Oil Spill
Report details how BP money is fueling coast tourism
WLOX
A new report details where some of the $16 million BP gave Mississippi to
bolster tourism has been spent.
http://www.wlox.com/story/18840840/report-details-how-bp-money-is-fueling-coast-tourism
No deal has been struck on sending BP oil spill fines to Gulf Coast
By Bruce Alpert
Times-Picayune
Washington -- With time running out, House-Senate negotiators still haven't
reached a deal on a transportation spending bill that Louisiana lawmakers
hope will designate 80 percent of BP oil spillfines to the Gulf Coast. Both
House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid offered a
bit of bipartisan advice this week to the negotiators: Come up with a
compromise.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2012/06/no_deal_has_been_struck_on_sen.html
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar repeats commitment to use BP money for
coastal restoration
By Mark Schleifstein
The Times-Picayune
Traveling by airboat through the Delta National Wildlife Refuge on
Wednesday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar repeated the Obama
administration's commitment to using large chunks of money paid by BP to
rebuild Louisiana wetlands.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2012/06/interior_secretary_ken_salazar_8.html
Va. inventor claims design for BP well cap stolen
Posted: Jun 20, 2012 3:37 PM CDTUpdated: Jun 20, 2012 4:37 PM CDT
By HARRY R. WEBER
Associated Press
ATLANTA (AP) - An inventor claims his design was the basis for the cap used
to choke off the flow of oil to the Gulf of Mexico nearly three months
after BP's undersea well blew in 2010. And he says it was stolen.
http://www.wlox.com/story/18838751/va-inventor-claims-design-for-bp-well-cap-stolen
State News
Cochran supports bill aimed at streamlining underground tank regulations
by MBJ Staff
Published: June 21,2012
WASHINGTON — Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss) is supporting bipartisan
legislation intended to help ease fuel prices and increase consumer energy
choices by decreasing the fees and regulations on domestic and alternative
fuels distribution.
http://msbusiness.com/2012/06/cochran-supports-bill-aimed-at-streamlining-underground-tank-regulations/
Hazardous device to be disposed of after scare
Rankin Ledger
A device that caused a bomb scare in Pearl last week was turned over to the
Department of Environmental Quality for disposal, according to authorities.
http://www.rankinledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120605/NEWS/206050303/-1/NEWS01/Hazardous
+device+to+be+disposed+of+after+scare
Sewer upgrades underway in Monticello
Lawrence County Press
The Town of Monticello is receiving an $800,000 upgrade to its sewer system
that should eliminate many problems the town has had in recent years.
http://www.lawrencecountypress.com/v2/content.aspx?ID=49857&MemberID=1181
Monroe, Itawamba Would Benefit From Flood Levee Plan
WCBI
Posted by Steve Rogers
WASHINGTON, D.C.--U.S. Senators Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), David Vitter
(R-La.), Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) today
announced an agreement on the treatment of levees under the National Flood
Insurance Program that they hope will allow the Senate to move closer to
passage of long-term legislation to reauthorize the National Flood
Insurance Program (NFIP).
http://www.wcbi.com/article.php?subaction=showfull&id=1340280115&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2,5,6&
City of Ocean Springs donates a trailer to be future home to Wildlife Care
and Rescue Center Â
By Susan Ruddiman
The Mississippi Press
OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi -- The city has a surplus trailer that needs to
go, and the Wildlife Care and Rescue Center can use it.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2012/06/city_of_ocean_springs_donates.html
National News
Senate kills effort to block EPA from setting first limits on power plants'
toxic pollution
By Associated Press, Published: June 20
WASHINGTON — The Democrat-controlled Senate defeated a bid Wednesday to
block the Environmental Protection Agency from setting the first federal
standards to reduce toxic air pollution from power plants.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/industries/senate-rejects-effort-to-block-epa-from-setting-first-limits-on-power-plants-toxic-pollution/2012/06/20/gJQAM0BTqV_story.html
EPA wears the bull's-eye
Politico
By: Jonathan Allen and Erica Martinson
This election year the EPA is toxic.
