#metal cutting service Hampshire

[accujetltd]

Precision and Elegance: Metal Cutting Services and Laser-Cut Designs in Hampshire

Introduction

In today’s fast-paced industrial and creative markets, precision and efficiency are paramount. Businesses and individuals alike seek professional metal cutting services in Hampshire to meet diverse needs, ranging from intricate laser-cut designs to robust industrial applications. This blog explores the world of metal fabrication, highlighting the benefits of modern techniques, applications for laser-cut designs metal Hampshire, and why this region is becoming a hub for these services.

The Growing Demand for Metal Cutting Services in Hampshire

Why Choose Professional Metal Cutting Services?

In Hampshire, industries such as construction, automotive, and art rely heavily on professional metal cutting services in Hampshire for precision and durability. Key benefits include:

High Accuracy: Advanced machinery ensures cuts within tight tolerances.

Cost-Effective Production: Bulk orders become more economical with modern methods.

Customisation: Tailored solutions cater to specific designs and projects.

Industries Benefiting from Metal Cutting

Construction: Structural components and bespoke architectural elements.

Automotive: Custom parts and prototypes.

Art and Design: Creative laser-cut designs metal Hampshire for decorative and functional purposes.

Engineering: Components for machinery and tools.

Understanding Laser-Cut Designs for Metal in Hampshire

What Is Laser Cutting?

Laser cutting is a precise method of shaping metal by using focused light beams. This technique is popular for creating detailed laser-cut designs metal Hampshire, as it delivers:

Smooth Edges: Minimal need for post-processing.

Versatility: Suitable for various metals, including steel, aluminium, and brass.

Speed: Faster turnaround times compared to traditional methods.

Applications of Laser-Cut Designs

Decorative Panels: Aesthetic designs for interiors and exteriors.

Signage: Custom branding for businesses.

Furniture: Unique patterns for tables, screens, and other items.

Gift Items: Personalised metal gifts.

Why Hampshire Is a Hub for Metal Cutting and Laser Design

Skilled Professionals and Cutting-Edge Technology

Hampshire is home to many companies specialising in metal cutting services in Hampshire, thanks to its access to skilled labour and state-of-the-art equipment. The region's emphasis on innovation ensures customers receive high-quality solutions.

Sustainable Practices

Local firms increasingly adopt eco-friendly practices, such as recycling metal waste and using energy-efficient laser systems. This commitment enhances the appeal of laser-cut designs metal Hampshire for environmentally conscious customers.

The Process: From Concept to Completion

Step 1: Design Consultation

A professional team collaborates with clients to refine their concepts, ensuring feasibility and precision.

Step 2: Material Selection

Different projects require different metals. Common choices include:

Stainless Steel: Durable and corrosion-resistant.

Aluminium: Lightweight and versatile.

Copper and Brass: Ideal for artistic laser-cut designs metal Hampshire.

Step 3: Cutting and Finishing

Using advanced machinery, metals are cut with laser precision. Finishing touches like polishing or coating may follow.

Step 4: Delivery and Installation

Final products are delivered and, if required, professionally installed.

Key Advantages of Laser-Cut Designs in Hampshire

Customisation at Scale: From single pieces to bulk orders, customisation remains consistent.

Time Efficiency: Quick turnaround ensures deadlines are met.

Design Complexity: Intricate patterns are achievable without compromising quality.

Cost-Effectiveness: Reduced material wastage lowers overall costs.

Tips for Choosing the Best Metal Cutting Service

Check Credentials: Look for certifications and reviews.

Assess Machinery: Ensure they use modern, well-maintained equipment.

Request Samples: Evaluate their work quality firsthand.

Discuss Costs: Opt for transparent pricing to avoid hidden fees.

Consider Location: Local providers in Hampshire ensure faster communication and delivery.

FAQs

1. What metals can be used for laser-cut designs in Hampshire? Common options include stainless steel, aluminium, brass, and copper, depending on the project requirements.

2. How accurate are metal cutting services in Hampshire? Professional services offer high precision, often within fractions of a millimetre, suitable for intricate designs.

3. Can laser cutting be used for industrial purposes? Yes, laser cutting is ideal for industries such as automotive, construction, and engineering.

4. Are laser-cut designs durable? Absolutely. Laser-cut designs maintain structural integrity and durability while offering aesthetic appeal.

5. How long does it take to complete a laser-cut design project? The timeframe depends on the project's complexity, but many providers in Hampshire offer quick turnarounds for standard jobs.

Conclusion

For those seeking precision, creativity, and quality, Hampshire’s growing expertise in metal cutting services in Hampshire and laser-cut designs metal Hampshire makes it the go-to destination. Whether for industrial needs or artistic endeavours, these services ensure projects are executed with professionalism and attention to detail.

By choosing a reliable provider in Hampshire, you not only benefit from cutting-edge technology but also support local businesses committed to excellence and sustainability.

[sheetmetalwork]

Slash Costs with Custom Sheet Metal Boxes Made in Eastleigh

Looking for a more economical way to source sheet metal boxes and covers? Consider partnering with a local manufacturer like V and F Sheet Metal in Eastleigh. Here's how custom-made boxes manufactured in Eastleigh can save you money in the long run.

Reduced Transportation Costs: Forget expensive international shipping fees. V and F Sheet Metal operates right here in Hampshire. This eliminates the hefty costs associated with overseas transportation, putting more money back in your pocket.

Streamlined Communication: When you work with a local manufacturer, communication becomes a breeze. No more time wasted on language barriers or time zone differences. V and F Sheet Metal's team is readily available to discuss your project details and answer any questions you might have. This clear and efficient communication fosters a smooth production process, minimizing delays and potential cost overruns.

Minimised Material Waste: V and F Sheet Metal boasts state-of-the-art technology, including CNC laser cutting and bending machines. These high-precision tools ensure minimal material waste during the manufacturing process. This translates directly to cost savings, as you only pay for the sheet metal used in your custom boxes and covers.

Efficient Production for Lower Costs: V and F Sheet Metal's expertise in sheet metal fabrication goes far beyond cutting and bending. Their team can advise on the most efficient design for your specific needs. This not only optimizes the functionality of your boxes and covers but also minimizes production steps, ultimately reducing overall costs.

Investing in Durability, Saving in the Long Run: While initial cost might be a concern, custom-made sheet metal boxes manufactured in Eastleigh offer exceptional durability. Unlike mass-produced, off-the-shelf options, V and F Sheet Metal can create boxes and covers specifically designed for your application. This translates to a longer lifespan, reducing your need for frequent replacements and repairs, which can significantly impact your budget over time.

Local Expertise at Your Doorstep: By partnering with V and F Sheet Metal, you gain access to a wealth of experience and knowledge right here in Eastleigh. Their team has a proven track record of success in various industries, from electronics to lighting. This local expertise ensures they understand your specific needs and can tailor their services to optimize your project's cost-effectiveness.

So, if you're looking for a cost-effective solution for your sheet metal box and cover needs, consider the advantages of working with a local manufacturer like V and F Sheet Metal in Eastleigh. Their focus on efficient production, minimized waste, and readily available expertise can significantly impact your bottom line.

[thomascodevelopment]

Premium dry lining service in waterlooville | Tcdltd.co.uk

Transform Your Workspace with TCD Fit-Out: Leading Commercial Fit-Out Contractors in Hampshire

Welcome to TCD Fit-Out, your premier choice for top-quality commercial fit-out and refurbishment services in Waterlooville, Hampshire, and the surrounding areas. Since 2015, we've been committed to transforming commercial spaces into stylish, functional environments that foster productivity and success.

Tailored Fit-Out Services for Your Business

At TCD Fit-Out, we understand that every business is unique, which is why we offer a comprehensive range of services designed to meet your specific needs. Whether you're undertaking a full office renovation or making targeted improvements, our expert team is here to deliver exceptional results. Our services include:

Office Fit-Out and Refurbishment: With expertise in office transformations across Waterlooville, Hampshire, Portsmouth, and Petersfield, we manage every aspect of your project from design and planning to construction and final touches. Our aim is to create workspaces that embody your brand and enhance efficiency.

Suspended Ceilings: Offering professional installation of suspended ceilings in Waterlooville, our services ensure a sleek, modern look for your office. Additionally, we provide jointing, plastering, and premium dry lining services to suit your particular needs.

Shop Fitting: Revamp your retail space with our expert shop fitting services available in Waterlooville, Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton, and Petersfield. We specialise in creating attractive, customer-friendly environments that boost your business.

Metal Stud and Glazed Partitions: Improve your office layout with our metal stud and glazed partition installations. These partitions are ideal for creating private workspaces while maintaining an open and inviting atmosphere.

Why TCD Fit-Out Stands Out

Extensive Experience: With nearly a decade in the industry, our team has perfected the art of delivering superior fit-out and refurbishment services. Our experienced professionals are dedicated to achieving excellence in every project.

Comprehensive Solutions: From initial consultation through to project completion, we oversee every detail of your fit-out or refurbishment, ensuring a seamless and stress-free experience. Our all-encompassing services cater to all your commercial space needs.

Client-Focused Approach: At TCD Fit-Out, we place your vision and goals at the forefront. We collaborate closely with you to understand your requirements and offer bespoke solutions that align with your business aspirations.

Uncompromising Quality: We use only the finest materials and cutting-edge techniques to deliver durable and elegant results. Our dedication to quality and reliability has established us as one of Hampshire's foremost fit-out companies.

Serving Hampshire and Beyond

Located in Waterlooville, TCD Fit-Out proudly serves a wide area including Portsmouth, Gosport, Fareham, Havant, Southampton, Eastleigh, Petersfield, Midhurst, Chichester, and the surrounding regions of Hampshire and West Sussex. We're also equipped to undertake projects across the rest of the UK.

Contact TCD Fit-Out Today

Ready to elevate your commercial space? Reach out to TCD Fit-Out, the leading office refurbishment company in Waterlooville and beyond. Let us help you create an environment that not only meets your functional needs but also inspires and motivates your team.

For more information or to schedule a consultation, visit us at Basepoint Business Centre Office, 14 Waterberry Dr, Waterlooville PO7 7TH, United Kingdom, or give us a call. Our friendly and knowledgeable team is ready to assist you at every stage.

Choose TCD Fit-Out for all your commercial fit-out and refurbishment needs and experience the exceptional difference that expertise, quality, and personalised service can make. We look forward to partnering with you!

[shotblasting]

Experienced Sand Blasting London | Blast A Way 

Blast A Way is an experienced Sand Blasting Contractor in London with over 35 years of experience in the preparation of various metal surfaces. We've worked on anything from garden furniture to car/bike chassis and parts, and even the renowned Cutty Sark. Metal cleaning services may be required due to years of exposure to the environment and paint build-up, and we can handle any job size. Our cutting-edge rig enables us to attend to the boatyard, garage, or residential property and finish the job. Our employees are continually educated so that they can give the highest level of service to their clients.

Blasting is a superb way for recovering metal work, but choosing the right blast substance is crucial for a great finish. When it comes to metal cleaning, we have a variety of abrasives to choose from, including sand, grit, glass beads, and steel shots.

We also provide the following services at reasonable rates in addition to steel cleaning.

·         Brick Cleaning

·         Timber Cleaning

·         Restoring Wood

·         Cleaning Concrete

Our main goal is to ensure that every client is completely satisfied. We serve London, Hampshire, Berkshire, and Kent in addition to Essex. If you'd like to learn more about our services, please visit our website today or call us at 7770576858

[sheetmetalwork]

The Benefits of Choosing Custom Sheet Metal Plates from V and F Sheet Metal

If you’re in the market for custom sheet metal plates, there’s no better partner than V and F Sheet Metal. Based in Fareham, Hampshire, this family-run business has been crafting bespoke metal fabrications since 1985. Let’s explore why businesses across the UK trust them for their projects.

First, V and F combines decades of experience with cutting-edge technology. Their laser cutting process, powered by the Trumpf fibre laser, ensures precision and efficiency. Whether you need intricate designs or large-scale production, the process delivers reliable results. Moreover, their CNC bending capabilities allow for highly accurate folds and bends, even on complex shapes.

Another advantage lies in their tailored approach. Unlike off-the-shelf options, custom sheet metal plates are made to your exact specifications. Whether you require specific dimensions, materials, or finishes, their team collaborates with you to ensure the product fits seamlessly into your project. This is especially valuable for industries like lighting, where both functionality and aesthetics matter greatly.

Additionally, working with V and F saves time and effort. Thanks to their in-house capabilities, they can handle every stage of production under one roof, from initial design to final assembly. This reduces lead times and ensures a smoother workflow for your project.

Transitioning to cost considerations, custom sheet metal plates are surprisingly economical. By using advanced software and efficient production methods, V and F optimises material usage and minimises waste. This efficiency benefits businesses by reducing costs without compromising results.

Finally, their reputation speaks for itself. Serving industries like electronics, heating, and audio, V and F has built strong relationships with countless UK companies. Their commitment to meeting deadlines and exceeding expectations makes them a trusted choice.

In summary, choosing custom sheet metal plates from V and F Sheet Metal means investing in precision, versatility, and excellent service. With their combination of expertise and technology, they turn your design ideas into reality, keeping your project on track from start to finish. Why settle for less when you can get exactly what you need? Visit their website to learn more and start your next project today!

