Tropical Storm Debby may churn up tar balls from oil spill
By Harlan Kirgan
Mississippi Press
PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- The meandering Tropical Storm Debby shut down much of the Gulf Island National Seashore, but its waves and wind also may be churning up tar balls, officials said Monday.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2012/06/debby_may_churn_up_tar_balls.html
BP oil spill hastened loss of Louisiana marshes, study says
Washington Post
By Brian Vastag, Published: June 25
The 2010 BP oil spill accelerated the loss of Louisiana’s delicate marshlands, which were already rapidly disappearing before the largest oil spill in U.S. history, a new study reports.
Study: BP oil leak caused temporary erosion increase
Erosion rate tapered off over time
Baton Rouge Advocate
BY AMY WOLD
Heavily oiled areas in Barataria Bay showed twice the normal land erosion rates in the year and a half after the Deepwater Horizon/BP oil leak, according to a new scientific study released Monday.
http://theadvocate.com/home/3166281-125/bp-oil-leak-caused-temporary
Freshwater, sediment diversion from Mississippi River could build wetlands in Barataria Basin
By Mark Schleifstein
The Times-Picayune
Louisiana hopes to kick-start a major diversion of freshwater and sediment from the Mississippi River to build wetlands in the Barataria Basin, Garret Graves, chairman of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, said Monday at State of the Coast, a conference on Louisiana restoration issues.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2012/06/freshwater_sediment_diversion.html
State News
Hazardous waste program receives grant
Sun Herald
GULFPORT -- The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality has given Harrison County a $22,000 grant for its household hazardous waste collection program.
"We could not do this without MDEQ," said Jenna Weatherford, county beautification director. "They have been beyond supportive, and have helped us with these grants from the beginning."http://www.sunherald.com/2012/06/25/4029130/hazardous-waste-program-receives.html
Are you putting the wrong waste in your garbage?
WTVA
TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) - Everyday households go through lots of garbage and trash.
Most of it ends up in the outside waste container to be hauled off.
But, what we may not realize is that many of us are putting something in that container nearly every week that's not suppose to go there.
http://www.wtva.com/news/local/story/Are-you-putting-the-wrong-waste-in-your-garbage/wx3p7wnldk69a2zU0u2ipg.cspx
100 fishermen involved in tagging project
Hattiesburg American
OCEAN SPRINGS — The Gulf Coast Research Lab began its Tripletail Tagging Program in 2001.
The focus was to gather information on migrational and feeding habits of one of the more intriguing species found in the Gulf of Mexico.
Now in its 11th year, the program continues to be a success.
Conservation association to hold program on rigs as habitat
By Harlan Kirgan
Mississippi Press
GULFPORT, Mississippi -- Two marine experts are to talk about the importance of offshore oil platforms as habitat in the Gulf of Mexico during a program planned at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Handsboro Community Center in Gulfport.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2012/06/cca_to_hold_program_on_rigs_as.html
National News
Timber industry hopes Supreme Court will find EPA can’t regulate mud runoff from logging roads
By Associated Press, Published: June 25
GRANTS PASS, Ore. — The timber industry is hoping that the U.S. Supreme Court will maintain business as usual on controlling muddy water running off logging roads into salmon streams.
The high court decided Monday to take up a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that federal regulators should treat stormwater on industrial timberlands the same as pollution discharged from a factory, changing the longstanding practice that treats it like water coming off farm fields.
Man found guilty of money laundering, wire fraud involving $9.1M in renewable energy credits
By Associated Press, Published: June 25
BALTIMORE — A Maryland man accused of selling millions of dollars in fraudulent renewable energy credits was convicted Monday on all 42 counts against him, including money laundering, wire fraud and violations of the Clean Air act.
Japanese tsunami debris washing ashore in US; cleanup costs piling up
By Dan Springer
FoxNews.com
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More than 15 months after a powerful magnitude 9 earthquake triggered a tsunami in Japan, some of the estimated 1.5 million tons of debris is starting to wash up on U.S. beaches. Among the items: a soccer ball in Alaska, a fishing boat in Washington State and a large dock in Oregon.
Cleaning up beaches is usually done for free by volunteer groups, but this kind of global garbage is different.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/06/25/japanese-tsunami-debris-washing-ashore-in-us-clean-up-costs-piling-up/?test=latestnews
On green jobs and DOE loans, the jury is still out
Politico
By: Andrew Restuccia and Darius Dixon
The Energy Department’s clean-energy loan program hasn’t yet yielded the kind of moonshot-style success that President Barack Obama envisions would transform the U.S. economy. But its results also go well beyond the $535 million collapse of Solyndra.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77802.html
Top Obama energy aide: 'Fracking' rules coming by year's end
The Hill
By Ben Geman - 06/25/12 02:21 PM ET
- A senior White House official said Monday that regulations to toughen oversight of oil-and-gas “fracking” on federal lands are on track despite a two-month extension of the public comment period announced last week.http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/234577-white-house-gas-fracking-rule-on-track-
Press Releases
EPA Proposes Updates and Deadline Extension for 2010 Cement Standards
Proposal would maintain significant air toxic reductions, while making cost-effective changes to provide greater flexibility for industry
WASHINGTON — In response to a federal court ruling and data from industry, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing changes to its 2010 air standards for the Portland cement manufacturing industry. The proposal would continue the significant emission reductions from the 2010 standards while providing industry additional compliance flexibilities, including more time to implement the proposed updates by extending the compliance date for existing cement kilns from September 2013 to September 2015.
In December 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit determined that EPA’s standards were legally sound, but asked the agency to account for rules finalized after the cement standards were issued. The proposed updates to certain emissions limits, monitoring requirements and compliance timelines – which are expected to result in additional cost savings for industry - are being made in response to this court remand and petitions for reconsideration of EPA’s 2010 final rule, which will dramatically cut emissions of mercury, particle pollution (PM), and other air toxics from cement production.
Based on new technical information, EPA is proposing to adjust the way cement kilns continuously monitor for particle pollution and would set new particle pollution emissions limits and averaging times to account for these changes. The proposed rule would not apply to kilns that burn non-hazardous solid waste; those kilns would be covered by other standards. The proposed extended compliance date would allow industry to reassess their emission control strategies in light of the proposed changes to the PM limits and monitoring methods.
EPA will accept comment on the proposed changes for 30 days after the proposal is published in the Federal Register. The agency will hold a public hearing if requested to do so. EPA will finalize the rule by December 20, 2012.
More information: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg/new.html
