Stone oil converts to RD99 diesel

John W. Stone Oil Distributors of Gretna, La., recently secured a ratable supply of renewable diesel (RD99) to help jumpstart the process of converting its entire marine fleet to RD99. 

The company aims to play a pivotal role in promoting lower-carbon fuels and assisting vessels in meeting regulatory emission targets on the Gulf Coast.

COO Tony Odak told WorkBoat that as of July 11, the company had started the process of converting its marine fleet made up of 11 inland tug/towboats, 47 inland barges, and three offshore tanker units to RD99. 

The company said it expected to have approximately 50% of its fleet converted by the end of July and expect the remainder on RD99 by the end of August. 

Renewable diesel is made from fats and oils, such as soybean oil or canola oil, which undergo processing to become chemically identical to petroleum diesel.

Renewable diesel, with its chemical similarity to petroleum diesel, exhibits a potential for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions of up to 75% on a life-cycle basis compared to conventional fuels. 

Stone has committed to two storage tanks - a 100,000-bbl tank in Port Fourchon, La., and an 85,000-bbl tank in New Orleans - enabling efficient storage and distribution of the renewable bunker fuel. (Work Boat 08/01/23) Louisiana fuel supplier converting marine fleet to renewable diesel | WorkBoat

Plaquemines port mid-year review

The Plaquemines (La.) Port and Harbor District recently held a Mid-Year Budget Review Hearing. The presentation has been posted on its website along with the budget variances. View the full presentation and documents at 2023-Mid-Year-Review-Variances-1-1.pdf (portofplaquemi.wpenginepowered.com)

Hispanic trade show; Kids' gala

NEW ORLEANS - The Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana will be hosting the Hispanic Business and Trade Show on Aug. 8 at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The event is an opportunity for businesses to market goods and services to the Hispanic business community. (Biz New Orleans 08/02/23) Hispanic Chamber to Host Aug. 8 Business and Trade Show - Biz New Orleans 

Chairish the Children Gala

NEW ORLEANS – The Louisiana Children’s Museum will host its 25th annual Chairish the Children Gala from 7-11 p.m. Sept. 23 at 15 Henry Thomas Drive in New Orleans City Park. 

Proceeds will benefit LCM’s mission to “strengthen and support families and improve life outcomes by ensuring children have access to safe, innovative, learning and play experiences.” (Biz New Orleans) Louisiana Children’s Museum to Host 25th Chairish the Children Gala - Biz New Orleans

Jenkins lands Stennis airport lead

KILN, Miss. - Stennis International Airport announced Aug. 2 that Austin Jenkins has been named its director. Jenkins began the job Aug. 1. 

The Hancock Port and Harbor Commission conducted a regional search for the director's post, according to CEO Blaine LaFontaine. 

Jenkins previously served as Airport Operations Manager with the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority (JMAA) where he was responsible for day-to-day operations of the FAA 139 commercial service airport (JAN), as well as Hawkins Field (HKS). 

Jenkins graduated from Delta State University in 2014 with a Bachelor of Commercial Aviation. He is a certified member with the American Association of Airport Executives and an active committee member with Airports Council International. 

Jenkins is an FAA licensed commercial pilot with instrument rating and also holds an FAA remote pilot certificate. (HCPHC 08/01/23)

DoD regional contract Aug. 2

B.L. Harbert International LLC, Birmingham, Alabama (N69450-21-D-0056); Balfour Beatty Construction LLC, Charlotte, North Carolina (N69450-21-D-0057); Gilbane Federal, Concord, California (N69450-21-D-0058); Hensel Phelps Construction Co., Orlando, Florida (N69450-21-D-0059); The Korte Co., St. Louis, Missouri (N69450-21-D-0060); M. A. Mortenson Co., doing business as Mortenson Construction, Minneapolis, Minnesota (N69450-21-D-0061); RQ Construction LLC, Carlsbad, California (N69450-21-D-0062); Sauer Construction LLC, Jacksonville, Florida (N69450-22-D-0011); Walsh Federal LLC, Chicago, Illinois (N69450-22-D-0012); and The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., Baltimore, Maryland (N69450-22-D-0013), are awarded a combined-maximum-value $50,000,000 firm-fixed-price modification to increase the capacity of their previously awarded contracts. The work to be performed provides for, but is not limited to, general building type projects located primarily within the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Southeast area of operations. After award of this modification, the total combined cumulative value for all 10 contracts is $950,000,000. Work will be performed within the states of Florida (15%); Georgia (15%); Louisiana (14%); Mississippi (14%); South Carolina (14%); Tennessee (14%); and Texas (14%), and is expected to be completed by September 2026. No funds will be obligated at time of award. NAVFAC Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity. (DoD 08/02/23)

Goings-on around NAS/JRB NOLA

The National WWII Museum in New Orleans will host the 2023 Medal of Honor Convention Oct. 30-Nov. 4.

