Students recognized for creativity on the importance of environmental justice
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Monday, March 31, 2014
Ameren, environmental groups square off on coal ash landfill : Business
JEFFERSON CITY • Trucking coal ash from its Labadie power plant to a remote landfill would cost Ameren Missouri — and ultimately ratepayers — $100 million more than keeping it nearby, but critics worry the utility’s preferred site invites an environmental catastrophe that could cost a whole lot more.
Ameren, environmental groups square off on coal ash landfill : Business
Ameren, environmental groups square off on coal ash landfill : Business
EPA Continues to Protect Human Health by Evaluating Ten Previously Cleaned Superfund Sites
EPA Press Release:
Louisiana
EPA Continues to Protect Human Health by Evaluating Ten
Previously Cleaned Superfund Sites
Sites are located in Ark., La., Okla., and Texas
DALLAS – (March 31, 2014) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will conduct ten, five-year reviews to ensure that cleanup of each site is working as intended and continues to protect public health and the environment. The reviews also identify any deficiencies and presents recommendations to address them. In conducting the five-year review, EPA will interview local citizens, review site operations, maintenance and monitoring information.
Five-year reviews are required by law under Superfund and provides the public with an opportunity to evaluate preliminary findings and provide input on any potential follow up activities that may be required after the review process.
Vertac, Inc.
Louisiana
Central Woods Preserving Co.
Madisonville Creosote Landfill
Oklahoma
Mosley Road Sanitary Landfill
Texas
Air Force Plant #4 (General Dynamics)
Garland Creosoting
Longhorn Army Ammunition Plant
Pesses Chemical Co.
State Road 114 Groundwater Plume
Connect with EPA Region 6:
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EPA Takes Action to Protect Public from an Illegal Nano Silver Pesticide in Food Containers
EPA Press Release:
EPA Takes Action to Protect Public from an
Illegal Nano Silver Pesticide in Food Containers
Cites NJ Company for Selling Food Containers with an Unregistered Pesticide
Warns Large Retailers Not to Sell These Products
Contact: John Martin, (212) 637-3662, martin.johnj@epa.gov
(New York, N.Y. – March 31, 2014) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued an order to the Pathway Investment Corp. of Englewood, New Jersey to stop the sale of plastic food storage containers that have not been tested or registered with the EPA, in violation of federal pesticides law. The company’s Kinetic Go Green Premium Food Storage Containers and Kinetic Smartwist Series Containers both contain nano silver as an active ingredient, and the company markets other products as containing nano silver, which the company claims helps reduce the growth of mold, fungus and bacteria. Such claims can only be made on products that have been properly tested and are registered with the EPA.
“Claims that mold, fungus or bacteria are controlled or destroyed by a particular product must be backed up with testing so that consumers know that the products do what the labels say,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “Unless these products are registered with the EPA, consumers have no information about whether the claims are accurate. The EPA will continue to take action against companies making unverified public health claims.”
Some pesticides have been linked to various forms of illnesses in people, ranging from skin and eye irritation to cancer. Some pesticides may also affect the hormone or endocrine systems. In many situations, there are non-chemical methods that will effectively control pests.
Under federal pesticide law, products that contain an unregistered pesticide as an active ingredient or claim to kill or repel bacteria or germs are considered pesticides and must be registered with the EPA prior to distribution or sale. The Agency will not register a pesticide until it has been tested to show that it will not pose an unreasonable risk when used according to the label directions. The food storage containers sold by Pathway were never registered with the EPA, or tested for their ability to protect consumers against bacteria, fungus, mold, or mildew. Consumers should be careful to look for the EPA registration number printed on product labels, and need to follow the label directions for use.
During a November 13, 2013 EPA inspection of the company’s facility in Englewood, New Jersey, a Pathway representative acknowledged that the company sold plastic products containing nano silver. The label for the Kinetic Go Green Premium food storage container stated that the product contained nano silver technology and that the nano-sized particles of silver helped to reduce the growth of bacteria and mold, allowing foods to stay fresh up to three times longer. In addition, the company’s product description touted the benefits of nano silver in its products and the company’s website contained several claims that describe how the nano silver particles destroy, kill or reduce the growth of mold, fungus and bacteria.
