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Archive for the ‘Global Warming’ Category

Rick Perry, the Environmentalist? Maybe!

Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 29, 2009 |

The Texas Governor announced this week that he supports legislation for a $5,000 rebate for plug-in hybrids. As the Wall Street Journal reports, Perry is an outspoken critic of government environmental regulation, saying that the “increasingly activist EPA[‘s]” initiatives to stem greenhouse gas output are “absolutely disastrous” for the Texas economy.  The WSJ says this initiative is to sidestep greater regulation from the DC mountaintop…he is throwing the liberals up there a bone so they will get off Texas’ case.

Perry Making a Point

From the governors prepared statement:

Rather than wait for more mandates and punishments for environmental non-attainment, let’s continue encouraging innovation. I support giving Texans in the non-attainment areas of our state a $5,000 incentive towards a purchase of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles, using the funds Texans have already paid to reduce emissions, while providing a unique way to store wind energy.

This is an exciting development for us down here in Texas, long known for being a fossil fuel state. Combining this with the $7,500 tax incentive on the docket in DC for a total of $12,500, Texans might have a fighting chance at purchasing a Chevy Volt, expected to retail for around 40 grand.

Perry would probably never refer to himself as an environmentalist in the same vein as most of the environmental movement, but at least he recognizes change is coming. Moral motives aside, any move in the right direction is welcomed. Thanks, Gov.

Check out the WSJ article here.

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New Study By NOAA Shows Climate Change Irreversable For 1000 Years

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , on January 28, 2009 |

In case you haven’t heard, a scientific study released by NOAA on Monday shows the need for immediate action to curb Global Climate Change. According to this study, “changes in surface temperature, rainfall, and sea level are largely irreversible for more than 1,000 years after carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are completely stopped.” This is truly horrible news.

We as citizens of the world must make great changes if we want to preserve at least part of the world we live in for our children and grandchildren (or for that matter our great-great-grandchildren). The CO2 we are putting into the atmosphere today will still be affecting the earth’s climate in a millennium.

The full text of this developing story is located below via the link:

NOAA’s Findings

This finding should be an indisputable marker to everyone that the time for debate on this issue is over. Great changes are now inescapable and the time to make them is upon us.

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Public Citizen and The Texas Observer: Voices in the Same Choir? Come sing along!

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2009 |

choirThe Texas Observer just ran an article on the top ten issues the Texas Legislature should address this session. Anybody want to guess what number two was?

If you guessed climate change… you’ve probably been reading this blog.  And you’d be right!

The Observer expects for Texas leaders to more amenable to climate change action than they have been in years past. Their reasoning?

Congress and the Obama administration have signaled that major federal climate change legislation is in the works. “The Obama package will give Texas a choice: lead or get left behind,” says state Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso. “Luddites need to move away and let leadership take the day.”

The article continues:

As the nation’s top emitter of carbon dioxide, Texas arguably has the most to lose and the most to gain from federal action, says Bea Moorehead, executive director of Texas Impact, an interfaith advocacy group. States that move sooner to cut their greenhouse-gas emissions will have an easier time adapting to a carbon-restrained world. Advocates like Moorehead want to build on the successes Texas has had with wind power and energy conservation by pushing incentives for the solar industry and expanding efficiency standards. Such measures, they say, will create jobs and cut air pollution while replacing sources of greenhouse gas.

I was particularly excited about this article because we’ve been singing the same tune in informational handouts to all your legislative members.

If you agree that this is the message your legislators need to hear, loud and clear… TELL THEM SO.  We can print out brochures and hand them to legislative staffers, and the Observer can print articles on what they think the legislature ought to be doing, but ultimately, politicians respond to what their constituents want.

This is a novel idea, I know.  You’re thinking; “But Sarah, I’ve been wanting politicians to pursue a whole host of progressive policies for years, and they haven’t happened.”

Well, have you every straight up asked?  Politicians aren’t mind readers, you know.  Sometimes we’ve got to count ourselves lucky if they are readers at all.  So if you want them to know what you want, you’ve got to tell them.  When you contact your legislators, they take it much more seriously than a small record of your personal opinion.  As few as five personal letters can key a legislator in that an issue is important.  Just ten letters can lead them to think they’ve got “constituent trouble” and cause them to support or vote against a particular bill.

