1.16.2014
Oil Spill
Analysis: BP's U.S. Gulf oil spill settlement challenges may backfire
Mica Rosenberg
Reuters
January 15, 2014
(Reuters) - A year after agreeing to a multi-billion dollar settlement with
victims of the 2010 Gulf oil spill, BP is aggressively challenging terms of
the deal in a legal strategy that could backfire with the judge who will
rule on the company's potentially hefty federal fines.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-rt-us-bp-settlement-analysis-20140115,0,7380502,full.story
Ft Walton Beach Boardwalk Expansion
WEAR
FORT WALTON BEACH -- A 4.6 million dollar BP grant is coming to Fort
Walton Beach, to pay for an expanded Boardwalk on Santa Rosa Sound.
http://www.weartv.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/fort-walton-beach-boardwalk-expansion-paid-bp-grant-40407.shtml
State
Court rules for utility in Biloxi eminent domain case
BY HOLBROOK MOHR
Associated Press
JACKSON -- The Mississippi Court of Appeals has sided with a South
Mississippi utility authority in a dispute over the use of eminent domain
to take private property for a massive sewage plant built with federal
Hurricane Katrina money.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/01/15/5261694/court-rules-for-utility-in-eminent.html
Natchez owes funds to Waste Pro for underpayments
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NATCHEZ, Miss. -- The city of Natchez apparently has been underpaying Waste
Pro USA, its trash collector, to the tune of $126,514 since July.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/01/15/3871876/natchez-owes-funds-to-waste-pro.html?NL=WST-03&Issue=WST-03_20140115_WST-03_870&YM_RID=mark_williams@deq.state.ms.us&YM_MID=1443020&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_7
Gulfport, secretary of state negotiating over harbor control
Sun Herald
BY ANITA LEE
GULFPORT -- The city and Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann have been
trying to negotiate a settlement in their yearslong legal fight over the
harbor and surrounding property. The Chancery Court case will go to trial
in two weeks if no agreement is reached.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/01/15/5261693/gulfport-secretary-of-state-negotiating.html
Department of Public Safety audit released
Clarion Ledger
An audit of the state Department of Public Safety says the agency has
problems keeping paperwork and financial reports in order and its
comptroller doesn't appear up to running such a large agency.
http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20140116/NEWS01/301160035/Department-Public-Safety-audit-released?nclick_check=1
Regional
Florida wildlife officials release 50 endangered sea turtles rescued during
cold snap last week
Press-Register
Dennis Pillion
January 15, 2014 at 3:50 PM
CAPE SAN BLAS, Florida -- The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC) and several partners returned approximately 50 sea turtles
to the wild Tuesday in the Gulf of Mexico off Cape San Blas after the
animals were rescued from last week's cold water temperatures.
http://blog.al.com/gulf-coast/2014/01/florida_wildlife_officials_rel.html#incart_river
National
EPA issues hazardous waste-tracking regs
The Hill
By Ben Goad
The Environmental Protection Agency issued regulations Wednesday creating a
national electronic system to track hazardous waste.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/195585-epa-issues-hazardous-waste-rule
Republican rider in omnibus bill would loosen EPA oversight of waste
The Hill
A GOP rider in the $1 trillion omnibus racing to President Obama's desk
would prevent the administration from tightening rules on waste materials
that mining companies can dump in streams.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/195621-gop-rider-in-omnibus-bill-would-tighten-rules-on-waste
Leaky Tank's Design, Age Probed
Vessel Dates to 1938, Built With Rivets, Not Welds
Wall Street Journal
CHARLESTON, W.Va.—As probes develop into a chemical spill here that tainted
the water supply, investigators are looking at the design, age and
maintenance of the tank that failed, a nondescript storage container sealed
with rivets and installed in 1938.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304419104579323044229021018?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5
W.Va. spill shows vulnerability of water supply
BY BEN NUCKOLS
Associated Press
CHARLESTON, W.VA. — It's a nightmare scenario that became all too real in
West Virginia: A chemical seeped into the water supply and threatened to
sicken hundreds of thousands of people.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/01/16/5262433/wva-spill-shows-vulnerability.html
Alaska copper, gold mine could devastate local salmon population, report
finds
Published January 15, 2014
Associated Press
UNEAU, Ala. – A government report indicates a large-scale copper and gold
mine in Alaska's Bristol Bay region could have devastating effects on the
world's largest sockeye salmon fishery and adversely affect Alaska Natives,
whose culture is built around salmon.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/01/15/alaska-copper-gold-mine-could-devastate-local-salmon-population-report-finds/?intcmp=latestnews
Oil! New Texas boom spawns riches, headaches
USA Today
THREE RIVERS, Texas — Not long ago, Richard Dockery was a real
estate and insurance broker in this town of 1,800 residents, putting
together small land deals and cobbling together a nest egg for
retirement.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/15/texas-oil-boom-fracking/4481977/
Opinion
EDITORIAL/Auditor should frack Bigger Pie
Madison County Journal
The State Auditor and a legislative watchdog committee say there's no merit
to allegations that Bigger Pie Forum, an opponent of Mississippi Power
Co.'s Kemper County plant, misappropriated state funds through another
organization, but maybe they didn't drill far enough.
http://onlinemadison.com/main.asp?SectionID=3&SubSectionID=3&ArticleID=27942
Press Releases
EPA Takes Important Step in Implementing the Hazardous Waste Electronic
Manifest Establishment Act
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today issued a
final rule that is a crucial step in the development of a national
electronic manifest (e-Manifest) system, which will upgrade the current
paper-based system of tracking hazardous waste to an electronic one.
"Today's action is a key step in bringing the oversight of these
potentially dangerous materials into the 21st century," said Mathy
Stanislaus, EPA assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and
Emergency Response. "Once fully implemented, the national e-Manifest system
will provide greater access for emergency responders to information about
the types and sources of hazardous waste that are in transit between
generator sites and waste management facilities."
The final rule authorizes the use of e-Manifests to track hazardous wastes
under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. This will allow the
current process, which requires paper forms, to be streamlined and greatly
reduce the millions of paper manifests produced each year.
The Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act requires EPA to
issue a regulation authorizing the use of electronic manifests as the legal
equivalent of the current paper manifest forms used to track shipments of
hazardous waste from a generator's site to the ultimate site of disposal.
EPA's goal is to promote the greatest possible use of electronic manifests.
The e-Manifest program is the vanguard of the agency-wide initiative to
develop new tools to reduce the reporting burden on regulated entities, and
provide the agency, states and the public with easier access to
environmental data. EPA estimates the national e-Manifest system will
ultimately reduce the burden associated with preparing shipping manifests
by between 300,000 and 700,000 hours, and result in cost savings of more
than $75 million per year for states and industry. In line with the
agency's e-Enterprise principles, the e-Manifest system will significantly
improve access to higher quality and more timely waste shipment data, and
will empower communities through increased transparency and more accurate
information on completed waste shipments and management trends.
The final rule will establish the legal and policy framework for using
electronic manifests; however, several more steps will be needed before the
e-Manifest program can be implemented. These include establishing the
system and initial fee structure. This year, EPA will work with states,
industry and other stakeholders to develop plans for the many key aspects
of the system and address concerns of intersystem compatibility. The Agency
will also begin developing the initial fee structure of the system,
including implementation and compliance dates, through a rulemaking.
Stakeholders and interested parties will have the opportunity to comment on
the proposed rule when it becomes available.
For more information:
http://www.epa.gov/waste/hazard/transportation/manifest/e-man.htm
