Oil Spill
Lawyers say timely payments vital in spill deal
By Emily Pickrell
Houston Chronicle
Gulf Coast residents who suffered economic damages in the 2010 oil spill
must start receiving payments soon under a proposed settlement to give the
deal credibility, participants in a Houston meeting on the proposal said.
http://www.chron.com/business/article/Lawyers-say-timely-payments-vital-in-spill-deal-3654044.php
State News
137 gallons of gasoline spilled on Ellisville State School campus
Hattiesburg American
A gasoline spill Wednesday at Ellisville State School caused a potential
environmental hazard to the campus and the surrounding area.
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/article/20120621/NEWS01/120621008/137-gallons-gasoline-spilled-Ellisville-State-School-campus
2 very different forecasts for Gulf dead zone
AP
Scientists from Louisiana and Michigan have very different predictions for
the size of this year's "dead zone" of low-oxygen in the Gulf of Mexico. It
will be the smallest in nearly a quarter century at just under 1,200 square
miles - or five times that size.
http://www.wlox.com/story/18851943/forecast-dead-zone-above-average-far-from-record
Gulf of Mexico 'dead zone' is forecast
UPI
WASHINGTON, June 21 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say this year's Gulf of Mexico
hypoxic "dead zone" could range from a low of approximately 1,197 square
miles to as much as 6,213 square miles.
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2012/06/21/Gulf-of-Mexico-dead-zone-is-forecast/UPI-35111340309214/
Predictions differ about size of 2012 'dead zone' in Gulf of Mexico
By Benjamin Alexander-Bloch
The Times-Picayune
Two Gulf of Mexico "dead zone" forecasts released Thursday could hardly be
more staggeringly different. The wide range of the dead zone's size in the
forecases is due to scientists' use of two different forecast models, and
the eventual size of the zone this year could help the scientific community
understand which model works best.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2012/06/predictions_differ_about_size.html
SummerFest wraps up with kayaks, outdoor expo
Hattiesburg American
Waterways and beaches all along the Mississippi Gulf Coast are seeing a
swell in paddlesport enthusiasts this week as the inaugural South Coast
SummerFest is in full swing.
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/article/20120622/NEWS01/206220312/SummerFest-wraps-up-kayaks-outdoor-expo
Childers Files Suit Over Fuel Spill
WCBI
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - Former Mississippi Congressman Travis Childers claims
in a federal lawsuit that his property on Pickwick Lake was contaminated by
a fuel leak at the nearby Flagship Aqua Yacht Harbor.
http://www.wcbi.com/article.php?subaction=showfull&id=1340312170&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2&
County had the most trash picked up in district
By Jeremy Pittari
The Picayune Item
PEARL RIVER COUNTY — Trusties in Pearl River County litter crews picked up
more trash than litter crews in the 13 other counties within the State
Transportation Commission's Southern District.
http://picayuneitem.com/local/x1767475158/County-had-the-most-trash-picked-up-in-district
Court upholds firing of forester who opposed state logging plan
by Associated Press
FRANKLIN COUNTY — The Mississippi Court of Appeals has upheld the firing of
a Franklin County forester who opposed a logging plan pushed by the state.
http://msbusiness.com/2012/06/court-upholds-firing-of-forester-who-opposed-state-logging-plan/
National News
Navistar Fined by EPA Over Technology Built With Agency
Bloomberg
By Mark Drajem - Jun 21, 2012
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is fining diesel-engine maker
Navistar International Corp. (NAV) for shortcomings in pollution-control
technology the agency helped it develop.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-21/navistar-fined-by-epa-over-technology-built-with-agency.html
EPA blasted for requiring oil refiners to add type of fuel that's merely
hypothetical
By Jim Angle
Published June 21, 2012
FoxNews.com
Federal regulations can be maddening, but none more so than a current one
that demands oil refiners use millions of gallons of a substance,
cellulosic ethanol, that does not exist.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/06/21/regulation-requires-oil-refiners-use-millions-gallons-fuel-that-is-nonexistent/
Senate passes farm bill, rejects EPA flyover ban
By JIM ABRAMS
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday completed a five-year,
half-trillion-dollar farm bill that cuts farm subsidies and land
conservation spending by about $2 billion a year but largely protects sugar
growers and some 46 million food stamp beneficiaries.
http://journalstar.com/news/national/govt-and-politics/senate-passes-farm-bill-rejects-epa-flyover-ban/article_0d2ae238-0cc7-5ba7-a15f-e7929f32ffa6.html
U.N. chief unveils clean energy pledges, investments
Reuters
Thu, Jun 21 2012
By Valerie Volcovici
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on
Thursday that more than 50 governments have launched new energy strategies,
while private investors have pledged more than $50 billion to help carry
out his goal to double the share of global renewable energy and the rate of
energy efficiency improvement by 2030.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/21/us-un-climate-energy-idUSBRE85K1RI20120621
Report: Natural-gas trucks economical without incentives
The Hill
By Ben Geman - 06/21/12 12:05 PM ET
Low natural-gas prices mean that it's economical to power heavy trucks with
the fuel even without federal incentives, according to a new report that
finds up-front investment costs for the vehicles could be recovered in
three years.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/234097-report-natural-gas-trucks-economic-without-incentives
EPA says much of Kalamazoo River, or 34 miles, to open 2 years after
840,000-gallon oil spill
By Associated Press, Published: June 21
DETROIT — Nearly all of the Kalamazoo River is being reopened for
recreational use and the cleanup of a massive oil spill nearly two years
ago is in its final stages, federal, state and local officials announced
Thursday.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/epa-says-much-of-kalamazoo-river-or-34-miles-to-open-2-years-after-840000-gallon-oil-spill/2012/06/21/gJQAwDdvsV_print.html
Are Fracking Wastewater Wells Poisoning the Ground beneath Our Feet?
