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Environmental NewsLinks for the Rochester, NY area

Posted Today - Friday, February 03, 2012

Indian Point fire rules affirmed - Times Union WHITE PLAINS — Federal regulators said Wednesday they have denied most of the fire-safety exemptions sought by the owner of the Indian Point nuclear plants near New York City. The state attorney general called the rulings "a major victory for the safety of millions of New Yorkers." The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said it turned down 42 of the 50 exemptions requested three years ago by Entergy Nuclear after new NRC standards were imposed. (February 2, 2012) Albany, Troy, Schenectady, Saratoga News, Weather, Sports, Capitol | timesunion.com - Times Union [more on Energy in our area]
Painted Post water deal moves forward - Corning, NY - The Corning Leader Painted Post, N.Y. — The Village of Painted Post is closing in on a deal that could earn it $2.6 million annually by selling water to companies drilling for natural gas in Pennsylvania, officials said Tuesday. The potential deal recently cleared another hurdle when Ingersoll-Rand officials signed off on a plan to develop a facility that will fill railroad tanker cars and tanker trucks at the company’s old foundry site, located at the end of West Water Street near Hodgman Park. (January 31, 2012) Homepage - Corning, NY - The Corning Leader [more on Fracking in our area]
Bird numbers plummet around stricken Fukushima plant - Asia - World - The Independent Researchers working around Japan's disabled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant say bird populations there have begun to dwindle, in what may be a chilling harbinger of the impact of radioactive fallout on local life. In the first major study of the impact of the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years, the researchers, from Japan, the US and Denmark, said their analysis of 14 species of bird common to Fukushima and Chernobyl, the Ukrainian city which suffered a similar nuclear meltdown, showed the effect on abundance is worse in the Japanese disaster zone. (February 3, 2012) The Independent | News | UK and Worldwide News | Newspaper [more on Energy in our area]
"Gasland" Director Josh Fox Arrested at Congressional Hearing on Natural Gas Fracking The Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Josh Fox was handcuffed and arrested Wednesday as he attempted to film a congressional hearing on the controversial natural gas drilling technique known as fracking, which the Environmental Protection Agency recently reported caused water contamination in Pavillion, Wyoming. Fox directed the award-winning film, "Gasland," which documents the impact of fracking on communities across the United States, and is now working on a sequel. (February 2, 2012) A daily TV/radio news program, hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, airing on over 900 stations, pioneering the largest community media collaboration in the United States. [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - Climate action plan still on the table in St. Lawrence County St. Lawrence County legislators are scheduled to take another look at a Climate Action Plan next week. When legislators asked the County Planning Department to write the plan last March, they wanted ways to save money by being more energy efficient. The climate plan was tabled last summer, when students and professors at the four universities in Canton and Potsdam started a cost-benefit analysis of some ideas in the plan. (February 2, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Climate Change in our area]
Federal Government Opens More Ocean to Wind Projects - NYTimes.com Enthusiasm for offshore wind projects may have cooled among developers in the United States these days, but the Obama administration is still trying to make a ribbon of wind farms off the Atlantic Coast a reality. On Thursday, Ken Salazar, the secretary of the interior, and Tommy P. Beaudreau, the director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, said the government had completed an environmental review and found that selling leases for wind energy would not create environmental problems in the designated “wind energy areas” off the coasts of Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey and Delaware. (February 2, 2012) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia [more on Wind Power in our area]
Scrappin' for a tidy profit | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Their number has grown — and continues to grow, they say — as a bad economy, a growing need for recycled metals and high prices paid for scrap drive competition. They know the tricks of the trade — head out early in the day, disassemble appliances to cull out the most valuable metals from the least — and they acknowledge they are sometimes looked upon with suspicion and wariness due to myriad news reports of the theft of copper piping from vacant homes, steel grates from city streets and aluminum tables from town parks. (February 3, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Recycling in our area]

News Highlight:

Photo: 100_2357 & 100_2356 = Photo credits: Steve Rosenfeld (Board), Hugh Mitchell (Sierra Club), Jim Howe (Director) .Hugh Mitchell Receives The Nature Conservancy “Friend of the Land” Award

For many years Hugh Mitchell worked to preserve the rare and beautiful Hemlock/Canadice Lakes Areas.

His efforts were recognized by the Central & Western NY Nature Conservancy by the award of a plaque which Reads, “In recognition of your role in permanently protecting the Hemlock/Canadice Lakes.”

Although Rochester City had done a good job over 135 years protecting the Upland Watershed of These reservoir lakes, because of budget shortages they were anxious to sell the 7,200 acres to New York State. This transfer was accomplished in June 2010 after more than 30 years of effort to permanently protect the land.

(Above scripts from Dynamic Drive)

Interested in specific NewsLinks Issues? Check these NewsLinks pages:

Global Environmental News Get environmental news from around the world. The Internet is especially handy at providing environmental news from major environmental news sources, from major media with environmental sections, from government, about businesses turning green, getting environmental news from multimedia sources and blogs where you can interact with others about our environment.

Posted earlier this month

These article are in order they were posted with the most recent at the top.

Clarkson receives $1.4 million to study contaminants in Great Lakes fish | NorthCountryNow POTSDAM -- Clarkson University has received $1.4 million to monitor formerly untraceable contaminants to water supply by studying the effects on fish in each of the Great Lakes. The Environmental Protection Agency Great Lakes Program grant, for $1,407,003 will not only follow and research long-documented substances and contaminants, but unlock information regarding undiscovered, low-level contaminants. (January 31, 2012) News & Info for Potsdam, Massena, Ogdensburg, Canton, Gouverneur & St. Lawrence County, NY | NorthCountryNow [more on Great Lakes in our area]
Southern Tier sees increase in bobcat population | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com Reports of bobcat sightings have surged in the Southern Tier and elsewhere over a few short years, spurring state officials to propose a dramatic expansion in the swath of New York where the rare felines can be hunted and trapped. The state Department of Environmental Conservation's five-year bobcat management plan, released late last month, proposes a harvest expansion area that includes parts of 24 counties. (February 1, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Wildlife in our area]
Solar firm courting foreign investment for Rochester facility | Innovation Trail Executives from foreign solar companies are descending on Rochester over the next couple of weeks, to hear a pitch from Natcore Technology. “What we’re saying is, ‘If you want our technology, you have to take a hard look at it here,’ ” says Natcore CEO Chuck Provini. (February 1, 2012) Innovation Trail [more on Solar Power in our area]
Ohio Tries to Escape Fate as a Dumping Ground for Fracking Fluid - Businessweek The millions of gallons of chemical- laced wastewater that fracking produces must flow somewhere, and Ohio is trying not to be that place. The oil and natural-gas drilling boom spurred more permits for disposal wells there during the past two years than during the previous decade combined. The volume injected into them was on a near-record pace last year, according to the Department of Natural Resources, and more than half was from out of state. That included 92.6 percent of the water sent to a Youngstown well closed last year after 11 nearby earthquakes. (February 2, 2012) Businessweek - Business News, Stock Market & Financial Advice [more on Fracking in our area]
NIH offers to evaluate Le Roy students for free | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com LE ROY — The National Institutes of Health has offered to evaluate the LeRoy High School students exhibiting involuntary tics and verbal outbursts for free, and state Health Department tests of the school's drinking water turned up nothing out of the ordinary, the state health commissioner said Wednesday. Dr. Nirav Shah, the commissioner, announced in a written statement released late in the day that an agreement had been struck with the NIH that would allow the students to travel to Bethesda, Md., for testing at no cost to their families. February 2, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Environmental Health in our area]
Le Roy officials: Speculation harmful | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Although some environmental activists continue to link a cluster of afflicted students in Le Roy to a spill of toxic chemicals in the Genesee County town 41 years ago, school officials reiterated Monday there is no evidence the two situations are connected. They said the school is safe, and that continuing national attention to the students' unusual neurological symptoms is distracting the student body and setting back the recovery of those who are afflicted. (January 31, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Environmental Health in our area]
EPA Doing Testing In LeRoy In Response To Community Concerns! - Rochester, News, Weather, Sports, and Events - 13WHAM.com LeRoy, N.Y. - On the very day two environmental groups called for more testing in LeRoy, we learned the EPA is testing drums of soil on the site of a 1970's train derailment. The drums contain rocks and soil taken during groundwater testing at the derailment site. It is a Superfund Clean-up site and is located off of Gulf Road, about four miles from the high school. EPA Spokeswoman Mary Mears told us she doubts the material is hazardous but says the EPA agreed to the testing "in response to community concerns." (January 31, 2012) Home - Rochester, News, Weather, Sports, and Events - 13WHAM.com [more on Environmental Health in our area]
01/31/2012: EPA To Provide Nearly $10 Million to Clean Up Beaches Across the Nation/The agency launches improved website for beach advisories and closures WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced that it will provide $9.8 million in grants to 38 states, territories and tribes to help protect the health of swimmers at America’s beaches. The agency also launched an improved website for beach advisories and closings, which will allow the public to more quickly and easily access the most current water quality and pollution testing information for more than 6,000 U.S. beaches. The website, called BEACON, has the capability to update as frequently as every two hours based on new data provided by states, territories and tribes. Users will have access to mapped location data for beaches and water monitoring stations, monitoring results for various pollutants such as bacteria and algae, and data on public notification of beach water quality advisories and closures. For the first time, users can also access reports that combine notifications and water quality monitoring data. The enhanced system also uses enhanced map navigation and report display tools. (January 31, 2012) U.S. EPA Newsroom - News Releases [more on Water Quality in our area]
Earth's Energy Budget Remained Out of Balance Despite Unusually Low Solar Activity A new NASA study underscores the fact that greenhouse gases generated by human activity — not changes in solar activity — are the primary force driving global warming. The study offers an updated calculation of the Earth's energy imbalance, the difference between the amount of solar energy absorbed by Earth's surface and the amount returned to space as heat. The researchers' calculations show that, despite unusually low solar activity between 2005 and 2010, the planet continued to absorb more energy than it returned to space. James Hansen, director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City, led the research. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics published the study last December. (January 30, 2012) NASA - Home [more on Climate Change in our area]
The World Today - 25,000 ducks killed in avian flu campaign 31/01/2012 ELEANOR HALL: In Victoria, authorities are working to contain the first confirmed outbreak of the avian flu in Australia for 15 years. Twenty-five-thousand ducks are being killed at a farm north of Melbourne after the virus was detected there last week. Victoria's Department of Primary Industries says there's no risk to human health but that they need to kill the birds to stop the virus from spreading. (January 31, 2012) The World Today - News & Current Affairs Radio [more on Environmental Health in our area]
Negotiations: U.N. pitches Rio+20 talks as a departure from political strife over climate change -- 01/31/2012 -- www.eenews.net UNITED NATIONS -- This summer's sustainable development conference in Brazil, known as Rio+20, is emerging as an overt attempt by U.N. officials to shift away from the divisive politics of climate change to a broader debate on the green economy and how to bring it to developing nations. On the heels of arguably little movement on an international climate pact during U.N.-sponsored talks in South Africa, Mexico and Denmark, officials here now say they view Rio+20 as a way to get past intractable policy fights between developed and developing nations over greenhouse gas emissions cuts, to focus on core issues like trade and technology. (January 31, 2012) E&E Publishing -- The Premier Information Source for Professionals Who Track Environmental and Energy Policy. [more on Climate Change in our area]
Fracturing site to detail what's in the water - Houston Chronicle Companies working in Texas oil fields must disclose the amount of water and the mix of chemicals they use in hydraulic fracturing starting Wednesday, under a new rule heralded by industry and environmentalists as a big transparency improvement. The rule, passed in last year's legislative session, requires service companies or suppliers to provide the well operators with the name of each chemical ingredient and to register this information on a national website, FracFocus, created for this purpose. (February 1, 2012) Houston News, Sports, Business, and Entertainment - The Houston Chronicle at Chron.com - Houston Chronicle [more on Fracking in our area]
