PaintCare Program Plan Receives Official Sign-Off from CalRecycle, California Program to Begin Oct. 19

The California PaintCare® program is intended to significantly increase post-consumer architectural paint collection sites and recycling opportunities for residents, small businesses and other generators of post-consumer architectural paint, while providing substantial cost savings to municipal household hazardous waste collection programs.

The comprehensive plan, which covers everything from PaintCare® operational organization, to program products, collection infrastructure, budget, and education and outreach, follows the statute that mandated the paint stewardship program. Eighty-five manufacturers have registered for California, with more responding each week. PaintCare® has identified more than 500 municipal paint collection sites and events, and has started the process to partner and contract with the agencies that manage these programs. PaintCare® has also identified more than 2,700 paint retailers and 1,000 contractors. Outreach to both of these groups began in April.

In September 2010, Governor Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 1343, creating the California Architectural Paint Stewardship Program. The statute requires architectural paint manufacturers to develop and implement a program to reduce, reuse, recycle and properly manage post-consumer architectural paint in the State. ACA created PaintCare®, a 501(C)(3) organization whose sole purpose is to ensure effective operation and efficient administration of paint stewardship programs on behalf of all architectural paint manufacturers in the United States. PaintCare® undertakes the responsibility for ensuring an environmentally sound and cost-effective program by developing and implementing strategies to reduce the generation of post-consumer architectural paint; promoting the reuse of post-consumer architectural paint; and providing for the collection, transport, and processing of post-consumer architectural paint using the hierarchy of reduce, reuse, recycle, and proper disposal.

This model solution was developed as part of an agreement with federal, state, and local government stakeholders. Oregon was the first state to adopt ACA's model paint stewardship in 2009. California was the second state, Connecticut the third in June 2011, and Rhode Island became the fourth just last month.

Read full at:
http://www.paint.org/news/industry-news/item/937-aca-paintcare-program-plan-receives-official-sign-off-from-calrecycle-california-program-to-begin-oct-19.html

Changes to EPA Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Reporting Forms - EPCRA

paint.org - Most significantly, facilities need to keep track of a few additional things during the 2013 reporting period. The final rule is effective on Jan. 1, 2014, and facilities must comply with the new requirements for the 2013 reporting year.

These modifications in the final rule change existing data elements and add new data elements to make the forms more useful for these emergency planning agencies and provide information to the public concerning potential chemical hazards present in their communities.

The changes and additions to the forms include the following:

• Facility’s latitude and longitude;
• Identification numbers assigned under the Toxic Release Inventory and risk management program;
• Whether the facility is manned or unmanned;
• Estimate for the maximum number of occupants at the facility at any given time;
• Whether the facility is subject to EPCRA section 302 and the Clean Air Act section 112(r) risk management program;
• Contact info for the person responsible for completing the forms;
• Emergency contact information for facilities subject to EPCRA section 302;
• Email addresses for the operator and emergency contact;
• Revised range codes for the maximum and daily average amount of hazardous chemicals; and
• Facilities must provide a description for storage types and conditions (rather than reporting codes).

Additional information, including the final rule, is available at
http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/epcra/]http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/epcra

One in 10 U.S. Employers to Drop Health Coverage -Deloitte, says in Wall Street Journal.

Around one in 10 employers in the United States plans to drop health coverage for workers in the next few years as the bulk of the federal health care law begins, and more indicated they may do so over time, according to a study by consulting company Deloitte, says the Wall Street Journal. Deloitte's findings differ from estimates by rival firm McKinsey & Co. last year that found 30 percent of employers say they would "definitely or probably" stop offering health insurance after 2014, as well as calculations by the Congressional Budget Office that estimated around 7 percent of workers could lose coverage under the law by 2019. In all, 9 percent of companies in the Deloitte study said they expected to stop offering insurance in the next one to three years. Around 81 percent were planning to continue providing benefits, and 10 percent weren't sure.

