Recommendations from a presidentially appointed panel that studied the 2010 Gulf oil spill have drawn a mixed reaction on Capitol Hill. In the Senate, a key Democrat plans to introduce a measure aimed at tightening safety and increasing oversight of offshore drilling. But in the House, Republican leaders gave the panel’s report an icy response. The divided views are likely to stall—or block—legislation to enact the panel’s proposals. Photo: AP/Wideworld Commission co-chairmen Reilly (left) and Graham face Senate and House questions about their panel’s recommendations. The report said there were “systemic” problems in the oil-and-gas industry and recommended changes in
Just as much of the country is deeply divided over political issues, a chasm is emerging between supporters of the Environmental Protection Agency’s greenhouse gas regulations and an array of opponents. Photo: Courtsey Of Fluor Corp. Wet flue gas desulfurization handles sulfur dioxide, but regulations for greenhouse gas emissions would likely require another level of technology development. Photo: Courtsey Of The Shaw Group Scrubber technology may help prolong life for besieged coal-burning plants. Critics say the regulations are an example of overreach by the federal agency, which will both cost jobs and stall major construction projects. Many utilities in the
President Obama has nominated Republican Terence Flynn to serve as a board member of the National Labor Relations Board. If he is confirmed by the Senate, the labor panel will have its full complement of five members. Obama also nominated Lafe Solomon, a Democrat and NLRB veteran, to serve as general counsel. Both will need Senate confirmation, which appears likely. The NLRB has begun to work through the backlog of cases that built up over the 27-month period between January 2008 and April 2010, when there were only two members—Democrat and Chairwoman Wilma Liebman and Republican Peter Schaumber—sitting on the
The House’s newly installed Republican leaders are gearing up to vote to repeal the health-care law enacted last year. Repeal is expected to clear the House. But observers say the legislation probably will languish in the Senate, which is still under Democrats’ control. If that scenario plays out, Republicans’ backup plan is to try to remove pieces of the huge health-care measure. But that also may hit roadblocks in the Senate and at the White House. Incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) told reporters on Jan. 4 that Republicans want to make repealing what he termed the “job-killing” health-
Wastewater utilities, municipalities and states will need to comply with stringent new requirements for nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment under a strict new “pollution diet” announced by the Environmental Protection Agency on Dec. 29. The “diet,” known as the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) establishes a legally enforceable plan to ensure that six states and the District of Columbia meet the new requirements established to restore the Chesapeake Bay to health by 2025. The jurisdictions affected are Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. Critics have charged that the cleanup of the Bay
The Environmental Protection Agency has set a timetable for regulating greenhouse gases from powerplants and oil refineries that some critics say is unrealistic. But environmental advocates say the development of the New Source Performance Standards for greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act is long overdue and will supplement some 75 other New Source Performance Standards already in existence for the power sector and other industries. Photo: Courtesy EPA Powerplants would be regulated under the New Source Performance Standards program. The timetable is part of a settlement reached among EPA and several states—including California, Rhode Island and Massachusetts—and environmental groups,
A major new infrastructure program to reduce or treat raw sewage flowing into Cleveland-area waterways and Lake Erie will move forward, as a result of a Clean Water Act settlement between the U.S. government and the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD) announced Dec. 22. The program includes the construction of seven new tunnels and at least $42 million in green infrastructure projects. Photo: Courtesy of Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District is nearing completion on the Mill Creek Tunnel, which can store 75 millions gallons of combined sewage for treatment at one of its
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has set an ambitious agenda for the next six months. Many of its top priorities, identified in the semi-annual agenda released on Dec. 20, involve the construction industry. While some sources say that OSHA has been revitalized under Assistant Secretary David Michaels, they wonder if the agency might be taking on more than it can accommodate. “OSHA has a lot on its plate,” says Aaron Trippler, director of government affairs for the American Industrial Hygiene Association. “We’re concerned that they may not have the resources to fully address all the issues, such as silica.”
As expected, the Dept. of Justice filed a civil lawsuit against BP and eight other companies involved in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on Dec. 15 in the U.S. District Court in New Orleans. A ruling against the companies could mean billions of dollars for environmental cleanup and restoration work for contractors. In the complaint, the U.S. government alleges violations of federal safety and operational regulations that caused or contributed to the oil spill. The lawsuit seeks civil penalties against eight of the firms under the Clean Water Act and damages “without limitation” under the Oil Pollution act for all
