Sacrificing biota for special interests
DiscussãoPro and Con
Entre no LibraryThing para poder publicar.
1margd
1. Interior Director's 219 allows lead once again in 4.6% of wildest America:
The NRA Applauds Secretary Zinke's Protection of Traditional Ammunition
(margd: all white, all but one male in NRA photo that recalls Trump at his desk)
https://www.nraila.org/articles/20170302/the-nra-applauds-secretary-zinkes-prote...
2. Trump administration freezes endangered species act protections
The rusty patched bumblebee is probably doomed
http://www.popsci.com/rusty-patched-bumblebee-may-not-make-it-onto-endangered-sp...
The NRA Applauds Secretary Zinke's Protection of Traditional Ammunition
(margd: all white, all but one male in NRA photo that recalls Trump at his desk)
https://www.nraila.org/articles/20170302/the-nra-applauds-secretary-zinkes-prote...
2. Trump administration freezes endangered species act protections
The rusty patched bumblebee is probably doomed
http://www.popsci.com/rusty-patched-bumblebee-may-not-make-it-onto-endangered-sp...
2margd
Trump relents: Bumblebee to be listed as endangered species
Doyle Rice , USA TODAY 2:44 p.m. ET March 21, 2017
It's official: A bumblebee is now on the endangered species list for the first time, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Tuesday.
“The Trump administration reversed course and listed the rusty patched bumblebee as an endangered species just in the nick of time," said Rebecca Riley, senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). "Federal protections may be the only thing standing between the bumblebee and extinction,” she said.
In early January, the service, under President Obama, had directed the rusty patched bumblebee to be added to the list and scheduled the official date for Feb. 10. But President Trump issued an order temporarily freezing all new federal regulations a day before the species was set to receive its newfound protective status.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is part of the Department of the Interior, originally placed the bee on the list because of a dramatic population decline of 87% over the past 20 years. It's now the first bee of any type in the continental U.S. to receive the designation. (In September, the Obama administration designated seven species of bees in Hawaii as endangered.)...
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/sciencefair/2017/03/21/trump-relents-bumblebe...
Range, etc., posted at http://www.bumblebeewatch.org/app/#/species/profile .
You can help map bumble bees by submitting photos to bumblebeewatch.org--surprising little known...
Doyle Rice , USA TODAY 2:44 p.m. ET March 21, 2017
It's official: A bumblebee is now on the endangered species list for the first time, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Tuesday.
“The Trump administration reversed course and listed the rusty patched bumblebee as an endangered species just in the nick of time," said Rebecca Riley, senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). "Federal protections may be the only thing standing between the bumblebee and extinction,” she said.
In early January, the service, under President Obama, had directed the rusty patched bumblebee to be added to the list and scheduled the official date for Feb. 10. But President Trump issued an order temporarily freezing all new federal regulations a day before the species was set to receive its newfound protective status.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is part of the Department of the Interior, originally placed the bee on the list because of a dramatic population decline of 87% over the past 20 years. It's now the first bee of any type in the continental U.S. to receive the designation. (In September, the Obama administration designated seven species of bees in Hawaii as endangered.)...
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/sciencefair/2017/03/21/trump-relents-bumblebe...
Range, etc., posted at http://www.bumblebeewatch.org/app/#/species/profile .
You can help map bumble bees by submitting photos to bumblebeewatch.org--surprising little known...
3margd
Connectivity...
The ecological disaster that is Trump’s border wall: a visual guide
The wall could cut off a Texas wildlife refuge and the habitat of big, beautiful cats.
Eliza Barclay and Sarah Frostenson Apr 10, 2017
...what is undeniable is that the 654 miles of walls and fences already on the US-Mexico border have made a mess out of the environment there. They’ve cut off, isolated, and reduced populations of some of the rarest and most amazing animals in North America, like the jaguar and ocelot (also known as the dwarf jaguar). They’ve led to the creation of miles of roads through pristine wilderness areas. They’ve even exacerbated flooding, becoming dams when rivers have overflowed.
And while we don’t yet know exactly what path Trump’s new wall would take, DHS has been eyeing unfenced areas in an East Texas wildlife refuge that conservationists consider some of the most ecologically valuable areas on the border — home to armadillos and bobcats. If a wall were to slice through these ecosystems, it could cause irreversible damage to plants and animals already under serious threat...
http://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/4/10/14471304/trump-border-wall-a...
The ecological disaster that is Trump’s border wall: a visual guide
The wall could cut off a Texas wildlife refuge and the habitat of big, beautiful cats.
Eliza Barclay and Sarah Frostenson Apr 10, 2017
...what is undeniable is that the 654 miles of walls and fences already on the US-Mexico border have made a mess out of the environment there. They’ve cut off, isolated, and reduced populations of some of the rarest and most amazing animals in North America, like the jaguar and ocelot (also known as the dwarf jaguar). They’ve led to the creation of miles of roads through pristine wilderness areas. They’ve even exacerbated flooding, becoming dams when rivers have overflowed.
And while we don’t yet know exactly what path Trump’s new wall would take, DHS has been eyeing unfenced areas in an East Texas wildlife refuge that conservationists consider some of the most ecologically valuable areas on the border — home to armadillos and bobcats. If a wall were to slice through these ecosystems, it could cause irreversible damage to plants and animals already under serious threat...
http://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/4/10/14471304/trump-border-wall-a...
4margd
AP Exclusive: Pesticide maker tries to kill risk study
MICHAEL BIESECKER | 4/21/2017
Dow Chemical is pushing a Trump administration open to scrapping regulations to ignore the findings of federal scientists who point to a family of widely used pesticides as harmful to about 1,800 critically threatened or endangered species.
Lawyers representing Dow, whose CEO is a close adviser to Trump, and two other manufacturers of organophosphates sent letters last week to the heads of three of Trump's Cabinet agencies (EPA, NOAA NMFS, Interior USFWS). The companies asked them "to set aside" the results of government studies the companies contend are fundamentally flawed.
Dow Chemical wrote a $1 million check to help underwrite Trump's inaugural festivities, and its chairman and CEO, Andrew Liveris, heads a White House manufacturing working group.
The industry's request comes after EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced last month he was reversing an Obama-era effort to bar the use of Dow's chlorpyrifos pesticide on food after recent peer-reviewed studies found that even tiny levels of exposure could hinder the development of children's brains.
... Over the past four years, government scientists have compiled an official record running more than 10,000 pages indicating the three pesticides under review — chlorpyrifos, diazinon and malathion — pose a risk to nearly every endangered species they studied. Regulators at the three federal agencies, which share responsibilities for enforcing the Endangered Species Act, are close to issuing findings expected to result in new limits on how and where the highly toxic pesticides can be used...
https://www.apnews.com/a29073ecef9b4841b2e6cca07202bb67/AP-Exclusive:-Pesticide-...
MICHAEL BIESECKER | 4/21/2017
Dow Chemical is pushing a Trump administration open to scrapping regulations to ignore the findings of federal scientists who point to a family of widely used pesticides as harmful to about 1,800 critically threatened or endangered species.
Lawyers representing Dow, whose CEO is a close adviser to Trump, and two other manufacturers of organophosphates sent letters last week to the heads of three of Trump's Cabinet agencies (EPA, NOAA NMFS, Interior USFWS). The companies asked them "to set aside" the results of government studies the companies contend are fundamentally flawed.
Dow Chemical wrote a $1 million check to help underwrite Trump's inaugural festivities, and its chairman and CEO, Andrew Liveris, heads a White House manufacturing working group.
The industry's request comes after EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced last month he was reversing an Obama-era effort to bar the use of Dow's chlorpyrifos pesticide on food after recent peer-reviewed studies found that even tiny levels of exposure could hinder the development of children's brains.
... Over the past four years, government scientists have compiled an official record running more than 10,000 pages indicating the three pesticides under review — chlorpyrifos, diazinon and malathion — pose a risk to nearly every endangered species they studied. Regulators at the three federal agencies, which share responsibilities for enforcing the Endangered Species Act, are close to issuing findings expected to result in new limits on how and where the highly toxic pesticides can be used...
https://www.apnews.com/a29073ecef9b4841b2e6cca07202bb67/AP-Exclusive:-Pesticide-...
5margd
The public, most of whom strongly favor protection of federal lands, may wish to weigh in as opportunities present:
Trump wants a review of national monuments
President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Wednesday directing his interior secretary to review the designation of tens of millions of acres of land as “national monuments,” an action that could upend protections put in place in Utah and other states as Trump tries to rack up accomplishments in his first 100 days.
The Antiquities Act of 1906 authorizes the president to declare federal lands as monuments and restrict how the lands can be used.
...Former President Barack Obama infuriated Utah Republicans when he created the Bears Ears National Monument in late December on more than 1 million acres of land that’s sacred to Native Americans and home to tens of thousands of archaeological sites, including ancient cliff dwellings.
...Interior Secretary Zinke will provide an interim report in 45 days in which he’ll provide a recommendation on Bears Ears UT and a final report within 120 days.
Over the last 20 years, Zinke said, tens of millions of acres have been designated as national monuments, limiting their use for farming, timber harvesting, mining and oil and gas exploration, and other commercial uses...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-to-order-review-of-national-monume...
Trump wants a review of national monuments
President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Wednesday directing his interior secretary to review the designation of tens of millions of acres of land as “national monuments,” an action that could upend protections put in place in Utah and other states as Trump tries to rack up accomplishments in his first 100 days.
The Antiquities Act of 1906 authorizes the president to declare federal lands as monuments and restrict how the lands can be used.
...Former President Barack Obama infuriated Utah Republicans when he created the Bears Ears National Monument in late December on more than 1 million acres of land that’s sacred to Native Americans and home to tens of thousands of archaeological sites, including ancient cliff dwellings.
...Interior Secretary Zinke will provide an interim report in 45 days in which he’ll provide a recommendation on Bears Ears UT and a final report within 120 days.
Over the last 20 years, Zinke said, tens of millions of acres have been designated as national monuments, limiting their use for farming, timber harvesting, mining and oil and gas exploration, and other commercial uses...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-to-order-review-of-national-monume...
6DugsBooks
>5 margd: I hope it is illegal to rescind the federal acts designating monuments. With grazing rights on federal lands going for pennies per acre at times and mining etc. with no clean up , it works out to be federal subsidies at the taxpayers expense and the detriment of the public interest.
7margd
>6 DugsBooks: I hope it is illegal to rescind the federal acts designating monuments.
What You Need to Know About Trump’s National Monument Rethink
Trump questions presidential authority to “lock up land”—but can he really rescind federal monuments?
Laura Parker | April 26, 2017
...Every president since, except Ronald Reagan, has used the (Antiquities Act) to set aside land to be preserved in national monuments—more than 120 in all. Obama created 34 national monuments, more than any other president, conserving more than 550 million acres on federal land or in federal waters.
Disagreement over the Antiquities Act’s intent lies in its simplicity. The four-paragraph law clearly states that the president is authorized to “declare” national monuments. But the law says nothing about the presidential authority to do the reverse.
“The Antiquities Act does not provide for rescinding a national monument,” says Robert Keiter, director of the University of Utah’s Wallace Stegner Center, and a specialist in public lands law. “The courts have not ruled on whether there is an implied power in the statute. The issue has never been litigated previously.”
Numerous Attorney General opinions argue that the president lacks the power to revoke, most notably one authored by President Franklin Roosevelt’s attorney general in 1938. When FDR inquired if the Antiquities Act allowed him to scuttle a derelict Civil War-era fort in Charleston, South Carolina, as a national monument, he was advised it did not. Successive administrations heeded that advice.
Presidents have downsized about 20 monuments, most with minor adjustments. The exception is the 639,000-acre Mount Olympus National Monument, created by Theodore Roosevelt in 1909 and cut in half by Woodrow Wilson in 1915 to keep a supply of timber flowing to build Navy ships for World War I. None of the resizings were challenged in court, so that question has yet to be tested.
Outrage and Protest
It would be a mistake to conclude that the controversy engulfing Bears Ears (UT monument created by Obama) cries out for a dramatic change. The dispute represents neither a shift in either the nation’s warm embrace of national monuments nor the contentious politics associated with their birth. The history of national monuments is replete with friction and strife, starting with the litigation over creation of the Grand Canyon National Monument, now one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world.
In 1907, opposing mining interests argued the monument was simply too large and violated a clause of the Antiquities Act that limits monuments to "the smallest area compatible with ... the objects to be protected." Trump seized on that phrase in alleging presidential abuse even though the Supreme Court found that Theodore Roosevelt indeed had authority to create a monument of such vast size. William Randolph Hearst complicated the politics further as the Grand Canyon was about to become a national park, requiring a provision to be tacked on preventing construction of any structures between the newspaper magnate’s property and the canyon rim that might block his view.
Franklin Roosevelt created Grand Teton National Monument from 35,000 acres of ranchland secretly purchased by John D. Rockefeller, a move that ignited such political blowback from Wyoming ranchers that the Antiquities Act was amended to exclude Wyoming from ever having another national monument.
Despite the machinations, the public largely supports even the most controversial monuments—one reason why Congress, which has clear authority to abolish national monuments, rarely does. It has revoked a handful of monuments, including, in 1955, the South Carolina fort that so pained FDR. More often, Congress has turned national monuments into national parks—more than 30 so far, including Joshua Tree in California, Denali in Alaska, and Olympic in Washington state. Four of Utah’s “Big Five” national parks—Arches, Bryce, Zion and Capitol Reef—began as monuments.
...Although the Utah delegation has Trump’s ear (exercised by Bears Ears monument created by Obama) for now, the election also reinvigorated supporters of public lands, including a coalition of unnatural allies: environmentalists, sportsmen, and business leaders who want public lands protected and are speaking out. In Montana, Zinke’s home state, the governor’s race was largely decided by a debate over the value of protecting public lands. Gov. Steve Bullock, a Democrat, was reelected after casting his Republican opponent as caving to mining and grazing interests.
In Utah, where tourism is the state’s largest “exported” industry, bringing in $8 billion in visitor dollars, the politicians’ tough stand against Bears Ears has come with costly consequences. In protest, the Outdoor Industry Association pulled its twice-yearly trade show from Salt Lake City, where it has been held for the past 20 years—a move that costs Utah $45 million.
Earlier this year, Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz got an eye-opening lesson from defenders of public lands after he introduced a bill that would have ordered the Interior Department to sell off 3.3 million acres of public land. The backlash against it was so swift and ferocious that he withdrew the bill a week later.
He wrote on Instagram that he’d pulled his bill because he feared it “sent the wrong message.”
But he added, “This fight is far from over.”
Now it’s up to Trump.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/04/trump-review-national-monuments-bears...
What You Need to Know About Trump’s National Monument Rethink
Trump questions presidential authority to “lock up land”—but can he really rescind federal monuments?
Laura Parker | April 26, 2017
...Every president since, except Ronald Reagan, has used the (Antiquities Act) to set aside land to be preserved in national monuments—more than 120 in all. Obama created 34 national monuments, more than any other president, conserving more than 550 million acres on federal land or in federal waters.
Disagreement over the Antiquities Act’s intent lies in its simplicity. The four-paragraph law clearly states that the president is authorized to “declare” national monuments. But the law says nothing about the presidential authority to do the reverse.
“The Antiquities Act does not provide for rescinding a national monument,” says Robert Keiter, director of the University of Utah’s Wallace Stegner Center, and a specialist in public lands law. “The courts have not ruled on whether there is an implied power in the statute. The issue has never been litigated previously.”
Numerous Attorney General opinions argue that the president lacks the power to revoke, most notably one authored by President Franklin Roosevelt’s attorney general in 1938. When FDR inquired if the Antiquities Act allowed him to scuttle a derelict Civil War-era fort in Charleston, South Carolina, as a national monument, he was advised it did not. Successive administrations heeded that advice.
Presidents have downsized about 20 monuments, most with minor adjustments. The exception is the 639,000-acre Mount Olympus National Monument, created by Theodore Roosevelt in 1909 and cut in half by Woodrow Wilson in 1915 to keep a supply of timber flowing to build Navy ships for World War I. None of the resizings were challenged in court, so that question has yet to be tested.
Outrage and Protest
It would be a mistake to conclude that the controversy engulfing Bears Ears (UT monument created by Obama) cries out for a dramatic change. The dispute represents neither a shift in either the nation’s warm embrace of national monuments nor the contentious politics associated with their birth. The history of national monuments is replete with friction and strife, starting with the litigation over creation of the Grand Canyon National Monument, now one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world.
In 1907, opposing mining interests argued the monument was simply too large and violated a clause of the Antiquities Act that limits monuments to "the smallest area compatible with ... the objects to be protected." Trump seized on that phrase in alleging presidential abuse even though the Supreme Court found that Theodore Roosevelt indeed had authority to create a monument of such vast size. William Randolph Hearst complicated the politics further as the Grand Canyon was about to become a national park, requiring a provision to be tacked on preventing construction of any structures between the newspaper magnate’s property and the canyon rim that might block his view.
Franklin Roosevelt created Grand Teton National Monument from 35,000 acres of ranchland secretly purchased by John D. Rockefeller, a move that ignited such political blowback from Wyoming ranchers that the Antiquities Act was amended to exclude Wyoming from ever having another national monument.
Despite the machinations, the public largely supports even the most controversial monuments—one reason why Congress, which has clear authority to abolish national monuments, rarely does. It has revoked a handful of monuments, including, in 1955, the South Carolina fort that so pained FDR. More often, Congress has turned national monuments into national parks—more than 30 so far, including Joshua Tree in California, Denali in Alaska, and Olympic in Washington state. Four of Utah’s “Big Five” national parks—Arches, Bryce, Zion and Capitol Reef—began as monuments.
...Although the Utah delegation has Trump’s ear (exercised by Bears Ears monument created by Obama) for now, the election also reinvigorated supporters of public lands, including a coalition of unnatural allies: environmentalists, sportsmen, and business leaders who want public lands protected and are speaking out. In Montana, Zinke’s home state, the governor’s race was largely decided by a debate over the value of protecting public lands. Gov. Steve Bullock, a Democrat, was reelected after casting his Republican opponent as caving to mining and grazing interests.
In Utah, where tourism is the state’s largest “exported” industry, bringing in $8 billion in visitor dollars, the politicians’ tough stand against Bears Ears has come with costly consequences. In protest, the Outdoor Industry Association pulled its twice-yearly trade show from Salt Lake City, where it has been held for the past 20 years—a move that costs Utah $45 million.
Earlier this year, Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz got an eye-opening lesson from defenders of public lands after he introduced a bill that would have ordered the Interior Department to sell off 3.3 million acres of public land. The backlash against it was so swift and ferocious that he withdrew the bill a week later.
He wrote on Instagram that he’d pulled his bill because he feared it “sent the wrong message.”
But he added, “This fight is far from over.”
Now it’s up to Trump.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/04/trump-review-national-monuments-bears...
8margd
Hope Supreme Court decision not to hear USFWS designation of polar bear habitat isn't in anticipation of a Trump review & over-ride:
Justices deny review of case challenging polar bear habitat
Lydia Wheeler | 05/01/17
http://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/331367-justices-deny-review-of-case-...
After all,
23 Environmental Rules Rolled Back in Trump’s First 100 Days
NADJA POPOVICH and TATIANA SCHLOSSBERG | MAY 2, 2017
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/05/02/climate/environmental-rules-rever...
Justices deny review of case challenging polar bear habitat
Lydia Wheeler | 05/01/17
http://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/331367-justices-deny-review-of-case-...
After all,
23 Environmental Rules Rolled Back in Trump’s First 100 Days
NADJA POPOVICH and TATIANA SCHLOSSBERG | MAY 2, 2017
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/05/02/climate/environmental-rules-rever...
9margd
(National Geographic) Asked the Government Why Animal Welfare Records Disappeared. They Sent 1,700 Blacked-Out Pages.
In January, the USDA deleted a public database that included inspection records from zoos, circuses, and research labs. In the agency’s response to our FOIA request, it still refuses to say why.
Natasha Daly & Rachael Bale. May 1, 2017
They exposed abuses at roadside zoos, uncovered controversial government-funded animal experiments, and revealed the mistreatment of circus elephants. They confirmed dog breeders weren't running puppy mills and that horse trainers weren’t exploiting their racers and jumpers. The records in U.S. Department of Agriculture’s online animal welfare database allowed journalists, investigators, and the public to look up inspection reports and violations of animal welfare laws.
But nearly three months ago, the the USDA removed its database of animal abuse records from its public website, with no explanation.
...The FOIA officer handling the request said that all 1,771 pages were redacted (blacked out) because they’re related to ongoing lawsuits.
...“While these bases may be legitimate for deleting portions of the records at issue, they absolutely cannot be used to withhold 1,771 entire pages,” (Delcianna Winders, of Harvard’s Animal Law & Policy Program) said in an email. She is part of the lawsuit against the USDA.
...The Humane Society’s John Goodwin believes the only beneficiaries to continued secrecy are abusers. “We want the database back up, the American Zoological Association wants it back up. The entire research community wants it back up. The only people who don’t are extremists who want to bury the truth.”
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/usda-animal-welfare-records-foia-blac...
In January, the USDA deleted a public database that included inspection records from zoos, circuses, and research labs. In the agency’s response to our FOIA request, it still refuses to say why.
Natasha Daly & Rachael Bale. May 1, 2017
They exposed abuses at roadside zoos, uncovered controversial government-funded animal experiments, and revealed the mistreatment of circus elephants. They confirmed dog breeders weren't running puppy mills and that horse trainers weren’t exploiting their racers and jumpers. The records in U.S. Department of Agriculture’s online animal welfare database allowed journalists, investigators, and the public to look up inspection reports and violations of animal welfare laws.
But nearly three months ago, the the USDA removed its database of animal abuse records from its public website, with no explanation.
...The FOIA officer handling the request said that all 1,771 pages were redacted (blacked out) because they’re related to ongoing lawsuits.
...“While these bases may be legitimate for deleting portions of the records at issue, they absolutely cannot be used to withhold 1,771 entire pages,” (Delcianna Winders, of Harvard’s Animal Law & Policy Program) said in an email. She is part of the lawsuit against the USDA.
...The Humane Society’s John Goodwin believes the only beneficiaries to continued secrecy are abusers. “We want the database back up, the American Zoological Association wants it back up. The entire research community wants it back up. The only people who don’t are extremists who want to bury the truth.”
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/usda-animal-welfare-records-foia-blac...
10margd
>5 margd: review of national monuments, incl marine monument like that off Hawaii
The public can comment online after May 12 on land and marine monuments.
Commerce Dept takes lead in review of MARINE monuments (such as off Hawaii) per executive order on offshore energy. :-(
https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/interior-department-releases-list-monuments-un...
National Geographic article on the monuments:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/national-monument-bears-ears-artifact...
The public can comment online after May 12 on land and marine monuments.
Commerce Dept takes lead in review of MARINE monuments (such as off Hawaii) per executive order on offshore energy. :-(
https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/interior-department-releases-list-monuments-un...
National Geographic article on the monuments:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/national-monument-bears-ears-artifact...
11margd
Four U.S. states sue Interior Department over coal leases on public lands
Emily Flitter | May 10, 2017
Four U.S. states have sued Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, the Interior Department and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to block new leases of public lands for coal mining, according to papers filed on Tuesday in Montana federal court.
State prosecutors for California, New Mexico, New York and Washington are arguing new coal extraction would exacerbate global warming and violate the federal government's statutory duty to use public lands "in a manner that will protect the quality of scientific, scenic, historical, ecological, environmental, air and atmospheric, water resource, and archaeological values," according to the filings...
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-environment-coal-idUSKBN1862CH?il=0
Emily Flitter | May 10, 2017
Four U.S. states have sued Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, the Interior Department and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to block new leases of public lands for coal mining, according to papers filed on Tuesday in Montana federal court.
State prosecutors for California, New Mexico, New York and Washington are arguing new coal extraction would exacerbate global warming and violate the federal government's statutory duty to use public lands "in a manner that will protect the quality of scientific, scenic, historical, ecological, environmental, air and atmospheric, water resource, and archaeological values," according to the filings...
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-environment-coal-idUSKBN1862CH?il=0
12margd
10 contd.
Review of Certain National Monuments Established Since 1996; Notice of Opportunity for Public Comment (by May 26 for Bears Ears, all others by July 10, 2017)
https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=DOI-2017-0002-0001
(Posted May 11. 7,370 Comments Received by midnight May 13)
"You may submit written comments online at http://www.regulations.gov by entering “DOI-2017-0002” in the Search bar and clicking “Search,” or by mail to Monument Review, MS-1530, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street NW., Washington, DC 20240."
Review of Certain National Monuments Established Since 1996; Notice of Opportunity for Public Comment (by May 26 for Bears Ears, all others by July 10, 2017)
https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=DOI-2017-0002-0001
(Posted May 11. 7,370 Comments Received by midnight May 13)
"You may submit written comments online at http://www.regulations.gov by entering “DOI-2017-0002” in the Search bar and clicking “Search,” or by mail to Monument Review, MS-1530, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street NW., Washington, DC 20240."
13margd
12 contd. Wow--Interior received 685,000 comments in 15 days re the Bears Ears monument. This is HUGE! Years ago Interior changed direction on another issue after receiving 8,000 postcards distributed at sportsmen's shows, a record at the time. Giving only 15 days for comment and counting bundles of comments via each ENGO sure weighted the consultation against preserving the Bears Ears National Monument--fingers crossed that 685,000 is a number that CAN'T be ignored! (If you wish to comment on the other monuments, you have until July 10.)
For Immediate Release, May 26, 2017
Contact: Randi Spivak, (310) 779-4894, rspivak@biologicaldiversity.org
Bears Ears National Monument Wins Overwhelming Support
Interior Receives More Than 685,000 Pro-monument Comments
WASHINGTON— Supporters of Bears Ears National Monument sent a flood of comments to the Department of the Interior urging that the Utah monument be protected, with more than 685,000 messages of support submitted in just 15 days. Interior’s Bears Ears comment period closes tonight.
...President Trump last month ordered a review of Bears Ears and 26 other national monuments at the behest of Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), one of the most anti-public-lands members of Congress. Hatch’s political career has been well funded by the fossil fuel industry, including the Koch brothers and Chevron.
A survey of dozens of organizations reveals that more than 685,000 public comments have been submitted to Interior in support of Bears Ears. The regulations.gov website displays each bundle of comments submitted from concerned groups as a single comment, significantly understating the number received.
...Under the order Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is to recommend whether to retain monument status, shrink or rescind certain monuments designated since 1996. Zinke opened a 60-day public comment period for all monuments except Bears Ears, which was allowed only 15 days for public comment.
The close of the comment period for the other monuments is July 10. Zinke is to issue interim recommendation on Bears Ears by June 10...
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2017/bears-ears-05-26-201...
For Immediate Release, May 26, 2017
Contact: Randi Spivak, (310) 779-4894, rspivak@biologicaldiversity.org
Bears Ears National Monument Wins Overwhelming Support
Interior Receives More Than 685,000 Pro-monument Comments
WASHINGTON— Supporters of Bears Ears National Monument sent a flood of comments to the Department of the Interior urging that the Utah monument be protected, with more than 685,000 messages of support submitted in just 15 days. Interior’s Bears Ears comment period closes tonight.
...President Trump last month ordered a review of Bears Ears and 26 other national monuments at the behest of Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), one of the most anti-public-lands members of Congress. Hatch’s political career has been well funded by the fossil fuel industry, including the Koch brothers and Chevron.
A survey of dozens of organizations reveals that more than 685,000 public comments have been submitted to Interior in support of Bears Ears. The regulations.gov website displays each bundle of comments submitted from concerned groups as a single comment, significantly understating the number received.
...Under the order Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is to recommend whether to retain monument status, shrink or rescind certain monuments designated since 1996. Zinke opened a 60-day public comment period for all monuments except Bears Ears, which was allowed only 15 days for public comment.
The close of the comment period for the other monuments is July 10. Zinke is to issue interim recommendation on Bears Ears by June 10...
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2017/bears-ears-05-26-201...
14margd
Maine, this time... Amazing how much money and cross-border crime there is in fish & wildlife. The tragedy of the commons--and the targeted critters.
Why Smuggling of This Ocean Creature May Skyrocket
A proposed law would bar wildlife authorities from monitoring exports of sea cucumbers.
A bill under consideration in the U.S. Congress could make it easier to smuggle sea cucumbers, in decline to satisfy demand in China where they're considered a delicacy.
Sea cucumbers clean the seafloor of waste material and make marine ecosystems more productive.
Commanding $500 or more per kilogram, sea cucumbers are a hot commodity on the black market.
U.S. law requires that any wildlife or wildlife product shipped into or out of the country for commercial sale be declared to the Fish and Wildlife Service—but sea cucumbers could soon be exempted.
Many sea cucumbers are caught illegally off the coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and smuggled to the U.S.
These "warty" sea cucumbers are sought after by fishermen in California's waters
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says that 66 species of sea cucumbers are overexploited worldwide.
Maraya Cornell | June 2, 2017
...In a prepared statement presented at a legislative hearing for last year’s version of the bill, William Woody, the Service’s chief of law enforcement, noted that the seafood exemption “is purposefully narrow to discourage smuggling and illegal trade.” Adding sea cucumbers and urchins to the exemption, he said, would limit “the Service’s ability to…detect and deter unsustainable, illegal trade,” pointing to the “highly profitable black market for transshipment of sea cucumbers through the United States” that the Fish and Wildlife Service had already uncovered.
Nevertheless, last year’s bill unanimously passed in the House under suspension of rules, a motion normally applied to uncontroversial legislation, such as naming post offices.
The Fish and Wildlife Service has declined to comment directly on the pending legislation, but Erin Dean says that inspections of sea cucumbers are crucial for putting together the cases she and her team have been working on.