Read on:
http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=22180

Yucca Mountain: The Safe Future for Nuclear Energy Nuclear

Despite controversy surrounding the disposal of spent nuclear fuel, nuclear power will continue to occupy an essential role in the United States’ electricity production for the foreseeable future. The 19 percent of the electricity generated in the United States by nuclear power plants is comparable to the electricity used in California, Texas, and New York combined. Besides that, nuclear power accounts for 8.5 percent of our total domestic energy consumption. [1] Nuclear plants—of which there are 104 total in the United States—produce far less waste than traditional power plants:   http://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/2012/06/19/yucca-mountain-the-safe-future-for-nuclear-energy/

NOTE: The comments are better than the article in this link

Petroleum Demand in Developing Countries

Conventional wisdom might suggest that as oil prices rise, developing countries would be less able to afford oil, leaving wealthier countries to bid against each other for increasingly higher-priced supplies. But that is not at all what happened over the past decade, and the trend may give developed countries a reason for concern.

read more

Solar Waterfall Could Power Rio Olympics · via @EnviroLeader

Swiss architectural and design firm Rafaa has proposed building a 345-foot solar tower and urban waterfall that will provide power to the city of Rio de Janeiro during the Olympic Games in 2016.

The solar city tower project consists of a massive power plant that will generate energy for the Olympic village in Rio. Excess energy from the solar panels will be pumped as seawater into the tower. At night, the seawater can be released to run a turbine and generate electricity. The water also can be released during special occasions to create the urban waterfall, Rafaa said.

The structure will include a balcony on a glass sky walk at the top of the tower, an observation deck located slightly lower and a cafeteria and shop beneath the waterfall.

“The technology and design is pretty much one-of-a-kind,” said Eric Bloom, senior analyst at Pike Research. ”It’s innovative and it addresses the intermittency challenges of renewable energy like solar and wind.”

Please continue reading at:

http://www.environmentalleader.com/2012/08/03/solar-waterfall-could-power-rio-olympics/

Cincinnati approves ban on injection of wastewater underground wells.

Cincinnati City Council passed an ordinance on Wednesday banning the injection of wastewater underground within city limits. The ordinance is aimed at preventing the injection of wastewater from fracking.

Please continue reading at:

http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/blog-3764-quinlivan_holds_anti_fracking_press_conference.html

US Senate panel adopts chemicals reform bill.

A Senate committee has approved legislation that would fundamentally alter the way the Environmental Protection Agency regulates commercial chemicals.

Please continue reading at:

http://cen.acs.org/articles/90/i31/Senate-Panel-Adopts-Chemicals-Reform.html

Washington state announces new rain runoff requirements.

Washington state will begin requiring municipalities to use "rain gardens" and pervious pavement in new urban developments to combat rainwater pollution to the state's rivers and lakes and to the Puget Sound, officials announced Wednesday.

Please continue reading at:

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2012/08/01/2236956/state-announces-new-rain-runoff.html

India drowning in waste, untreated sewage in the Indian city’s lakes and wetlands.

Investigations show that less than half of the sewage produced by the global information technology hub of Bangalore is being managed in modern treatment plants, with the rest ending up as raw, untreated sewage in the Indian city’s lakes and wetlands.

Please continue reading at:

http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/08/india-drowning-in-waste-experts-warn/

Drought bill offers livestock farmers up to $100,000 each.

Livestock producers hit by the worst drought in half a century could get up to $100,000 each to offset high feed costs and death of animals under a bill expected to pass the U.S. House of Representatives as early as Thursday.

Republican leaders indicated they would fast-track a vote on the $383 million bill before Congress leaves on Friday for a five-week vacation. There would be little time left for the Senate to act, so it could be fall before the plan becomes law.

While crop insurance will provide a safety net for many farmers, disaster programs for livestock producers expired at the end of 2011. Lawmakers were under pressure to provide help before they recess until Sept 10.

The bill would compensate ranchers for 75 percent of the value of stock killed by drought and pay 60 percent of feed costs for one to three months for stock on the range. It also has $20 million for feed and water shortages for livestock, bees and farm-raised fish, and a program to help tree farmers recover from losses.

Please continue reading at:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/01/us-usa-agriculture-idUSBRE8701S220120801

620 million without power: India's energy crisis as grids collapse

The SMH has a reports on the impact of poor rains and high temperatures on India's overloaded power grid - 620 million without power: India's energy crisis as grids collapse.

India's energy crisis cascaded over half the country on Tuesday when three of its regional grids collapsed, leaving 620 million people without government-supplied electricity for several hours in, by far, the world's biggest blackout. ...

