The Horinko Group has posted its latest headline from the USDA Newsroom. The article pertains to the recent announcement regarding the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps (21CSC), an organization called for in President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors Report. Secretaries Salazar and Vilsack named members of a newly-established federal advisory committee that will provide recommendations on how to build on the important ongoing work of local, state, federal and non-profit youth conservation corps that engage young Americans in hands-on service and job training experiences on public lands and open spaces. 21CSC will empower young people – including low-income, underserved and diverse youth and returning veterans – with valuable training and work experience, while accomplishing important conservation and restoration work for America’s great outdoors, waterways and cultural heritage sites.

Read the full release at the USDA’s website.

The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force, established by Presidential Executive Order 13554 in October 2011, released its final strategy for long-term ecosystem restoration on the Gulf Coast last week. The strategy is the first restoration blueprint ever developed for the Gulf to include input from states, tribes, federal agencies, local governments and thousands of involved citizens and organizations across the region. Key priorities include: (1) stopping the loss of critical wetlands, sand barriers, and beaches, (2) reducing the flow of excess nutrients into the Gulf, and (3) enhancing resiliency among coastal communities.

Read the full release at the EPA’s Newsroom.

The Horinko Group has posted its latest headline featuring a joint announcement from two federal agencies. Building on President Obama’s historic national program, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today formally unveiled their joint proposal to set stronger fuel economy and greenhouse gas pollution standards for model year 2017-2025 passenger cars and light trucks. Cars, SUVs, minivans, and pickup trucks are currently responsible for nearly 60 percent of U.S. transportation-related petroleum use and greenhouse gas emissions.

Read the full announcement on the EPA’s website.

The Horinko Group congratulates Lewis & Clark Community College, located in Godfrey, IL on receiving the Governor’s Sustainability Award as recognition of the college’s significant achievements in protecting the environment, helping sustain the future, and improving the economy. Between 2008-2010, the college recorded a 14.4 % reduction in campus energy usage. Some of the energy conservation measures taken by the college include transitioning custodial work shifts to reduce building hours, instituting automatic shutdown of all computer labs, and replacing light bulbs with high efficiency fluorescent and LED bulbs. In 2008, the college also completed a Climate Action Plan, detailing a cautious and conservative approach to its estimates for achieving climate neutrality within 50 years.

Lewis and Clark Community College is one of The Horinko Group’s featured Water Resources Pathfinders.

Read the full release on Lewis and Clark’s website.

To find out more about Lewis and Clark’s sustainability efforts, visit www.lc.edu/green.

The Horinko Group’s latest headline comes from the Bureau of National Affairs’ Daily Environmental Report. The article, titled “Federal, State Officials Seek to Cooperate On Protection of Nation’s Water Resources” features coverage of The Horinko Group’s recent October 25, 2011 Water Resources Summit. Included in the article is discussion of EPA Deputy Assistant Administrator for Water Mike Shapiro’s presentation as well as information about Chesapeake Bay Restoration and a new Mississippi River Water Quality Monitoring Framework.

Download a PDF version of this issue of the Daily Environmental Report.

On Thursday, October 20, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a press release announcing a schedule to develop standards for wastewater discharges produced by natural gas extraction from underground coalbed and shale formations.

In the release, the EPA indicated that over the coming months it will begin the process of developing a proposed standard with the input of stakeholders from industry, environment, and public health groups.

The announcement lines up with the “priorities identified in the president’s Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future, and is consistent with the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board recommendations on steps to support the safe development of natural gas resources.”

For more information, visit the EPA’s website for the guidance.

The National Audubon Society has announced the opening of its new Audubon Center at Riverlands. The Center held its grand opening on October 14 with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The new Audubon Center is located on property of the United States Army Corps of Engineers’ Riverlands Migratory Birds Sanctuary.

“The Audubon Center’s perfect location near the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers will provide tremendous opportunities for education, conservation, and recreation for the public,” Dr. Patricia Hagen, executive director of the Audubon Center at Riverlands said. “From here, visitors can learn about the natural environment and wildlife around them, then go out and reconnect in the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary.”

Read the full text of the news release.
Visit the Audubon Center at Riverlands homepage at http://riverlands.audubon.org/.

The Horinko Group has posted a new latest headline. This month’s headline comes from The Associated Press via The Washington Post and is titled “Pa., Philly Sign 25-year, $2 Billion Plan to Clean Water Through ‘Green’ Infrastructure.” The article highlights the efforts of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania as they embark “on what environmental officials say is the largest project in the U.S. to reduce stormwater pollution through eco-friendly measures.”

Download a PDF copy of this article.

The Stockholm International Water Institute (http://www.siwi.org) announced yesterday that American environmental scientist Stephen R. Carpenter has been named the 2011 Stockholm Water Prize Laureate. Carpenter is a Professor of Zoology and Limnology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and will receive the 2011 Stockholm Water Prize. Professor Carpenter’s groundbreaking research has “shown how lake ecosystems are affected by the surrounding landscape and by human activities.”

For more information on the Stockholm Water Prize and to read the full text of the announcement, visit http://www.siwi.org/SWP2011.

The Clean Water America Alliance announced five national recipients of the 2011 U.S. Water Prize. The U.S. Water Prize, created and administered by the Clean Water America Alliance, honors individuals, institutions and/or organizations that have made an outstanding achievement in the advancement of sustainable solutions to our nation’s water challenges. It is the first of its kind to recognize successful efforts in protecting and improving the health of watersheds in the country.

The five recipients of this year’s award include the City of Los Angeles, Milwaukee Water Council, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, National Great Rivers Research and Education Center, and Pacific Institute.

U.S. Water Prize winners will be honored in a special ceremony on May 9, 2011 at 5:30 p.m. in the Hotel Monaco of Washington, D.C. Proud sponsors of the inaugural award include Black & Veatch, CDM, CH2M Hill, Malcolm Pirnie, Veolia, and Brown and Caldwell. For additional information, please visit www.CWAA.us.