1) AEMC Adopts Emergency Solid Waste Management Plan Rule
2) Mobile Register: Sewage Overflow Total 3.4 Million Gallons in Mobile Area
3) ADEM Announces 2001 Pollution Prevention Awards
4) BEN Notes : Regional Greenways Position Open, Earth Creation "Alabama Dirt Shirt Sale", Southern Environmental Center's 3rd Annual EcoFest, Native Plant Conference in Birmingham, Ruffner Mountain's Haunted Mountain

1. AEMC Adopts Emergency Solid Waste Management Plan Rule - By a 4-2 margin, the Alabama Environmental Management Commission voted on Tuesday, October 9th to adopt a 120 day emergency rule concerning the State Solid Waste Management Plan.

AEMC Adopts Emergency Solid Waste Management Plan Rule - By a 4-2 margin, the Alabama Environmental Management Commission voted on Tuesday, October 9th to adopt a 120 day emergency rule concerning the State Solid Waste Management Plan.

2. Mobile Register: Sewage Overflow Total 3.4 Million Gallons in Mobile Area - The Mobile Register this week produced a three day series of articles profiling chronic sewage overflow problems locally and nationwide.

According to the Register, Mobile and Baldwin counties have reported this year 196 overflows, totaling an estimated 3.4 million gallons of raw sewage into Mobile Bay's watershed. Costs to fix Mobile's system is estimated to be nearly$1 billion.

This week's series examines the Mobile Area Water and Sewer System, recent events and court actions, and potential solutions. The following are links to this impressive series of articles.

"EPA calls sewage spills "national public health crisis"
http://www.al.com/news/mobileregister/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/news/1002471304200444.xml

"Caffeine test could pinpoint cause of bacteria in Bay"
http://www.al.com/news/mobileregister/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/news/100253250568547.xml

"Not enough money in the pipeline"
http://www.al.com/news/mobileregister/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/news/10026189151450440.xml

3. ADEM Announces 2001 Pollution Prevention Awards - On October 9th the Alabama Department of Environmental Management announced this year's recipients of ADEM's "Awards on Pollution Prevention (P2) 2001." The awards
recognize industries who have implemented creative pollution prevention strategies over the past year. The following is a listing of the winners and a sampling of their notable achievements.

2001 Directors' Award in P2 Large Business/Industry Category

3M - Decatur, Alabama - 3M has reduced their Toxic Release Inventory reportable discharges from approximately 2.25 million pounds in 1991 to 200,000 in 2001. Lab work implemented changes in one particular process that resulted in a 80% reduction in scrap generation.

Occidental Chemical Corporation - Muscle Shoals, Alabama - To truly judge Occidental recent P2 achievements you need to compare 2000 versus 1999 environmental performance. In 2000, Occidental achieved the following pollution reductions from the previous year: 25% in hazardous wastewater, 21% in hazardous solid waste, 25% reduction in mercury in air concentration, and a 71% reduction of mercury in outfall concentration. The plant also achieved a 25% reduction in water use.

2001 Directors' Award in P2 Small Business/Industry

Occidental Chemical Corporation - Mobile, Alabama - This plant reduced hazardous waste generation (it was not required by regulation) from 38 tons a year to 3 tons.

Additional 2001 Achievement Award in P2 Winners include:

Ciba Specialty Chemicals Corporation - McIntosh, Alabama - Produced significant energy cost savings and reduction of waste stream.

Alabama Power Company Barry Steam Plant - Mobile, Alabama - Installed a system that reduced the use of water treatment chemicals from approximately 1.1 million pounds of sulfuric acid to 54,000 pounds and 467,000 pounds of sodium hydroxide to 271,000 pounds.

Boise Cascade Jackson Mill - Jackson, Alabama - Recycled or reused much of their onsite wastes saving the company $1,122,300 in estimated landfill costs.

To learn about ADEM's Pollution Prevention Awards program, contact the Gavin Adams at 334-271-7700.

4. BEN Notes: Regional Greenways Position Open, Earth Creation "Alabama Dirt Shirt Sale", Southern Environmental Center's 3rd Annual EcoFest, Native Plant Conference in Birmingham, Ruffner Mountain's Haunted Mountain

Regional Greenways Position Open - The Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham is currently considering qualified persons for a Senior Planner position in the area of Greenway, Pedestrian, and Environmental Planning. Experience in urban, city or regional planning is required. Salary for the Senior planner level position is set at the $36,733-$49,697 range.
Interested applicants should either send resumes or call William Foisy, Director, Transportation Planning, RPC of Greater Birmingham, 2112 11th Avenue South, Suite 220, Birmingham, Alabama 35205 or e-mail bfoisy@brpc-al.org or call 205-251-8139.

Earth Creation "Alabama Dirt Shirt Sale" - Earth Creations, home of the Alabama Dirt Shirt is having a Warehouse Sale October 12th, 9am to 7pm at 3056 Mountainview Way in Bessemer, Alabama. For directions call 426-2302. Come and get Earth Creation's famous dirt shirts for $4.00 instead of $20 in a store.

Southern Environmental Center's 3rd Annual EcoFest - Come celebrate EcoFest 3 - an event benefiting the Southern Environmental Center at Birmingham Southern College. The benefit/auction will be held on Thursday, October 18th 6-9pm at Birmingham's newest venue WorkPlay (500 23rd Street South). There will a jazz band, food, complimentary beer and wine and live auction. Tickets are $60. All proceeds benefit the Southern Environmental Center. To RSVP call the SEC at 205-226-4934.

Native Plant Conference in Birmingham - Global warming, pollinators in peril, Alabama's botanical treasury, trilliums with Fred Case, roadsides with Bonnie Harper-Lore, ferns Stinking Benjamins and Green Dragons: Secrets and Myths of Native Plants, all of these plus landscaping and photography and much more are coming this week at the Central South Native Plant Conference, October 12th and 13th at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Reserve your spot today
by calling 205-414-3950. The $85 fee includes lunch and one buffet dinner. This is a can't miss event!

Ruffner Mountain's Haunted Mountain - Ruffner Mountain's annual Halloween event, "Haunted Mountain," has been scheduled for one weekend only, October 25-27. Walk the trail trough haunted woods and see scary scenes and a ghosts or two. Spooky fun is suitable for all but the youngest children. Haunted Mountain will be 7 to 10pm Thursday and Saturday and 7 to 11pm on Friday. Admission is $5 per person and all proceeds benefit Ruffner Mountain. For more information call 205-833-8264.

Please share BEN with friends and fellow conservationists. If you have any questions or comments about this publication, contact Pat Byington, the author and publisher of BEN at 205-226-7739 or pkbyington@aol.com To receive back issues of BEN, please go to our website at: http://www.BamaNews.com