Of algae and other things

Blue green algae blooms (cyanobacteria) have been in the news recently. Although algae blooms are a natural phenomenon and are caused by certain weather patterns, they can make people, livestock and pets ill. Are you concerned which lakes and ponds you can take your children or pets swimming in? Which waters its safe to fish. Do you wonder what algae blooms are and how they'll affect the public drinking water? The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is charged with monitoring waters in Kansas and informing the public which waters to avoid.

KDHE overview of what algae blooms are:
http://www.kdheks.gov/algae-illness/index.htm

Center for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) overview of cyanobacteria:
http://www.cdc.gov/hab/cyanobacteria/about.htm

CDC's facts about harmful algal blooms:
http://www.cdc.gov/hab/cyanobacteria/facts.htm

Current algae bloom advisories:
http://www.kdheks.gov/algae-illness/algae_advisories.htm

Examples of the signage you will see at waterways that are closed due to algae:
http://www.kdheks.gov/algae-illness/download/BGA_Signs.pdf

Explanation of symptoms brought on by ingestion of blue green algae:
http://www.kdheks.gov/algae-illness/algae_policy.htm

* Be sure to respect the warnings, soon the algae will die off naturally and activities can be resumed.

Article contact: Kim Harp

Cherokee County Cleanup

Residents of Cherokee County, Kansas have been living with the aftereffects of over 70 years of hard lead and zinc mining in southeastern Kansas for decades. This has left the area with piles of "chat" and lead contamination. The city of Treece, Kansas has been a part of the Tar Creek Superfund Site that extends south into Oklahoma. In April the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced to Treece, Kansas residents that their homes will be bought out and they can be relocated. Last week, Treece residents listened to a hearing in nearby Picher, Oklahoma as to how that buyout will be carried out.

Read about Treece from The New York Times

Learn about the buyout from the KC Tribune

Read about the EPA's restrictions on where Treece residents may relocate from the Pittsburg Morning Sun

Learn more about the history of the Federal Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) involvment in Southeast Kansas at:
http://www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/npl_files/ksd980741862.pdf

Read the report about the results of a public health screening event that occurred in Treece, Kansas on September 8th and 9th, 2009:
http://www.kdheks.gov/beh/download/Treece_Kansas.pdf

Read the report on zinc, lead, and cadmium in Tar Creek at:
http://www.kdheks.gov/tmdl/ne/TarCreek_Metals.pdf

Learn about other EPA cleanup sites in Kansas at:
http://www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/npl_files/index.htm#Kansas


You can read more in print by interlibrary loaning state and federal documents from the State Library or the Kansas State Historical Society. Below are links to the online catalog for titles related to Cherokee County and the contamination:

Assessment of contaminated streambed sediment in the Kansas part of the historic Tri-State Lead and Zinc Mining District, Cherokee County, 2004 / by Larry M. Pope ; prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment Reston, Va. : U.S. Geological Survey, 2005

Radioactivity surveys in the Kansas part of the tri-state zinc and lead mining district, Cherokee County, Kansas / by Robert M. Dreyer

Assessment of water resources in lead-zinc mined areas in Cherokee County, Kansas, and adjacent areas / by Timothy B. Spruill

A study of stability problems and hazard evaluation of the Kansas portion of the tri-state mining area / [James R. McCauley, Lawrence L. Brady, Frank W. Wilson]
[Washington, D.C.?] : Bureau of Mines, U.S. Dept. of the Interior, [1983]

Abandoned non-fuel mineral pits and quarries in Kansas, 1995 / authors, David A. Grisafe, Jorgina A. Ross, Douglas L. Beene

Contamination of wells completed in the Roubidoux aquifer by abandoned zinc and lead mines, Ottawa County, Oklahoma [electronic resource] / by Scott Christenson ; prepared in cooperation with the Oklahoma Water Resources Board

Kansas Laws, etc
Mined Land Conservation and Reclamation Board : governing statutes and regulations
[Topeka, Kan. : Kansas Corporation Commission, 1986]

Article contact: Kim Harp

Kansas Oil

The current oil spill crisis in the Gulf of Mexico has us all concerned about oil rig safety. Did you know that in 2009 Kansas had 45,579 oil wells across the state? In 2009 these oil wells produced 39,465,527 barrels of oil. Each well in the state is regulated by the Kansas Corporation Commission. Kansas Statute 55-152 gives the Kansas Corporation Commission authority to write regulations regarding oil and gas production and conservation in Kansas.

