State
Jackson chooses new sludge hauler
Clarion Ledger
Jackson's administration has recommended a new company be awarded a
nearly $15 million contract to transport and dispose biosolids from
the wastewater facility after the council voted against the mayor's
recommendation twice last fall.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/2016/04/29/jackson-chooses-new-sludge-hauler/83620814/
Ask Rufus: Earthquakes, volcanoes and fossils
Commercial Dispatch
A couple of days ago I was trying to decide what to write about in today's
column when I received an email from Peter Imes asking if I had seen the
new book on the Geology of Mississippi. A massive 751-page encyclopedic
book, "The Geology of Mississippi," has just been published. Mixed in with
some highly technical data is some fascinating information on earthquakes,
volcanoes and fossils in Mississippi.
http://www.cdispatch.com/opinions/article.asp?aid=49871
Symonds water issue on the mend with help
Bolivar Commercial
Approximately 40 people gathered at the New Hope Missionary Baptist Church
in Symonds Wednesday to get an update on the water/sewer system.
Representatives from the USDA Rural Development Jackson office, the
Mississippi Rural Water Association, Eley Engineering, and Delta Regional
Authority were there.
http://www.bolivarcommercial.com/newsx/item/4163-symonds-water-issue-on-the-mend-with-help
Bell honored for beautification efforts
Bolivar Commercial
Cleveland Public Works Director Ray Bell was honored Thursday by Keep
Mississippi Beautiful.
http://www.bolivarcommercial.com/newsx/item/4165-bell-honored-for-beautification-efforts
Mississippi selects waterfowl seasons for next year
Sun Herald
The Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks has chosen its waterfowl
hunting seasons for the 2016-2017 year.
http://www.sunherald.com/sports/outdoors/article74872532.html
Feds announce red snapper season
Clarion Ledger
Federal authorities released the dates of the 2016 red snapper
season in federal waters and as expected, it isn't much of one.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/sports/2016/04/29/feds-announce-red-snapper-season/83702460/
State agencies pondering cuts, layoffs with new budget
Clarion Ledger
In order to cobble together a "balanced" budget amid shortfalls and
deficits, Mississippi lawmakers shifted and raided so many accounts
that state agency leaders are still trying to figure out exactly how
much their budgets have been cut and how they'll operate.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2016/05/01/state-budget-cuts/83699348/
Oil Spill
Spend coast restoration dollars transparently: Public Affairs Research
Council
Times-Picayune
Louisiana's state and local governments and the federal-state Gulf Coast
Ecosystem Restoration Council must do a better job in assuring that their
spending of billions of dollars from the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill and
from offshore oil revenues is transparent to the public, the Public Affairs
Research Council said Friday (April 29) in a commentary published on their
web site.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2016/04/spend_coast_restoration_transp.html#incart_river_index
Regional
LSU professors pry open new world with Triple N Oyster Farm
AP
GRAND ISLE — With a 20 mph north wind whipping up whitecaps on Caminada
Bay, it's a Saturday where most small boat owners have second thoughts
about venturing from shore. But not Steve Pollock.
http://www.nola.com/outdoors/index.ssf/2016/04/lsu_professors_pry_open_new_wo.html#incart_river_index
Alabama governor, senator urge TVA to sell unfinished nuke
AP
BIRMINGHAM, ALA.
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley and Sen. Richard Shelby are among those urging
the Tennessee Valley Authority to sell its unfinished Bellefonte Nuclear
Plant, where more than four decades of work hasn't produced a watt of
electricity.http://www.sunherald.com/news/business/article75088837.html
National
14 States Seek Clean Power Plan Guidance Despite Stay
Bloomberg
Fourteen states are asking the Environmental Protection Agency for
assistance as they prepare to comply with the Clean Power Plan despite the
rule being stayed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
http://www.bna.com/14-states-seek-n57982070455/
States ask EPA for help on climate rule plans
The Hill
More than a dozen states have asked the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) to give them more information on how to form implementation plans for
the Obama administration's climate rule for power plants.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/278217-states-ask-epa-for-help-on-climate-rule-plans
Study: US Oil Field Source of Global Uptick in Air Pollution
AP
WASHINGTON — An oil and natural gas field in the western United
States is largely responsible for a global uptick of the air
pollutant ethane, according to a new study.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/04/29/us/politics/ap-us-ethane-pollution.html?_r=0
Most states do bare minimum on fire-foam contamination
AP
The military is checking U.S. bases for potential groundwater contamination
from a toxic firefighting foam, but most states so far show little
inclination to examine civilian sites for the same threat.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ff765c9513f4452b8295e6fa94d53063/most-states-do-bare-minimum-fire-foam-contamination
2,500 U.S. water systems would fail new lead standard proposal
AP
LANSING, Mich. — In proposing a tougher limit for lead in drinking water,
Gov. Rick Snyder wants to lift Michigan from the depths of the Flint crisis
to being a national model for lead monitoring that could help assess
whether current rules are too lax. Almost 1,500 water systems serving 3.3
million U.S. residents have exceeded the federal Environmental Protection
Agency's lead cap of 15 parts per billion at least once in the past three
years.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2016/04/lead_drinking_water_standards.html#incart_river_index
Battle over ozone standard latest states-federal conflict
Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — Nearly as large as New Jersey, San Juan County is home to
less than 16,000 people and the yawning vistas of Canyonlands National
Park.
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865653248/Battle-over-ozone-standard-latest-states-federal-conflict.html?pg=all
Texas high court rejects city air pollution rules
Houston Chronicle
The Texas Supreme Court on Friday struck down Houston's air quality
ordinances, ruling the city overstepped its authority to police polluters
and handing industry advocates a major victory.
http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Texas-high-court-rejects-city-air-pollution-rules-7384795.php
San Antonio, Austin governments ask for break on ozone
San Antonio Express-News
On Friday, politicians from San Antonio and Austin sent a joint message to
the federal government on clean air regulations: Let us handle it on our
own.
http://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/San-Antonio-Austin-governments-ask-for-break-on-7384585.php
International Paper makes $1.9 billion acquisition
USA Today
Memphis, Tenn.-based paper and packaging giantInternational Paper
said Monday that it would acquire the pulp business of Federal Way,
Wash.-based Weyerhaeuser.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/05/02/international-paper-weyerhaeuser/83815646/
Pa. investigates earthquakes near fracking sites
The Hill
Pennsylvania officials are investigating a possible link between a series
of earthquakes this week and nearby hydraulic fracturing operations.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/278169-pa-investigates-earthquakes-near-fracking-sites
Opinion
The Climate Police Escalate
A subpoena hits a think tank that resists progressive orthodoxy.
WSJ
Sometimes we wonder if we're still living in the land of the free. Witness
the subpoena from Claude Walker, attorney general of the U.S. Virgin
Islands, demanding that the Competitive Enterprise Institute cough up a
decade of emails and policy work, as well as a list of private donors.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-climate-police-escalate-1461968775