How the Stimulus Revived the Electric Car - ProPublica A common criticism of President Obama's $800 billion stimulus package has been that it failed to produce anything – that while the New Deal built bridges and dams, all the stimulus did was fill some potholes and create temporary jobs. Don't tell that to Annette Herrera. She was 50 when the auto supplier she worked for in Westland, Mich., closed its factory and moved the work to Mexico. Then, after being unemployed for 2½ years, she got a job in October 2010 with A123 Systems, which had received $250 million in stimulus money to help open a new lithium-ion battery plant in nearby Romulus, Mich. (February 1, 2012) ProPublica [more on Transportation in our area]
House plan drops high-speed rail | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com WASHINGTON — House Republicans unveiled a five-year, $260 billion transportation plan Tuesday that would drop further development of high-speed rail and give governors more say in how to spend federal money. The percentage of federal transportation money New York would receive for highways, bridges and mass transit won't be released until today. (February 1, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Transportation in our area]
Texas Heat and Drought Caused by Global Warming, NASA's Hansen Says | InsideClimate News Temperature data shows the Texas heat wave wouldn't have occurred without warming, Hansen claims. Others aren't ready to draw such a definitive conclusion. For three months last summer, temperatures in Texas soared higher than at any time in recorded history, and the state is still coping with the most expensive drought in its history. But can the 2011 Texas heat wave be attributed to global warming? Most scientists are careful not to link specific weather events to climate change trends, but NASA's James Hansen and two colleagues from the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Columbia University have taken that plunge. They've gathered data they say shows that the 2011 Texas and Oklahoma heat wave—as well as a deadly Moscow heat in 2010—were "a consequence of global warming because their likelihood was negligible prior to the recent rapid global warming." (January 31, 2012) | InsideClimate News [more on Climate Change in our area]
Research project to track bird migration hot spots on Superior shore An Algoma University professor plans to plant microphones along the shore of Lake Superior next fall to help find migratory hot spots that could be affected by wind energy development. “It’s important to try not to put developments in areas which are intensively used (by migrating birds), or maybe used by endangered species, and we really don’t have a good handle on that information,” said Jennifer Foote, an assistant professor in Algoma U.’s biology department who is behind the research. (January 26, 2012) The Sault Star - Ontario, CA [more on Wind Power in our area]
Wayne County town of Sodus gets $1.3M for water system - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Wayne County, N.Y. — U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer announced today the town of Sodus in Wayne County will to receive a $1.3 million to upgrade its drinking-water system to improve water quality and meet health and safety standards. (January 30, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Water Quality in our area]
44 Senators Behind Keystone Bill Took $22.3 Million in Campaign Cash from Big Oil « EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement Forty-four Senators who introduced legislation today backing the controversial Keystone XL pipeline received $22.3 million in campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry since 1989, according to analysis by 350.org and Public Campaign Action Fund. The figures reflected data coded by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics and available on their website and include contributions through Sept. 30, 2011. Fourth quarter filings are due to the Federal Election Commission tomorrow. The bill, which was announced on Jan. 30 by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and cosponsored by 42 GOP senators and one Democratic Senator, would approve the Keystone XL project despite the Obama Administration’s rejection of its permit following months of intensifying protest against it and studies downplaying its potential economic impact. (January 31, 2012) EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement
International plan to govern Lake Ontario levels - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Albany, N.Y. — A new plan for controlling Lake Ontario water levels is intended to restore diversity among shoreline plants and animals by permitting greater fluctuations, a U.S.-Canadian treaty organization said Monday. The International Joint Commission said the lake would be allowed to be a few inches higher, on average, in spring and fall than current regulations allow. Similar proposals in recent years were withdrawn after protests from shoreline residents and businesses. (January 30, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Great Lakes in our area]
Talk on fracking in Bloomfield | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com A presentation on hydrofracking is scheduled for 7 p.m. today at West Bloomfield Congregational Church, 9035 Routes 5 and 20 in West Bloomfield. (January 31, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Utica forming panel to study possibility of new power system - Utica, NY - The Observer-Dispatch, Utica, New York Ilion – a Herkimer County village of roughly 8,000 people – has run its own power system for more than a century. Sound like a good deal? Now, the city of Utica is taking baby steps toward the establishment of its own power utility – with the Common Council formalizing an exploratory committee. (January 26, 2012) Utica forming panel to study possibility of new power system - Utica, NY - The Observer-Dispatch, Utica, New York [more on Energy in our area]
White House To Unveil New Forest Rules : NPR The Obama administration says new rules to manage nearly 200 million acres of national forests will protect watersheds and wildlife while promoting uses ranging from recreation to logging. The new rules, to replace guidelines thrown out by a federal court in 2009, are set to be released Thursday by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. A summary was obtained by The Associated Press. (January 26, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Plants and our Environment in our area}
U.S. Schools Compete to Slash Energy Use in 2012 Students in more than 116 schools across the U.S. are competing to reduce their electricity consumption by participating in the 2012 national Green Cup Challenge® (GCC) during peak winter energy usage, Jan. 18 to Feb. 15. (New York City and Chicago will launch separate Challenges on March 2). The national Challenge, now in its fifth year, is a project of the non-profit Green Schools Alliance (GSA), and is designed to raise awareness about energy conservation and provide concrete action towards reduction. (January 28, 2012) Green News and Opinion on The Huffington Post
NY Town's Battle Over Wind Power Makes it to the Big Screen MEREDITH, N.Y. - President Obama got bipartisan applause during his State of the Union address when he called for an all-out clean-energy initiative. But a new film serves as a cautionary tale. Like many of her neighbors in Meredith, a small town near Oneonta, filmmaker Laura Israel was thrilled to learn developers wanted to build 40 industrial wind turbines in and around the town. The more she and the townspeople learned about the possible harmful impact on health and safety as well as some questionable economics involved, however, the more the town became divided, neighbor against neighbor. (January 30, 2012) Public News Service [more on Wind Power in our area]
Where did the crows go? | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com An all-out assault on a murder of crows 25,000 to 30,000 strong in downtown Rochester should begin next week, likely on Monday. However, finding the crows' roost could be part of the battle. "They are all gone," said Gregg Soucie, a member of Occupy Rochester whose camp was besieged by crows in Washington Square Park until earlier this month. "Ever since St. Mary's (Church) had their trees removed, we haven't seen any crows whatsoever." (January 30, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Wildlife in our area]
Conditional support for 'fracking' offered - Washington - The Buffalo News WASHINGTON — President Obama on Tuesday gave a qualified endorsement to a kind of natural gas drilling that many New Yorkers fear and a strong call for a revival of American manufacturing — based in part on the auto industry's comeback and a crackdown on unfair Chinese trading practices. In a State of the Union address that was unusual in its relevance to upstate New York, Obama also made reference to Rep. Louise M. Slaughter's effort to ban insider trading among members of Congress. And not surprisingly, it was all music to the ears of Democrats — and election-year rhetoric to Republicans. (January 25, 2012) [more on Fracking in our area]
Natural gas firm faults EPA probe | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com DIMOCK, Pa. -- Intervention by federal environmental regulators in rural Susquehanna County threatens to "undercut" President Barack Obama's commitment to developing the nation's shale gas reserves, according to the top executive of Cabot Oil & Gas. In a letter Thursday, Cabot CEO Dan Dinges fired back at U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson for a decision last week to overstep Pennsylvania regulators and begin a widespread investigation of drilling-related water contamination in Dimock Township. (January 26, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Regional Cap-and-Trade Effort Seeks Greater Impact by Cutting Carbon Allowances Adjusting to shifts in the economy, states in the cap-and-trade system known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative have slashed the number of allowances that electric power companies can buy to offset their emissions. The decision, made last week, was intended to shore up the pioneering program as it undergoes its first comprehensive review this year. While the program has been judged a success by most of the participating states, in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, an oversupply of the allowances — in essence, permits to pollute — has limited the program’s impact. (January 26, 2012) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia
Fracking gets its own "Occupy" movement - CBS News This is a story about water, the land surrounding it, and the lives it sustains. Clean water should be a right: there is no life without it. New York is what you might call a “water state.” Its rivers and their tributaries only start with the St. Lawrence, the Hudson, the Delaware, and the Susquehanna. The best known of its lakes are Great Lakes Erie and Ontario, Lake George, and the Finger Lakes. Its brooks, creeks, and trout streams are fishermen’s lore. Far below this rippling wealth there’s a vast, rocky netherworld called the Marcellus Shale. Stretching through southern New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, the shale contains bubbles of methane, the remains of life that died 400 million years ago. Gas corporations have lusted for the methane in the Marcellus since at least 1967 when one of them plotted with the Atomic Energy Agency to explode a nuclear bomb to unleash it. That idea died, but it’s been reborn in the form of a technology invented by Halliburton Corporation: high-volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing -- “fracking” for short. (January 23, 2012) Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment & World News - CBS News [more on Fracking in our area]
01/25/2012: EPA Releases New Tool with Information about Water Pollution Across the U.S. / EPA to host webinar on how to use tool to access information on pollutants released into local waterways WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of a new tool that provides the public with important information about pollutants that are released into local waterways. Developed under President Obama’s transparency initiative, the Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) Pollutant Loading Tool brings together millions of records and allows for easy searching and mapping of water pollution by local area, watershed, company, industry sector, and pollutant. Americans can use this new tool to protect their health and the health of their communities. (January 25, 2012) EPA Newsroom Home | Newsroom | USEPA [more on Water Quality in our area]
Gardening Map Of Warming U.S. Has Plant Zones Moving North : The Salt : NPR It's official: Gardeners and farmers can count on warmer weather. If that's you, it might be a good time to rethink those flower and vegetable beds for this year's growing season. That's the word from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which released a new version of its "Plant Hardiness Zone Map" this week, the first update since 1990. The color-coded zones on this map of the United States are widely used as a guide for what perennial flowers will survive in a particular area, or when to plant your vegetables. (January 26, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Climate Change in our area]
RG&E seeks to removed structures from Russell Station | Rochester Business Journal New York business news and information Rochester Gas and Electric Corp. wants to remove most of the structures and equipment at its shuttered Russell Station coal power plant, and might preserve some buildings that could support future power generation, the company states in a regulatory filing. RG&E filed the plans Wednesday with the state Public Service Commission, and has discussed environmental remediation and demolition plans with the town of Greece, company officials said in a statement Thursday. (January 26, 2012) Home | Rochester Business Journal New York business news and information [more on Energy in our area]
Great Lakes scientists educate communities; put research to work | Great Lakes Echo Let’s face it, a lot of scientific research lands in esoteric journals and peer-attended conferences. But at the westernmost point of Lake Superior, scientists have embedded themselves and their research in the community. “We meet with teachers, principals, citizen groups … decision makers and elected officials,” said Ralph Garono, reserve manager at the Lake Superior Estuarine Research Reserve. “We see what community concerns are and find information to fill in those knowledge gaps.” (January 26, 2012) Great Lakes Echo - Environmental news across the basin [more on the Great Lakes in our area]
Environmental icons drawn by Le Roy cluster | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com National environmental and health groups are beating a path to LeRoy, poking into the Genesee County community's startling cluster of teenage students with troubling neurological symptoms. Groups led by environmental-activist icons Erin Brockovich and Lois Gibbs have been talking with parents and gathering background. A chapter of the Sierra Club has been digging into the LeRoy school's unusual connection with natural gas drilling. The Healthy Schools Network, Empire State Consumer Project and others are involved. (January 27, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Environmental Health in our area]
