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ENVIRO-NEWS: EPA Improves Access to Information on Hundreds of Chemicals

Here is some need to know info.
AP

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Makuch, Joseph" <Joseph.Makuch@ars.usda.gov>
Date: Jun 15, 2011 1:53 PM
Subject: [ENVIRO-NEWS] EPA Improves Access to Information on Hundreds of Chemicals
To: <Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov>

From: U.S. EPA [mailto:usaepa@govdelivery.com]
Sent: Wednesday, June 15, 2011 12:58 PM
Subject: Research News Release (HQ): EPA Improves Access to Information
on Hundreds of Chemicals

CONTACT:
Mollie Lemon (News Media Only)
lemon.mollie@epa.gov
202-564-2039
202-564-4355

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 15, 2011


EPA Improves Access to Information on Hundreds of Chemicals

Searchable databases on chemical toxicity and exposure data now
available

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is making it
easier to find data about chemicals. EPA is releasing two databases -
the Toxicity Forecaster database (ToxCastDB) and a database of chemical
exposure studies (ExpoCastDB) - that scientists and the public can use
to access chemical toxicity and exposure data. Improved access supports
EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson's priorities of protecting Americans'
health by assuring the safety of chemicals and expanding the
conversation on environmentalism.

"Chemical safety is a major priority of EPA and its research," said Dr.
Paul Anastas, assistant administrator of EPA's Office of Research and
Development. "These databases provide the public access to chemical
information, data and results that we can use to make better-informed
and timelier decisions about chemicals to better protect people's
health."

ToxCastDB users can search and download data from over 500 rapid
chemical tests conducted on more than 300 environmental chemicals.
ToxCast uses advanced scientific tools to predict the potential toxicity
of chemicals and to provide a cost-effective approach to prioritizing
which chemicals of the thousands in use require further testing. ToxCast
is currently screening 700 additional chemicals, and the data will be
available in 2012.

ExpoCastDB consolidates human exposure data from studies that have
collected chemical measurements from homes and child care centers. Data
include the amounts of chemicals found in food, drinking water, air,
dust, indoor surfaces and urine. ExpoCastDB users can obtain summary
statistics of exposure data and download datasets. EPA will continue to
add internal and external chemical exposure data and advanced user
interface features to ExpoCastDB.

The new databases link together two important pieces of chemical
research - exposure and toxicity data - both of which are required when
considering potential risks posed by chemicals. The databases are
connected through EPA's Aggregated Computational Toxicology Resource
(ACToR), an online data warehouse that collects data on over 500,000
chemicals from over 500 public sources.

Users can now access 30 years worth of animal chemical toxicity studies
that were previously only found in paper documents, data from rapid
chemical testing, and various chemical exposure measurements through one
online resource. The ability to link and compare these different types
of data better informs EPA's decisions about chemical safety.

More information about the databases:
ToxCastDB: http://actor.epa.gov/actor/faces/ToxCastDB/Home.jsp
ExpoCastDB: http://actor.epa.gov/actor/faces/ExpoCastDB/Home.jsp
ACToR: http://actor.epa.gov

R202



***********************************************
Enviro-News is a service of the Water Quality
Information Center at the National Agricultural
Library.  The center's Web site is at
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/.

The Enviro-News list facilitates information exchange.
Inclusion of an item in Enviro-News does not imply
United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) agreement,
nor does USDA attest to the accuracy or completeness of
the item. See
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/environews.shtml#disclaimer
You can contact the list owner at
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ENVIRO-NEWS: EPA Water Headlines for the week of June 13, 2011

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Makuch, Joseph" <Joseph.Makuch@ars.usda.gov>
Date: Jun 14, 2011 4:10 PM
Subject: [ENVIRO-NEWS] EPA Water Headlines for the week of June 13, 2011
To: <Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov>

-----Original Message-----
From: Travis Loop [mailto:loop.travis@epa.gov]
Sent: Monday, June 13, 2011 9:34 PM
Subject: [waterheadlines] Water Headlines for the week of June 13, 2011

Water Headlines for the week of June 13, 2011

Water Headlines is a weekly on-line publication that announces
publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's Office of Water

