6.5.2013
Oil Spill
BP's Oil Spill Deal Sours as Claims Add Billions to Cost
Bloomberg
By Margaret Cronin Fisk, Brian Swint, Laurel Brubaker Calkins - Jun 5, 2013
BP Plc's (BP/) $8 billion settlement with victims of the 2010 Gulf of
Mexico spill may have hurt Europe's second-largest oil company more than it
helped.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-04/bp-s-oil-spill-settlement-sours-as-claims-add-billions.html
State News
Mississippi regulators consider energy-efficiency rules
By JEFF AMY — Associated Press
JACKSON -- A number of utilities and consumer groups say they support
proposed rules that would require Mississippi electric and gas utilities to
implement programs to save energy.
…Dallas Baker of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality said
that agency also favors adoption. Baker cited MDEQ's own experience in
cutting energy use at its Jackson headquarters after a 2009 energy audit.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/06/04/4712080/mississippi-regulators-consider.html
DMR announces Mississippi shrimp season to open June 11 at 6 a.m.
Mississippi Press Staff
June 04, 2013 at 5:14 PM
BILOXI, Mississippi -- The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources has
set the opening date of the 2013-14 shrimp season in Mississippi
territorial waters for 6 a.m., Tuesday, June 11.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2013/06/dmr_announces_mississippi_shri.html#incart_river
National News
House GOP bill would cut EPA out of coal ash regulation
The Hill
By Julian Hattem - 06/04/13 03:45 PM ET
Legislation from a Republican lawmaker would almost entirely cut the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) out of regulating the ash produced
from power plants that burn coal.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/303399-house-gop-bill-would-cut-epa-out-of-coal-ash-regulation
Oil and gas industry steps up ethanol fuel fight at Supreme Court
The Hill
By Ben Goad - 06/04/13 01:47 PM ET
The oil and gas industry's leading trade association renewed its call on
Tuesday for the Supreme Court to strike down Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) regulations allowing a high-ethanol fuel blend into the
marketplace.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/303367--oil-and-gas-industry-takes-ethanol-fuel-fight-to-supreme-court-
EPA accused of singling out conservative groups, amid IRS scandal
By Eric Shawn
Published June 04, 2013
FoxNews.com
It's not just the IRS.
A second federal agency is facing a probe and accusations of political bias
over its alleged targeting of conservative groups.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/06/04/epa-accused-singling-out-conservative-groups-amid-irs-scandal/?test=latestnews
EPA says $384 billion needed to upgrade aging water treatment plants and
pipelines
By Associated Press,
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency says nearly $400 billion
in infrastructure spending is needed over the next two decades to ensure
that Americans continue to have safe drinking water.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/epa-says-384-billion-needed-to-upgrade-aging-water-treatment-plants-and-pipelines/2013/06/04/ce84939a-cd63-11e2-8573-3baeea6a2647_story.html
Americans throw out more than a third of what they buy, gov't trying to
lower that number
By Associated Press, Published: June 4
WASHINGTON — Americans throw away more than a third of the food they buy —
that's almost $400 a year per person, or more than an average month's worth
of groceries.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/americans-throw-out-more-than-a-third-of-what-they-buy-govt-trying-to-lower-that-number/2013/06/04/9fd121f6-cd38-11e2-8573-3baeea6a2647_story.html
Amendments could sink bipartisan energy bill
Politico
By: Darren Goode and Andrew Restuccia
June 5, 2013 05:18 AM EDT
The pent-up demand for Senate energy legislation may doom the few bills on
the topic that seemed to have a chance of passing.
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/energy-bill-amendments-helium-92229.html?hp=r12
Iowa cities struggle as farm runoff causes nitrate levels to soar in
drinking water
By Associated Press, Updated: Wednesday, June 5, 2:19 AM
DES MOINES, Iowa — For much of last year, Iowa's most pressing agricultural
problem was a drought that baked farm fields and parched crops, turning
them brown and crumbly. Then the skies finally opened up, providing one of
the soggiest springs on record.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/iowa-cities-struggle-as-farm-runoff-causes-nitrate-levels-to-soar-in-drinking-water/2013/06/05/7c1a0450-cdae-11e2-8573-3baeea6a2647_story.html
Press Releases
EPA Survey Shows $384 Billion Needed for Drinking Water Infrastructure by
2030
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today released
results of a survey showing that $384 billion in improvements are needed
for the nation's drinking water infrastructure through 2030 for systems to
continue providing safe drinking water to 297 million Americans.
EPA's fifth Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment
identifies investments needed over the next 20 years for thousands of miles
of pipes and thousands of treatment plants, storage tanks and water
distribution systems, which are all vital to public health and the economy.
The national total of $384 billion includes the needs of 73,400 water
systems across the country, as well as American Indian and Alaska Native
Village water systems.
"A safe and adequate supply of drinking water in our homes, schools and
businesses is essential to the health and prosperity of every American,"
said EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. "The survey EPA released
today shows that the nation's water systems have entered a rehabilitation
and replacement era in which much of the existing infrastructure has
reached or is approaching the end of its useful life. This is a major issue
that must be addressed so that American families continue to have the
access they need to clean and healthy water sources."
The survey, required under the Safe Drinking Water Act to be submitted to
Congress every four years by EPA, was developed in consultation with all 50
states and the Navajo Nation. The survey looked at the funding and
operational needs of more than 3,000 public drinking water systems across
the United States, including those in Tribal communities, through an
extensive questionnaire. In many cases, drinking water infrastructure was
reported to be 50-100 years old.