Hog farm could be coming to Penfield - Henrietta, NY - Henrietta Post Penfield, N.Y. — The possibility of a hog farm moving into a farm in Penfield has neighbors worried about what exactly this means for them and their property values. A sign out in Penfield reads, “Hog Farm Coming Soon." People who live near Jackson Road in Penfield are concerned about the thought of hogs moving into their neighborhood. But they can hold their horses, because the farmer hasn’t gotten approval from the town, yet. (January 26, 2012) Homepage - Henrietta, NY - Henrietta Post
DEC Reminds Water Withdrawers to Report Their Water Use - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation A Phased-In Approach for Compliance will be Applied to Existing Water Users that Report Their Water Use by February 15, 2012 The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is reminding entities that currently use significant volumes of New York's water, including from the Great Lakes, that they must report their water use by February 15. A new water resources law, signed by Governor Cuomo in August 2011, requires a state permit for most water withdrawals that meet or exceed a threshold of 100,000 gallons per day. (January 25, 2012) Press Releases - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation [more on Water Quality in our area]
New map for what to plant reflects global warming - Times Union WASHINGTON (AP) — Global warming is hitting not just home, but garden. The color-coded map of planting zones often seen on the back of seed packets is being updated by the government, illustrating a hotter 21st century. It's the first time since 1990 that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has revised the official guide for the nation's 80 million gardeners, and much has changed. Nearly entire states, such as Ohio, Nebraska and Texas, are in warmer zones. (January 25, 2012) Albany, Troy, Schenectady, Saratoga News, Weather, Sports, Capitol | timesunion.com - Times Union [more on Climate Change in our area]
Feds exploring plans to bury nuclear waste in Ontario A proposal to bury nuclear waste in Eastern Ontario is taking an exploratory step ahead, while a plan to entomb radioactive rubbish near Lake Huron also advanced Tuesday. Natural Resources Canada is seeking an independent expert review of an Atomic Energy Canada Ltd. proposal to bury low- and intermediate-level atomic waste in a deep rock repository at AECL's Chalk River Laboratories, two hours northwest of Ottawa. January 24, 2012) The Montreal Gazette
Oil and gas: Obama calls for frack disclosure, but activists say that's not enough -- 01/25/2012 -- www.eenews.net As President Obama catches up, at least rhetorically, with drilling critics who have pushed for public disclosure of hydraulic fracturing chemicals, activists are stressing that disclosure is not enough. In his State of the Union address last night, Obama said he would implement a proposal bouncing around the Interior Department since 2010 to require drillers to publicly disclose the chemicals used when fracturing on public land (E&E Daily, Jan. 25). It was the only specific action he mentioned about how he would develop the country's vast store of natural gas in shale formations "without putting the health and safety of our citizens at risk." (January 26, 2012) E&E Publishing -- The Premier Information Source for Professionals Who Track Environmental and Energy Policy. [more on Fracking in our area]
Obama: 'I Will Not Walk Away From The Promise Of Clean Energy' : It's All Politics : NPR President Obama called for more domestic oil and gas production in his State of the Union address, saying that "a future where we're in control of our own energy" is within reach, where the nation's security and prosperity would not be so closely linked to unstable parts of the world. (January 26, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Energy in our area]
Hydrofracking gets a boost in President Obama's speech | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama's decision to support natural gas drilling on federal lands is being hailed by supporters of hydraulic fracturing in New York. Obama's comments in Tuesday's State of the Union speech "should send a message to all the folks back home that even the president has vetted this and we need to move forward together," said Republican Rep. Tom Reed of Corning. In his speech, Obama said America's natural gas reserves could meet the nation's energy needs for 100 years and could provide 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade. (January 26, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Department of Energy lowers Marcellus gas reserves estimate | Innovation Trail In its Energy Outlook for 2012, the Department of Energy has reduced its estimate of unproven "technically recoverable reserve" (TRR) natural gas in the Marcellus Shale from 410 trillion cubic feet to 141 trillion cubic. For those of you playing at home, 141 trillion down from 410 trillion represents a nearly one-third reduction in natural gas across the whole Marcellus Shale formation. But it's still pretty far off from the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) competing estimate, of about 84 trillion cubic feet. (January 24, 2012) Innovation Trail [more on Fracking in our area]
Shale Gas a Bridge to More Global Warming - IPS ipsnews.net UXBRIDGE, Canada, Jan 24, 2012 (IPS) - Hundreds of thousands of shale gas wells are being "fracked" in the United States and Canada, allowing large amounts of methane, a highly potent greenhouse gas, to escape into the atmosphere, new studies have shown. Shale gas production results in 40 to 60 percent more global warming emissions than conventional gas, said Robert Howarth of Cornell University in New York State. (January 25, 2010) IPS Inter Press Service [more on Fracking in our area]
Obama Pushes Natural-Gas Fracking to Create 600,000 U.S. Jobs - Businessweek Jan. 25 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama pushed drilling for gas in shale rock and support for cleaner energy sources to boost the economy in his final State of the Union address before facing U.S. voters in November. Hydraulic fracturing, the process of injecting water, sand and chemicals underground to free gas trapped in rock, could create more than 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade, Obama said yesterday. The process, called fracking, is among a list of energy policies Obama said would fuel economic growth. (January 25, 2012) Obama Pushes Natural-Gas Fracking to Create 600,000 U.S. Jobs - Businessweek [more on Fracking in our area]
Beyond Hype, a Closer Look at New York's Choice on Shale Gas - NYTimes.com More than 40,000 comments have been submitted to New York State aimed at shaping how Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo deals with the huge natural gas resource locked in the state’s portion of sprawling geological formations known as the Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale. The comments are not publicly viewable at this point. (You can submit a Freedom of Information Law request for an eventual CD, I was told.) But any quick sift of the Web provides a pretty solid sense of the range of views — from environmentalists pursuing an outright ban on hydraulic fracturing and related processes, widely called fracking, to landowners seeking the freedom to benefit from their mineral rights. There was a fresh anti-gas rally in Albany this morning, focused on passing bills (sponsored by lawmakers representing New York City constituents far from the resource) that would limit the governor’s ability to move ahead. (January 24, 2012) Natural Resources and the Environment - Dot Earth Blog - NYTimes.com [more on Fracking in our area]
NY takes action against Pa. driller over pollution ALBANY — New York environmental regulators are seeking $187,500 in fines against a gas-drilling company in Pennsylvania for polluting a stream in Allegany State Park. The state Department of Environmental Conservation says Tuesday it has filed an administrative complaint against U.S. Energy Development Corp. The agency says that storm water runoff from U.S. Energy’s roads and well pads in Pennsylvania’s Allegheny National Forest washed a large quantity of mud into nearby waterways. The mud fouled the water of Yeager Creek in New York’s park. (January 24, 2012) NY Daily Record [more on Fracking in our area]
NYSERDA Recognizes 20 Creative Energy Efficiency Projects that Encourage Student Learning about Sustainability $750 Awards for Hands-On Education Across New York State The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has recognized 20 energy efficiency projects developed by K-12 educators across the state for their potential to increase students’ knowledge about energy efficiency and sustainability at home. Projects include measuring energy consumed by household appliances before and after energy conservation improvements, installation of window insulation kits and energy-efficient lighting in the homes of senior citizens, and production of a TV commercial promoting an alternative energy system. Teachers will receive up to $750 to help implement the projects, which involve learning in various subject areas across the curriculum. (January 24, 2012) New York State Energy Research and Development Authority [more on Environmental Education in our area]
Report: Mercury Contaminating More than Just Fish NEW YORK - Levels of mercury in New York's birds and bats are at dangerously high levels, a new study has found. The problem is widespread in the Northeast, it says, and especially severe in upstate communities which have had problems with acid rain. Most people think of mercury contamination as affecting fish and mostly a concern in remote areas, says Dr. Timothy Tear, director of science for The Nature Conservancy. However, he says, the "Hidden Risk" report shows that the mercury problem is far more widespread. (January 25, 2012) Public News Service
City to Vote on Funds for USDA to Scare Crows Away - YNN, Your News Now City council will vote on a plan Tuesday night whether or not to have the U.S. Department of Agriculture step in to scare the pesky crows away from Rochester for good. (January 24, 2012) TOP STORIES - Rochester - YNN, Your News Now [more on Wildlife in our area]
Senator seeks EPA help with harmful algae in Lake Erie | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News Great Lakes biologist Jim Grazio wouldn't expect harmful algal blooms in Presque Isle Bay and nearby Lake Erie now. But that doesn't mean they couldn't be a problem here later. "Things seem to be getting worse in the last decade or so," Grazio said. "HABs seem to be starting earlier, persisting longer and increasing in frequency." (January 21, 2012) GoErie.com: Erie's #1 Source for News and Information [more on Great Lakes in our area]
01/23/2012: EPA Environmental Justice Grant to Help Farm Workers Reduce Pesticide Risks New York, N.Y.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is providing a $25,000 grant to the Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agrícolas (CATA) to reduce exposure to pesticides for farm workers in southern New Jersey. CATA, a Latino-led nonprofit organization, will educate migrant farm workers throughout the counties of Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem, New Jersey about the risks of pesticide exposure and how to protect their health during field work. (January 23, 2012) U.S. EPA Newsroom - News Releases [more on Pesticides in our area]
Scientist: Asian carp would thrive in Lake Erie If the Asian carp reaches Lake Erie in large numbers, it may be coming to stay. A new research article co-authored by a government fish scientist in Erie County predicts the Asian carp would be able to reproduce in large numbers in Lake Erie and its tributaries. The study sounds the alarm about what might happen if the invasive fish makes it into Lake Erie, said Patrick Kocovsky, a research fishery biologist at the U.S. Geological Survey's Lake Erie Biological Station at NASA Plum Brook Station. (1/23/2011) Sandusky Register [more on Invasive Species in our area]
NCPR News - Protestors to Albany: "No fracking way!" (01/24/12) Hundreds of anti-hydrofracking protesters were at the State Capitol Monday, in one of the largest demonstrations against the natural gas drilling process so far. In Albany, Karen DeWitt has the details on the protests: Hundreds of protesters, many holding signs directed against Governor Cuomo, came to the Capitol to chant, march and hear speeches from leaders of the anti-fracking movement. They implored the governor to drop his administration’s on- going approval process for hydrofracking. The rally included celebrities committed to the cause, like actor Debra Winger, who has a house in Sullivan County. Winger says she no longer believes the gas companies claim that fracking is safe, and says it’s too toxic and potentially polluting to be allowed in New York. (1/24/2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
United voices rally against hydrofracking | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — Anti-hydrofracking protesters Monday voiced their continued displeasure with the controversial drilling practice by symbolically delivering 100 loaves of bread to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office. In a gesture meant to replicate a similar fracking protest in Bulgaria last week, the group of about 400 people delivered the bread to signify what people would lose if hydraulic fracturing was allowed in the state. (January 24, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
In GOP contest, environmentalists see cause for alarm as candidates show signs of shift - The Washington Post WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Four years after the GOP’s rallying cry became “drill, baby, drill,” environmental issues have barely registered a blip in this Republican presidential primary. That’s likely to change as the race turns to Florida. The candidates’ positions on environmental regulation, global warming as well as clean air and water are all but certain to get attention ahead of the Jan. 31 primary in a state where the twin issues of offshore oil drilling and Everglades restoration are considered mandatory topics for discussion. (January 23, 2012) National: Breaking National News & Headlines - Washington Post [more on Climate Change in our area]
Urgent action needed to prevent England's rivers drying up | Environment | The Observer New report by Environment Agency says river levels may fall by 80% as a result of climate change and the growing population | Britain's rivers are drying up. Unless emergency measures are adopted, some of our finest waterways could be reduced to trickles over the next few decades. This is the stark warning of an Environment Agency study into the predicted impact of climate change on the flow of rivers in England and Wales by 2050. In some cases, the agency warns, river levels in summer could drop by 80%. Britain's cool green waters will be transformed into puddles of warm, stagnant mud. (January 21, 2012) Latest US and world news, sport and comment from the Guardian | guardiannews.com | The Guardian [more on Climate Change in our area]
Feeding The World Gets Short Shrift In Climate Change Debate : The Salt : NPR Food is getting elbowed out of the discussion on climate change, which could spell disaster for the 1 billion people who will be added to the world's population in the next 15 years. That's the word today from scientists wondering why food and sustainability get such short shrift when it comes to thinking about how humans will adapt to climate change. In the past year, we've seen drought in Texas, floods in Australia and massive drought and wildfires in Russia, all of which have had a big impact on global food supply and prices. Those are good examples of the extreme weather events and changes in weather patterns that scientists expect to see with climate change. (January 20, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Climate Change in our area]
