Alabama Department of Environmental Management

The corruption case that didn’t matter

It was late 2014, early 2015 and the race to be the next president of the United States was just starting to heat up when word of nefarious actions at the Clinton Foundation started to circulate. The FBI was looking into the allegations, and from all outward appearances it seemed as if the Clintons were … Continued

Josh Moon

May 19, 2020

ADEM receives EPA grant to “help keep our waters clean”

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management recently received a $500,000 competitive grant from the U.S Environmental Protection Agency as part of ADEM’s efforts to keep trash out of Alabama’s waterways and from entering the Gulf of Mexico. ADEM’s “Help Keep Our Waters Clean” litter abatement project was one of 17 recipients of EPA’s 2020 Trash … Continued

May 15, 2020

State warns reopening businesses to flush water systems to avoid Legionnaires, other diseases

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management and the Alabama Department of Public Health issued a joint statement today urging businesses that are reopening after the easing of coronavirus restrictions to thoroughly flush and inspect their water and air conditioning systems to avoid creating other potentially deadly health hazards – Legionnaires’disease and other bacterial infections. Legionnaires’ … Continued

April 30, 2020

Alabama’s drinking water is safe during COVID-19 crisis, ADEM Director Says

Alabama’s drinking water is safe, so there’s no need to hoard cases of bottled water during the coronavirus crisis, according to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. “With so many things Alabamians have to worry about – their jobs, social distancing, the welfare of loved ones, gathering food and other necessities – the safety of … Continued

March 30, 2020

Opinion

How Alabama’s government stays broken

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist — or even any kind of scientist — to figure out that Alabama’s state government is broken. I mean, really, just look around. At the poverty, the poor education, the racism, the arrested public officials, the in-your-face public corruption and the complete disregard for the welfare of the majority … Continued

Josh Moon

February 19, 2020

Report: Climate change threatens 11 Alabama superfund sites

Natural disasters made more severe and more frequent by climate change are endangering 11 superfund sites in Alabama, according to a report released Monday by the U.S. government. The report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office urges the Environmental Protection Agency to take action to protect more than 900 superfund sites across the country from … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

November 22, 2019

Opinion

The water is poison and there’s no one we trust to fix it

There’s too much lead in the water in Lauderdale County. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management issued that alert on Thursday, and if ADEM issued an alert, after all of the pollution they’ve kept quiet about, you can bet No. 2 pencils must be falling from the taps. ADEM has recommended a number of steps … Continued

Josh Moon

September 13, 2019

Opinion

ADEM found E. Coli levels 35 times the danger level after Tyson spill. It didn’t tell anyone.

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management’s website should probably be the first clue that the department doesn’t understand its responsibility to alert the public to dangerous environmental issues. That website, which appears to be designed around the time people were still messaging in AOL chatrooms, states near the bottom that it is best viewed in … Continued

Josh Moon

September 5, 2019

Opinion

Whose side is ADEM on?

Imagine this scenario: A thief calls the local police and tells them that he’s been stealing from local homes and businesses, and that he plans to steal more. He tells the cops when and where he’s been stealing, and when and where he plans on stealing from in the future. And the cops tell him … Continued

Josh Moon

June 20, 2019

Opinion

ADEM: where corporations regulate themselves … maybe

Imagine, if you will, that your home is burglarized and you happen to catch the break-in on your surveillance video. You take it to the cops. They quickly ID the perpetrators of the crime. But instead of arresting the burglars, the cops tell you that they’re going to allow the burglars to go back to … Continued

Josh Moon

March 29, 2019