3.8.13
Oil Spill
Bryant designates "Research Center of Excellence' for oil spill research
WLOX
USM's Center for Gulf Studies at Stennis has been named Mississippi's
Research Center of Excellence. That announcement came Thursday afternoon
from Governor Phil Bryant at a news conference at the USM Gulf Coast campus
in Long Beach.
http://www.wlox.com/story/21547853/bryant-names-usms-center-for-gulf-studies
USM to lead new Gulf research consortium
Sun Herald
By MICHAEL NEWSOM — mmnewsom@sunherald.com
LONG BEACH -- The University of Southern Mississippi will lead the Center
for Gulf Studies, which Gov. Phil Bryant and other officials said Thursday
will play a critical role in protecting the Gulf of Mexico and its
resources.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/03/07/4513293/usm-to-lead-new-research-consortium.html
USM to lead RESTORE research consortium with Jackson State and Mississippi
State
By Mississippi Press Staff
updated March 07, 2013 at 6:35 PM
LONG BEACH, Mississippi -- Gov. Phil Bryant today named the Center for Gulf
Studies, a research consortium led by the University of Southern
Mississippi, as the RESTORE Research Center of Excellence for the state of
Mississippi, according to a news release.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2013/03/usm_to_lead_restore_research_c.html#incart_river
Center of Excellence: USM leading the way on oil spill research
Hattiesburg American
LONG BEACH – University of Southern Mississippi scientists were first on
the spot when the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion began sending several
hundred million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/article/20130308/NEWS01/303080017/Center-Excellence-USM-leading-way-oil-spill-research
BP oil spill trial: Blowout preventer on Macondo well had dead battery,
miswired solenoid, expert testifies
By NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
updated March 07, 2013 at 8:11 PM
The blowout preventer used on the BP Macondo well contained a dead battery
and a miswired solenoid, a fatal combination that resulted in the complex
piece of machinery failing to stop the flow of oil and gas that triggered
the explosion and fire on April 20, 2010.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2013/03/bp_oil_spill_trial_blowout_pre.html#incart_river
Expert testifies BP should have halted cement job, as Gulf oil spill trial
continues
By Richard Thompson, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
updated March 07, 2013 at 6:10 PM
An oil well cementing expert told a federal judge Thursday that BP should
not have proceeded with the cement job the day before the ill-fated Macondo
well blew out, despite knowing the hazards involved.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2013/03/expert_testifies_bp_should_hav.html#incart_river
BP, Transocean botched safety tests, witness says
Posted on March 7, 2013 at 12:25 pm by Bloomberg
BP and Transocean officials on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig botched
safety tests the night it blew up and sent oil spilling into the Gulf of
Mexico, an expert on drilling told a judge.
http://fuelfix.com/blog/2013/03/07/bp-transocean-botched-safety-tests-witness-says/
BP Faces Escalating Spill Payouts After Court Ruling
Published March 07, 2013
Reuters
LONDON – BP must keep paying certain types of oil spill compensation in
much larger amounts and to more parties than it was expecting, according to
a court ruling which could add billions to its final bill.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/2013/03/07/bp-faces-escalating-spill-payouts-after-court-ruling/
State News
Mississippi senators rescind $235 million in bonds
Commercial Appeal
By Phil West
Thursday, March 7, 2013
JACKSON — State senators approved a House bill Thursday that de-authorizes
more than $235.7 million worth of bonds that had been approved, some more
than 50 years ago, but were never issued.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2013/mar/07/mississippi-senators-rescind-235m-in-bonds/
National News
Environmental groups sue Coast Guard
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Six environmental groups are suing the U.S. Coast Guard, challenging a
denial of two Freedom of Information Act requests about the response to an
oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/03/07/4514033/environmental-groups-sue-coast.html
Interior nominee Sally Jewell tells Senate she'll balance development,
conservation
By Sean Cockerham — McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON — Recreational Equipment Inc. chief executive officer Sally
Jewell worked Thursday to convince Republican senators rattled by her
leadership in conservation groups that she supports fossil fuel development
and should be the nation's next interior secretary.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/03/07/4513408/interior-nominee-sally-jewell.html
GOP respectful but skeptical of Sally Jewell
Politico
By: Darren Goode
March 8, 2013 04:39 AM EST
REI CEO Sally Jewell won bipartisan praise for her broad experience at her
confirmation hearing Thursday, but Republicans said President Barack
Obama's nominee for interior secretary left a lot of questions unanswered.
