GLIN==> Northeast-Midwest Weekly Update -- 2 November 2009

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Weekly Update

2 November 2009

 

*	October Upper Mississippi River Basin Update Released
*	Final Fiscal 2010 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill
Passed
*	Upper Mississippi River Basin Association Quarterly Meeting
*	Abstracts Sought for Stormwater Pollution Prevention Conference

 

 

October Upper Mississippi River Basin Update Released

 

The latest Upper Mississippi
<http://www.nemw.org/images/2009-10%20Upper%20Mississippi%20River%20Basin%20
Newsletter.pdf>  River Basin Update is now available.  The October edition
covers a recent EPA Inspector General finding that "EPA lacks an effective
strategy for protecting wetlands and tracking violations."  Also covered in
this edition is a state-EPA nutrient innovations task force "Urgent Call to
Action-Report," and a November 18 scheduling of the 2010 Water Resources
Development Act Hearing by the House Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee.  In addition to other news and events relevant the Basin, the
October Update has the latest Capitol Hill legislative updates on climate
change, clean water, and hypoxia research and control.

 

Contact Mark <mailto:mgordon at nemw.org?subject=UMRB%20October%20Update>
Gorman (202/464-4015) at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

 

 

House and Senate Pass Final Version of Fiscal 2010

Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill

 

Last week, the House and Senate approved - and the President signed into law
- the Conference
<http://www.glennstarnes.com/HR2996FinalConferenceReport.pdf>  Report of the
Fiscal 2010 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill.  The House passed
the bill on a 247-178 <http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll826.xml>  vote,
and the Senate on a 72-28
<http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cf
m?congress=111&session=1&vote=00331>  vote.  A summary
<http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/Interior_FY10_Conference_Summary.pdf>
of the Conference Report is on the House Appropriations Committee website.

 

In addition to the Interior and Environment appropriations, the bill also
included a Continuing Resolution to keep the government operational through
December 18, 2009.  This was necessary because not all of the Fiscal 2010
appropriations bills have been signed into law, and the previous Continuing
Resolution expired on October 31.  Under a "CR," government programs remain
at the previous year's funding level (Fiscal Year 2009) until the
appropriations bill for the current year is passed.

 

The Interior and Appropriations section of the bill includes the following
amounts:

 

*	EPA Brownfield Projects (assessment/cleanup):  $100 million
*	EPA Categorical Grants (Section 128):  $49.495 million
*	Clean Water State Revolving Fund:  $2.1 billion
*	Drinking Water State Revolving Fund:  $1.387 billion

 

In addition to this funding, the Conferees included the following provisions
for states to follow in their distribution of the State Revolving Fund:

 

o    Not less than 20 percent of the funds for both the Clean Water and
Drinking Water State Revolving Funds shall be used for green infrastructure
projects.

 

o    Not less than 30 percent of the funds for both the Clean Water and
Drinking Water State Revolving Funds shall be used "to provide additional
subsidy to eligible recipients in the form of forgiveness of principal,
negative interest loans, or grants (or any combination of these)."  This
provision only applies to the portion of Clean Water State Revolving Funds
over $1 billion.

 

*	Great Lakes Restoration Initiative:  $475 million

 

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) is a multi-agency restoration
effort led by the Environmental Protection Agency to protect and restore the
Great Lakes by addressing the new and historic threats to the lakes, such as
aquatic invasive species, contaminated sediments, and habitat loss.

 

*	Chesapeake Bay Program:  $50 million
*	Section 106 Water Pollution Control Grants:  $229.264 million

 

Contact Mary
<mailto:Mary.Cronin at mail.house.gov?subject=Final%20H.R.%202996%20Bill%20Pass
es%20House%20and%20Senate>  Cronin (202/226-6795) at the Northeast-Midwest
Congressional Coalition, Chris
<mailto:chris_hickling at reed.senate.gov?subject=Final%20H.R.%202996%20Bill%20
Passes%20House%20and%20Senate>  Hickling (202/224-0606) at the
Northeast-Midwest Senate Coalition, or Joy
<mailto:joy_mulinex at levin.senate.gov?subject=Final%20H.R.%202996%20Bill%20Pa
sses%20House%20and%20Senate>  Mulinex (202/224-1211) at the Great Lakes Task
Force.

 

 

Upper Mississippi River Basin Association Quarterly Meeting

 

The Upper Mississippi River Basin Association (UMRBA) has announced its next
set of meetings for the Upper Mississippi River on November 17-19 in Rock
Island, Illinois. Preliminary <http://www.umrba.org/meetings.htm>  agendas
for the quarterly meetings of UMRBA, the Navigation Environmental
Coordination Committee (NECC), and EMP Coordinating Committee (EMP-CC), as
well as the Joint Session of NECC and EMP-CC, are now available online.

 

Contact Margie
<mailto:mdaniels at umrba.org?subject=UMRBA%20Quarterly%20Meeting>  Daniels
(651/224-2880) at the Upper Mississippi River Basin Association.

 

 

Abstracts Sought for Stormwater Pollution Prevention Conference

 

StormCon, the world's largest conference on stormwater pollution prevention,
is seeking abstracts for its ninth annual conference, to be held August 1-5,
2010, in San Antonio, Texas.  The abstract submission deadline is December
2.  If an abstract is accepted, the final paper for the conference
proceedings will be due on May 3, 2010.  Click here
<http://www.stormcon.com/>  for a full description of the conference, and to
submit an abstract online.

 

 

 
<http://www.nemw.org/index.php?option=com_eventlist&view=eventlist&Itemid=24
> Calendar |
<http://www.nemw.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33&Itemid=
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<http://www.nemw.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=163&Itemid
=257> Media Links

 

 <http://www.nemw.org/> Northeast-Midwest Institute

50 F Street NW Suite 950

Washington DC 20001

202.544.5200

 

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