West Virginia Adopt-A-HIghway

The state Department of Environmental Protection is accepting registrations for the Saturday, Sept. 29 Adopt-A- Highway Fall Statewide Cleanup. Volunteers have until Friday, Sept. 14 to register.

Co-sponsored by the DEP and the state Division of Highways, the Adopt-A-Highway program is administered by the DEP’s Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan (REAP). Its goals include improving the quality of our environment by encouraging public involvement in the elimination of highway litter.

Individuals, families, churches, businesses, schools, civic organizations, government agencies and communities can register to pick up trash on almost any state-maintained road, back road or main route. Private roads and interstate highways cannot be adopted.

The Adopt-A-Highway program provides garbage bags, work gloves and safety vests to volunteers. The state also takes care of disposing of collected trash. Volunteers must be at least 12 years old to participate.

More than 3,400 volunteers turned out for the fall 2011 Adopt-A-Highway cleanup and cleared over 1,500 miles of West Virginia roadways. Since the program’s inception in 1988, state citizens have cleaned up close to 70,000 miles of state highways and roads during annual spring and fall Adopt-A-Highway events.

To register, call 1-800-322-5530 or send an email to:

dep.aah@wv.gov. If you reach the REAP voicemail, please leave your ID, phone number, group name, date of cleanup, number of participants and the county where your adopted road is located.

EPA, DOT Congratulate Themselves On Fuel Standards

While not generally a fan of government mandates, I like the fuel economy standards that are required for cars and trucks.  The same might have been accomplished by market forces even without the standards, but  they appear to have been a significant force in improving mileage.

Having said that, it is amusing to see any US administration, Democrat or Republican, bragging  about setting tough standards for  the future, long after they will be gone from politics and no longer responsible for actually achieving those standards. They  require no discipline or effort now, but are trumpeted as if they are achievements of current officeholders.  It's similar to politicians who have grand schemes for balancing the budget that rely on tax increases and/or program cuts that don't go into effect for years to come.

Anyway, here's the EPA announcement of the new fuel standards:

WASHINGTON, DC – The Obama Administration today finalized groundbreaking standards that will increase fuel economy to the equivalent of 54.5 mpg for cars and light-duty trucks by Model Year 2025. When combined with previous standards set by this Administration, this move will nearly double the fuel efficiency of those vehicles compared to new vehicles currently on our roads. In total, the Administration’s national program to improve fuel economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions will save consumers more than $1.7 trillion at the gas pump and reduce U.S. oil consumption by 12 billion barrels.

“These fuel standards represent the single most important step we’ve ever taken to reduce our dependence on foreign oil,” said President Obama. “This historic agreement builds on the progress we’ve already made to save families money at the pump and cut our oil consumption. By the middle of the next decade our cars will get nearly 55 miles per gallon, almost double what they get today. It’ll strengthen our nation’s energy security, it’s good for middle class families and it will help create an economy built to last.”

The historic standards issued today by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) build on the success of the Administration’s standards for cars and light trucks for Model Years 2011-2016. Those standards, which raised average fuel efficiency by 2016 to the equivalent of 35.5 mpg, are already saving families money at the pump.

Achieving the new fuel efficiency standards will encourage innovation and investment in advanced technologies that increase our economic competitiveness and support high-quality domestic jobs in the auto industry. The final standards were developed by DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and EPA following extensive engagement with automakers, the United Auto Workers, consumer groups, environmental and energy experts, states, and the public. Last year, 13 major automakers, which together account for more than 90 percent of all vehicles sold in the United States, announced their support for the new standards. By aligning Federal and state requirements and providing manufacturers with long-term regulatory certainty and compliance flexibility, the standards encourage investments in clean, innovative technologies that will benefit families, promote U.S. leadership in the automotive sector, and curb pollution.

“Simply put, this groundbreaking program will result in vehicles that use less gas, travel farther, and provide more efficiency for consumers than ever before—all while protecting the air we breathe and giving automakers the regulatory certainty to build the cars of the future here in America,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Today, automakers are seeing their more fuel-efficient vehicles climb in sales, while families already saving money under the Administration’s first fuel economy efforts will save even more in the future, making this announcement a victory for everyone.”

“The fuel efficiency standards the administration finalized today are another example of how we protect the environment and strengthen the economy at the same time,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “Innovation and economic growth are already reinvigorating the auto industry and the thousands of businesses that supply automakers as they create and produce the efficient vehicles of tomorrow. Clean, efficient vehicles are also cutting pollution and saving drivers money at the pump.”

The Administration’s combined efforts represent the first meaningful update to fuel efficiency standards in decades. Together, they will save American families more than $1.7 trillion dollars in fuel costs, resulting in an average fuel savings of more than $8,000 by 2025 over the lifetime of the vehicle. For families purchasing a model Year 2025 vehicle, the net savings will be comparable to lowering the price of gasoline by approximately $1 per gallon. Additionally, these programs will dramatically reduce our reliance on foreign oil, saving a total of 12 billion barrels of oil and reducing oil consumption by more than 2 million barrels a day by 2025 – as much as half of the oil we import from OPEC each day.

The standards also represent historic progress to reduce carbon pollution and address climate change. Combined, the Administration’s standards will cut greenhouse gas emissions from cars and light trucks in half by 2025, reducing emissions by 6 billion metric tons over the life of the program – more than the total amount of carbon dioxide emitted by the United States in 2010.

