Plane For Cuba Leaves Russia, But Snowden Is Not On Board

MOSCOW — Intrigue deepened on Monday over the whereabouts of Edward J. Snowden, the fugitive former National Security Agency contractor accused of espionage, when he did not leave Moscow on a planned flight to Havana, one day after Hong Kong frustrated his American pursuers by allowing him to fly out of the territory.

Mr. Snowden’s vacant seat on the Havana flight raised the possibility that the Russian government had detained him, either to consider the demands by the Obama administration to intercept him and return him to the United States or perhaps to question him for Russia’s own purposes.

The authorities in Hong Kong said Mr. Snowden boarded an Aeroflot flight to Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport that arrived on Sunday afternoon.  But he was never photographed in Hong Kong and has not been seen publicly or photographed since his reported arrival in Moscow.  Arriving passengers on that flight, interviewed at the airport, said they could not confirm that he had been aboard.

The situation remained infuriating for American officials, who have charged Mr. Snowden with illegally disclosing classified documents about American surveillance programs.

Read more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/25/world/edward-snowden-nsa-surveillance-leak.html?hp&_r=0

A 16th-Century Method May Revolutionize Mine Drainage Treatment

A technology dating to the 16th century and built with PVC piping available at any Home Depot or Lowe’s soon will be used to enhance and possibly revolutionize the treatment of abandoned mine drainage, still Pennsylvania’s biggest water quality problem.

The technology, called “trompe,” an old French word meaning trumpet, is a water-powered air compressor with no moving parts.  It has been adapted and developed by Bruce Leavitt, a mining hydrologist and professor of mining engineering at West Virginia University, to provide enhanced aeration of polluted mine water, which speeds the cleanup process.

Use of trompe technology is especially applicable to the hundreds of mine discharges flowing out of the Pittsburgh coal seam in Western Pennsylvania, said Mr. Leavitt, during a walking tour of a trompe-enhanced passive treatment system on the North Fork of Montour Run in Findlay, 2 miles south of the Pittsburgh International Airport.

“Trompe can reduce the size and cost of passive treatment systems for mine drainage,” he said, “And it can take a treatment system that’s not working, or not working well, and clean the water better.”

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/state/16th-century-method-may-ease-mine-drainage-692917/#ixzz2X9Sy6uym

Pottstown Rumble Final Day Ends With Familiar Champions

Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

POTTSTOWN — As twilight fell, two pairs who’d battled through two full days of Men’s Open play at the Pottstown Rumble battled in an evenly-matched final for $5,000 before a crowd of hundreds.

When it was over, Hudson Bates and Mark Berik, the 2011 Rumble Men’s Open Champions, added the 2013 crown to their resumes.

“Honestly, the Rumble is the best grass tournament in the country, I think,” said Bates, from Richmond, Va. “They stepped it up big-time this year.  Great organizers, great sponsors, it’s just a fun, fun tournament.  It’s awesome.”

By winning two games 11-6 and 11-9 in the best of three final, Bates and Berik, from Queens, N.Y., beat a pair from Ellicott City, Md., whom the courtside announcer dubbed the “Maryland Marauders,” Aaron Russell and Eric Lucas.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130624/NEWS01/130629684/pottstown-rumble-final-day-ends-with-familiar-champions#full_story

Kids’ Well-Being Slipping In Pennsylvania, Nonprofit Says

Map of Pennsylvania (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The well-being of children in Pennsylvania is 17th best in the nation, but that’s down from 14th a year ago, according to a study released today.

A lack of gains in health care and early learning caused the slip, according to the study by The Annie E. Casey Foundation, a Baltimore nonprofit for helping children.

The best-ranked states: New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts. The worst: Nevada, Mississippi and New Mexico.

It’s a warning sign that Pennsylvania was one of only five states to fall three or more spots, said local professionals who deal with children.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=486933

Slice Of Shale Pie Feeds Projects

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Soon the playground at Gring’s Mill Recreation Area will be out of the woods, literally and figuratively.

Credit goes to an issue not likely to hit Berks County directly: drilling for natural gas.

County officials recently were told they could expect a check any day for $345,000 from the impact fees gas producers pay the state. That’s on top of the $349,068 they received last year.  The money must be spent for parks and recreation projects.

The money enables the county to bump up the timetable for projects identified in the parks department’s five-year plan, and avoid spending taxpayer money on them, county Commissioner Kevin S. Barnhardt said.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=486931