- EC - lists.bikelover.org

Fwd: tri-ennial review
by James Kotcon 08 Jun '13

08 Jun '13

>From my backlog of e-mail, here is an idea for a new initiative. DEP is required to do a review of water quality standards every three years. In preparation for that, they solicited public comments last fall (available at: http://www.dep.wv.gov/WWE/Programs/wqs/Pages/2014TriennialReviewofWaterQual… Among the environmental groups, Appalachian Mountain Advocates recommended a standard for conductivity, John and Petra Wood recommended standards for conductivity, sulfates ad TDS, and Duane Nichols recommended a TDS standard. Not surprisingly, First Energy wants to weaken the arsenic standard. And AEP wants to limit the Category A (Public water supply) implementation, as well as restrict uses of the Stream Condition index (benthic insects), rescind the selenium Acute criterion, and weaken standards for mercury, beryllium, iron and aluminum (the aluminum and beryllium changes happened in the Legislature this year). Although we missed the deadline for initial comments, it would be a good step for us to support a WQS for TDS or conductivity as an extra tool for Marcellus activities, and adding a sulfate standard would be useful for coal-related impacts, as this is the dominant toxicant in TDS, and needs a stand-alone standard. Whaddya tink? Jim Kotcon P.S. Please keep the message form the "mole" below to ourselves. >>> Here are some comments from a mole in the water office. What I'm hearing is that it would be good for the environmentalists to request that DEP develop a sulfate criteria, that the Legislature needs to be lobbied to pass the TDS standard, and that they should be keeping up with what DEP's watershed assessment branch is doing with the fish IBI. Both our water quality standards group, Kevin Coyne and Watershed Assessment Branch, John Wirts are willing to meet with them to help them understand what DEP is doing. That used to happen but the enviros have not requested a meeting for a long time. They should try to meet with the staffers vs the politicos to get the best info. There is alot of room for intereference and influence on the fish IBI so it would be best not to let industry get the upper hand. As far as the specifics below, it all looks good. DEP staff feels pretty confident about the fecal coliform/e coli switch and don't see much of a threat there, but welcome the comments. It is suggested that Michael Becher, Appalachian Mt. Advocates is knowledgeable on the Category A issue listed here, but this group is probably aware of that.

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underground mine to close
by Jim Sconyers 08 Jun '13

08 Jun '13

Alpha closing Justice No. 1 mine in Boone County. http://www.wvgazette.com/News/201306070105 -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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link from Barbara Fallon
by Barbara Fallon 07 Jun '13

07 Jun '13

http://nukegets.info/gxco/swwgcfvakgv

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from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Disincentives to energy efficiency can be fixed
by Paul Wilson 05 Jun '13

05 Jun '13

Disincentives to energy efficiency can be fixed<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/y92…> Posted: 04 Jun 2013 12:35 PM PDT A new study finds that utilities aren't rewarded for adopting energy efficiency programs, and that reforms are needed to make energy efficiency as attractive as renewables. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Re: [EC] Fwd: Article from E&E News on WV Senate race
by Jim Sconyers 04 Jun '13

04 Jun '13

Sad, isn't it. Even a Democrat has to kiss King Coal's butt. On Jun 4, 2013 10:18 AM, "Paul Wilson" <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> wrote: > fyi, paul > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Emily Diamond-Falk <emily_diamond-falk(a)tws.org> > Date: Tue, Jun 4, 2013 at 10:00 AM > Subject: Article from E&E News on WV Senate race > To: Birth Place of Rivers <birthplaceofrivers(a)tws.org> > > > CAMPAIGN 2014:**** W.Va. Dems hopeful of finding pro-coal candidate to > follow Rockefeller**** > > Manuel Quinones, E&E reporter**** > > Published: Tuesday, June 4, 2013**** > > West Virginia Democrats are expressing optimism about their chances of > replacing retiring Sen. Jay Rockefeller with another Democrat in next > year's election, despite their apparent difficulty in tapping a strong > candidate.**** > > Yesterday, well-known West Virginia radio talk show host Hoppy Kercheval > raised eyebrows when he reported that Charleston attorney Nick Preservati > -- who had been called a potential "unicorn" candidate and an electable > pro-coal Democrat -- would not jump into the race because of family reasons. > **** > > Preservati did not return a call to confirm his intentions in time for > publication. But news that he would likely not be running sparked observers > in West Virginia and Washington, D.C., to chatter about the party's uphill > climb against Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, who announced her > intention to run even before Rockefeller announced his retirement.**** > > "I think with or without Preservati, this was looking like a really > difficult hold for Democrats," said Nathan Gonzalez, campaign analyst with > the nonpartisan Rothenberg Political Report, which has the West Virginia > Senate race leaning in favor of the Republicans.**** > > Gonzalez said Democrats "were excited about Preservati and his family's > connection to the coal industry, but the political reality is that it's > going to take a special Democratic candidate to win in West Virginia in the > second midterm of President Obama in the White House."**** > > West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Larry Puccio brushed off claims > that the party was in dire straits in its efforts to find a candidate.**** > > "The truth of the matter is, we have a couple of individuals who we > believe will have a positive announcement in the near future," Puccio said > in an interview.**** > > One name that keeps popping up is West Virginia Secretary of State Natalie > Tennant, a former journalist who has worked to increase her statewide > profile. She came in third in a 2011 primary for governor.**** > > Puccio, while not revealing names of candidates who have expressed their > interest to run, said support for the state's coal industry was an > important test of electability.**** > > "I think that's extremely important in this state," said Puccio. "And I > will tell you, of the candidates who have spoken to me, they are all > extremely supportive of coal in West Virginia."**** > > In recent days, attorney Ralph Baxter, the former CEO of global law firm > Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe LLP and a West Virginia native, also > decided against taking on Capito.**** > > Republicans were already painting Baxter as too liberal for West Virginia > and highlighting his connections to San Francisco, where the firm is > headquartered.**** > > Former state GOP Chairman Mike Stuart told Kercheval on West Virginia > MetroNews "Talkline" that Baxter's background was "frankly not in tune with > most of the people in West Virginia." Stuart said Baxter would have spent > "millions of his own dollars and [have lost] badly."**** > > George Carenbauer, former state Democratic chairman, shot back, saying > that Capito's record is "not necessarily a record that fits well with the > average West Virginian." He mentioned Medicare, likely referring to > Capito's vote for the GOP budget plan that would rework the system.**** > > Democrats control the West Virginia Legislature and the governor's > mansion. There are more registered Democrats than registered Republicans in > the state. Plus, along with touting their support for the state's coal > industry, Democrats generally also tend to favor strong worker protections, > endearing them to the United Mine Workers union.**** > > "Yeah, Democrats can get elected, but those state offices are built around > a completely different set of issues," said Gonzalez, noting that when it > comes to federal elections, Mountain State voters want to see candidates > who can prove their independence from more liberal national Democrats and > an unpopular Obama.**** > > Popular Sen. Joe Manchin has emerged as a model for an electable West > Virginia Democrat at the national level. Many observers called Preservati, > who has represented the coal companies and has family connections to the > industry, another "Joe Manchin."**** > > But even though some Democrats think Preservati's lack of an electoral > record is a good thing, Gonzalez said, "Joe Manchin didn't just develop his > political profile a year before his election to the Senate. He was a > two-term governor who also ran a good campaign."**** > > Rep. Nick Rahall, a Democrat serving his 19th term in the House, mulled a > Senate run but decided against it earlier this year. He may face a tough > race of his own for re-election.**** > > "West Virginia has lost a tremendous amount of seniority already with the > loss of Sen. [Robert] Byrd and [soon to retire] Sen. Rockefeller," said > Rahall in a recent interview. "And I felt that for the best interests of > the state of West Virginia and its people, that my seniority should stay in > the House of Representatives."**** > > Addressing his party's Senate prospects, Rahall said, "We'll come up with > a good candidate that can attract sufficient votes. The seat, I believe, > can be won by a good, strong Democrat who backs our coal industry and would > continue to diversify our economy and has experience in those areas."**** > > ** ** > > ** ** > > *Emily Diamond-Falk* > > Communications Manager**** > > *The Wilderness Society *| Washington, DC** > > 202.429.2608| cell: 202.841.8605**** > > www.wilderness.org**** > > ** ** > > Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheWildernessSociety**** > > Twitter: twitter.com/Wilderness <http://twitter.com/#!/Wilderness>**** > > ** ** > > ** ** > > *[image: cid:image001.jpg@01CC7170.6F236C10]**We protect wilderness and > inspire Americans to care for our wild places*** > > ** ** > > > > -- > Paul Wilson > Sierra Club > 504 Jefferson Ave > Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 > Phone: 304-725-4360 > Cell: 304-279-1361 > > "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha > > "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle >

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Forwarded article re comeback of coal from Power Line
by william.depaulo＠gmail.com 03 Jun '13

03 Jun '13

COAL MAKES A COMEBACK..... http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2013/06/coal-makes-a-comeback.php I highly recommend giving it a read. ---------------------------- This e-mail was sent because you were recommended via SmartAddon.com Share Tool - To stop all e-mails coming from us, please visit: http://www.smartaddon.com/?unsubscribe=ec@osenergy.org

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Arch's Leer mining complex ramping up outside Grafton - State Journal Article re vast expansion of production at Arch mine............
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 03 Jun '13

03 Jun '13

http://www.statejournal.com/story/22399790/archs-leer-mining-complex-rampin…

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Re: [EC] ] Articles on Chilling Dissent
by Beth Little 02 Jun '13

02 Jun '13

This is a quote from the article linked below. If a bill like this were passed in WV, I would be a felon and an ecological terrorist, except that some of the videotaping I did of the Lochgelly UIC by myself. The anti-fracking effort is becoming something much deeper than just trying to curtail pollution. Anybody know a computer geek who could tell if my computer is monitored? It seems pretty slow, but that could just be Frontier. Earlier this year, a bill was introduced into the Pennsylvania legislature that would make it a felony to videotape farming operations in Pennsylvania - so-called "ag-gag" legislation that has already passed in Utah and Iowa, and has been introduced in several other legislatures. Many of the ag-gag bills draw on language crafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council's (ALEC) "Animal and Ecological Terrorism Act." (In recent years ALEC has received considerable support from the natural gas industry). Section D of the ALEC bill defines an animal or ecological terrorist organization in broad terms "as any association, organization, entity, coalition, or combination of two or more persons" who seek to "obstruct, impede or deter any person from participating" not only in agricultural activity but also mining, foresting, harvesting, and gathering or processing of natural resources. The proposed law has many anti-drilling activists worried. If such language were included in the bill (it is currently in committee and will be revised before it comes to the floor) it would greatly limit the ability of residents to photograph or video well sites, compressor stations, and pipeline development - all of which could be considered part of the "gathering or processing of natural resources." From: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of cindy rank Sent: Wednesday, May 29, 2013 5:14 PM To: WVEC Subject: Re: [wvec-board] Articles on Chilling Dissent good one.... On Wed, May 29, 2013 at 2:04 PM, Steve Thompson <unclesteve197(a)yahoo.com> wrote: I think it was George Carlin that suggested sending a copy of the Constitution to himself every day by e-mail on the off chance that the national security state might actually read it... May 29, 2013 We Are Being Watched Corporate Spying on Environmental Groups by ADAM FEDERMAN http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/05/29/corporate-spying-on-environmental-gro ups/ May 29, 2013 Welcome to the Freakshow Media Gets Targeted by Obama, Discovers No One Cares Except the Media by BETHANIA PALMA MARKUS http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/05/29/media-gets-targeted-by-obama-administ ration-discovers-no-one-cares-except-the-media/ (Referenced in above article) Obama's personal role in a journalist's imprisonment By Glenn Greenwald Salon.com Wednesday, Mar 14, 2012 http://www.salon.com/2012/03/14/obamas_personal_role_in_a_journalists_impris onment/ <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxcGY3czB0BF9TAzk3 MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRtc2dJZAMzNDgwBHNlYwNm dHIEc2xrA3JwbHkEc3RpbWUDMTM2OTc2MTQ0OA--?act=reply&messageNum=3480> Reply via web post <mailto:deniseap@earthlink.net?subject=Re%3A%20WVEC%20Calendar%20June%20%26% 20July> Reply to sender <mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com?subject=Re%3A%20WVEC%20Calendar%20June%20 %26%20July> Reply to group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmYnJ0Z3VyBF9TAzk3 MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNudHBj BHN0aW1lAzEzNjk3NjE0NDg-> Start a New Topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/message/3480;_ylc=X3oDMTM1dHZjaGU3 BF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRtc2dJZAMzNDgw BHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA3Z0cGMEc3RpbWUDMTM2OTc2MTQ0OAR0cGNJZAMzNDgw> Messages in this topic (1) Recent Activity: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board;_ylc=X3oDMTJmOG1yODg3BF9TAzk3MzU5N zE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDdnRsBHNsawN2Z2hwBHN0a W1lAzEzNjk3NjE0NDc-> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJlaHB2NHYzBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxN Tg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNnZnAEc3RpbWUDMTM2OTc2MTQ0O A--> Error! 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May 30 - McKinley Climate Change Forum
by Jonathan Rosenbaum 29 May '13

29 May '13

May be an interesting event for some local Sierra Club members to attend: Washington, D.C.—Today, Rep. David B. McKinley, P.E. (R-WV) announced a panel of distinguished experts in the field of climate science will conduct a panel discussion in Fairmont. What: Discussion on the Origins and Response to Climate Change Who: The Office of Rep. David B. McKinley, P.E. (R-WV) and the West Virginia High Tech Consortium Foundation Where: W.Va. High Tech Consortium Foundation, 5000 NASA Boulevard, I-79 Technology Park in Fairmont, WV When: Thursday, May 30th from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This event is open to the media and the public. Please call 202-225-4172 for more information or to R.S.V.P. Confirmed Attendees: • Annie Petsonk, International Counsel of Environmental Defense Fund. • Marc Morano, Executive Director and Chief Correspondent for ClimateDepot.com; former senior advisor, speech-writer and climate researcher for Senator James Inhofe. • Jim Hurrell, Director, NCAR Earth System Laboratory. • Myron Ebell, Director of Energy and Environment, Competitive Enterprise Institute. • David Kreutzer, Ph.D., Research Fellow in Energy Economics and Climate Change, The Heritage Foundation. • Thomas Sheahan, Ph.D., MIT educated physicist and author. • Dennis Avery, Director, Center for Global Food Issues at the Hudson Institute and author of “Unstoppable Global Warming Every 1,500 Years”. • Sarah Forbes, Senior Associate, World Resources Institute. • A. Scott Denning, Professor, Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University. • Dr. John Christy, Distinguished Professors of atmospheric science, and director of the Earth System Science Center at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

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Fwd: You're invited: Forum on science, democracy, and fracking
by Paul Wilson 29 May '13

29 May '13

fyi, the link will go to my RSVP form so you will need to register with UCS or clear the form and start from scratch. It is on July 25th so there is a lot of time to sign up but space may be limited. best, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: UCS Science Network <sciencenetwork(a)ucsusa.org> Date: Tue, May 28, 2013 at 5:32 PM Subject: You're invited: Forum on science, democracy, and fracking To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com [image: UCS Science Network] *Register for the Forum Today* Join the Center for Science and Democracy for a live webcast of our *Science, Democracy, and Community Decisions on Fracking Forum* on July 25, 2:00 p.m. PDT/5:00 p.m. EDT. As a Science Network member, you can also sign up for a chance to win an free trip to the forum<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=E9INvInhunyAhe7-updT7w> . *[image: RSVP button]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=i1uKNdz3WpjGs7VyxzMOCA> * Related Links What Do Food and Fracking Have in Common? We Need Information to Make the Best Choice <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=pOOIW6RLozxNYM_BrN_YWw> Lewis M. Branscomb Science and Democracy Forums<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=47hMwPJPKHY0SiUcXYqbcA> Tell A Colleague Please encourage your colleagues to sign up<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=hfRwZpMeu_seikh3P8ILQw>and help increase our effectiveness in creating a healthy environment and a safer world. CLICK HERE<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=RnN8BhlXQbfYCeEggOJ17g> . Science, Democracy, and Community Decisions on Fracking A Lewis M. Branscomb Forum Dear Paul, The Union of Concerned Scientists invites you to join us for a public forum webcasted live from the University of California, Los Angeles on July 25. This forum will convene leading thinkers and key stakeholders for a candid discussion on how the best available science can help communities make informed decisions on hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") amidst the current expansion in drilling for shale oil and gas across the United States. *Science, Democracy, and Community Decisions on Fracking<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=99S1FKLfKZJzeKjx1pgR_A> * *A Lewis M. Branscomb Forum* Date: Thursday, July 25 Time: 2:00-5:00 p.m. PDT/5:00-8:00 p.m. EDT Location: UCLA *Register for the Webcast Today<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=YOuO0ezUNKSDuPtR_g-N4Q> * We will share a line-up of speakers and a detailed program soon. But as space is limited for this distinctive event, we want to give UCS supporters like you the opportunity for early event registration<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=M4yVVi9flo_ELAxRlk8Dvg>to join via webcast. *Want to join us in person?* As a member of the UCS Science Network, you can participate in the *UCS Science Network's Science and Democracy Forum Sweepstakes* for a chance to win an all-expenses paid trip to the forum as a Science Network Special Guest. *Click here to learn more and sign up for the sweepstakes. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=sNy1-m0WcEBoZl8iWLgnpg>* The rapid growth in fracking is driving many communities to make decisions on fracking without access to comprehensive and reliable scientific information of the potential impacts on their air and water quality, community health, and economic well-being. The forum will provide a unique opportunity to learn from experts, decision makers, and community leaders about the state of the science around fracking, the state and federal policy landscape, and what citizens and policy makers need to know to make informed decisions about whether, and under what conditions, to extract oil and gas using fracking. We look forward to you joining us and contributing to the conversation. Sincerely, [image: Andy Rosenberg signature.jpg] Andrew A. Rosenberg, Ph.D. Director, Center for Science and Democracy Union of Concerned Scientists The Union of Concerned Scientists puts rigorous, independent science to work to solve our planet's most pressing problems. Joining with citizens across the country, we combine technical analysis and effective advocacy to create innovative, practical solutions for a healthy, safe, and sustainable future. UCS is a 501(c)(3) organization. All gifts are tax deductible. You can be confident your donations to UCS are spent wisely. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=zVPxxSJ-EnFxD1_813U_4g> Union of Concerned Scientists 2 Brattle Square Cambridge, MA 02138-3780 Phone: 800-666-8276<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=wGhDdFbreVuX06tJ15xkJA> Fax: 617-864-9405 <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=XpLrJEHFh8pZynQBT9jF4w> *ucsaction(a)ucsusa.org* <ucsaction(a)ucsusa.org> *www.ucsusa.org* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=OLTRU7lMHAbDsBZbMdoDCg> *About UCS* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=YSWTM6aE_dDkaKwYLs5y9Q> | *Take Action* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=QZGOxRXaqZpTV7LJx_tVaA> | *Donate * <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=86JvXQMR5lfvTB-DbnENVQ> | *Contact Us*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=AIOQAmFQVnzj_rIOvSl17w>| *Privacy Policy* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=92yUvudnHtAc31d6-J7eTA>| *Unsubscribe*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/CO?i=JmPHG4ESwLswPDvKQFetQh7ATGdctngE&cid=178…>| *Update Your Profile*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Xmae0Zs02ap63Hyup1FL2w> © Union of Concerned Scientists. All rights reserved. [image: powered by CONVIO] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Rj0tPUBrPPBNzPzJmRvtLQ> nonprofit software <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=LcjtIloqm0tyI40Y_pTXXw> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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FW: [MarcellusGasInfo] Map of Gas Infrastructure, Susquehanna Co. PA + S. Broome NY
by Beth Little 24 May '13

24 May '13

From: marcellusgasinfo(a)googlegroups.com [mailto:marcellusgasinfo@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of William Huston Sent: Thursday, May 23, 2013 11:27 PM To: undisclosed-recipients: Subject: [MarcellusGasInfo] Map of Gas Infrastructure, Susquehanna Co. PA + S. Broome NY Holy God (see attached) -- -- May you, and all beings be happy and free from suffering :) -- ancient Buddhist Prayer (Metta) -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MarcellusGasInfo" group. To post to this group, send email to marcellusgasinfo(a)googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to marcellusgasinfo+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/marcellusgasinfo?hl=en This listserv is managed and owned by the Binghamton Regional Sustainabiliy Coalition (BRSC) For our email list policy, visit For BRSC email list policy, visit http://groups.google.com/group/marcellusgasinfo/files --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MarcellusGasInfo" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to marcellusgasinfo+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. _____ No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2013.0.3343 / Virus Database: 3184/6351 - Release Date: 05/23/13

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Fwd: WVNS story: Another Power Plant Being Unloaded Onto WV Consumers?
by Paul Wilson 22 May '13

22 May '13

f;yi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <newsservice(a)newsservicemail.org> Date: Mon, May 20, 2013 at 3:04 AM Subject: WVNS story: Another Power Plant Being Unloaded Onto WV Consumers? To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Another Power Plant Being Unloaded Onto WV Consumers? Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32546-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (05/20/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - With coal-fired power plants around the nation shutting down, why are corporations such as American Electric Power trying to sell coal-generating capacity to customers in West Virginia and Kentucky? Critics say the corporations are trying to move plants that are no longer cost-effective onto the backs of ratepayers who would have no choice but to pay for them. Alex Desha, an organizer with the Sierra Club in Kentucky, said that motivation is behind a plan to have AEP subsidiaries Appalachian Power and Kentucky Power take the Mitchell power station in Moundsville from a deregulated AEP subsidiary in Ohio. "It's essentially playing a shell game with our money," he said. "They're buying an old, outdated power plant and they're locking us into coal-fired generation for an extended period of time." Critics said the plan would raise rates and make consumers more dependent on a single fuel source, maybe adding to future costs, while making the deregulated Ohio subsidiary more diversified and flexible. AEP also wants to shift part of the John Amos plant to Appalachian Power, and a separate power company - FirstEnergy - wants to do a similar thing with a power plant in Harrison County. Cathy Kunkel, policy analyst, Energy Efficient West Virginia, pointed out that this is happening as dozens of coal plants have shut down due to competition from cheap natural gas. She said if AEP tried to sell the Mitchell plant on the open market, it might get only a quarter of what the power company wants Appalachian Power to pay. "The low price of natural gas has really driven down open-market sales of coal plants," Kunkel said. "It's cheaper to generate and buy power from natural gas plants." AEP said its regulated West Virginia and Kentucky subsidiaries need the generating capacity. However, Kunkel noted, the corporation initially said Appalachian Power needed 80 percent of the Mitchell Plant's capacity, until Kentucky Power decided to retire part of one of its plants, meaning it could buy some of the Mitchell capacity. "Appalachian Power's plan suddenly changed," Kunkel explained. "They said, 'Oh, we only need 50 percent of the Mitchell plant.' Is this actually about what's the best way to meet the capacity needs of Appalachian Power, or AEP offloading the Mitchell plant?" The West Virginia PSC will hold a hearing later this summer. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32546-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32546-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Report: WV Coal Production Will Fall, but Employment Will Rise
by Paul Wilson 16 May '13

