The BEAT News January 30, 2013

News Headlines

Help Stop the Tar Sands – Call Your Legislator

from 350MA.org

350MA.org has been helping coordinate visits to legislative offices to talk to our members of Congress about tar sands and 350MA and global warming in general. Honestly, they’ve been somewhat fun, frustrating, and encouraging, and we have learned a lot. One thing we were told by someone very experienced in politics: politicians take note of phone calls.

Calling political offices is a pain in the butt. That’s kind of the point: if you take the time to call they take notice. So be encouraged  to join many others in calling our members of Congress today.

When you call, just say who you are, where you are from, and where you stand on an issue: you’re against all tar sands pipelines including the Northeast Tar Sands Pipeline and want them to at least have to get a permit and environmental review. You don’t need to read from a script. You can give a few reasons why you care about the issue (our future, the climate, green jobs, your children, yourself, beauty of New England, tar sands are especially unsafe, etc.) but you don’t have to build a case.
Just make the call:

Senator Kerry – 617-565-8519

Senator Warren – 617-565-3170
If you don’t know who your representative is you can find out here: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/MA
Here are phone #s for their local offices (I think that’s a little more effective than calling D.C. offices):

Mike Capuano: 617-621-6208

Ed Markey: 781-396-2900

Stephen Lynch – 617-428-2000

Richard Neal – 413-785-0325

Niki Tsongas – 978-458-0101

James McGovern – 508-831-7356

Joe Kennedy – 202-225-5931

William Keating – 508-999-6462

John Tierney – 978-531-1669

 

Thanks for all you do everyone: 350MA gives me hope.

-Eli

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Let’s Improve Our Community. Together!  Tell Us How to Spend [Pittsfield’s] CDBG Funds

CHOOSE A NIGHT & COME AND TELL US HOW TO SPEND THE CITY’S CDBG FUNDS:

Monday, February 11, 2013
6:00 PM
Morningside Community School
Community Room
100 Burbank Street, Pittsfield, MA

OR

Monday, February 25, 2013
5:30 PM
Conte Community School
Community Room
200 West Union Street, Pittsfield, MA
We want to hear your comments about the issues that affect your life such as:

HOUSING * PUBLIC FACILITIES * JOBS * CODE ENFORCEMENT * INFRASTRUCTURE *CHILDCARE * DRUG & ALCOHOL ABUSE * DOMESTIC VIOLENCE * ELDERLY SERVICES * NEIGHBORHOOD ISSUES

BEAT Note: What about ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS, PUBLIC HEALTH, ETC.  If you think these items are worthy of attention you should attend and make your voice heard.

These public input sessions are being sponsored by the Pittsfield Department of Community Development to assist in the preparation of the City’s fiscal year 2014 Annual Action Plan, regarding the use of Pittsfield’s community development resources.

If you are unable to attend the public input session, you can submit your written or oral thoughts by contacting the Department of Community Development, City Hall, 70 Allen Street, Room 205, Pittsfield, MA.  Call (413) 499-9368 or TTY (413) 499-9340.  Persons with special needs should contact the Department of Community Development and every effort will be made to accommodate your request.

The FY 2014 Annual Action Plan will address the needs of low and moderate-income persons and households as required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.

Please share and forward this to others who may be interested.

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Energy Justice Mapping Energy Production

Energy Justice has an amazing website with an interactive map of energy facilities in the United States. It is not absolutely complete and up to date, but it is interesting. You can find oil, nuclear, natural gas, biomass, waste-to-energy, and hydro facilities in the Berkshires.

Another thing that they have mapped is logging for the McNeil BioMass facilty in Vermont. (McNeil Biomass Forest Mapping Project) It really gives you an idea of how much logging is needed to supply the fuel for that 50-megawatt facility.

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No more incinerators. We want a plan for Zero Waste.

We burn or bury more than half of our waste in Massachusetts, but we don’t have to — we can reduce, reuse and recycle all the way to Zero Waste.

Tell DEP Commissioner Kimmell to uphold the 20-year-old moratorium on incinerators and get Massachusetts on the path to Zero Waste.

Take Action!

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Speak up for the Connecticut River

from the Connecticut River Watershed Council

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will hold meetings next week to gather public input about the upcoming renewal of five hydroelectric operating licenses on the CT River in southern VT and northern MA. This is your chance to voice concerns and insist on improved ecological health & recreational opportunities for over 175 miles of the Connecticut River.

Public meetings will be held Monday, January 28 – Thursday, January 31. Please note that each meeting will focus on a specific project(s).
Both daytime and evening meetings will be held for each project. Evening meetings are primarily for receiving input from the public, though all interested individuals are invited to attend any of the meetings.
Click here to view a full list of meetings.

