Tag: national research council

Report Says Build More Power Plants

A new national report recommends building more nuclear power plants in the
U.S. Chuck Quirmbach reports:

Transcript

A new national report recommends building more nuclear power plants in the
U.S. Chuck Quirmbach reports:


A study by the National Research Council urges the Department of Energy to
place greater emphasis on identifying sites for more nuclear power plants and
improving plant designs.


University of Wisconsin Engineering Physics Chairman Mike Corradini served on
the committee. He says there’s a need for more large scale electricity generation
that doesn’t add to carbon emissions:


“And it’s important we do it with a fuel source which is relatively secure. Nuclear
power is a logical way to do this and therefore that should be the major focus in
the next 10 to 15 to 20 years.”


Another part of the national report recommends scaling back of a new program to
speed the reprocessing of spent uranium fuel to share with other countries. Nuclear power opponents worry about radioactive waste and want to block
proposed subsidies for the nuclear power industry.


For the Environment Report, I’m Chuck Quirmbach.

Related Links

Study: Corn Ethanol Leads to More Pollution

A new report warns growing more corn for ethanol production carries some risks
for clean water. Chuck Quirmbach has details:

Transcript

A new report warns growing more corn for ethanol production carries some risks
for clean water. Chuck Quirmbach has details:


A lot more corn is going toward making ethanol, but a study by the National Research
Council says in areas with limited water supplies, adding acres of corn, or
launching water-using ethanol production plants is a major concern. The report also says increased use of fertilizers and pesticides on corn fields
could trigger more water pollution.


Study committee chairman Jerald Schnoor urges more research to help
extract energy from lower-impact perennial crops such as grasses:


“There needs to be a technology breakthrough so that enzymes and organisms
can break down the cellulose, the hemi-cellulose and lignin from plants like
switchgrass, woody biomass plants like poplar and willow.”


Schnoor says more research dollars could come from reducing federal subsidies
for corn-based ethanol.


For the Environment Report, I’m Chuck Quirmbach.

Related Links

Dredging Gets Grudging Approval

A new study raises concerns about efforts to dredge polluted sediment
out of waterways. Chuck Quirmbach reports:

Transcript

A new study raises concerns about efforts to dredge polluted sediment
out of waterways. Chuck Quirmbach reports:


A study by the National Research Council looked at the dredging of
contaminants from about 25 projects around the US. Study Chairman
Charles O’Melia of Johns Hopkins University says the report has two
main conclusions:


One is that dredging has some failings when it comes to achieving short
term pollution reductions. For example, particles can be left behind or
re-suspended in the water.


O’Melia also says the report points to the need for more monitoring of
dredging projects:


“Each site is different and it is not going to be possible, to be able
to come up a plan that you would know with certainty what would
work… that you have to go out and test it.”


The EPA is evaluating the study, but says for the most part, it’s happy
with existing dredging plans for rivers.


For The Environment Report, I’m Chuck Quirmbach

Related Links

Guidelines for Windmills

  • Wind farms are being constructed across the nation. Experts think there should be clear criteria about how they're built. (Photo by Lester Graham)

A new study says more planning and
guidelines are needed to put wind energy
farms in the right places. Chuck Quirmbach
reports… windmills are sometimes built in
migrating bird flyways or block scenic views:

Transcript

A new study says more planning and
guidelines are needed to put wind energy
farms in the right places. Chuck Quirmbach
reports… windmills are sometimes built in
migrating bird flyways or block scenic views:


Wind energy generation has been growing and the growth is expected to
continue. A report by the National Research Council predicts that by
the year 2020, wind energy will offset the increase in carbon dioxide
pollution from coal-burning power plants by almost 5 percent. But wind
turbines can disturb wildlife and to some people, be an eyesore. So the
new report recommends that regulators adopt an evaluation guide for
proposed projects.


Study director David Policansky says the guide should make it easier to
site wind farms:


“So even if following that guide leads people to avoid some areas, we
believe that following the guide will just rationalize the process and
make it more streamlined and effective for everybody.”


The study also urges governments to work together to analyze the
cumulative effect of wind projects.


For the Environment Report, I’m Chuck Quirmbach.

Related Links

Epa to Survey Health of Us Lakes

The US Environmental Protection Agency will conduct an extensive three-year study on the health of the nation’s lakes. Mark Brush has more:

Transcript

The US Environmental Protection Agency will conduct an extensive three-year study on the health of the nation’s lakes. Mark Brush has more:


The EPA says it will survey a total of 909 inland lakes, ponds, and reservoirs across the country. The survey will be done in cooperation with state agencies and some Native American tribes.


They’re hoping to determine how many US lakes are in good, fair, or poor condition. Researchers will test water samples for levels of nutrients, bacteria from human and animal wastes, some pesticides, and they’ll take a look at the conditions of the waterways’ shorelines.


This study is being done after criticisms have been leveled against the EPA. The Government Accountability Office and the National Research Council, among others, have said that the EPA doesn’t know enough about the condition of the nation’s waterways. They say there’s not enough data to make good water management policy at the federal, state and local levels.


The EPA says the nationwide survey will be completed in 2009.


For the Environment Report, I’m Mark Brush.

Related Links

Army Corps to Expand Mississippi Locks

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is moving ahead with
recommendations to expand locks on the Mississippi River despite
an earlier report that found the Corps’ calculations in making a similar
plan were wrong. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham
reports:

Transcript

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is moving ahead with recommendations to expand
locks on
the Mississippi River despite an earlier report that found the Corps’ calculations
in making a
similar plan were wrong. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:


The Corps of Engineers proposes spending 8.3 billion dollars to expand navigation
locks for
heavier barge traffic and restore the ecosystem of the upper Mississippi River. The
National
Research Council was highly critical of an earlier plan, saying the Corps’
projections of greater
traffic on the river were flawed. In a statement, the Corps says this new plan
balances the need
for economic growth and environmental sustainability.


Environmentalists say it’s still wrong. Melissa Samet is with the group American
Rivers.


“The Corps has done a great disservice to the nation by recommending this project.
We have
other needs. It’s a significant amount of money. The recommendation is based on
unsound
science and unsound economics. And that’s just not the way a federal agency should
be working.
It’s certainly not serving the American people.”


Critics say they expect the Corps of Engineers to lobby Congress hard for funding
the expansion
of the locks and not as hard for the environmental restoration.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.

Related Links

Report Scrutinizes Clean Air Act

A new report says the federal Clean Air Act has been effective in dealing with some of the most serious air quality problems, but also recommends major changes to the law. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Julie Grant has more:

Transcript

A new report says the federal Clean Air Act has been effective in dealing with some of the most
serious air quality problems, but also recommends major changes to the law. The Great Lakes
Radio Consortium’s Julie Grant has more:


The National Research Council analysis is one of the most comprehensive studies ever done of
the forty-year old law. Republican Representative Ken Calvert requested the report. His district
outside of Los Angeles has some of the nation’s worst air pollution problems.


Rebecca Rubin is Calvert’s press secretary. She says the congressman is impressed with how
successful the Clean Air Act has been, despite the growing economy and population.


“Because of the Clean Air Act they were still able to improve the air quality. So the argument
that development and more people, more cars contribute is not necessarily always true.”


But some environmental groups see the report as a sharp critique of the Clean Air Act. Among
other things, the report’s authors urge the EPA to better enforce current environmental laws, to
pay attention to air quality in poor communities, and to consider the ecological effects of national
air pollution standards.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Julie Grant.

Related Links