Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Environmental Protection Agency
President Joe Biden's administration has announced a plan to rip out nine million lead water pipes across the US. The 10-year proposal aims to shield communities from a neurotoxin that can cause permanent damage to the brain and nervous system, especially in children. It would cost about $30bn (£24bn), the Environmental Protection Agency says.
The United States Supreme Court has curtailed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s authority to protect wetlands from pollution, a ruling that some experts and justices say goes too far by positioning the court as “the national decision-maker on environmental policy.” On May 25, the court ruled that only wetlands with a “continuous surface connection” to larger streams, lakes, and rivers fall under federal protection. This is the second major legal blow to the federal government’s powers for environmental protection, after last year’s SCOTUS decision that the Clean Air Act does not grant the EPA broad authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants that contribute to global warming.
The US Supreme Court curtailed the federal government's authority to protect its wetlands from pollution in a decision on Thursday. The court voted only those wetlands with a continuous surface connection to larger streams, lakes and rivers would come under federal protections. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) expressed its disappointment. It is the second case in two years where the court limited the EPA's ability to regulate pollution.
Some 9.2 million lead pipes carry water into homes across the U.S., with more in Florida than any other state, according to a new Environmental Protection Agency survey that will dictate how billions of dollars to find and replace those pipes are spent. The survey released Tuesday was the first time the agency asked about lead pipes and gave the best count yet of how many are underground. Florida, with an estimated 1.16 million pipes, was a surprise to one expert. Industrial states like Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania are more typically associated with extensive lead pipe issues.
The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to propose restrictions on harmful “forever chemicals” in drinking water after finding they are dangerous in amounts so small as to be undetectable. But experts say removing them will cost billions, a burden that will fall hardest on small communities with few resources. Concerned about the chemicals' ability to weaken children's immune systems, the EPA said last year that PFAS could cause harm at levels “much lower than previously understood.”
The Biden administration on Friday said it would require states to report on cybersecurity threats in their audits of public water systems, a day after it released a broader plan to protect critical infrastructure against cyberattacks. The Environmental Protection Agency said public water systems are increasingly at risk from cyberattacks that amount to a threat to public health.
An analysis of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data by Texas A&M University has found elevated levels of nine chemicals that “may be of health concern” to residents of East Palestine, Ohio. The small town of 5,000 played host to a nightmarish scenario early this month when a train carrying hazardous materials crashed, leaking toxins into the soil, water and air.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday proposed restrictions that would block plans for a copper and gold mine in Alaska's Bristol Bay region that is home to the world's largest sockeye salmon run. A statement from the regional EPA office said discharges of dredged or fill material into the waters of the U.S. within the proposed Pebble Mine footprint in southwest Alaska would "result in unacceptable adverse effects on salmon fishery areas."
The U.S. Justice Department has reached an agreement with the state of Mississippi and the city of Jackson to appoint an interim third-party manager to stabilize the city's drinking water supply after a catastrophic failure over the summer. The Justice Department also a filed a complaint against the city on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency, alleging the city failed to provide reliable drinking water.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan said Tuesday that the agency is still working on a plan to bring long-term improvements to the water system in Mississippi’s capital city, which came perilously close to collapsing more than two months ago. “I am here for the fourth time in one year because I want to hear directly from you,” Regan told dozens of business people, elected officials, pastors and others during a meeting at Jackson State University.
Perpetua Resources Corp. (Nasdaq: PPTA) (TSX: PPTA) ("Perpetua Resources" or "Perpetua" or the "Company") announced today the summer 2022 field program to initiate water quality improvements in the historical Stibnite mining district is complete. After 100 years of mining activity, the millions of tons of unconstrained tailings and mine waste left behind by previous operators has been degrading water quality for decades. Perpetua was granted permission to take action to address the most pressing water quality concerns through an agreement signed in 2021 between the Company, the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") and the United States Department of Agriculture ("USDA").
Walking the streets of Libby, Mont., on a hazy September day, it’s not uncommon to hear the cough of a local resident. The picturesque, blue-collar town about an hour southwest of the Canada-U.S. Border in Montana’s north was once bustling with jobs thanks to nearby vermiculite mines. The work helped line locals’ wallets with steady pay. And lined their lungs with toxic asbestos dust. Years of remediation have helped make the town of about 2,700 safe again following what government officials called the worst case of industrial poisoning of a community in American history. But residents are still struggling to rebuild after hundreds died, and approximately 2,400 have been diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases.
Referring to US water and wastewater systems as the “weakest link” in the country’s critical infrastructure, water sector leaders on Wednesday urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to focus on better regulating the cybersecurity of these critical services. According to Mark Montgomery, executive director of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission and senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, the EPA only has around $7 million in its annual budget dedicated to water sector cybersecurity, a far cry from the $45 million the Solarium Commission recommended the EPA earmark for the Office of Water. Nextgov.com explains that for the 2023 fiscal year, the EPA is requesting $4 billion for the water sector, and EPA Administrator Michael Regan told Congress that includes $50 million to support resiliency and sustainability initiatives, $25 million to improve cyber capabilities, and $35 million to provide technical assistance.
The Environmental Protection Agency will move forward with environmental review of several water infrastructure projects intended to address transborder water pollution from the Tijuana River, it was announced Monday. “In order to protect public health and vital ecosystems in this vibrant area, we need a bold solution to the transboundary water pollution challenge,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Radhika Fox.
Back in the U.S., Michigan officials have warned residents in the city of Benton Harbor not to use tap water for drinking, cooking or brushing their teeth due to lead contamination. The city’s tap water was found to contain lead levels up to 60 times the federal limit as early as 2018. That’s higher than the contamination of Flint’s tap during its water crisis. Advocates are calling for officials to declare a state of emergency and for the EPA to intervene. The population of Benton Harbor is 85% Black, and nearly half of its residents are poor.
Last week Canada issued new rules requiring all vessels stopping at Canadian ports to have ballast water treatment systems in place by 2030. While this may seem like a niche issue, reports have shown us that ships contribute to the introduction and spread of destructive aquatic invasive species through the discharge of ballast water. Once species such as zebra and quagga mussels set up camp, they devastate the natural food chain and can lead to dangerous algae growth, which causes substantial environmental and economic harm to the Great Lakes and waters all across the country.
The Ottawa, Canada, headquartered Chamber of Marine Commerce doesn’t like new ballast water regulations released by Transport Canada. In fact, Its president and CEO, Bruce Burrows, calls them “a half-baked solution.” The Chamber says the new regulations “unfairly target Canadian ship operators—who have spent billions of dollars on new fuel-efficient, eco-ships—while giving an extra six years for compliance to owners of older vessels, including those of virtually all U.S. ships operating in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence inland waterway.” The Chamber says this “creates an unlevel playing field between Canadian and U.S. domestic fleets (which operate virtually all older vessels) and discourages further investment in new, more fuel-efficient ships that produce significantly lower greenhouse gases.”
