NJ Republican lawmakers’ statement on Keyport cancer cluster

 

From NJ Republican lawmakers Sen. Declan O’Scanlon, Assemblywoman Victoria Flynn, and Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberger

 

As concerns continue to grow regarding the reported “cancer cluster” in the Borough of Keyport, we want every resident to know that their health and well-being remain our highest priority. We understand that many families are seeking answers, and we recognize the uncertainty and anxiety these reports have created throughout our community.

Our offices are in regular communication with both the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) as they continue their work. NJDEP is actively conducting environmental testing and reviewing the results as they become available. We remain committed to ensuring residents receive timely updates as verified information becomes available.

While this work continues, it is a good time to consider talking with a healthcare provider about your personal health history and any concerns you may have. Residents who are uninsured, underinsured, or otherwise concerned about the cost of preventive screenings should know that quality, affordable care is available locally.

Through the New Jersey Statewide Early Detection and Screening (NJSEED) Program, residents may qualify for breast, cervical, colorectal, and prostate cancer screenings at little to no cost. These services are available through the Visiting Nurse Association of Central Jersey Community Health Center (VNACJ CHC) right here in Keyport, helping to ensure that financial barriers do not prevent residents from receiving potentially lifesaving preventive care.

We strongly encourage anyone who believes they may be eligible for NJSEED services, or who has questions about recommended cancer screenings, to contact the VNACJ Community Health Center in Keyport to learn more about available programs and schedule an appointment. Early detection remains one of the most effective tools in improving health outcomes, and no one should delay seeking care because of cost or uncertainty.

As your representatives, we will continue working closely with local officials, NJDEP, NJDOH, and other appropriate state agencies throughout this process. We remain committed to advocating for transparency, supporting a thorough, science-based review of all available information, and ensuring that every member of our community has access to the resources they need. During times of uncertainty, we encourage residents to rely on credible information and take advantage of the preventive health services available right here in our community.”

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Chill out this summer at your choice of these five Pennsylvania waterfalls

 

Pennsylvania is home to dozens upon dozens of beautiful waterfalls that you can chase throughout the year. However, many Pa. waterfalls don’t allow swimming—a major bummer because swimming near waterfalls is relaxing, scenic, and extremely fun—but we get it: It’s a safety thing. You could get injured or damage the environment around the waterfall.

But don’t shrug your shoulders and head south in search of waterfall swimming holes in West Virginia. There are indeed a number of waterfalls and cascades in Pa. where you can swim and beat the heat this summer. Just be sure to always go with a friend, keep abreast of water conditions, and consider bringing a life jacket or other flotation device. Even if you don’t wear it, you could use it to pull a friend to safety if needed. Aim to stay safe as you cool off in Pa. swimming holes this summer!

We’ve done our best to make sure all of these sites are open for swimming, but be sure to check websites before you leave and follow any signs at the site that caution or bar visitors.

1. Meadow Run, Ohiopyle State Park – Ohiopyle

Meadow Run is actually a 14-mile tributary of the Youghiogheny River. But the stream itself includes a long ribbon of cascading waterfalls, which visitors to Ohiopyle know as the Natural Water Slides. You can take a dip down the slides, carved through sandstone. Find Meadow Run’s Natural Water Slides within Ohiopyle State Park — the attraction has its own parking area.

2. Big Falls Swimming Hole, Tioga State Forest – Morris

One of the best swimming holes in the state is found in rural Tioga County, just south of the town of Wellsboro. The turquoise water of Big Falls Swimming Hole — beautifully blue-green because of limestone deposits — is fed by the waters of Stony Fork Creek via a short but lovely waterfall. Bonus: You can jump into the swimming hole on a rope swing!

The list continues here

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Plug-In Solar Panels Are Popping Up in U.S. Backyards

Ten U.S. states have legalized systems that can be plugged into standard wall outlets. The technology typically does not require permits or electricians.

