Greenwire http://www.eenews.net/gw The leader in energy & environmental policy news en-us Fri May 24 14:03:36 -0400 2013 A federal district judge yesterday dismissed an effort by conservation groups to force U.S. EPA to regulate lead bullets as an environmental toxin, showing broad deference to the agency in light of a recent Supreme Court ruling. SPOTLIGHT Fri May 24 14:03:36 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981797/feed House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) yesterday reintroduced the "Regulatory Accountability Act," a rulemaking reform measure that passed the House but failed to be taken up in the Senate last Congress. Top Stories Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981813/feed President Obama will nominate former New York Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle (R), a tea party ally, to serve as commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the White House announced last night. Top Stories Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981808/feed A liberal energy watchdog group today said it has evidence the State Department inspector general is looking into allegations of bias by the new contractor hired to review the Keystone XL pipeline, an outcome that would hand fresh political capital to the $5.3 billion oil project's opponents. Top Stories Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981810/feed President Obama is nominating a scientist and former Interior Department official to be the second in command at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Politics Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981795/feed The bridge collapse last night on Interstate 5 in Washington state is not an example of aging infrastructure that's crumbling around the country and isn't likely to produce an influx of new funding, a leading transportation expert predicted today. But it may reignite the national debate over how to pay for transportation and infrastructure projects. Politics Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981815/feed President Obama has nominated William Ira Althen to be a member of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, a key panel tasked with overseeing mine safety enforcement, the White House said yesterday. Politics Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981809/feed U.S. EPA is one of several agencies that is closed today to save money during sequestration. Politics Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981800/feed Energy storage for residential or commercial use would be eligible for sizable investment tax credits under a bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate yesterday. Congress Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981811/feed U.S. EPA would be barred from promulgating rules that would require coal-fired power plants to use carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology until CCS is determined to be "technologically and economically feasible" under a bill reintroduced yesterday by West Virginia's entire House delegation. Congress Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981807/feed A House Republican has updated his recurring energy bill this year to include a phaseout of a key renewable energy tax credit, marking the first inclusion in formal legislation of an idea the wind industry floated last year. Congress Fri May 24 13:19:28 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981798/feed Alaska's sole lawmaker in the House of Representatives, Rep. Don Young (R), skipped a Natural Resources Committee hearing this week on Alaskan oil legislation while he was hunting in Africa. Congress Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981778/feed Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) proposed a bill that would create a National Conservation Area of 350,000 acres at Gold Butte in Nevada. Congress Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981779/feed The Bureau of Land Management failed to ensure the protection of endangered fish and birds before finalizing a plan to significantly reduce the amount of lands available for oil shale development in the West, according to a coalition of environmental groups threatening to sue the agency. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981814/feed A liberal watchdog group that has locked horns with the Bureau of Land Management in recent months over oil and natural gas drilling on public lands is accusing BLM's Colorado office of failing to implement federal leasing reforms that are supposed to reduce time-consuming protests by better balancing development and conservation. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981796/feed With the backing of big-name financiers, the American Prairie Reserve plans to reintroduce up to 10,000 genetically pure bison on sparsely settled Montana scrubland. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981789/feed The Fish and Wildlife Service yesterday said it would continue to list the Preble's meadow jumping mouse as threatened, saying human development still threatens the animal's habitat along streams in Colorado and eastern Wyoming. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981791/feed While no states and almost no communities require residential storm shelters, officials in tornado-ravaged Moore, Okla., are considering it. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981781/feed The group that last fall dumped 100 tons of iron sulfate into the Pacific Ocean to revive salmon populations has removed its lead scientist, Russ George. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981783/feed Google Street View users will soon be able to get a closer look at the remote volcanic islands whose exotic creatures inspired Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Natural Resources Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981784/feed An Alaska oil and gas trade group has filed a lawsuit challenging the Commerce Department's decision to list two seal species as threatened, arguing the Arctic mammals face no immediate threats and that their populations are thriving. Law Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981793/feed The owner of a Mississippi environmental lab was convicted yesterday of falsifying records and lying to federal investigators. Law Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981804/feed A Chicago commodities trading firm has accused three major oil firms of colluding to fix oil prices a week after European Union officials opened a similar investigation. Law Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981790/feed Four states hosting nuclear power plants are accusing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of using a flawed process for determining how long pools and concrete structures holding spent reactor fuel can linger in their communities. Energy Fri May 24 13:19:29 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981799/feed Facing criticism in recent weeks from the U.S. ethanol industry and lawmakers, Brazilian sugar cane ethanol producers are touting their product and urging Congress to maintain its inclusion in the renewable fuel standard. Energy Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981806/feed French nuclear services company Areva SA no longer estimates a date for building an Idaho uranium enrichment plant, aiming to restrain expectations while it continues to look for financing. Energy Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981785/feed Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) and National Security Agency officials are certain they can broker a deal to avoid taxing the new Utah Data Center on millions of dollars in electricity required to run the massive server farm. Energy Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981788/feed The Interior Department's top watchdog has concluded a 17-month review of an independent audit that found that roughly two-thirds of federal cash spent in recent years by a foundation connected to the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka, Kan., was unreasonable, unsupported or simply unallowable. Federal Agencies Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981803/feed The Bureau of Land Management has reimbursed employees for travel expenses despite missing documentation, expense errors and lax oversight, according to a new report from the Interior Department's inspector general. Federal Agencies Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981805/feed Just in time for the Memorial Day holiday, the Department of Transportation announced this week it would provide $3.7 billion in disaster relief to transit agencies in New York and New Jersey that were affected by Superstorm Sandy. Transportation Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981812/feed Delta Air Lines Inc., the first airline carrier to venture into the refining business, is intentionally driving down the price of fuel to increase profits. Transportation Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981776/feed The federal-state panel that will oversee billions of dollars expected to flow to the Gulf Coast from civil fines related to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill yesterday released an initial draft plan for how to spend the money on restoring the region's ecosystems and economies. Air and Water Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981802/feed The European Union authorized restrictions on three pesticides today in an effort to protect declining bee populations. Chemicals Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981794/feed A new California Assembly bill would be the first to try to cut down on plastic pollution in the ocean. States Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981782/feed Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) has enacted a solar energy standard that will require investor-owned utilities to obtain 1.5 percent of their power from solar energy by 2020. States Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981792/feed A California Senate committee voted to hold 72 measures that would have imposed taxes on behaviors and items including plastic bags and oil extraction. States Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981775/feed Brazil is slated to auction off rights to explore and produce oil at the giant Libra field, the country's biggest oil find so far. International Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981780/feed A new rule in China aimed at cutting emissions could instead provide a boost to oil companies. International Fri May 24 13:19:30 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981787/feed The Bolivian government plans to spend twice as much on oil and natural gas exploration next year. International Fri May 24 13:19:31 -0400 2013 http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981786/feed