16 May '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <newsservice(a)newsservicemail.org> Date: Thu, May 16, 2013 at 3:01 AM Subject: WVNS story: Report: WV Coal Production Will Fall, but Employment Will Rise To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Report: WV Coal Production Will Fall, but Employment Will Rise Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32502-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (05/16/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - For the next two decades, more miners will be digging less coal in West Virginia, according to an in-depth report<http://downstreamstrategies.com/documents/reports_publication/the-continuin…> . Morgantown consulting firm Downstream Strategies analyzed federal and other figures and pins the cause on thinner coal seams and, to a lesser degree, cheap natural gas. By 2040, the report said, central Appalachian coal production will be about a third of where it was at its 1997 peak. Even so, Downstream president Evan Hansen said employment actually will rise. "It takes more miners to produce a ton of coal," he said. "Generally that's because the thickest, most easily accessible coal seams are being mined out." Both production levels and per-miner productivity already have fallen a great deal in the past decade, Hansen said, adding that he expects that trend to continue. The industry attacks what it calls a "war on coal" by regulators, but Hansen said their real enemy is geology. Thinner coal seams and cheap gas mean much of the demand for central Appalachian coal from power plants is going away, he said, and regulations often don't enter into it. "If there's less demand," he said, "then frankly it doesn't matter how strict the regulations are because people are not going to buy as much." Despite the decline in demand from power plants, the report said, the number of mining jobs will rise - in part, Hansen said, because of a shift from highly mechanized surface mining that supplies coal for power plants to more labor-intensive underground mining for coal to make steel. According to the report, five West Virginia counties - Mingo, Kanawha, Lincoln, Boone and Nicholas - will be especially vulnerable as production declines.They could face a tough patch, Hansen said, but devoting part of the severance tax to a future fund would help pay for the transition. "Set aside that fund so that it can be used in these counties long into the future, as a perpetual source of funding to help diversify the economy," Hansen said. The report is available online at downstreamstrategies.com<http://downstreamstrategies.com/documents/reports_publication/the-continuin…> . Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32502-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32502-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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WVU's VenNostrand - strong op-ed against FE deal
by Jim Sconyers 16 May '13

16 May '13

http://blogs.wvgazette.com/coaltattoo/ WVU's James VanNostrand has an excellent analysis and statement of everything wrong with the FE deal to sell Harrison Station to Mon Power. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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CLIMATE CHANGE - Can we live with it?
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 16 May '13

16 May '13

How can we live with it?Thomas Jones - BUY<http://www.lrbshop.co.uk/product.php?productid=58996&utm_source=LRB&utm_med…> The Carbon Crunch: How We're Getting Climate Change Wrong - and How to Fix It by Dieter Helm <http://www.lrb.co.uk/search?author=Helm,+Dieter> Yale, 273 pp, £20.00, September 2012, ISBN 978 0 300 18659 8 - BUY<http://www.lrbshop.co.uk/product.php?productid=60773&utm_source=LRB&utm_med…> Earthmasters: The Dawn of the Age of Climate Engineering byClive Hamilton<http://www.lrb.co.uk/search?author=Hamilton,+Clive> Yale, 247 pp, £20.00, February, ISBN 978 0 300 18667 3 - BUY<http://www.lrbshop.co.uk/product.php?productid=63016&utm_source=LRB&utm_med…> The City and the Coming Climate: Climate Change in the Places We Live by Brian Stone <http://www.lrb.co.uk/search?author=Stone,+Brian> Cambridge, 187 pp, £19.99, July 2012, ISBN 978 1 107 60258 8 You are invited to read this free book review from the *London Review of Books*. Subscribe now to access every article from every fortnightly issue of the*London Review of Books*, including the entire LRB archive of over 12,500 essays and reviews.<http://ads.lrb.co.uk/www/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=554__zoneid=9…> On a damp, chill, blustery August afternoon in Whitby a few years ago I overheard a disgruntled holidaymaker declaiming - to his family, to anyone who would listen, to the wind - that 'global warming is a load of codswallop.' One of his children, a boy of around ten, was valiantly trying to explain to him the difference between climate and weather. But he wasn't paying attention, or couldn't hear over the gale and the sound of his own voice. 'Global warming,' he insisted again, 'is a load of codswallop.' This year's April snows provoked similar sentiments in many quarters. 'After such a long spell of cold, wet weather,'*Channel 4 News* asked, 'should scientists admit that the drastic temperature rises they predicted have failed to materialise?' A few days later, *Nature Geoscience*published a paper showing summer melting on the Antarctic Peninsula at a level 'unprecedented over the past thousand years'. The codswallop brigade say that even if the climate is changing, it isn't our fault. 'We human beings,' Boris Johnson wrote in the *Telegraph* in January, 'have become so blind with conceit and self-love that we genuinely believe that the fate of the planet is in our hands.' On the one hand, then, the modest mayor of London. On the other, a former head of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (as paraphrased by Brian Stone): 'Only Newton's laws of motion may enjoy a wider scientific consensus than a human-enhanced greenhouse effect.' There isn't consensus, however, either scientific or political, about the best ways to respond to the problem; in part because so many possible avenues of research are being explored, and it's still too early to say which, if any, have a reasonable chance of leading us out of the woods (or rather the desert, or the floodplain). The facts, rehearsed so often, for so long and to so little effect, nonetheless bear repeating. The greenhouse effect was first hypothesised in 1824 by Joseph Fourier - though his analogy was the bell jar rather than the greenhouse - and proved experimentally by John Tyndall in 1859. In the 19th century it could be seen as unambiguously a good thing: if carbon dioxide and other trace gases didn't trap heat in the atmosphere, the earth wouldn't be warm enough to support life as we know it. But there is now far more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than there has been at any point in the last 800,000 years (we know this because researchers have analysed air bubbles trapped in the ice in Greenland and Antarctica: the deeper you go, the older the bubbles). The concentration has increased from nearly 320 parts per million (high, but not unprecedented) in 1960 to more than 390 ppm today, 30 per cent higher than any previous peak, largely as a result of human activity. Not even the most fervent climate change denier can argue with the fact that burning carbon produces carbon dioxide: before the Industrial Revolution, atmospheric carbon dioxide levels were 280 ppm. Since 1850, more than 360 billion tonnes of fossil fuels have gone up in smoke. Average global temperatures have risen accordingly, for the last quarter century pretty much in line with the predictions made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its first assessment report (1990). Almost every year since 1988, when the IPCC was established, has been the hottest ever recorded. The most optimistic projection, which governments are nominally committed to (that's to say, the signatories of the Copenhagen Accord in 2009 agreed it would be nice), is that the average global temperature will rise no more than 2ºC by the end of the century. Sea level has risen 6 cm since 1990. The IPCC's fourth assessment report (2007) projected that it would rise between 18 and 59 cm by 2100. According to a more recent study, it could be anything from 33 to 132 cm. The question of how to prevent climate change - we're way past that point now - has morphed into the question of how to slow it down. There's no shortage of theoretical answers about the best way to pump fewer greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, or suck more of them out, or lower the temperature by other means. (Another week, another book about climate change: the mood optative, the structure evangelical; threats of doom followed by promises of salvation, punctuated by warnings against false prophets.) And yet carbon emissions, temperatures, sea level and the frequency of extreme weather events just keep on going up. Which leads to another, perhaps even more urgent question: if climate change is not only inevitable but already underway, how are we to live with it? The shift in emphasis towards adaptation will be reflected in the IPCC's fifth assessment report, due next year. The aim of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, negotiated at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, was to 'stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system'. So much for that. Twenty years on, after many more rounds of inconclusive talks, declarations of good intentions and accusations of bad faith, the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol has expired, with next to nothing to show for it, despite its excessively modest demands. Of the world's eight biggest national emitters of carbon dioxide, which between them account for more than 66 per cent of global emissions, only Germany (2.4 per cent) has agreed to legally binding reductions in the second commitment period (2013-20). Canada (1.7 per cent) has withdrawn from the protocol; the United States (16 per cent) never ratified it; China (29 per cent), India (5.9 per cent), Russia (5.4 per cent), Japan (3.7 per cent) and South Korea (1.8 per cent) are still signatories but don't have binding targets. Even the apparent successes of the first commitment period turn out to be not only modest but illusory: as Dieter Helm points out in *The Carbon Crunch*, Western Europe's 10 per cent reduction in emissions since 1990 is largely attributable to a decline in manufacturing. A lot of the energy generated in China's coal-fired power stations, which burn nearly as much of the black stuff as the rest of the world put together, is used to manufacture things for export to the West. We haven't really cut our emissions; we've just outsourced them. China is now pumping four times as much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as it was thirty years ago. There is a widely held view that if only China would stop burning coal, everything would be more or less OK (it's almost the only thing Helm and Clive Hamilton agree on). The government in Beijing said in February that China's coal burning will peak in the next two years. Maybe it will, maybe it won't. Nicholas Stern, who wrote a report on the economics of climate change for the British government in 2007, reckons the world would do well to take China at its word. 'Smart investors can already see that most fossil fuel reserves are essentially unburnable,' he wrote in the foreword to a recent report by the Carbon Tracker initiative and the LSE's Grantham Institute, if we are 'to avoid global warming of more than 2°C'.1<http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/thomas-jones/how-can-we-live-with-it?utm_sourc…> The report imagines that emissions targets will somehow be met, which means that up to 80 per cent of the vast quantities of fossil fuel reserves held as assets by publicly listed companies will lose all their value, and the huge sums currently being expended on finding new reserves will all be wasted: result, financial meltdown (again). It isn't hard, however, to turn the argument on its head: there's too much money at stake for those reserves not to be burned, so global warming of only 2°C is a pipedream.2<http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/thomas-jones/how-can-we-live-with-it?utm_sourc…> Either way, Beijing is apparently pouring money into renewable energy (hydroelectric, solar, wind, geothermal), as well as setting up an emissions trading scheme like the one the EU introduced in 2005. The idea behind an ETS is that power stations and factories are allocated a greenhouse gas emissions quota. If they emit less than their quota, they can sell the difference to a factory or power station that wants to emit more. A report in*Nature Climate Change* last autumn cautiously concluded that 'armed with powerful state machinery, China may be able to avoid some of the earlier failures of the EU ETS.' The European failures include handing out too many permits and giving them away rather than making companies pay for them. In April, the European Parliament voted against temporarily reducing the allowances (a reduction might have stimulated the flagging market): the economic slump means there's been very little demand for excess pollution rights. After the vote the carbon price fell even further. 'Some environmentalists,' the *Economist* said, 'fear that the whole edifice of European climate policy could start to crumble.' Others are hoping it will, so that something that works may be put in its place. * Helm, an economist and British government adviser (he's the chair of the Defra Natural Capital Committee and a member of the Economics Advisory Group to the secretary of state for energy and climate change), has a three-part proposal: switch from coal to gas; introduce a carbon tax to replace the ETS and apply it to imports to encourage other nations to get out of coal too; and invest in research into renewable energy. He almost makes it sound simple. Current renewables, he argues, simply aren't up to the task: he especially has it in for wind, quoting the dismaying statistic from David MacKay's *Sustainable Energy: Without the Hot Air* that a four-kilometre-wide belt of offshore windfarms all the way round the coast of Britain would provide less than an eighth of Britons' average daily energy consumption (according to official, conservative figures, which don't take imports into account).3<http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/thomas-jones/how-can-we-live-with-it?utm_sourc…> And nuclear power stations are just too slow to build, too unpopular and too expensive. [image: Felix Dennis Tour 2013]<http://ads.lrb.co.uk/www/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=656__zoneid=5…> So natural gas, which is half as polluting as coal, is the best - indeed the only realistic - 'transitionary option', Helm says, until a carbon-neutral alternative capable of meeting the world's growing energy demands is developed. He acknowledges some of the problems with gas, especially shale gas: leakages (methane is a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, though it doesn't stay in the atmosphere for nearly so long, ten years rather than hundreds); water pollution at fracking sites; the abundance, cheapness and greener-than-coal reputation of gas reducing or delaying incentives to develop genuinely green alternatives. But he shrugs them off, as lenient on them as he is unforgiving of the supposedly insurmountable difficulties with wind power. Other commentators (Bill McKibben is one) are less sanguine. And it is convenient, not to say suspicious, that Helm should be pushing gas as a solution to climate change, however 'transitionary', just as, in Barack Obama's words, 'we're producing more natural gas than ever before.' Helm doesn't make clear why current renewables, however imperfect, should be seen as an obstacle to the development of better alternatives and not as a 'transitionary' step in the right direction. It seems a bit like saying: 'No thank you, Mr Stephenson, you can keep your slow and inefficient steam locomotive; I'm waiting for the bullet train.' As for the form the bullet train could take, Helm won't hazard a guess. 'It is impossible to pick the winners in this technology race,' he says, noting po-faced that his 'email inbox is full of excited reports of the latest "breakthrough"'. 'The best we can do is identify classes of technologies that look like good prospects': including next generation solar (using, for example, carbon rather than silicon in photovoltaic cells), biotechnologies, nuclear and geothermal heat. The nuclear possibilities still include fusion, though Helm doesn't mention it. The amazing thing about fusion is that it doesn't produce radioactive waste or greenhouse gases, only helium, and it doesn't require nuclear fuel, only deuterium (a hydrogen isotope readily extractable from seawater) and a relatively small amount of lithium (already mined in large quantities for use in batteries). The really big problem is how to set up a fusion reaction that produces more energy than it consumes. That's what happens in stars, but creating the conditions for productive fusion on earth is far from easy. Three years ago, at Cadarache in south-east France, work started on the EURO 13 billion International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor: a joint venture by China, the EU, India, Japan, Korea, Russia and the US. The hope, when it eventually goes online (in 2020, supposedly), is that it will be able to generate ten times as much power as goes into it: 500 megawatts from 50. In order to do this it will have to reach temperatures of 150,000,000°C, ten times hotter than the middle of the sun. 'The goal of the ITER fusion programme,' its website says, 'is to produce a net gain of energy and set the stage for the demonstration fusion power plant to come.' Even if everything goes according to plan, large-scale electricity generation from nuclear fusion is a very long way off. Researchers at Lockheed Martin are working on a nippier approach that could, they say, 'be ready with a power plant in ten years' that 'would enable us to meet global electricity demands by around 2050, in time to have a significant impact on our climate.' But no one else seems to be holding their breath. As for biotechnologies, Helm mentions using algae to produce biodiesel. But that's the least of it. The Bioenergy Systems Research Institute at the University of Georgia announced in March that they'd found a way to 'remove plants as the middleman ... We can take carbon dioxide directly °from the atmosphere and turn it into useful products like fuels and chemicals without having to go through the inefficient process of growing plants and extracting sugars from biomass.'*Pyrococcus furiosus* ('rushing fireball'), discovered in the Aeolian Islands in 1986, is a micro-organism that thrives at high temperatures (around 100°C) near underwater geothermal vents. Organisms able to live in conditions that would kill most things - under extremes of temperature, pressure, acidity, radiation - are known as extremophiles. Bacteria known as snottites (the etymology is bluntly Anglo-Saxon) live in caves deep underground where they feed on hydrogen sulphide. Among the largest extremophiles are half-millimetre-long eight-legged animals called tardigrades. Johann Goeze, who first described the phylum in 1773, called it *kleiner Wasserbär* ('little water bear'); they're also known as moss piglets. More than a thousand species have since been identified, found everywhere from the seabed to the peaks of the Himalayas. The oldest tardigrade fossils date from 530 million years ago. They can survive for several minutes at 150°C or near absolute zero (and for several days at -200°C); endure both a vacuum and 6000 atmospheres of pressure; and tolerate levels of radiation a thousand times higher than would kill a human being. They've been taken up on space shuttles, exposed to open space for ten days and survived. According to a paper by a team of German researchers published in *Bioinformatics and Biology Insights* last year, the 'specific molecular pathways for stress adaptations' in tardigrades 'are partly conserved in other animals and their manipulation could boost stress adaptation even in human cells.' The mere existence of extremophiles (though 'mere' is hardly the word) is, in its way, bleakly comforting: evidence that life in some form seems bound to continue, whatever destruction humanity may wreak. But they offer more immediate grounds for hope. The researchers at UGA genetically modified *P. furiosus* to feed on carbon dioxide at much lower temperatures and, with the addition of some hydrogen, to produce 3-hydroxypropionic acid, a useful industrial chemical. Tinker with its genes in other ways and, in theory, you could have a micro-organism that would more or less guzzle CO2 and piss petrol. But not just yet. * Clive Hamilton, a professor of public ethics at Charles Sturt University, Canberra, is suspicious of 'the lure of the technofix'. In *Earthmasters*, between the handwringing ('for those who value civilised society and who are not willing to turn their faces away from the poorest and most vulnerable people of the world, the reasons to fret are numberless') and the awkward imagery ('I will suggest that climate engineering is the last battle in a titanic struggle between Prometheans and Soterians,' Soteria being 'the goddess of safety, preservation and deliverance from harm'), Hamilton gives a fairly thorough survey of schemes to counteract global warming through large-scale manipulation of the stratosphere or the oceans. As we're doing such a hopeless job of pumping less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, how about trying harder to suck some of it out? In the budget in March, George Osborne announced that the government intended to take 'two major carbon capture and storage projects to the next stage of development'. One of them, in the words of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, 'involves capturing around 90 per cent of the carbon dioxide from part' - how large a part it doesn't say - 'of the existing gas-fired power station at Peterhead before transporting it and storing it in a depleted gas field beneath the North Sea'. The other scheme 'involves capturing 90 per cent of the carbon dioxide from a new super-efficient coal-fired power station at the Drax site in North Yorkshire, before transporting and storing it in a saline aquifer beneath the southern North Sea'. The cynical view is that such projects - these two 'involve' private companies including Shell and BOC - are (skimpy) fig leaves for the fossil fuel industry. Two other projects are being held in reserve. 'A final investment decision will be taken by the government in early 2015 on the construction of up to two projects.' 'Up to two' could mean one. Or it could mean none. Whichever, it won't be nearly enough to have a discernible effect on Britain's emissions, let alone global atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Other, more ambitious carbon sequestration schemes are based on the idea that, given a little chemical encouragement, other species could do the capture and storage for us. Twenty-five years ago, one of the 11-year-olds in my science class asked our teacher why 'they' didn't invent machines to suck carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. 'They have,' Mr Cooney replied. 'They're called trees.' But trees are slow growing, and vulnerable to fire and chainsaws, and when they rot or burn the carbon they've captured and stored is released back into the atmosphere. Half the oxygen in the atmosphere is produced by photosynthesis not in trees but in phytoplankton. They reproduce incredibly fast and, when they die, some of the carbon they've taken from the air eventually sinks to the ocean floor (passing through the bodies of a series of larger creatures along the way), where it will remain for possibly thousands of years. Phytoplankton blooms can be encouraged by fertilising the seas with iron (they can't photosynthesise without it). This happens naturally when high winds blow iron-rich dust from the land out to sea. Or it can be done artificially by spraying a few thousand litres of iron sulphate solution off the back of a boat. Several experiments have been carried out to determine how effective this is as a way of taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere for the long term: probably not very, because far less carbon than was hoped actually tends to sink to the seabed, though it depends where the experiment is carried out (phytoplankton with shells, which can only grow if there's silicon in the water to make their shells from, sink better than those without). And iron fertilisation has any number of unintended and unpredictable consequences for marine ecosystems. But none of that stopped Russ George - a Californian businessman variously described as a 'geo-vigilante', 'rogue geoengineer' or 'climate hacker'; he calls himself 'a translator of science into application' - from discharging a hundred tonnes of iron sulphate, far more than any previous experiment had used, into the Pacific last summer. It produced a phytoplankton bloom over 4000 square miles of ocean. Beyond that, the effects are as yet unknown. Another possibility, instead of taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, is to turn down the heat, using what's known as 'solar radiation management'. The term was coined by Ken Caldeira, an atmospheric scientist at the Carnegie Institute, who told Hamilton he came up with it while organising a workshop with Nasa in 2006 and wanted a 'boring sounding name' that wouldn't scare bureaucrats who were 'queasy' about 'geoengineering'. Worried about the negative connotations of the word 'radiation', Caldeira later suggested that the acronym SRM stood for 'sunlight reflection methods'. The more visible sunlight that is reflected back into space, the less there is to be absorbed by the earth and re-emitted as lower frequency infrared radiation, which is what's absorbed and re-emitted into the atmosphere by greenhouse gases. One of the many reasons the melting of ice sheets, ice-caps and glaciers is such bad news is that ice and snow are highly reflective - it's the reason they look white to us - and rocks are not: less ice means less reflected sunlight means more warming. Proposed artificial sunlight reflection methods include launching giant mirrors into space, making clouds brighter by spraying seawater into the air (clouds are formed when water vapour condenses on tiny particles of dust, say, or soot, or sea salt; more salt in the air means denser clouds; denser clouds reflect more light), and spraying sulphates into the stratosphere. Large volcanic eruptions - Mount Laki in 1783, Mount Tabora in 1815 (1816 was 'the year without a summer'), Mount Pinatubo in 1991 - can send enough ash into the stratosphere to bring the average temperature down significantly: by 0.5°C during the year after Mount Pinatubo. Rather than waiting for the next volcano, we could spray sulphates into the stratosphere using planes, or even a giant hose. 'Stratospheric aerosol spraying is the archetypal geoengineering technique,' Hamilton writes. 'It would be easy, effective and cheap, and have the most far-reaching implications for life on earth.' The two big problems with geoengineering are, first, that interfering with vast, complex and poorly understood systems may well have unforeseen and potentially disastrous consequences, though that has to be weighed against the fact that simply carrying on as we are has consequences that are largely foreseeable and certainly disastrous; and, second, moral hazard: if the symptoms of global warming can be relieved by geoengineering, there's even less incentive for greenhouse gas emitters to do anything about the cause. Hamilton quotes a study that models what would happen if carbon emissions continued to rise at their present rate, but solar radiation management were used to offset the global warming between 2020 and 2059 and then for whatever reason abruptly stopped: temperatures would soar, and we - and other species - would have to (or in many cases fail to) adapt to the surge over ten years rather than fifty. Hamilton hazily worries that geoengineering crosses some kind of line in humanity's relationship with 'nature', though you could just as well argue that our ancestors crossed that line when they first struck flint to pyrite over tinder tens of thousands of years ago. 'There is something deeply perverse,' Hamilton writes, 'in the demand that we construct an immense industrial infrastructure in order to deal with the carbon emissions from another immense industrial infrastructure, when we could just stop burning fossil fuels.' But, actually, we couldn't. Not because it would be too expensive, and not only because billions of people would promptly die - from starvation, disease, cold, heat - but also, as Hamilton observes elsewhere in*Earthmasters*, because one immediate effect would be a sharp rise in global temperature. One of the effects of burning fossil fuels is the maintenance of a thick haze of sulphate aerosols in the atmosphere, which keeps the sunlight out and the temperature down. Sulphates last only weeks in the atmosphere; carbon dioxide endures for centuries. We are in a multiple bind. Both emissions and atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases need to be severely reduced. Cutting one without the other would be either fruitless in the long term or dangerous in the short term. We may well need to find other ways to keep the temperature down without fooling ourselves into believing we've made the problem go away. And we need to do all these things at the same time. * But who are 'we'? Who will - who can - do what is required? Neither the 'international community' nor such enterprising individuals as Russ George are in a position to save the planet (not that 'the planet' per se is in any need of saving, not even from the people who want to cool it down by shifting its orbit further from the sun using nuclear missiles and asteroids; just some of the lifeforms clinging to or scurrying around on its surface). The problem is so vast that it seems beyond anyone's individual or collective power to do anything about it. The theme of Earth Day 2013 on 22 April was 'The Face of Climate Change', an attempt to 'personalise the massive challenge climate change presents'. Another way of putting it would be to say that everybody needs to start looking at climate change as a local as well as a global problem. This may or may not have been what the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change meant when she said earlier this month at the end of a 'very productive week' of talks in Bonn that 'there is a growing realisation that this cannot be done exclusively by governments.' Carbon dioxide, wherever it may be emitted, is evenly distributed around the globe. But warming isn't. (Britain's recent cold winters don't disprove anything: they may well be caused by melting Arctic sea ice.) Brian Stone points out in *The City and the Coming Climate* that cities are getting hotter faster than anywhere else - so much so that they're often excluded from calculations of average global warming as statistical outliers. But more than half the people in the world now live in cities, and the proportion is set to increase to 70 per cent by 2050. The infrastructure that cities depend on is far more fragile than we care to think about. In August 2003, a short circuit on a power line in rural Ohio left 55 million people in the north-eastern United States without electricity. Stone begins his book with a riveting account of the devastating heatwave that swept over Europe ten years ago, when a temperature of 100ºF was recorded for the first time ever in the UK: In all, the EU estimated that more than 70,000 citizens of 12 countries died from heat-induced illnesses over a four-month period in the summer of 2003. This number represents more fatalities than have resulted from any EU or American conflict since World War Two or any natural disaster (e.g., hurricanes, earthquakes and floods) to have ever struck a developed nation. It dwarfs the 1800 deaths attributed to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and effectively renders trivial the 900 lives lost during the highly publicised Sars epidemic that struck in the same year as the heatwave ... Americans would need to experience more than 20 terrorist attacks equivalent in destruction to 9/11 before such a death toll would be approached. Yet the global response to this climate event, an event that reveals more about the profoundly changing environment in which we now live than any other yet endured, has largely been one of indifference. The reasons for the indifference aren't unobvious: the slow burn of a heatwave is less dramatic than a hurricane, an earthquake, a flood or a terrorist attack; most of the victims were old and many of them unidentified, buried in unmarked graves; the death toll is calculated by counting excess deaths, comparing the number of people who died during the heatwave with the number in previous years, so it's possible to say how many were killed, but not who they were. Heatwaves resist personalisation. 'Cities do not cause heatwaves,' Stone writes, 'they amplify them.' At the peak of a heatwave in July 1999, Chicago was more than 6ºF warmer than rural Illinois. The urban heat island effect was first documented in 1818, when Luke Howard, an amateur meteorologist, took a series of temperature measurements in and around London which showed that the city was on average 4°F warmer than the surrounding countryside. It's partly down to human activity (from driving to cooking to air-conditioning to breathing), partly because cities tend to be built from materials that are really bad at reflecting sunlight (tarmac's especially terrible), and partly because of the lack of trees. It takes a certain amount of energy to turn a liquid into a gas. When water evaporates, its molecules absorb heat from the surroundings: that's why sweating cools you down. The heat is then 'locked up', as Stone puts it, in the water vapour. Plants don't sweat, they transpire; but the principle, as far as water's concerned, is the same. So trees mitigate global warming not only by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere but also by cooling the earth down. Yet the emphasis on greenhouse gases in UN legislation means that planting or preserving trees gets you negligible points under the Kyoto Protocol, because of the uncertainty as to how long the carbon they take out of the atmosphere will be sequestered for. Even though, in Stone's words, 'a cessation of rainforest destruction in just two countries, Brazil and Indonesia, would by itself bring the world four-fifths of the way to meeting the cumulative targets of the Kyoto Protocol.' The difference trees make is demonstrated by a 2003 study that modelled the effects of reforesting the Sahara (there were trees there five thousand years ago). 'In theory,' Stone says, 'a Saharan subtropical forest could absorb enough CO2 each year to cease altogether greenhouse-driven climate change, and it could do so without the decommissioning of a single power plant.' Though it would require a logistically daunting and tremendously expensive network of desalination plants and irrigation pipes across a dozen of the world's politically less stable countries. More modestly, Stone recommends changes in global policy to focus on land-use management as well as carbon emissions (on turning the heat down under the saucepan as well as taking the lid off, to use one of his analogies), and a shift in urban planning towards densely populated cities with plenty of trees and good public transport systems, surrounded by forests rather than suburban sprawl. What's not to like? Local improvements in urban planning also have the advantage that they stand a realistic chance of being implemented, certainly compared to the prospect of united global action*.* The smothering pollution in Chinese cities is one of the major incentives for the government in Beijing to set about reducing carbon emissions. One of the 20th century's more effective pieces of environmental legislation was the 1956 Clean Air Act, a response to the great smog of 1952 that killed as many as 12,000 Londoners. Atlanta (Stone teaches at Georgia Tech) introduced a 'no net tree loss' policy a few years ago, but it's still a work in progress: 15,000 trees are cut down in the city each year; only 3000 are planted to replace them. Stone urges the adoption of 'mitigation strategies that yield concurrent adaptive benefits'. Examples of the opposite - adaptation without mitigation - are easier to come by. In 2004, Tim Flannery said that 'there is a fair chance Perth will be the 21st century's first ghost metropolis' because of the threat to its freshwater supply. The capital of Western Australia has since then opened one desalination plant, powered by wind turbines, and is in the process of setting up a second, much larger one, driven by coal. 'The benefits to Perth are direct and immediate (new water) and the harms are diffuse and intergenerational,' Robert Glennon wrote in *National Geographic* last year. 'That's what makes climate change such an intractable problem.' * There's no immediate need for desalination in Britain. But ahead of the UK National Adaptation Programme that will be published later this year, Defra last year released the first of its new five-yearly Climate Change Risk Assessments.4<http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/thomas-jones/how-can-we-live-with-it?utm_sourc…> It outlines the 'priorities for adaptation' under five 'themes' (Agriculture & Forestry; Business and Services; Health & Wellbeing; Buildings & Infrastructure; Natural Environment) and considers not only the risks associated with climate change - flooding, drought, supply chain disruption, flooding, disease, higher energy demand, flooding and more flooding - but possible opportunities, too: under the business theme, for example, there is hope for a 'possible increase in market opportunities such as tourism and leisure industry' (presumably this means luring the codswallopers back to a warmer, sunnier Whitby, even if most of the beach will have disappeared under the North Sea). Now there's a reason to look on the bright side. There are more detailed ideas in the Environment Agency's action plan for the Thames Estuary. The 'assets and people at risk in the tidal Thames floodplain' include 135 square miles of land, 1.25 million residents, 500,000 homes and 40,000 businesses with a combined property value of £200 billion, 400 schools, 16 hospitals, eight power stations, more than a thousand electricity substations, four World Heritage Sites, 35 Tube stations, 51 railway stations, more than a hundred miles of railway and 200 miles of road. In its first decade of operation, between 1982 and 1992, the Thames Barrier was closed 11 times. Between 1999 and 2009, it was closed 81 times. The current worst-case scenario is a rise in maximum water levels by 2100 of 2.7 metres (revised down from a previous estimate of 4.2 metres; it may yet be revised up again), which means that the Thames Barrier and 'associated defences' will need 'significant improvements' from 2035: not least, embankments and flood defences will have to be made higher. 'Major changes to the structure of the system will not be needed until much later in the century - under the government's current climate change guidance new arrangements must be in place by 2070.' Those new arrangements will have to be settled on by 2050. Under current plans they will include either replacing the current barrier at Woolwich or building a new one at Long Reach or Tilbury. The outlook may not be so bad for American and British cities. But the news that there are ways for the global North and West to adapt to and tolerate global warming is hardly reassuring for, say, the 12 million residents of Dhaka, which faces a much greater risk of flooding and has far less money to spend on defences. A paper published in *Natural Hazards* last year comparing the vulnerability to flooding of nine cities found - unsurprisingly, but it's useful to have it quantified - that Shanghai, Dhaka and Calcutta were far more vulnerable than Rotterdam, Marseille and Osaka. The director of the Research Institute of Global Climate and Ecology at the Russian Academy of Sciences, according to Hamilton, has said that 'it would be cheaper to resettle Bangladeshis threatened by sea-level rise' than to adhere to the Kyoto Protocol - and cheaper still to do neither. A recent Unicef briefing reiterated the obvious but important point that the world's poorest children are the most vulnerable to climate change. The report's recommendations include 'providing crops that are more drought resistant to smallholder families in areas that are increasingly prone to drought.' Unicef doesn't spell it out, but drought-resistant crops probably means genetically modified crops. One way to make crops hardier is using genes from tougher organisms like *Pyrococcus furiosus*. The International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines recently announced that it had developed a new kind of 'super salt-tolerant' rice by crossing two very different strains, one of them a wild species that 'is extremely difficult to cross with cultivated rice varieties'. If last year is anything to go by, British farmers are going to need new varieties of winter wheat that are more tolerant of cold and flooding. But last year may not be anything to go by. One of the difficulties with trying to adapt to climate change is that while the long-term average global effects seem to be fairly predictable, local and temporary effects are not. Depending on how you tweak the models, rainfall in Kansas, for example, could increase or decrease by more than 40 per cent by 2060, or stay roughly the same as it is now. That's quite a range of possibilities. Britain in the last ten years has seen severe heatwaves and extremely cold winters, periods of drought and serious flooding. It's hard to say which are the greatest long-term threats locally, which is a reason people talk about 'adaptive capacity': in other words, we need to prepare to be prepared. Policymakers aren't entirely to blame for the frustrating vagueness of their proposals, which often seem to consist of no more than a commitment to look at the situation again in a few years' time. Perhaps the best we can hope for is that somehow - using some of the technologies and policies I've discussed here, and some of the many I've overlooked - we'll muddle through. But only if we slow climate change to a rate that we, like other organisms that evolved when the world was mild, can adapt to. If we don't, we may indeed be doomed. And*Pyrococcus furiosus*, which needs us a lot less than we may need it, will inherit the earth. We hope you enjoyed reading this free book review from the *London Review of Books*. Subscribe now to access every article from every fortnightly issue of the *London Review of Books*, including the entire LRB archive of over 12,500 essays and reviews.<http://ads.lrb.co.uk/www/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=552__zoneid=1…> The print edition of the *London Review of Books* in which this book review appears<http://www.lrbshop.co.uk/product.php?productid=63015&utm_source=LRB&utm_med…> and a downloadable PDF version of this book review<http://www.lrbshop.co.uk/product.php?productid=62997&utm_source=LRB&utm_med…> are also available for purchase from the*London Review Bookshop*. Contact us<http://www.lrb.co.uk/contacts> for rights and issues enquiries. facebook - - 64 - twitter - - 35 - share - - email - letter - cite - print - More from this issue <http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/contents> >> - More by this contributor<http://www.lrb.co.uk/contributors/thomas-jones> >> [image: Subscribe to the London Review of Books]<http://ads.lrb.co.uk/www/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=612__zoneid=3…> [image: Combined Academic Publishers]<http://ads.lrb.co.uk/www/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=659__zoneid=4…> ISSN 0260-9592 Copyright <http://www.lrb.co.uk/copyright> (c) LRB Ltd., 1997-2013 | Send Us Feedback <http://www.lrb.co.uk/feedbackform> ^ Top<http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/thomas-jones/how-can-we-live-with-it?utm_sourc…> | Mobile website<http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n10/thomas-jones/how-can-we-live-with-it?utm_sourc…> | Librarians <http://www.lrb.co.uk/librarian> | Copyright<http://www.lrb.co.uk/copyright> | Terms & Conditions <http://www.lrb.co.uk/terms> | Privacy<http://www.lrb.co.uk/privacy> | Sitemap <http://www.lrb.co.uk/sitemap> | Acce<http://www.lrb.co.uk/accessibility> ssibility <http://www.lrb.co.uk/accessibility> -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Join us for "Beyond Coal Campaign - We're Halfway There! What's Next?"
by Paul Wilson 15 May '13