In This Week's Water Headlines:

1) U.S. EPA, NOAA Increase Protection of Public, Property in Coastal
Communities through New Partnership

2) EPA Extends Comment Period for Draft Construction General Permit

3) Join EPA for its "Introduction to the National Pretreatment Program"
Webcast
[deletions]

1)  U.S. EPA, NOAA Increase Protection of Public, Property in Coastal
Communities through New Partnership

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced a joint agreement that
will protect the safety, health and property of people living in or
visiting coastal communities around the nation.  Under the agreement,
the two agencies will partner with local governmental entities to
improve the sustainability of waterfront communities and protect coastal
ecosystems, including anticipating and reducing impacts of climate
change.

As part of the agreement, EPA and NOAA will provide technical assistance
and training to implement more sustainable construction and land use
practices, develop Innovative, web-based tools to better provide the
public and local government with essential scientific and technical
information, collaborate on the development of the National Coastal
Condition Assessment and Reports which depict the condition of the
nation's coastal waters based on data collected and analyzed by state
agencies, and support place-based projects focused on equitable
development and climate adaptation in coastal urban watersheds.

This  agreement builds on a 2005-2010 EPA-NOAA partnership which
provided training on resilience and smart growth to over 400 coastal
community officials and developed the publication Smart Growth for
Coastal and Waterfront Communities.
For more information about the new agreement, please visit
www.csc.noaa.gov/publications/2011-EPA-NOAA-MOA.pdf

2) EPA Extends Comment Period for Draft Construction General Permit

EPA is extending the public comment period for the draft Construction
General Permit (CGP) from June 24, 2011, to July 11, 2011, to give
stakeholders additional time to review the draft permit and provide
comments. The draft permit, published on April 25, 2011, regulates the
discharge of stormwater from construction sites that disturb one acre or
more of land and from smaller sites that are part of a larger common
plan of development in areas where EPA is the permitting authority,
including four states (Idaho, Massachusetts, New Mexico, and Idaho);
Washington, D.C.; most territories; and most Indian country lands.  The
draft CGP includes a number of modifications to the current permit, many
of which are necessary to implement the new Effluent Limitations
Guidelines and New Source Performance Standards for Construction and
Development point sources, known as the "C&D rule."

For additional information on the Construction General Permit and to
view a copy of the Federal Register notice announcing the comment period
extension, please visit http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/cgp.cfm.

3) Join EPA for its "Introduction to the National Pretreatment Program"
Webcast

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is offering a webcast
titled, "Introduction to the National Pretreatment Program," on
Thursday, June 30, 2011, from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern time. The webcast is
designed to provide a brief overview of the National Pretreatment
Program for interested parties, including but not limited to states,
publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) and industry stakeholders, who
are unfamiliar with the program's requirements.

The National Pretreatment Program is a cooperative effort of federal,
state, and local regulatory environmental agencies established to
protect water quality. The program is designed to reduce the level of
pollutants discharged by industry and other non-domestic wastewater
sources into municipal sewer systems, and, thereby, reduce the amount of
pollutants released into the environment through wastewater. The
objectives of the program are to protect POTWs from pollutants that may
interfere with plant operation, to prevent pollutants that may pass
through untreated from being introduced into POTWs, and to improve
opportunities for POTWs to reuse wastewater and sludges that are
generated.

Topics covered during the webcast will include: how the Clean Water Act
pertains to the National Pretreatment Program, an overview of the
general pretreatment regulations (40 CFR Part 403), and POTW
pretreatment program implementation requirements.

For more information on the webcast, including information on speakers
and instructions on how to register, please visit:
http://www.epa.gov/npdes/training.  For additional information on EPA's
National Pretreatment Program, visit:
http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=3.
[deletions]

***********************************************
Enviro-News is a service of the Water Quality
Information Center at the National Agricultural
Library.  The center's Web site is at
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/.

