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Last week's edition

About this Newsletter

Dec. 19, 2005

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—  Great Lakes

• $20 billion in doubt for Great Lakes fix
  (Detroit News, 12/13) "A presidential task force Monday released a historic $20 billion, 15-year blueprint to restore the ailing Great Lakes — but without promises from the White House or Congress to fund it."
  
  
• Great Lakes group wants $300 million soon
  (Toledo Blade, 12/13) "A partnership of government agencies and private groups yesterday announced a request for $300 million next fiscal year from Washington to start cleaning up the Great Lakes, the source of drinking water for 30 million people."
  
  
• New master plan creates important to-do list
  (Detroit Free Press, 12/13) EDITORIAL: "The EPA will go to bat to keep Asian carp out of Lake Michigan and to get Congress to pump more money into the Great Lakes Legacy Act, which funds cleanup of toxic hotspots. The agency promised a three-year attempt to figure out why bacteria levels get so high that beaches must be closed. Another goal is restoring 200,000 acres of wetlands, in conjunction with the states."
  
  
• Are farmers wasting water?
  (GLRC, 12/12) "In the Great Lakes region, farmers are one of the biggest users of water. They pump water from underground aquifers or from lakes and streams to irrigate their crops or water livestock. Agriculture has been criticized for its large withdrawals of water."
  

• Will Great Lakes plan come up dry?
  (Chicago Sun Times, 12/12) OPINION: "Today, appropriately enough at the Shedd Aquarium, the Bush administration will unveil what the Environmental Protection Agency is calling a 'comprehensive action plan … toward the final Restoration and Protection Strategy' for the Great Lakes."
  
  
• Great Lakes cleanup plans harbor deep differences
  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 12/10) "President Bush made a big splash in the Great Lakes region in the middle of the last presidential campaign when he announced a new effort to restore the world's largest freshwater system."
  

—  Water Supply

• Report: Few cities push water conservation
  (Lansing State Journal, 12/14) "Chicago's easy access to the vast blue waters of Lake Michigan is enough to make Las Vegas and Phoenix green with envy. But that hasn't stopped Chicago from waging one of the region's most aggressive campaigns for conservation."
  
  
• New water conservation group headquartered in Chicago
  (EPA, 12/12) NEWS RELEASE: "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen L. Johnson, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and Executive Director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council Mary Ann Dickinson, today announced that the headquarters of a new water conservation organization will be in Chicago."
  
  
• Las Vegas outgrowing water source
  (Las Vegas Sun, 12/12) "The area's water demands could outgrow the region's share of the Colorado River by 2007, according to the 2006 water budget approved by the Southern Nevada Water Authority."
  

—  Water Quality

• EPA to finalize drinking water protection rules
  (EPA, 12/14) NEWS RELEASE: "At a teleconference EPA will discuss finalizing two drinking water protection rules. One reduces the risk of disease-carrying microorganisms from entering water supplies. The second requires water systems to take actions to minimize the presence of contaminants known as disinfection byproducts that can form when water is disinfected to remove microorganisms."
  
  
• Tools to help small water utilities control arsenic
  (EPA, 12/14) NEWS RELEASE: "EPA has released a set of user-friendly multimedia products to help small drinking-water utilities meet revised regulations to control arsenic. The tools will provide owners and operators with information to guide them in making treatment decisions."
  
  
• Rumors of poisoned water spread in Baghdad
  (Boston Globe, 12/14) "Rumors swept the Iraqi capital early Thursday that the city's water supply had been poisoned, prompting a public denial from the Health Ministry only hours before polls were to open for national parliamentary elections."
  
  
• Poll: Public wants mercury-free treatment
  (Escanaba Daily Press, 12/12) "Nearly two-thirds of US adults want Congress to immediately ensure that new EPA implementation rules include mercury-free water treatment technologies."
  
  
• Water in east New Orleans deemed safe
  (Times Picayune, 12/10) "The city's Sewerage and Water Board has declared water in eastern New Orleans safe to drink."
  
  
• Experts to look at calcium, magnesium
  (NSF, 12/10) "NSF International and the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) have announced a new international symposium on the health effects of consuming drinking water containing magnesium and calcium."
  

