To: Earthjustice Supporters
From: Trip Van Noppen, President
Re: A Historic Victory for Everglades Restoration
Lake Okeechobee
Photo: James Valentine
Dear susan,
In a historic deal announced today, U.S. Sugar, the nation's largest producer of cane sugar, said it was leaving the Everglades and selling its nearly 300 square miles of land to the state of Florida for Everglades restoration.
The decision grew out of legal action by Earthjustice. According to Florida Governor Charlie Crist, U.S. Sugar agreed to begin negotiations to sell the land seven months ago, after it became clear that the state would require the clean-up of dirty farm runoff before it was backpumped into Lake Okeechobee. The backpumping issue came to the forefront following an Earthjustice victory in which the court ruled that this unpermitted practice was a violation of the Clean Water Act.
Learn more about how Earthjustice has worked for decades to restore the waters of Lake Okeechobee, which is considered the "heart" of the Everglades and serves as the main source of the region's drinking water.
Today's victory, made possible by years of hard work and tenacious litigation, means that the natural flow of the Everglades can finally be restored.
Restoring the natural water flow between Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades means a future for this unique landscape. We are proud to have played such a vital role in preserving and improving Florida's Everglades, and we will continue to work for smarter, stronger plans that will bring this aquatic jewel back to life.
Sincerely,
Trip Van Noppen
Trip Van Noppen
President, Earthjustice
P.S. Your support makes our work possible. Please consider making a special contribution to help fund future victories for the environment.
g'day to all the wildclickers
You and your 300 friends have supported 2,902,932.1 square feet!
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You have supported: (0.0)
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American Prairie habitat supported: 66,958.1 square feet.
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Rainforest habitat supported: 2,622,756.5 square feet.
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White House Tried to Silence EPA Proposal on Car Emissions
Agency Was Responding to Ruling About Clean Air Act
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, June 26, 2008; A02
White House officials last December sought to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from submitting a proposed rule that would limit greenhouse-gas emissions from new vehicles, agency sources said yesterday. And upon learning that EPA had hit the "send" button just minutes earlier, the White House called again to demand that the e-mail be recalled.
The EPA official who forwarded the e-mail, Associate Deputy Administrator Jason Burnett, refused, said the sources, who insisted on anonymity in order to discuss internal deliberations.
The proposed rule was EPA's response to an April 2007 Supreme Court ruling that the agency had violated the Clean Air Act by refusing to take up the issue of regulating automobile emissions that contribute to global warming.
Burnett, who resigned from the agency this month, sent the e-mail to the White House Office of Management and Budget at 2:17 p.m. Dec. 5 and received the call warning him to hold off at 2:25 p.m., the sources said. The EPA is expected to release a watered-down version of its original proposal within a week, highlighting the extent to which Bush administration officials continue to resist mandatory federal limits on emissions linked to global warming.
The New York Times reported Wednesday that White House officials never opened EPA's e-mail. In March, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee disclosed documents showing that the White House had overruled EPA's findings on the impact of vehicle emissions on climate change.
Burnett refused to comment on the White House calls but said in an interview, "In early December, I sent an e-mail with the formal finding that action must be taken to address the risk of climate change," adding that he resigned his political appointment because the agency had been stymied in its efforts to respond to the Supreme Court. "The White House made it clear they did not want to address the ramifications of that finding and have decided to leave the challenge to the next administration. Some [at the White House] thought that EPA had mistakenly concluded that climate change endangers the public. It was no mistake."
The Supreme Court ruling held that the Clean Air Act compelled the government to determine whether greenhouse gases endanger public health or the environment. Agency Administrator Stephen L. Johnson is expected to issue an "advance notice of proposed rulemaking" this week or next that outlines the issues but takes no stand on whether to regulate carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
White House spokesman Tony Fratto declined to comment on the exchange, saying in an e-mail: "We don't comment on internal deliberations. As Steve Johnson said, both publicly and in congressional testimony, this was a decision he made on his own."
Congressional Democrats and several public health and environmental advocates said the fact that EPA changed its proposal under White House pressure will delay implementation of a national cap on carbon emissions and affect upcoming rules on fuel economy standards for automobiles.
