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DEFENDING ENVIRONMENTAL AGENDA
April 27, 2005
Conservation isn't what it used to be. Energy amendment language from 2003 and 2005 in Washington Post's "Sunday Politics" section...
"Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall develop and implement measures to conserve petroleum in end-uses throughout the economy of the United States sufficient to reduce total demand for petroleum in the United Sates by 1,000,000 barrels per day from the amount projected for calendar year 2013." - Energy amendment passed by the Senate, 99 to 1, June 10, 2003
"Not later than six months after the date of enactment of this act, appropriate Federal Departments and agencies, as identified by the president, shall propose voluntary, regulatory, and other actions sufficient to reduce demand for oil in the United States by at least 1.0 million barrels per day from projected demand for oil in 2013." - Energy amendment defeated by the House, 262 to 166, April 20, 2005
(1) URGENT TAKE ACTION: Protect the Arctic Refuge
(2) ENERGY: Dangerous Liaisons
(3) COMMUNITIES: All Dolled Up
(4) TAKE ACTION: Fix It First
1. URGENT TAKE ACTION: Protect the Arctic Refuge
It's make or break for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Congress is poised to vote on a final Federal Budget Resolution which could include a controversial provision to open the Arctic Refuge to oil drilling. Proponents of opening the Refuge to drilling could insert an assumption of revenues from lease sales in the Arctic in the Budget Resolution -- a tactic that limits debate and amendment. Our lawmakers should not use the budget process to allow oil drilling in one of our nation's last great wilderness areas. The speculative revenue gains are too small and the sacrifice too great.
Tell your Representatives and Senators to vote against a budget that includes Arctic Refuge drilling: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cfhg,km3,6y6a,5h4t,irqz,5w4u
Or call the Arctic Action Hotline, 1-888-8-WILDAK (1- 888-894-5325), and connect directly to your members of Congress.
2. ENERGY: Dangerous Liaisons
The Department of Energy opted not to do a thorough security review of a uranium enrichment facility proposed for New Mexico, despite the fact that the contractor for the project was responsible for the largest leak of nuclear technology in history. Sierra Magazine uncovered the Department of Energy's decision while researching a story about Urenco, the majority partner in the proposed New Mexico facility, and its connections to Abdul Qadeer Khan, who last year confessed to selling nuclear secrets to Pakistan, North Korea, Libya, and Iran.
Read Sierra Magazine's investigative story: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cfhg,km3,iqc6,ear2,irqz,5w4u
3. COMMUNITIES: All Dolled Up
Students in New Hampshire put scissors to paper last week to draw attention to the state's air quality problems. Local members of the Sierra Club marked Earth Day by displaying tens of thousands of paper dolls to represent the number of children diagnosed with asthma in New Hampshire. Activists also went door-to-door advocated for strong enforcement of the federal Clean Air Act, and a moratorium on burning construction and demolition waste in New Hampshire. The state has one of the highest asthma rates in the nation.
Check out a picture of the dolls in the Concord Monitor: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cfhg,km3,keuu,5v4o,irqz,5w4u
4. TAKE ACTION: Fix It First
One in four bridges and one in six interstate miles nationwide are in need of repair. Instead of fixing what we have, Congress is expected to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on expensive pork projects we don't need. That includes $315 million on a bridge in Ketchikan, Alaska that will serve an island of only 50 people, and $2.3 billion on another massive bridge from Anchorage to a sparsely populated area of Alaska! This week, the Senate will take up a six- year transportation spending bill.
Tell your Senators to spend tax dollars wisely by putting potholes we have before the pork we don't need: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cfhg,km3,je35,iccx,irqz,5w4u
Learn more about Fix It First: www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/fixitfirst
"On previous Earth Days we have offered a solution: The President should set the standard by delivering a message to the Congress on the state of the environment, citing priorities that need to be addressed...But without Presidential and Congressional leadership, even an enlightened public cannot cope with the greatest challenge of our time." - Senator Gaylord Nelson, founder of Earth Day
(1) TOXICS: Pollution Goes Underground
(2) AIR: Just When You Thought You Were Safe...
