Telecom giant AT&T penalized $51.8 million for hazardous waste violations

Telecommunications giant AT&T agreed to a $51.8 million settlement with the State of California to resolve charges that employees at hundreds of its California facilities illegally disposed of hazardous waste and other materials for nine years. The settlement was jointly announced yesterday by California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris and Alameda County District Attorney Nancy E. O’Malley. This is the first enforcement action in California against a telecommunications company for its management of electronic waste.

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http://www.examiner.com/article/telecom-giant-at-t-penalized-51-8-million-for-hazardous-waste-violations

California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris

Valley recycling firms to get CalRecycle grants to reduce GHG emissions

Three San Joaquin Valley recycling businesses and five other state firms will share $19.5 million in newly established greenhouse gas reduction (GHG) grants, according to an announcement from the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) on Wednesday, November 18, 2014. The monies will be used to construct or expand new and existing facilities, and to upgrade equipment to allow the processing of more recycled materials.

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http://www.examiner.com/article/valley-recycling-firms-to-get-calrecycle-grants-to-reduce-ghg-emissions

New study warns of unhealthy indoor air pollution at the gym

Many residents of Bakersfield and the San Joaquin Valley, concerned about their health and physical fitness, hit the gym several times a week to get into or maintain their shape. Be it running on a treadmill, trudging up and down on a stair climbing machine, taking a spin class, or simply lifting weights, going to the gym has become a frequent habit for the healthy minded. However, except for the occasional turned-up nose when encountering a fellow gym member who, shall we say, has less than perfect personal hygiene, most people give little thought to the quality of the air that they breathe inside the gym when they workout.

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http://www.examiner.com/article/new-study-warns-of-unhealthy-indoor-air-pollution-at-the-gym

Modesto almond farmer learns the hard way not to ignore environmental laws

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced that it has penalized the owner of a proposed almond orchard for destroying nearly 33 acres of wetlands near Merced, California. Edward Lynn Brown, from Oakdale, California, who does business as California Healthy Harvest, a wholesaler of canned foods and nuts in Modesto, Stanislaus County, California, was fined $160,000. According to EPA's press release, he was also ordered to purchase and endow a conservation easement worth $1 million as part of the settlement.

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http://www.examiner.com/article/modesto-almond-farmer-learns-the-hard-way-not-to-ignore-environmental-laws