Categories for GreenPost

May 24

2013

Sewer overflows now public

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The stinky truth is finally public. The state Department of Environmental Conservation has begun publishing sewer overflow reports from across New York. The reports, which are in Excel format, are posted here. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the “Sewage Pollution Right to Know Law” in August. The law requires public sewage treatment plants and sewer systems to notify the DEC whenever there is a sewer overflow of untreated or partially treated sewage and stormwater into waterways. Combined sewer systems, like the one in Buffalo, take both untreated sewage and stormwater into one pipe before making its way to a treatment plant. But[...]

Posted 12 years ago

May 21

2013

EPA spotlights Tonawanda’s ‘citizen science’

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If it weren’t for local residents and “citizen science,” Tonawanda Coke may still be illegally spewing out tons of toxic benzene from a bleeder valve and hiding it from state regulators. The Environmental Protection Agency published a video today that focused on the efforts of local residents who about four years ago collected data with the guidance and help of the Clean Air Coalition of Western New York to bring attention to the dangerous pollution in an industrial corridor that has 53 plants in a 2-mile radius. What they found was shocking: the carcinogenic chemical benzene at levels well beyond[...]

Posted 12 years ago

May 17

2013

City Hall progress on recycling

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Two recent developments appear to signal that Buffalo officials are getting more serious about recycling after a series of reports by Investigative Post documenting serious shortcomings in the city’s efforts. One is a symbolic measure: The Buffalo Common Council on Tuesday passed a resolution calling on the Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority to gets its recycling act together. As we reported May 1, even though the City Charter mandates that all commercial and multi-family complexes recycle, the authority doesn’t have a comprehensive recycling program for its 27 developments that serve some 10,000 low-income and elderly residents. Council Members Joseph Golombek Jr.[...]

Posted 12 years ago

May 16

2013

New York’s energy-related CO2 emissions lowest per capita

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Whether levels of carbon dioxide did or did not reach the grim milestone of 400 parts per million at a Hawaiian observatory this month doesn’t take away from the fact that we are still very dependent on fossil fuels. Rising above the mark is inevitable. A host of scientific studies show there could be catastrophic results if global temperatures reach what has been called the “danger zone,” a 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) increase above pre-industrial global temperatures. Scientists believe the 400 parts per million level is the limit before global temperatures rise above that danger zone. This is important[...]

Posted 12 years ago

May 14

2013

Buffalo finally hires recycling coordinator

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Buffalo has its first recycling coordinator in four years. Commissioner of Public Works Steven Stepniak has selected Susan Attridge for the job that has been vacant since 2009. Attridge was hired May 2 at an annual salary of $54,500. She lives in Hamburg and will have to move to the city as a requirement for all Civil Service positions. The city hasn’t officially announced her hiring. The job had been funded but vacant, with many of the duties handled by Raymour Nosworthy, the son-in-law of University Common Council Member Bonnie Russell, an ally of Mayor Byron Brown. The city advertised the position[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Apr 30

2013

Shining light on sewer overflows

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Update: The DEC released a statement today that sewage discharges will be reported on its website. You can visit the page here. “DEC is developing regulations for a second part of the law that requires publicly owned treatment works and publicly owned sewer systems to notify the public directly of discharges.  DEC plans to release the draft regulations this fall for public comment.” There is a good chance that thousands of gallons of untreated stormwater and sewage spill into local waterways when it rains in Buffalo and people wouldn’t have any idea it happened. That’s all about to change, but not at the[...]

Posted 12 years ago
Investigative Post