State
DeSoto rubbish removal fee system adopted
DeSoto Times-Tribune
DeSoto County will soon implement a fee system to better recoup costs for rubbish removal operations but the new policy will still include at least one regular free removal pickup per route run for taxpayers before fees or costs associated with removal kick in.
Medications collected during National Drug Take Back go up in smoke
4,500 pounds of drugs collected in Mississippi
WAPT
JACKSON, Miss. — The last of the nearly 4,500 pounds of drugs collected during the National Drug Take Back in Mississippi are being incinerated this week.
Wasted food on move-out day sparks idea for grad student
Oxford Eagle
Julie LaBerge has called Oxford home for six years while attending Ole Miss and now before she returns home to Georgia, she wants to leave the LOU community better than when she moved here to start her college career.
Oil Spill
Tampa’s version of Central Park gets its finishing touches before Friday’s debut
Tampa Bay Times
TAMPA — Huge piles of mulch remain to be spread. The bocce ball court isn’t ready yet. And dozens of other little details remain for construction workers to complete in the final days before Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park opens to the public.
Regional
Code Orange issued for poor air quality in Mid-South
WMC
MEMPHIS, TN (WMC) -A Code Orange is in effect for the Mid-South on Tuesday.
The alert means ozone levels are below standards and may cause breathing issues for people in the area.
The Code Orange includes Shelby County, Crittenden County, and DeSoto County.
New Orleans will be under an air quality alert starting Tuesday at noon
Times-Picayune
An air quality alert has been issued for Tuesday (May 8) in the greater New Orleans area. Ozone is forecast to rise to levels potentially unhealthy for children, elderly adults and other sensitive groups.
State report finds air pollution on downward track
Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette
The level of regulated air pollutants in Arkansas continued to decline throughout 2016, the latest year for which data are available, according to a report from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.
Nashville gets the dockless scooter-sharing service Bird
The Tennessean
Bird, the ride sharing electric scooter service, officially launched in Nashville on Monday in downtown and its nearest neighborhoods.
Professor explains reasons behind the Gulf of Mexico earthquake
WLOX
GULF OF MEXICO (WLOX) -A registered 4.6 magnitude earthquake happened less than 200 miles south of the Mississippi Coast on Sunday, May 6.
National
White House Aides Are Urging Trump to Fire Scott Pruitt, the EPA Chief
NY Times
WASHINGTON — Senior White House staff members are encouraging President Donald Trump to fire Scott Pruitt, his embattled Environmental Protection Agency chief, according to two top administration officials.
E.P.A. Emails Show an Effort to Shield Pruitt From Public Scrutiny
NY Times
WASHINGTON — The invitation-only breakfast at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington gathered 250 executives from the nation’s largest electric utilities, assembled in a ballroom to meet with Scott Pruitt, who a month before had started his new job as chief of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Maryland to Other States: Stop Sending Us Your Dirty Air
State employs high-tech tools to spy on emissions from Midwest, Appalachia
WSJ
FROSTBURG, Md.—From a grassy hilltop in western Maryland, a high-tech spying operation tracks the source of pollution and ozone coming into the state.
Major automakers urge Trump not to freeze fuel economy targets
Reuters
Major automakers are telling the Trump administration they want to reach an agreement with California to avoid a legal battle over fuel efficiency standards, and support continued increases in mileage standards through 2025.
Frackers Feeling Shaken Up by Pennsylvania Court Decision
Bloomberg
Anxiety is building around a court ruling in Pennsylvania that could potentially upend long-standing oil and gas arrangements, and affect hydraulic fracturing efforts nationwide.
Press Releases
WICKER, HYDE-SMITH & PALAZZO ANNOUNCE $574,000 GRANT FOR RAIL CONNECTION IN JACKSON COUNTY
RESTORE Act Funds Will Provide Necessary Planning, Surveying, and Permitting Costs for North Rail Connector Project to Proceed
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., and Congressman Steven Palazzo, R-Miss., today announced a $574,000 grant to the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality to fund planning, surveying, and permitting for a 4,300-foot rail connection in Jackson County. The connection is a component of the Port of Pascagoula’s Intermodal Improvement Project to establish a more efficient rail connection to the port.
The funds are being made available as part of the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012 (RESTORE Act), which provides funding for Gulf Coast states affected by the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill.
“Better rail infrastructure will help Mississippi businesses more efficiently move their products to markets and will support our ports as hubs of commerce and trade,” said Wicker. “This grant lays the groundwork for a rail link that will reduce rail congestion and improve safety.”
