This report discusses the ongoing major USDA disaster programs designed to help crop producers recover from the financial effects of natural disasters — federal crop insurance, noninsured assistance program (NAP) payments, and emergency disaster loans.

Alcohol use by persons under age 21 has been identified as a major public health problem. Studies note that it increases the risks for disability, and may be detrimental to the developing brain. Minors who drink are more likely to commit suicide, break the law, or be victims of violence. Alcohol is implicated in nearly one-third of youth traffic fatalities. The total annual cost of underage drinking is estimated at $62 billion. While most laws intended to prevent underage drinking are passed at the state level, there has been legislative activity and interest at the federal level to support states’ efforts to curb the problem. This report describes the extent of underage alcohol use, recent legislative activity on this issue, and various policy implications.

This report is one of a series that profiles the emergency management and homeland security statutory authorities of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and three territories (American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Each profile identifies the more significant elements of state statutes, generally as codified. This report focuses on American Samoa.

The Office of Space and Defense Power Systems of the Department of Energy (DOE) provides Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) for applications where conventional power systems are not feasible. For example, radioisotope thermoelectric generators were supplied by the DOE to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for deep space missions including the Cassini Mission launched in October of 1997 to study the planet Saturn. For the Cassini Mission, ORNL produced carbon-bonded carbon fiber (CBCF) insulator sets, iridium alloy blanks and foil, and clad vent sets (CVS) used in the generators. The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has been involved in developing materials and technology and producing components for the DOE for more than three decades. This report reflects program guidance from the Office of Space and Defense Power Systems for fiscal year (FY) 2006. Production activities for prime quality (prime) CBCF insulator sets, iridium alloy blanks and foil, and CVS are summarized in this report. Technology activities are also reported that were conducted to improve the manufacturing processes, characterize materials, or to develop information for new radioisotope power systems.

This paper discusses the successful implementation of simple video technologies at the Savannah River Site (SRS) to perform complex visual inspection, monitoring, and surveillance tasks. The constraints and challenges associated with remote viewing are discussed, and examples of applications are given. Work at SRS involves many radioactive, hazardous, and remote operations and activities, which require monitoring or surveillance. As well, many facilities, including tanks, cells, and pipelines, require inspections but are inaccessible to humans. SRTC supports SRS in these situations by applying simple remote viewing technologies to address these issues and accomplish monitoring and inspection goals.

Aquifer characterization needs are currently being assessed to optimize pump-and-treat remedial strategies within the 200-ZP-1 operable unit, specifically for the immediate area of the 241-T Tank Farm. This report provides a general discussion of the six identified hydrologic test methods for possible subsequent characterization within the 241-T Tank Farm area and details for implementing the large-scale recovery test after terminating pumping at the 241-Tank Farm extraction well locations.

The ability to safely store radioactive materials for long periods of time depends on our understanding of the conditions that mobilize the nuclei, which requires an understanding of the mechanisms of dissolution and transport in aquifers. The objective of this research was to gain an understanding of the dissolution and transport of naturally occurring uranium, thorium, and their radioactive daughter products in groundwater systems without using injected tracers or accidental contaminants. The study involved analyses of groundwater in and around the Brookhaven National Laboratory site and the water supply system. A theoretical model of continuous flow was developed considering chemical, physical, and geologic properties. This is the first model of water transport in the vadose zone and the groundwater table with water-rock interactions supplying insight into the problems of mobilization and precipitation. We derived clear theoretical predictions on U and Th behavior in groundwater. The combination of sound theory and good data was successful. Most of the variation in uranium isotopes was due to the original imprint of near-surface weathering and not to water-rock reactions at depth. It was shown that high radon content was not due to micropores in the minerals but a reflection of thorium precipitation on surfaces …

This report contains the issues and regulatory developments of the Army Corps of engineers' nationwide permits program.

This report summarizes U.S. assistance to the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea (DPRK, also known as North Korea). It will be updated periodically to track changes in U.S. provision of aid to North Korea.

One of the least controversial provisions of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (P.L. 94-163) established corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for new passenger cars. This report presents a brief background and analysis regarding the price of crude oil that brought into sharp focus the fuel inefficiency of U.S. automobiles. The report also discusses the previous issues and the most recent developments regarding CAFE.

