Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Global Warming’ Category

E.P.A. delaying tougher rules on emissions. Are global warming gases next?

Posted in Air Quality, Global Warming, Toxics, tagged , , , , , , , , on December 12, 2010 |

Air pollution

Image via Wikipedia

In the face of the changes in the political dynamic in Washington, the Obama administration is retreating on long-delayed environmental regulations.  The new rules were set to take effect over the next several weeks, but this move will leave in place policies set by President George W. Bush while it pushes back deadlines to  July 2011 to further analyze scientific and health studies of the smog rules and until April 2012 on the boiler regulation.
Environmental advocates fear a similar delay on the approaching start of one of the most far-reaching regulatory programs in American environmental history, the effort to curb emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

The delayed smog rule would lower the allowable concentration of airborne ozone to 60 to 70 parts per billion from the current level of 75 parts per billion, putting several hundred cities in violation of air pollution standards. The agency says that the new rule would save thousands of lives per year, but saving lives now seems to have taken a back seat to saving the costs to businesses and municipalities of having to meet those standards.

Read Full Post »

TCEQ and RRC on Sunset Advisory Commission December 15th agenda

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , on December 9, 2010 |

The Sunset Advisory Commission has put TCEQ on the agenda for December 15th, following the Department of Transportation and the Railroad Commission. What this means is that public testimony on TCEQ should begin sometime after lunch.

We hope some of you can make it to the December 15th hearing.  Please don’t hesitate to contact us directly with your questions! Feel free to email us at texasfeedback (at) citizen.org.

###

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.

Read Full Post »

Texas State Climatoligist talks about Texas and Climate Change

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , on December 8, 2010 |

A Dust Bowl storm approaches Stratford, Texas ...

A Dust Bowl storm approaches Stratford, Texas in 1935. - wikipedia.org

Texas is not immune to the effects of increasing greenhouse gases, according to the state climatologist, John Nielsen-Gammon, of Texas A&M University’s Department of Atmospheric Sciences. Dr. Nielsen-Gammon also says the international science on climate change is fundamentally sound despite challenges from state officials, and the drought in Central Texas is likely to continue.  Below are excerpts from an interview with the Texas Tribune. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Supreme Court set to review CO2 suits

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , on December 7, 2010 |

In an article today by BRENT KENDALL And TENNILLE TRACY of the Washington post, they write that the Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether eight states and other plaintiffs can proceed with lawsuits that seek to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by utilities.

[scotus]

Read more about the Supreme Court, including upcoming cases and details on the justices. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Texas vs EPA – the saga continues

Posted in Air Quality, Global Warming, TCEQ, tagged , , , on December 6, 2010 |

US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set a December 1, 2011 deadline for 13 states to develop plans to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, as the agency prepares to implement its major new rule January 2.

A dozen of the states plan to submit emissions plans that do not account for GHG emissions, thereby triggering federal control of their GHG permitting process, but the process between EPA and those states is an expected amicable agreement.  Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Oregon, and Wyoming will submit plans by December 22 and Kentucky; Clark County, Nevada; Connecticut, parts of California and Nebraska are expected to submit their plans after the beginning of the year.

This will enable 49 of the states to issue permits on or around January 2, either themselves or through the EPA.  But Texas, the lone holdout, did not say when it would submit a GHG plan, continuing a standoff with the EPA and the administration on its environmental policies. The state has also filed a series of legal challenges in federal court.

Under the rules of the Clean Air Act, Texas has until December 1, 2011 to submit a revised “state implementation plan” that accounts for regulating GHG emissions. Although the EPA, in its Friday announcement, said it would not wait until then to take control of the state’s GHG permitting and is planning additional actions to ensure that GHG sources in Texas, as in every other state in the country, have available a permitting authority to process their permit applications as of January 2, 2011.

Related Articles

Read Full Post »

Don’t forget to pre-register for the 3rd Annual Austin Green Holiday Party

Posted in Consumers, Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, recycling, Renewables, solar, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 5, 2010 |

If you haven’t already pre-registered to celebrate the holidays at the 3rd Annual Austin Green Holiday Party, do so soon.  It is coming up soon and this year it is hosted by 10 great organizations.