[moderndaymiserypodcast]

Chamberlain by Julia Messinger

           Catherine Howser is driving up Haymock Road northwest of Chamberlain Lake at 9:34 PM on a Friday eating a chocolate frosted donut.            Now, this is not an unusual occurrence; any person who took one look at Miss Howser would infer that donuts are indeed a snack she often partakes in. She is the type of woman to walk into a Dunkin Donuts and feel good about treating herself to her eighth donut of the week. In fact, at 35 and weighing a whopping 403 pounds, Catherine is much past the point of caring whether she’s gaining weight or not.            Currently she is busying herself with wiping the last greasy donut crumbs clinging to her hands onto her creamy yellow khakis, a shiny residue staining the fabric in the wake of her chubby fingertips. She has to maneuver her knees to guide the steering wheel on the icy December road.            Now, one could also infer that Miss Howser is not a married woman. They would be correct. She is, in fact, not taken, and hasn’t been since her freshman year of high school. Having not experienced anything but a little hand holding and a hug, it is fair to say that she is very well versed in being single.            She is currently rushing home to tend to her seven cats, as she is concerned that they may be getting lonely.            Catherine can feel a tightness in her upper back, blooming gradually and spreading under her shoulder blades. It comes with the task of slouching in a chair all day and sitting for the forty-five-minute drive home isn’t helping her case. She recalls the events of her meetings that day; there was a lot of talk about moving Sarah from customer service to the empty office on floor twelve as a birthday present. For some reason, Catherine’s boss really likes Sarah from customer service. At this moment, Catherine is wondering if there even was that much talk about moving Sarah from customer service. She thinks she just might have a case of selective hearing.            A loud thwap breaks Catherine out of her reverie. If she hadn’t been strapped into her seat, she probably would have jumped a foot in the air, and her resulting scream from being startled is louder than the original sound itself. She realizes she is swiftly drifting into the other lane and jerks her wheel right to swerve back, breathing heavily. Catherine can feel her heart pounding against her ribcage. At closer inspection, there is a little ding on the glass of her windshield; she can only assume that a rogue rock or pebble flew into the glass. Embarrassed by her reaction even though she is alone, Miss Howser begins to fiddle with the radio to distract herself.            This far out in Maine, most of the sound crackling from her speakers is static. Finally, she decides on listening to a Québécois radio show. If she’s lucky, they might play some French top hits every once in a while, but for now she is comforted by the sounds of foreign voices to accompany her on her way home.            She travels along the road at a comfortable speed of 50 MPH for the next five minutes. Being out on this specific roadway at this time of year and this late at night, Catherine hasn’t seen any cars for about twenty miles, and isn’t expecting to see any more for the rest of her drive home. Glancing at the clock, she realizes that it is now 9:57 PM and she will be home in about fifteen minutes. Some relief seeps into her body as thoughts of her memory foam couch slip into her head, and she imagines petting her calico cat Rocco as she falls asleep watching reruns of The Big Bang Theory on the DVR -            THWAP            Catherine screams even louder this time as the snapping sound comes from the glass of her driver’s side window. Her car careens into the left lane as her knee jams up into the small space between her leg and the wheel and yanks it to the left, and Catherine scrambles to pull the wheel back to the right. By the time she has settled back into the right lane, she has felt all of the color drain out of her face and her hands are clammy and shivering where they’re gripping the wheel. Slowing down considerably to a safe 30 MPH, Catherine turns her head to look at the glass of her driver’s side window. There is another ping of the same style as the one on her windshield, but now she is confused. Catherine doesn’t consider herself to possess any sort of higher intelligence, but by the look of the dent in her window, it doesn’t seem like the rock was spit out of her wheel. There would be a long, streaking line if that happened, especially with the grey slush coating the asphalt below her car. In fact, it doesn’t even look like whatever hit her window left any additional moisture there at all. It looks like it had hit it straight on.            Shaken up and flustered by being startled twice in ten minutes, Catherine turns the volume up on her radio. The nasally whirrs and hums of the French language flood her car with sound for about five seconds before the station completely cuts to static, scaring Catherine almost worse than she had been before. Finally, she smacks the volume button in frustration and effectively mutes everything coming out of her sound system.            Breathing heavily, Catherine runs through her possible options. At this point, she just wants to get out of her car and off of the road as soon as possible. Whatever is going on is freaking her out to no end, and the woman doesn’t know if her poor heart can take any more. I could pull over, she thinks, but that would mean that I wouldn’t get home as soon as I would if I stayed on the road. Ultimately, Catherine presses her right foot to the accelerator and feels the revving of the engine vibrate her seat as the speed of her Prius climbs to an almost-dangerous 60 MPH. Feeling confident that she would get home in under ten minutes, Catherine feels her fear slip away just a little bit.

A few minutes later, Catherine picks up her cell phone out of her purse and decides to send a text to her next-door neighbor, Brenda. She is beginning to become increasingly worried about her precious kitties not having eaten for upwards of nine hours, so she thinks it would be in their best interest for her to have Brenda check in on them.

Catherine turns up the radio and hums along to a familiar French tune as the road begins to unwind and she gets closer to her destination. Quickly, she receives a text from Brenda saying that she’s in her apartment and that the cats are being properly taken care of. Catherine smiles to herself, feeling her phone vibrate in her hand as another message comes through, temporarily taking her eyes off of the road to view a photo of one of her Siamese cats, Mittens.

Cooing out loud at the adorable kitty sticking her tongue out for the camera, Catherine types back: “OMG! Totes adorbs. Totally adding to my scrapbook!!”

Placing her phone on her thigh and continuing to drive, Catherine immediately feels a buzz come from her cell on her lap. Slightly confused but also excited to see her friend’s response, she grabs the device and presses the home button, only to see an alert saying: “!MESSAGE FAILED TO SEND!”.

Catherine’s brows furrow. This area normally never loses cell reception, and to her knowledge she hasn’t ever had trouble with her phone -

Suddenly a terrible radio static fills the cab of the car and Catherine chokes on an inhale, gripping the items in her hands (her phone and the wheel) so tightly she is afraid that the glass of her cell screen might shatter. She lets out a shaky, squealing breath and slams on the brakes.

There’s only one problem with that: the pedal offers no resistance and the car, if anything, begins to speed up.

This is when she really begins to panic.

Alright, Catherine thinks to her herself, pull the emergency brake, everything is going to be fine, just pull the emergency -

The woman feels her car jolt downwards on the suspension as something slams onto the roof of her Prius, and a scream of terror begins to make its way out of her throat when all sounds are drowned out by a screeching bending of metal and two dark tendrils dart their way through the mutilated chassis and plunge into her supple body, the sound of flesh tearing and bones grinding mixing with the sound of the whistling wind as her car climbs to almost 75 MPH. The last thing Catherine feels is her ribs snapping one by one, a black cloud overriding her vision.

As her car skids away over the slushy Maine roads, Catherine’s limp body is ripped out of the rogue vehicle and her phone slips out of her slack hand, flies up into the air, and flips a considerable amount of times before smashing face-up onto the snow-covered asphalt.

As the commotion travels farther away and Catherine’s body is nowhere to be seen, the cracked screen flashes on with a text message from Brenda, the phone glitching as a smiley face emoticon is barely visible through the haze before everything flickers to black.

About the Author: Julia Messinger is a Junior at Keene State College in Keene, New Hampshire. She enjoys reading horror novels on her porch and hanging out with her dogs, George and Buddy. Her goal is to eventually become a part of a publishing team for young adult or adult novels. 

[deannadupont]

The William H Stevens Covered Bridge in Highlands NC. At the start of the 20th century, before the widespread use of steel in bridge construction, there were nearly 12,000 wooden covered bridges in America. A century later, all but about 800 have disappeared. One of those casualties was the Bagley Bridge in New Hampshire where it crossed the Warner River. Deemed unfit for vehicular and pedestrian traffic, city officials in Warner decided to have it removed. One of the few master covered bridgewrights in the country, Arnold M. Graton purchased the old structure in 1966 and placed it in storage. Thought to be New Hampshire's oldest covered bridge, the Bagley Bridge was removed without much public remorse. Forty years later, the one of a kind, old-growth white pine bridge was taken out of storage, placed on a transport and delivered to the Bascom Center in North Carolina. Once in Highland, Graton, with the help of DCF Engineering, reassembled the distinctive Ithiel Town lattice style bridge, creating a one-of-a-kind entrance to the art center. Nearly 60 percent of the bridge material had to be replaced, but Graton used no metal fasteners or supports of any kind. Over 1100 tree-nails, dowels and trunnels rejoined the bridge members. Replacement timbers were cut 20 years ago from Graton's family property, naturally dried and now ready for service. Completed in 2009, the 200 year old bridge is a tribute to conservation, foresight and love of these historic structures. (at Franklin, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFpC-xejM9Z/?igshid=olcmfxm95upz

[weworldnewsforalllove-blog]

Brutal mass #brawl erupts at charity #MMA bout as smartly-dressed revellers smash metal chairs over each other and hurl punches while security staff desperately battle to stop carnage The charity wrestling match in Portsmouth descended into mass violence Video shows one man apparently deliberately picking up a chair and viciously bringing it down over the head of an unsuspecting victim Chairs fly through the air over the heads of suited men punching and wrestling The event should have been refereed amateur MMA fights for Cancer Research By JOEL ADAMS FOR MAILONLINE PUBLISHED: 11:51 GMT, 25 March 2019 | UPDATED: 13:04 GMT, 25 March 2019

As the video begins two baying mobs can be seen squaring up to one another, being held apart by yellow-jacketed stewards, while black folding chairs fly dangerously through the air over their heads, thrown by people at the back of the crowd out of shot. #online One man is hit on the shoulder by a spinning chair leg and seems to push forward, as a steward falls to the floor under the press of men moving forward.

Liquid is thrown by one sharp-suited man while another picks up a chair and hurls it violently into the opposing crowd only to slip on the wet floor underfoot and fall down.

A small knot of fighting men forms and vicious punches are thrown, including some which seem to hit the staff trying to keep the peace in the rapidly escalating brawl.

One large red-haired man can be seen taking two vicious jabs to the jaw and staggers backwards.

As the violence escalates one man apparently deliberately picks up a chair and brings it down viciously on the back of the head of the man in front - who is oblivious of what is about to unfold

Two men fall to the ground fighting each other and have to be separated by stewards

At another point, a man is seen choking another in a headlock until he is hauled away.

Then two or three men fall to the ground wrestling and are pulled apart by a group of three stewards.

Behind them, a thin black-haired man raises a folded chair over his head, apparently deliberately, and brings it down violently on the back of the head of a man in front of him, who was unaware the blow was coming and bows his head in pain after being hit.

As the fight progresses a man close to the camera punches another man hard in the face, before the pair are restrained by stewards.

As the video ends, a man is heard shouting out: 'This is for charity, for f***'s sake!'

The footage was taken at a charity event in aid of Cancer Research UK, in Portsmouth, Hampshire, on Saturday evening.

The event's website boasts: 'Ultra MMA hold amazing, glamorous black tie events across the UK.

'Enjoy an evening of fantastic fights and support our participants who have trained hard for eight weeks to step in the cage and raise money for Cancer Research UK.'

The event had a strict dress code and amateurs who had trained for eight weeks were set to step into a caged wrestling ring to raise money for the charity. But the extraordinary violence of the crowd captured on camera contrasted sharply with the suits and ties worn by the participants.

Each VIP table at the event, which seats ten people with waitress service, cost £400 to book.

The event insisted: 'We operate a VERY strict dress code policy - Minimum Shirt, Tie, Trousers and Shoes for the Men. Evening dresses for ladies, or suitable smart trousers and a blouse. No Jeans, Trainers, Chinos, Leggings, Checked Shirts or Scruffs. Please Dress to impress.'

A spokeswoman for Hampshire Constabularly said police were called to a public order incident at around 9.50pm on Saturday at the Mountbatten Centre.

One 46-year-old man was treated for cuts and bruises but no arrests were made.

A spokesperson for Ultra Events said: 'On Saturday in Portsmouth a number of members of the audience became involved in an incident at an event.

'We understand it must be very upsetting for the people who came along to support their friends and family taking part in the event.

'Since 2015, we have staged 15 events in Portsmouth with, in excess of 10,000 spectators which have all taken place without incident.

'Ultra Events were not responsible for the security on the evening, this was the responsibility of BH Live, who run the venue.

'A total of £156,675 has been raised for Cancer Research UK in Portsmouth through Ultra Events with over 750 taking part, those taking part in Saturday night’s event raised over £8,500.

'This weekend Ultra Events staged 40 events and over the course of the year we stage a total of 450 such events.

'So far our events have raised more than £17 million for Cancer Research UK.'

MailOnline has contacted the Mountbatten Centre, and Cancer Research for comment.

Share or comment on this article: Brutal brawl erupts at charity MMA bout as smartly-dressed revellers smash chairs over each other

[ntrending]

The most important science policy issue in every state

New Post has been published on https://nexcraft.co/the-most-important-science-policy-issue-in-every-state/

The most important science policy issue in every state

Wildfires burning around the West. Rising seas lapping at the East. Animal feces, coal ash, and fertilizer fouling waterways from the Carolinas to the Midwest. Bridges, roads, and pipelines crumbling across the country. With the midterm elections less than a month away, communities across the United States face some of the most formidable scientific, environmental, and technological challenges in decades. On November 6, voters from Alaska to Florida will choose not just their next governor, state representative, or member of Congress, but to some degree how we live for decades to come. “This is the most important election of our lifetime,” says Bill Holland, New Mexico policy director for the League of Conservation Voters.

In the 36 gubernatorial and 470 congressional races around the country, some of these challenges, like opioids and fossil fuels, are campaign issues, while others, such as climate change’s role in severe wildfires, don’t appear on any candidates’ platform. But, whether these matters are on their minds, the victors will face them once sworn in. Their decisions will help shape how well storm-ravaged communities adapt, whether the water is safe to drink, how open our internet will be, and more.

These are the top science, technology, or environment issues facing each state—plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. Even if it never surfaces on the campaign trail, science is always on the ballot.

Scroll through, or use the links below to jump to your state:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Washington, D.C., West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming

Alabama: Keeping drinking water drinkable

With more than 100 mines, the Black Warrior River watershed is one of the largest coal-producing regions in the South. It also provides drinking water for Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, and other Alabama cities. While the mines employ hundreds of people, runoff from the operations carries heavy metals, acids, and sediment into waterways. Strip mining—in which workers scrape the surface of a mine and dump waste rock into valleys that run into river valleys—is one of the worst culprits. Environmental groups, including the Black Warrior Riverkeeper, say the Alabama Department of Environmental Management has failed to enforce laws that would protect water quality in the region. They’ve filed several lawsuits to compel the department to address the issue.

Alaska: Guarding calving grounds

The 19-million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is home to North America’s largest caribou herd. It also encompasses what energy companies believe is the biggest untapped oil and gas reserve left in the U.S. Companies have angled to drill in the refuge’s coastal plain for almost four decades, but congressional attempts to open the lands failed amid concerns that it would damage the caribou’s calving areas. Now, the industry might get its wish. Last year, Congress authorized drilling in the area as part of a tax reform bill, and directed the Bureau of Land Management to offer oil and gas leases to energy companies by 2024. BLM has received a proposal for seismic exploration of the 1.6-million-acre plain this coming winter. Longtime drilling proponent Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski and other supporters say development would be limited to no more than 2,000 acres. But a U.S. Geological Survey study of the effects of such development on caribou found that the animals avoided calving in any areas with concentrations of drilling infrastructure, which could cause the mammal’s numbers to dwindle. Similar studies also found that the herd avoids areas near oil and gas fields in the Canadian side of its range.

Arizona: Water conservation

For decades, two massive reservoirs—Lake Mead on the Arizona-Nevada border and Lake Powell on the Arizona-Utah border—have stored water from the Colorado River for cities and farms in Western states, including California, Nevada, and Arizona, as well as Mexico. But a triple whammy of prolonged drought, this past winter’s paltry Rocky Mountain snowpack (which feeds the river’s lower basin), and years of overuse by cities, farms, and factories have left levels low enough to risk a water shortage—the first ever—within the next two years. By the end of this year, Lake Mead will be at 1,080 feet above sea level, just 5 feet above the threshold that triggers the declaration of a shortage. If that happens, under agreements among the states that share the basin’s water, Arizona and Nevada, who have the most junior rights in the basin, would face the biggest cuts. Grand Canyon State water managers recently began drafting a drought contingency plan to soften the blow through conservation and other measures. The team hopes the legislature will approve the plan when it reconvenes in January.