Visit the website Who Represents Me? If you know your address, it will only take about 30 seconds to know who your legislators are as well.  Write them a letter.  Or pick up the phone and give them a call.  You probably won’t get to speak with your rep directly, but you can definitely ask for the staffer that works on energy and give them your two cents.  Make your voice be heard!

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Deadline Today!

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2009 |

urgentCongress is voting on Obama’s much anticipated stimulus package today. If you want this package to include measures to promote renewable energy and a public works project to make public buildings more energy-efficient — and if you read this blog, I bet you do — tell your legislator now! It will only take a minute, and could make a HUGE difference for America’s energy future.

Act Now!

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Come out and be heard: Austin Energy wants public input, yall!

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, tagged , , , , on January 27, 2009 |

towncrier3asWant Austin to do think outside the box on energy efficiency?

Think we should invest in storage technology to store all that beautiful wind and solar energy?

Want to see city hall but never had a reason to?

On Wednesday, Jan 28, Austin Energy will host a town hall meeting at city hall (301 W. 2nd Street) to solicit public comments and input on their future energy planning.  Here’s the full schedule.  If you can’t make one, make the other.

January 28, 2009 (Wednesday) City Hall Council Chambers (301 West 2nd Street); 6-9 PM

February 3, 2009 (Tuesday) Town Lake Center – Assembly Room (721 Barton Springs Road)

February 5, 2009 (Thursday) Carver Branch Library  (1161 Angelina)

Public Citizen, in case you were unaware, recommends mega energy efficiency programs (since there’s so much available in Texas), larger investment in renewable power (especially solar), and development of energy storage technologies like compressed air energy storage, thermal storage, advanced batteries, ultracapacitors, and flywheels.  Learn more here.  Austin Energy’s info is here.

-Matt

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A Clean Energy Economy

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 26, 2009 |

This morning President Obama outlined his energy and environmental policy and how it fit into his broader effort to jump start our flailing economy. It was a like taking a breath of fresh air to hear someone actually addressing the environmental problems we face reasonably. Finally!

sexyobamapic

He focused on the problems we face as an opportunity to secure our interests and security, create jobs, and restore America’s moral standing in the world. Outlining his plan in four pragmatic steps, he stated unequivocally that “it will be the policy of [his] administration to reverse our dependence on foreign oil while building a new energy economy that will create millions of jobs.”

1) The plan aims to create 460,000 jobs that will provide the workforce to double the domestic production capacity of energy. Among the projects he listed were 3000 miles of transmission lines to move this energy and to increase the energy efficiency of government buildings and private residences.

2) It aims to revitalize the American Auto Industry by encouraging energy efficient innovation, hoping the new cars will be produced in the US and meet more stringent emissions standards by model year 2011. He ended by saying that by 2020 all cars would get at least 35 mpg, reducing daily oil consumptions by 2 million barrels a day.

3) Referencing the Bush Era EPA’s rejection of California’s and 13 other state’s waiver requests to increase emissions standards, he said “Washington stood in their way”. California had sued the EPA for inaction…it took them two years to review their application. And they rejected it. He wants the EPA to empower rather than stifle states to make these changes. He said that the EPA will review the California waiver rejection and insinuated that it would be approved.

4) He argued that energy independence was important to secure our interests and safety, as hostile governments maintain power over the US because we depend on them for oil. Dwindling resources, hostile regimes, and unhealthy climate problems are the facts that underpin his plan and it is his intention to use these to guide pragmatic problem solving. He emphasized that facts, not ideology would be used to inform the conversation on these issues. (What a concept!) He said the aim ought to be for America to set the standard and call nations like India and China to greater participation in what needs to be a global effort to clean up our environment.

Mirroring the talking points of Public Citizen, Mr. Obama has taken the first sensible step toward a real remedy for this problem. We are happy to see someone is finally thinking in the Whitehouse. How refreshing…

You can read the president’s full remarks here.

Go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/energy_and_environment/ to see the Obama/Biden Energy and Environmental Plan.

