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School
Bus Diesel Emissions
Over 99% of our nation's 600,000 school buses run on diesel fuel,
placing millions of children at risk each day from the hazardous
health effects of diesel emissions. These emissions have been directly
linked to such serious health problems as asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia,
retarded lung development, and increased emergency room visits for
respiratory illnesses. After long-term exposure, diesel exhaust
can cause cancer. In an era where there are cleaner and less toxic
alternatives, states must act to protect our children from exposure
to these dangerous pollutants on their trips to and from school.
Diesel legislation can be found in many states, and these states
have taken a wide variety of approaches to addressing the problem,
including educating citizens about the hazards of diesel exhaust,
reducing heavy-duty diesel vehicle emissions, and establishing tax
breaks for alternative fuel use. As more states address the issue,
the spotlight shines more brightly on those states which are unwilling
to place the safety of our school children first. For more information
on school bus diesel emissions, visit: http://www.serconline.org/schoolbus/index.html. |
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CA
Law Could Force Car Manufacturers to Cut GHG Emissions by 30%
(Greenwire 1/13)
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/Backissues/011304/011304gw.htm#1
Charles Shulock, vehicle program specialist at the California Air
Resources Board (CARB), said state officials are currently writing
a draft implementation plan for AB 1493, which is expected to be
available in May with a final draft issued in July. The law requires
CARB to develop regulations to achieve "maximum feasible and
cost-effective" reduction of GHG emissions, including carbon
dioxide. The standards would take effect in 2006 and be required
of all cars beginning in model year 2009. CARB is currently working
to write the structure for the GHG reduction program and does not
want the regulations to restrict the products offered by manufacturers,
Shulock said. The agency is weighing two schemes: a single "fleet
average emission standard" or an emissions standards based
on a vehicle's size or weight. A number of innovations currently
exist, or are in use, including displacement-on-demand technology,
clean diesel engines, variable valve timing, gas direct injection,
and integrated starter/generators. The California system also will
include alternative compliance measures, whereby an automaker could
meet state requirements by reducing GHGs in other ways -- by planting
trees, for example. But CARB plans to be "very restrictive
on alternative measures," Shulock said. That means if an automaker
wants alternative credits by planting trees, those trees must be
planted in California. The agency will impose a cap on the amount
of alternative credits available. "The goal is to improve the
vehicles themselves," Shulock said. |
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ALEC
Rings in the New Year with "Ecoterrorism" Act
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) certainly knows
how to ring in the New Year. It celebrates by convincing legislators
to introduce the dangerous and ill-conceived Animal and Ecological
Terrorism Act (AETA). Introductions have been seen in Washington
(where the primary sponsor, Sen. Stevens, is the state chair for
ALEC), Arizona, and South Carolina. WA S6114, SC H4439 and AZ H2367
were all prefiled for the legislative sessions that just started.
In December 2002, ALEC's Criminal Justice Task Force endorsed the
model as a way to get at animal rights and environmental organizations
working for positive change, by playing upon the current terrorism
fears. The legislation's vague language and increased penalties
for violent crimes are already covered under existing laws, and
are designed not to protect hunting, fishing, livestock farms, and
animal research facilities but to suppress legitimate environmental,
animal rights, and family farm advocacy. The Act defines an "animal
or ecological terrorist organization" as "two or more
persons with the primary or incidental purpose of supporting any
politically motivated activity… intended to obstruct, impede,
or deter any person from participating in a lawful animal activity"
or in "mining, foresting, harvesting, gathering, or processing
natural resources." This and other passages in the Act could
be used to prosecute mainstream environmental groups engaged in
nonviolent advocacy work. People providing support to such organizations
-- even in the innocuous form of a monetary contribution -- could
also be prosecuted. The legislation also authorizes the creation
of a "terrorist registry." This is a dangerous piece of
legislation that threatens the legitimate work of many organizations,
and does nothing to accomplish its stated purpose. AETA is a bill
concocted by corporate donors, right-wing interests, and fringe
non-profit groups who seek to silence the legitimate opinions of
citizens and well-established environmental groups. For more information,
visit: http://www.serconline.org/alec/alec21.html. |
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Maryland
Senate Overrides Energy Efficiency Standards Veto
(Baltimore Sun 1/14; 1/16)
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.vetoes16jan16,0,4358756.story?coll=bal-local-headlines
http://www.sunspot.net/business/bal-bz.energy14jan14,0,3741295.story?coll=bal-business-headlines
For the first time in more than a decade, Maryland's Senate
overrode a Governor's veto, reviving energy efficiency standards
for nine types of appliances. The General Assembly passed
standards for nine mostly-commercial appliances last year,
only to see the action vetoed by Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich. The
legislation requires certain levels of energy savings for
ceiling fans and torchiere lighting fixtures as well as commercial
washers, refrigerators, air conditioners, heaters, illuminated
exit signs, traffic signals, and transformers that funnel
electricity from utilities to equipment. Some of the requirements
would take effect next year. Gov. Ehrlich vetoed the legislation
in favor of a national standard, while other opponents of
the state standard felt it would raise the price of the targeted
appliances too much. Proponents countered by citing the payback
of the retail cost in a few years with energy savings costs.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures,
a number of states are looking to address the issue this session,
including Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, New
Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Illinois. If Maryland's
legislation ultimately stands, the standards will save enough
energy by 2010 to power about 75,000 households, according
to MaryPIRG, a public interest group that supports the change.