Submitting Comments –

CRWC had a number of requests for guidance from those of you who cannot attend the meetings. Brief comments up to 6,000 characters can be submitted to FERC, without prior registration, using their eComment system. The deadline for comments on this stage of the process (study requests, project scoping, and the pre-application document) is March 1, 2013.  You must include your name and contact information at the end of your comments. You must also include the FERC project number on written comments.  FERC project numbers are as follows:

Wilder Project No. P-1892

Bellows Falls Project No. P-1855

Vernon Project No. P-1904

Turners Falls Project No. 1889

Northfield Mountain Pumped Storage Project No. 2485.

 

These are some of the issues we believe are of highest concern and welcome you to frame your own thoughts on potential studies or operational changes around these topics/questions.

Recreation

  • Is there adequate fishing and boating access?
  • Are more or better portage facilities needed?
  • Are more or better campsites needed?
  • What other recreational opportunities do the projects need to allow for?
  • Are there enough migratory fish viewing facilities accessible by all members of the public?
  • Will fish viewing facilities support educational programs?

Fisheries/habitat

  • Fish mortality due to turbines;
  • Efficiency and success of upstream and downstream passage of migratory and resident fish;
  • Effect of changing discharge rates and river level fluctuations on wetland and river habitat, spawning, and egg survival;
  • Impacts of project operations on endangered species such as the shortnose sturgeon;
  • Impacts of project on invasive species, if any.

 

Water quality & quantity/land use

  • Effect of dams on water temperature, dissolved oxygen, and suspended solids;
  • Effect of project operations and river fluctuations on riverbank erosion and associated issues;
  • Flow rates downstream of the dams (particularly Turners Falls and Bellows Falls which have canals and a “bypass reach”).

If you have questions about these meetings, submitting comments, or the five hydroelectric projects, please feel free to contact Andrea Donlon at the Connecticut River Watershed Council

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Park and Ride at the VA Medical Center in Northampton

I am pleased to be able to announce the city closed this afternoon on an easement from the Department of Veterans Afffairs that will allow a Park-and-Ride lot at the VA Medical Center in Leeds, along with parking for rail trail use, and new improved access from the VAMC to the Mass Central/Norwottuck Rail Trail.

We are extremely appreciative to the VA for donating this easement, and especially to our local VAMC for supporting this. Thanks are also due to:
Mayor Narkewicz, who has been extremely supportive of this project from his first day in office and helped lobby for the easement.
Councilor Tacy, the Transportation and Parking Commission, and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee, for their support.
MassDOT, who funded (with federal and state funds) the design of the project and will fund the construction.
Look Park, who granted an access to allow a new access ramp onto the rail trail.
Smith College, whose annual transportation demand management donation (a condition of their Ford Hall approval) is funding all city costs at this lot.

We expect construction of the Park and Ride lot in 2013-2014. Thank you all. This project has been almost as decade in the making, but it is a good step towards encouraging transit, ride sharing, and making the rail trail more accessible. The first city park and ride lot, at Sheldon Field, gets something like 40 cars a day off area roads and provides parking for Sheldon Field Recreation Area. We expect this new lot to be equally successful, and to serve the same kind of dual use so that we are not creating an asphalt parking lot that often sits empty.

Wayne Feiden, FAICP, Hon. WMAIA
Director of Planning and Development
City of Northampton 210 Main Street,
Room 11 Northampton, MA 01060
www.NorthamptonMA.gov/OPD

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Sheep Shares Yarn & Fiber CSA

Join Sheep Shares Yarn & Fiber CSA and be a part of a local fiber farm. Yarn and/or fiber shares are shipped in spring and fall. Springdelle Farm is a 220 acre sheep farm located in Shelburne’s bucolic Patten District. The farm hosts special events for CSA members: Shearing Day Celebration (April); Strolling of the Sheep (June); Fiber Foliage & Friends (October). CSA has been featured in the Valley Advocate and Massachusetts Preview Magazine. For details visit www.foxfirefiber.com or email: barb@foxfirefiber.com.

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“Travel the Watershed” Wild & Scenic Westfield River Call to Artists (painters)

Help us Inspire and build a community of River Stewards
Apply on line at the Becket Arts Center
www.becketartscenter.org
For more information 413 623-6635
Artists are invited to ponder questions like:
• How does the watershed connect us, revitalize and infuse our daily lives?
• What moves us to visit the Wild & Scenic sections of the river in our towns?
• What about the river should be protected and preserved for the next generations?
Six selected artists will be given a beautifully crafted wooden suitcase, approximately [18” by
30” by 6 “] to design and paint images on the exterior and on the three interior shelves to
celebrate and honor the river. Each artists selected will receive a $500 honorarium.

The “Travel the Watershed” suitcases will be displayed as works of art during the summer of
2013, then travel the watershed as display cases for publicity and information about the
Westfield River Wild & Scenic Advisory Committee.

