The House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power held a hearing on May 23, 2013 to discuss two bills pertaining to water resources. 

The first bill, H.R. 745, would reauthorize the Water Desalination Act of 1996 and extend funding for it through the 2018 fiscal year. Representative Grace Napolitano (D-CA) introduced the bill, which awards research grants for projects looking into best practices for water desalination techniques.

Representatives introduced four energy bills in May 2013: the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPR-A) Access Act (H.R. 1964); the Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security Act (H.R. 1965); the Planning for American Energy Act of 2013 (H.R. 1394); and the BLM Live Internet Auctions Act (H.R. 555). On May 22, 2013, the House Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing to discuss the proposed bills.

The EPA proposed Carbon Pollution Standards under the Clean Air Act to cut carbon pollution from new power plants to improve public health and curb the effects of climate change. According to the EPA, the standards would ensure that new power plants are built with available clean technology, and would coincide with investments in clean energy technologies that are already being made in the power industry.

The House Committee on Appropriations published their fiscal year (FY) 2014 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies appropriations bill this July. The bill met with strong opposition from House Democrats, who lambasted cuts that zero out approximately 20 programs and slash 34% from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) budget. The bill proposes $24.3 billion in total funding; $5.5 billion below FY 2013 levels, or 18 percent decrease. The Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Subcommittee has jurisdiction over many agencies, including the U.S.

On Tuesday, August 6, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) released a white paper entitled The Narrowing Window: America’s Opportunity to Join the Global Gas Trade. The paper provides a set of pro-growth policy recommendations based on in-depth studies and  analysis from a variety of sources, including government agencies, academia, think tanks, and the private sector.

Both the House and Senate passed crucial helium legislation this September to avert the shutdown of the federal helium reserve near Amarillo, Texas. The reserve provides the United States with 40 percent of its helium supply, and is critical for supplying the private sector with helium for hospital equipment, solar panels, and computer silicon chips. H.R. 527, the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013, passed with an amendment by the House and is expected to be signed by President Obama in the coming weeks.

Congressman Lamar Smith (R-TX), Chairman for the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, subpoenaed records from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) early this August. Rep. Smith hopes the records will show how the agency decided to instate newer and stricter air quality regulations in the United States. By subpoenaing the records, the committee wishes to independently verify the EPA’s decisions regarding the controversial regulations.

With Congress in recess for majority of August, little has changed within the budget since July.

The U.S. Geological Survey released a fact sheet summarizing a new national Water Science Strategy. The new strategy takes a comprehensive look at the country’s water needs for the next 5 to 10 years, and includes plans to build new infrastructure and capabilities to meet domestic water needs.

The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was established in 1987 to reduce the production and use of certain compounds that erode sections of the Earth’s stratosphere, making us more vulnerable to radiation. Now, a new study published in the Journal of Climate concludes that the Montreal Protocol did more than just protect us from radiation; it also helped lessen the effects of climate change.