Less than two weeks after EPA submitted its proposed rule on greenhouse gases, President Bush signed legislation that raises the fleetwide average fuel economy standard to 35 miles per gallon by 2020, arguing that this step would be more effective in limiting emissions. On Dec. 19, Johnson cited that law in denying California's petition for a waiver to allow it to directly limit greenhouse gases from vehicles.
EPA's original December proposal included language saying that climate change poses a threat to public welfare, but the draft that Johnson is preparing to issue will seek comments only on "whether" it poses such a danger, the sources said. It will also be shorter than the original document, which ran about 250 pages and included detailed alternative approaches on how to regulate greenhouse gases from fuels, vehicles and stationary sources such as power plants.
One EPA official said agency staff had encountered fierce opposition from Bush appointees on several of these sections. "They don't even want us to talk about alternatives," the official said, adding that Johnson and his top aides have been in an "intense negotiation" with White House officials on how much to alter the rulemaking, with Johnson working to resist major changes.
"The White House has found EPA's draft finding to be radioactive in three key areas," said S. William Becker, executive director of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies. "It validates the approval of California's waiver to regulate greenhouse gases from motor vehicles. It demonstrates that the Transportation Department's proposed fuel economy standards fall far short of what is technologically feasible and cost-effective. And it makes a strong case supporting how the existing Clean Air Act can be used to regulate greenhouse gases."
I'm all clicked for the day, including 2 petitions! Have a happy day, all!
Hurray for Earthjustice!
Shhh, Dan! There are some of gwb's logger buddies that actually
read 
Hiya Alex, Teeny, sue, and Beth too!
Have a marvelous day!
http://rainforest.care2.com/i?p=583091674
Yay, for Earthjustice! Love you, Stadee and all the wild Clickers!
CLIMATE SCIENCE: Charting Global Runoff
H. Jesse Smith
One widely expected potential consequence of climate warming is an intensification of the hydrological cycle, including more precipitation and more extreme precipitation events. Evidence that such intensification already has begun is available for some regions, but the question of whether or not the phenomenon is global remains unanswered. Milliman et al. have analyzed the runoff records of 137 rivers located on six continents, covering the last 50 years of the 20th century, in order to provide that answer. They find that global discharge has not changed significantly over that time, although regional changes were clearly apparent: Discharge decreases occurred disproportionately in Africa, Asia, and Australia, while Europe, North America, and South America experienced increases more often. Thus, the evidence seems not to show an intensification of the global hydrological cycle over the last half of the 20th century. That time period is too short, however, to draw firm conclusions about longer-term trends. -- HJS
Global Planet. Change 62, 187 (2008).
late clicks tonight
an extended long weekend starts NOW!
You and your 300 friends have supported 2,903,057.9 square feet!
Marine Wetlands habitat supported: 213,269.2 square feet.
You have supported: (0.0)
Your 300 friends have supported: (213,269.2)
American Prairie habitat supported: 66,965.6 square feet.
You have supported: (16,528.2)
Your 300 friends have supported: (50,437.4)
Rainforest habitat supported: 2,622,823.2 square feet.
You have supported: (187,934.7)
Your 300 friends have supported: (2,434,888.5)
Dan, you bet.
Teeny, register at
www.earthjustice.org and receive e mail alerts. Plus, you can read about each case pending, those in court, and also by State. A terrific site.
Yep, the WildClickers are a unique bunch.
cough
sputter
cannot believe Northern California's skies. Haven't seen the sun for days, so much smoke everywhere. unreal
Check out the map at:
http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/fireplots/cgb2008178_1900.jpg
Speaking of the sun....
June 27, 2008
Citing Need for Assessments, U.S. Freezes Solar Energy Projects
By DAN FROSCH
DENVER ?- Faced with a surge in the number of proposed solar power plants, the federal government has placed a moratorium on new solar projects on public land until it studies their environmental impact, which is expected to take about two years.
The Bureau of Land Management says an extensive environmental study is needed to determine how large solar plants might affect millions of acres it oversees in six Western states ?- Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah.
But the decision to freeze new solar proposals temporarily, reached late last month, has caused widespread concern in the alternative-energy industry, as fledgling solar companies must wait to see if they can realize their hopes of harnessing power from swaths of sun-baked public land, just as the demand for viable alternative energy is accelerating.