“Wildlife inspectors are the front-line officers responsible for identifying protected wildlife, examining documents that are presented with the shipments, and detecting if there’s a problem,” she says. “So their role is absolutely critical in stopping illegal trade of wildlife coming in and out of our country.”
That applies to exports as much as imports, Dean says. She notes that agents have seen a marked rise in illegal wildlife exported from the U.S. “Back when I first started as an agent in 2001 the majority of our cases were illegal imports—smuggling inbound. Now we’re seeing a significant shift in wildlife being shipped out of the U.S. In this case, obviously, sea cucumbers, but also live turtles,” and, she adds, other wildlife being smuggled out to Asia.
Conservation organizations, alarmed by the bill’s easy passage, lobbied against the legislation. In a letter 21 groups warned the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works that barring the Fish and Wildlife Service from inspecting sea urchins and sea cucumbers would “create loopholes for wildlife trafficking, undermine law enforcement’s efforts to intercept illegal trade in marine wildlife,” and “make it nearly impossible for the Service to track these highly vulnerable marine species.”
...As of this writing, the new bill is in committee in both the House and the Senate.
The proposed exemption for sea cucumbers and sea urchins is one of dozens of attempts to roll back protections for at-risk species. (Also read: Inside the Effort to Kill Protections for Endangered Animals).
Jamie Pang, with the Center for Biological Diversity, was among those who tried to stop the echinoderm exemption last year. She calls the bill’s reintroduction “disappointing and shameful.” In an email she said, “Emboldened by Trump, the industry has ramped up lobbying efforts on Congress, and even moderate politicians like Chellie Pingree and Angus King are acceding to their requests without even considering the effects on conservation or the weakening of the Endangered Species Act.”
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/06/wildlife-watch-sea-cucumbers-poaching...
Why Smuggling of This Ocean Creature May Skyrocket
A proposed law would bar wildlife authorities from monitoring exports of sea cucumbers.
A bill under consideration in the U.S. Congress could make it easier to smuggle sea cucumbers, in decline to satisfy demand in China where they're considered a delicacy.
Sea cucumbers clean the seafloor of waste material and make marine ecosystems more productive.
Commanding $500 or more per kilogram, sea cucumbers are a hot commodity on the black market.
U.S. law requires that any wildlife or wildlife product shipped into or out of the country for commercial sale be declared to the Fish and Wildlife Service—but sea cucumbers could soon be exempted.
Many sea cucumbers are caught illegally off the coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and smuggled to the U.S.
These "warty" sea cucumbers are sought after by fishermen in California's waters
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says that 66 species of sea cucumbers are overexploited worldwide.
Maraya Cornell | June 2, 2017
...In a prepared statement presented at a legislative hearing for last year’s version of the bill, William Woody, the Service’s chief of law enforcement, noted that the seafood exemption “is purposefully narrow to discourage smuggling and illegal trade.” Adding sea cucumbers and urchins to the exemption, he said, would limit “the Service’s ability to…detect and deter unsustainable, illegal trade,” pointing to the “highly profitable black market for transshipment of sea cucumbers through the United States” that the Fish and Wildlife Service had already uncovered.
Nevertheless, last year’s bill unanimously passed in the House under suspension of rules, a motion normally applied to uncontroversial legislation, such as naming post offices.
The Fish and Wildlife Service has declined to comment directly on the pending legislation, but Erin Dean says that inspections of sea cucumbers are crucial for putting together the cases she and her team have been working on.
“Wildlife inspectors are the front-line officers responsible for identifying protected wildlife, examining documents that are presented with the shipments, and detecting if there’s a problem,” she says. “So their role is absolutely critical in stopping illegal trade of wildlife coming in and out of our country.”
That applies to exports as much as imports, Dean says. She notes that agents have seen a marked rise in illegal wildlife exported from the U.S. “Back when I first started as an agent in 2001 the majority of our cases were illegal imports—smuggling inbound. Now we’re seeing a significant shift in wildlife being shipped out of the U.S. In this case, obviously, sea cucumbers, but also live turtles,” and, she adds, other wildlife being smuggled out to Asia.
Conservation organizations, alarmed by the bill’s easy passage, lobbied against the legislation. In a letter 21 groups warned the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works that barring the Fish and Wildlife Service from inspecting sea urchins and sea cucumbers would “create loopholes for wildlife trafficking, undermine law enforcement’s efforts to intercept illegal trade in marine wildlife,” and “make it nearly impossible for the Service to track these highly vulnerable marine species.”
...As of this writing, the new bill is in committee in both the House and the Senate.
The proposed exemption for sea cucumbers and sea urchins is one of dozens of attempts to roll back protections for at-risk species. (Also read: Inside the Effort to Kill Protections for Endangered Animals).
Jamie Pang, with the Center for Biological Diversity, was among those who tried to stop the echinoderm exemption last year. She calls the bill’s reintroduction “disappointing and shameful.” In an email she said, “Emboldened by Trump, the industry has ramped up lobbying efforts on Congress, and even moderate politicians like Chellie Pingree and Angus King are acceding to their requests without even considering the effects on conservation or the weakening of the Endangered Species Act.”
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/06/wildlife-watch-sea-cucumbers-poaching...
15margd
More...
Inside the Effort to Kill Protections for Endangered Animals
The U.S. Endangered Species Act has saved more than 200 species from extinction—but business and political interests want to scuttle it.
Christopher Ketcham | May 19, 2017
...Scientists have concluded that 227 species would have gone extinct between 1973 and 2005 without the ESA’s protections. Its broad mandate that vast stretches of habitat require protection in order to preserve the creatures living in them has produced cascading benefits for ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest, the Everglades, the Chesapeake Bay, Shenandoah National Park, and along the New England coast.
Since 1973 more than 1,600 animal and plant species have been declared endangered or threatened, and the great majority are headed toward recovery because of the ESA, researchers say.
...Since 1973 six federal circuit courts have considered and rejected challenges to the ESA's constitutionality, leaving the law intact. In Congress there have been scores of attempts to weaken it by little cuts.
ESA advocates, including conservation groups and most elected Democrats, warn that Republicans are now gearing up for an unprecedented assault. “The Republicans are pushing bills to divert protection funding, prioritize corporate land development, and sidestep science,” says Representative Raul Grijalva, a Democrat from Arizona. “These are blatant efforts to place corporate interests over species survival.”
During the past five months Republicans have introduced 25 proposals to skirt, hamper, defang, or undermine endangered species protections. These include bills to amend the ESA to abandon its requirement to use “best available science” in listing decisions and to hand oversight of some of the law’s key management and decision-making provisions to state governments historically hostile to the act.
...(In 1973) The ESA passed the House and Senate by margins that in the current partisan climate would be astonishing: 92 to zero in the Senate, 390 to 12 in the House. President Richard Nixon, a Republican, signed the law without hesitation.
I asked (Retired Congressman John) Dingell if he could get the ESA passed today.
“I don’t think I could pass the Lord’s Prayer in that nuthouse,” he told me, referring to Congress. “The ESA was written so that scientific principles would be used to protect species. Science would make the decisions, science would decide the case. Today we have a bunch of antiscience ignoramuses and vicious lying people in Congress. And we’re going to pay a hellacious price.”
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/endangered_speciesact/
Inside the Effort to Kill Protections for Endangered Animals
The U.S. Endangered Species Act has saved more than 200 species from extinction—but business and political interests want to scuttle it.
Christopher Ketcham | May 19, 2017
...Scientists have concluded that 227 species would have gone extinct between 1973 and 2005 without the ESA’s protections. Its broad mandate that vast stretches of habitat require protection in order to preserve the creatures living in them has produced cascading benefits for ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest, the Everglades, the Chesapeake Bay, Shenandoah National Park, and along the New England coast.
Since 1973 more than 1,600 animal and plant species have been declared endangered or threatened, and the great majority are headed toward recovery because of the ESA, researchers say.
...Since 1973 six federal circuit courts have considered and rejected challenges to the ESA's constitutionality, leaving the law intact. In Congress there have been scores of attempts to weaken it by little cuts.
ESA advocates, including conservation groups and most elected Democrats, warn that Republicans are now gearing up for an unprecedented assault. “The Republicans are pushing bills to divert protection funding, prioritize corporate land development, and sidestep science,” says Representative Raul Grijalva, a Democrat from Arizona. “These are blatant efforts to place corporate interests over species survival.”
During the past five months Republicans have introduced 25 proposals to skirt, hamper, defang, or undermine endangered species protections. These include bills to amend the ESA to abandon its requirement to use “best available science” in listing decisions and to hand oversight of some of the law’s key management and decision-making provisions to state governments historically hostile to the act.
...(In 1973) The ESA passed the House and Senate by margins that in the current partisan climate would be astonishing: 92 to zero in the Senate, 390 to 12 in the House. President Richard Nixon, a Republican, signed the law without hesitation.
I asked (Retired Congressman John) Dingell if he could get the ESA passed today.
“I don’t think I could pass the Lord’s Prayer in that nuthouse,” he told me, referring to Congress. “The ESA was written so that scientific principles would be used to protect species. Science would make the decisions, science would decide the case. Today we have a bunch of antiscience ignoramuses and vicious lying people in Congress. And we’re going to pay a hellacious price.”
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/endangered_speciesact/
16margd
Technical Guidance for Assessing the Effects of Anthropogenic Sound on Marine Mammal Hearing-Acoustic Threshold Levels for Onset of Permanent and Temporary Threshold Shifts
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 05/31/2017
SUMMARY:
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) seeks public comment to assist the Secretary of Commerce's review of NMFS' August 2016 Technical Guidance for Assessing the Effects of Anthropogenic Sound on Marine Mammal Hearing: Underwater Acoustic Thresholds for Onset of Permanent and Temporary Threshold Shifts (Technical Guidance), pursuant to section 10 of Presidential Executive Order (EO) 13795, Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy (April 28, 2017).
DATES:
Comments must be received by July 17, 2017.
ADDRESSES...
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/05/31/2017-11035/technical-guidan...
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 05/31/2017
SUMMARY:
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) seeks public comment to assist the Secretary of Commerce's review of NMFS' August 2016 Technical Guidance for Assessing the Effects of Anthropogenic Sound on Marine Mammal Hearing: Underwater Acoustic Thresholds for Onset of Permanent and Temporary Threshold Shifts (Technical Guidance), pursuant to section 10 of Presidential Executive Order (EO) 13795, Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy (April 28, 2017).
DATES:
Comments must be received by July 17, 2017.
ADDRESSES...
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/05/31/2017-11035/technical-guidan...
17margd
The fix was in, but perhaps thousands of Americans did hold off the worst... :-(
...Bears Ears National Monument, which President Obama established less than a month before leaving office and is the first-ever monument created in partnership with Native Americans. Today U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke recommended that Trump shrink the borders Bears Ears and reevaluate its management.
nrdc.org
...Bears Ears National Monument, which President Obama established less than a month before leaving office and is the first-ever monument created in partnership with Native Americans. Today U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke recommended that Trump shrink the borders Bears Ears and reevaluate its management.
nrdc.org
18DugsBooks
> I signed some online petitions. Best I can do currently, my reps are only looking for opinions that back their Republican stance - like "Obamacare horror stories " . They ignore any positive result feedback.
19margd
Thought I posted this, but maybe not?
...The Interior Department launched a new offshore-leasing planning process for 2019 to 2024, a move that could open up new areas for drilling in the Arctic, Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as the Gulf of Mexico.
In a Federal Register notice published Friday, the Interior Department invited public comment on a plan that would “replace the 2017-2022 Program” established during the Obama administration and represent “a key aspect of the implementation of President Donald J. Trump’s America-First Offshore Energy Strategy.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal-court-blocks-trump-epa-on-air-po...
________________________________________________
Request for Information and Comments on the Preparation of the 2019-2024 National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program MAA104000
A Notice by the Ocean Energy Management Bureau on 07/03/2017
This document has a comment period that ends in 44 days. (08/17/2017)
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/07/03/2017-13998/request-for-info...
_________________________________________________
Sierra Club's reaction and suggested response (per e-mail):
Horrible! The Trump administration just announced they're making new plans to expand drilling off America's coasts.
The announcement that this administration will develop a new Five Year Plan for offshore drilling, made today by Secretary Zinke, reopens plans to drill off our coasts, creating a potential for wide-scale disaster in our oceans. It also brazenly ignores permanent protections put in place for the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, and hits reset on the plan the Obama administration completed only 6 months ago.
Disaster after disaster has shown that Big Oil and Gas cannot be trusted. Their track record includes the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989, a failed attempt by Shell to drill in the Arctic Ocean, the Deepwater Horizon tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico, a major oil spill off the Santa Barbara coast, and the oil spill and leak of gas in Alaska's Cook Inlet. These tragedies can not be allowed to happen again.
We will not allow this administration to jeopardize our communities, waters, and wildlife! Take action now to tell Zinke the people have spoken -- no drilling off our coasts!
Offshore oil spills happen frequently, devastating marine environments, commercial fishing industry, and tourism businesses. Even without spills, offshore oil causes pollution. The Department of the Interior should be protecting our coasts not handing them over so Big Oil can profit at the expense of coastal communities!
After more than 3.3 million public comments and 36 public meetings, the Obama administration's recent 5-year lease plan excluded drilling in the Pacific, the Arctic, and the Atlantic. We cannot go backwards now and allow Trump, Zinke and the rest of this dirty fuel-hungry administration to put our vulnerable coasts in jeopardy.
This planning process is an incredible waste of public resources and a deliberate attack on our oceans. Tell Zinke: The public has spoken, no more offshore drilling!
Your persistence is the reason why President Obama used his authority to protect the Arctic and Atlantic oceans from drilling. Now is the time to resist the Trump administration's effort to roll back progress -- take action today!
...The Interior Department launched a new offshore-leasing planning process for 2019 to 2024, a move that could open up new areas for drilling in the Arctic, Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as the Gulf of Mexico.
In a Federal Register notice published Friday, the Interior Department invited public comment on a plan that would “replace the 2017-2022 Program” established during the Obama administration and represent “a key aspect of the implementation of President Donald J. Trump’s America-First Offshore Energy Strategy.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal-court-blocks-trump-epa-on-air-po...
________________________________________________
Request for Information and Comments on the Preparation of the 2019-2024 National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program MAA104000
A Notice by the Ocean Energy Management Bureau on 07/03/2017
This document has a comment period that ends in 44 days. (08/17/2017)
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/07/03/2017-13998/request-for-info...
_________________________________________________
Sierra Club's reaction and suggested response (per e-mail):
Horrible! The Trump administration just announced they're making new plans to expand drilling off America's coasts.
The announcement that this administration will develop a new Five Year Plan for offshore drilling, made today by Secretary Zinke, reopens plans to drill off our coasts, creating a potential for wide-scale disaster in our oceans. It also brazenly ignores permanent protections put in place for the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, and hits reset on the plan the Obama administration completed only 6 months ago.
Disaster after disaster has shown that Big Oil and Gas cannot be trusted. Their track record includes the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989, a failed attempt by Shell to drill in the Arctic Ocean, the Deepwater Horizon tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico, a major oil spill off the Santa Barbara coast, and the oil spill and leak of gas in Alaska's Cook Inlet. These tragedies can not be allowed to happen again.
We will not allow this administration to jeopardize our communities, waters, and wildlife! Take action now to tell Zinke the people have spoken -- no drilling off our coasts!
Offshore oil spills happen frequently, devastating marine environments, commercial fishing industry, and tourism businesses. Even without spills, offshore oil causes pollution. The Department of the Interior should be protecting our coasts not handing them over so Big Oil can profit at the expense of coastal communities!
After more than 3.3 million public comments and 36 public meetings, the Obama administration's recent 5-year lease plan excluded drilling in the Pacific, the Arctic, and the Atlantic. We cannot go backwards now and allow Trump, Zinke and the rest of this dirty fuel-hungry administration to put our vulnerable coasts in jeopardy.
This planning process is an incredible waste of public resources and a deliberate attack on our oceans. Tell Zinke: The public has spoken, no more offshore drilling!
Your persistence is the reason why President Obama used his authority to protect the Arctic and Atlantic oceans from drilling. Now is the time to resist the Trump administration's effort to roll back progress -- take action today!
20margd
Two week extension (to Aug 14, 2017) to comment on designation/expansion of marine sanctuaries and monuments in Atlantic, Pacific, L Huron, and energy mineral exploration in Outer Continental Shelf:
Pursuant to Executive Order 13795—Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy, signed on April 28, 2017, the Department of Commerce is conducting a review of all designations and expansions of National Marine Sanctuaries and Marine National Monuments since April 28, 2007. The Secretary of Commerce will use the review to inform the preparation of a report under Executive Order 13795, Sec. 4(b)(ii). This Notice identifies 11 National Marine Sanctuaries and Marine National Monuments subject to the review and invites comments to inform the review.
https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=NOAA-NOS-2017-0066-0001
Pursuant to Executive Order 13795—Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy, signed on April 28, 2017, the Department of Commerce is conducting a review of all designations and expansions of National Marine Sanctuaries and Marine National Monuments since April 28, 2007. The Secretary of Commerce will use the review to inform the preparation of a report under Executive Order 13795, Sec. 4(b)(ii). This Notice identifies 11 National Marine Sanctuaries and Marine National Monuments subject to the review and invites comments to inform the review.
https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=NOAA-NOS-2017-0066-0001
21margd
Trump Administration Moves to Build Border Wall Around Environmental Regulations
James Rainey | Aug 1, 2017
Donald Trump's Department of Homeland Security says it will waive more than three dozen laws and regulations — most of them requiring environmental review — as it pushes ahead with the first phase of construction of an enhanced wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The announcement Tuesday by the department's Customs and Border Protection Unit pertains to a 14-mile stretch of the wall in the San Diego area — stretching from the Pacific Ocean to a point inland known as Border Monument 251.
...Environmentalists said the area targeted for initial construction in San Diego County includes wetlands, streams and other rare wildlife habitats that are the home of endangered species, including the Quino checkerspot butterfly and the California gnatcatcher, a bird.
"This isn’t just a wall they’re in a rush to build. It’s roads, lighting and all of the infrastructure that comes with it. All of this without any environmental review or public input. It’s a travesty and it has to be stopped," (Brian Segee, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity) said in a statement. "We believe the waiver is unconstitutional, and we’re confident the courts will agree."
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-administration-moves-build-border-wall...
_________________________________________________
DHS Issues Waiver to Expedite Border Construction Projects in San Diego Area
Release Date: August 1, 2017
For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010
...The waiver will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days.
...Section 102(a) of IIRIRA provides that the Secretary of Homeland Security shall take such actions as may be necessary to install additional physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the United States border to deter illegal crossings in areas of high illegal entry into the United States. In section 102(b) of IIRIRA, Congress has called for the installation of additional fencing, barriers, roads, lighting, cameras, and sensors on the southwest border. Finally, in section 102(c) of IIRIRA, Congress granted to the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to waive all legal requirements that the Secretary, in his sole discretion, determines necessary to ensure the expeditious construction of the barriers and roads authorized by section 102 of IIRIRA.
The Department is implementing President Trump’s Executive Order 13767, Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, and continues to take steps to immediately plan, design and construct a physical wall along the southern border, using appropriate materials and technology to most effectively achieve complete operational control of the southern border.
While the waiver eliminates DHS’s obligation to comply with various laws with respect to covered projects, the Department remains committed to environmental stewardship with respect to these projects. DHS has been coordinating and consulting -- and intends to continue doing so -- with other federal and state resource agencies to ensure impacts to the environment, wildlife, and cultural and historic artifacts are analyzed and minimized, to the extent possible.
https://www.dhs.gov/news/2017/08/01/dhs-issues-waiver-expedite-border-constructi...
James Rainey | Aug 1, 2017
Donald Trump's Department of Homeland Security says it will waive more than three dozen laws and regulations — most of them requiring environmental review — as it pushes ahead with the first phase of construction of an enhanced wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The announcement Tuesday by the department's Customs and Border Protection Unit pertains to a 14-mile stretch of the wall in the San Diego area — stretching from the Pacific Ocean to a point inland known as Border Monument 251.
...Environmentalists said the area targeted for initial construction in San Diego County includes wetlands, streams and other rare wildlife habitats that are the home of endangered species, including the Quino checkerspot butterfly and the California gnatcatcher, a bird.
"This isn’t just a wall they’re in a rush to build. It’s roads, lighting and all of the infrastructure that comes with it. All of this without any environmental review or public input. It’s a travesty and it has to be stopped," (Brian Segee, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity) said in a statement. "We believe the waiver is unconstitutional, and we’re confident the courts will agree."
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-administration-moves-build-border-wall...
_________________________________________________
DHS Issues Waiver to Expedite Border Construction Projects in San Diego Area
Release Date: August 1, 2017
For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010
...The waiver will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days.
...Section 102(a) of IIRIRA provides that the Secretary of Homeland Security shall take such actions as may be necessary to install additional physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the United States border to deter illegal crossings in areas of high illegal entry into the United States. In section 102(b) of IIRIRA, Congress has called for the installation of additional fencing, barriers, roads, lighting, cameras, and sensors on the southwest border. Finally, in section 102(c) of IIRIRA, Congress granted to the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to waive all legal requirements that the Secretary, in his sole discretion, determines necessary to ensure the expeditious construction of the barriers and roads authorized by section 102 of IIRIRA.
The Department is implementing President Trump’s Executive Order 13767, Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, and continues to take steps to immediately plan, design and construct a physical wall along the southern border, using appropriate materials and technology to most effectively achieve complete operational control of the southern border.
While the waiver eliminates DHS’s obligation to comply with various laws with respect to covered projects, the Department remains committed to environmental stewardship with respect to these projects. DHS has been coordinating and consulting -- and intends to continue doing so -- with other federal and state resource agencies to ensure impacts to the environment, wildlife, and cultural and historic artifacts are analyzed and minimized, to the extent possible.
https://www.dhs.gov/news/2017/08/01/dhs-issues-waiver-expedite-border-constructi...
22margd
The EPA Is Beginning To Roll Back An Obama-Era Rule Limiting How Much Toxic Waste Power Plants Release In Water
The rule would have cut the amount of toxic metals, nutrients, and other pollutants that power plants release into US waters every year by 1.4 billion pounds, according to the EPA’s own analysis.
Updated on August 15, 2017
...the new rulemaking will target the so-called ELG rule, which applies to most power plants. The Obama administration finalized these standards in November 2015, estimating they would curb the amount of toxic metals, nutrients, and other pollutants that power plants annually release into US waters by 1.4 billion pounds.
The types of pollutants coming out of these plants have been linked to a range of health and environmental problems, from cancer in humans to deformities in fish.
The rule targets two main sources of waste. First, there’s the waste produced when sulfur dioxide is stripped out of the collection of gases venting into the atmosphere from a power plant. The rule imposed the first ever limits on how much mercury, arsenic, and other toxic pollutants can be in this waste.
Second, there’s the residue flushed out of the bottom of furnaces and incinerators at coal plants, called bottom ash, which is often combined with water and stored in ponds on-site. Sometimes heavy rains can cause these ponds to overflow into surrounding waterways, but other times companies may directly dump the waste into surface waters. The rule banned plants from dumping any of this waste, either intentionally or not, into waterways.
“The objective of the 2015 rule is to prevent repeats of the many environmental catastrophes caused by the failure of power company coal ash ponds, the most recent being the 70 mile long Duke Energy spill into the Dan River of North Carolina,” (Betsy Southerland, former director of science and technology in the EPA’s Office of Water) wrote in her exit letter...
https://www.buzzfeed.com/zahrahirji/trump-targets-strict-limits-on-power-plant-t...
The rule would have cut the amount of toxic metals, nutrients, and other pollutants that power plants release into US waters every year by 1.4 billion pounds, according to the EPA’s own analysis.
Updated on August 15, 2017
...the new rulemaking will target the so-called ELG rule, which applies to most power plants. The Obama administration finalized these standards in November 2015, estimating they would curb the amount of toxic metals, nutrients, and other pollutants that power plants annually release into US waters by 1.4 billion pounds.
The types of pollutants coming out of these plants have been linked to a range of health and environmental problems, from cancer in humans to deformities in fish.
The rule targets two main sources of waste. First, there’s the waste produced when sulfur dioxide is stripped out of the collection of gases venting into the atmosphere from a power plant. The rule imposed the first ever limits on how much mercury, arsenic, and other toxic pollutants can be in this waste.
Second, there’s the residue flushed out of the bottom of furnaces and incinerators at coal plants, called bottom ash, which is often combined with water and stored in ponds on-site. Sometimes heavy rains can cause these ponds to overflow into surrounding waterways, but other times companies may directly dump the waste into surface waters. The rule banned plants from dumping any of this waste, either intentionally or not, into waterways.
“The objective of the 2015 rule is to prevent repeats of the many environmental catastrophes caused by the failure of power company coal ash ponds, the most recent being the 70 mile long Duke Energy spill into the Dan River of North Carolina,” (Betsy Southerland, former director of science and technology in the EPA’s Office of Water) wrote in her exit letter...
https://www.buzzfeed.com/zahrahirji/trump-targets-strict-limits-on-power-plant-t...
23margd
Interior Asks to Shrink National Monuments...
Laura Parker | August 24, 2017
...Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke says he will recommend that none of the 27 national monuments under review be eliminated. But he told the Associated Press in Billings, Montana, that he will propose boundary readjustments to a “handful” of monuments.
The action will almost immediately trigger a legal challenge and political fight in Congress
...The monument review drew more than 2.8 million comments during the public comment period, among the largest number of comments over a proposal in Interior Department history.
...Presidential authority to create national monuments flows from the Antiquities Act, signed into law in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt
...Every president since Roosevelt, except Reagan, and now Trump, has created national monuments during his term. No president has ever revoked an established national monument, or ordered a review of existing monuments. Last spring...Trump signed an Executive Order calling for the analysis...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/08/trump-shrinks-national-monuments-zink...
Laura Parker | August 24, 2017
...Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke says he will recommend that none of the 27 national monuments under review be eliminated. But he told the Associated Press in Billings, Montana, that he will propose boundary readjustments to a “handful” of monuments.
The action will almost immediately trigger a legal challenge and political fight in Congress
...The monument review drew more than 2.8 million comments during the public comment period, among the largest number of comments over a proposal in Interior Department history.
...Presidential authority to create national monuments flows from the Antiquities Act, signed into law in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt
...Every president since Roosevelt, except Reagan, and now Trump, has created national monuments during his term. No president has ever revoked an established national monument, or ordered a review of existing monuments. Last spring...Trump signed an Executive Order calling for the analysis...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/08/trump-shrinks-national-monuments-zink...
24margd
Shrink at least 4 national monuments and modify a half-dozen others, Zinke tells Trump
Juliet Eilperin | September 17, 2017
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has recommended that President Trump modify 10 national monuments created by his immediate predecessors, including...Utah’s Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, Nevada’s Gold Butte, and Oregon’s Cascade-Siskiyou — or the two marine national monuments — the Pacific Remote Islands and Rose Atoll — for which he raised the same prospect.
...the administration should permit “traditional uses” now restricted within the monuments’ boundaries, such as grazing, logging, coal mining and commercial fishing.
...Trump should use his authority under the Antiquities Act to change each of the 10 sites’ proclamations to permit activities that are now restricted. These include “active timber management” in Maine’s Katahdin Woods and Waters; a broader set of activities in New Mexico’s Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte; and commercial fishing in the two Pacific Ocean marine monuments, as well as in one off the New England coast, Northeast Canyons and Seamounts.
...Trump (should) request congressional authority “to enable tribal co-management of designated cultural resources” in three ancestral sites: Bears Ears, Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks.
At the same time, he proposes not only shrinking the boundaries of Bears Ears but requesting that Congress make less-restrictive designations within it, “such as national recreation areas or national conservation areas.” The monument, which contains tens of thousands of cultural artifacts, has become the most prominent symbol of the issues surrounding the Antiquities Act.
...Yet Zinke also suggests the administration explore the possibility of establishing three new national monuments that would recognize either African American or Native American history. These include Kentucky’s Camp Nelson, an 1863 Union Army outpost where African American regiments trained; the home of murdered civil rights hero Medgar Evers in Jackson, Miss.; and the 130,000-acre Badger-Two Medicine area in Zinke’s home state of Montana, which is consider sacred by the Blackfeet Nation.
...Grand Staircase-Escalante...contains “an estimated several billion tons of coal and large oil deposits” and that the limits of motorized vehicle use there “has created conflict with Kane and Garfield Counties’ transportation network.”
...Pacific Remote Islands...before Bush protected it in 2009 “there were Hawaiian and American Samoan longliners and purse seiners vessels operating.”
...Changing the way these monuments are managed, as well as their size, is likely to spur a range of legal challenges...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/shrink-at-least-4-nationa...
Juliet Eilperin | September 17, 2017
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has recommended that President Trump modify 10 national monuments created by his immediate predecessors, including...Utah’s Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, Nevada’s Gold Butte, and Oregon’s Cascade-Siskiyou — or the two marine national monuments — the Pacific Remote Islands and Rose Atoll — for which he raised the same prospect.
...the administration should permit “traditional uses” now restricted within the monuments’ boundaries, such as grazing, logging, coal mining and commercial fishing.
...Trump should use his authority under the Antiquities Act to change each of the 10 sites’ proclamations to permit activities that are now restricted. These include “active timber management” in Maine’s Katahdin Woods and Waters; a broader set of activities in New Mexico’s Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte; and commercial fishing in the two Pacific Ocean marine monuments, as well as in one off the New England coast, Northeast Canyons and Seamounts.