In just a span of a week, there will be more than 25 separate events occurring that the New Orleans military will be supporting in various capacities to honor our nation’s Medal of Honor recipients.

Many events will be open to the public and free to service members. Information will be posted as details become available. (5) Facebook 

NAS/JRB New Orleans' Fleet and Family Support Center is putting together a career fair, and it's the first ever held at an off-base location.

The career fair will be Aug. 31 at the Plaquemines Parish Multi-Purpose Center. (NAS/JRN New Orleans 08/01/23) (5) Facebook

New commander for 159th FW

NEW ORLEANS – Col. Jonathan D. Mumme relinquished command of the 159th Fighter Wing (159 FW) to Col. David M. Anderson in an official ceremony June 30 at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans.

Anderson started his Air Force career in 2001 upon commissioning from the Texas A&M University ROTC program and earning his pilot wings at Laughlin AFB, Texas.

He served 11 years on active duty flying F-15Cs on multiple operational and training missions. 

In 2013, Anderson transitioned to the Louisiana Air National Guard (LAANG) as the chief of scheduling and, later, a flight commander. 

Prior to assuming his position of wing commander, Anderson was operations support flight commander and operations group commander within the 159 FW. 

Mumme had an accomplished career during his time as the wing commander from 2020 to 2023. He will continue his career by attending the Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy. (Currents 08/2023) 230801 - August 2023 Currents - The NAS JRB New Orleans Digital Publication (adobe.com)

NASM, Marines honor Cpl. Love

NAS Meridian and Marine Aviation Training Support Squadron ONE were among those invited to a ceremony honoring Willie Love, who served as a corporal in the Marine Corps during WWII.

The Montford Point Marine Association presented Mr. Love's family with the Congressional Gold Medal for his service.

Montford Point Marines are the first African Americans to enlist in the Marine Corps after President Franklin Roosevelt issued an Executive Order establishing the Fair Employment Practices Commission in June 1941.

The recruits trained at Camp Montford Point in Jacksonville, NC, from Aug. 26, 1942 until the camp was decommissioned on Sept. 9, 1949. (NAAS Meridian 07/31/23) (4) Facebook

Temps no match for Holling Springs

With outdoor temperatures reaching into the low 100s, you might have thought that there were new record high temperatures being set across the Mississippi. 

Yet, many of the high temperatures this week were cool compared to the record high 115-degree day recorded in Holly Springs, Miss., in 1930. 

According to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, that was the maximum recorded temperature in Mississippi on July 29, 1930. 

Record high temperatures in Alabama was 112 degrees on Sept. 6, 1925' in Centervi9lle; and 114 degrees in Plain Dealing, La., on Aug. 10, 1936. (Magnolia State Live 08/02/23) It may be hot, but is it the hottest ever in Mississippi? Current temps not close to high recorded in 1930. - Magnolia State Live | Magnolia State Live

Read more at: https://www.magnoliastatelive.com/2023/08/02/it-may-be-hot-but-is-it-the-hottest-ever-in-mississippi-current-temps-not-close-to-high-recorded-in-1930/

Goodbye incandescent light bulbs

SAN FRANCISCO - Get ready to say again goodbye to the incandescent light bulb, pioneered by Thomas Edison. New federal Energy Department efficiency regulations went into full effect Aug. 1, with little fanfare.

The rules, which date back to the Obama Administration, have been caught in the flip-flop of the political process for years. 

Some Republican lawmakers long denounced them for interfering with consumer choice and burdening businesses. 

Former President Donald Trump scrapped the rules in 2019. The Biden administration revived them. 

By Aug. 1, critics had gone silent, possibly because companies and consumers have already started voting for better lighting efficiency with their wallets. Here’s what you need to know. (The AP 08/01/23) Incandescent light bulb ban goes into effect (wdam.com)

Fitch downgrades US credit rating

WASHINGTON - Fitch Ratings has downgraded the United States government's credit rating, citing rising debt at the federal, state, and local levels and a "steady deterioration in standards of governance" over the past two decades. Fitch says the worsening political polarization around spending and tax policy are key reasons for the downgrade. It said U.S. governance has declined relative to other highly rated countries and cited "repeated debt limit standoffs and last-minute resolutions." The rating was cut Tuesday one notch to AA+ from AAA, the highest possible rating. The new rating is still well into investment grade. (The AP 08/01/23)

Data: GoM 'dead zone' smaller

The Gulf of Mexico's annual "dead zone" along coastal - an area with oxygen levels so low it can kill life - has been measured at 3,058 square miles, almost the size of Yellowstone National Park, according to NOAA and a team of scientists from LSU and the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium announced Aug. 2. 

