Oil Spill
Restore Act can shape future, Bonner says
Thursday, September 27, 2012, 6:56 AM
By Guy Busby Press-Register
FOLEY, Alabama -- The Restore Act can be a key to making south Alabama the
center of a revitalized economic region extending from Panama City, Fla.,
to New Orleans, if leaders can cooperate and plan carefully how to spend
the money, Rep. Jo Bonner said Wednesday.
http://blog.al.com/live/2012/09/restore_act_can_shape_future_b.html
Scientists say BP used courts to attack oil spill research
LA Times
By Monte Morin
Scientists are accusing the BP oil company of using the U.S. courts to
attack their calculations of how much oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico
during the Deepwater Horizon drilling disaster.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-bp-science-litigation-20120927,0,1504984.story?track=rss
State News
Dredging need continual
Initial Rez project could take 6 years
Clarion Ledger
Residents along the Ross Barnett Reservoir gathered Thursday night to view
plans for clearing out watery debris piling up in their areas, while the
state agency tasked with cleaning the mess informed them the dredging will
become a continual requirement.
http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20120928/NEWS/309280042/Dredging-need-continual?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CHome%7Cs
District officials, homeowners discuss reservoir runoff issue
Officials say residents will pay for dredging
WAPT
JACKSON, Miss. —
Homeowners on the reservoir said sediment build-up from new development is
preventing them from getting their boats in the water.
http://www.wapt.com/news/central-mississippi/District-officials-homeowners-discuss-reservoir-runoff-issue/-/9156946/16770724/-/1xxwgqz/-/index.html
Dredging the Rez
WJTV
About a hundred residents who live along the Ross Barnett Reservoir are
having problems with silt build-up on the bottom of the lake.
http://www2.wjtv.com/news/2012/sep/27/dredging-rez-ar-4642163/
Sigsby among first to examine Percy Quin Dam during Isaac's fury
Clay County Times Democrat
Thursday, September 27, 2012
A Rector native was on the scene to potentially help crews fight back
against the fury of nature during the recent assault of Hurricane Isaac at
the end of August. Natalie Sigsby, daughter of Steve and Lark Sigsby of
Rector, works with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
(MDEQ) as a dam safety engineer following the completion of her Master's
degree from Mississippi State University in Starkville.
http://www.cctimesdemocrat.com/story/1898623.html
Deadline nears for Hancock Co. storm debris removal
WLOX
If you live in the un-incorporated areas of Hancock County and still have
hurricane debris and wet household items that need to be picked up, county
leaders say you are running out of time to get it to the roadside.
http://www.wlox.com/story/19650702/deadline-nears-for-hancock-co-storm-debris-removal
Natchez to improve wastewater plant
The Associated Press
NATCHEZ, MISS. — The city of Natchez is making $1 million in improvements
to the city's wastewater treatment plant in an effort to save money in the
long run.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/09/28/4212842/natchez-to-improve-wastewater.html
Old drugs can be disposed of at Picayune PD
The Picayune Item
PICAYUNE — Unused or unwanted prescription medication can be safely
disposed of at the Picayune Police Department this Saturday.
http://picayuneitem.com/local/x1241971993/Old-drugs-can-be-disposed-of-at-Picayune-PD
Speaker Gun conducting 'ideas tour' next month
by Associated Press
Published: September 28,2012
AROUND MISSISSIPPI — Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn is holding an
"ideas tour" in October.
http://msbusiness.com/2012/09/speaker-gun-conducting-ideas-tour-next-month/
National News
Louisiana Bucket Brigade sues EPA over rules governing cancer-causing air
pollution
Times Picayune
The Louisiana Bucket Brigade and seven other environmental groups filed
suit against the Environmental Protection Agency Thursday in an attempt to
get the agency to limit air emissions of the most toxic, cancer-causing
chemicals released by 150 oil refineries in 32 states, including 17 in
Louisiana.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2012/09/louisiana_bucket_brigade_sues.html#
Judge gives approval to $42.6 million settlement in Katrina FEMA trailer
dispute
Thursday, September 27, 2012, 9:52 PM
By The Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana -- A federal judge gave his final approval Thursday
to a $42.6 million class-action settlement between companies that made and
installed government-issued trailers after hurricanes in 2005 and Gulf
Coast storm victims who claim they were exposed to hazardous fumes while
living in the shelters.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2012/09/judge_gives_approval_to_426_mi.html
BP fined for violating terminal spill response regulation
Reuters
Thu, Sep 27 2012
HOUSTON (Reuters) - BP Plc's division that oversees North American
refineries has agreed to pay a $210,000 fine for violating federal
regulations regarding spill response drills at a Maryland refined product
terminal, regulators said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/27/us-bp-fine-terminal-idUSBRE88Q1S720120927
USA TODAY analysis: Nation's water costs rushing higher
While most Americans worry about gas and heating oil prices, water rates
have surged in the past dozen years, according to a USA TODAY study of 100
municipalities. Prices at least doubled in more than a quarter of the
locations and even tripled in a few.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/story/2012-09-27/water-rates-rising/57849626/1
Natural gas wins place as oil field fuel
Houston Chronicle
The biggest, baddest engines in the world, long chained to diesel fuel, are
on the verge of a mass transformation because of cheap natural gas - with
oil field equipment holding particular potential, executives said Thursday
during a summit of heavy fuel users and producers.
