Erie Coke appeals $6.1M state air pollution fine (Public Opinion) ERIE, Pa.—Erie Coke Corp. is appealing more than $6.1 million in state air pollution fines that the company's owner say threatens the viability of its Erie plant. [News Source]

Give them their due. When Health Canada finally releases a major report on the health impacts of climate change, it will do so by posting it on the ministry website. The approach undermines the credibility of the federal government's commitment to addressing global warming. [News Source]

Smoke from fires eases, for now. Salinas Valley residents can now breathe a bit easier, literally. Northerly winds have blown smoke from the Basin Complex Fire away from the area, improving air quality significantly. [News Source]

Could we follow California, make shippers pay up? Sometime next month the California Legislature is likely to pass a bill that would place a $60 fee on each commonly sized container passing through three of its largest ports. [News Source]

BLM testing anti-dust solution. A short-term solution may be at hand to diminish damage to ancient rock art in Nine Mile Canyon, where big rigs serving gas drilling on the West Tavaputs Plateau are kicking up dust laden with corrosive salt. [News Source]

U of I dorm busy removing mold. Getting rid of mold from last month's record flooding has been the main focus for the largest University of Iowa dormitory to be ready by moving-in day on Aug. 18. [News Source]

Summer ozone levels may threaten health. The Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago (RHAMC) warns that as temperatures and humidity rise, levels of ozone smog and fine particulate matter (soot) also increase health problems. [News Source]

Bid for ‘eyeball’ soot monitoring failed in’90s. Alabama now uses light sensors to keep watch on smokestack emissions after previous efforts failed in the 1990s. [News Source]

State seeks EPA approval for new air regs. Gov. Bob Riley and the state's congressional delegation have petitioned the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to approve a new version of Alabama's smokestack law "without delay." [News Source]

League of Conservation Voters proposes green agenda for Yonkers. A leading environmental group this week called for a more environmentally sustainable city and issued a series of guidelines to make that possible. [News Source]

Paterson approves law on risky gas drilling. Gov. David Paterson signed a law Wednesday that makes it easier for natural gas companies to use an environmentally risky underground drilling technique, promising his administration will also give regulators more power to prevent damage that has occurred in other gas-producing states [News Source]