3.10.14
Oil Spill
Battles over BP settlement could be nearing an end
Payments of claims on hold during challenges
Baton Rouge Advocate
BY RICHARD THOMPSON
Legal wrangling over BP's multibillion-dollar settlement to resolve
hundreds of thousands of claims for damages tied to the 2010 Deepwater
Horizon disaster could be nearing the end of the line, some experts
believe, after a federal appellate panel ruled last week that businesses
did not have to prove the Gulf of Mexico oil spill directly caused their
losses.
http://theadvocate.com/news/neworleans/8558058-148/legal-battles-over-bp-settlement
BP Is Biggest Loser Among U.S. Government Contractors
Bloomberg
By Jonathan D. Salant and Kathleen Miller - Mar 10, 2014
BP, once the Pentagon's top fuel supplier, is now the biggest loser among
U.S. government vendors.
A combination of no big contracts awarded and promised military work
withdrawn left BP with a net loss of $654 million in federal contracts in
the year that ended Sept. 30, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That
compared with $2.51 billion in awards in fiscal 2012.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-10/bp-is-biggest-loser-among-u-s-government-contractors.html
Finish the cleanup
Pensacola News Journal Editorial Board
It's good to see BP's continued commitment to making sure its oil from the
2010 spill is removed from the Gulf and other waters.
http://www.pnj.com/article/20140307/OPINION/303070028/Finish-cleanup
State
Trip to D.C. successful say officials
DeSoto Times
By ROBERT LEE LONG
Published: Saturday, March 8, 2014 1:05 AM CST
DeSoto County officials returning to the state's fastest growing county say
their recent trip to the nation's capital was successful in more ways than
one, despite a tight-fisted Congress.
DeSoto County Board of Supervisors President Lee Caldwell said she and
fellow DeSoto County Supervisor Mark Gardner and DeSoto County
Administrator Vanessa Lynchard met with top Environmental Protection Agency
officials about DeSoto County's efforts to improve air quality.
http://www.desototimes.com/articles/2014/03/08/news/doc531a87544e0c0773964699.txt
Army Corps asking for public comment on Mississippi barrier island
restoration plan
Sun Herald
BY LAUREN WALCK
Mississippi's barrier islands are a step closer to rehabilitation after the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Friday released the final details of a
restoration plan.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/03/07/5398733/army-corps-asking-for-public-comment.html
Mississippi DMR more than doubles Horne contract
Sun Herald
BY PAUL HAMPTON
The Department of Marine Resources within months of signing a contract with
the firm that conducted a 60-day review of the agency last year has more
than doubled the amount of money the agency will pay.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/03/08/5400702/mississippi-dmr-more-than-doubles.html
Sentencing delayed in wetlands case in Hancock County
Sun Herald
BY ROBIN FITZGERALD
GULFPORT -- Sentencing has been delayed for an Alabama real-estate
developer who filled wetlands near Bay St. Louis in violation of the Clean
Water Act.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/03/10/5402592/sentencing-delayed-in-wetlands.html
NOAA: Rebuilding Gulfport piers will not harm endangered turtles
WLOX
GULFPORT, MS (WLOX) -It looks like Gulfport will finally get the go ahead
to rebuild four fishing piers. Friday, NOAA sent word to Sen. Roger
Wicker's office that rebuilding the hurricane damaged piers will cause no
jeopardy to endangered turtles.
http://www.wlox.com/story/24917807/noaa-rebuilding-gulfport-piers-will-not-harm-endangered-turtles
Bill Walker due in federal court Monday, expected to admit to fraud charge
Mississippi Press
Warren Kulo
March 07, 2014 at 4:05 PM
HATTIESBURG, Mississippi -- Former Mississippi Department of Marine
Resources Director Bill Walker is due in federal court Monday morning, at
which time he is expected to plead guilty to one court of conspiracy to
defraud the federal government.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2014/03/bill_walker_due_in_federal_cou.html
Regional
Cuts to DENR regulators jarring in wake of Dan River spill
Charlotte Observer
By Andrew Kenney and Craig Jarvis
RALEIGH There are fewer people protecting the state's waters than there
were a month ago.
Last week, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources eliminated
13 percent of the staff positions in the Division of Water Resources. The
cuts were only the latest step in years of winnowing the state agency.
Legislators have erased jobs there every year since the recession in 2008.
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/03/08/4751058/cuts-to-denr-regulators-jarring.html#.Ux20Gfk7tcY
National
EPA to Require Best Management Practices To Curb Erosion at Construction
Sites
Friday, March 7, 2014
Bloomberg
By Amena H. Saiyid
March 5 --The construction, utility and housing sectors will be required to
implement best management practices to prevent erosion at construction
sites in lieu of numeric nutrient limits for turbidity in stormwater under
a final Environmental Protection Agency rule published March 6 (79 Fed.
Reg. 12,661).http://www.bna.com/epa-require-best-n17179882677/
Senate Dems stage climate all-nighter
The Hill
By Laura Barron-Lopez
At least 28 Senate Democrats are pulling an all-nighter on Monday to wake
up "stubborn" climate change deniers in Congress.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/200263-climate-change-all-nighter-in-congress
Four New Ozone-Depleting Gases Found in Atmosphere
Gases Are of Type Banned or Being Phased Out
Wall Street Journal
By ROBERT LEE HOTZ
Updated March 9, 2014 8:04 p.m. ET
Traces of four previously undetected man-made gases have been discovered in
the atmosphere, where they are endangering Earth's protective ozone layer,
a team of scientists from six countries reported Sunday.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304020104579429220381691800?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5&mg=reno64-wsj
West Virginia Tightens Oversight After Spill
Above-Ground Storage Tanks Will Have to Be Registered, Inspected
Wall Street Journal
By ALEXANDRA BERZON
March 9, 2014 7:35 p.m. ET
CHARLESTON, W.Va.—The state will require stricter monitoring of storage
tanks and water systems under a bill Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is expected to
sign in response to a chemical spill that tainted the water supply for
300,000 people here.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304020104579429623941293660?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5&mg=reno64-wsj
EPA Said to Seek Softer Review of Dump
Agency Might Be Concerned About Cost Of Moving Nuclear Waste, Some Say
Wall Street Journal
BRIDGETON, Mo.—An Environmental Protection Agency review board was
pressured by officials at the agency to soften its challenges to an EPA
plan for dealing with a highly contaminated radioactive waste site in this
St. Louis suburb, a former board member and other people familiar with the
matter said.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304732804579421231225277814?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5&mg=reno64-wsj
Offshore Oregon Draws a Green-Energy Rush
Pacific Boasts Wind and Favorable Wave Action, but Projects Have Faced
Resistance Elsewhere
Wall Street Journal
Oregon's deep blue sea is poised to be a new testing ground for green
energy, as advanced technology has entrepreneurs lining up to try to
harness the Pacific's wind and waves.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304834704579403290791026218?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5&mg=reno64-wsj
Questions raised on use of government credit cards
AJC
By Jamie Dupree
A report by internal investigators at the Environmental Protection Agency
found 'ineffective oversight' at the EPA allowed federal workers to use
government credit cards to buy gift cards, gym memberships, food and
thousands of dollars in other items that were not properly approved for
purchase by the agency in 2012.
http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/jamie-dupree/2014/mar/09/questions-raised-use-government-credit-cards/
