8.15.2013
Oil Spill
Gulf oil spill settlement payment offers rise to $4.4 billion
Houston Chronicle
The administrator of last year's civil settlement between BP and thousands
of victims of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill said Wednesday he has now
offered $4.44 billion in payments to claimants, up about $470 million from
a month ago.
http://fuelfix.com/blog/2013/08/14/gulf-oil-spill-settlement-payment-offers-rise-to-4-4-billion/
BP Asks Judge to Deny Investors' Bid to Sue as Group Over Spill
Bloomberg
By Laurel Calkins and Margaret Cronin Fisk on August 15, 2013
BP Plc (BP/) asked a federal judge to deny U.S. investors the right to
pursue a class action, or group, lawsuit claiming the company misled them
before and after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
http://www.businessweek.com/printer/articles/571556?type=bloomberg
BP's tough talk will backfire, Gulf spill lawyer says
Reuters
By Andrew Callus
LONDON (Reuters) - BP's (BP.L: Quote,Profile, Research, Stock Buzz)
hard-line legal tactics aimed at capping the financial blowout from the
2010 Gulf of Mexico oil disaster will backfire, according to Joe Rice,
negotiator of last year's settlement on behalf of over 100,000 compensation
claimants.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/15/us-bp-spill-rice-idUSBRE97E0JV20130815
State
MDEQ lifts water contact advisories for Front Beach, Porter Avenue Beach
Mississippi Press
August 14, 2013 at 6:56 PM
JACKSON, Mississippi -- The Mississippi Department of Environmental
Quality, through its Beach Monitoring Program, lifted two water contact
advisories issued Aug. 10 for the following beach monitoring stations:
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2013/08/mdeq_lifts_water_contact_advis.html#incart_river
Funds available to Miss. farmers, ranchers
The Associated Press
HATTIESBURG, MISS. — More than $1 million in federal dollars has been set
aside for Mississippi farmers and ranchers to environmentally upgrade their
properties during fiscal year 2014.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/08/15/4875257/funds-available-to-miss-farmers.html
Bill Walker didn't participate in transfer of foundation's boats, documents
show
Sun Herald
By MICHAEL NEWSOM — mmnewsom@sunherald.com
Documents that State Auditor Stacey Pickering released to the Sun Herald
show former Mississippi Department of Marine Resources Director Bill Walker
didn't participate in the transfer of his foundation's two boats to the
state because his legal counsel advised him not to.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/08/14/4873439/auditors-documents-shed-more-light.html
Apartment residents threaten legal action over sewage
WAPT
JACKSON, Miss. —A sewage overflow at a Jackson apartment complex has people
ready to take legal action.
http://www.wapt.com/news/central-mississippi/jackson/apartment-residents-threaten-legal-action-over-sewage/-/9156912/21473704/-/ktssrm/-/index.html
Pontotoc to convert some vehicles to natural gas
By Bobby Harrison
Daily Journal Jackson Bureau
FLOWOOD – Pontotoc Mayor Jeff Stafford said he hopes the conversion of five
city vehicles to be fueled by compressed natural gas is just the beginning
for his city.
http://djournal.com/news/pontotoc-to-convert-some-vehicles-to-natural-gas/
National
EPA may have tried to evade Freedom of Information request, judge says
Washington Post
By Lenny Bernstein,
A federal judge said Wednesday that the Environmental Protection Agency may
have tried to evade a Freedom of Information Act request and added that
"numerous inconsistencies" in the agency's court filings "undermine
confidence in their truthfulness."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/epa-may-have-tried-to-evade-freedom-of-information-request-judge-says/2013/08/14/d21f27d0-0522-11e3-88d6-d5795fab4637_print.html
EPA's McCarthy: 'Responsible' gas production key to climate strategy
The Hill
By Ben Geman - 08/14/13 05:18 PM ET
Environmental Protection Agency chief Gina McCarthy said natural-gas
production — with the right safeguards — is a major piece of Obama
administration efforts to combat global warming.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/317119-epas-mccarthy-responsible-gas-production-key-to-climate-strategy
Interior names new offshore drilling safety chief
The Hill
By Ben Geman - 08/14/13 01:58 PM ET
The Interior Department has tapped Brian Salerno, a former U.S. Coast Guard
official who helped lead the response to the 2010 BP oil spill, as the next
director of its offshore drilling safety branch.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/317051-interior-names-new-offshore-drilling-safety-chief
