A House committee hearing in early December may indicate that the Republican-dominated lower chamber of Congress may plan an assault on the Endangered Species Act.
At the hearing, which was held Dec. 6, Natural Resources Committee chairman Doc Hastings, R-Washington, argued that the Endangered Species Act is not effectively working as a tool to recover vulnerable species to a sustainable population size because it allows concerned citizens and organizations too much access to the courts.
“The purpose of the ESA is to recover endangered species – yet this is where the current law is failing – and failing badly," Hastings said. "In my opinion, one of the greatest obstacles to the success of the ESA is the way in which it has become a tool for excessive litigation. Instead of focusing on recovering endangered species, there are groups that use the ESA as a way to bring lawsuits against the government and block job-creating projects.”
The Republican caucus in the House last tried to force through major changes to the ESA while the party had the majority in both chambers between 1995-2007. However, one of the party's leading advocates of weakening the law, Richard Pombo of California, was defeated in his 2006 reelection bid.
The committee indicated in a press release that the oversight hearing was the first in a planned series aimed at taking a "fair look at the ways in which the ESA is working well and areas where it could be improved and updated."
Showing posts with label 111th Congress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 111th Congress. Show all posts
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Oklahoma senator says he'll block big public lands, water, and wildlife bill
The man who describes himself as the Senate's most conservative member said Wednesday that he'll block a huge bill that would expand protections for wilderness, scenic rivers, wildlife, and marine resources.
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said in a statement that the provisions in the measure require additional debate and should not be considered during the current lame-duck session of Congress.
"I stand in firm opposition to this package, the contents of which are still uncertain," Inhofe said. "The first step to controlling government spending is for the authorizers to set reasonable and achievable authorization levels. I am perfectly willing to work with my colleagues to advance some of these bills individually, but we need time to examine the changes that have been made since they emerged from the EPW committee, and we must consider their effect on the deficit."
Inhofe was referring to the Senate Environment and Public Works committee, of which he is the ranking minority member.
According to a Nov. 15 report in E&E News, Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-NM, planned to ask the chamber to enact a bill that would encompass at least some of 60 natural resources-related measures already approved by Senate committees.
Inhofe's opposition may have been encouraged by the attitude of the ranching industry, which has urged Senate majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and minority leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to set the omnibus bill aside.
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said in a statement that the provisions in the measure require additional debate and should not be considered during the current lame-duck session of Congress.
"I stand in firm opposition to this package, the contents of which are still uncertain," Inhofe said. "The first step to controlling government spending is for the authorizers to set reasonable and achievable authorization levels. I am perfectly willing to work with my colleagues to advance some of these bills individually, but we need time to examine the changes that have been made since they emerged from the EPW committee, and we must consider their effect on the deficit."
Inhofe was referring to the Senate Environment and Public Works committee, of which he is the ranking minority member.
According to a Nov. 15 report in E&E News, Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-NM, planned to ask the chamber to enact a bill that would encompass at least some of 60 natural resources-related measures already approved by Senate committees.
Inhofe's opposition may have been encouraged by the attitude of the ranching industry, which has urged Senate majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and minority leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to set the omnibus bill aside.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Lame-duck session could include lands bill, report says
During its lame-duck session this month and next the Senate may take up a public lands bill that would create several new national parks, national monuments, wildlife refuges, and wilderness areas.
The prospect of consideration of such an omnibus measure, and its passage, is uncertain.
According to a report in the New York Times, it is not clear that the leadership of the House of Representatives would agree to pass the bill without committee consideration in that chamber.
The package would also have to compete with several other priorities in the Senate.
The bill may also include provisions to improve protection of ocean resources and expand marine research and fisheries protections.
The prospect of consideration of such an omnibus measure, and its passage, is uncertain.
According to a report in the New York Times, it is not clear that the leadership of the House of Representatives would agree to pass the bill without committee consideration in that chamber.
The package would also have to compete with several other priorities in the Senate.
The bill may also include provisions to improve protection of ocean resources and expand marine research and fisheries protections.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Rahall Introduces Coal Ash Dump Bill
House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick J. Rahall (D-WV) today introduced legislation requiring federal regulation of coal ash dumps.
There are currently no federal standards for coal ash impoundments as exist under SMCRA for coal slurry. Instead, such impoundments are constructed and maintained under a patchwork of state requirements, or on a voluntary basis.
"The disaster witnessed at the Kingston, Tennessee facility - which could have been avoided had TVA exercised appropriate engineering and monitoring regimes - was a clarion call for action," Rahall said. "Now is the time to take that action, before any lives are lost to a similar disaster, which is why I am introducing legislation to provide a basic level of safety for our communities and the environment from the hazards of coal ash waste."
The Coal Ash Reclamation and Environmental Safety Act of 2009 (H.R. 493) would impose uniform federal design, engineering, and performance standards on coal ash impoundments to avoid a repeat of the damage done in Kingston. The legislation, which requires minimum design and stability standards for all surface impoundments constructed to hold coal ash, draws on the regulatory model for impoundments that is used for coal slurry management under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).
The majority of coal ash, a byproduct of the combustion of coal at electric utility power plants, is deposited in impoundments, landfills, or mines. By comparison, coal slurry is one of the main refuse streams from the treatment of raw coal when it is mined.
