Environmental protection

Boston, March 10, 2008 -- EPA has ordered the town of Milford, Massachusetts to take steps to stop harmful sewage overflows from discharging from the Town’s sewer pipes onto streets and into buildings and surface waters, including tributaries of the Blackstone River and Charles River.    » read more »

03/10/2008, San Juan, P.R. -- Demonstrating its strong commitment to protect our oceans and marine life, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced that it has reached a settlement with the Authority for the Port of the Americas requiring it to pay a penalty of $308,000 for improper disposal of dredged material. On a number of occasions in the spring and summer of 2006, Weeks Marine, Inc., a Port of the Americas contractor, dumped material dredged to create the port in areas other than those designated for ocean disposal by EPA in its federal permit.    » read more »

Switzerland, Austria and Germany still top the rankings

Geneva, Switzerland, 4 March 2008 – Switzerland, Austria and Germany have the most attractive environments for developing the travel and tourism industry, according to the second annual Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2008, released today by the World Economic Forum. Australia, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States, Sweden, Canada and France complete the top-10 list.    » read more »

February 5, 2008, SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Shell Oil Company have removed more than 23,000 pounds of hazardous toxins from the Del Amo Superfund Site Waste Pits near Torrance, Calif.

With EPA oversight, responsible parties Shell Oil Company and the U.S. General Services Administration built a soil vapor extraction system at the Del Amo Waste Pits and have been successfully operating it for one year. The system stops further contamination of area groundwater, a potential drinking water resource.    » read more »

Washington, D.C., Feb. 4, 2008 -- Building on 37 years of progress in protecting human health and the environment, EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson today released his agency's $7.14 billion fiscal year 2009 budget.

"President Bush's budget request will continue to deliver environmental results today, as well as keep EPA on course to deliver a cleaner, healthier tomorrow," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "This budget represents government at its best – it helps EPA meet our environmental goals, while being responsible stewards of taxpayers' dollars."    » read more »

Jan. 20, 2008 -- Colorado Governor Bill Ritter will ask the legislature's Joint Budget Committee on Monday for spending authority for $1.75 million to fund an emergency winter feeding program for wildlife herds in the Gunnison Basin and other parts of Colorado.    » read more »

January 14, 2008 -- MADISON – Wisconsin Governor Doyle announced today $4.1 million that will be used for land purchases in Door County that will increase protection of plant and animal species that are endangered, threatened, and of special-concern; preserve unique Lake Michigan coastal wetlands habitat; and provide additional opportunities for public recreation.    » read more »

Washington, D.C. (Jan. 11, 2008) – The World Bank and Conservation International (CI) today signed an agreement for $20 million in new funds, provided by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), to protect some of the world’s most unique and threatened areas, including island ecosystems and temperate forests.

These biodiversity hotspots are home to more than half of all terrestrial plants and animals, as well as more than 1.8 billion people who are highly dependent on healthy lands for their livelihoods and well-being.    » read more »

Agenda Consists of Proposals related to Consumer Protection, Mental Health Reform, Illegal Immigration, Public Safety, Environmental Protection, Effective Government

Jan. 8, 2007 -- Richmond – Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell announced his 2008 legislative agenda today at a morning press conference in Richmond.    » read more »

Spending Bill Includes Boxer Amendment for $1.5 million

December 20, 2007 -- Washington, D.C. – The Fiscal Year 2008 omnibus appropriations bill includes an amendment offered by U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) that sets aside $1,500,000 to conduct an environmental study in Suisun Bay.

“I want to see these rotting ships moved out of the Bay, but we must make sure that we don’t cause more environmental damage in the process,” Boxer said. “I’m pleased that the Congress recognized the impact the mothballed fleet is having on our environment.”    » read more »

Funds to Help Protect 35 Farms in 22 Counties

December 20, 2007 -- New York Governor Eliot Spitzer today announced approximately $35 million in funding through the Agricultural and Farmland Protection Program to protect nearly 13,300 acres of active farmland across New York State. The funding is the largest dollar amount ever dedicated for farmland preservation, and will go to protect the largest single amount of acreage in the program’s 11-year history. The funding will go 35 farms in 22 counties.    » read more »

December 19, 2007 -- LA CROSSE – Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle today announced a nearly $1 million Stewardship grant to the Mississippi Valley Conservancy (MVC) for the purchase of the 318-acre parcel inside La Crosse Terrace Grasslands Priority Area in La Crosse County. The $2 million project is being funding by the $962,500 Stewardship grant and the remainder is made possible through a private donation by Northern Engraving and fundraising efforts by the MVC.    » read more »

Approved Legislation Includes More than $40 Million for Bay Preservation Projects

December 17, 2007 -- Washington, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD) today announced that the fiscal year 2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill approved by the House of Representatives this evening, includes federal funds for programs and projects that will benefit the Chesapeake Bay.    » read more »

Wassataquoik Valley And Local Recreation Lands To Change Hands

December 10, 2007 -- Augusta, ME – Maine Governor John Baldacci, Millinocket Town Manager Gene Conlogue, Roxanne Quimby, Commissioner Patrick McGowan and The Trust for Public Land (TPL) today announced an agreement to exchange land and easements in the region east and south of Katahdin Lake. In an historic collaboration, the parties have come together to accomplish the dual goals of wilderness management and lands open to hunting and snowmobiling.    » read more »

12/05/2007 -- BOSTON - The Senate today unanimously passed a Resolution, offered by Senator John Kerry, urging the Secretary of Commerce to reconsider a previous decision and declare a commercial fishery failure for groundfish fishermen in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. This action will help provide immediate disaster assistance to the region.    » read more »