Washington DC is suffering through the second deep freeze this month. Nighttime temperatures are in the single digits and teens. I have the basement shower on constant drip because the pipes are well-enough insulated and could freeze if the water weren't moving, however slowly, through the pipes. Even so I know the planet is getting warmer.
The New York Times had encouraging news the other day when it reported that this view is now shared by several large multinational companies like Coca-Cola and Nike. These, and other businesses, are making adjustments on their own and pushing governments to do more. And several conservative economists, like Douglas Holtz-Eakin, former advisor to Senator John McCain, are supporting a carbon tax.
It's enough to keep me reading the political news.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Friday, January 24, 2014
Chemicals in the Elk River
It's a little while now since the spill of toxic chemicals into the Elk River in West Virginia. For several days, after a storage tank owned by the wonderfully-named Freedom Industries leaked 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, or MCHM, into the river, West Virgina drinking water service was virtually shut down.
Last Sunday, the Washington Post published a useful article with a broader look at regulatory oversight of toxic chemicals. In fact, Joel Achenbach, the reporter for the piece, leaves the impression that there’s little or none. He reports that when officials were scrambling to deal with the leak and assess its seriousness, they had next to no information about the chemical contaminating the water supplies. According to his article, the MCHM safety data sheet that officials were probably looking at anxiously, uses the phrase “no data available” 152 times.
That would seem unacceptable when so much emphasis is placed on the safety of the things we eat and drink. But a spokesperson for Freedom Industries said the company was, in fact, following stricter European Union standards in the data sheet; under U.S. regulations, she said, they didn’t even need to say that much.
So the Elk River spill points out the need for better information about and regulation of industrial chemicals, right? Right. But the most prominent proposed legislation, drafted by the late Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and David Vitter (R-LA), both from states with sizable petro-chemical industries, would, if anything, weaken oversight. Elk River may have raised the salience of the issue for a while, and prompted an effort towards stricter regulation. Here’s hoping something comes of it.
Last Sunday, the Washington Post published a useful article with a broader look at regulatory oversight of toxic chemicals. In fact, Joel Achenbach, the reporter for the piece, leaves the impression that there’s little or none. He reports that when officials were scrambling to deal with the leak and assess its seriousness, they had next to no information about the chemical contaminating the water supplies. According to his article, the MCHM safety data sheet that officials were probably looking at anxiously, uses the phrase “no data available” 152 times.
That would seem unacceptable when so much emphasis is placed on the safety of the things we eat and drink. But a spokesperson for Freedom Industries said the company was, in fact, following stricter European Union standards in the data sheet; under U.S. regulations, she said, they didn’t even need to say that much.
So the Elk River spill points out the need for better information about and regulation of industrial chemicals, right? Right. But the most prominent proposed legislation, drafted by the late Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and David Vitter (R-LA), both from states with sizable petro-chemical industries, would, if anything, weaken oversight. Elk River may have raised the salience of the issue for a while, and prompted an effort towards stricter regulation. Here’s hoping something comes of it.
Monday, January 20, 2014
Hollande's turn and the environment
- My two favorite bloggers on French politics have included -- and referenced -- several commentaries on President François Hollande’s press conference last week. The New York Times summarized his proposals as including tax cuts, spending reductions, and a generally business-friendly tone. So far he seems to have upset those on the outer edges of the right and the left, created divisions within the UMP, and received encouraging words from some Germans and E.U. officials. This all suggests his move to the center could turn out to be smart politically. And, what seems less likely, it could even be good for France’s economy and for hiring.
Still, I doubt this business-friendly turn is going to be good for the environmental issues I tend to follow. Right off the bat, I’d say that this turn makes it more likely the government will go ahead with construction of the new airport at Notre-Dame-des-Landes. In the name of regional economic development (à la les Trente Glorieuses) and jobs, I expect Hollande and Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault will clear out the camped-in protesters and move in the bulldozers, probably in the next few weeks. It’s also hard to see how the government resist local development interests in the department-by-department face-offs over flood plain zoning along the Loire and other rivers. And how likely is it the government will insist to the always over-burdened farmers that they cut back on fertilizers and pesticides to clean up local drinking water supplies? We’ll see, but I’m not optimistic.
Still, I doubt this business-friendly turn is going to be good for the environmental issues I tend to follow. Right off the bat, I’d say that this turn makes it more likely the government will go ahead with construction of the new airport at Notre-Dame-des-Landes. In the name of regional economic development (à la les Trente Glorieuses) and jobs, I expect Hollande and Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault will clear out the camped-in protesters and move in the bulldozers, probably in the next few weeks. It’s also hard to see how the government resist local development interests in the department-by-department face-offs over flood plain zoning along the Loire and other rivers. And how likely is it the government will insist to the always over-burdened farmers that they cut back on fertilizers and pesticides to clean up local drinking water supplies? We’ll see, but I’m not optimistic.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Flood control on the Loire
Brives-Charensac is a small town on the Loire River adjacent to Le Puy-en-Velay. It’s deep in the Massif Central, not far from the river's headwaters. In 1980, waters from a massive rain storm swept down the river, flooded parts of the town and killed nine people. Ever since then flood control has been a sensitive issue for the Brivois.
A push in the late 1980s to build a dam at Serre-de-la-Fare upstream from the town was in large part justified as a way to prevent a repeat of the 1980 flooding. But several years of environmental opposition to the dam, including a five-year camp-in on the construction site, finally convinced the government that, technically and environmentally, it made more sense to use land use controls than dams and levees to prevent flooding risks.
