• Cleanup of most contaminated U.S. groundwater sites unlikely for many decades

    At least 126,000 sites across the United States have contaminated groundwater that requires remediation, and about 10 percent of these sites are considered “complex,” meaning restoration is unlikely to be achieved in the next 50 to 100 years due to technological limitations; the estimated cost of complete cleanup at these sites ranges from $110 billion to $127 billion, but the figures for both the number of sites and costs are likely underestimates

  • DREAM Act could generate billions for U.S. economy

    A new study estimates that passing the DREAM Act would contribute $329 billion to the U.S. economy by 2030, or $18 billion a year; under the act, illegal immigrants would be able to go to school, work legally, obtain professional licenses, and enjoy other benefits, which will see them earn more, pay more in taxes, and consume more goods and services

  • Administrations temporarily waives some immigration measures in wake of Hurricane Sandy

    The Obama administration has waived immigration laws for illegal immigrants now in the United States, saying that the immigrants’ ability to maintain their lawful status or collect benefits has been effected by Hurricane Sandy; this measure will provide relief for immigrants, but some people are not happy with it

  • Long-term sea level rise could cost Washington, D.C. billions

    New study projects that the city of Washington, D.C., and federal property in the city, could suffer billions of dollars in damage if sea level rise as a result of global warming increases over the next century. Potential for significant damage will be even greater in the event of extreme weather like Hurricane Sandy

  • NY, NJ brace for nor’easter

    East Coast resident are still coping with the destruction wreaked by Hurricane Sandy, but now they have to prepare for another potentially destructive storm – a nor’easter which is expected to hit New York and new Jersey on Wednesday; the nor’easter will likely stay 50-100 miles off shore, but its western edges will bring winds of up to 55 mph, coastal flooding, up to two inches of rain along the shore, and several inches of snow to Pennsylvania and New York

  • Housing problems loom large in post-Sandy New York City

    As a result of Hurricane Sandy, New York City is now dealing with more than 40,000 people who do not have homes to go back to; Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that the number is the worst possible case given by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and 20,000 is a more realistic assessment of how many people are homeless; as of late Sunday, 182,000 residents of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut have applied for disaster assistance, and $158 million has been approved

  • Many NYC buildings to remain closed for weeks, months for clean-up, repairs

    Water and winds produced by Hurricane Sandy destroyed mechanical and electrical systems in many commercial and residential buildings in Lower Manhattan; as a result, many buildings in the area are weeks or months away from being repaired and fully operational

  • Obama, Romney differ on major homeland security issues

    Tomorrow, Tuesday 6 November, American voters will choose between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney as the next president of the United States; the state of the U.S. economy and the best ways to reduce unemployment and increase the pace of economic growth were at the center of the campaign, leaving little room for other issues. Homeland security issues, in particular, played little, if any, role in the campaign or in the three debates between the presidential candidates and the debate between the vice-presidential candidates; still, if we examine the policy proposals each candidate has made, and also examine the details of policies posted on his Web sites, the differences between the candidates’ approaches on three major homeland security issues – immigration, cybersecurity, and infrastructure – are considerable

  • States, localities to assume more responsibilities for rebuilding U.S. aging infrastructure

    Infrastructure in the United States is in bad shape; Maryland needs more than $100 million a year for its bridges; Virginia needs $125 million per year for roads that need repaving; Washington’s failure to create a long-term funding plan to repair the nation’s infrastructure is forcing state and local governments to fill the void in federal funding

  • Sandy in perspective

    Hurricane Sandy has left death and destruction in its path, and it broke a few records, but there were worse hurricanes; since 1900, 242 hurricanes have hit the United States; if Sandy causes $20 billion in damage, in 2012 dollars, it would rank as the seventeenth most damaging hurricane or tropical storm out of these 242; the Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 tops the list; Hurricane Katrina ranks fourth; from August 1954 through August 1955, the East Coast saw three different storms make landfall — Carol, Hazel, and Diane; each, in 2012, would have caused about twice as much damage as Sandy

  • Algeria agreed to join military campaign to oust Mali Islamic militants

    Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday met with Algeria’s president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, seeking Algeria’s support for an emerging international effort to evict Islamic militants out of northern Mali; Algeria has the region’s strongest military, a highly regarded intelligence service, a long border with Mali, and experience in fighting, and defeating, Islamic militants; the UN Security Council declared its “readiness” to send an international force to evict the militants

  • U.K. govt. awards £37.1 million for civilian nuclear research

    The U.K. Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has announced an award of 37.1 million pounds to the University of Sheffield’s Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Center (Nuclear AMRC), which are working in partnership with Rolls-Royce as the lead company for the U.K. nuclear supply chain

  • Rising sea levels make NYC vulnerable to more frequent, more intense floods

    Scientists say that Hurricane Sandy has forced a recognition on New York City and on other coastal communities: the steady rise in sea levels means not only more floods, but more frequent and more devastating floods; three of the top 10 highest floods at the Battery since 1900 happened in the last two and a half years; after rising roughly an inch per decade in the last century, coastal waters in New York are expected to climb as fast as six inches per decade, or two feet by midcentury; the city is exploring a $10 billion system of surge barriers and huge sea gates

  • New cell phone surveillance method raises privacy concerns

    The FBI is using a new method to access cell phone customer data,butthe American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) contends that the method is overly invasive

  • DHS grants help Kansas Law enforcement agencies buy new equipment

    DHS grants help local law enforcement agencies fight crime more effectively, but according to some, those same agencies are bypassing military grade surplus equipment for brand new shiny toys