State
Helicopter to collect data on alluvial aquifer
Greenwood Commonwealth
A helicopter towing a 30-foot-long torpedo-shaped instrument will fly near Money in northern Leflore County next week. The instrument will collect data for the U.S. Geological Survey about water levels in the alluvial aquifer here and throughout the Mississippi Delta.
Low-flying copter will map water resources in Mississippi
AP
GREENWOOD, MISS.
A helicopter will be flying over parts of the Mississippi Delta to gather information for a 3-D map showing water resources.
Mississippi DEQ Honored with State Recycling Award
ECOS
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) this month was honored with the 2017 Environmental Hero “State Agency Recycler of the Year” Award from the Mississippi Recycling Coalition (MRC).
Farmers trained on using herbicide blamed for crop damage
AP
Tens of thousands of soybean and cotton farmers in Mississippi and across the country are taking or soon will be free but mandatory training in how to properly use a weed killer blamed for drifting and damaging crops in neighboring fields.
COST OF WATER SYSTEM NEEDS GROWS
Northside Sun
What was a $405 million problem for Jackson five years ago is likely a more costly one today, at least according to one city official.
MDWFP now requiring permits to trap wild hogs
Vicksburg Post
JACKSON — Sportsmen and landowners in some Mississippi counties who wish to trap wild hogs on their property must now obtain a permit from the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks.
Tori Bowie helps Mississippi put out wildfires
WLBT
The world's fastest woman and Olympic gold medalist Tori Bowie is helping her home state put out fires. The Mississippi native is featured in a public service announcement from the Forestry Commission to help prevent wildfires.
State Government
SENATE LEADERSHIP TO UNVEIL INFRASTRUCTURE PLAN SOON
MPB
A Mississippi legislator says the leadership in the state senate is working on a bill it'll reveal soon to fix crumbling roads and bridges. MPB's Desare Frazier reports.
Regional
Accused of Clean Air Act violations, Shell agrees to $10 million of pollution controls in Norco
The Advocate
Shell Chemical LP has agreed to install $10 million worth of pollution monitoring and control equipment at its Norco chemical plant after federal regulators accused the energy giant in a lawsuit of violating the federal Clean Air Act at that location for 20 years.
LDWF biologists, veterinarians meet with Arkansas, Mississippi personnel to review Chronic Wasting Disease response
WAFB
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) deer and wildlife health and disease program biologists and wildlife veterinarians met Thursday (Feb. 15) with Arkansas and Mississippi wildlife personnel to discuss and review their respective chronic wasting disease (CWD) response plans.
Shelby County drafts stricter rules to protect groundwater
Commercial Appeal
Less than two years after authorizing a TVA power plant to tap a vital aquifer for cooling water, a Shelby County board has drafted revised groundwater regulations that would subject similar projects to tougher scrutiny in the future.
Interior to hold largest oil and gas lease sale in US history
The Hill
The Interior Department is planning to hold the largest sale of oil and gas leases in the country's history.
Tennessee Tech professors 'begging' leaders to disavow contested emissions research
Tennessean
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — Questionable research at Tennessee Tech University has put the institution's policies and top leaders under scrutiny, and faculty members worry that a weak response could do lasting damage to the university's reputation.
Hurricane Katrina survivors win court battle against feds on regulating formaldehyde
The Advocate
Hurricane Katrina survivors won a court battle involving FEMA trailers on Friday.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was to start regulating formaldehyde, a chemical used to treat wood products, in December. The chemical has been linked to nose and throat cancers as well as respiratory ailments.
National
The Surprising Source of much US Air Pollution
CBS
Your shampoo, along with other common household products, produces almost as much air pollution in the U.S. as the millions of cars, trucks and other vehicles belching fumes into the atmosphere.
Senate bill would let EPA implement global greenhouse gas deal
The Hill
A bipartisan group of senators introduced a bill Friday that would let the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) implement a global deal meant to phase out certain greenhouse gases.
Fischer, Barrasso introduce FARM Act
Star Herald
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), on Tuesday joined six other senators to introduce the four-page Fair Agricultural Reporting Method (FARM) Act, which would protect farmers, ranchers, and livestock markets and waive new federal reporting requirements for air emissions generated from animal waste under two existing federal laws.
Energy Department to invest $44M in carbon capture technologies
The Hill
The Department of Energy will invest $44 million in projects to build new carbon capture technologies, the agency announced Friday.
Minnesota's Volkswagen settlement may pay for cleaner vehicles
MPCA issues a plan for the state's share of a national legal settlement.
StarTribune
Minnesota will spend $11.75 million on cleaner trucks, buses and electric charging stations if the state’s proposal for the first funds from a legal settlement with Volkswagen is accepted by the public and the trustee overseeing the massive federal litigation.
Illinois Idling on Spending Plan for Volkswagen Settlement Money
WTTW
Illinois is slated to receive $108.7 million in non-taxpayer money from a national settlement with Volkswagen over the German automaker’s emissions scandal. But unlike other states in the Midwest and across the country, Illinois continues to sit idling without a plan for how it will spend the money, which is intended for clean air projects.
EPA Plans To Deny Connecticut Petition To Clean Up Pennsylvania Plant Air Pollution
Hartford Courant
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials are planning to deny a Connecticut petition to force federal action to halt pollution from an old, coal-burning power plant in Pennsylvania that is hurting this state’s air quality.
Washington May Restrict Chemicals Found in Food Wrappers, Fire-Fighting Foam
Washington might soon be the first state to restrict a class of chemicals found in products from hamburger wrappers to fire-fighting foam.
KCTS
Rep. Joan McBride worries about what she’s helping her children put in their bodies whenever she takes them to get a hamburger and fries.
Opinion
WLOX Editorial: BP settlement money belongs in South Mississippi
Here's the latest on the money coming to the state of Mississippi from BP because of the oil disaster. It's the same as before. People who don't live anywhere near the coast want a chunk of the money.
Extreme cold serves as good reminder on energy policy
Patrick Sullivan
Clarion Ledger
As the sun rose recently when temperatures were near 10 degrees, I was drinking some hot coffee in my comfortable 70-degree living room and looking out across a snow-covered neighborhood. The steam at the vent pipes on houses caused me to realize most others were also in their warm homes all across Mississippi, with schools and many offices closed due to icy roads.
https://www.clarionledger.com/story/opinion/columnists/2018/02/15/extreme-cold-serves-good-reminder-energy-policy/340505002/
Press Releases
Museum to Host 15th Annual Fossil Road Show on March 3
JACKSON – Fossil enthusiasts are invited to pack up their fossil discoveries and head to MDWFP’s Mississippi Museum of Natural Science for the 15th Annual Fossil Road Show on Saturday, March 3, 2018 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Visitors will get expert opinions from our scientists and other experts about the ages and identities of their fossils.
