SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS ON $378 MILLION ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO SYRRA

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 

The United States Contributes $378 Million in Additional Funding to Syria

Remarks

John Kerry

Secretary of State

Washington, DC

July 30, 2014

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Nearly 11 million Syrians today are struggling to survive one of the worst humanitarian crises in living memory.

The brutally indefensible and illegitimate Asad regime continues to pursue its appalling “starve or surrender” tactics against the Syrian people. The regime is asphyxiating half a million Syrians in Aleppo by obstructing deliveries of food, water, and medicine, and dropping dozens of barrel bombs a day on the city and surrounding suburbs. Syrians all over the country are being butchered at the hands of a ruthless tyrant.

The world must act quickly and decisively to get life-saving assistance to the innocent civilians who are bearing the brunt of this barbaric war. That’s why the United States is providing nearly $378 million in additional aid to help those battered by conflict. The United States remains the single-largest donor of humanitarian aid for the crisis, and total U.S. humanitarian assistance will now reach more than $2.4 billion. Of that total, nearly $438 million is supporting cross-border assistance through non-governmental organizations to reach the children, women, and men residing in areas outside of the regime’s control.

This assistance is having an impact on the ground – right now. With our help, more than 4 million people in Syria have food to eat. More than 1.9 million patients have been treated in more than 300 U.S.-supported hospitals and health clinics across Syria. And our assistance feeds, shelters, and provides medicine and water to millions of refugees throughout the region in countries like Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq, and Egypt, all coping with the burden of hosting thousands of refugees.

We endorse full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2165, which was adopted unanimously. This resolution authorizes UN organizations to bring life-saving assistance across the border into Syria without the Asad regime’s consent. Late last week, truckloads of UN humanitarian aid began crossing into Syria, and we look forward to more UN aid convoys in the coming days.

As we continue our humanitarian efforts, we remain committed to finding a political solution to this crisis. We must bring the violence and bloodshed to an end, and work toward a future of dignity and freedom that all Syrians deserve.

CANADIAN ANTIQUE DEALER CHARGED WITH CONSPIRING TO SMUGGLE WILDLIFE PRODUCTS LIKE IVORY, RHINOCEROS HORN

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Canadian Antique Dealer Charged with Trafficking Wildlife

Antique Company President Charged with Smuggling Wildlife Worth More Than $500,000

Canadian antiques dealer Xiao Ju Guan, aka Tony Guan, 39, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Manhattan today for conspiring to smuggle wildlife, including rhinoceros horn, elephant ivory and coral, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Sam Hirsch for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara for the Southern District of New York and Director Dan Ashe of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS).

Guan, the president and owner of an antiques business in Richmond, British Columbia, was arrested on March 29, 2014, after flying from Vancouver to New York and purchasing two endangered black rhinoceros horns from undercover special agents with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service at a storage facility in the Bronx.   After purchasing the horns in a storage pod, Guan had the undercover agents drive him and a female accomplice acting as his interpreter to a nearby express mail store where he mailed the horns to an address in Point Roberts, Washington, less than a mile from the Canadian border and 17 miles from his business.   Guan labeled the box of black rhino horns as containing “handicrafts” worth $200, even though he had just paid $45,000 for them.   Guan indicated that he had people who could drive the horns across the border and that he had done so many times before.

Guan and his co-conspirators allegedly smuggled more than $500,000 of rhino horns and sculptures made from elephant ivory and coral from various U.S. auction houses to Canada by the same method or by having packages mailed directly to Canada with false paperwork and without the required declaration or permits.   One part of the criminal scheme was to falsely describe the wildlife in order to conceal Guan’s wildlife smuggling.   In the case of a rhino horn purchased in Florida, the Customs paperwork claimed it was a “Wooden Horn” worth $200.

At the same time that Guan was being arrested in New York, wildlife enforcement officers with Environment Canada executed a search warrant at Guan’s antique business in Canada.   Environment Canada and Justice Canada are working cooperatively with U.S. investigators and prosecutors.   The Guan case is part of “Operation Crash,” a U.S. Fish & Wildlife and Justice Department crackdown on illegal trafficking in rhinoceros horns.

“Illegal wildlife trafficking is a multibillion-dollar business that must be stopped,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Hirsch.  “The Justice Department is working vigorously to uphold the laws designed to protect rhinos and elephants and other threatened species from extinction and is working alongside our international partners to bring black-market wildlife traders to justice.   We are also very grateful here for the assistance from Canadian authorities.”

“ There is an ever-expanding black market for objects made from endangered species that fuels the devastating and senseless slaughter of noble animals,” said U.S. Attorney Bharara.  “The charges levied today are designed to deal a heavy blow to those that are deliberately profiting from the trade in rare and endangered species. ”

“As this case illustrates, the United States plays a key role in the illegal wildlife trade – often as the source of, or transit country for, poached and smuggled wildlife products headed elsewhere in the world,” said Director Ashe. “This makes coordination vital with our international partners as we work together to halt the slaughter of rhinos, elephants and many other imperiled species.   We have a long history of collaboration with Environment Canada on wildlife trafficking and other issues, and we appreciate the invaluable assistance they’ve provided in this case.”

Rhinoceros are an herbivore species of prehistoric origin and one of the largest remaining mega-fauna on earth.  They have no known predators other than humans.  All species of rhinoceros are protected under U.S. and international law.  Since 1976, trade in rhinoceros horn has been regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a treaty signed by over 170 countries around the world to protect fish, wildlife and plants that are or may become imperiled due to the demands of international markets.

Operation Crash is a continuing investigation by the Department of the Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), in coordination with the Department of Justice.   A “crash” is the term for a herd of rhinoceros.  Operation Crash is an ongoing effort to detect, deter and prosecute those engaged in the illegal killing of rhinoceros and the unlawful trafficking of rhinoceros horns.  The Guan case was investigated by FWS, the U.S. Attorney’s Office Complex Frauds Unit and the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section with assistance from Environment Canada’s Wildlife Enforcement Directorate.   Assistant U.S. Attorney Janis M. Echenberg and Senior Counsel Richard A. Udell of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section are in charge of the prosecution.

An indictment is an allegation based upon a finding of probable cause.   A defendant is presumed innocent until convicted.   If convicted, Guan faces up to five years in prison for the conspiracy and wildlife charges and up to ten years in prison for the crime of smuggling.   Guan could be fined up to $200,000 per count or up to twice the gross gain from the criminal conduct.

FTC GETS COURT TO SHUT DOWN MOBILE CRAMMING OPERATION

FROM:  FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION 

At FTC’s Request, Court Shuts Down Mobile Cramming Operation That Stuck Consumers with More Than $100 Million in Unauthorized Charges

Over a Million Consumers Were Crammed With Charges for Text Message “Services”

At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has temporarily halted a mobile phone cramming scheme that deceptively piled more than $100 million in charges on consumers’ mobile phone bills without their permission. In its complaint, the FTC seeks permanently to shut down the operation and recover money lost by consumers.

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued a temporary restraining order against six companies and six individual defendants behind the scheme, halting the operations and freezing their assets pending litigation.