Pollution in the Chesapeake Bay and the air would also be
reduced, the group said. For more information on how your
state can implement energy efficiency standards, visit: http://www.serconline.org/efficiencystandards/pkg_frameset.html. |
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MN:
Pawlenty Proposes $37.5 Million for Commuter Rail
(Star Tribune 1/14)
http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/4316577.html
Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced last week that he will ask the
Legislature to approve $37.5 million to advance Minnesota's
first commuter rail line. The proposed Northstar line would
extend 40 miles from downtown Minneapolis northwest to Big
Lake on existing freight tracks operated by the Burlington
Northern Santa Fe Railroad. The cost of buying trains, making
the tracks safe for dual use, and building stations is estimated
at $265 million. Half of that would be expected to come from
the federal government. Pawlenty proposes that the state share
the other half in a two-thirds/one-third split with counties
along the rail line. Pawlenty spoke personally with officials
at the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), which has adopted
strict ranking criteria to choose from among approximately
240 rail projects nationwide seeking federal funds. The northwest
corridor that would be served by the commuter rail line is
one of the fastest growing areas in the state. The rail line
is expected to save Hwy. 10 corridor commuters 892,000 travel
hours per year, compared with times on the best busway, according
to an updated project analysis submitted to the FTA. An earlier
proposal was an 82-mile commuter link between downtown Minneapolis
and St. Cloud. |
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Michigan
Supreme Court Considers Citizens' Right to Sue (mlive.com
1/14)
http://www.mlive.com/news/statewide/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1074078704270290.xml
A 34-year-old law giving any citizen the right to file suit
over environmental violations may hang in the balance as the
state's highest court considers a dispute involving expansion
of an Upper Peninsula mine. Lawyers for the National Wildlife
Federation on one side and Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Co. on the
other were before the Supreme Court to argue whether the Legislature
overstepped its bounds in a 1970 law allowing "any person"
to file a lawsuit over alleged environmental violations. The
Michigan Environmental Protection Act of 1970 specifies that
"the attorney general or any person" can bring a
suit "for the protection of the air, water, and other
natural resources, and the public trust in these resources,
from pollution, impairment, or destruction." NWF filed
suit in 2000 to contest a state permit that allowed Cleveland-Cliffs
to fill wetlands as part of a planned expansion of the Empire
Mine in Marquette County. Marquette Circuit Court Judge Garfield
Hood dismissed the case, ruling that the environmental group
had no legal standing to sue, since it had not been specifically
harmed by the mine project. The State Court of Appeals overturned
that decision and Cleveland-Cliffs appealed to the Supreme
Court. According to Andy Buchsbaum, director of the National
Wildlife Federation's Great Lakes Office, a ruling in favor
of Cleveland-Cliffs could also limit citizens' ability to
file suits over alleged violations of the Open Meetings Act
and certain taxpayer issues. For more information on citizen
suits, visit: http://www.serconline.org/citizensuits/index.html. |
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Wyoming's
Inadequate Plan Delays Gray Wolf Protection Decision
(AP 1/14; Great Falls Tribune 1/14)
http://sierraactivist.org/article.php?sid=39596
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/stories/20040114/localnews/223858.html
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service delayed plans to drop federal
protection for gray wolves in parts of the West, saying that
Wyoming had failed to submit an adequate plan for protecting
the animals if the federal government steps aside. Gray wolves,
once hunted and trapped nearly to extinction, have made a
remarkable comeback since being reintroduced into Yellowstone
National Park and surrounding areas in the 1990s. Before moving
ahead with a proposal that the wolves be removed from federal
protection in the Northern Rockies and some other Western
states, the Fish and Wildlife Service asked the three states
for their plans for protecting the animals. Montana and Idaho's
plans were found to be adequate. But the Fish and Wildlife
Service objected to Wyoming's plan to classify wolves in part
of the state as predators, which would mean they could be
shot with few restrictions. The agency also said the Wyoming
plan does not provide for adequate monitoring, and it objected
to the boundaries outlined by the state. Nina Fascione, vice
president of species conservation with the Defenders of Wildlife,
said Wyoming should not be surprised that its plan was rejected.