NCPR News - In historic APA decision, commissioners downplay environmental risks (01/23/12) On Friday, the Adirondack Park Agency voted to approve the largest project in the Park's modern history, giving the green light to a massive resort planned around the Big Tupper ski area. Supporters hope the project will bring hundreds of jobs to the Adirondacks, and revitalize the economy of Tupper Lake. Hundreds of people gathered in the village Friday night to celebrate the historic decision. Critics say developers haven't developed a realistic business plan for the resort. And they worry that hundreds of mansions and condos will create sprawl on the edge of one of the Park's biggest wilderness areas. Brian Mann has our story. (January 23, 2012)NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Parks in our area]
Experts: Gas drilling won't start in N.Y. in 2012 | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com JOHNSON CITY -- Area experts on natural gas drilling agree: New York's swath of the Marcellus Shale isn't likely to be tapped in 2012. Panelists on both sides of the issue discussed the future of natural gas drilling in the Southern Tier at a roundtable discussion hosted by Press & Sun-Bulletin on Thursday at the Gannett Central N.Y. Production Facility. (January 19, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Fracking in our area]
2011 was ninth-warmest year since 1880: NASA NOAA announces two additional severe weather events reached $1 billion damage threshold, raising 2011’s billion-dollar disaster count from 12 to 14 events | According to NOAA scientists, 2011 was a record-breaking year for climate extremes, as much of the United States faced historic levels of heat, precipitation, flooding and severe weather, while La Niña events at both ends of the year impacted weather patterns at home and around the world. NOAA’s annual analysis of U.S. and global conditions, conducted by scientists at NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center, reports that the average temperature for the contiguous U.S. was 53.8 degrees F, 1.0 degree F above the 20th century average, making it the 23rd warmest year on record. Precipitation across the nation averaged near normal, masking record-breaking extremes in both drought and precipitation. (January 19, 2012) NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [more on Climate Change in our area]
2011 was ninth-warmest year since 1880: NASA | Reuters (Reuters) - The global average temperature last year was the ninth-warmest in the modern meteorological record, continuing a trend linked to greenhouse gases that saw nine of the 10 hottest years occurring since the year 2000, NASA scientists said on Thursday. A separate report from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said the average temperature for the United States in 2011 as the 23rd warmest year on record. (January 19, 2012) Business & Financial News, Breaking US & International News | Reuters.com [more on Climate Change in our area]
Marcellus Shale Pennsylvania: Marcellus Shale industry spent millions of dollars in Pennsylvania - mcall.com They've spent nearly 20 times as much as environmentalists to influence Marcellus Shale debate in Harrisburg. — When they wanted to catch the ear of lawmakers this week on a bill imposing an impact fee on natural gas drillers, the state branch of the Sierra Club and other environmental groups held a rally in the Capitol rotunda. About 200 people gathered to wave hand-lettered signs and shout slogans as TV cameras whirred and newspaper reporters scribbled. According to one organizer, the hour-plus event, not including staff time, ran to the "high hundreds" of dollars to put together. (January 21, 2012) Allentown, Lehigh Valley news from The Morning Call and mcall.com - mcall.com [more on Fracking in our area]
EPA to deliver water in Dimock - Philly.com Federal regulators said Thursday they will deliver drinking water to four households near natural gas wells in the embattled town of Dimock, casting doubt on Pennsylvania's decision to allow a Marcellus Shale operator to halt deliveries in December. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also said it will conduct its own water sampling at 61 homes in the rural Susquehanna County township "to further assess whether any residents are being exposed to hazardous substances that cause health concerns." (January 19, 2012) Philly.com: News from the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philly Sports [more on Fracking in our area]
Cuomo's Budget: Good For Environment, Clean Energy | New York League of Conservation Voters Next step: Work with Legislature to craft best budget possible New York's environment will begin the next fiscal year on solid ground if Gov. Andrew Cuomo's budget proposals are adopted. In particular, NYLCV applauds Gov. Cuomo's sustained support for the Environmental Protection Fund, Farmland Protection Program and agency staff levels, as well two new tax credits that will give a boost to New York's solar energy industry. New York League of Conservation Voters | Electing for the Environment (January 18, 2012)
Mild winter leaves many in Erie wondering when ice will come | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News Presque Isle Bay in January usually is buzzing with activity. Hundreds of ice fishermen haul their huts to their favorite spots to enjoy a trademark Erie winter outdoor activity. It's also a time when area bait-and-tackle shops and sports stores typically benefit from robust sales of ice augurs, ice huts, rods, reels, lures, replacement blades, apparel and other fishing accessories. Not this season. (January 20, 2012) GoErie.com: Erie's #1 Source for News and Information [more on Climate Change in our area]
Watertown Daily Times | EPA overreaches on manure regulations, farm groups say WASHINGTON — National farm groups complained Thursday that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has gone too far by asking for more information about basic operations on large-scale animal farms that might pollute water supplies. But New York farmers already share much of that information with state regulators. The EPA closed out a public comment period on the proposed rules, which would require farmers to share more information about their businesses — a move the EPA agreed to in a settlement with the Natural Resources Defense Council and other environmental groups. (January 20, 2012) Watertown Daily Times | Local News, Sports, Features, and Community Information for Jefferson County, St. Lawrence County, and Lewis County in Northern New York [more on Water Quality in our area]
Vermont Can’t Shut Down Nuclear Plant, Judge Rules - NYTimes.com WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Thursday blocked Vermont from forcing the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor to shut down when its license expires in March, saying that the state is trying to regulate nuclear safety, which only the federal government can do. The judge, J. Garvan Murtha of United States District Court in Brattleboro, Vt., also held that the state cannot force the plant’s owner, Entergy, to sell electricity from the reactor to in-state utilities at reduced rates as a condition of continued operation, as Entergy asserts it is now doing. (January 20, 2012) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia [more on Energy in our area]
Cheap Chinese Panels Spark Solar Power Trade War : NPR There's a solar trade war going on inside the U.S., sparked by an invasion of inexpensive imports from China. The U.S. solar industry is divided over these imports: Panel-makers say their business is suffering and want a tariff slapped on the imports. But other parts of the industry say these cheap panels are driving a solar boom in the U.S. (January 19, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Solar Power in our area]
Dueling NY studies over natural gas climate impact ALBANY — Two groups of scientists at Cornell University are dueling over whether natural gas from shale is better or worse than coal when it comes to global climate change. It’s a significant question because proponents of shale gas development using the controversial practice of high-volume hydraulic fracturing argue that natural gas is a cleaner-burning “bridge fuel” from the age of coal to an era of wind, solar and other sustainable energy sources. (January 19, 2012) NY Daily Record [more on Fracking in our area]
Zero Waste group seeks expanded comment on landfill expansion - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Finger Lakes, N.Y. — Finger Lakes Zero Waste Coalition is urging the Ontario County Board of Supervisors to extend the public comment period to March 20 on the planned landfill expansion. (January 19, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Recycling in our area]
TRANSPORTATION: Group will focus on cyclist, pedestrian projects - News Articles - Rochester City Newspaper When Rochester and Penfield developed their respective cycling master plans, they each gathered substantial input from the bicycling community. Ideas were filtered up from the cyclists themselves. Now a new working group, convened under the Genesee Transportation Council, formalizes that approach to planning for cycling - and pedestrian - projects. And it takes a regional approach. ( January 18, 2012) Rochester NY News, Events, Restaurants, Music, Entertainment, Nightlife - Rochester City Newspaper [more on Transportation in our area]
Where do drillers want to frack? | Innovation Trail If New York State allows hydrofracking, where would it happen? With the help of officials from the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), we used the agency's searchable online oil and gas database to find out precisely where drilling companies have applied for hydrofracking permits. So what does this map mean? (January 18, 2012) Innovation Trail [more on Fracking in our area]
Higher Amtrak speed? Not yet. Higher ridership? Yep. | 520 – An Environmental Blog | Rochester Democrat and Chronicle Amtrak ridership in and out of Rochester is continuing to rise, hitting 140,000 in the fiscal year that ended in September. That figure is roughly double what it was in 2005, according to Bruce Becker, president of the Empire State Passenger Association. Just think what ridership would be if the Rochester station wasn’t run down and inhospitable, if trains were on time and better appointed, and maybe if they ran a bit faster (January 18, 2012) 520 – An Environmental Blog | Rochester Democrat and Chronicle [more on Transportation in our area]
CDC: Mild flu season so far | www.WHEC.com Experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are reporting a mild flu season so far but they say the illness usually spikes in February. (January 19, 2012) Rochester, NY News | www.WHEC.com [more on Environmental Health in our area]
TheSpec - As many as 1,900 jobs coming to Hamilton Five years of work to build turbine towers for $1.5b wind energy project | Hamilton companies have landed the major contracts in a $1.5-billion offshore wind energy project. It’s expected the majority of 1,900 jobs to build Windstream Energy’s 300-megawatt Wolfe Island Shoals project near Kingston will land in the city as four local firms will fabricate the steel, assemble the components and transport the giant towers across Lake Ontario. (January 18, 2012) TheSpec.com | Your Hamilton online newspaper | Today’s stories from the Hamilton Spectator [more on Wind Power in our area]
Brooks Unveils New Plastics Recycling Public Education Campaign County Executive Maggie Brooks today unveiled a new Public Education Campaign aimed at informing consumers on the expansion of the County’s plastics recycling/recovery program which includes most plastics labeled #1 - #7. The campaign kicks off on Monday, January 16th, and features a 30-second television spot calling attention to the importance of recycling the new plastic items and how those objects can now be placed in curbside recycling bins. MyMonroe. Opening Up Government. | Monroe County, NY
Cornell Study Links Fracking Wastewater with Mortality in Farm Animals « EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement It has been a rough week for the shale industry. Earthquakes have been tied to a deep wastewater injection well and resulted in, among other things, demonstrations on the lawn of the Ohio Statehouse. And residents in rural central New York are organizing door-to-door petition drives to halt hydraulic fracturing —if not in their state, at least in Madison and Oneida Counties. A recently completed study by two Cornell University researchers indicates the process of hydraulic fracturing deep shale to release natural gas may be linked to shortened lifespan and reduced or mutated reproduction in cattle—and maybe humans. (January 16, 2012) EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement [more on Fracking in our area]
World Environment News - Special Report: Fuel Storage, Safety Issues Vexed Japan Plant - Planet Ark When the massive tsunami smacked into Fukushima Daiichi, the nuclear power plant was stacked high with more uranium than it was originally designed to hold and had repeatedly missed mandatory safety checks over the past decade. | That debate has direct implications for nuclear policy in the United States about whether changes enacted after the September 11, 2001 attacks go far enough to protect potentially vulnerable fuel stored at the nearly two dozen U.S. power plants that have the same design as the Fukushima Daiichi plant, experts say. (January 17, 2012) Planet Ark [more on Energy in our area]
President Obama Kills Keystone XL Pipeline | InsideClimate News WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama on Wednesday blamed his Republican opponents for imposing an "arbitrary" deadline on his review of TransCanada Corp's plan to build the Keystone XL Canada-to-Texas crude oil pipeline, which led to its rejection. "This announcement is not a judgment on the merits of the pipeline, but the arbitrary nature of a deadline that prevented the State Department from gathering the information necessary to approve the project and protect the American people," Obama said in a statement. "I'm disappointed that Republicans in Congress forced this decision." )January 19, 2012) | InsideClimate News [more on Climate Change in our area]
Rejected Pipeline Becomes Hot-Button Election Issue : NPR President Obama rejected an application to build the 1,700-mile Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast on Wednesday. He blamed congressional Republicans, who had set a 60-day deadline for his administration to complete its review of the project. Just minutes after Obama issued a statement denying the permit, Republican members of Congress lined up before TV cameras. (January 19, 2012) [more on Climate Change in our area]
NCPR News - Budget leaves DEC, APA short Gov. Cuomo's budget would cut funding for the state Department of Environmental Conservation, following loss of federal stimulus money. The Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation gets an increase of 16%, to $276 million to address a backlog of repairs and maintenance and for a youth jobs program. Governor Andrew Cuomo's spending plan includes more environment money for flood prevention and clean-up projects following tropical storm Irene. But some environmental activists say state officials should restore more money for cash-strapped agencies like the DEC and the Adirondack Park Agency. (January 18, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio
