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W E E K L Y  U P D A T E    January 17,  2016
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Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to Hold Interior Secretary Nomination Hearing

Today, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination of Congressman Ryan Zinke (MT) to be the next Secretary of the Interior. Congressman Zinke, who was elected to a second term in the House in November, is a member of the House Natural Resources Committee and served as a former Navy Seal and Montana state legislator. He was the only Republican on the House Natural Resources Committee to vote for an amendment that would have permanently reauthorized the Land and Water Conservation Fund last fall.  The nomination hearing is scheduled to begin at 2:15 pm and can be viewed here .  

While the House plans to reconvene on Friday, January 20th for the Inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, the Senate this week will consider  H.R. 72 the GAO Access and Oversight Act of 2017, which  seeks to enhance the Government Accountability Office (GAO) ability to oversee federal programs and agencies.

For more information, contact  Matthew McKenna , Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program or  Jared Mott , Senior Policy Analyst for the Mississippi River at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
NEMWI Provides Input into EPA's Potential Lead and Copper Rule Revisions

In October 2016, The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a White Paper summarizing key issues that should be addressed through the forthcoming revision of the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR), as well as potential elements under consideration for the revised rule.  The Northeast-Midwest Institute (NEMWI) supports all the major concepts outlined in the White Paper for the LCR revisions, including the focus on minimizing exposure to lead in drinking water, clear and enforceable requirements, transparency, environmental justice, children's health, and integrating drinking water with cross-media lead reduction efforts. 

To improve the LCR's effectiveness in protecting public health, the NEMWI has offered a number of recommendations for greater specificity in the areas discussed in EPA's White Paper. Additional proactive measures, including ongoing surveillance for lead in drinking water and aggressive public education, are critical for protecting public health and preventing further catastrophic lead exposures such as those that happened in Washington, DC and in Flint, MI. While EPA's White Paper recommends these measures, NEMWI recommends greater specificity as discussed in the response, alongside acknowledging that CCT alone never can be a sufficient remedy for public health protection.

A copy of the NEMWI full recommendations to the EPA can be viewed here.  

For more information, contact  Elin Betanzo , Director of the Safe Drinking Water Research and Policy Program at  the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
 

NEMWI: Strengthening the Region that Sustains the Nation