• Mexican Dam Failure Could Flood El Paso
  
• Oregon Seeks Injunction to Stop First Roadless Logging
  
• U.S. Forest Service Plans to Outsource 21,350 Firefighting Jobs
  
• California Heat Wave Costs Agriculture Industry Billions
  
• Biofuel Crops Tested on Michigan Industrial Brownfields
  
• Floating Plant Mats Help Clean Manure Lagoons
  
• UPS Hydraulic Hybrid Delivery Truck Boosts Fuel Economy 60 Percent
  

Mexican Dam Failure Could Flood El Paso

EL PASO, Texas, August 4, 2006 (ENS) - About 2,500 people have been evacuated from their El Paso homes due to a dam safety emergency taking place across the border in Juarez, Mexico that could cause flooding in El Paso. A high rise inhabited by 455 elderly people was evacuated overnight.

Juarez officials contacted their counterparts across the border in El Paso on Thursday to warn that heavy rainfall had caused water to overtop a dam known as the Montada Dique twice this week.

The dam is located on the west side of Juarez, about one mile from downtown. The downstream face of the dam was eroded two to three feet during the overtopping.

Coordination between the two municipalities is needed because of potential for further uncontrolled release of water into the Rio Grande which could flood parts of El Paso.

The El Paso Mayor's Office contacted U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) dam safety personnel and requested technical assistance to evaluate the threat to El Paso associated with the present dam condition.

In response to that request and further requests by the City of Juarez and the International Boundaries Water Commission, USACE employees joined a team that observed the conditions. Escorted by City of Juarez officials, the team entered Mexico and returned to El Paso Thursday afternoon.

They found that approximately 200,000 cubic meters of water remain behind the dam, about two-thirds of the highest water level. Water is being pumped down at the rate of one to two feet per hour.

If pumped down to 100,000 cubic meters this will still be a threat as water is seeping from numerous areas. A second drainage area is being cleared which will facilitate pumping water.

Two-thirds of the residents in the threatened El Paso neighborhood have elected to stay. There is no mandatory evacuation order at this time, but that is being continuously evaluated based on the weather conditions.

The city is bracing for bad weather. NOAA forecasts a 20 to 40 percent chance of heavy rains through Friday night. Should the dam breach, El Paso and USACE officials project about three feet of flood waters in the downtown area.

Oregon Seeks Injunction to Stop First Roadless Logging

This will be the first roadless logging to take place in the nation since the Bush administration's repeal of the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule that held back 58.5 million acres of inventoried roadless public lands from logging and other development.

Governor Kulongoski condemned the logging operation that is set to proceed regardless of Oregon's lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California that seeks an injunction against logging in roadless areas of the state.

The case, States of California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington v. United States Department of Agriculture, alleges that the federal government violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to provide an adequate public process for the rules change.

"I hope to win the lawsuit, and that the court will issue an injunction to prevent the sale in Mike’s Gulch," said the governor.

The Bush administration plans to auction the Blackberry timber sale, in the North Kalmiopsis Roadless Area, today. As with the Mike's Gulch sale, this is likely to be sold at a loss to taxpayers, according to the American Lands Alliance, an environmental group which opposes the timber sales.

"I will also ask the court to enjoin the sale on the Blackberry Inventoried Roadless Area," said Governor Kulongoski.

The governor has announced his intention to petition the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for protection of the Oregon's roadless areas as each governor is now required to do by the Bush administration new rule. The USDA can choose to reject such a petition.

The governor is holding three public meetings across the state in August to generate public input on his petition to protect all inventoried roadless areas in the state.

"I have repeatedly urged the Bush administration to refrain from logging in Oregon’s two million acres of roadless areas while our lawsuit to protect the Clinton roadless rule moves forward," he said. "Also, the Bush administration should avoid such divisive measures until Oregon communities have an opportunity to weigh in on this important issue regarding our state’s natural heritage."

The American Lands Alliance describes the North and South Kalmiopsis Roadless Areas as some of the most valuable wild salmon and steelhead habitat in the United States. They adjoin the "world renowned" Kalmiopsis Wilderness. "Logging in these areas would devastate old growth forests, damage water quality and key wildlife habitat in one of the wildest corners of Oregon," the group warns.

Each Roadless Area Public Forum will be held from 6:00 - 8:00 pm:

• August 10
  Blue Mountain Conference Center
  404 Twelfth Street, La Grande, Oregon
  
  
• August 14
  Portland State University
  University Place – Columbia Falls Ballroom
  310 SW Lincoln Street, Portland, Oregon
  
  
• August 16
  Medford City Hall
  411 W 8th Street, Medford, Oregon

U.S. Forest Service Plans to Outsource 21,350 Firefighting Jobs

Documents jointly released Wednesday by the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) Forest Service Council, the Federal Wildland Fire Service Association (FWFSA) and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) show that the outsourcing is part of a plan to study replacement of more than two-thirds of the total agency workforce with contractors. As many as 21,350 Forest Service jobs could be outsourced.