"It doesn't make any sense," said Holly Gordon, vice president for legislative and regulatory affairs for Ausra, a solar thermal energy company in Palo Alto, Calif. "The Bureau of Land Management land has some of the best solar resources in the world. This could completely stunt the growth of the industry."
Much of the 119 million surface acres of federally administered land in the West is ideal for solar energy, particularly in Arizona, Nevada and Southern California, where sunlight drenches vast, flat desert tracts.
Galvanized by the national demand for clean energy development, solar companies have filed more than 130 proposals with the Bureau of Land Management since 2005. They center on the companies' desires to lease public land to build solar plants and then sell the energy to utilities.
According to the bureau, the applications, which cover more than one million acres, are for projects that have the potential to power more than 20 million homes.
All involve two types of solar plants, concentrating and photovoltaic. Concentrating solar plants use mirrors to direct sunlight toward a synthetic fluid, which powers a steam turbine that produces electricity. Photovoltaic plants use solar panels to convert sunlight into electric energy.
Much progress has been made in the development of both types of solar technology in the last few years. Photovoltaic solar projects grew by 48 percent in 2007 compared with 2006. Eleven concentrating solar plants are operational in the United States, and 20 are in various stages of planning or permitting, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.
The manager of the Bureau of Land Management's environmental impact study, Linda Resseguie, said that many factors must be considered when deciding whether to allow solar projects on the scale being proposed, among them the impact of construction and transmission lines on native vegetation and wildlife. In California, for example, solar developers often hire environmental experts to assess the effects of construction on the desert tortoise and Mojave ground squirrel.
Water use can be a factor as well, especially in the parched areas where virtually all of the proposed plants would be built. Concentrating solar plants may require water to condense the steam used to power the turbine.
"Reclamation is another big issue," Ms. Resseguie said. "These plants potentially have a 20- to 30-year life span. How to restore that land is a big question for us."
Another benefit of the study will be a single set of environmental criteria to weigh future solar proposals, which will ultimately speed the application process, said the assistant Interior Department secretary for land and minerals management, C. Stephen Allred. The land agency's manager of energy policy, Ray Brady, said the moratorium on new applications was necessary to "ensure that we are doing an adequate level of analysis of the impacts."
In the meantime, bureau officials emphasized, they will continue processing the more than 130 applications received before May 29, measuring each one's environmental impact.
While proponents of solar energy agree on the need for a sweeping environmental study, many believe that the freeze is unwarranted. Some, like Ms. Gordon, whose company has two pending proposals for solar plants on public land, say small solar energy businesses could suffer if they are forced to turn to more expensive private land for development.
The industry is already concerned over the fate of federal solar investment tax credits, which are set to expire at the end of the year unless Congress renews them. The moratorium, combined with an end to tax credits, would deal a double blow to an industry that, solar advocates say, has experienced significant growth without major environmental problems.
"The problem is that this is a very young industry, and the majority of us that are involved are young, struggling, hungry companies," said Lee Wallach of Solel, a solar power company based in California that has filed numerous applications to build on public land and was considering filing more in the next two years. "This is a setback."
At a public hearing in Golden, Colo., on Monday, one of a series by the Bureau of Land Management across the West, reaction to the moratorium was mixed.
Alex Daue, an outreach coordinator for the Wilderness Society, an environmental conservation group, praised the government for assessing the implications of large-scale solar development.
Others warned the bureau against becoming mired in its own bureaucratic processes on solar energy, while parts of the West are already humming with new oil and gas development.
Craig Cox, the executive director of the Interwest Energy Alliance, a renewable energy trade group, said he worried that the freeze would "throw a monkey wrench" into the solar energy industry at precisely the wrong time.
"I think it's good to have a plan," Mr. Cox said, "but I don't think we need to stop development in its tracks."
June 27, 2008
Editorial
DDT on Ice
It has been getting ever harder to pretend that Antarctica is a pristine place. We like to think of it as being scoured clean by hostile winds and extreme cold. But more and more, Antarctica, like the Arctic, shows the lasting scars of human negligence.
The effects of climate change are being felt far more strongly at the poles than elsewhere on the planet. Some of the most persistent and dangerous chemicals ever created have accumulated there and remain there.
