Officials: Plan in place if oil hits Texas beaches
By T.J. Aulds The Daily News Published June 2, 2010
The fish still are biting, the skies are clear, and beaches of Galveston and the Bolivar Peninsula are free of any oil residue from BP’s Deep Horizon spill off the Louisiana Coast.
Still, worried about perceptions the entire Gulf of Mexico is coated in oil, federal, state and local officials gathered to announce that, should the slick move this way, they were ready to respond.
“In my business, perception is more important than fact,” Galveston County Judge Jim Yarbrough said during a news conference that included top officials from Harris and Brazoria counties, as well as representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Texas General Land Office and the ports of Houston and Freeport.
The reality, Yarbrough said, was that none of the oil from the massive oil spill 400 miles away was headed toward Texas, and none was expected to.
There is, however, a comprehensive plan that calls for setting up booms along sensitive ecological areas along the coast, including estuaries and some beaches.
The more likely local consequence of the spill would be tar balls, not a top-water sheen such as is being seen in Louisiana.
Booms would be ineffective in stopping that threat, U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Marcus Wooding said.
The plan includes provisions to apply oil dispersing chemicals, as well as burning off oil, should the spill approach the state coast in any form other than tar balls.
The leaders pointed out this area had experience with past oil spills from sources closer to the Texas shore.
Wooding and the county leaders promised the 153-page plan, which has been tweaked because of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, should cover any contingency.
“We want people to be assured if things change we will be one step ahead if the oil starts to come to our coastal area,” Brazoria County Judge Joe King said.
Already the land office has positioned some booms along Bolivar Peninsula beaches, Richard Arnhart, regional director of the land office’s oil spill response division, said.
Those booms are catching little more than seaweed at this point, Arnhart said, but are providing a good test run should any surface oil drift this way.
For now, not even the seafood caught in the coastal waters near Galveston County is at risk, Kurt Koopmann, of the county’s health district, said.
Koopmann said the state was conducting regular tests of seafood and no health warnings had been issued.
The biggest risk of any of the oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill making its way to the Texas Coast actually is by ship. Wooding said a tanker that was to make port in Port Arthur last week went through some of the leaking oil, which coated the hull of the vessel.
He said when the captain realized what had happened, he reported the incident to the Coast Guard.
The ship anchored off the coast while booms were placed around the vessel and its hull cleaned before the ship made its way to the port, Wooding said.
There have been no other reports of ships having their hulls coated in the spilled oil, Wooding said.
Related Links
Read the region's oil spill response plan
http://wwwdb.glo.state.tx.us/oilspill/Atlas/atlas/acp/houston/msohoustongalvestongrp.pdf
http://galvestondailynews.com/story/157601
Officials say they're ready if oil reaches Texas
By HARVEY RICE Copyright 2010 Houston Chronicle
June 1, 2010, 9:15PM
GALVESTON — There is no indication that oil from the BP blowout off the Louisiana Coast is heading for Texas, but equipment and trained manpower are ready to deal with it if it does, officials said Tuesday.
Officials from Harris, Galveston and Brazoria counties called a news conference to reassure their constituents that the oil slick remains a long way from Texas. But they admitted unknowns exist, such as what would happen if a hurricane pushes the spill this way.
“It's not moving to the west, but the public is increasingly asking ... what happens if?” Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said. Because of the queries, officials decided, “We've got to have a meeting and tell everyone what is going on,” Emmett said.
Emmett said Harris County residents were unlikely to see oil even if it gets as far as Texas. “Galveston and Brazoria will bear the brunt,” he said.
Galveston County Judge Jim Yarbrough said the oil spill was far from Texas. “There is no reason for them not to come and enjoy the entire Texas coastline,” Yarbrough said.
On lookout for tar balls
If oil from the spill reaches Texas, it will likely be in the form of tar balls, said Capt. Marcus Woodring, U.S. Coast Guard sector commander for Houston-Galveston. He said tar balls found along Texas shores so far have been analyzed and are not from the spill. Tar balls are common along the Gulf Coast because of minor oil spills and natural seepage, he said.
As a precaution, floating barriers are already being placed in washout areas on the Bolivar Peninsula to protect the wetlands behind them, he said.
Shipping continues
Woodring said the spill is about 400 miles away and is being monitored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
He said shipping in the Houston area continues uninterrupted.
Richard Arnhart, regional director of the Texas General Land Office's oil spill response, said that his office monitored sensor-equipped buoys in the Gulf that would give an early warning of approaching oil. The buoys are able to a limited extent to monitor underwater plumes of oil, but not at great depths, he said.
