Senate Strikes Down Sportsmen’s Act of 2012

  On November 26, 2012, the United States Senate voted on the Sportsmen’s Act of 2012.  There was a large amount of bi-partisan support for the bill that would increase public lands for hunter and anglers.  The bill passed procedural votes earlier in November by 92-5 and 84-12, but the bill (S. 3525) was struck ...

Rhinos May Become Extinct in 10 Years

  Despite tighter international controls on ivory, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) warns that African Rhinos may become extinct in 10 years if immediate action is not taken by the international community.  The WWF reports that 588 rhinos and tens of thousands of elephants were killed in 2012.  There are several reasons ...

Pacific Islanders Facing Increasing Threats from Climate Change

  On November 30, 2012, a new report was released at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Doha that states island communities in the Pacific Ocean are facing extreme changes and dangers to their environment and economies because of climate change.  The report, call the Pacific Environment and Climate Change ...

Obama Signs Bill to Protect US Airlines from EU Carbon Fees

  On Tuesday, November 27, President Obama signed a bill that exempts airlines in the United States from carbon fees imposed by the European Union for every ton of carbon emitted from planes flying in and out of Europe.  The passage of the bill was commended by Airlines for America (A4A), the trade organization represented ...

New Rules will Increase Development on 56 Million Acres of Native American Land

  On November 27, 2012, Ken Salazar, the Secretary of the Interior, and Kevin K Washburn, the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, announced new regulations that will remove older regulations that slowed residential, commercial, and renewable energy development on American Indian Trust Land.  The new regulations are expected ...

New Research Projects Aim to Environmentally Extract Shale Gas

  The criticism against production of natural gas and oil from shale and tight sands constantly echoes around environmental circles.  It appears the Department of Defense (DOE) has been listening. ON November 28, 2012, the DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy approved $28 million for fifteen research projects that will ...

Lesser Prairie Chicken Listed as Threatened, Habitat Exchanges to Occur

  On November 30, 2012, the Fish and Wildlife Service announced that the prairie chicken is now considered threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  According to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), the decision by the Fish and Wildlife Service will likely cause state and federal wildlife agencies to issues stricter ...

First Renewable Energy Lease Sales Announced for Outer Continental Shelf

  On November 30, 2012, the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced leasing for 278,000 acres of wind energy offshore of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Virginia.  The Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, stated: “We are implementing the President’s all-of-the-above ...

A Northern California Oyster Farms Comes to an End

  On November 29, 2012, the Department of the Interior made a decision that was hailed by several environmental groups and deeply criticized by supporters of the oyster farm.  Secretary Ken Salazar made a decision to end Drakes Bay Oyster Company’s permit at the Point Reyes National Seashore in California.  The ...

Largest Glass Container Manufacturer Pays $39.2 Million

On December 3, 2012, the EPA and Department of Justice announced that Owens-Brockway Glass Container Inc based out of Ohio agreed to install new pollution control equipment in order to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and particulate matter (PM) by roughly 2,500 tons per year.  The company is required ...

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