The Senate is voting on whether EPA planes can take pictures of farms —
after it was mistakenly reported that drones were flying over the
heartland. House Republicans want to cut the agency's funding to pre-1998
levels. And the president has threatened to veto a House bill, due up
Wednesday, that would restrict Clean Air Act rules.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77626.html
Groups rushing to save green energy
Politico
By: Austin Wright
Green-energy advocates are scrambling behind the scenes to prevent what
they say could be a devastating blow to the military's biofuels
initiatives. And the clock is ticking.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77655.html
Climate change to worsen hunger as U.N.'s Rio+20 begins
USA Today
As leaders from more than 130 nations convene a United Nations conference
on sustainable development Wednesday, new research shows how climate change
will likely exacerbate a key issue: hunger.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2012/06/climate-change-exected-to-worsen-hunger-as-rio20-begins/1#.T-Mah7XY-4J
House Dems press Interior to toughen gas 'fracking' rule
The Hill
By Ben Geman - 06/20/12 02:20 PM ET
More than three dozen House Democrats want the Interior Department to
require natural-gas producers using the method called hydraulic fracturing
to disclose the chemicals they're injecting underground before they begin
the process.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/233845-house-dems-press-interior-to-toughen-gas-fracking-rule
The Fracking of America
CNBC
It's almost impossible to overestimate the importance of fracking to the
natural gas industry and the nation. It's also difficult to understate the
controversy surrounding the environmental issues of the rock fracturing
technology.
Our special report, "Who's Winning The Natural Gas Game?" addresses both
issues and more.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/47278369
Press Releases
EPA announces proposed dust standard
Jun. 20, 2012 2:31pmNational Cattlemen's Beef Association
EPA proposed its long awaited dust standard that sparked controversy within
the agricultural community.
The controversy arose when EPA staff announced the administrator would be
"justified" in doubling the stringency of the current, so-called dust
standard, officially known as the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for
coarse particulate matter.
The National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) welcomed news from EPA
that it plans to retain the current standard, however; the issue involving
farm dust is far from over, according to NCBA Deputy Environmental Counsel
Ashley McDonald.
"We learned from the last two reviews of this standard that a final
standard can look very different that the proposal. It is important to note
that EPA's action today is simply a proposal from the agency and not the
final standard," said McDonald.
The final standard is scheduled to be released by EPA in December of this
year. McDonald said NCBA encourages EPA to stick with the proposed standard
and not lower the final standard. She said lowering the standard would
throw a large section of the country into nonattainment.
McDonald said cattlemen are really in search of certainty when it comes to
rules and regulations being promulgated by EPA and other agencies. This is
why NCBA fully supports the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act introduced
by Senator Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) and Congresswoman Kristi Noem (R-S.D.).
The legislation would provide permanent relief and regulatory certainty by
exempting the agricultural community from EPA dust regulations. The
legislation has passed the U.S. House of Representatives, but the Senate
version (S. 1528) has not been brought up for a vote.
"The fact is, farmers and ranchers want and need certainty about this
issue. Regulatory uncertainty is unnecessary and unproductive," said
McDonald. "If EPA follows through and does not revise the dust standard,
such an action would only provide us with certainty for five years and
provides no relief to those producers who are spending more than $1,000 per
day on dust control measures right now."
NCBA is pleased with EPA's plan to retain the current standard, but will
continue working with Congress to move towards a more permanent solution.
http://westernfarmpress.com/government/epa-announces-proposed-dust-standard
EPA Announces New Members of Agricultural Advisory Committee
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced
new members of the Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Committee (FRRCC) for
its 2012-2014 term. The FRRCC is an independent committee that advises EPA
on a wide range of environmental issues that are important to agriculture
and rural communities.
"The committee has provided thoughtful and substantive insights on
agricultural and environmental issues over the past two years," said
Lawrence Elworth, agricultural counselor to the administrator. "We have
appreciated the contributions of the committee members and look forward to
continued constructive engagement on key issues as the new committee begins
its work."
Committee members were selected from a large number of applicants
responding to a request for nominations published in the Federal Register
on Feb. 13, 2012. New members include representatives from the academic
community, industry, non-governmental organizations, and state, local, and
tribal governments.
The FRRCC will engage in discussion over the next two years on a wide range
of specific and cross-cutting environmental issues that are important to
agriculture.
