5/17/2013
Oil Spill
Some oil spill cleanup workers say exposure to chemicals left them sick
WWL
When the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion killed 11 men in the Gulf of
Mexico and led to the worst oil spill in American history, BP promised to
make everything right. But three years later many people BP hired to clean
up the mess say their exposure to the chemicals has led to serious
illnesses with no prospect of being fully or fairly compensated.
http://www.wwltv.com/news/local/Some-oil-spill-cleanup-workers-say-exposure-to-chemicals-left-them-sick-207820271.html
BP seeks to stop payment of some 'inflated' claims
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LONDON -- BP is seeking to stop paying millions of dollars in what it calls
inflated compensation claims stemming from the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf
of Mexico.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/05/16/4671930/bp-seeks-to-stop-payment-of-some.html
Louisiana taps into BP oil spill money to bring 'Top Chef' to New Orleans
By Hollie McKay
Published May 16, 2013
FoxNews.com
Bravo's cooking elimination show "Top Chef" is headed to the Big Easy for
its eleventh season – but having Tom, Padma and their team of cooking
connoisseurs come to town doesn't come cheap.
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2013/05/16/louisiana-taps-into-bp-oil-spill-money-to-bring-top-chef-to-new-orleans/
County seeks $12 million in NRDA projects
By David Adlerstein
Published: Thursday, May 16, 2013 at 11:16 AM.Franklin County officials are
hoping to get a chunk of $58 million in early restoration projects for
Florida that have been proposed by the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource
Damage Assessment Trustees as part of a third phase.
http://www.apalachtimes.com/news/local-news/county-seeks-12-million-in-nrda-projects-1.143871
State News
Company fined $1 million for illegally filling Hancock County wetlands
Sun Herald
By ROBIN FITZGERALD — rfitzgerald@sunherald.com
GULFPORT -- An Alabama-based real estate investment company has agreed to
pay a $1 million fine for damaging wetlands and polluting waters in a
development project in Hancock County.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/05/16/4671229/alabama-company-fined-1-million.html
Bill would stop feared Louisiana levee
Sun Herald
WASHINGTON -- The water-projects bill the U.S. Senate passed this week
could promote investment in ports and protect the Coast from Louisiana
flood-control projects.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/05/16/4671933/bill-would-stop-feared-louisiana.html
Small Farms May Get Fuel Spill Exemption
WCBI
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Thad Cochran today reported that
legislation to exempt small farms from Environmental Protection Agency fuel
storage requirements has been incorporated into the Senate-passed Water
Resources Development Act of 2013 (WRDA).
http://www.wcbi.com/wordpress/small-farms-may-get-fuel-spill-exemption
Tupelo to receive MDEQ solid waste grant
by NEMS Daily Journal
05.17.13 - 04:44 am
TUPELO – The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality has awarded
the city of Tupelo a solid waste assistance grant of $4,800 for cleaning up
illegal dump sites.
http://djournal.com/view/full_story/22608189/article-Tupelo-to-receive-MDEQ-solid-waste-grant?instance=secondary_stories_left_column
MDEQ awards solid waste assistance grant
WTVA
JACKSON, Miss. (WTVA) -- The Mississippi Department of Environmental
Quality has awarded Lowndes County a solid waste assistance grant of
$21,440 that will be used by the county to clean up illegal dump sites and
for a local solid waste enforcement officer.
http://www.wtva.com/news/local/story/MDEQ-awards-solid-waste-assistance-grant/bhcBohdDv0qOJk4tJzDU5Q.cspx
Pearlington residents question flood buy-out program
WLOX
Dallas Trammell is one of many Pearlington residents who believe the
buy-out program underway in the community won't solve the bigger problem.
http://www.wlox.com/story/22265853/pearlington-residents-question-flood-buy-out-program
Sierra Club argues Kemper power plant deal voids PSC approval
The Associated Press
May 16, 2013 at 9:14 PM
JACKSON, Mississippi -- The Sierra Club has asked the Mississippi Supreme
Court to order the Public Service Commission to again reconsider its
approval of the $4.3 billion coal-fired power plant Mississippi Power Co.
is building in Kemper County.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2013/05/sierra_club_argues_kemper_powe.html#incart_river
DMR's marine patrol chief retiring
By SUN HERALD
The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources announced Thursday that
Marine Patrol Chief Walter "Tiny" Chataginer is retiring May 31, taking
with him more than 34 years of law enforcement experience.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/05/16/4671631/dmrs-marine-patrol-chief-retiring.html
National News
Wicker, other Republicans end boycott of EPA nominee, allow vote
Clarion Ledger
WASHINGTON — A Senate committee voted Thursday to approve Gina McCarthy's
nomination to head the Environmental Protection Agency after Mississippi
Sen. Roger Wicker and other Republicans ended their boycott of the vote.