—  Water Security

• Texas utilities launch emergency response network
  (AWWA, 12/12) "Texas water and wastewater utilities have followed the path pioneered by California and Florida in setting up an intrastate quick-response mutual aid network to help each other during emergencies."
  

—  Water Resources

• More money pledged for 'best levee system'
  (Associated Press, 12/16) "President Bush pledged Thursday to rebuild New Orleans’ shattered levee system taller and stronger than before Hurricane Katrina struck, requesting an additional $1.5 billion to buttress the system that failed and left the city flooded."
  
  
• Latest China river saga: Pig pollution
  (MSNBC, 12/16) "Chinese were told Thursday of yet another contaminated river incident — this one due to pig excrement. Domestic media reported that homes in a rural area of southwest China were allowed to turn the water back on this week after pig waste flooded a local river and forced water supplies to shut down for six days."
  
  
• Missouri reservoir breach washes away homes, cars
  (Boston Globe, 12/14) "Water poured through a breach at a hydroelectric plant's rural reservoir in southeast Missouri on Wednesday morning, washing away homes and vehicles, authorities said."
  
  
• Science of suburbia runoff gets closer look
  (Discovery Channel, 12/14) "Suburbia is the fastest growing, least understood land use in the United States, say scientists trying to fill the hole in scientific understanding of how pavement, roofs, lawns and household septic systems are changing streams, lakes and bays."
  

—  Oceans

• Ancient clues to ocean currents
  (BBC News, 12/13) "The close link between temperatures in the North Atlantic and the strength of ocean circulation is underlined by a new analysis of sea-floor sediments."
  
  
• Scientists say fissure could be a new ocean
  (AWWA, 12/12) "Ethiopian, American and European researchers have observed a fissure in a desert in the remote northeast that could be the "birth of a new ocean basin," scientists said Friday."
  
  

—  Mercury

• Poll: Public wants mercury-free treatment
  (Escanaba Daily Press, 12/12) "Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults want Congress to immediately ensure that new EPA implementation rules include mercury-free water treatment technologies."
  

—  Toxic Waste/Pollution

• U.S. mercury emissions worth investigating
  (ENS, 12/14) "The environmental agency that polices the North American Free Trade Agreement Tuesday said that it intends to investigate the United States government for failing to enforce the federal Clean Water Act against coal-fired power plants with respect to mercury discharges to air and water."
  
  
• DuPont fined more than $10 million over Teflon
  (Associated Press, 12/14) "DuPont Co. has agreed to pay $10.25 million in fines and $6.25 million for environmental projects to settle allegations by the Environmental Protection Agency that the company hid information about the dangers of a toxic chemical used to make the non-stick coating Teflon, officials said Wednesday."
  
  
• Killer whales most toxic mammal in Arctic, WWF Says
  (ENN, 12/12) "Killer whales are the most toxic mammals in the Arctic, riddled with household chemicals from around the world, the environmental pressure group WWF said on Monday."
  

—  Air Pollution

• EPA would ease pollution reporting rules
  (Associated Press, 12/14) "If the Bush administration has its way, some factories won't have to report all the pollution spewed from their smokestacks, making it harder for government scientists to calculate the health risks of the air Americans breathe."
  
  
• Americans in air pollution hot spots worry about kids
  (ENN, 12/15) "The people who breathe the nation's most unhealthy factory air worry about more than just asthma and other respiratory problems. They also want to know if their daily dose of toxic pollution is slowing the academic and physical development of their children."
  

—  Blogs

• Below The Fold: Of ethics, water wars and radioactive isotopes
  (CBS News, 12/14) "Amid plenty of news about what may become of the alternative minimum tax, Maine is engaged in a different sort of debate over tax policy (one that Poland Spring likely won't be too thrilled about) — whether companies that sell water from the state’s aquifers should be charged the nation’s first water tax."
  

—  Everything Else

• Antarctic ozone hole may take 60 years to recover
  (Reuters, 12/13) "The Antarctic ozone hole will probably take longer to heal than was previously thought, scientists say. At the current rate of recovery, the hole won't be gone until around the year 2065, some 15 years later than the generally accepted estimate."
  