The FRRCC will operate under the rules of the Federal Advisory Committee
Act (FACA). As required by FACA, the FRRCC will hold open meetings and
expects to meet approximately two times each year, generally in Washington,
DC.
More information on FRRCC members: http://epa.gov/ofacmo/frrcc/members.htm
More information on the FRRCC: http://epa.gov/ofacmo/frrcc/index.html
New US Brazil Joint Initiative Tool Informs Global Urban Infrastructure
Investments
WASHINGTON – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa
P. Jackson and Brazilian Minister for the Environment Izabella Teixeira
today announced a new online tool that highlights key links between
policies, funding and on-the-ground projects that can help drive urban
sustainability investment around the world. The benefits of sustainable
urban infrastructure include healthier air and water, job creation and
economic development. Jackson and Teixeira announced the web platform,
which was developed under the US Brazil Joint Initiative on Urban
Sustainability (JIUS), during the Rio+20 Conference in Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil.
"This interactive web platform is designed to serve as an entry point for
everyone from local officials to investors who are looking for the best
strategies for investment in urban sustainability," said Administrator
Jackson. "Right now the platform represents an array of different
approaches, not a comprehensive or one-size-fits-all plan. We believe that
this collection of policy instruments, financial mechanisms, and project
examples can serve as a model for sustainable development in cities around
the world."
The platform features expertise from a range of public and private sector
leaders, including: federal, state, and local government officials,
corporate, financial, academic, and community leaders and innovators from
Rio de Janeiro and Philadelphia. Government leaders of the JIUS are working
with C40 Cities, a forum for the world's largest cities to collaborate on
addressing climate change, and other partners, to expand this platform to
include urban sustainability efforts happening in cities around the world.
A global coalition of partners including C40 Cities, the Rockefeller
Foundation, the Tijuca Center for Applied Sustainability, US Green Building
Council and Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International
Studies, also plan to announce new efforts during the Rio+20 conference to
advance the work of the JIUS globally.
In March 2011, President Obama and President Rousseff announced the
creation of the US-Brazil Joint Initiative on Urban Sustainability, an
innovative public-private partnership for catalyzing investment in
sustainable urban infrastructure and expanding markets for clean
technology, products and services. The JIUS serves as a platform for
identifying and overcoming key barriers to investment and deployment of
clean infrastructure.
Check out the platform: http://www.epa.gov/jius
Watch the Administrator launch the new platform, and for more information
on the US Government's participation in Rio+20:
http://conx.state.gov/event/rio20/
Homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. to Pay $741,000 Clean Water Act Penalty and
Implement Company-Wide Stormwater Controls
Settlement to prevent millions of pounds of sediment and polluted
stormwater runoff from entering U.S. waterways each year
WASHINGTON –The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S.
Department of Justice announced that Toll Brothers Inc., one of the
nation's largest homebuilders, will pay a civil penalty of $741,000 to
resolve alleged Clean Water Act violations at its construction sites,
including sites located in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Toll Brothers will
also invest in a company-wide stormwater compliance program to improve
employee training and increase management oversight at all current and
future residential construction sites across the nation. The company is
required to inspect its current and future construction sites routinely to
minimize stormwater runoff from sites. Polluted stormwater runoff and
sediment from construction sites can flow directly into the nearest
waterway, affecting drinking water quality and damaging valuable aquatic
habitats.
"Keeping contaminated stormwater runoff out of the nation's waterways, like
the Chesapeake Bay, is one of EPA's top priorities," said Cynthia Giles,
assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance and
Assurance. "Today's settlement will improve oversight of stormwater runoff
at construction sites across the country and protect America's waters."
"This settlement will help protect the nation's waters from the harmful
pollutants contained in stormwater runoff from construction sites," said
Ignacia S. Moreno, assistant attorney general for the Environment and
Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. "The settlement
requires Toll Brothers to implement system-wide management controls and
training that will help prevent polluted stormwater runoff from
contaminating rivers, lakes and sources of drinking water."
EPA estimates the settlement will prevent millions of pounds of sediment
from entering U.S. waterways every year, including sediment that would
otherwise enter the Chesapeake Bay, North America's largest and most
biologically diverse estuary. The bay and its tidal tributaries are
threatened by pollution from a variety of sources and are overburdened with
nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment that can be carried by stormwater.