Kansas Corporation Commission:
www.kcc.state.ks.us

Pipeline Safety Regulations for Kansas:
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/pipeline/pipeline_safety_regs_0609.pdf

Reports of monthly oil production in Kansas:
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/conservation/production/index.htm

Kansas gas and oil production data from the Kansas Geological Survey:
http://www.kgs.ku.edu/PRS/petroDB.html

Map of Kansas oil and gas:
http://maps.kgs.ku.edu/oilgas/

Interested in Kansas oil? Learn more:
www.kgs.ku.edu/Publications/Oil/index.html

If you notice an oil spill in your area, contact the National Response Center:
http://www.nrc.uscg.mil/nrchp.html

Clean up procedures from the Kansas Corporation Commission:
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/conservation/cleanup_brochure.htm

Notice an abandoned oil well in your area? Report it at:
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/conservation/reported_abandoned.cgi

Before you dig on your property, make sure there aren't gas, oil or electric pipes or lines running underground:
www.kansasonecall.com/

Kansas Oil Museum in Butler County:
http://www.kansasoilmuseum.org/



Article contact: Kim Harp

Your Government Celebrates Earth Day

The 40th celebration of Earth Day is tomorrow, April 22. Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest in 1970, "to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda." The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. The fight for a clean Earth still continues in 2010. Find out how you can LEARN more about Earth Day, PROMOTE Earth Day in your community, and PARTICIPATE in Earth Day activities in or near your community.

Read President Obama's initiatives for a greener America:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/earthday

Federal Environmental Protection Agency website:
http://www.epa.gov/earthday/

Official Earth Day website:
http://www.earthday.org/

LEARN!
Learn more about Kansas' participation in 40 years of Earth Days from the Kansas Extension Office:
http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=20

Learn about Kansas' Energy Initiatives from the Kansas State Energy Office:
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/energy/topics.htm

More information from the Kansas Don't Spoil It! Program:
http://www.kansasdontspoilit.com/

PROMOTE!
Want some pamplets or brochures to display at your Earth Day event? Kansas Don't Spoil It! Program has some available online for downloading and printing:
http://www.kdheks.gov/waste/p_publications.html

More informational pamphlets available from Kansas Green Teams:
http://www.kansasgreenteams.org/node/64

Play interactive games, print educational coloring books, and more at:
http://www.call2recycle.org/education-fun.php?c=1&d=76&w=9&r=Y

PARTICIPATE AND CELEBRATE!
Learn how you can participate and volunteer in Earth Day activities:
http://www.epa.gov/earthday/events.htm or
http://www.serve.gov/earthday.asp

Does your office want to participate in recycling, but not sure of what the first steps may be? Join the Kansas Green Team!:
http://www.kansasgreenteams.org/

Do you have cell phones, computers, printers or other electronics that are of no use to you but still have value? Learn how to recycle your e-waste!
E-Waste recycling information from the Department of Health and Environment:
http://www.ksewaste.org/earth_day_2008.htm#earth

Article contact: Kim Harp

High-speed rail- coming to Kansas?

The Federal and state governments are looking at ways to build safe, functional, ecological and convenient methods of travel including high-speed passenger rail systems. The Federal government has been behind a national push to coordinate rail systems. The Kansas Legislature has introduced four bills that would help to direct and facilitate funding for rail systems in Kansas: House Bills 2382 and 2552, Senate Bills 409 and 502, House Concurrent Resolution 5014, and Senate Concurrent Resolution 1617. These bills may be found at http://www.kslegislature.org/- click on "full text of bills" from the menu at the top and then type in the bill number.