This project is sponsored by the Westfield River Wild & Scenic Committee.

For further information about Wild & Scenic Westfield River visit www.westfieldriverwildscenic.org

Travel the Watershed Flier

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Patrick-Murray Administration Joins MIT Researchers to Confront Climate Change

Patrick-Murray Administration energy and environment officials today joined Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers to discuss strategies for adapting to climate change. The panel discussion builds on the existing partnership between the Commonwealth and MIT to advance green technologies and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The discussion comes just days after President Obama called for action on climate change in his second inaugural address in Washington D.C. on Monday. President Obama highlighted the need for a path toward increased use of sustainable resources to combat climate change. Massachusetts has been a leader in preparing for climate change and exploring clean energy opportunities that will reduce reliance on foreign sources.

In 2008, Governor Patrick signed the Massachusetts Global Warming Solutions Act, a signature piece of legislation that mandates the most ambitious GHG reduction in the nation. The Commonwealth has set an economy-wide goal of GHG emission reductions of 25 percent below statewide 1990 GHG emissions by 2020 and at least 80 percent below statewide 1990 GHG emissions by 2050.  In 2011, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs released the Massachusetts Climate Action Adaptation Report which laid out potential strategies to help prepare for and respond to the impacts of climate change.

“If climate models prove to be correct, New England can expect somewhat more intense rain events and hurricanes in the coming decades – meaning more flooding and erosion in areas already being hit hard,” said Kerry Emanuel, the Cecil & Ida Green Professor of Atmospheric Science at MIT. “Fortunately, Governor Patrick and his administration take this threat seriously and have made adaptation a priority. Continued collaboration amongst lawmakers, researchers and communities is critical in our ability to adapt successfully moving forward.”

Continuing their commitment to address climate change, MIT and Patrick-Murray Administration officials will team-up again later this month to offer a workshop for MIT students led by energy and environmental officials.

BEAT Note: We are disappointed that MassDOT is not one of the presenters.

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Innovate, Manufacture, Compete: A Clean Energy Action Plan

The global clean energy marketplace is expanding rapidly, but the competitive position of American industry is at risk because of increased competition abroad and uncertain policies at home, according to a report released today by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

The study, Innovate, Manufacture, Compete: A Clean Energy Action Plan, states that revenue in the clean energy sector worldwide could total $1.9 trillion from 2012 to 2018. Yet roundtable discussions with more than 100 U.S. industry leaders reveal that the country is at a crossroads: Private investment, manufacturing, and deployment of renewable power have been constrained because of the lack of a long-term, consistent energy policy. To strengthen America’s global competitiveness in this growing economic sector, the report outlines policy recommendations, including investments in energy research and development, extension of key manufacturing incentives, and establishment of a national Clean Energy Standard that sets milestones for deployment of renewable and other clean sources in the electric power sector.

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Buy a raffle ticket for yourself or as a birthday gift for friend or family!

Solar Panel Raffle III

Citizens Awareness Network is doin’ it again! Our most popular, and most success­ful fundraiser raffle of four 240+ watt solar panels with inverters begins on December 1 and will conclude on March 23, 2013. Only 350 tickets will be sold at $20 per chance!

Buy your tickets from a CAN representative or call 413-625-6177 or buy online www.nukebusters.org (see the “latest events” section on our homepage).

Tickets are also available at the Solar Store of Greenfield, 2 Fiske Ave, Greenfield, MA 413-772-3122, (Hours Tues-Friday 10-5pm, Sat 10-2pm. Closed Jan 15-29).

Don’t wait! Get your chance before they’re all gone!

Thank you John and Claire of the Solar Store in Greenfield for your generous support and helping CAN with this raffle!


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EPA Releases New Report on Children’s Health and the Environment in America

WASHINGTON – EPA today released “America’s Children and the Environment, Third Edition,” a comprehensive compilation of information from a variety of sources on children’s health and the environment. The report shows trends for contaminants in air, water, food, and soil that may affect children; concentrations of contaminants in the bodies of children and women of child-bearing age; and childhood illnesses and health conditions. The report incorporates revisions to address peer review and public comments on draft materials released in 2011.

“This latest report provides important information for protecting America’s most vulnerable – our children. It shows good progress on some issues, such as reducing children’s blood lead levels and exposure to tobacco smoke in the home, and points to the need for continued focus on other issues”, said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “Although we are encouraged by these findings, there is still much work to be done. By monitoring trends, identifying successes, and shedding light on areas that need further evaluation, we can continue to improve the health of our children and all Americans.”

Among the contaminants clearly linked to health conditions in children, key findings include:

The median concentration of lead in the blood of children between the ages of 1 and 5 years was 92 percent lower in 2009-2010 compared to 1976-1980 levels. Although the majority of the decline occurred in the 1980s, consistent decreases have continued since 1999.