Arkansas: Monitoring confined animal feeding operations

The animal waste and dirtied water flowing out of high-density hog farms, a type of confined animal feeding operation (CAFO), have troubled clean-water advocates for years. The fate of Arkansas’ largest—C&H Hog Farms, a 6,500-head facility in the Buffalo River watershed—could determine the collective destiny of all other CAFOs in Arkansas. In operation since 2012, the facility has been hotly contested by some residents and local environmental organizations, including the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance and the Ozark Society. The groups worry that the estimated 2.5 million gallons of annual waste will leak into waterways and cause harmful algae blooms (rapidly growing colonies that produce toxins) downstream. The state Department of Environmental Quality suspended permitting of other CAFOs in the area, and, earlier this year, continued its crackdown by denying the facility’s renewed operating permit. C&H has appealed the decision.

California: Forging paths forward

To some degree, California and its nearly 40 million residents face almost every issue in the country. Where the Golden State sets itself apart, though, is in how its solutions to those issues can often set a national standard.

Climate change is at the root of its most pressing issues—a five-year drought, more-frequent wildfires, and water scarcity—but the state’s long-running push to expand renewable energy is facing challenges. Gov. Jerry Brown and some state lawmakers worry that President Trump’s embrace of fossil fuels will interfere with state’s 12-year-old effort to cut greenhouse-gas emissions and its new plan to go carbon-free by 2045. Thanks to a range of measures—capping industrial emissions, setting high vehicle fuel-efficiency standards, and providing incentives to switch to solar—the initial plan has met its goal of slashing greenhouse gases to 1990 levels four years ahead of schedule. (That’s more ambitious than targets in other states, which aim to cut emissions to higher 2000 levels.) In August, however, the Trump administration proposed revoking California’s authority to impose its own automotive standards. These and other federal climate-change rollbacks might be enough to sway voters, according to some analysts.

The state is also a bellwether in the national debate about internet freedom. Home to the nation’s leading tech companies, California is working to fill the regulatory vacuum left by the June federal repeal of Federal Communications Commission net neutrality regulations. This past August, state lawmakers passed a bill that will bar internet-service providers from slowing or blocking websites, and restrict “zero-metering,” the practice of not counting preferred services and apps against a customer’s monthly data limits. But days after Gov. Brown signed the bill into law in September, the Justice Department filed a legal challenge against it, arguing that internet runs between states, and is therefore subject to federal oversight.

Colorado: Quelling wildfire

The Spring Creek Fire scorched 108,000 acres of southern Colorado in July, making it the third-biggest blaze in the state’s history—and this past summer was its worst fire season in more than a decade. While August monsoons diminished the risk, the burns’ effect on vegetation led to another problem: floods. Without roots to hold the soil, sheets of water overflowed waterways and washed out roads. In the coming years, a Centennial State collaboration with the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder could help officials and land managers prepare for the next big burn. The prediction system will combine weather data, vegetation type, topography, and fire-behavior models to determine where a blaze will spread, how severe it will become, and how it will behave. The project, which is in the testing stage, has bipartisan support in the statehouse.

Connecticut: Bad air days

During a heatwave this past August, health officials issued a warning that has become very familiar to residents of the Nutmeg State: Elderly folks and people with asthma should stay indoors until smog levels subside. Air pollution remains a problem throughout the Northeast, but Connecticut has it worst: For two out of the past three years, the state has had 30 bad air days—when levels of ground-level ozone, a component of smog produced by vehicles and other sources, reached levels that could lead to asthma attacks and breathing problems. Neighboring Massachusetts, the state with the next-worst quality in the region, experienced about 3. The daily crush of commuters on I-95 is part of the problem; transportation accounts for 36 percent of emissions, according to the state’s 2013 greenhouse gas inventory (its most recent). Connecticut is also a victim of geography: It sits below an air-current highway that streams pollution from coal-fired power plants in Midwestern states. The state is one of 19 (including the District of Columbia) challenging the Trump administration’s decision to freeze fuel-economy standards for cars and sport utility vehicles at 2020 levels. Gubernatorial candidate Ned Lamont is among those making noise about the decision and has also vowed to put more electric vehicles on the road; challenger Bob Stefanowski has not taken a position on the issue.

Delaware: Blocking offshore drilling

Tiny Delaware is mostly coastal, and its economy relies heavily on beach tourism. In 2016, nine million visitors generated $500 million in tax revenue. So when President Trump announced plans to open most of the nation’s coastline to offshore energy development, state officials—worried about tourism-killing oil spills and unsightly derricks—swiftly moved to fill the regulatory vacuum. This past June, lawmakers passed a bill that bans offshore oil and gas drilling in the state. Gov. John Carney, who has spoken out against Trump’s plan, signed the measure September 20. While state waters extend only 3.5 miles offshore, companies wanting to develop in the zone would still have to get state permission to build pipelines and other infrastructure. The bill grants local regulators the authority to deny such permits. Companion legislation also empowers the state to take legal action to challenge oil and gas leases in federal waters.

Florida: Coastal protection

With 8,436 miles of coastline, more of Florida is at risk from sea-level rise than any other continental U.S. state. A recent University of Florida study found that levels rose more than 0.79 inches per year between 2011 and 2015 along the Sunshine State’s east coast. A May report by the Union of Concerned Scientists predicted that, in a worst-case scenario, three Florida communities, including two in the Keys, could experience double the current rate of tidal flooding by 2030; by 2045, 15 more communities, including Miami Beach, could see increased inundations; and 14 more, including Cocoa Beach-Cape Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale, and Jacksonville Beaches, would be regularly swamped by 2060. Despite this and other analyses, local lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott have resisted statewide efforts to prepare for a waterlogged future. Some coastal communities are beginning to adopt their own measures to deal with the rising waters; Miami Beach, for example, has redesigned stormwater-drainage systems and plans to raise roads by 2 feet—although some residents have fought those efforts, saying elevating streets could hurt property values.

Georgia: Conserving marshland

Georgia harbors one-third of the East Coast’s remaining salt marshlands, which filter pollutants, buffer against storm surges, and provide habitats for birds, shrimp, crabs, and other wildlife. But the Peach State’s marshes are in trouble. A recent University of Georgia analysis found a 35 percent drop in vegetation along the coast over the past 30 years. A spike in temperatures and prolonged drought are largely to blame—as is encroaching development. As building continues, legislative pushback has been sparse: A bill, introduced by state Rep. Matt Dubnik, would create a specialty license plate to generate funds to support wetlands conservation and restoration.

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Hawaii: Reconciling wildlife protection and green-energy development

The Aloha State and California share the most ambitious green-energy target in the nation: One-hundred percent of the archipelago’s electricity must come from renewable sources like wind and solar by 2045. But the proliferation of wind turbines has come with an unexpected cost. The structures are killing large numbers of endangered Hawaiian hoary bats, the state’s only native land mammal. Under a special provision of the Endangered Species Act, a trio of Hawaiian wind farms secured a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to cover the accidental “take” of 92 bats over 25 years, but they’ve reached that limit in just six. Earlier this year, wind generators asked the agency to raise the limit to 483 bats. To receive the expanded permit, the companies will have to show what measures they’ll take to minimize harm to the bats—such as shutting off turbines when winds are mild to avoid collisions, and using ultrasonic sound to shoo the critters from the blades.

Idaho: Sharing the forests

For decades, Western states have sought greater say in how the government manages federal land within their borders. The fracas has often ended up in court, but Idaho Gov. Butch Otter and other officials have come up with a compromise that could help ease those tensions—at least relating to the state’s 20 million acres of federal forests. Under the new “good neighbor” plan, foresters will work alongside U.S. Forest Service officials on federal projects, such as thinning overcrowded areas to reduce wildfire risk. “We’ve made a lot of progress on the politics of forest management,” says John Freemuth, a professor of public policy at Boise State University. Policymakers and public land advocates around the West are keeping an eye on how the new collaboration plays out.

Illinois: Cleaning up the Great Lakes

Fifty years ago, the Great Lakes—the world’s largest source of freshwater—were widely polluted. But after a decades-long federal cleanup effort, the lakes have begun to rebound. The upward trend might be in jeopardy, though. A June executive order, which revoked a 2010 order by President Barack Obama to protect and restore Great Lakes ecosystems, could open the door to oil and gas development—and the potential for spills that could foul drinking water and harm aquatic life. Congressional candidate Sean Casten, a biochemical engineer and clean-energy entrepreneur, has made Great Lakes protections a campaign issue, accusing incumbent Rep. Peter Roskam of not doing enough. Though it should be mentioned that Roskam has fought a separate Trump effort to defund the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, aimed at protecting water quality and ecosystem health.

Indiana: Containing coal ash

The Hoosier State has more coal-ash disposal ponds than any other, and tests show groundwater near 15 power plants is contaminated with a cocktail of cobalt, lead, arsenic, boron, molybdenum, radium, and thallium. So when the EPA announced in July changes to coal-ash regulations adopted by the Obama administration, the Hoosier Environmental Council and other advocates in Indiana warned that the move could leave more of the state’s water resources vulnerable to pollution. The new rule ditches the requirement that state officials force coal companies to monitor groundwater, and gives states more flexibility in determining how companies should handle ash dumps. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management has indicated it will now loosen requirements; though some companies, such as the Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), have said they plan to continue monitoring groundwater and proceed with coal-ash pond closures.

Iowa: Curbing farm pollution

Phosphorus and nitrogen runoff from the Hawkeye State’s farms has worsened: Nitrogen alone increased 47 percent over the past five years, according to a recent University of Iowa study. This is in spite of a five-year-old plan to reduce nutrient pollution by 45 percent. And what happens in Iowa doesn’t stay in Iowa. These nutrients flow into waterways that eventually pollute the Gulf of Mexico, where they feed the area’s infamous “dead zone.” The overload feeds massive algae blooms that cause oxygen levels in the now 8,776-square-mile swath to drop so low that marine life can’t survive, threatening the region’s seafood industry.

Kansas: Dry-cleaning chemicals in residents’ water

This past summer, an investigation in the Wichita Eagle newspaper found that hundreds of residents drank and bathed in water fouled with the dry-cleaning chemical perchloroethylene (PCE) for more than six years—and that state officials failed to inform the communities. At one site, PCE levels in the groundwater were 8.1 parts per billion; EPA limit is 5 ppb. As many as 22 other contaminated sites may have gone unaddressed, according to the investigation. A 1995 state law lobbied for by the dry-cleaning industry appears to be largely to blame. The Kansas Drycleaner Environmental Response Act included a provision that directed state regulators to refrain from looking for contamination from dry cleaners and “make every reasonable effort” to keep sites off the EPA’s Superfund list. Residents are calling for the state to scrub up the areas and for lawmakers to strike the part of the legislation that bars checking for PCE leaks in groundwater.

Kentucky: Fighting opioid abuse

More than 1,500 people died from drug overdoses in the Bluegrass State in 2017, an 11 percent increase over 2016—with heroin, fentanyl, or both involved in many of them. State lawmakers are taking a multipronged approach to tackling the problem: They’ve limited fills to three days (rather than the five- to seven-day bars in most states) to keep doctors from overprescribing the meds; state Attorney General Andy Beshear has sued seven pharmaceutical companies for failing to disclose how addictive their painkillers are; and a bipartisan bill to legalize medical cannabis, which for some could be used as an alternative pain medication, will likely be reintroduced in the 2019 legislature. “We’re still not taking this seriously enough,” Gov. Matt Bevin cautioned at the National Governors Association meeting in July.

Louisiana: Land loss

More than 2,000 square miles of Louisiana have slipped into the Gulf of Mexico since 1932. (Even a lab that studies flooding might have to move because of rising waters.) Encroaching seas are only partly to blame; erosion and subsidence—sinking of the land because of its underlying geology—allow water to encroach farther than it otherwise would. The loss of storm-surge-buffering wetlands also puts the shoreline at greater risk during severe weather. Hundreds of thousands of homes, economically important fisheries, and tourist centers like New Orleans are all in the danger zone. Now, the state has a plan to fortify the coast. Initiatives include restoring wetlands, and breaching barriers to reconnect the Mississippi River with its floodplain and deliver land-building sediment. But finding enough funding to implement the $50 billion plan has been a challenge, in part because of lower-than-expected oil and gas revenues that help fund the program.

Maine: Keeping smog in check

This past July, Maine Gov. Paul LePage asked the EPA to exempt much of the state from the Ozone Transport Region air-quality program. Created under the Clean Air Act, the 11-state partnership monitors and limits emissions that cross state lines. Under the regulation, the Pine Tree State’s paper and lumber mills must cut pollutants such as the volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides that contribute to smog. LePage, at the behest of the forest-products industry, contends that Maine contributes little to the Northeast’s smog issue; environmental groups, including the Natural Resources Council of Maine, however, say that the coalition is why the state’s ozone levels remain low, and that backing out would only dirty up their air.

Maryland: Protecting the Chesapeake

The Chesapeake Bay defines Maryland. The estuary—the third largest in the world—runs down the state’s middle, and generates billions of dollars each year in recreation, tourism, and seafood revenues. For decades, pollution from industries, farms, and cities in the watershed was so severe that crab and oyster populations shrank, spurring the EPA to mandate a cleanup in 2010. Halfway to the 2025 deadline, progress has been uneven: The watershed states (Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New York—plus Washington, D.C.) have cut phosphorus and sediment, but, according to a July report, there’s still too much nitrogen. Common in fertilizer, the chemical washes off fields and causes oxygen-sucking algae blooms. The EPA has asked the states for specific nitrogen-reduction plans in the next phase of restoration.

In some corners of the Bay watershed, cities are also struggling to cope with a 55 percent increase in heavy rains. Ellicott City, a nearly 250-year-old town in Howard County, has experienced two once-in-a-millennium-level floods within two years—the latest delivering 8.4 inches of rainfall and a 17-foot surge. Hydrologists suspect a number of factors are to blame, including the conversion of forests to pavement and a lack of flood infrastructure. Parts of Baltimore, Anne Arundel, and Prince George’s counties also dealt with increased flooding this year, but the state’s elected officials are divided over what to do. They passed a measure in 2012 requiring municipalities to reduce the risk by installing new flood-taming infrastructure paid for by a new “stormwater fee;” The law was repealed after critics maligned it as a “rain tax,” but environmental advocates and affected residents are pushing officials to reinstate it.