The Enviro-News list facilitates information exchange.
Inclusion of an item in Enviro-News does not imply
United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) agreement,
nor does USDA attest to the accuracy or completeness of
the item. See
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/environews.shtml#disclaimer
You can contact the list owner at
owner-Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov.
***********************************************

ENVIRO-NEWS

"USGS Study Finds Recent Snowpack Declines in the Rocky Mountains Unusual Compared to Past Few Centuries".

We are witnessing the rapid and  certain decline in winter snowpack on a global scale. These annual accumulations of frozen precipitation have been a consistent source of fresh water throughout recorded human history. Regardless of the cause, changes are occurring and we need to look at this reality for what it is; and be proactive in planning for a future that will be very different from what we have become accustomed to.

AP

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Makuch, Joseph" <Joseph.Makuch@ars.usda.gov>
Date: Jun 10, 2011 2:39 PM
Subject: [ENVIRO-NEWS] USGS Study Finds Recent Snowpack Declines in the Rocky Mountains Unusual Compared to Past Few Centuries
To: <Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov>

Forwarded from
http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/USGS-Study-Finds-Recent-Snowpack-Declines-in-the-Rocky-Mountains-Unusual-Compared-to-Past-Few-Centuries.cfm#
[also available at
http://go.usa.gov/WaY ]

USGS Study Finds Recent Snowpack Declines in the Rocky Mountains Unusual Compared to Past Few Centuries

06/09/2011

Contact: Kendra Barkoff (DOI) 202-208-6416
Suzanna Soileau (USGS) 406-994-7257

WASHINGTON - A USGS study released today suggests that snowpack declines in the Rocky Mountains over the last 30 years are unusual compared to the past few centuries. Prior studies by the USGS and other institutions attribute the decline to unusual springtime warming, more precipitation falling now as rain rather than snow and earlier snowmelt.

The warming and snowpack decline are projected to worsen through the 21st century, foreshadowing a strain on water supplies. Runoff from winter snowpack - layers of snow that accumulate at high altitude - accounts for 60 to 80 percent of the annual water supply for more than 70 million people living in the western United States.

"This scientific work is critical to understanding how climate change is affecting western water supplies," Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said. "It helps land managers adapt to changing conditions on the ground, assists water managers with planning for the future, and gives all of us a better understanding of the real impacts that carbon pollution is having on our resources and our way of life."

USGS scientists, with partners at the Universities of Arizona, Washington, Wyoming, and Western Ontario, led the study that evaluated the recent declines using snowpack reconstructions from 66 tree-ring chronologies, looking back 500 to more than 1,000 years. The network of sites was chosen strategically to characterize the range of natural snowpack variability over the long term, and from north to south in the Rocky Mountains.

With a few exceptions (the mid-14th and early 15th centuries), the snowpack reconstructions show that the northern Rocky Mountains experience large snowpacks when the southern Rockies experience meager ones, and vice versa. Since the 1980s, however, there were simultaneous declines along the entire length of the Rocky Mountains, and unusually severe declines in the north.

"Over most of the 20th century, and especially since the 1980s, the northern Rockies have borne the brunt of the snowpack losses," said USGS scientist Gregory Pederson, the lead author of the study. "Most of the land and snow in the northern Rockies sits at lower and warmer elevations than the southern Rockies, making the snowpack more sensitive to seemingly small increases in temperature. Also, winter storm tracks were displaced to the south in the early 20th century and post-1980s. Forest fires were larger, more frequent and harder to fight, while Glacier National Park lost 125 of its 150 glaciers."

USGS scientist and co-author Julio Betancourt explains that "The difference in snowpack along the north and south changed in the 1980s, as the unprecedented warming in the springtime began to overwhelm the precipitation effect, causing snowpack to decline simultaneously in the north and south. Throughout the West, springtime tends to be warmer during El Niño than La Niña years, but the warming prior to the 1980s was usually not enough to offset the strong influence of precipitation on snowpack."

The La Niña episode this year is an example with lots of snow in the north while severe drought afflicts the south. But, in the north, this year's gains are only a small blip on a century-long snowpack decline.

In the West, the average position of the winter storm tracks tend to fluctuate north and south around a latitudinal line connecting Denver, Salt Lake City and Sacramento. In El Niño years, winter storms track south of that line, while in La Niña years, they track to the north.

