Publication Items

EPA Inspector General Rips Risk Management Plan Follow-Up [1]

A new Office of Inspector General report found many chemical facilities storing large amounts of dangerous chemicals had not filed their required RMPs -- and that EPA was not checking often for compliance.
SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [3]
Disasters [4]
Government [5]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about EPA Inspector General Rips Risk Management Plan Follow-Up [1]
Blue Sky for TRI? [8]

EPA's public release of the latest Toxics Release Inventory data -- and rollback of Bush-era cutbacks on the amount of information chemical companies must report -- may have marked the beginning of a new era for the embattled program.
SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [3]
Laws & Regulations [9]
Government [5]
Policy [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about Blue Sky for TRI? [8]
CSB Reschedules W.VA. Meeting After Bayer Secrecy Demands [11]

A public meeting regarding the U.S. Chemical Safety Board's investigation of the August 2008 explosion at Bayer CropScience which killed two workers, originally scheduled for March 19, was postponed to April 23, 2009.
SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [4]
Chemicals [3]
Region:
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [12]
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about CSB Reschedules W.VA. Meeting After Bayer Secrecy Demands [11]
Leahy, Cornyn Introduce FOIA Exemption-Flagging Bill [13]

A new bill would require Congress to explicitly declare when it was creating a new exemption to the Freedom of Information Act in any legislation.
SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Laws & Regulations [9]
Government [5]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about Leahy, Cornyn Introduce FOIA Exemption-Flagging Bill [13]
Attorney General Sets Openness as Standard for Fed Info [14]

Carrying out a January 21 order by President Barack Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder has reversed the so-called "Ashcroft Memo," which had encouraged agencies during the George Bush presidency to err on the side of secrecy.
SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Laws & Regulations [9]
Government [5]
Policy [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about Attorney General Sets Openness as Standard for Fed Info [14]
Pitfalls And Challenges Await Those Who Cover Climate Future [15]

By BUD WARD
"Generational."
The term comes to mind in the context of the global climate change challenges and opportunities we all face.
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [16]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about Pitfalls And Challenges Await Those Who Cover Climate Future [15]
SEJ Watchdog Swiftly Responds For More Press Freedom [17]

By TIM WHEELER

A journalist's job is to follow the facts and call them as they appear, no matter which side of a debate they may favor. In the past year, as president of the Society of Environmental Journalists, I've often found myself explaining to various people and groups that the only cause for which SEJ advocates is more and better coverage of the environment.
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [16]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about SEJ Watchdog Swiftly Responds For More Press Freedom [17]
EPA Considers Raising Ethanol Content of Gasoline [18]

On March 6 a coalition of major ethanol producers (Growth Energy) formally requested that EPA raise the cap on the amount of ethanol that can be blended into US gasoline. EPA has 270 days to respond.
SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [19]
Topics on the Beat:
Energy & Fuel [20]
Government [5]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about EPA Considers Raising Ethanol Content of Gasoline [18]
Report: Hints of Substantial Urban Residential Infill [21]

Researchers with EPA's Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation has found that residential development in some metro areas has moved from suburbs and exurbs to infill development within urban areas.
SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [19]
Topics on the Beat:
Planning & Growth [22]
Consumer [23]
People & Population [24]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about Report: Hints of Substantial Urban Residential Infill [21]
Censoring Science: Inside The Political Attack On Dr. James Hansen And The Truth Of Global Warming [25]

by Mark Bowen,
Dutton, 336 pages, $25.95

Reviewed by Craig Pittman

On June 23, 1988, a scientist named Jim Hansen spent five minutes talking to a Senate committee. Hansen said he was 99 percent sure the Earth was getting warmer because of the greenhouse effect, and he predicted that 1988 would turn out to be one of the warmest years on record.

Althoughhe spoke inanIowa-bredmonotone, Hansen's testimony electrified the committee hearing.When he tried to leave,Hansen was surrounded by reporters.
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [26]
Region:
National (U.S.) [6]
Visibility:
Public [7]
- Read more about Censoring Science: Inside The Political Attack On Dr. James Hansen And The Truth Of Global Warming [25]

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