State
South Delta's 2019 backwater flood: What if it happens again this year? Can folks survive?
Clarion Ledger
An already swollen Mississippi River and more heavy rainfall have flooded an estimated 370,000 acres in the South Delta.
Jackson crews clean a growing illegal dumping site
WAPT
JACKSON, Miss. — Crews with the city of Jackson have removed all debris from an illegal dumping site on Patann Street.
Columbia to begin work soon on bridge, water and sewer projects
WDAM
COLUMBIA, Miss. (WDAM) - The city of Columbia will soon begin work on a couple of major infrastructure projects.
First responders trained for radioactive emergencies
WTOK
MERIDIAN, Miss. (WTOK) - Local EMA officials were taught how to respond to radiological emergencies Thursday at the Meridian Public Safety Training Facility.
Mississippi Ag Commissioner monitors coronavirus
WJTV
JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV)– The coronavirus outbreak is having an alarming impact on China. It’s also a global health emergency. The virus is leaving U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue uncertain if the trade agreement with China will be affected. The Mississippi agriculture commissioner is also monitoring the virus.
MS State Dept. of Health monitoring coronavirus
WJTV
JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – Leaders at the Mississippi State Department of Health said they are monitoring the new coronavirus, although no cases have been reported in the state. The death toll from the virus in China is 170 and the number of cases has risen to 7,711.
State Government
SUN-N-SAND NOW A MISSISSIPPI LANDMARK, FUTURE STILL UNCERTAIN
Northside Sun
The state has about five months to decide the future of historic Sun-N-Sand hotel in downtown Jackson.
Oil Spill
Lawsuit: EPA Has Dragged Feet on Oil Spill Dispersant Rules
AP
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Environmental groups and women from Alaska and Louisiana are asking a federal court to make the Environmental Protection Agency set new rules for use of oil spill dispersants, citing worries about the chemicals' health and environmental effects.
Mobile Bay National Estuary Program Needs Your Help!
WALA
A watershed is an area of land that drains into one body of water. The Western Shore Watershed encompasses about 26 square miles. It runs from downtown Mobile south 24 miles to the Dauphin Island Causeway.
Regional
Health officials confirm chemicals polluted drinking water near SC air base
Post and Courier
South Carolina health officials announced Thursday that the drinking water for roughly 259 people living near Shaw Air Force Base is contaminated with industrial chemicals, confirming what The Post and Courier reported earlier this month.
Smaller TN waterways lose protections under new EPA rule
WGNS
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has finalized a new rule, saying it clarifies which types of waterways are protected under the Clean Water Act and which are not.
Red beans, ground coffee: Local groups bring consumable Mardi Gras throws to the table
WVUE
NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) - Non-profits Grounds Krewe and Arc of Greater New Orleans worked together to fill biodegradable bags with red beans, jambalaya mix and ground coffee for parade-goers.
Officials to use new method to corral Asian carp in Kentucky
AP
Federal and state officials will use an experimental fishing method next month at Kentucky Lake in an attempt to reduce the infestation of Asian carp.
National
U.S. EPA reaffirms that glyphosate does not cause cancer
Reuters
CHICAGO (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Thursday it finished a regulatory review that found glyphosate, the most widely used weed killer in the United States, is not a carcinogen.
Green groups threaten to sue EPA over airplane pollution
The Hill
Environmental groups on Thursday threatened to sue the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over what they view as the agency's failure to act on aircraft emissions.
White House Moves To Formally Decriminalize Accidentally Killing Birds
NPR
The Trump administration is proposing a regulatory change to ensure that companies that accidentally kill migratory birds during the course of their operations will no longer face the possibility of criminal prosecution.
Kohler agrees to pay $20 million in federal settlement over small engines violations
Sheboygan Press
SHEBOYGAN - Kohler Co. has agreed to pay $20 million in a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, Environmental Protection Agency and the state of California over its small engines' violations of the Clean Air Act and California law.
U.S. EPA Chief of Staff Is Headed to Top Coal Mining Group
Bloomberg
EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s chief of staff is leaving the agency to work for the nation’s top coal mining trade group.
Hate the outdoors? Americans take 1 billion fewer outings than decade ago, report says
Sun Herald
Americans aren’t going outdoors as much as before, and a new report has data to prove it.
The Outdoor Foundation, an arm of the Outdoor Industry Association, found that only about half of the people in the U.S. took part in an outdoor activity at least once in 2018.
Press Releases
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Solicits Public Input on Proposed Rule and Environmental Impact Statement for Migratory Bird Treaty Act
January 30, 2020
Washington D.C. – Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is proposing a rule that defines the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) to provide regulatory certainty to the public, industries, states, tribes and other stakeholders.
