I was elected House Chair of the Legislative Task Force on Sustainable Building Design and Practices at the group’s first meeting of the new biennium yesterday. We elected Sen. David Johnson (D-Little Rock) to serve as Senate Chair. I was also recently named to serve the newly-created position of Communications Chair for the House Democratic Caucus.
Official: Ark. natural gas regulations sufficient
A joint session of Agriculture, Forestry, and Economic Development spent nearly seven hours Tuesday discussing a package of Interim Study Proposals concerning natural gas production in Arkansas. The proposals, two of which I’m sponsoring, were first introduced during the 2011 legislation session. Since we met strong opposition, we sent the bills to study. Tuesday’s meeting marked the first step.
From BusinessWeek:
Arkansas’ top environmental official said Tuesday that she believes her department has “sufficient” regulatory authority over natural gas drilling in Arkansas but says she wants to keep additional inspectors funded through an agreement with the Game and Fish Commission.
Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Director Teresa Marks told lawmakers that she believed the current regulations on natural gas drilling are sufficient. She spoke at a hearing on proposals to increase regulation of natural gas drillers and a process they use called hydraulic fracturing.
From the Arkansas Times:
Arkansas last year had the highest hunger in the nation among children under 18, according to Feeding America. This year, though the percentage of hungry children has grown — from 24.4 percent last year to 28.6 percent this year — in Arkansas, other states have outpaced that rate, leaving Arkansas the third highest behind Oregon and Arizona (and the District of Columbia).
Arkansas: Disposal Well Is Ordered Closed
From The New York Times:
The Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission voted Wednesday to close a well used to dispose of natural gas fluids and ban the drilling of others in an area north of Conway where hundreds of earthquakes have struck. The well between Greenbrier and Enola is operated by Deep-Six Water Disposal Services, a subsidiary of Hurst Oil Investments Inc. The moratorium would not affect the drilling of natural gas wells, but it would change how fluids from the process are disposed. Gas companies have tapped natural gas by injecting water and chemicals under high pressure to fracture the shale, a process known as fracking. Those fluids are injected into separate wells for disposal. The commission pinpointed four wells that it said needed to be closed. Operators of three of the wells agreed to close them by Sept. 30. Deep-Six, which operates the fourth, says its disposal well does not cause any seismic activity.
Hmm. It would appear that only South Dakota, Kansas, and Arkansas have yet to report any grassroots planning sessions to Obama for America.
UPDATE: I’ve been assured that organizers have held grassroots planning sessions here in Arkansas. You can find OFA Arkansas on Facebook at facebook.com/ofa.ar.
A Deeper Look At Child Hunger in Arkansas
Our state, unfortunately, leads the country in the number of people living meal to meal. Data suggests that one in four children go hungry each day.
Empty shelves at food pantries and freezers tell the sad story. The Hunger Relief Alliance reports, demand for food banks is soaring, but less than 30 percent of those who get help from food banks receive benefits from SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and formerly known as food stamps.
“Some people don’t because of pride, they don’t want to feel like they can’t make it on their own,” said Galyean.
The Director of the Growth and Development Clinic at Arkansas Children’s Hospital Dr. Patrick Casey said, “We believe that families who take advantage of these programs, there are benefits to their children that are measurable.”
He continued, “If malnutrition occurs in the first 3 years of life, it increases the chance that the brain may be injured and if the brain is injured it sets the child up with long-term developmental problems.”
He sees about 5 children a week that are underweight come into his clinic. He said people do not use the programs because of the red tape.
Me and My Shadow
A Fayetteville High School student participating in an Upward Bound program at the University of Arkansas shadowed me for a few hours today. We took a tour of the new Nanoscale Science and Engineering Building on the University of Arkansas campus—which was fascinating—and we attended a dedication ceremony for the Northwest Arkansas Conservation Authority Regional Wastewater Conveyance System and Treatment Plant—which was less than fascinating, though the facility is absolutely critical to regional growth.
The four hours we spent together probably won’t rank as the highlight of her summer, but I do hope I encouraged her to further explore her political interests. We talked over lunch about the notable lack of women in politics. Her big concern: health care. And while I suspect she and I might have different ideas as to how best to reform the system, we both agreed that something must be done, and that it’s an incredibly complex issue.
Let’s Run Some
I came up with this in the last hour during a run this afternoon, so I haven’t really had time to think through everything. If it works, great; if not, no big deal.
After months away from running regularly, I’m trying to get back into the habit once again. I love running. It’s great exercise, and it provides time to think about things. It’s often easier (and more fun) to run with other people. Running with others usually makes it easier to stick to a training schedule, too.
So here’s the thing: I figure the first day of summer makes for a good time to kick off a challenge of sorts. If you run, or if you’re looking to start running, let’s keep track of our miles beginning Thursday, June 23, and ending on Thursday, September 22 (the last day of summer). That’s 91 days (or 13 weeks)—plenty of time to train for your first 5K or to be well on your way to running a full marathon. (Might I suggest our local Hogeye Marathon?) We can celebrate our individual achievements with a cookout at Wilson Park on Friday, September 23, and each head into the final stretch of 2011 a little bit healthier. (We’ll work out the details of the cookout along the way.)
Our collective goal: 17,500 miles, a number not chosen (completely) at random. This summer marks 175 years since Arkansas became a state. (That makes for a septaquintaquinquecentennial, by the way.) Why not 100 miles for each year? That’s just a little more than 1,346 miles each of the 13 weeks. Just 60 people running about 23 miles each week can hit the mark.
If you happen to use Nike+, I’ve set up a challenge here. If you have suggestions of your own, let me know. You can submit them here, or send an email to greg (at) gregleding (dot) com.
If you use Twitter, and you want to share your runs, tag them with #runsum11. I’m on Twitter at both @gregleding and @g. I’ll also post updates on Facebook at facebook.com/gregleding.
What do you say? Is this ridiculous?