...Trump (should) request congressional authority “to enable tribal co-management of designated cultural resources” in three ancestral sites: Bears Ears, Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks.
At the same time, he proposes not only shrinking the boundaries of Bears Ears but requesting that Congress make less-restrictive designations within it, “such as national recreation areas or national conservation areas.” The monument, which contains tens of thousands of cultural artifacts, has become the most prominent symbol of the issues surrounding the Antiquities Act.
...Yet Zinke also suggests the administration explore the possibility of establishing three new national monuments that would recognize either African American or Native American history. These include Kentucky’s Camp Nelson, an 1863 Union Army outpost where African American regiments trained; the home of murdered civil rights hero Medgar Evers in Jackson, Miss.; and the 130,000-acre Badger-Two Medicine area in Zinke’s home state of Montana, which is consider sacred by the Blackfeet Nation.
...Grand Staircase-Escalante...contains “an estimated several billion tons of coal and large oil deposits” and that the limits of motorized vehicle use there “has created conflict with Kane and Garfield Counties’ transportation network.”
...Pacific Remote Islands...before Bush protected it in 2009 “there were Hawaiian and American Samoan longliners and purse seiners vessels operating.”
...Changing the way these monuments are managed, as well as their size, is likely to spur a range of legal challenges...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/shrink-at-least-4-nationa...
26margd
A Court Just Saved Millions of Acres of Untouched National Forestland
September 22, 2017 NRDC
...Yesterday, a Washington, D.C., district court rejected the state of Alaska’s latest attempt to scrap a 16-year-old rule that protects 50 million acres of wild national forests across 37 states.
The Roadless Area Conservation Rule, enacted by President Bill Clinton in 2001, protects the integrity of national forest wildlands by prohibiting damaging development, including commercial logging the construction of most roads. The rule was created for good reason—huge areas of our national forests have been logged, many of them clear-cut, and by 2000, the U.S. Forest Service was maintaining close to 400,000 miles of roads, more than the country’s entire interstate highway system.
But the timber industry—and states like Alaska where the industry holds a lot of influence—has for years been challenging these protections...
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/nrdc/court-just-saved-millions-acres-untouched-nati...
September 22, 2017 NRDC
...Yesterday, a Washington, D.C., district court rejected the state of Alaska’s latest attempt to scrap a 16-year-old rule that protects 50 million acres of wild national forests across 37 states.
The Roadless Area Conservation Rule, enacted by President Bill Clinton in 2001, protects the integrity of national forest wildlands by prohibiting damaging development, including commercial logging the construction of most roads. The rule was created for good reason—huge areas of our national forests have been logged, many of them clear-cut, and by 2000, the U.S. Forest Service was maintaining close to 400,000 miles of roads, more than the country’s entire interstate highway system.
But the timber industry—and states like Alaska where the industry holds a lot of influence—has for years been challenging these protections...
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/nrdc/court-just-saved-millions-acres-untouched-nati...
27margd
Witch hunt at Interior, whose employees BTW pledge allegiance to the CONSTITUTION. Open season though, sounds like, for any aggrieved mineral extractor, etc....
Zinke says a third of Interior’s staff is disloyal to Trump and promises ‘huge’ changes
Darryl Fears and Juliet Eilperin | September 26, 2017
In a speech to the oil industry, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke claimed that nearly a third of his staff is disloyal to President Trump, saying that workers in Washington are reluctant to relax regulations to permit increased mining for coal and drilling for natural gas and oil on public land.
Zinke promised a “huge” change by restructuring staff positions and possibly shifting decision-making positions in the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation from Washington to points out West in the speech Monday to the National Petroleum Council of oil and gas executives, first reported by the Associated Press.
“I got 30 percent of the crew that’s not loyal to the flag”...
...(However) Permits to drill, dig and log are protected by regulations that delay the application process...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/09/26/zinke-says-...
_______________________________________________
(Federal Employees') Oath
I, name, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.
5 U.S.C. §3331
https://archive.opm.gov/constitution_initiative/oath.asp
Zinke says a third of Interior’s staff is disloyal to Trump and promises ‘huge’ changes
Darryl Fears and Juliet Eilperin | September 26, 2017
In a speech to the oil industry, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke claimed that nearly a third of his staff is disloyal to President Trump, saying that workers in Washington are reluctant to relax regulations to permit increased mining for coal and drilling for natural gas and oil on public land.
Zinke promised a “huge” change by restructuring staff positions and possibly shifting decision-making positions in the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation from Washington to points out West in the speech Monday to the National Petroleum Council of oil and gas executives, first reported by the Associated Press.
“I got 30 percent of the crew that’s not loyal to the flag”...
...(However) Permits to drill, dig and log are protected by regulations that delay the application process...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/09/26/zinke-says-...
_______________________________________________
(Federal Employees') Oath
I, name, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.
5 U.S.C. §3331
https://archive.opm.gov/constitution_initiative/oath.asp
28margd
If you buy sockeye salmon from Alaska and don't care to have a ...Canadian... mine use salmon waters as a dump (in spite of Alaskan opposition), you have until Oct 17 to comment:
https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EPA-R10-OW-2017-0369
(Sure hope WH doesn't use this issue as opportunity to punish Senator Murkowski for her healthcare vote...)
______________________________________________________
Alaska’s Pebble Mine and the Legend of Trump’s Gold
Tim Sohn |March 2, 2017
...On Valentine’s Day, Kerrisdale Capital Management, a New York-based hedge fund with a specialty in shorting companies it views as overvalued, released a bearish report. “We believe Northern Dynasty is worthless,” it read. “Though the legal and regulatory problems that will continue to plague the Pebble project even under a Trump presidency are enormous, the project’s Achilles’ heel is more fundamental: economics.”
...The company has stayed ahead of insolvency by periodically selling shares and special warrants to investors, using the proceeds to pay lawyers and lobbyists to hobble the E.P.A. and keep the project alive. To make Pebble an actual mine now, the company will need, by its own estimate, some hundred and fifty million dollars for the permitting process alone. It will also require the institutional knowledge of a larger mining company, which means attracting another partner. And assuming it can do that, a number of other obstacles remain. The Kerrisdale report suggests, for instance, that the cost of meeting various logistical challenges—supplying the project’s enormous power needs; building a deep-water port, a pipeline, a haul road, and dams to hold back waste—may in fact be too high for Pebble’s relatively low-grade ore ever to be mined profitably. The report’s conclusion is damning: “Northern Dynasty has skillfully exploited the Trump narrative to reignite enthusiasm for a company that the market had left for dead. But ‘telling a good story’ is all Northern Dynasty has ever been good at.”
...in a generally extraction-friendly state, Pebble is unpopular, and only getting more so. Governor Bill Walker, an independent, has spoken out against the mine, and the G.O.P.-dominated state legislature has grown increasingly skeptical—a particularly important development, since a 2014 ballot measure, supported by two-thirds of voters, gave it veto power over any mine proposal in Bristol Bay. Earlier this week, the United Tribes of Bristol Bay, a consortium that has fought against Pebble for years, was invited to testify before the Alaska House Resources Committee about pollution allegedly caused by all those drill holes. “Our local hunters have seen our game pushed further and further away,” Alannah Hurley, the group’s executive director, told the committee. “These concerns come from our people and our communities, who are seeing real impacts to our way of life.”...
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/alaskas-pebble-mine-and-the-legend-of-tr...
https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EPA-R10-OW-2017-0369
(Sure hope WH doesn't use this issue as opportunity to punish Senator Murkowski for her healthcare vote...)
______________________________________________________
Alaska’s Pebble Mine and the Legend of Trump’s Gold
Tim Sohn |March 2, 2017
...On Valentine’s Day, Kerrisdale Capital Management, a New York-based hedge fund with a specialty in shorting companies it views as overvalued, released a bearish report. “We believe Northern Dynasty is worthless,” it read. “Though the legal and regulatory problems that will continue to plague the Pebble project even under a Trump presidency are enormous, the project’s Achilles’ heel is more fundamental: economics.”
...The company has stayed ahead of insolvency by periodically selling shares and special warrants to investors, using the proceeds to pay lawyers and lobbyists to hobble the E.P.A. and keep the project alive. To make Pebble an actual mine now, the company will need, by its own estimate, some hundred and fifty million dollars for the permitting process alone. It will also require the institutional knowledge of a larger mining company, which means attracting another partner. And assuming it can do that, a number of other obstacles remain. The Kerrisdale report suggests, for instance, that the cost of meeting various logistical challenges—supplying the project’s enormous power needs; building a deep-water port, a pipeline, a haul road, and dams to hold back waste—may in fact be too high for Pebble’s relatively low-grade ore ever to be mined profitably. The report’s conclusion is damning: “Northern Dynasty has skillfully exploited the Trump narrative to reignite enthusiasm for a company that the market had left for dead. But ‘telling a good story’ is all Northern Dynasty has ever been good at.”
...in a generally extraction-friendly state, Pebble is unpopular, and only getting more so. Governor Bill Walker, an independent, has spoken out against the mine, and the G.O.P.-dominated state legislature has grown increasingly skeptical—a particularly important development, since a 2014 ballot measure, supported by two-thirds of voters, gave it veto power over any mine proposal in Bristol Bay. Earlier this week, the United Tribes of Bristol Bay, a consortium that has fought against Pebble for years, was invited to testify before the Alaska House Resources Committee about pollution allegedly caused by all those drill holes. “Our local hunters have seen our game pushed further and further away,” Alannah Hurley, the group’s executive director, told the committee. “These concerns come from our people and our communities, who are seeing real impacts to our way of life.”...
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/alaskas-pebble-mine-and-the-legend-of-tr...
29margd
Amazing the animal bits that people traffic--and how they do it. Very lucrative. Punishments in this country at least are generally slaps on wrist relative to profits. So-o, IMHO even if case can be made for bring elephant bits into US legally--for example, giving locals reason to conserve endangered animals that bring in tourism $--legal import WILL be misused and elephants will continue their decline... Hey but big game hunters like Trump Jr will rejoice at Zinke's proposal...
Trophies from elephant hunts in Zimbabwe were banned in the U.S. Trump just reversed that.
Darryl Fears and Juliet Eilperin | November 15, 2017
The Trump administration announced Wednesday that the remains of elephants legally hunted in Zimbabwe and Zambia can now be imported to the United States as trophies, reversing a ban under former president Barack Obama.
African elephants are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that large sums paid for permits to hunt the animals could actually help them “by putting much-needed revenue back into conservation,” according to an agency statement.
Under the Obama administration, elephant-hunting trophies were allowed in countries such as South Africa but not in Zimbabwe because Fish and Wildlife decided in 2015 that the nation had failed to prove that its management of elephants enhanced the population. Zimbabwe could not confirm its elephant population in a way that was acceptable to U.S. officials, and did not demonstrate an ability to implement laws to protect it.
The Service’s new statement did not specify what had changed in that country — where the African elephant population has declined 6 percent in recent years, according to the Great Elephant Census project — to allow hunting trophies. A spokeswoman said an explanation will be published in the Federal Register on Friday...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/animalia/wp/2017/11/15/trophies-from-elephan...
Trophies from elephant hunts in Zimbabwe were banned in the U.S. Trump just reversed that.
Darryl Fears and Juliet Eilperin | November 15, 2017
The Trump administration announced Wednesday that the remains of elephants legally hunted in Zimbabwe and Zambia can now be imported to the United States as trophies, reversing a ban under former president Barack Obama.
African elephants are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that large sums paid for permits to hunt the animals could actually help them “by putting much-needed revenue back into conservation,” according to an agency statement.
Under the Obama administration, elephant-hunting trophies were allowed in countries such as South Africa but not in Zimbabwe because Fish and Wildlife decided in 2015 that the nation had failed to prove that its management of elephants enhanced the population. Zimbabwe could not confirm its elephant population in a way that was acceptable to U.S. officials, and did not demonstrate an ability to implement laws to protect it.
The Service’s new statement did not specify what had changed in that country — where the African elephant population has declined 6 percent in recent years, according to the Great Elephant Census project — to allow hunting trophies. A spokeswoman said an explanation will be published in the Federal Register on Friday...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/animalia/wp/2017/11/15/trophies-from-elephan...
302wonderY
>29 margd: I would think that that alone would turn all reasonable people against Trump.
This from California
Trump's environmental rollbacks hit California hard, despite Sacramento's resistance
just two examples - Federal waterways protections that state officials were relying on to save sensitive vernal pools and boost fisheries are gone. A dangerous pesticide that field workers expected would be banned remains widely sprayed.
This from California
Trump's environmental rollbacks hit California hard, despite Sacramento's resistance
just two examples - Federal waterways protections that state officials were relying on to save sensitive vernal pools and boost fisheries are gone. A dangerous pesticide that field workers expected would be banned remains widely sprayed.
31margd
...In March, Scott Pruitt, the E.P.A. chief, overrode the recommendation of ... (EPA) scientists to ban the commercial use of the pesticide chlorpyrifos, blamed for developmental disabilities in children.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/us/trump-epa-chemicals-regulations.html
_______________________________________________________________
New research--not just bees, butterflies, and people (in case of chlopyrifos) are impacted. Migrating birds also:
Birds consume pesticides chlorpyrifos (organophosphate) and imidacloprid (neonicotinoid) as granules mistaken as grit or as treated seeds, and it takes surprisingly few to poison a sparrow (4 to 8). Study saw some recovery in migration orientation two weeks after exposure to imidicloprid, but none after chlopyrifos... Imidacloprid changed not only the birds’ migratory orientation, but the birds lost up to 25 percent of their fat stores and body mass, both of which are detrimental to how a bird successfully migrates. (It takes an incredible amount of food energy to power migration.)
Link to Eng et al.'s paper, just published, is below. Discussion on p 3 is accessible and worth the read. (Only jargon in that section is 'LD50', which means dose that kills 50% of test subjects in, say, 24h; 25% LD50 would be one quarter of that lethal dose.)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-15446-x.epdf?shared_access_token=G0Us...
Wikipedia: Imidacloprid is a systemic insecticide that acts as an insect neurotoxin and belongs to a class of chemicals called the neonicotinoids which act on the central nervous system of insects, with much lower toxicity to mammals. (Routine, preventive application of neonicotinoids were recently banned in Ontario (bees), but are still permitted to control proven insect outbreaks. I believe seeds are still routinely treated with neonicotinoids in the US.)
Wikipedia: Chlorpyrifos (CPS), sold under many brandnames (Google--you may recognize some products.), is an organophosphate pesticide used to kill a number of pests including insects and worms.6 It is used on crops, animals, and buildings... It acts on the nervous system of insects by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase (i.e., a neurotoxin). Toxicity results in more than 10,000 human deaths a year. (This is the chem that kills tourists from time to time, when their overseas hotel rooms are sprayed with it.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/us/trump-epa-chemicals-regulations.html
_______________________________________________________________
New research--not just bees, butterflies, and people (in case of chlopyrifos) are impacted. Migrating birds also:
Birds consume pesticides chlorpyrifos (organophosphate) and imidacloprid (neonicotinoid) as granules mistaken as grit or as treated seeds, and it takes surprisingly few to poison a sparrow (4 to 8). Study saw some recovery in migration orientation two weeks after exposure to imidicloprid, but none after chlopyrifos... Imidacloprid changed not only the birds’ migratory orientation, but the birds lost up to 25 percent of their fat stores and body mass, both of which are detrimental to how a bird successfully migrates. (It takes an incredible amount of food energy to power migration.)
Link to Eng et al.'s paper, just published, is below. Discussion on p 3 is accessible and worth the read. (Only jargon in that section is 'LD50', which means dose that kills 50% of test subjects in, say, 24h; 25% LD50 would be one quarter of that lethal dose.)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-15446-x.epdf?shared_access_token=G0Us...
Wikipedia: Imidacloprid is a systemic insecticide that acts as an insect neurotoxin and belongs to a class of chemicals called the neonicotinoids which act on the central nervous system of insects, with much lower toxicity to mammals. (Routine, preventive application of neonicotinoids were recently banned in Ontario (bees), but are still permitted to control proven insect outbreaks. I believe seeds are still routinely treated with neonicotinoids in the US.)
Wikipedia: Chlorpyrifos (CPS), sold under many brandnames (Google--you may recognize some products.), is an organophosphate pesticide used to kill a number of pests including insects and worms.6 It is used on crops, animals, and buildings... It acts on the nervous system of insects by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase (i.e., a neurotoxin). Toxicity results in more than 10,000 human deaths a year. (This is the chem that kills tourists from time to time, when their overseas hotel rooms are sprayed with it.)
322wonderY
Uranium Company Urged Trump To Carve Up Bears Ears, Then He Did
Zinke has insisted the president’s push to reduce national monuments has nothing to do with mining interests. “This is not about energy,” Zinke told reporters last week. “There is no mine within Bears Ears.”
But the president’s redrawn boundaries of Bears Ears now puts the uranium deposits outside the protected area, Utah’s Republican Gov. Gary Herbert pointed out in an interview with the Post.
Energy Fuels Resources also paid $30,000 to lobbying firm Faegre Baker Daniels to push for the change throughout this year, according to federal records, the newspaper (Washington Post) reported. The lobbying team was headed by Andrew Wheeler, whom Trump has tapped to be deputy secretary of the Environmental Protection Agency. Wheeler is awaiting Senate confirmation.
Zinke has insisted the president’s push to reduce national monuments has nothing to do with mining interests. “This is not about energy,” Zinke told reporters last week. “There is no mine within Bears Ears.”
But the president’s redrawn boundaries of Bears Ears now puts the uranium deposits outside the protected area, Utah’s Republican Gov. Gary Herbert pointed out in an interview with the Post.
Energy Fuels Resources also paid $30,000 to lobbying firm Faegre Baker Daniels to push for the change throughout this year, according to federal records, the newspaper (Washington Post) reported. The lobbying team was headed by Andrew Wheeler, whom Trump has tapped to be deputy secretary of the Environmental Protection Agency. Wheeler is awaiting Senate confirmation.
33margd
White House relief for industrial practices that unnecessarily kill birds can have lasting effects if, for example, wind farms locate themselves in migration paths or breeding concentrations of birds. California’s Altamont Pass wind development built 25 years ago, kills an average of 116 Golden Eagles annually...
The White House Turns Its Back on America’s Birds
The Trump Administration will no longer hold industry accountable for bird deaths.
National Audubon Society | December 22, 2017
“...By acting to end industries’ responsibility to avoid millions of gruesome bird deaths per year, the White House is parting ways with more than 100 years of conservation legacy,” said David O’Neill, Audubon’s chief conservation officer, in response to the Trump Administration's decision to no longer enforce the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) in cases of incidental bird deaths.
“Gutting the MBTA runs counter to decades of legal precedent as well as basic conservative principles—for generations Republicans and Democrats have embraced both conservation and economic growth and now this Administration is pitting them against each other. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act is one of the most important conservation laws we have.
Congress passed the MBTA in 1918 (2018 will be its centennial year)...prohibits killing or harming America’s birds except under certain conditions, including managed hunting seasons for game species. The law protects more than 1,000 bird species in part because it requires industries implement commonsense best management practices like covering tar pits and marking transmission lines.
...industrial causes of bird mortality in the United States:
Power lines: Up to 175 million birds per year ...
Communication towers: Up to 50 million birds per year...
Oil waste pits: 500,000 to 1 million birds per year...
Gas flares: No reliable mortality estimates, but an infamous 2013 incident in Canada incinerated an estimated 7,500 birds...
http://www.audubon.org/news/the-white-house-turns-its-back-americas-birds
The White House Turns Its Back on America’s Birds
The Trump Administration will no longer hold industry accountable for bird deaths.
National Audubon Society | December 22, 2017
“...By acting to end industries’ responsibility to avoid millions of gruesome bird deaths per year, the White House is parting ways with more than 100 years of conservation legacy,” said David O’Neill, Audubon’s chief conservation officer, in response to the Trump Administration's decision to no longer enforce the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) in cases of incidental bird deaths.
“Gutting the MBTA runs counter to decades of legal precedent as well as basic conservative principles—for generations Republicans and Democrats have embraced both conservation and economic growth and now this Administration is pitting them against each other. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act is one of the most important conservation laws we have.
Congress passed the MBTA in 1918 (2018 will be its centennial year)...prohibits killing or harming America’s birds except under certain conditions, including managed hunting seasons for game species. The law protects more than 1,000 bird species in part because it requires industries implement commonsense best management practices like covering tar pits and marking transmission lines.
...industrial causes of bird mortality in the United States:
Power lines: Up to 175 million birds per year ...
Communication towers: Up to 50 million birds per year...
Oil waste pits: 500,000 to 1 million birds per year...
Gas flares: No reliable mortality estimates, but an infamous 2013 incident in Canada incinerated an estimated 7,500 birds...
http://www.audubon.org/news/the-white-house-turns-its-back-americas-birds
34margd
On to the marine monuments! What could possibly go wrong with self-certification?
SAFETY SCHMAFETY
Trump Rolls Back Post-Deepwater Horizon Offshore Safety Regulations
Dec 29, 2017
President Trump has opted to roll back several offshore drilling rules imposed following BP’s disastrous Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010 that killed 11 workers and spilled millions of barrels into the Gulf of Mexico. In April, Trump ordered Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to review some of the Obama-era safety rules that were intended to curb such accidents, and on Thursday the agency issued several proposed changes to regulations. The proposal would, for example, scrap the requirement that mandates operators certify—through a third party—that their safety devices are properly functioning. The changes are expected to save oil-industry companies more than $288 million over 10 years...
https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-rolls-back-post-deepwater-horizon-offshore-s...
SAFETY SCHMAFETY
Trump Rolls Back Post-Deepwater Horizon Offshore Safety Regulations
Dec 29, 2017
President Trump has opted to roll back several offshore drilling rules imposed following BP’s disastrous Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010 that killed 11 workers and spilled millions of barrels into the Gulf of Mexico. In April, Trump ordered Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to review some of the Obama-era safety rules that were intended to curb such accidents, and on Thursday the agency issued several proposed changes to regulations. The proposal would, for example, scrap the requirement that mandates operators certify—through a third party—that their safety devices are properly functioning. The changes are expected to save oil-industry companies more than $288 million over 10 years...
https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-rolls-back-post-deepwater-horizon-offshore-s...
35margd
Spectacular fossils found at Bears Ears — right where Trump removed protections
by Darryl Fears and Juliet Eilperin February 22 Email the author
...Triassic phytosaur...looted from Bears Ears in the late 1990s. (Dominic Frederico)
One of the world's richest troves of Triassic-period fossils has been discovered in an area of Bears Ears National Monument that just lost its protected status, scientists announced Thursday. President Trump signed a proclamation in December that shrank the national monument by 85 percent.
...Rob Gay, a contractor at the Museums of Western Colorado,..., who led a team of researchers on last year's expedition, called it the “largest and most complete bone bed in the state of Utah, and one of, if not the largest, anywhere in the United States.” He called the discovery of three intact toothy, long-snouted fossils from the period extremely rare, adding that the “density of bone is as high or greater than all the other Triassic sites in the country.”
The fossil bed is part of the Chinle Formation, ancient river and flood plain deposits that run through the center of the original monument President Barack Obama designated in December 2016. But that sedimentary rock also contains uranium, which made it more commercially attractive than other parts of Bears Ears.
...the firm Energy Fuels Resources lobbied Interior Department officials to shrink the boundaries of the monument, in part to allow the company greater access to areas where it held uranium mining rights. Trump's Bears Ears proclamation, which took effect Feb. 2, cut more than 1 million acres from its original 1.35-million-acre expanse...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2018/02/22/spectacula...
by Darryl Fears and Juliet Eilperin February 22 Email the author
...Triassic phytosaur...looted from Bears Ears in the late 1990s. (Dominic Frederico)
One of the world's richest troves of Triassic-period fossils has been discovered in an area of Bears Ears National Monument that just lost its protected status, scientists announced Thursday. President Trump signed a proclamation in December that shrank the national monument by 85 percent.
...Rob Gay, a contractor at the Museums of Western Colorado,..., who led a team of researchers on last year's expedition, called it the “largest and most complete bone bed in the state of Utah, and one of, if not the largest, anywhere in the United States.” He called the discovery of three intact toothy, long-snouted fossils from the period extremely rare, adding that the “density of bone is as high or greater than all the other Triassic sites in the country.”
The fossil bed is part of the Chinle Formation, ancient river and flood plain deposits that run through the center of the original monument President Barack Obama designated in December 2016. But that sedimentary rock also contains uranium, which made it more commercially attractive than other parts of Bears Ears.
...the firm Energy Fuels Resources lobbied Interior Department officials to shrink the boundaries of the monument, in part to allow the company greater access to areas where it held uranium mining rights. Trump's Bears Ears proclamation, which took effect Feb. 2, cut more than 1 million acres from its original 1.35-million-acre expanse...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2018/02/22/spectacula...
36margd
Trump reversal of elephant trophy ban underscores the need to watch what he does, not what he says
James Hohmann | March 8, 2018
...Handing another win to the National Rifle Association, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service withdrew a ban related to importing elephant trophies from Africa. A March 1 memorandum, written in dense legalese, said the government will now allow hunters to receive permits on “a case-by-case basis” to bring tusks and other body parts back to this country.
This is notable because Trump chastised and then overruled his own political appointees at the department, led by Secretary Ryan Zinke, when they unveiled plans last November to lift restrictions put in place by Barack Obama. The president called the hunting of elephants for sport a “horror show.”
...The population of African elephants, the world’s largest land mammal, has declined from 5 million to 400,000 over the past century. That’s why they’ve been protected under the Endangered Species Act since 1979....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/03/08/daily-...
James Hohmann | March 8, 2018
...Handing another win to the National Rifle Association, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service withdrew a ban related to importing elephant trophies from Africa. A March 1 memorandum, written in dense legalese, said the government will now allow hunters to receive permits on “a case-by-case basis” to bring tusks and other body parts back to this country.
This is notable because Trump chastised and then overruled his own political appointees at the department, led by Secretary Ryan Zinke, when they unveiled plans last November to lift restrictions put in place by Barack Obama. The president called the hunting of elephants for sport a “horror show.”
...The population of African elephants, the world’s largest land mammal, has declined from 5 million to 400,000 over the past century. That’s why they’ve been protected under the Endangered Species Act since 1979....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/03/08/daily-...
37margd
To mark the 100th anniversary of Migratory Bird Treaty, Interior says okay to kill birds if wasn't your intent. Developers have no incentive to site, design and operate to minimize kills. $ trumps our fellow critters... Hopefully next administration will reverse this, but some builds will be with us for decades...
The Trump administration has officially clipped the wings of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act
Darryl Fears and Dino Grandoni | April 13, 2018
...In an opinion issued Wednesday to federal wildlife police who enforce the rule, the Interior Department said “the take killing of birds resulting from an activity is not prohibited by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act when the underlying purpose of that activity is not to take birds.” For example, the guidance said, a person who destroys a structure such as a barn knowing that it is full of baby owls in nests is not liable for killing them. “All that is relevant is that the landowner undertook an action that did not have the killing of barn owls as its purpose,” the opinion said.
...The 1918 law was enacted after several species of common birds became extinct; the Audubon Society and other organizations named 2018 the year of the bird in honor of the MBTA’s centennial. The new interpretation reverses decades of action by Republican and Democratic administrations to protect the animals as they navigate the globe. The law covers such disparate birds as eagles, red knots, Canada geese and vultures.
Oil companies are the greatest beneficiaries of the new interpretation... (spills)... oil waste pits that birds mistake for ponds...each year, 500,000 to 1 million birds are lost to pits that oil companies leave uncovered.
The act “has been the tool the Fish and Wildlife Service has used to work with industry to implement basic management practices,” said Sarah Greenberger, vice president of conservation for the Audubon Society, an advocacy group that studies and protects birds. “The reason the industry covers the tar pits (that birds mistake for ponds)is the Fish and Wildlife Service’s use of the MBTA as a tool to get them to the table. Why would you spend money to implement those, why would your shareholders even allow it, if there’s no reason?”
Seventeen former Interior officials, including U.S. Fish and Wildlife directors under presidents Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, repudiated the reinterpretation when it was first announced in December...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2018/04/13/the-trump-a...
The Trump administration has officially clipped the wings of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act
Darryl Fears and Dino Grandoni | April 13, 2018
...In an opinion issued Wednesday to federal wildlife police who enforce the rule, the Interior Department said “the take killing of birds resulting from an activity is not prohibited by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act when the underlying purpose of that activity is not to take birds.” For example, the guidance said, a person who destroys a structure such as a barn knowing that it is full of baby owls in nests is not liable for killing them. “All that is relevant is that the landowner undertook an action that did not have the killing of barn owls as its purpose,” the opinion said.
...The 1918 law was enacted after several species of common birds became extinct; the Audubon Society and other organizations named 2018 the year of the bird in honor of the MBTA’s centennial. The new interpretation reverses decades of action by Republican and Democratic administrations to protect the animals as they navigate the globe. The law covers such disparate birds as eagles, red knots, Canada geese and vultures.
Oil companies are the greatest beneficiaries of the new interpretation... (spills)... oil waste pits that birds mistake for ponds...each year, 500,000 to 1 million birds are lost to pits that oil companies leave uncovered.
The act “has been the tool the Fish and Wildlife Service has used to work with industry to implement basic management practices,” said Sarah Greenberger, vice president of conservation for the Audubon Society, an advocacy group that studies and protects birds. “The reason the industry covers the tar pits (that birds mistake for ponds)is the Fish and Wildlife Service’s use of the MBTA as a tool to get them to the table. Why would you spend money to implement those, why would your shareholders even allow it, if there’s no reason?”
Seventeen former Interior officials, including U.S. Fish and Wildlife directors under presidents Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, repudiated the reinterpretation when it was first announced in December...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2018/04/13/the-trump-a...