Kansas Department of Transportation's Long Range Plan:
http://www.ksdot.org/lrtp2008/

President Obama's 2010 State of the Union speech:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTMrs9vpoqg

See President Obama and Vice President Biden discuss passenger rail at a town hall-type meeting:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/01/29/one-step-closer-future-high-speed-rail

Press release regarding President Obama and Vice President Biden announcing funds for high-speed rail projects:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/press-releases/341

Read the U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood's blog post regarding rail:
http://fastlane.dot.gov/2010/01/president-obama-delivers-on-american-highspeed-rail.html

High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program
http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/2243

FRA Vision for High-Speed Rail:
http://www.northflyer.org/resources/FRA_HSR_Plan.pdf

Amtrak Kansas Fact Sheet:
http://www.northflyer.org/resources/KANSAS08.pdf

High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program- a short legislative and executive history:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/2325

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Federal Rail Administration:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/2153

Methodology for Determining the Avoidable and Fully Allocated Costs of Amtrak Routes, Vol. I, Main Report (December 2009):
http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Research/ORD0916_Vol_1.pdf

Article Contact: Kim Harp

Earth Day Every Day

April 22 is Earth Day, celebrated worldwide. Learn how state, local and federal governments as well as private groups and organizations observe Earth Day every day in programs, projects, information sites, volunteer opportunities, etc.!

City of Lawrence Fact Sheets
http://lawrenceks.org/wrr/factsheets
(Recycling, hazardous waste, lawn care, composting, safer alternatives, clean water, reducing junk mail)

Conservation/Efficiency/Cost Reduction
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/energy/conservation.htm
(Energy conservation news from the Kansas Corporation Commission)

Cost-Effective Solar Power in the Heartland
http://kcc.ks.gov/energy/solar_manual.pdf

Energy Star
http://www.energystar.gov/
(A joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices)

Greensburg... Better, Stronger, Greener!
http://www.greensburgks.org/
(Greensburg rises out of the ruins of a devastating tornado)
----A wind farm that may power the entire town
http://www.cjonline.com/news/state/2009-04-22/wind_farm_could_power_greensburg
(Topeka Capital Journal)
----Putting the Green in Greensburg
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8z4x7_earth-day-kansas-town-rebuilds-putt_news
(Video on the efforts under way in making Greensburg a green city)

"Growing" a Wind Farm in Spearville, Kansas
http://www.slideshare.net/mobear410/spearville-wind-farm
(Spearville, called the "City of Windmills," lives up to its name with a new kind of wind harnessing tool)

Heartland Renewable Energy Society
http://www.heartland-res.org/
(The MO/KS chapter of the American Solar Energy Society)

Kansas Energy Directory
http://www.kansasenergy.org/energydirectory.htm
(Designed to help Kansans easily find energy professionals that serve within the state)

Kansas Energy Office
http://kcc.ks.gov/energy/index.htm

Kansas Solar Electric Co-operatives
http://www.geocities.com/Solar_Electric_Cooperatives/

Kansas Threatened and Endangered Species Act
http://kdwp.state.ks.us/news/Other-Services/Threatened-and-Endangered-Species

Kansas Wind Energy
http://www.kansasenergy.org/wind_projects.htm
(Provided by the Kansas Energy Information Network)

Lawrence Energy Conservation Fair
http://lawrenceks.org/wrr/energyfair
(Communities across the nation have displays, fairs, classes, etc. demonstrating new and innovative concepts in conserving energy. Here's a look at Lawrence's fair held in October)

Recycling E-Waste
http://www.ksewaste.org/ewaste_where.htm
(Kansas Bureau of Waste Management)

Recycling Resources

Recycling is a positive way to impact your community and the world. Recycling and purchasing recycled material benefits the environment and recycling also creates jobs. Check out the links below, provided by federal, state, local and private sources for more information:

Recycling (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/recycle.htm
---Recycling old computers
---Create your own compost pile
---Consumer tips
---Consejos para Consumidores
---Municipal Solid Waste in the United States
---Recycling Publications
---Buy Recycled
---Common Wastes and Materials
---Recycling Market Development

Get Caught Recycling!
http://www.getcaughtrecycling.org/
(The Kansas Department of Health and Environment)

Kansas Green Teams
http://www.kansasgreenteams.org/
(The Green Team program was created as a way for you to make a difference by incorporating environmentally responsible practices into your daily routine at work and at school.)

Kansas Don't Spoil it!
http://www.kansasdontspoilit.com/
(Sponsored by the Kansas Bureau of Waste Management. Kansas is a clean state, and we want to keep it that way. We began the KDSI campaign, an awareness and education program, to encourage Kansans to reduce, reuse and recycle waste and keep their state in a beautiful condition. We aim to keep the Kansas environment top-of-mind so that every Kansan will do what's needed to "keep it clean" to minimize the amount of waste entering the environment.)

