Ohio EPA

Ohio EPA Under New Interim Leadership

January 8, 2014 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Ohio Gov. John Kasich announced earlier this week that Scott Nally will be leaving his post as director of Ohio EPA and will be replaced on an interim basis by Craig Butler a senior policy advisor to the governor on environmental issues.

Butler is not a stranger to Ohio EPA. According to the Hannah Report, Butler is a career state employee who previously served in state EPA district director roles in central and southeast Ohio.

Kasich reported that Nally’s resigned to pursue other opportunities. Butler’s role as a senior advisor to Kasich had him frequently working across state agencies on energy, public utility and agricultural issues according to Hannah.

Coming This Fall: Ohio General Assembly Work on Nutrient Management Proposal

June 23, 2013 By Ron Sylvester 1 Comment

You may recall that earlier this year three state agencies floated a proposed bill to address agriculture’s perceived part in combating the contamination of Ohio’s freshwater resources with too much phosphorous and other materials that lead to toxic algal blooms in areas like the western basin of Lake Erie.

The draft legislative language was created by the Ohio Departments of Agriculture, Natural Resources and the Ohio EPA after Gov. John Kasich requested them to form the Directors’ Agricultural Nutrients and Water Quality Working Group. Previously this year Director Jim Zehringer (ODNR), Director Scott Nally (OEPA) and Director David Daniels (ODA) circulated the second version of their proposed bill for comment from various environmental and agricultural stakeholders around the state. You may read OFU President Roger Wise’s response to that request here.

Stakeholders were put on notice regarding impending legislative action once again earlier this month. In an informal hearing in the Senate Agriculture Committee, Chairman Cliff Hite (R-Findlay) and members heard proponent testimony from the three directors in anticipation of what Hite said would be formal bills in the House and Senate regarding farming nutrient management in the fall.

[UPDATE – June 30 S.B. 150 has been introduced by Senators Cliff Hite and Bob Peterson.]

ODNR Director James Zehringer

“Over the course of the past year and into the foreseeable future, agricultural nutrient management will be the number one priority for the (Soil and Water Resources) Division, and one of the top priorities of the department,” Zerhinger said at the June 11 hearing.

Zerhinger acknowledged that there is nothing the state or farmers can do that will immediately solve the problem of the harmful Lake Erie algal blooms. He also noted that, “It is important to note that the loading of dissolved phosphorous into Lake Erie’s tributaries from agricultural sources is not an intentional act by farmers in the watershed.”

[Read more…]

Ag News Rounup – October 13, 2011

October 13, 2011 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Potato Wars on Capitol Hill

Politico

Sen. Susan Collins is a more gentle soul than your typical Republican Steering Group regular, but there she was in the Capitol last week: Ms. Maine Moderate lunching with the “Sons of Jesse Helms” — all in the name of the potato.

It was a jaw-dropping, don’t-spill-your-fries moment and a sign of the newest civil rights frontier of this dysfunctional Congress: the battle over equity among vegetables.

Read the Rest at Politco

Deal close on cut in farm subsidies

Politico

Under pressure to cut farm subsidies, Agriculture Committee leaders in Congress are closing in on a 10-year savings target near $23 billion, about a third less than what House Republicans and President Barack Obama had proposed but still a significant change.

No final announcement has been made, but the bipartisan leadership met Tuesday evening, and three lawmakers told POLITICO that they expected the final savings to be in $23 billion range.

Read the Rest at Politico

Ohio EPA to clarify water quality trading rules

Ohio Environmental Protection Agency

Updates to a program that allows voluntary trading of water quality pollution credits are being considered by Ohio EPA as part of a five-year rule review. Public comments on draft rules are sought through October 25, 2011.

Water quality trading is a voluntary program, typically undertaken by wastewater treatment plants, that allows dischargers to use pollutant reduction credits to offset reductions required by their permits. The credits may be generated by another wastewater treatment plant or by a nonpoint source. The goal of the program is to improve water quality and minimize the cost of achieving and maintaining water quality standards.

Read the Rest

Ohio Turnpike tolls to rise

Associated Press

BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Ohio Turnpike tolls are expected to go up Jan. 1, despite an earlier proposed freeze and opposition from truckers.

Turnpike Commission Chairman Jerry Hruby has said the increase, which is about 10 percent for trucks and cars, is necessary and already in the budget.

The previous chairman, Joseph Balog, said in June that rates should be held steady next year for users of the E-ZPass electronic toll system to satisfy truckers and give motorists a break during a tough economy, The Plain Dealer of Cleveland reported today.