The new power failure affected 620 million people across 20 of India's 28 states - about double the population of the United States. The blackout was unusual in its reach, stretching from the border with Myanmar in the northeast to the Pakistani border about 3000 kilometres away. Its impact, however, was softened by Indians' familiarity with frequent blackouts and the widespread use of backup generators for major businesses and key facilities such as hospitals and airports. ...

Tuesday's blackout eclipsed Monday's in India, which covered territory including 370 million people. The third largest blackout affected 100 million people in Indonesia in 2005, according to reports by The Associated Press.

India's demand for electricity has soared along with its economy in recent years, but utilities have been unable to meet the growing needs. India's Central Electricity Authority reported power deficits of more than 8 per cent in recent months.

In addition, vast amounts of power are pirated through unauthorized wiring that taps into the electrical system.

The power deficit was worsened by a weak monsoon that lowered hydroelectric generation and kept temperatures higher, further increasing electricity usage as people seek to cool off.

Please continue reading at:

http://peakenergy.blogspot.com/2012/08/620-million-without-power-indias-energy.html

The Defense Implications of Rare Earth Shortages - China produces more than 94 percent of the world's rare earth oxides

Rare earth elements are essential in a number of products crucial to the operations of the U.S. military. Indeed, rare earth phosphors, metals, alloys and magnets are regularly used in laser designators, jet aircraft engines and missiles, to name a few applications, says Jeffery A. Green, the founder of the Strategic Material Advisory Council and an adjunct scholar with the National Center for Policy Analysis. For the supply of these resources, the Department of Defense (DOD) said in recent statements that it will rely upon international markets. However, rare earth elements are just that -- rare -- and the world's limited supply is concentrated in a country that is solidifying its reputation as a trade manipulator. The Chinese central government has offered direct support to the rare earth elements industry since the 1980s, allowing it to come to dominate global production. China produces more than 94 percent of the world's rare earth oxides, virtually 100 percent of all commercially available rare earth metals, and more than 90 percent of the rare earth alloys. China manufactures approximately 75 percent of the world's samarium-cobalt magnets and 60 percent of the neo magnets -- crucial tools for DOD production needs. While relying upon Chinese manufacturers to meet demand (the United States has almost no domestic production in this market anymore) may not be an inherently bad idea, Chinese trade practices lend little reliability to this supply line.

Please continue reading at:

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=22209

Oregon OSHA urges caution following three workplace carbon monoxide (CO) incidents

Oregon OSHA is investigating the following three cases:

• Several workers became ill July 17 after an employee began using a gas-powered pressure washer to clean a refrigerated room at a fruit processing plant. A total of 23 people went to the hospital, many of whom didn’t recognize the symptoms until it was too late.
• On July 18, construction workers in a warehouse were operating a gas-powered saw and other internal combustion engine equipment at the same time. Despite the employer’s effort to keep air moving with commercial fans, it wasn’t enough to avoid an overexposure.
• In the third incident, also on July 18, a worker using a gas-powered saw in a manhole was overcome by carbon monoxide and lost consciousness.

Read on at: http://www.orosha.org/admin/newsrelease/2012/nr2012_17.html

 

Proved reserves of U.S. oil and natural gas in 2010 rose by the highest amounts ever recorded

Record Increases in U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Reserves in 2010

Crude Oil Reserves Up 13 Percent to Highest Level Since 1991
Natural Gas Reserves Up 12 Percent, Top 300 Trillion Cubic Feet for First Time

U.S. proved crude oil and natural gas reserves achieved record annual volumetric increases in 2010 according to U.S. Crude Oil, Natural Gas, and Natural Gas Liquids Reserves, 2010, released today by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

"The use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing in shale and other tight rock formations played an important role in the increase of oil and natural gas reserves," said EIA Administrator Adam Sieminski. "For both oil and natural gas, these reserves increases underscore the potential of a growing role for domestically-produced hydrocarbons in meeting current and projected U.S. energy demand."

Proved oil reserves, which include crude oil and lease condensate, increased by 13 percent in 2010 to 25.2 billion barrels, marking the second consecutive annual increase and the highest volume of proved reserves since 1991.

