• New Bill Would Govern Rocket Fuel in Drinking Water
  
• Domenici Aims to Streamline Oil and Gas Permits
  
• Bipartisan Bill to Boost Renewables Introduced
  
• State Department Outlines Climate Change Strategy
  
• Bush Administration Fast Tracks Maryland Transport Project
  
• Delaware and New Jersey Close Horseshoe Crab Harvest
  
• Feds Offer Help to Manage a Septic System
  
• California Indian Casinos Must Address Off-Reservation Impact
  

New Bill Would Govern Rocket Fuel in Drinking Water

The bill would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish a standard for perchlorate contamination in drinking water supplies by July 1, 2004. The EPA's current schedule would not finalize a standard until 2006 at the earliest.

"We can not wait four more years to address this threat," said Boxer, a Democrat. "EPA needs to get moving and protect our drinking water sooner rather than later."

Missile and rocket fuel accounts for 90 percent of the use of perchlorate, but additional uses include ammunition, fireworks, highway safety flares, air bags and fertilizers.

Perchlorate has been shown to pose a variety of health risks related to the thyroid, particularly in newborns, children and pregnant women.

According to the research organization Environmental Working Group (EWG), more than 20 million Americans drink water from public and private sources known to be polluted with perchlorate. This figure includes customers of 81 contaminated water systems in California and all residents of California, Arizona and Nevada who get at least part of their drinking water from the perchlorate tainted Colorado River.

"Senator Boxer's legislation is a long overdue step toward addressing a toxic legacy of the Cold War that poses a health risk to Americans from California to Cape Cod," said Bill Walker, West Coast vice president of EWG, which has studied perchlorate pollution since 2000. "Now the Pentagon and the defense industry must stop trying to block safety standards and cleanup of contaminated sites, and let the EPA do its job of protecting the public."

Domenici Aims to Streamline Oil and Gas Permits

Domenici, a Republican from New Mexico, announced his intent after a hearing on energy and public lands issues held by his committee last Thursday. The senator complained that the current process can take up to two years and causes unnecessary delays in oil and gas development on public lands.

"The federal government is unnecessarily delaying American production of oil and gas," Domenici said. "Even after the federal government sells an oil or gas lease, the studies, permits, authorizations and appeals can take years and cost an energy company millions of dollars."

The costs of these delays, Domenici said, are passed onto American consumers and rising energy costs are impeding the recovery of the nation's economy. Some of the rules and regulations affecting the permitting process haven't been updated for two or three decades, he said.

"We have vast reserves of oil and gas on public lands that are appropriate for energy development," he said. "I am not talking about parks or wilderness areas. These are lands designated for multiple use, including energy development. But [industry experts] estimate that as much as 95 percent of that land is unusable because of costs and delays that make development prohibitive."

Bipartisan Bill to Boost Renewables Introduced

"Our demand for energy is growing by leaps and bounds," said Smith. "We have to make sure that not only are we generating enough from traditional sources, but that we're also looking for new environmentally friendly ways to provide for our ever increasing needs."

The bill would make the production tax credit for renewable energy permanent and raises it from 1.5 to 1.8 cents per kilowatt hour. It would expand the existing production tax credit that covers wind, poultry waste, and closed loop biomass to include geothermal, incremental geothermal, solar, open loop biomass, incremental hydropower, animal waste, and landfill gas.

"We have made great strides in wind energy development because of the current tax credit," said Reid. "Now is the time to extend that opportunity to solar, geothermal and other forms of green energy, and make it permanent to encourage investment in renewable power and the development of innovative new technology."

Advocates of renewable energy development praised the legislation because it provides incentives for companies to move forward with renewable power production projects.

It is the "single most important measure before Congress to stimulate new investment in new renewable power production in the United States," said Karl Gawell, executive director of the Geothermal Energy Association, which represents 80 renewable energy companies and organizations in the United States.

State Department Outlines Climate Change Strategy

Within the President's budget, he has outlined several international programs to demonstrate U.S. leadership on the issue and to promote the administration's pro growth strategy to climate change.

The President's budget earmarks $155 million for the U.S. Agency for International Development. Some $70 million is allocated for the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which is designed to help developing countries better measure and reduce emissions. GEF funds can be invested in clean and renewable energy technologies.

The spending plan includes money for climate observation systems in developing countries and $50 million for tropical forest conservation under the Tropical Forest Conservation Act. This helps countries redirect debt payments toward protecting tropical forests, which store millions of tons of carbon.

Of the funds set aside for multilateral partnerships, the administration's largest program focuses on carbon sequestration and development. Some $62 million has been set aside in the spending plan for this program.

A program to develop the next generation nuclear energy system is funded at $9.7 million and $12 million is set to support an international effort to research fusion energy.

Bush Administration Fast Tracks Maryland Transport Project

On Thursday, Governor Ehrlich was able to thank U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta for adding the Inter-County Connector (ICC) project to a select Federal Project Priority List for the environmental review fast track. The ICC project was selected from among 70 transportation projects nationwide.

"As a longtime proponent of the ICC, I applaud the Bush administration for fast-tracking this critical transportation project, Ehrlich said. This new federal initiative is a win for Maryland families and businesses, whose transportation needs have been neglected long enough. I look forward to working with President Bush and Secretary Mineta to make life a little easier for Maryland commuters," he said.

The Project Priority List of six transportation projects will be required to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act and all other environmental statutes.

Among the criteria for projects selected include those of national or regional significance that have experienced or are likely to experience delays from lack of federal interagency coordination, those that have support of local officials, and those likely to benefit from innovative coordination strategies.

