ENVIRONMENTALISTS, MARYLAND SIDE WITH PENNSYLVANIA IN POTW SUIT

Environmentalists and the state of Maryland are supporting Pennsylvania's right to set stringent discharge permit requirements for publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) in state litigation where POTWs are challenging Pennsylvania-issued permits intended to improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. A group of 64 municipalities filed the suit, Borough of Bedford, et al. v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, et al., Feb. 29 in the state's Commonwealth Court in hopes of striking down strict permit requirements requiring infrastructure improvements. The municipalities say...

EPA DOWNSIZES ECOLOGICAL SERVICES PROGRAM DUE TO SAB CONCERNS

EPA is downsizing its ambitious, upcoming new program for valuing the services that various ecosystems provide to humans and the environment in response to concerns raised by the agency's Science Advisory Board (SAB) that there are insufficient resources for the plan, an agency source says. EPA's Ecological Research Program is a five-year plan intended to create a national system for monitoring and collecting data about ecosystems. The agency is basing the plan on "ecosystem services" -- a controversial approach that...

CRS FINDS 'LIMITED' EPA SUCCESS GATHERING DATA ON NEW CHEMICAL RISKS

EPA is having "limited success" gathering information about the risks new chemicals may present to people and the environment using existing Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorities, according to a recently updated Congressional Research Service (CRS) report that comes amid a growing push to amend the toxics law. The July 18 report outlines advances in toxicology methods and new knowledge about health effects that TSCA "does not account for," including hormone-disrupting effects. "The available evidence indicates that EPA has had...

EPA FACES JURISDICTIONAL DISPUTE WITH STATES ON SHIP DISCHARGE PERMITS

States and Great Lakes environmentalists are disputing EPA's authority to issue clean water discharge permits for commercial ships, a dispute that is delaying states' approval of the agency's permit, prompting other states to issue permits under state law, and signaling a new legal avenue for challenging the permit. Washington state officials, for example, say they will not certify that EPA's proposed permit is consistent with state water quality requirements as required by section 401 of the Clean Water Act until...

(Lead) Pipe Dreams

Washington DC's water board, which has been struggling to limit lead levels in drinking water, isn't waiting for an upcoming EPA study on the contributions of plumbing fixtures and service lines to drop its program to replace lead pipes. According to the Washington Post , the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority's board voted Sept. 4 to dump a plan to replace the city's lead service pipes, citing high costs as well as other existing, equally effective measures to limit the...

Blocking EPA's Permit Fee Rule

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) is vowing to block EPA's just-issued rule encouraging states to charge fees to clean water permit applicants. Wyden, a member of a bipartisan group of senators who warned EPA the agency did not have authority to issue its clean water permit fee rule, told Inside EPA in a statement that he plans to work with those colleagues to block the rule. “I will be working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to find...

We Are The CHAMP-ions

A chemical industry trade group is launching a lobbying push for the final 100 days of the Bush administration to pressure EPA to complete and implement stalled reforms for the agency's chemical management program, known as the Chemical Assessment and Management Program (CHAMP) so that it will survive into the next administration. Officials from the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association (SOCMA), a trade group that works with companies producing smaller batches of specialty chemicals, are meeting with EPA officials to...

New Avenue For Pollution Cuts

Senate environment committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-CA) says one of her top priorities for the upcoming transportation funding bill is to cut air pollution, listing greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and particulate matter as pollutants of concern. “One of my primary goals for this bill is to improve air quality,” Boxer said at a committee field hearing in Los Angeles Sept. 4, which was held to hear testimony from community leaders and state government officials on local and state...

Boxer Seeks 11-th Hour Deal To Retain EPA, State Role Over Ships' Ballast

Staff for Senate environment committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) is floating draft legislative language allowing EPA and states to retain their stringent Clean Water Act (CWA) authority over commercial ships' ballast discharges while granting the Coast Guard enforcement rights over ballast water treatment, according to a source familiar with the document. The new environment committee "discussion bill" is a response to language floated by staff on the Senate commerce committee last month, which environmentalists have criticized for eliminating EPA and...

Engine Producers Seek EPA Help To Limit Tort Suits Over High-Grade Ethanol

Engine manufacturers are urging EPA to scale up its enforcement and educational campaigns to reduce unlawful sales of fuel blends with high levels of ethanol as a way to reduce potential industry liability from the growing number of class action suits stemming from engine damage due to the fuels' use. While no class action suit has yet targeted the engine manufacturers, "If someone's tractor malfunctions because there was too much ethanol in the tank, the trial attorneys may target the...

EPA Faces Industry Resistance To Strict Vapor Intrusion Standards

A major environmental consulting firm is resisting EPA efforts to use strict Superfund standards to force an emergency cleanup action to address the threat of vapor intrusion in commercial facilities in Pennsylvania -- efforts that if successful could indicate the agency will insist on using its own stringent standards to assess the quality of indoor air in workplaces rather than relying on more lax Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) requirements, a legal observer following the issue says. In comments...

Pending Appellate Suits Pose Crucial Tests For Activists, EPA Air Rules

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is slated to hear a number of cases this fall that are expected to pose a key test of environmentalists' ability to win standing to challenge EPA rules, as well as the extent that EPA is obligated to follow the guidance of its independent advisors in setting health-protective national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). The fall session of the DC Circuit's calendar, which began Sept. 4, comes as the...

Inside Cal/EPA - 09/05/2008

Fri, 2008-09-05 00:00

Inside EPA - 09/05/2008

Fri, 2008-09-05 00:00

Inside Cal/EPA - 09/05/2008

Industry Floats Alternative Diesel Truck Rule To California Air Officials Activists Petition California Energy Officials Over Power Plant GHG Impacts California Lawmakers, Stakeholders To Discuss Renewable Energy Reform Environmental Justice Group Sues California Air Board Over Diesel Pollution Activists Challenge Ninth Circuit Ruling On California\'s Fumigant Regulations Stakeholder Group Pitches Recycled Water Policy Proposal To California Water Officials

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Stakeholder Group Issues Proposal For Statewide Recycled Water Policy

Stakeholders Present Proposal Overview To State Water Officials


Activists Ask Ninth Circuit Court To Review Its Decision On DPR Regulations

DPR Director Says State Will Phase-In Fumigant Regulations For Ventura County


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