Take the long-banned pesticide DDT. When it was still sprayed on crops and gardens across the globe, it moved through the atmosphere to the polar regions, where it was deposited in water, snow and ice, ultimately making its way into the food chain.
The residue of DDT found in many Arctic species has declined in the past 30 years. But recently, scientists in Antarctica reported that Adélie penguins have a constant and, in some cases, increasing level of DDT in their body fat. It appears that the birds are being newly exposed to remnants of DDT that was deposited long ago.
Scientists estimate that between 2 pounds and 8.8 pounds of DDT are being released annually. This is not a large amount, but it is troubling nonetheless, especially since the levels released are likely to rise as climate change intensifies. As more ice melts, it will only add to the burden of so-called persistent organic pollutants that have made their way into the Antarctic's life stream.
Nothing could seem farther removed from our ordinary lives than these isolated populations of Adélies. But they are frighteningly near to our pesticidal past and one more reminder of the long-lasting consequences of human behavior.
Quote:Others warned the bureau against becoming mired in its own bureaucratic processes on solar energy, while parts of the West are already humming with new oil and gas development
The BLM has announced the lease sale of 31 parcels of land on Roan Plateau, opening over 55,000 acres to gas development and violating protections called for by Colorado's governor and congressional leaders, as well as local and national environmental and wildlife advocates.
So much for the BLM's 'enviornmental impact' studies.
Lest we forget: "More than half of the electricity generated in America today comes from coal. If we weren't blessed with this natural resource, we would face even greater [energy] shortages and higher prices today. Yet, coal presents an environmental challenge. So our plan funds research into new, clean coal technologies." There's just one catch: The money isn't going to wind or solar power. It's going directly to
. coal. As coal plants win the right to burn dirtier and dirtier, the administration is pitching coal as the "clean fuel" of the future.
http://www.motherjones.com/news/update/2005/05/clean_coal.html
Clean Energy - How Solar Energy Works
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/renewable_energy_basics/how-solar-energy-works.html
http://rainforest.care2.com/i?p=583091674
The most abundant energy source in the universe is hydrogen.
So, why not use it - it's only pollutant when burned is pure water. Which is two-thirds hydrogen. Talk about reusable fuel. That leaves oxygen, which we need to survive.
clicked.
Great article, Stradee. I printed it out to read it carefully, and then send to Frank. He may have the opportunity to do something with this, at least for the hot water heater.
Dan, there are two hydrogen power plants - The Abu Dhabi and California Projects.
Natural gas will be used for hydrogen-fired power generation at Dhabi, the California plant will utilize petroleum coke to manufacture hydrogen.
The California project would eliminate 2.25 million tons per year of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere by sequestering, or storing, them underground, equivalent to taking 500,000 cars off the roads. Once captured, it would be transported by pipeline to the California oil fields and stored in oil reservoirs thousands of feet below the surface, where it will flush out additional oil that traditionally could not be recovered.
http://www.hydrogenenergy.com/FullStory.aspx?m=18
Abu Dhabi
http://www.hydrogenenergy.com/
Two good resource pages.
sue, eons ago, the house pool was solar heated - utlizing roof space for the cells. Worked very well.
Relatively inexpensive, solar energy for new homes and also converting new technology for older structures, can elliminate high energy costs.
Hi stradee, how's your breathing in all that smoke?
~~~
aktbird57 - You and your wildclicking friends have supported 2,903,169.0 square feet!
Marine Wetlands habitat supported: 213,321.1 square feet.
You have supported: (0.0)
Your 300 friends have supported: (213,321.1)
American Prairie habitat supported: 66,965.6 square feet.
You have supported: (16,528.2)
Your 300 friends have supported: (50,437.4)
Rainforest habitat supported: 2,622,882.4 square feet.
You have supported: (187,942.1)
Your 300 friends have supported: (2,434,940.3)
Stradee wrote:Dan, you bet.
Teeny, register at
www.earthjustice.org and receive e mail alerts. Plus, you can read about each case pending, those in court, and also by State. A terrific site.
Yep, the WildClickers are a unique bunch.
I just did!
Thanks! Oops! I'm all clicked for Friday!
