Despite cleanup efforts, some of the 58,000 gallons of spilled bunker fuel will remain at-large for the next decade, poisoning sensitive habitats and infiltrating the food web, environmental watchdogs said. Contra Costa Times 11/10/07 A preliminary Coast Guard investigation has found that "human error" caused a cargo ship to crash into the Bay Bridge. CCT 11/10/07 Four days after Wednesday's 58,000-gallon spill, dozens of oil-drenched birds are arriving shivering and in shock at the San Francisco Bay Oiled Wildlife Care and Education Center in Cordelia. CCT 11/11/07 Federal authorities have launched a criminal investigation into last week's massive oil spill, the top Coast Guard official said Sunday night. CCT 11/12/07 Bay Area members of Congress suggested Monday that tougher safeguards might be needed on cargo ships to prevent accidents. Oakland Tribune 11/13/07
The oil spill plaguing San Francisco Bay has raised fresh questions about the changing mission of the U.S. Coast Guard, with critics Monday saying the agency's new homeland security duties have eroded its ability to tackle such environmental disasters. Last March, the Coast Guard disbanded its department that helped set up oil-spill response exercises and reassigned more than a dozen people to homeland security duties. LA Times 11/13/07
Three realigned ramps could open next week on the Pacheco Pass Highway, at highways 152 and 156, providing some relief now on a popular road used by motorists headed toward southern California. Bad driving conditions have led to a number of accidents over the years. These openings represent only a stopgap solution; real reform to the road will begin next summer. Contra Costa Times 11/10/07
Two bridges currently unlikely to survive a major earthquake are among the final seven projects in the earthquake safety program awakened by the devastation suffered on that freeway. Their eventual replacement is expected to coincide with the completion of the more infamously delayed Bay Bridge retrofit project, which is being done under a separate toll bridge seismic safety program. Today, the massive job of fixing elevated freeways is nearly finished, with 2,187 out of 2,194 bridges deemed inadequate to stand up to a major temblor having been retrofitted or replaced. Contra Costa Times 11/11/07
The board of the California High-Speed Rail Authority is scheduled to decide next month how to get the bullet trains through the coastal mountains between the San Joaquin Valley and the Bay Area, and the debate over the options has become fierce. Five members of Congress representing districts from the Bay Area to Monterey have threatened to oppose federal funding for the project if the board chooses a northern route that generally would follow Interstate 580 through the Altamont Pass. Supporters of an Altamont Pass option have raised the possibility of a lawsuit if the board picks a southerly route following Highway 152 through Pacheco Pass. Contra Costa Times 11/13/07
Richmond city officials are talking with Honda about importing and distributing cars at the port, potentially bringing up to $6 million a year in revenue -- nearly double what the port currently generates. In recent years, the trend in the import auto industry has been to add ports of entry in Northern California. Local cities with ports, such as Richmond and Benicia, are capturing the industry's attention. Contra Costa Times 11/12/07
The United Parcel Service (UPS) rolled out a small parcel delivery service this week in Northern California using 42 electric cars and trucks from ZAP. Small parcel deliveries are becoming more challenging for the trademark big, brown UPS delivery vans, which is why UPS is using the electric city cars and trucks to handle small parcel deliveries. CNN 11/13/07
Large vessels are among the fastest-growing sources of air pollution, with emissions projected to double in North America in the next decade, according to Earthjustice, an Oakland, Calif., environmental law firm. Daily Press 11/11/07
No comments:
Post a Comment