“This scheme demonstrates the kind of widespread harm that mobile phone cramming can inflict on American consumers,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “It also shows why we’ve made it a priority to crack down on this problem.”

In its complaint, the FTC charged that the defendants used deceptive practices, including fake websites with bogus offers of “freebies” or gift cards, to trick consumers into providing their mobile phone numbers. The defendants then placed monthly subscription fees for a variety of “services” on consumers’ mobile phone bills without their authorization.

The practice, known as mobile cramming, relies on the fact that many consumers often don’t closely examine their monthly statements, or assume that charges are legitimate.

The “services” described in the complaint consisted of subscriptions for text messages sent to consumers’ mobile phones that contained short celebrity gossip alerts, “fun facts,” horoscopes, and other items.  The subscriptions typically cost consumers $9.99 or $14.99 per month and were set to renew automatically each month.

According to the FTC’s complaint, the process of disputing the charges was frustrating and time-consuming for consumers. Some consumers were crammed for multiple months before noticing the charges and, even after significant effort, were unable to obtain a full refund.

According to documents filed in court by the FTC, the defendants continued cramming charges on to consumers’ mobile phone bills even after wireless carriers terminated their billing privileges. For example, two mobile carriers terminated MDK’s billing privileges because of its high refund rates and its association with deceptive websites. In spite of that, MDK continued cramming through use of a fictitious business name.

The defendants in the case are MDK Media Inc.; Tendenci Media LLC; Mindkontrol Industries LLC; Anacapa Media LLC; Bear Communications LLC; Network One Commerce Inc.; Makonnen Demessow Kebede; Sarah Ann Brekke; Christopher Thomas DeNovellis; Wayne Calvin Byrd II; James Matthew Dawson; and Casey Lee Adkisson.

The FTC’s complaint alleges that the defendants violated the FTC Act, through their deceptive tactics and by unfairly billing consumers for unauthorized services.

In recent months, the FTC has brought a number of law enforcement actions in addition to policy and education activities designed to combat mobile cramming that are part of the Commission’s overall work to protect consumers in the mobile environment. Earlier this week, the Commission released a staff report with best practices for companies in the carrier billing industry to help prevent mobile cramming. The Commission voted 5-0 to authorize the staff to file the complaint.

NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The case will be decided by the court.

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SKIN CANCER RATES INCREASING: SURGEON GENERAL ISSUES CALL TO ACTION

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

Surgeon General issues call to action to prevent skin cancer

Skin cancer rates rising: most cases are preventable

Skin cancer, the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States, is a major public health problem that requires immediate action, according to a new Call to Action released today by the U.S. Surgeon General.

Even though most skin cancers can be prevented, rates of skin cancer, including melanoma, are increasing in the United States. Nearly 5 million people in the U.S. are treated for skin cancer every year, at an average annual cost of $8.1 billion. It is also one of the most common types of cancer among U.S. teens and young adults.

A key message in today’s report is that although people with lighter skin are at higher risk, anyone can get skin cancer—and it can be disfiguring, even deadly. Over the last three decades, the number of Americans who have had skin cancer is estimated to be higher than the number for all other cancers combined.

“While many other cancers, such as lung cancer, are decreasing, rates of melanoma -- the deadliest form of skin cancer -- are increasing,” said Assistant Secretary for Health Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H. “As a skin oncologist who worked in this field for many years, I have cared for both the young and old with skin cancers. Almost all of these cancers were caused by unnecessary ultraviolet radiation exposure, usually from excessive time in the sun or from the use of indoor tanning devices.”

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer. Each year, more than 63,000 new cases are diagnosed in the U.S. and nearly 9,000 people die from this disease. Rates of melanoma increased more than 200 percent from 1973 to 2011. Melanoma is also one of the most common types of cancer among U.S. teens and young adults.

According to research cited in the Call to Action, more than 400,000 cases of skin cancer, about 6,000 of which are melanomas, are estimated to be related to indoor tanning in the U.S. each year. Currently, as many as 44 states plus the District of Columbia have some type of law or regulation related to indoor tanning, but nearly one out of every three white women aged 16 to 25 years engages in indoor tanning each year.

“Tanned skin is damaged skin, and we need to shatter the myth that tanned skin is a sign of health,” said Acting Surgeon General Boris D. Lushniak, M.D., M.P.H. “When people tan or get sunburned, they increase their risk of getting skin cancer later in life.”

The Surgeon General’s Call to Action helps to educate consumers by providing everyday steps they can take to lead healthy and active lives while being outdoors. These steps include wearing protective gear (such as a hat, sunglasses, and other protective clothing) and seeking shade along with the use of a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher to protect any exposed skin, especially during midday hours.

“We want all Americans to lead healthy, active lives,” Dr. Lushniak said, “We all need to take an active role to prevent skin cancer by protecting our skin while being outdoors and avoiding intentional sun exposure and indoor tanning.”

The report calls on all sectors of Americans society, including the business, health care, education, government and nonprofit sectors, as well as families and individuals, to do more. Examples include communities providing shade in outdoor settings, health care providers counseling patients on the importance of using sun protection, and educational institutions discouraging indoor tanning.

WHITE HOUSE FACT SHEET ON PRESIDENT'S CLIMATE DATA INITIATIVE

FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 

FACT SHEET: Empowering America’s Agricultural Sector and Strengthening Food Resilience through the President’s Climate Data Initiative

“My administration will work with tech innovators and launch new challenges under our Climate Data Initiative, focused initially on rising sea levels and their impact on the coasts, but ultimately focused on how all these changes in weather patterns are going to have an impact up and down the United States…and how do we start preparing for that.” – President Obama, remarks on the California Drought, February 14, 2014.

In March 2014, the Obama Administration unveiled the Climate Data Initiative—a key deliverable of the President’s Climate Action Plan to cut carbon pollution in America, prepare communities for the impacts of climate change, and lead international efforts to address this global challenge. The Climate Data Initiative leverages the Federal Government’s vast and open data resources to stimulate the kinds of innovation and entrepreneurship that can empower America’s communities and businesses to take action against climate change and prepare for the future.

Today, building on the Climate Data Initiative’s initial focus on coastal resilience, the Obama Administration is unveiling the Initiative’s “Food Resilience” theme, aimed at empowering America’s agricultural sector and strengthening the resilience of the global food system in a changing climate.

The National Climate Assessment, released in May, 2014, confirms that climate disruptions to agriculture have been increasing, are projected to become more severe over this century, and that climate-change effects on agriculture will have consequences for food security, both nationally and globally, through changes in crop yields and food prices, as well as effects on food processing, storage, transportation, and retailing. 

That’s why the Obama Administration is working to connect farmers, food distributors, and agricultural businesses with the data, tools, and information they need to understand how climate change impacts—such as more intense heat waves, heavier downpours, and severe droughts and wildfires out west—are affecting their operations today and steps they can take to both prepare for and help fight climate change.

To continue momentum under the Climate Data Initiative, the Obama Administration is today renewing the President’s call to America’s private-sector innovators to leverage open government data and other resources to build tools that will make the U.S. and global food systems more resilient against the impacts of climate change. In response to this call, today’s launch includes a number of commitments by Federal agencies and private-sector collaborators to combat climate change and support food resilience through data-driven innovation.