In addition to the order sent to Pathway, the EPA has also issued warning letters to Amazon, Sears, Wal-Mart and other large retailers directing them not to sell these products. These vendors have been selling Kinetic Food Storage Containers through their websites.
Under the order announced today, Pathway may not sell the following products: Kinetic Go Green Premium Food Storage Containers; Kinetic Smartwist Series Containers; TRITAN Food Storage; and StackSmart Storage.
Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and Facebook athttp://facebook.com/eparegion2.
14-016 # # #
Three Companies to Repay EPA for Costs of Cleaning Up Contaminated Site in Clifton, New Jersey
EPA News Release:
Three Companies to Repay EPA for Costs of Cleaning Up Contaminated Site in Clifton, New Jersey
Successful Cleanup of Leaking Drums Protecting
Health and Safety of Community
Contact: Elias Rodriguez, (212) 637-3664, rodriguez.elias@epa.gov
(New York, N.Y. – March 31, 2014) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced legal agreements with Clifton 2003, L.L.C, Hampshire Generational Fund, L.L.C and WEA Enterprises Co., Inc. to repay $2.1 million spent by the EPA to clean up contamination at Abrachem Chemical, a former bulk chemical packaging facility in Clifton, New Jersey. When the EPA began its investigation and cleanup of the site in 2008, it reeked of caustic chemicals and solvents that were leaking from rusted and mislabeled drums. Sampling of the contents of over 1,600 drums revealed the presence of hazardous materials, including corrosive and flammable chemicals, benzene, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and volatile organic chemicals. Exposure to these chemicals can have serious health impacts, including an increased risk of cancer.
“The legal agreements to recover the considerable costs of the Abrachem Chemical cleanup means that the responsible parties will bear the financial burden for cleaning up this site, not taxpayers, “ said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “The Abrachem Chemical site was found in a horrible state of disrepair and posed serious risks to the health of people in the surrounding community. Today the site is cleaned up, people’s health has been protected, the property is being productively used for a new business and the responsible parties are footing the majority of the bill.”
After being contacted by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection in 2008, the EPA conducted an initial investigation and found that Abrachem was improperly storing drums and bulk containers of known and unknown chemicals in seventeen, 43-foot long shipping containers and elsewhere on the property. Drums at the site were leaking and there was a strong chemical odor emanating from the facility. However, the EPA was unable to clean up the site because Clifton 2003, one of the site owners, refused to grant EPA full access to its property. In January 2009, the EPA got a warrant from a federal judge that allowed access to the property to start a cleanup.
The EPA first removed drums of the unknown chemicals from the shipping containers and moved them into the facility for staging and sampling to determine what they were. On several occasions over the course of the seven-month cleanup, areas of the surrounding community were evacuated with the assistance of local and state authorities when unknown and potentially explosive chemicals were discovered.
The EPA also identified the chemicals in the mislabeled drums and, when possible, identified where the drums had originated. Hundreds of containers were returned to their owners, while others were disposed of by the EPA at licensed hazardous waste disposal facilities out of the area. The floors inside the facility were washed and decontaminated and all debris and trash removed. The EPA completed its work in September 2009.
The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters, not taxpayers, should pay for the cleanups. The EPA works hard to recover taxpayer dollars spent on the cleanup of abandoned and polluted sites. In this instance, more than 82 percent of the costs will be repaid through EPA’s enforcement action and resulting agreements.
The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters, not taxpayers, should pay for the cleanups. The EPA works hard to recover taxpayer dollars spent on the cleanup of abandoned and polluted sites. In this instance, more than 82 percent of the costs will be repaid through EPA’s enforcement action and resulting agreements.