38pmackey
>37 margd: As a bird watcher, I find this ruling horrifying. Now there's no incentive for companies to work towards preservation of habitat and wildlife.
39margd
The Interior Department Announced (By Accident) That Everything Is for Sale
Charles P. Pierce | Jul 24, 2018
Just in case you had any doubts about Ryan Zinke's commitment to national monument protections.
...The thousands of pages of email correspondence chart how Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and his aides instead tailored their survey of protected sites to emphasize the value of logging, ranching and energy development that would be unlocked if they were not designated national monuments. Comments the department’s Freedom of Information Act officers made in the documents show that they sought to keep some of the references out of the public eye because they were “revealing the strategy” behind the review...
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a22530044/interior-department-lea...
________________________________________________________________________
Good Lord! That a state challenged by water management and dependent on tourism permits this. Never mind the thirsty Everglades, which could use the water the US Army Corps of Engineers is flushing to sea. Meanwhile, I understand Gov Scott was blaming residential septic systems? Becoming another election year issue. (And here I was shocked by road run-off directed into Panama City's lovely beach. Children playing in it...):
Investigation: Human waste fertilizes farms, but fuels toxic algae blooms
Lucas Daprile | Feb. 7, 2017
Deregulated "fertilizer" contains same nitrogen and phosphorus as regulated "sludge."
...(Dan Griffin's) 317-acre (sod) farm (in Palm Beach County) was covered in a layer 2 feet deep with mountains piled 12 feet high and wet pools turning blue and green — but no commercial sod in sight.
...During heavy rains, excess nutrients run into nearby watersheds, where they can feed potentially toxic algae blooms. The oxygen- and sunlight-choking pollution can kill fish, mussels and sea grass beds that are food for manatees and a safe haven for juvenile snook, bonefish, sea trout and other marine life.
...illustrates an extreme example of a common practice, a TCPalm investigation found. Two-thirds of the state’s waste is spread on private land. Half of that requires permits and is banned in certain watersheds because, being less treated, it contains more pathogens and heavy metals.
The other half is not. Classified as “fertilizer,” limitless amounts of it can be dumped near waterways — despite containing just as much nitrogen and phosphorus as the sewage sludge.
It's the source of nearly a fourth of the phosphorus in the Lake Okeechobee watershed, according to a 2009 Audubon Florida report that called human waste-dumping "the most preventable source of pollution."
...Farmers have long fertilized their crops with manure and even treated human waste, and some science and industry officials say there's no problem if it's done correctly. The concern is the sheer amount being used these days, which more resembles dumping than fertilizing.
"If you ... use it properly, you don’t cause a pollution problem," said Paul Gray, an Audubon Florida scientist. "It’s being done on an industrial scale and that industrial scale really adds up and harms our waterways.”
https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/investigations/2017/02/07/biosolids-pollute-fl...
Blue-green algae, red tide soil beaches, threaten Florida tourism
Jennifer Kay | July 10, 2018
The algae blooms have become an annual summer threat, fed by nutrients from cattle ranches and farms surrounding the country’s second largest natural freshwater lake. But two years ago, pressure from the powerful sugar industry prompted the Legislature to push back a lake cleanup deadline another 20 years.
The Trump administration is reviewing plans for a new Everglades reservoir that would give water managers more flexibility when lake levels rise.
Scott declared a state of emergency Monday for seven counties around the lake to give state environmental and tourism agencies more resources to respond to problems caused by the algae. The order also authorizes flushing water south of the lake instead of down the rivers that run to the coasts.
Repairs on the dike are expected to continue until 2022. Until then, lake levels must be kept between 12.5 feet and 15.5 feet. On Tuesday, the lake stage was 14.46 feet (4.4 meters), swelled with recent rains over the last two weeks.
In southwest Florida over the past week, a months-long bloom of red tide has been blamed for respiratory irritations and dead fish, turtles and manatees. Red tide is another kind of algae that can be exacerbated by fertilizers and other pollution...
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-florida-algae-bloom-20180710-story.ht...
ETA__________________________________________________________________
July 7, 2016, 12:36pm
How Corruption Caused A Toxic Water Crisis In Florida
Cartoon Of The Day
https://www.forbes.com/sites/cartoonoftheday/2016/07/07/how-corruption-caused-a-...
ETA___________________________________________________________________
The Clock is Ticking on Florida’s Mountains of Hazardous Phosphate Waste
Craig Pittman 4/26/2017
Phosphate has also seeded Florida with the environmental equivalent of ticking time bombs.
Drive through much of the Florida peninsula and the land you see is flat—flat as a pancake, flat as a billiard table, flat as a contestant on The Voice who’s about to get the boot. But at the Mulberry plant, and everywhere else the phosphate industry operates, you’ll see mountains. These are massive piles of waste materials called phosphogypsum that are left over from the fertilizer manufacturing process. They rise up to 200 feet high and cover some 400 acres. On top of each one is a pond of acidic water from 40 to 80 acres in size...
Mosaic’s phosphate mines and fertilizer factories must store their waste this way because there is no other way to get rid of it safely. The phosphogypsum is mildly radioactive, enough so that it exceeds a level that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has deemed safe for humans. The industry has proposed using its waste for everything from wallboard to road-building material. But the EPA, since 1992, has repeatedly said no. So the only solution is to stack it.
About 25 stacks now dot the Florida landscape, and every year the waste must be piled up higher. In 2014, Mosaic asked Polk County officials for permission to make one of its Mulberry gyp stacks twice as wide and nearly 400 feet tall—taller than the highest natural point in Florida, which is 345 feet above sea level.
...from time to time, a problem crops up at one of the gyp stacks. Then the pond pooled on top spills out and threatens to poison a creek, a bay, or drinking water for miles around.
...sinkhole...
In 1997, amid heavy rains, a dam broke atop one of two gypsum stacks at the Mulberry Phosphates plant on State Road 60, unleashing a 56-million gallon spill of the acidic wastewater into the Alafia River. The pollution killed everything in its path for 42 miles, eventually rolling into Hillsborough Bay. The death toll included more than 1 million baitfish and shellfish and 72,900 gamefish near the river’s mouth, 377 acres of damaged trees and other vegetation along the riverbank, and an unknown number of alligators. When state officials hit the company with a multimillion-dollar fine for the damage done, it declared bankruptcy and shut down. (Its insurance company wound up footing the bill.) Ten years later, local and state officials were still working on restoration projects. Meanwhile the old gyp stack was taken over by a larger company—Mosaic—with plans to close it permanently.
Florida’s leading industry is tourism. Nearly 100 million tourists visit the state every year. They show up because Florida’s air and beaches are clean and free of pollution. One catastrophic gyp stack leak like the one that happened in 1997 can lay waste to an entire estuary, creating fishkills and other impacts that can drive the tourists away for years...
https://www.sarasotamagazine.com/articles/2017/4/26/florida-phosphate
Charles P. Pierce | Jul 24, 2018
Just in case you had any doubts about Ryan Zinke's commitment to national monument protections.
...The thousands of pages of email correspondence chart how Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and his aides instead tailored their survey of protected sites to emphasize the value of logging, ranching and energy development that would be unlocked if they were not designated national monuments. Comments the department’s Freedom of Information Act officers made in the documents show that they sought to keep some of the references out of the public eye because they were “revealing the strategy” behind the review...
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a22530044/interior-department-lea...
________________________________________________________________________
Good Lord! That a state challenged by water management and dependent on tourism permits this. Never mind the thirsty Everglades, which could use the water the US Army Corps of Engineers is flushing to sea. Meanwhile, I understand Gov Scott was blaming residential septic systems? Becoming another election year issue. (And here I was shocked by road run-off directed into Panama City's lovely beach. Children playing in it...):
Investigation: Human waste fertilizes farms, but fuels toxic algae blooms
Lucas Daprile | Feb. 7, 2017
Deregulated "fertilizer" contains same nitrogen and phosphorus as regulated "sludge."
...(Dan Griffin's) 317-acre (sod) farm (in Palm Beach County) was covered in a layer 2 feet deep with mountains piled 12 feet high and wet pools turning blue and green — but no commercial sod in sight.
...During heavy rains, excess nutrients run into nearby watersheds, where they can feed potentially toxic algae blooms. The oxygen- and sunlight-choking pollution can kill fish, mussels and sea grass beds that are food for manatees and a safe haven for juvenile snook, bonefish, sea trout and other marine life.
...illustrates an extreme example of a common practice, a TCPalm investigation found. Two-thirds of the state’s waste is spread on private land. Half of that requires permits and is banned in certain watersheds because, being less treated, it contains more pathogens and heavy metals.
The other half is not. Classified as “fertilizer,” limitless amounts of it can be dumped near waterways — despite containing just as much nitrogen and phosphorus as the sewage sludge.
It's the source of nearly a fourth of the phosphorus in the Lake Okeechobee watershed, according to a 2009 Audubon Florida report that called human waste-dumping "the most preventable source of pollution."
...Farmers have long fertilized their crops with manure and even treated human waste, and some science and industry officials say there's no problem if it's done correctly. The concern is the sheer amount being used these days, which more resembles dumping than fertilizing.
"If you ... use it properly, you don’t cause a pollution problem," said Paul Gray, an Audubon Florida scientist. "It’s being done on an industrial scale and that industrial scale really adds up and harms our waterways.”
https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/investigations/2017/02/07/biosolids-pollute-fl...
Blue-green algae, red tide soil beaches, threaten Florida tourism
Jennifer Kay | July 10, 2018
The algae blooms have become an annual summer threat, fed by nutrients from cattle ranches and farms surrounding the country’s second largest natural freshwater lake. But two years ago, pressure from the powerful sugar industry prompted the Legislature to push back a lake cleanup deadline another 20 years.
The Trump administration is reviewing plans for a new Everglades reservoir that would give water managers more flexibility when lake levels rise.
Scott declared a state of emergency Monday for seven counties around the lake to give state environmental and tourism agencies more resources to respond to problems caused by the algae. The order also authorizes flushing water south of the lake instead of down the rivers that run to the coasts.
Repairs on the dike are expected to continue until 2022. Until then, lake levels must be kept between 12.5 feet and 15.5 feet. On Tuesday, the lake stage was 14.46 feet (4.4 meters), swelled with recent rains over the last two weeks.
In southwest Florida over the past week, a months-long bloom of red tide has been blamed for respiratory irritations and dead fish, turtles and manatees. Red tide is another kind of algae that can be exacerbated by fertilizers and other pollution...
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-florida-algae-bloom-20180710-story.ht...
ETA__________________________________________________________________
July 7, 2016, 12:36pm
How Corruption Caused A Toxic Water Crisis In Florida
Cartoon Of The Day
https://www.forbes.com/sites/cartoonoftheday/2016/07/07/how-corruption-caused-a-...
ETA___________________________________________________________________
The Clock is Ticking on Florida’s Mountains of Hazardous Phosphate Waste
Craig Pittman 4/26/2017
Phosphate has also seeded Florida with the environmental equivalent of ticking time bombs.
Drive through much of the Florida peninsula and the land you see is flat—flat as a pancake, flat as a billiard table, flat as a contestant on The Voice who’s about to get the boot. But at the Mulberry plant, and everywhere else the phosphate industry operates, you’ll see mountains. These are massive piles of waste materials called phosphogypsum that are left over from the fertilizer manufacturing process. They rise up to 200 feet high and cover some 400 acres. On top of each one is a pond of acidic water from 40 to 80 acres in size...
Mosaic’s phosphate mines and fertilizer factories must store their waste this way because there is no other way to get rid of it safely. The phosphogypsum is mildly radioactive, enough so that it exceeds a level that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has deemed safe for humans. The industry has proposed using its waste for everything from wallboard to road-building material. But the EPA, since 1992, has repeatedly said no. So the only solution is to stack it.
About 25 stacks now dot the Florida landscape, and every year the waste must be piled up higher. In 2014, Mosaic asked Polk County officials for permission to make one of its Mulberry gyp stacks twice as wide and nearly 400 feet tall—taller than the highest natural point in Florida, which is 345 feet above sea level.
...from time to time, a problem crops up at one of the gyp stacks. Then the pond pooled on top spills out and threatens to poison a creek, a bay, or drinking water for miles around.
...sinkhole...
In 1997, amid heavy rains, a dam broke atop one of two gypsum stacks at the Mulberry Phosphates plant on State Road 60, unleashing a 56-million gallon spill of the acidic wastewater into the Alafia River. The pollution killed everything in its path for 42 miles, eventually rolling into Hillsborough Bay. The death toll included more than 1 million baitfish and shellfish and 72,900 gamefish near the river’s mouth, 377 acres of damaged trees and other vegetation along the riverbank, and an unknown number of alligators. When state officials hit the company with a multimillion-dollar fine for the damage done, it declared bankruptcy and shut down. (Its insurance company wound up footing the bill.) Ten years later, local and state officials were still working on restoration projects. Meanwhile the old gyp stack was taken over by a larger company—Mosaic—with plans to close it permanently.
Florida’s leading industry is tourism. Nearly 100 million tourists visit the state every year. They show up because Florida’s air and beaches are clean and free of pollution. One catastrophic gyp stack leak like the one that happened in 1997 can lay waste to an entire estuary, creating fishkills and other impacts that can drive the tourists away for years...
https://www.sarasotamagazine.com/articles/2017/4/26/florida-phosphate
40margd
No refuge from Roundup (glyphosphate) and neonicotinoids for bees, Monarch Butterflies, swallows...
Trump administration lifts ban on pesticides linked to declining bee numbers
Reuters | Fri 3 Aug 2018
Environmentalists say lifting the restriction poses a grave threat to pollinating insects
...The rollback, spelled out in a US Fish and Wildlife Service memo, ends a policy that had prohibited farmers on refuges from planting biotech crops – such as soybeans and corn – engineered to resist insect pests and weed-controlling herbicides.
That policy also had barred the use on wildlife refuges of neonicotinoid pesticides, or neonics, in conjunction with GMO crops. Neonics are a class of insecticides tied by research to declining populations of wild bees and other pollinating insects around the world.
Rather than continuing to impose a blanket ban on GMO crops and neonics on refuges, Fish and Wildlife Service deputy director Greg Sheehan said decisions about their use would be made on a case-by-case basis.
Sheehan said the move was needed to ensure adequate forage for migratory birds, including ducks and geese favored and hunted by sportsmen on many of the nation’s refuges. US interior secretary Ryan Zinke, whose department oversees the Fish and Wildlife Service, has made expansion of hunting on public lands a priority for his agency.
Sheehan wrote that genetically modified organisms have helped “maximize production, and that neonicotinoids might be needed “to fulfill needed farming practices”...
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/aug/04/trump-administration-lifts-b...
Trump administration lifts ban on pesticides linked to declining bee numbers
Reuters | Fri 3 Aug 2018
Environmentalists say lifting the restriction poses a grave threat to pollinating insects
...The rollback, spelled out in a US Fish and Wildlife Service memo, ends a policy that had prohibited farmers on refuges from planting biotech crops – such as soybeans and corn – engineered to resist insect pests and weed-controlling herbicides.
That policy also had barred the use on wildlife refuges of neonicotinoid pesticides, or neonics, in conjunction with GMO crops. Neonics are a class of insecticides tied by research to declining populations of wild bees and other pollinating insects around the world.
Rather than continuing to impose a blanket ban on GMO crops and neonics on refuges, Fish and Wildlife Service deputy director Greg Sheehan said decisions about their use would be made on a case-by-case basis.
Sheehan said the move was needed to ensure adequate forage for migratory birds, including ducks and geese favored and hunted by sportsmen on many of the nation’s refuges. US interior secretary Ryan Zinke, whose department oversees the Fish and Wildlife Service, has made expansion of hunting on public lands a priority for his agency.
Sheehan wrote that genetically modified organisms have helped “maximize production, and that neonicotinoids might be needed “to fulfill needed farming practices”...
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/aug/04/trump-administration-lifts-b...
41margd
Toxic Spills Highlight Trump's Deregulation of Coal Plant Waste
Ari Natter and Jennifer A Dlouhy | September 21, 2018
EPA relaxed Obama-era rule on coal ash from power plants
Fears of environmental disasters at North Carolina sites
...The Environmental Protection Agency in July relaxed Obama administration requirements that forced companies to keep a closer watch on coal ash disposal sites and their potential groundwater contamination -- and signaled further revisions sought by industry are coming.
...Duke Energy Corp. said Friday that floodwaters from Hurricane Florence had overwhelmed a coal ash basin at its Sutton power plant in Wilmington, North Carolina, raising the possibility the material had spilled into the Cape Fear River.
The Obama-era regulation, put in place after several spills including one in North Carolina, wouldn’t prevent coal ash from pouring into the river. But environmentalists say the Trump administration’s changes will prolong the lives of those toxic waste sites and increase the risk of spills.
More than 100 million tons of coal ash are generated each year from about 400 power plants across the country. When stored in disposal ponds, such as the one compromised in North Carolina, it is a toxic slurry teeming with mercury, arsenic, lead and chromium -- substances that can cause irreversible brain damage, cancer and other diseases...
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-21/toxic-spills-highlight-trump-...
Ari Natter and Jennifer A Dlouhy | September 21, 2018
EPA relaxed Obama-era rule on coal ash from power plants
Fears of environmental disasters at North Carolina sites
...The Environmental Protection Agency in July relaxed Obama administration requirements that forced companies to keep a closer watch on coal ash disposal sites and their potential groundwater contamination -- and signaled further revisions sought by industry are coming.
...Duke Energy Corp. said Friday that floodwaters from Hurricane Florence had overwhelmed a coal ash basin at its Sutton power plant in Wilmington, North Carolina, raising the possibility the material had spilled into the Cape Fear River.
The Obama-era regulation, put in place after several spills including one in North Carolina, wouldn’t prevent coal ash from pouring into the river. But environmentalists say the Trump administration’s changes will prolong the lives of those toxic waste sites and increase the risk of spills.
More than 100 million tons of coal ash are generated each year from about 400 power plants across the country. When stored in disposal ponds, such as the one compromised in North Carolina, it is a toxic slurry teeming with mercury, arsenic, lead and chromium -- substances that can cause irreversible brain damage, cancer and other diseases...
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-21/toxic-spills-highlight-trump-...
42margd
A friend testified in this successful effort to protect grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Yellowstone grizzlies: Court reinstates protections, blocks ID, WY trophy hunts
Sep 24, 2018 | News Release, Protecting Grizzly Bears
...The recovery of (other imperiled populations of grizzly bears in the lower 48 states) depends heavily on inter-population connectivity and genetic exchange...the very bears essential to achieve connectivity between still-struggling isolated grizzly populations would have died at the hands of trophy hunters
...A copy of the ruling is available here. https://westernlaw.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/2018.09.24-Grizzly-Final-Decis...
https://westernlaw.org/yellowstone-grizzlies-court-reinstates-protections-blocks...
Yellowstone grizzlies: Court reinstates protections, blocks ID, WY trophy hunts
Sep 24, 2018 | News Release, Protecting Grizzly Bears
...The recovery of (other imperiled populations of grizzly bears in the lower 48 states) depends heavily on inter-population connectivity and genetic exchange...the very bears essential to achieve connectivity between still-struggling isolated grizzly populations would have died at the hands of trophy hunters
...A copy of the ruling is available here. https://westernlaw.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/2018.09.24-Grizzly-Final-Decis...
https://westernlaw.org/yellowstone-grizzlies-court-reinstates-protections-blocks...
43margd
Mercury not only is a neurotoxin affecting children and fetuses, more emissions will result in more sportfish consumption advisories. In 1970s. Lake Erie walleye were completely off-limits.
Trump Administration Prepares a Major Weakening of Mercury Emissions Rules
Coral Davenport | Sept. 30, 2018
The Trump administration has completed a detailed legal proposal to dramatically weaken a major environmental regulation covering mercury, a toxic chemical emitted from coal-burning power plants, according to a person who has seen the document...
The proposal would not eliminate the mercury regulation entirely, but it is designed to put in place the legal justification for the Trump administration to weaken it and several other pollution rules, while setting the stage for a possible full repeal of the rule.
...in the coming days to send the proposal to the White House for approval.
The move is the latest, and one of the most significant, in the Trump administration’s steady march of rollbacks of Obama-era health and environmental regulations on polluting industries, particularly coal. The weakening of the mercury rule — which the E.P.A. considers the most expensive clean air regulation ever put forth in terms of annual cost to industry — would represent a major victory for the coal industry. Mercury is known to damage the nervous systems of children and fetuses...
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/30/climate/epa-trump-mercury-rule.html
____________________________________________________________
EPA Administrator Wheeler, coal baron and Trump contributor Murray...
Decades ago, there was a bit of a scandal over a (government?) valuation of an elderly black woman's life at ($27?)...
The E.P.A.’s Review of Mercury Rules Could Remake Its Methods for Valuing Human Life and Health
Coral Davenport and Lisa Friedman | Sept. 7, 2018
WASHINGTON — When writing environmental rules, one of the most important calculations involves weighing the financial costs against any gains in human life and health. The formulas are complex, but the bottom line is that reducing the emphasis on health makes it tougher to justify a rule.
Last week the Trump administration took a crucial step toward de-emphasizing the life and health benefits in this calculus when the Environmental Protection Agency said it would rethink a major regulation that restricts mercury emissions by coal-burning power plants.
The 2011 mercury rule — based on decades of research showing that mercury damages the brain, lungs and fetal health — is among the costliest but most effective clean-air policies put forth by the Environmental Protection Agency. Utilities estimate they have spent $18 billion installing clean-air technology, and mercury pollution has fallen by nearly 70 percent...
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/07/climate/epa-mercury-life-cost-benefit.html
Trump Administration Prepares a Major Weakening of Mercury Emissions Rules
Coral Davenport | Sept. 30, 2018
The Trump administration has completed a detailed legal proposal to dramatically weaken a major environmental regulation covering mercury, a toxic chemical emitted from coal-burning power plants, according to a person who has seen the document...
The proposal would not eliminate the mercury regulation entirely, but it is designed to put in place the legal justification for the Trump administration to weaken it and several other pollution rules, while setting the stage for a possible full repeal of the rule.
...in the coming days to send the proposal to the White House for approval.
The move is the latest, and one of the most significant, in the Trump administration’s steady march of rollbacks of Obama-era health and environmental regulations on polluting industries, particularly coal. The weakening of the mercury rule — which the E.P.A. considers the most expensive clean air regulation ever put forth in terms of annual cost to industry — would represent a major victory for the coal industry. Mercury is known to damage the nervous systems of children and fetuses...
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/30/climate/epa-trump-mercury-rule.html
____________________________________________________________
EPA Administrator Wheeler, coal baron and Trump contributor Murray...
Decades ago, there was a bit of a scandal over a (government?) valuation of an elderly black woman's life at ($27?)...
The E.P.A.’s Review of Mercury Rules Could Remake Its Methods for Valuing Human Life and Health
Coral Davenport and Lisa Friedman | Sept. 7, 2018
WASHINGTON — When writing environmental rules, one of the most important calculations involves weighing the financial costs against any gains in human life and health. The formulas are complex, but the bottom line is that reducing the emphasis on health makes it tougher to justify a rule.
Last week the Trump administration took a crucial step toward de-emphasizing the life and health benefits in this calculus when the Environmental Protection Agency said it would rethink a major regulation that restricts mercury emissions by coal-burning power plants.
The 2011 mercury rule — based on decades of research showing that mercury damages the brain, lungs and fetal health — is among the costliest but most effective clean-air policies put forth by the Environmental Protection Agency. Utilities estimate they have spent $18 billion installing clean-air technology, and mercury pollution has fallen by nearly 70 percent...
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/07/climate/epa-mercury-life-cost-benefit.html
44DugsBooks
>43 margd: Years ago I took a public speaking course and chose Mercury pollution as a topic. I did some online research and was surprised that coal burning IS the major source of Mercury pollution and comes about by mercury molecules being attached to a ch group by bacteria which makes absorbable by animals.
I had a chart showing how small organisms injested the Hg then were eaten by small fish which were eaten by larger fish, concentrating the Hg, until you got to a top predator like King Mackeral which were listed as dangerous to eat because of the mercury content. I gave out M&Ms to represent Mercury molecules being concentrated which made the speech a great success:-)
The effects of mercury are so severe I don’t see how those rules could be weakened.
I had a chart showing how small organisms injested the Hg then were eaten by small fish which were eaten by larger fish, concentrating the Hg, until you got to a top predator like King Mackeral which were listed as dangerous to eat because of the mercury content. I gave out M&Ms to represent Mercury molecules being concentrated which made the speech a great success:-)
The effects of mercury are so severe I don’t see how those rules could be weakened.
46margd
>45 mamzel: Good point, but US sport and commercial fishermen on the Great Lakes (and elsewhere?) tend to be Rs...at least the ones with boats or able to afford charters. Hope they object--and loudly!
47margd
Protect the last of the wild
James E. M. Watson, James R. Allan and colleagues | Oct 31, 2018
A century ago, only 15% of Earth’s surface was used to grow crops and raise livestock. Today, more than 77% of land (excluding Antarctica) and 87% of the ocean has been modified by the direct effects of human activities.
...Wilderness areas are now the only places that contain mixes of species at near-natural levels of abundance.
...wilderness areas provide increasingly important refuges for species that are declining in landscapes dominated by people. In the seas, they are the last regions that still contain viable populations of top predators, such as tuna, marlins and sharks.
Safeguarding intact ecosystems is also key to mitigating the effects of climate change, which are making the refuge function of wilderness areas especially important.
...Many wilderness areas are critical sinks for atmospheric carbon dioxide...boreal forest...intact forested ecosystems are able to store and sequester much more carbon than are degraded ones...tropics forest)...seagrass meadows
...wilderness areas regulate the climate and water cycles...buffer against extreme weather and geological events.
Wilderness regions are home to some of the most politically and economically marginalized indigenous communities on Earth. These people (who number in the hundreds of millions)
...As US President Lyndon B. Johnson observed when he signed the US Wilderness Act in 1964, “If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt … we must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning.”
Already we have lost so much. We must grasp this opportunity to secure the wilderness before it disappears forever.
Nature 563, 27-30 (2018)
doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-07183-6
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07183-6
James E. M. Watson, James R. Allan and colleagues | Oct 31, 2018
A century ago, only 15% of Earth’s surface was used to grow crops and raise livestock. Today, more than 77% of land (excluding Antarctica) and 87% of the ocean has been modified by the direct effects of human activities.
...Wilderness areas are now the only places that contain mixes of species at near-natural levels of abundance.
...wilderness areas provide increasingly important refuges for species that are declining in landscapes dominated by people. In the seas, they are the last regions that still contain viable populations of top predators, such as tuna, marlins and sharks.
Safeguarding intact ecosystems is also key to mitigating the effects of climate change, which are making the refuge function of wilderness areas especially important.
...Many wilderness areas are critical sinks for atmospheric carbon dioxide...boreal forest...intact forested ecosystems are able to store and sequester much more carbon than are degraded ones...tropics forest)...seagrass meadows
...wilderness areas regulate the climate and water cycles...buffer against extreme weather and geological events.
Wilderness regions are home to some of the most politically and economically marginalized indigenous communities on Earth. These people (who number in the hundreds of millions)
...As US President Lyndon B. Johnson observed when he signed the US Wilderness Act in 1964, “If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt … we must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning.”
Already we have lost so much. We must grasp this opportunity to secure the wilderness before it disappears forever.
Nature 563, 27-30 (2018)
doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-07183-6
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07183-6
48margd
Trump: Judge's ruling blocking Keystone XL ‘a disgrace’
ALEX GUILLÉN | 11/09/2018
...Thursday’s decision does not permanently block a federal permit for Keystone XL, a project of the Calgary-based firm TransCanada. It requires the administration to conduct a more complete review of potential adverse impacts related to climate change, cultural resources and endangered species. The court basically ordered a do-over.
In a 54-page opinion, Morris hit the administration with a familiar charge that it disregarded facts, facts established by experts during the Obama administration about “climate-related impacts” from Keystone XL. The Trump administration claimed, with no supporting information, that those impacts “would prove inconsequential,” Morris wrote. The State Department “simply discarded prior factual findings related to climate change to support its course reversal.”
It also used “outdated information” about the impact of potential oil spills on endangered species, he said, rather than “'the best scientific and commercial data available.'...
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/09/trump-keystone-xl-pipeline-react-98042...
492wonderY
Toxic waste from 22 coal plants in Illinois puts drinking water for nearby communities at risk, reports show
The compilation of industry-supplied reports from 24 coal plants highlights how federal and state officials have failed for decades to hold corporations accountable for the millions of tons of ash and other harmful byproducts created by the burning of coal to generate electricity.
Most of the waste in Illinois has been mixed with water and pumped into unlined pits, where testing shows harmful levels of arsenic, chromium, lead and other heavy metals are steadily oozing through the ground toward lakes and rivers, including the state's only national scenic river.
…
In August, a key federal appeals court handed down a scathing ruling that regulations adopted during the Obama administration weren't tough enough and did nothing to prevent leaks at scores of ash pits near shuttered coal plants.
The court ordered the U.S. EPA to adopt new rules that adequately protect the health of people and wildlife. But the Trump administration is pushing to replace the Obama-era regulations with an even weaker set of requirements.
Most of the coal plants in Illinois are owned by two companies, New Jersey-based NRG and Houston-based Vistra Energy.
The compilation of industry-supplied reports from 24 coal plants highlights how federal and state officials have failed for decades to hold corporations accountable for the millions of tons of ash and other harmful byproducts created by the burning of coal to generate electricity.
