[Source: Phys.Org] A peer-reviewed study by scientists at the Environmental Working Group estimates that more than 200 million Americans could have the toxic fluorinated chemicals known as PFAS in their drinking water at a concentration of 1 part per trillion, or ppt, or higher. Independent scientific studies have recommended a safe level for PFAS in Read More…
Tag: environment
White House speeds environmental rollbacks ahead of election
[Source: Forbes] The Wall Street Journal reports the Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to finalize new rules this week rescinding Obama-era regulations of methane gas emissions for oil-and-gas producers, as the Trump administration continues its systematic rollback of environmental regulations—which is reportedly speeding up ahead of November before a Democratic administration potentially takes over. The Read More…
Trump looks to scale back environmental reviews for projects
[Source: Associated Press] President Donald Trump is ready to roll back a foundational Nixon-era environmental law that he says stifles major infrastructure projects, but that environmentalists say has served for decades as a safeguard for low-income and minority communities. Trump was traveling to Atlanta on Wednesday to formally announce changes to the National Environmental Policy Read More…
California DA‘s offices settle environmental protection action against CarMax Auto Superstores
[Source: 23ABC News/Bakersfield] Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer announced she and 16 other DA’s offices throughout the state have reached a $1,600,000 settlement in an environmental protection action case against CarMax Auto Superstores California, LLC. The action filed in the Orange County Superior Court accused the auto company of unlawful handling and disposal of Read More…
California’s budget cuts threaten environmental spending
[Source: Associated Press] California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed budget cuts include canceling billions of dollars in climate change spending, a blow to environmental advocates who look to the state as a stopgap for the Trump administration’s weakening of federal protections. In January, Newsom proposed a $12 billion “climate budget” that, over the next five years, Read More…
As Californians stay at home, air quality improves – for now
[Source: Cal Matters] The global coronavirus pandemic has inadvertently achieved what state officials have sought to do for decades: Californians have parked their cars. Freeways and highways are clear. And the constant burn of fossil fuels has been markedly diminished. The statewide stay-at-home order has brought about drastic reductions in air pollution and planet-warming emissions, Read More…
Ready or not here it comes—State groundwater regulation
[Source: CalChamber] January 31, 2020 marks the first time in California’s history that groundwater will be regulated. Twenty-one critically over-drafted groundwater basins must submit detailed plans showing how they will reach sustainability by 2040. The plans must include ways to monitor groundwater on a day-to-day basis, short-term, seasonal, and year long. Sustainability generally means eliminating Read More…
NEPA climate overhaul could unleash energy projects
[Source: E&E NEWS] The White House is poised to exclude climate considerations from its controversial rewrite of rules surrounding the nation’s core environmental law. The Council on Environmental Quality’s proposed changes to National Environmental Policy Act guidelines will likely emerge this week. NEPA, signed into law by President Nixon, gives communities input and allows them Read More…
New study details economic impact of fracturing ban
[Source: Midland Reporter Telegram] As the 2020 presidential election campaign heats up, some candidates have called for a total ban on hydraulic fracturing while other groups support a “keep it in the ground” policy against producing fossil fuels. Such comments come as the Global Energy Institute, part of the US Chamber of Commerce, issued a Read More…