State
Number of Jobs Rises to Record Highs
News Mississippi
Mississippi has more jobs than ever before. According to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, in December, the number of non-farm jobs in Mississippi rose to 1,173,000, which are the most jobs ever recorded in Mississippi. December was the third month in a row in which the number of jobs broke the previous record.
https://newsms.fm/number-of-jobs-rises-to-record-highs/
Poll: 67% in State Support Medical Mariguana
News Mississippi
A recent poll from Millsaps College and Chism Strategies showed that 67% of Mississippians supported a 2020 ballot initiative to allow for the use of medical marijuana for patients with debilitating medical conditions.
https://newsms.fm/poll-67-in-state-support-medical-marijuana/
Oil Spill
Lawmaker: Cleanup After Hurricanes Without BP Money
NPR Florida
Cleanup continues from Hurricane Michael, which hit 10 Panhandle counties in October, leaving nearly seven times the debris of Hurricane Irma, which barreled across 45 counties in 2017.
https://www.wuwf.org/post/lawmaker-cleanup-after-hurricanes-without-bp-money
BP launches biggest global campaign in a decade
Campaign
BP is set to launch its biggest corporate campaign since before the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010.
https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/bp-launches-biggest-global-campaign-decade/1523391
Regional
Last Katrina damage suit ends; BP to expand Gulf oil production: Louisiana Coastal Roundup
The Times-Picayune
In this week’s coastal news roundup, WWNO’s Travis Lux talks with NOLA.com. The Times-Picayune environment reporter Mark Schleifstein about the Supreme Court’s decision not to consider reversing an appeals court ruling throwing out a Hurricane Katrina damage suit, and BP’s decision to invest another $1.3 billion in offshore oil exploration and production. https://www.nola.com/environment/2019/01/last-katrina-damage-suit-ends-bp-to-expand-gulf-oil-production-louisiana-coastal-roundup.html
BP to spend $1.3 billion on Atlantis Gulf oilfield
The Times-Picayune
The expansion, plus increases in expected production from Thunder Horse, Na Kika, could increase Gulf production to 400,000 barrels/day in next decade. The company also announced two new oil discoveries at its Manuel and Nearly Headless Nick prospect oilfields in the Gulf, which are near BP’s Na Kika platform. The company anticipates its Gulf production growing from less than 200,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day in 2013 to around 400,000 barrels a day by the middle of the next decade.
https://www.nola.com/environment/2019/01/last-katrina-damage-suit-ends-bp-to-expand-gulf-oil-production-louisiana-coastal-roundup.html
National
EPA criminal penalties against polluters hit 30-year-low
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency hit a 30-year low in 2018 in the number of pollution cases it referred for criminal prosecution, Justice Department data show.
EPA said in a statement that it is directing "its resources to the most significant and impactful cases."
https://www.nola.com/news/2019/01/epa-criminal-penalties-against-polluters-hit-30-year-low.html
It's so cold, parts of Niagara Falls have frozen like a scene from a Disney movie
USA Today
A brutal winter storm not only dumped snow in the Northeast and sent temperatures plunging, it froze one of North America's top tourist spots.
People visiting Niagara Falls are sharing pictures of the attraction frozen by the cold temperatures on social media.
https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/nation/2019/01/22/niagara-falls-have-frozen-due-cold-weather/2642409002/