15 May '13

fyi, paul w. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Becki Clayborn <becki.clayborn(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Tue, May 14, 2013 at 6:30 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] Join us for "Beyond Coal Campaign - We're Halfway There! What's Next?" To: #Coal-Volunteers <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> Beyond Coal Campaign - We're Halfway There! What's Next? Join us for a Volunteer Webinar on May 28th at 8pm ET / 7pm CT / 6pm MT / 5pm PT! <https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/165438239> The Beyond Coal Campaign set out to retire 105,000MW’s of coal fired electricity by 2020 – and according to the commitments we have secured - we're half way there! This webinar will highlight how we secured those MW retirements and the campaign’s strategic thinking heading into the second half of MW’s targeted. Join this webinar to hear the vision strategy and outlook for the next stage of the Beyond Coal Campaign from Mary Anne Hitt, Campaign Director and Verena Owen, Campaign Volunteer Lead. Q&A will be held at the end. Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/165438239 *Title:* Beyond Coal Campaign - We're Halfway There! What's Next? *Date:* Tuesday, May 28, 2013 *Time:* 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM CDT After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar. *System Requirements* PC-based attendees Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server Mac®-based attendees Required: Mac OS® X 10.6 or newer Mobile attendees Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet -- Becki Clayborn Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign Internal Capacities and Communications Coordinator Chicago, IL 312-251-1680 630-881-3480 (cell) -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ To sign up for this list, email becki.clayborn(a)sierraclub.org with the subject and message "SUBSCRIBE #coal-volunteer" --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Is Mon Power Trying to Stick Customers With a White Elephant?
by Paul Wilson 14 May '13

14 May '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <newsservice(a)newsservicemail.org> Date: Mon, May 13, 2013 at 3:13 AM Subject: WVNS story: Is Mon Power Trying to Stick Customers With a White Elephant? To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Is Mon Power Trying to Stick Customers With a White Elephant? Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32433-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (05/13/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Consumer advocates say Mon Power is trying to stick ratepayers with an overpriced white elephant, in a deal that would benefit another subsidiary of FirstEnergy. The utility has asked the Public Service Commission to let it buy 80 percent of the huge Harrison power plant from sister company Allegheny Energy Supply. With natural gas cheaper than coal, said Cathy Kunkel, a policy analyst for Energy Efficient West Virginia, the Harrison plant is not as cost efficient. FirstEnergy wants to shift the liability from a out-of-state subsidiary that would have to eat the cost to Mon Power, which would stick ratepayers for it, Kunkel said, adding that the sale price is way too high. "Every utility in the country right now basically is running away from coal towards natural gas," she said. "Coal plants have been going for about a quarter of the price that Allegheny Energy Supply wants to sell Harrison for." Kunkel said Mon Power would be paying too much for generating capacity for which it doesn't have nearly the demand. "Buying the Harrison plant is way more energy and capacity than the company even needs," she said. "If they buy this plant, they're going to have excess energy and capacity for more than 10 years into the future." A properly designed energy conservation program actually could make money for the company while reducing customers' bills, Kunkel said. That would be a lot smarter than paying too much for a generating station that has serious competitive disadvantages, she said. "Around the country, time and again, we've seen that those sorts of energy-efficiency investments are actually much cheaper than investments in new generating capacity," she said. The company says the Harrison County plant would give it more predictable future power costs. However, Kunkel said most projections are that gas will stay cheap at least through 2020. The PSC will hold hearings on the case May 29-31. The case number is 12-1571-E-PC. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32433-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32433-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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400 parts per billion......
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 11 May '13

11 May '13

[image: The New York Times] <http://www.nytimes.com/> ------------------------------ http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/11/science/earth/carbon-dioxide-level-passes… May 10, 2013 Heat-Trapping Gas Passes Milestone, Raising Fears By JUSTIN GILLIS<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/g/justin_gillis/…> The level of the most important heat-trapping gas in the atmosphere, carbon dioxide, has passed a long-feared milestone, scientists reported Friday, reaching a concentration not seen on the earth for millions of years. Scientific instruments showed that the gas had reached an average daily level above 400 parts per million — just an odometer moment in one sense, but also a sobering reminder that decades of efforts to bring human-produced emissions under control are faltering. The best available evidence suggests the amount of the gas in the air has not been this high for at least three million years, before humans evolved, and scientists believe the rise portends large changes in the climate and the level of the sea. “It symbolizes that so far we have failed miserably in tackling this problem,” said Pieter P. Tans, who runs the monitoring program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that reported the new reading. Ralph Keeling, who runs another monitoring program at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography <http://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu/> in San Diego, said a continuing rise could be catastrophic. “It means we are quickly losing the possibility of keeping the climate below what people thought were possibly tolerable thresholds,” he said. Virtually every automobile ride, every plane trip and, in most places, every flip of a light switch adds carbon dioxide to the air, and relatively little money is being spent to find and deploy alternative technologies. China is now the largest emitter, but Americans have been consuming fossil fuels extensively for far longer, and experts say the United States is more responsible than any other nation for the high level. The new measurement came from analyzers atop Mauna Loa<http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/22/science/earth/22carbon.html?pagewanted=al…>, the volcano on the big island of Hawaii that has long been ground zero for monitoring the worldwide trend on carbon dioxide, or CO2. Devices there sample <http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/weekly.html> clean, crisp air that has blown thousands of miles across the Pacific Ocean, producing a record of rising carbon dioxide levels that has been closely tracked for half a century. Carbon dioxide above 400 parts per million was first seen in the Arctic last year, and had also spiked above that level in hourly readings at Mauna Loa. But the average reading for an entire day surpassed that level at Mauna Loa for the first time in the 24 hours that ended at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Thursday. The two monitoring programs use slightly different protocols; NOAA reported an average for the period of 400.03 parts per million, while Scripps reported 400.08. Carbon dioxide rises and falls on a seasonal cycle, and the level will dip below 400 this summer as leaf growth in the Northern Hemisphere pulls about 10 billion tons of carbon out of the air. But experts say that will be a brief reprieve — the moment is approaching when no measurement of the ambient air anywhere on earth, in any season, will produce a reading below 400. “It feels like the inevitable march toward disaster,” said Maureen E. Raymo, a scientist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, a unit of Columbia University. >From studying air bubbles trapped in Antarctic ice, scientists know that going back 800,000 years, the carbon dioxide level oscillated in a tight band, from about 180 parts per million in the depths of ice ages to about 280 during the warm periods between. The evidence shows that global temperatures and CO2 levels are tightly linked. For the entire period of human civilization, roughly 8,000 years, the carbon dioxide level was relatively stable near that upper bound. But the burning of fossil fuels has caused a 41 percent increase in the heat-trapping gas since the Industrial Revolution, a mere geological instant, and scientists say the climate is beginning to react, though they expect far larger changes in the future. Indirect measurements suggest that the last time the carbon dioxide level was this high was at least three million years ago, during an epoch called the Pliocene. Geological research shows that the climate then was far warmer than today, the world’s ice caps were smaller, and the sea level might have been as much as 60 or 80 feet higher. Experts fear that humanity may be precipitating a return to such conditions — except this time, billions of people are in harm’s way. “It takes a long time to melt ice, but we’re doing it,” Dr. Keeling said. “It’s scary.” Dr. Keeling’s father, Charles David Keeling, began carbon dioxide measurements on Mauna Loa and at other locations in the late 1950s. The elder Dr. Keeling found a level in the air then of about 315 parts per million — meaning that if a person had filled a million quart jars with air, about 315 quart jars of carbon dioxide would have been mixed in. His analysis revealed a relentless, long-term increase superimposed on the seasonal cycle, a trend that was dubbed the Keeling Curve<http://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu/>. Countries have adopted an official target to limit the damage from global warming, with 450 parts per million seen as the maximum level compatible with that goal. “Unless things slow down, we’ll probably get there in well under 25 years,” Ralph Keeling said. Yet many countries, including China and the United States, have refused to adopt binding national targets. Scientists say that unless far greater efforts are made soon, the goal of limiting the warming will become impossible without severe economic disruption. “If you start turning the Titanic long before you hit the iceberg, you can go clear without even spilling a drink of a passenger on deck,” said Richard B. Alley, a climate scientist at Pennsylvania State University. “If you wait until you’re really close, spilling a lot of drinks is the best you can hope for.” Climate-change contrarians, who have little scientific credibility but are politically influential in Washington, point out that carbon dioxide represents only a tiny fraction of the air — as of Thursday’s reading, exactly 0.04 percent. “The CO2 levels in the atmosphere are rather undramatic,” a Republican congressman from California, Dana Rohrabacher, said in a Congressional hearing several years ago. But climate scientists reject that argument, saying it is like claiming that a tiny bit of arsenic or cobra venom cannot have much effect. Research shows that even at such low levels, carbon dioxide is potent at trapping heat near the surface of the earth. “If you’re looking to stave off climate perturbations that I don’t believe our culture is ready to adapt to, then significant reductions in CO2emissions have to occur right away,” said Mark Pagani, a Yale geochemist who studies climates of the past. “I feel like the time to do something was yesterday.” This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: *Correction: May 10, 2013* An earlier version of this article misstated the amount of carbon dioxide in the air as of Thursday’s reading from monitors. It is .04 percent, not .0004 percent. -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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Fwd: WVNS story: Fight Over Clean Water Rules
by Paul Wilson 11 May '13

11 May '13

FYI. Paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Public News Service" <newsservice(a)newsservicemail.org> Date: May 10, 2013 3:05 AM Subject: WVNS story: Fight Over Clean Water Rules To: "PaulWilson" <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Cc: Fight Over Clean Water Rules Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32354-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (05/10/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Congressional Republicans want to force the Environmental Protection Agency to loosen clean water laws, but coalfield residents say their water is too polluted now. Republicans, including Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Rep. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, are backing a bill that would force the EPA to act on coal mining permits or have them approved automatically. But coalfield residents say pollution from the mines already threatens their health. Bo Webb of Peachtree Creek in Raleigh County, W.Va., says in the last year and a half, 14 people in that small community have found they have cancer, including his wife. "I got home on December the 1st, my wife wasn't feeling good,” he recalls. “And we went to the doctor, and she'd thrown up some blood. And the doctor called, so we went in. And my wife had cancer. Then on March 3rd she died. And so, it takes its toll." The Republicans say the EPA is sitting on permits in a back-door attempt to shut down coalmines, part of what they call a "war on coal." Meanwhile coalfield residents are bringing gallons of brown and red water to Congress to show what they drink, cook and wash with. The GOP bill, known as the Coal Jobs Protection Act, has the backing of coal industry associations and a variety of business groups. But Ada Smith of Whitesburg, Ky. says the focus should be more about overall job diversification in the region. "I think that most people understand that coal isn't going to be the number one source of employment,” she says. “It hasn't been for a really long time." Many citizen and environmental groups say the clean water that coalfield residents depend on is at risk of being sacrificed for mine company profits. Sue Tallichet, a member of the grassroots citizens group Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, calls the legislation "a bailout for coal." "McConnell's bill is very deceiving in that, it's even called the Coal Job Protection Act,” she argues. “They're not protecting jobs and miners – they're protecting profits." Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32354-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32354-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line.

