7.28.14
State
City defends plan to drain lake
By Terri Ferguson Smith
The Meridian Star
MERIDIAN — City officials say they need to drain Long Creek Reservoir
and cut a 40-foot section out of the lake's dam to protect lives and
property downstream, but it is unclear from engineering reports and state
officials if the dam needs to be totally drained and breached to shore up
the dam.
http://www.meridianstar.com/local/x197373341/City-defends-plan-to-drain-lake
State officials said city needs to contact feds about bald eagles
By Brandon Ward
The Meridian Star
MERIDIAN — If there are bald eagles nesting at Long Creek Reservoir,
then city officials need to contact the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, said
Nick Winstead, an ornithologist with the Mississippi Department of
Wildlife, Fisheries, & Parks Museum of Natural Science.
http://www.meridianstar.com/local/x864254248/State-officials-said-city-needs-to-contact-feds-about-bald-eagles
Dead fish stink and so does dam problem
Editorial
The Meridian Star
MERIDIAN — The city of Meridian has known for six years that the dam at
Long Creek Reservoir was structurally unsound and would need to be repaired
or the lake would have to be drained — and did absolutely nothing about it.
http://www.meridianstar.com/editorials/x197373265/Dead-fish-stink-and-so-does-dam-problem
Mississippi falls in beach ratings, MDEQ could lose funding
Sun Herald
BY LAUREN WALCK
New federal standards may be bad news for beaches that line the murky
waters of the Mississippi Sound.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/07/27/5717399/mississippi-falls-in-beach-ratings.html?sp=/99/100/&ihp=1
Oil Spill
Gulf Restoration Council to select projects in August paid with 30 percent
of BP RESTORE Act money
Mark Schleifstein
The Times-Picayune
The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council on Friday (July 25) announced
it will begin accepting proposals in August for projects to restore the
effects of the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/07/gulf_restoration_council_annou.html#incart_river
BP oil spill dispersants still in environment
Pensacola News Journal
A common ingredient in human laxatives and in the controversial
dispersants that was used to break down oil from the BP Deepwater
Horizon oil spill is still being found in tar balls four years later
along Gulf Coast beaches including Perdido Key.
http://www.pnj.com/story/news/2014/07/26/bp-oil-spill-dispersants-still-environment/13213759/
BP asks Texas judge to dismiss British lawsuits
Houston Chronicle
By Collin Eaton
Attorneys for BP asked a Houston judge on Friday to dismiss a case in which
British investors are seeking damages in Texas for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico
oil spill.
http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/BP-asks-Texas-judge-to-dismiss-British-lawsuits-5648204.php
BP executive charged with obstruction in oil spill probe to get trial date
The Associated Press
July 26, 2014 at 9:51 AM
A judge is getting ready to set a new trial date for a former BP executive
charged with obstructing a congressional investigation into the 2010 Gulf
of Mexico oil spill.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2014/07/bp_executive_who_faces_crimina.html
National
Week ahead: EPA heads into battle on climate rule
The Hill
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is heading into a battle with the
coal industry next week over its landmark climate regulations.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/213463-week-ahead-epa-heads-into-battle-on-climate-rule
Internal report faults EPA on gas line leaks
The Hill
The Environmental Protection Agency is not doing enough to prevent millions
of tons of methane from leaking into the atmosphere from natural gas
pipelines, according to an internal watchdog report.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/213333-internal-report-faults-epa-on-gas-pipeline-leaks
EPA: Most Waste Sites Used for Renewable Energy Subject to State Laws, Not
CERCLA
Bloomberg
The "vast majority" of contaminated sites requiring cleanup are likely to
be addressed by state cleanup programs and won't involve federal cleanup or
enforcement laws, the Environmental Protection Agency said in a reference
guide addressing liability for renewable energy projects at contaminated
sites.http://www.bna.com/epa-waste-sites-n17179892888/
Not in my backyard: US sending dirty coal abroad
BY DINA CAPPIELLO
Associated Press
NEWPORT NEWS, VA. — Coal from Appalachia rumbles into this port city, 150
railroad cars at a time, bound for the belly of the massive cargo ship
Prime Lily. The ship soon sets sail for South America, its 80,000 tons of
coal destined for power plants and factories, an export of American energy
— and pollution.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/07/27/5712512/not-in-my-backyard-us-sending.html?sp=/99/184/767/312/
