State
America’s first ‘clean coal’ plant is now operational — and it’s not Kemper
The first large scale U.S. “clean coal” facility was declared operational Tuesday — by the large energy firm NRG Energy and JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corp.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/business/article125684599.html
Recycling woes pile up across county as bin reaches capacity
| Madison County Journal |
Gluckstadt firefighters picked up trash dumped outside an overflowing recycling bin outside the station after the county ended curbside pickup to save more than a quarter of a million dollars.
http://onlinemadison.com/Content/Default/News/Article/Recycling-woes-pile-up-across-county-as-bin-reaches-capacity/-3/592/39105
Habitat Day, Cleanup Approach At Enid
North Mississippi Herald
ENID LAKE – Enid Lake’s annual Habitat Day is less than a month away and organizers have scheduled a planning meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 17, at the Enid Lake Field Office.
Public meeting on shrimping regulation gets little feedback
WLOX
BILOXI, MS (WLOX) -
A new federal regulation on Coast shrimpers may add more stress on an already stressed industry.
http://www.wlox.com/story/34241102/public-meeting-on-shrimping-regulation-gets-little-feedback
TURTLE EXCLUDER DEVICES ON SKIMMER TRAWLS DISCUSSION
WXXV
NOAA Fisheries is proposing a change in the way shrimpers on the Coast tow in their catch in an effort to save more turtles.
http://www.wxxv25.com/2017/01/11/turtle-excluder-devices-skimmer-trawls-discussion/
Oil, gas board expects production uptick
Mississippi Today
The dip in oil and gas prices over the past couple of years has dried up production in the state, but things are looking up, according to the Mississippi Oil and Gas Board.
http://mississippitoday.org/2017/01/11/oil-and-gas-board-expects-production-uptick/
Editorials
Now is the time to speak out about lakes
Sun Herald
It is hard to look upon the beauty of the Pascagoula River and imagine anything humans might do to improve on this natural wonder.
Still, there are those in George County intent on damming a tributary of the river.
http://www.sunherald.com/opinion/editorials/article125108339.html
Regional
Commercial Fishing for Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Sharks to Open in State Waters February 1
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
The commercial fishing season for Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Sharks will open in Louisiana waters at 12:01 a.m. on February 1, 2017; federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico will also open at this time.
For more information, contact Jason Adriance at (504) 284-2032 or jadriance@wlf.louisiana.gov
National
U.S. Indicts Six Volkswagen Executives in Emissions Scandal
Wall Street Journal
A U.S. grand jury on Wednesday indicted six current and former executives of Volkswagen AG for their alleged part in the company’s U.S. emissions fraud as the Justice Department’s investigation shifts from bringing the German car maker to account to prosecuting individual executives.
The indictments came as Volkswagen formally admitted to criminal wrongdoing and agreed to pay a $2.8 billion criminal fine and an additional $1.5...
http://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/volkswagen-pleads-guilty-in-u-s-emissions-scam-1484159603
Press Release
CONTACT:
press@epa.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 10, 2017
EPA Launches New Program With $1 Billion in Loans Available for Water Infrastructure Projects
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of approximately $1 billion in credit assistance for water infrastructure projects under the new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program.
EPA’s WIFIA program will provide long-term, low-cost credit assistance in the form of direct loans and loan guarantees to creditworthy water projects. WIFIA provides another option for financing large infrastructure projects – generally at least $20 million – in addition to the State Revolving Funds and bond market. WIFIA is available to state, local, and tribal governments; private entities; partnerships; and State Revolving Fund programs. EPA estimates that funds appropriated to the WIFIA program can be leveraged at a ratio greater than 50 to one, which means the $17 million program budget could allow EPA to make approximately $1 billion in loans and stimulate about $2 billion in total infrastructure investment.
“The launch of the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program marks a huge step forward for modernizing our nation’s aging water infrastructure,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “WIFIA gives us a new opportunity to provide billions of dollars in low-interest loans to communities to build large infrastructure projects, significantly accelerating investments that benefit our nation’s public health and water security for generations to come.”
Some of the projects that WIFIA enables EPA to provide assistance for include:
• drinking water treatment and distribution projects
• wastewater conveyance and treatment projects
• enhanced energy efficiency projects at drinking water and wastewater facilities
• desalination, aquifer recharge, alternative water supply, and water recycling projects
• drought prevention, reduction, or mitigation projects
EPA will evaluate projects using criteria such as the extent to which the project is nationally or regionally significant, helps maintain or protect public health or the environment, protects against extreme weather, and serves regions with significant water resource challenges. EPA will make selections on a competitive basis.
EPA estimates that the U.S. needs about $660 billion in investments for drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure over the next 20 years.
For more information, visit www.epa.gov/wifia
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Phil Bryant to participate in MDMR boat ceremony
Gov. Phil Bryant to participate in MDMR boat christening, naming ceremony
BILOXI, Miss. – Gov. Phil Bryant will participate in a ceremony Thursday for two Mississippi Department of Marine Resources vessels.
The Conservationist, an oyster lugger, will be christened, and a new Marine Patrol vessel will be named.
The ceremony will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12, at Singing River Island near the Coast Guard Station.
Your coverage is invited.
Photos courtesy of Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
MDMR will christen two boats at a ceremony Thursday, Jan. 12. A new Marine Patrol vessel will be named, and The Conservationist will be christened as the oyster lugger returns to service.
The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources is dedicated to enhancing, protecting and conserving marine interests of the state by managing all marine life, public trust wetlands, adjacent uplands and waterfront areas to provide for the optimal commercial, recreational, educational and economic uses of these resources consistent with environmental concerns and social changes. Visit the DMR online atwww.dmr.ms.gov.
CONTACT:
Christie St. Clair
stclair.christie@epa.gov
(202) 564-2880
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 11, 2017
EPA Announces $2 Million to Assist Tribes’ Brownfields Efforts
Kansas State University to provide technical support with clean up, reuse and revitalization
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has selected Kansas State University (KSU) to receive approximately $2 million in funding over the course of five years to provide technical support to tribes addressing environmentally contaminated land. The university will help tribes with technical support around cleaning up these lands, known as brownfields.
“Tribes have unique needs in revitalizing contaminated lands for productive reuses,” said Mathy Stanislaus, EPA’s Assistant Administrator for the Office of Land and Emergency Management. “Kansas State University will offer tribes substantive technical assistance as they work to clean up and revitalize lands in a manner they determine is consistent with their culture and governance.”
KSU will help tribes across the country identify solutions on assessing and cleaning up brownfields, developing reuse plans, and financing options. They will also help tribes develop peer networks to share ideas about brownfields issues. With KSU’s help, tribes will build tribal response programs to develop integrated approaches to brownfield cleanup and reuse, considering the links between environmental, economic, cultural, and social issues.
There are 566 federally recognized tribes within the United States. Each tribe is an independent, sovereign nation, responsible for setting standards, making environmental policy and managing environmental programs for its people. While each tribe faces unique challenges, many share similar environmental legacies. EPA and tribes have been working together to clean up brownfields for more than a decade, and the partnership is making a difference:
- In Fiscal Year 2016, EPA allocated than $12 million dollars to 107 tribes for their tribal response programs.
- More than 700 properties are enrolled in tribal response programs.
- More than 455 properties are cleanup-final, with required institutional controls in place
- More than 3,800 acres on tribal lands are ready for reuse
For more information on brownfields: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields
More information on EPA brownfields grants: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/types-brownfields-grant-funding
More information on state and tribal response programs: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/brownfields-state-local-tribal-information
More information on environmental protection in Indian Country: https://www.epa.gov/tribal
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