Administration Commitments: 

• Convening Agriculture and Technology Leaders at the White House. Today, Senior Obama Administration officials are meeting at the White House with representatives of leading food, agriculture and technology businesses to discuss ways these companies are leveraging open government data, related information tools, and other innovations to improve the resilience of the U.S. and global food system and reduce the contributions of food production to climate change.
• New Features on climate.data.gov. The Obama Administration is today unveiling an expanded climate.data.gov to include new pages and features that make data about the risks of climate change to food production, supply, nutrition, and security more open and accessible to innovators, entrepreneurs, and researchers. Through a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and other Federal agency partners, hundreds of datasets, web services, and tools on these topics and more are being made accessible through climate.data.gov, including data from the Census of Agriculture, current and historical data on production, supply, and distribution of agricultural products, and data on climate-change-related risks such as storms, pests, and drought. The Administration is also expanding climate.data.gov to include datasets from climate models, projecting potential future climate impacts.
• Hosting Agriculture-Innovation Workshops. The Obama Administration will host and participate in a series of innovation workshops focused on data-driven innovation at the nexus of climate-change and agriculture, including:
  • On July 30, USDA will host two innovation workshops in Washington, DC, one with young and beginning farmers and another with food distributors, to spur the development of creative information-technology tools that can help farmers and those in the food supply chain to prepare for climate-change impacts.
  • On August 1, USDA and NYU’s Governance Lab (GovLab) will host an Open Data event in Washington, DC, focused on food resilience and climate change, as well as preparedness for food emergencies. The event will encourage dialogue between government agencies and the businesses and organizations that use their data, in support of the goals of the Climate Data Initiative.
  • On August 5, concurrent with the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Government, IBM, and partners of the Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition Initiative will host a data-innovation event focused on developing technological innovations based on open data that can help address global food security and nutrition in Africa.

Private-Sector Commitments:

• Principles for Responsible Investment. The United-Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) has formed an investor group made up of Rockefeller & Co. and five European-based institutional investors (PGGM, Aberdeen Asset Management, Hermes, MN, and Nordea) to address the risks from climate change to companies with agricultural supply chains – including in the food, beverage, and apparel sectors. Using data from the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Water Risk Filter mapping tool and Pricewaterhouse Coopers’ (PwC) ESCHER model, the investor group will engage approximately 50 major companies in constructive dialogue to increase resilience to water risks and foster more informed investment decision-making. PRI and the investor group are launching an Investor Guidance Document and issuing a call to action to support the effort to PRI’s 1260 global signatories representing more than $45 trillion USD in assets.
• Microsoft. In support of the President’s Climate Data Initiative’s, Microsoft and USDA will co-host a series of workshops, webinars, and an app-athon aimed at demonstrating the value of open-data and data-driven tools to boost climate preparedness and resilience in the agricultural sector. Microsoft and USDA will also jointly launch a climate-change-focused Innovation Challenge to inspire the development of new tools and services that harness data available via data.gov, as well as an initial collection of USDA datasets that will be made available through Microsoft’s Azure Marketplace. Microsoft Research will issue a special request for proposals focused on food resilience and climate change and grant 12 months of free cloud-computing resources to 20 awardees whose proposals are submitted by Sept. 15, 2014 through the Azure for Research program.
• Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. Through the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, the U.S. dairy industry is today committing to advance a series of science-based efforts, including additional research to understand and optimize dairy’s role in a resilient, efficient, and sustainable food system, as well as testing and piloting four new Farm Smart modules—energy, feed, nutrient, and herd management—by the end of 2014.  Farm Smart is a data-driven online tool that helps dairy farmers assess their farm’s environmental footprint; explore the potential environmental value and cost-effectiveness of on-farm innovations; and communicate progress.
• The U.S. Water Partnership. Recognizing that open data can help inform actions to meet the growing water crisis in regions at home and abroad, the U.S. Water Partnership (USWP) will deploy a web-based portal called “H2InfO” during World Water Week on September 2, 2014, to increase access to high quality US-based water- and drought- information resources. In addition, the U.S. Water Partnership will develop a virtual community of practice to share data, experiences, lessons, and best practices and will convene an in-person technical dialogue for community members and other key public and private stakeholders to create a two-way exchange of expertise on drought preparedness and water resilience.
• IBM. IBM is announcing an expansion of its philanthropic World Community Grid program, which enables members of the public to donate their computer or mobile device's unused computing power to scientists. The expansion will provide scientists studying climate change topics including staple food crops and water management with free access to dedicated virtual supercomputing resources and a platform to engage the public on their research. Each researcher will have access to up to 100,000 years of computing time, a value of $60m in today's costs. IBM is inviting researchers to submit project proposals and members of the public to donate their unused computing power to these efforts at worldcommunitygrid.org. 
• GoodCompanyVentures. During the summer of 2015, GoodCompanyVentures will launch Climate Ventures 2.0, a project to source, accelerate, and deploy entrepreneurial solutions to climate-change preparedness in collaboration with the Wharton Social Impact Initiative, the Impact Hub, and the MIT Climate CoLab.  Over a nine-month period, Climate Ventures 2.0 will provide mentoring, design consulting, and access to capital for 10 high-potential teams working on ongoing climate data innovation challenges, such as those issued by NASA and MIT.  Climate Ventures 2.0 will focus on innovations that leverage scientific and government data to enhance climate change preparedness in areas such as food security, agriculture, flood, and drought.  
• The Coca-Cola Company. To help reduce the company’s environmental footprint across its value chain, the Coca-Cola Company is committing to rapidly expand the application of the Field-to-Market program and its data-driven tool to quantify water use, fertilizer use, energy use, greenhouse emissions and more. By the end of 2014, Coca-Cola will launch major initiatives with two of its four leading suppliers to implement this commitment. By the end of 2015, Coca-Cola will aim to engage farmers representing 250,000 acres, and by 2020, up to 1 million acres—equating to roughly 50% of the company’s global corn supply.
• World Wildlife Fund. In support of the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF’s) collaboration with the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), WWF is combining detailed agricultural, water, and economic data from its Water Risk Filter to help the PRI’s 1000+ signatories better assess and manage water risks in the agro-commodity supply chains of portfolio companies. WWF will work with leading technology partners to make public and leverage detailed datasets that include more than 15,000 agricultural-crop/water-basin combinations in order to empower industry, financiers, and policy-makers as they work to strengthen global water stewardship, food security, and climate resilience.
• The Agricultural Model Intercomparison & Improvement Program and the Center for Integrated Modeling of Sustainable Agriculture and Nutrition Security. The Agricultural Model Intercomparison & Improvement Program (AgMIP) and the Center for Integrated Modeling of Sustainable Agriculture and Nutrition Security (CIMSANS), in partnership with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), are announcing a new public-private partnership on open data and open-source code modeling to enhance the climate-resilience of food systems. The new partnership will secure the resources and expertise necessary to evaluate seven novel nutrition and sustainability metrics of global food systems, including all of the world’s important staple and non-staple foods, through the year 2050.
• Amazon Web Services. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is today launching the Amazon Climate Research Grant program and a call for proposals designed to drive innovativeclimate-change research with a focus on computational analysis. In early September 2014, AWS will award grants of free access to supercomputing resources through Amazon EC2 Spot Instances. By providing grants totaling 50 million core hours, AWS is enabling researchers to accelerate research that can result in an improved understanding of the scope and effects of climate change, and analyses that could suggest potential mitigating actions. Early results of the program will publish in November 2014. Expanding upon AWS’s participation in the Open NASA Earth eXchange (NEX), this program will also accelerate the development of open climate data and software resources. Details can be found here.
• National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center at the University of Maryland. The National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) at the University of Maryland is committing to fund 25 early-career scholars to address critical, actionable research questions on the resilience of food systems to climate change. Advanced Ph.D. students and scholars fewer than two years post-Ph.D. with relevant interests will be invited to apply through an open call. Successful candidates will participate in workshops in which SESYNC and USDA computational experts guide participants in a highly interactive and dynamic process of data discovery, analysis, and visualization, and will be invited to submit proposals for interdisciplinary team projects. SESYNC will fund up to six teams as well as a postdoctoral fellow with expertise in food systems research to undertake and help coordinate research for the program.
• PepsiCo. PepsiCo is announcing the installation of a 1.7 megawatt solar photovoltaic system designed to supply 3.3 million kilowatt hours of renewable energy for the company’s Gatorade manufacturing operations in Tolleson, Arizona.  Over the 25 year life of the project, this initiative will prevent the release of approximately 50,000 tons of carbon and other greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. PepsiCo will use data from this solar project to help inform future solar installations and projects as the company works to meet its goal of achieving an absolute reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. 
• Esri. Esri will work with USDA, GEOGLAM, CGIAR and others to expose and unlock authoritative data as live data feeds across dimensions of agricultural production, risk and trade.  In the fall of 2014, Esri will host an Executive White Boarding session to target the development of common information products (maps, apps and templates) needed to address specific needs in the domain of climate, society, and agriculture.  
• Michigan Agri-Business Association. In August 2014, the Michigan Agri-Business Association will launch a publicly-available web-based mapping tool for use by the state’s agriculture sector. This platform will incorporate Federal, state, and local data that could prove useful to farmers, rural businesses, conservationists and economic development professionals. Resulting maps will aggregate soil, water, meteorological and infrastructure GIS data that can be compared and visualized to meet the needs of a particular project. It is anticipated that this tool will be particularly useful for planning future agricultural activities in response to climate change in Michigan.
• Sustainable Development Solutions Network and Columbia University Earth Institute. The Sustainable Development Solutions Network is announcing a new initiative on Healthy and Sustainable Diets that will include efforts to build datasets that enable the analysis of food and nutrition security achievements across landscape-level scenarios and rural livelihoods. The Center on Globalization and Sustainable Development (CGSD) in Columbia’s Earth Institute, as a partner in the Agriculture and Food Systems group of the Network, is committing to provide this initiative with tools, research, and policy support to address these challenges in a global context.
• SWIIM System. SWIIM System, Ltd. will develop an application using USDA Quickstats data that will allow users to easily view trends in water use by irrigated agriculture as climate changes occur and as water transfers from agricultural to municipal and industrial (M&I) uses take place. This new application will allow users to explore the consequences of future climate- and water-use scenarios to water available for crop production, and will educate the user on effects of water transfer and climate change on irrigated agriculture on a localized basis. The application will be made available on the SWIIM client page and its parent website. Development is expected to commence in August 2014 and completed within approximately six months.
• Nestle. Nestlé will review and expand the scope of its public commitments on climate change leadership (detailed in the Nestlé in Society report), setting greenhouse-gas reduction targets that are based upon science and incorporating both absolute-carbon and carbon-intensity aspects. Nestlé will also incorporate climate change provisions into its responsible sourcing & traceability program, will engage in further water stewardship programs, and will extend education and training within its Farmer Connect initiative regarding good farming practices and water stewardship. Nestlé’s nutritional profiling tool (which can be used to link nutritional value calculations to calculations of environmental impact) and related data will be made available outside Nestlé through the publication of algorithms for nutritional assessments in peer reviewed scientific journals, the sharing of data on Life Cycle Inventories, and other mechanisms. 
• Rock and Wrap it Up. Rock and Wrap It Up! (RWU) is launching an updated Whole Earth Calculator, a simple mobile app that resides on a mobile-friendly website and can be used on both mobile and laptop/desktop devices. Using EPA datasets and based on information from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and USDA, the Whole Earth Calculator converts the total pounds of paper products and plastics that are diverted from landfills into the amount of carbon dioxide that is not produced as a result – and then sends this information to social media (Twitter).  The tool can also be used to convert total pounds of donated food into meal equivalents and total CO2-averted equivalents.
• Monsanto. Monsanto is announcing that it will donate a multi-site/multi-year maize breeding trial dataset to open data portals maintained by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the Agricultural Model Intercomparison & Improvement Project (AgMIP). Opening these data will it make it possible for public- and private-sector scientists to improve models being used to understand how climate and water-availability changes will impact crop productivity and therefore food security. Monsanto is also partnering with a number of external scientists in the AgMIP community to improve one of the leading publicly available crop-growth simulation models (AgMaize).
• HabitatSeven and Quandl: HabitatSeven is announcing a partnership with the data platform Quandl to combine Federal climate-impact data with private-sector commodity and supply-chain data. Through this partnership, visualization tools will be developed for private-sector decision makers, investors, and commodity traders to incorporate climate risks and opportunities into commodity prices and resilience strategies.
• The Climate Corporation: The Climate Corporation has launched a free online and mobile service called Climate Basic that provides farmers with hyper-local weather information to help them identify the impact of recent and current weather conditions on their fields. To enable the development of additional data science driven tools and services to help farmers increase production to meet increasing global demand, the company helped found the Open Ag Data Alliance (OADA), an open source software project to ensure farmers have full data access across different agriculture technology platforms. The Climate Corporation is today committing resources to support OADA's work, as well as code development to enable farmers to fully leverage their data. 
• Center for Robust Decision Making on Climate and Energy Policy at the University of Chicago. The Center for Robust Decision Making on Climate and Energy Policy (RDCEP), a research center at the Computation Institute of the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory, is announcing several new tools to expand access to the data and methods used by experts to understand climate change and its impacts. The RDCEP climate emulator, enables users to work in their own web browser with output data from state-of-the-art climate models that typically require powerful supercomputers. ATLAS, which will launch this fall, will enable users to explore climate impact data on global food security and land use. Additional web tools make up RDCEP’s FACE-IT platform, which will be adapted later this year for use by researchers in seven countries, including China, Nigeria, and India, to model and understand local climate risks and vulnerabilities in food supply, agriculture, and economics. Preliminary versions of these applications will be unveiled at the African Food Systems in the Information Age forum in Ibadan, Nigeria, on August 28-30, 2014.
• Kellogg Company and University of Minnesota. The Global Landscapes Initiative at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment is committing to openly share data and maps that illustrate how climate change affects risks to major crops within the food system. In conjunction with this commitment, Kellogg Company is committing to use these agricultural data and climate-related maps to foster geographically relevant implementation in its global sourcing. Kellogg Company, the Global Landscape Initiative, and other partners will use climate data, research, and assessments to guide education and actions that help create efficient, adaptable, and sustainable supply chains, as well as identify information gaps and needs to improve the resilience of the agricultural sector to climate change.
• American Red Cross and Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre: To better help communities in East and Southern Africa prepare for climate and weather related events, the American Red Cross and the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre are committing to scale up the distribution and use of their participatory games to communicate risk information. This scale-up will bring Climate Centre game designers, trainers, and facilitators to more places served by American Red Cross in the developing world. It will focus initially on a river basin in East or Southern Africa and will help to ensure that communities are better prepared to respond to flood warnings. This experience will be documented and made publicly available on the Climate Centrewebsite and the Global Disaster Preparedness Center website. 
• Mars, Incorporated: Mars, Incorporated, will continue to make major investments in science, including in areas such as food safety and plant science, to create resilienceacross its agricultural supply chains, improve safety, quality, resource management, and yields. Mars, Inc. will also continue to invest in renewable energy resources. For example, the company has recently invested in a 200 megawatt wind farm in Lamesa, Texas that will provide energy equal to the needs of its North America offices and factories.
• Walmart. Walmart is committing to the ongoing use of data to help set priorities for future actions to reduce greenhouse gases, including meeting the company’s 2020 goal of driving the production or procurement of 7 billion kWh of renewable energy globally every year and reducing the kWh/sq. ft. energy intensity required to power Walmart’s buildings globally by 20 percent compared to 2010 levels. Walmart will use data-driven tools such as the Sustainability Index to measure, track, and identify hot spots in its overall supply chain and provide buyers with transparency into the key impacts, such as greenhouse gas emissions, of the products they source. In addition, Walmart recently announced a partnership with eight of the largest food companies to help ensure that tomorrow’s food supply is more sustainable, including by bringing an additional eight million acres of farmland into sustainability agriculture programs.
• UN Global Pulse: In May 2014, United Nations Global Pulse hosted its first Big Data Climate Challenge, calling for cutting-edge examples of how scientists, researchers, and citizens are using big data and analytics to address social, economic and environmental challenges. Submissions were received from 40 countries, representing over 20 disciplines, including agriculture. UN Global Pulse will fly winners of the Challenge to the upcoming Climate Summit on September 24th in New York City and their work will be showcased prominently in front of media, decision-makers and civil society. In addition, Global Pulse will work with partners to summarize the results of the Big Data Climate Challenge in a report that maps the intersection of big data and climate change to build global understanding of how big data can reveal critical insights for strengthening resilience, including in the agriculture sector. 

