Environmental News Highlights – July 10, 2024

FEDERAL ACTION

Biden tailpipe emission rules on shakier ground after Supreme Court ruling -Reuters

GM to pay $146 million in penalties over excess emissions -Mercury News

INFRASTRUCTURE RESILIENCE AND SUSTAINABILITY

Hydrogen-Powered Train Travels 1,750 Miles on Single Tank -Government Technology

Popular Lake Powell ferry service returns after low waters kept it docked for 3 years -KSL.com

Hyperloop study fails to gain support from Met Council committee -Star Tribune

Oregon to expand the state’s network of EV fast chargers -Oregon Public Broadcasting

re:Charge and CDTA Launch First Universal Wireless Charging Stations for Electric Bikes -Capital District Transportation Authority (media release)

 

AIR QUALITY

Compact Cities in Europe Have Lower Carbon Emissions, But Poorer Air Quality -Barcelona Institute of Global Health

 

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE/EQUITY

Removing the highway is the easy part. Reconnecting the community is harder. –NPR

NATURAL RESOURCES

Managing Undesirable and Invasive Species on ROWs -T&D World

UDOT To Install New Remote Avalanche Control Systems In Little Cottonwood Canyon -Utah DOT (media release)

CULTURAL RESOURCES

A Street of Stars Awaits its Hollywood Remake –CityLab

$23.5M Federal Grant Electrifies Maine National Park Buses -Portland Press Herald

As Chicago’s NASCAR race returns, changes abound, but critics wave yellow flag -Chicago Tribune

 

HEALTH AND HUMAN ENVIRONMENT/ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION

How E-Bikes Won Over Europe –CityLab

Atlanta E-Bike Rebate Program Off to Strong Start -Atlanta Regional Commission (blog)

New phase on Savannah Tide to Town Urban Trail to begin soon -WJCL-TV

New Florida law cracks down on drivers, pedestrians who take risks at railroad crossings -WFOR-TV

Houston no longer has a bike share network. Will another one be launched? -Houston Public Media

TRB RESOURCES/RESEARCH/ANNOUNCEMENTS

TRB’s 2nd Conference on Advancing Transportation Equity –TRB

FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICES

Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the San Clemente Shoreline Protection Project -Corps of Engineers (Notice of intent)

Air Plan Revisions; California; Motor Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program -EPA (Proposed rule)

National Environmental Youth Advisory Council; Notification of Public Meeting -EPA (Notice of meeting)

Federal Management Regulation; Accessibility Standard for Pedestrian Facilities in the Public Right-of-Way -GSA (Final rule with 60-day comment Period)

Adoption of Department of Energy Categorical Exclusion Under the National Environmental Policy Act -Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (Notice)

Call for Nominations to the National Geospatial Advisory Committee -U.S. Geological Survey (Call for nominations)

Notice of Availability of a Joint Record of Decision for the Proposed Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind South Project -Bureau of Ocean Energy Management; National Marine Fisheries Service; U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (Record of decision; notice of availability)

Illinois DOT Tailors Mowing Program to Pollinator Needs

The Illinois Department of Transportation recently kicked off its statewide mowing campaign, which will continue until August 15; an effort the agency said plays a key role in its pollinator preservation efforts.

[Above photo by Illinois DOT]

During the summer months, the agency said it conducts two primary types of mowing. The first is safety mowing, which occurs directly adjacent to the road as needed. The second and more involved operation is maintenance mowing, which lasts for approximately six weeks – from around July 1 through August 15.

Meanwhile, maintenance mowing encompasses areas next to culverts, ditches, traffic control devices and other structures, while following the Illinois Monarch Project Mowing Guidelines for Pollinators, protecting as much habitat and nectar resources as possible, Illinois DOT noted.

The agency added that its mowing schedule helps to minimize the impact on the traveling public while encouraging pollinator activity that aids in the reproduction of flowers, fruits, and vegetables that are essential to the state’s ecosystem and economy.

Reducing the amount of land maintained and growing pollinator habitat also protects the endangered rusty patched bumble bee and the monarch butterfly, the latter of which is the official state insect of Illinois, the department pointed out.

