State
NORTHSIDER REPORTS SEWER ISSUE TO MDEQ
Northside Sun
A sewer main break on Northside Drive has prompted one Northsider to file a complaint with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).
Illegal Tire Dumping: Growing Problem in Leflore County
DeltaNewsTV
Leflore County is trying to deal with the growing problem of illegal tire dumping, The number of used tires being dumped illegally is on the rise.they are littering the city.
...And that service is a Waste Tire Grant, provided by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, which allows residents to dispose of their discarded tires to the county at no charge.
More cases of chronic wasting disease have been found in Mississippi
Clarion Ledger
According to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, additional cases of chronic wasting disease were confirmed in Mississippi this week.
Smithsonian exhibit broadens understanding of how water has shaped our world
Commercial Dispatch
Like a bracing splash of water to your face that awakens your senses, the Smithsonian Water/Ways exhibit greets you as soon as you step through the door at the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Transportation Museum.
Jr. Women’s League working
Panolian
Because Old Panola Road has closed to through traffic past the turn to Curtis Road since November, Barnacre Road is seeing more traffic and garbage than ever as the detour road.
Tree seedlings to be distributed in Lauderdale County
WTOK
The Lauderdale County Soil and Water Conservation District will offer free tree seedlings in conjunction with the observance of Mississippi's Arbor Day.
Free tree seedlings available for Mississippi Arbor Day
Monroe Journal
The Monroe County Soil and Water Conservation District, located at 517 Highway 145 N, will have free tree seedlings available Feb. 8 in observance of Mississippi Arbor Day. The giveaway begins at 8 a.m. and will continue until all of the seedlings are gone.
Supervisors adopt flood damage prevention ordinance
Monroe Journal
ABERDEEN – A battle for more accurate floodplain data dating as far back as the 1970s came to a foreseeable end Jan. 25 as the board of supervisors approved to adopt an ordinance pertaining to flood damage prevention.
GAS TURBINE TO REPOWER R.D. MORROW SR. STATION
Hub City Spokes
Siemens has announced a new order to supply natural gas power generation hardware, software, and service support to re-power Cooperative Energy’s R.D. Morrow, Sr. Generating Station facility in Purvis.
Artillery shells found in Forrest County
WDAM
An artillery shell was found in Forrest County off of Luther Carter Road on Tuesday night.
Forrest County District 3 Supervisor Burkett Ross said Forrest County and Emergency Operations District officials checked the shell out.
State Government
New Mississippi law lets electric co-ops offer internet
AP
Mississippi’s 25 electrical cooperatives can now offer high-speed internet service Wednesday as Gov. Phil Bryant signed a law that immediately gives them that legal authority.
Coast a step closer to 13th casino after Mississippi Gaming Commission OKs site
Sun Herald
It’s been talked about for years, and on Wednesday, Long Beach took a big step toward getting the city’s first casino.
Legislative PEER Report shows some marginal improvements but still danger ahead for PERS
Yall Politics blog
The Legislative PEER Committee is releasing its report titled 2018 Update on Financial Soundness of the Public Employees’ Retirement System.
Oil Spill
EPA highlights BTNEP response during BP spill
Houma Courier
The Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program was recently recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency for its work during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Regional
Potential disaster at huge St. James waste pile has crews racing to prevent massive wall collapse
The Advocate
CONVENT — Hundreds of trucks a day will be traveling this week through a mushy cane field north of Mosaic Fertilizer's huge phosphogypsum waste pile in St. James Parish to dump 150,000 cubic yards of earth in hopes of blunting a slow-moving, potential environmental disaster.
State to spend $783M on coastal restoration, levees in 2020
Times-Picayune
The Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority expects to have 23 levee and coastal restoration projects under construction in Southeastern Louisiana during fiscal year 2020 and another 20 projects will undergo engineering and design work, the authority’s new executive director said during a public hearing in New Orleans Wednesday evening (Jan. 30).
Navy testing water wells near Saufley Field for chemical linked to serious health problems
WEAR
ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. (WEAR-TV) — On Monday, Pensacola resident Kenneth Higdon got a letter in the mail.
It started off by stating, “Dear property owner, the department of the Navy is conducting a private drinking water well investigation around Saufley Field beginning February 2019.”
LSU researchers team up with coastal colleagues to defend against mother nature
The Advocate
Flying drones toward hurricanes to gather better scientific data is just one idea under consideration as LSU researchers team up with their colleagues around the Gulf to better understand tropical storms.
National
Dem senator and 8 AGs file brief in support of Chevron climate challenge
The Hill
A Rhode Island senator and eight state attorneys general are throwing their support behind a California lawsuit that challenges Chevron and dozens of other other fossil fuel companies for knowingly contributing to climate change.
Oil Trains Make Comeback as Pipeline Bottlenecks Worsen
Crude-by-rail has rebounded across the U.S. because oil production has outstripped pipeline capacity
WSJ
The use of trains to carry crude is surging after dropping in recent years amid concerns about safety, as drillers in parts of North America produce more oil than area pipelines can accommodate.
30 years later, researchers are still learning from the Exxon Valdez oil spill
KTUU
ANCHORAGE (KTUU) — The Exxon Valdez oil spill that happened almost 30 years ago has left a scientific legacy in the marine science research field that's now being used as a powerful research tool to evaluate the impact of other spills around the world.
Trump administration secretly shipped weapons-grade plutonium from S. Carolina to Nevada
USA Today
The Department of Energy disclosed Wednesday that it has shipped one-half metric ton of weapons-grade plutonium from South Carolina to the Nevada National Security Site, despite Nevada's objections.
Corona debuts plastic-free six-pack rings in Mexican beach town
Times-Picayune
A Mexican beer popular with beachside sippers, including along the Gulf Coast, is easing its impact on the world’s waterways.
Opinion
Sustainability impacts agriculture’s future
Three goals of sustainable agriculture: long-term profitability; stewardship of land, air and water; and quality of life for farmers and their communities.
Delta Farm Press
Words like sustainability can become buzzwords and are often misunderstood or misused, but despite its widespread use, this term isn’t going anywhere.
Press Releases
CWD samples needed in Southeast MS
MDWFP
The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP) is still encouraging Southeast Mississippi hunters to submit samples from harvested deer for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) testing.
Recovery Criteria Amended for 42 Endangered Species, To Assist Service and Partners Measure Progress and Address Threats
USFWS
Additions are the first in comprehensive effort to ensure all Endangered Species Act recovery plans contain quantifiable recovery goals
As part of an agency-wide effort to advance the recovery of our nation’s most imperiled species, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has updated 26 Endangered Species Act (ESA) recovery plans that cover 42 species. The amendments are part of an agency-wide effort to add quantitative, measurable criteria for successful recovery of federally listed species.
