State
Officials: 7 injured in Oxford chemical, ammunition plant explosion
WMC
Investigators are trying to determine what caused an explosion at a chemical and ammunition plant in Oxford Tuesday.
3.7 Magnitude Earthquake Rattles Delta
Delta News TV
Local residents alarmed by an earthquake that briefly shook several areas across the Delta. Some Delta cities report feeling the rumble from the quake's origin of Hollandale, Mississippi.
Small Earthquake Rattles Delta Residents
Delta Daily News
A minor earthquake struck the Delta Tuesday afternoon.
LOCAL SCHOOLS RECOGNIZED FOR RECYCLING EFFORTS
WTVA
Several local schools have been awarded funds to help continue their recycling efforts and education.
State Government
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE CONVENES, BURTON LEAVES LEADERSHIP
AP
Mississippi lawmakers opened their election-year session Tuesday and a top senator resigned his leadership post amid questions about a second-offense drunken driving charge he faces.
Only 1 of 3 Mississippi transport commissioners is running
AP
Only one of the three transportation commissioners is seeking re-election in Mississippi this year.
Bryant sets special elections for 3 Mississippi House seats
AP
Gov. Phil Bryant set March 12 special elections for Mississippi House seats that are vacant because three former lawmakers became judges.
Oil Spill
Soft-shell crab decline affecting local businesses
Houma Today
Louisiana soft-shell crabs, long a favorite in local restaurants and home kitchens, may soon be a culinary memory.
Regional
BP approves expansion of Gulf oil project
AP
BP has approved a $1.3 billion expansion at one of its oil projects in the Gulf of Mexico and discovered an additional 1.4 billion barrels at two of them.
Program allows residents to trade in dumped tires for cash
WMC
A Memphis-Shelby County proposal targets tires and offers money up for grabs.
Not the tires on your car, but the ones being dumped in neighborhoods all over the city. You can get paid to help pick them up.
National
Trump Poised to Nominate Wheeler as Permanent EPA Administrator
Bloomberg
President Donald Trump is set to nominate Andrew Wheeler to head the EPA as soon as Tuesday evening, seeking to elevate the former coal lobbyist who has led the agency on an acting basis for six months.
EPA moves to ban toxic paint-stripper chemical for some — but not all — uses
Washington Post
In the past year, major retailers such as Lowe’s and Home Depot have pulled a toxic chemical used in paint strippers, methylene chloride, from their shelves. The families of those who have died after exposure to the substance have begged leaders of the Environmental Protection Agency to finalize a ban that the agency proposed on Jan. 19, 2017 — a day before President Barack Obama left office. And in May, then-EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt pledged to do just that.
EPA says it is committed to rule for higher ethanol blend by summer driving season
Reuters
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Tuesday it would complete a rule to boost sales of higher-ethanol blends of gasoline by the summer driving season, despite a partial government shutdown.
Ex-Sioux City wastewater treatment plant supervisor to plead guilty to federal charges
Sioux City Journal
SIOUX CITY -- A former supervisor at Sioux City's wastewater treatment plant intends to plead guilty to federal criminal charges alleging he conspired with others to manipulate water sample test results to make it appear that discharges from the plant into the Missouri River met federal guidelines.
Newsom names former Obama official as California EPA chief
Jared Blumenfeld of San Francisco will oversee air, water, toxics and recycling policy
Mercury News
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has named Jared Blumenfeld, a former Obama administration official and longtime environmental advocate as the new secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency.
