10/29/2014
State
Mississippi Phosphates in Pascagoula Files Bankruptcy
WXXV
Pascagoula-based Mississippi Phosphates filed for bankruptcy Monday. The
company is a major fertilizer producer that has been plagued with
environmental issues over the past few years.
Members of the Cherokee Concerned Citizens Group in Pascagoula believe
their chronic health issues are linked to the emissions of Mississippi
Phosphates, a fertilizer plant just two blocks away from the neighborhood.
http://www.wxxv25.com/news/local/story/Mississippi-Phosphates-in-Pascagoula-Files/_O2h8ef-GEOMRwvikYjM5g.cspx
Eco-tourism could give the coast a huge boost
WLOX
JACKSON COUNTY, MS (WLOX) -Now that the coast is being marketed as one
single destination, those in charge of getting the word out need to know
what the entire coast has to offer. In Jackson County, that something is
Mother Nature. So commissioners, staff members, and ad agency executives
representing the Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau took a look
around on their own tour of the county.
http://www.wlox.com/story/27134401/eco-tourism-could-give-the-coast-a-huge-boost
Report: Gulf Islands National Seashore created $39M in economic growth for
Jackson County last year
Gulf Islands helped add $39M to county's economy in 2013
Sun Herald
BY JAMES SKRMETTA
OCEAN SPRINGS -- A group of coastal leaders toured natural resource sites
across Jackson County early Tuesday morning to observe how to grow the
nature tourism industry.
http://www.sunherald.com/2014/10/28/5881072/report-gulf-islands-national-seashore.html?sp=/99/184/201/
Kemper County power plant price tag tops $6.1 billion as costs climb again,
start-up delayed
The Associated Press
October 28, 2014 at 8:16 PM
JACKSON, Mississippi — Southern Co. says it will cost at least another $496
million to finish the power plant it's building in eastern Mississippi's
Kemper County, pushing the total cost above $6.1 billion.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-business/2014/10/kemper_county_power_plant_pric.html#incart_river
White: Clean cities thrive
Tully Taylor
Enterprise-Journal
Tuesday, October 28
One of Mississippi's top tourism officials told attendees of Keep Pike
County Beautiful's annual awards banquet on Monday that cleanliness,
beautification and civic pride go a long way in promoting a community.
http://www.enterprise-journal.com/news/article_ac1fdb7c-5ebf-11e4-8d8a-937e6cda5e7e.html
Ole Miss gets $20M grant, will build science facility
Clarion Ledger
The University of Mississippi will expand "Science Row" with a new
facility seeded by a $20 million grant from the Gertrude C. Ford
Foundation.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/2014/10/28/ole-miss-gertrude-ford-grant-science/18072751/
State sues, claims lab wasn't up to handling biohazards
Clarion Ledger
The state is suing architects and designers of a new Public Health
Lab, saying the $28 million lab wasn't up to containing deadly
diseases, biohazards and chemicals.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2014/10/27/state-suing-architects-health-lab/18020615/
Mississippi PERS shows improved results with stock market gains
The Associated Press
October 28, 2014 at 6:00 PM
JACKSON, Mississippi -- With stock market gains replacing steep losses in
the accounting ledger, Mississippi's main public employee pension fund
posted stronger results last year.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2014/10/mississippi_pers_shows_improve.html#incart_river
Oil Spill
NEW PROGRAM TRAINS YOUNG PEOPLE FOR RESTORATION JOBS
MPB
A new project is training young people on the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the
skills needed for coastal restoration work. MPB's Evelina Burnett reports,
billions of additional dollars to restore the Gulf after the 2010 BP oil
spill will soon start flowing to the region.
http://www.mpbonline.org/blogs/news/2014/10/28/new-program-trains-young-people-for-restoration-jobs/
Coast youth learn job skills testing water quality
WLOX
GULFPORT, MS (WLOX) -They are testing water quality and learning future job
skills. Some young people who graduated from Climb CDC training program in
Gulfport are now involved in a restoration project that's part of the
ongoing recovery from the BP oil spill.
http://www.wlox.com/story/27141898/coast-youth-learn-job-skills-testing-water-quality
Gulf Coast landowners, farmers can tap $40M in conservation cash from BP
oil spill
Mark Schleifstein
The Times-Picayune
October 28, 2014 at 7:57 PM
Gulf Coast landowners and farmers are eligible for $40 million in
conservation grants aimed at offsetting the impacts of the BP Deepwater
Horizon oil spill, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Tuesday
(Oct. 28).
