State
Trip gives visitors close-up look at challenges of commercial fishing
WLOX
A longtime Vietnamese fisherman took a group on a special fishing trip
Monday. They were part of an event called "Come Fish off My Boat." The
unique trip called attention to the plight of commercial fishermen and
sparked conversations about efforts to restore the fishery.
http://www.wlox.com/story/27472595/trip-gives-visitors-close-up-look-at-challenges-of-commercial-fishing
Mill development on pace for June completion
Commercial Dispatch
November 24, 2014 9:49:05 AM
Developers of the John M. Stone Cotton Mill, formerly known as MSU's E.E.
Cooley Building, held several tours Friday of the historic building, which
is located at the corner of Russell Street and Highway 12.
http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=38313
Oil Spill
Plan To Use Gulf Oil Spill Funds For Beach Hotel Sparks Lawsuit
NPR
Money is flowing now to Gulf Coast states to remedy damage from the 2010
Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and subsequent spill. All kinds of
projects are underway, from building boat ramps to shoring-up marshland.
http://www.npr.org/2014/11/25/366335282/plan-to-use-gulf-oil-spill-funds-for-beach-hotel-stirs-debate
National
Major energy rule timelines pushed back
The Hill
The Obama administration is pushing back its timeline for issuing major
energy regulations from the Interior Department and the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC).
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/225167-major-energy-rules-pushed-back
Poll: Most voters support stricter smog standards
The Hill
By Lydia Wheeler - 11/25/14 12:01 AM EST
Sixty-two percent of voters support of the Environmental Protection
Agency's plan to issue stricter standards to reduce smog, according to a
new poll from the American Lung Association.
http://thehill.com/regulation/225243-poll-most-voters-support-stricter-smog-standards
EPA rejects Texas plan to cut haze-causing pollution from coal plants
Dallas Morning News
The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday rejected parts of a key Texas
clean-air plan, setting up a conflict that has deep implications both for
the state's electricity mix and for air quality across much of the country.
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/state/headlines/20141124-epa-rejects-texas-plan-to-cut-haze-causing-pollution-from-coal-plants.ece
In North Dakota, Rising Unease Over Oil's Effects
NY Times
In early August 2013, Arlene Skurupey of Blacksburg, Va., got an animated
call from the normally taciturn farmer who rents her family land in
Billings County, N.D. There had been an accident at the Skurupey 1-9H oil
well. "Oh, my gosh, the gold is blowing," she said he told her. "Bakken
gold."
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/in-north-dakota-rising-unease-over-oil%E2%80%99s-effects/ar-BBfvuJ0
Press releases
EPA Awards Grants to Reduce Indoor Pollutant Exposure, Protect Public
Health
Eight organizations in Calif., DC, Ill., Kan., Ky., and Md. receive funding
to minimize exposure to indoor pollutants
WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded
funding to eight organizations throughout the United States to protect
public health by reducing exposure to indoor pollutants, such as radon, and
environmental asthma triggers commonly found in homes, schools, offices and
other large buildings. Through a competitive grant process, EPA is
providing $4.5 million in funds to ensure Americans, especially in
low-income, minority and tribal communities, are able to reduce their
exposure to indoor pollutants and safeguard their families' health.
"Partnering with these leading organizations will increase national
awareness on the importance of healthy indoor air quality in our changing
climate and will empower communities to implement public health projects
locally," said Janet McCabe, acting assistant administrator for the Office
of Air and Radiation.
"With these agreements, EPA advances our commitment to communities by
providing financial and technical assistance so they can take action to
prevent lung cancer, asthma episodes and other respiratory diseases."
Americans spend up to 90 percent of their time indoors, making indoor air
quality an important public health issue. For example, radon is the second
leading cause of lung cancer in the United States and asthma affects more
than 25 million Americans, including 7 million children, with poor and
minority children suffering a greater burden of the disease.
EPA will collaborate with the recipients of the three-year cooperative
agreements to:
· · prevent future lung cancer deaths by reducing public
exposure to radon by mitigating risks in existing homes and schools
and by constructing new homes and schools with radon-reducing
features;
· · prevent asthma attacks, emergency room visits, and other
poor health outcomes by supporting delivery, infrastructure and/or
sustainability of environmental asthma interventions at home and
school, with a focus on populations disproportionately impacted by
asthma; and
· · prevent other poor health outcomes through expanded support
of state and local efforts to improve indoor air quality by promoting
best practices and policies.
The recipients of the "National Indoor Environments Program: Reducing
Public Exposure to Indoor Pollutants" cooperative agreements are:
· · American Lung Association, Washington, DC
· · American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest,
Springfield, Ill.
· · America's Health Insurance Plans, Washington, DC
· · Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors,
Frankfort, Ky.
· · Environmental Law Institute, Washington, DC
· · Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kan.
· · National Center for Healthy Housing, Columbia, Md.
· · Public Health Institute, Oakland, Calif.
For more information on these innovative projects, visit www.epa.gov/iaq.