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Food, Farms, Forests and Fracking: Connecting the Dots
by Beth Little 09 May '13

09 May '13

http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_27489.cfm

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Fracking fracas over Smokey Bear
by Beth Little 09 May '13

09 May '13

http://inthesetimes.com/uprising/entry/14955/smokey_the_bear_anti_fracking_i nsurgent/ John, The Mon is mentioned in this article - specifically the disaster at the Fernow. The article mentions that the artist who created "Only you can prevent faucet fires" wants/needs support from other groups in her legal battle. Maybe we can put a picture in the Voice along with an article. Here's more: http://williamahuston.blogspot.com/2013/05/dont-look-you-may-be-party-to-cri me.html

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Fwd: Report: More US C02 reductions from EE than Switching in Nat Gas
by James Kotcon 08 May '13

08 May '13

For those who still think natural gas is a way to reduce greenhouse gases, join the EE campaign team. Lower your bills, create thousands of jobs, and save the planet! Jim Kotcon ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jennifer Miller <jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Thu, May 2, 2013 at 12:50 PM Subject: Report: More US C02 reductions from EE than Switching in Nat Gas To: CONS-FRED(a)lists.sierraclub.org http://co2scorecard.org/home/researchitem/27 "Energy related CO2 emissions in the US fell by 205 million metric tons in 2012. CO2 Scorecard breaks it down and shows that nearly 75% of the decline is accounted for by demand reduction primarily due to the economy-wide energy efficiency and conservation measures in the transportation, residential and commercial sectors; the mild winter in the first quarter of 2012 also gave a helping hand." -- Jen Miller (614)563-9543 ( tel:%28614%29563-9543 ) Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign

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Re: [EC] Power purchase agreements - bringing rooftop solar
by Jim Sconyers 05 May '13

05 May '13

Very interesting discussion of PPAs 3rd party power purchase agreements. Bringing more rooftop solar. On May 3, 2013 8:18 AM, "Ivy Main" <ivymain(a)cox.net> wrote: > Jim, the discussion of the PPA is here: powerforthepeopleva.com. > > Ivy Main > 703-967-2876 > >

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THE PROPHETS OF OAK RIDGE.
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 02 May '13