Climate Data in Action:

In addition to the food- and agriculture-focused commitments launching today, a host of new and ongoing efforts continue to broadly advance the President’s Climate Data Initiative, including:

• iSeeChange and Berkeley Atmospheric C02 Observation Network collaboration:The public media platform iSeeChange and the Berkeley Atmospheric CO₂ Observation Network (BEACO₂N) are launching a new collaborative project to develop a pilot citizen-science story-corps to help monitor carbon emissions in the San Francisco Bay area and Oakland. Combining BEACO₂N’s network of carbon sensors, most mounted atop local schools and museums in the Bay Area, and iSeeChange’s digital platform and public media partners, the collaboration will create an information network to monitor local carbon emissions, produce stories that effectively match data and local impacts over time, and more. The partnership will kick off its work at the AAAS Citizen Science Workshop scheduled for February 2014.
• UCLA Luskin Center and EDF: The UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation and Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) are releasing the newest version of the Los Angeles Solar and Efficiency Report (LASER)—a data-driven mapping tool designed to help communities identify opportunities to invest in projects that will save households money, create clean energy jobs and strengthen climate resilience. The tool illustrates existing pollution and climate change impacts at a community level, and illustrates “hot spots” ripe for rooftop solar investment and energy efficiency building potential at the parcel level.
• Trust for Public Land: The Trust for Public Land will commit new organizational resources through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology to help America's cities lessen their vulnerability to climate-related heat events. Specifically, over the next two years the Trust for Public Land will help fill national gaps in heat-risk spatial data and modeling for cities, expand its Urban Heat Risk Explorer App to new cities, and develop a heat risk reduction GIS toolkit to help cities strategically target green infrastructure for heat resilience.   
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U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT CONTRACTS FOR JULY 30, 2014

CONTRACTS

U.S. TRANSPORTATION COMMAND

U.S. Transportation Command is awarding modifications to contracts exercising second year options for international commercial multimodal transportation services each valued at a maximum $513,625,650 to the following carriers: Liberty Global Logistics LLC, Lake Success, New York (modification P00013 to previously awarded contract HTC711-12-D-R008); American President Lines, LTD, Scottsdale, Arizona (modification P00013 to previously awarded contract HTC711-12-D-R009); and Farrell Lines, Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (modification P00010 to previously awarded contract HTC711-13-D-R001). Work will be performed worldwide, with an expected completion date of July 31, 2015. Fiscal 2014 and 2015 transportation working capital funds will be obligated on individual task orders. The contracting activity is the U.S. Transportation Command, Directorate of Acquisition, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois.

NAVY

Data Link Solutions, LLC, Cedar Rapids, Iowa (N00039-10-D-0031) and ViaSat, Inc., Carlsbad, California (N00039-10-D-0032), are being awarded a combined $116,750,000 modification to a previously awarded multiple award contract to exercise options for systems engineering and integration for the Multifunctional Information Distribution System (MIDS) Low Volume Terminal (LVT) and the MIDS Joint Tactical Radio Systems (JTRS) terminal. The MIDS-LVT provides secure, high-capacity, jam-resistant, digital data and voice communications capability for Navy, Air Force and Army platforms. MIDS JTRS is a pre-planned product improvement replacement transforming the MIDS-LVT into a four-channel, software communications architecture compliant JTRS terminal while maintaining current Link 16 and tactical air navigation capability. For Data Link Solutions, LLC, work will be performed in Wayne, New Jersey (50 percent) and Cedar Rapids, Iowa (50 percent). For ViaSat, Inc., work will be performed in Carlsbad, California. Work is expected to be completed by March 9, 2015. No funds are obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated as delivery orders are issued in the future. No contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured as a multiple award contract via the Federal Business Opportunities and SPAWAR e-Commerce Central websites, with two proposals solicited and two offers received. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.

DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a $101,947,764 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00421-11-C-0033) to exercise an option for organizational level maintenance and logistics support for all aircraft and support equipment for which the Naval Test Wing Atlantic has maintenance responsibility. This includes all rotary, fixed, lighter-than-air, and unmanned aircraft on-site for project testing, transient aircraft, loaner aircraft, leased aircraft, and tested civilian aircraft assigned to the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland. In addition, this option provides supportability/safety studies, and off-site aircraft safety/spill containment patrols and aircraft recovery services. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland, and is expected to be completed in July 2015. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation; operations and maintenance; and working capital funds (Navy) in the amount of $11,853,572 will be obligated at time of award; $3,980,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards Mayport, Jacksonville, Florida, is being awarded an $54,698,937 modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-10-C-4406) for a Docking Selected Restricted Availability to include structural work and extensive repairs and maintenance onboard USS Gettysburg (CG-64). This availability includes hull, machinery, electrical, electronics, ship alterations, and piping alteration and repair work. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Florida, and is expected to be completed by April 2015. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $32,914,644 will be obligated at time of award. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Southeast Regional Maintenance Center, Mayport, Florida, is the administering contracting activity.

Defense Support Services, LLC, Marlton, New Jersey, is being awarded a $47,514,293 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00421-11-C-0031) for organizational level maintenance, with limited intermediate level maintenance, in support of current and future aircraft assigned to the Naval Test Wing Pacific at Point Mugu and China Lake Naval Air Stations, California. Work will be performed in China Lake, California (79 percent) and Point Mugu, California (21 percent), and is expected to be completed in July 2015. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation and working capital funds (Navy) in the amount of $7,672,825 are being obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is being awarded a not-to-exceed $38,199,550 delivery order (0017) under a previously awarded contract (N00383-07-D-001J) for the repair of various parts in support of the AV-8 aircraft. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri, and the expected completion date is June 5, 2015. Fiscal 2014 working capital funds (Navy) in the amount of $28,649,662 will be obligated at the time of award and these funds will not expire before the end of the current fiscal year. One company was solicited for this non-competitive requirement in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) and one offer was received in response to this solicitation. Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity.

BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair, Norfolk, Virginia, is being awarded a $27,625,758 modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-10-C-4308) for USS NITZE (DDG-94) fiscal 2014 and 2015 docking selected restricted availability. A docking selected restricted availability includes the planning and execution of depot-level maintenance, alterations, and modifications that will update and improve the ship's military and technical capabilities while in dry dock. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by January 2015. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $27,625,758 will be obligated at time of award and the funds will expire at the end of fiscal year 2015. Norfolk Ship Support Activity, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity.

Will-Burt Advanced Composites, Inc.,* Orrville, Ohio, is being awarded a $19,465,444 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the design, fabrication and delivery of radio frequency shielded enclosures (shelters) with weatherization, and electrical and fire suppression systems to house the electronic equipment infrastructure for the Relocatable Over-The-Horizon (ROTHR) system. Work will be performed in Orrville, Ohio, and is expected to be completed by July 30, 2019. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $4,000,000 will be obligated at the time of award and these funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with three offers received in response to the solicitation.
NAVSUP Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department, Philadelphia Office, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (N00189-14-D-Z033).

Raytheon Company, McKinney, Texas, is being awarded an $18,207,740 job order which is a combination of cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price to previously awarded contract N00164-12-G-JQ66 for Common Sensor Payload (CSP) AN/AAS-53 repairs and sustainment support. CSP AN/AAS-53 repairs and sustainment support, which includes depot repair, spare analysis, program management, configuration management, software maintenance, field support repair, field support engineering support in the continental United States, engineering support, reliability and logistical support, and software support. Work will be performed in McKinney, Texas (97.8 percent) and El Mirage, California (1.2 percent), and is expected to be completed by July 2015. Fiscal 2014 aircraft procurement (Army) and fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Army) contract funds in the amount of $9,574,221 will be obligated at time of award. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane, Indiana, is the contracting activity.

Robertson Fuel Systems, LLC, Tempe, Arizona, is being awarded a $14,779,950 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-12-C-0097) to exercise an option for the procurement of two mission auxiliary fuel tank systems for the MV-22 Osprey aircraft. Work will be performed in Tempe, Arizona, and is expected to be completed in July 2015. Fiscal 2013 and 2014 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $14,779,950 will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

Lockheed Martin Corp., Mission Systems and Training, Manassas, Virginia, is being awarded a $10,944,817 modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-11-C-6294) for fiscal 2014 Acoustic Rapid Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Insertion (ARCI) Systems Production. A-RCI is a sonar system that integrates and improves towed array, hull array, sphere array, and other ship sensor processing, through rapid insertion of COTS based hardware and software. The contract provides funding for the development and production of the A-RCI and common acoustics processing for Technology Insertion 12 through Technology Insertion 14 for the U.S. submarine fleet. This modification will purchase TI-14 Spares for 12 ships and one installation and check out kit for the Virginia Class. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (60 percent) and Clearwater, Florida (40 percent), and is expected to be completed by December 2018. Funds in the amount of $10,944,817 will be obligated at the time of award. Fiscal 2012, 2013, 2014 ship conversion (Navy) and fiscal 2014 other procurement (Navy) contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.

AIR FORCE

Cessna Aircraft Co., Wichita, Kansas has been awarded a $64,493,531 firm-fixed-price contract for Interim Contractor Support (ICS) and Training. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $64,493,531. The contract provides for the ICS of 26 C-208B aircraft, six T-182T aircraft, six aircrew training devices and aircraft maintenance training. Work will be performed at Kabul International Airport, Kandahar Air Base and Shindand Air Base, Afghanistan, and is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2016. This contract supports 100 percent foreign military sales for Afghanistan, and $18,965,809 will be obligated from fiscal 2013 Afghanistan Security Forces fund at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/WLZI, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8617-14-C-6195).

ARMY

KIRA, Inc.,* Boulder, Colorado was awarded a $36,904,747 modification (P00161) to contract W911RZ-05-C-0009 to exercise option nine for base operations and maintenance services for the Directorate of Public Works, Fort Carson. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $1,206,947 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Sept. 29, 2015. Work will be performed at Fort Carson, Colorado. Army Contracting Command, Fort Carson, Colorado, is the contracting activity.

Source America, Vienna, Virginia, was awarded a $26,028,750 modification (P00068) to contract W9124D-11-C-0019 for facilities maintenance for the Department of Public Works, Fort Knox, Kentucky. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $3,395,931 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is July 31, 2015. Work will be performed at Fort Knox. Army Contracting Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky, is the contracting activity.

Great Lakes Dock and Materials LLC,* Muskegon, Michigan, was awarded a $24,992,668 firm-fixed-price multi-year contract to repair the Cleveland East Breakwater. Work will be performed in Cleveland, Ohio, with a completion date of Nov. 3, 2016. Bids were solicited via the Internet with two received. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $24,992,668 are being obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo, New York, is the contracting activity (W912P4-14-C-0017).

PRIDE Industries, Roseville, California was awarded a $14,862,152 modification (P00054) to contract W9124J-09-C-0014 to support the Fort Polk Directorate of Public Works Base Operations. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $14,862,152 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is April 30, 2015. Work will be performed at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Army Contracting Command, Fort Polk, Louisiana is the contracting activity.

Broadband Discovery Systems,* Scotts Valley, California, was awarded a $9,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to build, test and assess multi-sensor stand-off person-borne improvised explosive device detection systems with an estimated completion date of July 30, 2019. One bid was solicited with one received. Funding and work location will be determined with each order. Army Contracting Command, Natick, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity (W911QY-14-D-0025).