President Obama announced the proposed standard in July 2011, joined by Ford, GM, Chrysler, BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar/Land Rover, Kia, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota, and Volvo, as well as the United Auto Workers. The State of California and other key stakeholders also supported the announcement and were integral in developing this national program.

In achieving these new standards, EPA and NHTSA expect automakers’ to use a range of efficient and advanced technologies to transform the vehicle fleet. The standards issued today provide for a mid-term evaluation to allow the agencies to review their effectiveness and make any needed adjustments.

Major auto manufacturers are already developing advanced technologies that can significantly reduce fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions beyond the existing model year 2012-2016 standards. In addition, a wide range of technologies are currently available for automakers to meet the new standards, including advanced gasoline engines and transmissions, vehicle weight reduction, lower tire rolling resistance, improvements in aerodynamics, diesel engines, more efficient accessories, and improvements in air conditioning systems. The program also includes targeted incentives to encourage early adoption and introduction into the marketplace of advanced technologies to dramatically improve vehicle performance, including:

• Incentives for electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and fuel cells vehicles; 
• Incentives for hybrid technologies for large pickups and for other technologies that achieve high fuel economy levels on large pickups; 
• Incentives for natural gas vehicles; 
• Credits for technologies with potential to achieve real-world greenhouse gas reductions and fuel economy improvements that are not captured by the standards test procedures.

Germany To Build 23 Coal-fired Power Plants

Dr. Kelvin Kemm ruminates on Germany's plans to build 23 new coal burning power plants.  Turns out that wind power provided much less (almost half) of the  power it was expected to provide, and much  more fossil fuel power  is needed to keep the economy running.   Germany, which prohibits fracking and is de-commissioning its nuclear plants, has turned to coal to power itself. Germany recently  opened a huge (2200 megawatt) coal-fired plant near Cologne, to a deafening silence.  This in a country that prides itself on being green.  

EPA Explains Post-Sackett Approach To Enforcement

The US Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Sackett v EPA,  132 S. Ct. 1367, that compliance orders issued under Section 309(a) of the Clean Water Act are final orders that are subject to judicial challenge under the Administrative Procedure Act.  Senator Inhofe  inquired about statements made by an EPA employee to the effect that nothing had changed after the Supreme Court's decision, and Giles responded to him, saying that was not the case, and the employee was quoted out of context. Giles  attached a memo from Pamela J. Mazakas, Director of the Office of Civil Enforcement, that explained how EPA would proceed post-Sackett.  EPA staff  is encouraged to "continue the practice of inviting parties to meet ande discuss how CWA violatons . . .can be resolved as quickly as possible." Consensual administrative compliance orders" are also suggested options.

West Virginia DEP Proposes First CAFO NPDES Permit

West Virginia's Department of Environmental Protection has proposed issuing its first (to my knowledge, anyway) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for a concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO.  The draft permit can be found here.

CAFOs are places where large numbers of animals are kept, and may generate significant amounts of waste. Production wastewater, or water running off from the places the animals are kept, is subject to NPDES permitting if it runs to a water of the United States. However, agricultural storm water is exempt from NPDES permitting  under the Clean Water Act, and the state agencies that issue NPDES permits are still trying to differentiate between production wastewater, which can be permitted, and agricultural storm water, which cannot. For example, regulating animal wastes that are used as fertilizer can become  a tricky issue. In this permit, manure from the CAFO  production area can be spread on fields if it is done in accordance with a Nutrient Management Plan (NMP), even if some will eventually run to jurisdictional waters, but that same waste cannot run off the production area and into a jurisdictional water  in any amount.

Anyone interested in commenting on the  permit has until September 12 to do so.

DEP Offers eDMR Guidance

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection Division of Water and Waste Management issues NPDES permits in the state.  Monthly reports, known as Discharge Monitoring Reports, or DMRs, are the means by which permittees report to the DEP on the results of their wastewater testing.  That reporting is now supposed to be done electronically,and as with many new things, a few glitches have arisen.  The DEP has prepared a guidance that may answer questions for some permittees who are using the eDMR system.  You can find that guidance here.

Center for Biological Diversity May Challenge Nationwide Permits

The Center for Biological Diversity notified the US Army Corps of Engineers by letter dated August 16 that it intends to file a lawsuit challenging  the Corps' nationwide permit (NWP) program, which is authorized  by Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.  The CBD is threatening to file suit because  the Corps allegedly failed to consider the effects of the NWP program on endangered species, and therefore violates the Endangered Species Act.  Its position is summarized in the letter this way:

As explained above, ACOE is in violation of the ESA as a result of its failure to insure that the
NWP program will not jeopardize the continued existence of any listed species, or result in the
destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat. ACOE’s NWP program constitutes
violations of Section 7(a)(2) and Section 7(d) of the ESA. 

If ACOE does not act to correct the violations described in this letter, the Center will pursue
litigation against ACOE in U.S. District Court in 60 days from your receipt of this notice. The
Center will seek injunctive and declaratory relief, and legal fees and costs regarding these
violations. An appropriate remedy that would prevent litigation would be for ACOE to
immediately cease its NWP program until it can insure that the discharges permitted under the
program will not jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered or threatened species, and will not destroy or adversely modify any critical habitat for such species, in consultation with and with the assistance of NMFS and FWS and in accordance with any RPA.

Hunton & Williams has an explanation of  the letter and the possible ramifications of the lawsuit.