Related Links: EPA blog post announcing draft proposal action EPA background on "Waters of the U.S.," including links to court cases Supreme Court Decision Leaves Wetlands Definition Murky (ENR 6/19/06) The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers have moved forward on a proposed rule that the agencies say aims to spell out more clearly which bodies of water fall under federal regulatory jurisdiction and which do not.EPA and the Corps said they had sent the draft proposal on Sept. 17 to the White House Office of Management and Budget, which now will coordinate a review of the proposal
Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Savannah District House bill would authorize channel deepening at Savannah Harbor and 22 other projects. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee House committee's "whiteboard" video on the need for the water-resources bill Related Links: Link to summary and text of bill Link to House committee "whiteboard" video on need for the water resources bill The drive to put the first new Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) on the books in more than five years picked up some steam on Sept. 11, when House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster introduced a measure
Related Links: Court Tells NRC To Resume Review of Yucca Mountain Proposal Despite a recent federal court directive and pressure from Republican lawmakers to move forward with a review of the stalled Yucca Mountain nuclear-waste repository, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has not yet decided on its next step. However, the NRC has set in motion a process to help it determine what that future action will be, its chairman says.The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled on Aug. 13 that NRC violated a federal energy law when it halted its review of a Dept of
Related Links: Bureau of Labor Statistics release, with data tables Associated General Contractors of America release, analysis Associated Builders and Contractors release, analysis The construction industry’s jobless rate leveled off in August at 9.1%, the same as July’s rate, but improved from the August 2012 mark of 11.3%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported.The BLS August employment numbers, released on Sept. 6, showed that construction’s jobs total last month also was flat, compared with July’s figure.The August bright spots among construction sectors were residential specialty trade contractors, which gained 4,900 jobs, and heavy-civil engineering construction, which added 1,200.All other
Image courtesy of Kansas City Streetcar Authority Planned Kansas City streetcar line won $20-million grant, the largest in the fifth TIGER round. Related Links: DOT list of TIGER grant winners, amounts for 2013 round The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has announced that 52 projects—including highways, bridge, transit, ports, rail and pedestrian paths—will share $474 million in grants in the latest round of its popular TIGER program.In announcing the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program winners on Sept. 5, DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx told reporters, “TIGER has helped get large, multimodal projects off the ground that would otherwise struggle to find
Related Links: Labor Dept. Affirmative-Action Rules Draw Construction Groups' Ire (enr.com 8/28/13) Associated Builders and Contractors statement Associated General Contractors of America statement Two newly issued Labor Dept. affirmative-action rules for federal contractors have sparked harsh criticism from construction- contractor organizations.The final rules, which Labor announced on Aug. 27, set new requirements for federal contractors in recruiting and hiring veterans and people with disabilities.The department says the regulations will provide more job opportunities for people in those groups. Advocacy groups for veterans and people with disabilities viewed Labor's move as a positive step. But Sherman Gillums Jr., a Paralyzed Veterans
Photo by Don Wilson, Port of Seattle Port Support Senators Murray and Cantwell say their tax proposal would recapture for U.S. ports, such as Seattle, freight now moving through ports in Canada and Mexico. Related Links: Focus on Water-Resources Bill Shifts to the House (ENR 6/3/13) Lawmakers Eye Harbor Maintenance Fund's Surplus (ENR 2/11/13) Washington state's U.S. senators, Democrats Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, want to repeal the harbor maintenance tax (HMT), a major funding source for dredging projects, and replace it with a new fee on maritime freight. They say their plan, announced on Aug. 15, would double funding
Related Links: Summary of Labor Dept. rule regarding veterans (with links to text of rule, other info) Summary of Labor Dept. regulation applying to individuals with disabilities (with links to rule, other data) The Labor Dept. has issued a pair of final rules that set new requirements for federal contractors in recruiting and hiring veterans and individuals with disabilities. The department says the regulations, announced on Aug. 27, will provide more job opportunities for people in those groups.But major construction contractor organizations blasted the rules, particularly their new record-keeping requirements, and say they are studying possible court challenges.Both regulations are
Photo by Tony Bodway, Silica/Milling Machine Partnership NIOSH-industry-labor partnership has been testing anti-silica-dust options, such as this water sprayer system, on milling equipment. Related Links: Links to OSHA fact sheets on proposal: overview, construction provisions, FAQs, etc. Text of proposed OSHA silica rule After more than a decade of study and review, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has proposed a much tighter limit on how much airborne silica dust workers can be exposed to, a move that agency officials say will prevent hundreds of deaths and illnesses among construction workers each year.The long-awaited proposal, which OSHA released on Aug.
Related Links: Bureau of Labor Statistics report on 2012 fatal occupational injuries (preliminary figures) Link to download NIOSH ladder-safety mobile app Construction workplace fatalities rose 5% in 2012, the first annual increase in six years, and the industry’s fatality rate also increased, reports the Labor Dept.'s Bureau of Labor Statistics.According to the latest BLS annual report on fatal occupational injuries, released on Aug. 22, there were 775 workplace deaths in the private construction industry last year, compared with 738 in 2011.The 2012 figures are preliminary; BLS will release updated, final data in April.The industry’s 2012 fatality rate also went up,
