West
Virginia AG Approves Corporate Water Takeover
(Charleston Gazette 1/3/03)
Last week West Virginia
Attorney General Darrell McGraw said "yes" to a German
conglomerate's takeover of West Virginia-American Water Co. All
of the other 26 states in which American Water Works operates already
have approved the takeover. WV was the last state to clear the $4.6
billion buyout by Germany's RWE and its British subsidiary, Thames
Water. The new agreement, which must be approved by the state Public
Service Commission, addresses the worries McGraw had about handing
over 25 percent of W. Virginians' water supply to a foreign mega-corporation.
RWE/Thames won't be able to export massive amounts of WV's water,
Hughes said, because under the new agreement, RWE/Thames and AWW
agree that they don't own or control the water, and they never will.
Also, AWW can't export any more water from WV than it already does
without PSC approval, according to the agreement. RWE/Thames gives
up its right to use international trade laws to challenge the authority
of state and local regulators, under the new agreement. International
law experts said trade agreements such as GATS and NAFTA could override
state and even federal rules – water-purity standards, for
example, or rate caps. If the PSC adopts it, the WV agreement would
be the stiffest one in the nation for RWE/Thames. |
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North
Carolina Aims to Meet Conservation Goal
(Raleigh News and Observer 1/3/03)
Gov. Mike Easley's administration has started figuring out how the
state can realize former Gov. Jim Hunt's goal of preserving 1 million
acres of open land by 2010. The One North Carolina Naturally program
aims to draw a master map of the undeveloped places most important
to preserve and to protect wildlife and plants, to attract tourists
and to keep waterways clean. The state Department of Environment
and Natural Resources will try to reach the goal by targeting acquisitions
by state and local governments, nonprofits such as the Nature Conservancy
and private donors. Officials aim to develop a map by summer that
shows natural features already preserved, key sites still unprotected
and a plan to preserve the best of what remains at risk. The DENR
is adding up sources of available money before it puts a funding
request before the General Assembly this spring. Various state programs
already pay to develop park lands, to leave farms and forests undeveloped
and to buy land to reduce water pollution. State government has
had to cut spending and raise revenue to close budget shortfalls
of nearly $2.5 billion the past two years, but private groups have
stepped in to the conservation breech. |
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Carolinas'
Water Use Increasing (Charlotte
Observer 12/30/02)
Despite improved technology
and education about conservation, water use in the Carolinas is
growing faster than the population. Most of the increased use is
due to new homes – and the lawns that inevitably go with them.
More and more new homes come with sprinkler systems, which makes
it easy to water, and over water, the lawn. After the drought last
summer, cities and towns are searching for ways to reduce water
use, and many are looking at limiting development as a solution.
Municipalities have tried everything from limiting lawn size to
outright bans on new development. New water deals have become contingent
on smart growth as well, with some cities refusing to sell water
to nearby towns unless they agree to limit their growth rate. For
more on how states can conserve water, please see http://www.serconline.org/waterconservation/pkg_frameset.html.
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Species'
Ranges Shifted by Global Warming
(NY Times 1/2/03)
Global climate change is causing some species to shift both their
ranges and when they start key life events like reproduction or
migration, according to recent studies in the journal Nature. The
increase in global temperature, most likely caused by human produced
greenhouse gasses, has caused the range of some species to shift
as much as 60 miles northward, and has prompted other species to
begin migrating weeks earlier than usual. The studies' authors
estimate that ranges are moving toward the poles at a rate of 4
miles per decade, and that key events are starting about 2 days
earlier every ten years. All of this could cause severe ecological
disruption and species extinction, in part because not all species
are equally affected. Species may become separated, in time or space,
from food or other resources. Pest species, on the other hand, may
escape their natural predators and become an increasing problem
to humans. The authors expressed concern that these dramatic changes
had been caused by only one degree of warming over a century, since
global temperatures are expected to rise at least 2.5 degrees in
the next 100 years. For more information on what your state can
do to protect wildlife, please see http://www.serconline.org/save_wildlife.html. |
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Bill
Addresses Cleanup of Methamphetamine Labs
(Arkansas News Bureau 1/1/03)
People convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine would be responsible
for paying to clean up the labs under Arkansas House Bill 1032.