Massachusetts: Aging gas lines

A series of explosions along natural-gas pipelines in Lawrence, Andover, and North Andover, Massachusetts, on September 13 killed one person, injured 25, and sparked several fires. The event has focused attention on delivery safety—especially in states with aging infrastructure. Initially, inspectors found that the pressure in the pipes just before the explosions was 12 times what’s normal: 6 pounds per square inch instead of 0.5 pounds; a recent report tips ongoing repairs on old iron pipes as the root cause. Families affected by the blast have filed a class-action lawsuit against Columbia Gas of Massachusetts for negligence. Massachusetts has some of the oldest conduits in the country, and the incident has drawn the attention of officials elsewhere who are also dealing with the problem of outdated infrastructure. The National Transportation Safety Board and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration have issued warnings to utilities that aging pipelines need to be replaced for years. But it isn’t cheap: New pipelines can cost more than $1 million per mile.

Michigan: Updating infrastructure to prevent water poisoning

Four years after lead contamination in Flint’s drinking water made national headlines, Michigan has adopted the strictest lead rules in the U.S. In June, regulators finalized requirements to eliminate lead service lines by 2040. “As a state, we could no longer afford to wait on needed changes at the federal level,” Gov. Rick Snyder said in a statement. Under the new Michigan Department of Environmental Quality standards, public water utilities will have to swap out the state’s 500,000 lead pipelines, and cut the amount of lead in drinking water below 12 parts per billion (the EPA limit is 15 ppb). Utilities, which will have to pay for the work, say replacing the lines will be too costly and won’t necessarily prevent another Flint-like crisis. A big part of the problem there, they note, is that the city failed to add anti-corrosion chemicals when it switched its water source to the Flint River. The new rules do not require corrosion-control evaluations when municipalities turn to alternate sources. Gubernatorial candidate and former State Senate Democratic Leader Gretchen Whitmer has proposed a replacing the state’s aging water infrastructure faster. Her opponent, state Attorney General Bill Schuette, led the investigation of the crisis that resulted in charges against 15 former and current Flint and state officials.

Minnesota: Minding mining

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is famous for its crystalline waters, evergreen forests, and moose herds. But just upstream in Superior National Forest lie rich deposits of copper and nickel, and mining companies are making a new bid to plumb the precious metals. Amid concerns from some residents, the outdoor recreation industry, and some lawmakers that the earth-moving could send mercury and arsenic into the protected area, the Obama administration placed a moratorium on mining in the area in late 2016. The Trump White House has peeled back those rules and recently gave Twin Metals Minnesota (a subsidiary of a Chilean company) the go-ahead to dig on the lands. Another firm, PolyMet Mining Co., wants to extract copper and nickel in the nearby Lake Superior watershed. The issue has divided residents: Outdoor recreation outfitters and environmental groups are suing to overturn the decision. Meanwhile, mining interests, some labor unions, and a few politicos are defending the mines as job creators. Rep. Rick Nolan, who angled for the lands to be opened up (they’re in his district), is not running for re-election; both candidates vying for his seat, Pete Stauber and Joe Radinovich, also support mining in the area, as do gubernatorial hopefuls Tim Walz and challenger Jeff Johnson.

Mississippi: Rebuilding bridges

Failing infrastructure is a problem across the country, but in Mississippi, it’s a full-blown crisis. Nearly 500 bridges are in such disrepair that the state Department of Transportation (DOT) had to close them—in some cases isolating rural residents. Communities and local businesses are pressing Magnolia State lawmakers to fix the deteriorating thoroughfares, but measures to deal with the problem have yet to gain traction. After the tax-averse legislature failed to pass a repair plan this past March, Gov. Phil Bryant announced that the DOT would immediately close another 83 bridges. Engineers and inspectors deemed the aging crossings unsafe for vehicles.

Missouri: The fake-meat debate

Missouri has become the epicenter of a fracas between meat producers and the burgeoning “fake meat” industry, a market that has jumped 24 percent since 2015. This past May, the legislature passed a bill that bars makers of flesh substitutes from using the word “meat” on their labels. Backed by the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association and pork producers, the bill could stifle growth of a new industry, according to meat substitute producers. Columbia-based Beyond Meat, for instance, could likely have to change its name, and warns that the measure could result in job loss. The company, together with University of Missouri researchers, has developed plant-based burgers, chicken strips, and sausages that closely resemble real meat. Beyond Meat CEO Ethan Brown says the bill would do little to convince consumers to opt for the real thing. In late August, vegan food maker Tofurky, along with the Animal Legal Defense Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri, filed suit against the state, arguing that the new law stifles free speech and hampers competition.

Montana: Land use

What activities—mining, logging, livestock grazing, recreation—should and should not be allowed on Montana’s 27 million acres of federal land has been a flashpoint in Big Sky Country for decades. This year, access advocates have 29 Wilderness Study Areas in their sights, but these untrammeled tracts are good candidates for permanent congressional protection. At the behest of state lawmakers, Rep. Greg Gianforte has introduced two bills in Congress to allow logging and mining on the largely untouched areas. Environmental groups argue the lands, which total 690,000 acres, are worth protecting. At public discussions on Gianforte’s bills held in August—including one hosted by challenger Kathleen Williams—Montanans expressed a range of views on the measures: Some are worried about the impact on wildlife and ecosystems, while others hope for access for off-road vehicles and economic gains from diversifying permitted uses on the lands.

Nebraska: Expanding internet access

Nebraska’s 1.9 million residents are spread over 76,824 square miles of land, making it one of the nation’s most sparsely populated states. This dispersion presents a huge challenge in connecting households and farms to the internet. According to census data, 81 percent of homes in the Cornhusker State’s metro areas have internet access, compared with 73 percent in smaller cities and rural areas. The gap can be perilous: Many can drive two hours or more to reach medical care; a connection would allow them to use telemedicine for quicker diagnoses and earlier treatment. Access can also help farmers become more efficient and competitive by allowing them to employ sensors and other networked systems to monitor metrics like soil moisture and crop health. While competition among providers has hindered progress in some states, in Nebraska, companies like Cox Communications—which used a state grant to wire up a “Wi-Fi bus”—are collaborating with regulators to address digital deserts. A new law signed by Gov. Pete Ricketts this past April created a multidisciplinary Rural Broadband Task force and authorized the state Public Service Commission to give grants to companies that submit the lowest-cost bids for connectivity measures. “Closing the rural digital divide is an all-hands-on-deck exercise,” says Gus Hurwitz, a telecommunications expert at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Nevada: Debating the fate of Yucca Mountain

In Nevada’s tight senate race, both incumbent Sen. Dean Heller and challenger Rep. Jacky Rosen claim to be the most capable of quashing a controversial 30-year-old plan to build the U.S.’s only permanent, high-level nuclear-waste storage facility in Nevada. Developing Yucca Mountain, a volcanic rock ridge about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, has been fraught since Congress identified the site in 1987. Continued concerns over groundwater contamination and the potential for spills during transport ended with the Obama administration mothballing the project in 2009. Now, amid a new push for nuclear power, the dormant program—which proponents say is the safest option for storing such waste—might get a revival thanks to a House vote and a proposed $120 million White House budget boost, both aimed at expediting Yucca’s Nuclear Regulatory Commission license.

New Hampshire: Maintaining renewable-energy growth

New Hampshire is at a crossroads in its efforts to produce more renewable energy. Under a 2007 state rule, utilities must include more green power in their mix of sources. The 2018 target is 18.7 percent; by 2025, that target will be 25.2 percent. Granite State lawmakers recently passed bills to goose both the solar- and timber-based biomass industries, but only one survived the governor’s veto pen. The failed measure would have quintupled the allowable size of solar projects that qualify for net metering (the practice of selling excess power back to the grid). But incumbent Gov. Chris Sununu, who faces renewable-energy advocate Molly Kelly, nixed the measure, saying it would drive up electricity prices—already some of the highest in the nation. Lawmakers did, however, override his veto for a law requiring utilities to buy more power from six faltering biomass plants in the state. But the Energy Justice Network and other critics question whether biomass should qualify as a clean renewable: Burning wood emits sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulates, as well as heat. Still, proponents point out, biomass produces far fewer greenhouse gases than fossil fuels: 18 grams of CO2 (equivalent) per kilowatt hour, compared to 840 for oil and 1,001 for coal.

New Jersey: Getting a grip on stormwater

The Garden State is covered in more pavement and cement than any other; hardscapes make up 12 percent of its area. When it rains, rather than seeping into the ground, the water funnels into storm drains, often overwhelming aging pipes and washing pollutants from parking lots and roads into waterways. In some places, especially in many of the state’s older cities such as Newark and Trenton, drainage and sewer infrastructure combine in one system, adding even more pollutants to the mix. Jersey lawmakers are considering allowing municipalities and counties to establish stormwater utilities; these new public works would receive funding from fees placed on property owners based on how much pavement and rooftop area they have.

New Mexico: Drought

The average annual temperature in New Mexico has risen about 2.7 degrees over the past 45 years, making it one of the fastest-warming states in the union. Climate-change-fueled drought has dewatered long stretches of the Rio Grande, withered crops, and forced ranchers to reduce cattle herds. A lack of planning by state water managers and government officials—experts have warned of more-frequent drought for years—hasn’t helped. The parched conditions also have turbocharged the natural fire cycle; as of late September, 26 large forest fires had burned across the state. With the consequences of climate change at residents’ doorsteps, managing it is a recurring theme on the campaign trail. Gubernatorial candidate Michelle Lujan Grisham vowed to ramp up renewable energy development, calling for 50 percent of the state’s electricity to come from climate-friendly sources by 2030—and reach 80 percent by 2040. The efforts could bolster the state’s solar industry, which could be hurt by Trump administration’s solar tariffs.

New York: Restoring water quality

The Empire State has a lot of water cleanup ahead. According to the state Department of Environmental Conservation, as of this past August, 54 bodies of water have harmful algae blooms—rapidly growing nutrient colonies that can kill marine life and cause illness in humans. Fueled by warming waters, blooms lace both salty areas such as the Long Island Sound and freshwater deposits such as the Finger Lakes. At the same time, industry might also be compromising the wet stuff. In 2015, residents of Hoosick Falls, a village in eastern New York, discovered the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in its water supply, blaming the nearby Saint-Gobain Performance Plastic manufacturing plant. Though the state sided with the villagers and set aside $25 million for relief efforts, the town is still waiting on an alternative source of H2O. Lawmakers are addressing the state’s overall clean-water issues broadly: They’ve passed $2.5 billion in funding to replace pipes and install new treatment systems; estimates from the state comptroller’s office, however, put the cost of proper plumbing closer to $40 billion.

North Carolina: Regulating coal ash

In the Tar Heel State, officials are grappling with how to handle a nasty byproduct of coal-fired power: the toxic ash that incinerated carbon leaves behind. After a 2014 ash spill in the Dan River, state lawmakers directed Duke Energy to close off and contain all 32 of its North Carolina ash basins. But stored waste and chemicals such as arsenic and lead can still continue to seep into the waterways. (Hurricane Florence floodwaters have further exacerbated the issue, breaching two containment dams.) In April, the state Department of Environmental Quality fined the coal company $156,000 for ground- and surface-water contamination from ash stored at its power plants—the latest in a series of fines. Advocates, including the Southern Environmental Law Center, however, say the state should strengthen cleanup requirements, particularly in light of the EPA’s July decision to toss 2015 federal standards and give states greater authority to set coal-ash regulations.

North Carolina is also home to the world’s only population of red wolves, a species poised for a (second) extinction. After hunting and other threats led the carnivores to be declared extinct in the wild, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reintroduced a colony in 1987. Today, only about 40 remain, and wildlife advocates fear that a new Interior Department plan to allow landowners to kill wolves outside their protected habitat could wipe out the rest.

North Dakota: Preserving air quality

Vast and sparsely populated, North Dakota has historically had some of the best air quality in the nation. Bismarck, for example, ranks among the American Lung Association’s top five least-polluted cities. But a recent oil-and-gas surge is testing the state’s ability to balance economic development with environmental protection. In July, Meridian Energy Group began constructing an oil refinery about 3 miles from Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The company claims the facility will provide 200 permanent jobs, but a trio of advocacy groups, including the Dakota Resource Council, are concerned that the resulting pollution will foul the park’s air. The groups sued the state in July; the plaintiffs contend that Meridian underestimated how much sulfur, methane, and other pollutants the facility will emit, and that the state health department’s monitoring requirements are inadequate. The legal challenge to the facility’s permit was dismissed in September; other suits are still pending

Ohio: Finding opioid solutions

The opioid epidemic is a top campaign issue for gubernatorial nominee Richard Cordray, a former consumer-protection official in the Obama administration. He’s openly blamed his opponent, current state Attorney General Mike DeWine, for a 20 percent spike in drug fatalities from 2016 to 2017—largely driven by an increase in fentanyl use. Ohio has one of the highest opioid-related overdose death rates in the nation. But opioid experts note that there’s little an attorney general can do to aid treatment or stop doctors from over-prescribing the drugs. DeWine did sponsor law-enforcement training as well as sued drugmakers and distributors for downplaying the addictiveness of such meds. Through the state’s job-creation agency’s “Third Frontier” program, Ohio also offered $20 million in grants for innovative solutions, including a $3 million effort to develop “abuse-resistant” opioids.

Oklahoma: Earthquakes from oil and gas development

Earthquakes in Oklahoma are up about 13,000 percent in the past decade, according to U.S. Geological Survey data. The uptick coincides with an increase in oil and gas development—more specifically, the practice of injecting wastewater into deep wells. Several landowners and the Pawnee Nation have sued natural-gas companies over resulting property damage. But the case is difficult to make: While a new study published in the journal Science suggests injection wells can trigger tremors several miles away, and a 2015 report from the Oklahoma Geological Survey linked the wells to property damage, it’s hard to connect damage from a rumbler directly to a specific constellation of wells. A federal court recently dismissed a class-action lawsuit filed by homeowners. Current state laws won’t do much to prevent further damage: A 2016 measure allowed the oil-and-gas authority to regulate how much wastewater goes into wells; the effort reduced minor tremors but did little to curtail the bigger ones, prompting calls to further limit the practice.

Oregon: Curbing pollution to protect water

From sea to peak, Oregon is struggling with the consequences of climate change. Its low-elevation mountain snowpack—which provides crucial river flows for cities, farms, and fish when it melts each spring—is shrinking faster than similar reserves elsewhere in the West.

The state’s saltwater resources are in trouble too. A 2017 study by Oregon State University found that increased carbon pollution has spiked ocean acidity along the Pacific Coast, making the area one of the worst in the world for oysters, crabs, and other marine life. But even as Oregon launches a collaborative working group of scientists, fishermen, and wildlife and agriculture officials to find workable solutions, legislative efforts to pass an emissions-reduction program have sputtered. Supporters hope a proposed “cap-and-trade” measure, which would require the state’s biggest CO2 emitters to either reduce their output or buy overages from other businesses, will finally pass in the 2019 legislative session.