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/gop-respectful-but-skeptical-of-sally-jewell-88601.html?hp=r1
Current Global Warming Rates Are Fastest On Record
NPR
by CHRISTOPHER JOYCE
There's plenty of evidence that the climate has warmed up over the past
century, and climate scientists know this has happened throughout the
history of the planet. But they want to know more about how this warming is
different.
http://www.npr.org/2013/03/08/173739884/since-end-of-last-ice-age-rates-of-global-warming-amazing-and-atypical
As Fracking Increases, So Do Fears About Water Supply
NY Times
By KATE GALBRAITH
CARRIZO SPRINGS, Tex. — In this South Texas stretch of mesquite trees and
cactus, where the land is sometimes too dry to grow crops, the local
aquifer is being strained in the search for oil. The reason is hydraulic
fracturing, or fracking, a drilling process that requires massive amounts
of water.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/08/us/as-fracking-in-texas-increases-so-do-water-supply-fears.html?ref=earth&_r=0&pagewanted=print
Underground Water Ignites New Fight in West
Reserves Fed by Mountain Runoff Become Battlegrounds as Drought-Stricken
Towns With Rising Populations Hunt for Supplies
Wall Street Journal
By JIM CARLTON
PILOT VALLEY, Nev.—A glitzy gambling town and a remote outpost are
embroiled in a dispute over 650 million gallons of underground water, as
the West's water wars increasingly revolve around reserves below the
surface of the desert.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323293704578332840439165114.html
Opinion
SUN HERALD | Editorial: Cochran's export plan makes sense for U.S. and the
Coast
Sen. Thad Cochran has joined a bipartisan effort to expand natural gas
exports from the United States to its allies, a proposal that makes sense
from a national security standpoint and one that could be a significant
boost for the Coast economy.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/03/07/4513773/sun-herald-editorial-cochrans.html
Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 7, 2013
CONTACT:
Mick Bullock: mick.bullock@governor.ms.gov (601-576-2811)
Nicole Roberts: nicole.roberts@governor.ms.gov (601-576-2802)
www.governorbryant.com
Robbie Wilbur, MDEQ: robbie_wilbur@deq.state.ms.us (601-961-5277)
Caron Blanton, IHL: cblanton@ihl.state.ms.us (769-257-4585)
Jim Coll, USM: james.coll@usm.edu (601-266-4491)
Gov. Bryant Names Center for Gulf Studies as RESTORE Research Center of
Excellence
LONG BEACH, Miss.—Gov. Phil Bryant today named the Center for Gulf Studies,
a research consortium led by The University of Southern Mississippi, as the
RESTORE Research Center of Excellence for the state of Mississippi. The
University of Mississippi, Jackson State University and Mississippi State
University are partners in the research consortium.
Following the Deepwater Horizon disaster, Congress established the RESTORE
Act to direct Clean Water Act penalties collected from responsible parties
to the states impacted by the oil spill. The RESTORE Act includes a 2.5
percent funding designation to establish Research Centers of Excellence.
Through the Center for Gulf Studies, Mississippi is already gaining a more
comprehensive understanding of the northern Gulf of Mexico ecosystem and
its relationship to environmental stressors like storms and oil spills. Now
with the designation of the Center for Gulf Studies as a RESTORE Research
Center of Excellence, Mississippi is further positioned as a leader in Gulf
research.
"The Center for Gulf Studies, utilizing the existing resources of the
Mississippi Research Consortium of The University of Southern Mississippi,
Jackson State, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State, will provide significant
research for not only the state of Mississippi but also the entire Gulf of
Mexico. This research is just not academic; it will help grow our local
economy and benefit all types of business sectors," Gov. Bryant said.
The results of studies conducted by the center will be shared with other
scientists, agencies and research groups to enhance coastal resource
management and develop practical applications that can drive technology
innovation and business development.
Gov. Bryant was joined at the announcement by Trudy Fisher, Executive
Director of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality; Dr. Hank
Bounds, Commissioner of Higher Education; and Dr. Rodney Bennett,
President-elect of The University of Southern Mississippi.
"The Center for Gulf Studies' research will further our understanding of
the condition of our natural resources and how to better protect them,"
Fisher said. "It is rewarding to use the tragedy of the oil spill to
increase our knowledge of the Gulf, to benefit our economy, and improve the
quality of life for our citizens."
"The Center for Gulf Studies represents an excellent example of how
Mississippi Public Universities work collaboratively to advance the state,"
Bounds said. "By leveraging the collective resources of the universities
and working with other state and federal agencies, the Center will conduct
research that will unlock the mysteries of the Gulf and translate into
products and information that will improve the quality of life for all
Mississippians."
"Southern Miss has a rich tradition in marine and coastal research
excellence, and I applaud the vision and actions of Governor Bryant and
Director Fisher as they continue to keep Mississippi's science and
technology capabilities at the center of environmental and economic
recovery in the Gulf region," Bennett said. "I see a bright future as our
university and this institutional partnership continue to lead at the
cutting edge of meaningful ocean science."
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