State
MDEQ awards county 2-year grant to help with waste tire collection
DDT (subscription required, but I have an image copy of the article if anyone wants to view it)
Hundreds of tires are found abandoned on the side of Delta roads each month, but a new two-year grant awarded to Washington County will give it a boost of help toward cleaning up the mess.
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) last week awarded Washington County a $90,000, two-year Local Government Waste Tire Assistance Grant to continue the local waste tire collection program for small quantity generators of waste tires.
Hattiesburg getting closer to goal of one water, sewer project in every ward
Hattiesburg American
Hattiesburg Mayor Toby Barker announced Tuesday two water and sewer improvement projects — for the areas between Quinn Street and Pearl Street in Ward 4’s Longleaf Heights neighborhood and for the areas around Ward 1’s North 39th Avenue and North 40th Avenue.
$10K grant awarded to community nonprofit
Madison County Journal
Keep Canton Beautiful has received a $10,000 grant as part of the 2018 Keep America Beautiful/Lowe’s Community Partners Grant Program, officials announced late last week.
State Will Test 5,000 Deer For CWD
North Mississippi Herald
ENID LAKE – Yalobusha County will have a hunters’ drop off point to test whitetail deer for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) during the 2018-19 hunting season as the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks plans to sample 5,000 deer across the state.
The sampling follows the first confirmed case of CWD in Mississippi back in January, a four and a half year-old old buck found dead by hunters near Vicksburg, making Mississippi the 23rd state in the country with the deadly prion disease that affects deer, elk, reindeer, sika deer and moose.
Biologist John Gruchy provided details of his agency’s ongoing response to CWD, speaking during a law enforcement appreciation luncheon hosted by MDWFP at the North Mississippi Fish Hatchery at Enid Lake last Thursday. Gruchy said his agency, in conjunction with Mississippi State University, plans to sample 2,000 deer from portions in the state west of Interstate 55 and 2,000 from areas east of the interstate. The MDWFP plan also includes testing 1,000 deer from six counties in the Delta in the area where the state’s first confirmed case of CWD was discovered near Vicksburg.
The testing will include deer harvested by hunters, road kill deer, and reports of sick deer in the state. Gruchy said anyone who spots a sick deer can report it to MDWFP by calling 1-800 BE SMART.
The Yalobusha drop-off point will be located on County Road 36, in the brown building next to the old Corps of Engineers headquarters. Hunters can bring the head of the deer for testing, with plans to target mature deer.
The sampling follows an effort earlier in the year that included testing samples of over 800 deer in a 25-mile radius of the confirmed case. No additional cases of CWD were confirmed during the testings.
Also speaking at the law enforcement appreciation luncheon was Michael Robinson, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Resource Manager at Enid Lake, who provided an overview of activities at the lake. Robinson reported the bridge on the access road (CR 36) at the I-55 Enid Lake exit that was closed in May will be replaced at an estimated cost of $3 million.
“It will likely go back in the same place and they will take out the serpentine curve leading up to the bridge,” Robinson explained. The new bridge is currently in the design stage and he did not speculate about the replacement time.
Robinson also reported the five-year periodic inspection of the spillway has been completed and repairs have been made. “The water was cut back on last week.”
He also noted several shoreline protection projects are scheduled after the lake recorded high water that eroded some areas of the lake.
“The state park suffered some pretty bad damage during the high water,” Robinson noted.
Other items of interest at the lake included:
• The addition of a soccer/football field and volleyball court at the Riverview Recreation area.
• All of the lights around the lake have been replaced with LED lights.
• A fishing day for physically challenged participants is scheduled Sept. 8.
• Thirty-three new picnics will be installed at Persimmon Hill Campground on the south end of the dam.
• New signs will be installed at some recreational areas and at the field office.
• Seasonal planting is underway for forage areas for wildlife.
• Fish forage areas are also being planted, a first at the lake.
Natural resource workshops help landowners profit from land
Pontotoc Progress
Landowners and hunting clubs who want to branch out and earn extra income are encouraged to attend one of three upcoming Natural Resource Enterprises business workshops.
RECREATIONAL SNAPPER SEASON OPENS FOR LABOR DAY WEEKEND
WXXV
The recreational red snapper season will reopen in Mississippi territorial waters for the Labor Day Weekend..
Clarksdale Utilities Board Holds Contentious Public Hearing
Delta Daily News
About three dozen people packed the boardroom at Clarksdale Public Utilities for Tuesday’s meeting, including Ben Lewis who commented on the pattern of general manager turnover, lack of transparency and disregard for citizens by the publicly-owned utility.