The underwater oil plumes carried by deep currents remain one of the unknowns. Another is how a hurricane would affect the spill, Woodring said. “If it arrives here with a hurricane? That's a good question,” he said.
harvey.rice@chron.com
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/deepwaterhorizon/7032107.html
Sunday, May 30, 2010
DO WE NEED AN IKE DIKE, OR A B.P. DIKE, OR BOTH
Documents Show Early Worries About Safety of Rig
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/2010/05/do-we-need-ike-dike-or-bp-dike-or-both.html
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/
Greetings,
BE very suspicious of Government (red, blue, and inbetweeners), or Industry officials telling you that everything is alright, under control, and most of all, is not harmful to humans or animals. don't believe me, just think Tobacco and Asbestos, or mad cow disease. I was oblivious of this for years, until I was forced to open my eyes, and what I have seen is complete ignorance and greed. for anyone interested, please follow the data below. ...kind regards, terry
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
TEXAS WINS TO BE NEXT BIG DUMPING GROUND FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS RADIOACTIVE WASTE
IT seems a more correct headlines would have read ''Company bribes Governor Perry to bury nuclear waste and contaminate Texas''. Waste Control Specialists. The company is owned by Harold Simmons, a ''TOP DONOR TO GOV. RICK PERRY, WHO APPOINTS MEMBERS TO THE TCEQ.'' The good governor has sold out to the citizens of Texas for train car, after train car of nuclear waste from 'the mound' Monsanto plant in Miamisburg Ohio. It just so happens, my father-in-law, who is down visiting now with us, has pictures of those railroad cars just sitting and waiting to come down to Texas. Odd how I was watching the news today, about this small plane that had crashed, it had showed pictures of where it had crashed right up near a bunch of tractor-trailer cargo container boxes in a parking lot. What would keep this from happening with those radioactive toxic containers in Ohio, at 'the mound', and or in route to Texas? You see, it's been killing my father-in-law, he has been on oxygen for years, but his breathing is getting more and more labored now, even with the oxygen. He worked at 'the mound' for years and years, and he is now dying a slow death from asbestosis, among other ailments caused by working at 'the mound'. NOW here is what I just cannot understand. This material is so toxic, in trying to gain further medical assistance from the DOE, the evidence that was needed to show that indeed my father-in-law worked their i.e. work records, paperwork records, payment records etc., they told my father-in-law, that they could not dig those records up, that they were buried due to high nuclear contamination, it was just too toxic, and that he had to prove that he had worked there. In which he did finally prove, and did gain further assistance. ...
(see more photo's of railcars loaded with MOUND COLD WAR NUCLEAR AFTER-BIRTH headed to a nuclear dump in Texas...tss)
http://sciencebushwhacked.blogspot.com/2008/07/texas-wins-to-be-next-big-dumping.html
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Company advances on plan for West Texas nuclear dump
http://sciencebushwhacked.blogspot.com/2008/08/company-advances-on-plan-for-west-texas.html
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Transmissible Spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) animal and human TSE in North America 14th
ICID International Scientific Exchange Brochure -
http://transmissiblespongiformencephalopathy.blogspot.com/2010/02/transmissible-spongiform-encephalopathy.html
O.I.E. and U.S.D.A. ignore key data on human health risk from atypical BSE
To date the OIE/WAHO assumes that the human and animal health standards set out in the BSE chapter for classical BSE (C-Type) applies to all forms of BSE which include the H-type and L-type atypical forms. This assumption is scientifically not completely justified and accumulating evidence suggests that this may in fact not be the case. Molecular characterization and the spatial distribution pattern of histopathologic lesions and immunohistochemistry (IHC) signals are used to identify and characterize atypical BSE. Both the L-type and H-type atypical cases display significant differences in the conformation and spatial accumulation of the disease associated prion protein (PrPSc) in brains of afflicted cattle. Transmission studies in bovine transgenic and wild type mouse models support that the atypical BSE types might be unique strains because they have different incubation times and lesion profiles when compared to C-type BSE. When L-type BSE was inoculated into ovine transgenic mice and Syrian hamster the resulting molecular fingerprint had changed, either in the first or a subsequent passage, from L-type into C-type BSE. In addition, non-human primates are specifically susceptible for atypical BSE as demonstrated by an approximately 50% shortened incubation time for L-type BSE as compared to C-type. Considering the current scientific information available, it cannot be assumed that these different BSE types pose the same human health risks as C-type BSE or that these risks are mitigated by the same protective measures.