In the mid-1990s regulations were adopted to prevent new construction in at-risk zones, business installations were relocated with public assistance, and several projects were carried out to improve the river’s flow through the town. Last week, the issue of flood control and land-use planning was revived when the government presented new maps with new definitions of at-risk areas in the flood plain. Generally, the new maps double the lands within Brive defined as having a potential for serious flooding. The maps are still in draft form for purposes of public discussion.
In large measure the new maps area a response to the "Xynthia" storm in 2010 that hit coastal areas, ripping through levees, destroying property, and killing more than 50 people. Now, new government rules now place much less faith in levee protection. If the new maps are finally adopted, Brive, and other towns along the river, will need to substantially revising the zoning rules and place new limits on areas of permissible development. Understandably they are not happy. The maps area expected to be finalized by the end of this year.
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| © Zoomdici.fr |
In the mid-1990s regulations were adopted to prevent new construction in at-risk zones, business installations were relocated with public assistance, and several projects were carried out to improve the river’s flow through the town. Last week, the issue of flood control and land-use planning was revived when the government presented new maps with new definitions of at-risk areas in the flood plain. Generally, the new maps double the lands within Brive defined as having a potential for serious flooding. The maps are still in draft form for purposes of public discussion.
In large measure the new maps area a response to the "Xynthia" storm in 2010 that hit coastal areas, ripping through levees, destroying property, and killing more than 50 people. Now, new government rules now place much less faith in levee protection. If the new maps are finally adopted, Brive, and other towns along the river, will need to substantially revising the zoning rules and place new limits on areas of permissible development. Understandably they are not happy. The maps area expected to be finalized by the end of this year.
Friday, January 17, 2014
Agricultural pollution in drinking water
Farmers and environmentalists often have a hard time being friends. This is especially true when agricultural fertilizers and pesticides are leaching into groundwater systems and drinking water supplies. Another instance of this was recently reported in the French department of the Vienne just south of the Loire Valley.
A biennial report from the Agence régionale santé (ASR) for the Poitou-Charente Region found dangerous levels of nitrates in several local drinking water supplies. As a result, some drinking water agencies are considering investing in special treatment systems to remove the contaminants. The ARS found similar contimination from pesticides.
The article in La Nouvelle Republique (published in Tours) only reported on the release of the ARS study, not on any corrective measures. So, absent any action, this appears to be where things will remain. Farmers will continue current practices and drinking water customers will pay higher rates to cover costs of decontamination, effectively providing another form of agricultural subsidy.
The national consumer organization UFC Que Choisir is reported to have initiated some form of legal action, but the article didn’t provide details.
A biennial report from the Agence régionale santé (ASR) for the Poitou-Charente Region found dangerous levels of nitrates in several local drinking water supplies. As a result, some drinking water agencies are considering investing in special treatment systems to remove the contaminants. The ARS found similar contimination from pesticides.
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| © La Nouvelle République |
The national consumer organization UFC Que Choisir is reported to have initiated some form of legal action, but the article didn’t provide details.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Return. Smog in Rome
I’ve been away from this for too long. It’s still early in the year and probably still within an acceptable time period for making new year’s resolutions. I maybe stretching that time, but I hope whoever regulates these things can give me a pass. So my resolution is to return to writing here regularly. That doesn’t mean every day, but at least a few times a week.
I’m working on a long-term writing project, a book I hope, on the Loire River. I'm probably repeating something I've said earlier. But in any case, it will be about things I saw while riding my bicycle along the river and things I want to know more about, especially environmental things. I’m also interested in some of the history, certainly about the chateaux, but also about the commercial and industrial history of the river and canals.
So I’ll be posting little blurbs about those topics. I also try to follow a couple of Italian newspapers and I’ll highlight environmental stories when I see them in those places; and, of course, similar stories in the U.S.
As it happens, the first post of the new year deals with Italy. I probably should have know this, but Rome has a serious smog problem. To try to cut down on auto emissions the local government has decreed a series of no-drive Sundays. The next one will be this coming Sunday, 19 January. Others are scheduled for 23 February and 23 March.
The government’s decision applies to the fascia verde or green zone, an area including about half of the city inside the GRA, the Rome “beltway.” The restrictions don’t apply to the entire day, only the morning hours of 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and then again from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
This may be a way of showing people they don’t need to be so dependent on their cars. But I doubt it will do much to reduce the smog.
I’m working on a long-term writing project, a book I hope, on the Loire River. I'm probably repeating something I've said earlier. But in any case, it will be about things I saw while riding my bicycle along the river and things I want to know more about, especially environmental things. I’m also interested in some of the history, certainly about the chateaux, but also about the commercial and industrial history of the river and canals.
So I’ll be posting little blurbs about those topics. I also try to follow a couple of Italian newspapers and I’ll highlight environmental stories when I see them in those places; and, of course, similar stories in the U.S.
As it happens, the first post of the new year deals with Italy. I probably should have know this, but Rome has a serious smog problem. To try to cut down on auto emissions the local government has decreed a series of no-drive Sundays. The next one will be this coming Sunday, 19 January. Others are scheduled for 23 February and 23 March.
The government’s decision applies to the fascia verde or green zone, an area including about half of the city inside the GRA, the Rome “beltway.” The restrictions don’t apply to the entire day, only the morning hours of 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and then again from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
This may be a way of showing people they don’t need to be so dependent on their cars. But I doubt it will do much to reduce the smog.
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