State
City will allow some agricultural burning
Daily Journal
TUPELO – Agricultural burning will now be allowed within the city limits but with heavy regulations in place.
http://djournal.com/news/city-will-allow-agricultural-burning/
Harrison County leaders open dialogue with D'Iberville on water, sewer needs
WLOX
D'IBERVILLE, MS (WLOX) -Harrison County leaders are starting an early dialogue to help D'Iberville with its growing pains.
CMU claims excess cookie dough clogging up its lines
Madison County Journal
Cookie dough from a Madison County manufacturer is clogging up Canton Municipal Utilities lines, officials said Tuesday during a meeting of the CMU Board of Commissioners.
MISSISSIPPI STRONG: Friends of the ChakChiuma Swamp Natural Area
WLBT
GRENADA, MS (Mississippi News Now) -Walt Grayson is back with a story about some folks who are standing Mississippi Strong over a nature area they love and also a city that is more than willing to listen to their better idea.
Time to apply for turkey, squirrel draw hunts
Clarion Ledger
If you want to get in on some of the best spring turkey hunting action public land has to offer, now is the time to apply.
http://www.clarionledger.com/story/sports/2017/01/18/time-apply-turkey-squirrel-draw-hunts/96717524/
LAWMAKERS TALK STREAMLINING THE STATE BUDGET WITH BUSINESS LEADERS
MPB
Capping travel and putting a moratorium on purchasing vehicles are two ways Mississippi lawmakers say they are working to cut waste in state agency budgets. The pair discussed the issue at a Mississippi Economic Council event.
Oil Spill
Wiggins has a plan for BP settlement money
Sun Herald
Sen. Brice Wiggins has filed a bill that would put most of the BP economic damages money into the Public Trust Tidelands Fund.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article127406759.html
Dead dolphin found in Waveland was carrying full term calf
WLOX
WAVELAND, MS (WLOX) -The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies is looking into what caused the death of a pregnant dolphin found on the beach in Waveland on Wednesday morning.
http://www.wlox.com/story/34291204/dead-dolphin-found-in-waveland-was-carrying-full-term-calf
$812 million in BP spill fines going to Louisiana coastal restoration
Times-Picayune
Louisiana's Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority gave final approval Wednesday (Jan. 18) to a plan for spending $812 million of federal Restore Act money on coastal restoration projects in Houma, the Lake Charles area and across the coast.
Regional
EPA faults N.C. over health of minority communities near hog farms
News & Observer
Two years into an investigation of the health problems affecting minority communities near large-scale hog operations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s civil rights office has written a stern “letter of concern” to state regulators.
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article127286899.html
Challenge finalists aim to solve hypoxia
Tulane Hullabaloo
The Tulane Nitrogen Reduction Challenge selected five finalists based on their proposed solutions to hypoxia, a fatal oxygen deficiency in lakes and oceans creating ecological dead zones where marine life cannot survive.
National
Scott Pruitt, Testifying to Lead E.P.A., Criticizes Environmental Rules
NY Times
WASHINGTON — Scott Pruitt, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, offered a vision of a far smaller and more restrained agency at his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday. He criticized federal rules protecting air and water and tackling climate change, and forcefully advocated a states’ rights approach to environmental regulation.
EPA nominee Scott Pruitt won’t say if he would recuse himself from his own lawsuits against the agency
Washington Post
Scott Pruitt, who repeatedly has sued the Environmental Protection Agency during his tenure as Oklahoma attorney general, declined to say Wednesday whether he would recuse himself from those ongoing cases if confirmed as the agency’s new leader.
IN BREAK WITH TRUMP, EPA PICK SAYS CLIMATE CHANGE ISN'T HOAX
AP
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Donald Trump's choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday that climate change is real, breaking with both the president-elect and his own past statements.
EPA nominee faces tough questions over ties to oil execs, previous lawsuits
Fox News
Scott Pruitt, President-elect Donald Trump’s controversial pick to head up the Environmental Protection Agency, on Wednesday told Senate lawmakers he’s the right candidate to lead the very agency he has spent years trying to dismantle and discredit.
Energy Secretary Nominee Rick Perry Regrets Call to Eliminate Agency
Former Texas governor says past statements about abolishing department don’t reflect his current thinking
WSJ
WASHINGTON—Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry regrets his call six years ago for the elimination of the federal agency that President-elect Donald Trump has tapped him to lead, according to written testimony he is set to deliver to Congress on Thursday.
Report: Donald Trump to nominate former Ga. Gov. Sonny Perdue for agriculture secretary
AP
WASHINGTON -- President-elect Donald Trump intends to nominate former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue to serve as agriculture secretary, according to a person familiar with the decision but not authorized to speak publicly before it is announced.
States sue to block last-minute Obama environmental rule
The Hill
Thirteen states are asking a federal judge to block a last-minute Obama administration environmental rule aimed at preventing coal mines from fouling thousands of miles of streams.
New regs for Thursday: Guitarfish, fish diet, airlines
Guitarfish: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is moving forward with new protections for guitarfish.
Fish diet: The Food and Drug Administration and Environmental Protection Agency are drafting new guidelines for eating fish.
Efficiency: The Department of Energy is moving forward with new efficiency rules for ceiling fans.
http://thehill.com/regulation/314785-new-regs-for-thursday-guitarfish-fish-diet-airlines
Press Releases
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Tauber Oil Company Settles Allegations of Selling Unregistered Fuel Additive in Violation of Clean Air Act
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced a settlement with Tauber Oil Company, resolving alleged Clean Air Act violations stemming from the company's sale of a fuel additive that was not registered with the EPA. Tauber stopped selling the unregistered fuel additive and will pay a $700,000 civil penalty.