02 May '13

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/style/2013/04/29/the-prophets-of-oak-ridge… THE PROPHETS OF OAK RIDGE Last summer, in the dead of night, three peace activists penetrated the exterior of Y-12 in Tennessee, supposedly one of the most secure nuclear-weapons facilities in the United States. A drifter, an 82-year-old nun and a house painter. They face trial next week on charges that fall under the sabotage section of the U.S. criminal code. And if they had been terrorists armed with explosives, intent on mass destruction? That nightmare scenario underlies the government’s response to the intrusion. This is the story of two competing worldviews, of conscience vs. court, of fantasy vs. reality, of history vs. the future. CHAPTER 1 Mission *The devil was* just over Pine Ridge. >From the deserted parking lot on the edge of town, the three servants of God looked into darkness. They clicked on their flashlights, pushed through the initial thicket of brush and began their trek, aiming for the black wooded slope. First, the house painter: bearded, calm, quiet. Second, the Catholic nun: gentle, grandmotherly, short of breath. Third, the drifter: alert, intense, shouldering supplies. They crept across the marshy field, led by some combination of God and Google Maps. Behind them was the city of Oak Ridge, Tenn., 30 minutes west of Knoxville. On the other side of Pine Ridge was Bear Creek Valley — cradle of the Y-12 National Security Complex, the “Fort Knox of Uranium,” birthplace of the heart of the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima 67 years earlier. It was, the house painter would later recall, as if the Almighty were guiding each step, across 1,000 feet of open field and up an embankment. By 3 a.m. on Saturday, July 28, 2012, two career peace activists, with eight years jail time between them, and an 82-year-old nun had reached the first obstacle in their two-hour, one-mile hike toward one of the country’s most secure nuclear facilities. A six-foot chain-link boundary fence bordered a gravel patrol road. Strung along the fence were yellow “No Trespassing” placards threatening a $100,000 fine and up to one year in prison. The house painter gripped a pair of bolt cutters, fixed the jaws around a link and squeezed. He cut links in three lines, then opened the new flap. No alarm. No patrol cars. The nun went through first. After the two men followed her, they closed the fence with twine, crossed the patrol road and began the 40-degree ascent to the dark crest of the ridge. The crime had started, which meant they were one step closer to justice. One step closer to rattling the Department of Energy. One step closer to assailing the nation’s storied nuclear identity. One step closer to changing their lives and the lives of the people on the other side of the slope — including the first man they would meet once they cut through three more fences and entered the kill zone. John Hendrix, an ascetic who lived in East Tennesse during the early part of the 20th century, was nicknamed the Prophet of Oak Ridge after his death. His grave is located near the Y-12 National Security Complex. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 2 ‘… and the earth will shake’ *In those same* woods, around 1900, a middle-aged ascetic named John Hendrix gazed up at the sky and heard a voice like a clap of thunder. The voice told Hendrix to sleep in the woods for 40 nights. So he did. And he had a vision of the future, according to “The Oak Ridge Story<http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1440051658/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=17…>,” a 1950 book by George O. Robinson Jr. “And I tell you,” Hendrix said to his farming community after his retreat, “Bear Creek Valley some day will be filled with great buildings and factories and they will help toward winning the greatest war that ever will be. . . . They will be building things and there will be great noise and confusion and the earth will shake.” Hendrix often summited Pine Ridge, Robinson wrote, to pray over the vista of peach orchards and log cabins. “I’ve seen it,” was his refrain. “It’s coming.” On Nov. 11, 1942, decades after Hendrix’s death, a letter from the government arrived at the home of his son: “The War Department intends to take possession of your farm Dec. 1, 1942. . . . Your fullest cooperation will be a material aid to the War Effort.” The government paid Curtis Allen Hendrix $850 for his 60-acre farm, which would be overtaken by the Manhattan Project, the country’s race to build an atomic bomb before Hitler did. Three thousand homesteaders were displaced by the government, which then built a city from scratch by laying 200 miles of road, constructing 44,000 dwelling units and importing 75,000 workers: steelmen from Pennsylvania, machinists and woodworkers from Michigan, riveters and physicists and stenographers and chemists from coast to coast. The 14-square-mile “Secret City” of Oak Ridge was forested with billboards that said “Keep mum about this job” and “We will win in ’44 with your help.” Click or press to view full image Scores of East Tennessee high school girls were trained to operate the dials on complex machinery at the Y-12 site. They didn’t know that each flick of their wrists aided the gram-by-gram production of U-235, the uranium isotope that can sustain the chain reaction of fission necessary to create a nuclear explosion. The science seems simple enough: When a neutron strikes the nucleus of a U-235 atom, the nucleus splits and releases thermal energy and more neutrons, which in turn strike and split more uranium nuclei, and on and on, in an instant, until . . . The biggest boom, from the smallest of particles. Around the clock for 18 months, the Secret City hummed and hustled. Hendrix, his vision borne out, was posthumously deemed the Prophet of Oak Ridge. For most townspeople, the full nature of their mission became clear only in bold newspaper ink on Aug. 6, 1945. “ATOMIC SUPER-BOMB, MADE AT OAK RIDGE, STRIKES JAPAN,” announced the Knoxville News-Sentinel. Sunset at the Y-12 National Security Complex, where weapons-grade uranium is stored and processed. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 3 Sabotage *It was into* this land and history that outsiders intruded 67 years later: Sister Megan Gillespie Rice, now 83; drifter Michael Robin Walli, now 64; and house painter Gregory Irwin Boertje-Obed, 57. They, like Hendrix, had a vision. They, like Hendrix, can come off a little batty. Michael, though fiercely intelligent, often departs on tirades about the Antichrist. Sister Megan, adamant about not harming any living thing, vowed that if they were attacked by guard dogs inside the complex she would not even raise her hands in self-defense. Greg is so meek in demeanor that it’s hard to imagine him wielding cutlery, let alone bolt cutters. Hendrix envisioned the improbable construction of a wartime city. Michael, Sister Megan and Greg envision its improbable dismantlement. With elbow grease and blind faith, they would make a symbolic incursion to defeat the site’s $150 million-a-year security operation. They would mortify the nation’s nuclear weapons programs, which since 1940 has cost at least $9.8 trillion in 2013 dollars — costlier than all other government expenditures except Social Security and non-nuclear defense programs, according to nuclear weapons policy analyst Stephen Schwartz’s recent update of his1998 Brookings Institution audit<http://www.brookings.edu/research/books/1998/atomic> . In short: Nuclear weapons have been the United States’ third-highest national priority since World War II, in terms of dollars, and we spend a fortune every year to manage and secure them. Yet a crucial facility in this nuclear enterprise “wasn’t even nun-proofed, much less terrorist-proofed,” as a Tennessee congressman would put it in a February hearing on the break-in, which shut down Y-12 site operations for two weeks. This is how Congress describes the intrusion and fallout: “Embarrassing.” “Astonishing.” “Unprecedented.” This is how Greg, Michael and Sister Megan describe it: “God’s will.” “Victory.” “A miracle.” Another step toward the eradication of immoral weapons. When superimposed on the small-town history of Oak Ridge or the quotidian mechanics of federal Washington, their anti-nuclear beliefs can look heroic or treasonous. Nuclear bombs are existential weaponry. They ignite existential debates. Paradoxes proliferate. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction, sometimes unclear at first. Sometimes one must step away from lawfulness in the service of a greater good. Sometimes the very thing that keeps us safe is the one thing that can exterminate us. Sometimes we bargain over the lesser of two evils. What is unambiguous: The nun, the drifter and the house painter have been charged with two felonies whose combined maximum sentence is 30 years in prison. One of these felonies is rarely leveled against civilians: “intent to injure, interfere with, or obstruct the national defense of the United States,” as written under the “Sabotage” chapter of the U.S. Code<http://uscode.house.gov/uscode-cgi/fastweb.exe?getdoc+uscview+t17t20+991+0+…> . Their jury trial is scheduled to begin May 7 in Knoxville. The defendants do not view it as *their* trial, even though they proudly admit to trespassing and damaging government property. By exposing what they believe to be the fallacy of national security, by smuggling their anti-war message into the judicial system through the back door, they believe they are putting the country on trial. CHAPTER 4 The summit *The nun plodded* up the steep and densely wooded ridge. In front of her was the painter, behind her the drifter and the boundary fence. Pathless, they snaked slowly in wide turns to ease the climb, pausing often so she could catch her breath. Sister Megan Gillespie Rice *The Holy Spirit directs a person to what is right and what is possible*, the nun thought, *and *this *was possible*. Her parents taught her that life is about moving toward one’s purpose. She had been working her way toward this climb since the age of 9, when she learned her family’s next-door neighbor in New York City was a Columbia University biophysicist privy to the secret Manhattan project. She remembers Pearl Harbor and covering her eyes when the newsreels played war footage before matinees at Trans-Lux movie theaters in Manhattan. She remembers her obstetrician father, who spoke of impoverished patients at Bellevue Hospital; her mother, whose PhD thesis explored the Catholic opinion on slavery; and her uncle, Walter Hooke, a Marine who was yoked with “the terrible weight of knowing” after surveying the decimation of Nagasaki, where all that survived in the city’s cathedral was a scorched wood statue of the Virgin Mary. She remembers committing as a teenager to the teaching order Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus because of their work in Africa, and learning at Boston College how radioactivity affects human cells. The servants of God stopped to rest. A dog barked in the distance. From town? From over the ridge? She had known danger. Kneeling down to block traffic at the entrance to the Nevada Test Site in the ’80s. She had known hardship. Sleeping in classrooms in rural east Nigeria. No running water, no electricity. She had known Sister Anne Montgomery<http://ncronline.org/news/people/sr-anne-montgomery-plowshares-leader-again…>, who, in 2009 at 83, broke into Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, which harbors nuclear submarines, and was convicted, with four others, of trespassing and damaging federal property. How can I get involved? Sister Megan asked Sister Anne after the trial. Call Greg Boertje-Obed, Sister Anne said. “It’s idolatry, putting trust in weapons. And weapons are made like gods. … Weapons are always false gods because they make money. It’s profiteering.”Sister Megan Rice And now there she was, an old lady in sturdy shoes, reaching the limits of her mortal energy at the top of Pine Ridge with Greg, about 90 minutes into the mission. There was the vista over which the Prophet of Oak Ridge had prayed more than a century before, where a national security complex now winked in the darkness. There was still a slope to descend, and three more fences to cut through. The plan was to hike along the ridge, breach the fences away from the facility’s guard towers and then walk casually toward the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility, which houses the nation’s cache of highly enriched uranium — an estimated 400 tons of it, racked in cans floor-to-ceiling across 110,000 square feet. Inside the building was enough radioactive material to fuel over 10,000 nuclear bombs, which would end civilization many times over. Sister Megan was tired and fading with the night, so they recalibrated. They started down the slope immediately. Once clear of the trees, they would head for the first building they saw. The woods of Pine Ridge, which separates the city of Oak Ridge from the Y-12 National Security Complex. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 5 The belly of the beast *Mission planning involved* searching the Bible and the Internet. All of the relevant information on Y-12’s layout was available online. All of the relevant motivation was available in the books of Psalms, Proverbs and Isaiah. The Y-12 break-in is the latest “Plowshares” disarmament action, a tradition of symbolic and intrepid civil resistance dating to September 1980, when the Berrigan brothers and six others hammered on Minutemen missiles and poured blood on documents at the General Electric weapons plant in King of Prussia, Pa. The Plowshares activists take their name and inspiration from Isaiah 2:4, a verse prophesying a world without war. A parade of actions, each with its own name, has followed over the years. The Dorothy Day Catholic Worker house in Petworth is home to several Plowshares alumni, including Michael, and a home away from home to Sister Megan, who resides in her order’s residence on Newton Street NE. (Greg lives with his wife and daughter in Duluth, Minn.) In the context of Plowshares history, the July action was both typical and astounding, says Paul Magno, a Plowshares veteran and a leader of D.C. nonprofit Witness for Peace. “To me, it goes to not only the over-hype, the over-sell of the whole security mythology, but it goes to what you can do with an act of faith,” Magno says. “God’s people can be faithful and the Red Sea parts and lets them through when there’s no reason to believe that should be possible.” Sister Megan Rice holds her bible. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) The action last summer was dubbed “Transform Now Plowshares” because its three participants desire the immediate conversion of all nuclear weaponry from agents of war to resources that benefit mankind. Michael and Sister Megan live in the world as they believe it should be, not in the world as it is. Sister Megan doesn’t vote. “It would mean I would be a citizen of this regime. I am a citizen of the world. I act in consequence.” Michael derides Washington as the belly of the beast. “Did you know that the last president who wasn’t a war criminal was Herbert Hoover?” Says Sister Megan of Michael: “His mind is never still.” Says Michael of Sister Megan: “She’s a visionary.” Together they’re like an overactive younger brother and patient older sister. Michael summons the brimstone, Sister Megan the bromide. When she and Michael retell their story, which they do often to eager foot soldiers of social justice groups, they put it in tidy parable form on PowerPoint: We saw injustice at Y-12, so we broke in to bring truth and attract the world’s attention, and here is the U.S. government’s seven-decade budget for nuclear-weapons infrastructure. After one such presentation, at the weekly “Clarification of Thought” at the Dorothy Day house, a visitor asks about the forces they faced once they made it through the final fence that summer night. “The first person to really lose his job was this lovely security guard,” says Sister Megan, adding that she hopes to meet him when she, Greg and Michael go to Knoxville for a pre-trial hearing on whether they can offer moral conviction as a defense in court. CHAPTER 6 The descent *The lights of* the Antichrist flickered through the trees. The drifter prayed. *Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. For all the glory is yours, and on the last day Jesus will come like this, like a thief in the night, and the warmongering United States will fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy by beating its swords into plowshares.* Michael Robin Walli He had duct-taped the head of his flashlight to reduce the beam to a sliver. On the downward slope of Pine Ridge, he moved in front of the nun, clearing branches and stones from her path. He was just a frail earthen vessel, he believed, but she was a daughter of God. He was her bodyguard. On his head was a construction hat painted light blue, with “UN” marked on the front. On his breath was the stink of Top brand tobacco. In their backpacks, he and the nun carried twine, matches, candles, a Bible, three hammers, six cans of spray paint, three protest banners, copies of a letter they wished to deliver to Y-12 employees and two emblems of sustenance — a packet of cucumber seeds and a fresh-baked loaf of bread with a cross molded into the top. And six baby bottles of human blood. Click or press to view full image This was easy compared with Vietnam, where he carried briefing boards of heavy hinged plywood out of Phuoc Long province during the Cambodia incursion. Michael was an Army specialist, an expert marksman with an M-14 and M-16. The carpet-bombing from American B-52s still echoes in his head. “Like thunder, but it didn’t stop.” He earned a Bronze Star. He considers himself a war criminal. He left the Army after two tours, found Jesus, became an ascetic, worked in a homeless shelter in Chicago, stormed the gates of the CIA with 1,500 other activists in April 1987, wound up in Fairfax County’s jail and decided to stay in Washington upon his release. And now, 45 years after his enlistment, he was at the edge of the woods on the other side of Pine Ridge, the flood-lit expanse of Y-12 in front of him. “In heaven Jesus has no arsenal of nuclear weapons. And as we pray in the Our Father prayer: ‘Here on Earth as it is in heaven.’ … Nuclear weapons are a product of hell and we need to send them back there.”Michael Walli As predicted long ago, the valley was filled with great buildings, many rusted and dating to the Manhattan Project. But right in front of them was a vast, new fortress of reinforced concrete with a foundation anchored in bedrock. As luck, or providence, would have it, this was their original target: the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility, a large part of Y-12’s mission to reduce its physical footprint, improve its safety and modernize its operations. >From the treeline, they watched a patrol SUV pass one way on Bear Creek Road, then the other. Then they walked across the two lanes and approached the first of three eight-foot chain-link fences. This outer fence, with three lines of barbed wire on top, was part of Y-12’s “perimeter intrusion detection and assessment system.” It was no match for bolt cutters. The house painter began cutting links in the first fence near a sign that said “Danger: Halt! Deadly force is authorized beyond this point.” Somewhere on the site, according to the Knoxville News-Sentinel’s nuclear reporter Frank Munger, were Gatling guns capable of firing 3,000 rounds per minute — a fusillade that could reduce a trespasser to pink mist. The painter pulled back the flap of chain links like a curtain. The nun entered the kill zone first. Oak Ridge, Tenn., was created in 1943 by the U.S. government to play an integral role in the Manhattan Project. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 7 The Secret City *Nestled in a* river valley, Oak Ridge looks unremarkable on the surface. Its old town square has been overtaken by a congested turnpike lined with fast food joints, credit unions and parking lots. Cul-de-sacs of single-family homes unfurl up the foggy foothills of the Smoky Mountains. Roads are named Hickory, Poplar and Whippoorwill, and Manhattan, Palladium and Boeing. Flagpoles clang. The Panera is always packed. Locals pronounce their city “Oh-*kridge*.” On a knoll on the front lawn of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, a six-foot marble statue of the Virgin Mary gazes southward over the low-rise downtown, toward Pine Ridge. Her face shaded by dark green mold, the Virgin stands barefoot on a spheroid plinth that represents Earth. This Mary, like most Marys, has her foot on a serpent, but there’s a curious non-biblical icon on the Earth under her toes: a nucleus framed by a whirl of electrons. The atomic symbol is on the facade of the public high school. It is rendered in stained glass inside the public library. It is on the big green sign that heralds the Y-12 National Security Complex just over Pine Ridge. Click or press to view full image At noon on the first Wednesday of every month, the DOE tests its public-warning sirens for three minutes. Every June, reenactors stage the Allied invasion of Normandy in the town park. Though you haven’t needed a badge to get into the town since 1949, Oak Ridge’s soul hasn’t changed. It’s still a company town, and the company is the government, and the business is bombs. Its centerpiece, Y-12, has become a large processing shop and warehouse for most of the country’s highly enriched uranium. It’s one of five production sites connected to three research labs under the umbrella of the National Nuclear Security Administration, a semi-autonomous entity within the Department of Energy created in the year 2000 to manage and secure nuclear weapons and non-proliferation programs. Y-12 processes highly enriched uranium for a variety of purposes, including “life-extension programs” for three classes of warheads and the B61 bomb<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/the-b61-bomb-a-case-s…>. The renovation of these weapons programs<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-nuclear-arsenal-is…> could take 25 years, officials estimate, and cost $20 billion. The site also dismantles weapons components and “downblends” the highly enriched uranium, reducing its radioactivity for use in research and nuclear reactors. Weapons, war and secrecy are the city’s economy, its legacy and, for now, its future. Concrete guard stations from the early 1950s lurk on the roadsides. A “commemorative walk” salutes the 43ers — those thousands of people who moved to Oak Ridge at the government’s behest in 1943. One plaque says residents’ work “made possible a weapon that was instrumental in bringing peace to a world anguished by the brutal six-year war in which 54 million people died.” The activists of Transform Now Plowshares are in West Knoxville in early February, at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, testifying to the congregation after a Sunday service. Church members ask them how they can claim nonviolence when they destroyed property. “Maybe the triviality of that destruction comes from a truth that is monstrous,” Sister Megan says. “Those very fences are illegal, and guarding lies and secrecy and corruption and great danger to the world.” White-haired Lillian Mashburn stands, arms crossed, in the back of the church. She’s thinking of her father, who was an infantryman stationed in the Pacific when Oak Ridge’s uranium fell toward Hiroshima. “He was saved by that bomb,” Mashburn, a church board member, says after the discussion. “They were told when they landed they would be killed as part of the first wave. . . . There’s a whole generation of people, most of whom would’ve been dead, who were saved.” What saves Oak Ridge are the dollars that gush from Washington to East Tennessee. The complex is the second-largest employer in East Tennessee and creates 24,000 indirect jobs, according to the site contractor’s Y-12 Community Relations Council. Eight thousand people go to work there, including contractors, subcontractors, protective-force guards and 80 federal employees of the Department of Energy. For 2014, $1.2 billion was requested by the NNSA for the management and operation of Y-12. Y-12 is slated to construct a new Uranium Processing Facility, a massive building that will ensure that America’s nuclear arsenal remains operational. Peak construction of the UPF will create 1,500 construction jobs and 5,000 support jobs. “This community serves the DOE,” says Ralph Hutchison, 56, the coordinator of the nonprofit Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance <http://orepa.org/>, whose ultimate goal is to abolish nuclear weapons, which means halting operations at Y-12. “It’s the environment in which they live. It’s the air they breathe.” CHAPTER 8 The miracle *The trio stood* in a moat of white rocks between the first and second fence. The complex was lit bright as day. No one was racing to apprehend them. The middle fence was intimidating, and wired for something. Motion sensoring? Electricity? *This is not going to work*, the house painter thought. *We are not going to get through this.* Gregory Irwin Boertje-Obed He had known doubt before. Greg was a Presbyterian Iowa farm boy who joined the ROTC to afford Tulane University. He went into active duty at Fort Polk in 1981, as the nuclear-freeze movement rallied against President Ronald Reagan’s stockpile buildup. He read Daniel Berrigan. His government said: Be ready for nuclear war. The prophet Isaiah said: Do not put your trust in horses and chariots. He couldn’t reconcile the two. He left the Army as a conscientious objector, he says, and returned to New Orleans in time to hear Berrigan talk about Plowshares actions. Greg heard an inner voice say, *Go in this direction*. Within two years, he was living at Jonah House, the Catholic Worker residence in Baltimore, where he met his wife, Michele. While raising their daughter, they scheduled their protests to make sure that only one of them was facing jail at any given time. His first action was hammering Trident II missile tubes at Quonset Point shipyard in Rhode Island. Twenty-six years later, a nun would call him up, looking to make her own first action. “We are a little bungling. We are just ordinary people, and inept. … So we chose a date and said come in advance. We thought Sunday. We thought maybe there would be fewer workers, maybe they would be in a more charitable mood – if it’s a Sunday, they’re less likely to shoot you.”Greg Boertje-Obed And now this middle fence, and the possibility that their mission was over. Surely security cameras had spied them by now. Surely this fence would trip an alarm. *You won’t know unless you try*, the inner voice told him. He began cutting links in the middle fence, severing fiber-optic sensors. No one came for them. *This is grace*, he thought, and he climbed through after the others. He cut through the last fence, and they were through the Red Sea, and there was nothing between them and the Fort Knox of Uranium. *God is with us*, he thought. *This is a miracle*. They shook cans of red and black spray paint. They gripped the baby bottles of blood. They spray painted the building’s north wall, which was designed to withstand the impact of aircraft but not the words of the Book of Proverbs. They poured and splashed blood that had once been in the veins of a painter-activist named Tom Lewis, one of the Catonsville Nine who, on Hiroshima Day 1987, hammered on the bomb racks of an anti-submarine plane at the South Weymouth Naval Air Station near Boston. In 2008, Lewis died in his sleep, and his blood was frozen so that he might one day participate in one last Plowshares action. In bright red rivulets, the last of Tom Lewis streaked down the concrete. They removed the hammers from the drifter’s backpack. “TRANSFORM NOW” was written in red marker on the handle of the claw hammer. Burned into the handle of the small sledge hammer was “Repent! God’s kingdom is at hand!” They began to strike the pentagonal base of a guard tower at the northwest corner of the building. Chips of concrete fell to the asphalt. Blood dribbled into the scar. They believed they were also hammering on what had not yet been built. The wide open space to the right of the tower was designated for the Uranium Processing Facility, now projected to cost at least $6.5 billion, a stockpile of money that they wanted spent on life-extension programs for people. They rang their hammers down on the senselessness of it all. They waited to be arrested. In a matter of minutes, a single guard would be sent to investigate. >From left, Sister Megan Rice, Shelley Wascom, Sarah Hutchison, Michael Walli and Gregory Boertje-Obed pray before dinner in Knoxville on Feb. 4, 2013. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 9 The quantum theory of physics *Greg is prepping* baked potatoes. Sister Megan is setting silverware. Michael is carrying armloads of firewood in from outside. They are gathering for a dinner of salmon, tofu and broccoli with a couple of other members of the Transform Now Plowshares support group at a supporter’s house in south Knoxville. From this home base, in the days before their February pretrial hearing, they bring their anti-bomb evangel to various settings. At the University of Tennessee, where they are guest speakers in a systems theory class, Greg talks about the diffusion of social responsibility and how he feels personally responsible for nuclear weapons because his taxes have paid for them. Michael, who is wearing a T-shirt that says “GROUND THE DRONES,” calls Y-12 “a failed rogue terrorist state.” “I think there’s a deafening silence about what’s going on at Y-12,” says student Rochelle Butler, “but I do know people who work there are good people. Why would I believe outsiders rather than people who work there, who I believe to be good?” “We love these people in a deeply compassionate way,” Sister Megan says of the Y-12 employees. “Our motivation was in solidarity with people who spend their time making nuclear bombs to feed their children. . . . We are all so intertwined and empower each other. A thought creates its own energy. The quantum theory of physics is always at work.” The theory is at work a couple of days later at Maryville College, where the trio eats pizza with 15 students from a progressive Christian group. “They are each connected to 50 others,” Sister Megan whispers before chatting with music student Chris Hickman. “I know nothing about the anti-nuclear movement,” Hickman tells her. “I was born in ’92, and it’s kind of an afterthought for my generation.” Greg, Michael and Sister Megan visit with two dozen people at a meeting of the Presbyterian Peacemaking Committee of East Tennessee. “Prince of Peace, we thank you for your prophets who’ve spoken your word down through the ages, and we thank you for the prophets among us,” says host Scott Brunger during his opening prayer. The attendees chat about the fallout from the break-in. Someone asks about what their intrusion has cost taxpayers — at least $15 million in security alterations by the NNSA, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel<http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2013/feb/01/nnsa-cost-of-y-12-break-in-at-leas…> — and Greg says that they saved taxpayers $12.2 million that was docked from the management contractor’s award fee. Sister Megan again brings up the first guard they encountered inside the facility and how he lost his job. She says how he saved their lives by not escalating the situation. “I feel very guilty not contacting him,” Sister Megan admits. The guard’s number is listed. He’ll answer the phone if you call. And when you ask about the three people who broke into Y-12 last summer, you can almost hear his grip on the phone tighten as he says: “You mean the people who ruined my life?” Security guard Kirk Garland on the property of his former home, now in foreclosure after he lost his job at Y-12. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 10 ‘I’ve served my country’ *Two weeks after* the break-in, Kirk Garland was handed a letter from the site’s protective-force contractor that said he “failed” in his responsibilities as a guard on the morning of July 28, 2012. The letter said he showed “blatant disregard for the seriousness of the situation.” It said he was terminated, effective immediately, and his health insurance would expire two days later. Kirk Garland A solid man with a cinnamon-colored mustache, Kirk started working in nuclear security in 1983 at Colorado’s now-shuttered Rocky Flats Plant, which processed plutonium for weapons. For three years, he worked in a similar job at the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Tex., where nuclear weapons are put together and taken apart. Then he moved to Y-12, where the fuel is processed. What Oak Ridge built, he says, he was proud to protect. “In my eyes, after being a guard for 30 years, I feel that I should be treated the same way as somebody who served in Iraq,” says Kirk, 52. “I’ve served my country for 30 years by protecting my nation’s nuclear assets.” He was four years from retirement, bringing home $85,000 a year with overtime, with a pristine employment record. The sign on the front door of his modest house says, “This property has been determined to be vacant and abandoned.” He could rescue it from foreclosure, but doesn’t have the money. What he has is a rental home in nearby Clinton, a sick wife, a month’s worth of losing lottery tickets, a 16-year-old daughter who has curtailed her passion for barrel-racing horses, and a small contingent of German shepherds that he raises to sell to police department K-9 units. “I do okay,” he says, standing in the ransacked backyard of his former home in Lake City, Tenn. “My wife don’t. She can’t come up here. Nothing I can do about it. Thirty years with DOE. And you’re looking at everything.” Scattered cinder blocks. Sodden heaps of pink insulation. The kennel hauled off by vandals, the small stable stripped of its roof and most of its siding. It had been a good life in Lake City, 20 miles north of Y-12, where he worked for nearly 5 1/2 years until those people, he says, decided to overexert their First Amendment right. The report on the break-in by the inspector general of the Department of Energy faults Kirk for not pulling his weapon, for not securing the area. The site’s management contractor, Babcock & Wilcox Technical Services Y-12, faults him for not immobilizing the intruders and for turning his back while they rummaged through their backpacks. The site’s protective-force contractor, WSI-Oak Ridge, faults him for an “embarrassing” and “casual” response to the intrusion. NNSA officials were “horrified” by surveillance video of Kirk first addressing the intruders from his car, instead of immediately jumping out, and for making assumptions about their intent. If he had acted too aggressively, on the other hand, Y-12 might have had a dead nun on its hands. Kirk says there was no reason to unholster his gun, that it was unsafe for one man to try to cuff three people, that an entire patrol team should’ve been dispatched to a zone with multiple alarms. He had previously dealt with peace protesters at Rocky Flats, which is how he knew that the three trespassers were not dangerous, he says. The “blatant disregard,” he says, lies elsewhere. In fact, the security camera that watched Zone 63, the area of the trio’s incursion, had been out of service for six months, according to a subsequent report from the Department of Energy’s inspector general. At the time of the break-in, there were 56 busted security tools across Y-12, seven broken security cameras surrounding the HEUMF and an average of 2,170 sitewide alarms per day — many caused by wildlife, weather and foliage. None of this was Kirk’s responsibility. “In my eyes they’ve ruined my name,” Kirk says of the government and its contractors. “I worked hard. I mean, I put my family second a lot of times to keep this clearance for 30 years, just to have it jerked out from me like that. . . . I think they were embarrassed that an 82-year-old got in that far. And they used me for their scapegoat. They used me to say, ‘Well, he messed it up. We got rid of him.’ But I wasn’t the problem.” The problem, according to a string of reports over the years from the DOE’s inspector general and the Government Accountability Office, was a lax security culture and hands-off federal oversight. The problem was “a culture of compliance, as opposed to a culture of performance,” according to a B&W Y-12’s post-mortem of what became known internally as “the Security Event.” A GAO report released, coincidentally, three days after the break-in admonished the NNSA for cost overruns, mismanagement and an absentee relationship with contractors. To date, Kirk is the only individual to have been fired outright because of the incident. The guards who failed to detect and initiate a proper response to the breach were suspended, and the supervising lieutenant was disciplined. B&W Y-12 removed four managers, allowing the top two to formally retire. Four federal officials with security oversight jobs were reassigned. The leaders of the guard force retired or were reassigned, says Paul Donahue, chief executive of G4S Government Solutions, the parent company of the protective force company, which lost its contract. The management and operations contractor lost $12.2 million of its award incentive fee, and the same firms, with different partners, have bid on a new 10-year contract for both Y-12 and Pantex worth $23 billion. Kirk has a car repairman dogging him for a $1,000 debt that he can’t pay. In March, he took a guard job at a county jail that he says pays $24,000 a year. His case is slated for arbitration this fall through the International Guards Union of America. He’s reached for his Baptist faith to temper his anger. He attends services at Faith Promise, a massive church on a hill on the outskirts of Oak Ridge. He doesn’t understand how law-breaking activists can be inspired by the same God that guides his life down the straight and narrow. “I’ve got to sit down and ask a priest,” Kirk says. “Doing the Lord’s work is not protesting and getting arrested. You don’t get to heaven on your works anyway. You get to heaven on salvation. . . . God’s got a different plan for me. Everything happens in his timing, whenever he’s ready to move us along.” When told that Sister Megan thinks he saved her life by not escalating the situation — that, in fact, he was her salvation — Kirk is speechless. His wife is not. “That’s amazing that she’d make that kind of statement,” scoffs Joann Garland. “She is safe — because of him — to be able to go and do what she’s doing. . . . The joke of it is they came in God’s name. God does not say to break laws. Sorry. God does not say that.” Knoxville attorney Francis Lloyd Jr. listens to his client, Sister Megan Rice, during a meeting before their February pre-trial hearing. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post) CHAPTER 11 Scales of justice *If religion gives* meaning to the chaos of the cosmos, the law developed alongside to order society’s unruliest parts. Greg, who represents himself in court, stood behind the microphone and delivered his testimony in monolithic terms. “So when you build a nuclear weapon, you are planning and preparing to commit mass murder,” he argued in a November pre-trial hearing in Knoxville. “You are giving your assent to the killing of civilians.” In that precursor episode to *The United States of America v. Walli et al*, the defense argued that it is illegal for the United States to possess nuclear weapons because their sole purpose is to inflict damage that cannot be contained: Civilians perish en masse, the environment is poisoned for generations and the mere threat of this scenario — even under the guise of deterrence — constitutes “imminent harm” that cannot be ignored for one more minute, let alone successive generations. After the defense cited the Geneva and Hague conventions and invoked the Nuremberg principles, the government argued that international treaties do not take precedence over laws Congress enacts to ensure national defense, including nuclear weapons programs. At the notion of complicity to war crimes, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey E. Theodore balked. “They say if they didn’t act, that they are somehow complicit in this ‘illegality,’” Theodore argued in November. “Well, then, therefore, all the people here who have not acted, not [broken] in to Y-12 to stop the ‘illegal’ operations there, then . . . they’re complicit in war crimes, I guess, which is . . . a ludicrous argument.” William Quigley, the defendants’ pro-bono counsel, told the court his clients should be allowed to testify about their moral imperatives for the break-in. “The effort to preclude necessity, international law, nuclear policy, God, conscience, history, who knows the other things — I think it’s, it’s inconsistent with our search, our mutual search for the truth,” Quigley said. After Michael, Greg and Sister Megan refused a plea bargain, the government hit them with the more serious charge under the sabotage act. That led Transform Now Plowshares and its support group to Courtroom 3B of U.S. District Court in downtown Knoxville in Feburary, for a second hearing on obstructing the national defense, scheduled between a case of bank robbery and a case of Social Security fraud. That morning, Sister Megan has trouble getting through security. “Any metal on you, sister?” a guard asks during her third run through the metal detector. “I have titanium in my wrists,” the nun says, then gestures to the X-ray machine. “Do you wear lead vests standing next to this all day? I think you should.” The support group swells to 25 people and fills all rows on the defense’s side of the courtroom. Ralph Hutchison and folks from the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance are here. As they await the start of the hearing, the supporters begin singing softly. “Peace is flo-wing like a riiiii-ver,” they warble from their seats. “Flo-wing out into the deeeeesert.” Hutchison chuckles. “Oh the judge *loves *it when they sing,” he says. Click or press to view full image CHAPTER 12 Reaction *In Washington, a* congressman asks the nun to please stand up. “We want to thank you for pointing out some of the problems in our security,” says Rep. Joe L. Barton (R-Tex.). Another congressman expresses a different kind of gratitude. “Thank you for your willingness to focus attention on this nuclear weapons buildup that still exists in our world,” says Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), “and how much we need to do something to reduce it.” A third congressman is incredulous at the nun’s mere presence at this September oversight hearing of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. “Why are they even here in this hearing room?” says Rep. Michael C. Burgess (R-Tex.). “Why are they not being held in — in detention somewhere?” Since July 28, Congress has been sputtering with indignation. Hearings were scheduled on Sept. 12 and 13,Feb. 28<http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=…> and March 13<http://energycommerce.house.gov/hearing/doe-management-and-oversight-its-nu…> so legislators could vocalize how “shocked” and “appalled” they are. The phrase “wake-up call” is uttered and re-uttered. “Peace through strength” becomes a refrain. The word “culture” is used 72 times to explain how a complex, highly funded operation could be so vulnerable. Federal officials at the witness table get lost in a maze of their own jargon. Congress members wonder over and over what would have happened if the intruders had been terrorists, not peace activists. Brig. Gen. Sandra Finan, commander of the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, appears several times to present her task force’s findings on “Lessons of the Y-12 Security Failure<http://democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Tes…>”: NNSA has muddled lines of authority, and its security culture has “focused on fiscal limitations over effective performance.” Megan Rice and Michael Walli attend a hearing on nuclear security conducted by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Between them is activist and supporter Paul Magno. (Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post) Sister Megan and Michael witness each hearing in sweat pants and parkas. They are lost in the navy thicket of young legislative assistants. On one of these field trips, they get off the Metro at Capitol South station and grimace at the giant Raytheon ads that feature military vehicles and mottos like “Any threat, any mission.” On Feb. 28, the House Armed Services Committee’s subcommittee on strategic forces tries to sniff out blame. “And as the chairman correctly pointed out,” says Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) at one point, “it’s hard to find that anybody was punished except the lowest-level guard.” At a break, Sister Megan approaches one of the expert witnesses, retired Maj. Gen. C. Donald Alston, the former Air Force assistant chief of staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration. “I’ll give this to you,” she says, handing him a folded sheet of white paper. It’s a letter calling for the immediate suspension of funding for the Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12. “The whole thing can be solved by changing the mission,” Sister Megan says to the major general. “Change the mission, brother.” “We have a lot of stability in the world because of” nuclear weapons, says Alston, smiling, towering over her in uniform. “It’s impossible to even secure *one*,” Sister Megan says. “We can change the mission. It’s possible.” “Okay,” he says. “We can have projects that sustain humanity.” “Okay,” he says, starting to leave the witness table. “This is the nun,” Michael says, coming to her side. “*Oh*,” Alston says, before turning away. Sister Megan is not concerned with this slight. The world needs positive * and *negative charges, she says. You can’t have energy without both. On March 13, during a second hearing in front of the Energy and Commerce’s oversight subcommittee, Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio) cites a 2010 Department of Energy memo<http://hssoutreach.doe.gov/documents/meetings/20100316_SafetySecurityReform…> in which Deputy Secretary Daniel B. Poneman called for the elimination of “excessive Federal oversight” of contractors and the awarding of “decision-making authorities” to “the lowest level of contractor and Federal management.” The subcommittee, as a body, wonders if the department had farmed out the stewardship of nuclear assets to contractors who self-police and self-appraise, and therefore continue to collect fees while cutting corners. “What we were trying to do, sir, was to get rid of the check-box mentality of just looking at paperwork and creating paperwork,” Poneman replies. “To get back to performance testing so we could be better, safer and more secure.” Sitting just over Poneman’s shoulder at each one of these hearings are two of the people who have put him on this hot seat for the past eight months. “I appreciate what you did,” a staffer for the Government Accountability Office tells Sister Megan after the hearing adjourns. “But don’t do it again, because I don’t want you to get hurt.” The mushroom cloud at Hiroshima, Aug. 6, 1945. (AP Photo/U.S. Air Force) CHAPTER 13 ‘A sheet of sun’ *The last shipment* of highly enriched uranium bound for Japan left Oak Ridge on July 25, 1945, and arrived two days later on the island of Tinian in the oblivion of the Pacific Ocean. On Aug. 6, a 9,700-pound, 10-foot-long atomic bomb was loaded onto a B-29 bomber, flown 1,500 miles northwest, and dropped over Hiroshima. Eyes melted from the heads of those who had been looking skyward at the “sheet of sun,” as John Hersey’s “Hiroshima<http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/148258798X/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=17…>” described the light of the explosion. Some 160,000 were dead, dying or injured. Five square miles burned. “A harnessing of the basic power of the universe,” President Harry Truman announced. “One of the greatest blunders of history,” wrote physicist Leo Szilard, an architect of the Manhattan Project. “WAR ENDS,” The Knoxville Journal declared. Our national complex was just beginning. The bomb created to stop one war imbued all future wars with apocalyptic power. The United States raced Russia to amass nuclear weapons — a peak of 30,000 stateside in the mid-1960s — then began to reduce the stockpile as other nations pursued and attained nuclear capability. This past January, the Indian government distributed to Kashmiris a nuclear-war advisory<http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2013/01/201312382354914360.html> that encouraged the building of bunkers. In March, Secretary of State John F. Kerry told ABC News that “confrontation becomes more possible” if Iran continues its plan to enrich uranium and develop nuclear weaponry. In April, North Korea publicized its desire to strike the United States, and the White House announced that it had helped the Czech Republic remove its entire stockpile<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/white-house-says-us-h…>of highly enriched uranium — all 150 pounds of it, or enough for two or three nukes. “Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.”President Dwight D. Eisenhower, April 16, 1953 The United States possesses roughly 4,650 active nuclear weapons plus another 3,000 awaiting dismantlement,according to the Federation of American Scientists<http://www.fas.org/programs/ssp/nukes/publications1/TrimmingNuclearExcess.p…>, a non-partisan think tank created by Manhattan Project scientists. To satisfy the New START Treaty with Russia, our 1,950 strategically deployed high-alert nuclear weapons must be reduced to 1,550 by 2018. In order to get the treaty ratified by the Senate in 2010, President Obama promised $85 billion<http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2010/11/17/fact-sheet-enduring-c…> through 2020 for modernizing the U.S. stockpile. In a time of austerity, our weapons budget is rising as our stockpile is falling. The officials who lay awake at night worrying how to safeguard Cold War leftovers have a delicate, intricate mission fraught with peril and obstacle. “Of course, what’s also undeniable is that the threat remains. There are still too many bad actors in search of these dangerous materials, and these dangerous materials are still vulnerable in too many places. It would not take much… to kill hundreds of thousands of innocent people.”President Obama, March 26, 2012 “We have been running a system a certain way for such a long time and not really thinking about whether it was working or not,” says acting NNSA administrator Neile Miller, charged with overseeing the politically choreographed — and therefore incremental — transition from proliferation to disarmament. Miller, during an interview in April at the DOE, acknowledges failures in management and says she understands the protester mentality and frustration. But the wish for a nuclear-free world of the future, she says, can distort perception of the policy that guides the world of the present. “I know people want to believe that everybody here is just of one mind . . . and we’re all somehow of this military-industrial complex — and it just doesn’t work that way,” she says. “ . . . People tend to be religiously for or religiously against. And as a result, they tend to attribute motivations and actions to all sorts of things that, in my personal experience, so very rarely turn out to be anywhere near what’s actually happening.” Our very national position on nuclear weapons, though, is a paradox. “As long as nuclear weapons exist,” says the administration’s 2010 Nuclear Posture Review<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/documents/2010NuclearPostureR…>, “the United States will sustain safe, secure, and effective nuclear forces.” As long as nuclear weapons exist, Sister Megan, Michael, Greg and their fellow activists will hammer on their infrastructure. Incrementalism is the danger, they believe, because the threat is imminent, the consequences are catastrophic and society suffers financially and morally. And what if these backpack-wearing peaceniks had been terrorists, for whom obtaining highly enriched uranium is the likeliest way to create mass destruction? With those 20 minutes of uninterrupted access to the site, they could have blown through the doors or walls of the HEUMF with an explosively formed penetrator and rigged an improvised nuclear device using highly enriched uranium and conventional explosives. A 10-kiloton detonation at Y-12 would cause an estimated 60,000 casualties, including 18,000 deaths, in East Tennessee. Radiation would have sickened people over 40 miles. This worst-case scenario is presented in a yet-to-be-published report on UPF by the watchdog group Project on Government Oversight, which combines a “design basis threat” scenario from the Department of Energy with a Department of Defense hazard-prediction algorithm employed by the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy nonprofit. NNSA officials, noting classified security measures inside HEUMF, call this worst-case scenario “very, very far-fetched.” But then so is a nun breaking into the Fort Knox of Uranium. The intruders who weren’t terrorists admit to their actions. The legislators have thanked them for initiating security reforms. The deputy secretary of the Department of Energy said in February — during the Nuclear Deterrence Summit in Arlington — that the intrusion, while “unacceptable,” did not compromise the uranium and therefore did not directly imperil the nation. The Justice Department has charged the trio with intending to do just that. So what is really on trial the second week of May? The limits of the judicial system, or the limits of social-justice actions? The moral arch of the universe versus the bottom line of governance? Is it the bargain we strike with ourselves? CHAPTER 14 Fission *In the late* afternoon of Friday, July 27, 2012, the guard drove to Y-12, put on his camouflage uniform, embroidered with “Semper Vigil,” and holstered a Sig P226 9 mm on his hip. Over his 12-hour shift, day became night. For his last two hours, 4 to 6 a.m., he rotated into a patrol vehicle. Around 4:20 a.m., a three-second tone came over his radio — a low-priority alarm that was cleared by an officer in short order. Soon after, the guard’s cellphone rang. The cleared alarm keeps bouncing back, his supervising lieutenant said; the alarm station was suggesting “something is not right” in Zone 63, and that a maintenance crew might be at work. The guard was then dispatched to a sector of the security fence that runs around the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility. He arrived there in less than a minute and pulled slowly to the fence in his vehicle. Nothing seemed amiss, until movement caught his eye. He turned his head away from the fence to the HEUMF. An old woman was walking toward his vehicle, a grizzled man on either side. At first he thought it was a painting crew — it wasn’t uncommon for maintenance to be done overnight — but behind them were three phrases spray-painted red and black onto the white building. THE FRUIT OF JUSTICE IS PEACE. PLOWSHARES PLEASE ISAIAH. WOE TO AN EMPIRE OF BLOOD. Click or press to view full image Their hands were up. *Peace protesters*, he thought, as his phone rang again. It was his lieutenant, checking in. “I’ve got three individuals here who have appeared to have breached our system,” the guard told him, “and they’ve written graffiti all over the walls.” His lieutenant thought he was kidding. “I’m telling you what I got. They’re peace protesters. I need backup.” He then identified himself through the vehicle window and asked the trio: “What are you doing here? “God led us here,” said one of the men. “Stop where you’re at,” the guard said, exiting his vehicle. The old woman bowed to him. “Keep your hands where I can see them.” “Will you listen to our message?” she said. The three began to recite text from a white piece of paper. “Brothers and sisters, powers that be, we come to you today as friends . . .” The two men retrieved candles from their backpacks nearby and lit them. “A loving and compassionate creator invites us to take the urgent and decisive steps to transform the U.S. empire, and this facility, into life-giving alternatives which resolve real problems . . .” It would be five minutes before another security officer would show up, brandishing an M-16, ready to help cuff the intruders on the ground as they sang “This Little Light of Mine.” It would be another two hours until special agents from the Department of Energy arrested the trespassers and mobilized the wheels of justice, and six hours until the trespassers were booked in the Blount County Jail, and one day until the biblical graffiti was scrubbed clean, and 10 days until the three were charged with “maliciously” attempting to destroy a structure within the Y-12 National Security Complex, and two weeks until the complex reopened and the guard lost his job, and nine months until the trespassers would face trial before a jury of their fellow citizens that would have the power to convict them of intending to endanger the United States. But for those next five minutes the scene was simple, almost sacramental. Four servants of God, drawn together by conviction and coincidence, regarded each other as dawn approached. The Lord may have been there. The devil, too. Or maybe human beings colliding in the quantum theory of physics was almighty enough. *About this story.* The intrusion at Y-12 in Tennessee was re-created for this article through reporting in the city of Oak Ridge, extensive interviews with the three activists and former protective-force guard Kirk Garland, and interviews with federal officials and site employees. This account also draws upon congressional testimony and detailed written reports on the security event from the inspector general of the Department of Energy and the contractor partnership Babcock & Wilcox Technical Services Y-12. WRITER - Dan Zak EDITOR - Ann Gerhart ART DIRECTION - Janet Michaud DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT - Andrew Metcalf - Tim Wong ILLUSTRATION - Jeffrey Smith TEXT AND VISUAL EDITING - Brian Cleveland - Kat Downs - Jesse Lewis - Sarah Sampsel PHOTOGRAPHY - Linda Davidson - Anne Farrar - Dee Swann - Sarah L. Voisin GRAPHICS - Laris Karklis - Todd Lindeman GALLERY: The activists <http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-activists/2013/04/29/d2da…> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-activists/2013/04/29/d2da…> GALLERY: The Secret City <http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-secret-city/2013/04/29/06…> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-secret-city/2013/04/29/06…> GALLERY: Wartime billboards <http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/words-to-live-by/2013/04/29/8…> -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Residents concerned about health effects of hydrofracking
by Paul Wilson 29 Apr '13