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Session starts, Straus is Official

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 15, 2009 |

And its off to the races!  The state legislative session has officially begun.  House representatives and state senators were officially sworn into office in formal ceremonies Tuesday.  The biggest news, of course, was the unanimous election of Joe Straus as Speaker of the House.joeanddaughters

Highlights from the House ceremonies:

  • Hope Andrade, Secretary of State, got choked up as she announced and congratulated Straus’s election.  I actually saw her wipe away a tear.  I like a little emotion from my politicians, and this just shows how high hopes run at the dome for a bipartisan, productive session.
  • Environmental folks got a hat tip from Speaker Straus during remarks.  As he listed the work to be done and Texas’ greatest challenges this session, Straus mentioned that “We must be better stewards of our natural resources and protect our environment.” Not too shabby, we’ll certainly take what we can get.

To read more exhaustive, who-said-what-congratulatory-comment type reporting on the Speaker’s election, check out Capitol Annex – Vince Leibowitz did an excellent job of covering the  event, and even “live-Twittered” the whole thing.  Check it out.

Also, try Greg Harmon’s post to the SA Current blog on how Energy efficiency could get greased with Speaker Straus.

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The staggering cost of new nuclear power

Posted in Energy, Global Warming, tagged , on January 7, 2009 |

On the heels of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s environmental scoping meeting about the proposed expansion of the Comanche Peak Nuclear Plant outside of Fort Worth, TX (two of six new units moving through the permitting process in Texas), a new study by Craig Severance –a leading expert in power plant costs- was released detailing the staggering cost estimates of new nuclear power.

The new study, Business Risks and Costs of New Nuclear Power  puts the generation costs for power from new nuclear plants between 25 to 30 cents per kilowatt-hour — triple current U.S. electricity  rates! This staggering price is far higher than the cost of a variety of carbon-free renewable power sources available today, and ten times the cost of energy efficiency. 

This is one of the most detailed cost analyses publically available on the current generation of nuclear power plants being considered in this country. The author, Craig Severance is a practicing CPA and co-author of The Economics of Nuclear and Coal Power (Praeger 1976). 

This important new analysis fills the critical transparency gap in the current debate over nuclear power, demystifying the entire process, so that anyone reading  it (including non-technical readers) can develop a clear understanding of  how total generation costs per kWh come together.  

Join the opposition to new Comanche Peak nuclear reactors

For those living near the Comanche Peak Nuclear Plant near Glen Rose, Texas who are concerned about the health, safety and pocketbooks of Texans, join the opposition by attending a public meeting:

Thursday, January 29th at 7pm
Fort Worth Botanical Gardens

Learn more about radioactive, health and economic risks of nuclear power, as well as the history of Comanche Peak’s existing reactors at www.NukeFreeTexas.org.  (Video of the January 6th scoping meeting coming soon to this site) 

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Don’t Say We Didn’t Tell You So…

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , on January 6, 2009 |

In an editorial published yesterday, the Austin American Statesman agrees:  Texas needs to take the lead on climate change.

And I quote (bold my own),

…sea levels could rise by 4 feet by 2100 – versus the 1.5 feet predicted by a United Nations panel on climate change. That’s a warning that ought to be taken seriously now – especially along the Texas coast.

Unfortunately, it appears Texas government will try to ignore the problem of climate change. Gov. Rick Perry, digging in his boot heels, seems to admit only grudgingly that climate change is occurring, never mind that science has concluded that it is being driven by humankind’s use of fuels that produce carbon dioxide – coal, oil and natural gas, primarily.

Perry says potential federal legislation to begin limiting carbon dioxide production could harm the Texas economy. But drought and rising sea levels won’t? Texas needs to find a way to take the lead on this problem, not try to pretend it will go away.

Well done, Statesman editorial board.  You make us proud.

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Old Argument, New Twist

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 6, 2009 |

tvTelevision sets use about 4% of household power nation-wide, and the newest flat screens are even bigger power suckers — LCD screens use 43% more power than the old tube TV models.  Despite this situation, government efficiency testing standards for televisions haven’t been updated since Leave It to Beaver appeared in black and white.  Energy Star, a voluntary labeling system developed by the EPA, uses modern efficiency tests, but Energy Guide, the mandatory Department of Energy labeling program, still uses standards from the era of Lucy and Ricky in separate twin beds.

In order to confront this problem, California has once again stepped to the forefront.  According to Kate Galbraith at Green, Inc:

California regulators are drafting rules mandating that retailers stock only the most energy-efficient TVs, according to The Times. The program would start in 2011, with a more stringent standard coming into effect in 2013.