This study supports research by others estimating that between 30-60 percent of the declines in the late 20th century are likely due to greenhouse gas emissions. The remaining part of the trend can be attributed to natural decadal variability in the ocean and atmosphere, which is making springtime temperatures that much warmer.

"What we have seen in the last few decades may signal a fundamental shift from precipitation to temperature as the dominant influence on western snowpack." Pederson said.

The study, The unusual nature of recent snowpack declines in the North American Cordillera, is online at Science magazine http://www.sciencemag.org/lookup/doi/10.1126/science.1201570.

USGS provides science for a changing world. For more information visit www.usgs.gov.
###

***********************************************
Enviro-News is a service of the Water Quality
Information Center at the National Agricultural
Library.  The center's Web site is at
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/.

The Enviro-News list facilitates information exchange.
Inclusion of an item in Enviro-News does not imply
United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) agreement,
nor does USDA attest to the accuracy or completeness of
the item. See
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/environews.shtml#disclaimer
You can contact the list owner at
owner-Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov.
***********************************************

Fwd: ENVIRO-NEWS: Draft Plan to Protect Water Quality and Availability from Climate Change Impacts - Comments requested by July 15

The EPA is looking for public input for this draft plan. Please review the document and exercise your rights as a citizen. 

AP

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Makuch, Joseph" <Joseph.Makuch@ars.usda.gov>
Date: Jun 8, 2011 10:04 AM
Subject: [ENVIRO-NEWS] Draft Plan to Protect Water Quality and Availability from Climate Change Impacts - Comments requested by July 15
To: <Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov>

-----Original Message-----
From: Water Quality Discussion List [mailto:WQ-L@LISTSERV.URI.EDU] On Behalf Of Rozum, Mary
Sent: Tuesday, June 07, 2011 7:13 PM
To: WQ-L@LISTSERV.URI.EDU
Subject: Council on Environmental Quality Releases Draft Plan to Protect Water Quality and Availability from Climate Change Impacts - Comments requested by July 15
________________________________

From: Pixie A Hamilton
To: Pixie A Hamilton
Cc: Matthew C Larsen ; William H Werkheiser
Sent: Tue Jun 07 18:02:33 2011
Subject: FYI - Council on Environmental Quality Releases Draft Plan to Protect Water Quality and Availability from Climate Change Impacts - Comments requested by July 15


To Water and Climate Colleagues (from Matt Larsen, Associate Director, Climate and Land Use Change)

CEQ released the draft National Action Plan on June 2, with a request for comments by July 15.  The plan and a press release are available via the URL below.   Comments can be sent to the website directly.  CEQ will post the comments on the website within several days after they are received.

Please forward this information and the request for comments on the draft Plan widely to any interested parties.  A key next step for the public comment period is to organize a new round of listening sessions, to be scheduled between now and mid July.

Thanks for any input you or colleagues would like to offer on this draft plan.
Matt


http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ceq/initiatives/adaptation
___________________________________
Matthew C. Larsen
Associate Director, Climate & Land Use Change
U.S. Geological Survey, 409 National Center
Reston, VA 20192 tel.703-648-5215
mclarsen@usgs.gov       http://www.usgs.gov <http://www.usgs.gov/>

***********************************************
Enviro-News is a service of the Water Quality
Information Center at the National Agricultural
Library.  The center's Web site is at
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/.

The Enviro-News list facilitates information exchange.
Inclusion of an item in Enviro-News does not imply
United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) agreement,
nor does USDA attest to the accuracy or completeness of
the item. See
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/environews.shtml#disclaimer
You can contact the list owner at
owner-Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov.
***********************************************

ENVIRO-NEWS

EPA Water Headlines for the week of June 6, 2011

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Makuch, Joseph" <Joseph.Makuch@ars.usda.gov>
Date: Jun 7, 2011 9:37 AM
Subject: [ENVIRO-NEWS] EPA Water Headlines for the week of June 6, 2011
To: <Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov>

-----Original Message-----
From: Amy Han [mailto:han.amy@epamail.epa.gov]
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 6:45 PM
Subject: [waterheadlines] Water Headlines for the week of June 6, 2011