For more information including an archived 2009 video about the Abrachem site, visithttp://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/removal/abrachem/.
Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and Facebook athttp://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.
14-017 # # #
IPCC Report: A changing climate creates pervasive risks but opportunities exist for effective responses
Responses will face challenges with high warming of the climate
www.ipcc.ch/pdf/ar5/pr_wg2/140330_pr_wgII_spm_en.pdf
www.ipcc.ch/pdf/ar5/pr_wg2/140330_pr_wgII_spm_en.pdf
The Modern Farmer and USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service
USDA Blog Post:
The Get Started page is a new addition to the NRCS website, and it provides the steps to assistance.
For generations, children have been singing about the farmer, his wife and kids, and even the mouse and the cheese. But today, a modern farmer is more likely to be using the mouse on his computer (or more realistically, a smartphone or tablet) than dancing around a small wooded valley with his family and farm animals.
The website of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, nrcs.usda.gov, has been evolving to keep pace with the needs of today’s farmer. Our mission is to provide American farmers, ranchers and other visitors with the tools and resources they are looking for on a site that is easy to use and navigate.
The most effective websites combine clear and readable text, usability, functionality and simple navigation. We write the text for targeted audiences, which for us includes farmers and ranchers as well as people who use our online tools, such as Web Soil Survey, PLANTS database and COMET-FarmTM.
Recently, we created a new Get Started with NRCS page. This new webpage helps farmers, ranchers and forest landowners learn how they can make improvements to their land with conservation.
This webpage provides the five steps to getting assistance from NRCS, so that farmers, ranchers and forest landowners can know about the process of applying for assistance from the comfort of their own home, barn, tractor or wherever else they hop online.
Also, we want to point you to our revamped About NRCS and Drought Resources pages as well as our newly created Resources for Small Farms page. About NRCS provides an overview of what NRCS offers, including those popular tools that bring many visitors to our website.
Drought Resources houses information on assistance and resources that can help farmers and ranchers be more resilient to drought. And finally, the Resources for Small Farms page pulls together information and resources that may be of interest to owners and managers of smaller farms, such as information on organics and seasonal high tunnels.
We use a number of tools to help us create these pages, including site traffic and customer experience information. We’ve found that more than 61 percent of people coming to our website were new visitors, many of whom were farmers, ranchers and forest landowners looking for information on conservation programs.
We have about 13,000 visits per day on the NRCS website, and some of our most popular pages deal with soils, Web Soil Survey and Farm Bill.
We hope you enjoy these new and revamped pages, and we welcome feedback on how we can improve our “digital” service center. We’re excited to have the opportunity to help you get started with NRCS!
Kampf ums Überleben: Sinkende Inseln | Alle Inhalte | DW.DE | 28.03.2014
Die Auswirkungen des Klimawandels werden überall auf der Welt zu spüren sein - besonders in niedrig liegenden Inselstaaten und Küstenregionen. So schreibt es der Klima-Ausschuss IPCC in seinem neuesten Bericht.
Kampf ums Überleben: Sinkende Inseln | Alle Inhalte | DW.DE | 28.03.2014
Kampf ums Überleben: Sinkende Inseln | Alle Inhalte | DW.DE | 28.03.2014
Handlungschancen gegen den Klimawandel | Wissen & Umwelt | DW.DE | 31.03.2014
Der Weltklimarat der Vereinten Nationen stellt in seinem jüngsten Bericht fest, dass sich die Erderwärmung bereits auf Menschen und Umwelt auswirkt. Trotzdem sei es noch nicht zu spät.
Handlungschancen gegen den Klimawandel | Wissen & Umwelt | DW.DE | 31.03.2014
Handlungschancen gegen den Klimawandel | Wissen & Umwelt | DW.DE | 31.03.2014
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Photosynthesis, reimagined
Argonne National Laboratory News Release:
Photosynthesis, reimagined
BY JARED SAGOFF • MARCH 27, 2014
ARGONNE, Ill. – Using water as fuel has been a recurrent theme of science fiction since the days of Jules Verne. A recent discovery, however, may bring it one step closer to science fact by mimicking the very first steps of the photosynthetic water-splitting pathway.