  
• Glaciers erode Earth faster than rivers
  (Live Science, 12/13) "Mountains owe their shapes to millions of years of gouging glaciers, eroding rivers, and shifting tectonic plates, but scientists have struggled to understand how these forces combine and how quickly they did their work."
  
  
• Amazon drought ending, yet sickness looms
  (ENN, 12/10) "The Amazon basin's worst drought in more than 40 years is ending as rainfall returns to normal, though officials fear diseases will spread as rising rivers stir up muck from stagnant pools of contaminated water."
  
  
• Christmas an environmental grinch?
  (MSNBC, 12/16) "Christmas is damaging the environment, says a new report by the Australian Conservation Foundation. The report titled 'The Hidden Cost of Christmas' calculated the environmental impact of spending on books, clothes, alcohol, electrical appliances and candy during the festive season."

Illinois

—  Water Supply

• Boody kicks off water tower work
  (Red Nova, 12/15) "Water at last. That's what project leaders are saying about their eight-year effort to bring a water supply to Boody."
  

• Decatur: South Shores residents protest reservoir
  (Decatur Herald & Review, 12/13) "South Shores residents continue to fight plans to construct a new water reservoir in their back yard."
  
  
• 'Gloves off' on water issue in Homer Glen
  (Joliet Herald News, 12/11) "The village picked up some new ammunition in its ongoing water wars Tuesday. Still smarting from a summer of costly water bills and the lack of a satisfactory explanation from the supplier, trustees hired an attorney to take up their cause."
  
  
• United Water's future in Freeport
  (Freeport Journal Standard, 12/11) "While the mayor should be commended for moving city water and sewer service back in-house, he's still talking to private firm United Water about a 'consulting' relationship in the future."
  
  
• State to residents: Get private wells tested
  (Aurora Beacon News, 12/11) "People should get their well water tested for contamination once a year, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency advise."
  

—  Water Resources

• $50 million Ashtabula River cleanup in the works
  (ENS, 12/12) "A federal-state-local agreement to fund and carry out a $50 million cleanup of sediment contaminated with PCBs from the Ashtabula River in Ohio was announced on Friday."
  
  
• New Tinley Park detention ponds to prevent flooding
  (Chicago Sun Times, 12/11) "The second phase of a $4 million Tinley Park flood mitigation project has begun. D Construction of Coal City has been hired by the village to construct two detention ponds on each side of Sayre Avenue at 179th Street, public works director Dale Schepers said."
  

—  Wastewater

• Lagoon at issue in Wilmington
  (Joliet Herald News, 12/14) "It was the end of February in 2003 when U.S. Rep. Jerry Weller, R-Morris, presented city officials with a $675,000 check to be used to jump-start plans for a new sewage treatment plant."
  

—  Toxic Waste

• Waste mound: Company willing to cap it if landfill plan is approved
  (Peoria Journal Star, 12/16) "Waste Management is willing to spend $23 million to cap a mountain of gypsum on the former Olin chemical site if Will County approves the company's request for an expansion at its adjacent Laraway landfill."
  

—  Everything Else

• Carlyle City Council approves water, sewer rate increases
  (WJBD Salem, 12/14) "The Carlyle City Council has approved water and sewer rate increases discussed at the last meeting and also approved payments of almost $100,000 on the water plant improvements and $41,000 for the sewer plant rehabilitation."

Indiana

—  Water Supply

• Lafayette changing water cleaning process
  (Lafayette Journal & Courier, 12/14) "Lafayette is changing how it treats its water. Instead of adding gaseous chlorine to treated water, the city will begin producing its own liquid form of chlorine, which will be safer."
  
  
• Brownsburg weighs $6.8 million water treatment plan
  (Indianapolis Star, 12/10) "Brownsburg Town Council members are considering a proposed $6.8 million wastewater treatment project designed to limit sewage and storm water overflows into White Lick Creek."
   

—  Water Resources

• Noblesville oil spill impact deemed minimal
  (Noblesville Daily Times, 12/13) "Clean up crews were at work Monday on an 18-acre lake near 116th Street and Hoosier Road, after a home heating fuel tank leaked about 200 gallons of fuel oil into the water."
  