Industry, of course, objects:

The proposal is running into resistance from the Consumer Electronics Association and other industry representatives. One retailer told the Los Angeles Times that efficiency standards would “kill dealerships,” because Californians would search the Internet for less-efficient TVs, and get them shipped into California.

I’m sorry, but that argument is completely ridiculous.  And I’ve heard it before.  Remember when the auto industry resisted efficiency measures and stricter environmental standards that would have forced them to create a better product, and then foreign companies did just that and stole all their business?  And then domestic auto companies couldn’t keep their businesses afloat anymore and had to ask the government for a bailout? I remember that, because it just happened.

I’m really tired of industry bellyaching about efficiency and environmental standards that would make them create better products.  All this California amendment would say is, we want our consumers to be provided the most innovative, efficient products on the market.  There are already over 100 models that would keep up with their proposed standards.  Industry reps are just upset that their inefficient, energy sucking TVs won’t make the cut.  Sorry, but it isn’t California’s fault you created a sub-par product.

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Nuclear Power Too Risky, Too Expensive, Too Dangerous

Posted in Global Warming, Nuclear, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 5, 2009 |

Hey, look! A joint press release from Public Citizen Texas, the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club, and the SEED Coalition:

An NRC Environmental Scoping Meeting will be held on Jan. 6th in Glen Rose, Texas to take comment on the environmental impact study for two nuclear reactors proposed for the existing Comanche Peak site. A coalition of environmental and consumer groups and their members will be telling the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Luminant (formerly TXU) that nuclear plants are “too risky, too expensive and too dangerous” to help Texas meet its power needs, and makes no sense when clean, safe, affordable options exist. The coalition of groups said they
only learned of the hastily called public meeting to seek input on environmental issues on December 24th.

“We’ve been down this road before,” noted Cyrus Reed, Conservation Director of the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club. “The utility industry sold Texas on Comanche Peak and the South Texas Project and consumers have been paying the ‘stranded’ costs ever since, even as valuable water resources are expended and radioactive waste piles up on-site.”

Luminant proposes to build two more nuclear reactors at the existing Comanche Peak nuclear site near Glen Rose, in Somervell County, using an unproven, untested technology known as USAPWR. “The design of the reactors has not been certified and has never been builtanywhere in the world. Why should Texas serve as guinea pigs for a dangerous radioactive experiment?” asked Karen Hadden, Executive Director of the Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (SEED) Coalition. “Design problems as well as human error led to numerous problems and shutdowns of Comanche Peak reactors in the past. The competence and character of Luminant need to be examined closely since the history of the existing reactors is disastrous. In the past, there was a chance to fix nuclear reactor construction problems before an operating license was issued, but that safeguard is gone with the new licensing process.” (more…)

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Joe Straus in da HAUS

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 5, 2009 |

straus2Joe Straus (R- San Antonio) announced in a press conference this morning that he has enough pledged supporters to win the race for Speaker of the Texas House.

In holding with the national trend towards change and bipartisanship, Straus will replace the great and powerful Tom Craddick with a pledge to bring harmony back to the sharply divided Texas legislature.

Said Democratic strategist Harold Cook in an article in the Dallas Morning News,

“I don’t know anybody who doesn’t like the guy, and in the Legislature, that’s really saying something,” Cook said. “It’s easy to see why people looking for a new tone out of the Texas House are gravitating toward him.”

Other state Dems agreed,

“He is one of the most honest people that I know,” said Rep. Ruth Jones McClendon, D-San Antonio. “He’s going to be a fair speaker who will rule with an even hand and an open mind.”

We have seen such a bitterly divided legislature in recent years, these reactions sound almost too good to be true.  But it looks as though Straus may represent Texas’ brightest hope for a constructive, pragmatic legislative session.

What’s more, Straus has a positive history on ethics reform, open government, and has shown significant leadership on environmental issues.  As a member of the Regulated Industries Committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy Conservation and Efficiency, Straus oversaw the passage of the most important energy efficiency bill since deregulation. Straus’ HB 3693 doubled utilities’ efficiency goals to 20% of load growth by 2010 and directed the Public Utility Commission to study whether increasing the program to 50% of load growth is technically possible.  This report, released by ITRON a month ago, found that Texas could not only meet but exceed that goal.