The median level of cotinine (a marker of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke) measured in blood of nonsmoking children ages 3 to 17 years was 88 percent lower in 2009-2010 than it was in 1988–1991. In 2010, 6 percent of children ages 0 to 6 years lived in homes where someone smoked regularly, compared with 27 percent in 1994.

The percentage of children living in counties where pollutant concentrations were above the levels of one or more national air quality standards declined from 75 percent to 59 percent from 1999 to 2009.
The level of knowledge regarding the relationship between environmental exposures and health outcomes varies widely among the topics presented in this report, and the inclusion of an indicator in the report does not necessarily imply a known relationship between environmental exposure and children’s health effects. The report provides data for selected children’s health conditions that warrant further research because the causes, including possible contributing environmental factors, are complex and not well understood at this point.

In the case of asthma, researchers do not fully understand why children develop the condition. However, substantial evidence shows exposure to certain air pollutants, including particulate matter and ozone, can trigger symptoms in children who already have asthma. Although the report found the percentage of children reported to currently have asthma increased from 8.7 percent in 2001 to 9.4 percent in 2010 and that minority populations are particularly affected by asthma, the severity of children’s asthma and respiratory symptoms has declined. The rate of emergency room visits for asthma decreased from 114 visits per 10,000 children in 1996 to 103 visits per 10,000 children in 2008. Between 1996 and 2008, hospitalizations for asthma and for all other respiratory causes decreased from 90 hospitalizations per 10,000 children to 56 hospitalizations per 10,000 children.

The report also looks at trends in other health conditions, such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and preterm births, for which rates have increased. There is no conclusive information on the role of environmental contaminants in ADHD or preterm births, and additional research is ongoing.

The national indicators presented in this comprehensive report are important for informing future research related to children’s health. Children may be more vulnerable to environmental exposures than adults because children’s bodies are still developing. Children eat more, drink more, and breathe more in proportion to their body size; and their behavior can expose them more to chemicals and organisms.

This report includes 37 indicators of children’s environmental health to address 23 important topics. The expanded content reflects the latest research on children’s health issues and the availability of data for more topics. Each indicator and its supporting text were peer reviewed by independent external experts and made available for review and comment by the public.

More on “America’s Children and the Environment, Third Edition”: http://www.epa.gov/ace

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Supreme Court Clarifies Definition of “Discharge” under CWA

By Russell Prugh

January 22, 2013

The Supreme Court decided a case this month that everyone agreed the Ninth Circuit had gotten wrong – the scope of what constitutes a “discharge” under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Court held that no discharge occurs when water flows from one portion of a river to another through a concrete flood control channel. None of the litigants in the case, Los Angeles County Flood Control District v. Natural Resources Defense Council (L.A. County),[1] supported the Ninth Circuit decision[2] below, which had held the operator of a Municipal Storm Sewer System (MS4) responsible for pollutants detected at monitoring points within two rivers. The Court relied on South Florida Water Management District v. Miccosukee Tribe of Indians,[3] an earlier Supreme Court decision which held that transfer of water from one water body to another does not constitute a CWA discharge unless the two waterbodies are “meaningfully distinct.” In the LA County case, since the water merely flowed through a manmade channel and back into the same river, the Court concluded no CWA discharge had occurred. L.A. County continues the recent trend of Ninth Circuit reversals in environmental cases – representing the seventh instance where the Court has struck down the Ninth Circuit on an environmental question in the last five terms.[4]
Although the MS4 operator prevailed in the litigation, the case may have unwanted consequences for MS4 permit holders around the country. The Court indicated that the regulatory authority modified the MS4 operator’s CWA permit during the litigation to require end-of-pipe monitoring at certain MS4 discharge points in addition to the centralized, in-stream monitoring points at issue in this case. As many other MS4 permits employ a similar strategy – centralized compliance monitoring – the decision could indirectly impact MS4 operators as permitting authorities around the country re-evaluate their MS4 permits in the wake of the decision.

