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April 18, 2002 #175 1) Mobile Register: Mercury Contamination At
Some Rigs On Par With Superfund ***************************************************************** Check out this week's local Earth Day activities at ************************************************************* According to the Register, mercury contamination at some oil
and gas rigs in the Gulf of Mexico appear to be so severe that
the rigs could qualify for the National Priorities List, a placement
that can eventually lead to a federal "Superfund" cleanup
effort. A rating of 28.5 qualifies a site for the National Priorities
List. The Register's most conservative calculations yielded a
score of 42 for the most contaminated rig. Despite these figures,
federal officials who reviewed the Register's data said there
is little chance that any agency would attempt to put any of
the more than 4000 Gulf rigs on the Superfund priorities list,
regardless of the level of contamination. In a related story, Senator Richard Shelby's office announced
Monday that the U.S. Department of the Interior has assembled
a special subcommittee to review the issue of mercury contamination
around oil and gas rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. The committee
was formed in response to a February letter Sen. Shelby wrote
to the heads of the EPA and the Interior Department's Mineral
Management Service. 2. Shoals TVA Reservation/RSA Golf Course
Project Relocated - According to local and state reports,
the Retirement Systems of Alabama's (RSA) plan to use 920 acres
to build a Robert Trent Jones Golf Course on Tennessee Valley
Authority (TVA) land, appears to be dead. As a result of the
possible donation of 850 acres nearby the TVA land, by a local
private landowner, the proposed $40 to 60 million 36 hole golf
course project/hotel convention center is still a possibility. Ray Vaughan, the attorney representing Wild Alabama, a group
that had filed suit against the project, stated the group had
said from the "get-go" the project should be on private
land. He indicated the suit would be dropped if the project was
moved onto private land. 3. Ozone Forecasting Begins April 15th
in Mobile - What does April 15th have in common with taxes
and ozone pollution? Of course, the 15th is the deadline to file your federal and
state income taxes, but it is also the beginning of Alabama's
Ozone Season. Starting on April 15th in Mobile, the Alabama Department
of Environmental Management will be begin their daily ozone forecasts.
On May 1st, there will be ozone forecasts issued for residents
living in the Birmingham and Huntsville metro areas. This will
be the first year, the Huntsville area has been added to the
ozone alert system. The purpose of the ozone forecasts is to declare "Ozone
Alerts" on days when weather conditions are favorable for
ozone concentrations to approach, or surpass, the NAAQS and to
recommend actions that citizens can take to reduce the emissions
of pollutants that contribute to the formation of ozone. To access daily ozone forecasts, visit the ADEM website at
http://www.adem.state.al.us/Air%20Division/Ozone/OzoneForecast.htm 4. ADEM Upgrades Lake and Stream Standards
- Last week, the Alabama Environmental Management Commission
approved by a 4-3 vote to adopt nutrient water quality standards
for nine Alabama lakes. Also included in the measure was a move
to implement new and stronger water use classifications for several
stream segments in Alabama. Since December 2000, ADEM has adopted nutrient standards for
13 lakes throughout Alabama. Some of the lakes recently receiving
the new standard include Lake Martin, Thurlow Lake, Pickwick
Lake, Wilson Lake, Wheeler Lake, Lake Guntersville, Cedar Creek
and Little Bear Creek. As a result of the stream water use classification upgrades
Alabama today only has 19 stream segments encompassing 162 miles,
that are not either the Fish and Wildlife (FW) classification
or greater. ADEM has steadily upgraded streams from classifications
lower than the Fish and Wildlife classification for over the
past two decades. In 1980, 83 stream and river segments comprising
of 713 miles were below the FW classification. In 1990, 49 segments
encompassing 465 miles were below FW. Including the new upgrades,
Alabama now has over 99% of the entire 77,000 miles of rivers,
creeks and streams classified as suitable for Fish and Wildlife,
or better. 5. Anniston Pollution Woes Featured In
People and Newsweek Magazines - Calhoun County's environmental/pollution
woes have now been featured in two popular national magazines. In the March 25 edition of People magazine, a five page article
about the community's legal struggle with Monsanto titled "Living
on Poisoned Ground," was featured. Last week, in the Newsweek
Magazine's web edition, a photo gallery story titled "Toxic
Town" describes in a series of 11 photos the community dealing
with PCB pollution and the new chemical weapons incinerator. To view the Newsweek web exclusive story log on to their website
at: http://www.msnbc.com/news/735060.asp 6. BEN Notes: Northern Gulf Coast Mercury
Forum Scholarships, Earth Day at EastLake Park, Tree Planting
and Ed Begley, Jr., 5th Annual Bay Bash to Feature "A Civil
Action" Lawyer, Upper Cahaba Watershed Workshop Planned Northern Gulf Coast Mercury Forum Scholarships - Mobile Bay
Watch has raised monies for citizens interested in receiving
a scholarship to the Mercury Forum that will be held in Mobile
on May 20-21. The Mercury Forum will examine mercury pollution
occurring in the North Gulf Coast region. The conference will
cost participants $85 ($115 after April 20th), which includes
all meals on Monday and breakfast and lunch on Tuesday. First
priority goes to students, seniors and members of the environmental
community with no paid staff. Please call or email Mobile Bay
Watch at 251-476-0376 or callaway@MobileBayWatch.org
to receive additional information. To learn more about the Mercury Forum, visit the following
website - http://www.masgc.org/mercury Earth Day at EastLake Park - The Village Creek Human and Environmental
Justice Society will be holding an Earth Day Festival Saturday,
April 20th at EastLake Park in Birmingham. There will be a litter
pickup competition, music, food and contests. For more info about
the event call 205-798-0087. Tree Planting and Ed BegleyJr., Come volunteer and join Ed
Begley, Jr. (TV doctor on the 80's hit show St. Elsewhere) and
the Alabama Environmental Council Birmingham Chapter in a day
of tree planting at George Ward Park in Birmingham. The group
intends to plant more than 500 trees between 10:00 a.m. to 2:00
p.m. on Sunday, April 21st. Ed BegleyJr. will be speaking to
the group at 11:00. For more information about the event call
the AEC at 205-322-3126 or visit their website at http://www.aeconline.ws 5th Annual Bay Bash to Feature "A Civil Action"
Lawyer - Mobile Bay Watch/Mobile BayKeeper will be holding their
5th Annual Bay Bash Fundraiser on the Battleship Grounds in Mobile
from 2:00 to 6:00 on Sunday, May 5th. This year's special guest
speaker will be Jan Schlichtmann, the attorney portrayed by John
Travolta in the movie "A Civil Action." Mr. Schlichtmann
worked successfully for 11 years to prove that two companies
were responsible for dumping a cancer causing industrial solvent
into a community's drinking water supply. For more information
about Bay Bash, contact Mobile Bay Watch at 251-476-0328. Upper Cahaba Watershed Workshop Planned - The Upper Cahaba Watershed Consortium will be holding its kickoff workshop Monday, April 29th from 8:30 to 4:30, at the Mountain Brook Inn in Birmingham. If you care about protecting the Upper Cahaba Watershed, this meeting is for you. The Conference is free. For more information about this event contact Earnestine Evans at 205-251-8139 or visit the following website at http://www.cahabariver.com 7. Websites Featured in BEN #175 Alabama Department of Environmental Management - Ozone Forecast Newsweek Magazine (Web Exclusive Version) Mercury Forum Alabama Environmental Council Cahaba River Basin Project |