“This sort of investment to improve infrastructure on the Mississippi Gulf Coast is needed to realize the full potential of the Port of Pascagoula. The planning and surveying work is an important step to making this Jackson County rail project a reality,” Hyde-Smith said.
“This project will increase commerce for the port authority and provide new opportunities in Jackson County. These are RESTORE Act funds that will be used for another sound infrastructure investment on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and will assist the Jackson County Port Authority in beginning a year-long multi-faceted intermodal project," Palazzo said.
This grant was approved by the U.S. Treasury Department Office of Gulf Coast Restoration.
Wicker, then-Senator Thad Cochran, and Palazzo sponsored the RESTORE Act, which provided Gulf Coast states—Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Texas—with 80 percent of the Clean Water Act fines related to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. In addition, the funding supported the creation of a long-term science and fisheries endowment and the creation of Gulf Coast Centers of Excellence.
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EPA to Host Public Availability Sessions and Conduct Sampling in the Eastern Heights Neighborhood of Grenada, Miss.
ATLANTA (May 7, 2018) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will host two public availability sessions on Tuesday, May 15, 2018, in Grenada, Miss. Area residents are invited to come learn about upcoming sampling activities in the Eastern Heights neighborhood that will begin the same week. From May 16-18, 2018, EPA will test outdoor air in and around the neighborhood for trichloroethene (TCE). The data will inform future sampling planned for July 2018 of indoor air and air under the foundations of homes located over the TCE-contaminated groundwater plume.
What:
Public availability sessions for the Rockwell Grenada site
When:
Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Two sessions: noon to 3 p.m. and 5 to 8 p.m.
Where:
Grenada City Auditorium at 17 N. Main Street
Who:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ)
***Press Availability – 4:15 to 4:45 p.m.: Representatives of EPA and MDEQ will answer questions. Members of the media should RSVP to marraccini.davina@epa.gov. These sampling activities in Eastern Heights are part of the Remedial Investigation (RI) for the Rockwell Grenada Site, which was proposed to the Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) early this year. EPA is also working with the potentially responsible parties to conduct additional sampling needed at the 40-acre facility at 635 Highway 332 (commonly called Grenada Stamping and currently operated by Ice Industries) and off-property disposal areas to inform the RI.
In consultation with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), EPA proposed to add the Rockwell Grenada site to the Superfund NPL on January 18, 2018. The original 60-day public comment was extended by one week—ending on March 26, 2018. EPA will consider public comments before making a final decision about adding the site to the NPL.
Under Administrator Pruitt’s leadership, the Superfund program has reemerged as a top priority to advance the Agency’s core mission of protecting human health and the environment.
GOV. BRYANT DECLARES HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS WEEK IN MISSISSIPPI
PEARL – Gov. Phil Bryant has declared May 7-May 11 as Hurricane Preparedness Week in Mississippi to ensure residents are prepared for the upcoming tropical weather season. This year also marks the 13-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina that devastated the entire Mississippi Coast on August 29, 2005.
In October of last year, Hurricane Nate made landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, marking the first time since 2012 our state experienced a hurricane.
“Hurricane Nate reminded us that Mississippians can be in the bullseye of a tropical system at any point during hurricane season,” said Gov. Bryant. “With continued preparation and coordination, my goal will always be to save lives and improve our state’s ability to withstand the impact of tropical systems.”
The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency will provide valuable preparedness information throughout the week for citizens and businesses on its website and on the social media platforms Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Personal and community planning are the foundation for preparedness.
“Because of the excellent preparedness of our residents, state and local partners, there were no deaths nor injuries due to the Hurricane Nate”, said MEMA Executive Director Lee Smithson. “We cannot allow complacency to set in. Now is the time to prepare for another potentially active hurricane season. Remember, it only takes one to change your life forever.”
The Atlantic Hurricane Season officially starts June 1 and runs through November 30.
Throughout the week, MEMA will focus on the following preparedness tips:
- Tuesday – Family Emergency Plan
- Wednesday – Flood Insurance and Financial Planning
- Thursday – Pet Preparedness
- Friday – Social Media
MEMA and various state agencies are also hosting its annual Partners in Preparedness Summit at the Imperial Palace Casino and Resort this week, May 7-11. The Summit will end with the Hurricane Season Press Conference, which will be held on Thursday, May 10th at 12:30PM in Studio A of the Imperial Palace.
You can download the 2018 MEMA Hurricane Preparedness Guide at http://www.msema.org/hurricane2018/. The best way to get up-to-date information is to “Like” MEMA on Facebook, or “Follow” us on Twitter, @msema. You can download the new MEMA app from Android and Apple devices by searching “Mississippi EMA” in the iTunes or Google Play store.
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