Most of the waste in Illinois has been mixed with water and pumped into unlined pits, where testing shows harmful levels of arsenic, chromium, lead and other heavy metals are steadily oozing through the ground toward lakes and rivers, including the state's only national scenic river.
…
In August, a key federal appeals court handed down a scathing ruling that regulations adopted during the Obama administration weren't tough enough and did nothing to prevent leaks at scores of ash pits near shuttered coal plants.
The court ordered the U.S. EPA to adopt new rules that adequately protect the health of people and wildlife. But the Trump administration is pushing to replace the Obama-era regulations with an even weaker set of requirements.
Most of the coal plants in Illinois are owned by two companies, New Jersey-based NRG and Houston-based Vistra Energy.
50DugsBooks
>49 2wonderY: So are we headed to distilled water with a drop of non polluted mid ocean water for micro nutrients - like the guy used to recommend on the radio decades ago?
51margd
Monumental Disaster at the Department of the Interior
A new report documents suppression of science, denial of climate change, the silencing and intimidation of staff
Joel Clement | December 4, 2018
...America’s public lands, and the natural and cultural resources they contain, belong to all of us. It is astounding that a small group of ideologues thinks they can hand these resources, and the agencies that manage them, over to industries eager to carve them up for private profit. To do so with blithe disregard for the impact upon our planet’s operating system is careless and dangerous, and we must demand better...
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/monumental-disaster-at-the-dep...
____________________________________________________________________________________
Science Under Siege at the Department of the Interior (38 p)
Union of Concerned Scientists | 2018
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and his political appointees have overseen relentless attacks on science and put our nation's parks, health, and wildlife at risk.
During the first two years of the Trump administration, Secretary Ryan Zinke and his political team have unleashed constant—and ongoing—attacks on science, from sidelining the work of the agency's own scientists to systematically refusing to acknowledge or act on climate change. These actions have far-reaching and serious implications for our health, the environment, and the future of our public lands.
Science under Siege at the Department of the Interior reviews nearly two years of actions by the DOI under Secretary Zinke and identifies the most damaging and egregious examples of anti-science policies and practices.
Sytematically suppressing science...
Failing to acknowledge or act on climate change...
Silencing and intimidating agency scientists and staff...
Attacking science-based laws that protect wildlife...
Recommendations
The damage from Secretary Zinke’s policies is mounting. They have caused harm to public lands, public health and safety, and the country’s wildlife and habitats. Left unchecked, the effects will take decades to repair, and yet the consequences of climate change are already upon us. We have no time to lose.
Congress, particularly the House Committee on Natural Resources and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, should increase congressional oversight of the DOI and thoroughly investigate all alleged violations of scientific integrity and all reports of suppressed or censored scientific studies. Congress and others should also demand that the DOI's efforts to protect America’s public lands and wildlife include and factor in climate change, both now and in the future.
Scientists and science supporters should bring attention to DOI activities that sideline science and threaten public lands or health. Any scientist—indeed, anyone—can raise their voice and raise awareness when DOI activities threaten public lands or health. Call your representative, visit their local offices, or write a letter to your local newspaper’s editor. UCS has tips and resources to help guide your efforts: www.ucsusa.org/actiontips.
Local stakeholders, partners of public lands, and the outdoor industry should engage with the DOI and participate in public comment periods and other DOI rule-making processes, especially ones that affect public lands in your region, state, and community. As regular users of public lands, local partners and stakeholders are uniquely positioned to see any changes occurring on the ground as a result of DOI actions. Share what you see with your community, other local stakeholders, and the media.
https://www.ucsusa.org/our-work/center-science-and-democracy/science-under-siege...
A new report documents suppression of science, denial of climate change, the silencing and intimidation of staff
Joel Clement | December 4, 2018
...America’s public lands, and the natural and cultural resources they contain, belong to all of us. It is astounding that a small group of ideologues thinks they can hand these resources, and the agencies that manage them, over to industries eager to carve them up for private profit. To do so with blithe disregard for the impact upon our planet’s operating system is careless and dangerous, and we must demand better...
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/monumental-disaster-at-the-dep...
____________________________________________________________________________________
Science Under Siege at the Department of the Interior (38 p)
Union of Concerned Scientists | 2018
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and his political appointees have overseen relentless attacks on science and put our nation's parks, health, and wildlife at risk.
During the first two years of the Trump administration, Secretary Ryan Zinke and his political team have unleashed constant—and ongoing—attacks on science, from sidelining the work of the agency's own scientists to systematically refusing to acknowledge or act on climate change. These actions have far-reaching and serious implications for our health, the environment, and the future of our public lands.
Science under Siege at the Department of the Interior reviews nearly two years of actions by the DOI under Secretary Zinke and identifies the most damaging and egregious examples of anti-science policies and practices.
Sytematically suppressing science...
Failing to acknowledge or act on climate change...
Silencing and intimidating agency scientists and staff...
Attacking science-based laws that protect wildlife...
Recommendations
The damage from Secretary Zinke’s policies is mounting. They have caused harm to public lands, public health and safety, and the country’s wildlife and habitats. Left unchecked, the effects will take decades to repair, and yet the consequences of climate change are already upon us. We have no time to lose.
Congress, particularly the House Committee on Natural Resources and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, should increase congressional oversight of the DOI and thoroughly investigate all alleged violations of scientific integrity and all reports of suppressed or censored scientific studies. Congress and others should also demand that the DOI's efforts to protect America’s public lands and wildlife include and factor in climate change, both now and in the future.
Scientists and science supporters should bring attention to DOI activities that sideline science and threaten public lands or health. Any scientist—indeed, anyone—can raise their voice and raise awareness when DOI activities threaten public lands or health. Call your representative, visit their local offices, or write a letter to your local newspaper’s editor. UCS has tips and resources to help guide your efforts: www.ucsusa.org/actiontips.
Local stakeholders, partners of public lands, and the outdoor industry should engage with the DOI and participate in public comment periods and other DOI rule-making processes, especially ones that affect public lands in your region, state, and community. As regular users of public lands, local partners and stakeholders are uniquely positioned to see any changes occurring on the ground as a result of DOI actions. Share what you see with your community, other local stakeholders, and the media.
https://www.ucsusa.org/our-work/center-science-and-democracy/science-under-siege...
52mamzel
>50 DugsBooks: The midocean water may just be riddled with micro pieces of plastic.
53DugsBooks
Scientists create bee vaccine to fight off 'insect apocalypse'
A rare ray of hope for the environment compromised by industry & agroindustry
A rare ray of hope for the environment compromised by industry & agroindustry
54margd
Eric Lipton (NYT) @EricLiptonNYT | 7:06 PM - 2 Jan 2019:
As of Thursday,
DOD will be run by a former senior Boeing executive.
EPA is run by a former coal lobbyist.
HHS is run by a former pharmaceutical lobbyist. And
Interior will be run by a former oil-industry lobbyist.
Welcome to 2019.
James Goldwasser @locussolus1 | 9:19 PM - 2 Jan 2019:
...And the Dept of Transportation is run by the daughter of a Chinese shipping magnate and the spouse of the Senate Majority Leader...
As of Thursday,
DOD will be run by a former senior Boeing executive.
EPA is run by a former coal lobbyist.
HHS is run by a former pharmaceutical lobbyist. And
Interior will be run by a former oil-industry lobbyist.
Welcome to 2019.
James Goldwasser @locussolus1 | 9:19 PM - 2 Jan 2019:
...And the Dept of Transportation is run by the daughter of a Chinese shipping magnate and the spouse of the Senate Majority Leader...
55DugsBooks
>54 margd: It just boggles the mind when you see the facts in print like that. None of those people plan on having grandchildren or they plan on having a coal powered dome to live in.
56RickHarsch
The ghost of C. Wright Mills
58margd
The Trump Administration’s War on Wildlife Should Be a Scandal
Nick Tabor | Dec. 29, 2018
The Trump administration’s policies are leading to wholesale destruction of certain birds and other wildlife. This fact has escaped most public notice amid the broader damage the Cabinet is causing to the environment. Among other measures, regulatory agencies have been working to lift protections on endangered animals, open up vast animal habitats for drilling, encourage more trophy hunting, and repress treatment standards for farm animals.
Granted, Republican administrations since Ronald Reagan’s, with their contempt for federal regulation, have often been unfriendly to the animal kingdom. George W. Bush’s administration, for instance, only added 62 kinds of animals to the endangered species list over the course of 8 years, compared to 700 animals each under Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. But several veteran policy advocates we reached for interviews this week said Trump’s team has been unusually aggressive about regulatory rollback.
“I think that what’s different this time is an across-the-board, no-stone-left-unturned, no-holds-barred approach to rolling back environmental safeguards — including for wildlife,” said Andrew Wetzler of the Natural Resources Defense Council. George W. Bush’s advisers, he added, picked their targets more selectively. “It was more like a rifle-shot approach. This is more of a shotgun approach.”
...when questioned by the Union of Concerned Scientists, workers at the Fish and Wildlife Service tend to report at a higher rate than most that politics get in the way of their work.
Trump’s stealth war on wildlife has gone under the radar. It’s hard to get worked up about the gratuitous death of, say, 200,000 sage grouse. But Greenberger argues that everyone has a stake in what happens to the sage grouse. “They are an indicator for a much bigger landscape — where there are pronghorn and mule deer and other iconic species,” she said. “If we allow these birds to go extinct, what that signals is something much bigger that will impact all of us.”
http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/trumps-war-on-wildlife-should-be-a-scanda...
Nick Tabor | Dec. 29, 2018
The Trump administration’s policies are leading to wholesale destruction of certain birds and other wildlife. This fact has escaped most public notice amid the broader damage the Cabinet is causing to the environment. Among other measures, regulatory agencies have been working to lift protections on endangered animals, open up vast animal habitats for drilling, encourage more trophy hunting, and repress treatment standards for farm animals.
Granted, Republican administrations since Ronald Reagan’s, with their contempt for federal regulation, have often been unfriendly to the animal kingdom. George W. Bush’s administration, for instance, only added 62 kinds of animals to the endangered species list over the course of 8 years, compared to 700 animals each under Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. But several veteran policy advocates we reached for interviews this week said Trump’s team has been unusually aggressive about regulatory rollback.
“I think that what’s different this time is an across-the-board, no-stone-left-unturned, no-holds-barred approach to rolling back environmental safeguards — including for wildlife,” said Andrew Wetzler of the Natural Resources Defense Council. George W. Bush’s advisers, he added, picked their targets more selectively. “It was more like a rifle-shot approach. This is more of a shotgun approach.”
...when questioned by the Union of Concerned Scientists, workers at the Fish and Wildlife Service tend to report at a higher rate than most that politics get in the way of their work.
Trump’s stealth war on wildlife has gone under the radar. It’s hard to get worked up about the gratuitous death of, say, 200,000 sage grouse. But Greenberger argues that everyone has a stake in what happens to the sage grouse. “They are an indicator for a much bigger landscape — where there are pronghorn and mule deer and other iconic species,” she said. “If we allow these birds to go extinct, what that signals is something much bigger that will impact all of us.”
http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/trumps-war-on-wildlife-should-be-a-scanda...
59margd
GAO investigating EPA's low enforcement numbers
Miranda Green - 01/15/19
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has launched an investigation into declining enforcement actions against companies accused of violating EPA's pollution standards during the Trump administration.
A GAO spokesman said Tuesday that the probe began in October, with a focus on 2017 enforcement data that showed a significant drop in dollar amounts for settlements made with polluters.
The final report is underway but not expected to be completed “until later in the year, likely fall,” the spokesman said.
...2018 enforcement numbers, which are expected to be even lower than the previous year.
...The drop in the EPA's enforcement of regulations were even more stark when looking at the agency's actions on injunction relief — the monetary commitments polluters pledge to spend in order to remediate their pollution and keep it from recurring.
Injunctive relief in 2017 stood at $20 billion, compared to $13.7 billion the previous year, but $15.9 billion of the recent total come from the landmark Volkswagen settlement. When the settlement is taken out of the calculation, injunctive relief payments in fiscal year 2017 totaled $4 billion — less than one-third of the previous year's amount and less than half of the total in 2015...
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/425485-gao-investigating-epas-low-...
Miranda Green - 01/15/19
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has launched an investigation into declining enforcement actions against companies accused of violating EPA's pollution standards during the Trump administration.
A GAO spokesman said Tuesday that the probe began in October, with a focus on 2017 enforcement data that showed a significant drop in dollar amounts for settlements made with polluters.
The final report is underway but not expected to be completed “until later in the year, likely fall,” the spokesman said.
...2018 enforcement numbers, which are expected to be even lower than the previous year.
...The drop in the EPA's enforcement of regulations were even more stark when looking at the agency's actions on injunction relief — the monetary commitments polluters pledge to spend in order to remediate their pollution and keep it from recurring.
Injunctive relief in 2017 stood at $20 billion, compared to $13.7 billion the previous year, but $15.9 billion of the recent total come from the landmark Volkswagen settlement. When the settlement is taken out of the calculation, injunctive relief payments in fiscal year 2017 totaled $4 billion — less than one-third of the previous year's amount and less than half of the total in 2015...
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/425485-gao-investigating-epas-low-...
60margd
EPA prosecutions against polluters drop to 30-year low
Ellen Knickmeyer | January 15, 2019
The Environmental Protection Agency hit a 30-year low in 2018 in the number of pollution cases it referred for criminal prosecution, Justice Department data show.
EPA said in a statement that it is directing "its resources to the most significant and impactful cases."
But the 166 cases referred for prosecution in the last fiscal year is the lowest number since 1988, when Ronald Reagan was president and 151 cases were referred, according to Justice Department data obtained by the nonprofit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility advocacy group and released Tuesday...
https://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2019/0115/EPA-prosecutions-against-pollute...
Ellen Knickmeyer | January 15, 2019
The Environmental Protection Agency hit a 30-year low in 2018 in the number of pollution cases it referred for criminal prosecution, Justice Department data show.
EPA said in a statement that it is directing "its resources to the most significant and impactful cases."
But the 166 cases referred for prosecution in the last fiscal year is the lowest number since 1988, when Ronald Reagan was president and 151 cases were referred, according to Justice Department data obtained by the nonprofit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility advocacy group and released Tuesday...
https://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2019/0115/EPA-prosecutions-against-pollute...
61margd
The Rapid Decline Of The Natural World Is A Crisis Even Bigger Than Climate Change
John Vidal | 03/15/2019
...Nature is in freefall and the planet’s support systems are so stretched that we face widespread species extinctions and mass human migration unless urgent action is taken...
The last year has seen a slew of brutal and terrifying warnings about the threat climate change poses to life. Far less talked about but just as dangerous, if not more so, is the rapid decline of the natural world. The felling of forests, the over-exploitation of seas and soils, and the pollution of air and water are together driving the living world to the brink, according to a huge three-year, U.N.-backed landmark study to be published in May.
The (three-year UN-backed) study from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform On Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), expected to run to over 8,000 pages, is being compiled by more than 500 experts in 50 countries. It is the greatest attempt yet to assess the state of life on Earth and will show how tens of thousands of species are at high risk of extinction, how countries are using nature at a rate that far exceeds its ability to renew itself, and how nature’s ability to contribute food and fresh water to a growing human population is being compromised in every region on earth.
Nature underpins all economies with the “free” services it provides in the form of clean water, air and the pollination of all major human food crops by bees and insects. In the Americas, this is said to total more than $24 trillion a year. The pollination of crops globally by bees and other animals alone is worth up to $577 billion.
...“There are no magic bullets or one-size-fits-all answers. The best options are found in better governance, putting biodiversity concerns into the heart of farming and energy policies, the application of scientific knowledge and technology, and increased awareness and behavioral changes,” (Sir Robert Watson, overall chair of the study) said. “The evidence shows that we do know how to protect and at least partially restore our vital natural assets. We know what we have to do.”
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/nature-destruction-climate-change-world-biodivers...
John Vidal | 03/15/2019
...Nature is in freefall and the planet’s support systems are so stretched that we face widespread species extinctions and mass human migration unless urgent action is taken...
The last year has seen a slew of brutal and terrifying warnings about the threat climate change poses to life. Far less talked about but just as dangerous, if not more so, is the rapid decline of the natural world. The felling of forests, the over-exploitation of seas and soils, and the pollution of air and water are together driving the living world to the brink, according to a huge three-year, U.N.-backed landmark study to be published in May.
The (three-year UN-backed) study from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform On Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), expected to run to over 8,000 pages, is being compiled by more than 500 experts in 50 countries. It is the greatest attempt yet to assess the state of life on Earth and will show how tens of thousands of species are at high risk of extinction, how countries are using nature at a rate that far exceeds its ability to renew itself, and how nature’s ability to contribute food and fresh water to a growing human population is being compromised in every region on earth.
Nature underpins all economies with the “free” services it provides in the form of clean water, air and the pollination of all major human food crops by bees and insects. In the Americas, this is said to total more than $24 trillion a year. The pollination of crops globally by bees and other animals alone is worth up to $577 billion.
...“There are no magic bullets or one-size-fits-all answers. The best options are found in better governance, putting biodiversity concerns into the heart of farming and energy policies, the application of scientific knowledge and technology, and increased awareness and behavioral changes,” (Sir Robert Watson, overall chair of the study) said. “The evidence shows that we do know how to protect and at least partially restore our vital natural assets. We know what we have to do.”
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/nature-destruction-climate-change-world-biodivers...
62margd
Lordy, there IS a tape...
Recording Reveals Oil Industry Execs Laughing at Trump Access
LANCE WILLIAMS | March 23, 2019
The (hourlong) tape of a (June 17, 2017) private meeting was made shortly after (David Bernhardt) the lawyer for an influential industry group was tapped for a high-level (#2) post at the Department of the Interior.
...Dan Naatz, (Independent Petroleum Association of America’s) political director, told ...~100 executives that Bernhardt’s new role meant their priorities would be heard at the highest levels of Interior.
“We know him very well, and we have direct access to him, have conversations with him about issues ranging from federal land access to endangered species, to a lot of issues”...
The recording gives a rare look behind the curtain of an influential oil industry lobbying group that spends more than $1 million per year to push its agenda in Congress and federal regulatory agencies. The previous eight years had been dispiriting for the industry: As IPAA vice president Jeff Eshelman told the group, it had seemed as though the Obama administration and environmental groups had put together “their target list of everything that they wanted done to shut down the oil and gas industry.” But now, the oil executives were almost giddy at the prospect of high-level executive branch access of the sort they hadn’t enjoyed since Dick Cheney, a fellow oilman, was vice president.
“It’s really a new thing for us,” said Barry Russell, the association’s CEO, boasting of his meetings with Environmental Protection Agency chief at the time, Scott Pruitt, and the then-Interior Secretary, Ryan Zinke. “For example, next week I’m invited to the White House to talk about tax code. Last week we were talking to Secretary Pruitt, and in about two weeks we have a meeting with Secretary Zinke. So we have unprecedented access to people that are in these positions who are trying to help us, which is great.”
In that Ritz-Carlton conference room, Russell also spoke of his ties to Bernhardt, recalling the lawyer’s role as point man on an association legal team set up to challenge federal endangered species rules. “Well, the guy that actually headed up that group is now the No. 2 at Interior,” he said, referring to Bernhardt. “So that’s worked out well.”...
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/03/23/trump-big-oil-industry-influe...
Recording Reveals Oil Industry Execs Laughing at Trump Access
LANCE WILLIAMS | March 23, 2019
The (hourlong) tape of a (June 17, 2017) private meeting was made shortly after (David Bernhardt) the lawyer for an influential industry group was tapped for a high-level (#2) post at the Department of the Interior.
...Dan Naatz, (Independent Petroleum Association of America’s) political director, told ...~100 executives that Bernhardt’s new role meant their priorities would be heard at the highest levels of Interior.
“We know him very well, and we have direct access to him, have conversations with him about issues ranging from federal land access to endangered species, to a lot of issues”...
The recording gives a rare look behind the curtain of an influential oil industry lobbying group that spends more than $1 million per year to push its agenda in Congress and federal regulatory agencies. The previous eight years had been dispiriting for the industry: As IPAA vice president Jeff Eshelman told the group, it had seemed as though the Obama administration and environmental groups had put together “their target list of everything that they wanted done to shut down the oil and gas industry.” But now, the oil executives were almost giddy at the prospect of high-level executive branch access of the sort they hadn’t enjoyed since Dick Cheney, a fellow oilman, was vice president.
“It’s really a new thing for us,” said Barry Russell, the association’s CEO, boasting of his meetings with Environmental Protection Agency chief at the time, Scott Pruitt, and the then-Interior Secretary, Ryan Zinke. “For example, next week I’m invited to the White House to talk about tax code. Last week we were talking to Secretary Pruitt, and in about two weeks we have a meeting with Secretary Zinke. So we have unprecedented access to people that are in these positions who are trying to help us, which is great.”
In that Ritz-Carlton conference room, Russell also spoke of his ties to Bernhardt, recalling the lawyer’s role as point man on an association legal team set up to challenge federal endangered species rules. “Well, the guy that actually headed up that group is now the No. 2 at Interior,” he said, referring to Bernhardt. “So that’s worked out well.”...
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/03/23/trump-big-oil-industry-influe...
63margd
Federal judge declares Trump’s push to open up Arctic and Atlantic oceans to oil and gas drilling illegal
Juliet Eilperin | March 30, 2019
A federal judge in Alaska declared late Friday that President Trump’s order revoking a sweeping ban on oil and gas drilling in the Arctic and Atlantic oceans is illegal, putting 128 million acres of federal waters off limits to energy exploration.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason is the third legal setback this week to Trump’s energy and environmental policies. The judge, who was appointed to the federal bench by President Barack Obama in 2012, also blocked on Friday a land swap the Interior Department arranged that would pave the way for constructing a road through wilderness in a major National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
Earlier this week, U.S. District Judge Lewis T. Babcock, who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan, ruled that Interior’s Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service illegally approved two gas drilling plans in western Colorado. The judge said officials did not adequately analyze wildlife and climate impacts in their plans — which were challenged by a coalition of environmental groups — to drill 171 wells in North Fork Valley, which provides key habitat for elk and mule deer...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/03/30/federal-judge-decl...
Juliet Eilperin | March 30, 2019
A federal judge in Alaska declared late Friday that President Trump’s order revoking a sweeping ban on oil and gas drilling in the Arctic and Atlantic oceans is illegal, putting 128 million acres of federal waters off limits to energy exploration.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason is the third legal setback this week to Trump’s energy and environmental policies. The judge, who was appointed to the federal bench by President Barack Obama in 2012, also blocked on Friday a land swap the Interior Department arranged that would pave the way for constructing a road through wilderness in a major National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
Earlier this week, U.S. District Judge Lewis T. Babcock, who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan, ruled that Interior’s Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service illegally approved two gas drilling plans in western Colorado. The judge said officials did not adequately analyze wildlife and climate impacts in their plans — which were challenged by a coalition of environmental groups — to drill 171 wells in North Fork Valley, which provides key habitat for elk and mule deer...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/03/30/federal-judge-decl...
64margd
Comments are due April 17 on EPA's proposed deregulation of the 2012 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) for coal- and oil-fired power plants:
https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0794
Below is a comment guide from the Union of Concerned Scientists.
One of the most notorious cases of Methyl Mercury's neural toxicity was Minamata Disease in Japan, where locals and their animals consumed contaminated fish and shellfish: https://www.bu.edu/sustainability/minamata-disease/ .
Mercury likewise closed fisheries in the Great Lakes, such as walleye in Lake Erie, in the early 1970s, and consumption advisories followed. Today, those fisheries are notably cleaner and support not only indigenous and commercial fisheries, but sport fisheries which contribute more than $4 billion to shoreline communities.
Ambient winds carry smog and its pollutants from Ohio, etc. into Ontario along the axes of Lakes Erie and Ontario, where Canadian deaths are added to those of the US: http://communityhealthstats.healthunit.com/indicator/environmental-health/air-qu... . US deregulation of MATS would be particularly pernicious given Ontario's efforts to eliminate its own coal-fired power plants.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Let the EPA Know It Is “Appropriate and Necessary” to Regulate Mercury and Other Toxic Air Pollutants
A Public Comment Guide for the EPA’s Proposal to Undermine the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards for Coal-Fired Power Plants and Diminish the Value of Public Health Benefits (8 p)
...This guide is focused on the agency’s attack on cost-benefit analysis given its relevance across rule makings, and it identifies four key areas where expert comments would be valuable, pushing back against the EPA:
▪refusing to consider all benefits when evaluating the “worth” of a rule;
▪ignoring unquantified direct benefits of reducing air toxics;
▪relying on outdated information and disregardingnew information; and
▪undermining the public health gains from MATS and potentially other public health protections...
...WHO SHOULD WRITE
Scientists...economists...public health professionals...industry experts...parents...people...people who birdwatch or engage in recreational activities in aquatic ecosystems; and anyone who wants the EPA to take strong action to protect human health and the environment from industrial pollution
...The EPA is now proposing to reverse its repeated finding that regulation is “appropriate and necessary”—though it is not proposing to rescind MATS itself—by changing how benefits and costs are considered when determining whether regulation is “appropriate.”
...In practice,this proposed change means that theEPA no longer finds it relevant to consider an annual reduction of 11,000 premature deaths, 130,000 asthma attacks, and 4,700 heart attacks—benefits estimated at on the order of$37 billion to $90 billion each year—in its determination of whether a regulation is “worth” the costs.Most of these quantifiable benefits come from reductions of fine particulate matter, which would occur as a direct and simultaneous result of pollution controls installed to limit air toxics. Yet the EPA believes these direct effects of the rule should not be relevant in determining whether costs, estimated in 2011 to be on the order of $7.4 to $9.6 billion annually, are “worth” it. The EPA instead proposes to consider only the limited subset of quantifiable benefits from reducing air toxics, which, since most of these benefits were not quantifiable,the agency estimated at $4 to $6 million annually.
...Issues to Address in Your Comments
There are numerous concerns with the EPA’s approach, factual basis, and conclusions in the proposed rule. Below we have highlighted four specific issues of focus related to cost-benefit analysis, including the agency’s proposal to:
▪refuseto consider all benefitswhen evaluating the “worth” of a rule;
▪ignoreunquantified direct benefits of reducing air toxics;
▪rely on outdated information and disregard new information;and
▪underminethe public health gains from MATS and potentially other public health protections.
You do not need to address all,or even most, of these issues. It is most effective to provide detailed comments on the specific area(s)where you have personal expertise, information, experience, or strong concerns.To the extent you can, explain why the EPA’s specific approach and conclusions are unreasonable and harmful while providing as much factual support as possible.
https://www.ucsusa.org/sites/default/files/attach/2019/03/Public-Comment-Guide-M...
https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0794
Below is a comment guide from the Union of Concerned Scientists.
One of the most notorious cases of Methyl Mercury's neural toxicity was Minamata Disease in Japan, where locals and their animals consumed contaminated fish and shellfish: https://www.bu.edu/sustainability/minamata-disease/ .
Mercury likewise closed fisheries in the Great Lakes, such as walleye in Lake Erie, in the early 1970s, and consumption advisories followed. Today, those fisheries are notably cleaner and support not only indigenous and commercial fisheries, but sport fisheries which contribute more than $4 billion to shoreline communities.
Ambient winds carry smog and its pollutants from Ohio, etc. into Ontario along the axes of Lakes Erie and Ontario, where Canadian deaths are added to those of the US: http://communityhealthstats.healthunit.com/indicator/environmental-health/air-qu... . US deregulation of MATS would be particularly pernicious given Ontario's efforts to eliminate its own coal-fired power plants.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Let the EPA Know It Is “Appropriate and Necessary” to Regulate Mercury and Other Toxic Air Pollutants
A Public Comment Guide for the EPA’s Proposal to Undermine the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards for Coal-Fired Power Plants and Diminish the Value of Public Health Benefits (8 p)
...This guide is focused on the agency’s attack on cost-benefit analysis given its relevance across rule makings, and it identifies four key areas where expert comments would be valuable, pushing back against the EPA:
▪refusing to consider all benefits when evaluating the “worth” of a rule;
▪ignoring unquantified direct benefits of reducing air toxics;
▪relying on outdated information and disregardingnew information; and
▪undermining the public health gains from MATS and potentially other public health protections...
...WHO SHOULD WRITE
Scientists...economists...public health professionals...industry experts...parents...people...people who birdwatch or engage in recreational activities in aquatic ecosystems; and anyone who wants the EPA to take strong action to protect human health and the environment from industrial pollution
...The EPA is now proposing to reverse its repeated finding that regulation is “appropriate and necessary”—though it is not proposing to rescind MATS itself—by changing how benefits and costs are considered when determining whether regulation is “appropriate.”
...In practice,this proposed change means that theEPA no longer finds it relevant to consider an annual reduction of 11,000 premature deaths, 130,000 asthma attacks, and 4,700 heart attacks—benefits estimated at on the order of$37 billion to $90 billion each year—in its determination of whether a regulation is “worth” the costs.Most of these quantifiable benefits come from reductions of fine particulate matter, which would occur as a direct and simultaneous result of pollution controls installed to limit air toxics. Yet the EPA believes these direct effects of the rule should not be relevant in determining whether costs, estimated in 2011 to be on the order of $7.4 to $9.6 billion annually, are “worth” it. The EPA instead proposes to consider only the limited subset of quantifiable benefits from reducing air toxics, which, since most of these benefits were not quantifiable,the agency estimated at $4 to $6 million annually.
...Issues to Address in Your Comments
There are numerous concerns with the EPA’s approach, factual basis, and conclusions in the proposed rule. Below we have highlighted four specific issues of focus related to cost-benefit analysis, including the agency’s proposal to:
▪refuseto consider all benefitswhen evaluating the “worth” of a rule;
▪ignoreunquantified direct benefits of reducing air toxics;
▪rely on outdated information and disregard new information;and
▪underminethe public health gains from MATS and potentially other public health protections.