http://www.chron.com/business/article/Natural-gas-wins-place-as-oil-field-fuel-3900742.php
Biofuels industry fights back with media blitz
The Hill
By Zack Colman - 09/27/12 10:00 AM ET
The biofuels industry is undertaking an aggressive messaging campaign aimed
at building public support for a fuel requirement that is increasingly
under attack on Capitol Hill.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/258933--biofuels-industry-fights-back-with-media-blitz
Questioning EPA science, chemical giant opposes asbestos proposal for
tainted Montana town
By Associated Press, Published: September 27
BILLINGS, Mont. — A proposed standard for federal cleanup of asbestos
contamination in a Montana town concludes that even a tiny amount of the
material can lead to lung problems — a benchmark far more rigorous than any
in the past and one that the industry says could force expensive and
unnecessary cleanups across the country.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/questioning-epa-science-chemical-giant-opposes-asbestos-proposal-for-tainted-montana-town/2012/09/27/82afa7f6-08e8-11e2-9eea-333857f6a7bd_story.html
Press Releases
BP Products North America to Improve Spill Response Preparedness at Oil
Terminals Nationwide
Company also agrees to pay $210,000 penalty for oil spill response
violations at Maryland facility
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S.
Department of Justice announced that BP Products North America, Inc. will
pay a $210,000 penalty and implement an enhanced oil spill response program
at its oil terminals nationwide, as well as a comprehensive compliance
audit to resolve alleged violations of oil spill response regulations at
its Curtis Bay Terminal in Md. The enhanced oil spill response program will
help ensure that BP's oil terminals are better prepared to respond to oil
spills that could affect people's health and the environment.
EPA alleged that BP Products violated federal regulations requiring oil
storage facilities to conduct drills and exercises to respond to oil spills
at its Curtis Bay Terminal. The civil penalty is EPA's highest to date for
violations of oil drills and exercises requirements where there was no
discharge of oil.
"Being prepared to respond to an oil spill can be the difference between
dealing with a small, contained event or a full-blown environmental
disaster," said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of
Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. "After twice failing to pass oil
spill response exercises at its Curtis Bay facility, under the settlement,
BP is required to put preventative measures into place at all of its
terminals nationwide that will reduce the threat of oil spills and protect
our nation's valuable waterways. These measures also raise the bar for
forward-looking companies seeking to ensure that their facilities are ready
to respond quickly in the event of a spill."
"This agreement will help BP Products strengthen its spill response
capabilities across the nation at 33 onshore oil terminals, implementing
enhanced oil spill response measures, and requiring an independent auditor
to evaluate a dozen high-risk onshore facilities for their readiness to
respond to oil spills," said Ignacia S. Moreno, assistant attorney general
for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of
Justice. "Taking these steps will help instill a culture of readiness and
preparedness that will help protect many communities, and the natural
resources upon which they rely, from future harm."
Under the settlement filed today in federal court by the U.S. Department of
Justice, BP Products will implement a first-of-its-kind program of spill
prevention measures at its 33 non-refinery petroleum products terminals
across the country.
As part of this program, the company will review and revise response plans
for these facilities to ensure safeguards are tailored to the conditions at
each facility. BP Products will also perform enhanced training, drills and
exercises, exceeding regulatory requirements, and will repeat any failed
drills and exercises within 90 days.
In addition, BP Products has agreed to an independent compliance audit of
12 of its marine and high-risk petroleum product terminal facilities. The
audits will ensure that each audited facility is in compliance with spill
response requirements, and to evaluate whether the facilities have
resources to respond to major spills. The results of the compliance audits
will also be incorporated into the enhanced spill prevention and response
program being implemented at all of BP's petroleum terminals.
EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard twice conducted unannounced
government-initiated oil spill response exercises at the Curtis Bay
Terminal. During these exercises, BP Products was required to demonstrate
its response to a small scale discharge of fuel oil from the facility into
Curtis Creek by being prepared to deploy 1,000 feet of oil containment boom
within one hour and subsequently deploying the boom. On both occasions, the
company did not complete the exercise in the allotted time and failed to
adequately deploy the containment boom.
The Curtis Bay Terminal, which can store about 22 million gallons of oil,
is located less than a quarter mile from Curtis Creek, a tributary of
Curtis Bay, the Patapsco River, and the Chesapeake Bay.
High-risk onshore facilities that store oil, such as the Curtis Bay
Terminal, must have a plan for responding to oil spills that includes
employee training, spill response equipment, and a "worst case" contingency
plan for containing and cleaning up spills.
Based on the failed drills, EPA cited the company for failing to adequately
implement a response plan, failing to identify sufficient spill response
resources at the facility, and deficiencies in the facility's training,
drills and exercises program.
The proposed consent decree is subject to a 30 day public comment period
and final court approval.
More information about the settlement:
http://www.epa.gov/enforcement/water/cases/curtisbay.html
More information about EPA's Federal Response Plan requirements:
http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/frps/index.htm
More about the Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure requirement:
http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/spcc/index.htm