President Bush issued Executive Order 13274 on September 18, 2002 to enhance environmental stewardship and streamline the decision making process in connection with major transportation projects. It instructs the Department of Transportation to select priority projects and establishes an interagency Task Force to coordinate expedited decision making across the federal agencies.

"Since Day One of the Ehrlich administration we have been developing a strategy to re-start the ICC project and today's announcement is another major step forward," said Transportation Secretary-designate Robert Flanagan on Thursday. "It was Governor Ehrlich's excellent personal relationship with President Bush that sealed the deal. In the very near future we will be meeting with staff from the Bush administration to determine how we best move the project forward."

Delaware and New Jersey Close Horseshoe Crab Harvest

Horseshoe crabs are thought to date back 450 million years – before the dinosaurs, says the American Bird Conservancy, a nonprofit group that works for the conservation of birds and their habitats throughout the Americas.

Delaware and New Jersey will also now require all conch potters to use bait saving devices such as bait bags, which are already required in Virginia, another bay state. These bags, advocated by the conservancy, can reduce crab use by 50 percent by enabling only half a crab to be used for bait in each pot instead of a whole crab with equal catch results.

Restrictions will also be imposed on access to state and federal beaches during the peak horsehoe crab spawning time. This will apply to bird watchers, beach goers, local residents, and researchers.

Despite past actions by the states and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to reduce crab harvest for bait, reported harvests went up in 2002 by 25 percent to 1.257 million crabs. Much of this increase occurred in Delaware and New Jersey.

Maryland exceeded its voluntary quota by 67,000 crabs before closing its harvest.

Now, Delaware and New Jersey have agreed to cap their harvest at 150,000 crabs each, nearly one-half of 2002 levels.

Maryland has also agreed to maintain a voluntary cap of 211,000 crabs while saying it will endeavor to keep landings even lower, at the 2001 level of 170,000.

The horseshoe crabs provide a crucial food source for shorebirds. “The relatively short period of this harvest closure is crucial to both the crabs and shorebirds as it is the peak time when the crabs come ashore to spawn,” said Gerald Winegrad, vice president for policy at the conservancy.

“Migrating shorebirds like the red knot stop off on their long journey north to gorge on the crab eggs that will sustain them through the remainder of their trip and for successful breeding," Windgrad explains. "This has also historically been the time of greatest harvest of crabs for bait, because the crabs are easily picked off the beaches, interrupting their spawning and shorebird feeding. We are delighted by the news and commend the states of New Jersey and Delaware for their timely actions on behalf of the crabs and shorebirds,” he says.

In the past several years, the crabs have been harvested so heavily that their populations have declined along the Atlantic Coast, particularly in the Delaware Bay.

The conservancy and other conservation groups, including National Audubon and New Jersey Audubon Societies, along with leading international scientists from Canada, Argentina, Brazil, and Europe, had urged New Jersey and Delaware to put a halt to the harvest to protect red knot populations.

About 90 percent of the Western Hemisphere’s red knot population flies from southern Argentina each spring to feed on horseshoe crab eggs in the Delaware Bay. The conservancy says crab declines mean that many of these birds are not gaining sufficient weight to migrate to the Arctic and successfully breed. Dunlins, semipalmated sandpipers, ruddy turnstones, and sanderlings are also dependent on crab eggs, says the bird advocacy organization.

Feds Offer Help to Manage a Septic System

The EPA is providing approximately 4,000 city and county public health officials with a CD that is really a kit for public education about proper septic system management.

"Public education is the key to improving septic system management. Citizens need to better understand the potential harm improperly managed septic systems can have on the environment and public health and what they can do to help," said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water G. Tracy Mehan, III.

As part of EPA's year long celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, the agency has developed the Wastewater Month CD that communities can use to reach out to citizens with septic tanks.

Using the CD, communities can inexpensively produce customized versions of brochures, utility bill inserts, and other useful information. Each document contains space where communities can add local information, so citizens will know how to obtain additional information.

To order copies of the Wastewater Month CD or hard copies of these materials, visit the Wastewater Month website at www.epa.gov/npdes/wastewatermonth or contact Nikos Singelis, of the Office of Wastewater Management, at singelis.nikos@epa.gov

California Indian Casinos Must Address Off-Reservation Impact

"The prosperity that many Indian casinos are enjoying has created unintentional consequences for many local governments - affecting traffic, air quality, law enforcement, water and sewage," Davis said. "Local governments and citizens have expressed concern that the provisions in the compact are inadequate to protect the off-reservation environment from significant adverse impacts."

The state and the tribes negotiated gaming compacts in September of 1999 to help Indian tribes achieve financial independence. The compacts envisioned that this issue would be re-opened for discussion in 2003. According to section 10.8 of compacts California can request negotiations for an amendment to the off-reservation environmental impacts of casinos.

Negotiations will center on the tribes' responsibilities to address off-reservation impacts related to the casino and any present or future expansion or significant renovation or modification, or any significant excavation, construction, or development associated with the casino.

"Tribal Gaming Facilities have created significant adverse impacts related to off-reservation traffic congestion, surface and ground water quality and quantity, air quality, sewage treatment, noise and wildlife habitat that have not been adequately mitigated," Davis wrote in his letter to the tribes.

"Indian tribes have been stewards of the environment for hundreds of years," Davis said. "I will consider these negotiations a success if we can come to an agreement in which we protect the environment from off-reservation impacts of casino gambling."