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

Pelican/Hardigg Industries, South Deerfield, Massachusetts, has been awarded a maximum $35,440,000 fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract for medical items and accessories. This contract was a competitive acquisition with six offers received. This is a five-year base contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Massachusetts with a July 29, 2019, performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2DH-14-D-0004).

JOINT IMPROVISED EXPLOSIVE DEVICE DEFEAT ORGANIZATION

CACI- Athena, Inc., Chantilly, Virginia, is being awarded a $12,646,545 time and materials contract for J-9 Operations Research Analysis (ORSA) support services. The J-9 ORSA will provide rapidly deployable ORSA expertise in all aspects of counter-improvised explosive device operations to support U.S. Forces within and outside of the continental United States. The primary location of performance is Reston, Virginia, and overseas locations. If all options are exercised, work is expected to be completed by August 2017. Fiscal 2013 overseas contingency operations funds in the amount of $3,000,000 are being obligated at award. This contract was competitively procured, with 10 bids received. The contracting activity is the Joint IED Defeat Organization Contract Operations, Arlington, Virginia (HQ0682-14-C-0005).

*Small business
 

G-7 LEADERS EXPRESS "GRAVE CONCERN" REGARDING RUSSIA'S ACTIONS IN UKRAINE

FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 

G-7 Leaders Statement on Ukraine

We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, the President of the European Council, and the President of the European Commission, join in expressing our grave concern about Russia’s continued actions to undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence.  We once again condemn Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea, and actions to de-stabilize eastern Ukraine.  Those actions are unacceptable and violate international law.

We condemn the tragic downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and the deaths of 298 innocent civilians.  We demand a prompt, full, unimpeded, and transparent international investigation.  We call upon all sides to establish, maintain, and fully respect a cease-fire at and around the crash site, as demanded by UN Security Council resolution 2166, so that the investigators can take up their work and to recover the remains of all victims and their personal possessions.

This terrible event should have marked a watershed in this conflict, causing Russia to suspend its support for illegal armed groups in Ukraine, secure its border with Ukraine, and stop the increasing flow of weapons, equipment, and militants across the border in order to achieve rapid and tangible results in de-escalation.

Regrettably, however, Russia has not changed course.  This week, we have all announced additional coordinated sanctions on Russia, including sanctions on specific companies operating in key sectors of the Russian economy.  We believe it is essential to demonstrate to the Russian leadership that it must stop its support for the separatists in eastern Ukraine and tangibly participate in creating the necessary conditions for the political process.

We remain convinced that there must be a political solution to the current conflict, which is causing rising numbers of civilian casualties.  We call for a peaceful settlement of the crisis in Ukraine and underline the need to implement President Poroshenko’s peace plan without any further delay.  To this end, we urge all parties to establish a swift, genuine, and sustainable general cease-fire on the basis of the Berlin Declaration of 2 July with the aim of maintaining Ukraine’s territorial integrity.  We call upon Russia to use its influence with the separatist groups and ensure effective border control, including through OSCE observers.   We support the OSCE and the Trilateral Contact Group as central players in creating the conditions for a ceasefire.

Russia still has the opportunity to choose the path of de-escalation, which would lead to the removal of these sanctions.  If it does not do so, however, we remain ready to further intensify the costs of its adverse actions.

The President Speaks on the Situation in Ukraine

U.S. EXTENDS BEST WISHES TO KING MOHAMMED VI AND MOROCCAN PEOPLE ON THEIR FEAST OF THE THRONE

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT MOROCCO NATIONAL DAY

Morocco National Day

Press Statement

John Kerry

Secretary of State

Washington, DC

July 30, 2014

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On behalf of President Obama and the American people, I extend my best wishes to King Mohammed VI and the Moroccan people as you celebrate the Feast of the Throne.
The strong and enduring friendship between our two countries grows stronger each day as we continue to expand our economic cooperation and increase trade, enhance our educational and cultural exchanges, and promote security and stability in the region. We look forward to building on our historic and proud partnership and working together to advance our common goals.

Congratulations and best wishes for peace and prosperity in the year to come. Eid Mubarak.

SECRETARY KERRY'S OP-ED ON AFGHAN ELECTIONS

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 

Op-Ed

John Kerry

Secretary of State

TOLOnews

Washington, DC

July 30, 2014

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Again and again, through all my visits to your country, I've been struck by one profound fact: Afghans want and deserve a better future. You want to live without fear, to have the best possible education for your children, health care systems that provide dignity and the jobs and other opportunities that come with a stable economy.

Something else has been clear to me: Democracy is the path Afghans have chosen to achieve that better life.

For more than a decade, President Hamid Karzai has led Afghanistan through triumph and tragedy. I've worked closely with him, and I know that one of his lasting legacies will be how Afghanistan makes its first democratic, peaceful transfer of power.

Afghans took an enormous step on the road toward a stronger democracy in April and June when millions of people went to the polls to choose the country's next president. Every vote was a courageous endorsement of democracy, and an expression of hope for the future.

The United States knows from our own history the road to democracy is bumpy and the journey is not completed overnight. Democracy requires building credible institutions, overcoming divisions, building trust and working together for a brighter future.

Today, Afghanistan and its two presidential candidates face one of those bumps in the road -- a moment of decision. Their ability to overcome the obstacles and work together to honor the votes of millions of their citizens will determine the future of Afghanistan and its relationship with the international community.

The United States, the United Nations and the international community are engaged in the post-election process solely to help the Afghan election institutions restore credibility to the voting. Experts tell me that the audit under way in Kabul is the largest and most complicated election audit ever undertaken anywhere.

Few countries could meet this challenge alone.

Specialists from the UN are working side by side with their Afghan colleagues to ensure that the audit meets the laws of Afghanistan, the highest international standards and, most importantly, the expectations of Afghans. The process, which has been painstaking and slow, will accelerate with the end of Eid al-Fitr. But democracy can't be rushed and every legitimate vote deserves to be counted and respected. The Afghan Independent Election Commission, the UN and dozens of international observers are working night and day to conclude the audit.

The audit is only one part of the challenge confronting democracy in Afghanistan today. Equally important are the actions of the two candidates, Dr. Ashraf Ghani and Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, and their political teams.

On July 12, the two candidates shook hands and agreed to respect the results of the audit. They also agreed to build a unity government that will lead Afghanistan to a better future. The political agreement responds to a challenging situation that requires cooperation between the two leaders and their broad range of supporters.

In reaching the agreement, Dr. Abdullah and Dr. Ghani showed incredible statesmanship. In any democracy, it's very hard after an intense campaign as a presidential candidate to come to that moment where you must put your own aspirations and those of your supporters second to the greater long-term interests of your country. Both candidates managed to overcome their reservations and those of their backers. They set aside political interests in favor of the national interest. They exhibited the statesmanship we expect from great leaders.

Their challenge now is to translate that agreement into a strong working relationship in the new government, whoever wins. The time for politics is over. The time for cooperation is at hand. There is no time to waste, and I encourage both teams to work cooperatively on the critical issues facing their country even as the audit continues.

