State
Pascagoula renews contract with Waste Pro to improve waste collection
Mississippi Press
PASCAGOULA, Miss. -- The City of Pascagoula announced on Friday that it has renewed its residential and light commercial contract with Waste Pro. According to the release, residents will be receiving new recycling roll-out cans to help make recycling easier. All citizens should receive a new rolling recycle can by September 12.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2016/08/pascagoula_renews_contract_wit.html#incart_river_index
Ocean Springs schools change garbage vendors, lose recycling program
Mississippi Press
OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi -- In a constant quest to balance its budget, the Ocean Springs school district changed garbage vendors earlier this year, saving $7,000 in annual costs, but in the process lost the recycling program.
http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2016/08/ocean_springs_schools_change_g.html#incart_river_index
Supervisors borrow for Bogue Chitto River project
Ernest Herndon | Enterprise-Journal
Pike County supervisors proceeded with plans Thursday to borrow $600,000 to repair bridge-threatening erosion on the Bogue Chitto River at Holmesville.
In other business Thursday, supervisors:
• Learned that Household Hazardous Waste Day will be held 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 22, at the county health department. No household garbage will be accepted.
• Met with Artis Brown, Recycle One program manager for the city of McComb. She said a Department of Environmental Quality grant ended this year but she got a $50,000 solid waste assistance grant, with $37,000 to go to the city and $13,000 to the county. She also got a $10,000 Dr. Pepper-Snapple grant to put 25 recycling containers in city parks. Brown said there are recycling sites in McComb, Magnolia, Osyka and Summit.
http://www.enterprise-journal.com/news/article_099d1738-6cd8-11e6-9392-ebe47880f012.html
City to get Kuhn property through eminent domain
Vicksburg Post
The city of Vicksburg is going to court to acquire the 12.8-acre Kuhn Memorial Hospital property.
http://www.vicksburgpost.com/2016/08/26/city-to-get-kuhn-property-through-eminent-domain/
MSU-USDA to create national training academy
WTVA
STARKVILLE, Miss (WTVA) -- Mississippi State and the USDA APHIS Wildlife Services program are partnering for a national training academy on the MSU campus.
http://www.wtva.com/news/local/MSU-USDA_to_create_national_training_academy.html
Early migratory game-bird season begins Labor Day weekend
Sun Herald
Labor Day weekend marks the start of early hunting seasons for migratory game birds in Mississippi.
http://www.sunherald.com/sports/outdoors/article98354532.html
Oil Spill
Analysis: Miss. lawmakers jockey for BP money
Jeff Amy
BP
JACKSON - Generally, there's nothing better for a politician than spending "free" money — cash that arrived in the treasury without lawmakers having to vote to raise taxes on their constituents.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2016/08/28/analysis-miss-lawmakers-jockey-bp-money/89519716/
Regional
N.C. policy makers, regulators attack EPA's Clean Power Plan
Charlotte Business Journal
The Obama administration's Clean Power Plan, requiring states to achieve 30% reductions in carbon emissions, did not get much love at the Carolinas Federal and State Policy Briefing sponsored by E4 Carolinas.
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2016/08/29/n-c-policy-makers-regulators-attack-epas-clean.html
Study: Triangle ozone deaths can be prevented
News & Observer
RALEIGH
An estimated 25 deaths each year in the Triangle from health problems caused by poor air quality could be prevented by reducing ozone pollution to levels recommended by the American Thoracic Society, according to a report released by the society and the New York University Marron Institute for Urban Management.
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article98181542.html
See how Louisville's air quality has improved
Courier-Journal
Failing grades from the American Lung Association. Among the highest-ranked cities for toxic air emissions from industry.
http://www.courier-journal.com/story/tech/science/watchdog-earth/2016/08/26/see-how-louisvilles-air-quality-has-improved/89396854/
Exposure to fracking chemicals might impair fertility, study says
Times-Picayune
Exposure to chemicals released during hydraulic fracturing has been linked to adverse reproductive and developmental outcomes in mice, according to aUniversity of Missouri study released Thursday (Aug. 25). Exposure to the chemicals also could pose a threat to human development, the university said in an announcement of the study.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2016/08/exposure_to_fracking_chemicals.html#incart_river_index
Picture this: Better flood forecast graphics still 5 years away
Times-Picayune
Amid the flooding that swamped 20 Louisiana parishes, damaging an estimated 60,000 homes and killing 13 people, survivors lamented that they were not sufficiently warned. Sure, they knew it was going to rain heavily and that flooding was possible in their parish, but somehow the gravity of the forecast had not sunk in.
http://www.nola.com/environment/index.ssf/2016/08/new_rainfall_flood_inundation.html#incart_river_index
National
EPA Bans Exports of Five Mercury Compounds as of 2020
Bloomberg
The Environmental Protection Agency is banning exports of five mercury compounds effective Jan. 1, 2020.
http://www.bna.com/epa-bans-exports-n73014446904/
Report: Texas Flouted Federal Aquifer Rules for 34 Years
AP
Texas allowed the drilling of oil and natural gas injection wells in some areas near drinking water sources starting more than three decades ago, but state regulators recently assured the federal government the effort posed "little to no risk" to the subterranean reserves, according to a report released Friday.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/report-texas-flaunted-federal-aquifer-rules-34-years-41680189
Which State Is a Big Renewable Energy Pioneer? Texas
The Lone Star state has added more wind-based capacity than any other, as part of an aggressive energy diversification that seeks to skirt ideological land mines
WSJ
SAN ANTONIO—On a blustery February night, the Texas electricity market hit a milestone. Nearly half the power flowing onto the grid came from wind turbines, a level unimaginable a decade ago in a place better known for its long romance with fossil fuels.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/which-state-is-a-big-renewable-energy-pioneer-texas-1472414098
Sewer spills put city under EPA scrutiny
Analysis: Poor, minority areas most affected
Houston Chronicle
It's something of a ritual. Every time it storms, Rudy Barajas grabs an umbrella and trudges to the end of his street in southwest Houston to see if raw sewage is gurgling out of a nearby manhole on Wilcrest.
http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Sewer-spills-put-city-under-EPA-scrutiny-9188683.php
New regs for Monday: Trash, lamps, ships
The Hill
Efficiency: The Department of Energy is moving forward with new efficiency rules for fluorescent lamps.
Emissions: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is moving forward with new emissions guidelines for municipal solid waste landfills where communities dispose of trash.
http://thehill.com/regulation/293434-new-regs-for-monday-trash-lamps-ships
Opinion
Working across borders is essential for birds, but also people
By Amanda D. Rodewald, contributor
The Hill
With political divisiveness so often headlining the news, how refreshing it is to celebrate a centennial that demonstrates the power of countries coming together. One hundred years ago, the United States and Great Britain (for Canada) came together for birds when they signed theMigratory Bird Treaty, a convention to protect migratory birds across international borders.
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/energy-environment/293476-working-across-borders-is-essential-for-birds-but-also