Pennsylvania: Figuring out fracking

The Keystone State sits atop one of the richest natural-gas deposits east of the Mississippi, making it a poster child in the national debate over hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” Opponents of the drilling technique—which involves pumping sand and a largely unknown chemical cocktail deep into the ground to pry open rock fissures and release trapped gas—scored a major victory this past spring. The Pennsylvania Superior Court ruled that creating gas-releasing fractures that extend beneath neighboring property amounts to trespassing. Analysts expect the ruling to inspire a wave of similar suits across the country. Meanwhile, politicians remain at loggerheads over the issue: While a new set of regulations in 2016 gave the state the authority to institute their own safeguards for drilling near public-water resources, industry advocates in the legislature continue to fight further restrictions.

Puerto Rico: Preparing for the next storm

Puerto Rico is still recovering from the 2017 hurricane season, which saw two storms pummel the territory, leading to more than 2,975 deaths—the worst natural disaster in its history. The local Climate Change Council says the island remains unprepared for the realities of intensifying storms, severe droughts, and eventual 2-foot sea-level rise that scientists predict. “Delayed decisions may cost human lives, destroy critical infrastructure, and damage the economy,” the council wrote in a 2013 report. Yet over the past decade, numerous fortification plans have fizzled, and a climate-change bill introduced this past January focused only on cutting emissions. Gov. Ricardo Rosselló Nevares is looking to the 50 states for help by providing more federal funding to preparedness efforts. He’s encouraging Puerto Ricans in other states to vote for representatives and senators who pledge to do so.

Rhode Island: Paying for climate resiliency

The Ocean State is a national leader in the fight against climate change. It built the nation’s first offshore wind farm in 2016; it created 15,000 new green jobs; and, in July 2018, Rhode Island was the first state to file suit against fossil-fuel companies for climate-related damages like eroded beaches and the saltwater contamination of groundwater. (Previously, only cities like New York and Imperial Beach, California, had pursued legal action.) The nation’s smallest state has good reason to be worried: A recent Union of Concerned Scientists analysis warns that by 2045, almost 900 homes will face flooding from rising seas. Warming temperatures contribute to threats like drought and heat waves, but also could heat the oceans, pushing valuable cold-water-loving species like lobster and cod farther north. As the state awaits the fate of its legal challenge against 21 companies, officials are implementing the climate action strategy Resilient Rhody. These initiatives range from restricting and pulling back coastal development to restoring storm-buffering wetlands and improving emergency-response systems.

South Carolina: Monitoring oil cleanup

In December 2014, residents near the western South Carolina city of Belton spotted pools of gasoline. They’d discovered that energy giant Kinder Morgan’s underground Plantation Pipeline had spilled almost 370,000 gallons of gas into a tributary of the Savannah River. While the company has repaired the line, petroleum pollutants such as benzene and toluene continue to seep downstream. Two local groups, Savannah Riverkeeper and Upstate Forever, have filed suit under the Clean Water Act to force Kinder to continue the cleanup. Their case received a boost in May, when the U.S. Court of Appeals denied the company’s request for a rehearing—though it plans to ask the Supreme Court to review the case. While local officials support the lawsuit, incumbent state Attorney General Alan Wilson has sided with the defendants; his challenger Constance Anastopoulo has been quiet on the issue.

South Dakota: Finessing fossil fuels

Fossil fuels are front-of-mind for South Dakotans. The upcoming Keystone XL pipeline will cross the state as it ferries oil from Canada to the U.S. Last November, the existing Keystone pipe spilled 210,400 gallons of crude oil onto farmland near the northeastern town of Amherst. Residents worry that the new project will only increase the risk of future accidents. The Cheyenne River Sioux tribe, whose lands lie just downstream of where the conduit would cross the Cheyenne River, has vowed to stop it, while a trio of measures introduced by Democratic state lawmakers to regulate the pipeline industry have run out of gas.

Meanwhile, the Mount Rushmore State’s congressional delegation is united in favor of ethanol. While the biofuel’s credibility as a clean alternative to fossil sources remains questionable, the industry pumps almost $1 billion into the local economy, and the state is home to the world’s largest producer: POET. In April, the EPA under the Trump administration granted fossil-fuel refineries 25 waivers, excusing them from a 2007 law that would otherwise require them to blend in proportions of biofuels each year. Industry leaders worry the move will decrease demand, and ethanol producers and farm groups sued the EPA over three of the waivers in late May.

Tennessee: Strengthening water standards

The Volunteer State is awash in water-quality troubles. Exhibit A: Two years after the state lowered stormwater runoff standards for new construction projects, regulators have proposed more easements for real estate developers and transportation officials seeking to pave wetlands and divert streams. Exhibit B: Environmental group Tennessee Riverkeeper is suing the town of Pulaski, an hour south of Nashville, for the release of 30 million gallons of untreated wastewater; when the town’s infrastructure overloads during heavy rains, human waste can combine with runoff, overwhelming treatment plants and fouling waterways. Exhibit C: In eastern Tennessee, locals are pushing for the closure of the U.S. Nitrogen plant, which opened along the Nolichucky River in 2016, after a series of pollution violations. Riverkeeper and other groups say tougher regulations, strict enforcement, as well as infrastructure improvements are necessary to solve the state’s water woes.

Texas: Flood management and rural healthcare

As Houston continues to recover from Hurricane Harvey, new data from the U.S. Geological Survey confirms that the storm was the biggest rainfall event in U.S. history. It won’t be the last: A recent MIT study found there’s an 18 percent chance that record rainfall will hit the Lone Star State by 2100. Whether the region will be ready for the next storm is an open question. This past July, the Army Corps of Engineers allocated $4 billion to shore up coastal levees, but much of the flood infrastructure Harvey damaged still has not been fixed—and each new storm weakens it further. The state is also still vulnerable to accidental chemical releases, like the one that occurred when a power outage during Harvey led to a fire at the Arkema chemical plant. Thankfully, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in August that the Environmental Protection Agency must require safeguards to prevent the accidental release of toxic chemicals into the air.

Healthcare access is also top-of-mind among Texans, especially those in sparsely populated areas. About 36 percent of low-income rural residents do not have health insurance, compared with 29 percent in urban areas, making Texas one of the worst states in the nation for the rural uninsured, according to a report from Georgetown University and the University of North Carolina. To compound the problem, 14 rural hospitals have shuttered since 2010. Residents must rely on urgent-care centers or drive several hours to the nearest city for care. Healthcare advocates, including Dayna Steele, candidate for Texas’ 36th congressional district, are vocal about closing the gap. Steele has called for the state to incentivize healthcare providers to stay in rural areas and expand broadband connectivity, which could aid in telemedicine.

Utah: Protecting public lands

This past December, President Trump shrank two national monuments in Utah: Bears Ears by 85 percent and Grand Staircase-Escalante by about half. This past August, a draft plan from the Bureau of Land Management confirmed that the removed acreage would be opened up for mining and drilling—precisely what conservationists at groups like the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance had feared. Beehive State politicians say that the monuments, both established within the past 25 years, are an unnecessary restriction on development, but those in favor of protection say the lands are key to keeping wildlife habitats and fossil troves intact. Currently there are five suits in federal court that challenge the president’s move. Those who want to open up the lands are “a very small group of people,” says Nada Culver, senior counsel and director of the BLM Action Center at the Wilderness Society. “It’s so hard to see this happening.”

Vermont: Landfill expansion

The Green Mountain State’s last open landfill, the 78-acre Coventry facility near the Canadian border, could soon become even bigger, much to the chagrin of local residents and some of our neighbors to the north. The owner, Casella Waste Systems, has applied for a permit to expand into 51 acres of adjacent land, which would allow it to take in 11 million more tons of trash and stay open another two decades. But locals worry that the project will contaminate groundwater and nearby Lake Memphremagog, which provides potable water for about 200,000 people in Quebec. Casella officials say they will minimize groundwater pollution risk by double-lining the new addition and funneling any contaminated fluid into storage tanks, but Canadians who live nearby worry those safeguards might not be sufficient. This past July, a member of Canadian Parliament, Denis Paradis, urged Vermont regulators and incumbent Gov. Phil Scott to delay public meetings on the proposed expansion until the International Joint Commission, a body charged with resolving water disputes between the U.S. and Canada, can study potential effects on the lake. In August, officials agreed to hold off on granting the expansion, pending groundwater testing. Neither Scott nor challenger Christine Hallquist has taken a public stance on the expansion.

Virginia: Preparing for sea-level rise

Rising seas are lapping at states all along the East Coast, but the stakes are especially high in Virginia. Scientists expect levels in the Old Dominion to swell by at least 1.5 feet by 2050, swamping shoreline cities like Hampton Roads and Virginia Beach, and the 4,300-acre naval base in Norfolk. Since the 1980s, the area has experienced a 350 percent uptick in “sunshine flooding”—rising waters from high tides rather than storms. And March data from researchers at the College of William and Mary shows sea-level rise is accelerating: now 5.1 millimeters a year, compared with 4.6 millimeters a decade ago. Officials are deploying patchwork fixes like dikes and porous pavement (which allows water to sink into the ground beneath), but some coastal residents are resistant to what might be the optimal solution: retreat to higher ground with the help of government buyouts.

Washington: Taxes for carbon emitters

Voters here could make history. The ballot includes a measure to establish a carbon fee, a surcharge on most (but not all) sources of fossil-fuel emissions. If adopted, lawmakers expect the program to raise about $1 billion a year for clean-energy development and other efforts to fight climate change. Starting at $15 per metric ton of carbon, the price would rise by $2 per ton of emissions each year. If Washingtonians greenlight the fee—which enjoys support from environmental, labor, social-justice groups, and local tribes—the state will be the first to adopt a such a scheme. Fossil-fuel companies have spent millions opposing the program, focusing primarily on its exemption for certain polluters, such as a coal-fired power plant set to shutter in 2025. Other critics, such as the group No on 1631, say the fee—which would tack 14 cents to the cost of a gallon of gasoline and about 15 cents a gallon to the cost of home heating oil—amounts to a tax that would hit low-income residents hardest.

Washington, D.C.: Doubling down on drainage

D.C.’s drainage is overwhelmed during storms, sending pollutants that normally would run to treatment plants into waterways that empty into the Chesapeake Bay. The overflow, which is worsening as storms intensify, threatens the region’s progress in cleaning up the estuary. In June, the EPA issued the District some of the most stringent water-management directives in the region. The agency called for D.C. to 1) “immediately” reduce the amount of E. coli washing into the Bay; 2) create more “green infrastructure” such as gardens, vegetated roofs, and porous pavement that allow rainwater to sink into the ground; and 3) plant almost 7,000 new trees each year, 3,000 more than the previous guidance. “Most of the permits I’m familiar with in the other [Bay] watershed states don’t have these numerical requirements, don’t talk about trees, don’t talk about street sweeping, don’t talk about green roofs,” says Lee Epstein, Lands Program director for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. He and other advocates say the new permit is an improvement, but it might not address the stormwater problem swiftly enough.

West Virginia: Monitoring natural gas

Natural-gas production has increased fivefold in West Virginia over the past decade. Some lawmakers and residents worry that the state will repeat the same policy missteps with the natural-gas industry that it did with coal: imposing only a few regulations to protect water and ecosystems, and offering generous tax breaks that result in little revenue for the state (the fourth poorest in the nation, with a poverty rate of 17.9 percent). A proposed tax on natural-gas companies from Gov. Jim Justice to fund a pay raise for teachers fizzled this past spring amid strong pushback from industry leaders.

Wisconsin: Protecting groundwater

Unregulated groundwater pumping by farms has lowered levels in 22 lakes and several streams in central Wisconsin, spurring an outcry from lakeside homeowners, anglers, and environmental advocates such as Clean Wisconsin. Generally speaking, overpumping lowers the water table, causing spring-fed streams to drop as well. Many of these waterways are also polluted. An influx of nitrogen from farming fertilizer has spurred the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to add 242 bodies to the state’s “impaired waters” list, bringing the total to 1,124. In some areas, fertilizer and animal-waste runoff is making its way into private wells. In Kewaunee, Wood, and Juneau counties, between 40 and 50 percent of the sources are contaminated with E. coli or nitrates. “Literally people have excrement coming out of their taps,” says George Meyer, who headed the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources from 1990 to 2002 and is now executive director of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation. Meyer and other advocates say the state legislature and Gov. Scott Walker’s administration have failed to enforce clean-water rules and groundwater protections; challenger Tony Evers, who has a slight lead over Walker according to a Marquette University Law School poll, has called for strengthening water-safety measures.

Wyoming: Combusting over coal

More than any other state, Wyoming—by far the nation’s top coal producer—stands to economically benefit from the Trump administration’s decision to scuttle the Obama-era Clean Power Plan, which set strict limits on carbon emissions from power plants. The new rule encourages coal-fired generators to become more efficient but does not impose a carbon-emissions cap. (Wyoming is one of a dozen coal-producing states that challenged the Clean Power Plan in court.) While analysts expect the changes to prolong the life of a few plants, some point out that coal’s bigger problem is that natural gas and renewables now outcompete it. The black stuff accounted for about half of the nation’s electricity 10 years ago, but a series of plant closures have cut production to about one-third. More facilities will likely shutter over the next two years, according to the S&P Global Market Intelligence. Environmental groups, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, say they will sue if the Trump plan, which is still being finalized, goes into effect. Cowboy State candidates universally back the coal industry. But at the same time, a new energy source is on the rise in Wyoming: wind. In the next few years, about 5,000 megawatts of new wind energy could come online in the state.

Written By April Reese

[sheetmetalwork]

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[toptecharena]

Pamela Smart, the subject of Investigation Discovery’s upcoming three-part series Pamela Smart: An American Murder Mystery, is currently serving out the rest of her days in prison for orchestrating the 1991 death of her husband, Gregg. Things had, needless to say, started out far more hopeful.

Born Pamela Ann Wojas on Aug. 16, 1967, in Coral Gables, FL, she met Gregg on New Year’s Eve 1986 in New Hampshire, where she had moved. “The first time I saw Gregg was at a party,” she explains in an exclusive interview from An American Murder Mystery. “He was a friend of one of my friends. Gregg was very handsome, he had big dimples, and he was a very smiley person, always friendly to everyone.”

Pam’s friend, Tracy Paris, adds, “They were fun, they would tease each other, they would laugh and be silly together. They were a good couple. They were well suited to each other.”

In many ways, though, they seemed so different from each other. While Pam was an overachiever, Gregg, says investigative reporter Diane Dimond, “was very out-going, always a smile on his face, he loved a good party, he was not so interested in going to college. He was never a good student.”

The thing that did draw them together was their obsession with rock music, in particular, heavy metal. In fact, she named both her first car (a Honda CRX) and the Chinese Shih Tzu given to her by Gregg, Halen, after rocker Eddie Van Halen. It was reportedly Pam’s love of rock music that initially made Gregg so attracted to her. He was a guy who chose not to go to college, but, instead, right from high school went to work on a heavy-equipment assembly line, driven by a dual love of music and women. He had long hair, oftentimes wore a black leather jacket and had a carefree manner that reminded Pam of Jon Bon Jovi, the rocker who was so enormously popular at the time.

