The Race to Save Dwindling Commercial Fisheries in the Chesapeake Bay

Predatory invasive species are blamed for causing blue crab and other commercial stocks to drop significantly, prompting a renewed effort to remedy the situation.

J.C. Hudgins shows a blue crab he caught in the Chesapeake Bay in Mathews, Virginia, on Friday, June 10, 2022. Credit: Kristen Zeis/Deep Indigo Collective for Inside Climate News

By Aman Azhar, Inside Climate News

Alarmed by plummeting stocks of commercial fisheries in the Chesapeake Bay, officials in Maryland and Virginia are scrambling to control invasive fish species that are causing at least part of the problem.   

On Thursday, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore asked the federal government to carry out an evaluation to determine if the situation amounts to a declaration of a “commercial fishery disaster,” which would qualify the state for federal assistance. 

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In a letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, Moore said the state is increasingly concerned about the explosive growth of invasive fish species in the Chesapeake Bay, including blue catfish, flathead catfish, and snakehead. “There is mounting evidence around the deleterious impacts of these species on the native ecosystem and the communities dependent on the commercial fisheries,” Moore wrote. 

The blue catfish, flathead catfish, and snakehead were Introduced in Virginia in the 1970s to create a recreational fishery. They have since spread to tributaries throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. 

The Chesapeake Bay office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) identified invasive catfish as a persistent challenge facing the Chesapeake ecosystem several years ago. Known for their voracious appetite, catfish out-compete native species for both habitats and food and threaten key commercial fisheries including blue crab, striped bass, white perch, yellow perch, and American eel. 

Read the full story here

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Why did residents of a small town in Texas go almost five years without safe drinking water?

The Texas attorney general finally filed suit last year. Still, some residents in Toyah say the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality was “negligent” and want to know what took so long.

Ed Puckett helps operate Toyah's water treatment plant on a volunteer basis. During a tour of the plant in early February, he maintained that the water is safe to drink. Credit: Mitch Borden/Marfa Public Radio
Ed Puckett helps operate Toyah’s water treatment plant on a volunteer basis. During a plant tour in early February, he maintained that the water is safe to drink. Credit: Mitch Borden/Marfa Public Radio

This story was reported and produced in collaboration with Mitch Borden, a reporter at Marfa Public Radio.

By Martha Pskowski, Inside Climate News, March 15, 2023

TOYAH, Texas—It all began simply enough: A boil water notice was issued. A state inspection followed. A list of violations arrived. It’s a well-known pattern in small Texas towns that struggle to maintain their water systems.

But there was nothing simple about Toyah’s water woes, which were years in the making and remain unresolved. A boil water notice issued in June 2018 is still in effect. In the shadow of the country’s most prosperous oil and gas fields, the residents of Toyah, many low-income and Hispanic, have gone nearly five years without safe drinking water.

Elida “Angel” Machuca, a former city council member and mother of two, has made it her mission to expose Toyah’s water crisis. She holds the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) responsible for allowing the town to stall and remain out of compliance with hundreds of drinking water violations it filed against Toyah over the past five years. 

It wasn’t until Sept. 30, 2022, that at TCEQ’s request, the Texas Attorney General brought a civil suit against Toyah to place the public water utility in a receivership. 

After years of agitating, Machuca is finally seeing results. But residents still have no clear answer of when the water will be safe to drink.

A cascade of mistakes and mismanagement has left this small West Texas town without safe drinking water, Inside Climate News and Marfa Public Radio found in reporting that included over a dozen interviews and a review of hundreds of pages of public records.

Read the full story here

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Princeton University students are all crazy liberals, right? Hold on there, dude

Another New Jersey resident, a Princeton student, has been charged for their alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection.

This image of Larry Fife Giberson, circled in annotation by the justice department in the Statement of Facts supporting the arrest of Giberson, shows him outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan 6. 2021.

By P. Kenneth Burns, WHYY

Larry Fife Giberson, of Manahawkin, was arrested Tuesday morning and charged with felony civil disorder and related misdemeanor offenses.

Video shows Giberson making his way to the Lower West Terrace entrance of the U.S. Capitol, also known as the tunnel entrance, according to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Other news coverage:
Princeton senior arrested in U.S. Capitol riot (Daily Princetonian)
Princeton University student charged in Jan 6 riot (Planet Princeton)

It claims Giberson was part of the first coordinated “heave-ho” push against the line of officers, after making his way to the front of the crowd. During this time, an officer was crushed between a door and a shield held by a rioter.

Officers were eventually able to regain control of the tunnel and pushed out the rioters, including Giberson. While other rioters attempted to regain entry, Giberson stood nearby as one officer was dragged into the crowd, according to the complaint. He allegedly yelled “drag them out” and cheered as weapons and pepper spray were used against police officers in the tunnel.

Interview with FBI

Giberson, 21, was released on his own recognizance. Under the terms of his pretrial supervision, he must notify the court if he plans on traveling outside of New Jersey, any trips outside of the continental U.S. must be approved by a judge, and he can’t possess any weapons.

Read the full story here

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Wonder of wonders: Political Conservatives who love renewables!

While Republican politicians castigate Wall Street over ESG, some are trying to win over red states on the shift to clean energy

By Saijel Kishan, Bloomberg Green Daily Newsletter

While Republican politicians castigate Wall Street over its climate initiatives, another group of conservatives is trying to change hearts and minds in rural counties and state capitals on the benefits of the nation’s shift to clean energy.

In town halls, courthouses, and statehouses across the Midwest, South, and Appalachian states, members of the Conservative Energy Network have been meeting with farmers, landowners, Evangelicals, and state lawmakers to convince them that wind, solar and other forms of renewable power are good for their wallets, rights, and votes. 