New spreader offers precision and environmental benefits
Delta Farm Press
The next advancement in dry fertilizer precision spreading equipment was recently introduced by the Salford Group – the BBI Sniper. The nine-ton capacity, pull-type machine with a dual spinner system allows it to put out a 120-foot wide dry fertilizer spread pattern that can be split into 12 sections.
Murals depict local ecosystem
Stone County Enterprise
The ecosystems depicted in Stone County shelter a multitude of unique flora and fauna.
The fortitude of the Longleaf Pine even caught the eye of famed naturalist John Muir, who cautioned people against deforestation and wrote: “Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world.”
State Government
Special session ends with infrastructure, lottery, BP bills passed
Sun Herald
Less than an hour after the BP bill passed the House, Gov. Phil Bryant signed the $200 million a year infrastructure bill and celebrated the end of what he called a historic special session.
State Health Officer Dr. Mary Currier is retiring
Clarion Ledger
State Health Officer Dr. Mary Currier announced Wednesday that she will retire Nov. 1.
“I’m looking at the mess in my office and considering my career. This has been my life,” said the 62-year-old veteran of public health. “Public health is truly my heart. I will certainly miss it.”
National
Washington's fall agenda: EPA to focus on new power plant, water rules
The Hill
Congress and the White House are facing a number of important issues this fall. But the clock is ticking with the November midterms looming and the end of the year fast approaching. Here's a look at Washington's agenda and the key stories The Hill will be watching in the months ahead.
EPA to reconsider 2011 power plant pollution rule
The Hill
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Wednesday that it is reconsidering a 2011 air pollution rule that has been blamed for numerous coal-fired power plant closures.
Trump Eyes Changes to Another Coal Plant Emissions Rule (1)
Bloomberg
The EPA will reconsider its rationale for setting limits on toxic power plant air pollution with an eye toward revising those emissions limits, the agency told Bloomberg Environment Aug. 29.
Trump set to tap centrist to head EPA’s chemical safety office
Washington Post
When President Trump first took office and was looking for someone to head the Environmental Protection Agency’s chemical safety division, it didn’t go well.
Chemours Chemicals to Get New EPA Safety Levels in Coming Weeks
Bloomberg
The EPA will propose new safety levels in a matter of weeks for a class of chemicals manufactured by the Chemours Co. that have triggered water contamination concerns across the country.
Bayer's weed-killing future targeted in appeal of EPA approvals
Bloomberg
When it comes to killing weeds, Bayer crop chemical XtendiMax has become a powerful new tool for American farmers. But environmental groups say U.S. regulators ignored warnings about the herbicide's main ingredient, dicamba, when they permitted its use in 2016.
Zinke says Interior reorganization won't relocate employees — yet
The Hill
The Interior Department's final reorganization plan would separate agency offices into 12 regions across the U.S., according to an internal email obtained by The Hill Wednesday.
Interior Department Solicits Comments on Natural Resource Damage Assessment Regulations
On August 27, 2018, the US Department of the Interior (DOI) issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) requesting comments by October 26, 2018 on potential changes to its natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) regulations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).
Illinois Aims $108M VW Settlement to Replace Diesel Engines
AP
CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois will use a $108 million settlement with Volkswagen over the company's cheating on emissions tests to improve air quality, mostly by replacing old diesel engines with more environmentally friendly options.
Watch this plane dump flailing fish into a Utah lake. Experts say it’s the best way.
McClatchy
Utah wildlife officials have called it “extreme fish stocking.” It’s hard to argue with that description after watching video of the tiny fish plummeting from an airplane into a lake.
Drowning in Dirty Water, Permian Seeks $22 Billion Lifeline
Bloomberg
In the dry, dusty plains of West Texas, home to America’s most prolific oil play, the problem isn’t too little water, it’s too much of it.
Press Releases
Mississippi’s Alligator Hunting Season Opens August 31st
MDWFP
JACKSON – The 2018 Public Waters Alligator Hunting Season opens in Mississippi on Friday, August 31, at 12 p.m.
Red Snapper season to reopen September 1 and 2
BILOXI, Miss. – The recreational fishing season for Red Snapper will reopen in Mississippi territorial waters on Saturday, September 1, 2018 at 12:01 a.m. and close on Sunday, September 2, 2018 at 11:59 p.m.
Commercial Red Drum season to open September 1
BILOXI, Miss. – The commercial fishing season for Red Drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) will open at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 1, officials with the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources said today.
EPA Gears Up for Final PFAS Community Engagement Event in Leavenworth, Kansas Next Week
08/29/2018
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the full agenda for the final per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) community engagement event.
