12.21.12
Oil Spill
Gulf Shores gearing up for BP grants as 2012 oil cleanup tops 1.7 million
pounds
Press Register
By Marc D. Anderson | manderson@al.com
updated December 19, 2012 at 2:38 PM
GULF SHORES, Alabama -- More than 1.7 million pounds of oil material have
been collected along the north Gulf Coast this year, with 21 percent of
that found on Alabama beaches.
http://blog.al.com/live/2012/12/gulf_shores_gears_up_for_bp_gr.html
State News
EPA denies appeals, rules Memphis area in violation of air-pollution
standards
Commercial Appeal
By Tom Charlier
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Rejecting appeals by state officials, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency has ruled that three Memphis-area counties, as well as three others
in East Tennessee, violate federal air-quality standards for ozone
pollution.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/dec/20/epa-denies-appeals-rules-memphis-area-in-of-air/?print=1
EPA refuses to change ruling on air quality rating
by Associated Press
Published: December 21,2012
DESOTO COUNTY — The Environmental Protection Agency has rejected appeals
from state officials over air quality listings.
http://msbusiness.com/blog/2012/12/21/epa-refuses-to-change-ruling-on-air-quality-rating/
Jackson County to begin Christmas tree recycling program on Wednesday
By Mississippi Press Staff
updated December 20, 2012 at 2:31 PM
PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- Jackson County's Solid Waste Department will
again collect and recycle Christmas trees starting Wednesday at five
locations:
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-living/2012/12/jackson_county_to_begin_christ.html#incart_river
Officials: Recycle bins are better than burglars
WTVA
TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) -- Tupelo Police Officer Alan Chavers said all too
often, he sees very trustinghomeowners who have no idea they are being
watched.
http://www.wtva.com/news/local/story/Officials-Recycle-bins-are-better-than-burglars/wSn04UED30O4c4yNes8gag.cspx
A green Christmas: Extra bins to handle post-holiday recycling
by M. Scott Morris
NEMS Daily Journal
12.21.12 - 07:25 am
TUPELO – Christmas presents inevitably lead to Christmas trash, but there's
a new plan to handle this year's yuletide rubbish.
http://djournal.com/view/full_story/21206443/article-A-green-Christmas--Extra-bins-to-handle-post-holiday-recycling?instance=secondary_stories_left_column
National News
Appeals upholds EPA authority over emissions
Politico
By: Erica Martinson
December 21, 2012 04:15 AM EST
An appeals court on Thursday denied a request from industry groups to
rehear a case in which the court upheld the Environmental Protection
Agency's climate change regulations.
http://www.politico.com/story/2012/12/appeals-upholds-epa-authority-over-emissions-85381.html?hp=r9
Industry Seen Winning as EPA Weighs Weaker Boiler Rules
Bloomberg
By Mark Drajem - Dec 21, 2012
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is expected to release new
pollution caps for industrial boilers and cement plants, as it bows to
industry pressure to delay their effective date and ease some standards,
according to environmental and business groups.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-20/relaxed-pollution-rules-on-boilers-said-to-be-considered-by-epa.html
House Natural Resources subcommittee to sharpen focus on environmental
reviews
The Hill
By Zack Colman - 12/20/12 03:51 PM ET
The House Natural Resources committee will devote more attention to
environmental reviews and their effects on advancing energy development in
a new subcommittee next Congress.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/274079-house-natural-resources-subcommittee-to-sharpen-focus-on-environmental-reviews
Fracking industry worried Matt Damon's 'Promised Land' will be hatchet job
Published December 20, 2012
FoxNews.com
advertisement
NEW YORK – Matt Damon is throwing his two cents into the debate about
fracking with his upcoming film "Promised Land," but critics are worried it
will be nothing more than a hatchet job on the entire fracking industry.
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2012/12/20/matt-damon-promised-land-addresses-fracking-debate/
EPA building to be named after Bill Clinton
By James Rosen — McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON — Fourteen years after his impeachment, former President Bill
Clinton is about to get a big building named after him in Washington.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/12/20/4370264/epa-building-to-be-named-after.html
Press Releases
EPA Updates Rule for Pathogens in Drinking Water, Sets Limit for E. Coli
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has updated the
rule for pathogens in drinking water, including setting a limit for the
bacteria E. coli to better protect public health.
The Revised Total Coliform Rule ensures that all of the approximately
155,000 public water systems in the United States, which provide drinking
water to more than 310 million people, take steps to prevent exposure to
pathogens like E. coli. Pathogens like E. coli can cause a variety of
illnesses with symptoms such as acute abdominal discomfort or, in more
extreme cases, kidney failure or hepatitis.
Under the revised rule, public drinking water systems are required to
notify the public if a test exceeds the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for
E. coli in drinking water. If E. coli or other indications of drinking
water contamination are detected above a certain level, drinking water
facilities must assess the system and fix potential sources and pathways of
contamination. High-risk drinking water systems with a history of
non-compliance must perform more frequent monitoring. The revised rule
provides incentives for small drinking water systems that consistently meet
certain measures of water quality and system performance.
Public water systems and the state and local agencies that oversee them
must comply with the requirements of the Revised Total Coliform Rule
beginning April 1, 2016. Until then, public water systems and primacy
agencies must continue to comply with the 1989 version of the rule.