Fiesta Gardens  (2100 Jesse E. Segovia St., Austin, TX 78702)
Thursday, December 16th, 2010 from 5:30pm-9:30pm

Registration:  Pre-Registration ONLY for this Event (No Cash Accepted at Door)

Network and learn about the hosting organizations and come together for a unified 2011.  Celebrate the holidays with us and enjoy music, great food, beer, wine and other beverages, as well as holiday cheer…

Live Music by: Austin Eco-Musicians (Reed Sternberg, Bill Oliver, Frank Meyer and More!) with Tribal Nation, the Austin reggae band later in the evening.

Food:  Barr Mansion (Please help support our event sponsor and friend to the environmental community, the Barr Mansion.  They are catering this event, even as their own facility is being rebuilt after the fire.)

  • Blue Cheese and Winter Squash Sandwich
  • Chicken and Pepperoni Sandwich
  • Sundried Tomato White Bean Dip with Crostini
  • Basil Hummus and Cracker Shards
  • Local Organic Farm Salad Station with assorted dressings

Beverages: Beer, Wine, Sodas, Teas and water will be provided by the following sponsors:

The Co-Hosts: Texas Green Network •Public Citizen • SEED Coalition • Sierra Club • Design Build Live • Austin EcoNetwork • Solar Austin • NetImpact •
Texas League of Conservation Voters • Austin Physicians for Social Responsibility

Read Full Post »

Texas’ proposed rule to accept radioactive waste from many other states concerns Vermont

Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Nuclear, Radiation, Radioactive Waste, TCEQ, Toxics, Transportation, tagged , , , , , , , , on December 3, 2010 |

The Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant.

Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant -by Wikipedia

In an article by the New York Times that focuses on Vermont‘s concerns about losing space to waste from generators in other states, Matthew Wald writes:

Waste disposal is so difficult, says the company, Waste Control Services, that power plants and other generating sources have reduced their volumes sharply. And Vermont and Texas together produce so little that, the company adds, it would have to charge huge amounts per cubic foot and per unit of radioactivity to get its investment back.

Yet, the Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (SEED) Coalition’s research shows the Waste Control Specialists site is currently licensed for 2.3 million cubic feet of water and 3.89 million curies. Texas’ existing four reactors and Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor would require 6 million cubic feet of capacity.

Tom “Smitty” Smith, the director of the Texas office of Public Citizen tells the New York Times that he believes, “They’re trying to get it done before the new governor takes office.”

To read the New York Times article, click here.

Read Full Post »

“Las Brisas” Coal Plant Recommended for Denial, Again!

Posted in Coal, Global Warming, tagged , , , , , on December 1, 2010 |

The Las Brisas coal (pet coke) plant proposed for Corpus Christi has had its air permit recommended for denial by the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) for the second time. The SOAH judges presiding over the case have stated in their “proposal for decision” that:

At this time, we are unable to recommend that the requested permits be issued, because we find that Las Brisas Energy Center, LLC… has not made the necessary compliance demonstration to ensure that emissions from the proposed facility would not contribute to air pollution through a violation of a NAAQS or the PSD increment, particularly in regard to particulate matter (PM).

Though not legally binding, a recommendation of denial by SOAH for a second time will, hopefully, have some impact on the TCEQ, who has the final authority for granting the permit.  However, the TCEQ has a history of simply ignoring SOAH, the public, and even their own staff in order to grant inadequate and inappropriate permits to large, industrial sources of pollution such as Las Brisas.

(more…)

Read Full Post »

The EPA’s new Tailoring Rule

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , on December 1, 2010 |

The Environmental Protection Agency issued a 100-page proposal, the “PSD and Title V Permitting Guidance for Greenhouse Gases” for public review and feedback in mid-November, providing two weeks  for responses by a Dec. 1 deadline. Finalized terms will be put in place by Jan. 2, 2011, in accordance with an implementing “Tailoring Rule” to guide state-level permitting authorities and extend the EPA’s influence over the greenhouse gas emissions of industrial sectors.  Click here to see a copy of the rule and EPA factsheets on the issue.