 

Alex Ottoboni, wearing a black T-shirt, is holding a solar panel on his balcony.
Alex Ottoboni with his balcony solar panel at his condo in the San Francisco Bay AreaCredit…Poppy Lynch for The New York Times

 

By Ivan Penn and Claire Brown,  The New York Times

After watching a YouTube video about solar panels that can be plugged into a regular electrical outlet, Melani Jackson plopped four panels in the backyard of her Salt Lake City home.

 

In the six months since, she has lowered her electricity bill by about $77 in total. While that’s not a large sum, she is happy to have banked those savings, which required little effort on her part.

“I just really appreciated the idea of being able to do something to cut even just a few dollars off my energy bill plus just become a little bit more environmentally friendly,” Ms. Jackson, 35, said.

Millions of Americans worried about rising energy costs might soon follow in her footsteps as states start allowing homeowners and renters to plug in solar panels on balconies, in backyards and other places. Plug-in systems are much smaller and cheaper than rooftop build-outs — some costing just a few hundred dollars a panel. Permits are not required in the states that allow their use, and people can often install them on their own.

Read the full story here

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Antora snags $550M for heat batteries to run data centers and factories

Rows of white batteries in front of a factory, with a beige building between with an Antora sign
Antora Energy’s thermal batteries at the Poet bioprocessing facility in Big Stone City, South Dakota (Antora Energy)

The startup Antora Energy just raised $550 million to build and deploy more of its heat-storing batteries for powering data centers and cleaning up factories.


By Maria Gallucci, CanaryMedia 

On Thursday, San Jose, California–based Antora said it closed a Series C funding round co-led by climatetech investor G2 Venture Partners and the VC firm Eclipse, which backs manufacturing-focused startups. That brings Antora’s total corporate and project financing to around $1 billion, the company says, adding that the latest infusion will enable it to expand domestic production of its thermal batteries and accelerate the buildout of large-scale projects.

Eight-year-old Antora has likened its technology to an enormous toaster. Electricity runs through a large resistance heater to warm big blocks of solid carbon to extremely high temperatures for days on end. The blocks release controlled blasts of high-intensity light that can be used to either produce power on demand or generate steam for industrial processes.

Just two months ago, Antora began booting up its first commercial-size system: a 5-gigawatt-hour thermal battery at Poet’s biofuels plant near Big Stone City, South Dakota. The project will turn cheap wind energy into steam the plant needs to convert corn into ethanol, displacing some of the facility’s reliance on coal-fueled boilers.

Read the full story here.

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A new Colorado River plan requires water cuts for three states

An overlook above Lake Mead, one of the two biggest reservoirs on the Colorado River, near Boulder City, Nevada. (Caroline Brehman/Reuters)

By 

Arizona, California and Nevada will be required to curb their use of the water from the Colorado River by about 20 percent over the next two years — and could ultimately face even larger cuts, according to three officials familiar with negotiations over a long-awaited federal plan to rescue the depleted waterway.

The plan, part of which the Bureau of Reclamation described in an Environmental Impact Statement early on Friday morning, comes at a time of escalating crisis for the Colorado River, a crucial water source for seven states, 30 Native tribes and a swath of northwestern Mexico. But experts say it will not be sufficient to resolve a political standoff among the river’s many users or prevent the beleaguered waterway from teetering toward collapse.

Friday’s announcement outlines a broad 10-year framework for operating the river’s dams and reservoirs. It calls for more specific operating plans to be developed every two years and offers a wide range of possible measures those plans could include — including reducing the amount of water released to the Lower Basin by as much as 40 percent.

The framework does not consider mandatory cuts to water use from the four states in the upper part of the basin — Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming — though it does allow for voluntary reductions. Arizona, California and Nevada make up the Lower Basin.

Read the full story here

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Clean energy advocates see opportunity in state races

Clean energy advocates see opportunity in state races Read More »