The settlement resolves claims that Tauber produced a fuel additive called Mixed Alcohol by blending together various alcohol streams, then sold approximately 1.9 million gallons of Mixed Alcohol without first registering it as a fuel additive with the EPA or meeting the Clean Air Act requirement that fuel and fuel additives are substantially similar to what was used in the certification of motor vehicles. Tauber is a manufacturer and marketer of petroleum and petrochemical products based in Houston, Texas.
The Clean Air Act establishes fuel quality and emissions standards, including requirements relating to the registration and sale of fuel additives, to reduce air pollution from motor vehicles, like passenger cars. These requirements provide EPA with information on fuel additive composition to prevent potential increases in harmful pollutants that may result either directly from the combustion of additive-containing fuel or indirectly due to the degradation of vehicle emission control systems that additive-containing fuel can cause.
The Clean Air Act requires that a fuel additive manufacturer must register the fuel additive with the EPA before selling, offering for sale, or introducing the additive into commerce. Also, the Clean Air Act makes it unlawful for fuel additive manufacturers to first introduce into commerce, or to increase the concentration in use of, any fuel or fuel additive in motor vehicles that is not substantially similar to any fuel or fuel additive utilized in engine certification.
The stipulation of settlement and order, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, will undergo a 30-day public comment period and approval by the federal court. Information about submitting a public comment is available at: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees
For more information on this settlement: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/tauber-oil-company-clean-air-act-settlement
FDA and EPA issue final fish consumption advice
Chart makes it easier than ever for pregnant women and others to choose from dozens of healthy and safe options; Nearly 90% of fish eaten in the U.S. fall into “best choices” category
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued final advice regarding fish consumption. This advice is geared toward helping women who are pregnant or may become pregnant – as well as breastfeeding mothers and parents of young children – make informed choices when it comes to fish that are healthy and safe to eat. (This advice refers to fish and shellfish collectively as “fish.”)
To help these consumers more easily understand the types of fish to select, the agencies have created an easy-to-use reference chart that sorts 62 types of fish into three categories:
· “Best choices” (eat two to three servings a week)
· “Good choices” (eat one serving a week)
· “Fish to avoid”
Fish in the “best choices” category make up nearly 90 percent of fish eaten in the United States.
An FDA analysis of fish consumption data found that 50 percent of pregnant women surveyed ate fewer than 2 ounces a week, far less than the amount recommended. Because the nutritional benefits of eating fish are important for growth and development during pregnancy and early childhood, the agencies are advising and promoting a minimum level of fish consumption for these groups. The advice recommends 2-3 servings of lower-mercury fish per week, or 8 to 12 ounces. However, all fish contain at least traces of mercury, which can be harmful to the brain and nervous system if a person is exposed to too much of it over time. The maximum level of consumption recommended in the final advice is consistent with the previous recommended level of 12 ounces per week. The new advice is consistent with the 2015 - 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
For adults, a typical serving is 4 ounces of fish, measured before cooking. Serving sizes for children should be smaller and adjusted for their age and total calorie needs. It is recommended that children eat fish once or twice a week, selected from a variety of fish types.
“Fish are an important source of protein and other nutrients for young children and women who are or may become pregnant, or are breastfeeding. This advice clearly shows the great diversity of fish in the U.S. market that they can consume safely,” said FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods and Veterinary Medicine Stephen Ostroff, M.D. “This new, clear and concrete advice is an excellent tool for making safe and healthy choices when buying fish.” Choices lower in mercury include some of the most commonly eaten fish, such as shrimp, pollock, salmon, canned light tuna, tilapia, catfish and cod.
When updating the advice, the agencies took a cautious and highly protective approach to allow consumers to enjoy the benefits of fish while avoiding those with higher levels of mercury, which is especially important during pregnancy and early childhood. The average mercury content of each type of fish was calculated based on FDA data and information from other sources. The updated advice cautions parents of young children and certain women to avoid seven types of fish that typically have higher mercury levels: tilefish from the Gulf of Mexico; shark; swordfish; orange roughy; bigeye tuna; marlin; and king mackerel.
For fish caught recreationally, consumers are urged to check for local advisories where they are fishing and gauge their fish consumption based on any local and state advisories for those waters. If no information on fishing advisories is available, eat just one fish meal a week from local waters and also, avoid other fish that week. Consumers should clean and trim the fish they catch of fat and skin, since locally-caught fish may contain contaminants besides mercury that can be reduced by proper trimming and cooking, (e.g. broiling instead of frying can reduce some contaminants by letting fat drip away from the fish).
“It’s all about eating and enjoying fish of the right kind and in the right amounts,” said EPA Director for Water Science and Technology, Elizabeth Southerland, Ph.D. “This joint advice not only provides information for fish consumers who buy from local markets, but it also contains good information for people who catch their own fish or are provided fish caught by friends or relatives.”
All retailers, grocers and others are urged to post this new advice, including the reference chart listing fish to choose, prominently in their stores so consumers can make informed decisions when and where they purchase fish. The agencies will be implementing a consumer education campaign working with a wide array of public and private partners featuring the new advice.
In June 2014, the agencies issued draft advice which encouraged pregnant women and others to eat between 8 and 12 ounces of fish a week of fish “lower in mercury” but did not provide a list showing consumers which fish are lower in mercury. The advice issued today also takes into account more than 220 comments received from academia, industry, nongovernmental organizations and consumers as well as an external peer review of the information and method used to categorize the fish.
The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation's food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.
The EPA, a federal agency, works to protect all Americans from significant risks to human health and the environment where they live, learn and work. The agency focuses on all parts of society, from individuals to businesses and local governments. It develops regulations concerning natural resources, energy, transportation, agriculture, and industry and supports the various facets of environmental research and protection.
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