http://www.prionetcanada.ca/detail.aspx?menu=5&dt=293380&app=93&cat1=387&tp=20&lk=no&cat2
please see full text ;
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Atypical BSE in Cattle
http://bse-atypical.blogspot.com/2010/03/atypical-bse-in-cattle-position-post.html
Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy
http://transmissiblespongiformencephalopathy.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
USA cases of dpCJD rising with 24 cases so far in 2010
http://cjdtexas.blogspot.com/2010/06/usa-cases-of-dpcjd-rising-with-24-cases.html
CJD TEXAS 38 YEAR OLD FEMALE WORKED SLAUGHTERING CATTLE EXPOSED TO BRAIN AND SPINAL CORD MATTER
>>> Up until about 6 years ago, the pt worked at Tyson foods where she worked on the assembly line, slaughtering cattle and preparing them for packaging. She was exposed to brain and spinal cord matter when she would euthanize the cattle. <<<
Irma Linda Andablo CJD Victim, she died at 38 years old on February 6, 2010 in Mesquite Texas Irma Linda Andablo CJD Victim, she died at 38 years old on February 6, 2010 in Mesquite Texas.She left 6 Kids and a Husband.The Purpose of this web is to give information in Spanish to the Hispanic community, and to all the community who want's information about this terrible disease.-
Physician Discharge Summary, Parkland Hospital, Dallas Texas Admit Date: 12/29/2009
Discharge Date: 1/20/2010 Attending Provider: Greenberg, Benjamin Morris;
General Neurology Team: General Neurology Team
Linda was a Hispanic female with no past medical history presents with 14 months of incresing/progressive altered mental status, generalized weakness, inability to walk, loss of appetite, inability to speak, tremor and bowel/blader incontinence.She was, in her usual state of health up until February, 2009, when her husbans notes that she began forgetting things like names and short term memories. He also noticed mild/vague personality changes such as increased aggression. In March, she was involved in a hit and run MVA,although she was not injured. The police tracked her down and ticketed her. At that time, her son deployed to Iraq with the Army and her husband assumed her mentation changes were due to stress over these two events. Also in March, she began to have weakness in her legs, making it difficult to walk. Over the next few months, her mentation and personality changes worsened, getting to a point where she could no longer recognized her children. She was eating less and less. She was losing more weight. In the last 2-3 months, she reached the point where she could not walk without an assist, then 1 month ago, she stopped talking, only making grunting/aggressive sounds when anyone came near her. She also became both bowel and bladder incontinent, having to wear diapers. Her '"tremor'" and body jerks worsened and her hands assumed a sort of permanent grip position, leading her family to put tennis balls in her hands to protect her fingers. The husband says that they have lived in Nebraska for the past 21 years. They had seen a doctor there during the summer time who prescribed her Seroquel and Lexapro, Thinking these were sx of a mood disorder. However, the medications did not help and she continued to deteriorate clinically. Up until about 6 years ago, the pt worked at Tyson foods where she worked on the assembly line, slaughtering cattle and preparing them for packaging. She was exposed to brain and spinal cord matter when she would euthanize the cattle. The husband says that he does not know any fellow workers with a similar illness. He also says that she did not have any preceeding illness or travel.
http://www.recordandoalinda.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=19:cjd-english-info&catid=9:cjd-ingles&Itemid=8
>>> Up until about 6 years ago, the pt worked at Tyson foods where she worked on the assembly line, slaughtering cattle and preparing them for packaging. She was exposed to brain and spinal cord matter when she would euthanize the cattle. <<<
please see full text ;
Monday, March 29, 2010
Irma Linda Andablo CJD Victim, she died at 38 years old on February 6, 2010 in Mesquite Texas
http://creutzfeldt-jakob-disease.blogspot.com/2010/03/irma-linda-andablo-cjd-victim-she-died.html
CJD TEXAS 38 YEAR OLD FEMALE WORKED SLAUGHTERING CATTLE EXPOSED TO BRAIN AND SPINAL CORD MATTER
http://cjdtexas.blogspot.com/2010/03/cjd-texas-38-year-old-female-worked.html
TSS
Showing posts with label TEXAS BEACHES. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TEXAS BEACHES. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Testing the Waters 2008 TEXAS BEACHES UPDATE
Oceans Campaign News Search • RSS Feed
For Immediate Release: 07/29/2008
For More Information: Contact Luke Metzger (512) 479-0388
Beach Warnings Increase in Texas Environment Texas Calls for Faster Pollution Testing, Opposes More Offshore Drilling AUSTIN (July 29, 2008) –
As millions of Americans flock to beaches around the country, Environment Texas reported that beach closings and warnings due to pollution went up last year in Texas, according to the Natural Resource Defense Council’s 18th annual beach water quality report. The group called for increased federal funding and faster testing for beachwater pollution and decried efforts to open protected coastlines to offshore drilling.
Using data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the report, Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches, tallied 532 beach closing and health advisory days in 2007 in Texas, an eleven percent jump from the year before. In Texas, 49 percent of the closing and advisory days were caused by high bacteria levels resulting from storm water run-off. Another 49 per cent were high bacteria levels from unknown sources.