The assessment shows that improvements are primarily needed in:
- Distribution and transmission: $247.5 billion to replace or refurbish
aging or deteriorating lines
- Treatment: $72.5 billion to construct, expand or rehabilitate
infrastructure to reduce contamination
- Storage: $39.5 billion to construct, rehabilitate or cover finished water
storage reservoirs
- Source: $20.5 billion to construct or rehabilitate intake structures,
wells and spring collectors
EPA allocates Drinking Water State Revolving Fund grants to states based on
the finding of the assessment. These funds help states to provide low-cost
financing to public water systems for infrastructure improvements necessary
to protect public health and comply with drinking water regulations.
Since its inception in 1997, the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund has
provided close to $15 billion in grants to all 50 states and Puerto Rico to
improve drinking water treatment, transmission and distribution. The
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program has also provided more than
$5.5 billion to protect drinking water in disadvantaged communities.
EPA is committed to utilizing the tools provided under the Safe Drinking
Water Act to assist states and to better target resources and technical
assistance toward managing the nation's drinking water infrastructure. In
addition to Drinking Water State Revolving Fund grants, EPA awarded nearly
$15 million in funding in 2012 to provide training and technical assistance
to small drinking and wastewater systems – those serving fewer than 10,000
people – and to private well owners to improve small system operations and
management practices and to promote sustainability. EPA also works with
states, municipalities and water utilities to strengthen the resiliency of
drinking water systems against the potential impacts of severe weather
events and climate change.
More information: http://water.epa.gov/grants_funding/dwsrf/index.cfm
EPA and NIH Announce the Winning Team in My Air, My Health Challenge
Winners developed a low cost, real time personal digital device that
measures health effects of harmful air pollution
WASHINGTON — Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced the winner of the My Air, My
Health Challenge. The Challenge called upon innovators nationwide to design
a small, low-cost sensor that integrates air quality measurements with
related health data, such as heart rate and breathing. Such innovations
will help EPA and NIH as they continue their work together to better
understand, in real time, the impacts of harmful air pollution on people's
health.
Judges for the EPA and NIH challenge selected the team of David Kuller,
Gabrielle Savage Dockterman, and Dot Kelly from among finalist teams. The
award will be presented today at Health Datapalooza IV in Washington, D.C.
The winning team will receive a $100,000 award for developing Conscious
Clothing, a wearable, real-time breathing analysis tool that calculates the
amount of polluted air a person inhales. Estimates of pollution exposure
result from how deeply the person breathes and how much pollution is in the
air. This data is transmitted to any Bluetooth-enabled device, such as a
cellphone.
"This integration of technologies represents a growing area of interest for
environmental and health scientists," said Glenn Paulson, Ph.D., EPA
science advisor. "We're at the edge of a technology wave where anyone can
use these sensors – these innovations will help EPA better understand air
pollution's impacts on people's health. The potential impact on personal
health care and local environmental quality is tremendous."
"With people wearing these new data-collecting devices, researchers will be
able to see and understand the relationships between varying levels of
chemical exposures and individual health responses—in real time," said
Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of the National Institute of Environmental
Health Sciences, part of the NIH. "This is a big step forward toward
treating, and more importantly, preventing disease and illness. This is an
exciting time in research."
These types of low-cost, portable, easy-to-use sensors have the potential
to produce a more complete picture of air quality and individual health in
communities across the country.
More information on the My Air, My Health Challenge:
http://epa.gov/research/challenges
###
EPA and USDA Join Together To Help Americans Reduce Wasted Food
Release Date: 06/04/2013
Contact Information: Enesta Jones (EPA), jones.enesta@epa.gov,
202-564-7873, 202-564-4355
WASHINGTON – Today EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe joined U.S.
Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to announce the launch of a
challenge that asks farmers, processors, manufacturers, retailers,
communities and government agencies to reduce wasted food. The U.S. Food
Waste Challenge builds upon the success of EPA's Food Recovery Challenge to
help more Americans do their part to reduce food waste.
"Food waste is the single largest type of waste entering our landfills --
Americans throw away up to 40 percent of their food. Addressing this issue
helps to combat hunger and save money, while also combating climate change.
Food waste in landfills decomposes to create potent greenhouse gases and by
reducing this waste we can in turn reduce greenhouse gas emissions," said
EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. "I'm proud that EPA is joining
with USDA today to announce the U.S. Food Waste Challenge. With the help of
partners across the country, we can ensure that our nation's food goes to
our families and those in need – not the landfill."
"The United States enjoys the most productive and abundant food supply on
earth, but too much of this food goes to waste," said Agriculture Secretary
Tom Vilsack. "Not only could this food be going to folks who need it – we
also have an opportunity to reduce the amount of food that ends up in
America's landfills. By joining together with EPA and businesses from
around the country, we have an opportunity to better educate folks about
the problem of food waste and begin to address this problem across the
nation."
Americans send more food to landfills and incinerators than any other
single municipal solid waste (MSW) – 35 million tons– even more than paper
and plastic. When wasted food is sent to landfills, it decomposes and
becomes a source of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to
climate change. In addition, the production and transportation of food has
a number of environmental impacts; by reducing wasted food our society
helps conserve energy and reduces environmental impacts.
In 2010, EPA began challenging organizations along the food lifecycle to
adopt more sustainable practices through its National Sustainable Materials
Management (SMM) program's Food Recovery Challenge (FRC). EPA's Food
Recovery Challenge provides direct technical assistance, a tracking system,
and recognition to help support and motivate organizations to reduce their
food waste. Through the simple act of measuring food that is wasted,
organizations can immediately identify simple changes that lead to big
reductions. More than 200 organizations are now participating in the Food
Recovery Challenge.
More on the U.S. Food Waste Challenge: www.usda.gov/oce/foodwaste/index.htm
More on the EPA's Sustainable Materials Management Program and Food
Recovery Challenge: http://www.epa.gov/smm/foodrecovery/