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/10/gulf_coast_landowners_farmers.html#incart_river
Craft favors larger projects with RESTORE Act money
Gulf Coast News
BY JOHN MULLEN
October 28, 2014
GULF SHORES, AL — With the possibility of RESTORE Act money becoming a
reality, Mayor Robert Craft of Gulf Shores says members of a committee who
will vote on spending that money are faced with two choices.
http://www.gulfcoastnewstoday.com/area_news/article_315303ba-5ec9-11e4-b8f3-1be9981e76a4.html
BP wants federal judge to order oil spill claims administrator to turn over
audit
Jennifer Larino
The Times-Picayune
October 28, 2014 at 2:25 PM
BP is asking a federal judge in New Orleans to order oil spill claims
administrator Patrick Juneau to turn over results of an audit of the
program. The British oil giant says it has the right to not only review the
findings, but to examine why audit costs have soared over the past year.
http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2014/10/bp_asks_federal_judge_to_order.html#incart_river
Regional
Louisiana sues Corps of Engineers for $3 billion cost of repairing MR-GO
damaged wetlands
Mark Schleifstein
The Times-Picayune
October 28, 2014 at 8:15 PM
The state of Louisiana sued the Army Corps of Engineers Tuesday (Oct. 28)
to force it to pay the full $3 billion cost of restoring wetlands destroyed
during the maintenance and operation of the shuttered Mississippi
River-Gulf Outlet navigation channel.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/10/louisiana_files_federal_suit_t.html#incart_river
National
U.S. EPA seeks more input on sweeping power plant rule
Reuters
Tue, Oct 28 2014
By Valerie Volcovici
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators said on Tuesday they wanted more
input on elements of a sweeping plan to reduce pollution from power plants
and about the role natural gas can play to achieve emissions cuts.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/28/us-usa-climatechange-epa-idUSKBN0IH23W20141028
Coal ash rule heads to White House for final review
The Hill
The nation's first-ever regulations on the storage and disposal of coal ash
have been sent to the White House for final review.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/222071-coal-ash-rule-heads-to-white-house-for-final-review
Opinion
ROSS REILY: EPA should have historical background of Delta
MBJ
by Ross Reily
Published: October 28,2014
If you first listen to environmentalists and the Environmental Protection
Agency as to why they are opposed to the Yazoo Backwater project, they make
a pretty compelling argument.
http://msbusiness.com/blog/2014/10/28/ross-reily-epa-historical-background-delta/
Press Releases
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| USDA Announces New Partnership with National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to Support |
| Ongoing Gulf Restoration |
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|NORCO, La., Oct. 28, 2014 - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a new |
|partnership between USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the |
|National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) that will provide additional support for |
|restoration of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem in response to impacts that occurred as a |
|result of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. |
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|"The health of the Gulf ecosystem will be decided by how well we treat the private |
|lands that make up most of this region," Secretary Vilsack said. "This new partnership |
|with NFWF leverages significant funding for restoration in these Gulf States. In |
|addition to our many Farm Bill conservation programs, partnering with NFWF and private |
|landowners will enable us to continue to make progress in this region and achieve our |
|goals for a healthy Gulf ecosystem." |
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|The new partnership will significantly expand conservation efforts with private |
|landowners and operators who might not otherwise be eligible to participate in existing|
|recovery programs. The partnership will begin with a $20 million investment from NFWF, |
|matched by a $20 million investment from NRCS. Additional commitments of up to $30 |
|million from each partner are possible over the next four years. |
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|NFWF, NRCS and other partners will focus on working on private lands to implement |
|conservation projects that will enhance the existing recovery efforts in Louisiana, |
|Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and Texas. |
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|Potential projects include: |
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| · Wetlands conservation; |
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| · Stream and riparian buffer restoration; |
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| · Farm and ranch land protection, including the practices that go along with |
| protection, such as improving soil health, implementing no-till farming and |
| enhancing wildlife habitat. |
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|More information on these projects will be available through NRCS offices in the five |
|Gulf states. |
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|In early 2013, a U.S. District Court approved two plea agreements resolving certain |
|criminal cases against BP and Transocean which arose from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon |
|explosion and oil spill. The agreements direct a total of $2.544 billion to NFWF to |
|fund projects benefiting the natural resources of the Gulf Coast that were impacted by |
|the spill. |
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|This agreement builds on investments that NFWF and NRCS are making in the region. NRCS |
|works side-by-side with farmers, ranchers and private landowners to make improvements |
|to their land, helping clean water and air, enhance habitat and enrich soil. This past |
|year, NRCS worked with farmers, ranchers, and forestland managers in the five Gulf |
|states to improve the health of more than 3 million acres. |
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EPA Provides Additional Information on Clean Power Plan
Agency requests public comment on additional information and proposes
carbon goals for areas in Indian Country and U.S. Territories
WASHINGTON – As part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's
extensive outreach since issuing the proposed Clean Power Plan, EPA is
making additional information and ideas available for public comment in a
notice of data availability (NODA). At the same time, EPA is following
through on its commitment made in June to propose goals to reduce carbon
pollution in areas of Indian Country and U.S. Territories where fossil-fuel
power plants are located.