“Some families can’t enjoy a day at the beach because the water is polluted and kids are getting sick,” said Brittany Ballard, Citizen Outreach Director for Environment Texas. “Texas beachgoers should not be swimming in human and animal waste.”
For the first time, the Testing the Waters report gives a five-star rating for a selection of the most popular beaches in the nation. The star rating criteria is based on indicators of beach water quality, monitoring frequency, and use of health standards to protect beachgoers. In Texas, no beaches earned 5 stars, and Stewart Beach Park in Galveston County and McGee Beach in Nueces County earned 1 star, because advisories at those beaches are always issued without waiting for re-sampling or other information to confirm results.
Across the country, the number of closing and advisory days at ocean, bay and Great Lakes beaches was more than 22,000 for the third consecutive year, confirming that our nation’s beaches continue to suffer from serious water pollution that puts swimmers at risk.
While nationally there was an overall decrease in beach closing and advisory days from 2006, regionally the picture varied. The biggest increase in closing and advisory days (38 percent) was in the Gulf Coast region, partly because beaches in Louisiana and Mississippi were reopened and monitored for the first full beach season there since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck in 2005.
The report shows that the number of closing and advisory days due to sewage spills and overflows more than tripled to 4,097 from 2006 to 2007, but the largest known source of pollution continues to be contamination from stormwater, which caused more than 10,000 closing and advisory days. Stormwater carries pollution from the streets to the beach without treatment whenever it rains. Unknown sources of pollution caused more than 8,000 closing and advisory days.
Nationally, seven percent of beachwater samples violated health standards, showing no improvement from 2006. In Texas, 9 percent of beachwater samples violated those standards.
“What this report means for families heading to the beach is they need to be careful and do a little homework,” said Nancy Stonerdirector of NRDC’s clean water project. “Call your local public health authority and ask them if the beachwater is safe for swimming. If there is any doubt, or if the water smells bad or looks dirty, stay out of it.”
Aging and poorly-designed sewage and storm water systems hold much of the blame for beachwater pollution. Environment Texas also said that sprawl development in coastal areas is devouring wetlands and other natural buffers such as dunes and beach grass that otherwise would help filter out dangerous pollution before it reaches the beach.
Not only are the beaches polluted, the way they are tested is also failing the American public, according to Environment Texas. Beach water quality standards are more than 20 years old and rely on outdated science and monitoring methods that leave beachgoers vulnerable to a range of waterborne illnesses including gastroenteritis, dysentery, hepatitis, respiratory ailments and other serious health problems. For small children, senior citizens and people with weak immune systems, the results can be fatal.
The Beach Protection Act (H.R. 2537/S. 1506), a bill now pending in Congress, would provide more money for beachwater sampling and require the use of faster testing methods so people get timely information about whether it is safe to swim. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Beach Protection Act in April and the U.S. Senate is expected to vote on the bill soon.
“We urge Senators Cornyn and Hutchison to support the Beach Protection Act and ensure America’s beaches are tested for pollution in time to protect public health,” said Ballard.
Environment Texas also called on Congress to continue to protect U.S. beaches from offshore oil and gas drilling. Offshore drilling threatens beaches with chronic toxic pollution from oil and gas production and oil spills from the pipelines, tankers and barges that bring oil to shore. Environment Texas also pointed to a Bush administration analysis which concluded that opening currently protected offshore areas would have an “insignificant” impact on prices.
###
Environment Texas is a statewide, citizen-based environmental advocacy organization.
http://www.environmenttexas.org/newsroom/oceans/oceans-campaign-news7/beach-warnings-increase-in-texas
Testing the Waters 2008 TX.1 Natural Resources Defense Council Texas 10th in the nation in percent exceedances in 2007
Texas 10th in the nation in percent exceedances in 2007
Virtually the entire Texas coast is bordered by barrier islands, which separate the Gulf of Mexico from the bays. The mainland has over 1,400 miles of coastline, but most of it is privately owned or is composed of wetlands. Of the barrier islands, which have almost 400 miles of Gulf shoreline and more than 650 miles of shoreline on their back side, three are privately owned and have beaches that can only be accessed by boat. Padre Island National Seashore and the National Wildlife Refuge are accessible to the public but is federally managed; the state was unable to verify whether beaches at the National Seashore or in the Wildlife Refuge are monitored. Most of the back side of the barrier islands is wetlands with little or no opportunity for water contact recreation. In all, 56 miles of mainland coast, 235 miles of barrier island Gulf coast, and 33 miles of back side barrier island coast are subject to monitoring under the BEACH Act. There are 166 public coastal beaches lining this 324 miles of coastline. Forty percent of these beaches and 50 percent of the beach miles are monitored in a program administered by the Texas General Land office, which contracts with local county health departments, universities, municipalities, and commercial laboratories to conduct the Texas Beach Watch Program.