29 Apr '13

Residents concerned about health effects of hydrofracking<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/IVv…> Posted: 28 Apr 2013 08:04 PM PDT Some residents living in areas in Bradford, Co, Pa., near natural gas operations, also known as hydraulic fracturing, are concerned their illnesses may be a result of nearby drilling operations. Twenty-two percent of the participants in a small pilot study surmise that hydrofracking may be the cause of such health concerns as sinus problems, sleeping difficulties, and gastrointestinal problems. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Embarrassing video:
by Jim Sconyers 25 Apr '13

25 Apr '13

Leading off is our own WV Congressman McKinley. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jon Carson, BarackObama.com <info(a)barackobama.com> Date: Thu, Apr 25, 2013 at 11:45 AM Subject: Embarrassing video: To: James S <jimscon(a)gmail.com> ** [image: Organizing for Action] James -- Right now, way too many lawmakers in Washington flat-out refuse to face the facts when it comes to climate change. We're never going to make real progress on this issue unless members of Congress get serious. Instead, some of them have made a habit of publicly mocking it. We thought it was time to call them out for denying what's basic science. *Watch this embarrassing video of climate deniers in Congress -- and say you're ready to help hold them accountable:<https://my.barackobama.com/page/m/55c1a95b/6cec4c83/3666dba8b/173a7777/1532…> * [image: Denying climate change keeps us from finding a solution. Watch this.]<https://my.barackobama.com/page/m/55c1a95b/6cec4c83/3666dba8b/173a776f/1532…> The science matters in this. That's the message way too many people in Washington need to hear right now. In 2011, there were 240 members of Congress who voted to say that climate change is a hoax. Most of them are still around today, and they're getting away with it -- some of them are actually proud of it. They think the whole debate is pretty funny. If we want to make progress on climate change, we need everyone in Congress on board for a solution. It's our job to show them there's a price to pay for being a climate denier. *Take a look at this video and join the fight:* *http://my.barackobama.com/Climate-Change<https://my.barackobama.com/page/m/55c1a95b/6cec4c83/3666dba8b/173a7768/1532…> * Get ready -- more on this coming soon. Thanks, Jon Jon Carson Executive Director Organizing for Action @JonCarsonOFA ---------------- A movement of millions elected President Obama. Let's keep fighting for change. *Chip in $10 or more to support Organizing for Action today.<https://my.barackobama.com/page/m/55c1a95b/6cec4c83/3666dba8b/173a7767/1532…> * Paid for by Organizing for Action Contributions or gifts to Organizing for Action are not tax deductible. This email was sent to: *jimscon(a)gmail.com*. If that is not your preferred email address, you can update your information here<https://my.barackobama.com/page/m/55c1a95b/6cec4c83/3666dba8b/173a7762/1532…>. We believe that emails are a vital way to stay in direct contact with supporters. Click here<https://my.barackobama.com/page/m/55c1a95b/6cec4c83/3666dba8b/173a779e/1532…>if you'd like to unsubscribe from these messages. Organizing for Action, P.O. Box 66732 Washington, D.C. 20035 -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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WVU Law School gas confrence
by Jim Sconyers 24 Apr '13

24 Apr '13

Conference title: Natural Gas as the Bridge to Sustainability and Economic Growth - major oxymoron there. The main point of the conference seemed to be gas prices are too low, how can we get prices and consumption up> -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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WVU Gas Conference today
by Jim Sconyers 24 Apr '13

24 Apr '13

I asked why the governor deleted all alternative vehicle energy - electric, hybrid - from SB 185 except gas. After a lot of evasion and BS, his rep Ms. Mason of the Natural Gas Vehicle Task Force finally stated flatly that he wanted to benefit the gas industry. What a surprise! -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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Fwd: WVNS story: Court Cases Confirm EPA's Right to Limit MTR Pollution
by Paul Wilson 24 Apr '13

24 Apr '13

from WV Public News Service. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Wed, Apr 24, 2013 at 3:34 AM Subject: WVNS story: Court Cases Confirm EPA's Right to Limit MTR Pollution To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Court Cases Confirm EPA's Right to Limit MTR Pollution Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32126-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (04/24/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Citizen groups say two big legal victories confirm what they've asserted for years - that mountaintop removal causes dangerous pollution levels, and the Environmental Protection Agency can and should protect the public. One federal court ruled that the Corps of Engineers has been too lax in issuing mountaintop removal permits, while another ruled that the EPA has the right to veto a Corps permit after it's been issued. The second decision, which could block the huge Spruce mine in Logan County, is important, said Jon Devine, senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council's water program, because it strengthens the EPA's right to enforce clean-water laws. "The court said clearly - and reaffirmed what the law says clearly - that EPA can act," Devine said. The court decisions came as a group of independent scientists was calling for a moratorium on mountaintop removal. The Center for Health, Environment and Justice report <http://www.chej.org/mtopreport> cited such health effects as higher rates of cancer and birth defects. Aimee Rist, a mother of two from Fayetteville, said it's deeply troubling to those living close to a mountaintop removal site. "But I don't want to leave my home," she said. "It's beautiful. The people are wonderful. It just makes you question what my children might be breathing, what they might be drinking in their water." The researchers believe some West Virginia women's miscarriages could be associated with the mining. It's an emotional topic for Rist. "I had two miscarriages in West Virginia before I had Emma," she said. "And so I wonder, is it something that I was breathing or something that I was drinking?" The coal industry argues that the controversial mining practice creates jobs, but some medical researchers estimate it costs more to pay for the damage to human health than the mining pays in terms of economic development. The report on the health effects of mountaintop removal is online at chej.org <http://www.chej.org/mtopreport>. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32126-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/32126-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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sallywilts@yahoo.com has shared something with you
by sallywilts＠yahoo.com 23 Apr '13

23 Apr '13

What a nice Earth Day gift! http://blogs.wvgazette.com/coaltattoo/2013/04/23/appeals-court-sides-with-e… --- This message was sent by sallywilts(a)yahoo.com via http://addthis.com. Please note that AddThis does not verify email addresses. To stop receiving any emails from AddThis, please visit: http://www.addthis.com/privacy/email-opt-out?e=0oW4853_rvWz9a_3pL6y4ro

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Fwd: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] Rolling Stone interviews BIDDER 70 hero, Tim DeChristopher
by Jim Sconyers 23 Apr '13

23 Apr '13

Tim is the son of founding WVSC chair Chris DeChristopher. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Lauren Swain <video(a)mindseyeworld.com> Date: Mon, Apr 22, 2013 at 9:27 PM Subject: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] Rolling Stone interviews BIDDER 70 hero, Tim DeChristopher To: ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS(a)lists.sierraclub.org Rolling Stone interviews BIDDER 70 hero, Tim DeCristopher: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/tim-dechristopher-is-a-free-man-w… By Alexander Zaitchik<http://www.rollingstone.com/contributor/alexander-zaitchik> April 22, 2013 4:35 PM ET There are worse ways for a climate activist to celebrate getting out of jail than speaking to a packed theater of comrades and supporters. Tonight, that's how Tim DeChristopher will publically mark his release from two years of state custody, spread over four states and five institutions – from the isolation wings of federal prisons to the halfway house he left yesterday. Following an address that will represent DeChristopher's public return to grassroots climate activism, Salt Lake City's Tower Theater will screen *Bidder 70* <http://www.bidder70film.com/>, a documentary about his 2009 trial. Both the talk and the screening will be live-streamed to 50 theaters around the country. The Fossil Fuel Resistance: Meet the New Green Heroes<http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/lists/the-fossil-fuel-resistance-meet-…> It's a happy coincidence that the event is taking place on Earth Day – but there was never any question it would be in Salt Lake City. It was there, in December 2008, that DeChristopher disrupted a federal Bureau of Land Management auction by submitting nearly $2 million in bids on oil and gas concessions. For the crime of what the prosecution called "obstruct[ing] lawful government proceedings," DeChristopher was whisked from the courthouse following his sentencing to begin his term, which ended yesterday. The 31-year-old activist talked to *Rolling Stone* about his time served and the future of the climate movement. *What are your immediate plans now that you're out? * I'll be traveling around a bit over the summer. Then in the fall, I start Harvard Divinity School. I see divinity school and the ministry as an extension of my activism, not as a new direction. It's probably the best outlet for the skills I've built so far. I take inspiration from the activist leaders of the past, whether it's the [antiwar activist] Berrigan brothers, or Martin Luther King, or many ministry leaders that have also been at the front of social movements throughout American history. *Will you keep up an activist's schedule w**hen you start school**?* Obviously I won't be able to do quite as much. I expect divinity school to be pretty demanding, so I won't be keeping up the full-time schedule that I had when I was a full-time activist. But I will still be doing certain speaking events and stuff like that. *Are you prepared to return to prison in the future? * Definitely. Especially having experienced it and knowing that I can handle it. If the opportunity comes up again to do something impactful, then I'd have to take that opportunity. *A lot of famous activists over the years have spoken about the benefits of prison time. Did you find that to be the case?* There are certainly upsides. They call it "doing time" for a reason. You just have a lot of time on your hands. So I read a lot. A lot of my day consisted of exercising and walking and reading. It was a very reflective environment and very low-stress environment. It kind of naturally lent itself to introspection. *Did you have a lot of conversations about climate and energy issues with other inmates? * I had a lot of conversations more about general social justice issues, about corporate control of our government, how the criminal justice system works. *Looking ahead, it seems activism around climate and energy is moving into a more militant posture. For example, the anti-fracking leader Sandra Steingraber and some of her colleagues in the so-called "Seneca Lake 12" went to jail in New York just as you were being released. * I certainly think the climate movement is going to get more aggressive. There's been a tremendous amount of movement in the past few years. And with changes like the Sierra Club completely overhauling the way they were operating [in terms of civil disobedience] – that's a massive shift, and I think those changes will continue. And I think there will also be more kind of bottom-up actions in the future. More things like the tar sands blockade in Texas, things that are not necessarily done by big organizations saying, "This is what you need to do and this is how you're going to do it." The grassroots side of the movement is really stepping up in a big way, and that's been the big shift since 2009. The grassroots side is no longer willing to limit themselves to the directions given by the big green groups and the Washington-centric side of the movement. The big green groups failed horribly in 2009 with the Waxman-Markey bill. Up until that time, they kind of kept everyone in check by saying, "We know how change happens, we know how to do things in Washington. This is what's politically feasible." And they fell on their face. Now a lot of folks are saying, "Well, we tried it your way. Now we're going to do it our way." *And your group, Peaceful Uprising, was part of that shift. * Yeah, Peaceful Uprising was forming during that time, largely out of an awareness that what the climate movement was doing wasn't working and we needed to do something else. It was started largely for the purpose of experimenting, and simply trying something new. Not saying this is the one right way. But saying we need a new way of doing things. And hopefully there will be more experimenting in the climate movement. A movement that gets a little bit out of control – that's what we need. One that's more spontaneous, trying more things and is more willing to do things even if it's not the exact right thing to do, but just because we need to move forward. *Will you stay involved with Peaceful Uprising? * I handed over the reins when I was convicted. I was pretty much out of the picture once I was incarcerated. I am not really in a leadership position there anymore. *Because of the publicity around your trial and incarceration, and now with the documentary, you have achieved a national profile and will be seen as a sort of spokesperson for the movement. Are you comfortable with this new level of fame? * As far as being seen as a speaker and that sort of thing, that's a role that I'm willing to serve. I kind of ended up in the role as the guy who always talked about civil disobedience just because that was the opening that the movement had in 2008 and 2009. So I sort of ended up in that role by default. Now I'll try and fill whatever role is needed. And I feel like I naturally look at things from a holistic perspective. I tend to be good at articulating a vision of where we need to go. I feel like I'm well suited for the role that I'm in right now. Bidder 70* opens in New York for a limited run on May 17th. * Lauren Swain (303) 964-9592, (303) 887-5951 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This email list is associated with the Hydrofracking Team on the Sierra Club's Activist Network. Join the Hydrofracking Team at http://sc.org/frac. This list is open to the public and subscribers are not moderated. Please be aware that information you share may be forwarded to or read by others beyond this list. To unsubscribe from the ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS list, send any message to: ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] EPA - water pollution from power plants rulemaking
by Paul Wilson 23 Apr '13

23 Apr '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <baumling(a)aol.com> Date: Tue, Apr 23, 2013 at 9:55 AM Subject: Re: [Coal Volunteers List] EPA - water pollution from power plants rulemaking To: dave.oleary(a)mdsierra.org, coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org Hi Dave, I have seen our statement about the rule on another list, see below. I don't think we know yet if there are going to be hearings but I am sure we will collect comments. This is an important rule and there will be activities around it. Stay tuned. Verena FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 22, 2013 *After 30 Years of Inaction, EPA Finally Proposes Plans for Power Plant Water Pollution* *Includes options protecting waters from toxic pollution as well as weaker standards that maintain the status quo* Washington, D.C. – The Environmental Protection Agency proposed a number of regulatory options late last Friday night, known as steam electric effluent limitation guidelines for power plants<http://water.epa.gov/scitech/wastetech/guide/steam-electric/proposed.cfm>, two of which will finally clean up water pollution from hundreds of power plants. Power plant water discharges are filled with toxic pollution such as mercury, arsenic, lead, and selenium – heavy metals that can cause neurological and developmental damage, cause harm *in utero*, damage internal organs and cause cancer. Power plants are the biggest sources of water pollution in the country, yet the EPA has not reviewed regulations for this industry in more than 30 years. To address this unacceptable delay, environmental groups filed a lawsuit in 2010 to force the EPA to take action and regulate this dirty industry. The following statement is from Appalachian Voices, Clean Water Action, Environmental Integrity Project, Earthjustice, Prairie Rivers Network, Sierra Club, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, and Waterkeeper Alliance on today’s proposal: “After 30 years of inaction, the EPA has finally offered a plan that utilizes affordable, available pollution controls to clean up toxic power plant waste water. We need strong protections that limit the amount of mercury, lead, arsenic, chromium, and other heavy metals that power plants are dumping into the rivers, lakes, and streams where we fish, boat, swim, and drink. The technology to clean up power plant water discharges exists, and in many cases is already being used. While the EPA has presented a menu of options, there are two options (Options 4 and 5)<http://water.epa.gov/scitech/wastetech/guide/steam-electric/proposed.cfm> that address all of the contaminated wastewaters of concern across the industry. We are heartened to see that the EPA has identified these options as both achievable and affordable, and we urge the agency to settle on a final choice that will keep America’s waters safe and clean as the Clean Water Act requires. “In addition to the protective alternatives identified by the agency, the EPA also included many weaker options that would allow power plants to continue to dump poisons unabated from unlined pits. Some of these options also create sweeping exemptions. “Toxic water pollution from coal-fired power plants makes people sick. Those who live in the communities around these plants have had all kinds of concerns about the pollution – everything from reduced property values to extremely rare forms of cancer. We applaud the EPA for taking this next step to address the problem, and we will keep fighting to ensure the EPA chooses the strongest regulation to protect our health and our water.” -----Original Message----- From: dave o'leary <dave.oleary(a)mdsierra.org> To: coal-volunteers-list <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> Sent: Mon, Apr 22, 2013 10:26 pm Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] EPA - water pollution from power plants rulemaking Hi - I haven't seen this noticed shared yet and I'm wondering about the plans to engage in this process. Has anyone reviewed the four options yet and is there any guidance on comments? Thanks, David O'Leary Sierra Club, Maryland Chapter U.S. EPA News Release: EPA Proposes to Reduce Toxic Pollutants Discharged into Waterways by Power Plants > 04/19/2013 > CONTACT: > Stacy Kika (News Media Only) > Kika.stacy(a)epa.gov > 202-564-0906 > 202-564-4355 > > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE > April 19, 2013 > > > EPA Proposes to Reduce Toxic Pollutants Discharged into Waterways by Power > Plants > > WASHINGTON — In accordance with a consent decree and in line with > requirements under the Clean Water Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection > Agency (EPA) > today will propose a range of options to help reduce dangerous pollutants, > including mercury, arsenic, lead, and selenium that are released into > America’s waterways by coal ash, air pollution control waste and other > waste from steam electric power plants. Today’s proposal includes a variety > of options > for whether and how these different waste streams should be treated. EPA > will take comment on all of these options, which it will use to help inform > the > most appropriate final standard. > > Steam electric power plants currently account for more than half of all > toxic pollutants discharged into streams, rivers and lakes from permitted > industrial > facilities in the United States. High exposure to these types of > pollutants has been linked to neurological damage and cancer as well as > damage to the > circulatory system, kidneys and liver.Toxic heavy metals do not break down > in the environment and can also contaminate sediment in waterways and > impact aquatic life and wildlife, including large-scale die-offs of fish. > > “America’s waterways are vital to the health and well-being of our > communities,” said Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. “Reducing the > pollution > of our waters through effective but flexible controls such as we are > proposing today is a win-win for our public health and our economic > vitality. > We look forward to hearing from all stakeholders on the best way forward.” > > EPA has put a focus on ensuring any final rule would protect public health > while being sensible and achievable, and in line with that goal, under > every preferred option proposed by EPA today, more than half of America’s > coal fired power plants would be in compliance without incurring any > additional cost. > > The proposal updates standards that have been in place since 1982, > incorporating technology improvements in the steam electric power industry > over the last three decades as required by the Clean Water Act. The > proposed national standards are based on data collected from industry and > provide flexibility in implementation through a phased-in approach and use > of technologies already installed at a number of plants. Under the > proposed approach, new requirements for existing power plants would be > phased in between 2017 and 2022, and would leverage flexibilities as > necessary. > > Fewer than half of coal-fired power plants are estimated to incur costs > under any of the proposed preferred options, because many power plants > already have the technology and procedures in place to meet the proposed > pollution control standards. > > The four preferred options differ in the number of waste streams covered > (such as fly ash handling systems, treatment of air pollution control waste > and bottom ash), the size of the units controlled and the stringency of > the treatment controls to be imposed. EPA estimates that the regulations > would reduce pollutant discharges by 470 million to 2.62 billion pounds > annually and reduce water use by 50 billion to 103 billion gallons per year. > > EPA also announced its intention to align this Clean Water Act rule with a > related rule for coal combustion residuals (CCRs, also known as > “coal ash”) proposed in 2010 under the Resource Conservation and Recovery > Act. The two rules would apply to many of the same facilities and > would work together to reduce pollution associated with coal ash and > related wastes. EPA is seeking comment from industry and other stakeholders > to ensure that both final rules are aligned to reduce pollution > efficiently and minimize regulatory burdens. > > There are approximately 1,200 steam electric power plants that generate > electricity using nuclear fuel or fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and > natural gas in the U.S. Approximately 500 of these power plants are coal > fired units which are the primary source of the pollutants being addressed > by the proposed regulation. Power plants that are smaller than 50 > megawatts would not be impacted by these new standards, and the majority of > coal-fired power plants would incur no costs under the proposed standards. > > The public comment period on the proposed rule will be open for 60 days > after publication in the Federal Register. The agency is under a consent > decree > to take final action by May 22, 2014. > > More information: > http://water.epa.gov/scitech/wastetech/guide/steam-electric/index.cfm > > > -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ To sign up for this list, email becki.clayborn(a)sierraclub.org with the subject and message "SUBSCRIBE #coal-volunteer" --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ To sign up for this list, email becki.clayborn(a)sierraclub.org with the subject and message "SUBSCRIBE #coal-volunteer" --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Re: We won the 6th Circuit appeal on NWP 21!
by Jim Sconyers 22 Apr '13

