Special zone sip

This past Saturday marked the midpoint of the First Regular Session of the 70th General Assembly of the State of Colorado. Having had 60 days to watch legislators in action, we now have a fairly good idea where the General Assembly is heading in terms of energy legislation. One big caveat to that is the potential for oil and gas legislation. The Governor’s Oil and Gas Task Force just wrapped up its work, and sent nine (out of 36) suggestions to the Governor for consideration. The 21 members could not reach the required 2/3 margin needed to pass the more controversial measures, so what remains are less controversial proposals, such as enhancing the permitting process, including local governments in the siting process earlier, and appropriations for more inspectors. As a result, there are now two schools of thought as to where legislators may go: introduce a slew of legislation that is destined for death in the other chamber, or avoid any legislative fights and prepare for ballot … [Read more...] about Colorado Energy Legislation 2015: Where Do We Stand at the Session Midpoint?

FEDERAL ISSUES  TSCA/FIFRA/IRIS/NTP/TRIEPA Extends Comment Period On Proposed SNUR: On October 21, 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it has reopened the comment period on a proposed Significant New Use Rule (SNUR) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) as requested by a commenter. 81 Fed. Reg. 72759. The proposed rule would amend the TSCA significant new use regulations to align them with revisions to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Hazard Communications Standard (HCS), as occasioned by OSHA’s March 2012 final rule modifying the HCS to conform to the United Nations’ (UN) Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS), changes to OSHA’s Respiratory Protection Standard, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) respirator certification requirements pertaining to respiratory protection of workers from exposure to chemicals. The … [Read more...] about Human Carcinogens, Antimicrobial Pesticides, Cross-State Air Pollution: Federal Law Updates for Chemical Law and Science

By Danish Siddiqui SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) – Few people step outside Anchar, a neighbourhood ringed by steel barricades and razor wire in Indian Kashmir, where police have imposed a weeks-long regionwide clampdown to stifle protests. The densely-populated, working class area in the main city, Srinagar, is a pocket of resistance to India’s removal in early August of special status for Jammu and Kashmir, the country’s only Muslim-majority state. While some normalcy has returned to the region more than seven weeks after the crackdown began, there is little sign of an end to the standoff in Anchar, home to about 15,000 people. (Click https://reut.rs/2lXBF34 for a photo essay on Anchar.) Entrances to the area are guarded by young people manning barricades made of tree trunks, electricity poles and barbed wire to keep the police out. Laneways have been dug up to block security vehicles. As night falls, groups of youths, many wearing masks and armed with stones and tree … [Read more...] about Barricades and books: life in restive Kashmir neighbourhood