When she graduated from high school, Pam wanted to go back to Florida and planned to enroll at Florida State University in Tallahassee to study broadcasting. They maintained a long distance relationship. “We would talk on the phone, but it was difficult,” she explains. “But he wanted to move anyway; he was looking for a change in his life, so he moved to Florida.” Which is where he would propose to her.

In Florida, Gregg worked at a landscaping company. Eventually, though, he began to realize that he wanted more out of life and that he wanted to actually build a future rather than drift along. The couple decided to move back to New Hampshire, partially so that Gregg could, once his studies were finished, work at his father’s insurance company. The choice was actually a little disheartening to Pam in terms of career, but she did her best to offer moral support. On top of all of that — and to look more professional — he actually decided to cut his hair. Although they still had gotten married on May 7, 1989, to Pam, notes the book about the case, Deadly Lessons, “that was a major turning point in their relationship. Instead of Bon Jovi, Gregg, with his shorn locks, looked like just another New England yuppie.”

In New Hampshire, Pam began working as media services director at Winnacunnet High School and also a “mentor” at a drug counseling program, Project Self-Esteem. Her job, comments eventual prosecutor, then Assistant Attorney General Paul Maggiotto, “was writing press releases, maybe doing short videos, and teaching the kids how to use audio/video equipment.”

It was about this time that the marriage really started to go south. Traveling on business, Gregg reportedly met and slept with another woman for what was a one-night affair. Deciding to confess this to his wife, she never really forgave him for the betrayal, adding to the vast distance she was already feeling. At the same time, she was finding herself connecting emotionally with 15-year-old William “Billy” Flynn, a student and volunteer at Project Self-Esteem. They had, he would later testify, a mutual love for heavy-metal bands, which led them to work on a project calling for submissions of rock videos talking about the virtues of orange juice(!).

During all of that — and a period where Pam was supposedly giving divorce serious consideration but feared losing everything, including her dog — they became very close. In February of 1990, their relationship became a sexual one following a video screening of the erotic film 9 1/2 Weeks. Afterward, she donned a sexy negligee, mimicked a strip scene from the movie, and then engaged in sex with the teen.

It was, he would later reveal in the courtroom, following this that she first brought up the idea that the two of them could be together if something could be done about her husband.

On May 1, 1990 — about a week before the one year wedding anniversary of Gregg and Pamela Smart — the deed was done.

The ins and outs of all of this and so much more are revealed in the three-part Pamela Smart: An American Murder Mystery, which will debut on the ID network on August 19.

We pay for juicy info! Do you have a story for RadarOnline.com? Email us at tips@radaronline.com, or call us at (866) ON-RADAR (667-2327) any time, day or night.

Go to Source Author: Radar Staff Pamela Smart — The Rise and Deadly Fall of the Smart Marriage Pamela Smart, the subject of Investigation Discovery’s upcoming three-part series Pamela Smart: An American Murder Mystery…

[alamante]

Portland Press Herald/Getty Images

Bales of recyclables at an Ecomaine recycling facility in Portland, Maine. Ecomaine is one of many U.S. recyclers that have been affected by China’s waste import restrictions.

Americans recycle millions of tons of trash every year. We trust that the items we toss in the blue bin won’t end up in a landfill. We hope this stuff is repurposed and turned into reusable goods ― but a lot of it isn’t getting recycled at all. 

Two-thirds of U.S. states are facing a recycling crisis of our own making. For months, mountains of plastic, paper and other materials have been piling up at recycling facilities across the nation. Recyclables are ending up in landfills en masse. Some municipalities — from Sacramento, California, to Hooksett, New Hampshire — have canceled or significantly curtailed their recycling programs, leaving residents with no choice but to throw their recyclables in the trash. 

To put it in the words of a waste manager in Bakersfield, California, the situation is “not just a little bad, it is terrible.”

“I’ve been in garbage all my life. This is unprecedented,” Kevin Barnes, the city’s solid waste director, told The Bakersfield Californian earlier this month. “I think there’s been nothing in history this severe for the markets. So we’re in uncharted waters here.���

The first signs of trouble came in January when China, which had long served as the world’s de facto wastebasket, banned the importation of several categories of recyclable waste. For decades, China had bought massive shipments of recyclable plastics, paper, cardboard and other materials from countries around the world.

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It had been a win-win situation. On the one hand, China needed a steady supply of recyclable waste to feed its flourishing manufacturing sector. And on the other, countries like the U.S., Canada, Germany, the U.K. and Japan lacked the recycling facilities and manpower that China had ― and they desperately needed a destination for their growing quantity of garbage.

About a year ago, however, China abruptly announced its intention to close its borders to this trash influx. The country notified the World Trade Organization that it would be banning the import of 24 categories of solid waste, including several kinds of scrap plastic and mixed paper. It also demanded that other waste materials, like cardboard and scrap metal, have only 0.5 percent contamination from food and other sources ― a standard that American recyclers have said is “impossible” to meet.

The immediate global impact of the new Chinese restrictions, enforced on Jan. 1, was staggering. “It was a huge shock — a tsunami for the industry,” said Arnaud Brunet, head of the Bureau of International Recycling, speaking from Brussels on Wednesday. “When the biggest market for recyclables progressively shuts the door to imports, you can expect the global industry will be under stress.”

Prior to its new policy, China had been processing at least half of the world’s exports of waste plastic, paper and metals. Between 1992 and 2016, China accepted more than 110 million tons of plastic scrap from countries around the globe, or about 45 percent of the world’s plastic waste. A recent study predicts that about 120 million tons of plastic waste will be displaced worldwide by 2030 because of China’s policy change. 

Aaron Ontiveroz/Getty Images

Alpine Waste & Recycling in Denver has been investing in cleaning up its paper recycling stream in an effort to meet China’s new import standards.

The United States has long been one of the biggest exporters of trash to China. Of the estimated 66 million tons of material that Americans recycle each year, about one-third used to be exported — a majority of which had been bound for Chinese shores.

Since January, however, local and state governments, together with domestic recycling companies, have had to figure out new destinations for all this garbage.

At least 38 states have experienced “noticeable” impacts since the policy took effect, according to Waste Dive, a D.C.-based publisher of waste industry news that’s been documenting the ban’s effects with this online tracker.

At least 10 states — including California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Oregon — have been “heavily” affected. A waste coordinator in Alaska, another of the hardest-hit states, described the shake-up as “Armageddon for recycling.”

“At this point, there is no state in the country that has not felt at least something because of the ban,” Waste Dive reporter Cole Rosengren told HuffPost. 

Is your #recycling facility being impacted by China’s waste import restrictions? Check out our resources page and infographics for more information on policy and next steps! https://t.co/SHZ6KubZjH pic.twitter.com/ND8b7UvHJ9

— SWANA (@SWANA) July 15, 2018

Recyclables Get Dumped 

In the U.S., local governments often contract private recycling companies to collect and sort through recyclables. Once sorted, the marketable materials are sold to domestic or overseas processors. In the past, China had, in many cases, been that final destination.

Nowadays, however, there are few willing buyers ― and none of them come close to filling China’s shoes.

“Overall, the value of a ton of recycling has declined by about 40 percent over the past year,” David Biderman, executive director of the Solid Waste Association of North America, told HuffPost in an email.

In some of the worst-hit places — like parts of the Pacific Northwest, which has traditionally sent a greater proportion of its recycling to China, and New England, where waste processing costs had been hefty even before the ban — there’s now “no market” at all for certain materials like mixed paper (cereal boxes, junk mail, magazines and the like) and some types of plastic, Biderman said. 

Across the country, thousands of bales of paper and plastic are being stockpiled and stored at recycling facilities in the hopes that new markets will eventually be found for them.

E.L. Harvey & Sons, a recycling company in Massachusetts, told The New York Times in May that half of its 80,000-square-foot facility was stacked high with about 6,000 tons of stockpiled material. In New Hanover County, North Carolina, “piles of recycled cardboard” have reportedly sat unused for months.

Mid America Recycling in Des Moines, Iowa, told The Wall Street Journal that it had stockpiled about 1,000 tons of mixed paper, which it had hoped to sell when prices improved.

All of it, however, was eventually dumped in a landfill.

“We had to purge,” Michael Barry, the company’s president, told the paper in May. “There’s no demand for it.”

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Recology, a curbside recycler in San Francisco, admits it’s been diverting some materials to landfills. “There’s no market for a lot of stuff in the blue bin. What we can’t recycle we take to a landfill,” a company rep told the Los Angeles Times earlier this month.

Dumping recyclables in a landfill is a recycler’s nightmare. “We hate the landfill. We do everything we can to avoid it,” Brunet said. “It’s a waste of resources — for the industry, for the planet.”

But many U.S. recyclers have had to resort to landfills in recent months. 

States like Oregon and Massachusetts have laws prohibiting companies from dumping recyclables ― but have recently been granting waivers so firms can dispose of the materials they can’t seem to sell.

Garten Services, an Oregon recycler, told The New York Times that the company recently sought a waiver to dump about 900 tons of recyclables in a landfill.

Republic Services, one of the country’s largest waste managers, said it’s disposed of more than 2,000 tons of paper in landfills since January.

Some municipalities have raised recycling rates or even resorted to canceling or cutting back on recycling services. The Alaskan cities of Sitka, Ketchikan and Petersburg, for instance, have stopped accepting mixed plastics and paper to their recycling programs. In Arizona, one of the states believed to be less severely affected by the new recycling landscape, the city of Flagstaff nevertheless announced in June that it was limiting its curbside recycling collection to only #1 and #2 plastics.

Sacramento said it was similarly dropping several kinds of plastics from its curbside program, and Hooksett, a New Hampshire town of some 14,000 people, said it was canceling curbside collection entirely. The town has said the move is only temporary. The Hooksett Department of Public Works did not respond to questions about when the program would be reinstated.

Saul Loeb/Getty Images

The Waste Management Material Recovery Facility in Elkridge, Maryland, says it’s had to pay to get rid of huge amounts of paper and plastic that it would have normally sold to China.

‘A Real Wake-up Call’

China has been widely vilified as the cause of the current recycling fiasco. But industry watchers say the blame should not be placed on China, which has cited environmental and public health concerns, as well as a desire for self-sufficiency, as reasons for its policy change.

“China’s not the bad guy,” Mark Murray, executive director of the advocacy group Californians Against Waste, told the Los Angeles Times in June. “To the Chinese credit, they’ve decided they don’t want to have Third World [trash] sorting in their country.”

So, who then should be held accountable for this mess? It turns out we’re all to blame.

“People were upset and had been pointing the finger at China, but really, here in the U.S., it’s a shared responsibility,” Rosengren said.

China’s waste import restrictions have revealed just how flawed ― and dirty ― the American recycling industry is, and how bad American consumers are at recycling.

“One of the principal reasons China imposed these restrictions is that the scrap and recyclables that the U.S. was sending to China included too much ‘contamination’ ― material that is not recyclables,” Biderman said. “This is because many Americans are ‘wishful recyclers’ and put items in the recycling container hoping that the recycling company or local sanitation department will recycle them.”

Dirty takeout containers, most plastic bags, batteries, Christmas lights, garden hoses and those takeout coffee cups from Starbucks are all not recyclable ― yet many Americans toss their trash willy-nilly into the recycling bin without a second thought.

Rosengren also blames waste management companies for allowing higher levels of contamination over time. Before the ban, some companies were shipping recyclables to China with contamination levels of up to 30 percent, he told HuffPost.

“Things had been good, they were making money, so a lot of these companies got complacent,” he said.

Federal, state and local governments also failed to support and invest in domestic recycling infrastructure, Rosengren noted. “Everyone got complacent, they figured China would just be there… It’s been a real wake-up call for people.”

David L. Ryan/Boston Globe/Getty Images

Trash is separated on a conveyor belt at E.L. Harvey & Sons in Westborough, Massachusetts, on May 31. The company says it’s been forced to stockpile thousands of tons of recyclables since January.

New Markets, New Opportunities

Industry experts say China isn’t likely to soften its stance on foreign scrap ― in fact, the country recently suggested that it would seek to ban all solid waste imports by 2020. Global recyclers will thus need to evolve and adapt.

There are expectations that the downturn in the recycling industry will continue for many months, if not years. But there is also optimism that the recycling industry as a whole will eventually emerge better and brighter than ever. 

“On the short term, it’s painful for the industry, but long term it’s probably a good thing for society at large,” said Brunet, who predicts more market diversity and better, cleaner recycling processes as a result of China’s policy change.

Already, new recycling markets have emerged to fill the void that China once occupied. In recent months, recyclables have flooded into other nations, mostly in Asia, including India, Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan.

These countries have only a fraction of China’s processing capacity, however, and signs of strain are already starting to show.  

“Vietnamese ports are clogging up due to the upsurge of plastic waste imports into the country,” Von Hernandez, global coordinator for the nonprofit Break Free From Plastic, said in an email. “In Thailand, the spike in imports is, unfortunately, fuelling demands to establish more incinerators in the country, which would be tantamount to exporting and externalizing one country’s toxic air emissions to another, if those plastic materials end up being burned in those facilities.” 

It remains to be seen whether these other nations will be able to adequately ― and sustainably ― handle the new influx of waste. 

Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald/Getty Images

Ecomaine says it’s been implementing new policies to eliminate contaminated recycling from its waste stream in an effort to reduce losses in the global recycled-commodity market.

Stateside, many opportunities have emerged for the American recycling industry ― from investments in contamination reduction to the building of more recycling infrastructure. 

“I hope that the federal government recognizes the value of strong municipal recycling programs in the United States,” Biderman said. “Recycling is a job creator ― recycling creates up to seven times more jobs per ton than landfilling, preserves landfill space for what truly needs to be disposed of, and is good for the environment.” 

Consumers, too, have a critical role to play in turning the recycling tide. 

“People seem to think that once recyclables hit the curb, they just go away. They don’t think about the process,” Rosengren said. 

Check your local guidelines to find out what can and cannot be recycled in your municipality ― the rules tend to vary from city to city and county to county. “Make sure you’re giving the right stuff, and make sure they’re all clean and dry,” Rosengren said. “Get the peanut butter out of the jar, rinse your beer bottle out and remember to never, ever put plastic bags in your recycling. That’s death to a recycling facility.”

“Try to reduce your consumption,” he added. “Just because you’re recycling doesn’t mean you’re absolved of your environmental footprint on the Earth.” 