It's about 1,000 square miles smaller than NOAA's June prediction based on measurements of key nutrients carried to the GoM by the Mississippi River, and its lower-than-average flow this year. 

It was also about 200 square miles smaller than last year's dead zone. 

However, the 5-year average size is 4,347 square miles, more than twice as large of reduction goals set by the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia federal-state task force. 

It's the seventh-smallest zone measured by the NOAA-funded LSU/LUMCON cruise since measurements began in 1985. 

With more frequent and intense weather in the GoM, it is "imperative that we continue to measure hypoxia in this region as an indicator of ocean health and progress toward management targets,” Nicole LeBoeuf, director of NOAA’s National Ocean Service said in a media release announcing the results of a measuring cruise. 

The data collected "helps decision-makers fine tune strategies to reduce the size of the hypoxic zone and mitigate harmful impacts to our coastal resources, communities and economy.” (NOLA.com 08/02/23) Gulf 'dead zone' is smaller, but still twice reduction goal | Environment | nola.com

Shopping based on your values?

Veebs, a shopping app launched in July, aims to aid consumers in making purchases based on their values.

The app allows grocery shoppers to scan a product's barcode to reveal its "V Score," which is a rating from 0 to 100 calculated on political alignment and "America-first" initiatives. 

Users can choose a values pack or select multiple packs to customize their ratings. The app then provides a rating of good, fair or poor and gives users the option to add the product to a preferred or non-preferred list. 

Veebs CEO Chris Rhodes says the app allows consumers to find brands that align with their personal values, and also offers alternative options by allowing users to find companies and brands that match their values more closely. 

Since its launch, Veebs has reportedly gained 50,000 downloads. While the app itself is free, the scanning tool requires a $0.99 per month subscription. 

Rhodes clarifies the subscription fee is to ensure the app remains independent and can continuously update its information. He emphasized the importance of paying for the product to avoid being the product. (Press Run Down 07/31/23) Veebs app helps shoppers by revealing brands' political views (pressrundown.com)

Battle over EM spectrum system

For decades, the Pentagon has had relatively unquestioned access to a large portion of the electromagnetic spectrum - a critical resource that enables capabilities like radars, satellite communications and navigation systems. 

However, a number of leaders at the Defense Department are concerns that access may soon be slipping away. 

“That part of the spectrum is where we have many of our capabilities across the Joint Force,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown said in July confirmation hearing to become the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

If vacated, the Pentagon would "lose that capability and we’d have to figure out how now to regain" it ... and that would "take time and cost money.”

Brown’s comments have been echoed by numerous DoD officials throughout this year’s budget hearing process. It represents one side of a years-long struggle between the Pentagon and the commercial telecommunications industry over access to the 3.1-3.45 GHz S-band, which they say is crucial for 5G wireless technology. 

That portion has been solely designated to the Defense Department for decades.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is on the cusp of releasing a highly anticipated study discussing potential impacts to DoD if it had to give up parts of the spectrum. 

The study also examines the feasibility of both 5G providers and DoD sharing the spectrum, requiring additional technical/scheduling agreements between the two. 

Experts have told DefenseScoop that the conflict is symptomatic of an outdated spectrum management system plagued by policy, legal and technological guardrails. 

At the same time, freeing up spectrum for commercial use could be considered a national security interest. (Defense Scoop 07/31/23) Pentagon, telecom industry’s battle over spectrum symptomatic of a troubled system | DefenseScoop

Sen.: NASA to remove space debris

WASHINGTON - The Senate has advanced a bill that would direct NASA to support missions to remove orbital debris. NASA is outlining the role it will take assisting the U.S. Commerce Department for a new space traffic coordination system. 

The Senate Commerce Committee advanced the Orbital Sustainability (ORBITS) Act on a voice vote July 27. A version of the bill made it through the Senate last year but wasn't taken up by the House. 

The ORBITS Act would empower NASA to research, develop and demonstrate key technologies to remove the debris, according to Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), lead sponsor of the bill. 

The bill "ensures that the United States remains the leader in responsible and sustainable uses of outer space,” he recently said. 

The bill directs NASA to establish an active debris removal program, which includes funding R&D activities to "close commercial capability gaps and enable potential future remediation missions for such orbital debris,” the bill states. 

NASA would also fund a demonstration mission for debris removal and allow it and other agencies to procure debris removal services. 

The version of the ORBITS Act approved by the committee is different from the version introduced earlier in 2023. 

Among the changes: A section to develop a prioritized list of orbital debris to remove. In the new version, that responsibility is given instead to the Commerce Department. (Space News 08/01/23) Senate committee advances orbital debris removal bill - SpaceNews

Aug. 1 history: Colorado is a state

Today Aug. 1 in history

In 1876, Colorado was admitted as the 38th state. 