Background

As discussed in previous editions of this newsletter, L.A. County involves an MS4 which collects and conveys untreated stormwater in the Los Angeles County basin and is operated by a number of entities, including 84 incorporated cities, Los Angeles County, and the petitioner in this case, Los Angeles County Flood Control District (District). See Russell Prugh, Supreme Court Preview: The 2012/2013 Docket: L.A. County Flood Control District v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Marten Law Environmental News (Oct. 8, 2012). All of these MS4s are regulated under one basin-wide CWA National Pollution Discharge Elimination System, or NPDES, permit (the Permit). The District’s MS4 is by far the largest within the basin and discharges stormwater into the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers at a number of different points. Rather than require the District to monitor pollutants at these numerous outfalls, the Permit authorized monitoring at several points downstream in the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers (the Monitoring Stations). These Monitoring Stations are located at the end of concrete channels that contain the rivers for flood control. Sampling at these Monitoring Stations has shown that the water flowing out of the concrete channels contains pollutant levels that exceed the limits set in the Permit.
In 2008,environmental groups (Plaintiffs) filed a CWA citizen suit alleging that discharges from the District’s MS4 violated the Permit, pointing to the water quality data from the Monitoring Stations. The District countered that the pollutant exceedences were not caused solely by the District’s MS4 outfalls, but rather upstream sources had also contributed pollutants detected at the Monitoring Stations. The district court agreed and dismissed the suit, concluding that Plaintiffs failed to present evidence that discharges from the MS4 caused the exceedences at the Monitoring Stations.[5]
The Ninth Circuit reversed, concluding that CWA “discharges” occurred at the Monitoring Stations when the water flowed out of the concrete channels and back into the “naturally occurring” part of the river.[6] “Because the [Monitoring Stations], as the appropriate locations to measure compliance, for these two rivers are located in a section of the MS4 owned and operated by the District, when pollutants were detected, they had not yet exited the point source into navigable waters. As such, there is no question over who controlled the polluted stormwater at the time it was measured or who caused or contributed to the exceedances when that water was again discharged to the rivers—in both cases, the District.”[7] The District sought certiorari, arguing that the Ninth Circuit’s decision directly contravenes the Supreme Court’s holding in Miccosukee Tribe that “simply transferring water from one portion of a single body of water into another portion cannot constitute the ‘addition’ of pollutants for purposes of the [CWA].”[8]

The Court’s Decision

In a brief five-page decision, a unanimous[9] court reversed – concluding that the Ninth Circuit’s decision violated the holding in Miccosukee Tribe. In that case, the Court sought to determine whether polluted water removed from a canal, transported through a pump station, and deposited into a nearby reservoir constituted a discharge of pollutants under the CWA.[10] The Court looked to the CWA, which defines the term “discharge of a pollutant” as “any addition of any pollutant to navigable waters from any point source.”[11] Miccosukee Tribe held that the water transfer would count as a discharge of pollutants under the CWA only if the canal and the reservoir were “meaningfully distinct water bodies.”[12] In L.A. County, the Court reaffirmed this holding, noting “[u]nder a common understanding of the meaning of the word ‘add,’ no pollutants are ‘added’ to a water body when water is merely transferred between different portions of that water body.”[13] Thus, the Court concluded that under Miccosukee Tribe, “no discharge of pollutants occurs when water, rather than being removed and then returned to a water body, simply flows from one portion of the water body to another.” Since the water at issue here merely flowed from an improved portion of a navigable waterway into an unimproved portion of the same waterway, the Court reversed the Ninth Circuit’s decision.[14]
The Court acknowledged that in briefing and at oral argument, the parties and the United States (as amicus) all agreed that the outflow from the concrete channels did not constitute a discharge under the CWA. However, the Plaintiffs urged the Court to affirm the Ninth Circuit’s result on alternative grounds – that the limitations written into the Permit held the District responsible under the CWA for pollutant exceedences at the Monitoring Stations. The Court noted that not only did this argument fail in the court below, but also that it was “not embraced within, or even touched by, the narrow question on which we granted certiorari.”[15] Thus, the Court chose not to address, and “indicate[d] no opinion on,” these alternative grounds for decision.[16] In doing so, the Court also noted that the District’s Permit had been renewed and modified during the litigation. Unlike the prior Permit which allowed compliance monitoring only at the centralized, in-river Monitoring Stations, the new Permit also requires the District to sample certain end-of-pipe MS4 discharges.[17]

Conclusion

L.A. County reinforced prior Court holdings that the transfer of water from one water body to another does not constitute a discharge under the CWA. Although the case represents a win for the District, it may have influenced changes to the District’s CWA Permit which require the District to monitor certain end-of-pipe MS4 discharges in addition to the centralized, in-stream Monitoring Stations. This change will most likely add to the cost of CWA compliance for the District and perhaps influence changes to the permits of other similarly situated MS4 operators around the country.
For more information regarding L.A. County, please contact Russell Prugh or any member of Marten Law’s Water Quality practice group.