Straus has also received awards from both the Texas Public Power Association and the  Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club for his work in energy efficiency and contributions to public power.

Public Citizen congratulates Straus on being the next Speaker of the House of Representatives, and looks forward to working with him in the upcoming session.

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A new year, a new twist on global warming: The Economist even agrees

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , on January 1, 2009 |

Happy 2009, everyone.

Imagine my surprise when I see the new issue of The Economist, now talking about the major problems global warming will be creating called The Curse of Carbon.  When even The Economist is coming around on global warming, it seems like things might be changing on the climate change debate.  Who’s next?  The Free Republic?

From the article:

Copyright The Economist 2009

If the seas continue to become less alkaline at the current rate, the time will soon come when reefs will start to lose coral faster through erosion than they gain it through calcification. How soon? Some scientists think it could be in 60 or 70 years. Many fear that half the world’s coral will be gone by 2030.

The Arctic has lost over 40% of its year-round ice since 1985, 14% in 2004-05 alone. This will not do much directly to raise sea levels, because most Arctic ice is floating, but it suggests that the melting is speeding up, and that is confirmed by the flow of the Jakobshavn glacier in Greenland, which doubled in speed between 1997 and 2003.

Everything depends on the speed at which the ice disappears. Computer models have been predicting that the Arctic will not be ice-free, even for a short time in late summer, until 2040, and at present only icebreakers and the occasional lone yachtsman are getting through. But some people believe change is coming so fast that the northern seas will open up much earlier than expected. They may be right.

If so, it will be seen as a harbinger of a another horror: the prospect of a shutdown of the North Atlantic conveyor. This is the current of water that takes enormous amounts of heat—about as much as would be generated by a million nuclear power plants—from the tropics and carries it to eastern North America and western Europe. The fear is that melting ice, along with increased snow and rain, could reduce the density and salinity of the top layers of the sea, making them more buoyant. At present, the conveyor depends on surface water sinking and travelling towards the equator, there to rise again and bring warmth back to the north (see map in the introduction). If this current stopped, the average temperature in Europe might fall by five to ten degrees Celsius.

They even have a video of the ice melt and the major problems that melting arctic sea ice will create.

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Hey, let’s destabilize a nuclear power because of global warming!

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 30, 2008 |

A truly frightening article from The International News and their Karachi (Pakistan) bureau:

Global warming and the ongoing thinning of Tibetan glaciers will result in as many as 15 million ‘environmental refugees’ in South Asia in the near future, said Chairperson Hisaar Foundation and member of Stockholm-based Global Water Partnership Technical Committee, Simi Kamal.

Full article can be found here.

Besides Pakistan (who we obviously do not want to destabilize), other major powers who get their water from the Himalayan glaciers include India,  China, and other trouble spots like Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Thailand and Burma.

Emissions in Texas affect the climate worldwide, and as we all have painfully learned, what happens in other countries can end up right back on our doorstep.  We need to start cooling it, especially considering that if Texas were its own country we would be the 7th largest polluter of greenhouse gases in the world.  Thankfully, we also lead in renewable energy potential and can start saving money today by investing in energy efficiency.

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From deep in the heart of Texas, a Global Warming Solutions Act

Posted in Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , on December 24, 2008 |

What a beautiful gift to find under my cyber Christmas tree this morning (give me a break, its Christmas Eve and I’m going to milk my holiday references for all they’re worth). From harman on earth, the good news that State Senator Rodney Ellis has filed legislation to get Texas working toward a climate change solution.

Harman reports,

The Texas Global Warming Solutions Act, refiled by Ellis for the 2009 Legislative Session after a failed effort to get traction in 2007, would create a state commission to make an accounting of all the state’s greenhouse gas emissions and then help craft policy to begin reducing those levels. It would be quite a task. It has been widely reported that if Texas were its own country (as some would still have it, no doubt), it would rank as the world’s eighth-largest emitter.

To bring those levels down, Ellis’ act would have all state agencies required to account for their greenhouse gas contributions and create plans to reduce them. Private industry would also have to begin to monitor and report their releases.

In order to move forward with global warming solutions, Texas needs a thorough understanding of our contribution to the problem.

Check out Harman’s full post. Brief warning: the cockroach video is just a smidge on the creepy side.  My stomach isn’t ready for talking bugs first thing in the morning.

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