* 1907" the U.S. Army Signal Corps established an aeronautical division, the forerunner of the U.S. Air Force. 

* 1957: the United States and Canada announced they had agreed to create the North American Air Defense Command (NORAD).

* 1966: Charles Joseph Whitman, 25, went on an armed rampage at the University of Texas in Austin that killed 14 people, most of whom were shot by Whitman while he was perched in the clock tower of the main campus building.

* 1994: Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley confirmed they’d been secretly married 11 weeks earlier. (Presley filed for divorce from Jackson in January 1996.) 

2011: The U.S. House of Representatives passed emergency legislation to avert the nation’s first-ever financial default. U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) returned to the House for the first time since being shot in January 2011. (The AP 08/01/23)

Ala. ANG supports Tradewinds 23

GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Tradewinds 23, a 2-week multinational exercise supporting the security of the Caribbean and Central America, wrapped up July 27. 

Tradewinds 23 involved 21 nations and more than 1,500 people from all branches of the U.S. military, civilians and law enforcement across partner-nations. 

U.S. military organizations that supported Tradewinds 21 included Army and Air National Guard units from Alabama, Florida, Missouri, Oklahoma and the Virgin Islands; U.S. Southern Command; U.S. Army South; U.S. Marine Corps Forces South; Marine Forces Reserve and the Coast Guard. 

Events conducted during the exercise included jungle certification, airborne wing exchange, oil spill and flood simulation, and human rights and Women, Peace and Security Training.

“Tradewinds 23 demonstrated that when nations unite for a common purpose, we become a better sum of our parts,” said Maj. Jaime Castillo, Guyana’s lead planner of the exercise.

The 38th annual exercise focused on foreign military interaction, maritime interdiction, ground security and field training supporting U.S. Southern Command’s priorities throughout the Caribbean and Central America. 

The exercise is designed to expand each nation’s ability to plan and execute multinational operations, counter transnational organized crime, and provide better regional security. (70th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment 07/31/23) Tradewinds 23 Exercise Highlights Multinational Partnerships > National Guard > Guard News - The National Guard

DoD regional contract: HII

HII's Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, is awarded a fixed-price incentive (firm-target) multi-year contract for construction of six DDG 51 class ships - one in FY 2023, one in FY-24, two in FY-25, one in FY-26 and one in FY-27. This contract includes options for engineering change proposals, design budgeting requirements, and post-delivery availabilities on the awarded firm multiyear ships. This contract includes options for construction of additional DDG 51 class ships, which may be subject to future competition in accordance with the terms and conditions of the contract. Therefore, the dollar values associated with the multiyear contract are considered source selection sensitive information and will not be made public at this time (see 41 U.S. Code 2101, et seq., Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 2.101 and FAR 3.104). Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Mississippi (77%); and other locations below 1 percent (collectively totaling 23%) and is expected to be completed by June 2034. Fiscal 2022 and 2023 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funding will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was procured via a limited competition between HHI and Bath Iron Works pursuant to U.S Code 3204 (a) (3) (A) and FAR 6.302-3 (Industrial Mobilization), with two offers received. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. Bath (Maine) Iron Works is awarded a fixed-price incentive (firm target) multi-year contract for construction of three DDG 51 class ships - one each in FYs 2023, 2024 and 2026. (DoD 08/01/23)

Where Army contractors located

America has the world’s largest defense industry, spending more than $1.7T in FY 2023. 

The manufacture and sale of everything from service revolvers to the maintenance and operation of 420 military installations scattered across the nation, making up significant shares of local economies. 

Defense spending as a share of GDP is as high as 12% and 10% in Virginia and Hawaii, respectively. 

(See states with the largest U.S. Army presence.)

417 military contractors in 40 states support only the material needs of the Army. 

(States with the most Army contractors: Army Weapon Systems Handbook for 2020-2021.)

States are ranked by the number of contractors operating in the state. Ten states have no contractors operating in them, including Louisiana. 

Virginia and Maryland are home to 92 Army contractors, including the world’s largest aerospace and defense companies General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and Lockheed Martin.

Texas and California are home to 24 and 44, respectively.

Companies in eight states make artillery shells. Contractors that build the Apache helicopters and mortar systems are spread out across five states.

Army contracts also go to small companies like Stark Aerospace in Mississippi that produces tactical unmanned aerial vehicles. Stark is the only Army contract in Mississippi.

Tennessee-based Accurate Energetic Systems makes various explosives. There are 27 Army contractors in Alabama. (24/7 Wall Street 08/31/23) These States Make the Most Weapons for the US Army – 24/7 Wall St. (247wallst.com)

Two August super moons

August is offering a celestial double feature: a pair of supermoons, culminating in a rare blue moon. The sturgeon moon will grace the evening sky tonight, followed by an even closer glimpse of a blue moon Aug. 30. (The AP 08/01/23)