Read the Rest at the Columbus Dispatch

Demand unusually high for Ohio pumpkin crop this year

Ohio’s crop of pumpkins for jack-o’-lanterns and decorations is expected to be good or at least average this year. But demand from the Northeast, where pumpkin crops were damaged by Hurricane Irene, could push prices higher.

Central Ohio’s weather didn’t do the local pumpkin crop any favors.

Record rains in the spring and an unusually hot and dry summer led the state’s pumpkin crop to an “erratic performance,” said Lisa Schacht, board president of the Ohio Produce Growers and Marketers Association.

Read the Rest at the Columbus Dispatch

Low interest rates mean opportunities for farmers

Farm and Dairy

The perfect storm of economics is giving many farmers opportunities they might not have seen coming.

Mark Hancock, vice president and treasurer of Farm Credit Services, said the down economy has created low rates for borrowing, but unfortunately shows a sign of general weakness in the economy.

Read the Rest at Farm and Dairy

Congress ends 5-year standoff on three free trade deals

New York Times

WASHINGTON — Congress passed three long-awaited free trade agreements on Wednesday, ending a political standoff that has stretched across two presidencies. The move offered a rare moment of bipartisan accord at a time when Republicans and Democrats are bitterly divided over the role that government ought to play in reviving the sputtering economy.

The approval of the deals with South Korea, Colombia and Panama is a victory for President Obama and proponents of the view that foreign trade can drive America’s economic growth in the face of rising protectionist sentiment in both political parties. They are the first trade agreements to pass Congress since Democrats broke a decade of Republican control in 2007.

All three agreements cleared both chambers with overwhelming Republican support just one day after Senate Republicans prevented action on Mr. Obama’s jobs bill.

Read the Rest at The New York Times

U.S. Senate approves China currency manipulation bill

New York Times

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan cross-section of Congress seems to agree that China manipulates its currency in ways that make it harder for many American manufacturers to compete. Where they cannot find alignment is on how best to address that problem, while maintaining America’s relationship with its biggest lender and a major trading partner.

On Tuesday, the Senate passed a bill that would require the Treasury Department to order the Commerce Department to impose tough tariffs on certain Chinese goods in the event of a finding by the Treasury that China was improperly valuing its currency to gain an economic advantage.

The measure passed 63 to 35, with 16 Republican votes, an unusual dynamic in the Democrat-controlled Senate. It enjoyed rare support from members of both parties despite the strong disapproval of Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, who pressed his party colleagues to vote against it.

Read the Rest at The New York Times

Ohio EPA working on ‘general permit’ for shale gas drilling site air quality

August 19, 2011 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

EPA Director Nally touts permitting process to take as little as two weeks

Ohio EPA Director Scott Nally announced yesterday that his department has a draft “general permit” for air quality around shale gas production sites.

In a news release Nally said that Ohio EPA has several types of general permits that are meant to streamline the regulatory process for businesses involved in activities that do not differ substantially from site to site.

“A general permit for shale gas production will streamline the process, giving producers the tools they need to comply with Ohio’s air pollution regulations,” said Nally.

From Ohio EPA’s news release:

Since most shale gas operations will be similar, Ohio EPA is developing a general permit that will create consistent standards for the sites. This will allow most applicants to apply for and receive a permit in as little as two weeks. Ohio EPA’s air division currently offers 47 general permits which serve a variety of business sectors.

The draft general permit includes emission limits, operating restrictions, and monitoring, testing and reporting requirements. It will cover a variety of emissions sources found at most shale gas production sites including internal combustion engines, dehydration systems, truck-loading racks, storage tanks, flares and unpaved roadways. The permit will not cover activities that occur during the drilling and fracturing phase as the resulting air emissions are considered temporary and exempt from air pollution permit regulations.

The draft general permit and qualifying criteria have been reviewed by interested parties to ensure all common shale gas production operations are covered under the permit. Ohio EPA will incorporate comments received before finalizing the draft general permit and making it available for a 30-day public comment period. Ohio EPA will issue another news release to announce the beginning of the public comment period.

The draft permit may be viewed here.

State Agencies Work with Ohio Company to Deliver Data on Grand Lake St. Marys Algae

July 24, 2011 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Screenshot of monitoring results of water quality at Grand Lake St. Marys

News releases from Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s office and the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said last week that a public-private partnership is bringing results in monitoring water quality levels at Grand Lake St. Marys.

Working with Ohio DNR and EPA, YSI, Inc. of Yellow Springs has installed water monitoring stations at the 13,000 acre lake. For the past two years Grand Lake St. Mary’s has been a stew of toxic algae. The state has tried repeated treatments of alum in the water to get the algal blooms under control. Recreational activities at the lake have come to a standstill causing problems for the local economy during outdoor activity seasons.