Nine counties had monitored beaches in 2007: Aransas, Brazoria, Cameron, Jefferson, Galveston, Kleberg, Matagorda, Nueces, and San Patricio. Another five counties with at least one public water contact recreation coastal beach had no monitored beaches:
Calhoun, Chambers, Harris, Refugio, and Willacy. Orange County, Kenedy County, and Victoria County are on the coast but have no publicly accessible beaches and/or no water contact recreation beaches. The Texas General Land Office recommends beach advisories when bacterial standards are exceeded but does not have the authority to close beaches or post advisory signs at the beaches. This authority lies with local government officials and health departments.1 Beaches are monitored year-round, with more frequent monitoring from May to September for all monitored beaches and in March at Gulf of Mexico beaches (for spring break).1 Texas experienced more rainfall in 2007 than in 2006. Texas received a $385,180 federal BEACH Act grant in 2007 and was eligible for a $379,140 grant in 2008. In addition to these funds, the state allocated nearly $150,000 to the beach monitoring program in 2007.
Standards Indicator Organism: Enterococcus Standards: Texas applies an Enterococcus single-sample maximum of 104 cfu/100ml when making decisions about advisories. No geometric mean standard is used. Two or three samples are taken at each location and the results are averaged before comparing to the standard.1 In 2007, the Texas General Land Office funded a study that examined the occurrence and levels of Vibrio vulnificus during the summer at six beach stations currently monitored for Enterococcus through the Texas Beach Watch Program. The Texas General Land Office will use the data to determine if regular sampling and testing for Vibrio is warranted and, if so, will determine the feasibility of using local contractors who already collect water samples to test for Enterococcus to concurrently collect additional samples to test for Vibrio.1 Texas does not have preemptive rainfall standards. In the case of a known sewage spill, the decision to issue a preemptive closing or advisory would be made by local government.1 ?? Sewage 0%?? Stormwater 49%?? Unknown 49%?? Other 2% Texas Sources of Contamination Testing the Waters 2008 TX.2 Natural Resources Defense Council In Texas, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has a team of biologists who respond to an incident where fish or other animals have been harmed. These specially trained biologists contact other agencies and personnel (including the Texas Department of State Health Services if human health issues are suspected, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for impacts to natural res urces, and the governing authority that manages a particular area), collect water samples for analysis and confirmation of algae, if appropriate, collect water quality and environmental data, and identify and count the number of dead wildlife, among other tasks. TPWD monitors harmful algal blooms and communicates to the public through their website, e-mail alerts, and a hotline. The Harmful Algal Bloom Workgroup has produced the Texas Harmful Algal Bloom Response Plan for identification and management of harmful algal blooms in Texas.1
Monitoring Frequency: Texas reported 169 beaches in 2007. Thirty-six percent (61) were monitored weekly, 4 percent (7) were monitored at an unspecified frequency, and 60 percent (101) were not monitored. Monitored beaches represent 153 miles of coastline. Beach segments that are used most frequently by the public and where health risks are the greatest are given priority for monitoring.
Practice: The Texas Beach Watch Program collects samples between sunrise and noon. Samples are generally collected about one foot below the surface in water that is knee deep (approximately two feet deep). If the majority of recreational activity occurs at a depth significantly different than two feet, then samples can be collected at the location of greatest swimmer activity. Also, if the two-foot sampling depth occurs more than 50 meters from shore, samples can be collected 50 meters from shore or at the location of greatest swimmer activity. Two or three samples are taken per sampling location. Sample results are available a minimum of 24 hours after the lab receives the sample. Routine sampling usually takes place on Tuesdays, with Mondays and Wednesdays as alternate sampling days. Results: For the third consecutive year, NRDC looked at the percent of monitoring samples that exceeded the state’s daily maximum bacterial standards. The percent of samples exceeding the standard increased to 9 percent in 2007 from 8 percent in 2006 and 9 percent in 2005.
Note: to make this three-year comparison, NRDC includes only those beaches reported in each of these three years.
The beaches with the highest percent exceedances in 2007 were Cole Park (44%), Ropes Park (38%), Emerald Beach (35%), and Poenisch Park in Nueces County (33%), Nueces Bay Causeway #4 in San Patricio (26%), Laguna Shores (26%), University Beach (23%), JFK Causeway-SW (20%), and McGee Beach in Nueces (19%),
and Texas City Dike in Galveston (18%).