You do not need to address all,or even most, of these issues. It is most effective to provide detailed comments on the specific area(s)where you have personal expertise, information, experience, or strong concerns.To the extent you can, explain why the EPA’s specific approach and conclusions are unreasonable and harmful while providing as much factual support as possible.
https://www.ucsusa.org/sites/default/files/attach/2019/03/Public-Comment-Guide-M...
65margd
States aren’t waiting for the Trump administration on environmental protections
How Trump is hindering the fight against climate change
Brady Dennis and Juliet Eilperin | May 19, 2019
More than a dozen states are moving to strengthen environmental protections to combat a range of issues from climate change to water pollution, opening a widening rift between stringent state policies and the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda.
In recent months, Hawaii, New York and California have moved to ban a widely used agricultural pesticide linked to neurological problems in children, even as the administration has resisted such restrictions. Michigan and New Jersey are pushing to restrict a ubiquitous class of chemical compounds (PFAS) that have turned up in drinking water, saying they can no longer wait for the Environmental Protection Agency to take action.
Colorado and New Mexico have adopted new policies targeting greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel drilling and limiting where these operations can take place. And more than a dozen states have adopted policies that would force automakers to produce more fuel-efficient cars than required by federal standards.
The growing patchwork of regulations is creating uncertainty for American businesses as state lawmakers vie to change rules that, in past administrations, were more likely to be set at the federal level.
...jumble of policies also threatens to create disparities, not only in obligations placed on businesses but also in the level of protections guarding human health in different communities....
...Since President Trump took office, his administration has scaled back numerous environmental rules enacted under President Barack Obama and declined to impose federal limits on some contaminants and pesticides. The Trump administration also has reversed course on climate change, refusing to embrace the limits on greenhouse gas emissions that the federal government previously had pledged to adopt under an international agreement.
...Interior Department...controls industry access to vast swaths of public lands...New Mexico)'s) ... land commissioner last month put nearly 73,000 acres in the northwest part of the state off-limits to drilling...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/states-arent-waiting-for-...
How Trump is hindering the fight against climate change
Brady Dennis and Juliet Eilperin | May 19, 2019
More than a dozen states are moving to strengthen environmental protections to combat a range of issues from climate change to water pollution, opening a widening rift between stringent state policies and the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda.
In recent months, Hawaii, New York and California have moved to ban a widely used agricultural pesticide linked to neurological problems in children, even as the administration has resisted such restrictions. Michigan and New Jersey are pushing to restrict a ubiquitous class of chemical compounds (PFAS) that have turned up in drinking water, saying they can no longer wait for the Environmental Protection Agency to take action.
Colorado and New Mexico have adopted new policies targeting greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel drilling and limiting where these operations can take place. And more than a dozen states have adopted policies that would force automakers to produce more fuel-efficient cars than required by federal standards.
The growing patchwork of regulations is creating uncertainty for American businesses as state lawmakers vie to change rules that, in past administrations, were more likely to be set at the federal level.
...jumble of policies also threatens to create disparities, not only in obligations placed on businesses but also in the level of protections guarding human health in different communities....
...Since President Trump took office, his administration has scaled back numerous environmental rules enacted under President Barack Obama and declined to impose federal limits on some contaminants and pesticides. The Trump administration also has reversed course on climate change, refusing to embrace the limits on greenhouse gas emissions that the federal government previously had pledged to adopt under an international agreement.
...Interior Department...controls industry access to vast swaths of public lands...New Mexico)'s) ... land commissioner last month put nearly 73,000 acres in the northwest part of the state off-limits to drilling...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/states-arent-waiting-for-...
66margd
EPA cuts off funding for kids' health research centers
Corbin Hiar and Ariel Wittenberg | Monday, May 20, 2019
Despite repeatedly expressing public support for children's health, EPA is ending funding for a network of research centers focused on environmental threats to kids, imperiling several long-running studies of pollutants' effects on child development.
The move, critics say, is part of a broader Trump administration effort to downplay science that could lead to stricter regulations on polluting industries.
At issue are 13 Children's Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Research Centers located at institutions across the country, from UCLA to Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.
Jointly funded by EPA and the Department of Health and Human Services' National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) for more than two decades, the children's centers study everything from childhood leukemia to the development of autism spectrum disorders. Grants to those centers have long been considered unique in the public health world for including funding for both research and public outreach.
...Ending grants for children's centers is one of several moves the Trump EPA has taken to undercut research. In rejecting a proposed ban on the neurotoxic pesticide chlorpyrifos, for instance, EPA mirrored arguments made by the pesticide industry to raise concerns about peer-reviewed research it had funded by Columbia University's Center for Children's Environmental Health (Greenwire, Aug. 23, 2018).
Studies that link leukemia and other childhood ailments to pesticides "make this administration uncomfortable," said UC San Francisco's Woodruff, a former EPA senior scientist and policy adviser under Presidents Clinton and George W. Bush.
EPA didn't respond to questions about how its allies in industry could benefit. But Administrator Andrew Wheeler, who lobbied for fossil fuel companies before joining the administration, said earlier this year that "protecting children's health is a top priority for EPA."
Wheeler was speaking about EPA's budget proposal. It would direct $50 million toward "healthy schools" grants that aim to reduce pests, asthma triggers and exposure to lead in schools, but also would slash nearly $220.6 million from four research programs that work on toxic chemicals in drinking water (E&E News PM, March 18).
https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060367917
Corbin Hiar and Ariel Wittenberg | Monday, May 20, 2019
Despite repeatedly expressing public support for children's health, EPA is ending funding for a network of research centers focused on environmental threats to kids, imperiling several long-running studies of pollutants' effects on child development.
The move, critics say, is part of a broader Trump administration effort to downplay science that could lead to stricter regulations on polluting industries.
At issue are 13 Children's Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Research Centers located at institutions across the country, from UCLA to Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.
Jointly funded by EPA and the Department of Health and Human Services' National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) for more than two decades, the children's centers study everything from childhood leukemia to the development of autism spectrum disorders. Grants to those centers have long been considered unique in the public health world for including funding for both research and public outreach.
...Ending grants for children's centers is one of several moves the Trump EPA has taken to undercut research. In rejecting a proposed ban on the neurotoxic pesticide chlorpyrifos, for instance, EPA mirrored arguments made by the pesticide industry to raise concerns about peer-reviewed research it had funded by Columbia University's Center for Children's Environmental Health (Greenwire, Aug. 23, 2018).
Studies that link leukemia and other childhood ailments to pesticides "make this administration uncomfortable," said UC San Francisco's Woodruff, a former EPA senior scientist and policy adviser under Presidents Clinton and George W. Bush.
EPA didn't respond to questions about how its allies in industry could benefit. But Administrator Andrew Wheeler, who lobbied for fossil fuel companies before joining the administration, said earlier this year that "protecting children's health is a top priority for EPA."
Wheeler was speaking about EPA's budget proposal. It would direct $50 million toward "healthy schools" grants that aim to reduce pests, asthma triggers and exposure to lead in schools, but also would slash nearly $220.6 million from four research programs that work on toxic chemicals in drinking water (E&E News PM, March 18).
https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060367917
67margd
Bipartisan former EPA chiefs say Trump administration has abandoned agency's mission
Rebecca Beitsch | 06/11/19
Bipartisan former EPA chiefs say Trump administration has abandoned agency's mission
Four former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrators (3R + 1D) appeared before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday, criticizing the agency under the direction of the Trump administration and imploring Congress to push it to return to its mission.
...(Gina) McCarthy joined Republican counterparts spanning the Reagan to George W. Bush administrations. Their appearance comes after they sent a letter to various members of Congress offering the help of former EPA staff, who, concerned about the direction of the agency, formed an association — The Environmental Protection Network.
The four former cabinet secretaries say the agency is reversing course and endangering human health along the way.
...Christine Todd Whitman, who headed the agency under former President George W. Bush, said in her opening remarks...pointed to a retreat from science, the influence of regulated industries, a disinterest in addressing climate change and a lack of a focus on public health as areas for concern.
“This unprecedented attack on science-based regulations designed to protect the environment and public health represents the gravest threat to the effectiveness of the EPA — and to the federal government’s overall ability to do the same — in the nation’s history,” she said.
...“I’ve never had a situation where four former EPA administrations, three Republicans and one Democrat…would come in and sounds the alarm the way they did today,” Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) said of her tenure on the committee.
...The hearing comes on the heels of a contentious meeting between the EPA and its Science Advisory Board and renewed concerns that the agency is sidelining scientists.
...As the agency approaches its 50th anniversary, the former administrators were clear in their consensus that the agency is backtracking on a number of notable fronts.
Several of them voiced concern over what they said is an agency pivot toward valuing regulatory rollbacks over environmental or public health benefits.
...The former administrators criticized the agency for frequently portraying economic progress as being at odds with environmental regulations — two things, they say, can proceed in tandem.
The group also raised concerns over how the agency calculates the cost-benefit analysis of its regulations...
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/447946-bipartisan-former-epa-admin...
Rebecca Beitsch | 06/11/19
Bipartisan former EPA chiefs say Trump administration has abandoned agency's mission
Four former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrators (3R + 1D) appeared before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday, criticizing the agency under the direction of the Trump administration and imploring Congress to push it to return to its mission.
...(Gina) McCarthy joined Republican counterparts spanning the Reagan to George W. Bush administrations. Their appearance comes after they sent a letter to various members of Congress offering the help of former EPA staff, who, concerned about the direction of the agency, formed an association — The Environmental Protection Network.
The four former cabinet secretaries say the agency is reversing course and endangering human health along the way.
...Christine Todd Whitman, who headed the agency under former President George W. Bush, said in her opening remarks...pointed to a retreat from science, the influence of regulated industries, a disinterest in addressing climate change and a lack of a focus on public health as areas for concern.
“This unprecedented attack on science-based regulations designed to protect the environment and public health represents the gravest threat to the effectiveness of the EPA — and to the federal government’s overall ability to do the same — in the nation’s history,” she said.
...“I’ve never had a situation where four former EPA administrations, three Republicans and one Democrat…would come in and sounds the alarm the way they did today,” Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) said of her tenure on the committee.
...The hearing comes on the heels of a contentious meeting between the EPA and its Science Advisory Board and renewed concerns that the agency is sidelining scientists.
...As the agency approaches its 50th anniversary, the former administrators were clear in their consensus that the agency is backtracking on a number of notable fronts.
Several of them voiced concern over what they said is an agency pivot toward valuing regulatory rollbacks over environmental or public health benefits.
...The former administrators criticized the agency for frequently portraying economic progress as being at odds with environmental regulations — two things, they say, can proceed in tandem.
The group also raised concerns over how the agency calculates the cost-benefit analysis of its regulations...
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/447946-bipartisan-former-epa-admin...
68margd
The Anthropocene Project
https://theanthropocene.org/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh Dear: Photos Show What Humans Have Done To The Planet
Jonathan Lambert and Rebecca Ellis | June 15, 2019
...Photographer Edward Burtynsky and filmmakers Jennifer Baichwal and Nicholas de Pencier were inspired by this ongoing discussion of the debate over this new geological era. These three Canadian artists traveled to 22 countries to research and document "places of obvious, physical human incursions on the landscape," says filmmaker de Pencier.
They created over 50 images capturing the impact of humans on the Earth, like a sprawling, 30-acre garbage dump in Kenya, large swaths of deforestation in Borneo and waterways damaged by oil siphoning in Nigeria.
Their expansive, multidisciplinary body of work is called The Anthropocene Project.
The project, which includes photography, film, virtual reality and augmented reality, took four years to complete and launched in September 2018. The exhibition is currently on display at the Fondazione MAST Museum in Bologna, Italy. And their film will be shown in the U.S. this fall...
https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/06/15/727583729/the-anthropocene-...
https://theanthropocene.org/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh Dear: Photos Show What Humans Have Done To The Planet
Jonathan Lambert and Rebecca Ellis | June 15, 2019
...Photographer Edward Burtynsky and filmmakers Jennifer Baichwal and Nicholas de Pencier were inspired by this ongoing discussion of the debate over this new geological era. These three Canadian artists traveled to 22 countries to research and document "places of obvious, physical human incursions on the landscape," says filmmaker de Pencier.
They created over 50 images capturing the impact of humans on the Earth, like a sprawling, 30-acre garbage dump in Kenya, large swaths of deforestation in Borneo and waterways damaged by oil siphoning in Nigeria.
Their expansive, multidisciplinary body of work is called The Anthropocene Project.
The project, which includes photography, film, virtual reality and augmented reality, took four years to complete and launched in September 2018. The exhibition is currently on display at the Fondazione MAST Museum in Bologna, Italy. And their film will be shown in the U.S. this fall...
https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/06/15/727583729/the-anthropocene-...
692wonderY
>68 margd: Ever since I saw photos of the Canadian tarsands, I've been struck by how much we are turning our world into an image of hell.
71margd
EPA will not ban use of controversial pesticide linked to children’s health problems
Brady Dennis and Juliet Eilperin | July 18, 2019
The agency says the widely used chemical chlorpyrifos is an important tool for the nation’s farmers.
The Environmental Protection Agency rejected a petition by environmental and public health groups Thursday to ban a widely used pesticide that has been linked to neurological damage in children, even though a federal court said last year there was “no justification” for such a decision.
In a notice to the Federal Register on Thursday, the agency wrote that “critical questions remained regarding the significance of the data” that suggests that chlorpyrifos causes neurological damage in young children. The agency said that the Obama administration’s decision to ban the product — used on more than 50 crops, including grapes, broccoli and strawberries — was based on epidemiological studies rather than direct tests on animals, which have historically been used by the EPA to determine a pesticide’s safety.
The EPA’s decision, which represented a win for industry, drew swift condemnation from groups that have pushed for years to remove the pesticide from the market.
...Still, the decision to deny the petition could bring the country closer to final resolution of a decades-long battle over a pesticide used on fruits, vegetables and cereals that Americans eat every day. Kevin Minoli, a partner at the Alston & Bird law firm, said agency critics can now challenge the EPA’s conclusion that the pesticide is safe. He noted that judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit have already indicated “they have significant concerns about the safety of chlorpyrifos.”...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/07/18/epa-will-not-ban-u...
ETA_______________________________________________________________________________
Trump’s EPA Just Made Its Final Decision Not to Ban a Pesticide That Hurts Kids’ Brains
Tom Philpott | July 19, 2019
The president has quite a chummy relationship with chlorpyrifos’ maker, DowDupont.
...(2017) And here’s the dirt on the relationship between President Donald Trump and the company that markets the chemical:
Dow AgroSciences’ parent company, Dow Chemical, has also been buttering up Trump. The company contributed $1 million to the president’s inaugural committee, the Center for Public Integrity notes. In December, Dow Chemical Chairman and CEO Andrew Liveris attended a post-election Trump rally in the company’s home state of Michigan, and used the occasion to announce plans to create 100 new jobs and bring back another 100 more from foreign subsidiaries. Around the same time, Trump named Liveris chair of the American Manufacturing Council, declaring the chemical exec would “find ways to bring industry back to America.” (Dow has another reason beside chlorpyrifos’ fate to get chummy with Trump: its pending mega-merger with erstwhile rival DuPont, which still has to clear Trump’s Department of Justice.)
Since the 2017 chlorpyrifos decision (just confirmed in Federal Register), the administration has approved the Dow-Dupont merger, and named several former Dow execs to high posts within the US Department of Agriculture.
Meanwhile, Hawaii, California, and New York have all announced plans to phase out use of chlorpyrifos in farm fields.
Here’s (map) from the US Geological Survey on where chlorpyrifos is used:...
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/07/trumps-epa-just-made-its-final-d...
Brady Dennis and Juliet Eilperin | July 18, 2019
The agency says the widely used chemical chlorpyrifos is an important tool for the nation’s farmers.
The Environmental Protection Agency rejected a petition by environmental and public health groups Thursday to ban a widely used pesticide that has been linked to neurological damage in children, even though a federal court said last year there was “no justification” for such a decision.
In a notice to the Federal Register on Thursday, the agency wrote that “critical questions remained regarding the significance of the data” that suggests that chlorpyrifos causes neurological damage in young children. The agency said that the Obama administration’s decision to ban the product — used on more than 50 crops, including grapes, broccoli and strawberries — was based on epidemiological studies rather than direct tests on animals, which have historically been used by the EPA to determine a pesticide’s safety.
The EPA’s decision, which represented a win for industry, drew swift condemnation from groups that have pushed for years to remove the pesticide from the market.
...Still, the decision to deny the petition could bring the country closer to final resolution of a decades-long battle over a pesticide used on fruits, vegetables and cereals that Americans eat every day. Kevin Minoli, a partner at the Alston & Bird law firm, said agency critics can now challenge the EPA’s conclusion that the pesticide is safe. He noted that judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit have already indicated “they have significant concerns about the safety of chlorpyrifos.”...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/07/18/epa-will-not-ban-u...
ETA_______________________________________________________________________________
Trump’s EPA Just Made Its Final Decision Not to Ban a Pesticide That Hurts Kids’ Brains
Tom Philpott | July 19, 2019
The president has quite a chummy relationship with chlorpyrifos’ maker, DowDupont.
...(2017) And here’s the dirt on the relationship between President Donald Trump and the company that markets the chemical:
Dow AgroSciences’ parent company, Dow Chemical, has also been buttering up Trump. The company contributed $1 million to the president’s inaugural committee, the Center for Public Integrity notes. In December, Dow Chemical Chairman and CEO Andrew Liveris attended a post-election Trump rally in the company’s home state of Michigan, and used the occasion to announce plans to create 100 new jobs and bring back another 100 more from foreign subsidiaries. Around the same time, Trump named Liveris chair of the American Manufacturing Council, declaring the chemical exec would “find ways to bring industry back to America.” (Dow has another reason beside chlorpyrifos’ fate to get chummy with Trump: its pending mega-merger with erstwhile rival DuPont, which still has to clear Trump’s Department of Justice.)
Since the 2017 chlorpyrifos decision (just confirmed in Federal Register), the administration has approved the Dow-Dupont merger, and named several former Dow execs to high posts within the US Department of Agriculture.
Meanwhile, Hawaii, California, and New York have all announced plans to phase out use of chlorpyrifos in farm fields.
Here’s (map) from the US Geological Survey on where chlorpyrifos is used:...
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/07/trumps-epa-just-made-its-final-d...
72margd
EPA dropped salmon protection after Trump met with Alaska governor
Scott Bronstein, Curt Devine, Drew Griffin and Ashley Hackett | August 9, 2019
(CNN) The Environmental Protection Agency told staff scientists that it was no longer opposing a controversial Alaska mining project that could devastate one of the world's most valuable wild salmon fisheries just one day after President Trump met with Alaska's governor
...The copper-and-gold mine planned near Bristol Bay, Alaska, known as Pebble Mine, was blocked by the Obama administration's EPA after scientists found that the mine would cause "complete loss of" the bay's fish habitat.
EPA insiders tell CNN that the timing of the agency's internal announcement suggests Trump was personally involved in the decision.
Dunleavy met with Trump aboard Air Force One on June 26, as the President's plane was on the tarmac in Alaska. The President had stopped there on his way to the G20 summit in Japan.
In 2014, the project was halted because an EPA study found that it would cause "complete loss of fish habitat due to elimination, dewatering, and fragmentation of streams, wetlands, and other aquatic resources" in some areas of Bristol Bay. The agency invoked a rarely used provision of the Clean Water Act that works like a veto, effectively banning mining on the site...
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/09/us/epa-alaska-pebble-mine-salmon-invs/index.html
Scott Bronstein, Curt Devine, Drew Griffin and Ashley Hackett | August 9, 2019
(CNN) The Environmental Protection Agency told staff scientists that it was no longer opposing a controversial Alaska mining project that could devastate one of the world's most valuable wild salmon fisheries just one day after President Trump met with Alaska's governor
...The copper-and-gold mine planned near Bristol Bay, Alaska, known as Pebble Mine, was blocked by the Obama administration's EPA after scientists found that the mine would cause "complete loss of" the bay's fish habitat.
EPA insiders tell CNN that the timing of the agency's internal announcement suggests Trump was personally involved in the decision.
Dunleavy met with Trump aboard Air Force One on June 26, as the President's plane was on the tarmac in Alaska. The President had stopped there on his way to the G20 summit in Japan.
In 2014, the project was halted because an EPA study found that it would cause "complete loss of fish habitat due to elimination, dewatering, and fragmentation of streams, wetlands, and other aquatic resources" in some areas of Bristol Bay. The agency invoked a rarely used provision of the Clean Water Act that works like a veto, effectively banning mining on the site...
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/09/us/epa-alaska-pebble-mine-salmon-invs/index.html
73RickHarsch
It's apparently gone from corporate/oligarchic chummy to obsession
74DugsBooks
>72 margd: >73 RickHarsch:. Unbelievable- did not make a ripple in news that l read. Stock market manipulating tweets & mass shootings take up all the headlines. Where are the fishermen? They should be storming the guvs office.
75margd
In a time of red tides, cyanobacteria, PFAS and other threats to human and ecosystem health:
Trump Administration Rolls Back Clean Water Protections
Lisa Friedman and Coral Davenport | Sept. 12, 2019
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Thursday announced the repeal of a major (2015) Obama-era clean water regulation that had placed limits on polluting chemicals that could be used near streams, wetlands and other bodies of water.
...An immediate effect of the clean water repeal is that polluters will no longer need a permit to discharge potentially harmful substances into many streams and wetlands. But the measure, which is expected to take effect in a matter of weeks, has implications far beyond the pollution that will now be allowed to flow freely into waterways.
The Obama administration implemented the rule in response to a Supreme Court decision that opened the door to a more expansive legal definition of “waters of the United States” under the 1972 Clean Water Act. With Thursday’s announcement, the Environmental Protection Agency is aiming to drastically narrow that definition, a move that critics fear could be difficult for future administrations to undo because the ideological balance of the Supreme Court has shifted to the right...
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/12/climate/trump-administration-rolls-back-clean...
Trump Administration Rolls Back Clean Water Protections
Lisa Friedman and Coral Davenport | Sept. 12, 2019
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Thursday announced the repeal of a major (2015) Obama-era clean water regulation that had placed limits on polluting chemicals that could be used near streams, wetlands and other bodies of water.
...An immediate effect of the clean water repeal is that polluters will no longer need a permit to discharge potentially harmful substances into many streams and wetlands. But the measure, which is expected to take effect in a matter of weeks, has implications far beyond the pollution that will now be allowed to flow freely into waterways.
The Obama administration implemented the rule in response to a Supreme Court decision that opened the door to a more expansive legal definition of “waters of the United States” under the 1972 Clean Water Act. With Thursday’s announcement, the Environmental Protection Agency is aiming to drastically narrow that definition, a move that critics fear could be difficult for future administrations to undo because the ideological balance of the Supreme Court has shifted to the right...
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/12/climate/trump-administration-rolls-back-clean...
76margd
I know of US federal civil servants, who doing their job to protect the environment, have earned enmity of well-connected interests. Presidential appointees have been forced to resign. Career civil servants have been re-assigned to the American equivalent of "finclipping in Moosonee". (Believe me, that's not a job you would seek!)
Now, Trump administration, frustrated by inability to get rid of inconvenient, irritating folk folk (except in cases of "folly of their own making") is proposing a change to Civil Service protections, which will make it easier to get rid of them. Remember the cruelty of firing DOJ's McCabe ONE DAY before he was eligible for his pension? This is what would be visited on many more folk that you will never hear about, public servants who, serving YOUR interests, offend friends of powerful people...Presidents, Senators, etc. Many fewer will be willing to speak up. Partying will ensue at Mar-a-Lago
OPM Proposes Changes to Federal Employee Removal Process
Ralph R. Smith | September 17, 2019
https://www.fedsmith.com/2019/09/17/opm-proposes-changes-federal-employee-remova...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Probation on Initial Appointment to a Competitive Position, Performance-Based Reduction in Grade and Removal Actions and Adverse Actions
A Proposed Rule by the Personnel Management Office on 09/17/2019
This document has a comment period that ends in 29 days. (10/17/2019)
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/09/17/2019-19636/probation-on-ini...
_______________________________________________________________________________
ProTip 🍑 @alt_localgov | 11:35 PM · Sep 17, 2019:
Dear America,
Your public servants can only do so much.
We whistleblow and get blocked.
We forecast hurricanes and are contradicted with a Sharpie.
We science and they relocate us.
We try to do our jobs and they threaten to take them away.
Resist w @resistbot.
❤️,
LocalGov
Now, Trump administration, frustrated by inability to get rid of inconvenient, irritating folk folk (except in cases of "folly of their own making") is proposing a change to Civil Service protections, which will make it easier to get rid of them. Remember the cruelty of firing DOJ's McCabe ONE DAY before he was eligible for his pension? This is what would be visited on many more folk that you will never hear about, public servants who, serving YOUR interests, offend friends of powerful people...Presidents, Senators, etc. Many fewer will be willing to speak up. Partying will ensue at Mar-a-Lago
OPM Proposes Changes to Federal Employee Removal Process
Ralph R. Smith | September 17, 2019
https://www.fedsmith.com/2019/09/17/opm-proposes-changes-federal-employee-remova...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Probation on Initial Appointment to a Competitive Position, Performance-Based Reduction in Grade and Removal Actions and Adverse Actions
A Proposed Rule by the Personnel Management Office on 09/17/2019
This document has a comment period that ends in 29 days. (10/17/2019)
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/09/17/2019-19636/probation-on-ini...
_______________________________________________________________________________
ProTip 🍑 @alt_localgov | 11:35 PM · Sep 17, 2019:
Dear America,
Your public servants can only do so much.
We whistleblow and get blocked.
We forecast hurricanes and are contradicted with a Sharpie.
We science and they relocate us.
We try to do our jobs and they threaten to take them away.
Resist w @resistbot.
❤️,
LocalGov
77margd
Ending invasive species group ‘a disaster,’ says Florida scientist who helped start it
Craig Pittman | Oct. 7, 2019
For 20 years, the Invasive Species Advisory Committee coordinated all of the federal government’s efforts at controlling pythons and other invasive species plaguing the nation, aiding in the design of regulations and scientific approaches to dealing with them.
But last week the Trump Administration officially suspended the committee, in effect disbanding it at a time when Florida — which has more invasive species than any other state — has doubled down on its attempts to stop pythons.
An Interior Department official said this was part of an effort to consider “the collective cost” of all federal advisory committees and “evaluate how those funds might be better utilized to address their missions.”
...Laura Meyerson, a University of Rhode Island professor, said its budget is just $30,000, so claiming it’s being abolished because of the cost “doesn’t pass the laugh test.”...
https://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/2019/10/07/ending-invasive-species-gro...
Craig Pittman | Oct. 7, 2019
For 20 years, the Invasive Species Advisory Committee coordinated all of the federal government’s efforts at controlling pythons and other invasive species plaguing the nation, aiding in the design of regulations and scientific approaches to dealing with them.
But last week the Trump Administration officially suspended the committee, in effect disbanding it at a time when Florida — which has more invasive species than any other state — has doubled down on its attempts to stop pythons.
An Interior Department official said this was part of an effort to consider “the collective cost” of all federal advisory committees and “evaluate how those funds might be better utilized to address their missions.”
...Laura Meyerson, a University of Rhode Island professor, said its budget is just $30,000, so claiming it’s being abolished because of the cost “doesn’t pass the laugh test.”...
https://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/2019/10/07/ending-invasive-species-gro...
78margd
America's Wildest National Forest Is Under Attack
Tongass National Forest
...Recently the Forest Service issued a proposal to open more than 9 million pristine acres of Alaska's Tongass National Forest to clearcut logging and bulldozing of roads. This would endanger one of the largest intact old-growth temperate rainforests left in North America. And crucially, it would set a terrible precedent for other national forests by rolling back protections that explicitly bar destructive roads.
...The new proposal would eliminate protections the Tongass now enjoys under what's known as the Roadless Rule. For nearly two decades, that rule has protected much of our country's last wild national forests from most logging and development. At almost 17 million acres, the Tongass is the largest U.S. national forest — and one of the world's most important temperate rainforests. On the Tongass alone the rule protects 9.3 million acres of breathtaking, undeveloped forests.
This attack also threatens habitat for grizzly and black bears, rare Alexander Archipelago wolves and wild salmon. And it would be a major blow to one of our greatest defenses against climate change: the forest's centuries-old trees that store huge amounts of carbon.
And adding insult to injury, at the last minute, Trump snuck in a poison pill that would open the door to bulldozers and chainsaws on 5.3 million more acres of roadless lands on the neighboring Chugach National Forest — a spectacular landscape of rugged mountains, snow-covered peaks, lakes, rivers and streams.
...Tell the feds to keep the Roadless Rule's protections for Alaska's Tongass rainforest...to choose the "no action" alternative and uphold safeguards for the Tongass.
https://act.biologicaldiversity.org/onlineactions/ZRXPglYU-E-PRbwPQbG80A2
Tongass National Forest
...Recently the Forest Service issued a proposal to open more than 9 million pristine acres of Alaska's Tongass National Forest to clearcut logging and bulldozing of roads. This would endanger one of the largest intact old-growth temperate rainforests left in North America. And crucially, it would set a terrible precedent for other national forests by rolling back protections that explicitly bar destructive roads.
...The new proposal would eliminate protections the Tongass now enjoys under what's known as the Roadless Rule. For nearly two decades, that rule has protected much of our country's last wild national forests from most logging and development. At almost 17 million acres, the Tongass is the largest U.S. national forest — and one of the world's most important temperate rainforests. On the Tongass alone the rule protects 9.3 million acres of breathtaking, undeveloped forests.
