Pollution & Health
Gulf oil spill update
The Deepwater Horizon oil rig rig explosion was bound to put some pressure on the Obama administration to renounce the plan it announced just three weeks earlier to open new areas to offshore drilling. Today, the President ordered Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to report on how to reduce the risk of oil spills from offshore …
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CONTINUE READINGA good time to think about off-shore energy
Rick recently pointed out the ironic timing of the tragic Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion. The news from the Gulf in the wake of that explosion just gets worse. The first report was that the well had sealed. Offshore wells have “blowout preventer” valves which are supposed to shut in the event of an emergency …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Offshore Oil Drilling Debate–Revisited (Again)
Earlier this month, the Sacramento Bee published an interesting point-counterpoint debate over the wisdom of re-commencing offshore oil drilling in the U.S., with a particular focus on California and the West Coast. Arguing in favor of the proposition was U.C. Santa Barbara Professor of Political Science and Environmental Studies Eric R.A.N. Smith, who maintained that …
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CONTINUE READINGInteresting Lessons from the EU Cap and Trade Scheme
In a really interesting recent post by Sandbag, a UK-based organization that buys and retires credits from the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, the organization analyzed newly released 2009 data about drops in the emissions covered by the EU scheme. On the good news front, emissions that are covered by the EU scheme have dropped 17 …
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CONTINUE READINGToothless Toxic Regs
The NY Times “economic scene” column has an interesting column about toxics. Current regulations are largely ineffectual. Case in point: zinc in denture cream, which turns out to be at a high enough level to cause neurological damage for some users. The product stayed on the market for years despite rising evidence, and some of …
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CONTINUE READINGEPA proposes to veto mountaintop removal project
Cross-posted at CPRBlog. EPA’s seesaw on mountaintop removal mining continues. Last time I wrote about this topic it was to note EPA’s approval of the Hobet 45 project. Today, EPA announced that it is proposing to veto the Spruce No. 1 project, as it had threatened last fall. Should EPA follow through on its proposal, …
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CONTINUE READINGU.S. Chamber of Commerce adopts “grassroots” organizing tactic, redoubles attacks on climate science and law
The Los Angeles Times reported last week that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce – a significant and strident voice in opposition to anything that our government might possibly do to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – is using its considerable financial resources to dramatically increase its constituent base through “grass-roots organizing,” and that its influence is …
CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Supreme Court decides in favor of accurate environmental impact analysis (and cleaner air)
The California Supreme Court just issued an important decision interpreting public agencies’ obligations under the California Environmental Quality Act. This case will result in cleaner air in southern California. It also establishes that public agencies must measure environmental impacts from a new project against actual existing conditions, rather than against theoretical conditions (based on permits …
CONTINUE READINGI Love That Dirty Water?
The New York Times supplies another excellent installment on its series about an often-overlooked environmental problem: outdated and overwhelmed municipal water and sewage systems. State and federal studies indicate that thousands of water and sewer systems may be too old to function properly. For decades, these systems — some built around the time of the …
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CONTINUE READINGEnforcement Pushback–Making It Personal
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that enforcement staff and managers (including the regional office director and an enforcement attorney) in Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) were held personally liable for 6.5 million in damages relating to a series of enforcement actions against one company. MFS Inc., a manufacturer of industrial insulation and ceiling tiles, alleged that the four …
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