EPA has engaged in unprecedented outreach to a broad range of stakeholders
since proposing the Clean Power Plan, including states, utilities,
industry, public health and environmental groups, labor, and community
groups. During the many meetings, conference calls, and the nearly 1.5
million public comments the agency has received so far, stakeholders have
identified a wide range of ideas and information.
In issuing today's NODA, EPA is seeking to ensure that all interested
parties are aware of the issues and ideas that have been consistently
raised by a diverse group of stakeholders, so that everyone has the
opportunity to consider them as they formulate their comments, which are
due on Dec. 1, 2014. Notices of data availability are commonly used to
present additional information for the public to consider. They do not
change a proposal, nor are they a complete summary of the wide variety of
ideas that have been raised. They allow EPA to continue seeking ideas and
comments on these and many other issues as the agency works toward a final
rule that is flexible and empowers states to chart their own, customized
path to meet goals for reducing harmful carbon pollution.
In a separate but related action, EPA is proposing goals for areas of
Indian Country and U.S. Territories where fossil-fuel fired power plants
are located to reduce their carbon pollution by 2030. Proposed goals for
these areas were not included in the June 2014 proposed Clean Power Plan.
The supplemental proposal relies on the approach used in the June 2014
Clean Power Plan and is based on new information and data provided through
additional outreach to covered facilities and tribal and territorial
governments. The proposal outlines a diverse range of options that tribes
and territories could use to meet their goals. EPA will hold a public
hearing on the supplemental proposal on Nov. 19, 2014 in Phoenix, Ariz. and
will accept comment through Dec. 19, 2014.
Today's actions are part of the common-sense steps laid out in President
Obama's Climate Action Plan and the June 2013 Presidential Memorandum.
Power plants account for roughly one-third of all domestic greenhouse gas
emissions in the United States. While there are limits in place for
arsenic, mercury, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particle pollution
emissions, there are currently no national limits on carbon pollution from
power plants.
In 2009, EPA determined that greenhouse gas pollution threatens Americans'
health and welfare by leading to long-lasting changes in our climate that
can have a range of negative effects on human health and the environment.
Taking steady, responsible steps to cut carbon pollution from existing
power plants will protect public health, continue the United States'
international environmental leadership, and move the nation toward a
cleaner, more stable environment for future generations, while supplying
the reliable, affordable power needed for economic growth.
Fact sheets and details about the NODA and the supplemental proposal:
http://www.epa.gov/cleanpowerplan
More information on President Obama's Climate Action Plan:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/climate-change
Accepting Nominations for the 2015 Gulf Guardian Awards
ATLANTA - The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency's Gulf of Mexico
Program partnership developed the Gulf Guardian awards as a way to
recognize and honor the businesses, community groups, individuals, and
organizations that are taking extraordinary steps to keep the Gulf healthy,
beautiful and productive. The Gulf Guardian Award recipients exemplify what
the Gulf of Mexico Program partnership is all about; innovative solutions
that come about when we pool resources and look for creative ways to
positively impact our quality of life and economic well-being on the Gulf
of Mexico.