  
• Allen County: Stormwater fixes don’t come cheap
  (Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, 12/11) "Stormwater isn’t something most people think about — except when it’s raining — but all Allen County residents could be paying to control it in the near future."
  

—  Wastewater

• Water pollution plant contract may be Fort Wayne’s largest
  (Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, 12/14) "Fort Wayne City Council members Tuesday approved what is believed to be the largest contract in the city’s history."
  
  
• Hog manure worries Medora officials
  (Seymour Daily Tribune, 12/14) "Town officials remain fearful a large-scale hog operation planned in Owen Township could harm their public water supply."
  
  
• 62% rate increase possible for New Haven sewer work
  (Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, 12/14) "City residents will likely be asked to pay almost 62 percent more on their sewer bills next year to help pay for the final part of a $12 million sewer separation project."
  
  
• Wheatfield residents oppose hog farm
  (South Bend Tribune, 12/12) "Residents near a wildlife area where thousands of sandhill cranes gather each fall want the state to halt the nearby construction of a 2,500-sow farm."
  
  
• East Germantown residents ready for new sewer
  (Richmond Palladium-Item, 12/12) "Lori Monk has to dig through her concrete sunroom floor to hook up to East Germantown's new sewer system. But she's happy to do it and happy she'll finally have municipal wastewater treatment."
  
  
• Septic system crisis looms in Indiana
  (DeKalb News-Sun, 12/11) "For many rural residents, septic systems are the only option available for sewage disposal, but they do not work. Septics are a threat to the public health and the environment."
  

—  Toxic Waste

• Plans under way to fix gas leak in Granger
  (WNDU South Bend, 12/12) "A long-term cleanup plan is expected soon, after an underground gasoline spill in Granger."

Michigan

—  Water Supply

• Senate approves oversight of water
  (South Bend Tribune, 12/12) "The Michigan Senate voted unanimously recently to give the state oversight of farms, utilities and manufacturers that use large amounts of water — a long-awaited step toward protecting the state's water resources."
  
  
• Ludington: Conservation catching on for state's water resource
  (Lansing State Journal, 12/12) "When the Metalworks company set out a couple of years ago to manufacture office furniture in a more environmentally friendly way, a consultant made a suggestion: Why not use less water?"
  
  
• Balancing water rights
  (Saginaw News, 12/12) OPINION: "A ruling from the Michigan Court of Appeals sets the spigot just about right on groundwater use. The decision balances the rights of well owners against those of neighbors, a sensible standard for courts to use in arbitrating disputes."
  
  
• Water conservation hard to promote in West Michigan
  (Grand Rapids Press, 12/11) "West Michigan municipalities find it difficult to promote water conservation when they are drawing from one of the world's largest lakes."
  
  
• From urinals to golf courses, you're using less water
  (Bay City Times, 12/12) "What do these things have in common: A power plant in Grayling, a sprinkler head in Roscommon County, a urinal in Grand Rapids? They all traditionally pull huge amounts of water from the Great Lakes Basin."
  

—  Water Resources

• A watershed moment for Michigan
  (Grand Rapids Press, 12/14) "Water is Michigan's most precious resource, providing the outline and definition of the state. Thanks to the tireless work of Sen. Patricia Birkholz, R-Saugatuck, and others, Michigan is on the brink of meaningful water laws."
  
  
• Saginaw: Revive partnership to coordinate watershed cleanup
  (Bay City Times, 12/13) "Our local Area of Concern doesn't appear to be a very big environmental worry anymore. That needs to change. The Saginaw Bay/Saginaw River remains one of 43 environmental Areas of Concern on the Great Lakes."
  
  
• Ann Arbor waters high on risk list
  (Ann Arbor News, 12/12) "A new report has identified Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti area watersheds as among the most at risk statewide because of polluted stormwater caused by increasing development."
  
  
• Tour offers news on Mill Creek dam future
  (Ann Arbor News, 12/11) "Sediment tests that will help determine the total cost of removing a 181-year-old landmark dam on Mill Creek in Dexter may be performed within the next two months, according to the civil engineer working with the village."
   