DEC Announces Public Hearings on Proposed Air Quality Regulations - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation DEC Announces Public Hearings on Proposed Air Quality Regulations The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) will be holding public hearings on proposed amendments to 6 NYCRR Parts 219, and 200; Part 248 and revisions to the State Implementation Plan (SIP). DEC proposes to amend Part 248, Use of Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel Fuel and Best Available Retrofit Technology for Heavy Duty Vehicles. These amendments will continue to implement the Diesel Emission Reduction Act of 2006 (DERA) and conform Part 248 to the recent ECL Section 19-0323 changes. The amended regulation will continue to generally mitigate a potential threat to the health and well being of New Yorkers posed by diesel exhaust emissions by providing emissions reductions. Date: Thursday, January 19, 2012 Time: 2:00 p.m. Location: NYSDEC Region 8 Office Conference Room, 6274 East Avon-Lima Road (Rts. 5 and 20), Avon, NY 14414 (January 13, 2012) U.S. EPA Newsroom - News Releases [more on Air Quality in our area]
Invasion of the Great Lakes: Quagga mussels least known, most dangerous invader - News - Voice News The little known quagga mussel is taking over vast stretches of the Great Lakes, dramatically reducing populations of game and commercial fish and presenting a much more immediate danger to lake ecology than its more famous cousin - the zebra mussel - ever did. In fact, the quagga mussel is out-competing and replacing the zebra mussel. (January 17, 2012) The Voice [more on Invasive Species in our area]
Shale Gas: Boon Could Stunt Renewable Energy Alternatives, Study Says Shale gas has transformed the U.S. energy landscape in the past several years—but it may crowd out renewable energy and other ways of cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, a new study warns. A team of researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology used economic modeling to show that new abundant natural gas is likely to have a far more complex impact on the energy scene than is generally assumed. If climate policy continues to play out in the United States with a relatively weak set of measures to control emissions, the new gas source will lead to lower gas and electricity prices, and total energy use will be higher in 2050. (January 17, 2012) National Geographic - Inspiring People to Care About the Planet Since 1888 [more on Fracking in our area]
Pipeline foes press Congress with upcoming protest - The Hill's E2-Wire Environmentalists battling the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline are shifting their focus from the White House to pressuring what they call an oil-soaked Congress, a strategy that will be on display next week. The group 350.org is planning a Jan. 23 demonstration at the Capitol that will then march to the American Petroleum Institute, the powerful industry group lobbying for approval of the Alberta-to-Texas pipeline. 350.org, seeking to highlight oil industry donations to pro-Keystone lawmakers, is urging people to “Blow the Whistle on Big Oil Corruption.” (January 17, 2012) TheHill.com [more on Climate Change in our area]
Sen. Charles Schumer calls on CSX to sign rail deal | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com BERGEN — U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., travelled to Genesee County Tuesday afternoon to implore the CSX freight railroad to sign a needed agreement so that work can begin on a high-speed rail line that would pass through this village. The federal government has pledged $58 million to build an 11-mile-long track between Riga in Monroe County and Byron in Genesee County to serve Amtrak passenger trains. (January 18, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Transportation in our area]
Assembly considers future without Indian Point; offline reactor expected to be operational next week | The Journal News | LoHud.com | LoHud.com NEW YORK — Indian Point 2 should be back online by the end of next week, plant officials said Thursday, even as state lawmakers held a six-hour hearing on whether the entire nuclear plant should be shut down for good. “There’s a lot of conflicting information on these matters,” said Assemblyman James Brennan, D-Brooklyn, who chairs the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions. “But we have a lot of experts.” (January 13, 2012) The Journal News | LoHud.com | Westchester, Rockland, Putnam news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, New York | LoHud.com [more on Energy in our area]
Schumer wants to get WNY high-speed rail back on track | www.WHEC.com Plans for a short stretch of high-speed rail in Western New York could be brought back to life today, when Senator Chuck Schumer visits the Village of Bergen, Genesee County and urges state transportation leaders to finish dealing and begin construction. (January 17, 2012) Rochester, NY News | www.WHEC.com [more on Transportation in our area]
Flood gages in New York and Vermont saved for now » Local News » Press-Republican ALBANY — The imminent shutdown of 18 flood gages in New York and Vermont has been stalled. A written request to save the gages was sent to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazarby by U.S. Senators Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). (January 15, 2012) Homepage » Press-Republican [more on Water Quality in our area]
Corbett fires conservation official Action could affect state's oversight of drilling in parks The longtime head of the citizens advisory committee that has oversight of the state's parks and forests was fired Friday by the Corbett administration, a termination that council members say was illegal and raises concerns about reduced public accountability of Marcellus Shale gas drilling in state forests. Kurt Leitholf, who served as executive director of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Citizens Advisory Council since 1996, was told Wednesday that his position would be eliminated. He was let go two days later. (January 16, 2012) Post-Gazette.com [more on Fracking in our area]
RIT journal focuses on environmental sustainability | Rochester Business Journal New York business news and information Rochester Institute of Technology has launched a publication dedicated to the study of environmental sustainability. The Journal for Environmental Sustainability has editorial staff from around the world and informational articles about understandings and trends within the field. It includes theoretical papers, applied research, case studies and commentaries by professionals in the field of environmental management. (January 16, 2012) Home | Rochester Business Journal New York business news and information [more on Environmental Education in our area]
Electric plants shift from coal to natural gas PITTSBURGH — The huge, belching smokestacks of electric power plants have long symbolized air pollution woes. But a shift is under way: More and more electric plants around the nation are being fueled by natural gas, which is far cleaner than coal, the traditional fuel. The most optimistic projections describe an abundant domestic energy source that will create enormous numbers of jobs and lead to cleaner skies. (January 16, 2012) NY Daily Record [more on Energy in our area]
Andrew Cuomo: No Hydrofracking funds in budget proposal | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo's budget proposal will not include any funding for additional gas-drilling regulators, he said Monday. Speaking after a Martin Luther King Jr. remembrance ceremony, Cuomo told reporters he won't move to add the appropriate staff until the state Department of Environmental Conservation determines whether to allow high-volume hydraulic fracturing in New York. It's a "chicken and the egg" situation, Cuomo said. (January 17, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Climate change becomes a flash point in science education - latimes.com Some states have introduced education standards requiring teachers to defend the denial of man-made global warming. A national watchdog group says it will start monitoring classrooms. Reporting from Washington— A flash point has emerged in American science education that echoes the battle over evolution, as scientists and educators report mounting resistance to the study of man-made climate change in middle and high schools. Although scientific evidence increasingly shows that fossil fuel consumption has caused the climate to change rapidly, the issue has grown so politicized that skepticism of the broad scientific consensus has seeped into classrooms. (January 16, 2012) Los Angeles Times {more on Climate Change in our area]
'Boxing match' tests support for fracking - Times Union ALBANY — A veritable battle of the boxes was raging Tuesday at the state Capitol as opponents and supporters of hydrofracking publicized their last-minute efforts to submit tens of thousands of letters on whether the controversial natural gas drilling technique should be allowed in New York. The public comment period for a long-sought and twice-delayed state Department of Environmental Conservation impact statement on hydrofracking ends at midnight Wednesday. If it proceeds, the final version of the report will include regulations. (January 10, 2012) Albany, Troy, Schenectady, Saratoga News, Weather, Sports, Capitol | timesunion.com - Times Union [more on Fracking in our area]
National Biomass And Carbon Dataset Map Depicts U.S. Tree Density (PHOTO) Where are most of the trees in the U.S.? Concentrations in areas like New York's Adirondack Park or the Cascade Range in the west are predictable, but other areas of dense biomass might surprise you. A newly released map, shown below, depicts the density of aboveground vegetation across the contiguous United States. Created by NASA Earth Observatory, the map represents years of data compiled by the Woods Hole Research Center (WHRC) in Massachusetts. WHRC's National Biomass and Carbon Dataset (NBCD) project, released in 2011, measured the density of organic carbon in vegetation across the United States. (January 14, 2012) Green News and Opinion on The Huffington Post
Want to read 40,000 fracking letters? | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — Three days was all it took to double the state Department of Environmental Conservation's workload when it comes to hydraulic fracturing. Comments on the agency's proposed hydrofracking rules skyrocketed from 20,800 on Jan. 9 to an estimated 40,000 by the time a response period closed at midnight Jan. 11. (January 15, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Test of algae pump deemed success | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Last summer's test of a pump system to remove troublesome algae from Ontario Beach in Charlotte has been declared a success by the contractor who performed the work. The contractor and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which funded the demonstration project, are recommending that the pump become a permanent fixture at the Lake Ontario beach, which has been plagued for years by periodic buildups of smelly algae. (January 16, 2011) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Water Quality in our area]
Both sides of natural gas debate agree: DEC's fracking review is flawed | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com ALBANY -- A top gas-industry trade group and environmental lobbyists on Wednesday offered biting criticism of the state's review of hydraulic fracturing, as a four-month public comment period came to a close at midnight. The Department of Environmental Conservation was bombarded Wednesday with hundreds of pages of technical, lengthy responses from lobbying groups, lawmakers, advocates and regulators, a day after landowners and environmental groups swarmed the Capitol with boxes of letters offering opinions on the 1,500-page document. (January 13, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Keep an eye out for sick deer | 520 – An Environmental Blog | Rochester Democrat and Chronicle New Yorkers are being asked to keep an eye out for deer that appear ill or act oddly, or for deer that have died for no obvious reason. The request for extra vigilance, issued Thursday, is due to the discovery that a white-tailed deer found in northeast New York last month apparently died from an infection by a bacteria known as pasteurella. Hunters stumbled on the deer with a strangely swollen head and neck, fluids dripping from its mouth and nose. It later died, and a necropsy performed by the Department of Environmental Conservation. (January 12, 2012) 520 – An Environmental Blog | Rochester Democrat and Chronicle [more on the Deer Problem in our area]
Rochester Scientist Leads National Fight against Lead - News Room - University of Rochester Medical Center When the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention needed a scientist to lead the panel charged with making recommendations regarding hazardous levels of lead in children, they turned to one of Rochester’s own. Deborah Cory-Slechta, Ph.D., professor of Environmental Medicine and an internationally recognized authority on the hazards of lead, was co-chair of the CDC panel that last week recommended slashing the level of lead that should be considered as the point for intervention by physicians and public health authorities. (January 12, 2012) News Room - University of Rochester Medical Center [more on Lead Poisoning in our area]
Dollars continue to flow for Asian carp control PORTAGE | Federal and state officials said Thursday that Asian carp control efforts in the Great Lakes would continue this year with congressional commitments to maintain funding similar to the previous fiscal year. U.S. Asian carp czar John Goss said efforts such as environmental DNA sampling, research on fish habits and rapid response fish catches so far are proving effective in stopping Asian carp from gaining a foothold in the Great Lakes. Goss spoke Thursday at the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee's first Indiana public meeting this year. (January 12, 2012) nwitimes.com [more on Invasive Species in our area]
Pa. families get no quick answer from EPA on water | ajc.com PHILADELPHIA — Residents of a small northeastern Pennsylvania town at the center of the political fight over natural gas drilling struck out Friday when they tried to take their complaints directly to the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A handful of residents-turned-activists from Dimock joined about 50 environmental activists from neighboring communities and elsewhere to rally outside a conference at Philadelphia's Academy of Natural Sciences on urban environmental issues, chanting, "Lisa Jackson, take some action!" Their hope was to find a kindred spirit in EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and to ask her directly to have fresh water delivered to them. (January 13, 2012) Atlanta News, Sports, Atlanta Weather, Business News | ajc.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Heavy Lobbying Before Keystone Oil Pipeline Decision : NPR The oil industry and environmentalists are fighting over the Keystone XL pipeline, and in this election year, President Obama is caught in the middle. The industry says the pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada to the Gulf Coast, would create jobs. Environmentalists worry it will lead to more pollution. Obama has until next month to make a decision, and that has both sides lobbying heavily. (January 12, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Climate Change in our area]
