Federal survey of coal ash disposal finds hundreds of sites _ and some spills _ in 35 states

October 6th, 2009 Survey finds Cook Inlet belugas declining againANCHORAGE, Alaska — A survey finds that the number of beluga whales in Cook Inlet is again declining. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration report released Tuesday shows the numbers have slipped again to 321 animals, down from an estimated 375 animals in 2007 and 2008.

September 9th, 2009 Fed survey: most of US in economic healing modeWASHINGTON — A new government survey finds the vast majority of the country reporting economic activity is stabilizing or improving, as the worst recession since the 1930s appears to be over. The Federal Reserve's snapshot of economic conditions backs predictions by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and most other analysts that the economy has started to grow again in the current quarter.

September 1st, 2009 Study finds Web no equalizer for civic engagementNEW YORK — Unlike some people have hoped, the Internet hasn't led to big changes in the socio-economic makeup of Americans engaged in civic activities, a new study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project finds. As in offline politics, people who participate in online civic life — by contacting government officials, making political or charitable donations or signing petitions, for example — tend to be richer and better educated.

August 1st, 2009 TVA raises coal ash tab to $1.2B, reports 3Q lossKNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Valley Authority raised its estimates for cleaning up a massive coal ash spill to $1.2 billion on Friday, and partly blamed its third-quarter loss of $167 million on that cleanup.

July 22nd, 2009 Report blasts TVA on coal ash storage after spillKNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Consultants hired by the Tennessee Valley Authority after a major coal ash spill found widespread problems with how the nation's largest public utility runs and maintains its coal ash storage operations, the consultants said in a report issued Tuesday.

July 21st, 2009 TVA consultants criticize coal ash operationsKNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Consultants hired by the Tennessee Valley Authority say they found widespread problems with how the nation's largest public utility is running and maintaining its coal ash storage operations.

July 17th, 2009 TVA says hazard rating 'high' at 4 coal ash sitesKNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Valley Authority on Thursday significantly raised the hazard potential for several of its coal ash sites in a self-assessment to the U.S.

July 13th, 2009 Moratorium sought in Utah on depleted uraniumSALT LAKE CITY — State regulators will consider whether federal rules for disposing of depleted uranium are adequate to protect health and safety in Utah or if the waste should be banned until more stringent procedures are put in place. The Utah Radiation Control Board will meet Tuesday to discuss a disposal moratorium sought by the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah, an environmental watchdog group.

July 2nd, 2009 EPA allows TVA to dump spilled coal ash in Ala.BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The nation's largest utility can dump millions of tons of coal ash from a Tennessee spill into an Alabama landfill, federal regulators said Thursday, despite criticism that the plan is unfair to one of Alabama's poorest counties.

June 30th, 2009 EPA targets 44 coal ash sites in 10 statesWASHINGTON — Forty-four coal ash storage sites near 26 communities have been targeted for inspection after federal officials identified the ponds as potential threats to nearby residents. The storage ponds, which are used to store waste from coal-fired power plants, are in 10 states, according to a list released Monday by the Environmental Protection Agency.

June 29th, 2009 EPA reveals 44 higher risk coal ash sitesWASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday made public a list of 26 communities in 10 states where residents are potentially threatened by coal ash storage ponds similar to one that flooded a neighborhood in Tennessee last year. North Carolina has the most sites on the list, a dozen.

June 12th, 2009 Communities at risk, but coal ash sites secretWASHINGTON — Dozens of communities nationwide are at risk from a coal ash spill like the one that blanketed a Tennessee neighborhood last year, but the Obama administration has decided not to tell the public about it because of the danger of a terrorist attack. The Environmental Protection Agency, as part of an investigation opened after the Tennessee spill, classified 44 coal ash storage ponds in 26 communities as potential hazards.

April 14th, 2009 LONDON - Hollywood actress Keira Knightley is unhappy with social networking sites and says she finds Internet 'dehumanising'. 'I hate Internet.

February 4th, 2009 RAIPUR - Mineral-rich Chhattisgarh has hit another goldmine: a fresh discovery of 90 million tonnes of coal and a little over 22 million tonnes of iron ore. 'Deposits of 50 million tonnes of coal have been found in Korba district and 40 million tonnes of coal in Raigarh district,' says the Economic Survey of the state government.

December 25th, 2008 RANCHI - Efforts are going on to get coal blocks in three countries, including the US, said minister of state for coal Santosh Bagrodia here Friday. 'We are making efforts to get coal blocks in the United States, Indonesia and Mozambique.