June 30, 2011 -- The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) has prepared an Infrastructure State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the 2006 24-hour Fine Particle (PM 2.5) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). Infrastructure SIPs, which are required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, are plans that provide for the implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of each NAAQS.

The Air Update Workshops will provide the attendee updates on current air quality regulations and issues. NDEQ encourages anyone working with air quality regulations to attend.

 

The state has issued a health alert for toxic blue-green algae at Willow Creek Lake in Pierce County. This is the first health alert issued for the 2011 season. Weekly sampling has been conducted at 47 public lakes in Nebraska since the beginning of May.

A health alert for toxic blue-green algae continues to be in effect at Willow Creek Lake in Pierce County. The alert went into effect last week, and is the only toxic algae health alert in the state. Weekly sampling has been conducted at 49 public lakes in Nebraska since the beginning of May.

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality Director Mike Linder today announced the awarding of $1,140,883 in grants for waste reduction and recycling projects. The grants are available through the Waste Reduction and Recycling Incentive Grant Fund. This fund is generated by a fee on solid waste disposed of in landfills (disposal fee), an annual retail business sales fee (business fee), and a fee assessed on the sale of new tires for motor vehicles (tire fee). Tire fee grants totaling $1.15 million for projects related to tire recycling were previously announced in June.

The state has issued health alerts for toxic blue-green algae at Lone Star Lake in Fillmore County, Rockford Lake in Gage County and Maskenthine Lake in Stanton County. An alert continues to be in effect at Willow Creek Lake in Pierce County.

The artwork of 13 Nebraska students will be featured in the 2012 “Nebraska: Don’t Waste It!” environmental calendar. The statewide contest is sponsored by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) and focuses on the importance of waste reduction, recycling and litter cleanup.

The state has discontinued health alerts for toxic blue-green algae at Lone Star Lake in Fillmore County, Rockford Lake in Gage County, Maskenthine Lake in Stanton County, and Willow Creek Lake in Pierce County, after the lakes had two consecutive weeks of low readings for toxic blue-green algae. This week, there are no health alerts in effect at any of the 46 public lakes that are tested weekly by the state.

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality has approved a Class III Underground Injection Control Permit submitted by Crow Butte Resources Inc. This permit is associated with an expansion area for the Crow Butte uranium mining facility, in an area north of Crawford that is referred to as the North Trend Expansion Area (see map below).

Aug. 30, 2011 -- Nebraska's 2011 Ambient Air Monitoring Network Plan is available for public comment. The Network Plan was developed to comply with new Federal regulation 40 CFR Part 58.10.