Tuesday PA Environment & Energy NewsClips - 7.2.24

"The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania's public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”

-- Article I, Section 27 Pennsylvania Constitution  [It’s Not A Suggestion]

House next voting day July 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

-- Committee Schedule

Senate next voting day July 2, 3, 5, 6, 7,  September 16, 17, 18, 30

-- Committee Schedule

TODAY’s Calendar Of Events 

Legislative Update--

--TODAY Off The Floor: Senate Appropriations Committee meets to consider House Bill 1466 (Bizzarro-D-Erie) protecting free speech from frivolous SLAPP lawsuits.  Rules Room [No video coverage]  Read more here on SLAPP suits.

-- On July 1, the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously reported out House Bill 1466 (Bizzarro-D-Erie) protecting free speech from frivolous SLAPP lawsuits and it is now on the Senate Calendar for action [House Summary & Fiscal Note]. Read more here on SLAPP suits. 

-- On July 1, the Governor signed into law House Bill 797 (B.Miller-R-Lancaster) requires PennDOT to plant native vegetation along state highways [House Summary & Fiscal Note] as Act 37.   Read more here. 

-- The Center Square: Senate Confirmed Dr. Debra Bogen As Secretary of Health By Vote Off 42 To 8.

Note: Still No State Budget

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-- AP: Louisiana Federal Judge Sides With 16 States, Putting Pause On Biden’s Pause On New LNG Gas Export Facility Permits

-- PA Marcellus Shale Gas Coalition Doubles-Down On Support For Exporting PA Natural Gas To China, Our Economic, Military Competitor  [PaEN]

-- Reuters: China Sets Up New State Body To Drill Deep For Unconventional Oil And Gas Reserves

-- Post-Gazette: US Supreme Court Pause Of Good Neighbor Air Pollution Reduction Rule Praised By US Steel, Panned By Environmental Groups

-- StateImpactPA/WITF: In US, Overall Emissions Down As Oil & Gas Production Rose Between 2015-2022; But In PA Region Carbon Dioxide Emissions Are Up 4%, Methane Emissions Down 25% 

-- TribLive: As Solar Energy Facilities Begin To Blossom In Western PA, Some Townships Look To Adopt Regulations 

-- PA Senate, House Legislators Announce Relaunch Of Bipartisan Nuclear Energy Caucus

-- City & State PA Guest Essay: PA’s Energy Past Could Be Its Energy Future - Relaunching The Nuclear Energy Caucus - By Rep. Tom Mehaffie (R-Dauphin)  

-- TribLive: Senate Bill Could Limit Citizens' Ability To Make Right To Know Requests

-- PA Resources Council Releases Schedule Of Hard-To-Recycle, Household Chemical Collection Events Remaining This Year In Western PA  [PaEN] 

-- Warren Times: DCNR Highlights Allegheny River River Of The Year Event Last Month

-- The Allegheny Front: PA American Water To Spend $300,000 For Watershed Project For Polluting Lackawanna County Streams

-- StateCollege.com: PA Senior Environment Corps Volunteers Watch Over Centre County Waterways

-- Beaver County Times: Beaver County Children Enjoy Critter Hunt In Brush Creek

-- Pike, Wayne Conservation Districts, Trout Unlimited Partner On New Stream Keepers Youth Program Aug. 3  [PaEN]

-- Chesapeake Bay Journal - Karl Blankenship: Planting Of Streamside Forests Picked Up In 2023, But Loss Might Outpace Gain; PA Plants 268 Miles Of Buffers

-- TribLive: Tornado Misses Old Growth Forest Trees On Bushy Run Battlefield In Westmoreland County 

-- Penn State Extension July 16 Webinar On How To Plant A Tiny Forest In Your Neighborhood  [PaEN]

-- Discover How To Identify, Track Invasive Species Using iMapInvasives In Aug. 9 Penn State Extension Webinar  [PaEN] 

-- New Bucknell University Study Reveals How Interactions In Nature Impact Stewardship  [PaEN] 

-- Williamsport Sun: New Bucknell Study Reveals How Various Interactions In Nature Impact Stewardship

-- Republican Herald: Why Spending Time Outdoors Is Good For Your Health

-- Tribune-Democrat: 9/11 Trail Signs, Markings Added To National Park Service Sites

-- Williamsport Sun - Bill Bower: Reflections In Nature - Hunting Heritage Began With The Magna Carta Signing

6th Oil/Natural Gas Spike: True Energy Independence Means Renewables

[There Is No Limit To What Oil/Natural Gas Industry Can Make You Pay]

-- PA Marcellus Shale Gas Coalition Doubles-Down On Support For Exporting PA Natural Gas To China, Our Economic, Military Competitor  [PaEN]

-- AP: Louisiana Federal Judge Sides With 16 States, Putting Pause On Biden’s Pause On New LNG Gas Export Facility Permits 

-- Reuters: Louisiana Federal Judge Halts Biden’s Pause On New LNG Gas Export Facility Permits

-- Reuters: China Sets Up New State Body To Drill Deep For Unconventional Oil And Gas Reserves 

Other States/National/International

-- Environmental Defense Fund Blog: Unpacking EPA/DOE $850 Million Program To Tackle Oil & Gas Industry Methane Emissions 

PA Politics - Everything Is Connected

-- City & State PA: Guide To Reaching The Next Level Of Budget Negotiations

-- AP: Lawsuit Says Washington County Deliberately Hid Decisions To Invalidate Some Mail-In Ballots

-- TribLive: Lawsuit Accuses Washington County Of Not Allowing Mail-In Voters To Fix Ballot Errors

-- Dept. Of Revenue Reports 2023-24 Tax Collections $862.9 Million, 1.9% Above Governor’s Estimates

-- Independent Fiscal Office Reports 2023-24 Tax Revenue $273 Million, 0.6%, Above IFO Estimates

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: State Revenue Grew During Pandemic, But Spending Grew Faster

-- PA Capital-Star: PA House Passes Slew Of Legislation, Including Bill To Address School Meal Debt

-- WITF: As Gun Violence Drops Sharply In PA, Focus Is On What’s Working

-- AP: PA US Senator Bob Casey Stands By Biden, Says Voters Will Decide On Issues, Not A Bad Debate

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[Posted: July 2, 2024]  PA Environment Digest