10/22/14
State
North Lee issue addressed: Tupelo leaders favor legal action, water
upgrades
By Robbie Ward
Daily Journal
TUPELO – City Council approval Tuesday for possible legal action against a
rural water association serving parts of the city followed support for
making $11.3 million in water and sewer infrastructure improvements in
related annexed areas.
http://djournal.com/news/north-lee-issue-addressed-tupelo-leaders-favor-legal-action-water-upgrades/
Innovative aquaculture program grows oysters
WLOX
A seafood dealer in Pass Christian is testing a new method for growing
oysters. It involves raising oyster larvae in large tanks, then
transplanting the young oysters onto reefs. The process is called remote
setting and it's proven successful on both the East and West coasts. The
big question now is: How will it work in the Mississippi Sound?
http://www.wlox.com/story/26844426/innovative-aquaculture-program-grows-oysters
OYSTER AQUACULTURE PROJECT HOPES TO JUMPSTART PRODUCTION
MPB
Mississippi's oyster harvest has fallen 84 percent in the past decade. As
MPB's Evelina Burnett reports, a Pass Christian oyster processor is trying
to reverse that trend.
http://www.mpbonline.org/blogs/news/2014/10/22/oyster-aquaculture-project-hopes-to-jumpstart-production/
Petal OKs wastewater study
Hattiesburg American
Petal's Board of Aldermen voted Tuesday night to give
Hattiesburg-based wastewater management company Earthworx LLC the
green light to proceed with a study tailored to the city's
wastewater treatment needs.
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/story/news/local/petal/2014/10/21/petal-oks-wastewater-study/17698943/
Starkville Debris Removal Waivers
WCBI
Starkville, Mississippi (WCBI) – Starkville aldermen approve several debris
removal waivers for residents still cleaning up from the October 13th storm
that hit the city.
http://www.wcbi.com/wordpress/starkville-debris-removal-waivers
County, city work to improve creek banks
Meridian Star
By Terri Ferguson Smith
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Homeowners along part of Robbins Creek will get to hang on to more of
their back yards after county and city efforts have stopped some of the
erosion.
http://www.meridianstar.com/news/article_7b4c3e26-5999-11e4-a5c8-6b7c5ef88a6c.html
Oil Spill
BP takes another shot in bid to delay seafood claims payments
Jennifer Larino
The Times-Picayune
October 21, 2014 at 8:01 PM
BP has asked a federal judge to delay a second round of oil spill payments
to seafood workers, arguing that there are still problems within the
compensation program.
http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2014/10/bp_takes_another_shot_in_bid_t.html#incart_river
National
US energy-related carbon emissions rose in 2013, feds say
The Hill
Energy-related carbon emissions rose 2.5 percent in 2013, according to the
Energy Department's stat shop.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/221398-us-energy-related-carbon-emissions-rose-in-2013-feds-say
EPA Carbon Standards for Modified Plants Impose Double Regulation,
Utilities Say
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Bloomberg
An Environmental Protection Agency proposed rule that would require
modified and reconstructed power plants to meet two different carbon
dioxide emissions standards under separate provisions of the Clean Air Act
is illegal, states and industry groups said.
http://www.bna.com/epa-carbon-standards-n17179897251/
Is EPA's inspector general overstepping with review of fracking regs?
Washington Post
The Environmental Protection Agency's inspector general said Tuesday that
he will move forward with a review of pollution risks from hydraulic
fracturing, despite objections from lawmakers who say he is overstepping
his bounds.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/wp/2014/10/21/is-epas-inspector-general-overstepping-with-review-of-fracking-regs/
High pollution levels found near Ohio gas wells
The Associated Press
October 21, 2014 at 4:24 PM
CLEVELAND (AP) — A study in a rural Ohio county where oil and gas drilling
is booming found air pollution levels near well sites higher than those in
downtown Chicago.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/10/high_pollution_levels_found_ne.html#incart_river
Dentists brace for new EPA pollution rules
The Hill
Dentists are facing new pollution rules from the Environmental Protection
Agency that could cost the industry millions of dollars to comply with.
http://thehill.com/regulation/221376-dentists-facing-new-pollution-rules
Opinion
No, BP Didn't Ruin the Gulf
Politico
By GEOFF MORRELL
October 21, 2014
Ongoing litigation and political wrangling over the Deepwater Horizon
accident have generated considerable speculation about the size of the
potential financial penalties facing BP, how much money will go to the Gulf
Coast states and how the states will spend the money. Lost in all that is a
more fundamental question: What impact did the spill actually have on the
Gulf Coast environment?
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/10/gulf-coast-recovery-expectations-112088.html#.VEeujvmjNcY
Press Releases
EPA Launches a Voluntary Star-Rating Program to Reduce Pesticide Drift and
Protect People,Wildlife and the Environment
More stars equals greater potential for reducing spray drift
WASHINGTON-The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing a new
voluntary Drift Reduction Technology (DRT) program to encourage the use of
verified, safer pesticide spray products to reduce exposure and pesticide
movement while saving farmers money in pesticide loss.
"Every year state and local agencies receive thousands of complaints about
the impacts of pesticide drift on people, wildlife and plants," said Jim
Jones, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and
Pollution Prevention. "Our new star-rating system of products and
technologies will help farmers reduce drift, protect neighbors and reduce
costs by keeping more of the pesticide on the crop. We hope the new
voluntary DRT will encourage the manufacture, marketing and use of safer
spray technology and equipment scientifically proven to reduce pesticide
drift."
One to ten percent of agricultural pesticide sprays drift or move from the
intended target crop. Every year about 70 million pounds of pesticides
valued up to $640 million are lost to pesticide drift. And, state agencies
use substantial resources each year investigating drift complaints. Farmers
have long been concerned about reducing pesticide product loss during and
after application to crops and minimizing drift to neighbors.
DRT is a voluntary program that encourages manufacturers to test their
technologies (such as nozzles, spray shields and drift reduction chemicals)
for drift reduction potential. EPA encourages pesticide manufacturers to
label their products for use with DRT technologies. The four DRT ratings
represented by one, two, three or four stars are awarded for technologies
that demonstrate at least 25 percent reduction in potential spray drift
compared to the standard.
Spray technology manufacturers interested in participating in EPA's DRT
program may now submit data verifying their technology reduces pesticide
movement. EPA will evaluate each data submission and, if appropriate,
assign a drift-reduction star rating to the product based on its ability to
reduce spray drift. EPA will post these ratings at:
http://www2.epa.gov/reducing-pesticide-drift .
A pesticide manufacturer can choose to label a product for use with a DRT
of a particular rating after receiving approval from EPA.
Over time, the program will move the agricultural sector toward the
widespread use of low-drift technologies. Drift-reduction ratings could
appear on pesticide labels as early as fall 2015.
Additional information on EPA's DRT Program, including how to test
technologies, is available at: http://www2.epa.gov/reducing-pesticide-drift
.
