11/5/14
State
Record hazardous waste haul in DeSoto
Commercial Appeal
Henry Bailey Jr.
The 2014 edition of DeSoto County's Household Hazardous Waste Day and Tire
Recycle merged toxic refuse and community mirth for a record collection —
609 vehicle loads — that will keep area waterways and landfills cleaner.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/local-news/desoto/record-hazardous-waste-haul-in-desoto_01516394
Miss. voters approve hunting rights proposal
AP
Mississippi voters Tuesday approved a proposal to enshrine hunting
and fishing as rights in the state's constitution.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2014/11/04/miss-voters-approve-hunting-rights-proposal/18500203/
Neel-Schaffer joins forces with Alabama-based engineering firm
MBJ
by Ross Reily
Published: November 4,2014
JACKSON — Neel-Schaffer, Inc., is joining forces with Almon Associates of
Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to form a larger, more versatile engineering and
planning firm to better serve clients throughout Alabama. Almon Associates
was founded in 1956 in Tuscaloosa.
http://msbusiness.com/blog/2014/11/04/neel-schaffer-joins-forces-alabama-based-engineering-firm/
National
DOJ asks court to dismiss lawsuit against EPA climate rule
The Hill
Obama administration attorneys are calling a lawsuit against the
Environmental Protection Agency's landmark climate rule "premature" and
says it should be dismissed.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/222780-doj-asks-court-to-dismiss-epa-climate-rule-lawsuit
White House: GOP Senate won't stop Obama on climate
The Hill
President Obama will continue to take action on policies to fight climate
change whether or not Republicans take control of the Senate, the White
House said.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/222811-gop-senate-wont-stop-obama-on-climate
Lightbulb efficiency improving under federal rules
The Hill
The efficiency of light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs have improved greatly in
recent years as federal mandates have tightened, the Energy Information
Administration (EIA) reported.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/222826-lightbulb-efficiency-improving-under-federal-rules
Press Releases
Leading Edge Aviation Services Sentenced for Unlawful Handling of Hazardous
Waste at Greenville, Miss. Facility
Contact: Davina Marraccini (EPA), 404-562-9183 or marraccini.davina@epa.gov
; William C. Lamar (DOJ) 662-234-3351 or chad.lamar@usdoj.gov
ATLANTA – Felicia C. Adams, United States Attorney for the Northern
District of Mississippi, together with Maureen O'Mara, Special Agent in
Charge of the Environmental Protection Agency's criminal enforcement
program in the Southeast, announces:
Leading Edge Aviation Services, Inc. (Leading Edge), a corporation
headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, was sentenced today by United
States District Judge Glen Davidson, in Aberdeen, Mississippi, following a
guilty plea to one felony count of treating, storing, or disposing of
hazardous waste without a permit at Leading Edge's now shuttered
Greenville, Mississippi, facility.
Leading Edge operated a commercial aircraft painting facility at
Greenville's Mid-Delta Regional Airport until mid-2013. The process of
stripping paint from aircraft in preparation for repainting generated large
volumes of hazardous wastes that Leading Edge was required to properly
manage. However, an investigation by the government revealed that from
April 23, 2010 to May 16, 2010, Leading Edge failed to properly manage its
hazardous wastes when it stored them in an open pit without a permit.
Judge Davidson sentenced Leading Edge to pay a criminal fine in the amount
of $700,000. Leading Edge will pay a separate $275,000 civil penalty to the
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and a $25,000 community
service payment to the Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste
Management Officials, a non-profit corporation. Leading Edge was also
ordered to serve a term of probation of 12 months. The sentence further
requires Leading Edge to complete cleanup of its Greenville facility,
implement a corporate wide hazardous waste training program, hire an
Environmental, Health and Safety Manager, obtain ISO 14001 environmental
management certification for its operating facilities, adopt a corporate
code of ethics policy, and conduct ethics training for senior management.
The activity to which Leading Edge plead guilty occurred prior to the
company's purchase by a new ownership group in April 2012. The company,
under the direction of its new ownership, cooperated fully with the EPA's
investigation of this matter.
Felicia C. Adams, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi,
said, "The former owners of Leading Edge flouted the law by failing to
properly manage its hazardous waste. Today's sentence ensures that these
illegal practices will not continue. The United States Attorney's Office
for the Northern District of Mississippi is committed to maintaining the
health and safety of our citizens."
"Our nation's environmental laws help ensure that human health and safety
is not endangered by companies looking to cut costs illegally," said
Maureen O'Mara, Special Agent in Charge of EPA's criminal enforcement
program in Mississippi. "The defendant's actions callously placed the
health of nearby residents at great risk. The paints and solvents used in
this case were especially hazardous, requiring proper handling and
disposal. This case sends a clear message that corporations that fail to
properly manage hazardous wastes will be prosecuted and held accountable
for their actions."
This case was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal
Investigation Division, and the Mississippi Department of Environmental
Quality.
News Brief: EPA Awards Environmental Education Grants to Recipients in 18
States
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 4, 2014
WASHINGTON: Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the
completion of awards for the 2013 Environmental Education Model Grants
Program. Projects include community energy education, summer programs for
low-income teenagers, integration of multimedia learning tools into
watershed education, environmental health education on the impact of
climate change and asthma, and hands-on K-12 environmental education
programs. From applications received in 2013, EPA has funded 20 grants from
across the country, ranging from $75,000- 200,000 for a total of
approximately $2.8 million.
Winners of the 2013 competition include recipients from 18 states: Maine,
Rhode Island, New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Alabama, South Carolina,
Illinois, Michigan, Louisiana, Texas, Nebraska, Colorado, Montana, Arizona,
Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.
Since 1992, EPA has distributed between $2 and $3.5 million in grant
funding per year, for a total of $62,143,290, supporting more than 3,600
grant projects. Applications for the 2014 EE Model Grants Program will be
available later in Fall 2014.
The purpose of the EE Model Grants Program is to support environmental
education projects that increase public awareness about environmental
issues and provide participants with the skills to take responsible actions
to protect the environment. This grant program provides financial support
for projects that design, demonstrate, and/or disseminate environmental
education practices, methods, or techniques, and that will serve as models
that can be replicated in a variety of settings.
For more information on the new awardees and on future EE grant
competitions visit,
http://www2.epa.gov/education/environmental-education-ee-grants.
