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Archive for July, 2010

Climate Activist Ted Glick Sentenced

Posted in Coal, Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, Renewables, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 6, 2010 |

Ted Glick,  policy director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network was just sentenced for his demonstration on September 8.

I am on one year’s probation, I need to pay an $1100 fine, I need to do 40 hours of community service in D.C. and if I’m arrested over the next year I automatically go to jail for 30 days on each of the two misdemeanor counts I was convicted of.

What was Ted’s heinous crime? He hung two banners saying “Green Jobs Now” and “Get to Work” in the Hart Senate Office Building. (more…)

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Who Watches the Watchmen? YOU DO- read your Representatives’ personal financial disclosure!

Posted in Good Government, tagged , , , , , on July 6, 2010 |

"You Have Won Second Prize in a Beauty Contest" says this Community Chest card from the board game Monopoly

Did YOUR Legislator win 2nd prize in any beauty contests? Find out in their personal financial disclosures.

Texas Tribune has just published their list of Texas Personal Financial Statements: 2009, in which you can search for the personal financial statements of over 3,000 Texas officials and political candidates.  Why not look up your representative or senator, your favorite  TCEQ commissioner, the governor, perhaps?  You will be able to see the source of the paychecks they are bringing home and what investments or gifts they might have which create any impropriety.

All of this is thanks to the Texas Public Information Act, under which they bravely requested all of these disclosures and then went through the arduous task of scanning and uploading them.

Top MenEDITOR’S NOTE: What? You thought Texas might provide these types of records in an electronic format to begin with? Or that legislators and candidates would be able to file electronically? Almost makes you wonder why they want this information trapped on paper instead of an easily parse-able format, eh? Cut to scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark with giant warehouse where Indiana Jones is promised “top men” will be looking into the ark… ~~AW

Texas Tribune, Burnt Orange Report and the Hank Gilbert campaign are all already making issues out of information in personal financial statements of former Houston Mayor and Dem gubernatorial nominee Bill White, Governor Perry and Ag Commissioner Todd Staples, respectively.

Texas Tribune doesn’t have the time to sift through all of these, so they’re asking their readers to help them out– check out what you can and if you see something, let us know and let them know.

To save you the trouble, here is the link for Rick Perry’s: http://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-personal-financial-statements-2009/?appSession=532163143824315

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.

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New EPA Air Quality rule will protect lives by cutting emissions from coal-fired power plants

Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Energy, tagged , , , , , , on July 6, 2010 |

In a breaking story from the AP, we learn that the air pollution rules first proposed under George W. Bush’s EPA are Pollution from coal fired power plants has been linked to respiratory illness and premature deathsmoving forward.

The Environmental Protection Agency said the new rules would cut sulfur dioxide emissions by 71 percent from 2005 levels by 2014 and nitrogen oxide emissions by 52 percent in the same time frame.

The regulation, known as the Clean Air Interstate Rule, requires 31 states from Massachusetts to Texas to reduce emissions that contribute to smog and soot and can travel long distances in the wind. The agency predicted the rule would prevent about 14,000 to 36,000 premature deaths a year.

The rule would overturn and toughen rules issued during the administration of former President George W. Bush.

What happened was the Bush Administration took a look at the scientific reviews for where the levels of these pollutants should be to protect health. When they published their new air quality standards, they were actually less strong than the science required.

And while legal wrangling is fun, the real story here is the impact on human health.

“We’re working to limit pollution at its source, rather than waiting for it to move across the country,” Jackson said in a statement.

The proposed reductions should save billions of dollars in avoided health costs and sick days and save thousands of lives each year, Jackson said. Those benefits would far outweigh the estimated $2.8 annual cost of compliance, she said.

Reducing pollution from power plants means fewer sick kids who have to miss school, it means fewer people who have to be rushed to the ER for an asthma treatment, and even means fewer deaths.  And, of course, reducing these emissions most likely also means a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, another added benefit we can all be happy about.

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas

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South Texas nuke expansion project cuts staff

Posted in Nuclear, tagged , , , , on July 2, 2010 |

About 20 of the roughly 100 contractor personnel working on the proposed addition of two new 1,350-MW nuclear units at the South Texas nuclear station have been let go.

Nuclear Innovation North America (NINA), an 88/12 joint venture of NRG Energy and Toshiba, currently owns 92.35% of the planned expansion, and CPS Energy, the municipal utility in San Antonio owns the remaining 7.65%.   In May, NINA announced Tokyo Electric Power Co. plans to eventually take up to a 20% stake in NINA’s share, beginning with a 10% stake in that share–or a 9.235% stake in the  project itself–if a $7 billion federal loan guarantee is secured.

NINA has recently said it expects the project to cost about $13 billion, including $10 billion in “overnight” costs and $3 billion in financing costs. Although earlier cost projections have put the project coming in at $18 billion.

At this time, there is spectulation that the remaining loan guarantees will go to Calvert Cliffs in Maryland.  NINA has said they would not go forward with the expansion without the loan guarantees.  Could this be the beginning of the end for the STP expansion?  Stay tuned.

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas

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Canadian Tar Sands Meeting in Houston

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , on July 2, 2010 |

Here is the most recent footage from the additional State Department meeting that was held in Houston for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. See this post for the footage from the 4 original meetings in East Texas. For more info on the tar sands pipeline visit citizen.org/texas and dirtyoilsands.org.

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas

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Austin Environmental and Consumer Advocates say “Try Again” to Austin Energy General Manager Candidate choices

Posted in Energy, Good Government, tagged , , , , , on July 1, 2010 |

After a several hour closed-door meeting between the two remaining candidates for Austin Energy’s General Manager position and some of Austin’s best environmental, energy, and consumer advocates, all of the groups represented came to the same conclusion: neither of these candidates was a right fit for Austin.

In fact, former City Councilwoman Brigid Shea told reporters that “Mr. Wright is wrong for Austin” and that they had hoped our nationwide search would produce “major league” candidates to fit with Austin’s leadership on energy and community issues.  “No offense, but these guys are more minor league.”

You can see the entire video here of their press conference, led by Public Citizen representative Cary Ferchill:

YouTube:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcXDk-fXEYk]

Vimeo:

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas

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TCEQ Decides That Regulating Pollution Isn’t Their Job

Posted in Air Quality, Global Warming, Good Government, TCEQ, Toxics, tagged , , , , , , , on July 1, 2010 |

Yesterday the TCEQ remanded the air permit for the proposed Las Brisas petroleum-coke plant back to the State Office of Administrative Hearings. What they didn’t do is require the facility to do what’s called a case-by-case analysis of MACT (Maximum Achievable Control Technology) for Hazardous Air Pollutants. In effect, TCEQ (the agency tasked with protecting people and the environment from pollution) is not going to require Las Brisas to do a proper analysis of their pollution control!

This is outrageous. A permit which should have been denied outright, or at the least sent back to the beginning of the process, is instead being temporarily remanded on a number of less significant issues. Below is the proceeding in its entirety. The first video covers the first part of the process when the applicant and the opposition’s representation were allowed time to make comments to the commissioners. The second video shows the commissioners’ decision which is then followed by a press conference which includes responses from local residents in Corpus Christi who would be directly affected by the pollution TCEQ is failing to properly address.

For more information contact Public Citizen’s office at 512-477-1155.

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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas

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