Environmental News: Media Center
Our Expert Finder is a guide to the NRDC's environmental experts and the issues that they cover in their work. To arrange for interviews with or comments from any of our lawyers, scientists and analysts, please contact the appropriate press officer. If you are not a member of the press, please write to us at nrdcinfo@nrdc.org or see our contact page.
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WASHINGTON (May 22, 2013) – A majority in the U.S. House today voted for Nebraska GOP Rep. Lee Terry’s legislation, The Northern Route Approval Act,” that seeks to speed up approval for the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline by eliminating the need for a presidential permit.
SAN FRANCISCO (May 22, 2013) – The state of California issued new rules today that will greatly reduce the amount of dangerous mercury sent to landfills and incinerators each year due to the improper disposal of old mercury-laden thermostats. The new rules will require thermostat manufacturers to collect and recycle the vast majority of discarded mercury thermostats in California. Over the next five years, this will keep nearly 2 tons of the toxin out of garbage trucks, landfills and incinerators where the mercury can be released from crushing or burning, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council, the California Product Stewardship Council, and the California Sierra Club.
SAN DIEGO, CA (May 22, 2013) – The first five-mile segment of a planned 16-mile toll road through south Orange County and northern San Diego County fails to account for a range of ecological and economic impacts, according to a new lawsuit filed by the Save San Onofre coalition today. The suit asserts that the Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA)’s approval of the flawed toll road project is in violation of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for not meeting basic environmental review.
WASHINGTON (May 16, 2013) – New draft rules for fracking on public lands, released by the federal Bureau of Land Management today, would leave drinking water supplies for millions of Americans, as well as millions of acres of wild lands, at risk, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.
WASHINGTON – (May 16, 2013) – The Senate today confirmed Ernest Moniz as the next Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy.
Following is a statement from Natural Resources Defense Council President Frances Beinecke:
“Ernest Moniz comes with a strong background in energy policy and science and a proven ability to work with the diverse constituencies served by the Department of Energy.
WASHINGTON (May 16, 2013) – The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today approved the nomination of Gina McCarthy to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, sending her nomination for consideration to the full Senate.
SAN FRANCISCO (May 15, 2013) – Karen Garrison, oceans champion and co-director of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Ocean Program, will be recognized today as a 2013 “Hero of the Seas” by the prestigious Peter Benchley Ocean Awards. Presented by Blue Frontier Campaign, the award, which is named for Jaws author and long-time shark advocate Peter Benchley, is dedicated to recognizing excellence in ocean conservation solutions in the areas of science, policy, media, youth, and citizen activism.
WASHINGTON (May 14, 2013) – U.S. taxpayers paid nearly $100 billion responding to damages caused by last year’s extreme weather events associated with climate change, about $1,100 per taxpayer, according to an analysis by the Natural Resources Defense Council released today.
By paying nearly $100 billion, taxpayers—through the federal government—spent more on climate change cleanup than on education or transportation, the analysis shows.
SAN FRANCISCO (May 13, 2013) – As California’s prized Central Valley Chinook salmon are arriving in markets and restaurants this week, a new analysis by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Golden Gate Salmon Association reveals that the salmon fishery is limping along at only 20 percent of the population goal required by state and federal law. The Central Valley Project Improvement Act, passed by Congress in 1992, set a goal of rebuilding salmon runs to almost a million adult fish by 2002. More than a decade past the law’s deadline, the salmon fishery continues to struggle due, in large part, to excessive pumping of fresh water from the Bay-Delta that deprives salmon of the cold, flowing rivers and healthy habitat they need to thrive.
WASHINGTON (May 9, 2013) – A boycott by Republicans delayed a vote planned today in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on the nomination of Gina McCarthy to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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