EJToday is SEJ's selection of new and outstanding stories on environmental topics in print and on the air, updated every weekday. SEJ also offers a free e-mailed digest of the day's EJToday postings, called SEJ-beat. SEJ members are subscribed automatically, but may opt out here. Non-members may subscribe here. EJToday is also available via RSS feed. Please see Editorial Guidelines for EJToday content.
"Feds Release Confidential Report on Cal Nuke Plant"
AP, 03/12/2013"LOS ANGELES -- The company that runs the troubled San Onofre nuclear power plant sparred with environmental activists Friday over the details of a once-confidential report that shows industry engineers were aware of problems with steam quality inside equipment that later malfunctioned."
Off-Record Meeting: "Energy and Climate on the White House Agenda"
NY Times, 03/12/2013"President Obama hosted a casual off-the-record meeting with a diverse group of energy and climate change experts at the White House on Thursday evening, officials and participants said Friday."
"Fracking's 'Revolving Door' Draws a Warning"
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 03/11/2013"Many of Pennsylvania's policymakers, regulators and enforcement workers have come from the oil and gas industry they oversee, or they leave state jobs for industry jobs, according to a recent report that questions the impacts of such a "revolving door" on public policy decisions."
Whole Foods Grocery Chain to Label Foods With Gene-Modified Content
NY Times, 03/11/2013"Whole Foods Market, the grocery chain, on Friday became the first retailer in the United States to require labeling of all genetically modified foods sold in its stores, a move that some experts said could radically alter the food industry."
"Nuclear Industry Withers in U.S. as Wind Pummels Prices: Energy"
Bloomberg, 03/11/2013"A glut of government-subsidized wind power may help accomplish a goal some environmentalists have sought for decades: kill off U.S. nuclear power plants while reducing reliance on electricity from burning coal."
Forest Service Rethinks Controversial Firefighting Policy
OnEarth, 03/11/2013"Last year, as hot, dry conditions fueled blazes across the West, nearly 10 million acres of U.S. land were burned in what ended up being one of the costliest and most destructive wildfire seasons in the nation’s history. In the middle of all that, the U.S. Forest Service, which manages nearly 200 million acres of public land, didn’t do itself any favors when it reversed nearly two decades of national policy and ordered an 'aggressive initial attack' on all blazes within the agency’s jurisdiction, no matter how small or remote."
"EPA Fails To Revise Key Lead-Poisoning Hazard Standards"
USA TODAY, 03/11/2013"The EPA has not revised key hazard standards that protect children from lead poisoning since 2001, despite science showing harms at far lower levels of exposure than previously believed."
"Jewell Pressed on Carbon Tax, Coal and Litigation on Public Lands"
Greenwire, 03/08/2013"President Obama's nominee for Interior secretary was grilled this morning over how she would balance conservation and development on hundreds of millions of acres of public lands, whether she would support a carbon tax and how she would regulate the controversial technique of hydraulic fracturing."
"Safety Breaches Seen Plaguing U.S. Reactors in Report"
Bloomberg, 03/08/2013"Almost one-in-six U.S. nuclear reactors experienced safety breaches last year due in part to poor oversight by federal regulators, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists."
"Incidents including a cooling water leak and unusual wear on steam generator tubes were reported at 16 units owned by companies including Entergy Corp. (ETR) and Edison International (EIX), the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based environmental group said in its third annual report on reactor safety released today.
"Insurers on Climate Change: Whatevs"
Mother Jones, 03/08/2013"Despite record heat and extreme weather disasters in recent years, insurers aren't adequately planning for climate change, according to a report issued Thursday. Only 13 percent of insurance companies have a 'specific, comprehensive strategy' to deal with global warming."
"Tesla Arranges to Repay U.S. Loans Five Years Early"
Bloomberg, 03/08/2013"Tesla Motors Inc., which received $465 million in U.S. Energy Department loans to develop and build electric cars, will repay the funds five years ahead of schedule in a plan approved by the government."
"As Fracking Increases, So Do Fears About Water Supply"
Texas Tribune, 03/08/2013"CARRIZO SPRINGS, Tex. -- In this South Texas stretch of mesquite trees and cactus, where the land is sometimes too dry to grow crops, the local aquifer is being strained in the search for oil. The reason is hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a drilling process that requires massive amounts of water."
Wisconsin Legislature GOPers Send Walker Iron Mining Bill
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 03/08/2013"MADISON, Wisc. -- Assembly Republicans sent Gov. Scott Walker a bill Thursday that could clear the way for a miles-long iron ore mine in northern Wisconsin, handing the GOP governor a victory that eluded him last year."
"LA Harbor Commissioners OK Rail Yard Near Port"
LA Times, 03/08/2013"Over the objections of environmentalists, community groups and neighboring Long Beach officials, Los Angeles harbor commissioners on Thursday approved a $500-million rail yard that could dramatically boost business but also drive more noise and dirty air into schools, parks and low-income neighborhoods."
Key Part of Keystone Report Done by Firms with Deep Oil Industry Ties
InsideClimate News, 03/07/2013"Two consulting firms provided State Department with key analysis of whether the pipeline would speed development of Canada's oil sands."

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