Ursula Madden’s MLGW salary vote punted to next meeting
The Memphis City Council has to approve any MLGW salary more than $180,000, but that number could soon change.
Reporter
Keely Brewer is a Report for America corps member covering environmental impacts on communities of color in Memphis. She is working in partnership with the Ag & Water Desk, a sustainable reporting network aimed at telling water and agriculture stories across the Mississippi River Basin.
There are 322 articles by Keely Brewer :
The Memphis City Council has to approve any MLGW salary more than $180,000, but that number could soon change.
They’re following suit with the City of Memphis, Collierville and Bartlett.
A bill that would have allowed more development on certain types of Tennessee wetlands stalled Wednesday, March 6.
A new federal bill could require the Tennessee Valley Authority to consider more public input in its long-term planning process.
For decades, a dozen acres of old-growth forest have been separated from Overton Park by a chain-link fence, but the area could reconnect to the park’s existing trail system by the end of the year.
Memphis Urban Wood planned to turn a vacant 10-acre property on North Watkins Street into a facility that transforms wood waste into lumber and wood compost.
The former TV journalist was supposed to start work at the utility in early March, but a month-long delay by the City Council left her in limbo. MLGW pushes back on council proposal for more say-so on contracts, salariesRelated story:
Had the proposed limits been in place last year, the Memphis City Council would have needed to approve about a tenth of MLGW’s new external hires, or 23 employees.
Nearly a year and a half after Memphis Light, Gas and Water’s smart meters started breaking — and just as the utility thought it was almost done repairing them — another issue has arisen.
At a rare community meeting Thursday evening, tensions between about 30 community members and a couple company representatives boiled over. One message was clear: The community doesn’t trust Velsicol.
There are a litany of things that can cause a ship or barge to collide with a bridge, with “Mother Nature being a primary one,” according to a waterways management chief with the U.S. Coast Guard.
Under new federal guidelines, one Memphis company will have to slash emissions and another seems to be in the process of shutting down.
The developers “withdrew” their application but say they only meant to postpone the vote. Council member Easter-Thomas doesn’t buy it.
The Memphis City Council will have more direct control over Memphis Light, Gas and Water’s spending for at least six months.
Because Tennessee has never regulated PFAS, it’s unknown how much of the forever chemicals are in Memphis’ drinking water.
Since 2017, the MLGW board has allowed for two members who live outside the Memphis city limits, but they don’t get a vote. That could soon change if the City Council and residents agree.
After decades of toxic emissions and nearly two years of community pressure on the company, Sterilization Services of Tennessee is leaving its South Memphis facility.
The developers shouldn’t be able to pursue any similar projects for five years, but a representative of the project said otherwise.
Foliage has historically caused about 40% of power outages in Memphis, but thick canopies shelter residents from the sun and harsh winds, meaning tree trimming is a balancing act for MLGW.
The developers and Shelby County reached an out-of-court settlement to allow the 1,500-acre solar farm to be built.
As more data centers are built in the U.S., they’re consuming more energy. And in Shelby County, RWE’s Graceland Solar project unwittingly became a case study for how new facilities might be powered.
South Memphis residents were celebrating Tuesday as Sterilization Services of Tennessee left its home of nearly 50 years.