January 26, 2002

#168

1) Mobile Sewer Suit Settled
2) Vessel Dumping Bill Passes Alabama Legislature
3) Shoals Curbside Recycling In Trouble
4) New RSA Golf Course Proposal In Shoals To Face Impact Study
5) BEN Notes : Mississippi Audubon Seeking Executive Director, Legacy
Conference Scheduled, Program on Alabama Hummingbird Program Honored

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1. Mobile Sewer Suit Settled - The Mobile Area Water and Sewer System has
agreed to spend $60 million over five years upgrading its treatment plants
and pipes as a result of a lawsuit filed by Mobile Baywatch, accusing the
system of repeatedly violating federal law through massive sewage spills.

Mobile Baywatch filed the initial "intent to sue" legal action in 1999,
claiming that the sewer service had violated the Clean Water Act more than
1000 times over five years. The Environmental Protection Agency and the
Alabama Department of Environmental Management later join Mobile Baywatch in
separate suits.

According to the Mobile Register, along with the $60 million to be spent on
repairs, the consent decree calls upon the Mobile Sewer Board to pay over
$100,000 in upfront penalties, which will be paid directly to state and
federal authorities; set up a $2 million fund to help low income families
repair leaking sewer pipes on private property, and require the Mobile Sewer
Board to buy and preserve $150,000 worth of land in the Dog River watershed,
plus an additional $300,000 worth of land in Mobile County. There will also
be a database established for water quality monitoring.

To learn more about the details of this important water quality legal
settlement, visit the EPA website at
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/headline3_012502.htm

2. Vessel Dumping Bill Passes Alabama Legislature - After being introduced
every year for nearly ten years, the vessel dumping bill passed the Alabama
legislature this week after an unanimous vote in the State House of
Representatives.

The bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Jack Venable of Tallassee and Senator
Jim Preuitt and supported by the Governor's Commission on Environmental
Initiatives and the Department of Conservation, will authorize the Department
of Conservation to regulate sewage disposal from recreational and house
boats. The new law will help prevent the practice of raw sewage discharges
from boats into Alabama's lakes.

3. Shoals Curbside Recycling In Trouble - One of Alabama's first curbside
recycling programs is in danger of extinction.

The city of Florence started Alabama's first curbside recycling program for a
city its size more than 12 years ago. The successful Florence program
helped launch a boom in recycling statewide. Today, Alabama has 39 curbside
recycling programs serving 23% of the state's population.

Unfortunately, earlier this month, the Florence city council agreed in a
planning session to discontinue the city's curbside recycling program (the
whole council has yet to vote on the issue). Citing poor markets, officials
claim the program is losing $300,000 annually. The neighboring city of Muscle
Shoals has followed suit by voting last week to eliminate their curbside
recycling program.

4. New RSA Golf Course Proposal In Shoals To Face Impact Study - The
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) will soon begin to study the potential
environmental threats posed by a 36 hole golf course the Retirement Systems
of Alabama (RSA) wants to build on 650 acres of TVA land overlooking Pickwick
Lake in the Shoals area.

At TVA's latest board meeting, opponents to the RSA proposal cited possible
damage to nature trails, wildlife habitat, historical sites, and the river's
water quality as reasons to turn down the RSA proposal. Proponents of the
project told TVA the golf course is only part of a $60 million development
that could help jump-start the Shoals economy.

In the coming weeks, TVA will be deciding whether to perform an environmental
assessment or environmental impact study on the project. The assessment
could possibly be completed by a March 1 deadline Retirement Systems chief
David Bronner has set for local leaders and TVA to make a decision on the
proposal. If TVA chooses to do an Environmental Impact Statement, the study
would take more than 100 days.

To learn more about this issue read the following series of articles
published by the Times Daily in Florence, Alabama.

Group to oppose RSA course site
http://timesdaily.com/news/stories/13754newsstories.html

Positive Numbers
http://timesdaily.com/news/stories/13671newsstories.html

Environmental impact study planned
http://timesdaily.com/news/stories/13668newsstories.html

TVA Board listens
http://timesdaily.com/news/stories/13568newsstories.html

5. BEN Notes : Mississippi Audubon Seeking Executive Director, Legacy
Conference Scheduled, Program on Alabama Hummingbird Program Honored

Mississippi Audubon Seeking Executive Director - The National Audubon Society
is seeking an Executive Director to lead and develop the Strawberry Plains
Audubon Center and Sanctuary. A background in environmental education and
nonprofit administration and knowledge of Mississippi and its heritage is
preferred. The position is located in Holly Springs, Mississippi.
Interested? Send resume to Les Corey, Audubon Mississippi, 285 East Falconer
Street, Holly Springs, MS. 38635 or e-mail lcorey@audubon.org .

Legacy Conference Scheduled - Please mark your calendars! The Legacy 2002
Partnership Conference "e3 - Environmental Education for Everyone" will be
held March 22-24 at the Huntsville Marriott in Huntsville, Alabama. This is
one of Alabama's best and most comprehensive environmental education
conferences. For more information download a conference application at
http://www.legacyenved.org

Program on Alabama Hummingbird Program Honored - "A Bird in the Hand," a
documentary produced by the University of Alabama's Center for Public
Television and Radio has been awarded a first place in Nature and Scientific
Documentaries by the National Educational Telecommunications Association. The
documentary focused on the migration and banding patterns of ruby-throated
hummingbirds in Alabama on their journey between Central and North America
and was based on research conducted by Bob and Martha Sargent and members of
the Hummer/Bird Study Group.

Congrats to the University of Alabama and the Sargents for receiving this
national honor! For more info about the Hummer/Study Groups visit their
website at http://www.hummingbirdsplus.org

6. Websites Featured in BEN #168

Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/headline3_012502.htm

Florence Times Daily
http://www.Timesdaily.com

Legacy
http://www.legacyenved.org

Hummer/Bird Study Group
http://www.hummingbirdsplus.org
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