This attack also threatens habitat for grizzly and black bears, rare Alexander Archipelago wolves and wild salmon. And it would be a major blow to one of our greatest defenses against climate change: the forest's centuries-old trees that store huge amounts of carbon.
And adding insult to injury, at the last minute, Trump snuck in a poison pill that would open the door to bulldozers and chainsaws on 5.3 million more acres of roadless lands on the neighboring Chugach National Forest — a spectacular landscape of rugged mountains, snow-covered peaks, lakes, rivers and streams.
...Tell the feds to keep the Roadless Rule's protections for Alaska's Tongass rainforest...to choose the "no action" alternative and uphold safeguards for the Tongass.
https://act.biologicaldiversity.org/onlineactions/ZRXPglYU-E-PRbwPQbG80A2
79margd
The 'Go see Ryan' approach to lobbying EPA
Mike Soraghan | November 15, 2019
.... Thousands of pages of emails released under the Freedom of Information Act show (EPA's top political staffer, Chief of Staff Ryan Jackson's) inbox was flooded with chummy notes from lobbyists, many of whom he'd worked with on Capitol Hill. And he played the role of ombudsman, willing to lend a sympathetic ear.
...Lobbyists even asked for his help with enforcement matters, and some cases later vanished
...Jackson hasn't been as cooperative, though, with the Office of Inspector General, the agency's internal watchdog.
...Many former top agency hands are also surprised that a chief of staff would be so willing to intervene in specific EPA cases for regulated companies.
"If they are putting their thumb on the scale for friends or because ideologically they like some company more than a community, that undermines the reputation of the agency," said Linda Fisher, who served as EPA chief of staff and later deputy administrator during Republican administrations. "Everyone should have equal access to a regulatory agency."
And Jackson's emails show little sign of contact with environmental groups or others representing people affected by industrial pollution...
https://www.eenews.net/stories/1061557265
_____________________________________________________
The EPA must not ignore alarming science
Editorial Board | November 17, 2019
...it is standard operating procedure for researchers submitting papers to prestigious peer-reviewed journals to keep some data confidential. Underlying data might contain health, housing, occupational, business or other information that would be harder for scientists to collect without confidentiality agreements. (e.g., a Harvard paper and an American Cancer Society analysis definitively linking air pollution with premature death.)
The Trump EPA last year moved to restrict its consideration of studies that did not disclose underlying data. A new draft supplement to the rule...explained that the “EPA will ensure that data and models underlying science that is pivotal to EPA’s significant regulatory decisions are publicly available in a manner sufficient for independent validation and analysis.”
...There is a point past which skepticism is no longer healthy but, rather, an excuse to troll scientists and undercut findings that some interested parties would prefer to ignore or deny. As the EPA finalizes its new rules, it must not embrace willful blindness as policy.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-epa-must-not-ignore-alarming-science...
Mike Soraghan | November 15, 2019
.... Thousands of pages of emails released under the Freedom of Information Act show (EPA's top political staffer, Chief of Staff Ryan Jackson's) inbox was flooded with chummy notes from lobbyists, many of whom he'd worked with on Capitol Hill. And he played the role of ombudsman, willing to lend a sympathetic ear.
...Lobbyists even asked for his help with enforcement matters, and some cases later vanished
...Jackson hasn't been as cooperative, though, with the Office of Inspector General, the agency's internal watchdog.
...Many former top agency hands are also surprised that a chief of staff would be so willing to intervene in specific EPA cases for regulated companies.
"If they are putting their thumb on the scale for friends or because ideologically they like some company more than a community, that undermines the reputation of the agency," said Linda Fisher, who served as EPA chief of staff and later deputy administrator during Republican administrations. "Everyone should have equal access to a regulatory agency."
And Jackson's emails show little sign of contact with environmental groups or others representing people affected by industrial pollution...
https://www.eenews.net/stories/1061557265
_____________________________________________________
The EPA must not ignore alarming science
Editorial Board | November 17, 2019
...it is standard operating procedure for researchers submitting papers to prestigious peer-reviewed journals to keep some data confidential. Underlying data might contain health, housing, occupational, business or other information that would be harder for scientists to collect without confidentiality agreements. (e.g., a Harvard paper and an American Cancer Society analysis definitively linking air pollution with premature death.)
The Trump EPA last year moved to restrict its consideration of studies that did not disclose underlying data. A new draft supplement to the rule...explained that the “EPA will ensure that data and models underlying science that is pivotal to EPA’s significant regulatory decisions are publicly available in a manner sufficient for independent validation and analysis.”
...There is a point past which skepticism is no longer healthy but, rather, an excuse to troll scientists and undercut findings that some interested parties would prefer to ignore or deny. As the EPA finalizes its new rules, it must not embrace willful blindness as policy.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-epa-must-not-ignore-alarming-science...
80margd
Exclusive: Controversial mining company coached Alaska's governor to lobby White House
Curt Devine, Scott Bronstein and Drew Griffin | December 20, 2019
(CNN)A mining company secretly collaborated with the governor of Alaska to lobby the Trump administration to move forward with a mining project that Environmental Protection Agency scientists warned could devastate the world's most valuable wild salmon habitat, according to newly released emails obtained by CNN...
...While the EPA lifted its prior restriction on Pebble, the proposed mine's future remains uncertain. The project must clear permit-review processes and raise funding, though Pebble's CEO Collier told CNN, "with the completion of the financing round that we are now in, we believe we've raised sufficient funds to get through the permitting process."...
https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/19/politics/pebble-mine-alaska-governor-controversy-...
Curt Devine, Scott Bronstein and Drew Griffin | December 20, 2019
(CNN)A mining company secretly collaborated with the governor of Alaska to lobby the Trump administration to move forward with a mining project that Environmental Protection Agency scientists warned could devastate the world's most valuable wild salmon habitat, according to newly released emails obtained by CNN...
...While the EPA lifted its prior restriction on Pebble, the proposed mine's future remains uncertain. The project must clear permit-review processes and raise funding, though Pebble's CEO Collier told CNN, "with the completion of the financing round that we are now in, we believe we've raised sufficient funds to get through the permitting process."...
https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/19/politics/pebble-mine-alaska-governor-controversy-...
81DugsBooks
>80 margd: Just unreal that people can't see that destroying one "free" resource, salmon, for another resource, mining, which only benefits a small number of people and is not sustainable is not a good way to proceed with the Earth's evermore limited resources.
Ever think of posting links to online petitions to stop actions like this? {excuse me if you already do that}.
Ever think of posting links to online petitions to stop actions like this? {excuse me if you already do that}.
82margd
I don't need much encouragement! There was opportunity to comment in #28, but it expired a couple years ago. I'll keep eye out for others. Maybe ask a bear-biologist friend if he's aware of any current opportunities. I like to eat salmon, but Orcas and bears NEED them. When a salmon population is depleted, bears panic when they can't fatten up for winter, and the females for pregnancy.
83margd
>81 DugsBooks: Bear biologist directed me to Pebble Watch. If opportunity for comment arises, it should be flagged there.
Status: in permitting.
Most recently Pebble mining co. implicated agencies--including Office of the President--and tribes in production of Environmental Impact Statement:
Who Produced the Draft EIS?
December 18, 2019
Last month the Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP) launched new advertising efforts to state its case that the federal permitting process is working as designed and that the Corps’ Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) “shows a clear path forward for permitting…” PLP’s full-page ad in the Anchorage Daily News, along with a 20-page direct mailer, also included logos of 16 cooperating agencies and tribes, ranging from The Office of the President of the United States to Curyung Tribal Council.
However, some agencies and tribes listed were surprised by this inclusion and felt it misleading and confusing to the public, especially since the mailer included the headline “Who Produced the Draft EIS?” above the logos...
https://pebblewatch.com/who-produced-the-draft-eis/
Status: in permitting.
Most recently Pebble mining co. implicated agencies--including Office of the President--and tribes in production of Environmental Impact Statement:
Who Produced the Draft EIS?
December 18, 2019
Last month the Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP) launched new advertising efforts to state its case that the federal permitting process is working as designed and that the Corps’ Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) “shows a clear path forward for permitting…” PLP’s full-page ad in the Anchorage Daily News, along with a 20-page direct mailer, also included logos of 16 cooperating agencies and tribes, ranging from The Office of the President of the United States to Curyung Tribal Council.
However, some agencies and tribes listed were surprised by this inclusion and felt it misleading and confusing to the public, especially since the mailer included the headline “Who Produced the Draft EIS?” above the logos...
https://pebblewatch.com/who-produced-the-draft-eis/
84margd
"proposed changes...are expected to appear in the federal register on Friday. There will be a 60-day window for public comment and two public hearings before a final regulation is issued, most likely in the fall."
Trump Moves to Exempt Big Projects From Environmental Review
Lisa Friedman | Jan. 9, 2020
WASHINGTON — The White House on Thursday introduced major changes to the nation’s benchmark environmental protection law, moving to ease approval of major energy and infrastructure projects without detailed environmental review or consideration of climate change.
Many of the changes to the law — the 50-year-old National Environmental Policy Act, a landmark measure that touches nearly every significant construction project in the country — had been long sought by the oil and gas industry as well as trade unions, which have argued that the review process is lengthy, cumbersome and used by environmental activists to drag out legal disputes and kill infrastructure projects.
Under the law, major federal projects like bridges, highways, pipelines or power plants that will have a significant impact on the environment require a review, or environmental impact statement, outlining potential consequences. The proposed new rules would narrow the range of projects that require such a review.
... Projects (with “minimum federal funding or involvement”) could move forward without any assessment.
...eliminate the need for agencies to consider the “cumulative impacts” of projects, which in recent years courts have said include studying the planet-warming consequences of emitting more greenhouse gases. And they would set hard deadlines of one year to complete reviews of smaller projects and two years to complete reviews of larger ones.
...proposed changes, which would affect the regulations that guide implementation of the law but not the law itself, are expected to appear in the federal register on Friday. There will be a 60-day window for public comment and two public hearings before a final regulation is issued, most likely in the fall.
...Environmental groups said the revisions would threaten species and lead to more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
The proposal does not mention the words “climate change,” but courts have interpreted the requirement to consider “cumulative consequences” as a mandate to study the effects of allowing more planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. It also has meant understanding the impacts of rising sea levels and other results of climate change on a given project.
That means agencies will not have to examine whether a pipeline, mine or other fossil fuel project would worsen climate change. It also means there will not be any requirement to understand how or whether a road or bridge in a coastal area would be threatened by sea-level rise.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/09/climate/trump-nepa-environment.html
Trump Moves to Exempt Big Projects From Environmental Review
Lisa Friedman | Jan. 9, 2020
WASHINGTON — The White House on Thursday introduced major changes to the nation’s benchmark environmental protection law, moving to ease approval of major energy and infrastructure projects without detailed environmental review or consideration of climate change.
Many of the changes to the law — the 50-year-old National Environmental Policy Act, a landmark measure that touches nearly every significant construction project in the country — had been long sought by the oil and gas industry as well as trade unions, which have argued that the review process is lengthy, cumbersome and used by environmental activists to drag out legal disputes and kill infrastructure projects.
Under the law, major federal projects like bridges, highways, pipelines or power plants that will have a significant impact on the environment require a review, or environmental impact statement, outlining potential consequences. The proposed new rules would narrow the range of projects that require such a review.
... Projects (with “minimum federal funding or involvement”) could move forward without any assessment.
...eliminate the need for agencies to consider the “cumulative impacts” of projects, which in recent years courts have said include studying the planet-warming consequences of emitting more greenhouse gases. And they would set hard deadlines of one year to complete reviews of smaller projects and two years to complete reviews of larger ones.
...proposed changes, which would affect the regulations that guide implementation of the law but not the law itself, are expected to appear in the federal register on Friday. There will be a 60-day window for public comment and two public hearings before a final regulation is issued, most likely in the fall.
...Environmental groups said the revisions would threaten species and lead to more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
The proposal does not mention the words “climate change,” but courts have interpreted the requirement to consider “cumulative consequences” as a mandate to study the effects of allowing more planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. It also has meant understanding the impacts of rising sea levels and other results of climate change on a given project.
That means agencies will not have to examine whether a pipeline, mine or other fossil fuel project would worsen climate change. It also means there will not be any requirement to understand how or whether a road or bridge in a coastal area would be threatened by sea-level rise.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/09/climate/trump-nepa-environment.html
85margd
The first act of NAFTA's environmental commission was to take Mexico to task over ducks attracted to their deaths in (oily) pit. Support US bill to protect migratory birds from such hazards here at home:
Defend America's Most Important Bird Law
Audubon Action Center
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) is our most important bird protection law. But in 2017, the Department of the Interior issued a policy to give a free pass for industries to kill birds. For the first time, companies are off the hook from having to protect birds from hazards such as open oil pits and power lines, and will no longer be held accountable when their actions result in bird deaths. Now leaders in Congress have introduced the Migratory Bird Protection Act to restore its protections and safeguard the law for the future.
Take action today by asking your U.S. Representative to support and cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act.
https://act.audubon.org/onlineactions/7q3Ky05r50irttToFGZy5w2
Defend America's Most Important Bird Law
Audubon Action Center
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) is our most important bird protection law. But in 2017, the Department of the Interior issued a policy to give a free pass for industries to kill birds. For the first time, companies are off the hook from having to protect birds from hazards such as open oil pits and power lines, and will no longer be held accountable when their actions result in bird deaths. Now leaders in Congress have introduced the Migratory Bird Protection Act to restore its protections and safeguard the law for the future.
Take action today by asking your U.S. Representative to support and cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act.
https://act.audubon.org/onlineactions/7q3Ky05r50irttToFGZy5w2
86margd
Trump Removes Pollution Controls on Streams and Wetlands
Coral Davenport | Jan. 22, 2020
...From Day 1 of his administration, President Trump vowed to repeal President Barack Obama’s “Waters of the United States” regulation, which had frustrated rural landowners. His new rule, which will be implemented in the coming weeks, is the latest step in the Trump administration’s push to repeal or weaken nearly 100 environmental rules and laws, loosening or eliminating rules on climate change, clean air, chemical pollution, coal mining, oil drilling and endangered species protections.
...Mr. Trump has called the regulation “horrible,” “destructive” and “one of the worst examples of federal” overreach. “I terminated one of the most ridiculous regulations of all: the last administration’s disastrous Waters of the United States rule,” he told the American Farm Bureau Federation’s annual convention in Texas on Sunday, to rousing applause. “That was a rule that basically took your property away from you,” added Mr. Trump, whose real estate holdings include more than a dozen golf courses. (Golf course developers were among the key opponents of the Obama rule and key backers of the new one.)
His administration had completed the first step of its demise in September with the rule’s repeal. His replacement on Thursday will complete the process, not only rolling back 2015 rules that guaranteed protections under the 1972 Clean Water Act to certain wetlands and streams that run intermittently or run temporarily underground, but also relieves landowners of the need to seek permits that the Environmental Protection Agency had considered on a case-by-case basis before the Obama rule.
It also gives President Trump a major policy achievement to bring to his political base while his impeachment trial continues.
...The new water rule will remove federal protections from more than half the nation’s wetlands, and hundreds of thousands of small waterways. That would for the first time in decades allow landowners and property developers to dump pollutants such as pesticides and fertilizers directly into many of those waterways, and to destroy or fill in wetlands for construction projects...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/22/climate/trump-environment-water.html
Coral Davenport | Jan. 22, 2020
...From Day 1 of his administration, President Trump vowed to repeal President Barack Obama’s “Waters of the United States” regulation, which had frustrated rural landowners. His new rule, which will be implemented in the coming weeks, is the latest step in the Trump administration’s push to repeal or weaken nearly 100 environmental rules and laws, loosening or eliminating rules on climate change, clean air, chemical pollution, coal mining, oil drilling and endangered species protections.
...Mr. Trump has called the regulation “horrible,” “destructive” and “one of the worst examples of federal” overreach. “I terminated one of the most ridiculous regulations of all: the last administration’s disastrous Waters of the United States rule,” he told the American Farm Bureau Federation’s annual convention in Texas on Sunday, to rousing applause. “That was a rule that basically took your property away from you,” added Mr. Trump, whose real estate holdings include more than a dozen golf courses. (Golf course developers were among the key opponents of the Obama rule and key backers of the new one.)
His administration had completed the first step of its demise in September with the rule’s repeal. His replacement on Thursday will complete the process, not only rolling back 2015 rules that guaranteed protections under the 1972 Clean Water Act to certain wetlands and streams that run intermittently or run temporarily underground, but also relieves landowners of the need to seek permits that the Environmental Protection Agency had considered on a case-by-case basis before the Obama rule.
It also gives President Trump a major policy achievement to bring to his political base while his impeachment trial continues.
...The new water rule will remove federal protections from more than half the nation’s wetlands, and hundreds of thousands of small waterways. That would for the first time in decades allow landowners and property developers to dump pollutants such as pesticides and fertilizers directly into many of those waterways, and to destroy or fill in wetlands for construction projects...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/22/climate/trump-environment-water.html
87margd
I think I've seen PFAS foam (dense) on a flooded river in Michigan--upstream of Ann Arbor's water intake.
U.S. drinking water widely contaminated with 'forever chemicals': environment watchdog
Timothy Gardner | Jan 23, 2020
..chemicals, resistant to breaking down in the environment, are known as perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Some have been linked to cancers, liver damage, low birth weight and other health problems.
The findings here by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) show the group's previous estimate in 2018, based on unpublished U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data, that 110 million Americans may be contaminated with PFAS, could be far too low.
...The chemicals were used in products like Teflon and Scotchguard and in firefighting foam. Some are used in a variety of other products and industrial processes, and their replacements also pose risks.
Of tap water samples taken by EWG from 44 sites in 31 states and Washington D.C., only one location, Meridian, Mississippi, which relies on 700 foot (215 m) deep wells, had no detectable PFAS. Only Seattle and Tuscaloosa, Alabama had levels below 1 part per trillion (PPT), the limit EWG recommends.
...In 34 places where EWG’s tests found PFAS, contamination had not been publicly reported by the EPA or state environmental agencies.
...In 2018 a draft report from an office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the risk level for exposure to the chemicals should be up to 10 times lower than the 70 PPT threshold the EPA recommends. The White House and the EPA had tried to stop the report from being published.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-water-foreverchemicals-idUSKBN1ZL0F8
U.S. drinking water widely contaminated with 'forever chemicals': environment watchdog
Timothy Gardner | Jan 23, 2020
..chemicals, resistant to breaking down in the environment, are known as perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Some have been linked to cancers, liver damage, low birth weight and other health problems.
The findings here by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) show the group's previous estimate in 2018, based on unpublished U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data, that 110 million Americans may be contaminated with PFAS, could be far too low.
...The chemicals were used in products like Teflon and Scotchguard and in firefighting foam. Some are used in a variety of other products and industrial processes, and their replacements also pose risks.
Of tap water samples taken by EWG from 44 sites in 31 states and Washington D.C., only one location, Meridian, Mississippi, which relies on 700 foot (215 m) deep wells, had no detectable PFAS. Only Seattle and Tuscaloosa, Alabama had levels below 1 part per trillion (PPT), the limit EWG recommends.
...In 34 places where EWG’s tests found PFAS, contamination had not been publicly reported by the EPA or state environmental agencies.
...In 2018 a draft report from an office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the risk level for exposure to the chemicals should be up to 10 times lower than the 70 PPT threshold the EPA recommends. The White House and the EPA had tried to stop the report from being published.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-water-foreverchemicals-idUSKBN1ZL0F8
882wonderY
>87 margd: **raising my hand** I'm enrolled in the Dupont study of the health consequences of C-8.
89margd
>88 2wonderY: Had to look up C-8: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfluorooctanoic_acid
Good for you for participating--I hope as a control!
And that no health effects for anybody, assuming Dupont can be trusted to run/fund an unbiased study...
Good for you for participating--I hope as a control!
And that no health effects for anybody, assuming Dupont can be trusted to run/fund an unbiased study...
902wonderY
Only affected residents are enrolled. I snuck in because I worked in the town across the river from me. Theoretically, my town's water supply, coming from deep wells next to the river, not directly from the river, and also upriver from the plant was clean.
Next circus trick coming is a gas cracking plant. Fun!
Next circus trick coming is a gas cracking plant. Fun!
91margd
E.P.A. Weakens Controls on Mercury
Lisa Friedman and Coral Davenport | April 16, 2020
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Thursday weakened regulations on the release of mercury and other toxic metals from oil and coal-fired power plants, another step toward rolling back health protections in the middle of a pandemic.
The new Environmental Protection Agency rule does not eliminate restrictions on the release of mercury, a heavy metal linked to brain damage. Instead, it creates a new method of calculating the costs and benefits of curbing mercury pollution that environmental lawyers said would fundamentally undermine the legal underpinnings of controls on mercury and many other pollutants.
By reducing the positive health effects of regulations on paper and raising their economic costs, the new method could be used to justify loosening restrictions on any pollutant that the fossil fuel industry has deemed too costly to control.
“That is the big unstated goal,” said David Konisky, a professor of public and environmental affairs at Indiana University. “This is less about mercury than about potentially constraining or handcuffing future efforts by the E.P.A. to regulate air pollution.”...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/climate/epa-mercury-coal.html
______________________________________________________
Why Is Trump Gutting Regulations That Save Lives?
Cass R. Sunstein | April 17, 2020
Smart safeguards, designed by specialists, protect public health and safety.
...numbers, capturing the benefits of regulation, are not limited to purely economic savings. They are meant to include deaths, injuries and illnesses prevented. When Republican and Democratic administrations issued expensive regulations, they also saved a lot of lives.
The Covid-19 pandemic is vividly making that point. For example, recent work finds that air pollution makes the disease significantly more deadly. Even a small increase in exposure to particulate matter — one of the most harmful air pollutants — produces a big increase in the Covid-19 death rate. That finding is consistent with an earlier one, to the effect that in China, deaths from SARS were significantly elevated in areas with high levels of air pollution.
That is especially bad news, because levels of particulate matter in the ambient air have spiked under Mr. Trump (after significant decreases from 2009 to 2016). In 2018 alone, that spike was estimated to have caused 9,700 additional deaths.
Consider in this light the Trump administration’s decision to finalize its rollback of fuel economy standards — a decision announced, in a kind of cruel irony, during the early stages of the pandemic in the U.S. The new rule is highly likely to produce significant increases in air pollution (including greenhouse gases). For that reason, it will produce more illness and more death.
Or consider the Trump administration’s proposal not to tighten regulation of particulate matter, even in the face of scientific evidence, compiled before the pandemic, suggesting that doing that would prevent over 10,000 premature deaths annually. In view of the pandemic, that number might well be too low.
Any administration, Republican or Democratic, should be scrutinizing existing regulations and eliminating those that no longer make sense. That is an urgent project, because many regulatory requirements impose “sludge” — paperwork requirements and administrative burdens that make it tough for people to get economic assistance to which they are entitled, or that impose pointless obstacles to those seeking medical help.
Right now, doctors, nurses and hospitals could benefit a lot from clearing out regulatory sludge. So could small business owners, whose ability to obtain financial help from the recent stimulus package has been badly undermined by sludge, including paperwork burdens.
At the same time, regulations designed to protect health, safety and the environment should be immediately freed from the one-in, two-out rule. They should also be exempt from any other kind of gimmick that focuses on the costs of regulations while turning a blind eye to the benefits.
In a pandemic, we need regulatory safeguards in a hurry. Whenever their benefits exceed their costs, they should be welcomed. And even when the pandemic is over, the president of the United States should celebrate, rather than stymie, the efforts of experts, in regulatory agencies and elsewhere, to use their knowledge to prevent unnecessary illnesses, accidents and deaths — and to protect the most vulnerable members of society.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/17/opinion/coronavirus-trump-regulations.html
Lisa Friedman and Coral Davenport | April 16, 2020
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Thursday weakened regulations on the release of mercury and other toxic metals from oil and coal-fired power plants, another step toward rolling back health protections in the middle of a pandemic.
The new Environmental Protection Agency rule does not eliminate restrictions on the release of mercury, a heavy metal linked to brain damage. Instead, it creates a new method of calculating the costs and benefits of curbing mercury pollution that environmental lawyers said would fundamentally undermine the legal underpinnings of controls on mercury and many other pollutants.
By reducing the positive health effects of regulations on paper and raising their economic costs, the new method could be used to justify loosening restrictions on any pollutant that the fossil fuel industry has deemed too costly to control.
“That is the big unstated goal,” said David Konisky, a professor of public and environmental affairs at Indiana University. “This is less about mercury than about potentially constraining or handcuffing future efforts by the E.P.A. to regulate air pollution.”...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/climate/epa-mercury-coal.html
______________________________________________________
Why Is Trump Gutting Regulations That Save Lives?
Cass R. Sunstein | April 17, 2020
Smart safeguards, designed by specialists, protect public health and safety.
...numbers, capturing the benefits of regulation, are not limited to purely economic savings. They are meant to include deaths, injuries and illnesses prevented. When Republican and Democratic administrations issued expensive regulations, they also saved a lot of lives.
The Covid-19 pandemic is vividly making that point. For example, recent work finds that air pollution makes the disease significantly more deadly. Even a small increase in exposure to particulate matter — one of the most harmful air pollutants — produces a big increase in the Covid-19 death rate. That finding is consistent with an earlier one, to the effect that in China, deaths from SARS were significantly elevated in areas with high levels of air pollution.
That is especially bad news, because levels of particulate matter in the ambient air have spiked under Mr. Trump (after significant decreases from 2009 to 2016). In 2018 alone, that spike was estimated to have caused 9,700 additional deaths.
Consider in this light the Trump administration’s decision to finalize its rollback of fuel economy standards — a decision announced, in a kind of cruel irony, during the early stages of the pandemic in the U.S. The new rule is highly likely to produce significant increases in air pollution (including greenhouse gases). For that reason, it will produce more illness and more death.
Or consider the Trump administration’s proposal not to tighten regulation of particulate matter, even in the face of scientific evidence, compiled before the pandemic, suggesting that doing that would prevent over 10,000 premature deaths annually. In view of the pandemic, that number might well be too low.
Any administration, Republican or Democratic, should be scrutinizing existing regulations and eliminating those that no longer make sense. That is an urgent project, because many regulatory requirements impose “sludge” — paperwork requirements and administrative burdens that make it tough for people to get economic assistance to which they are entitled, or that impose pointless obstacles to those seeking medical help.
Right now, doctors, nurses and hospitals could benefit a lot from clearing out regulatory sludge. So could small business owners, whose ability to obtain financial help from the recent stimulus package has been badly undermined by sludge, including paperwork burdens.
At the same time, regulations designed to protect health, safety and the environment should be immediately freed from the one-in, two-out rule. They should also be exempt from any other kind of gimmick that focuses on the costs of regulations while turning a blind eye to the benefits.
In a pandemic, we need regulatory safeguards in a hurry. Whenever their benefits exceed their costs, they should be welcomed. And even when the pandemic is over, the president of the United States should celebrate, rather than stymie, the efforts of experts, in regulatory agencies and elsewhere, to use their knowledge to prevent unnecessary illnesses, accidents and deaths — and to protect the most vulnerable members of society.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/17/opinion/coronavirus-trump-regulations.html
92margd
Clean Water Act Covers Groundwater Discharges, Supreme Court Rules
Adam Liptak | April 23, 2020
...The case, County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, No. 18-260, concerned a wastewater treatment plant on Maui, Hawaii, that used injection wells to dispose of some four million gallons of treated sewage each day by pumping it into groundwater about a half-mile from the Pacific Ocean. Some of the waste reached the ocean.
...In a 6-to-3 ruling, the court rejected what it called the extreme positions advanced by the parties and the administration, returning the case to an appeals court for reconsideration under a new standard. But the decision was on balance a victory for environmental groups, as it allowed at least some lawsuits over groundwater discharges.
...The Clean Water Act requires “point sources” of pollution to obtain permits for “any addition of any pollutant to navigable waters.” Failing to have a permit can subject polluters to daily fines of more than $50,000.
It was undisputed that the injection wells in Maui were “point sources.” The case turned largely on whether indirect discharges were considered “from” the wells.
...Justice Stephen G. Breyer, writing for the majority, rejected both sides’ positions in the case as too extreme. The county and the Trump administration had argued that discharges into groundwater were never covered, while environmental groups suing the county said the law applied to discharges that “actually and foreseeably reach navigable surface waters.”
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, ruled for the environmental groups, saying the law applied because pollution in the ocean was “fairly traceable” to the wells.
That standard was too broad, Justice Breyer wrote. “Virtually all water, polluted or not, eventually makes its way to navigable water,” he wrote. The question courts should ask, he wrote, was whether “the addition of the pollutants through groundwater is the functional equivalent of a direct discharge from the point source into navigable waters.”
The Ninth Circuit’s approach, he wrote, “would require a permit in surprising, even bizarre, circumstances, such as for pollutants carried to navigable waters on a bird’s feathers, or, to mention more mundane instances, the 100-year migration of pollutants through 250 miles of groundwater to a river.”
But the opposite extreme, as argued by the county and the administration, would allow polluters to evade the law, Justice Breyer wrote. “Why could not the pipe’s owner, seeking to avoid the permit requirement, simply move the pipe back, perhaps only a few yards, so that the pollution must travel through at least some groundwater before reaching the sea?” he asked.
In requiring “the functional equivalent of a direct discharge,” Justice Breyer listed several factors for courts to consider. “Time and distance are obviously important,” he wrote, but he listed five other considerations, too, including the material through which the pollutants travel and whether they are diluted or chemically altered along the way.