22 Apr '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Aaron Isherwood" <aaron.isherwood(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Apr 22, 2013 11:44 AM Subject: Re: We won the 6th Circuit appeal on NWP 21! To: "Mark Kresowik" <mark.kresowik(a)sierraclub.org> Cc: "Bruce Nilles" <bruce.nilles(a)sierraclub.org>, "Mary Anne Hitt" < maryanne.hitt(a)sierraclub.org>, "David Muhly" <david.muhly(a)sierraclub.org>, "Ed Hopkins" <ed.hopkins(a)sierraclub.org>, "Bill Price" < bill.price(a)sierraclub.org>, "Jim Sconyers" <jimscon(a)gmail.com>, "Lane Boldman" <lanebold(a)earthlink.net>, "Rick Clewett" < rick.clewett(a)insightbb.com>, "Axel C Ringe" <onyxfarm(a)bellsouth.net>, "Alex DeSha" <alex.desha(a)sierraclub.org>, "Marley Green" < marley.green(a)sierraclub.org>, "Bonnie Swinford" <bswinford1(a)yahoo.com>, "Sean Sarah" <sean.sarah(a)sierraclub.org>, "Glen Besa" < glen.besa(a)sierraclub.org>, "Peter Morgan" <peter.morgan(a)sierraclub.org>, "Pat Gallagher" <pat.gallagher(a)sierraclub.org> Just got this draft from Jim... Sean, are you available to make suggestions? This is a national case, so should we include a quote from Mary Anne or Ed? Aaron *Appeals Court Invalidates Nationwide Permit* *Used to Bury Streams with Mining Waste* * * The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit today invalidated the 2007 version of the nationwide permit used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to authorize the dumping of coal mining waste into hundreds of miles of Appalachian headwater streams. **** ** ** “The Court agreed with us that the Corps failed in 2007 to demonstrate that filling streams with mining waste has minimal cumulative impacts and that the mining companies can mitigate those environmental impacts to insignificance, ” said Jim Hecker, Environmental Enforcement Director at Public Justice in Washington, DC. “This permit should never have been issued, because it was based on the Corps’ unsupportable assumption that filling these streams has minimal environmental effects.”**** ** ** Since 2003, coalfield residents and state and national environmental groups have been challenging the legality of Nationwide Permit 21 in West Virginia and Kentucky federal courts. A West Virginia federal court enjoined the permit’s use in that state in 2009, but a Kentucky court disagreed with that decision in 2011 and allowed its use in that state to continue. The Sixth Circuit today reversed that Kentucky decision and agreed with the earlier decision by the West Virginia court. **** ** ** The Clean Water Act only authorizes nationwide permits for stream-filling activities that have minimal environmental effects, both individually and cumulatively. Mountaintop removal coal mining produces enormous quantities of waste that is commonly disposed of in adjacent valleys and streams. Scientific studies have shown that the waters downstream from valley fills are degraded, and there is no scientific evidence that buried headwater streams can be re-created successfully elsewhere.**** ** ** The Sixth Circuit found that the Corps’ determination that the 2007 NWP 21 would have cumulatively minimal effects was irrational, for two reasons. First, the Corps failed to analyze the present effects of its past actions allowing the filling of hundreds of miles of streams prior to 2007, and instead improperly limited its analysis to the effects of future filling from 2007 to 2012. Second, the Corps had no documented information showing that mitigation could offset the loss of headwater streams at mining sites. **** ** ** The Sixth Circuit stayed its decision for 60 days to give the lower court and the parties time to assess its impact on existing projects. While the appeal in the Sixth Circuit was pending, the 2007 NWP 21 expired, but the Corps reissued the NWP in 2012 for five more years with more stringent conditions (namely, a 300-foot limit on filling and a prohibition against valley fills). In reissuing that permit, the Corps created a new loophole that gave about 70 uncompleted projects under the old 2007 NWP 21 five more years to use it without meeting the more stringent conditions of the 2012 NWP 21. That loophole is now likely to be closed. At a minimum, these grandfathered projects will require additional analysis and should have to comply with the more stringent 2012 conditions.**** ** ** More broadly, the court’s decision raises serious questions about the Corps’ entire approach to cumulative impacts and compensatory mitigation for coal mining projects. The court directed the Corps to use past mining impacts more carefully to assess cumulative impacts and to document in detail whether mitigation can effectively reduce cumulative impacts. Up to now, the Corps has refused to take these issues seriously and to measure mitigation effectiveness. Recent scientific studies on the relationship between the percentage of mining in a watershed and the severity of downstream biological impairment indicate that surface coal mining is having serious cumulative impacts. **** ** ** “This decision has been a long time coming. Every year we see the health of rivers and streams in eastern Kentucky declining. In 2010, according to the Kentucky Division of Water, only 1% of eastern Kentucky streams fully supported fish and other aquatic life. I’d say that we can see an impact from mining,” stated Judy Petersen, executive director of Kentucky Waterways Alliance.**** ** ** The groups that have challenged NWP 21 in court actions are: in Kentucky—Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Kentucky Waterways Alliance, and Kentucky Riverkeeper; in West Virginia—Ohio River Environmental Coalition, Coal River Mountain Watch, and Natural Resources Defense Council. The legal team opposing NWP 21 has been led by Jim Hecker at Public Justice in Washington, D.C., assisted by Joe Lovett at Appalachian Mountain Advocates in Lewisburg, WV, and Stephen Sanders at the Appalachian Citizens Law Center in Whitesburg, KY. On Mon, Apr 22, 2013 at 8:40 AM, Mark Kresowik <mark.kresowik(a)sierraclub.org > wrote: > Congrats! Is anyone working on media about this already? Seems like > something we'd want to highlight? > > Mark > > > On Mon, Apr 22, 2013 at 11:39 AM, Aaron Isherwood < > aaron.isherwood(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: > >> Excellent news...! >> >> Aaron >> >> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- >> From: Jim Hecker <JHecker(a)publicjustice.net> >> Date: Mon, Apr 22, 2013 at 6:33 AM >> Subject: We won the 6th Circuit appeal on NWP 21! >> To: Joe Lovett <jlovett(a)appalmad.org>, Derek Teaney <dteaney(a)appalmad.org>, >> Mike Becher <mbecher(a)appalmad.org>, Margaret Janes <mjanes100(a)gmail.com> >> Cc: cindy rank <clrank2(a)gmail.com>, Aaron Isherwood < >> aaron.isherwood(a)sierraclub.org>, Peter Morgan < >> peter.morgan(a)sierraclub.org>, dianne bady <dbady.ovec(a)gmail.com>, Alan >> Banks <alan.banks(a)eku.edu>, Judy Petersen <judy(a)kwalliance.org>, Kevin >> Pentz <kevin(a)kftc.org> >> >> >> After eight years of litigation, the Sixth Circuit reversed our loss at >> the district court level and agreed with the prior decision by Judge >> Goodwin in the 2009 Hurst case that NWP 21 violates NEPA, both the >> cumulative impacts and mitigation issues.**** >> >> ** ** >> >> I will have more analysis later.**** >> >> ** ** >> >> Jim Hecker**** >> >> Public Justice**** >> >> 1825 K Street, NW Suite 200**** >> >> Washington, D.C. 20006**** >> >> (202) 797-8600**** >> >> fax (202) 232-7203**** >> >> jhecker(a)publicjustice.net **** >> >> ** ** >> >> > > > -- > Mark Kresowik > Eastern Region Deputy Director > Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Campaign > mark.kresowik(a)sierraclub.org > 202-675-7914 (o) > 319-621-7393 (c) > 50 F St NW Eighth Floor > Washington, DC 20001 >

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KEN WARD ARTICLE IN GAZETTE RE COAL FUNDED "SCHOLARSHIP"
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 22 Apr '13

22 Apr '13

HERE IS A LINK<http://books.google.com/books?id=OTNQLteehOgC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage…>TO THE COAL INDUSTRY FUNDED RESEARCH INTENDED TO CAST DOUBT ON MICHAEL KENDRYX'S PEER-REVIEWED HEALTH STUDIES. -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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Fwd: Coal companies don't want you to see this:
by Paul Wilson 09 Apr '13

09 Apr '13

check out the report and the "Ask the Scientist" question. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Union of Concerned Scientists <action(a)ucsusa.org> Date: Tue, Apr 9, 2013 at 9:38 AM Subject: Coal companies don't want you to see this: To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com *Read this issue on the UCS website.<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=rZCgHspScqPPufjdGDp9lw> * [image: The Pulse: Facts you need from experts you trust] Dear Paul, <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Ad5DalomdqPfV5Qr38dw2A> Coal-fired power plants pollute our air and water and are one of our nation's largest sources of global warming emissions. But times are changing. People like you and me have been working to advance cleaner, more sustainable energy solutions—and it's starting to pay off. Our new report, *Ramping Up Renewables <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=LDXoUktQ4dX4zK1Xfrm4iQ>*, shows that renewable energy is *already* providing reliable power to consumers and that we can dramatically expand our renewable energy use. *Unfortunately, the fossil-fuel industry doesn't want the rest of the country to catch on.*They're working day in and day out to roll back policies that support our transition to a cleaner, renewable future. It's up to us to fight back, so read on! —*Karla* Science in Action [image: Billowing Smokestack] *Take action for more renewable energy in West Virginia* In 2012, new wind power capacity outpaced coal and natural gas for the first time, a success made possible in part by 29 states and the District of Columbia, which require power companies to generate a certain amount of electricity from renewable sources like the wind and sun. These states are demonstrating that we can transition away from dirty, coal-burning power plants toward cleaner sources of electricity while maintaining a reliable and affordable electricity system. This progress threatens the fossil-fuel industry, and they're fighting back—opposing efforts to pass renewable electricity standards in states across the country. *Don't let the fossil-fuel industry stop clean energy progress! Contact your elected officials now to let them know you support a renewable electricity standard in your community!*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=AtCaQiaOGPIZmkX4sagPrg> [image: Click Here to Take Action]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=uELl9yU7Ls7PmGwauNo_DA> *Share:* [image: Share on Facebook]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=oDnkYrJzCIJU9tAiEomfmg> [image: Share on Twitter]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=27wytFY38s3xL7mnFi8DWw> Cartoon of the Month Links for Paul [image: Cartoon: Solar Power]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=j8NT8msZWlDGFpqjmhIFvw> *Click to view larger image.*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=YOT8bPx9M0o_lQGRjLPT_A> *Share:* [image: Share on Facebook]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=0v4HB6VDjil40qasC3ECWQ> [image: Share on Twitter]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=mebnlvTwNYW0CMqjdXFewQ> You know renewable energy is good, but how good? Dive into the details!<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=o7kVutqOmX3lUjkdGEIoCA> What does energy use have to do with our water supply? Find out!<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=sI-V4KHUc5pIejdl9E3HBw> Stay on top of important clean energy updates. Follow our *Ramping Up Renewables* blog series.<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Ua28lieo9Q1150Gyf-0q5A> INFOGRAPHIC: What *science* says about climate change and extreme weather.<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=jR6SeAvDDFjnyp8pChzvxQ> Ask the Scientist [image: David Wright]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=XsD-mRXdd66-JqQa53zv_A> Laura Wisland Senior Energy Analyst, Climate and Energy Program *Follow Laura's blog >>* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=kOmgh3dR6g-nkhLocEnjmg> *A friend of mine claims that if all direct and indirect government subsidies were eliminated, the cheapest electricity source would be coal and that renewables of any kind would be most expensive. Can you clarify how the cost of renewables actually stacks up against other sources? —George E. Milkowski, Chicago, IL* The most important thing to emphasize in answering your question is the fact that renewable sources of electricity are providing clean, safe electricity at competitive prices *right now* across the country. That's a big reason why electricity suppliers are making record-level investments in resources like wind and solar. In fact, the latest data indicate the U.S. wind industry installed more electric generation capacity in 2012 than any other energy source, beating even natural gas. And, thanks in part to government incentives and a maturing industry, renewable sources are getting substantially cheaper. But let's try to unpack some of your friend's claims and assumptions to gain a fuller understanding of how the cost of renewables compares to other sources of electricity. *MORE*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=mM5hZaqbci0VuG_pP9J06g> *Share:* [image: Share on Facebook]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=n6v8saQT42I-rItnuX_nTg> [image: Share on Twitter]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=7PuEoI9UMK96LY4S5M1lFg> Do you have a question for UCS scientists? *Submit your question today.*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=yNOiW375VDRad2pL2bCttw> This Just In [image: Clean Energy Works]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=tVQed4BMVfjnE1YNqibU1A> *Don't believe the critics. Renewable energy works!* When it comes to America's energy future, there's a lot of crosstalk and deception, and the fossil-fuel industry and its allies just want us to keep swallowing their misinformation. Citing inaccurate data, they falsely claim that renewable energy provides few benefits to the environment and assert it must cost more. *That's where science steps in.* To fight their distortion, UCS has released a new report, *Ramping Up Renewables<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=4S6fuDpNEkyl5jlm-4eqgQ> *, which shows how renewable energy solutions are already delivering reliable power to homes and businesses in the United States. The report also describes how the United States can transition to a cleaner, more sustainable energy future if we take the right steps. Read this exciting new report and share it with your family and friends. *MORE*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=ENrRA_NOfl4T1DtJ2w9RBg> * Share:* [image: Share on Facebook]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=nMN4sNr47jv6a6-NQbtgMA> [image: Share on Twitter]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=6VxfeWwPAvPsBeb-kjGVPA> [image: Got Science]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=ownY3QWe7WJcEtLveO1qkg> *For more than a year, officials in South Carolina tried to suppress a science-based report about the impacts of climate change in the state. Here's how science and sunlight finally won the day...* * * *MORE* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Z6vAaEHLKZIX1FcMuz186g> [image: Buzz from the UCS Blog: The Equation]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=ESQOEWJbwiMLyoRX9VZ-pQ> *Doug Gurian-Sherman:* *Biotech Rider* a Threat to Farmers and the Environment <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=va3bnAehwCVNbNKvf1CRZg> *Francesca Grifo:* Who Keeps an Eye on *EPA* Science?<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=aWhmv4abfJDcdEaUtDypRw> *Jeremy Martin:* The Future of *Biofuels* in 10 Charts and Maps<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=MR7cC1NWJxjqtAT10JOo2g> *Michael Halpern:* Four Hours after UCS Report Release, *United States Geological Survey* Takes a Step Forward<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=kJxJnb1VMjdmeR_Wof17eg> *MORE* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=aUTPvgrPZRUT6n-dwe12Bg> [image: UCS on Twitter]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=PWM0U3bj6BXjCS2SQkgVBw> Absurd: #Ohio Senator compares renewable #energy policy he voted for to "Joseph Stalin's 5-year plan" http://ow.ly/jzPfA <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=oaCKNe3ZnIYV6HkRaORz9A> The 2012 figures on US #solar installations have just come in, and things are looking, well, sunny.ow.ly/jiry3<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=YB9zTo7k7ASSu5jTlLJ-jQ> "Detroit Voices" by @FairFoodNetwork--inspiring look at how city is coming together to expand access to healthy food! http://ow.ly/juYZb<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=upGcBTKyCnBxKEteX3k5Jg> #science groups too! http://bit.ly/14tdSGG MT @cleanairfrank: Health & enviro grps praise EPA #driveclean proposal: http://bit.ly/11WNyAG<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=ilARWLUB8Xcs0JTKl8qncg> *MORE* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=zA_s0MfL2E0z7HHmOtYjoQ> DEFEND SCIENCE! Your commitment to UCS ensures that scientific facts inform decisions that affect our environment, our health, and our security. *Donate today.*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=R-mVKBp56wI-JjYFXqilTQ> [image: Make a Donation]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=qIIbaQhUSTgfS7FcgQJEvw> *STAY CONNECTED TO UCS* [image: You Tube]<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=hqbO8o1ZNH6SaT9jFfnfsw> [image: RSS] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=g_khx0X-BaZKX2Pkr8hlOA> [image: Facebook] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=_AZWSC7HAmUqt5LAWnLrHQ> [image: twitter] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=fHo4r1EVtkEAfIJTScBWlw> The Union of Concerned Scientists puts rigorous, independent science to work to solve our planet's most pressing problems. Joining with citizens across the country, we combine technical analysis and effective advocacy to create innovative, practical solutions for a healthy, safe, and sustainable future. Union of Concerned Scientists, 2 Brattle Square Cambridge, MA 02138-3780 phone: 800-666-8276 | Fax: 617-864-9405 | ucsaction(a)ucsusa.org | www.ucsusa.org <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=sLvJsSMdwCn3vkpkYGOEHQ> UCS is a 501(c)(3) organization. All gifts are tax deductible. You can be confident your donations to UCS are spent wisely. About UCS<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=rj2MAEqeULOXwMxmpNoNgA>| Take Action <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=0lceNMQMEdvTNQvX4tAcZw> | Donate<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=8N4Iuc3OngQkugAOKhmIKw>| Contact Us <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=VnwNq4h8Ab0VXAw5hDCKIQ> | Privacy Policy <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=CPPgUotHseGpmHCoJAqW7Q> | Unsubscribe<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/CO?i=XM83aok9p4T3Oq0AusnbBvP5pCu0CIwc&cid=1786>| Update your profile <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=gc_vSLB0M-252jilZ19Zqg> © Union of Concerned Scientists. All rights reserved. [image: powered by CONVIO] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=nx_2F2n9oMi4Ir5fZBE2nQ> nonprofit software <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=kJ4eTkiV8MGK61gj1Ea6Qg> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Coal squeezed by Nat gas?
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 09 Apr '13

09 Apr '13

Fuel Prices, Emission Standards, and Generation Costs for Coal vs Natural Gas Power Plants <http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es4001642> Lincoln F. Pratson<http://pubs.acs.org/action/doSearch?action=search&author=Pratson%2C+L+F&qsS…> * <http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021%2Fes4001642#cor1>, Drew Haerer<http://pubs.acs.org/action/doSearch?action=search&author=Haerer%2C+D&qsSear…> , and Dalia Patiño-Echeverri<http://pubs.acs.org/action/doSearch?action=search&author=Pati%C3%B1o%5C-Ech…> Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, United States Environ. Sci. Technol., Article ASAP *DOI: *10.1021/es4001642 Publication Date (Web): March 15, 2013 Copyright © 2013 American Chemical Society *Phone: (919) 681-8077; fax: (919) 684-5833; e-mail:lincoln.pratson@du<lincoln.pratson(a)duke.edu> ke.edu <lincoln.pratson(a)duke.edu>. ABSTRACT [image: Abstract Image] Low natural gas prices and stricter, federal emission regulations are promoting a shift away from coal power plants and toward natural gas plants as the lowest-cost means of generating electricity in the United States. By estimating the cost of electricity generation (COE) for 304 coal and 358 natural gas plants, we show that the economic viability of 9% of current coal capacity is challenged by low natural gas prices, while another 56% would be challenged by the stricter emission regulations. Under the current regulations, coal plants would again become the dominant least-cost generation option should the ratio of average natural gas to coal prices (NG2CP) rise to 1.8 (it was 1.42 in February 2012). If the more stringent emission standards are enforced, however, natural gas plants would remain cost competitive with a majority of coal plants for NG2CPs up to 4.3. Print<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/04/08/study-the-coal-i…> ------------------------------ Study: The coal industry is in far more trouble than anyone realizesBy Brad Plumer, Updated: April 8, 2013 Here’s some bleak news for the coal industry: As much as 65 percent of the U.S. coal fleet could find itself under threat in the years ahead, thanks to cheap natural gas and stricter air-pollution regulations. That’s according to a new peer-reviewed study<http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021%2Fes4001642> by three researchers at Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment, who take a detailed look at the costs of operating both coal-fired power plants and natural-gas plants around the United States. Their conclusion? Coal power is far more economically vulnerable than most analysts have realized to date. Here’s why: *Cheap natural gas is crowding out coal: *Already, a glut of cheap natural gas from shale deposits in Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and elsewhere is upending the electricity sector. The researchers found that around 9 percent of the U.S. coal fleet has become uneconomical — it’s now cheaper to burn natural gas for electricity than to keep running those coal plants, which are now slated for retirement. The chart below sums up the ongoing shift quite vividly. Many coal plants are now operating at far lower capacity in 2012 than they were back in 2007: <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/files/2013/04/coal-capacity.png> *And new pollution rules could accelerate that shift: *But the shift to gas could become even more dramatic in the years ahead. Under the Obama administration, the EPA has been tightening various standards for air pollutants, including sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, and mercury. By 2016, power-plant operators will have to start installing costly new emissions controls at their coal units to comply with these rules. And that will further sway the economics of power generation. By looking carefully at operating costs, the Duke researchers found that an additional 56 percent of the U.S. coal fleet could become more expensive than natural gas, assuming the ratio of gas prices to coal stayed around its current level. That poses a huge challenge to the coal industry — far bigger than previous analyses have suggested. “That was the most surprising thing to come out of this analysis,” says Duke’s Lincoln Pratson, who led the study. “There has been a lot of focus on those 9 percent of coal plants set for retirement — mostly smaller, older plants. But what were seeing is that there are a very large number of younger plants that would become more costly to run than the median natural-gas plant if they were to upgrade their emissions controls.” *That said, there are some caveats: *That doesn’t mean 65 percent of the coal fleet is set to shut down in the years ahead. This analysis all depends on a number of assumptions. First and most obviously, natural gas prices could start rising again — the early glut of gas from the fracking boom already appears to be leveling off<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/22/what-happens-whe…>. That would help many coal plants hang on. Yet, surprisingly, Pratson and his colleagues found that natural gas would stay competitive even if the ratio of natural gas to coal prices rose from its current level of 1.7 to 4. ”Even in that case, we wouldn’t see the situation we had [in the early 2000s] where every coal plant was cheaper to run than every single natural gas plant,” Pratson says. The study makes a few other debatable assumptions as well. For one, it assumes that power plant operators will comply with the EPA rules by installing new emissions controls — rather than, say, buying allowances under cap-and-trade systems like the acid-rain program. On the flip side, the study doesn’t take into account further potential EPA regulations on cooling water or coal ash. As such, says Pratson, the analysis is offering a “mid-range estimate” on coal’s vulnerability. As a side note, the study also helps referee a contentious political debate. During the 2012 campaign, there were two big theories for what, exactly, was killing the U.S. coal industry. Many conservatives blamed the EPA’s air pollution rules, part of President Obama’s “war on coal.” Other analysts largely chalked it up to cheap natural gas — this was just the market at work. This new study suggests that *both* are crucial factors, and tries to look at how, precisely, natural gas and the EPA will interact with each other in the years ahead. *Further reading:* –The decline of coal, in three charts<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/07/31/the-decline-of-u…> . –The shift from coal to natural gas has helped drive down U.S. carbon-dioxide emissions. But natural gas will only be effective in tackling climate change if the industry gets a handle on methane leaks<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/04/04/methane-leaks-ar…> . –What happens to America’s coal if we don’t burn it? Mining companies will try to ship it abroad<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/post/what-happens-to-us-coal-i…>, mainly to China. But that all depends on whether they can build new export facilities<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/post/can-the-united-states-inf…> in the Pacific Northwest. © The Washington Post Company -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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Fwd: WVNS story: Halliburton's Dirty Secrets Pumped Into WV?
by Paul Wilson 08 Apr '13

08 Apr '13

Chuck is quoted in this WVNS story. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Apr 8, 2013 at 6:25 AM Subject: WVNS story: Halliburton's Dirty Secrets Pumped Into WV? To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Halliburton's Dirty Secrets Pumped Into WV? Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31805-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (04/08/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Landowners, citizen groups and environmentalists are concerned about legislation now before the House of Delegates that would allow drilling companies to keep secret the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing (fracking). Outreach coordinator Chuck Wyrostok, West Virginia Sierra Club, said the industry, led by the huge oilfield service company, Halliburton Corp., has convinced lawmakers in several states to treat the chemical formulas as trade secrets. The drilling service company wants to do the same thing is West Virginia, Wyrostok warned. That is acting with contempt for the people living around Marcellus natural gas drilling, he said. "It's pretty ludicrous to say, 'We're gonna pump secret chemicals into the ground, and we're gonna transport them through your towns, past your schools. And I'm sorry, you just can't know what they are,'" Wyrostok said. Senate Bill 243 <http://goo.gl/DpM0w> inserts what Wyrostok and others call the "Halliburton dirty-secrets amendment" into a bundle of rules proposed by the Department of Environmental Protection. It has passed the Senate and is now before the House Judiciary Committee. Drillers use hundreds of chemicals to help break up the rock deep underground and get the gas out. Halliburton spokesmen have said the company wants to keep competitors from learning its formulas. But critics say it is more likely they don't want landowners and residents to know. There are practical reasons for not treating the fracking formulas like CIA secrets, Wyrostok pointed out. "Say a truck going through a town in West Virginia crashes or ruptures, and no one knows what the chemicals are. How do the first responders react to that? They don't know what's in that truck." Landowners have a hard time testing their well water for contaminates if they don't know what they're looking for, he said, noting that doctors would have to ask the companies what chemicals might be making their patients sick. No one knows how long the company might take to respond, Wyrostok said, or even if it would. Plus, if the doctors find out what the chemicals are, the new rule would forbid them from telling anyone, he added. "Basically, it's a gag order," he said. "I don't think the medical community is gonna go along with that. Doctors in Pennsylvania are suing the state over it." Information about the status of SB 243 is available at http://www.legis.state.wv.us <http://goo.gl/DpM0w>. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31805-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31805-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Justice Loughry: Public Financing Offers An Alternative To Cynicism
by Paul Wilson 04 Apr '13

04 Apr '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Thu, Apr 4, 2013 at 3:29 AM Subject: WVNS story: Justice Loughry: Public Financing Offers An Alternative To Cynicism To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Justice Loughry: Public Financing Offers An Alternative To Cynicism Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31726-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (04/04/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - As lawmakers consider two bills<http://goo.gl/54PU9>making public financing for State Supreme Court elections permanent, the justice elected under the pilot program says it worked because it gave people a chance to feel good about politics for a change. Justice Allen Loughry accepted public financing for his campaign last year and won, astounding many seasoned political observers. The justice said he cannot endorse legislation, but he added that it is vital that people get a chance not to feel cynical about judicial elections. "You should not be able to buy a seat on the West Virginia Supreme Court like you go into a convenience store and buy a candy bar off the shelf," Loughry said. When he accepted public financing, Loughry also accepted strict limits on how much he could spend. That meant he faced opponents with a lot more money, which caused most observers to dismiss his chances. Loughry noted one thing his election proved: You do not have to match your opponents dollar for dollar. "We were still able to reach average West Virginians," he said, "and part of that was because we ran a very positive campaign." To qualify for public financing, Loughry had to raise hundreds of small donations from registered voters across the state's congressional districts. He said that was hard to do, but stressed that it should be hard, to make sure only candidates with a real shot at being elected get a chance at public money. "I don't want to see that change," he said. "You have to be able to show that enough average West Virginia voters would support your campaign. Only at that point should you qualify for that funding." House Bill 2805 would make the pilot program permanent. It has passed the house and is now awaiting action in the senate. HB 2805 and its companion bill in the senate, SB 413, are available at http://www.legis.state.wv.us<http://goo.gl/54PU9> . Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31726-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31726-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Re: AEP utilities seek incentive for energy efficiency programs
by James Kotcon 03 Apr '13