For the year 2015, the Gulf of Mexico Program will be awarding 1st, 2nd and
3rd place awards for seven (7) categories: Business & Industry,
Environmental Justice/Cultural Diversity, Civic/Non-Profit Organizations,
Partnerships, Youth Environmental Education, Individual, and Bi-National
partnership efforts. All 21 winners in these seven different categories
will be rewarded with the Gulf Guardian Memento, extensive press coverage
on their project and achievements, and recognition by their peers at a
special Gulf Guardian Awards ceremony.
The Gulf of Mexico Program is underwritten by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency and is a non-regulatory, inclusive consortium of state
and federal government agencies and representatives of the business and
agricultural community, fishing industry, scientists, and community leaders
from all across the five Gulf States and Mexico.
To complete a nomination application for 2015, go to the Gulf of Mexico
Program's web site at http://www.epa.gov/gmpo, The 2015 Gulf Guardian
Applications are available in both English and Spanish. Email your
nomination to GulfGuardian@epa.gov by January 15, 2015. If you have any
questions, or require further information or assistance, please contact The
Gulf of Mexico Program Office at (228) 688-3726.
ENERGY STAR Day: Administrator McCarthy Recognizes Billions in Savings to
Consumers and Businesses Through ENERGY STAR
Hello, we wanted to make sure you saw this blog post with a video from EPA
Administrator Gina McCarthy about the accomplishments of the ENERGY STAR
program in recognition of ENERGY STAR Day. View the Administrator's blog
and video on the EPA Connect blog online: http://go.usa.gov/Guj5
ENERGY STAR Day: The Power of the Little Blue Label
Click here to view videos and photos online: http://go.usa.gov/Guj5
Let's start with a few numbers:
300 billion dollars in savings. That's how much consumers and businesses
have saved on utility bills in the last 22 years because of the ENERGY STAR
program.
Two billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions avoided, or the
equivalent to the annual emissions of more than 420 million cars. Thanks to
our little blue ENERGY STAR label, folks are doing their part to reduce
their greenhouse emissions and combat climate change.
Since President Obama took office, ENERGY STAR has helped American
consumers and businesses save over one billion metric tons of greenhouse
gas emissions and approximately $110 billion on their utility bills.
That's one powerful little label. Click here to view the ENERGY STAR logo
online: http://go.usa.gov/Guj5
For more than 20 years, people across the country have looked to EPA's
ENERGY STAR program for guidance on how to save energy and money while
protecting the environment. Today, on ENERGY STAR Day, we are celebrating
the accomplishments of our program, and recognizing the important
partnership between businesses, consumers, and the government to find
commonsense ways to save money, fight climate change, and leave the world a
better place for our kids.
Throughout October, the ENERGY STAR Community Service Tour, in partnership
with private and public sector organizations, are working to improve the
quality of life for families, children and our veterans through energy
efficiency service projects, while inspiring folks to think about what they
can do to make a difference through energy efficiency in their communities.
Projects include an energy-saving makeover at the Edgewood, Maryland Boys
and Girls Club, featuring energy efficient lights that will save the club
money on their electric bills; upgrades to appliances and other equipment a
Denver Housing Authority building to increase the comfort of residents and
save energy, water and money; and to wrap it all up, today, we are
partnering with a non-profit housing facility for homeless veterans in
Phoenix to celebrate an extensive energy efficiency upgrade that included
ENERGY STAR certified lighting, appliances, insulation, weatherization and
windows, plus upgraded HVAC equipment.
Click here to view photos of the Edgewood, Maryland, Boys & Girls Club
basketball court before and after ENERGY STAR efficiency upgrades:
http://go.usa.gov/Guj5
Here are a few things you can do now to spread the word about how your
family and friends can save money and do their part to combat climate
change through ENERGY STAR:
1. Share the Administrator's video and blog on your social media sites
and encourage your friends to retweet: http://go.usa.gov/Guj5
2. Take the pledge to save energy through the My ENERGY STAR tool at
www.energystar.gov
3. Join our ENERGY STAR Twitter chat on October 29th at 2 p.m. by using
the hashtag #ESPositiveEnergy for more information about what you can
do to make a difference now and in the future.
4. Keep an eye out for that little blue label and switch to ENERGY STAR
certified products.