Proved reserves of U.S. oil and natural gas in 2010 rose by the highest amounts ever recorded since the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) began publishing proved reserves estimates in 1977.

• Net additions to proved reserves of crude oil plus lease condensate in 2010 totaled 2.9 billion barrels, surpassing the previous high of 1.8 billion barrels added in 2009 by 63 percent (Table 1).
• Net additions of wet natural gas in 2010 totaled 33.8 trillion cubic feet (Tcf), nearly 5 Tcf (17 percent) higher than the previous record of 28.8 Tcf, also added in 2009.

See full here:
http://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/crudeoilreserves/

OSHA's "QuickTakes" Newsletter for August

In this issue of OSHA QuickTakes

• U.S. Department of Labor finds 2 companies in violation of Federal Railroad Safety Act for retaliating against whistleblowers
• Federal OSHA and the Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations propose agreement to provide strengthened protections for Hawaii's workers
• OSHA delivers message of "Water. Rest. Shade." in media old and new
• Zaplanuj. Zaplanij. Przeszkól.: New educational resources available to prevent falls in construction
• OSHA publishes Final Rule on whistleblower retaliation complaints made under the Surface Transportation Assistance Act
• OSHA cites Nebraska Prime Group in Hastings, Neb., for 11 violations after worker fatality at meat packing facility
• OSHA cites Idaho group home and adult day care operator for inadequate workplace violence safeguards at Pocatello facility
• Hasbro's Massachusetts-based manufacturing facility recognized as a leader in employee health and safety for second consecutive year
• Protecting salon workers from on-the-job hazards: OSHA highlights salon safety at Asian American and Pacific Islander working group
• OSHA reaches out to vulnerable workers in Little Rock and Tulsa with information on heat stress and other workplace hazards
• OSHA and NIOSH join together to inform employers and workers on safe work practices when using cleaning chemicals
• New searchable online course schedule makes it easy to find OSHA Training Institute Education Centers training opportunities
• Protecting workers from mercury exposure in fluorescent bulbs: New educational resources available
• Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health meets in Seattle
• National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health (NACOSH); Request for Nominations
• OSHA to participate in roundtable on confined space safety August 21
• Job openings

See full here
http://www.osha.gov/as/opa/quicktakes/qt08012012.html

H.R. 3158, Farmers Undertake Environmental Land Stewardship Act to modify SPCC oil discharges into navigable waters and shorelines

H.R. 3158 would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to modify the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule, which regulates oil discharges into navigable waters and adjoining shorelines. A portion of the SPCC rule, effective May 10, 2013, will require farmers to develop an oil spill prevention plan that is certified by a professional engineer. Those plans could involve certain infrastructure changes to reduce the possibility of oil spills. Such plans will apply to farms that store more than 1,320 gallons of oil products in aboveground containers or more than 42,000 gallons of oil products in buried containers that could reasonably be expected to discharge oil into waters of the United States.

Enacting H.R. 3158 would ease some compliance requirements for farmers, depending on the capacity of oil product containers located on a farm and whether a farm has previously experienced any spills. Specifically, under the bill, certification of compliance with the EPA rule by a professional engineer would only be required if the farm has an individual tank with a storage capacity greater than 10,000 gallons, has an aggregate storage capacity greater than or equal to 42,000 gallons, or has previously experienced a spill. However, an owner or operator of a farm could provide self-certification with the SPCC rule if the farm has an aggregate storage capacity greater than 10,000 gallons, but less than 42,000 gallons, and has no history of spills. Farms with an aggregate capacity of less than or equal to 10,000 gallons and no history of a spill would be exempt from all requirements of the SPCC rule.

Please read full at:
http://www.cbo.gov/publication/43506

Low-Carbon Cement Researchers:Thermal Solar Process that eliminates CO2 ­from lime production. via@techreview

Researchers at George Washington University have invented a solar-powered process that makes lime from limestone without emitting any carbon dioxide and demonstrated it in a proof-of-concept device. The researchers estimate that the process could cost less than the conventional one and eliminate a major global source of carbon dioxide emissions. Rather than simply heating up limestone until it releases carbon dioxide, as in the conventional method, the process uses a combination of heat and electrolysis, which produces lime, oxygen, and either carbon or carbon monoxide, based on the temperatures used. The researchers built a device that includes three Fresnel lenses for concentrating sunlight. High temperatures reduce the amount of electricity needed and cause the lime to precipitate out of the mixture, making it easy to separate.