[1] L.A. Cnty. Flood Control Dist. v. Natural Res. Def. Council , No. 11-460 (Jan. 8, 2013). A copy of the decision is available here.
[2] Natural Res. Def. Council, Inc. v. Cnty. of L.A., 673 F.3d 880, 902 (9th Cir. 2011).
[3] 541 U.S. 95, 107 (2004).
[4] See R. Prugh, S. Jones & B. Marten, Unanimous Supreme Court Tells EPA Its Orders Can Be Appealed, Marten Law Environmental News (Mar. 23, 2012) (discussing Sackett v. Envtl. Prot. Agency, 132 S. Ct. 1367 (2012)); Steve Jones, Supreme Court Reasserts Standard for Injunctive Relief in NEPA Cases, Marten Law Environmental News (June 28, 2010) (discussing Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms, 130 S. Ct. 2743 (2010)); Steve Jones, Supreme Court Finds No Permitting Role for EPA When Corps Issues Fill Permits Under Clean Water Act, Marten Law Environmental News (June 23, 2009) (discussing Coeur Alaska, Inc. v. Se. Alaska Conservation Council, 557 U.S. 261 (2009)); Brad Marten, U.S. Supreme Court Holds That Superfund Liability Is Not Joint and Several Where A Reasonable Basis for Apportionment Exists; Court Also Narrows Arranger Liability, Marten Law Environmental News (May 4, 2009) (discussing Burlington N. & Santa Fe Ry. Co. v. United States, 556 U.S. 599 (2009)); Dustin Till, U.S. Supreme Court Limits Rights of Environmental Groups to Challenge Federal Agency Decisions, Marten Law Environmental News (Mar. 5, 2009) (discussing Summers v. Earth Island Inst., 555 U.S. 488 (2009)); S. Brandt-Erichsen, Supreme Court Rules on Preliminary Injunction Standard in Environmental Cases, Marten Law Environmental News (Nov. 13, 2008) (discussing Winters v. Natural Res. Def. Council, Inc., 555 U.S. 7 (2008)).
[5] Natural Res. Def. Council, Inc. v. Cnty. of L.A., No. CV 08-1467 AHM, 2010 WL 761287, at *7-8 (C.D. Cal. 2010).
[6] Cnty. of L.A., 673 F.3d at 900.
[7] Id. at 899.
[8] Petitioner’s Brief, at 22 (citing Miccosukee Tribe, 541 U.S. at 107).
[9] Justice Alito concurred in the judgment and did not join Justice Ginsberg’s opinion.
[10] Miccosukee Tribe, 541 U.S. at 100.
[11] L.A. Cnty. Flood Control Dist., Slip Op. at 3-4 (quoting 33 U. S. C. §1362(12)) (emphasis in opinion).
[12] Miccosukee Tribe, 541 U.S. at 112.
[13] L.A. Cnty. Flood Control Dist., Slip Op. at 4 (citing Webster’s Third New International Dictionary 24 (2002) (“add” means “to join, annex, or unite (as one thing to another) so as to bring about an increase (as in number, size, or importance) or so as to form one aggregate”)).
[14] Id.
[15] Id. at 5.
[16] Id.
[17] Id. at 5 n.2.

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Commonwealth Woodstove Trade-in-Program Closes

Popular renewable thermal program funds more than 750 cleaner stoves

Due to high demand, the Commonwealth Woodstove Change-Out Pilot Program – which provides rebates for the replacement of old, inefficient wood- or coal-burning stoves – closed on Sunday, Jan. 27 and will no longer accept applications.

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List of GE Pittsfield/Housatonic River Project Documents submitted to Repositories from December 2, 2012 through December 15, 2012

Documents submitted to the Berkshire Athenaeum

Letter from Richard Fisher (USEPA) to Richard W. Gates (GE), December 6, 2012, Re: Conditional Approval of General Electric’s November 20, 2012 submittal titled Groundwater Management Area 1, East Street Area 1 LNAPL Volatilization Assessment, GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Michael Gorski (MADEP), December 6, 2012, Re: November 2012 Monthly Status Report; GE Pittsfield ACO/MCP Activities

Letter (with attachments) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dave Dickerson (USEPA), December 7, 2012, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Silver Lake Area (GECD600); Revised Evaluation for Tax Parcel I9-9-34

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA), December 7, 2012, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Monthly Status Report Pursuant to Consent Decree November 2012 (GECD900)

Letter from Kevin G. Mooney (GE) to Robert Van Der Kar (Pittsfield Conservation Commission), December 13, 2012, Re: Notice Relating to the Registry of Properties Adjacent to East Branch of Housatonic River and Subject to Consent Decree for GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

Documents submitted to the Connecticut Repositories

Letter (with attached report) from Richard W. Gates (GE) to Dean Tagliaferro (USEPA), December 7, 2012, Re: GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site; Monthly Status Report Pursuant to Consent Decree November 2012 (GECD900)

Letter from Kevin G. Mooney (GE) to Robert Van Der Kar (Pittsfield Conservation Commission), December 13, 2012, Re: Notice Relating to the Registry of Properties Adjacent to East Branch of Housatonic River and Subject to Consent Decree for GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site

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Register for the 2013 MEES Conference!

Strengthening Communities: Branching Out, Reaching In

Save $15 and register by January 31st.

 

Join us on Wedenesday, March 6, 2013 for the MEES annual Conference.  The theme this year is Strengthening Communities: Branching Out, Reaching In.

