Oil Spill
Plaintiffs, BP disagree over company's blame for oil spill, slowness to
plug Macondo well
Mark Schleifstein
Times-Picayune
December 20, 2013 at 10:18 PM
Attorneys representing private plaintiffs as well as the states of
Louisiana and Mississippi argued Friday (Dec. 20) that evidence presented
durinlg the first two phases of the trial to determine liability in the BP
Deepwater Horizon oil spil clearly establishes that BP and its subsidiaries
"exhibited a willful, wanton and reckless disregard for the environment,
the property rights of others, and public health and safety."
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2013/12/plaintiffs_bp_disagree_over_co.html
BP Caused Gulf Spill to Last Longer, Victims' Lawyers Say
Bloomberg
By Margaret Cronin Fisk - Dec 21, 2013
BP Plc (BP/) delayed efforts to cap its Macondo well in 2010 by
misrepresenting how much oil was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico, lawyers
for spill victims said, urging a judge to find the company grossly
negligent.
BP was unprepared for a deep-water blowout and the company misled the
government on its ability to respond, plaintiffs' lawyers said in court
papers filed yesterday in the second phase of a trial over the disaster.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-12-20/bp-caused-gulf-spill-to-last-longer-victims-lawyers-say.html
For BP Cleanup, 2013 Meant 4.6 Million Pounds Of Oily Gunk
by: Debbie Elliott, NPR, December 21, 2013 1:12:00 pm
KUHF
As we near the end of 2013, NPR is taking a look at the numbers that tell
the story of this year. They're numbers that, if you really understand
them, give insight into the world we live in.
On a breezy December morning, a work crew is scouring the surf line on
Grand Isle, La., scooping up tiny tar balls and collecting them in a
basket.
http://app1.kuhf.org/articles/npr255843362-For-BP-Cleanup,-2013-Meant-4.6-Million-Pounds-Of-Gulf-Coast-Oil-.html
Two top officials leave BP oil spill claims office
The Associated Press
December 22, 2013
NEW ORLEANS -- Two top officials of a fund that pays compensation in
connection with the 2010 BP oil spill have resigned, just months after the
two were accused of engaging in improper conduct.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2013/12/two_top_officials_leave_bp_oil.html#incart_river
State
Recycling doesn't need to be difficult, expensive
By BECKY GILLETTE, Mississippi Business Journal
December 21, 2013
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Some cities say recycling is just too expensive and
difficult, particularly to get a large enough percentage of households to
participate to make the program cost effective.
The City of Ridgeland, which for the second time in three years has been
given the Local Government Recycler of the Year Award by the Mississippi
Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), has proven that doesn't have to
be true.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/Recycling-doesn-t-need-to-be-difficult-expensive-5084416.php
Kemper plant's clean coal technology not so green; critics cite oil ties
AP
DE KALB — America's newest, most expensive coal-fired power plant is hailed
as one of the cleanest on the planet, thanks to government-backed
technology that removes carbon dioxide and keeps it out of the atmosphere.
http://www.clarionledger.com/viewart/20131223/NEWS01/312230004/Kemper-plant-s-clean-coal-technology-not-green-critics-cite-oil-ties
MEMA reports damage in 15 counties from severe weekend weather, two deaths
reported
Mississippi Press
December 22, 2013 at 6:05 PM
PEARL, Mississippi -- The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency has
received initial storm damage reports from 15 counties. Reports range from
major damage to homes, to trees and power lines down.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2013/12/mema_reports_damage_in_15_coun.html#incart_river
Local Family Farm is Finalist for National Environmental Award
WTOK
Waynesboro, Mississippi A Clarke County family(Embedded image moved to
file: pic23281.jpg) farm is up for a national environmental award.
The Hilton Davis farm near Waynesboro is one of two semi-finalists in the
Southeast region of the United States.
http://www.wtok.com/home/headlines/Local-Family-Farm-is-Finalist-for-National-Environmental-Award-236834601.html
Federal judge orders release of DMR records
Sun Herald
BY PAUL HAMPTON
GULFPORT -- A federal judge on Friday ordered the release of documents
sought by the Sun Herald for more than a year in its investigation of the
Department of Marine Resources.
http://www.sunherald.com/2013/12/20/5210620/federal-judge-orders-release-of.html
Kelly R. Blackwood named chair of the board of trustees of The Nature
Conservancy in Mississippi
MBJ
Published: December 20,2013
Kelly R. Blackwood, a senior attorney in Bradley Arant Boult Cummings,
LLP's Jackson office, has been named chair of the board of trustees of The
Nature Conservancy in Mississippi. Blackwood has been a board member for
The Nature Conservancy's Mississippi chapter since 2011.
http://msbusiness.com/blog/2013/12/20/kelly-r-blackwood-named-chair-board-trustees-nature-conservancy-mississippi/
Regional
Focus on Ocean's Health as Dolphin Deaths Soar
NY Times
By LIZETTE ALVAREZ
MIAMI — Like a macabre marine mystery, the carcasses — many badly
deteriorated and tossing about in the surf — first turned up along the
coast of New Jersey in June. Soon, droves of them washed up in Virginia,
the Carolinas, Georgia and most recently Florida, their winter home.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/23/us/focus-on-oceans-health-as-dolphin-deaths-soar.html?ref=earth&_r=0&pagewanted=print
Hickman industrial fire stirs concerns over air pollution
AP
A large industrial fire at a federal Superfund site in Middle Tennessee was
almost completely contained on Thursday evening, a day and a half after it
started.
http://www.tennessean.com/viewart/20131220/NEWS01/312200095/Hickman-industrial-fire-stirs-concerns-over-air-pollution
National
U.S. Won't Tighten Pipeline Rules
The U.S. Transportation Department doesn't plan to change regulations to
better protect underground pipelines.
Wall Street Journal
The U.S. Transportation Department doesn't plan to change regulations to
better protect underground pipelines from riverbed erosion, a year after
Congress ordered it to evaluate its policies in the wake of pipeline breaks
that spilled hazardous liquids into waterways.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304202204579254302494142622?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5
Janet McCabe to get top EPA pollution regulator nod
The Hill
By Laura Barron-Lopez
President Obama announced plans to nominate Janet McCabe to a top post at
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) late Thursday.
Obama intends to nominate McCabe as assistant administrator for the
agency's Office of Air and Radiation, a post she has been occupying in the
acting capacity.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/193761-obama-to-nominate-janet-mccabe-as-top-epa-pollution-regulator
Opinion
The EPA's Golden Rule: No Good Neighbor Goes Unpunished
Why the agency's 2011 Cross-State Air Pollution Rule should be struck down.
Wall Street Journal
By BRIAN H. POTTS
Dec. 20, 2013 6:23 p.m. ET
Have you ever wondered what all those additional charges are on your
electric bill? This month my bill lists a "Customer Charge," a "2013 Fuel
Adjustment" and a "State-Wide Low-Income Assistance Fee," which add up to
about $10, or $120 a year. I'm a utility lawyer, and even I don't know what
all of these charges are or how they were calculated.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303932504579258291708181228