The Safe Drinking Water Act requires that EPA review each National Primary
Drinking Water Regulation, such as the Total Coliform Rule, at least once
every six years. The outcome of the review of the 1989 Total Coliform Rule
determined that there was an opportunity to reduce implementation burden
and improve rule effectiveness while at the same time increasing public
health protection against pathogens in the drinking water distribution
systems. EPA's revised rule incorporates recommendations from a federal
advisory committee comprised of a broad range of stakeholders and considers
public comments received during a public comment period held in fall 2010.
For more information:
http://water.epa.gov/lawsregs/rulesregs/sdwa/tcr/regulation.cfm
EPA & National Science Foundation Support Research for Safer Chemical
Design
WASHINGTON - Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in
collaboration with the National Science Foundation (NSF), announced two
funding opportunities for up to ten grants totaling up to $32 million for
research on the design of safer chemicals. These two Requests for
Applications (RFAs), which focus on sustainable chemical design and
assessment of the life cycle impacts of chemicals from production to
disposal, will support research to create chemicals that are safer for
people and the environment.
"Changes in our economy, society, technology and the environment itself are
presenting the EPA with new challenges and opportunities," said Lek Kadeli,
principal deputy assistant administrator of EPA's Office of Research and
Development. "This joint effort with the National Science Foundation is an
important step forward in realizing that vision and creating a more
sustainable future."
The research resulting from these two solicitations, "Networks for
Sustainable Molecular Design and Synthesis" and "Networks for
Characterizing Chemical Life Cycle" will enhance cooperation among the
chemical sciences, materials research, geosciences, engineering, and
biomedical and public health communities. The two RFAs are now open for
submissions.
The sustainable chemical design solicitation requests applications from
trans-disciplinary research teams who want to replace toxic and expensive
chemicals with greener, safer alternatives. These safer chemical design
processes could, for example, consume less water, generate less waste, or
use less energy than current practices.
The chemical life cycle solicitation seeks research to further the
understanding of chemicals (including nanomaterials, materials produced at
the nano-scale) throughout the life cycle at the systems and molecular
levels. As chemicals are manufactured and used, they may be altered through
their interactions with people and the environment, potentially resulting
in unforeseen health and environmental impacts. This research has the
potential to provide tools to characterize and predict these health and
environmental effects.
More information on the RFAs: http://epa.gov/ncer/rfa/
More information on EPA's chemical safety research:
http://www.epa.gov/research/chemicalscience/
More about the National Science Foundation: http://www.nsf.gov/
EPA Withdraws Order In the Face of Farmer's Lawsuit
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 20, 2012 – In a surprise about-face, the
Environmental ProtectionAgency has withdrawn an order demanding that West
Virginia poultry grower Lois Alt obtain a Clean Water Act discharge
permit for stormwater runoff from her farmyard or face up to $37,500 per
day in penalties. While the action is a great victory for Alt, it leaves
unresolved a major legal issue with serious implications for other
livestock and poultry farmers that must be addressed, according to the
American Farm Bureau Federation.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia ruled
in October that AFBF and West Virginia Farm Bureau have the right to join
Alt's lawsuit. EPA had aggressively opposed the Farm Bureaus'
participation. EPA's withdrawal of the order comes six months after Alt
filed her legal action and a mere six weeks before Alt and AFBF are
scheduled to file briefs challenging EPA's interpretation of the law.
In withdrawing its order, EPA cited new management practices identified
during a May 2012 re-inspection of the farm. However, EPA's inspection
report also states that dust, feathers and small amounts of manure were
still observed on the ground at the farm – which was the very same basis
of EPA's original order, according to AFBF General Counsel Ellen Steen.
"EPA still has not backed away from its position that any amount of
pollutant on the ground at a livestock or poultry farm requires a Clean
Water Act permit," according to Steen. "The more likely reason for EPA's
withdrawal is that it does not want to defend its position in court."
"This is a personal victory for Lois Alt, but it should not have taken a
federal lawsuit to convince EPA to withdraw an order that was illegal
from the start," said American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob
Stallman. "EPA's withdrawal of the Alt order without correcting its legal
position still leaves other farmers and ranchers hanging in uncertainty,
vulnerable to the same threats that Ms. Alt faced."
EPA's November 2011 order threatened Alt with $37,500 in fines for each
time stormwater came into contact with dust, feathers or small amounts of
manure on the ground outside of her poultry houses as a result of normal
poultry farming operations. EPA also threatened separate fines of $37,500
per day if Alt failed to apply for a National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System permit. Alt responded by filing her own legal
challenge to the EPA order in June 2012.
"EPA says its withdrawal is based on a May 2012 re-inspection of the
farm, but I can't help but notice that EPA only withdrew the order after
Farm Bureau was granted intervention in October," Steen explained. "It's
like upsetting the chess board when you know you are in danger of losing.
All signs are that EPA does not want to defend its position in court."
"EPA knows very well that most farmers lack the resources to fight back
when they face an EPA order – even if the order has no legal basis,"
noted Stallman. "We are happy for Ms. Alt that EPA has flinched, but the
principles for which she stood remain in danger."
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http://www.fb.org/index.php?action=newsroom.news&year=2012&file=nr1220.html