Nueces County had the highest percent exceedance in 2007 (16%), followed by Aransas (15%), Galveston (9%), Kleberg (5%), Jefferson (4%), Brazoria (3%), Matagorda (2%), and Cameron (1%).
snip...see full text with county by county ;
http://www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/sumtex.pdf
>>>In the case of a known sewage spill, the decision to issue a preemptive closing or advisory would be made by local government.1 ???<<<
THANKS AGAIN THERE MAYOR WHITE, i want to thank you again for that wade in feces a few weeks ago outback in Galveston Bay, when some brilliant decision was made to flush a broken sewage pipe up in Buffalo Bayou, into Galveston Bay, probably the last time i go wade fishing. ...thanks mayor!
what do you have against your fellow neighbors down south of you???
i remember well when you dumped all of Houston on our interstate highways during the coastal evacuation from Hurricane Rita. now your dumping feces on us. next your probably be taking in the train loads of Thousands of metal cylinders of corrosive radioactive waste from THE MOUND weapons LAB, up in Miamisburg, Ohio. Thanks to your good buddy Governor Perry, who seems to want to turn TEXAS into the next BIG RADIOACTIVE DUMPING SITE, i look for those train loads to start rolling on in, if they are not here already. ...
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
TEXAS WINS TO BE NEXT BIG DUMPING GROUND FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS RADIOACTIVE WASTE
http://sciencebushwhacked.blogspot.com/2008/07/texas-wins-to-be-next-big-dumping.html
Saturday, July 19, 2008 GALVESTON BAY, swimming with the dolphins, PCBs, and FECAL MATTER
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/2008/07/galveston-bay-swimming-with-dolphins.html
GALVESTON BAY FISH CONSUMPTION WARNING DUE TO PCBs
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/
Monday, July 14, 2008
Heedless practices of Texas industry and DREDGING OF SHIP CHANNEL, now
poisoning sport fishing industry, AND IT'S CONSUMERS
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/2008/07/heedless-practices-of-texas-industry.html
http://www.texashuntfish.com/app/forum/19324/GALVESTON-BAY-FISH-CONSUMPTION-WARNING-and-ship-channel-dredging-for-BAYPORT
TSS
For Immediate Release: 07/29/2008
For More Information: Contact Luke Metzger (512) 479-0388
Beach Warnings Increase in Texas Environment Texas Calls for Faster Pollution Testing, Opposes More Offshore Drilling AUSTIN (July 29, 2008) –
As millions of Americans flock to beaches around the country, Environment Texas reported that beach closings and warnings due to pollution went up last year in Texas, according to the Natural Resource Defense Council’s 18th annual beach water quality report. The group called for increased federal funding and faster testing for beachwater pollution and decried efforts to open protected coastlines to offshore drilling.
Using data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the report, Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches, tallied 532 beach closing and health advisory days in 2007 in Texas, an eleven percent jump from the year before. In Texas, 49 percent of the closing and advisory days were caused by high bacteria levels resulting from storm water run-off. Another 49 per cent were high bacteria levels from unknown sources.
“Some families can’t enjoy a day at the beach because the water is polluted and kids are getting sick,” said Brittany Ballard, Citizen Outreach Director for Environment Texas. “Texas beachgoers should not be swimming in human and animal waste.”
For the first time, the Testing the Waters report gives a five-star rating for a selection of the most popular beaches in the nation. The star rating criteria is based on indicators of beach water quality, monitoring frequency, and use of health standards to protect beachgoers. In Texas, no beaches earned 5 stars, and Stewart Beach Park in Galveston County and McGee Beach in Nueces County earned 1 star, because advisories at those beaches are always issued without waiting for re-sampling or other information to confirm results.
Across the country, the number of closing and advisory days at ocean, bay and Great Lakes beaches was more than 22,000 for the third consecutive year, confirming that our nation’s beaches continue to suffer from serious water pollution that puts swimmers at risk.
While nationally there was an overall decrease in beach closing and advisory days from 2006, regionally the picture varied. The biggest increase in closing and advisory days (38 percent) was in the Gulf Coast region, partly because beaches in Louisiana and Mississippi were reopened and monitored for the first full beach season there since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck in 2005.
The report shows that the number of closing and advisory days due to sewage spills and overflows more than tripled to 4,097 from 2006 to 2007, but the largest known source of pollution continues to be contamination from stormwater, which caused more than 10,000 closing and advisory days. Stormwater carries pollution from the streets to the beach without treatment whenever it rains. Unknown sources of pollution caused more than 8,000 closing and advisory days.
Nationally, seven percent of beachwater samples violated health standards, showing no improvement from 2006. In Texas, 9 percent of beachwater samples violated those standards.
“What this report means for families heading to the beach is they need to be careful and do a little homework,” said Nancy Stonerdirector of NRDC’s clean water project. “Call your local public health authority and ask them if the beachwater is safe for swimming. If there is any doubt, or if the water smells bad or looks dirty, stay out of it.”