Water Headlines for the week of June 6, 2011

Water Headlines is a weekly on-line publication that announces
publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's Office of Water

In This Week's Water Headlines:

1) EPA's Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Operation, Maintenance, and
Management Training for Tribal Operators and Leaders
2) EPA-Supported Water Purification Eco-Center Demonstration Project to
Launch this Month
3) Office of Water's Acting Assistant Administrator Blogs on Waters of
the U.S.
[deletions]

1) EPA's Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Operation, Maintenance, and
Management Training for Tribal Operators and Leaders

From June to October 2011, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) will be sponsoring a series of in-person training workshops for
federally recognized tribes and Alaskan Native Villages across the
country to help increase participants' skills and knowledge in the
operation of wastewater and drinking water treatment systems. The
training is intended for water system operators, wastewater system
operators, tribal utility managers, tribal council members and leaders
involved with water utility management.

While there is no registration fee for the workshops, there is a cap of
50 participants at each session, and tribes and Alaskan Native Villages
that received 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds
will be given registration priority. Travel, hotel, and per diem costs
for attendees from tribal reservations may be covered by a participant's
local Indian Health Service (IHS) Area office. Participants can contact
their local IHS office for additional details.

The first training workshop will be in Seattle, June 21-23, 2011.
Registration is open until 24 hours prior to the workshop. Early
registration is encouraged.

For more information, including how to register, please go to:
http://water.epa.gov/learn/training/tribaltraining/tcourse7_2011.cfm.
For questions about the training, please contact Leon Latino by e-mail
at latino.leon@epa.gov or by phone at (202) 564-1997; or Matthew
Richardson by e-mail at richardson.matthew@epa.gov or by phone at (202)
564-2947.

2) EPA-Supported Water Purification Eco-Center Demonstration Project to
Launch this Month

On June 16, 2011, the Rodale Institute will hold a ribbon-cutting
ceremony to celebrate the opening of its new Water Purification
Eco-Center located on its research farm in Kutztown, PA.  The center,
supported in part through a $695,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), will serve as a model on-site wastewater
treatment system.  The system incorporates an experimental wetland-based
treatment and reuse facility that captures rainwater and reuses it
several times before returning it to the soil as clean water. The
system, which serves as an alternative to standard septic and sand mound
on-lot sewage systems, is scalable and can be used in sustainable
landscapes for residential and small commercial entities.  This project
will help promote the adoption of wetlands-based residential and
institutional wastewater treatment systems to help encourage homeowners
and businesses to seek out more sustainable and water-efficient
wastewater treatment options.

For additional information or to register to attend the ribbon-cutting
ceremony, please visit the Rodale Institute website at:
http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/water-purification-eco-center. For
additional project information, please contact Bob Bastian, EPA Office
of Wastewater Management, by phone at (202) 564-0677 or via e-mail at
bastian.robert@epa.gov.

3) Office of Water's Acting Assistant Administrator Blogs on Waters of
the U.S.

Acting Assistant Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA) Office of Water, Nancy Stoner, recently posted a blog on
Waters of the U.S.  In the blog, Ms. Stoner discusses her experience
growing up near the water and EPA's work to protect the nation's waters
by proposing a draft guidance that identifies waters protected by the
Clean Water Act.

To read the blog:
http://blog.epa.gov/blog/2011/06/02/waters-of-the-us/?utm_source=feedbur
ner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Greenversations_main+%28U.S.+EP
A%3A+Greenversations%29 [or http://go.usa.gov/Dsi ]

For information on the draft guidance:
http://water.epa.gov/lawsregs/guidance/wetlands/CWAwaters.cfm
[deletions]

***********************************************
Enviro-News is a service of the Water Quality
Information Center at the National Agricultural
Library.  The center's Web site is at
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/.

The Enviro-News list facilitates information exchange.
Inclusion of an item in Enviro-News does not imply
United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) agreement,
nor does USDA attest to the accuracy or completeness of
the item. See
http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/environews.shtml#disclaimer
You can contact the list owner at
owner-Enviro-News@ars.usda.gov.
***********************************************