EPA Sees Risks to Water, Workers In New York Fracking Rules - ProPublica New York's emerging plan to regulate natural gas drilling in the gas-rich Marcellus Shale needs to go further to safeguard drinking water, environmentally sensitive areas and gas industry workers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has informed state officials. The EPA's comments, in a series of letters [1] this week to the state's Department of Environmental Conservation, are significant because they suggest the agency will be watching closely as states in the Northeast and Midwest embrace new drilling technologies to tap vast reserves of shale gas. (February 13, 2012) ProPublica [more on Fracking in our area]
Ad hopes to foster plastics recycling | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com A television ad featuring a pack of eco-wise kids urging people to recycle more plastic will hit the airwaves Monday. The spot, paid for out of revenue from the Monroe County Recycling Center, is intended to reinforce a broadened plastics-recycling program that began last summer. The county, which handles blue-box recyclables collected in the city of Rochester and most suburbs, began taking containers and other plastic waste stamped with numbers 1 through 7. The program previously had accepted only numbers 1 and 2. (January 14, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Recycling in our area]
Region 2 | US EPA On January 11, 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency submitted its comments on New York State's revised draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) and the proposed state regulations and general permit for storm water discharges related to high volume hydraulic fracturing. US Environmental Protection Agency
DEC Seeks Information about Sick or Dead Deer - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is asking the public to report any instances of deer appearing sick or acting abnormally. DEC is only investigating deer that appear to have died from unknown causes and not those that were killed by a vehicle, the agency announced today. Anyone who sees a white-tailed deer acting abnormally or who finds a dead deer that was not struck by a vehicle is asked to report the animal to the nearest DEC regional office or to an Environmental Conservation Officer or Forest Ranger. (January 12, 2012) Press Releases - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation [more on the Deer Problem in our area]
NCPR News - Gas drilling could take air out of offshore wind Politics and price are pitting gas drilling against offshore wind on the Great lakes. Our Front and Center partnership with WBEZ in Chicago looks at hopes for economic revival in the nation's rustbelt. In the Cleveland area, politicians and businessmen have been pushing for years to build a wind farm in Lake Erie. But the project's financing is up in the air, and as WBEZ's Chip Mitchell reports, state politics is tipping the balance toward hydrofracking, and away from what could be the first major offshore wind development in the Great Lakes. (January 11, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Wind Power in our area]
Protestors rally against hydrofracking As New York State moves closer to announcing rules on how it plans to move forward with hydrofracking, members of Occupy Rochester and others around the state protested against the practice Thursday. Hydrofracking is the process of drilling, and then blasting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals deep underground to extract natural gas. While potentially lucrative, those who oppose the practice say it could threaten the water supply. "Even the possible threat to our Finger Lakes, to our municipal water supplies, to Hemlock Lake which supplies part of the water to our Rochester water system, to the Great Lakes, any of that, we can't possibly put up with that," said Frank Regan of Rochester's Sierra Club. (January 13, 2012) RochesterHomepage.net [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - "Oddball" deer illness sparks probe State officials are investigating the death of a deer in the town of Thurman in Warren County that appears to have been infected with an uncommon bacteria. The animal was spotted in December by hunters, still alive but suffering from obvious distress. Last week, researchers who conducted a necropsy identified what appeared to be a bacteria infection. (January 13, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on the Deer Problem in our area]
NCPR News - State has 40,000 hydrofracking comments to go through, DEC head says The State's environmental commissioner estimates the agency has received 40,000 comments in the public comment period on proposed hydrofracking in New York, which ended Wednesday. (January 13, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
EPA: NY should map gas wells, set radiation limits - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Finger Lakes, N.Y. — The Environmental Protection Agency says New York regulators should set limits for radioactive materials in gas-drilling wastewater sent to public treatment plants before allowing any hydraulic fracturing of natural gas wells in the state. (February 12, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Fracking in our area]
Organic gardening classes offered in Penfield | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Penfield Recreation is offering a series of organic gardening classes over the winter and in early spring. (January 13, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Food and our environment in our area]
New e-waste policy in effect in East Rochester | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com The town/village of East Rochester has instated new rules involving electronic waste, including computers and televisions, to comply with a new state law. Residents now will be charged $25 for any electronic waste left at the curb for refuse pickup. (January 13, 2012)Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Recycling in our area]
EPA reaction mixed on DEC fracking review | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency urged New York regulators to take steps to bolster the state's proposed hydraulic fracturing rules, providing a meticulous, line-by-line critique of its 1,500-page report. Beating a midnight Wednesday deadline to submit comments by less than three hours, the federal agency recommended dozens of ways for the state Department of Environmental Conservation to strengthen its hydrofracking proposals. Those suggestions include beefing up a ban on the technique within two major water supplies and taking a closer look at naturally occurring radioactive material found in gas-drilling waste. (January 13, 2012] Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Fracking advisory panel calls off third meeting in three months | Innovation Trail The Department of Environmental Conservation's (DEC) hydrofracking advisory panel is supposed to meet with the agency every few weeks*, but their meeting scheduled for tomorrow has been postponed. This is the third time one of the panel's meetings has been called off since mid-October. The group was also supposed to issue preliminary recommendations by early November, but failed to do so. (January 11, 2012) Innovation Trail [more on Fracking in our area]
Gas industry to NYS: back off | 520 – An Environmental Blog | Rochester Democrat and Chronicle The public comment period on New York’s proposed gas-drilling guidelines is closing today, and a prominent statewide industry group has weighed in with its final, formal opinion. And – here’s a news flash! — the Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York believes the state’s proposed rules for horizontal hydraulic fracturing are too demanding. “They will set an unreasonable bar for oil and natural gas developers prepared to bring jobs and opportunity to upstate New York and will make development economically unattractive,” IOGA said in a statement it released a few moments ago. (January 11, 2012) 520 – An Environmental Blog | Rochester Democrat and Chronicle [more on Fracking in our area]
Rush Considers Closing Door On Fracking - Rochester, News, Weather, Sports, and Events - 13WHAM.com Rush, N.Y. – The Rush Town Board is considering a moratorium that would ban a controversial drilling procedure within the town’s borders. Wednesday night, the board listened to a presentation from a local group opposed to hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracking, which uses a combination of water and chemicals to unlock natural gas from shale formations. (January 11, 2012) Home - Rochester, News, Weather, Sports, and Events - 13WHAM.com [more on Fracking in our area]
On Shale Gas, Warming and Whiplash ‹ Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future In his Dot Earth blog for the New York Times, Andrew Revkin discusses a new paper, A commentary on “The greenhouse-gas footprint of natural gas in shale formations”, by Lawrence M. Cathles (EAS), Larry Brown (EAS), Andrew Hunter (CHEME), and Milton Taam. Their paper reviews a March 2011 paper, Methane and the greenhouse-gas footprint of natural gas from shale formations, by Robert Howarth (EEB) and Anthony Ingraffea (CEE) in the same journal. (January 11, 2012) Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future [more on Climate Change in our area]
Commissioner Martens Statement on Closing of the Comment Period - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation "There has been an unprecedented response to this issue with tens of thousands of comments submitted. All comments are being carefully considered as we develop the final rules and conditions for high-volume hydraulic fracturing. In addition, the final documents will include responses to the comments in responsiveness summaries. (January 11, 2012) Press Releases - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation {more on Fracking in our area]
Fuel Fix » Super fracking goes deeper to pump up production As regulators and environmentalists study whether hydraulic fracturing can damage the environment, industry scientists are studying ways to create longer, deeper cracks in the earth to release more oil and natural gas. Energy companies are focused on boosting production and lowering costs associated with so-called fracking, a technique that uses high-pressure injections of water, sand and chemicals to break apart petroleum-saturated rock. The more thoroughly the rock is cracked, the more oil and gas will flow from each well. (January 11, 2012) Fuel Fix » Your daily must-read source for news and analysis on the energy business [more on Fracking in our area]
New York Rules on Hydrofracking Get 20,000 Comments - NYTimes.com After taking over 20,000 public comments, more than on any issue they have ever faced, New York environmental officials are getting ready for the final phase of work on their proposal to allow hydrofracking of natural gas in the state. Wednesday was the deadline for people to make their opinions heard on a draft of the state’s environmental impact statement and proposed regulations governing the hydraulic gas drilling process. The first task facing state environmental officials is to cull any new information from those comments after three years of debate and two rounds of hearings. (January 11, 2012) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia [more on Fracking in our area]
No sign of Ontario enacting biodiversity strategy: Report - The Whig Standard - Ontario, CA Budget cuts expected in the spring will only weaken the ability of the government to respond to environmental threats, Ontario's environment commissioner warned Tuesday. Gord Miller said Ontario has an obligation to meet the objectives of international treaties Canada signed and risks being seen to renege on those pacts if it does not do so. In a special report on biodiversity, Miller said the the provincial government made international commitments to protect wildlife but its biodiversity strategy expired last year and there is no sign of a new strategy being enacted. (January 11, 2012) The Whig Standard - Ontario, CA [more on the Great Lakes in our area]
EPA Creates Website To ID Biggest Emitters Of Greenhouse Gases : The Two-Way : NPR Ever wondered who the big greenhouse-gas emitters are in your neck of the woods? The answer is now just a click away. The US Environmental Protection Agency today unveiled a new website that identifies most of the nation's biggest emitters of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases. It lets you, for example: (January 11, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Climate Change in our area]
Fracking comment period concludes | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — A top gas-industry trade group and environmental lobbyists on Wednesday offered biting criticism of the state's review of hydraulic fracturing as a four-month comment period on the 1,500-page document officially came to a close. The response period, facilitated by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, ended at midnight Wednesday. While landowners and environmental groups swarmed the DEC with boxes of letters on Tuesday, Wednesday brought hundreds of pages of technical, lengthy responses from lobbying groups, lawmakers, advocates and regulators. (January 12, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Toxic vapors at old landfill may cost Rochester $1 million to fix | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Toxic vapors from the former Emerson Street Landfill surround nine buildings on the site — in the soil and, in some cases, beneath the structures. There is no evidence yet that the gases have seeped inside, a city official said Wednesday. Still, the city is preparing to spend $1 million to address the problem, as well as a methane leak into the First Student school bus company building nearby. "We don't have any indication that anybody is being exposed to an unhealthy condition out there," Mark Gregor, manager of the city's division of environmental quality, said of the site in northwest Rochester. "We did identify some higher-risk properties. That is what we are addressing." (January 12, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Brownfields in our area}
The Year That Winter Forgot: Is It Climate Change? - TIME As I got off the plane in the Vermont town of Burlington on Sunday, I felt something new: cold. It wasn't that cold — high temperatures in Burlington were hovering around the freezing mark, a little warmer than average for this city of eager ski bums. But after more than a month of unusually mild weather in New York City — where Januarys can sometimes be nothing short of brutal — it was almost a treat to feel a hazy hint of winter. That's because 2012 is shaping up to be the year that winter forgot in the U.S. December and the first week of January have seen atypically mild temperatures throughout much of the country — especially in the usually harsh states of the far north and parts of the plains. Fargo, N.D. — which probably exists in most Americans' minds as a big white blur of snow — saw temperatures of 55°F on Jan. 5, breaking a more than century-old record for the warmest day in January. High temperatures in Nebraska at the end of last week were more than 30°F above normal, and in December at least half the U.S. had temperatures at least 5°F above normal. (January 9, 2012) Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com [more on Climate Change in our area]