The complaint, filed simultaneously with the settlement agreement, alleges
over 600 stormwater violations that were discovered through site
inspections and by reviewing documentation submitted by Toll Brothers. The
majority of the alleged violations involve Toll Brothers' repeated failures
to comply with permit requirements at its construction sites, including
requirements to install and maintain adequate stormwater pollution
controls.
The Clean Water Act requires permits for the discharge of stormwater
runoff. In general, Toll Brothers' permits require that construction sites
have controls in place to prevent pollution from being discharged with
stormwater into nearby waterways. These controls include common-sense
safeguards such as silt fences, phased site grading and sediment basins to
prevent construction contaminants from entering the nation's waterways.
The settlement requires Toll Brothers to obtain all required permits,
develop site-specific pollution prevention plans for each construction
site, conduct additional site inspections beyond those required by
stormwater regulations, and document and promptly correct any problems. The
company must properly train construction managers and contractors on
stormwater requirements and designate trained staff for each site. Toll
Brothers must also submit national compliance summary reports to EPA based
on management oversight inspections and reviews.
This settlement is the latest in a series of enforcement actions to address
stormwater violations from residential construction sites around the
country. Construction projects have a high potential for environmental harm
because they disturb large areas of land and significantly increase the
potential for erosion, and stormwater runoff from sites can pick up other
pollutants, including concrete washout, paint, used oil, solvents and
trash.
The state of Maryland and the commonwealth of Virginia have joined the
settlement and will receive a portion of the $741,000 penalty. The
settlement includes Toll Brothers sites in
Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia,
Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New
York, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.
The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern
District of Pennsylvania, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and
approval by the federal court.
More information about this settlement:
http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/cwa/tollbrothers.html
More information about EPA's stormwater enforcement:
http://www.epa.gov/oecaerth/data/planning/priorities/cwastorm.html
NIST Launches New Website to Educate Industry About Alternatives to Mercury
Thermometers
From NIST Tech Beat: Contact: Mark Esser
301-975-8735
As part of a larger effort to reduce the amount of mercury, a potent
neurotoxin, in the environment, the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) has launched a new website to help industry scientists
and engineers decide the best temperature measurement alternative for their
purposes. The website also includes information about myths pertaining to
mercury and temperature measurement and how to safely package and recycle
mercury-containing products.
NIST stopped providing calibration services for mercury thermometers on
March 1, 2011. This was motivated in part by NIST's work with the
Environmental Protection Agency to eliminate as many sources of mercury in
the environment as possible.
According to Greg Strouse, leader of NIST's temperature, pressure and
vacuum programs, mercury thermometers are neither a superior nor a standard
method for measuring temperature.
"We haven't used mercury thermometers as a calibration standard since 1927
when the platinum resistance thermometer standard was adopted," says
Strouse. "Our goal with this new website is to show that there is a
temperature-sensing technology that will satisfy their needs as well as, or
better than, a mercury thermometer, all without the added liability of
containing a neurotoxin that is hugely expensive to clean up if released
into the environment."
According to NIST researcher Dawn Cross, industrial scientists commonly
object to replacing their mercury thermometers because they have grown
accustomed to getting the same answer from their mercury thermometers over
the years, even if it is less accurate than can be provided by modern
digital thermometers.
"Some people who are used to using mercury thermometers think that they
define temperature, and this simply isn't true," Cross says. "Graduations
on a piece of glass filled with a fluid can never give as accurate a
reading as a digital thermometer, based on how the conductivity of metals
change as a function of temperature, something we know and can characterize
very, very well."
Cross points out that other thermometers based on the principle of thermal
expansion of a fluid, such as alcohol, are not hopelessly inaccurate. In
fact, they are as accurate as mercury thermometers and are suitable for
some applications that don't require stringent temperature control. For
example, alcohol thermometers might be suitable for measuring the
temperature of gasoline and other fuels, but they would be unsuitable for
monitoring the temperature of vaccines, the viability of which relies on
strict control of their temperature.
Visit the website at www.nist.gov/pml/mercury.cfm for more information
about how NIST can help your industry find an accurate, nontoxic and
environmentally benign alternative to mercury thermometers.
