"Judge Blocks California's Low-Carbon Fuel Rules"
"A federal judge finds that the state Air Resources Board's regulations discriminate against crude oil and biofuel makers outside the state."
Source: LA Times, 12/30/2011
California
"Modesto Residents Concerned Over Soil Laced With Toxic Barium"
"Too much exposure to barium can cause tremors, breathing problems, diarrhea, irregular heartbeats, paralysis and death. Who could blame people for worrying if they live near huge mounds of soil laced with it?
The prospect of dust kicking up from those mounds when crews finally start building a freeway segment on top of them is causing some anxiety in neighborhoods west of downtown Modesto."
Garth Stapley reports for the Modesto Bee December 12, 2011.
Source: Modesto Bee, 12/12/2011
"San Benito County's New Idria Mercury Mine Now a Superfund Site"
"Every second of every day it flows: a river of poison gushing from the hillsides."
Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, 12/05/2011
Calif. Law Keeps Public from Knowing About Dangerous Pipelines
The San Francisco Chronicle revealed almost all records of the state's Public Utilities Commission, which regulates pipelines, are secret — and the PUC typically asks permission from the utility companies before releasing any information. In most other states, such information is freely available to the public.
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"Strong Winds Coming To Southern California"
"Strong Santa Ana winds, with hurricane-force gusts of 80 mph or more in some areas, could cause dangerous fire conditions and hazardous driving over the next several days."
Source: LA Times, 11/30/2011
Law Allows State California PUC To Keep Utilities Data Secret
"Californians concerned about dangerous pipelines running underneath their neighborhoods are barred from obtaining government records about them by a 60-year-old state law backed by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and other utilities, a Chronicle investigation shows."
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 11/28/2011
BLM Says 9 Western States Have Worthy Wilderness Areas
Designating lands as wilderness or some other highly protected status always is contentious, but the BLM has identified 24 areas in 9 western states the agency says have significant local support for this idea: CA (9 areas), CO (3), ID (1), MT (1), NM (2), NV (2), OR (2), UT (3), and WA (1).
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