Category: News

Source: Environmental Protection News.com

The compliance date is May 10, 2013, by which farms covered by the rule must prepare or amend and implement their plans.

The compliance date has arrived for certain farms to prepare or amend and implement Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) plans. EPA’’ SPCC rule includes requirements for oil spill prevention, preparedness, and response to prevent oil discharges to navigable waters and adjoining shorelines, and the rule requires specific facilities to implement these plans.

The plans will help farms prevent oil spills and control a spill if one does occur. EPA’s Oil Information Center (800-424-9346) can answer questions about the agency’s SPCC program, and its SPCC for Agriculture web page links to numerous information sources.

SPCC applies to a farm that:

• Stores, transfers, uses, or consumes oil or oil products — such as diesel fuel, gasoline, lube oil, hydraulic oil, adjuvant oil, crop oil, vegetable oil or animal fat; and
• Stores more than 1,320 U.S. gallons in total of all aboveground containers (only count containers with 55 gallons or greater storage capacity) or more than 42,000 gallons in completely buried containers; and
• Could reasonably be expected to discharge oil to navigable waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines, such as lakes, rivers, and streams.

Source: Andrew Bender, Contributor Forbes.com

One hotel in Reno, Nevada is not like the others, but not for the reasons you’d expect. Sure, the Peppermill Resort Spa Casino’s two 19-story towers are unique, as are the 2.1 million square foot (195,000 sqm) interior, 1,635 guest rooms, 43,000 square-foot (3,995 sqm) spa, Tuscan-themed decor and larger-than-life casinos, restaurants and nightclubs.

This difference is one you can’t see: how it’s heated. Water from a geothermal aquifer 4,400 feet (1.34 kilometers) underground powers the Peppermill’s massive heating and hot water systems, saving a cool $2 million annually versus its former, conventional power source, natural gas.

Geothermal expert Dr. Jim Combs of Geo Hills Associates calls the Peppermill “the only resort in the United States whose heating source is totally provided from geothermal energy produced on the immediate property.” Going green has earned the Peppermill commendations from far and wide, including the U.S. Congress.
Continue reading Reno Hotel Gambles On Green Energy And Saves $2 Million Per Year

Source: USGBC Nevada Chapter Newsletter
Over the past decade, the City of Las Vegas has made significant progress in clean energy, water conservation, recycling, green building, and alternative transportation that have resulted in positive impacts to the environment, economy, and community. As a result, the City is on track to reduce City energy costs more than $6 million annually, putting it on the course to achieving its goal of being America’s first net-zero city.

In 2008, the Mayor and City Council to resolved to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions and construct new City buildings and facilities to LEED standards. Since then, the City performed the following actions, already saving the City more than $4 million: Continue reading Sustainability in ACTION at the City of Las Vegas

FY 2014 Request Focuses on Transforming the Way EPA Does Business

WASHINGTON – Today the Obama Administration proposed a Fiscal Year 2014 (FY 2014) budget of $8.153 billion for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This request is $296 million below the EPA’s budget for Fiscal Year 2012.

“EPA’s FY 2014 budget reflects our firm commitment to keeping American communities across our country healthy and clean, while also taking into consideration the difficult fiscal situation and the declining resources of state, local and tribal programs,” said EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. “Our request takes a balanced approach to funding the agency, including increased investments in more efficient technologies as well as necessary program eliminations or reductions.”

EPA’s FY 2014 request will allow EPA to continue its progress in addressing climate change; protecting the nation’s air, waters, and lands; supporting sustainable water infrastructure; and assuring the safety of chemicals. EPA will continue to lay the groundwork to transform the way it does business, ensuring the best use of human and financial resources, while continuing to achieve the agency’s mission effectively and efficiently.
Continue reading EPA’s FY 2014 Budget Proposal Maintains the Strength of Federal, State, and Tribal Core Environmental and Human Health Protections

Source: Learn Stuff.com

Climate Change is Real

Thanks to extensive research and noticeable changes in weather and storm prevalence, it’s getting harder to turn a blind eye to the reality of climate change. Since the Industrial Age spurred the increasing usage of fossil fuels for energy production, the weather has been warming slowly. In fact, since 1880, the temperature of the earth has increased by 1 degree Celsius.

Although 72% of media outlets report on global warming with a skeptical air, the overwhelming majority of scientists believe that the extreme weather of the last decade is at least partially caused by global warming. Some examples of climate calamities caused partly by global warming include:

• Hurricane Katrina
• Drought in desert countries
• Hurricane Sandy
• Tornadoes in the Midwest

These storms, droughts, and floods are causing death and economic issues for people all over the world – many of whom cannot afford to rebuild their lives from the ground up after being wiped out by a tsunami or other disaster.

Check out this infographic to see what else the changing climate is affecting!