Concerned citizens reached out to Shorekeeper early this year to inquiry about a consent order between the Department of Environmental Quality and the poultry company, Tyson for violations at their Temperanceville plant in Accomack County.

Shorekeeper contacted the state but the information provided raised more questions than answers and so Shorekeeper filed a Freedom of Information request to obtain the detailed reports of the violations as well as Tysons plan to remedy the issues.

The documents made clear that the proposed penalty of $16,000 was woefully inadequate as the violations were made knowingly and the state had failed to fine them for all violations. Additionally, the plan to remedy the issues was clearly insufficient to protect our waters from future pollution.

Shorekeeper wrote to the Department of Environmental Quality detailing our concerns with both the penalty and action plan proposed. We also made clear that a fine of $16,000 did not meet the intent of the Clean Water Act to serve as a deterrent. Shorekeeper also highlighted the fact that this facility has a long history of violating its permit and dumping excess pollutants into our waterways as evidenced by previous consent orders. Clearly the penalties are not having the intended action of forcing Tyson to clean up its act on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. [Read more…]

The Wolf Creek Nuclear power plant in Kansas in 2000. The corporation that runs the plant was targeted by hackers. Credit David Eulitt/Capital Journal, via Associated Press

The New York Times reports that cyberattacks have targeted American energy facilities, including Wolf Creek Nuclear plant in Kansas, since May. The hacks, which may have originated from Russia, gained access to office computer systems but failed to take control of operations. Reports suggest that hackers were mapping networks for future missions, adding to concerns that recent attacks of Ukrainian energy infrastructure may have been test runs for taking down Western facilities.

“The report did not indicate whether the cyberattacks were an attempt at espionage — such as stealing industrial secrets — or part of a plan to cause destruction. There is no indication that hackers were able to jump from their victims’ computers into the control systems of the facilities, nor is it clear how many facilities were breached. Wolf Creek officials said that while they could not comment on cyberattacks or security issues, no ‘operations systems’ had been affected and that their corporate network and the internet were separate from the network that runs the plant.”- NY Times

Wendell Berry at his writing desk in Kentucky in the 1970s. (Photo by James Baker Hall)

Raising sheep and growing grain on a small farm in Henry County, Wendell Berry has lived deeply connected to the land in his native Kentucky. But in between planting and picking, Berry has devoted himself to words. His more than forty novels, essays, and poetry collections have made the 82-year-old author one of the country’s most prominent voices on the value of small-scale farming and rural life, earning him honors including the National Humanities Medal and a spot in the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame. Now, the first film devoted to Berry’s vision, Look & See, shares an insider’s perspective of his philosophy and community. “I wanted to document Wendell’s world and what he cares most about—farmers, who are his neighbors and friends,” says the Austin, Texas–based director Laura Dunn, who worked on the project for ten years.

Through interviews with Henry County residents, historic photographs from Berry’s life, and beautiful shots of the rural Kentucky landscape, Look & See explores both the upheavals wrought by industrial agriculture and the humble, persistent ethos that has guided Berry’s path. Although the camera-shy Berry prefers to tell stories through writing, his wife and daughter appear on screen, and he participated in the documentary by reading his poems and shaping the way the cinematography chronicled all four seasons of farm life in the Bluegrass State. Executive produced by Robert Redford and Terrence Malick, Look & See premiered on June 30 in New York and will screen this summer at venues across the country, including in Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, and Kentucky. And while the film charts the struggles of modern farmers, it also sounds a note of optimism, provided by the voices of those inspired by Berry’s writing and presence. “You can’t oversimplify his worldview because it’s layered and complex,” Dunn says. “But at the heart of it is hope.”

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Scientists say this year’s summer “dead zone” in the Chesapeake Bay will be larger than average. “Dead zone” refers areas of low or no oxygen that can kill fish and aquatic life.

Scientists with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Geological Survey gave a forecast on the dead zone on Wednesday. They say this year’s dead zone could be about 1.89 cubic miles, or nearly the volume of 3.2 million Olympic-size swimming pools.

According to measurements dating to 1950, the 30-year mean maximum dead zone volume is 1.74 cubic miles.

Officials say spring rainfall plays an important role in determining the size of the low-oxygen and no-oxygen zone. That rainfall in New York and Pennsylvania has led to higher streamflow in the Susquehanna River, delivering more nitrogen runoff.

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