In a settlement with federal agencies, BP Exploration Alaska Inc. has agreed to pay a $25-million civil penalty for two crude-oil spills in 2006 from its pipelines on Alaska's North Slope, the U.S. Justice Dept. says. Related Links: BP Closes Prudhoe Over Corroded Pipes House Lawmakers Slam BP for Alaska Pipeline Maintenance The settlement was spelled out in a consent decree filed on May 3 in federal district court in Alaska. Under the settlement, BP Alaska also will put in place a pipeline-integrity program, including regular inspections. The estimated cost of the program is $60 million. BP said in a
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has sent a final notice to New Jersey, directing the state to repay $271 million in federal funds for a $9.1-billion commuter-rail tunnel project that its governor, Chris Christie, (R) canceled last October. Related Links: Blurry Tunnel Vision Huge N.J.-N.Y. Commuter Link Halted 30 Days for Cost Review The Access to the Region's Core (ARC), conceived before Christie took office in January 2010, was to be a nine-mile-long commuter rail link running under the Hudson River, from Secaucus, N.J., to midtown Manhattan. In a final decision issued on April 29, U.S. DOT's Federal Transit Administration
MARTELLY Fifteen months after an earthquake devastated Haiti's capital, the country's newly elected president, Michel Martelly, says he recognizes that he and his nation face a major rebuilding task. Speaking after an April 20 meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington, D.C., Martelly said, through an interpreter, “Clearly, I have huge challenges in front of me, but I intend to meet them.” He added, “The reconstruction process is despairingly slow.” Martelly, a former entertainer, said that 1.7 million Haitians “still live under tents” and that, unless more people are vaccinated against cholera, the epidemic could widen with the
The State Dept. is pushing ahead with plans to embrace “design excellence” in its embassy construction program, using some elements for a new U.S. embassy in London, now in design, and fleshing out details through a series of documents that will spell out specific Design Excellence program guidelines. Photo: U.S. Department of State / Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations / Timothy Hursley The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations used some Design Excellence elements as it planned and built an embassy in Beijing that was completed in 2008. Image: U.S. Dept. of State/Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations For the new U.S.
An appellate court has rejected a National Roofing Contractors Association challenge to an Occupational Safety and Health Administration's directive on fall protection in residential construction. The directive, issued in December 2010, takes effect on June 16. It rescinds OSHA's 1999 guidelines, which allowed roofing and residential contractors to use “alternative” methods, such as slide guards—also called “roof brackets”—to protect workers. The new directive discards that option, except in narrow circumstances, and requires contractors to have written fall-protection plans. In a ruling issued on April 7, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said that because the OSHA directive was not
The Senate has approved the nomination of Peter Lyons, a former Nuclear Regulatory Commission member, to be the Dept. of Energy's assistant secretary for nuclear energy. Lyons, who was confirmed on April 14, has been acting assistant secretary in DOE's nuclear office since November 2010. The Nuclear Energy Institute supports Lyons' confirmation, saying he always has advocated high standards for nuclear plant safety.
Citing limited Highway Trust Fund revenue, Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) has floated the idea of a two-year highway bill. The Obama administration has proposed a six-year highway-transit authorization, a span many in industry like. At an April 14 Environment and Public Works Committee hearing, Baucus said if currently projected trust-fund revenue were spread over six years, annual highway spending in that period would be cut to $28 billion from $42 billion now. Baucus says, unless new revenue is found, a shorter bill that the trust-fund can finance at $42 billion a year, may be better than a six-year measure with
The simmering debate over how to cut the federal budget deficit is heating up, with the April 13 release of President Obama's outline for shrinking the budget gap squaring off against House Republicans' deficit-trimming plan, drafted by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (Wis.) and approved by the chamber on April 15. Photo: Courtesy of House Republican Conference Duel begins between budget plans from the House GOP’s Ryan and Obama. Photo: Pete Souza Both proposals would slice non-defense domestic spending, which could hit construction programs. Construction officials welcome the fiscal focus. The proposals aim to slash the deficit by about $4
Republican governors in Ohio, Wisconsin and Florida grabbed headlines by rejecting federal high-speed-rail funds awarded to their states, but many other governors—Democrats and Republicans—are hungry for the money that was turned back. In a signal that demand for rail money still outpaces supply, the U.S. Dept. of Transportation has received almost $10 billion in requests for shares of $2 billion in rail aid Florida rejected earlier this year. DOT Secretary Ray LaHood said on April 6 that 24 states, the District of Columbia and Amtrak submitted more than 90 applications for the money Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) turned back.
In a move welcomed by construction groups and other business organizations, Congress has cleared a bill to repeal a tax-reporting provision of last year's health-care law. Final congressional approval came on April 5, when the Senate passed the measure on a 87-12 vote. The House had approved the bill on March 3. The measure now goes to the White House for President Obama's expected signature. After the Senate vote, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney issued a statement saying that "we are pleased Congress has acted to correct a flaw that placed an unnecessary bookkeeping burden on small businesses." The