“If the pipe ends 50 miles from navigable waters and the pipe emits pollutants that travel with groundwater, mix with much other material, and end up in navigable waters only many years later,” he wrote, “the permitting requirements likely do not apply.”
Justice Breyer’s opinion, which returned the case to the Ninth Circuit for application of the new standard, was joined by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Brett M. Kavanaugh.
In dissent, Justice Clarence Thomas, joined by Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, said the law applied “only when a point source discharges pollutants directly into navigable waters.”
In a separate dissent, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote that the majority opinion “makes up a rule that provides no clear guidance and invites arbitrary and inconsistent application...The court...adopts a nebulous standard, enumerates a non-exhaustive list of potentially relevant factors, and washes its hands of the problem.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/23/us/supreme-court-clean-water-act-hawaii.html
Adam Liptak | April 23, 2020
...The case, County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, No. 18-260, concerned a wastewater treatment plant on Maui, Hawaii, that used injection wells to dispose of some four million gallons of treated sewage each day by pumping it into groundwater about a half-mile from the Pacific Ocean. Some of the waste reached the ocean.
...In a 6-to-3 ruling, the court rejected what it called the extreme positions advanced by the parties and the administration, returning the case to an appeals court for reconsideration under a new standard. But the decision was on balance a victory for environmental groups, as it allowed at least some lawsuits over groundwater discharges.
...The Clean Water Act requires “point sources” of pollution to obtain permits for “any addition of any pollutant to navigable waters.” Failing to have a permit can subject polluters to daily fines of more than $50,000.
It was undisputed that the injection wells in Maui were “point sources.” The case turned largely on whether indirect discharges were considered “from” the wells.
...Justice Stephen G. Breyer, writing for the majority, rejected both sides’ positions in the case as too extreme. The county and the Trump administration had argued that discharges into groundwater were never covered, while environmental groups suing the county said the law applied to discharges that “actually and foreseeably reach navigable surface waters.”
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, ruled for the environmental groups, saying the law applied because pollution in the ocean was “fairly traceable” to the wells.
That standard was too broad, Justice Breyer wrote. “Virtually all water, polluted or not, eventually makes its way to navigable water,” he wrote. The question courts should ask, he wrote, was whether “the addition of the pollutants through groundwater is the functional equivalent of a direct discharge from the point source into navigable waters.”
The Ninth Circuit’s approach, he wrote, “would require a permit in surprising, even bizarre, circumstances, such as for pollutants carried to navigable waters on a bird’s feathers, or, to mention more mundane instances, the 100-year migration of pollutants through 250 miles of groundwater to a river.”
But the opposite extreme, as argued by the county and the administration, would allow polluters to evade the law, Justice Breyer wrote. “Why could not the pipe’s owner, seeking to avoid the permit requirement, simply move the pipe back, perhaps only a few yards, so that the pollution must travel through at least some groundwater before reaching the sea?” he asked.
In requiring “the functional equivalent of a direct discharge,” Justice Breyer listed several factors for courts to consider. “Time and distance are obviously important,” he wrote, but he listed five other considerations, too, including the material through which the pollutants travel and whether they are diluted or chemically altered along the way.
“If the pipe ends 50 miles from navigable waters and the pipe emits pollutants that travel with groundwater, mix with much other material, and end up in navigable waters only many years later,” he wrote, “the permitting requirements likely do not apply.”
Justice Breyer’s opinion, which returned the case to the Ninth Circuit for application of the new standard, was joined by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Brett M. Kavanaugh.
In dissent, Justice Clarence Thomas, joined by Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, said the law applied “only when a point source discharges pollutants directly into navigable waters.”
In a separate dissent, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote that the majority opinion “makes up a rule that provides no clear guidance and invites arbitrary and inconsistent application...The court...adopts a nebulous standard, enumerates a non-exhaustive list of potentially relevant factors, and washes its hands of the problem.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/23/us/supreme-court-clean-water-act-hawaii.html
93margd
Trump has defunded the police that stop corporations from looting --
the EPA,
SEC,
Labor Department,
Federal Trade Commission,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,
Consumer Product Safety Commission,
FDA, and
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
- Robert Reich @RBReich | 11:37 AM · Jun 10, 2020
Correct! Don't forget the IRS, which is blaming understaffing as the reason for it's failure to pursue billions in taxes owed by some of our wealthiest citizens. Just like taxes, apparently all laws only apply to the rest of us.
- Nicole St. Pierre #BLM @nicolesaintp · 1h
the EPA,
SEC,
Labor Department,
Federal Trade Commission,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,
Consumer Product Safety Commission,
FDA, and
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
- Robert Reich @RBReich | 11:37 AM · Jun 10, 2020
Correct! Don't forget the IRS, which is blaming understaffing as the reason for it's failure to pursue billions in taxes owed by some of our wealthiest citizens. Just like taxes, apparently all laws only apply to the rest of us.
- Nicole St. Pierre #BLM @nicolesaintp · 1h
94margd
Supreme Court Won’t Block Ruling to Halt Work on Keystone XL Pipeline
But the justices stayed the rest of a federal trial judge’s ruling striking down a permit program, allowing construction of other pipelines around the nation.
Adam Liptak | July 6, 2020
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a request from the Trump administration to allow construction of parts of the Keystone XL oil pipeline that had been blocked by a federal judge in Montana. But the court temporarily revived a permit program that would let other oil and gas pipelines cross waterways after only modest scrutiny from regulators.
The court’s brief, unsigned order...would last while appeals moved forward...
Environmental groups had challenged the permit program, called for by the Clean Water Act, saying it posed a threat to endangered species. In April, Judge Brian M. Morris of the Federal District Court in Montana suspended the program, which is administered by the Army Corps of Engineers, saying that it had been improperly reauthorized in 2017.
The government, he wrote, had violated the Endangered Species Act by failing to adequately consult with federal wildlife agencies
Judge Morris’s ruling disrupted the plans of TC Energy to build the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry crude oil from Canada to Nebraska, where it would connect with an existing network to deliver the crude to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico. In the process, it would cross some 20 miles of waterways.
Judge Morris’s ruling also affected scores of other pipeline construction projects around the nation...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/06/us/politics/supreme-court-keystone-xl-pipelin...
But the justices stayed the rest of a federal trial judge’s ruling striking down a permit program, allowing construction of other pipelines around the nation.
Adam Liptak | July 6, 2020
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a request from the Trump administration to allow construction of parts of the Keystone XL oil pipeline that had been blocked by a federal judge in Montana. But the court temporarily revived a permit program that would let other oil and gas pipelines cross waterways after only modest scrutiny from regulators.
The court’s brief, unsigned order...would last while appeals moved forward...
Environmental groups had challenged the permit program, called for by the Clean Water Act, saying it posed a threat to endangered species. In April, Judge Brian M. Morris of the Federal District Court in Montana suspended the program, which is administered by the Army Corps of Engineers, saying that it had been improperly reauthorized in 2017.
The government, he wrote, had violated the Endangered Species Act by failing to adequately consult with federal wildlife agencies
Judge Morris’s ruling disrupted the plans of TC Energy to build the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry crude oil from Canada to Nebraska, where it would connect with an existing network to deliver the crude to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico. In the process, it would cross some 20 miles of waterways.
Judge Morris’s ruling also affected scores of other pipeline construction projects around the nation...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/06/us/politics/supreme-court-keystone-xl-pipelin...
95margd
Nixon signed this key environmental law. Trump plans to change it to speed up pipelines, highway projects and more.
Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis | July 14, 2020
President Trump plans this week to overhaul a federal law that poor and minority communities around the country have used for generations to delay or stop projects that threaten to pollute their neighborhoods — a law he says needlessly blocks good jobs, industry and public works.
The president’s plan to streamline the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a bedrock environmental law signed with much fanfare by President Richard M. Nixon in 1970, would make it easier to build highways, pipelines, chemical plants and other projects that pose environmental risks.
If the final version mirrors a proposal from January, it would force agencies to complete even the most exhaustive environmental reviews within two years and restrict the extent to which they could consider a project’s full impact on the climate.
Trump is scheduled to announce the changes on Wednesday in Atlanta, as part of his effort to revive the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.
But the proposed changes also threaten to rob the public, in particular marginalized communities most affected by such projects, of their ability to impact decisions that could affect their health, according to many activists...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/nixon-signed-this-key-environ...
Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis | July 14, 2020
President Trump plans this week to overhaul a federal law that poor and minority communities around the country have used for generations to delay or stop projects that threaten to pollute their neighborhoods — a law he says needlessly blocks good jobs, industry and public works.
The president’s plan to streamline the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a bedrock environmental law signed with much fanfare by President Richard M. Nixon in 1970, would make it easier to build highways, pipelines, chemical plants and other projects that pose environmental risks.
If the final version mirrors a proposal from January, it would force agencies to complete even the most exhaustive environmental reviews within two years and restrict the extent to which they could consider a project’s full impact on the climate.
Trump is scheduled to announce the changes on Wednesday in Atlanta, as part of his effort to revive the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.
But the proposed changes also threaten to rob the public, in particular marginalized communities most affected by such projects, of their ability to impact decisions that could affect their health, according to many activists...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/nixon-signed-this-key-environ...
96margd
EPA Reportedly Set To Rescind Obama-Era Methane Rules As White House Speeds Environmental Rollbacks Ahead Of Election
Alison Durkee | Aug 10, 2020
...The NYT reported in March that the Trump administration is on an “aggressive timeline” to roll back environmental regulations ahead of the November election, and further rollbacks to (methane) inspection requirements were reportedly dropped because they could potentially stretch out the process beyond the end of Trump’s term.
100: The number of environmental regulations the Trump administration has rolled back or is trying to roll back as of July 15, according to the Times, including 68 completed rollbacks and 32 still in progress....
https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2020/08/10/epa-reportedly-set-to-resci...
Alison Durkee | Aug 10, 2020
...The NYT reported in March that the Trump administration is on an “aggressive timeline” to roll back environmental regulations ahead of the November election, and further rollbacks to (methane) inspection requirements were reportedly dropped because they could potentially stretch out the process beyond the end of Trump’s term.
100: The number of environmental regulations the Trump administration has rolled back or is trying to roll back as of July 15, according to the Times, including 68 completed rollbacks and 32 still in progress....
https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2020/08/10/epa-reportedly-set-to-resci...
97margd
Trump administration approves opening Arctic refuge for drilling
BEN LEFEBVRE and ZACK COLMAN | 08/17/2020
The Trump administration said on Monday it has officially approved a plan to open a pristine Arctic wildlife refuge in Alaska for oil drilling, an effort that has enraged environmental groups who say the work will threaten polar bears and herds of caribou in the region.
The plan has been in the works since Congress mandated in its 2017 tax bill that the Interior Department must auction off drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It would open up the so-called 1002 area, a patch of 1.5 million acres along the coast of the Beaufort Sea.
"I do believe that there certainly could be a lease sale by the end of the year,” Interior Secretary David Bernhardt told reporters on a conference call.
Oil companies have sought access to ANWR for decades, but the official decision to open it comes at a time when few in the industry are expected to take a risk on unexplored properties with little data on the oil resources beneath the surface. But Bernhardt said despite the absence of seismic data that companies use to map out oil reservoirs before drilling, he expected interest to be strong...
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/17/trump-administration-arctic-refuge-dril...
BEN LEFEBVRE and ZACK COLMAN | 08/17/2020
The Trump administration said on Monday it has officially approved a plan to open a pristine Arctic wildlife refuge in Alaska for oil drilling, an effort that has enraged environmental groups who say the work will threaten polar bears and herds of caribou in the region.
The plan has been in the works since Congress mandated in its 2017 tax bill that the Interior Department must auction off drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It would open up the so-called 1002 area, a patch of 1.5 million acres along the coast of the Beaufort Sea.
"I do believe that there certainly could be a lease sale by the end of the year,” Interior Secretary David Bernhardt told reporters on a conference call.
Oil companies have sought access to ANWR for decades, but the official decision to open it comes at a time when few in the industry are expected to take a risk on unexplored properties with little data on the oil resources beneath the surface. But Bernhardt said despite the absence of seismic data that companies use to map out oil reservoirs before drilling, he expected interest to be strong...
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/17/trump-administration-arctic-refuge-dril...
98margd
"Personhood" has been sought for chimpanzees, elephants, even Lake Erie-- https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2019/2/26/18241904/lake-erie-legal-rights-per... -- though challenged in courts(?) and arguably with few benefits so far for those so distinguished?
Below, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer proposes the pronoun "ki" (sp?) for the world and its non-human denizens.
Interesting that "ki" from the Potawatomi language has echoes in Romantic languages (qui) and English (kin). Speech anthropologists think "tik", as in counting, has origins in the earliest language, widely echoed today (tick off, digital etc.). Caucasians , Apaches and west coast Canadian indigenous peoples have some vaguely common words, with genetica links recently confimed, if I recall correctly.
On Being with Krista Tippett
August 20, 2020 (51:00)
Robin Wall Kimmerer*
The Intelligence of Plants
As a botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Robin Wall Kimmerer joins science’s ability to “polish the art of seeing” with her personal, civilizational lineage of listening to plant life and heeding the languages of the natural world. She’s an expert in moss — a bryologist — who describes mosses as the “coral reefs of the forest.” And she says that as our knowledge about plant life unfolds, human vocabulary and imaginations must adapt.
https://onbeing.org/
*Robin Wall Kimmerer is the State University of New York Distinguished Teaching Professor at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. She is founding director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment. Her books include Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses and Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants.
Below, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer proposes the pronoun "ki" (sp?) for the world and its non-human denizens.
Interesting that "ki" from the Potawatomi language has echoes in Romantic languages (qui) and English (kin). Speech anthropologists think "tik", as in counting, has origins in the earliest language, widely echoed today (tick off, digital etc.). Caucasians , Apaches and west coast Canadian indigenous peoples have some vaguely common words, with genetica links recently confimed, if I recall correctly.
On Being with Krista Tippett
August 20, 2020 (51:00)
Robin Wall Kimmerer*
The Intelligence of Plants
As a botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Robin Wall Kimmerer joins science’s ability to “polish the art of seeing” with her personal, civilizational lineage of listening to plant life and heeding the languages of the natural world. She’s an expert in moss — a bryologist — who describes mosses as the “coral reefs of the forest.” And she says that as our knowledge about plant life unfolds, human vocabulary and imaginations must adapt.
https://onbeing.org/
*Robin Wall Kimmerer is the State University of New York Distinguished Teaching Professor at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. She is founding director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment. Her books include Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses and Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants.
99margd
Election and Supreme Court Fight Will Decide Trump’s Environmental Legacy
Lisa Friedman and John Schwartz | Sept. 23, 2020. Updated Sept. 25, 2020
WASHINGTON — President Trump has initiated the most aggressive environmental deregulation agenda in modern history, but as his first term drives to a close, many of his policies are being cut down by the courts — even by Republican-appointed jurists who the administration had hoped would be friendly.
Those losses have actually heightened the stakes in the election and the fight over a replacement on the Supreme Court for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A second term, coupled with a 6-3 conservative majority on the high court, could save some of his biggest environmental rollbacks.
...methane emissions standards for the oil and gas industry...Dakota Access Pipeline...protections for migratory birds...rollback of...rule to reduce waste from natural gas flaring on federal lands...(rollbacks of clean water rules, curbs to greenhouse gas emissions in automobiles and power plants, and environmental reviews of infrastructure projects)...
...According to a database kept by New York University’s nonpartisan Institute for Policy Integrity, the Environmental Protection Agency has won only nine out of 47 cases in court under Mr. Trump, while the Interior Department has won four of 22. The Trump administration’s overall win rate hovers just under 16 percent, the group said, compared to win rates of about 70 percent for both the Obama and Bush administrations.
But the courts have in most cases given the administration an opportunity to go back and revise their work. The future of those rules may then rest on whether Mr. Trump is re-elected, with a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court ready to hear his fresh attempts.
...Early in the administration, a number of courts ruled that agencies acted illegally by providing little or no justification when they rewrote, weakened or repealed regulation.
Now courts are increasingly telling the E.P.A. and Interior Department that their legal, scientific and economic analyses upholding rollbacks directly violate underlying laws....
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/23/climate/trump-environment-courts.html
Lisa Friedman and John Schwartz | Sept. 23, 2020. Updated Sept. 25, 2020
WASHINGTON — President Trump has initiated the most aggressive environmental deregulation agenda in modern history, but as his first term drives to a close, many of his policies are being cut down by the courts — even by Republican-appointed jurists who the administration had hoped would be friendly.
Those losses have actually heightened the stakes in the election and the fight over a replacement on the Supreme Court for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A second term, coupled with a 6-3 conservative majority on the high court, could save some of his biggest environmental rollbacks.
...methane emissions standards for the oil and gas industry...Dakota Access Pipeline...protections for migratory birds...rollback of...rule to reduce waste from natural gas flaring on federal lands...(rollbacks of clean water rules, curbs to greenhouse gas emissions in automobiles and power plants, and environmental reviews of infrastructure projects)...
...According to a database kept by New York University’s nonpartisan Institute for Policy Integrity, the Environmental Protection Agency has won only nine out of 47 cases in court under Mr. Trump, while the Interior Department has won four of 22. The Trump administration’s overall win rate hovers just under 16 percent, the group said, compared to win rates of about 70 percent for both the Obama and Bush administrations.
But the courts have in most cases given the administration an opportunity to go back and revise their work. The future of those rules may then rest on whether Mr. Trump is re-elected, with a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court ready to hear his fresh attempts.
...Early in the administration, a number of courts ruled that agencies acted illegally by providing little or no justification when they rewrote, weakened or repealed regulation.
Now courts are increasingly telling the E.P.A. and Interior Department that their legal, scientific and economic analyses upholding rollbacks directly violate underlying laws....
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/23/climate/trump-environment-courts.html
100margd
EPA Grants Oklahoma Control Over Tribal Lands
Agency Decision Reverses Tribal Sovereignty That Was Recognized in Landmark Supreme Court Ruling
Ti-Hua Chang | Oct 5, 2020
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has granted the state of Oklahoma regulatory control over environmental issues on nearly all tribal lands there, TYT has learned. This strips from 38 tribes in Oklahoma their sovereignty over environmental issues. It also establishes a legal and administrative pathway to potential environmental abuses on tribal land, including dumping hazardous chemicals like carcinogenic PCBs and petroleum spills, with no legal recourse by the tribes, according to a former high-level official of the EPA.
This also includes hazardous chemicals that are byproducts of petroleum procurement and refining. In 2019, Oklahoma had the fourth largest petroleum industry in the US.
...WHO BENEFITS FROM EPA DECISION?
Who will benefit from the state of Oklahoma taking over environmental regulations on tribal lands there? Fossil fuel companies, big agriculture, and livestock companies. This is based on what a former high-level EPA official said after reviewing Governor Stitt’s letter to the EPA requesting jurisdiction.
As for the future of Oklahoma’s environmental control, the EPA Summary Report includes one paragraph that suggests a pro-environment president and Congress could have impact, but only if new federal legislation is passed:
“EPA has found no evidence, nor has any been provided by tribes, that indicates section 10211 has sunset and is therefore no longer valid. Should Congress elect to repeal this provision after EPA approves the State’s request, EPA would address any effect on its approval of the State’s request at that time."
THE NEXT MOVE?
U.S. Attorney General William Barr has now joined other Republican officials trying to nullify the McGirt v. Oklahoma ruling that much of the eastern portion of the state is tribal land. The Associated Press and a local Cherokee Radio station report that during a Sept. 30 visit to the Cherokee Nation headquarters, Barr said that he is working with Oklahoma’s federal congressional delegation to devise a “legislative approach" to address the McGirt decision. Both Governor Stitt and Senator Inhofe have called for a federal “legislative solution.”
As TYT has reported, Stitt and Inhofe have pushed for federal legislation to take over not only environmental regulatory control of Tribal lands but all regulatory control, which would return Oklahoma back legally to pre-McGirt status.
In six emails between the EPA’s public relations office and TYT, the agency has not denied the accuracy of TYT’s main points or the Wheeler letter and Summary Report.
https://tyt.com/stories/4vZLCHuQrYE4uKagy0oyMA/65Oa5a0nYI4rljnOqxhUto
Agency Decision Reverses Tribal Sovereignty That Was Recognized in Landmark Supreme Court Ruling
Ti-Hua Chang | Oct 5, 2020
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has granted the state of Oklahoma regulatory control over environmental issues on nearly all tribal lands there, TYT has learned. This strips from 38 tribes in Oklahoma their sovereignty over environmental issues. It also establishes a legal and administrative pathway to potential environmental abuses on tribal land, including dumping hazardous chemicals like carcinogenic PCBs and petroleum spills, with no legal recourse by the tribes, according to a former high-level official of the EPA.
This also includes hazardous chemicals that are byproducts of petroleum procurement and refining. In 2019, Oklahoma had the fourth largest petroleum industry in the US.
...WHO BENEFITS FROM EPA DECISION?
Who will benefit from the state of Oklahoma taking over environmental regulations on tribal lands there? Fossil fuel companies, big agriculture, and livestock companies. This is based on what a former high-level EPA official said after reviewing Governor Stitt’s letter to the EPA requesting jurisdiction.
As for the future of Oklahoma’s environmental control, the EPA Summary Report includes one paragraph that suggests a pro-environment president and Congress could have impact, but only if new federal legislation is passed:
“EPA has found no evidence, nor has any been provided by tribes, that indicates section 10211 has sunset and is therefore no longer valid. Should Congress elect to repeal this provision after EPA approves the State’s request, EPA would address any effect on its approval of the State’s request at that time."
THE NEXT MOVE?
U.S. Attorney General William Barr has now joined other Republican officials trying to nullify the McGirt v. Oklahoma ruling that much of the eastern portion of the state is tribal land. The Associated Press and a local Cherokee Radio station report that during a Sept. 30 visit to the Cherokee Nation headquarters, Barr said that he is working with Oklahoma’s federal congressional delegation to devise a “legislative approach" to address the McGirt decision. Both Governor Stitt and Senator Inhofe have called for a federal “legislative solution.”
As TYT has reported, Stitt and Inhofe have pushed for federal legislation to take over not only environmental regulatory control of Tribal lands but all regulatory control, which would return Oklahoma back legally to pre-McGirt status.
In six emails between the EPA’s public relations office and TYT, the agency has not denied the accuracy of TYT’s main points or the Wheeler letter and Summary Report.
https://tyt.com/stories/4vZLCHuQrYE4uKagy0oyMA/65Oa5a0nYI4rljnOqxhUto
101margd
Wouter Halfwerk et al. 2020. The quiet spring of 2020 (Perspective). Science 30 Oct 2020: Vol. 370, Issue 6516, pp. 523-524
DOI: 10.1126/science.abe8026 https://science.sciencemag.org/content/370/6516/523
Sounds of the past can be easily forgotten, especially when soundscapes change gradually over long periods of time. This past spring, many people got a chance to experience how the outside world sounded in the 1950s. Global transport came to a halt as human activities decreased abruptly (either voluntarily or under direct order for lockdown) to stem the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). With fewer people driving cars and hardly any airplanes traversing the skies, the amount of background noise across whole continents dropped substantially. On page 575 of this issue, Derryberry et al. report the impact of the COVID-19 shutdown on animal behavior—namely, the songs of white-crowned sparrows. The findings suggest that mitigation measures against noise pollution could yield immediate beneficial effects on urban wildlife...
DOI: 10.1126/science.abe8026 https://science.sciencemag.org/content/370/6516/523
Sounds of the past can be easily forgotten, especially when soundscapes change gradually over long periods of time. This past spring, many people got a chance to experience how the outside world sounded in the 1950s. Global transport came to a halt as human activities decreased abruptly (either voluntarily or under direct order for lockdown) to stem the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). With fewer people driving cars and hardly any airplanes traversing the skies, the amount of background noise across whole continents dropped substantially. On page 575 of this issue, Derryberry et al. report the impact of the COVID-19 shutdown on animal behavior—namely, the songs of white-crowned sparrows. The findings suggest that mitigation measures against noise pollution could yield immediate beneficial effects on urban wildlife...
102margd
Good news for once.
And, for once, an attaboy for DJT, Jr.
Alaska’s Controversial Pebble Mine Fails to Win Critical Permit, Likely Killing It
The immense project would have been one of the world’s largest gold and copper mines, but regulators found it “contrary to the public interest” due to environmental risks in the pristine Alaskan tundra.
Henry Fountain | Nov. 25, 2020
The Army Corps of Engineers on Wednesday denied a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska, likely dealing a death blow to a long-disputed project that aimed to extract one of the world’s largest deposits of copper and gold ore, but which threatened breeding grounds for salmon in the pristine Bristol Bay region.
The fight over the mine’s fate has raged for more than a decade. The plan was scuttled years ago under the Obama administration, only to find new life under President Trump. But opposition, from Alaska Native American communities, environmentalists and the fishing industry never diminished, and recently even the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., a sportsman who had fished in the region, came out against the project...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/25/climate/pebble-mine-permit-denied.html
And, for once, an attaboy for DJT, Jr.
Alaska’s Controversial Pebble Mine Fails to Win Critical Permit, Likely Killing It
The immense project would have been one of the world’s largest gold and copper mines, but regulators found it “contrary to the public interest” due to environmental risks in the pristine Alaskan tundra.
Henry Fountain | Nov. 25, 2020
The Army Corps of Engineers on Wednesday denied a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska, likely dealing a death blow to a long-disputed project that aimed to extract one of the world’s largest deposits of copper and gold ore, but which threatened breeding grounds for salmon in the pristine Bristol Bay region.
The fight over the mine’s fate has raged for more than a decade. The plan was scuttled years ago under the Obama administration, only to find new life under President Trump. But opposition, from Alaska Native American communities, environmentalists and the fishing industry never diminished, and recently even the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., a sportsman who had fished in the region, came out against the project...
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/25/climate/pebble-mine-permit-denied.html
103margd
Comment by March 1 on proposed Trump reg to loosen protections on migratory birds:
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 10
Docket No. FWS–HQ–MB–2018–0090; FF09M22000–201–FXMB1231090BPP0
RIN 1018–BD76
Regulations Governing Take of Migratory Birds; Delay of Effective Date
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Final rule; delay of effective date and request for public comments.
...Public comments must be received or postmarked on or before March 1, 2021...
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-02-09/pdf/2021-02667.pdf
____________________________________________________________
A Canada-U.S. flap over protecting migratory birds takes new twist
Biden administration pauses a Trump-era regulation Canada complained about
Alexander Panetta · CBC News · Posted: Feb 09, 2021
...There are competing schools of thought on when to punish someone for killing a migratory bird...the Trump administration (planned to limit penalties under a new regulation that was going to take effect this week on U.S. territory...punishment (would) be limited to people who intentionally kill a bird unlawfully — by poisoning, trapping or shooting without a licence.)
(Under) existing practice...penalties should apply to industries whose products and activities accidentally kill birds, such as oil wells, buildings and power lines...The Canadian government supports the existing interpretation of a century-old international treaty that protects hundreds of species that flutter across the border.
...On Tuesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a one-month delay to allow further public comment on the new regulation.
The rule would protect normal industrial activity from liability, and would reserve fines for those who intentionally set out to unlawfully kill birds.
It would apply to more than 1,000 bird species, according to a U.S. government's environmental study *, including ducks, geese, swans, herons, cormorants, plovers, hummingbirds and sparrows.
The study said hundreds of thousands of birds were killed over a recent nine-year period in the U.S. by regular human activity, including things such as buildings, communications towers and oil pits.
...the new administration has cited three reasons for hitting the pause button: environmental concerns, potential litigation, and the effect on several treaty partners...
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/migratory-birds-canada-us-1.5907236
* Final Environmental Impact Statement
Regulations Governing Take of Migratory Birds
Prepared by U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service
5275 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, VA 22041-3803
November 2020
133 p
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 10
Docket No. FWS–HQ–MB–2018–0090; FF09M22000–201–FXMB1231090BPP0
RIN 1018–BD76
Regulations Governing Take of Migratory Birds; Delay of Effective Date
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Final rule; delay of effective date and request for public comments.
...Public comments must be received or postmarked on or before March 1, 2021...
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-02-09/pdf/2021-02667.pdf
____________________________________________________________
A Canada-U.S. flap over protecting migratory birds takes new twist
Biden administration pauses a Trump-era regulation Canada complained about
Alexander Panetta · CBC News · Posted: Feb 09, 2021
...There are competing schools of thought on when to punish someone for killing a migratory bird...the Trump administration (planned to limit penalties under a new regulation that was going to take effect this week on U.S. territory...punishment (would) be limited to people who intentionally kill a bird unlawfully — by poisoning, trapping or shooting without a licence.)
(Under) existing practice...penalties should apply to industries whose products and activities accidentally kill birds, such as oil wells, buildings and power lines...The Canadian government supports the existing interpretation of a century-old international treaty that protects hundreds of species that flutter across the border.
...On Tuesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a one-month delay to allow further public comment on the new regulation.
The rule would protect normal industrial activity from liability, and would reserve fines for those who intentionally set out to unlawfully kill birds.
It would apply to more than 1,000 bird species, according to a U.S. government's environmental study *, including ducks, geese, swans, herons, cormorants, plovers, hummingbirds and sparrows.
The study said hundreds of thousands of birds were killed over a recent nine-year period in the U.S. by regular human activity, including things such as buildings, communications towers and oil pits.
...the new administration has cited three reasons for hitting the pause button: environmental concerns, potential litigation, and the effect on several treaty partners...
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/migratory-birds-canada-us-1.5907236
* Final Environmental Impact Statement
Regulations Governing Take of Migratory Birds
Prepared by U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service
5275 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, VA 22041-3803
November 2020
133 p