 

Join fellow environmental educators and advocates in a day of problem-solving and discussion. Rebuild your excitement and commitment to our natural world and gain a fresh new perspective on the tools of the environmental education trade.

Conference Information:

Wednesday, March 6, 2013
College of the Holy Cross
Hogan Campus Center
Worcester, Massachusetts

Conference Schedule:
8:15-9:00 am – Registration, Coffee, Exhibits
9:00-10:15 am – Session A
10:30-11:45 am -Session B
12:00-12:45 pm – Lunch, Annual Meeting
12:45-1:15 pm -Exhibit Session
1:15-2:30 pm- Session C
2:45-4:00 pm-Session D

Cost: $75 (register by January 31) or $90 (register after January 31) Scholarships and Student rates available!

 

All attendees of MEES’s annual conference are extended an annual membership. Membership entitles you to all the services that MEES provides, including the society’s quarterly e-newsletter, The Observer, and full access to www.massmees.org.

 
For any questions, email Nicole Scola at nscola@massmees.org
For exhibitor information, please contact Alex Dunn at exhibitors@massmees.org

 

Visit our webesite www.massmess.org for more information

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EPA Announces Call for Presentations for 2013 EPA Community Involvement Training Conference

EPA is seeking presentation and training proposals for the 13th EPA Community Involvement Training Conference, July 30 – August 1, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. This three-day conference seeks to inform and train EPA staff as well as Agency stakeholders and partners in best practices to enhance community involvement. The conference features plenary sessions with guest speakers, topical discussions, multiple 90-minute information sessions, and dozens of engaging and interactive training sessions.  Additionally, there will be field trips demonstrating effective community involvement and cooperative conservation efforts in the Boston area, a poster session, exhibits, a technology demonstration area showcasing new tools, technology, and software, and a variety of networking opportunities. In 2011, the conference brought together more than 450 community involvement practitioners. Visit http://www.epa.gov/ciconference/index.htm for more information. Conference presentation and training proposals are being accepted through February 22, 2013 and details can be found at:

http://www.epa.gov/ciconference/cfp_instructions.htm


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News from the EPA Office of Environmental Education:  Upcoming Grant Deadlines

  • Reminder: Deadline to apply for the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmetnal Educators is  January 31, 2013
  • Applications for the National Network for Environmental Management Studies (NNEMS) program for undergraduate and graduate students due February 8, 2013
  • NOAA announces new Environmental Literacy Grants funding opportunity

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Reminder: Deadline to apply for the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators is January 31, 2013

The application period for the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators (PIAEE) closes January 31, 2013. PIAEE recognizes outstanding kindergarten through grade 12 teachers who employ innovative approaches to environmental education and use the environment as a context for learning for their students. To view eligibility and to apply, please visit www.epa.gov/education/teacheraward

 

Applications for the National Network for Environmental Management Studies (NNEMS) program for undergraduate and graduate students due February 8, 2013

The NNEMS program is a comprehensive fellowship program that provides undergraduate and graduate students an opportunity to participate in a fellowship project that is directly related to their field of study. Each year, the NNEMS program offers fellowships developed and sponsored by the EPA Headquarters office in Washington, D.C. and in the EPA’s 10 regional offices and laboratories throughout the United States.

Applications for NNEMS are due February 8, 2013. To view application materials and program materials, visit www.epa.gov/education/NNEMS

 

NOAA announces new Environmental Literacy Grants funding opportunity

NOAA’s Office of Education (OEd) has issued a request for applications for projects designed to build the capacity of informal educators (including interpreters and docents) and/or formal educators (pre- or in-service) to use NOAA data and data access tools to help K-12 students and/or the public understand and respond to global change. Successful projects will enhance educators’ ability to use the wealth of scientific data, data visualizations, data access technologies, information products, and other assets available through NOAA (plus additional sources, if desired) to engage K-12 students and/or other members of the public in a minimum of two U.S. states or territories.
This funding opportunity identifies two priority categories of eligible applicants, both of equal importance. Eligible applicants for Priority 1 are collaborative teams of two or more U.S. institutions. Eligible applicants for Priority 2 are collaborative teams of two or more non-profit U.S. aquariums, of which at least one must be accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Collaborative applicant teams in both Priority 1 and Priority 2 are strongly encouraged to include at least one applicant that has not previously received a grant from NOAA’s Environmental Literacy Grants program. Proposed projects in each priority must be between two and five years in duration and have combined federal requests of $500,000 – $1,000,000 for all years of the project.
*Deadlines*
The deadline for applications to this funding opportunity is 11:59:59 pm EST on March 12, 2013. Applications must be submitted online via www.grants.gov. It is anticipated that awards under this announcement will be made by September 30, 2013 and that the projects funded under this announcement will have a start date no earlier than October 1, 2013.
*Informational Webinar*
Two informational webinars with the program officers will occur on February 5, 2013 from 3:00 to 5:00 pm EST and February 6, 2013, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm EST. By noon EST on February 1, 2013, interested applicants should register by contacting oed.grants@noaa.gov and including in the Subject line of the email: “Register for Educator Capacity Building FFO Webinar” and providing the interested party’s name, institution, telephone number, email address and preferred webinar date in the body of the email. You will receive an email response from oed.grants@noaa.gov with the log-in information and date for the webinar. Whenever possible, individuals from the same institution should try to join the webinar from the same computer/phone line.
*Additional Information*
To read the full funding announcement, visit www.grants.gov.