"We just went to the highest wildfire risk level, National Preparedness Level 5, with several regions experiencing major incidents which have the potential to exhaust all agency fire resources," said FWFSA Business Manager Casey Judd. "The Forest Service simply cannot afford to give away fire-fighting capacity, regardless of the reason."

Firefighters work in a variety of "day jobs," but are certified for critical fire suppression duties, many of which require years of training and experience on fires to acquire.

Concerned that agency plans would reduce national fire suppression capabilities, appropriations committees in both houses of Congress have passed language prohibiting outsourcing studies involving personnel who support wildfire suppression activities.

Still, Forest Service officials recently briefed the White House Office of Management and Budget that it will proceed with outsourcing studies affecting agency firefighters regardless of whether this language is enacted in law.

"There is broad bi-partisan agreement that the Forest Service competitive sourcing program is an unmitigated disaster," observed Bill Dougan, president of the NFFE Forest Service Council, noting that a Government Accountability Office (GAO) review is slated to begin following a bi-partisan expression of concern. "It makes sense to put this program on hold until the GAO audit can be completed."

In addition to firefighting, these trained employees respond to emergencies ranging from hurricanes to outbreaks of avian viruses, such as Exotic Newcastle Disease.

The Incident Command System used by the firefighters has been so successful that President George W. Bush ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to duplicate the structure, the employees' organizations point out.

"These outsourcing plans threaten to FEMA-ize the Forest Service by atomizing its operations into disposable portions and sacrificing its large-scale incident management capabilities," said PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. "Unfortunately, delays in enacting appropriations legislation may allow the Forest Service to begin the contracting process before Congress can put a stop to it."

California Heat Wave Costs Agriculture Industry Billions

Following the visit with Fresno County dairy rancher Steve Nash on Wednesday, the governor participated in a roundtable discussion with agriculture leaders, farmers, dairy producers and growers about the economic impact the heat wave has had on California agriculture.

Record-breaking temperatures in mid-July caused tens of thousands of livestock deaths in the Central Valley and millions of dollars in crop losses. Many farmers were unable to dispose of tens of thousands of animal carcasses due to the fact that rendering plants were over capacity.

On July 21, the California Environmental Protection Agency provided emergency waivers to dispose of animal carcasses for producers in Fresno, Kings, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tulare counties.

Other farmers have reported major damages to tomato, corn, grape, apple and plum crops.

The Governor's Office of Emergency Services initiated a request to the U.S. Department of Food and Agriculture (USDA) to make emergency loans available to farmers and ranchers that experienced severe economic losses due to the heat.

The Governor is seeking Congressional assistance to secure loans from the USDA for crop losses and other economic damage through a program similar to the one used to aid Gulf Coast farmers and ranchers following the destructive 2005 hurricanes.

California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary A.G. Kawamura is in Washington this week to meet with federal officials, including U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns. Kawamura will urge federal officials to act upon the governor's request for a disaster designation from the USDA.

In addition, the governor joined U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein of California in a letter to the President George W. Bush requesting the release of funds available in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program emergency contingency fund for those residents facing economic hardships due to increased energy costs caused by the extreme weather conditions.

Biofuel Crops Tested on Michigan Industrial Brownfields

Kurt Thelen, MSU professor of crop and soil sciences, is leading the investigation to examine the possibility that some oilseed crops like soybeans, sunflower and canola, and other crops such as corn and switchgrass, can be grown on abandoned industrial sites for use in ethanol or biodiesel fuel production.

"Right now, brownfields don’t grow anything," Thelen said. "This may seem like a drop in the bucket, but we’re looking at the possibilities of taking land that isn’t productive and using it to both learn and produce."

The first project covers a two-acre parcel that is part of a former industrial dump site in Oakland County’s Rose Township. Thelen’s group is determining whether crops grown on brownfield sites can produce adequate yields for use in biofuel production and seed oil.

The crop may also be able to take up contaminants from the soils without affecting its quality for use in biofuels, such as B20, a mix of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent petroleum diesel.

"As the chemical engineers work on developing a national spec for B20, we’ll grow the crops in the marginal areas and see if they can meet it," Thelen said. "We’re replicating our study on campus on good agricultural land to compare yields and the quality of biofuel produced from an agricultural land base versus a marginal brownfield land base and see if there’s a difference in yield and quality of biofuel."

DaimlerChrysler has been selling the Jeep Liberty SUV with a diesel engine, and beginning in early 2007 it will offer a diesel-powered Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV. In both cases, the vehicles are fueled with B5, which contains five percent biodiesel.

This fall, the company will approve use of B20 in the Dodge Ram diesel pickup for fleet customers who use fuel that meets the current military fuel quality specification.

