State
Suit Asks Court to Order Construction of Backwater Pumps
Vicksburg Post
Thousands comment on proposed Mississippi pump project
AP
The Army Corps of Engineers says thousands of people have sent comments about a proposal for huge pumps to drain floodwaters from parts of the rural Mississippi Delta.
Today is the final day for public comment on the Yazoo Backwater Project
MPB
A plan that could help control flooding in the Mississippi Delta is being revised. Leaders at the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers are asking Mississippians for their input on the Yazoo Backwater Project. Today is the final day for public comment.
Mississippi suburbs offer to quadruple sewer payments to Memphis. Will the city budge
Commercial Appeal
Memphis' Mississippi suburbs want the city of Memphis to keep treating sewage from across state lines. And Horn Lake and Southaven are willing to pay up to do it.
Hopes of opening Lake Hico fizzle as Entergy closes power plant, drains lake
MS Today
Revitalizing Lake Hico and the surrounding area to be a viable economic asset for metro Jackson has been bandied about for years, but dreams of bringing the area back to life have officially come to an end.
Railroad provides grant for Flora landscaping
Madison County Journal
The Mississippi Urban Forest Council partnered with CN Railroad and America in Bloom to provide grant funds for the Town of Flora and Friends of Flora re-landscape the historic Flora Railroad Depot earlier this month.
Oil Spill
Infinity Science Center will temporarily close in the new year because of COVID-19
Sun Herald
Infinity Science Center in Hancock County will be open on the weekends only in December and will close from Jan. 1 through March in hopes of reopening when a vaccine is available, Fred Haise confirmed Wednesday to the Sun Herald.
$234M in BP spill money approved for 5 wetlands projects in 2 parishes
AP
Louisiana is getting $234.6 million in BP oil spill settlement money for five wetlands restoration projects in three parishes.
Volunteers plant mangrove bushes to add nesting habitat at Queen Bess Island
Daily Iberian
BATON ROUGE — More nesting accommodations are waiting for brown pelicans at one of the largest nesting colonies in the Sportsman’s Paradise.
Regional
Hundreds of opponents ask EPA to deny Florida more control of its wetlands
Tampa Bay Times
Judging by the comments, Florida residents do not trust the state to oversee more of its own wetlands.
National
E.P.A.’s Final Deregulatory Rush Runs Into Open Staff Resistance
NYT
WASHINGTON — President Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency was rushing to complete one of its last regulatory priorities, aiming to obstruct the creation of air- and water-pollution controls far into the future, when a senior career scientist moved to hobble it.
Who Is Mary Nichols, Leading Contender To Head EPA Under Biden
NPR
Mary Nichols has been in charge of California's Air Resources Board for the past 13 years.
Biden's Next Climate Chief Will Tackle 'Existential Threat' At Home
NPR
President-elect Joe Biden is preparing to name a second high-level climate position in the White House, a counterpart to his diplomatic climate envoy John Kerry, to ramp up action dramatically at home.
States Explored Litigation to Challenge U.S. Policy on Climate Change
WSJ
WASHINGTON—Nearly two dozen Democratic-led states at odds with the Trump administration on climate-change policy joined forces last year to explore using the courts to secure federal mandates on greenhouse-gas emissions, according to records and interviews.
EPA won't require industry to guarantee funding for toxic waste cleanups
The Hill
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is declining to require oil and gas, coal, chemical and mining companies to have insurance to cover major spills and accidents.
Trump administration moves to weaken migratory bird protections
Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration took a step on Friday toward rolling back protections for migratory birds and reducing penalties for companies that inadvertently kill them, the latest effort to finalize regulatory rollbacks before President Donald Trump leaves office in January.
Army Corps of Engineers Denies Permit To Controversial Alaska Gold Mine
NPR
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has denied a permit for the massive Pebble Mine project in Alaska – a proposed open-pit copper and gold mine that would be upstream from the world's largest sockeye salmon fishery.
Press Releases
Governor Reeves Requests Federal Assistance Following Hurricane Zeta
JACKSON — Governor Tate Reeves has requested a Federal Disaster Declaration for Individual and Public Assistance as well as U.S. Small Business Administration Assistance following Hurricane Zeta that impacted portions of Southeast Mississippi on October 28, 2020.
