Environmental Policy & Law

The Board of Directors of Squaw Valley's primary water provider yesterday reaffirmed its intent to solve its local problems with water imports from Martis Valley. In a 4-1 vote, the Squaw Valley Public Services District (SVPSD) directed staff to “...define a preferred water supply alternative from Martis Valley” as a “redundant water supply” and to identify sites for wells and a pumping station in Martis Valley, a pipeline corridor, and terminal storage tanks in Squaw Valley.

From The Wall Street Journal: West Virginia lawmakers approved a measure on Saturday to roll back strict water-protection rules enacted last year after a chemical spill contaminated drinking water for 300,000 people in West Virginia’s capital. ... Environmental groups fought the measure. "It reduces the regulation of tens of thousands of above-ground storage tanks, some of which have the potential to contaminate drinking water," said Evan Hansen, president of Downstream Strategies, an environmental consulting company based in Morgantown, W.Va.

Although environmentalists had hoped for more progress when Obama came into office, most give him credit for having done what he has in the face of Republican opposition. “Obama has done an amazing amount on climate in his six years, and it certainly looks like he is trying to make this a legacy issue,” says Kevin Kennedy, director of the US Climate Initiative at the World Resources Institute, a non-govern­mental environmental-research organization in Washington DC.