"It is impossible to write off the disaster in Tennessee as a freak accident," Rahll said. "The absence of national standards for coal ash has resulted in environmental damage and threats to human health throughout the country - not just last month, or last year, but for decades, and as far as we know this may be just the tip of the iceberg."
Requirements for coal slurry impoundments under SMCRA that would be made applicable to coal ash impoundments under H.R. 493 cover aspects of design, construction, operation, and closure, including:
* Regulations detailing the engineering and stability of the embankment.
* Regulations requiring all applications for an impoundment to have a foundation investigation to determine design requirements for stability.
* Each design plan must include a geotechnical investigation of the embankment foundation area.
* Each impoundment plan must include a survey describing the potential effect on the structure from subsidence of the subsurface strata resulting from past mining operations in the area.
* Plans for impoundments must be reviewed by a geologist or an engineer.
* Regulations requiring that a qualified engineer, with experience in construction of impoundments, inspect each impoundment regularly during construction, upon completion of construction, and periodically thereafter.
"For those states that do not already have careful standards for coal ash disposal, my legislation will require immediate attention to the shocking gaps in coal ash management," Rahall said. "The American public and our environment simply cannot afford to wait any longer to rein in the hazards posed by the shoddy and irresponsible coal ash disposal practices that currently exist."
A 2006 National Academy of Sciences study, along with a 2007 Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources oversight hearing, pointed to the pressing need for a federal regulatory regime governing the disposal of coal ash.
A coal ash spill covering more than 300 acres occurred at a Tennessee Valley Authority facility about three weeks ago.
There are currently no federal standards for coal ash impoundments as exist under SMCRA for coal slurry. Instead, such impoundments are constructed and maintained under a patchwork of state requirements, or on a voluntary basis.
"The disaster witnessed at the Kingston, Tennessee facility - which could have been avoided had TVA exercised appropriate engineering and monitoring regimes - was a clarion call for action," Rahall said. "Now is the time to take that action, before any lives are lost to a similar disaster, which is why I am introducing legislation to provide a basic level of safety for our communities and the environment from the hazards of coal ash waste."
The Coal Ash Reclamation and Environmental Safety Act of 2009 (H.R. 493) would impose uniform federal design, engineering, and performance standards on coal ash impoundments to avoid a repeat of the damage done in Kingston. The legislation, which requires minimum design and stability standards for all surface impoundments constructed to hold coal ash, draws on the regulatory model for impoundments that is used for coal slurry management under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).
The majority of coal ash, a byproduct of the combustion of coal at electric utility power plants, is deposited in impoundments, landfills, or mines. By comparison, coal slurry is one of the main refuse streams from the treatment of raw coal when it is mined.
"It is impossible to write off the disaster in Tennessee as a freak accident," Rahll said. "The absence of national standards for coal ash has resulted in environmental damage and threats to human health throughout the country - not just last month, or last year, but for decades, and as far as we know this may be just the tip of the iceberg."
Requirements for coal slurry impoundments under SMCRA that would be made applicable to coal ash impoundments under H.R. 493 cover aspects of design, construction, operation, and closure, including:
* Regulations detailing the engineering and stability of the embankment.
* Regulations requiring all applications for an impoundment to have a foundation investigation to determine design requirements for stability.
* Each design plan must include a geotechnical investigation of the embankment foundation area.
* Each impoundment plan must include a survey describing the potential effect on the structure from subsidence of the subsurface strata resulting from past mining operations in the area.
* Plans for impoundments must be reviewed by a geologist or an engineer.
* Regulations requiring that a qualified engineer, with experience in construction of impoundments, inspect each impoundment regularly during construction, upon completion of construction, and periodically thereafter.
"For those states that do not already have careful standards for coal ash disposal, my legislation will require immediate attention to the shocking gaps in coal ash management," Rahall said. "The American public and our environment simply cannot afford to wait any longer to rein in the hazards posed by the shoddy and irresponsible coal ash disposal practices that currently exist."
A 2006 National Academy of Sciences study, along with a 2007 Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources oversight hearing, pointed to the pressing need for a federal regulatory regime governing the disposal of coal ash.
A coal ash spill covering more than 300 acres occurred at a Tennessee Valley Authority facility about three weeks ago.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Senate Committee Chairs in 111th Congress Announced
Senate majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., announced the names of Democrats who will chair the upper chamber's committees in the 111th Congress yesterday and there are some important changes.
The biggest is at Appropriations, where Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, D-Hawaii, takes over for ailing, 91-year old Sen. Robert Byrd, D-West Virginia. Inouye, who was first elected to the Senate in 1962, is 84.
West Virginia's junior U.S. senator, Jay Rockefeller, will chair the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, will continue to chair the Environment and Public Works Committee. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico remains chair of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, while Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin continues as chair of the Agriculture Committee and Kent Conrad of North Dakota chairs the Budget Committee.
The biggest is at Appropriations, where Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, D-Hawaii, takes over for ailing, 91-year old Sen. Robert Byrd, D-West Virginia. Inouye, who was first elected to the Senate in 1962, is 84.
West Virginia's junior U.S. senator, Jay Rockefeller, will chair the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, will continue to chair the Environment and Public Works Committee. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico remains chair of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, while Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin continues as chair of the Agriculture Committee and Kent Conrad of North Dakota chairs the Budget Committee.
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