State
Ex-Kemper plant manager says execs ignored her warnings: 'It was essentially a cover-up'
Clarion Ledger
Kelli Williams said the feds haven't contacted her yet.
But if they called, Williams said she would tell them about the deceit, fraud and cover-up she saw firsthand.
Keystone property sale process inches forward
Daily Leader
A half dozen letters signed by the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors hit the post office this week to be sent to property owners around the Keystone property at the industrial park.
The letters serve to update them on the county’s Brownfield agreement with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality.
MDEQ ISSUES SEVEN BEACH ADVISORIES, THREE OTHERS IN EFFECT
WXXV
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), through its Beach Monitoring Program, issued seven water contact advisories Thursday for Station 1 (Lakeshore Beach in Bay St. Louis), Station 3 (Waveland Beach), Station 4 (Bay St. Louis Beach), Station 6 (Pass Christian Central Beach), Station 7A (Long Beach Beach), Station 8 (Gulfport West Beach), and Station 9 (Gulfport Harbor Beach). Advisories for Stations 5, 7, and 10 remain in effect.
Mayor declares State of Emergency for entire city of Jackson
WLBT
JACKSON, MS (WLBT) - Due to severe weather around Central Mississippi, Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba declared a State of Emergency for the city on Thursday.
JACKSON SHOULD HAVE ENOUGH TO COVER BOND DEBT WITH IMPROVED WATER COLLECTIONS
Northside Sun
Jackson city officials say they are now bringing in just enough to cover its debt service and basic operations and maintenance, after having to dip in the general fund to pay its water and sewer bond debt last year,
PELAHATCHIE BAY REOPENING ON MAY 14
Northside Sun
After months of battling giant salvinia in the reservoir, the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District (PRVWSD) board voted to lift the boating ban in Pelahatchie Bay beginning May 14.
Williams named executive director of Manufacturing Extension Partnership
Daily Journal
The Mississippi Manufacturers Association has named James Williams as executive director of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership. He replaced Dr. John "Jay" Tice IV, who retired Jan. 31. The MMA-MEP is one of 51 centers that provides services to assist manufacturers in being globally competitive and is sponsored in Mississippi by the MMA.
State Government
A CONVERSATION WITH DOBBS ON MISS. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
Northside Sun
Dr. Thomas E. Dobbs III was recently named the State Health Officer for the Mississippi Department of Health. Dr. Dobbs is a board-certified infectious diseases and internal medicine physician with extensive training in public health and epidemiology.
Regional
Officials seek to open major spillway on Mississippi River
AP
Army Corps of Engineers officials in Louisiana aim to open a historic flood control structure above New Orleans on Tuesday for an unprecedented second time in one year.
Corps keeps an eye on fast-flowing, rising river; may reopen spillway
WVUE
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The Mississippi River is rising, and the United States Army Corps of Engineers said it will continue to do so.
New CEO of TVA seeks to tackle concerns over coal ash, transparency and the threat of losing its biggest customer
Chattanooga Times Free Press
The new head of the Tennessee Valley Authority on Thursday appointed top TVA executives to help tackle the utility's ongoing coal ash cleanup problems and the threat of losing its biggest customer.
National
Facing Floods, Towns Call for New Controls on the Great Rivers
‘Something needs to change,’ says one governor as flooding along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers worsens and comes more frequently
WSJ
Alton, Ill., a tourist town on the edge of the Mississippi River, has been fighting floods about every eight months for the last six years. This week’s crest, which ranked No. 7 among the city’s 10 worst floods, forced the closure of the city’s riverboat casino, left its riverfront park underwater and closed portions of its downtown.
New Mexico wants lake on Air Force base closed
AP
New Mexico's top prosecutor is demanding that the U.S. Air Force close a publicly accessible lake at Holloman Air Force Base, saying Thursday the concentration of hazardous chemicals at the site poses a risk to public health and the environment.
U.S. EPA proposes hike in biofuel mandate to 20.04 billion gallons in 2020: sources
Reuters
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed increasing the volume of biofuels refiners must blend into their fuel annually to 20.04 billion gallons in 2020, from 19.92 billion gallons in 2019, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
Opinion
Mississippi deserves better than Enviva's wood pellet mill
Mary Annaise Heglar, Guest Coloumnist
Hattiesburg American
If you’ve not heard, Enviva Partners LP has proposed to build a dirty, dangerous wood pellet mill in Lucedale, Mississippi. They promise wealth. They promise jobs. But it’s all snake oil. The only thing this facility is sure to deliver are tax breaks for corporate titans clean across the country, to feed power plants clean across the world. And what does Mississippi get? Bald patches where forests used to be, poisoned air, and thickened traffic.
FED KEMPER PAYBACK
Northside Sun
Just when you thought it was safe to forget about the Kemper “clean coal” fiasco, the mess has resurfaced with the revelation that the U.S. Justice Department is investigating the miserably failed experiment.