The bill would require the first $3,000 of any fines levied against
convicted methamphetamine dealers or manufacturers to be placed
in the state's Emergency Response Fund. The state Department of
Environmental Quality would use that money to clean up laboratories,
sites or substances used in the manufacture of the illegal narcotic.
The labs are dangerous because they contain hazardous chemicals
and can be costly to clean up. In the past, the state has relied
on federal funding and grant money to get the necessary money to
clean up the labs. Many small towns do not have enough money to
clean up meth. labs, which have become dangers to the community. |
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States
Sue EPA over New Clean Air Rules
(Star-Tribune 12/31/2002)
The Bush administration issued rules last week to make it easier
for industrial plants and refineries to modernize without having
to buy expensive pollution controls – and immediately was sued by
nine states charging that the changes undermine their efforts to
protect public health. The US EPA regulations, which go into effect
in March, amount to a major change in the way older industrial plants
will have to deal with air pollution when they expand, make major
repairs or modify operations to increase efficiency. While the administration
called the new approach badly needed to remove barriers to innovation
and increased productivity, the lawsuit – filed only hours after
the changes became final – argues that new breaks given industry
amount to a "gutting" of the 1970 law that has been responsible
for substantial air quality improvements over the past three decades.
The more relaxed requirements "will bring more acid rain, more
smog, more asthma, and more respiratory diseases to millions of
Americans," said New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, calling
them "a betrayal of the right of Americans to breathe clean
healthy air." Along with NY, eight other Northeastern states
– Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New
Jersey, Rhode Island and Vermont – joined in the lawsuit. Among
the changes to become effective in March: -Companies will be given
greater flexibility to modernize or expand without having to install
new pollution controls, although the changes may lead to greater
air emissions. -Plants that have installed state-of-the-art pollution
controls will be assured they will not be required for 10 years
to install more effective equipment even if they expand or change
operations in a way that results in greater pollution. -Plants with
numerous pollution sources may increase pollution from some sources
as long as overall, plant-wide air emissions are not increased.
-Companies are given greater leeway in calculating pollution to
reduce the likelihood that new pollution controls will be required.
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New
Jersey Requires Carbon Monoxide Detectors in All Homes
(Atlantic City Press 1/6/03)
Homes in New Jersey must have a carbon-monoxide detector by next
month. However, the new state regulations will be focused on newly
constructed homes, existing homes that are being sold, and those
undergoing significant renovation. Carbon monoxide is the leading
cause of accidental poisoning deaths in the United States. The state's
push for the detectors was prompted by a series of carbon monoxide
poisonings statewide. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless
gas that can deprive the body of oxygen. Exposure can produce headaches,
sleepiness, fatigue, confusion and irritability. At higher levels,
symptoms can include irregular heartbeat, impaired vision, loss
of coordination and death. Sources of carbon monoxide include unvented
kerosene and gas space heaters, gas water heaters, wood stoves,
leaking chimneys and furnaces, fireplaces and gas stoves. Automobile
exhaust in unvented garages also is a serious threat. Area construction
officials said the new regulation probably will cost a homeowner
about $45 per carbon monoxide detector. |
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2003
National Wetlands Awards Nominations Due Jan 10, 2003
The National Wetlands Awards Program honors individuals from across
the country that have demonstrated extraordinary effort, innovation,
and excellence through programs or projects at the regional, state,
or local level. The deadline for nomination forms for the 2003 National
Wetlands Awards is January 10, 2003 (postmarked). The program is
co-sponsored by the Environmental Law Institute, U.S.EPA, U.S.D.A.
Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine
Fisheries Service, and Natural Resources Conservation Service. Awards
are given for the following categories: Education/Outreach, Science
Research, Volunteer Leadership, Land Stewardship and Development,
and Outstanding Wetlands Program Development. To download the nomination
form, please visit http://www.eli.org/nwa/nwaprogram.htm.
For more information about the National Wetlands Awards Program,
please e-mail wetlandsawards@eli.org,
or contact Erica Pencak at 202-939-3822. |
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