Despite promises of transparency, the US Environmental Protection Agency has denied a Freedom-of-Information request by Charleston Gazette reporter Ken Ward Jr. for the contractor study, which apparently outlines less harmful options for this West Virginia mountaintop-removal project.
The open-government agenda made only a little progress in the session of Congress now waddling to a lame-duck close. Hope still remains for a few measures that would increase public access to government information — but it dwindles with every day that passes.
The Senate's Nov. 30 vote not to impose a moratorium on "earmarks" practically ensures that pork-barrel spending will live on as a subject for journalists — at least in fiscal 2011.
"The Senate passed a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s food safety system on Tuesday, after tainted eggs, peanut butter and spinach sickened thousands of people in the last few years and led major food makers to join consumer advocates in demanding stronger government oversight."
"Old splits between rich and poor nations re-emerged on Tuesday over a plan to slow global warming, but both sides maintained a 'balanced package' is the goal of U.N. talks in Mexico."
"A coalition of 20 environmental groups took to the airwaves today in their escalating pushback against a $7 billion Canadian oil sands pipeline, launching a two-week ad campaign urging President Obama to 'prevent the next oil disaster' by rejecting a permit for the project."
"The New York State Assembly voted 93 to 43 Monday night to place a temporary moratorium on a controversial type of natural gas exploration that combines hydraulic fracturing with horizontal drilling."
"Subsidies and tariffs to promote domestic ethanol production are “fiscally irresponsible and environmentally unwise” and should be ended, a bipartisan group of United States senators declared in a letter to the chamber’s leaders on Tuesday."
"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday levied a $300,000 fine against a toxic waste dump near a Central California farming community plagued by birth defects for failing to properly manage carcinogenic polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs."
"Republicans plotting their offensive against the Obama administration’s environmental policies are eyeing a powerful weapon that would force the Democratic-held Senate to schedule votes on nullifying controversial regulations."
Links
[1] https://www.sej.org/publications/government/epa-wont-disclose-alternative-study-spruce-mine-mtr-permit
[2] https://www.sej.org/publications/government/111th-congress-ending-unfinished-foi-do-list
[3] https://www.sej.org/publications/government/enviropork-reporting-secret-santas
[4] https://www.sej.org/headlines/senate-passes-sweeping-law-food-safety
[5] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/01/health/policy/01food.html
[6] https://www.sej.org/headlines/old-rifts-mar-un-climate-talks-balanced-deal
[7] http://planetark.org/enviro-news/item/60420
[8] https://www.sej.org/headlines/enviros-launch-ad-assault-against-oil-sands-pipeline-project
[9] http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2010/11/30/30greenwire-enviros-launch-ad-assault-against-oil-sands-pi-82051.html
[10] https://www.sej.org/headlines/ny-assembly-approves-fracking-moratorium
[11] http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/n-y-assembly-approves-fracking-moratorium/
[12] https://www.sej.org/headlines/end-ethanol-subsidies-senators-say
[13] http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/end-ethanol-subsidies-senators-say/
[14] https://www.sej.org/headlines/epa-fines-kettleman-city-waste-dump-over-pcb-contamination
[15] http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2010/11/epa-fines-waste-facility-over-pcb-contamination.html
[16] https://www.sej.org/headlines/gop-plans-strategy-stymie-epa
[17] http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1110/45754.html
[18] https://www.sej.org/search_results
[19] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4310
[20] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4307
[21] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4308
[22] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4309
[23] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4312
[24] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4313
[25] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4314
[26] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4315
[27] https://www.sej.org/search_results?page=4888