"I am pleasantly surprised and encouraged that the service
doesn't think open season on wolves is a decent management
plan," she said. For more information on state wolf plans,
visit: http://www.serconline.org/wolfpreservation/index.html. |
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California
Shuts Down Marine Reserve Program (San Jose Mercury
News 1/13)
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/7697991.htm
California Gov. Schwarzenegger's administration has decided
to put on "indefinite hold" a plan to create a network
of coastal marine reserves. The plan, which could have put
up to 20 percent of state waters off limits to fishing, was
required by a 1999 state law. It has been cited by marine
biologists as a national model -- and perhaps the best hope
of arresting the steady decline of dozens of types of fish
in California waters. Resources Secretary Mike Chrisman said
the California Department of Fish and Game chose to halt the
process and disband seven working groups because the state
lacks the $2 million needed to finish the plan by a Jan. 1,
2005 deadline. Marine scientists and environmentalists greeted
the decision with disappointment and anger. "Just because
the state can't provide the gold-plated Cadillac version doesn't
mean they should abandon their responsibility to implement
state law," said Warner Chabot, vice president of the
Ocean Conservancy in San Francisco. Research will continue
on existing reserves, including a newly established network
off the Channel Islands, officials said. Currently, less than
1 percent of California's ocean waters have been declared
no-fishing reserves. "I hope the administration reconsiders,"
said Mary Nichols, former resources secretary. "The longer
we wait, the harder it will be to have these reserves fulfill
their promise." Fish and Game officials tried to kill
the controversial program during former Gov. Davis' tenure,
Nichols said, but he refused to allow it. "It became
clear the department did not have the will or the capacity
to put this program together," said Nichols, "I'm
not surprised the department is using the budget as the rationale
for stopping the program." |
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Biomass:
An Untapped Resource in Washington State (Seattle
Post Intelligencer 1/13)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/156367_bioenergy13.html
Washington State could use biological energy sources to power
four out of every ten homes in Eastern Washington, said a
study commissioned by the state Department of Ecology and
conducted by Washington State University's Department of Biological
Systems Engineering. The availability of vast amounts of such
sources, mostly in the form of agricultural waste such as
wheat straw and manure, could position the region to be a
major player in the development of bioenergy. Questions remain
regarding electrical transmission of such energy and transportation
of wastes to generators, but some hope the study will help
spur further development. "We'll probably never even
approach what this potential is," said Mark Fuchs, a
biosolids coordinator with the Department of Ecology. "But
there are localized opportunities. There's a lot of resource
out there." Organizers hope to get funding for a second
phase of the study. For more information on using biomass
for energy, visit: http://www.serconline.org/biomassdefinition/index.html. |
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New
Hampshire Lawmakers Want to Ban MTBE (Foster's Daily
Democrat 1/13)
http://www4.fosters.com/news2004/January2004/January_13/News/reg_nh_0113b.asp
New Hampshire's administration is attacking the water polluting
gas additive MTBE on several fronts, yet the chemical is still
in every gallon of gasoline sold in southern New Hampshire.