"Renewable fuels such as biodiesel can be a home-grown solution to our nation’s environmental, energy and economic challenges," said Deborah Morrissett, vice president of regulatory affairs for DaimlerChrysler. "This research project with Michigan State can make an important contribution toward reducing our nation’s reliance on oil."

The three-year study is supported by DaimlerChrysler, NextEnergy, a nonprofit organization that supports energy technology development, and Project GREEEN, Generating Research and Extension to meet Economic and Environmental Needs, the state’s plant industry initiative at MSU. The study also is supported by the MSU Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station.

"Biofuel production is going to require a significant land base to meet future production expectations," Thelen said. "Use of marginal lands or sites not preferable for food crops is a good idea. We’ll be looking at whether it is something that might offer multiple benefits."

Floating Plant Mats Help Clean Manure Lagoons

TIFTON, Georgia, August 4, 2006 (ENS) - Studies by federal government agriculture scientist have shown that it is possible to remove excess nutrients from manure lagoons by growing plants on floating mats.

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service center in Tifton have been studying how to most efficiently use this method to extract excess nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater before it becomes an environmental problem.

Soil scientist Robert Hubbard, in the ARS Southeast Watershed Research Unit together with plant pathologist Jeffrey Wilson and geneticist William Anderson at the ARS Crop Genetics and Breeding Research Unit in Tifton; and colleagues Larry Newton, John Ruter and Gary Gascho at the University of Georgia are trying to determine the feasibility of removing excess nutrients in this way.

Manure lagoons are used to store wastewater from confined-feeding dairy and swine operations. The nutrient-laden water is generally applied to land as fertilizer. But if it is not applied properly, excess nitrogen and phosphorus may run off to contaminate drinking water, impair soil quality and cause dead zones in surface waters.

In the first phase, research was conducted in small tanks. Vegetation was grown atop floating rafts constructed of PVC pipe and chicken wire covered with jute erosion-control matting. The mats were tested on full-strength wastewater, half-strength wastewater, or an inorganic solution.

In that phase, cattails grew the best on full-strength wastewater, produced the most biomass, and removed the most nutrients.

Studies showed that harvesting cattails from these floating rafts could remove an average of 493 grams of nitrogen and 73 grams of phosphorus per square meter per year.

Now the second phase of research is being conducted at Southern Select Farms, a commercial hog farm in Tifton that has a single anaerobic lagoon.

The tests will use a new type of floating mat, consisting of plastic foam covered with braided coir - the coarse fibers from the outer shell of coconuts.

These mats were designed in cooperation with aquatic nurseries located in Jarretsville, Maryland, and Johns Island, South Carolina.

Several different plant species seem to be good candidates, including St. Augustine grass, coastal Bermudagrass, and giant reed, which have potential as a source of biofuel.

UPS Hydraulic Hybrid Delivery Truck Boosts Fuel Economy 60 Percent

HOUSTON, Texas, August 4, 2006 (ENS) - The world’s first hydraulic hybrid commercial truck came to Houston in July in the form of a brown United Parcel Service (UPS) delivery truck.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and UPS partnered to develop a delivery truck that is the first of its kind using EPA's patented hydraulic hybrid technology.

Following a road tour of EPA regional offices, the vehicle will be delivering UPS packages across Michigan this summer.

In city driving conditions, the truck can increase fuel efficiency by 60 to 70 percent over trucks that run solely on petroleum diesel fuel. The hybrid truck also lowers greenhouse gas emissions by reducing carbon dioxide by 40 percent compared to the conventional UPS diesel delivery trucks.

Laboratory tests show that this hybrid technology has the potential to improve the fuel economy for package delivery vehicles, shuttle and transit buses, and refuse pickup. More than 1,000 gallons of fuel each year could be saved per vehicle.

EPA estimates that upfront costs for the hybrid components could be recouped in fewer than three years for a typical delivery vehicle. The net savings over the vehicle's lifespan could exceed $50,000, assuming current fuel prices.

"Proven innovations like the hydraulic hybrid technology, combined with the efforts of voluntary regional partnerships across the country, such as our own Blue Skyways Collaborative, are helping our country improve fuel efficiency," EPA Regional Administrator Richard Greene said.

The Blue Skyways Collaborative is a group of businesses, communities, and government agencies working together to reduce air pollution emissions in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and other urban areas in the central United States. Projects include innovations in diesel engines, alternative fuels and renewable energy technologies to reduce air emissions along air, water and rail transportation corridors.

"Managing fuel consumption makes good business sense. It improves a business’ bottom line and reduces its environmental impact at the same time," said Greene.

The hydraulic hybrid commercial truck features a full hydraulic hybrid powertrain and a unique hydraulic hybrid propulsion system integrated with the drive axle.

Hydraulic motors and hydraulic tanks are used to store energy, in contrast to electric motors and batteries used in electric hybrid vehicles. Like other hybrid systems, energy saved when applying the brakes is reused to help accelerate the vehicle.