Aging and poorly-designed sewage and storm water systems hold much of the blame for beachwater pollution. Environment Texas also said that sprawl development in coastal areas is devouring wetlands and other natural buffers such as dunes and beach grass that otherwise would help filter out dangerous pollution before it reaches the beach.
Not only are the beaches polluted, the way they are tested is also failing the American public, according to Environment Texas. Beach water quality standards are more than 20 years old and rely on outdated science and monitoring methods that leave beachgoers vulnerable to a range of waterborne illnesses including gastroenteritis, dysentery, hepatitis, respiratory ailments and other serious health problems. For small children, senior citizens and people with weak immune systems, the results can be fatal.
The Beach Protection Act (H.R. 2537/S. 1506), a bill now pending in Congress, would provide more money for beachwater sampling and require the use of faster testing methods so people get timely information about whether it is safe to swim. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Beach Protection Act in April and the U.S. Senate is expected to vote on the bill soon.
“We urge Senators Cornyn and Hutchison to support the Beach Protection Act and ensure America’s beaches are tested for pollution in time to protect public health,” said Ballard.
Environment Texas also called on Congress to continue to protect U.S. beaches from offshore oil and gas drilling. Offshore drilling threatens beaches with chronic toxic pollution from oil and gas production and oil spills from the pipelines, tankers and barges that bring oil to shore. Environment Texas also pointed to a Bush administration analysis which concluded that opening currently protected offshore areas would have an “insignificant” impact on prices.
###
Environment Texas is a statewide, citizen-based environmental advocacy organization.
http://www.environmenttexas.org/newsroom/oceans/oceans-campaign-news7/beach-warnings-increase-in-texas
Testing the Waters 2008 TX.1 Natural Resources Defense Council Texas 10th in the nation in percent exceedances in 2007
Texas 10th in the nation in percent exceedances in 2007
Virtually the entire Texas coast is bordered by barrier islands, which separate the Gulf of Mexico from the bays. The mainland has over 1,400 miles of coastline, but most of it is privately owned or is composed of wetlands. Of the barrier islands, which have almost 400 miles of Gulf shoreline and more than 650 miles of shoreline on their back side, three are privately owned and have beaches that can only be accessed by boat. Padre Island National Seashore and the National Wildlife Refuge are accessible to the public but is federally managed; the state was unable to verify whether beaches at the National Seashore or in the Wildlife Refuge are monitored. Most of the back side of the barrier islands is wetlands with little or no opportunity for water contact recreation. In all, 56 miles of mainland coast, 235 miles of barrier island Gulf coast, and 33 miles of back side barrier island coast are subject to monitoring under the BEACH Act. There are 166 public coastal beaches lining this 324 miles of coastline. Forty percent of these beaches and 50 percent of the beach miles are monitored in a program administered by the Texas General Land office, which contracts with local county health departments, universities, municipalities, and commercial laboratories to conduct the Texas Beach Watch Program.
Nine counties had monitored beaches in 2007: Aransas, Brazoria, Cameron, Jefferson, Galveston, Kleberg, Matagorda, Nueces, and San Patricio. Another five counties with at least one public water contact recreation coastal beach had no monitored beaches:
Calhoun, Chambers, Harris, Refugio, and Willacy. Orange County, Kenedy County, and Victoria County are on the coast but have no publicly accessible beaches and/or no water contact recreation beaches. The Texas General Land Office recommends beach advisories when bacterial standards are exceeded but does not have the authority to close beaches or post advisory signs at the beaches. This authority lies with local government officials and health departments.1 Beaches are monitored year-round, with more frequent monitoring from May to September for all monitored beaches and in March at Gulf of Mexico beaches (for spring break).1 Texas experienced more rainfall in 2007 than in 2006. Texas received a $385,180 federal BEACH Act grant in 2007 and was eligible for a $379,140 grant in 2008. In addition to these funds, the state allocated nearly $150,000 to the beach monitoring program in 2007.