“Timely, strategic mowing is an essential part of Illinois DOT’s green efforts,” said Omer Osman, the agency’s secretary, in a statement. He added that, in 2020, IDOT joined in the launch of the Illinois Monarch Action Plan as part of the Illinois Monarch Project, a collaborative effort with local and state partners to help ensure the survival and successful migration of monarchs by increasing and protecting habitat.

Roadway mowing operations can also provide other benefits as well in other areas of the country. For example, the Wyoming Department of Transportation recently noted in a 2023 video that while its mowing operations improves visibility for drivers and removes forage, which helps keeps wildlife away from the roads, it also helps with winter highway maintenance needs as well.

“Most of the reason we mow is to help prevent drifting,” explained Carson Morales, a heavy equipment operator for the agency, in that video. “When the grass is high, it gives the snow more places to catch. The wind keeps piling it in there and we can’t do much with it once it gets stuck there.”

NMDOT Grants to Support Local Beautification Projects

The New Mexico Department of Transportation has launched a new grant program to support the development and implementation of local beautification programs, especially for roadway trash removal efforts.

[Above photo by NMDOT]

“The goal of the program is to increase litter pickup in every community, as well as build a culture throughout our state that eliminates littering,” said Ricky Serna, NMDOT secretary, in a statement.  “Litter across New Mexico’s roads is hiding the natural beauty of our state and we all can do better.”

New Mexico municipalities, counties, tribal communities, and entities of government in good standing with the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department may apply for the funding, the agency noted.

NMDOT said local governments will be eligible to receive up to $200,000 per award, with this grant program able to support 15 to 20 total awardees in its inaugural year.

The agency added that it expects recipients to receive 100 percent of their grant funding following the execution of the grant agreement and submission of their plan, as it relates to the program goals.

Awardees will receive a year of funding for a coordinator position and supportive budget expenses, the agency said, with the coordinator responsible for designing and implementing a local beautification program. NMDOT stressed that local beautification initiatives receiving grants must follow the agency’s “Que Linda” beautification toolkit, which outlines 11 types of beautification endeavors that are eligible for grant funds under this new program.

Other state departments of transportation across the country are involved in similar efforts to jump-start local litter removal and related beautification efforts.

For example, in October 2023, cities and local agencies throughout California received $114.5 million in grants to help fund 60 litter removal as well as neighborhoods and public space beautification projects.

That funding includes $14.5 million set aside specifically to support 18 projects for cleaning transit stations and other areas around the state’s public transportation systems.

Those grants represent the latest round of funding from the “Clean California” initiative; a sweeping billion-dollar multi-year clean-up effort led by the California Department of Transportation, known as Caltrans, to remove trash and help to revitalize public spaces in local communities statewide.

Meanwhile, in February 2023, the Washington State Department of Transportation – in coordination with the city of Des Moines – provided a “much-needed makeover” to a popular 14-acre green space along Barnes Creek; an area used by local residents for a variety of outdoor activities.

The agency described this particular green space in a blog post as a “well-loved unofficial neighborhood trail” where people are often seen walking their dogs, running, or enjoying nature with their families.

This natural corridor includes a series of wetlands along Barnes Creek that have been degraded over time by invasive plants.

Back on the East Coast, the Tennessee Department of Transportation celebrated the 40th anniversary of its “Litter Grant Program” in July 2023. That program – started in 1983 – provides funding to all 95 counties within the state to pay for a wide variety of litter-related efforts, such as litter and tarp law enforcement; cleanup and recycling events; and litter prevention education campaigns.

Those funds also help county governments participate in multijurisdictional and statewide collaborations with Tennessee DOT’s “Nobody Trashes Tennessee” litter prevention campaign, conducted jointly with Keep Tennessee Beautiful and its local affiliates.

Collectively, the agency’s litter grant program is responsible for removing an average of 11,243 tons of roadway trash annually and, in 2022 alone, nearly 29 percent of that statewide total was diverted from landfills and recycled. Additionally, 3,480 illegal dumpsites were cleaned up. All told, more than 435,529 tons of litter have been removed from Tennessee roadways since the program’s inception four decades ago, Tennessee DOT said.

The program’s impact is further amplified through local government partners that invest additional resources in trash cleanup and removal, as well as by individuals who contribute tens of thousands of volunteer hours. This makes the program extremely efficient, saving communities and the state critical funds when compared to the costs of contracted litter pickup.