The group does however eschew the term “green energy.’’ And while its members say they believe the science underpinning climate change, “net zero’’ and the Paris climate accord aren’t top of mind. Instead, their message squarely focuses on energy independence, free markets, land rights, and consumer choice. 

“Quite frankly, our conservative voice has been missing from policy debates for too long, especially at the state and local levels,’’ says Brittany Tisler, interim chief of the Michigan-based nonprofit.

CEN was started in 2016 by late Republican strategist Mark Pischea, who worked in Michigan politics and at the National Republican Congressional Committee. By 2021, CEN was bringing in $7.4 million in donations, according to its latest tax filing, with funding from groups including the Energy Foundation, which partners with other foundations including those tied to Hewlett Packard Enterprises, Home Depot Inc. and the late hedge fund billionaire Julian Robertson.

One of CEN’s biggest challenges is fighting disinformation surrounding renewable power. “We spend a lot of time trying to convince people that they aren’t going to get cancer from wind turbines,” Tisler says. “We try to neutralize the political toxicity of clean energy issues.’’

As well as seeking to educate local and state officials, CEN has placed ads on right-leaning websites like the Daily Caller and Fox News to get their message out. They also conduct polling: their latest survey shows 80% of American voters want government action on boosting renewable energy.

CEN says it works with other conservative groups in 24 states. A grassroots project it runs—the Land & Liberty Coalition—has worked with local officials who approve renewable projects and helped secure permits for wind and solar farms that produce at least 2.8 gigawatts of power, Tisler says.

This excerpt is from Bloomberg‘s Green Daily newsletter. Sign up to receive it in your inbox.

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Delaware Riverkeeper Network​ “wholeheartedly endorses” EPA’s proposed regulations for PFAS

The EPA estimates this rule could reduce PFAS exposure for nearly 100 million Americans, decreasing rates of cancer, heart attacks and birth complications.
The EPA estimates this rule could reduce PFAS exposure for nearly 100 million Americans, decreasing rates of cancer, heart attacks and birth complications. (Shutterstock)

Michelle Rotuno-Johnson, Patch Staff

NEW JERSEY — The Environmental Protection Agency gave water officials in New Jersey more information Tuesday on what they’ll have to do to reduce harmful PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” in water supplies.

PFAS, or per-and polyfluorinated substances, don’t degrade in the environment and are linked to a broad range of health issues, including low birthweight babies and kidney cancer. Drinking water is a significant way that people are exposed to PFAS across the nation and towns across New Jersey, the agency said.

The EPA said limiting these chemicals to the lowest level tests can detect will save thousands of lives and prevent serious illnesses, including cancer. This is the first time the EPA has proposed regulating a toxic group of compounds that are widespread, dangerous, and expensive to remove from the water.

The agency also estimates the rule could reduce PFAS exposure for nearly 100 million Americans, decreasing cancer rates, heart attacks, and birth complications.

Don’t miss environmental news like this Click for free updates

No state is untouched by PFAS contamination, according to a map compiled by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization sometimes criticized for exaggerating certain toxicity risks. But a growing body of scholarly and government research backs the assertion of both the EPA and EWG that, even at low levels currently, these chemicals can cause harm over a person’s lifetime.

PFAS can be found in water systems throughout the state, according to the EWG’s interactive map.

The Delaware Riverkeeper Network “wholeheartedly endorses” the EPA’s plan to propose national drinking water regulations for PFAS compounds. Deputy Director Tracy Carluccio said this action would “finally” protect Americans from exposure to toxic chemicals in their drinking water in a statement Tuesday.

“The science-based foundation developed by EPA for this rule provides incontrovertible evidence of the enormous risks to health posed by these PFAS compounds, including declaring both PFOA and PFOS to be “likely carcinogens,” said Carluccio. “The benefits calculated by EPA include the prevention of tens of thousands of deaths per year, making immediate action imperative. The federal rule has been a long time coming and we will advocate that the public rulemaking process move ahead on urgent footing.”

The Environmental Working Group has a large number of PFAS contaminations recorded in New Jersey on its site; these comprise quantities both above and below proposed limits and are found at schools, fire departments, water utility providers, and other locations around the state.

Cities or areas in New Jersey where PFAS contamination has been detected in the water supply include:

Read the full story here

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Biden approves huge Willow oil drilling in Alaska

By MATTHEW DALY and CHRIS MEGERIAN, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Monday it is approving the controversial major Willow oil project on Alaska’s petroleum-rich North Slope, one of President Joe Biden’s most consequential climate choices that is likely to draw condemnation from environmentalists who say it flies in the face of the Democratic president’s pledges.

The announcement comes a day after the administration, in a big conservation move, said it would bar or limit drilling in some other areas of Alaska and the Arctic Ocean.

Biden’s Willow plan would allow three drill sites initially, the sources said, which project developer ConocoPhillips has said would include about 219 total wells. A fourth drill site proposed for the project would be denied. The company has said it considers the three-site option workable.

TikTokers target controversial Willow oil project

Climate activists have been outraged that Biden appeared open to greenlighting the project, which they said put Biden’s climate legacy at risk. Allowing oil company ConocoPhillips to move forward with the drilling plan also would break Biden’s campaign promise to stop new oil drilling on public lands, they say.

Houston-based ConocoPhillips will relinquish rights to about 68,000 acres of existing leases in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.

The administration’s decision is not likely to be the last word, with litigation expected from environmental groups.

ConocoPhillips Alaska’s Willow project could produce up to 180,000 barrels of oil a day, create up to 2,500 jobs during construction and 300 long-term jobs, and generate billions of dollars in royalties and tax revenues for the federal, state, and local governments, the company says.

Read the full story here

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