July 30, 2013 | Advocacy, Clean Water Act, EPA, NPDES Permits, OR NPDES, OR Temperature, Oregon, Temperature, Water Quality
In a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on July 26th, NWEA asked the federal agency to consider why Oregon dischargers are being allowed to use hyporheic zones, which are supposed to be protected as thermal refuges for the protection of salmon, as...
June 26, 2013 | Advocacy, Arsenic, Clean Water Act, Cyanide, Endangered Species, ID Copper, ID WQS, Idaho, Lawsuits, Salmon, Toxics, Water Quality, Water Quality Standards
NWEA filed a lawsuit over Idaho toxics standards because a 17 year delay by federal fish and wildlife agencies in reviewing the state’s water quality standards is unlawful. The lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife...
June 12, 2013 | Advocacy, Arsenic, Clean Water Act, Dioxin, Human Health, Mercury, Toxics, WA WQS, Washington, Water Quality, Water Quality Standards
NWEA resigned from the Washington Department of Ecology’s process to adopt new human health criteria for toxics today. NWEA was the last remaining participant not affiliated with pollution sources. In a letter to Ecology Director Maia Bellon, NWEA wrote that “Ecology...
May 28, 2013 | Advocacy, Agriculture, Comments, CZARA, EPA, Lawsuits, NOAA, Nonpoint Sources, OR CZARA, OR Dairies, OR Temperature, Oregon, Oregon Coast, Water Quality
With Oregon staring down a November 15, 2013 date on which two federal agencies must issue a proposed decision on the State’s coastal nonpoint pollution program, NWEA’s more recent letter describes Oregon’s nonpoint program failure to control agricultural pollution....
April 14, 2013 | Energy, Energy Efficiency
With rapid growth wireless networks will soon pass data centers as energy hogs, that’s the finding of a new report from researchers in Australia. According to Melbourne’s Centre for Energy Efficient Telecommunications (CEET) report: Previous analysis and...
April 11, 2013 | Advocacy, Antidegradation, Clean Water Act, EPA, Lawsuits, OR Temperature, OR WQS, Oregon, Salmon, Temperature, Water Quality Standards
Over a year after a federal court ruled in NWEA’s favor on key provisions of Oregon’s water quality temperature standards, an agreement between NWEA and EPA has resulted in two court orders – one in January and the second in April – in which the court has...
April 7, 2013 | Ballast Water, Clean Water Act, EPA, Invasive Species, National, NPDES Permits, Uncategorized, Water Quality
EPA has issued its second national permit to control invasive species from ship discharges and the result is not much better than the first permit. The national permit, known as the Vessel General Permit (VGP), is intended to control the discharge of invasive species,...
March 16, 2013 | Advocacy, EPA, NPDES Permits, OR NPDES, OR Temperature, OR Trading, Oregon, Temperature, Water Pollution Trading, Water Quality
Pollution credit trading is a new idea that is already badly tarnished. Many examples of abuses exist, including an increase in production of dangerous gases in response to a United Nations climate change credit initiative. In the Pacific Northwest pollution credit...
March 10, 2013 | Advocacy, Ammonia, Clean Water Act, Copper, EPA, Lawsuits, Toxics, WA Copper, WA WQS, Washington, Water Quality Standards
Over twenty years ago the Washington Department of Ecology water quality standards changes to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for approval. These standards, and updates made in the two decades since then, set the allowable levels of toxic chemicals for...
March 10, 2013 | Agriculture, Nonpoint Sources, WA CZARA, WA Temperature, Washington, Water Quality
In January 2013 the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) sent two other federal agencies a letter regarding the need for riparian stream buffers along streams in western Washington agricultural lands. The letter includes NMFS’s recommendation for minimum buffers...