EPA Solicits Applicants for the 2015 Environmental Justice Small Grants
Program
Contact: Davina Marraccini, 404-562-8293 (direct), 404-562-8400 (main),
marraccini.davina@epa.gov
ATLANTA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting
applications from eligible non-profit groups and tribal communities for the
2015 Environmental Justice Small Grants (EJSG) Program. The EJSG Program
provides funding for projects that help communities understand and address
exposure to multiple environmental harms and risks at the local level. The
application deadline is December 15, 2014.
EPA recognizes the critical role of helping communities with localized
strategies to avoid, lessen, or delay the risks and impacts associated with
our changing climate. As a result, this year's EJSG Program will have a
special emphasis on proposals supporting community-based preparedness and
resilience efforts (community climate resiliency). In an effort to ensure
that support reaches new areas, the Agency also is prioritizing funding to
organizations that have not recently received an award under the EJSG
Program.
The total estimated amount of funding available for awards under this
solicitation for fiscal year 2015 is approximately $1.2 million. EPA
anticipates awarding up to four grants per EPA region in amounts of up to
$30,000 per award for a two-year project period.
Potential applicants in the Southeast who have questions about the
application process may contact Deborah Carter, EPA Region 4's Grants
Coordinator, at 404-562-9668, or carter.deborah@epa.gov.
More information regarding the Environmental Justice Small Grants Program,
including the Request for Applications and descriptions of previously
funded grants:
http://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/grants/ej-smgrants.html
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| Landmark Report Charts Path to Commercialization of Cellulosic Nanomaterials |
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| Potential to Improve Forest Health, Create Products, New Demand for Timber, and Jobs |
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|WASHINGTON, November 24, 2014 - The U.S. Forest Service has released a report that |
|details the pathway to commercializing affordable, renewable, and biodegradable |
|cellulose nanomaterials from trees. Cellulosic nanomaterials are tiny, naturally |
|occurring structural building blocks and hold great promise for many new and improved |
|commercial products. Commercializing these materials also has the potential to create |
|hundreds of thousands of American jobs while helping to restore our nation's forests. |
| |
| |
|"This report is yet another important step toward commercializing a material that can |
|aid in restoring our nations' forests, provide jobs, and improve products that make the|
|lives of Americans better every day," said U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell. "The |
|Forest Service plans to generate greater public and market awareness of the benefits |
|and uses for these naturally-occurring nanomaterials." |
| |
| |
|The report, titled " Cellulose Nanomaterials – A Path towards Commercialization," is a |
|result of a workshop held earlier this year that brought together a wide range of |
|experts from industry, academia, and government to ensure that commercialization |
|efforts are driven by market and user materials needs. |
| |
| |
|Cellulose nanomaterials have the potential to add value to an array of new and improved|
|products across a range of industries, including electronics, construction, food, |
|energy, health care, automotive, aerospace, and defense, according to Ted Wegner, |
|assistant director at the U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, |
|Wis. |
| |
| |
|"These environmentally friendly materials are extremely attractive because they have a |
|unique combination of high strength, high stiffness, and light weight at what looks to |
|be affordable prices," Wegner explained. "Creating market pull for cellulose |
|nanomaterials is critical to its commercialization. |
| |
| |
|The success of this commercialization effort is important to the U.S. Forest Service |
|for another key reason: creating forests that are more resilient to disturbances |
|through restorative actions. Removing excess biomass from overgrown forests and making |
|it into higher value products like nanocellulose, is a win for the environment and for |
|the economy. |
| |
| |
|"Finding high-value, high-volume uses for low-value materials is the key to successful |
|forest restoration," said Michael T. Rains, Director of the Northern Research Station |
|and Forest Products Laboratory. "With about 400 million acres of America's forests in |
|need of some type of restorative action, finding markets for wood-based nanocellulose |
|could have a huge impact on the economic viability of that work." |
| |
| |
|The U.S. Forest Service, in collaboration with the U.S. National Nanotechnology |
|Initiative, organized the workshop. Participants included over 130 stakeholders from |
|large volume industrial users, specialty users, Federal Government agencies, academia, |
|non-government organizations, cellulose nanomaterials manufactures and industry |
|consultants. The workshop generated market-driven input in three areas: Opportunities |
|for Commercialization, Barriers to Commercialization, and Research and Development |
|Roles and Priorities. Issues identified by participants included the need for more data|
|on materials properties, performance, and environmental, health, and safety |
|implications and the need for a more aggressive U.S. response to opportunities for |
|advancing and developing cellulose nanomaterial. |
| |
| |
|"The workshop was a great opportunity to get research ideas directly from the people |
|who want to use the material," says World Nieh, the U.S. Forest Service's national |
|program lead for forest products. "Getting the market perspective and finding out what |
|barriers they have encountered is invaluable guidance for moving research in a |
|direction that will bring cellulose nanomaterials into the marketplace for commercial |
|use." |
| |
| |
|The mission of the U.S. Forest Service, part U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to |
|sustain the health, diversity and productivity of the nation's forests and grasslands |
|to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million |
|acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and |
|maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world. Public lands the |
|Forest Service manages contribute more than $13 billion to the economy each year |
|through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 20 percent of the nation's |
|clean water supply, a value estimated at $7.2 billion per year. The agency has either a|
|direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 80 percent of the 850 million forested |
|acres within the U.S., of which 100 million acres are urban forests where most |
|Americans live. |
| |
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|# |
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