Kansas Recycles
http://kansasrecycles.org/

Why recycle?
http://www.co.shawnee.ks.us/recycling/whyrecycle.shtm
(Shawnee County Recycling, Kansas)

Find a Kansas Recycling Program
http://kansasrecycles.org/find-a-recycling-program
(Provided by the Kansas Dept. of Health and Environment)

Kansas Organization of Recyclers
http://www.kskor.org/
(The Kansas Organization of Recyclers is a non-profit, membership based network of representatives from government, industry, non-profit and public entities and individuals that support environmental stewardship through waste reduction, composting, reuse, recycling, and
sustainable efforts in Kansas.)

Find a recycling center near you
http://earth911.org/
(Type in your zip code and see what's nearby you)

SOME PUBLICATIONS ISSUED BY K-STATE RESEARCH AND EXTENSION

Glass Recycling: Just How Clear Is It? (1995)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/solw2/ep24.pdf
Green Confusion (1995)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/solw2/ep18.pdf
Leaf Recycling (1995)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/solw2/ep12.pdf
Recycling Grass Clippings (2001)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/hort2/mf2110.pdf
Resources for Recycling (1991)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/agec2/samplers/c724.asp
Tips for Home and Yard (1998)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/hort2/mf2132.pdf
Using Wood Chips for Mulch (2006)
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/hort2/mf2133.pdf

Wind Energy

Many believe that the word, Kansas, named for the Kansa Native American tribe, means "People of the South Wind." It's an appropriate name as wind has played a vital role in the development of our state.

As people worldwide turn to alternate energy resources to replace fossil fuels the "People of the South Wind" have also set their sails... or rather wind turbines... toward this powerful force as a means of harnessing one of the great symbols of our state and converting it into energy that will light our cities and drive us into the 21st century.

Below are some online resources on the development and use of wind energy in Kansas:

Community Wind
http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/energy/comm_wind/index.htm
(Kansas State Corporation Commission, 2006 workshop)

Fact Sheet on Wind Power in Kansas
http://kansas.sierraclub.org/Wind/WindPower-FactSheet.htm
(Sierra Club)

Impact of Wind Farms on Public Health
http://skyways.lib.ks.us/ksleg/KLRD/Publications/46082.pdf
(Kansas Legislative Research Department, 2007)

Kansas Annual Average Wind Power Map
http://rredc.nrel.gov/wind/pubs/atlas/maps/chap3/3-42m.html
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

Kansas Energy Plans (2007 and 2008)
http://kec.kansas.gov/energy_plan.htm
(Kansas Energy Council)

Kansas Wind Activities
http://www.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/windpoweringamerica/astate_template.asp?stateab=ks
(U.S. Dept of Energy)

Kansas Wind Energy
http://www.kansasenergy.org/wind.htm
(Kansas Energy Information Network)

Kansas Wind Energy Development
http://www.kfb.org/blog/irvinwind1.htm
(Advice from the Kansas Farm Bureau for landowners approached by wind energy companies)

Kansas Wind Energy Resource Map and Electric Transmission
http://kec.kansas.gov/chart_book/Chapter6/02_KSWindEnergyElectricTransMap.pdf
(Kansas Energy Council)

Kansas Wind Working Group
http://wwg.kansas.gov/
(Established by Governor Sebelius, January 7, 2008)

Small Wind in Kansas
http://www.awea.org/smallwind/kansas.html
(American Wind Energy Association)

Ten FAQs About Wind Energy
http://www.nrel.gov/wind/systemsintegration/pdfs/milligan_wind_integration_faqs.pdf
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

Wind and Prairie Task Force
http://kec.kansas.gov/wptf/sercc_wptf.htm
(Established by Governor Kathleen Sebelius. Final report delivered June 7, 2004)

Wind Energy
http://www.ksda.gov/renewable_energy/content/193
(Kansas Dept. of Agriculture)

Wind Energy Projects
http://www.kansasruralcenter.org/wind.html
(Kansas Rural Center)

Wind Powering America: Kansas
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy00osti/28085.pdf
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

Wind Shear Characteristics at Central Plains Tall Towers
http://www.nrel.gov/wind/pdfs/40019.pdf
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

Information provided by State Library of Kansas staff. Contact us with your questions at: http://www.kslib.info/ask.html