Operating through permitting authority asserted under the Clean Air Act, the agency will now require CO2 emissions to be considered in the design of every major project in which fossil fuel is combusted or CO2 emissions are released. Included are electrical power generation, refineries, iron and steel mills, pulp and paper mills and cement production.

Effective July 1, 2011, any new source of greenhouse gas emissions that exceeds 100,000 tons of CO2 per year or plant modification adding 75,000 tons annually, will be subject to permit approval based upon currently undefined case-by-case “best available control technology” assessments.

Some background information
In an April 2, 2007, Supreme Court case (Massachusetts v. EPA), the court ruled in a split 5-4 decision that greenhouse gasses fit within the definition of “air pollutants” and subsequently the EPA issued a finding of public health or welfare endangerment.

On Dec. 7, 2009, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson signed two distinct findings. One was an “Endangerment Finding,” which found that current and projected atmospheric concentrations of six greenhouse gases (including CO2) “threaten the public health and welfare of current and future generations.” A second “Cause or Contribute Finding” found that “combined emissions of these well-mixed [greenhouse gases] from new motor vehicles and new motor vehicle engines contribute to greenhouse gas pollution which threatens public health and welfare.”

On April 1 the EPA finalized a light-duty vehicle rule controlling greenhouse gas emissions, confirming that Jan. 2, 2011, is the earliest date that a 2012 model year vehicle meeting established limits can be sold in the U.S. Then on Oct. 25 the EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a proposed rule to establish the first-ever greenhouse emission and economy standards for heavy-duty trucks that will phase in during model years 2014 to 2018 arguing that improved fuel efficiency growing out of this ruling will save the trucking industry money.

Read Full Post »

20,000 Sacrificed In Annual Blood Offering To Corporate America

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , on November 30, 2010 |

The nation looked on in reverence Friday as 20,000 citizens were decapitated, dismembered, and burned alive in the name of Corporate America, continuing the age-old annual rite to ensure bounteous profits in the coming fiscal year.

Human sacrifice depicted using Playmobile stand-ins

. . . The blood offering follows last week’s Feast of Increasing Market Values, a yearly celebration during which Americans gather with their families under the second Q4 full moon to give thanks to corporations and to pray for cash dividends during the holiday shopping season.

Enjoy the Onion‘s take on a winter holiday ritual, click here.

Read Full Post »

No Environmental Groups in the Navajo Nation

Posted in Coal, Consumers, Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 26, 2010 |

Joe Shirley Jr., President of the Navajo Nation

Joe Shirley Jr., President of the Navajo Nation

I’m not (by any stretch of the imagination) an expert on Native American affairs, but there is an interesting and rather sad drama playing out in the Navajo Nation (a semi-autonomous Native American homeland covering parts of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico). The Nation also encompasses the Hopi Reservation, represented by the Hopi Tribal Council. Here is a USA Today article of September 30, 2009, in part:

PHOENIX — The president of the Navajo Nation joined other Native American leaders this week in assailing environmentalists who have sought to block or shut down coal-fired power plants that provide vital jobs and revenue to tribes in northern Arizona. (more…)

Read Full Post »

For your holiday travel pleasure

Posted in Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, Transportation, tagged , , , , , , on November 25, 2010 |

If you are traveling this holiday weekend, here’s a short cautionary tale for your holiday enjoyment.

A musician named Dave Carroll recently had difficulty with United Airlines. United apparently damaged his treasured Taylor guitar ($3500) during a flight. Dave spent over 9 months trying to get United to pay for damages caused by baggage handlers to his custom Taylor guitar.

During his final exchange with the United customer relations manager, he stated that he was left with no choice other than to create a music video for youtube exposing their lack of cooperation.  The manager responded: “Good luck with that one, pal”.