Some NH lawmakers want to follow New York, Connecticut, and
California in banning the additive, which cuts air pollution
but which can quickly pollute water supplies if gasoline is
spilled or leaked. A House committee will consider a bill
requiring the state environmental department to develop a
plan by April next year to ban the sale of gasoline containing
the additive. Lawmakers have considered banning MTBE before,
but have been dissuaded by concerns about compliance with
federal law, gas pump price increases, or supply problems.
Any price increase at the gas pumps in New Hampshire would
have to be balanced against the costs of cleaning up polluted
water, said bill co-sponsor Rep. James Phinizy, D-Acworth. |
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Georgia:
Local Governments Pay Tab for Hazardous Waste Cleanup
(Macon Telegraph 1/13)
http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/7696388.htm
Georgia law requires that a certain percentage of garbage
fees collected from local residents be used by local municipalities
to pay into a statewide Hazardous Waste Trust Fund. Part of
the money generated from that trust fund is supposed to return
to local governments to clean up old, leaky landfills, but
last year Gov. Sonny Perdue used that money to balance the
state budget, putting local governments on a waiting list.
Despite the enormous amount of financial strain this has placed
on local governments, it looks like the same thing will happen
this year. The Governor's 2004 budget originally included
$4 million for the trust fund, but the Legislature re-routed
the money at the last minute. "These funds were a trust
with the public... and if they're not being used for their
intended purposes, they might as well be a tax," said
Glenn Dowling, associate legislative director for the Association
County Commissioners of Georgia. |
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NJ
Legislature to Adopt Stricter California Auto Emissions Standards
(NY Times 1/12)
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/13/nyregion/13JERS.html?pagewanted=all
Despite heavy opposition from automobile manufacturers and
dealers, the New Jersey Senate and Assembly passed, and Gov.
James McGreevey signed into law, S2351/A3393, better known
as the Clean Car Bill. The bill requires the Department of
Environmental Protection to begin implementing the California
Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) program in 2009, which requires
reductions in tailpipe and evaporative emissions of hydrocarbons
and nitrogen oxides for all passenger cars, light-duty trucks,
and sport utility vehicles. The bill will also require that
carmakers produce a total of approximately 40,000 gas electric
hybrid cars and 128,000 super clean gasoline cars between
1999 and 2009. The combination of stricter standards and the
promotion of cleaner vehicles are expected to reduce smog
by 19 percent by the year 2020. |
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Feds
Back Move to Weaken Pollution Standards in California
(LA Times 1/10)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-ed-smog10jan10,1,2383719.story
California laws require that, when the state or private contractors
replace worn out diesel engine buses, trash trucks, and street
sweepers, they must do so with cleaner-fuel vehicles. As a
result of the laws, 60% of California's local transit buses
and a host of other fuel-burning vehicles now run on cleaner
fuels, decreasing the transit system's contribution to pollution.
But a lawsuit, brought by diesel engine makers and endorsed
by the White House, is seeking to invalidate California's
local fleet rules, arguing that only the federal Environmental
Protection Agency can make such rules, despite California's
allowance from Congress to enforce stricter pollution standards.
To make matters worse, the Bush Administration is also pushing
a transportation funding bill that would weaken limits on
ozone, the primary ingredient of smog. |
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MI
Legislature Working Toward Smart Growth (Great Lakes
Bulletin News Service 1/08)
http://mlui.org/growthmanagement/fullarticle.asp?fileid=16609
In Michigan, Republican lawmakers and Democratic Governor
Jennifer M. Granholm have built bipartisan support to combat
sprawl and revitalize the Michigan economy. Last August, a
bipartisan panel produced a report with 160 recommendations
aimed at changing patterns of development in ways that serve
cities and suburbs, better retaining the state's best and
brightest workers, protecting farmland and the environment,
and improving the state's economy. Since then, the governor
has signed two executive orders and 17 bills passed by the
Legislature that, among other things, empower municipalities
to get tough on owners of blighted property, help expedite
redevelopment of abandoned brownfield sites, and raise the
cap on bond money available for such projects. Other measures
signed by the governor encourage regional planning and permit
townships to include open space in their mixed-use zoning
laws. As the Michigan Legislature resumes this week, they
will be confronted with at least 48 additional land use reform
bills. For more information on how your state can curb urban
sprawl, visit: http://www.serconline.org/sprawl/pkg_frameset.html. |
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