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory in collaboration with researchers from Arizona State University have found a way to imitate Photosystem II, the first protein complex in the long chain of reactions that use energy from the sun to create usable fuel. The result was reported in the journal Nature Chemistry.
Photosystem II uses energized electrons to split water into oxygen, protons and the electrons that are necessary to complete the photosynthetic process.
Once light strikes an electron in a chlorophyll molecule at the heart of photosystem II, the excited electron moves to a higher energy state, leaving behind a positively charged region called a "hole," which is in then filled by other electrons that are stripped from water by a special enzyme. The excited electron then travels through a number of "electron carrier" proteins like a baton being passed among relay racers.
However, the motion of an electron brings with it a negative charge. The protein compensates for this by transferring a positively-charged proton as well. When both steps happen, the "baton exchange" is complete and charge separation happens successfully.
"The problem is that even though we know exactly how these reactions occur in nature, it’s extremely difficult to replicate them in the laboratory because the protein environment is so hard to imitate," said Argonne nanoscientist Tijana Rajh.
In this experiment, Rajh and her colleagues used facilities at Argonne’sCenter for Nanoscale Materials to create an organic/inorganic hybrid based around a titanium dioxide nanoparticle. This hybrid performed the same elementary steps of charge separation as in the natural system, including the transfer of both electrons and protons facilitated by the protein environment.
The researchers were able to follow and compare these first steps by using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, which is similar to the techniques used in MRI machines in doctors' offices – however, it looks at electron spins instead of those of atomic nuclei.
"There are three parts to doing this kind of research: synthesizing the material, performing EPR experiments and making theoretical calculations," Rajh said.
“EPR is the optimal technique for studying photochemical reactions because it’s the only technique that lets us see both the electrons and the holes,” said Argonne chemist Oleg Poluektov.
In the future, Rajh and Poluektov hope to generate a more perfect imitation of the biological system. "We’re trying to mimic a natural solution that’s cheap, stable, and efficient. Right now, we can only do two out of three," Rajh said.
Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation's first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America's scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future. With employees from more than 60 nations, Argonne is managed by UChicago Argonne, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.
The Center for Nanoscale Materials at Argonne National Laboratory is one of the five DOE Nanoscale Science Research Centers (NSRCs), premier national user facilities for interdisciplinary research at the nanoscale, supported by the DOE Office of Science. Together the NSRCs comprise a suite of complementary facilities that provide researchers with state-of-the-art capabilities to fabricate, process, characterize and model nanoscale materials, and constitute the largest infrastructure investment of the National Nanotechnology Initiative. The NSRCs are located at DOE’s Argonne, Brookhaven, Lawrence Berkeley, Oak Ridge and Sandiaand Los Alamos National Laboratories. For more information about the DOE NSRCs, please visit the Office of Science website.
Would Noah build in Chesterfield Valley? : Entertainment
Authors Christine A. Klein and Sandra B. Zellmer have a lot in common. Both teach at law schools. Both shared in the writing of “Mississippi River Tragedies.” And, as they write in their preface, “We both grew up in the Mississippi River Basin, during a period when kids had plenty of room to play and explore outside.” Klein did her playing and exploring in Chesterfield, alongside a Mississippi River tributary, the Missouri River. Zellmer grew up on a farm outside Sioux City, Iowa, also close to the Missouri.
Would Noah build in Chesterfield Valley? : Entertainment
Would Noah build in Chesterfield Valley? : Entertainment
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Lee's Summit Road to Highway 40 25
Eastbound U.S. Highway 40 crossing the Little Blue River. March 28, 2014.
Lee's Summit Road to Highway 40 24
Sign at crossing of Highway 40 and Little Blue River. March 28, 2014.