(3) TAKE ACTION: Celebrate Earth Day
(4) TAKE ACTION: Tell Congress to Reject the Polluting Energy Bill
1. TOXICS: Pollution Goes Underground
The federal government is shirking its responsibility to clean up toxic leaks from Underground Storage Tanks (USTs), a growing threat to groundwater quality and public health. The federal government's refusal to accept its responsibility to fund the cleanups is making the problem worse and part of a larger effort to undermine the principle of "polluter pays" -- which makes polluters clean up after themselves. "More than 100 million people drink groundwater in states where thousands of Underground Storage Tanks are leaking and need cleanups," said Grant Cope, Toxics Expert with the Sierra Club. "These sites include toxics like benzene, toluene and heavy metals that can quickly pollute groundwater, threaten public health, burden taxpayers with cleanup costs and hurts real estate values."
Read the whole report or read specific information about your state: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cagy,km3,2m10,9u4a,irqz,5w4u sp
2. AIR: Just When You Thought You Were Safe...
When the Clean Air Act was upheld last month, we thought we could finally take a breather. But deep in the energy bill just approved by a House committee lurks a provision that could have major consequences for communities struggling to clean up their air. Under the new provision, "downwind" states would not be required to meet clean air standards until the "upwind" states that contributed to the problem had done so. This would be one of the most significant changes to the Clean Air Act in 15 years. Said an anonymous high-ranking official in the EPA, "Some people think it's a good idea. Most don't."
Read "Change to the Clean Air Act Is Built Into New Energy Bill" in the New York Times: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cagy,km3,ajlu,ez23,irqz,5w4u tml?ex=1114488000&en=f728b3ac4c74193d&ei=5070
3. TAKE ACTION: Celebrate Earth Day
Plant a tree. Wave a sign at a rally. Ride your bike to work. Speak up at a public hearing. There are plenty of ways to celebrate Earth Day. You're invited to join one of the many events the Sierra Club is organizing around the country as part of its Building Environmental Community campaign.
Find Earth Day events near you: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cagy,km3,4m2r,29ac,irqz,5w4u
4. TAKE ACTION: Tell Congress to Reject the Polluting Energy Bill
Once again, anti-environmental forces have resurrected the polluting Bush-Cheney energy bill. The bill contains many provisions that weaken environmental protections. The latest of these is a provision that undermines the Clean Air Act by delaying smog and soot deadlines by a decade or more if a community can blame any part of their pollution problem on upwind states (see #2 above). The bill also contains provisions for increasing domestic oil production, including drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Tell Congress to reject the Energy Policy Act of 2005: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,cagy,km3,asen,gl5i,irqz,5w4u
"If I owned land in Florida, I might have a different opinion myself." - Duane Radtke, executive of Dominion Resources Inc., a natural gas production company, supports opening up America's coasts to oil and gas drilling (as long as it isn't in his backyard).
(1) CONSERVATION: True Value
(2) ENERGY: If at First You Don't Succeed...
(3) TAKE ACTION: Break America's Oil Dependence
(4) TAKE ACTION: Oppose the CAFTA Trade Agreement
1. CONSERVATION: True Value
A new economic argument is disproving the old adage "Money doesn't grow on trees." In fact, according to economics professor John Loomis and doctoral student Robert Richardson, trees can be quite profitable. Their studies estimated that 42 million acres of roadless forest in the contiguous U.S. support 24,000 jobs and provide nearly $600 million annually in recreation benefits and another $280 million could be tacked on for every year the lands are maintained for future generations.
Read more about the new "invisible" economy in Outside Magazine: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c47b,km3,81lo,9jee,irqz,5w4u
2. ENERGY: If at First You Don't Succeed...
...lie, lie again? For years, the U.S. has tried to find a way to store 77,000 tons of nuclear waste. The Bush administration wants to put it under Nevada's Yucca Mountain, just 70 miles from Las Vegas. On March 16, the Department of Energy released emails written by several U.S. Geological Survey scientists working on the project revealing that they may have made up information for computer programs designed to track desert water movement. One of the emails says "I don't have a clue when these programs were installed. So I've made up the dates and names..." Last year, a federal court ruled that the Yucca Mountain project violated the groundwater safety standards, the same issue where scientists falsified data.
Read the Associated Press story: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c47b,km3,6nnk,1ges,irqz,5w4u
3. TAKE ACTION: Break America's Oil Dependence
As gas prices continue to rise, Congress is again preparing an energy bill that threatens to drill our coasts and other special places, gives away billions of dollars to polluting energy companies, and does nothing to lessen our dependence on foreign oil. America needs real energy policy would cut our oil dependence while preserving our national treasures.