http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20130517/NEWS01/305170046/Wicker-other-Republicans-end-boycott-EPA-nominee-allow-vote
Senate committee approves Obama's nomination of Gina McCarthy to head EPA
Washington Post
By Lenny Bernstein,
President Obama's nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency was
quickly approved by a Senate committee Thursday when Republicans abandoned
their boycott of a vote on the career environmental administrator, after
what Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) described as "significant steps forward" on
transparency issues important to the GOP.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/senate-committee-approves-nomination-of-gina-mccarthy-to-head-epa/2013/05/16/fbebc06c-be52-11e2-9b09-1638acc3942e_story.html
Senate confirms Moniz as secretary of energy
Washington Post
By Al Kamen
The Senate unanimously confirmed Ernest Moniz, a scientist and professor at
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, to be secretary of energy Thursday.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/in-the-loop
New Fracking Rules Proposed for U.S. Land
NY Times
By JOHN M. BRODER
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration on Thursday issued a new set of
proposed rules governing hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas on public
lands, moving further to address industry concerns about the costs and
reporting burdens of federal regulation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/17/us/interior-proposes-new-rules-for-fracking-on-us-land.html?ref=earth&_r=0&pagewanted=print
Proposed New Fracking Rules Draw Fire From Industry
Wall Street Journal
By TENNILLE TRACY
The Interior Department proposed relaxing some of the requirements it
wants to impose on energy companies that conduct hydraulic fracturing on
federal land, but the industry remains opposed to the new rules, saying
they are unnecessary.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324082604578487482397534830.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5
Study: Natural gas fracking hasn't polluted Arkansas water, but geology
there plays a role
By Associated Press,
PITTSBURGH — Hydraulic fracturing for natural gas hasn't contaminated
drinking water wells in Arkansas, according to a new study, but researchers
said the geology there may be more of a natural barrier to pollution than
in other areas where shale gas drilling takes place.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/energy-environment/study-natural-gas-fracking-hasnt-polluted-arkansas-water-but-geology-there-plays-a-role/2013/05/16/08421b48-be6e-11e2-b537-ab47f0325f7c_story.html
EPA to review claims of bias against conservatives amid fight over IRS
The Hill
By Ben Geman - 05/16/13 11:42 AM ET
The Environmental Protection Agency's inspector general will review claims
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) refuses to waive public records
fees for conservative groups while granting the waivers for environmental
organizations.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/300167-epas-internal-watchdog-to-probe-bias-claims-amid-gop-comparisons-to-tax-scandal
EPA addresses bias complaints
Politico
By: Erica Martinson
May 16, 2013 05:09 PM EDT
Amid allegations from House Republicans that it showed a bias for liberal
groups, the EPA will audit its fee-waiver process for Freedom of
Information Act requests, acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe said
Thursday.
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/05/epa-audit-foia-91509.html?hp=r3
Opinion
Jack Payne: Science and support needed in Gulf Coast restoration
Published: Thursday, May 16, 2013 at 10:06 a.m.
Noted American satirist and journalist H.L. Mencken once said, "For every
complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple and wrong."
That's an observation worth remembering as we seek to restore and protect
Florida's Gulf Coast in the wake of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20130516/OPINION/130519709/-1/entertainment?Title=Jack-Payne-Science-and-support-needed-in-Gulf-Coast-restoration
Press Releases
May 16 2013
COCHRAN: EPA FUEL SPILL EXEMPTION FOR SMALL FARMS INCLUDED IN WATER
RESOURCES BILL
Senate-passed Water Development Resources Act Incorporates Bill Cochran
Cosponsored
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Thad Cochran today reported that
legislation to exempt small farms from Environmental Protection Agency fuel
storage requirements has been incorporated into the Senate-passed Water
Resources Development Act of 2013 (WRDA).
The Senate passed WRDA legislation (S.601) on Wednesday and with it also
approved all the provisions included in the Farmers Undertake Environmental
Land Stewardship Act (S.496)—a bill Cochran supported as an original
cosponsor.
The fuel storage provisions in WRDA will amend an EPA Spill Prevention,
Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule by reducing the necessity for farms
with above-ground oil and gas storage tanks to hire a certified
professional engineer to design a SPCC compliance plan.
"The fuel spill rule propounded by the EPA poses an unnecessary financial
and regulatory burden on farmers. The legislative corrections we've
incorporated into the Water Resources and Development Act are reasonable
from both the farm operations and environmental protection standpoint,"
said Cochran, the ranking Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
S.496 was introduced by Senator Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) in March to adjust the
aggregate storage capacity standards in the new SPCC rule—set at 1,320
gallons or more of above-ground storage capacity—to save farmers from
having to purchase new capital equipment to comply with the regulations.
As drafted, the rule could have required new ground storage units and dual
containment tanks on farm vehicles, all of which would unnecessarily raise
the cost of farming and result in higher prices for consumers.
Exemptions from the rule would apply to farms with above-ground oil storage
tanks that have an aggregate storage capacity of less than 10,000 gallons.
In addition, the measure would allow farmers to self-certify their own
plans if they have less than 42,000 gallons of above-ground storage
capacity. (Summary:http://1.usa.gov/VQmp2L)
The Senate voted 83-14 to approve S.601, an authorization bill for Army
Corps of Engineers water conservation and development projects throughout
the country. The House of Representatives has not yet acted on WRDA
legislation.
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