So he posted a retaliatory video on youtube. The video has since received nearly 9 and a half million hits. United Airlines contacted the musician and attempted settlement in exchange for pulling the video. Naturally his response was: “Good luck with that one, pal”.

Taylor Guitars sent the musician 2 new custom guitars in appreciation for the product recognition from the video that has led to a sharp increase in orders.

Here’s the video ….

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/5YGc4zOqozo?fs]

###

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.

Read Full Post »

Happy Thanksgiving? Not if climate change has anything to say about it

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , on November 25, 2010 |

Climate change could change Norman Rockwell's classic "Freedom from Want" into anything but

Freedom from Want? With climate change, Thanksgiving could be anything but

As families attempt to reunite for the holidays, we are awash in bad weather across the US.  And while we are enjoying wonderful weather down here in Texas at the moment, the rest of the country is not so fortunate.  My friends in the Pacific Northwest are dealing with snow and ice, and the same storm is causing blizzard conditions from Reno to Denver.  One of my friends in Utah referred to their blizzard as the “Snowpocalypse.”  Much of the Midwest is faring as badly, with delays at some of our biggest hub airports– Chicago, Denver, and Atlanta, etc– because of weather.

Wait, wait– I thought we were talking about “global warming”– you know? Shouldn’t that mean that that in Seattle and Portland they should be wearing shorts and sipping frozen beverages instead of battling frozen roads?  Au contraire, mon frere.  A warming Arctic has pushed colder air south to the US and Europe, and warmer oceans are putting more water vapor into the atmosphere, causing more extreme weather. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Texas scores a “D-” in its regulatory process

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , on November 24, 2010 |

As the Texas Sunset Advisory Committee takes a look at our environmental regulatory agencies this interim, perhaps they should consider Texas’ grade in a new report released by the Institute for Policy Integrity – a “D minus” the lowest possible grade of all the states reviewed because of  inadequacies in  how our regulatory decisions are made. The results of that report point to billions of dollars wasted and inadequate protections for Texans.

Institute for Policy IntegrityThe Institute for Policy Integrity, a non-partisan advocacy organization and think-tank dedicated to improving the quality of governmental decisionmaking and sponsored by the New York University School of Law developed fifteen points of evaluation for an ideal regulatory process.  Among them: regulatory review that properly calibrates rules; review that is consistent and buffered from political influence; and review that provides a balanced treatment of costs and benefits.  The Institute took a look at how states routinely regulate industries whose economic footprints climb into the hundreds of millions.

Nearly twenty percent of the American economy is regulated by state governments. But there are major concerns about how regulatory decisions are made. The results of “52 Experiments with Regulatory Review” point to rules that are often made ad hoc and in too many cases yield inefficient results that limit public benefit, wasting billions of dollars and providing inadequate protections for Americans—earning states an average grade of “D+” with the lowest possible grade being a “D-.”  Seven jurisdictions scored a D-, having met none of the guiding principles: Alaska, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Texas. (more…)

Read Full Post »

TCEQ Sunset Town Halls – Victoria

Posted in Air Quality, Energy, Global Warming, Good Government, Sunset, TCEQ, Texas Legislature, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 23, 2010 |

Texans living around the Victoria region attended a town hall in September to express their concerns about the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) on a number of different issues, including the proposed White Stallion coal plant in Bay City. On the panel were Sunset Commission Chairman Sen. Glenn Hegar, former TCEQ commissioner Larry Soward, the regional administrator of TCEQ for that area, and a lawyer with Blackburn & Carter who often take on environmental cases.

[vimeo=17100424]

This town hall was one of a series of events held to provide the people of Texas a way in which to voice their concerns to TCEQ. The official Sunset Commission hearing on TCEQ is scheduled for December 15th in Austin. For more video footage of these town halls check our archives and stay tuned to TexasVOX. For more information on the ongoing Sunset review of TCEQ check out Alliance for a Clean Texas.

###

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 arePublic Citizen Texas.

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »