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Environmental
Justice
In the early 1980s, several studies were published illustrating
the disproportionate and adverse health effects felt in economically
disadvantaged areas and by communities of color. These environmental
health risks have various causes, including high concentrations
of industry and waste facilities. One report found that the EPA
took 20% longer to place abandoned sites in communities of color
on a national priority list than it took to prioritize sites in
white communities. It also noted that polluters paid 54% lower fines
for damage to communities of color relative to white neighborhoods.
Communities with a large population of low-income and/or people
of color are more likely to be subjected to environmental hazards.
These communities are often excluded from decision-making processes,
making it difficult for them to fight against pollution and improve
the environmental health of their community. The environmental justice
movement is a growing movement gaining national attention through
the relentless efforts of religious and other community organizations,
individuals, and families, to demand recognition and justice for
their communities. Many people across the nation have worked persistently
and strategically to bring attention to the oversights of government
and the environmental targeting of these communities. State legislation
focusing on environmental justice gives further recognition and
legal protection to communities faced with these issues, expedites
action, and channels money to the people and communities that have
been ignored for so long. For more information on Environmental
Justice, visit: http://www.serconline.org/ej/index.html. |
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States
Object to Changes in Coastal Zone Management Act (LA Times,
8/21)
At the urging of Vice-President Cheney's energy task force, the
U.S. Commerce Department is undertaking a comprehensive revision
of the Federal Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, proposing 24
pages of changes. The Act gives states a say in decisions affecting
their coastal waters and shorelines, effectively making the federal
and state governments partners in the stewardship of federal waters
(those more than three miles offshore). The changes would allow
federal agencies' opinions on questions about the environmental
impacts of offshore drilling and other activities to outweigh those
of state agencies. Members of Congress called the proposal a "pernicious
assault on states' rights"; the Commerce Department insists
states' rights will not be affected. California and other coastal
states have publicly objected to the changes. California Attorney
General Bill Lockyer said the Commerce Department is attempting
to "eviscerate" a recent federal court decision that supported
the right of the state's Coastal Commission to review any new drilling
plans for environmental hazards before they are allowed to proceed.
The coastal coordinator of the Western States Petroleum Association,
on the other hand, said the revisions make "good business sense."
Oil industry executives have complained that efforts by coastal
states, especially California, to protect coastal and marine life
have slowed or stopped drilling plans. For information about alternatives
to offshore oil drilling, visit: http://www.serconline.org/RPS/pkg_frameset.html. |
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What
About a State's Right to a Healthy Environment?
Offshore oil drilling and ozone in California. Factory farm pollution
in North Carolina. Power plant regulation in the northeast. Across
the country, states are finding that the Bush Administration's environmental
policies are less stringent than their own and, in some cases, the
administration is even limiting the ability of states to protect
their environment. In North Carolina, for example, factory-style
farms are subject to state regulations requiring various permits
and waste treatment systems, and the state currently has a ban on
new hog farms. These rules are more stringent than recently released
EPA guidelines. Environmental advocates in North Carolina are concerned
that large scale animal farmers will use the new EPA rules as leverage
to weaken the state regulations (Raleigh News & Observer 12/17/02).
In California, a new smog reduction plan proposed by the EPA has
state officials worried that ozone levels might actually increase,
because of the long phase-in period. The Bush administration is
also quietly rewriting the rules governing coastal drilling to limit
the influence of states. A letter signed by Rep. Lois Capps and
90 other members of Congress calls the revision a "pernicious
assault on states' rights." (LA Times 8/21/03). On the opposite
coast, thirteen states have again filed a legal challenge to the
EPA's revised New Source Review regulations, which would allow many
older power plants to upgrade without reducing the amount they pollute
(Hartford Courant 8/21/03). It seems the administration supports
states' rights -- unless it's the right to a healthy environment. |
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FCC
to Probe Dead Birds and Wires
(San Francisco Gate 8/21)
The Federal Communications Commission announced this week
it is looking into how to manage the expansion of communications
towers in a way that "best preserves the country's environmental
resources." The inquiry will look into why so many birds
are killed flying into communications towers. This is part
of an effort to study and police how the growing number of
cell phone and broadcast towers sprouting across the country
affects historic sites, Native American land, and the environment.
The FCC will work with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
to study why an estimated 5 to 50 million migratory birds
fly into towers each year. Researchers suspect part of the
problem is due to the bird's attraction to lights on the towers.
For more information on this issue, visit: http://www.serconline.org/avian_mortality.html. |
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'Green
Power' Drawing More Customers in the Northwest
(Seattle Post-Intelligencer 8/21)
The amount of renewable energy consumers in the Northwest
chose to buy increased 88% since 2002, according to a report
from the Renewable Northwest Project. Thanks to programs where
customers can choose to by power from solar, biomass, and
wind sources for a premium, the amount of renewable energy
used by both residential and commercial users has increased.
To read the report, visit www.RNP.org.
For more information on how your state can promote clean energy,
see http://www.serconline.org/cleanenergy.html. |
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Ohio
Bans Drilling in Lake Erie
(Cincinnati Enquirer, Cleveland Plain Dealer, 8/21)
Ohio Governor Bob Taft signed an executive order in July banning
oil and gas drilling in Lake Erie. The order prohibits the
state Department of Natural Resources from issuing any permit,
license, or lease for drilling in the lake's Ohio waters through
2006, the end of Taft's second term. Local environmental groups,
concerned that the September 2005 expiration of a federal
ban on drilling in the Great Lakes might hurt Lake Erie, had
encouraged the Governor to take action. Critics of the ban,
including the Ohio Oil and Gas Association, point out that
there are 550 oil-producing wells in Lake Erie's Canadian
zone, and that Ohio could use the energy and money from the
additional oil and gas production. It is estimated that more
than 1.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas lies under Lake
Erie's Ohio waters, approximately the same amount as all of
the state's onshore reserves. Ohio produced 98 billion cubic
feet of gas, or 11 percent of what it consumed, last year.
For information on alternatives to oil and gas, visit: http://www.serconline.org/RenewableEnergyIncentives/index.html. |
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NJ
Judge Refuses Request for Secondary Containment of CWD
(The Star-Ledger 8/21)
Judge Theodore Bozonelis denied a request to order a second
fence built around a gated hunting preserve that may be contaminated
with Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). The Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) asked for the secondary containment to guard
against possible disease transmission to neighboring wild
herds. Bozonelis stated that he refused the request because
the preserve had already been sufficiently quarantined. On
September 16, a court hearing will consider a lawsuit, also
filed by DEP, to order CWD testing. Testing requires destroying
the animals because live diagnosis is unreliable. Big Spring
Whitetail Preserve imported 20 deer from Wisconsin, one of
twelve states infected with CWD. Trade of infected animals
between game farms is the most rapid way the disease is transmitted.
For more information on how your state can protect itself
from Chronic Wasting Disease, visit: http://www.serconline.org/CWD/index.html. |
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CT
Leads State Effort to Block Weakened Clean Air Rules
(Hartford Courant 8/21)
Connecticut, in a 13-state coalition, filed a stay to block
changes to the federal Clean Air Act. The changes, proposed
by the Bush Administration, allow old coal-burning power plants
to operate without modernizing controls to meet emissions
standards. The utility industry supports the changes because
they claim that the current rules are too expensive and confusing.
The state coalition, however, argues that these changes would
lead to increased air pollution. The rules have been reopened
for public comment after the Environmental Protection Agency
acknowledged using faulty environmental analysis to support
its argument. Final consideration is expected on October 28.
For more information on clean power, visit: http://www.serconline.org/clean/index.html. |
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California
Bills Target Cruise Ship Pollution
(LA Times 8/18, San Diego Union Tribune 8/20)
Three bills that would keep cruise ships from dumping sewage
and spewing diesel fumes off the California coast passed the
state Assembly and are in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The bills were inspired by the growth of the cruise ship industry
and a few particularly polluting incidents. Cruise ships,
which are currently not regulated in most states, can produce
50 tons of garbage and 210,000 gallons of sewage in a week.
Unlike similar enterprises on land, they are not subject to
environmental regulations, although many companies have been
prosecuted under federal law for failing to report discharges.
Cruise ships "have an abysmal record for protecting the
environment," said Russell Long, executive director of
Bluewater Network. "They need to be cleaned up, and it
needs to happen fast." |
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Gold
Firm Attacks California Law under NAFTA
(LA Times 8/20)
Glamis Gold Ltd., a Canadian company with US subsidiaries,
will be filing a claim under chapter 11 of the North American
Free Trade Agreement over a recently-passed California law
that governs open pit mining. Glamis, which has plans to mine
in an area of Imperial County, CA that is not only federally
protected but also a Native American religious site, is arguing
that the new law has lowered the value of the mine. The law
requires backfilling and flattening of mine waste piles, and
a complete restoration of areas near Native American religious
sites. |
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Report
on NEPA and Public Involvement
A new report released by the Natural Resources Defense Council
and the Sierra Club looks into the effect that NEPA, the National
Environmental Policy Act, has had on various highway case
studies in recent years. "The Road to Better Transportation
Projects," looks into 12 projects across the country
and generally concludes that, for the specific case studies,
public input significantly reduced the amount of environmental
damage. The report also finds that public input allowed modifications
which enabled the projects to have a better fit in the communities
they were directly affecting. Unfortunately, the current administration
seeks to use NEPA as a scapegoat for costly delays due to
the public involvement and environmental review necessitated
by law. However, in a majority of the cases the delay problems
were caused by lack of funding, local controversy, and the
complex nature of the projects. Although the process is not
perfect, it is not a reason to weaken the law. The report
recommends a several ways to strengthen the process, including
early meetings with stakeholders in order to coordinate much
earlier to avoid costly delays. To read the full report, visit:
http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/nepa/. |
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