Tell your senators that any national energy policy must address America's oil dependence: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c47b,km3,gffh,jiba,irqz,5w4u
4. TAKE ACTION: Oppose the CAFTA Trade Agreement
The Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), which includes Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, is the biggest free trade agreement Congress has considered in more than 10 years. Unfortunately it is a flawed model which could threaten the environment and natural resources both in the U.S. and in Central America, put more workers out of a job, jeopardize rural farmers, reduce access to life-saving medicines and stifle democracy.
April 13th is CAFTA National Call-in Day. Call your members of Congress at 1-888-355-3588 and urge them to vote against CAFTA (just available April 13th).
Read a sample script for help on what to say: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c47b,km3,bg7,98f8,irqz,5w4u
Want to do something before the 13th? Write your Senators and Representatives and urge them to oppose CAFTA: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c47b,km3,epyc,c2i8,irqz,5w4u
"Big Power gets a tasty multibillion-dollar treat, while everyone else is served up a Toxic Tuna Surprise. Of course, cooking up distorted scientific findings and dishing out political favors at the expense of the public good has become something of a blue plate special at the Bush White House." - Columnist and author Arianna Huffington speaking on mercury pollution. Huffington is one of many speakers scheduled for the first-ever Sierra Club National Environmental Convention & Expo later this year.
(1) WATCH: Molehills Out of Mountains (2) AWARD: Bee Season
(3) TAKE ACTION: Preserve Checks and Balances
(4) TAKE ACTION: Toxic Selenium Needs Strong Protections
1. WATCH: Molehills Out of Mountains
Mountaintop removal mining, a destructive practice that involves clear-cutting native forests, blasting away more than 1000 feet of mountaintop and burying streams with waste, is kicking into high gear with looser regulations and a new coal boom. The Sierra Club-sponsored documentary film entitled The Appalachians offers a unique overview of the region's history, a sampling of its rich musical traditions - including the last filmed interview with the Man in Black, Johnny Cash - and an eye-opening look at the issues residents face today.
The series will air on public television stations nationwide. Find out when The Appalachians is airing in your hometown: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c09z,km3,1l6t,15lw,irqz,5w4u
Read more about the film and the Sierra Club's involvement in Appalachia: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c09z,km3,1nit,8m8g,irqz,5w4u
2. AWARD: Bee Season
Yesterday, Sacramento Bee associate editor Tom Philp won the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing for a series urging the restoration of Yosemite's Hetch Hetchy Valley. In 1913, Hetch Hetchy was lost -- presumably forever -- when Congress authorized the construction of a dam to provide water and electrical power to San Francisco. The authorization of the dam, the only major hydroelectric facility within a national park, sparked a passionate debate. In particular, the fight to save Hetch Hetchy was the last of John Muir's life. The award marks the newspaper's first Pulitzer since 1992.
Read the Sacramento Bee series "Hetch Hetchy Reclaimed": https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c09z,km3,an8k,h00q,irqz,5w4u -11432525c.html
3. TAKE ACTION: Preserve Checks and Balances
In an effort to rush through judicial nominees who could put our rights and protections at risk, the majority leadership in the U.S. Senate is trying to change the rules in the middle of the game by limiting debate and silencing the voice of the minority. This move, dubbed the "nuclear option" by Senator Trent Lott (R-Miss.), could have a devastating impact on our democracy and threaten the 200-year-old system of checks and balances on which our government in based. It is an unprecedented power grab intended to deny the Senate's longstanding right to withhold approval of judicial nominees.
Tell Majority Leader Frist to reject the "nuclear option" and preserve democracy in the Senate: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c09z,km3,g74w,13ev,irqz,5w4u
4. TAKE ACTION: Toxic Selenium Needs Strong Protections
Last year, the EPA proposed weakening existing Clean Water Act protections for selenium. Selenium is a toxin that, in high doses, is known to cause severe reproductive impairment in fish, birds, and other wildlife. The new proposal means that polluters could dump more selenium into our waters. There is strong evidence that the proposed selenium criterion was developed with flawed science. In addition, the proposal has drawn criticism from wildlife scientists who believe that the number chosen will not be protective of fish or wildlife.
Tell the EPA NOT to weaken our protections from toxic selenium: https://info.sierraclub.org/ct.html?rtr=on&s=arz,c09z,km3,bt1t,gbsr,irqz,5w4u
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