Leaking injection wells may pose a risk--and the science has not kept pace
with the growing glut of wastewater
By Abrahm Lustgarten and ProPublica | Thursday, June 21, 2012 | 13
Scientific American
Over the past several decades, U.S. industries have injected more than 30
trillion gallons of toxic liquid deep into the earth, using broad expanses
of the nation's geology as an invisible dumping ground.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=are-fracking-wastewater-wells-poisoning-ground-beneath-our-feeth
Opinion
Tackling global warming in 21 easy steps
Washington Post Blog
By Brad Plumer , Updated: June 21, 2012
In the past, whenever world leaders have huddled to discuss what to do
about this steadily warming planet of ours, they've usually endorsed one
big, sweeping solution. That was the logic behind the Kyoto Protocol — each
nation would promise sharp cuts in their overall carbon emissions.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/wp/2012/06/21/tackling-global-warming-in-21-easy-steps/
Press Releases
EPA Announces $3 Million In Environmental Job Training Grants
Grants provide job trainees opportunities to protect public health in their
communities
WASHINGTON – Today at the Sewage and Water Board of New Orleans U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Assistant Administrator Mathy
Stanislaus announced that EPA is awarding $3 million to 15 grantees through
the Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training (EWDJT) program.
The grants will recruit, train, and place unemployed individuals in jobs
that address environmental challenges in their communities. These
investments will protect the health of local communities by targeting
economically disadvantaged neighborhoods where environmental cleanups and
jobs are often most needed.
"People want and deserve both a healthier environment and greater economic
opportunity," said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA's
Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. "This training program for
environmental jobs has a proven track record. Approximately 71 percent of
graduates find employment in environmental fields that serve local
communities."
EPA's Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training program seeks to
stimulate the partnership development among local workforce investment
boards, community-based organizations, governmental entities, and academic
institutions. The program also helps to enhance the skills and the
availability of local labor while providing communities the flexibility to
design training programs that meet their individual market's demands and
preferences.
The 15 grantees are:
- North Star Center for Human Development, Inc., Connecticut – Plans to
train 60 students, and place at least 54 graduates in environmental jobs.
- Groundwork Providence, Rhode Island – Plans to train a minimum of 54
students, and place at least 45 graduates in environmental jobs.
- City of Glens Fall, New York - Plans to train 100 students, and place 90
graduates in environmental jobs.
- City Durham, North Carolina – Plans to train 60 students, and place 42
graduates in environmental jobs.
- City of Toledo, Ohio – Plans to train a minimum of 75 students, and place
at least 60 graduates in environmental jobs.
- City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin – Plans to train a minimum of 80 students,
and place at least 64 graduates in environmental jobs.
- Arkansas Construction Education Foundation, Arkansas – Plans to train 90
students, and place 72 graduates in environmental jobs.
- City of Camden, Arkansas – Plans to train 45 students, and place at least
36 graduates in environmental jobs.
- Limitless Vistas, Inc., Louisiana – Plans to train 40 students, and place
at least 32 graduates in environmental jobs.
- Iowa Western Community College, Iowa – Plans to train 100 students, and
place 80 graduates in jobs.
- Cypress Mandela Training Center, Inc., California – Plans to train a
minimum of 80 students, and place at least 60 graduates in environmental
jobs.
- Los Angeles Conservation Corps, California – Plans to train 60 students,
and place at least 48 graduates in environmental jobs.
- The Hunters Point Family, California – Plans to train a minimum of 54
students, and place at least 43 graduates in environmental jobs.
- Nye County, Nevada – Plans to train a minimum of 54 students, and place
at least 43 graduates in environmental jobs.
- Oregon Tradeswomen, Inc., Oregon - Plans to train a minimum of 30
students, and place at least 23 graduates in environmental jobs.
Since 1998, EPA has awarded more than $42 million under the Environmental
Workforce Development and Job Training program. As of June 2012,
approximately 10,300 individuals had completed training and approximately
7,300 obtained employment in the environmental field, with an average
starting hourly wage of $14.12. The development of this green workforce
will allow the trainees to develop skills that will make them competitive
in the construction and redevelopment fields.
Graduates of the program are equipped with skills and certifications in
various environmental fields including lead and asbestos abatement,
environmental site sampling, construction and demolition debris recycling,
underground storage tank removal, ecological restoration, and green
building techniques. Graduates use these skills to improve the environment
and people's health while supporting economic development in their
communities.
More information on environmental workforce development and job training
grants: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/pilot_grants.htm