Read more from MIT Technology Review
 http://www.technologyreview.com/fromthelabs/428147/low-carbon-cement/

Source: David Schaller www.sustainablepractices.info

Chattanooga Combines LED Streetlights With Radio Controls For 75-80% Savings. via@Bloomberg

After deciding to replace City street lamps with light-emitting diodes (LEDs), Chattanooga officials discovered a local company with a further cost-saving proposal: a radio-controlled system that can also slash maintenance expenses. Combined, the changes promise dollar savings of 75 percent to 80 percent. Following a successful test of 350 lights last year, The city contracted with Global Green Lighting to replace the city’s 26,500 street lamps. With estimated savings of $2.7 million annually when the project is completed in late 2013, the system will pay for itself within seven years, says David Crockett, director of the city’s office of sustainability. “If we’d just done LED, that would be like putting rocket boosters on horseshoes because it’s an old design,” he says. With the radio network, the city can turn street lamps on and off and tailor brightness to a neighborhood’s lighting needs.

Read on at:
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-05-10/chattanoogas-radio-operated-streetlamps

Source:
 David Schaller www.sustainablepractices.info

New Colorado Law Lets Anyone, Not Just Utilities, Re-Sell Electricity. #green #energy

A new Colorado law, effective in August, slashes state regulation so that anybody can resell electricity. Traditionally, only utilities could do that. The law is seen as a way to spur entrepreneurs to install e-chargers at grocery stores, hotels, malls, cafes and other urban spots.  For around $5,000, anybody with property and access to electricity can install an EV charging station, and a market for $1-an-hour battery charging probably will emerge soon, said Dave Altman, regional development and government sales chief for Eaton Corp., which designs and distributes charging stations. "It's a matter of putting them out in front of your business and saying: 'Here is the station!' It's got a credit-card reader on it — very simple — just like at the gas pump." But drivers would pay $4 instead of $40 or more for a tank of gas.

Read full at http://www.denverpost.com/environment/ci_20926269/electric-vehicle-drivers-colorado-get-charge-out-new

Source:
 David Schaller www.sustainablepractices.info

Employment Opportunity in #Environment, #Safety & #Health Field - #jobs

Environmental, Safety & Health Specialist - Bloom Energy Corporation
Sunnyvale, Ca.

Under the direction of manager, this position is responsible for supporting the EHS team in the development, implementation, monitoring and continuous improvement of Environmental Health and Safety programs, ensuring compliance with corporate, Federal, state, and local EHS requirements.

Required Skills and Experience:

• AA or BS in a EHS or other science major
• 3-5 or more years of experience in environmental, Safety & Health
• Understand and apply Cal-OSHA, EPA, DTSC and other related regulations
• Have good Industrial Hygiene and occupational safety/health hands on identification, evaluation and controls skills
• Have good interaction skills and have the ability to build liaisons between the different company departments
• Have excellent skills using Excel, Power Point, and other MS software
• Knowledge of safety management systems such as OSHA VPP, OHSAS 18001 are a plus.

Please complete application at: http://www.bloomenergy.com/
For additional Information contact Sam Ghezavat, Global EHS manager at 408-543-1056

Workers Compensation Risk Adviser - Cavignac & Associates

Brokerage seeks TEMPORARY assistance for a leave of absence. September – December 2012. Duties: review/report claims; advise/strategize claims mgmt with clients/adjusters; project/analyze xmods; reconcile xmods; analyze loss history to identify risks/hazards/exposures to be managed; previous brokerage exp a plus; contact srugg@cavignac.com.

Safety Director -  LB Construction, Inc.

Roseville, CA specializing in the commercial construction industry seeking a Safety Director, bilingual in Spanish preferred but not required.  The Safety Director plans, directs and implements the company safety program to ensure safe, healthy and accident-free work environment by assisting in meeting company safety goals and objectives.   

