Gasp
Judge refuses to dismiss Alabama lawsuit over solar panel fees
U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson ruled Monday that a group of homeowners and the Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution can pursue a lawsuit challenging the fees as a violation of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act, a 1978 law that promotes renewable energy production.
Advocates criticize state environmental commission about response to Moody landfill fire
Speakers at the meeting argued the Alabama Department of Environmental Management took too long to act on the fire and that steps must be taken to regulate these types of landfills.
St. Clair County declares emergency in response to landfill fire
The declaration means the county can ask the state for funding and resources. But residents are left with unanswered questions about the fire's affect on the local air and water quality.
Wealthy Governor’s Company to Pay Nearly $1 Million for Chronic Air Pollution Violations
In the generations before Bluestone acquired the plant in 2019, people living in the area faced exposure to levels of contaminants in the air and soil that have ranked among the worst in the nation.
Settlement Reached To Address ABC Coke Pollution
The Drummond Company will now be required to follow a leak detection and repair program for the rest of the plant’s existence.
Advocates Call For Environmental & Racial Justice At North Birmingham Superfund Site
The "Right to Breathe Caravan" toured several north Birmingham neighborhoods Saturday, calling for environmental and racial justice in communities that have faced decades of industrial pollution.
EPA Rejects Move To Strengthen Air Pollution Limits
The Trump EPA announced this week that it will not lower the current limit on particulate air pollution, an action that disappointed but didn’t surprise public health scientists and clean-air advocates.
Gasp, SELC Challenge ABC Coke Consent Decree
A fight over ABC Coke’s air pollution in Birmingham and Tarrant entered federal court Tuesday as groups charged that a consent decree agreement approved last spring is too weak to guarantee that unlawful discharges of the cancer-causing chemical benzene will stop.
Despite Pledges, Birmingham Barely Out of Gate on Energy Efficiency, Renewables, Sustainability
Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin promised in December to pivot toward prioritizing sustainability during the remaining two years of his term in office. But for some, Woodfin’s administration — and Birmingham’s municipal government as a whole — has been frustratingly inert when it comes to environmental issues.
Frustration With Health Department Intensifies as Environmental Groups Seek to Overturn ABC Coke’s Air Permit Renewal
Environmental groups say ABC Coke’s air permit renewal issued in April is flawed and are appealing to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to agree that it does not comply with requirements of the federal Clean Air Act.
Drummond to Pay $775,000 Penalty to EPA, Jefferson County Health Department
Drummond Company has agreed to pay a $775,000 civil penalty as part of a settlement contained in a consent decree relating to alleged violations of environmental laws at its ABC Coke Plant in Tarrant.
North Birmingham Neighborhoods ‘Have Taken a Beating,’ Work to Unite Over Pollution Concerns
The EPA Superfund cleanup and ABC Coke’s proposed air emissions permit have dominated health concerns of residents in northern Birmingham neighborhoods for months. Now officials and residents of several neighborhoods there are attempting to form a coalition to broaden the concerns to other sources of possible pollution.
LeFleur Still Feeling the Sting From Advocacy Groups’ Condemnation, Responds to Their Criticism
Months after testifying in the North Birmingham bribery trial, the state’s top environmental regulator is firing back at watchdog groups calling for his dismissal or resignation.
County’s Major Air Polluters Concentrated in Low-Income, Minority Neighborhoods
By Hank Black The Oliver Robinson bribery trial, in which guilty verdicts were issued for officials of Drummond Coal Co. and its law firm, Balch & Bingham, revealed a gritty episode about avoiding environmental cleanup in North Birmingham. But there’s a bigger dirty picture. The vast majority of Jefferson County’s 31 major sources of pollution […]
Former Lawmaker’s Message Led to Concerns About Property Values
Former State Rep. Oliver Robinson abruptly resigned his legislative seat last November. He recently confirmed to WBHM that he is under investigation. The details of that investigation aren’t known, but reports suggest it’s tied to his interference with efforts by the US Environmental Protection Agency to test for contamination in his former district.
Birmingham Awarded 3-Star Sustainability Certification
Birmingham was awarded a three star rating by the STAR Communities on Friday. STAR stands for "Sustainability tools for assessing and rating communities." In a ceremony at UAB, Mayor William Bell addressed the crowd about his vision for a sustainable Birmingham. But, as the weekly newspaper WELD reports, the city still has a ways to go. Nick Patterson, the editor of WELD joins WBHM to explain where the city needs to show some improvement.
Air Quality: a history
Birmingham's air quality has improved significantly over the last century. But you wouldn't know it. The area still has problems with smog and other particulate matter, exceeding federal standards. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis harkens back to a time when bad air meant big Birmingham business.