Hydrofracking industry bigs gave state politicians thousands of dollars - NY Daily News ALBANY — In pushing for state approval of hydrofracking, the natural gas industry has pumped $1.34 million into the coffers of New York politicians and their parties, a new study revealed. The donations were sprinkled around over the last four years as lawmakers and state officials debated whether to allow the controversial drilling process, formally known as hydraulic fracturing, in the gas-rich Marcellus Shale formation upstate, Common Cause New York said in its report. (January 11, 2012) New York News, Traffic, Sports, Weather, Photos, Entertainment, and Gossip - Homepage - NY Daily News [more on Fracking in our area]
Ohioans Demand Fracking Moratorium at Ohio Statehouse Rally « EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement On Jan. 10, more than 250 Ohioans assembled on the west lawn of the Ohio Statehouse to voice their opposition to hydraulic fracturing—better known as fracking—and deep injection wastewater disposal wells. Leading the charge was State Rep. Robert Hagan (D-Youngstown), who last week called on Gov. John Kasich (R-OH) in a letter to implement an indefinite moratorium on D&L Energy’s deep injection wells in Youngstown, Ohio, which has been rocked 11 times in the past nine months by earthquakes. Seismic surveys have corroborated that the two most recent earthquakes—on Christmas Eve and a 4.0 magnitude quake on New Year’s Eve—had epicenters near D&L’s deep injection wells. (January 10, 2012) EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement [more on Fracking in our area]
Gas-drilling fans, foes weigh in on NY rules ALBANY — A coalition of groups on Tuesday delivered more than 12,000 comments expressing health and environmental concerns about a drilling process used to reach natural gas that’s being considered in New York. It was a last-minute deluge of opinion submitted the day before a four-month comment period comes to a close on the state’s environmental impact review and proposed regulations. (January 10, 2012) NY Daily Record [more on Fracking in our area]
EPA’s national manure proposal – comment period extended to January 19 | Save Our Sodus The public now has until January 19th to comment on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal of a rule that will enable the agency to regulate Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) on a national level. The proposed rule would enable the EPA to monitor manure quality, the transferring of manure, available acreage for land application and application of manure on a national scale, all of which is aimed at preventing water runoff and protecting water quality. (December 26, 2012) Save Our Sodus [more on Water Quality in our area]
NCPR News - Gas drilling could take air out of offshore wind Politics and price are pitting gas drilling against offshore wind on the Great lakes. Our Front and Center partnership with WBEZ in Chicago looks at hopes for economic revival in the nation's rustbelt. In the Cleveland area, politicians and businessmen have been pushing for years to build a wind farm in Lake Erie. But the project's financing is up in the air, and as WBEZ's Chip Mitchell reports, state politics is tipping the balance toward hydrofracking, and away from what could be the first major offshore wind development in the Great Lakes. (January 11, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - Boxes and boxes of comments for DEC on hydrofracking deadline The state department of environmental conservation is going to have a lot of reading to do about hydrofracking. The deadline to comment about new regulations was midnight. The Times Union of Albany reports that DEC already had more than 21-thousand comments on the issue. And yesterday, both supporters and opponents of the controversial gas-drilling technique brought box after box filled with more comments. (January 11, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
Fracking deadline prompts rallies planned for Tuesday - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Finger Lakes, N.Y. — Supporters and opponents of natural gas drilling using hydraulic fracturing are making a last-minute effort to voice their positions as the comment period on the state’s environmental impact review and proposed regulations comes to a close. (January 10, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Fracking in our area]
Last day for fracking comments today | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — Industry, environmental, landowner and anti-drilling groups all gathered at the state Capitol on Tuesday, making a furious last-minute push as the state's comment period on hydraulic fracturing winds down. And with that push came plenty of paper. A coalition of conservation groups said they submitted a total of 12,587 new comments to the Department of Environmental Conservation, along with 500 personal letters to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. (January 11, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Rush residents weigh fracking ban | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com More than 250 people filled every pew and spilled out the sanctuary door at a Rush church Tuesday night, learning about self-defense. Community self-defense, that is — the practice of adopting local laws and rules to forestall potential problems of impending natural gas drilling. (January 11, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Hydrofracking energizes New York residents | The Poughkeepsie Journal | poughkeepsiejournal.com Most comments to DEC oppose natural gas method, cite risks ALBANY — With only one day left to comment, input from those opposed to permitting hydrofracking in New York is overwhelmingly outweighing that of supporters. The responses to the state Department of Environmental Conservation have come from places such as Buffalo and Albany, from Poughkeepsie and Long Island, and from states as far away as Nevada. (January 10, 2012) The Poughkeepsie Journal | Poughkeepsie news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Poughkeepsie, New York | poughkeepsiejournal.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Rush Holds Public Forum on Hydrofracking - YNN, Your News Now The Town of Rush is holding a public forum on hydrofracking Tuesday night. The meeting will be at the Rush Methodist Church on Rush-Lima Road at 7 p.m. (January 10, 2012) TOP STORIES - Rochester - YNN, Your News Now [more on Fracking in our area]
Fracking Moratorium Urged as Doctors Call for Health Study Jan. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. should declare a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing for natural gas in populated areas until the health effects are better understood, doctors said at a conference on the drilling process. Gas producers should set up a foundation to finance studies on fracking and independent research is also needed, said Jerome Paulson, a pediatrician at George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington. Top independent producers include Chesapeake Energy Corp. and Devon Energy Corp., both of Oklahoma City, and Encana Corp. of Calgary, according to Bloomberg Industries. (January 10, 2012) San Francisco Bay Area — News, Sports, Business, Entertainment, Classifieds: SFGate [more on Fracking in our area]
Gas Drilling Critics in New York Face a Divide Over Their Goal - NYTimes.com With a deadline looming this week for the public to weigh in on gas drilling in New York State, the antifracking movement itself has become divided over what its goal should be: securing the nation’s toughest regulations, or winning an outright ban? The question is pitting brand-name organizations like the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Nature Conservancy, which are working nationwide for stringent rules, against an ever-growing universe of grass-roots groups demanding a prohibition on the kind of intensive shale gas drilling being proposed in the state. And it is reflecting the tightrope being walked by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo between an economically potent industry and many landowners eager for drilling on one side, and on the other a movement that has become one of the most powerful environmental and citizens campaigns in state history. (January 9, 2012) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia [more on Fracking in our area]
Iceless lake concerns scientists Scientists say the lack of ice could be related to global warming. Leshkevich said it's difficult to say how much of the decline in ice is because of abnormal climate change, and how much is because of natural variation throughout the years. "The record we have for ice cover on the lake right now is relatively short," he said. Two other scientists, however, said they think global warming has contributed to the recent shortage of ice, although they said further research is needed. (January 9, 2012) Sandusky Register [more on Climate Change in our area]
NCPR News - Crow "hazing" continues Tuesday, Wednesday nights in Watertown In Watertown, wildlife biologists will be out "crow hazing" tonight. They're trying to scare away the city's huge winter population of the birds. It's estimated there are as many as 30,000 crows roosting in Watertown right now. Nora Flaherty has more. (January 19, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Wildlife in our area]
Health experts urge delay in permitting NY fracking - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Finger Lakes, N.Y. — Leading U.S. medical experts today urged a delay in the expansion of hydrofracking, the natural-gas drilling method going through a final approval process in New York. The medical experts voiced their concerns about fracking on human health said during a conference today in Arlington, Va., sponsored by the nonprofit Physicians Scientists and Engineers for Healthy Energy (PSE) and the Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment (MACCHE). (January 9, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Fracking in our area]
Fracking public comment period ends Wednesday - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow The state Department of Enviromental Conservation ends its public comment period Wednesday, Jan. 11. (January 10, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Fracking in our area]
TCE vapors linked to birth defects near old IBM factory | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ENDICOTT— A new study links congenital heart problems, low birthweight and other birth defects to soil vapors from industrial contaminants that have lurked beneath Endicott — and in subterranean pockets across upstate New York — for decades. State Department of Health researchers found infants born to mothers living in a 70-block area of Endicott, south of the former IBM manufacturing facility, had health problems at higher rates than those born in the rest of the state. (January 10, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Brownfields in our area]
City, church hatch plans to drive crows from park | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Lasers, pyrotechnics, spotlights and more could be used to drive thousands of crows from their winter roosts in Washington Square Park and places south along the river. But St. Mary Church — having seen the crows ousted before, only to return — chose to cut down its 21 swamp oak trees that lined Woodbury Boulevard. The last of the old trees fell on Monday. New plantings begin today. (January 10, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Wildlife in our area]
More than 18,000 comment on fracking | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com A review by Gannett's Albany Bureau of the public comments submitted through Dec. 16, obtained through a Freedom of Information Law request, shows interest from all corners of the state. Submissions from those against hydrofracking appeared to outnumber those from supporters by at least a 10-to-1 margin. (January 7, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Scaring the Crows - Rochester, News, Weather, Sports, and Events - 13WHAM.com Mayor Tom Richards submitted a proposal to the city council recruiting the USDA to use distress calls, lasers and pyrotechnics for five nights to attempt to scare the birds off. (January 8, 2012) Home - Rochester, News, Weather, Sports, and Events - 13WHAM.com [more on Wildlife in our area]
NCPR News - Feral hogs invade Champlain Valley, Adirondacks Invasive plants and animals have been a big problem in the North Country for decades, from Eurasian watermilfoil in Lake George to zebra mussels in the St. Lawrence River. But farmers in the Clinton County town of Peru are wrestling with a new invasive animal - and this one weighs three hundred pounds and comes with razor-sharp tusks. (January 9, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Invasive Species in our area]
Hydrofracking input due this week - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow The high-pressure hydraulic-fracturing natural gas drilling method fuels strong emotions in those for and against it in New York, where this Wednesday marks something of a milestone: Jan. 11 will be the last day for the public to submit comments to the state regarding the issue. While fracking trucks won’t be rolling in Jan. 12 — state Department of Environmental Conservation officials say they won’t begin issuing permits until they determine fracking can be done safely — the deadline is significant. After several years of a statewide moratorium on fracking — a method that blasts millions of gallons of water containing chemicals deep underground to release natural gas — the state is poised to approve the technique, albeit under what state officials promise will be tight regulations to safeguard the environment. (January 8, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Fracking in our area]
Gov. Andrew Cuomo faces potentially divisive issues | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — In his State of the State address Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo provided a vision for economic development in the state that most officials could support. He pledged billions of dollars to repair roads and bridges, a restructuring of state agencies and an effort to continue the momentum he built with legislators in his first year in office. But as the popular Cuomo heads into his second year, he'll also face wading through divisive issues — such as hydraulic fracturing, mandate relief and independent redistricting of legislative lines — that could pit him against lawmakers and the public. (January 9, 2011) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Hydrofracking comments span state and flood DEC | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — The responses came from Buffalo to Albany, from Plattsburgh to Long Island, from states as far away as Nevada. Everyone from college students to senior citizens sent them in, even a child the age of six. They were written online and by hand, from elected officials to everyday citizens and business owners. (January 9, 2011) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Fracking debate heats up in Monroe County | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Days before the New Year, Brighton became the first town in Monroe County to enact a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing, the controversial process of injecting a high-volume, high-pressure mix of water, sand and chemicals deep into the ground in order to extract natural gas from ancient shale deposits. Could the town of Rush be next? Rush Citizens Concerned About Hydrofracking will conduct a public forum to discuss the potential impacts of "fracking" at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Rush Methodist Church, 6200 Rush-Lima Road (January 8, 2011) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
