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Climate, Air Quality, and Weather Stories August 13, 2001 Smog days of summer are here to stay The dog days of August are here, and they brought unhealthy smog that leaves a brownish-yellow rim of ground-level ozone around the region. From Maine to New Hampshire, unhealthy smog days are rising like mercury in thermometers. This Portsmouth Herald article looks at smog in northern New England this summer. New England schools win indoor air quality award Schools in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut have won a national award from the Environmental Protection Agency for improving indoor air quality under the agency's "Tools for Schools" program. The campaign strives to create healthier and safer classrooms, homes and a cleaner outdoors. So far, more than 200 schools in New England have joined the "Tools for School" program. Have a look at these EPA press releases for details. NESCAUM releases detailed report on ethanol If you're interested in methanol, you'll want to check this out. The Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM) and New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC) have released a detailed report outlining the potential public health, environmental, regulatory and economic impacts associated with introducing hundreds of millions of gallons of ethanol into the region's gasoline pool. The report, in three volumes, was commissioned by the New England Governors' Conference Committee on the Environment. Among the report's key findings: Direct exposure to fuel ethanol in the air and in contaminated drinking water is not expected to pose public health risks. The potential for other adverse impacts, including developmental effects, associated with large-scale exposure to low levels of ethanol is uncertain. The entire report can be downloaded from the NESCAUM Web site. EPA seeks air penalties against Rhode Island plant A Rhode Island photographic film and paper manufacturer, Arkwright, faces more than $370,000 in penalties from the Environmental Protection Agency for alleged air quality violations. The EPA says in a press release that emissions resulting from Arkwright's manufacturing process contained volatile organic compounds, (VOCs), which evaporate readily into the air. The EPA plans to seek the penalties under the Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, or RCRA. Massachusetts company pays air quality fine The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection says an Acton company has paid more than $11,800 in penalties after a state inspection uncovered violations of state air quality regulations and problems with the labeling and handling of hazardous wastes. A DEP news release says Haartz Corp. did not ensure that thermal oxidizing equipment, used in a production process, was operating at the DEP-approved efficiency level, leading to air quality release violations. The DEP says the company did not inform the state about the operating problems. Xerox to pay EPA air fine in New York Xerox Corporation has reportedly agreed to pay a $74,000 penalty for failing to inspect vats of waste and monitor air emissions from containers and equipment at its facility in Webster, New York. The company has also agreed to certify in writing that it is in compliance with all applicable regulations. The EPA charged Xerox in April with several violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). See this Earth Times News Service story for more details. Report: aerosols cool surface, warm atmosphere NASA's Earth Observatory News reports that new research based on satellite data and field experiments reveals that carbon aerosols can both cool the earth's surface and warm the atmosphere. Satellite built to monitor global warming is grounded No one knows for sure if the $100 million Earth-observing spacecraft, built to study the Earth's climate and monitor global warming, will ever fly. The Washington Post provides an interesting recap of the transformation of a controversial proposal into a scientific mission, only to have its launch into orbit threatened by a lack of cargo room for it on the Space Shuttle. First two biodeisel stations open in U.S. Cars pulling out of two new gas stations in California and Nevada may smell a little like doughnuts or french fries. The first two public stations offering the alternative fuel in the United States have opened in San Francisco and Sparks, Nevada. No modifications are required to allow diesel engines to run on pure biodiesel or a blend of any biodiesel and standard petroleum diesel. See details in this short story in Environmental Science and Technology Magazine. |
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