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2013 Outdoor Nation Paddle Nation Project

 

Applications Due:  February 1, 2013

Outdoor Nation is pleased to announce that it is accepting applications from individuals between the ages of 18 and 28 or 501c3 non-profit organizations who are interested in connecting young Americans with their waterways through recreational paddling.

The Paddle Nation Project is made possible by support and funding from the Outdoor Industry Association Paddle Advisory Council (PAC), Nielson Expositions and National Park Service. The PAC is a coalition of top paddlesports manufacturers, retailers and stakeholders dedicated to advancing and growing participation in paddlesports.

 

A signature program of The Outdoor Foundation and supported by a diverse coalition of public, private and not-for-profit partners, Outdoor Nation and its community of young ‘Outsiders’ are committed to increasing and expanding outdoor youth participation by empowering young leaders to champion the outdoors on campuses and in communities. Over the past year, Outdoor Nation has awarded over $250,000 to youth for projects that reconnect young people with nature.

 

Deadline: Proposals must be submitted to Outdoor Nation by February 1, 2013.

 

Award Amount: Individuals or non-profit organizations can be awarded UP TO $2,500 for requests that are millennial-driven and that work towards creating connections between young people with their local waterways through recreational paddling. Please note that individual grant recipients (non 501c3s) will be required to work with a local community partners on project implementation.  A minimum of 20 projects will be awarded funding along with technical support and guidance from The Outdoor Foundation.

 

Selection and Notification Process: Criteria for The Paddle Nation Project have been established by the Outdoor Foundation and the OIA Paddle Advisory Council.  Based on a rigorous review and selection process, The Outdoor Foundation and PAC will announce the grant recipients on March 1, 2013.

 

Questions: Contact Ivan Levin, Director, Outdoor Nation at ilevin@outdoorfoundation.org with questions regarding this program.
 For more information and to apply see: http://outdoornation.org/grants


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Wanted: Beekeeper apprentice 2013 Northampton MA

from Northampton Honey

 

Alas, our excellent beekeeping apprentice from 2011-2012 has gone off to greener pastures, running a CSA in New York State!

We’re a small beekeeping operation in downtown Northampton, we keep bees at 3 locations and have about 30 hives.

We may try and start a mite resistance queen breeding program based on feral bees at a remote site this year, as well.

 

The operation is run by my wife, Priscilla and myself. We sell all of our honey through River Valley Market and Enterprise farm. We exchange honey for credit and, in essence, are working towards “growing all of our own food”. Our aim is to be “community sufficient” instead of self sufficient where food is concerned.

We’ve had two apprentices in the past 3 years and both of them are still involved with beekeeping.

What we offer is a lot of time with bees. You’ll see the inside of many hives for an entire year.  It’s impossible to overstate the advantage of working side by side with an experienced keeper and seeing many, many hives in a year. It’d take forever to get this kind of experience with a couple of backyard hives. We’ll also likely send you to a couple of Dan Conlon’s early classes so you can get a sense of bee biology.

We don’t use “hard chemical” treatments but do feed bees in spring to encourage early growth and do use some herbal based treatments or mites etc.

In season commitment works out to about 2 hours per week and more when things get really going for about 4 weeks per year.  Since it’s not a paid position we’re not at all strict, but if it’s to be of any value to either of us we’d expect you to want to be around. Beekeeping takes place either on weekends or sometimes on a Wed. or Thurs morning.

Beekeeping, while rewarding, means lifting heavy boxes, getting stung by bees, being very hot in hot weather and sometimes being cold. it also means getting covered with sticky substances. It’s not a picnic but it’s very rewarding and makes you think you’re cooler than you actually are.

It would really be best if you live in Northampton close enough to bike to downtown and or the community gardens.  Driving in from e.g. Conway will not work.

 

Priscilla and I are perfectly nice people that drink espresso and play cribbage. We’ve really enjoyed our last two internes and think we’ll be friends with them for a long time.   In all honesty, training someone up to do this work is as much or more work than doing it ourselves.  But we enjoy the company. If you’re interested please email us at taxonomy@gmail.com

—

Adam
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