12/10/12
Oil Spill
Regional panel approves new formula to share BP money
By TOM McLAUGHLIN / Daily News
Published: Friday, December 7, 2012 at 17:27 PM.
SANTA ROSA BEACH — Representatives from Okaloosa, Walton and Santa Rosa
counties voted Friday to accept a lesser share of RESTORE Act funds so
smaller counties among Florida's eight most impacted by the BP oil spill
can receive more.
http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local-news/regional-panel-approves-new-formula-to-share-bp-money-1.61514
Restoration Council begins oil spill recovery effort with meeting in Mobile
(Guest Column)
By AL.com
Op-Ed
By Bethany Kraft
Citizens across the Gulf region have an unprecedented opportunity through
the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council to not only restore what was
lost in the BP oil disaster, but to leave a legacy of healthy communities,
strong economies, and productive coastal and marine environments. The first
meeting of the Restoration Council, Dec. 11, in Mobile is likely the first
of many meetings to chart a course for restoration of the Gulf's ecosystems
and coastal communities, both cornerstones that support our vibrant coastal
economy.
http://blog.al.com/press-register-commentary/2012/12/restoration_council_begins_oil.html
BP spill's socioeconomic damage needs attention, too: Jeffrey Buchanan
By Contributing Op-Ed columnist
on December 07, 2012 at 1:32 PM, updated December 07, 2012 at 1:39 PM
On the heels of a historic criminal plea agreement between BP and the
Justice Department over the 2010 oil spill, questions about how the money
will be spent loom ever larger. When an agreement on civil fines and
environmental damages is reached, how can we make best use of those
potential billions? Can we find ways to restore critical ecosystems while
we help families who have been struggling since the spill devastated
fishing grounds, oyster reefs, a fragile economic system and a way of life?
http://www.nola.com/opinions/index.ssf/2012/12/lets_take_care_of_spills_socio.html
State News
Cleanup starts at Hercules
MDEQ ordered sludge removed because of toxic chemicals
Hattiesburg American
Cleanup of the impoundment basin at the Hercules plant on West Seventh
Street began a few days after Hercules and parent company Ashland Inc.
answered a lawsuit filed against both alleging pollution in nearby
neighborhoods.
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/article/20121209/NEWS01/312090023/Cleanup-starts-Hercules?nclick_check=1
DMR pours more than $1.4 million into fishing boats in South Mississippi
By KAREN NELSON, JOHN FITZHUGH and PAUL HAMPTON — Sun Herald
BILOXI -- The state Department of Marine Resources, headed by Bill Walker,
has since 2007 spent more than $1.46 million in public money on two
recreational fishing boats leased from a foundation Walker also manages,
state records show.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/12/08/4348111/dmr-pours-more-than-15-million.html#storylink=misearch
Grant will help Columbus residents restore contaminated properties
Commercial Dispatch
A project aimed at identifying possibly contaminated properties for renewal
will be implemented in Columbus sometime in 2013.
A $400,000 Brownfields Assessment Grant will be fully- implemented next
year, said city planner Christina Berry. Berry hopes the assessments could
lead to economic development for Columbus.
http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=20816
Curbside recycling: Worth its weight?
Hub City sees 30% participation, $1,400 monthly rebate
Hattiesburg American
Jordan Whittle knows recycling is good for the environment.
The Hattiesburg resident attempts to recycle as much as possible through
the city's curbside program, but she admits setting aside recyclables is a
bit of a challenge.
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/article/20121209/NEWS01/312090022/Curbside-recycling-Worth-its-weight-
Waste Management sues city of Natchez
AP
NATCHEZ, Miss. (AP) - Waste Management has sued the city of Natchez over
its decision to award garbage collection and disposal contracts to other
companies.
http://www2.wjtv.com/news/2012/dec/09/waste-management-sues-city-natchez-ar-5136973/
Controversial method could lead to oil drilling in Caledonia
Commercial Dispatch
The Town of Caledonia has long enjoyed the financial benefits of sitting
atop a natural gas field, and now, the hunt is on for black gold -- oil,
that is.
http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=20845
Museum's new roof designed to help community 'think green'
Commercial Dispatch
STARKVILLE -- The finishing touches are being put on a new pavilion at the
Oktibbeha County Heritage Museum.
On Friday, Corey Gallo, assistant professor in Mississippi State
University's Department of Landscape Architecture, and some of his students
helped move five tons of soil to the roof of the pavilion, and began
planting vegetation in that soil. Once complete, the green roof will be one
of the only of its kind in Northeast Mississippi.
http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=20843
Rigs to Reef program can turn derelicts like Mr. Gus II into fishing havens
Mississippi Press
By Jay Hughes
updated December 07, 2012 at 4:19 PM
PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- One solution for disposal of oil rigs that, like
the Mr. Gus II, have reached the end of their useful lives in energy
production is to turn them into man-made underwater reefs.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2012/12/rigs_to_reef_program_can_turn.html#incart_river
National News
How much can the EPA cut carbon emissions? It depends on the courts.
Washington Post
By Brad Plumer , Updated: December 7, 2012
Congress isn't likely to do much about global warming anytime soon. So if
the Obama administration wants to set a national policy on greenhouse-gas
emissions, it will have to lean on the Environmental Protection Agency.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/12/07/how-much-can-the-epa-cut-carbon-it-depends-on-the-courts/?print=1
Groups back EPA, try to join W.Va. farmer lawsuit
AP
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Several environmental groups want a federal judge to
let them join a lawsuit by a West Virginia chicken grower who is
challenging new water-pollution rules aimed at cleaning up the Chesapeake
Bay watershed.
http://online.wsj.com/article/AP0e31d19846ab4c28b35d22295ad47dc3.html
State's water rules better than the federal regulations, agencies say
Bradenton Herald
MANATEE -- State and private agencies in Florida say the federal government
should have allowed the state to implement and regulate its own water
rules, rather than having to follow pollution rules set forth by the U.S.
Environment Protection Agency that they say will cost the state millions of
dollars to reach compliance.
http://www.bradenton.com/2012/12/09/4309815/states-water-rules-better-the.html
Brownback applauds EPA's ruling on grain sorghum
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
TOPEKA -- An Environmental Protection Agency decisionto qualify grain
sorghum as a renewable fuel under federal standards is being hailed as good
news for Kansas, which raises more of the crop than any other state.
http://www.kansascity.com/2012/12/09/3957325/brownback-applauds-epas-ruling.html