Job Requirements and Skills for Safety Manager

• Knowledge in Construction/Industrial Health and Safety OSHA regulations, some basic H/R Knowledge, five years of solid experience.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Health and Safety is required.
• Coordinates physical processes and compliance functions to ensure company safety program is in compliance with local, State and Federal OSHA Regulations.
• Provide assistance in Health and Risk Management and Workers Compensation and administration.
• Good driving record. 

Our company is an E.O.E, Drug-Free work environment and offers an employee benefits package including an Employee Stock Option Plan, Medical/Dental, 401K, Holiday/Vacation/PTO and competitive wages.

Send resume to e-mail: hr@Lbconstructioninc.com or call (916) 624-8404

See more from source Cal-OSHA Reporter
http://cal-osha.com/job-postings.aspx

#Jobs for Coatings Chemist (Multiple Openings) in Chicago, IL

Two employers in the Chicago area that are looking for experienced BS/MS level chemists to do research and development of coatings for industrial applications.  Both companies are large chemical companies offering competitive salary and full benefits.  In addition to formulation/bench work, there will also be duties involved with scaling up in manufacturing and supporting customer requests.

Requirements:
- BS/MS in Chemistry or related
- Minimum 4-5 years in coatings formulation (preferably utilizing acrylic, polyurethane, epoxy, and/or alkyd chemistries).
- Ability to work in the US without sponsorship - no international relocation assistance is available.
If you or someone you know would like to learn more, please contact Devin Heffernan at 815-756-1221 or email me at dheffernan (at) cps4jobs.com.

Caffeinated seas found off US Pacific Northwest.

The discovery of caffeine pollution in the Pacific Ocean off Oregon is further evidence that contaminants in human waste are entering natural water systems, with unknown consequences for wildlife and humans alike, experts say. Caffeine is something of a canary in a coal mine: If caffeine's in the water, chances are there are other contaminants too.

Please continue reading at:

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/07/120730-caffeinated-seas-pacific-northwest-caffeine-coffee-science/

C8 linked to thyroid, bowel disease.

Exposure to C8 is probably linked to thyroid disease and to an inflammatory bowel disease called ulcerative colitis, according to the latest findings of a scientific team that is investigating the DuPont Co. chemical's potential impacts on human health.

Please continue reading at:

http://wvgazette.com/News/201207300038

Fracking boom lifts hopes for geothermal project at Oregon volcano.

No matter what it may sound like, Susan Petty insists she's not trying to frack a volcano. Petty, the founder and president of the Seattle startup AltaRock Energy Inc., says she is just trying to do for geothermal energy what hydraulic fracturing has done for oil and gas.

Please continue reading at:

http://www.eenews.net/public/Greenwire/2012/07/30/1

Obama's Legacy: $25 Trillion in Debt by 2022

The Obama administration quietly released a new budget report Friday afternoon at a time calculated to make sure it received minimal attention. The highlights of the new report are a pair of new estimates, the first of this year's deficit and the second of projected debt 10 years from now.

As reported over the weekend, the new Obama budget document lowers growth estimates for the current year to a (still) high 2.6 percent and estimates this years' deficit at $1.2 trillion. That will bring our national debt to $16.2 trillion by the end of the fiscal year.

The more worrisome number in the new report is the estimated national debt at the end of the current 10-year budget widow. Senator Sessions, ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee posted this chart of the anticipated growth of our debt. As you can see, we'll be looking at over $25 trillion in debt by 2022:

Please continue reading at:

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2012/07/30/Obama-s-Legacy-25-Trillion-in-Debt-by-2022

Fracking Dust Alert - Nearly 80% of NIOSH air samples showed exposure rates above federal recommendations.

A recent federal worker safety alert about dust from sand used in hydraulic fracturing caught few Wyoming oil and gas officials and companies by surprise, despite a lack of research into the danger by state agencies. Nearly 80% of all air samples taken by NIOSH showed exposure rates above federal recommendations. Nearly a third of all samples surpassed the recommended limits by 10 times or more.
Go to the Full Story at Casper Star-Tribune 

Accident Claims Second Worker at Wisconsin Paper Mill when 2 men came into contact with fly ash, a product of burning coal.

The second person injured in an incident at a Tomahawk, Wis., has died of his injuries. Reports say the two men came into contact with fly ash, a product of burning coal.
Go to the Full Story at WSAU (Wausau, Wisc.)