Standards Indicator Organism: Enterococcus Standards: Texas applies an Enterococcus single-sample maximum of 104 cfu/100ml when making decisions about advisories. No geometric mean standard is used. Two or three samples are taken at each location and the results are averaged before comparing to the standard.1 In 2007, the Texas General Land Office funded a study that examined the occurrence and levels of Vibrio vulnificus during the summer at six beach stations currently monitored for Enterococcus through the Texas Beach Watch Program. The Texas General Land Office will use the data to determine if regular sampling and testing for Vibrio is warranted and, if so, will determine the feasibility of using local contractors who already collect water samples to test for Enterococcus to concurrently collect additional samples to test for Vibrio.1 Texas does not have preemptive rainfall standards. In the case of a known sewage spill, the decision to issue a preemptive closing or advisory would be made by local government.1 ?? Sewage 0%?? Stormwater 49%?? Unknown 49%?? Other 2% Texas Sources of Contamination Testing the Waters 2008 TX.2 Natural Resources Defense Council In Texas, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has a team of biologists who respond to an incident where fish or other animals have been harmed. These specially trained biologists contact other agencies and personnel (including the Texas Department of State Health Services if human health issues are suspected, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for impacts to natural res urces, and the governing authority that manages a particular area), collect water samples for analysis and confirmation of algae, if appropriate, collect water quality and environmental data, and identify and count the number of dead wildlife, among other tasks. TPWD monitors harmful algal blooms and communicates to the public through their website, e-mail alerts, and a hotline. The Harmful Algal Bloom Workgroup has produced the Texas Harmful Algal Bloom Response Plan for identification and management of harmful algal blooms in Texas.1
Monitoring Frequency: Texas reported 169 beaches in 2007. Thirty-six percent (61) were monitored weekly, 4 percent (7) were monitored at an unspecified frequency, and 60 percent (101) were not monitored. Monitored beaches represent 153 miles of coastline. Beach segments that are used most frequently by the public and where health risks are the greatest are given priority for monitoring.
Practice: The Texas Beach Watch Program collects samples between sunrise and noon. Samples are generally collected about one foot below the surface in water that is knee deep (approximately two feet deep). If the majority of recreational activity occurs at a depth significantly different than two feet, then samples can be collected at the location of greatest swimmer activity. Also, if the two-foot sampling depth occurs more than 50 meters from shore, samples can be collected 50 meters from shore or at the location of greatest swimmer activity. Two or three samples are taken per sampling location. Sample results are available a minimum of 24 hours after the lab receives the sample. Routine sampling usually takes place on Tuesdays, with Mondays and Wednesdays as alternate sampling days. Results: For the third consecutive year, NRDC looked at the percent of monitoring samples that exceeded the state’s daily maximum bacterial standards. The percent of samples exceeding the standard increased to 9 percent in 2007 from 8 percent in 2006 and 9 percent in 2005.
Note: to make this three-year comparison, NRDC includes only those beaches reported in each of these three years.
The beaches with the highest percent exceedances in 2007 were Cole Park (44%), Ropes Park (38%), Emerald Beach (35%), and Poenisch Park in Nueces County (33%), Nueces Bay Causeway #4 in San Patricio (26%), Laguna Shores (26%), University Beach (23%), JFK Causeway-SW (20%), and McGee Beach in Nueces (19%),
and Texas City Dike in Galveston (18%).
Nueces County had the highest percent exceedance in 2007 (16%), followed by Aransas (15%), Galveston (9%), Kleberg (5%), Jefferson (4%), Brazoria (3%), Matagorda (2%), and Cameron (1%).
snip...see full text with county by county ;
http://www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/sumtex.pdf
>>>In the case of a known sewage spill, the decision to issue a preemptive closing or advisory would be made by local government.1 ???<<<
THANKS AGAIN THERE MAYOR WHITE, i want to thank you again for that wade in feces a few weeks ago outback in Galveston Bay, when some brilliant decision was made to flush a broken sewage pipe up in Buffalo Bayou, into Galveston Bay, probably the last time i go wade fishing. ...thanks mayor!
what do you have against your fellow neighbors down south of you???
i remember well when you dumped all of Houston on our interstate highways during the coastal evacuation from Hurricane Rita. now your dumping feces on us. next your probably be taking in the train loads of Thousands of metal cylinders of corrosive radioactive waste from THE MOUND weapons LAB, up in Miamisburg, Ohio. Thanks to your good buddy Governor Perry, who seems to want to turn TEXAS into the next BIG RADIOACTIVE DUMPING SITE, i look for those train loads to start rolling on in, if they are not here already. ...
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
TEXAS WINS TO BE NEXT BIG DUMPING GROUND FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS RADIOACTIVE WASTE
http://sciencebushwhacked.blogspot.com/2008/07/texas-wins-to-be-next-big-dumping.html
Saturday, July 19, 2008 GALVESTON BAY, swimming with the dolphins, PCBs, and FECAL MATTER
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/2008/07/galveston-bay-swimming-with-dolphins.html
GALVESTON BAY FISH CONSUMPTION WARNING DUE TO PCBs
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/
Monday, July 14, 2008
Heedless practices of Texas industry and DREDGING OF SHIP CHANNEL, now
poisoning sport fishing industry, AND IT'S CONSUMERS
http://galvestonbay.blogspot.com/2008/07/heedless-practices-of-texas-industry.html
http://www.texashuntfish.com/app/forum/19324/GALVESTON-BAY-FISH-CONSUMPTION-WARNING-and-ship-channel-dredging-for-BAYPORT
TSS
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