—  Wastewater

• Belding adopts sewer plan
  (Grand Rapids Press, 12/15) "Belding's adoption of a municipal sewer master plan puts it in line to receive state funds for much-needed repairs."
  

—  Everything Else

• Detroit: Suburban water rates to jump 5.7%
  (Detroit News, 12/13) "Suburban customers in 126 communities across southeast Michigan will pay an average of 5.7 percent more for water, and Detroiters will pay 5.4 percent more, according to rates proposed Monday by the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department."

Minnesota

—  Water Supply

• Tests confirm farm chemicals in Dakota County wells
  (West Central Tribune, 12/14) "Thousands of people in Dakota County will receive letters telling them that their drinking water contains unsafe levels of farm chemicals."
  

—  Water Resources

• DNR issues ice warning for aerated lakes
  (Walker Pilot-Independent, 12/15) "The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) warns ice anglers, snowmobilers, skiers and other outdoor enthusiasts to use caution when going onto any lake covered or partially covered with ice, especially those that have operating aeration systems."
  
  
• Northshore mining firm fined for water, air lapses
  (St. Paul Pioneer Press, 12/14) "Less than a month after the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's citizens board approved Northshore Mining Co.'s proposal to expand its taconite production plant in Silver Bay, the company has paid a $58,250 penalty to the agency for air, water and stormwater permit violations."
  
  
• DNR considering plan to draw down Swan Lake
  (Fergus Falls Daily Journal, 12/14) "The discovery of carp in Nicollet County's Swan Lake has prompted the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to begin an aggressive plan to draw down water levels on the lake this winter to eradicate them."
  
  
• Stream used by spawning fish prompts questions
  (Brainerd Dispatch, 12/14) "Concerns about a stream used by spawning fish has caused Crow Wing County commissioners to weigh whether a more in-depth environmental review was needed for a proposed development."
  
  
• Conservation funding available for farmers
  (North Brach Post-Review, 12/13) "The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has announced that $25 million is available to help agricultural producers apply needed conservation practices on land throughout Minnesota."
  
  
• Albert Lea finalizes additional cuts to levy
  (Albert Lea Tribune, 12/13) "City council members voted unanimously Monday night to approve the city's 2006 proposed property tax levy and budget. The current levy is for $3,555,000, a $225,000 reduction from the city's original proposed levy of $3,780,000."
  
  
• Watershed district board approves revised budget
  (Albert Lea Tribune, 12/12) "The Shell Rock River Watershed District Board voted Friday to approve a revised budget for 2006. New to the budget is $169,000 in loan money the watershed district will seek either from the county or a financial institution."
  

—  Solid/Toxic Waste

• Cross Lake landfill woes won't go away
  (Brainerd Dispatch, 12/14) "The Crosslake Demolition Landfill has received a letter of warning from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency."
  
  
• Analysis: State's blacks more likely to live in polluted areas
  (Duluth News Tribune, 12/13) "Robert Writters moved to his north side house about a decade ago and soon began noticing health problems."

Ohio

—  Water Supply

• Akron tap water 'still stinks'
  (Akron Beacon Journal, 12/16) "'It's terrible. It smells and it tastes bad.... I sure don't like it.'' Don Smith, a 61-year-old Stow resident, doesn't mince words when he talks about Akron's water."
  
  
• Springfield County wants village water
  (Springfield News-Sun, 12/13) "The county will negotiate an agreement with North Hampton for the village to supply water to the former village of Lawrenceville, Clark County commissioners decided Tuesday."
  

—  Water Resources

• MWCD officials looking to prioritize projects
  (Dover Times-Reporter, 12/14) "Several area officials are offering advice and guidance to the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District for creation of a fair and equitable system to prioritize and select local flood reduction and water quality improvement projects as part of the district’s planned maintenance assessment program."
  
  
• Buck leaving Grand Lake watershed post
  (Lima News, 12/11) "Heather Buck is leaving her post as the coordinator of the Grand Lake-Wabash Watershed Alliance with a sense of satisfaction and hope for future water quality improvements."
  

—  Wastewater

• Funding available for Petersburg sewer line
  (Youngstown Vindicator, 12/16) "Despite some funding concerns, construction of the Petersburg sanitary sewer line is going forward."
  
