Mike Smith

Falls Church

Land Use and Environmental Reporter at Spotlight Delaware

Public Affairs. News Columnist. Beats: education & environment for Coastal Point. Boards: IPC for Chesapeake, DPL Delaware, PRSA and National Press Club.

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Articles

IR seniors earn admission to U.S. military service academies

Feb 6, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

Cade Donnelly and Jacob Massey are running through the tape as they accept admission to U.S. service academies.
South Bethany committee holds line on rental taxes

Jan 30, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

The Town of South Bethany has collected a majority of the tax revenue from town assessment fees and local property taxes for the current fiscal year, and the Town’s Budget & Finance Committee met on Friday, Jan. 24, to review the budget for the upcoming 2026 fiscal year. The committee decided, after some rigorous review, to keep the rental tax rate the same for the 2026 fiscal year, rather than lowering the rate, as had previously been proposed.
Trump places halt on all offshore wind, including local project

Jan 30, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

President Donald Trump, in his Jan. 20, inaugural address focused on — among other policy statements — reducing inflation by extracting American natural resources and fulfilling his pledge to increase domestic oil production. “The Cabinet must marshal all forces to rapidly bring down costs and beat inflation,” said Trump in his speech. “Escalating energy costs are what cause inflation, and therefore I am going to declare a national energy emergency.
IRSD to float $22M referendum to meet budget shortfalls

Jan 30, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

At the Indian River School District Board of Education meeting held on Jan. 27 at Indian River High School, the board wrestled with how to meet the educational needs of 10,750 students and bridge a budget gap for hiring new teachers and support staff. The district already has one of the largest educational workforces in the state, with 1,000 teachers and 300 paraprofessionals. “This is a pay-now or pay-later situation,” said Board Member Anita West-Werner.
EPA: DNREC, County violated civil rights on Seaford biogester plant approval

Jan 23, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Civil Rights Compliance office and DNREC officials recently signed an informal resolution agreement in response to a civil-rights complaint over permitting for a bioenergy project in Seaford, Bioenergy Devco. The announcement of the settlement was made on Friday, Jan. 17. While the agreement allows for new environmental-justice practices, there is no financial or community-benefits relief included for the impacted communities near Seaford.
Garvin retires from DNREC after eight years

Jan 16, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin is leaving public service. Garvin has served as the leading environmental control officer in the state for eight years, after taking office March of 2017, and prior to that was regional administrator for EPA Region 3 in Philadelphia, starting in 2009. His immediate successor as of Jan. 8, was set to be DNREC Deputy Secretary Lisa Borin Ogden, who has served with him at DNREC since the early days of now-former Gov. John Carney’s administration.
Orlen wins NSF award, White House math recognition

Jan 16, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

Jason Orlen, a teacher at East Millsboro Elementary School, has been awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math & Science Teaching (PAEMST). The award comes with a $10,000 stipend. The PAEMST program, administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) on behalf of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy, recognizes outstanding teachers for their contributions to the teaching and learning of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
NCR Superfund site in Millsboro deemed safe, compliant

Jan 16, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now reviewing the cleanup work that was conducted at the NCR Corporation Superfund site located near Millsboro. The contamination impacted the underwater aquifers from which drinking water may have been resourced. A TCE-contaminated groundwater plume was cleaned at the Wharton Street/Dupont Highway NCR Superfund site, and the public drinking-water supply system operated by the Town of Millsboro was tested. The area is currently a vacant lot.
DELAWARE: Carney, DNREC agree to $128M in wind-power benefits

Jan 10, 2025 | savingseafood.org | Mike Smith

January 10, 2024 — The plot thickens on offshore wind-power generation in Delaware as outgoing Gov. John Carney and the state’s environmental control agency agreed this week to permit offshore wind-power cabling through Delaware state parks, including Delaware Seashore State Park north of Bethany Beach.
Perdue plant chemical release forces shelter-in-place order, some evacuations

Jan 10, 2025 | coastalpoint.com | Mike Smith

A shelter-in-place order was issued for people near the Perdue poultry processing plant in Georgetown on Wednesday, Jan. 8, after a worker at the plant reportedly mixed volatile chemicals by mistake. The Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) issued the order on Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 6:20 p.m., more than two hours after a toxic chemical leak at the plant on Savannah Road near downtown Georgetown.