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[davidpires578]

Wadkin Dimension Saw: Resurrection (Phase 1)

A little background, for those readers who haven’t been reading this blog since the inception of written records (somewhere in 2009):

Wadkins Glen, II, III, IV

Just before I head out to Colgate University to install some woodwork, I decided the timing was about right to deal with a niggling issue I have had with the Wadkin table saw since I bought it, namely that the sliding table is not flat: it is bowed upward slightly in the middle. This is unfortunate. For cross-cutting around about the 90˚mark, this is no issue, but for ripping or acutely angled cuts, the bow or bulge upwards at the middle of the sliding table causes stock which I am ripping to be tilted up slightly. It is slight, but it means the rip cut face has the unfortunate characteristic of not being 90˚ to the adjacent face, necessitating additional steps after sawing the put things right.

I just want the saw to perform the basics well, and in this case it has been letting me down.

Additionally, the detent positions in the sliding table for the mitre fence are severely worn, and the pivot hole location, which accepts a BSW (Whitworth) 1/2″ x 12TPI pivot bolt, has been heli-coiled  -and not very well – so it is not a precise location any longer. As a result, none of the detent positions (there are three: 90˚, 45˚ and 30˚) actually produce accurate mitre cuts. Also, there are too few detent positions in the first place. I would like to have more, if they can be done accurately.

Because of the sliding table bow, the linear bearings for the table cannot be properly set, and thus the table runs with more slop in the middle position, which is exactly where you would want it to have minimal play.

Finally, the cast iron support beam for the sliding table is a ‘fugly’ casting which bothers me on an aesthetic level. so I have wanted to have that casting machined clean so it doesn’t look like it was cast by a couple of fellows who had spent a little extra time in the pub at lunch, if you catch my drift.

I’m more concerned generally with how a machine works, than how it looks, but if I have the sliding table off for machining work, then it makes sense to deal with the ugly casting issue at the same time.

In the past I have had machines with non-flat table castings, like my old Oliver 166 BD jointer, and I had a machine shop in E. Hartford CT do the grinding work on the two tables and fence for that machine, however, through that experience, and others, I have found that the shop doesn’t follow the instructions I give them, and haven’t been too friendly when the overcharge for services was their own fault and not mine, so it left me with a slightly bad taste in my mouth.

Also, Blanchard grinding, which is the norm in N. America at least, is not my top choice for correcting a distorted surface: rather, it is single-point planing.

As Wayne Moore put it in his 1970 publication Foundations of Mechanical Accuracy (p. 17) the acknowledged ‘bible’ on the topic,

Single point planing is how many machine surfaces on higher-end european woodworking and metal working machines are created. On the Wadkin, it was used for the table edges at the very least. Typically, on machine tables like those found jointers and planers, and usually shapers, the planing is done so as to leave the surface with very slight ridges, which allow for easier transport of the wood over the surface.

Trouble is, single point planers for machine table work are comparatively rare birds these days. I had, in fact, dismissed the possibility of getting the table planed, and instead had devoted quite a bit of time to the design of a sliding table made from Mic-6 aluminum tooling plate. This idea had its plusses and minuses, the chief-most among the drawbacks was the cost, which would likely be at least half-again what I had paid for the saw.

While humming and hawing over this matter for a good couple of years, I happened to be researching the topic of replacing cast machine ways with linear slide rails, which more than a few people have done with their Bridgeport mills so as to get around the cost and difficulty of machine and scraping everything back to spec. I then found a video of a guy who had his Bridgeport mill’s saddle re-planed, by a guy up in New Hampshire who had a planing mill which he had modernized and reconditioned. Here’s a link to the video that caught my attention. After the intro, which is definitely worth a view, if you jump ahead to the 7:52 mark you can see the planing machine and watch it work. Around the 13:00 minute mark you can see the metal planing most dramatically.

A bit of digging around and I had obtained the contact info for the fellow in NH, named Rees. I spoke with him and his son Fitz, who are both involved in the business. Rees is retired but his favorite machine to run happens to be the planer. I explained my Wadkin situation to him and, a month or two later, he came to my shop with his son to take a look at the Wadkin and inspect.

Rees was initially skeptical that a woodworker would want a woodworking machine set up more precisely, but when he checked over the table on my saw he could confirm that the bow was more than insignificant, and he also said he could deal with repairing the pivot hole and detents for the mitre fence.

So, yesterday, the right moment had arrived, and I pulled the sliding table and its support beam off of the Wadkin:

The saw now without its sliding table looks a bit diminished to be sure:

The angle brackets to the left and right which carry the table were also removed later so they could be inspected at Rees shop. I noticed that the surfaces under those brackets were single-point planed, though the brackets themselves were simply rough-ground.

I was surprised to find that, with a straightedge on the bottom surfaces of the sliding table, where one of the linear rail assemblies mounts, was very flat, while I was expecting it to be concave:

Checking with the straightedge along the (in the above photo) left side mounting position for the rail, however, found a result which was concave, as expected. So the table bow was not uniform, seemingly concentrated towards the sliding table edge which runs along the blade.

Also, with the linear rail assemblies off the table, I found that the assemblies themselves were not straight along their lengths:

Each linear rod carrier was bowed a bit more than 1/16″, the gap totaling more than 1/8″ at the middle:

I’m not sure that bow really matters with those parts, as the mounting bolts will hold the rails in a straight position, but it was curious nonetheless.

With some help from a friend, I got the sliding table and support beam loaded in a rental truck and arrived to Rees’ shop a little after lunch. He lives in a rural area, up a dirt road. The view at the shop door revealed a clean space, a good sign:

He had various pieces of equipment, most of which were quite old, like this Brown and Sharpe universal milling machine:

[newssplashy]

Strategy: The most disproportionately high-paying job in every state

Some jobs are paid better in one part of the US than in other parts. Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we found the job in each state that pays the highest relative to the typical national median salary.

Some jobs are paid better in one part of the US than in other parts.

Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we found the job in each state that pays the highest relative to the typical national median salary for that job.

For instance, bartenders earn more in Hawaii than they do in most other states.

Some careers are more lucrative in one part of the US than another.

Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment Statistics program, Business Insider found the job in each state that pays the highest relative to the typical annual salary nationwide for that job. That is, we found the job with the highest percent difference between the median annual salary in a particular state and the national median salary.

Here's the most disproportionately high-paying job in every state, along with a brief description of what the job entails according to the Department of Labor's O*NET careers database where those descriptions are available:

Alabama: Driver/sales workers

Driver/sales workers drive a truck or other vehicle to sell or deliver goods.

Median income in-state: $31,710

Median income nationally: $24,040

Percent difference: 32%

Alaska: Security guards

Security guards patrol or monitor premises to prevent theft or violence.

Median income in-state: $43,260

Median income nationally: $26,900

Percent difference: 61%

Arizona: Motor vehicle operators, all other

They drive various types of motor vehicles.

Median income in-state: $37,340

Median income nationally: $26,640

Percent difference: 40%

Arkansas: Extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic

They operate machines that extrude metal or plastic into various shapes.

Median income in-state: $39,170

Median income nationally: $34,600

Percent difference: 13%

California: Legislators

Legislators are elected by their constituents to write laws at the local, state, or federal level. One reason legislators in California are so highly paid compared to the national median is that certain states, like California, have full-time, highly-paid state legislators, while other state legislatures are only in session for a fraction of the year.

Median income in-state: $54,840

Median income nationally: $25,630

Percent difference: 114%

Colorado: Tax preparers

They prepare tax returns for individuals or small businesses.

Median income in-state: $57,140

Median income nationally: $38,730

Percent difference: 48%

Connecticut: Child, family, and school social workers

They provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and families.

Median income in-state: $68,780

Median income nationally: $44,380

Percent difference: 55%

Delaware: Sales managers

Sales managers plan or direct the actual distribution of a product or service to a customer.

Median income in-state: $169,670

Median income nationally: $121,060

Percent difference: 40%

Washington, DC: Reporters and correspondents

Reporters and correspondents gather facts and write stories for media outlets.

Median income in-state: $83,320

Median income nationally: $39,370

Percent difference: 112%

Florida: Legislators

Legislators are elected by their constituents to write laws at the local, state, or federal level.

Median income in-state: $41,800

Median income nationally: $25,630

Percent difference: 63%

Georgia: Health educators

Health educators provide education programs that help people maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Median income in-state: $80,940

Median income nationally: $53,940

Percent difference: 50%

Hawaii: Bartenders

Bartenders mix and serve drinks to patrons.

Median income in-state: $45,120

Median income nationally: $21,690

Percent difference: 108%

Idaho: Sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood

They operate equipment for sawing wood.

Median income in-state: $36,520

Median income nationally: $29,080

Percent difference: 26%

Illinois: Miscellaneous construction and related workers

Construction workers build and maintain structures.

Median income in-state: $84,230

Median income nationally: $38,040

Percent difference: 121%

Indiana: Engine and other machine assemblers

They construct, assemble, or rebuild machinery.

Median income in-state: $55,610

Median income nationally: $43,390

Percent difference: 28%

Iowa: Eligibility interviewers, government programs

They determine the eligibility of people to receive assistance from government programs and agencies.

Median income in-state: $59,300

Median income nationally: $44,400

Percent difference: 34%

Kansas: Multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic

They set up or operate more than one type of cutting or forming machine tool or robot.

Median income in-state: $47,560

Median income nationally: $34,800

Percent difference: 37%

Kentucky: Aircraft mechanics and service technicians

They diagnose and repair aircraft engines or assemblies.

Median income in-state: $93,640

Median income nationally: $61,020

Percent difference: 53%

Louisiana: Chemical equipment operators and tenders

They operate equipment to control chemical reactions in the processing of industrial or consumer products.

Median income in-state: $66,410

Median income nationally: $47,800

Percent difference: 39%

Maine: Teacher assistants

Teacher assistants help teachers in providing instruction and services to students and parents.

Median income in-state: $33,240

Median income nationally: $26,260

Percent difference: 27%

Maryland: Health diagnosing and treating practitioners, all other

They diagnose and treat illnesses in patients.

Median income in-state: $133,440

Median income nationally: $73,830

Percent difference: 81%

Massachusetts: Graduate teaching assistants

Graduate teaching assistants help faculty by teaching classes or assisting in other teaching-related activities.

Median income in-state: $55,280

Median income nationally: $32,460

Percent difference: 70%

Michigan: Office and administrative support workers, all other

They perform tasks in an office setting.

Median income in-state: $49,050

Median income nationally: $35,590

Percent difference: 38%

Minnesota: Roofers

Roofers cover the roofs of structures with shingles or other material.

Median income in-state: $63,880

Median income nationally: $38,970

Percent difference: 64%

Mississippi: Health specialties teachers, postsecondary

They teach college or graduate-level course in health specialties, such as medicine or dentistry.

Median income in-state: $134,290

Median income nationally: $97,870

Percent difference: 37%

Missouri: Health specialties teachers, postsecondary

They teach college or graduate-level course in health specialties, such as medicine or dentistry.

Median income in-state: $143,290

Median income nationally: $97,870

Percent difference: 46%

Montana: Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters

Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters install and maintain pipe systems.

Median income in-state: $64,020

Median income nationally: $52,590

Percent difference: 22%

Nebraska: Dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance

They schedule and dispatch non-first responder workers for delivery, repair, or other jobs.

Median income in-state: $55,410

Median income nationally: $38,790

Percent difference: 43%

Nevada: Maids and housekeeping cleaners

Maids and housekeepers perform cleaning duties in households or commercial establishments like hotels.

Median income in-state: $31,860

Median income nationally: $22,860

Percent difference: 39%

New Hampshire: Telecommunications equipment installers and repairers, except line installers

They install and maintain routing and switching equipment in buildings.

Median income in-state: $71,290

Median income nationally: $53,380

Percent difference: 34%

New Jersey: Correctional officers and jailers

Correctional officers and jailers guard inmates in prisons and other penal facilities.

Median income in-state: $74,110

Median income nationally: $43,540

Percent difference: 70%

New Mexico: Mechanical engineers

Mechanical engineers design tools, engines, and other machinery.

Median income in-state: $109,750

Median income nationally: $85,880

Percent difference: 28%

New York: Legislators

Legislators are elected by their constituents to write laws at the local, state, or federal level.

Median income in-state: $91,910

Median income nationally: $25,630

Percent difference: 259%

North Carolina: Food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders

They operate machines that bake or roast food or tobacco.

Median income in-state: $43,080

Median income nationally: $29,410

Percent difference: 46%

North Dakota: Home health aides

Home health aides provide routine medical care in a patient's home or in a care facility.

Median income in-state: $34,110

Median income nationally: $23,210

Percent difference: 47%

Ohio: Graduate teaching assistants

Graduate teaching assistants help faculty by teaching classes or assisting in other teaching-related activities.

Median income in-state: $47,030

Median income nationally: $32,460

Percent difference: 45%

Oklahoma: Reservation and transportation ticket agents and travel clerks

They make and confirm reservations for travel tickets and lodging.

Median income in-state: $45,960

Median income nationally: $36,280

Percent difference: 27%

Oregon: Substitute teachers

Substitute teachers fill in when regularly scheduled teachers are absent.

Median income in-state: $45,410

Median income nationally: $28,270

Percent difference: 61%

Pennsylvania: Legislators

Legislators are elected by their constituents to write laws at the local, state, or federal level.

Median income in-state: $48,260

Median income nationally: $25,630

Percent difference: 88%

Rhode Island: Teachers and instructors, all other, except substitute teachers

Teachers instruct and guide students.

Median income in-state: $79,450

Median income nationally: $39,710

Percent difference: 100%

South Carolina: Paper goods machine setters, operators, and tenders

They operate machinery that makes paper products.

Median income in-state: $55,150

Median income nationally: $37,890

Percent difference: 46%

South Dakota: Driver/Sales Workers

Driver/sales workers drive a truck or other vehicle to sell or deliver goods.

Median income in-state: $29,260

Median income nationally: $24,040

Percent difference: 22%

Tennessee: Forging machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic

They operate machines that manufacture metal or plastic parts.

Median income in-state: $54,090

Median income nationally: $38,650

Percent difference: 40%

Texas: Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels

They operate water vessels, like ferry boats and tugboats.

Median income in-state: $122,390

Median income nationally: $70,920

Percent difference: 73%

Utah: Graduate teaching assistants

Graduate teaching assistants help faculty by teaching classes or assisting in other teaching-related activities.

Median income in-state: $46,650

Median income nationally: $32,460

Percent difference: 44%

Vermont: Waiters and waitresses

Waiters and waitresses take orders and bring food to customers at restaurants.

Median income in-state: $29,950

Median income nationally: $20,820

Percent difference: 44%

Virginia: Legal support workers, all other

Legal support workers assist lawyers and judges.

Median income in-state: $117,210

Median income nationally: $56,120

Percent difference: 109%

Washington: Emergency medical technicians and paramedics

EMTs and paramedics assess injuries and administer emergency medical care.