It's not for outsiders to describe the contents of the political framework both candidates accepted a few days ago. But I was there in the room, and I can tell you what is not in that one-page document.

It does not violate the Afghan constitution – it respects Afghan institutions and the role of the president as the head of government. It does not establish a parliamentary system – it creates a new position of chief executive who will report to the president until the president convenes a loya jirga to determine whether a permanent change is in the best interests of the country.

What the agreement does provide is a critical opportunity for both candidates to move beyond political competition to real statesmanship. It is a chance for them to work together to build an inclusive government that represents all sectors of Afghan society – Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbeks and Hazaras, men and women.

Yes, democracy is an evolutionary process. It isn't easy. But every democracy reaches a decisive moment where the interests of the country must outweigh the interests of politicians. Afghanistan is at that critical point today. Its leaders cannot afford to miss the chance to help bring their people the better lives they deserve and demand. And that is a challenge for two statesmen who both love Afghanistan.

DOD NEWS NOW: JULY 30, 2015

AFGHAN AIR FORCE TRAINING CONTINUES

DOJ, EPA TOUT NEW SETTLEMENT AS ELIMINATING MILLIONS OF GALLONS OF DISCHARGE INTO SAN FRANCISCO BAY

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

Monday, July 28, 2014

Historic Clean Water Act Settlement Will Prevent Millions of Gallons of Sewage Discharges into San Francisco Bay

Seven East Bay Communities, Municipal Utility District to Repair Systems, Pay Civil Penalties

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a Clean Water Act settlement requiring the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) and seven East Bay communities to conduct extensive system repairs aimed at eliminating millions of gallons of sewage discharges into San Francisco Bay.  Under today’s agreement, EBMUD and the communities will assess and upgrade their 1,500 mile-long sewer system infrastructure over a 21-year period.  The work is expected to cost approximately $1.5 billion.  The entities will pay civil penalties of $1.5 million for past sewage discharges that violated federal environmental law.

Since 2009, EPA, state and local regulators and environmental groups have worked to reduce sewage discharges from East Bay communities.  During that period, interim actions required EBMUD and the East Bay communities to improve their sewer maintenance practices and gather information to identify priorities for investment.

The San Francisco Bay covers 1,600 square miles and is the largest Pacific estuary in the Americas, a host for millions of migratory birds and a hub of commerce and recreation for more than 7 million Bay Area residents.  Unfortunately, the bay is under threat from many sources of pollution, including crumbling wastewater infrastructure that allows sewage to escape from the system.  During rainstorms, in particular, older sewer systems can be overwhelmed, releasing rivers of sewage before fully treated.

In addition to polluting waterways , raw and partially treated sewage can spread disease-causing organisms, metals, and nutrients that threaten public health. Sewage can also deplete oxygen in the bay, threatening fish, seals and other wildlife.

“For many years, the health of San Francisco Bay has been imperiled by ongoing pollution, including enormous discharges of raw and partially treated sewage from communities in the East Bay,” said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest.  “Many of these discharges are the result of aging, deteriorated sewer infrastructure that will be fixed under the EPA order.”

Today’s settlement is the result of a Clean Water Act enforcement action brought by the EPA, U.S. Department of Justice, State Water Resources Control Board, San Francisco Bay Regional Water Board, San Francisco Baykeeper and Our Children’s Earth Foundation.

“This settlement will result in major reductions of sewage discharges into the San Francisco Bay,” said W. Benjamin Fisherow, Chief of Environmental Enforcement in the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “These improvements will help reach our goal of eliminating pollution in the neighborhoods in these cities and in the bay so that citizens may rest assured that they reside in a safe, clean environment.”

The seven East Bay communities in the EBMUD settlement are:

-        City of Alameda
-        City of Albany
-        City of Berkeley
-        City of Emeryville
-        City of Oakland
-        City of Piedmont
-        Stege Sanitary District (serving El Cerrito, Kensington, and a portion of Richmond)

“The public has been required to repair their own sewer laterals for over two years now, so it is past time that the local agencies aggressively repair their sewer systems,” said Bruce Wolfe, Executive Officer of the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Board.  “This settlement spells out how the agencies will work with the public over the next 21 years to do just that and protect the bay.”

“Baykeeper will be watching the progress of these repairs closely to ensure that pollution of San Francisco Bay is reduced and eventually eliminated, and we will take action if the repairs fall short,” said Baykeeper Executive Director Deb Self.

On an annual basis, hundreds of millions of gallons of raw and partially treated sewage are discharged directly to San Francisco Bay.  Also, as much as 600,000 gallons of raw sewage from community sewer systems is first discharged onto streets and other public areas—through outlets such as manhole covers—before it drains to the bay.

As part of the agreement, EBMUD and the seven communities will:

-        repair and rehabilitate old and cracked sewer pipes;

-        regularly clean and inspect sewer pipes to prevent overflows of raw sewage;

-        identify and eliminate illegal sewer connections;

-        continue to enforce private sewer lateral ordinances; and

-        ensure proactive renewal of existing sanitary sewer infrastructure.

EBMUD will also immediately begin work to offset the environmental harm caused by the sewage discharges, which are expected to continue until these sewer upgrades are completed, by capturing and treating urban runoff and contaminated water that currently flows to the bay untreated during dry weather.

Keeping raw sewage and contaminated storm water out of the waters of the United States is one of EPA’s National Enforcement Initiatives.  The proposed settlement is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.

DOJ FILES SEX DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT AGAINST COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA AND STATE POLICE

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Justice Department Files Lawsuit Alleging Sex Discrimination Against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania State Police

The Justice Department announced the filing of a lawsuit today against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania State Police, alleging that the defendants are engaged in a pattern or practice of employment discrimination against women in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.   Specifically, the lawsuit challenges the state police’s use of two physical fitness tests to screen and select entry-level state troopers.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, alleges that the physical fitness tests used by the state police between 2003 and the present excluded qualified women from consideration for hire as entry-level state troopers by testing for physical skills that are not required to perform the job.  The department also alleges that, during the relevant time period, the defendants’ use of physical fitness tests as part of a multi-step employment selection process disproportionately screened out female applicants, resulting in a disparate impact against those applicants.

Title VII prohibits both intentional discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin and religion as well as employment practices that result in a disparate impact upon a protected group, unless the practices are job-related and consistent with business necessity.   The department alleges that the defendants’ use of the challenged physical fitness tests violates Title VII because that use does not meet this standard and does not identify the best qualified applicants for entry-level state trooper jobs.

“The Department of Justice is deeply committed to eliminating artificial barriers that keep qualified women out of public safety work,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.   “The Justice Department will continue to challenge discriminatory hiring practices that unnecessarily exclude qualified applicants on account of sex.”

In the lawsuit, the department seeks a court order that would require the Pennsylvania State Police to stop using the challenged physical fitness tests, develop hiring procedures that comply with Title VII and provide make-whole relief, including offers of hire, retroactive seniority, and back pay to individual women who have been harmed as a result of the defendants’ use of the challenged physical fitness tests.