Corn prices hit record as crops shrivel - FOOD or Ethanol?

CNN - Corn prices surged to a new record high Monday, as the worst drought in more than 50 years continues to plague more than half the country. Almost 90% of the United States' corn crops are in drought ravaged areas, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and nearly 40% are situated in the hardest hit spots.

Corn prices have soared more than 50% during the past six weeks as the crops continue to shrivel in relentless dry heat throughout the Midwest. They jumped another 3% Monday to a record high of $8.17 per bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Please continue reading at:

http://buzz.money.cnn.com/2012/07/30/corn-soybean-prices/

Are Fast-Breeder Reactors A Nuclear Power Panacea? by Fred Pearce: Yale360

Plutonium is the nuclear nightmare...it is a million-year radioactive waste legacy that is already costing the world billions of dollars a year to contain.

And yet, some scientists say, we have the technology to burn plutonium in a new generation of “fast” reactors. That could dispose of the waste problem, reducing the threat of radiation and nuclear proliferation, and at the same time generate vast amounts of low-carbon energy. It sounds too good to be true. So are the techno-optimists right — or should the conventional environmental revulsion at all things nuclear still hold?

Fast-breeder technology is almost as old as nuclear power. But after almost two decades in the wilderness, it could be poised to take off. The U.S. corporation GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) is promoting a reactor design called the PRISM (for Power Reactor Innovative Small Modular) that its chief consulting engineer and fast-breeder guru, Eric Loewen, says is a safe and secure way to power the world using yesterday’s nuclear waste.

The company wants to try out the idea for the first time on the northwest coast of England, at the notorious nuclear dumping ground at Sellafield, which holds the world’s largest stock of civilian plutonium. At close to 120 tons, it stores more plutonium from reactors than the U.S. and Russia

Britain’s huge plutonium stockpile makes it a vast energy resource.

combined.

While most of the world’s civilian plutonium waste is still trapped inside highly radioactive spent fuel, much of that British plutonium is in the form of plutonium dioxide powder. It has been extracted from spent fuel with the intention of using it to power an earlier generation of fast reactors that were never built. This makes it much more vulnerable to theft and use in nuclear weapons than plutonium still held inside spent fuel, as most of the U.S. stockpile is.

The Royal Society, Britain’s equivalent of the National Academy of Sciences, reported last year that the plutonium powder, which is stored in drums, “poses a serious security risk” and “undermines the UK’s credibility in non-proliferation debates.”

Please continue reading at:

http://e360.yale.edu/feature/are_fast-breeder_reactors_a_nuclear_power_panacea/2557/

Why the military is trying to reduce its fossil fuel use

Photo courtesy of U.S. Army.

Republicans have been going after the Navy’s biofuel program, the “Green Fleet,” as I covered here and here. As I’ve said, I have mixed feelings about military biofuels. Apart from the details of that program, though, I expect that this is the first sortie in what will become a broader conservative campaign against the military’s efforts to move beyond fossil fuels. So let’s have a reminder of just why the military is doing what it’s doing.

In 2008, the Defense Science Board Task Force on Department of Defense Energy Strategy released its findings in a seminal report called “More Fight — Less Fuel.” Here, from a slideshow summary [PDF] of the report, are the “two primary energy risks to DoD.”

1. Unnecessarily high and growing operational fuel demand increases mission risk
2. Critical missions at fixed installations are at unacceptable risk from extended power loss

So: too much liquid fuel needed in the field and too much reliance on unsteady power grids at the bases.

Let’s turn to recent news.

First, a couple weeks ago, “a bomb planted by the Taliban in northern Afghanistan destroyed 22 NATO fuel tankers carrying supplies to coalition forces.” Luckily the bomb went off fairly early in the morning, so there weren’t many casualties to add to the more than 3,000 Americans killed protecting fuel convoys in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is all it took: “the device was attached under one of the trucks, which were parked close together.”

As I wrote in Outside last year:

THE TACTICAL NEED to reduce reliance on fossil fuels is not new to the Pentagon. In 2003, at the outset of the second Iraq war, General James Mattis commanded the 1st Marine Division during the initial drive to Baghdad. He found himself repeatedly outrunning his own fuel resupply lines, forcing him to slow down to remain fully powered. In a post-combat report that has since become a touchstone for military analysts, he called on the Department of Defense to “unleash us from the tether of fuel.”