  
• Sewer problem brought to Mt. Vernon Council
  (Mt. Vernon News, 12/13) "Blake Delgouffre, 804 E. Burgess St., was upset when a sewer line backed up into his basement on Nov. 15, and wants the city to foot the bill for the damages caused by the incident."
  

—  Solid/Toxic Waste

• State landfill regulation moves forward
  (Canton Repository, 12/14) "Legislation that will bring sweeping regulation of landfills where none existed before moved from the Ohio House to the Senate on Tuesday, but not without some disagreement between two Stark County Republicans."
  
  
• Mansfield man sentenced for illegal dumping
  (Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum, 12/14) "The second of two area men who dumped 45 drums of chemical waste throughout Richland County had his day in court Tuesday. Richland County Common Pleas Court Judge James Henson sentenced Thomas A. Chafin, 39, to 90 days of house arrest and five years under community control for charges of improper disposal of hazardous waste."
   

—  Everything Else

• Ex-leader of Norwalk Water District is indicted
  (Toledo Blade, 12/14) "The former general manager of a Norwalk-based regional water district pleaded not guilty yesterday to a 19-count indictment that accuses him of stealing thousands of dollars from the agency, tampering with evidence, bribery, and other crimes."
  
  
• Canton water to cost more
  (Canton Repository, 12/14) "It may be only an $8.50-per-year increase, but City Councilman Donald Casar is upset with the new water rates that go in effect Jan. 1."
  
  
• Dayton: Forum to examine state of environment
  (Dayton Daily News, 12/13) "The city of Dayton Environmental Advisory Board is holding a town hall meeting tonight at City Hall on the state of the environment."

Wisconsin

—  Water Supply

• Waukesha wades closer to Lake Michigan water
  (Greater Milwaukee Today, 12/15) "Waukesha is one step closer to Lake Michigan, says Gov. Jim Doyle. His comment came Tuesday after he signed the Annex 2001 Compact negotiated by the Council of Great Lakes Governors over several years."
  
  
• DNR: Loganville school's drinking water unsafe
  (Baraboo Republic, 12/14) "Recent tests show the drinking water is unsafe at Loganville Elementary School because of high nitrate levels."
  
  
• Plan tightens taps on Lake Michigan water
  (Green Bay Press-Gazette, 12/11) "It was 1957 when Green Bay first started siphoning water from Lake Michigan for public drinking water. A pipeline was built 27 miles to the lake just north of Kewaunee, bringing treated lake water to businesses, schools and your kitchen tap."
  

—  Water Resources

• 3-year study will see if E. coli is poor 'indicator' of beach health
  (Wisconsin Business News, 12/14) "With $325,000 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Sea Grant Program, the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh will study if the resurgence of green algae has made E. coli a poor 'indicator' of beach contamination."
  
  
• Big Spring: Will public or profit prevail on water?
  (Wisconsin State Journal, 12/13) COLUMN: "The creek was open, and waterfowl were taking full advantage of it here on a bright, cold Friday afternoon in December."
  

—  Wastewater

• Comment period extended for manure management rules
  (Wisconsin Ag Connection, 12/15) "The deadline to comment on preliminary recommendations from the Manure Management Task Force has been extended to December 21. The panel was asked to find ways to minimize manure runoff and to protect Wisconsin's water resources following numerous manure runoff events in early 2005."
  
  
• Kewaunee County farm cleaning up another manure spill
  (WBAY Green Bay, 12/13) "There was another liquid manure spill at a Kewaunee County farm that just recently settled a lawsuit for a previous incident."
  

—  Air Quality

• Area air among nation's worst
  (Green Bay Press Gazette, 12/14) "James Mitchell moved to Green Bay from Milwaukee 12 years ago. At the time, he thought it was an improvement in many ways. But after more than a decade, Mitchell said he's noticed Green Bay has many big-city problems and some seem worse."
  

—  Everything Else

• Lawmakers eager to dig up dirt on DNR
  (Appleton Post Crescent, 12/14) COLUMN: "The leaders of the Wisconsin legislature need your help. With an election year coming up, it's time once again to kick dirt on everyone's favorite villain, the state Department of Natural Resources."