What he didn't say: Cuomo omits fracking, despite prepared remarks | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com ALBANY -- If Gov. Andrew Cuomo has walked a fine line on hydraulic fracturing over his first year in office, Wednesday found him on his tiptoes. Cuomo made no mention of the natural gas extraction technique in his second State of the State address, though prepared remarks released prior to his speech included a 125-word statement on "Hydraulic Fracturing in the Southern Tier." (Janurary 4, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Fracking in our area]
Environmental group announces natural gas guidelines MONTICELLO – The Delaware Highlands Conservancy, a land trust organization that works with willing landowners and communities to protect the natural heritage and quality of life of the Upper Delaware region, has drafted a set of guidelines reflecting its judgment toward gas drilling. The hydrofracking issue now “complicates and compromises our efforts to achieve our mission: the protection of the lands, waters, and quality of life in the Upper Delaware region now and for future generations,” said Conservancy President Greg Belcamino. (January 6, 2012) New York State News on the Net! [more on Fracking in our area]
SED: Friends fight together for wind power | Innovation Trail 2011 was a choppy year for wind power in New York State. It was marked by both high-profile failure, of an ambitious Great Lakes offshore wind project, and smaller-scale successes, like keeping a small wind farm in local hands. But overall, wind power in New York has been growing at a steady clip. (January 5, 2011) Innovation Trail [more on Solar Power in our area]
01/05/2012: EPA Issues Annual Report on Chemicals Released Into Land, Air and Water in New York (New York, N.Y.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today issued its 25th annual report on the amount of toxic chemicals released in 2010 to the land, air and water by industrial facilities in New York. The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) report covers 650 New York facilities that are required to report their releases to the EPA. Total releases of chemicals in New York were 15% lower in 2010 than in 2009. Much of this reduction was due to a decrease in the amount of nitrate compounds released into water by Finch Paper Co. of Glens Falls. (January 5, 2012) U.S. EPA Newsroom - News Releases [more on Air Quality in our area]
Warm weather threatens to extend U.S. drought | Reuters (Reuters) - A New Year's Eve "heat wave" melted away welcomed winter snow that had brought some drought relief to the U.S. Plains, reviving fears that harmfully warm and dry conditions will persist into 2012, U.S. climatologists said in a report issued Thursday. "The return of warm, dry weather to the nation's southern tier could be suggestive of an increasingly La Nina-driven atmospheric regime," said the U.S. Drought Monitor report, issued weekly by a team of national, state and academic climatology experts. (January 5, 2011) Business & Financial News, Breaking US & International News | Reuters.com [more on Climate Change in our area]
Toxic releases rose 16 percent in 2010, EPA says - The Washington Post The amount of toxic chemicals released into the environment nationwide in 2010 increased 16 percent over the year before, reversing a downward trend in overall toxic releases since 2006, according to a report released Thursday by the Environmental Protection Agency. The spike was driven largely by metal mining, but other sectors — including the chemical industry — also contributed to the rise in emissions, according to the new analysis from the annual federal Toxics Release Inventory. (January 5, 2012) National: Breaking National News & Headlines - Washington Post [more on Air Quality in our area
Solar Panels Compete With Cheap Natural Gas : NPR Renewable energy is growing rapidly in the U.S., with wind and solar industries enjoying double-digit growth each year. Part of that growth comes from more homeowners choosing to install solar panels. With government subsidies, some people can even make a financial argument for installing the panels. But in recent years, the price of one fossil fuel — natural gas — has declined so much that solar panels are having difficulty competing. (January 5, 2011) Environment : NPR [more on Solar Power in our area]
2012: A new year and a new ban on e-waste More on the state Electronic Equipment Recycling and Reuse Act Beginning January 1, 2012, any organization engaged in the collection of solid waste for delivery to a New York state solid waste management facility (i.e. private or municipal solid waste haulers/transporters), businesses, private or public corporations, not-for-profit corporations and government entities are prohibited from disposing of electronic equipment in landfills. Exceptions to the current law include individuals or household consumers. (January 4, 2012) Niagara Index — The Nation’s Third Oldest College Newspaper [more on Recycling in our area]
Chicago Waterways Study Stirs Debate on Their Future - NYTimes.com A new Army Corps of Engineers study of Chicago-area waterways has stirred the debate over whether to sever the connection between Lake Michigan and inland waterways that was created by the construction of canals a century ago. The study, released on Dec. 7, is part of the Corps’s nearly decade-long process aimed at preventing invasive species, including voracious Asian carp, from spreading between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River ecosystems. (December 31, 2012) The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia [more on Invasive Species in our area]
NCPR News - Anti-Hydrofracking protestors gather outside State of State More than 100 protestors opposed to hydrofracking gathered in the Empire State Plaza Wednesday outside the auditorium where Governor Andrew Cuomo delivered his State of the State address, chanting "no fracking way!" (January 4, 2012) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
New York ban on landfilling electronic waste begins | Press & Sun-Bulletin | pressconnects.com ALBANY -- New York state environmental officials are warning waste haulers that they can no longer dispose of televisions, computers and other electronic waste at landfills. Under a new law that took effect Sunday, both private and public haulers are prohibited from collecting electronic waste, except for recycling. The law also requires haulers and waste facility operators to provide customers with written information about options for recycling unwanted electronics. (January 1, 2012) Press & Sun-Bulletin | Binghamton news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Binghamton, New York | pressconnects.com [more on Recycling in our area]
SUNY Geneseo earns grant to study extinctions | Rochester Business Journal New York business news and information A researcher at SUNY College at Geneseo has received an $80,000 grant for a two-year study into how climate cycles have affected earth history. Jeffrey Over, a geological sciences professor, received a National Science Foundation grant for a collaborative research project to examine reasons for the major biological extinctions that occurred during the Late Devonian period in geological history. The time interval, 375 million years ago, marks one of five major extinctions. (January 3, 2011) Home | Rochester Business Journal New York business news and information [more on Climate Change in our area]
“Superhero” Ads, Protesters Pressure Cuomo on Fracking ALBANY, N.Y. - Critics of fracking are to protest today at Gov. Andrew Cuomo's "State of the State address, hoping to tell the governor that he should slow the rush toward horizontal drilling for natural gas in New York's Marcellus Shale. Meanwhile, those worried about fracking's impact on New York's water have a new superhero, in a television ad produced by the Water Rangers Coalition. Wearing tights and a cape, he's played by a familiar character actor, Albany-born Adam Lefevre. (January 4, 2012) Public News Service [more on Fracking in our area]
National Public Health Conference explores shale gas production - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Finger Lakes, N.Y. — Public health experts, physicians and epidemiologists from across the nation will attend a conference Jan. 9 on the public health aspects from the natural gas drilling method of hydrofracking. (January 3, 2012) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Fracking in our area]
RIT scientist heads team to measure polar ice melt | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Satellite imagery has helped scientists detect everything from wheat shortages in the former Soviet Union to deforestation in the Amazon. Nowadays, satellites are using more sophisticated technology to determine how much polar ice has melted — a sign of global warming. Rochester Institute of Technology associate professor John Kerekes is heading up a team that is creating a computer model that will guide scientists who are applying this technology in a future satellite launch. (January 4, 2011) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Climate Change in our area]
Climate coverage down again in 2011 — The Daily Climate Climate change dropped even further from the world's headlines and newscasts last year. Weird weather, Australia's carbon tax and Solyndra fracas weren't enough to stem a decline that started in 2009. Media coverage of climate change continued to tumble in 2011, declining roughly 20 percent from 2010's levels and nearly 42 percent from 2009's peak, according to analysis of DailyClimate.org's archive of global media. (January 3, 2011) The Daily Climate [more on Climate Change in our area]
Western Canada Loosens Rules for Drilling, Attracts Massive Fracking Operations | InsideClimate News In Alberta and British Columbia, regional authories have passed regs to allow more intensive drilling. The result: a string of record-breaking fracks. Early last year, deep in the forests of northern British Columbia, workers for Apache Corp. performed what the company proclaimed was the biggest hydraulic fracturing operation ever. The project used 259 million gallons of water and 50,000 tons of sand to frack 16 gas wells side by side. It was "nearly four times larger than any project of its nature in North America," Apache boasted. (December 28, 2011) | InsideClimate News [more on Fracking in our area]
Oil-Drilling Wastewater Seen Causing Earthquake : NPR A northeast Ohio well used to dispose of wastewater from oil and gas drilling almost certainly caused a series of 11 minor earthquakes in the Youngstown area since last spring, a seismologist investigating the quakes said Monday. Research is continuing on seismic activity near the now-shuttered injection well at Youngstown, Ohio, but it might take a year for the wastewater-related rumblings in the earth to dissipate, said John Armbruster of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, N.Y. (January 2, 2012) Environment : NPR [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - Landowners may get less in shale lease deals Experts say exploration of natural gas in the Marcellus Shale is expected to keep rising in 2012. But they say landowners may find that signing lease deals isn't as easy as in years past. Drillers have swarmed in recent years to the Shale that lies beneath Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia and Ohio. Pennsylvania is the center of activity, with more than 3,000 wells drilled in the past three years and thousands more planned. (January 3, 2012)NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - Comptroller wants fee to build drilling accident fund New York Comptroller Tom DiNapoli is thinking ahead to the possibility of new hydrofracking operations in the state this year. In a letter to the Department of Environmental Conservation, DiNapoli renewed his call for a drilling fee to pay for any accidents caused by natural gas drilling. The Innovation Trail's Matt Richmond reports. (January 3, 2012) [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - Ohio delays four fracking wastewater wells in wake of quake Ohio leaders are prohibiting the use of four hydro-fracking waste-water wells from opening, after a series of earthquakes. Julie Grant reports that the state is concerned there's a link between the two. The wells are for disposal of waste fluid left over from hydraulic fracturing. Also known as fracking, it involves injecting water, sand, and chemicals deep into the ground at high pressure. That cracks the underground bedrock and allows oil or gas to flow. At the end of the process, there can be millions of gallons of waste-water. NCPR: North Country Public Radio (January 3, 2012) [more on Fracking in our area]
NCPR News - Fracking emissions raise questions about "green" gas The gas drilling technique known as hydro-fracking has raised fears about water supplies and environmental damage. But as the Innovation Trail's Matt Richmond reports, there's a new conflict about fracking brewing: what effect will emissions from the production process have on global climate change? (January 3, 2011) NCPR: North Country Public Radio [more on Fracking in our area]
N.Y. gas drilling opponents aim for local bans | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com ALBANY — As state environmental regulators wrap up their review of shale gas drilling in New York, opponents of a drilling method called hydraulic fracturing are taking a local approach, enacting zoning and planning laws that ban the practice. This home rule tactic will be a key focus of environmental groups in the new legislative session that begins Wednesday with Gov. Andrew Cuomo's state-of-the-state address in Albany. (January 3, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Fracking in our area]
County makes plans for bigger landfill | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com A new agreement between Monroe County and officials in the Genesee County town of Bergen has set the stage for Monroe County to pursue expanding the Mill Seat Landfill, which is expected to reach capacity by 2018. The agreement, like one inked in 2011 with the town of Riga, where the landfill sits on the border of Bergen, provides financial incentives for the town, village, school district and fire department of Bergen in exchange for their support of an expansion. (January 3, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Recycling in our area]
Smart-growth trend shifting focus away from sprawl | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com Shifting demographic and economic factors, coupled with a state policy that encourages smart-growth principles, signal a shift in the decades-old debate over suburban sprawl. While recent events don't amount to a full-scale reversal of the building trend that started after World War II, they do suggest that developers and elected officials are taking a more long-range approach. While many suburban municipalities are revising local zoning rules and making provisions for land preservation, smart-growth projects are also becoming eligible for government grants and tax incentives. (January 3, 2012) Democrat and Chronicle | Rochester news, community, entertainment, yellow pages and classifieds. Serving Rochester, New York | democratandchronicle.com [more on Urban Sprawl in our area]

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