It Figures

$14.7 Million

The State of Ohio has been awarded a $14.7 million judgment against four defendants in a case involving a hazardous waste treatment facility that was not shut down properly. The Montgomery County Common Pleas Court found that Republic Environmental Systems Ohio Inc., formerly known as Ecolotec, failed to close the site in compliance with state hazardous waste regulations after it stopped operating the facility in Dayton in 1995. The site is within the city’s source water protection area. Soil and ground water samples indicate it remains contaminated. The money will be split between the state’s Hazardous Waste Cleanup Fund and the Ohio Environmental Education Fund’s Clean Diesel School Bus Fund. Other defendants include BRAC, Inc.; McCabe Engineering Corp. and Edward M. McCabe. AP

34%

A survey of adult motorcycle riders in South Dakota found that only 34 percent of them wear a helmet. State law requires a helmet for riders age 17 and under; it’s optional for anyone over 18. The state Office of Highway Safety commissioned the survey, the first of its kind in that state. AP

$16 Million

The federal government gave Wisconsin a $16.3 million grant to build a radio system that would allow emergency personnel to communicate across the state. Right now only a small number of mutual aid channels with limited range enable communication between emergency agencies. The state Office of Justice Assistance Interoperability Council is developing a statewide communications system. The grant will help cover the initial phase, which should provide 95 percent coverage across Wisconsin by using existing antenna towers and other infrastructure. AP

$1.3 Billion

The Army Corps of Engineers estimates that the cost of flood mitigation in North Dakota and Minnesota will range between $900 million and $1.3 billion. The Corps said a diversion channel through Minnesota, a similar channel through North Dakota or levees along the bank of the Red River are among the best flood control options for residents in the Moorhead-Fargo area. Six Minnesota diversion plans and three North Dakota alternatives that proposed channels or levees were studied. AP