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Jun 16

2014

High bacteria levels close Bennett Beach

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The start of the swimming season at Bennett Beach is getting off with a bang—a bacterial bang, that is. The beach, which is 22 miles southwest of downtown Buffalo, opened for swimming Saturday. But health department officials closed it Monday for high levels of E. coli bacteria. The announcement of the closing didn’t reach all levels of county government fast enough, however. Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz sent this Twitter post at 10:58 a.m.:   Two minutes later, the Twitter feed for Erie County Parks made the following announcement: Bennett Beach closed 15 times last season, according to data from the Environmental Protection[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 13

2014

EPA fines Buffalo for mishandling waste

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The City of Buffalo will pay a $21,094 fine and spend $79,000 on nine community recycling events as punishment for numerous violations of federal hazardous waste laws under an agreement announced Thursday with the Environmental Protection Agency. City officials also agreed to improve its management of hazardous waste and spent lamps- a commitment the city failed to honor three years ago. The EPA conducted two investigations in 2008 and 2011 that found various violations of hazardous waste laws that put city employees and neighborhood residents at risk of potential mercury poisoning and chemical explosions. The settlement comes two days after Investigative[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 10

2014

Another ‘fine mess’ for Buffalo’s City Hall

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Buffalo is facing more than $100,000 in fines because of its mishandling of hazardous materials that put city employees and neighborhood residents at risk of everything from mercury poisoning to chemical explosions. Some of the problems go back decades and were first brought to light in 2008 when inspectors from the Environmental Protection Agency learned city employees and tenants of city-owned buildings had been throwing spent lamps, which can contain small amounts of mercury, into the trash rather than safely disposing of them. Exposure to mercury can damage the central nervous system and cause breathing problems and memory impairment, especially[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 5

2014

Recycling data ‘a mess’

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Comparing recycling rates community to community isn’t an easy task. In fact, data and reporting inconsistencies make it nearly impossible to make accurate comparisons. While localities can be faulted for the inconsistent way they track their recycling programs, the state Department of Environmental Conservation has been willing to accept it. As a result, it’s hard to measure progress and hold cities and towns accountable. “It’s a mess,” said Maggie Clarke, a zero waste consultant and researcher who has done work for the New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse and Recycling, “especially if you are trying to compare one city or[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Jun 3

2014

AP: 5 things you should know about Obama’s power plant rule

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President Obama’s Power Plant Rule requires power plants to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent by 2030, using 2005 emissions as the baseline. “But Environmental Protection Agency data shows that the nation’s power plants already have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 13 percent since 2005, or about halfway to the goal,” the AP reports. This rule alone would make a small improvement on global warming. But when this effort is coupled with Obama’s rule to reduce carbon dioxide from cars and trucks by doubling fuel economy, there is a much bigger gain. Five things you must know about[...]

Posted 12 years ago
Investigative Post