Lee's Summit Road to Highway 40 23
Highway 40 bridge crossing the Little Blue River. March 28, 2014.
Friday, March 28, 2014
Lee's Summit Road to Highway 40 20
Little Blue Trace Trail and Little Blue River. Missouri Highway 291 crossing Little Blue River in background. March 28, 2014.
Lee's Summit Road to Highway 40 4
Lee's Summit Road bridge crossing the Little Blue River. Jackson County, MO. March 28, 2014.
Lee's Summit Road to Highway 40 1
Little Blue Trace Trailhead near intersection of Lee's Summit Road and Phelps. March 28, 2014.
EPA, Coast Guard to clean up millions of gallons of hazardous liquids and sludge from Samoa Pulp site
EPA News Release:
For Immediate Release: March 28, 2014Media Contact: David Yogi, yogi.david@epa.gov , Ph: 415-972-3350, Cell: 415-760-5419
EPA, Coast Guard to clean up millions of gallons of hazardous liquids and sludge from Samoa Pulp site
SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard today announced the agencies will begin removing millions of gallons of hazardous materials and toxic sludge from the former Samoa Pulp Mill site in Samoa, Calif. as part of a joint cleanup effort. EPA Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest, Jared Blumenfeld, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA-2), and U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector San Francisco Commander Captain Gregory Stump, announced the cleanup at a ceremony held today at the site, located near Eureka, Calif.
“Removing this massive toxic legacy from the Humboldt Bay shoreline will ensure the safety of residents and protection for the environment and wildlife,” said Regional Administrator Blumenfeld. “The livelihood of thousands of Northern Californians relies on the health of this bay, so it is critical we begin this clean up now.”
“Protecting the sensitive habitats and economic values of Humboldt Bay and the Pacific Ocean from these caustic chemicals is a top priority,” Congressman Huffman said. “I am thrilled with the quick response from the community and from the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District, the EPA, and the U.S. Coast Guard in handling what otherwise could have led to the disastrous pollution of these precious resources.”
From its investigation, EPA determined all storage tanks holding the hazardous waste were leaking or failing, and several of the tanks posed an immediate risk to human health and the environment due to potential runoff from the site to Humboldt Bay, which is only 800 feet from the site. Waste from the site will be trucked to a facility in Longview, Wash. for treatment and reuse. Following site cleanup, the Harbor District of Humboldt Bay plans to reuse the site for aquaculture purposes, including the oyster and caviar farming.
"The EPA and Coast Guard, as well as other state, local, and commercial partners, will work diligently to resolve this environmental challenge,” said Captain Stump. “It is clear that a coordinated and collaborative response is essential to effectively and efficiently handle, transport, and dispose of the hazardous material, and to reduce threats to the public and environment."
Approximately 20 tanks containing 3 million gallons of highly caustic liquids, 10,000 gallons of various acids, 10,000 tons of corrosive sludge, 3,000 gallons of turpentine, several laboratories with approximately 1,000 containers of a wide range of chemicals, and several thousand containers of various types will be removed as part of the effort.
The former Samoa Pulp Mill site is a 70-acre industrial pulp manufacturing facility that had been in operation from 1963 until 2008. After preparations for a potential resumption of mill activities failed in August 2013, the site was sold to the harbor district. Shortly thereafter, EPA was contacted by the district for assistance to assess the site under the agency’s emergency cleanup program.
EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region’s Superfund Emergency Response Program responds to environmental disasters, hazardous materials releases, and inland oil spills that threaten human health and/or the environment throughout the region. The program participates, on average, in 25 hazardous waste cleanups every year, in addition to several oil spills, and investigates another 20-30. Sites range in complexity from chemical waste dumps to residential yards contaminated with legacy mining waste.
For more information about EPA’s Samoa Pulp Mill cleanup activities, visit:http://www.epaosc.org/site/site_profile.aspx?site_id=8891
For more information about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region’s Superfund Emergency Response Program, visit:http://www.epa.gov/region9/disaster/emerresponse.html
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