DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

Although both were caused by power outages — the boil order when an outage Sunday at a water purification plant caused water pressure to drop, triggering concerns of possible contamination — that's where the similarities end, he said. According to Turner, two transformers failed, causing power outages at the East Water Purification Plant, which he said provides water for much of Houston's 2.2 million residents. The East Water Purification Plant is outside the city, in Galena Park. The entrance to the East Water Purification Plant in Galena Park, outside Houston, on Monday. The city issued the boil water notice in an "abundance of caution" after the main transformer and its backup failed, Turner said.

Residents of the country's fourth-largest city were told to boil water Sunday after pump-driven water system pressure dropped because of an electrical outage, triggering concerns of possible contamination. "We believe the water is safe but based on regulatory requirements when pressure drops below 20 psi we are obligated to issue a boil water notice," Turner said. A power outage Sunday at the East Water Purification Plant caused pressure to drop below 20 psi, or pounds per square inch, the state threshold that triggers boil water notices, Houston Public Works said. Water system pressure can use the weight of liquid to occupy cracks and crevices that might otherwise be exposed to outside incursions, such as urban runoff. "Houston’s water system is different than other systems in that we don’t use water towers to provide pressure to the system," it tweeted.

☆ EXCLUSIVE Cheniere seeks 18 months to upgrade LNG turbines that failed pollution tests-document
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Cheniere is one of only two LNG providers with turbines subject to the rule, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data. He asked the state for 18 months to make changes to and retest the turbines. In the meantime, the company said it would take steps to minimize formaldehyde emissions, including taking a turbine offline or replacing components. In September, Cheniere submitted test results to Texas regulators that showed formaldehyde emissions at that facility were well below the EPA threshold. Cheniere has big plans to expand the Texas and Louisiana plants in coming years.

☆ High rates and inflation are here to stay, says PwC's real estate practice leader. Here's what it means for major metro areas, and why cities will need to be completely reimagined in the next great ho
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

High inflation and interest rates are here to stay in 2023, said PwC's Byron Carlock. To the dismay of real estate investors everywhere, Byron Carlock says that higher interest rates are here to stay for 2023. And while housing input prices and the costs of raw materials have begun to moderate, he doesn't believe that these can completely offset the ongoing increase in interest rates. But there's also a few obstacles in the way of reimagining entire cities, Carlock. "Cities are going to have to step up their game with respect to zoning and entitlement processes," he added.

☆ Gov. Gavin Newsom is threatening to cancel a San Francisco toilet that could cost $1.7 million and take more than two years to build
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Gavin Newsom is threatening to halt plans for a $1.7 million toilet in San Francisco. The city's Rec and Park department said the costs included planning, drawing, permits, and reviews. Gavin Newsom is threatening to halt plans to build a public toilet in San Francisco after it received huge backlash over its $1.7 million cost and 2-year construction time. "A single, small bathroom should not cost $1.7 million," Erin Mellon, the governor's communications director, told the Chronicle in a statement. "The state will hold funding until San Francisco delivers a plan to use this public money more efficiently.

☆ U.S. EPA opens civil rights probe into Mississippi capital's water crisis
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Daniel Trotta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday opened an investigation into Mississippi state agencies to determine if they violated civil rights in the majority Black city of Jackson in the course of funding of the city's water infrastructure. Representatives of those two departments and the office of Governor Tate Reeves did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Even before that crisis, the city had been under a boil water notice due to "elevated turbidity levels," meaning the water appear cloudy. That followed a string of disruptions to the city's water supply in recent years caused by high lead levels, bacterial contamination and storm damage. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Aurora EllisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The civil rights organization alleged that the state’s rollout of federal dollars has favored whiter communities, even as Jackson has struggled to comply with state and federal guidelines meant to protect drinking water quality. The NAACP’s federal complaint raises concerns about a loan program overseen by the state Department of Health that distributes federal funding to communities to improve their water systems. Problems with water billing and collections have also resulted in Jackson missing out on sorely needed revenue that could go toward repairs. The EPA’s inquiry comes just days after the launch of a congressional investigation concerning the city’s water crisis. Reps. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., have asked Reeves to answer a series of questions about how the state has spent or plans to spend federal funds that can upgrade water systems in the state.

☆ Mississippi Faces EPA Probe of Jackson Water Supply Cutoff
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Adolfo Flores | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday said it has launched an investigation into whether Mississippi state agencies discriminated against the mostly Black city of Jackson by not funding improvements to its crumbling water system. The investigation is in response to a complaint filed with the EPA against the Mississippi Department of Health and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality by the NAACP on behalf of nine Jackson residents who went without running water late this summer.

Oakridge's air quality index was 487, in the hazardous category, according to the federal airnow.gov website. The air quality index measures a combination of ozone and particulate pollution in the air. In Oregon, smoke from numerous fires has been held close to the ground by a weather system, he said. Rain expected on Friday throughout the region was expected to aid firefighting efforts and improve air quality. The federal government's InciWeb wildfire information site shows more than two dozen wildfires currently burning in Washington and Oregon.

An LNG tanker is guided by tug boats at the Cheniere Sabine Pass LNG export unit in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, U.S., April 14, 2022. “Our turbine engineers determined a repair could improve the emission performance of the turbine," Robert Gray, senior environmental coordinator for the Sabine Pass plant, wrote. EPA spokesperson Tim Carroll said "the agency will work with Cheniere to assure they meet Clean Air Act obligations." Colin Cox, an attorney with the Environmental Integrity Project, said it was important for Cheniere to monitor the turbines to ensure continuous compliance moving forward. Louisiana and Texas regulators are responsible for overseeing compliance with federal clean air laws and regulations for facilities in their respective states.

One of two state agencies responsible for pushing out millions of dollars in federal infrastructure funds said it could be at least mid-to-late 2023 before any allocations roll out. Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba, a Democrat, has said the price tag to overhaul the city’s water infrastructure could balloon into the billions. This year, the Mississippi Legislature created a $450 million water infrastructure funding program with money the state received through the Congressional Covid relief package that passed in 2021. The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality is administering the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program. Sam Mozee, director of the Mississippi Urban Research Center at Jackson State University, says his team is tracking what happens with funding going forward.

Search resuls for: "Environmental Quality"

11 mentions found