10.21.14
State
Miss renews water-rights battle with Memphis
The Associated Press
October 21, 2014
JACKSON, MISS. — The U.S Supreme Court is asking the Obama administration
to weigh-in on whether to allow Mississippi to filed a new lawsuit alleging
Memphis, Tennessee, is stealing water from the state.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/10/21/5866892/miss-renews-water-rights-battle.html?sp=/99/184/218/
Hinds County prepares for possibility of ebola
WLBT
JACKSON, MS (Mississippi News Now) -The Hinds County Emergency Management
Agency says they are working very closely with the Mississippi State
Department of Health, Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, Department
of Environmental Quality and area hospitals to ensure the safety of the
citizens and of first responders in the event that an ebola case is
confirmed.
http://www.msnewsnow.com/story/26831390/hinds-county-prepares-for-possibility-of-ebola
Battle over Maywood's dams at a standoff
Commercial Appeal
Toni Lepeska
Oct 17, 2014
The battle over fixing Maywood's dams is at a standoff after a state
Department of Environmental Quality deadline passed.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/local-news/desoto/battle-over-maywoods-dams-at-a-standoff_03551351
Jackson County awards $2.9M dredging contract for work in Stark, Davis,
Simmons bayous
Mississippi Press
April M. Havens
October 20, 2014 at 2:05 PM
PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- Jackson County supervisors this morning awarded
a $2.9 million contract to J.E. Borries Inc. for dredging work in Stark,
Upper Davis and Simmons bayous.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2014/10/jackson_county_awards_29_milli.html#incart_river
Oil Spill
U.S. Supreme Court rejects appeal to revive lawsuits against BP by 11
parishes
The Associated Press
October 20, 2014 at 9:47 AM
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from 11 Louisiana
parishes that wanted to revive their lawsuits over wildlife damage from the
BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/10/us_supreme_court_rejects_appea.html#incart_river
National
Warming Earth heading for hottest year on record
The Associated Press
October 20, 2014 at 3:49 PM
WASHINGTON — Earth is on pace to tie or even break the mark for the hottest
year on record, federal meteorologists say.
That's because global heat records have kept falling in 2014, with
September the latest example.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/10/warming_earth_heading_for_hott.html#incart_river
California looks to curb methane emissions
BY SEAN COCKERHAM
McClatchy Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — Pressure is growing on regulators in California and
Washington, D.C., to crack down on methane, a greenhouse gas that's 25
times more potent than carbon dioxide and is accelerating the warming of
the planet.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/10/20/5866676/california-looks-to-curb-methane.html?sp=/99/184/767/312/
Nearly All New Nanoengineered Chemicals Are Regulated by EPA Due to
Potential Risks
Monday, October 20, 2014
Bloomberg
The Environmental Protection Agency has regulated nearly all nanoengineered
chemicals that it has reviewed under its new chemicals program, an EPA
program manager who reviews such chemicals said Oct. 16.
http://www.bna.com/nearly-new-nanoengineered-n17179897160/
Energy conservation standards target fluorescent lamps, water heaters
The Hill
The Department of Energy (DOE) is considering new energy conservation
standards for some water heaters and fluorescent lamps, the agency
announced Monday.
http://thehill.com/regulation/221262-energy-conservation-standards-target-fluorescent-lamps-water-heaters
Press Releases
EPA Makes Preliminary Determination to Regulate Strontium in Drinking Water
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has made a
preliminary determination to regulate strontium in the nation's drinking
water. Strontium is a naturally occurring element that, at elevated levels,
can impact bone strength in people who do not consume enough calcium.
A regulatory determination is a formal decision on whether EPA should
initiate a rulemaking process to regulate a specific contaminant. The Safe
Drinking Water Act requires that every five years, EPA develop a
contaminant candidate list and then make a regulatory determination for at
least five contaminants on the list.
Based on available information, the agency has initially determined that
strontium has adverse health effects. Strontium replaces calcium in bone,
affecting skeletal development. Although strontium affects all life stages,
infants, children, and adolescents are of particular concern because their
bones are developing. Strontium has been detected in 99 percent of public
water systems and at levels of concern in 7 percent of public water systems
in the country.
Four other contaminants (dimethoate, 1,3dinitrobenzene, terbufos, and
terbufos sulfone) are either not found, or are found at low levels of
occurrence in public water systems, thus requiring no regulation at this
time.
These determinations are preliminary. EPA will evaluate public feedback
following a 60-day public comment period and determine whether to issue a
final determination to regulate strontium. If EPA makes such a
determination, the Agency will begin the process of developing a proposed
rule, with hopes of publishing the final regulatory determinations in 2015.
For more information, please visit:
http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/ccl3.cfm .
