Tag: federal policy

New Bill Seeks to Ban Gl Drilling

  • There is currently a ban on oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes, but it's only temporary. (Photo courtesy of the USGS)

Members of Congress from eight Great Lakes states have introduced legislation to permanently ban oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes. They say the lakes are vulnerable to environmental damage if a temporary ban is allowed to expire. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Tracy Samilton
reports:

Transcript

Members of Congress from eight Great Lakes states have introduced
legislation to permanently ban oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes.
They say the Lakes are vulnerable to environmental damage if a temporary ban
is allowed to expire. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Tracy Samilton
reports:


The temporary ban on Great Lakes drilling is due to expire in 2007.


Michigan Congressman Bart Stupak says oil leaks from drilling pollute the
Lakes, and people could be injured or even killed by releases of toxic
hydrogen sulfide from gas drilling.


Four Great Lakes states have their own drilling bans. But Stupak says the issue is too important to take the risk that new state legislatures might lift the ban.


“We think it should be federal policy. The federal government has acted once or twice for at least these temporary bans that we have in place right now, so why don’t we just make it part of our
energy policy and permanently ban oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes?”


Stupak says a federal ban might also convince Canada to consider follow
suit. He says there are about eighty oil spills a year in the Lakes from
Canadian oil rigs.


Energy companies maintain the practice is safe both for the environment and people’s health.


For the GLRC, I’m Tracy Samilton.

Related Links

Epa to Give States Clean-Up Authority?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants to give states more authority to decide whether to clean up pollution in rivers and lakes. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham has more:

Transcript

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants to give states more authority to decide whether to clean up pollution in rivers and lakes. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham has more:


The E.P.A. says its new proposal would “trust the states” to clean up waterways. The E.P.A. would give up its authority to sign off on states’ clean-up plans and instead leave it up to the states to decide if, when, and how a waterway would be cleaned up. In a report in U.S.A. Today, an E.P.A. official indicates the change would make it possible for more water bodies to be cleaned up more quickly and effectively. But some environmental groups say the federal government is abandoning its responsibility to clean up the nation’s waters. Howard Fox is with the group Earthjustice.


“Where there are failures over a really long period by the states, to step in and clean up the water, there has to be a backstop role by the federal government to move things along.”


Farm groups, timber companies and municipalities have been worried that the Clinton-era rule requiring the E.P.A. to sign off on clean up plans would end up costing them too much money. Most are in favor of letting the states make the decisions.

Utilities Bear Cost of New Regulations

The Environmental Protection Agency is requiring 22 states to reduceemissions that lead to smog. The states will likely go after electricpower plants that burn fossil fuels. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’sLester Graham reports that the power companies say they’re beingtargeted unfairly and the consumer cost will be high:

The Cost of Cheap Electricity

Concern about the environmental impacts of deregulating the electricitymarket have taken a back seat to promises of cheaper power and customerchoice on both sides of the border. But, as Great Lakes RadioConsortium Commentator Suzanne Elston has discovered, proponents ofgreen power just got a very strong ally:

Feds Criticized for Lead Strategy

The U-S-E-P-A is working on a new set of standards for lead content indust and soil in and around homes. Those standards will be mandatory forall federally-owned or assisted housing and voluntary for other homes.Lead is of concern for the E-P-A because studies have found that one outof every 20 children in the U-S suffer from elevated blood-lead levels.But in a September issue of the journal "Science", one physician iscriticizing the way federal authorities are developing those newstandards. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Hirschberg hasmore:

&Quot;Higher"-Speed Rail Study Unveiled

States in the Midwest are looking at a plan to link cities with faster passenger rail. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports…the plan would cost billions of dollars, but its backers say it will better serve mid-sized cities.