Mattis’s plea served to highlight the extraordinary costs of fuel to the military in Afghanistan and Iraq—in dollars and lives. By some estimates, fully 70 percent of the convoys crisscrossing the theater of war are involved in “liquid logistics,” the delivery of fuel and water. In Afghanistan, fuel reaches the front lines via tankers and planes that cross the ocean, trucks from Tajikistan or Russia, and (sometimes) helicopters from forward bases. By the time it gets there, the fully burdened cost can reach anywhere from $30 to an astounding $400 per gallon. Then there are the casualties: one for every 24 fuel convoys, according to a 2009 report by the Army Environmental Policy Institute.

Reducing fuel use in the field is about saving lives, pure and simple.

Second, recent research has shown that power outages are becoming more common in the U.S. In 2008, “there were 2,169 power outages in the U.S. affecting 25 million people. In 2011, there were more than 3,000 outages affecting 41.8 million people.” Absent enormous investments in the grid, this trend is expected to continue as power lines get older and weather gets weirder. Meanwhile, there are 64 bases in the U.S. that operate drones by remote control. A power outage at a base during a drone mission would be … awkward.

And it’s not just U.S. bases that need to learn how to generate their own power and handle their own (micro)grids. The U.S. is building drone bases all over the world, often in places with even worse grids than ours. A blackout just yesterday in India left 300 million people in the dark. Autonomous power generation will become more and more mission critical.

Please continue reading at:

http://grist.org/climate-energy/why-the-military-is-trying-to-reduce-its-fossil-fuel-use/

CCOHS Podcasts Address Psychosocial Connection to Workplace Safety, Job Safety Analysis via @CCOHS

Each month, the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) posts Health and Safety To Go! podcasts. In this month's 16-minute podcast, Dr. Keven Kelloway explains what positive psychology is and how it relates to workplace stress. Listen to the podcast now.

CCOHS also has posted an encore presentation of its nearly 4-minute podcast on the basics of conducting a job safety analysis. Listen to the podcast now.

Please read full and follow at:

http://americansocietyofsafetyengineers.blogspot.com/2012/07/ccohs-podcasts-address-connection.html

350 Million People in India Lose Power Due to Scorching Summer Weather - via@inhabitat

India suffered one of its worst blackouts in a decade this Monday morning when high demand for electricity cut off power to seven northern states and over 360 million people.  India’s electricity demand during the hot, dry summer has greatly increased this year, especially in urban areas.  Without a good monsoon and due to unusually arid weather, the nation’s electricity grid has been under a lot of strain.

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The Simple Living Amish Are the Fastest Growing Community In the US

The Amish are best known for their simple living, their plain dress and their reluctance to adopt many of the technological luxuries we take for granted. In many regards, they are among the greenest and most sustainable communities in the US given their farming methods, their recycling of resources, their reliance on horse power and a prohibition on automobiles. However, a new report from Ohio State University on the Amish population in the US has found that a new Amish community is founded, on average, about every 3 1/2 weeks. This would suggest that the Amish are the most rapidly growing community (and religion) in the US!

Read the rest of The Simple Living Amish Are the Fastest Growing Community In the US

EU Introduces New Biocides Framework via @3ecompany

Companies will have until September 1, 2013, the day the European Union’s updated biocides legislation applies, to prepare for the provisions it introduces. Effective from July 17, 2012, differences between Regulation 528/2012/EU and the previous framework under Directive 98/8/EC include streamlined requirements for approving active substances and authorizing products, including at Union level for certain biocidal products; new provisions aimed at reducing animal testing by making data sharing compulsory; and the introduction of the new European Commission nanomaterials definition. According to the EC, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), whose staff dedicated to biocides-related activities will eventually number 100 with an annual budget of EUR 25 million, “will provide a strong scientific and technical back-up to the Commission and the member states under this new regulation.” Regulation 528/2012/EU repeals and replaces Directive 98/8/EC on 1 September 2013.

Please click here to view an EC Q&A document and to access a link to the regulation. See more By Scott Stephens at http://3ecompany.com/blog/?p=89