Median income in-state: $76,040

Median income nationally: $33,380

Percent difference: 128%

West Virginia: Chemical equipment operators and tenders

They operate equipment to control chemical reactions in the processing of industrial or consumer products.

Median income in-state: $67,330

Median income nationally: $47,800

Percent difference: 41%

Wisconsin: Manicurists and pedicurists

Manicurists and pedicurists clean, shape, and decorate clients' fingernails and toenails.

Median income in-state: $31,480

Median income nationally: $23,230

Percent difference: 36%

Wyoming: Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers

They use hand-welding or cutting equipment to work with metal products.

Median income in-state: $57,550

Median income nationally: $40,240

Percent difference: 43%

source http://www.newssplashy.com/2018/06/strategy-most-disproportionately-high.html

[goldeagleprice]

Three states consider tax exemptions

There are currently efforts under way in Alabama, Kansas, and Tennessee to seek sales and use tax exemptions on the in-state retail sales of rare coins and precious metals bullion.

Last fall, the state of North Carolina became the 36th state to have either no sales and use taxes at all (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon), or a complete or partial sales tax exemption on the in-state retail sales of rare coins and precious metals bullion.

Further, North Carolina also exempted the retail sales of legal tender currency from sales and use taxes as did Indiana the year before, both joining a small number of other state doing so.

This year, there are efforts under way in three additional states to seek similar sales and use tax exemptions.

In Alabama, a new pair of bills, HB 19 and SB 156, were entered this year after last year’s effort to gain an exemption failed when the session adjourned.

The Alabama House bill has already passed favorably out of the House Ways and Means Education committee on Jan. 24 and has gone through its second reading in the full House chamber. It might be voted upon by the full House as early as this week.

The Alabama Senate bill passed out of the Senate committee with little opposition on Jan. 31 and has been sent to the entire Senate Chamber for a vote. The exemption would cover gold, silver, platinum and palladium bullion products of at least 90 percent purity and all legal tender coins and currency. For details of the legislation, refer to pages 39-40 of https://legiscan.com/AL/text/HB19/2018.

Whichever bill first passes both chambers and is signed by the governor would take effect on the first day of the third month after the effective date that it becomes law. The law does contain a five-year sunset provision, meaning that the exemption would expire unless it was renewed by the government. The exemptions in California and Virginia had or still have similar sunset provisions.

Hopes are high that the Alabama exemption will be enacted this year.

In Kansas, House Bill 2421 was introduced in May 2017 but lay dormant while the legislature wrangled over significant fiscal problems.

The current text of this bill is available at http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2017_18/measures/documents/hb2421_00_0000.pdf (go to pages 36-7). It would exempt gold, silver, platinum and palladium bullion products plus all legal tender coins and currency.

The potential fiscal obstacles have now been resolved. Last week, the Kansas House Committee on Taxation heard testimony on the exemption bill from four Kansas dealers, Kathy McFadden, the executive director of the Industry Council for Tangible Assets (ICTA), and me.

The committee did not take a vote on the bill. The lobbyists hired by Kansas coin dealers are now polling committee members. If there is sufficient support among them, the committee chair will be asked to bring it up for a committee vote. From there it would advance to the full House. If successful in the House, it would advance to the Kansas Senate for a committee hearing and then vote of the full chamber. The effective date of the exemption would be after its publication in the statute book or possibly at the beginning of the next fiscal year on July 1.

In the committee hearing, the dealers presented a strong case of significant lost business to dealers in the states surrounding Kansas (Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma), all of which already have rare coins and precious metals sales and use tax exemptions.

Information was also presented from ICTA’s national coin dealer survey in 2016 that determined it is virtually certain that state treasuries in states with complete or partial sales rare coins and precious metals sales and use tax exemptions actually collect higher sales taxes per capita than do states that do not exempt them from such taxes! In effect, these exemption bills could more properly be considered jobs creation and business development bills that do not require any net state government outlays.

The effort in Kansas may be more of an uphill challenge than in Alabama. Some tax cuts in recent years brought on a major fiscal crisis for the Kansas state government to such a degree that some legislators may automatically oppose any newly proposed tax credits, exemptions, or reductions. To help advance the effort in this state, Kansas residents can contact ICTA at icta@ictaonline.org, or call 410-626-7005 for more information.

In Tennessee, HB 342 was introduced in February 2017 seeking a sales and use tax exemption on gold, silver, platinum and palladium bullion products and legal tender coins and currency. You can read the text at http://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/110/Bill/HB0342.pdf. The Senate bill was referred favorably with recommendation to its Finance, Ways and Means Committee by its subcommittee. The House Bill remains in its Finance, Ways and Means subcommittee because the state’s governor late last year directed the committee’s chairman, Rep. Charles Sargent, to not send him any sales and use tax exemption bills to sign. The information I have is that this state has a large budget surplus that the governor wanted to leave intact when he left office at the end of 2018.

The efforts in Tennessee have thus far been pursued without the support of professional lobbyists. ICTA and the state’s coin dealers are working to overcome the political obstacles. However, without a commitment of funds by the state’s coin dealers to pay for a lobbyist, the efforts may take longer. ICTA Chief Operating Officer David Crenshaw has made multiple trips to Nashville for meetings seeking to promote this bill. I visited there twice to testify before a subcommittee and meet with the head of the state’s fiscal agency and key legislators.

By the way, last week there were additional similar sales and use tax exemption bills introduced in the Tennessee legislature, HB 915 and SB 1893. This certainly indicates interest in the issue and may help garner enough support to achieve an exemption.

Incidentally, there has also been a separate push for Tennessee to establish a state-owned precious metals storage facility. Such a development would pretty much require that the state enact a precious metals sales tax exemption first. The state treasurer has expressed support for such a storage facility.

Once again, Tennessee coin business owners and collectors can contact ICTA by email at icta@ictaonline.org for more information on how they may help in this exemption effort.

Over the past four years, new exemptions have been gained in Indiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma and Virginia. A suspension of Louisiana’s exemption was eliminated and substantially restored ahead of schedule. The existing exemptions in Texas and Virginia were expanded. Clearly, the momentum is on adding more rare coins and precious metals state sales tax exemptions over time.

In most of the states with recent legislative success or where efforts are now under way, there were past efforts to gain rare coins and use tax sales tax exemptions that were not successful. The recent string of successes takes advantage of the significant data accumulated by ICTA to support such efforts. Further, the current strategy to meet with state fiscal agency, revenue and treasury personnel in advance of the introduction of the legislation to defuse potential opposition once the legislative process begins has made an enormous difference.

ICTA staff are working on enough other projects (such as promoting the Anti-Counterfeiting Task Force) that it is not possible to devote staff time to too many sales tax exemption efforts simultaneously. Dealers and collectors who may be in the other 11 states or in the District of Columbia that do not yet have any rare coins and precious metals sales tax exemptions (Arkansas, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin) may want to contact ICTA soon to arrange for an effort in 2019.

Patrick A. Heller was the American Numismatic Association 2017 Exemplary Service and 2012 Harry Forman Numismatic Dealer of the Year Award winner. He was also honored by the Numismatic Literary Guild in 2017 and 2016 for the Best Dealer-Published Magazine/Newspaper and for Best Radio Report. He is the communications officer of Liberty Coin Service in Lansing, Mich., and writes “Liberty’s Outlook,” a monthly newsletter on rare coins and precious metals subjects. Past newsletter issues can be viewed at http://www.libertycoinservice.com. Some of his radio commentaries titled “Things You ‘Know’ That Just Aren’t So, And Important News You Need To Know” can be heard at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday and Friday mornings on 1320-AM WILS in Lansing (which streams live and becomes part of the audio and text archives posted at http://www.1320wils.com).

  This article was originally printed in Numismatic News. >> Subscribe today.

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Bitcoins Fueling The particular Ethos Perfectly Revolution

These are generally the real McCoy; Genuine Casascius BitCoins Spirit are always within the forefront regarding cutting-edge engineering and so they have become accepting BitCoins as a fresh payment selection for their cutting edge and modern health, activities and nutrient products like their; Shiny Eyes Is catagorized eye is catagorized for cataracts which were included on the Rich & Judy TV Show assessments, Ethos Underwater Phytoplankton, Ethozyme, Ethos Endymion Sport™ and also ASEA™.

ASEA™ Fueling Our Race

ASEA™ is the extremely latest supplement to their special range of Tendency Healthy Way of living products and it can be a major health breakthrough which usually, for the first time ever before, enables often the successful supply of Redox Signalling Elements in a product drink. ASEA™ is a activity changer along with category choreographer; it is not any nutritional supplement, supplement nor gemstone supplement. It can be a unique in addition to patented method for into the well-being along with the only method to obtain Redox Whistling Molecules away from human body. Professional medical studies have certainly shown some sort of 12% increased the time arrive at reach Ventilatory Threshold that is certainly the point with your workout an excellent leaf blower body finds out other powers because it is unable to bring in ample oxygen to help fuel your muscle mass. After solely two weeks involving supplementing having ASEA SPORT™ Some players increased their particular power production and energy by above 30%! instructions ASEA Redox Signaling Compounds

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What are BitCoins..?

BitCoins, with all the currency mark BTC, undoubtedly are a revolutionary brand-new digital currency exchange that you can use web in an expanding number of shops worldwide. Financial transaction fees are usually far less than those patients of all standard payment control methods just like Visa plus MasterCard and so forth and are fully secure. Everyone can build a free BitCoins eWallet and also immediately get started enjoying the main advantages of secure fiscal transactions together with negligible rates. You can shift funds that will anyone, wherever, instantly.

BitCoins were the exact brainchild of an person (or group of people) going under the particular pseudonym connected with Satoshi Nakamoto (the Western equivalent with John Smith) and ended up first launched the government financial aid January yr. On the twenty seventh February 2013, one BitCoin was well worth USD33. seventy two and the existing global economic base regarding BitCoins and then was projected to be well over USD275 million, turning it into the number one, fastest-growing, alternative digital camera crypto-currency worldwide. BitCoins is often a totally decentralised currency and is particularly not linked with, nor manipulated by, virtually any specific company, central standard bank or authorities institution. It can be totally distinct and the means it has been produced means that we will see a governed and pre-calculated release of latest coins into your world's world international economic system between today and the calendar year 2140. Along with a totally to cap it market reduce of 21 years old million BitCoins that will at any time be unveiled into movement, unlike the fiat pieces of paper currencies which often devalue regular as each of our governments printer themselves in oblivion, BitCoins will never endure hyperinflation.

BitCoins can be swapped for any regular currency, every time, through an exspanding number of loan companies climbing on this phone the fast growing BitCoin bandwagon. They will also be familiar with pay for goods and services at an widening number of online shops as well as quite a few offline corporations who can look at great benefits which is available from accepting BitCoins as a means of payment. BitCoins are transmitted electronically through the internet as well as mobile phone arrangements via a peer-to-peer computer multilevel which easily verifies every transaction consequently each financial transaction is unique along with cannot ever previously be replicated. Anyone can certainly very simply and simply set up a new mobile phone plan to equally send in addition to receive installments via BitCoins.

In the States, a couple New Hampshire entrepreneurs include recently designed the tour's first BitCoin ATM which will converts cash into BitCoins and remains them promptly into your BitCoin eWallet. Automobile planning to position them in discos, restaurants plus retail outlets around the USA. Earth's First BitCoin ATM

Typically the BitCoin eWallet uses a quite special cryptography with a 10 word key-phrase which is exclusive to each profile and is the one that would have even the tallest 3g base station most stylish super-computers around one hundred several years to bust. The key-phrase should be memorised as this subsequently gives you immediate access to your BitCoin funds coming from anywhere in the world. Just about every transaction entirely anonymous and also cannot be ed or followed by any business or govt body. An idea of how this is very valuable is that you may leave your family bundle to your little ones by simply going for your 16 word key-phrase in your continue will along with testament and yes it would in that case be cost free of just about any inheritance income tax or different deductions.

Often the Euro-zone desperate, combined with the latest meltdown involving Cyprus' business banking system, features driven BitCoin prices previously higher when they continue to break up new file highs. For the duration of writing, the existing price is at this point USD71. forty seven which is by now over increase what it i visited the end connected with February 2013.

BitCoins are hitting the core media using headlines similar to:

Cyprus' Business banking Crisis great News to get BitCoins : Click Here

Vacation, The BitCoin Run Has begun - Please click here

Canadian Gentleman Selling His / her House To get BitCoins rapid Click Here

Therefore , how substantial can BitCoins go..?

At this time, there are twenty-five new BitCoins generated having every 10-minute block. This can be halved to be able to 12. 5 various BitCoins in the past year 2017; and halved frequently every 5 years afterward until the tricky total limitation of twenty-one million BitCoins is gotten to during the year 2140.

The current personal base with BitCoins is already valued on over USD600 million. The latest target market limitation of a few million BitCoins, with a valuation between 800 billion to six trillion GBP, means that each one BitCoin will then end up being worth cover anything from USD100, 000 at the not-so-fast market covering, and USD1, 000, 000 at the quality market limit. With this in mind, persons thinking that the actual speculative estimations of BitCoins ever attaining USD100 are generally 'daring in addition to optimistic' lighter into insignificance in comparison. Through doubling via USD33. seventy two at the end of January to USD71. 47 nowadays also attests that bursting the USD100 barrier isn't going to look to always be that miles away in the future plus, if stuff carry on rising at all their current charge, that wall could instantly be cracked sometime the following month. Each BitCoin is subdivided into 75 million small units identified as 'Satoshis', characterized by nine decimal sites.

For those who prefer to carry physical sending of authentic genuine sheet metal BitCoins you could order these individuals directly from: hardbtc. org. Exceptional reader's BitCoin offer instructions 10% price cut valid until eventually May thirty first using cheap code: ETHOS10%. They are you can buy in several different denominations; 1 BTC, 5 BTC and 30 BTC. The same as consuming physical shipping and delivery of yellow metal or sterling silver, you fork out a premium in the current position price when necessary, but in the forthcoming I foresee that they will turn into very well wanted collectors objects and basically be worthy of a lot more than their whole weight with gold. These are typically the real McCoy; Genuine Casascius BitCoins. The exact coin possesses a peel rear tamper-proof hologram sticker which in turn reveals your 'Private key' inside that is definitely accepted by major BitCoin dealer MtGox. com for you to convert these kind of physical BitCoins into usual digital BitCoins by using the 'Redeem Private Key' feature observed under the 'Funding Options' selection. These BitCoins are ideal for all those who are looking to get started with BitCoins and especially those of you that are not incredibly tech informed. I would certainly not recommend basically opening one of those BitCoins, because you will then have always a BitCoin to keep for just a rainy morning. Buy one right now, keep it some time safe, next wait to check out exactly what the significance of BitCoins springs up to seeing that I'm gently confident this, in many years to come, you will be pretty pleasantly surprised while using outcome.