Industrial-scale injection of CO{sub 2} into saline sedimentary basins will cause large-scale fluid pressurization and migration of native brines, which may affect valuable groundwater resources overlying the deep sequestration reservoirs. In this paper, we discuss how such basin-scale hydrologic impacts can (1) affect regulation of CO{sub 2} storage projects and (2) may reduce current storage capacity estimates. Our assessment arises from a hypothetical future carbon sequestration scenario in the Illinois Basin, which involves twenty individual CO{sub 2} storage projects in a core injection area suitable for long-term storage. Each project is assumed to inject five million tonnes of CO{sub 2} per year for 50 years. A regional-scale three-dimensional simulation model was developed for the Illinois Basin that captures both the local-scale CO{sub 2}-brine flow processes and the large-scale groundwater flow patterns in response to CO{sub 2} storage. The far-field pressure buildup predicted for this selected sequestration scenario suggests that (1) the area that needs to be characterized in a permitting process may comprise a very large region within the basin if reservoir pressurization is considered, and (2) permits cannot be granted on a single-site basis alone because the near- and far-field hydrologic response may be affected by interference between individual …

A detailed chemical kinetic model is used to explore the flammability and detonability of hydrogen mixtures. In the case of flammability, a detailed chemical kinetic mechanism for hydrogen is coupled to the CHEMKIN Premix code to compute premixed, laminar flame speeds. The detailed chemical kinetic model reproduces flame speeds in the literature over a range of equivalence ratios, pressures and reactant temperatures. A series of calculation were performed to assess the key parameters determining the flammability of hydrogen mixtures. Increased reactant temperature was found to greatly increase the flame speed and the flammability of the mixture. The effect of added diluents was assessed. Addition of water and carbon dioxide were found to reduce the flame speed and thus the flammability of a hydrogen mixture approximately equally well and much more than the addition of nitrogen. The detailed chemical kinetic model was used to explore the detonability of hydrogen mixtures. A Zeldovich-von Neumann-Doring (ZND) detonation model coupled with detailed chemical kinetics was used to model the detonation. The effectiveness on different diluents was assessed in reducing the detonability of a hydrogen mixture. Carbon dioxide was found to be most effective in reducing the detonability followed by water and nitrogen. The chemical …

This report discusses the economy of China and how it is has been affected by the recent economic downturn. China has recently enjoyed one of the world's fastest-growing economies and has been a major contributor to world economic growth, but several Chinese industries have been hard by the crisis, and millions of workers have been laid off.

China has sought over the past several years to become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the international agency that administers multilateral trade rules. China’s WTO membership (as well as that of Taiwan’s) was formally approved at the WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha, Qatar in November 2001. On December 11, 2001, China officially became a WTO member. WTO membership will require China to significantly liberalize its trade and investment regimes, which could produce significant new commercial opportunities for U.S. businesses. A main concern for Congress is to ensure that China fully complies with its WTO commitments.

This report addresses relevant policy questions in current U.S.-China relations, discusses trends and key legislation in the current Congress, and provides a chronology of developments and high-level exchanges.

This report is one of a series that profiles the emergency management and homeland security statutory authorities of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and three territories (American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Each profile identifies the more significant elements of state statutes, generally as codified. This report focuses on the Northern Mariana Islands.

One of the most powerful and promising strategies for optimizing environmental restoration is the use of combinations of technologies rather than a single technology to reach the target cleanup goals. The U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) is actively working to clean up legacy contamination from its operations. Notably, DOE is responsible for the cleanup of many sites where the contamination includes chlorinated solvents (or chlorinated volatile organic contaminants (CVOCs)). At some sites, groundwater plumes containing CVOCs tend to become relatively large. Estimates for times to remediate sites often ranges up to 100s of years for these large plumes. As a result, the CVOC plumes are a concern to DOE, regulators and stakeholders. In response to this challenge, DOE initiated a project to ''provide the technical and policy support to facilitate implementing appropriate passive cleanup... leading to responsible completion of active remediation activities at high risk DOE waste sites.'' A combined approach benefits from the ability to match the invasiveness and aggressiveness of the remedial action to the amount of contamination and level of risk. This matching process is particularly important for recalcitrant contaminants such as chlorinated solvents. Highly contaminated areas justify more intense remediation action(s) while minimally contaminated areas …

When conducting investigations of the executive branch, congressional committees and Members of Congress generally receive the information required for legislative needs. If agencies fail to cooperate or the President invokes executive privilege, Congress can turn to a number of legislative powers that are likely to compel compliance. The two techniques described in this report are the issuance of subpoenas and the holding of executive officials in contempt. These techniques usually lead to an accommodation that meets the needs of both branches. Litigation is used at times, but federal judges generally encourage congressional and executive parties to settle their differences out of court. The specific examples in this report explain how information disputes arise and how they are resolved.

This report is one of a series that profiles the emergency management and homeland security statutory authorities of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and three territories (American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Each profile identifies the more significant elements of state statutes, generally as codified. This report focuses on the state of Connecticut.

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This report discusses a Series of high-profile product recalls during 2007--most notably of children's toys imported from China--focused attention on the CPSC's resources, including its legal authority, for the task at hand.

This report is part of a series of reports on building energy efficiency codes in countries associated with the Asian Pacific Partnership (APP) - Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, India, and the United States of America (U.S.). This reports gives an overview of the development of building energy codes in Australia, including national energy policies related to building energy codes, history of building energy codes, recent national projects and activities to promote building energy codes. The report also provides a review of current building energy codes (such as building envelope, HVAC, and lighting) for commercial and residential buildings in Australia.

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