03 Apr '13

This looks like one we should examine carefully, as we may want to support AEP on this case, or perhaps even urge a more aggressive EE target. Jim Kotcon >>> Bill Howley <billhowley(a)hughes.net> 4/3/2013 9:17 AM >>> I haven't studied their incentive plan, because I'm out of town. But incentives are absolutely vital for expanded efficiency programs. When power companies sell less power, they still have to cover their basic overhead costs. Unless they can still cover those costs, they have no interest in selling less power. Even with the incentives, EE will save people money in fuel costs and operating costs. Bill Howley Research -- PO Box 3 -- Chloe, WV 25235 -- 304-655-8255 On 4/2/2013 4:14 PM, Daniel Chiotos wrote: AEP utilities seek incentive for energy efficiency programs ( http://www.statejournal.com/story/21857235/aep-utilities-seek-incentive-for… ) Posted: Apr 02, 2013 2:39 PM EDTUpdated: Apr 02, 2013 2:48 PM EDT By Pam Kasey - email ( mailto:pkasey@statejournal.com?body=http://www.statejournal.com/story/21857235/aep-utilities-seek-incentive-for-energy-efficiency-programs ) Energy What does Patriot propose for escaping bankruptcy? ( http://www.statejournal.com/story/21857934/what-does-patriot-propose-for-es… )WV House votes to expand Mine Safety Technology Tax Credit ( http://www.statejournal.com/story/21857500/wv-house-votes-to-expand )Coal Association supporting transfer of Harrison to Mon Power ( http://www.statejournal.com/story/21857653/coal-association-supporting-tran… )AEP utilities seek incentive for energy efficiency programs ( http://www.statejournal.com/story/21857235/aep-utilities-seek-incentive-for… )Two WV AEP subsidiaries not seeking rate increases ( http://www.statejournal.com/story/21854023/two-wv-aep-subsidiaries-not-seek… ) More>> ( http://www.statejournal.com/category/222501/energy ) Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power want a financial incentive for the energy efficiency programs they offer customers. The companies made their case in an April 1 filing ( http://www.psc.state.wv.us/scripts/WebDocket/ViewDocument.cfm?CaseActivityI… ) with the Public Service Commission of West Virginia. Both AEP's Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power and FirstEnergy's Mon Power and Potomac Edison have in recent years established basic energy efficiency programs for their customers, ordered and approved by the PSC. The AEP companies' programs include, for residential customers, subsidized sales of compact fluorescent light bulbs, home energy audits with recommendations for improvements and offers of rebates, and support for the state's Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, LIHEAP. To commercial and industrial customers, the companies offer rebates for more efficient lighting and heating and cooling. In 2012, the programs saved 51 million kilowatt-hours, up from 22 million in 2011. The AEP companies take in about $6.1 million a year in customer rates to support the programs, and propose to continue that for the coming year. But they also seek an incentive. A challenge in asking utilities to promote energy efficiency among their customers is that utilities make a return on investments that increase supply but they lose money on energy efficiency investments that decrease demand: not only do they get no return on the investments, but, by reducing demand, the programs also cut sales. The companies propose to receive 5 percent of the pre-tax net benefits of the programs as their incentive, up to a total of 12 percent of program cost. The incentive for 2012 would come to about $605,000, according to the filing. The companies said in the filing that regulators in other jurisdictions have allowed their sister companies incentives for energy efficiency efforts and that, as a result, those companies have much larger energy efficiency programs, both in terms of spending and of kilowatt-hour savings achieved for participating customers. An incentive, or lack of an incentive, will figure into the companies' future plans for expanding their energy efficiency programs, they said. To follow the case, subscribe to case number 13-0462 on the Public Service Commission's website ( http://www.psc.state.wv.us/scripts/CaseSubscriptions/SubscriberLogin.cfm ).

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Fwd: Major tar sands oil spill in Arkansas
by Jim Sconyers 02 Apr '13

02 Apr '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Vanessa Kritzer <feedback(a)lcv.org> Date: Tue, Apr 2, 2013 at 2:54 PM Subject: Major tar sands oil spill in Arkansas To: jimscon(a)gmail.com [image: LCV logo header] *Enough is enough! Join us in saying NO to more tar sands spills. Help us reach one million comments against the dangerous Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=YSpaol2X6uByoV4T0a89mw>* Jim, * <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=f0CfeDHryI_732JC-dMuIg>* *[image: Arkansas oil spill large]<http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=6ij8fMTNox5wfguVPR8CLA> * *More than 500,000 gallons of tar sands oil and water just spilled in Arkansas. Don’t let this dirty oil nightmare ooze across America. * *Help us gather 1 million comments to stop the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline! Submit your comment here >><http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=NCmCSdaIdRIiSQm9IrTcYQ> * Imagine coming home to this: Oil oozing down your driveway, pooling in your back yard, and filling up your local waterways. Sounds like a nightmare, right? This is the reality that families in Mayflower, Arkansas, have had to deal with since more than 500,000 gallons of dirty tar sands oil and water spilled out of a ruptured Exxon Mobil pipeline this past Friday. This spill is terrible and our hearts go out to the community in Mayflower affected by this disaster. This shouldn’t have happened. That’s why it’s critical that President Obama and Secretary Kerry reject the construction of a much bigger pipeline, Keystone XL, which could cause even more devastating spills of tar sands crude in waterways and lands across America. *We need you to raise your voice now. Tell the State Department to keep us safe from more tar sands spills by rejecting the dangerous Keystone XL pipeline! <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=I2xAhD4B16VzpIeBIfYMtg>* Unfortunately, the spill in Arkansas repeats a story we know too well. In 2010, an Enbridge Energy pipeline in Michigan broke and spilled more than 800,000 gallons of toxic tar sands crude into the Kalamazoo River -- and it still hasn’t been fully cleaned up. That same year, TransCanada, the company that wants to build the Keystone XL pipeline now, built a pipeline that experienced 12 separate spills in a single year. In 2011, one of Exxon Mobil’s pipelines in Montana ruptured and contaminated the Yellowstone River. And even just last week, a train derailed in Minnesota and spilled 30,000 gallons of tar sands crude. If these stories make your stomach churn, I know how you feel. It’s absolutely infuriating that we keep allowing Big Oil to put our lands, water, and wildlife at risk, when we have seen over and over how it ends. *The Keystone XL tar sands pipeline would be a monster -- carrying 20 times more oil than the Exxon pipeline that burst in the Yellowstone River two years ago. If we have any hope of stopping it, we need you to tell Secretary of State John Kerry that this dirty pipeline is all risk and no reward. Send a message asking him to reject it here >><http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=EUQrqZvtSk6V_BwT-zwWsg> * Right now, the State Department is accepting comments on its review of the potential environmental impacts of the Keystone XL pipeline. The initial draft of this review was completely off-base, downplaying the risks of spills and the devastating impact that this dirty oil would have in fueling climate change. Luckily, we have the chance to weigh in on this draft and push them to change it to recommend what many scientists have attested to -- that this pipeline is too dangerous to build and the tar sands oil needs to stay in the ground. *So we’re joining with groups across the environmental movement to gather one million comments opposing the dirty Keystone XL pipeline by the end of the comment period on April 22. With only 20 days to go, we need you to send a message now. <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=WLCqlKdGJk5pIotkzABNww>* Thanks to contributions from more than 3,000 LCV members, we hit our goal in our fundraising drive for this campaign and now we’ve got all the resources we need to win this fight. But we can’t do it without your help. So thanks for taking a moment to make your voice heard today<http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=ouNexmqd2GvWguXc0DtedA> . Let’s do this, [image: Vanessa] Vanessa Kritzer Online Campaigns Manager League of Conservation Voters Update Your Profile <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=NR9awocIis0FyYJZTj9_IA> To Unsubscribe Click Here<http://action.lcv.org/site/CO?i=ma1nN4n3fm81MDSdw0YRmIdfNA9o-eo8&cid=0> 1920 L Street, NW Suite 800 Washington, DC 20036 202-785-8683 [image: powered by CONVIO] <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=nWJcPOJ6rfOEmr81Bo2qRA> nonprofit software <http://action.lcv.org/site/R?i=mxgUgD0DkbYc6b2ThDv75Q> -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. *There is no Planet B!*

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Washington Post headline: Top climate activist to retire from NASA
by Paul Wilson 02 Apr '13

02 Apr '13

*Top climate activist to retire from NASA<http://link.email.washingtonpost.com/r/LI37JS/26TJ9O/DSHOZO/WPDJQ7/FX2FEW/8…> * Outspoken scientist James Hansen will turn to full-time activism after 46 years at the space agency. ( by Juliet Eilperin , The Washington Post) -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Should Fracking Waste be Barged on Ohio River?
by Paul Wilson 01 Apr '13

01 Apr '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Apr 1, 2013 at 4:45 AM Subject: WVNS story: Should Fracking Waste be Barged on Ohio River? To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Should Fracking Waste be Barged on Ohio River? Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31636-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (04/01/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Toxic waste from fracking could soon travel the Ohio River, if the U.S. Coast Guard gives the green light to a proposal by a Texas company. GreenHunter Water, which owns a fracking waste facility in Washington County Ohio, wants approval to ship the waste by barge at a rate of up to a half-million gallons per load. Environmental groups, including Appalachia Resist!, called it a dangerous idea that could threaten the drinking water source for more than 5 million people. Sasha White, an organizer with the group, explained why. "Frack waste is showing pretty significant levels of carcinogens, toxic heavy metals, radioactive particles," White said, "and the fact that it has been dispersed in a watery medium makes it particularly frightening that they would be shipping it on our waterways." According to GreenHunter, barge transport is safer and more cost-efficient than hauling the waste by truck. The Coast Guard is investigating and has not said when a decision is expected. Some have advised that a safer approach would be to recycle more of the fracking fluids and brine through what is called a "closed loop system." Don Garvin, legislative coordinator with the West Virginia Environmental Council, said the state legislature recently killed a bill that would have made that mandatory in West Virginia. However, he noted, several of the state's largest drilling companies already use a closed loop, because it's cheaper. "It decreases the amount of water that has to be disposed of and decreases the risks from spills and it facilitates the reduction in waste at a drilling site," Garvin said. White said environmental groups are also concerned that if the Ohio barge plans are approved, it could encourage more waste to be produced and injected into wells, a practice that has been linked to small earthquakes. "According to the company that proposed it, one barge could contain the same volume as over 1,000 truckloads," White explained. "If you're able to ship that off to one place, you can increase how much waste you're actually producing." It is estimated that millions of barrels of fracking waste, often from operations in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, are injected each year into more than 170 wells in Ohio. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31636-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31636-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Re: [EC] [wvec-board] Fwd: Energy-Efficient Homes Are Much Less Likely to Go Into ...
by DSGJr＠aol.com 31 Mar '13

31 Mar '13

The House took up the rule, as HB 2660. It passed Gov Org, then Judiciary, and has been put in a different bundle, as HB 2626. No changes that I can find were made to the rule. It is on third reading on House Calendar on 4/01/13. Here is a link: _http://www.legis.state.wv.us/bill_status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=HB2626%20SU B.htm&yr=2013&sesstype=RS&i=2626_ (http://www.legis.state.wv.us/bill_status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=HB2626%20SU…) I have no idea why the House is originating this bundle, instead of the Senate. Probably just sharing the workload. And I have no idea why it is being held up for final passage. don garvin In a message dated 3/31/2013 3:42:42 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, jkotcon(a)wvu.edu writes: Any idea what happened to the WV Energy Efficiency Building codes (87-CSR-4)? SB 251 went to Senate Judiciary, but was never taken up. Other Dept. of Commerce rules are in SB 250, but I can't find any reference to the energy building codes in the version on the Legislature's web page? Jim Kotcon ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jennifer Miller <_jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org_ (mailto:jen.miller@sierraclub.org) > Date: Thu, Mar 21, 2013 at 2:47 PM Subject: Energy-Efficient Homes Are Much Less Likely to Go Into Default To: _CONS-FRED(a)lists.sierraclub.org_ (mailto:CONS-FRED@lists.sierraclub.org) --------------------------- cc:Mail Users----------------------------- ** Remember to DELETE the 'Sender: ...' lines above before REPLYing ** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- New study by IMT that could be helpful to EE and building codes advocates! Energy-Efficient Homes Are Much Less Likely to Go Into Default * _Emily Badger_ (http://www.theatlanticcities.com/authors/emily-badger/) * Mar 19, 2013 _http://www.theatlanticcities.com/housing/2013/03/energy-efficient-homes-are -much-less-likely-go-default/5025/_ (http://www.theatlanticcities.com/housing/2013/03/energy-efficient-homes-are…) Green builders and environmental advocates have long suspected it to be true that families living in energy-efficient homes might be less likely to get in trouble making their monthly mortgage payments. Their energy bills are lower and more predictable, without those wild swings between summer’s air conditioning costs and winter’s heating oil delivery. It also seems plausible that a homeowner who has weighed the up-front costs of energy improvements over the long-term payoff in lower utility bills might be equally conscientious in sizing up the risks of a 30-year mortgage. But there’s never been hard data to support any of this – let alone to help make the case that energy efficiency should be baked into how we underwrite mortgages. A _new study released today_ (http://www.imt.org/resources/detail/home-energy-efficiency-and-mortgage-ris…) attempts for the first time to quantify the connection between energy efficiency and default risk. The research, funded by the _Institute for Market Transformation_ (http://www.imt.org/) and led by University of North Carolina researcher Nikhil Kaza, looked at 71,000 nationally representative owner-occupied single-family homes, 21,000 of them with _Energy Star certifications_ (http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cbd_guidebook.cbd_guidebook_apply_3) . And it turns out the energy-efficient houses were 32 percent less likely to go into default when sized up against comparable homes without that rating. The study looked at loans that originated between 2002 and 2012, spanning the mortgage crisis. And it also found that the more energy-efficient the house, the lower the default risk. The researchers controlled for the size and age of the houses, neighborhood income, climate, home value, local unemployment rates, utility prices and borrower credit scores, among other variables. And so this is not a snapshot of pricey solar-powered homes compared to 1950s-era bungalows. “We’re going to similar homes in the same neighborhoods, with the same price, with the same credit scores of the borrowers,” says Robert Sahidi, a co-author of the report’s executive summary and the director of the Energy Efficiency Finance Policy program at IMT. “It’s not like were picking somebody making $100,000 and comparing it to somebody making $50,000 with a lower credit score and a lower home price.” The average sale price of the non-Energy Star homes in the study was $218,461 (for 2,183 square feet), and $221,919 for the Energy Star homes (for 2,283 square feet). The homes also came from fairly prosperous zipcodes with average income of about $73,000 and an unemployment rate of 6.4 percent. On this map, the Energy-Star homes studied in the paper are noted in red and the control homes in blue (data was unavailable for states like California that aren’t represented): As best as the researchers can tell in their data, there’s little visible difference between the two groups that might explain their varying default rates, other than the efficiency of their homes. “There’s always going to be some portion of unobserved variables that might explain some of this result,” says Kaza, who’s a researcher with the _UNC-Chapel Hill Center for Community Capital_ (http://www.ccc.unc.edu/) . “But we tried as much as we can to make sure control and treatment groups are roughly similar.” He can’t say, though, exactly why the default rates are significantly different. Does the added cost of all those utility bills really add up to the difference between defaulting on a mortgage or staying on top of it? Or is there some other explanation at play – that, for instance, the owners of energy-efficient homes are happier with where they live and more likely to try hard to stay there? Green homes can also be healthier ones, meaning that the families who live there may have lower medical expenses tugging at the family budget from another direction. “But under certain circumstances,” says Cliff Majersik, the executive director of IMT, “you can act on data like this without knowing which portion comes from lower utility bills, which portion comes from healthier homes, which portion comes from happier homeowners.” This evidence is enough, he argues, to justify adjusting federal mortgage guidelines to take into account the fact that would-be owners of energy-efficient homes pose a lower risk of default. A similar argument has been _made about “location-efficient” homes_ (http://www.cnt.org/tcd/location-efficiency/lem) , where homeowners arguably have more money to spend on housing as a result of their lower transportation costs. One day, it’s possible that federal mortgage guidelines could pursue these two ideas in tandem, weighting the benefits of housing that comes with both lower utility and transportation costs – and, in the process, increasing market demand for it. Top image: _Pupes_ (http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-718555p1.html) /_Shutterstock_ (http://www.shutterstock.com/) Keywords: _utility bills_ (http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/utility-bills/) , _default_ (http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/default/) , _Mortgages_ (http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/mortgages/) , _energy efficiency_ (http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/energy-efficiency/) -- Jen Miller _(614)563-9543_ (tel:(614)563-9543) Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign pst....My work is now national in scope, but I'm still based in Columbus, Ohio (the Eastern Time Zone)! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-FRED list, send any message to: _CONS-FRED-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG_ (mailto:CONS-FRED-signoff-request@LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG) Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: _http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp_ (http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp) To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: _http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp_ (http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp) __._,_.___ _Reply via web post_ (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxdWIzNGdpBF9TAzk3… Rtc2dJZAMzMzkzBHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA3JwbHkEc3RpbWUDMTM2NDc1ODk2MA--?act=reply&mes sageNum=3393) _Reply to sender _ (mailto:jkotcon@wvu.edu?subject=Re:%20Fwd:%20Energy-Efficient%20Homes%20Are%20Much%20Less%20Likely%20to%20Go%20Into% 20Default) _Reply to group _ (mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com?subject=Re:%20Fwd:%20Energy-Efficient%20Homes%20Are%20Much%20Less%20Likely%20to%20Go%2 0Into%20Default) _Start a New Topic_ (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmNjU4cjYwBF9TAzk3… WQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNudHBjBHN0aW1lAzEzNjQ3NTg5NjA-) _Messages in this topic_ (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/message/3393;_ylc=X3oDMTM1cWoxaHFy… 5MgRtc2dJZAMzMzkzBHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA3Z0cGMEc3RpbWUDMTM2NDc1ODk2MAR0cGNJZAMzMzk z) (1) Recent Activity: _Visit Your Group_ (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board;_ylc=X3oDMTJmMmw4bm43BF9TAzk3MzU5N… nRsBHNsawN2Z2hwBHN0aW1lAzEzNjQ3NTg5NjA-) (http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJlYmRiZmkyBF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkAzIxN… MA--) Switch to: _Text-Only_ (mailto:wvec-board-traditional@yahoogroups.com?subject=Change Delivery Format: Traditional) , _Daily Digest_ (mailto:wvec-board-digest@yahoogroups.com?subject=Email Delivery: Digest) • _Unsubscribe_ (mailto:wvec-board-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe) • _Terms of Use_ (http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/) • _Send us Feedback _ (mailto:ygroupsnotifications@yahoogroups.com?subject=Feedback on the redesigned individual mail v1) . __,_._,___

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Energy Efficiency Win in Ohio
by James Kotcon 31 Mar '13

31 Mar '13

If WV had Integrated Resource Planning, we could see these savings too. JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Mary Anne Hitt <maryanne.hitt(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Fri, Mar 22, 2013 at 3:08 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] A remarkable, historic week - thank you To: #Coal <coal-list(a)sierraclub.org>, coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org Hello Beyond Coal team, Big Energy Efficiency Win in Ohio ( http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2013/03/firstenergy_corp_ordere… ) This week, the Ohio Public Utilities Commission required utility FirstEnergy to include energy efficiency as part of the portfolio of energy sources they will put into the market for auction this year. The utility had ferociously resisted doing this because they only wanted to put their coal power on the market, to protect their aging, increasingly uncompetitive merchant coal plants. The Commission's action will save Ohio electric customers tens of millions of dollars and will also result in an estimated 300 MW of coal and gas within PJM -- the regional grid operator -- failing to clear in this year's auction, removing a critical revenue stream for these uneconomic plants and hastening their retirement. Perhaps most exciting, the Commission's action signals that they are likely to require something similar for Ohio's other utilities, which also participate in PJM. If so, we're likely to see something like 800-1,000 additional megawatts of cheap, carbon-free energy displacing dirty capacity within the PJM footprint. -- Mary Anne Hitt Director, Beyond Coal Campaign Sierra Club Twitter ( http://twitter.com/#!/maryannehitt ) | Blog ( http://sierraclub.typepad.com/compass/coal-director/ ) 304-876-7064 ( tel:304-876-7064 ) (w) | 540-239-0073 ( tel:540-239-0073 ) (c) www.beyondcoal.org -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ To sign up for this list, email becki.clayborn(a)sierraclub.org with the subject and message "SUBSCRIBE #coal-volunteer" --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org ( mailto:coal-volunteers-list%2Bunsubscribe@sierraclub.org ). To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org.

1 0

Fwd: Energy-Efficient Homes Are Much Less Likely to Go Into Default
by James Kotcon 31 Mar '13

31 Mar '13

Any idea what happened to the WV Energy Efficiency Building codes (87-CSR-4)? SB 251 went to Senate Judiciary, but was never taken up. Other Dept. of Commerce rules are in SB 250, but I can't find any reference to the energy building codes in the version on the Legislature's web page? Jim Kotcon ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jennifer Miller <jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Thu, Mar 21, 2013 at 2:47 PM Subject: Energy-Efficient Homes Are Much Less Likely to Go Into Default To: CONS-FRED(a)lists.sierraclub.org --------------------------- cc:Mail Users----------------------------- ** Remember to DELETE the 'Sender: ...' lines above before REPLYing ** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- New study by IMT that could be helpful to EE and building codes advocates! Energy-Efficient Homes Are Much Less Likely to Go Into Default Emily Badger ( http://www.theatlanticcities.com/authors/emily-badger/ ) Mar 19, 2013 http://www.theatlanticcities.com/housing/2013/03/energy-efficient-homes-are… Green builders and environmental advocates have long suspected it to be true that families living in energy-efficient homes might be less likely to get in trouble making their monthly mortgage payments. Their energy bills are lower and more predictable, without those wild swings between summer’s air conditioning costs and winter’s heating oil delivery. It also seems plausible that a homeowner who has weighed the up-front costs of energy improvements over the long-term payoff in lower utility bills might be equally conscientious in sizing up the risks of a 30-year mortgage. But there’s never been hard data to support any of this – let alone to help make the case that energy efficiency should be baked into how we underwrite mortgages. A new study released today ( http://www.imt.org/resources/detail/home-energy-efficiency-and-mortgage-ris… ) attempts for the first time to quantify the connection between energy efficiency and default risk. The research, funded by the Institute for Market Transformation ( http://www.imt.org/ ) and led by University of North Carolina researcher Nikhil Kaza, looked at 71,000 nationally representative owner-occupied single-family homes, 21,000 of them with Energy Star certifications ( http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cbd_guidebook.cbd_guidebook_apply_3 ). And it turns out the energy-efficient houses were 32 percent less likely to go into default when sized up against comparable homes without that rating. The study looked at loans that originated between 2002 and 2012, spanning the mortgage crisis. And it also found that the more energy-efficient the house, the lower the default risk. The researchers controlled for the size and age of the houses, neighborhood income, climate, home value, local unemployment rates, utility prices and borrower credit scores, among other variables. And so this is not a snapshot of pricey solar-powered homes compared to 1950s-era bungalows. “We’re going to similar homes in the same neighborhoods, with the same price, with the same credit scores of the borrowers,” says Robert Sahidi, a co-author of the report’s executive summary and the director of the Energy Efficiency Finance Policy program at IMT. “It’s not like were picking somebody making $100,000 and comparing it to somebody making $50,000 with a lower credit score and a lower home price.” The average sale price of the non-Energy Star homes in the study was $218,461 (for 2,183 square feet), and $221,919 for the Energy Star homes (for 2,283 square feet). The homes also came from fairly prosperous zipcodes with average income of about $73,000 and an unemployment rate of 6.4 percent. On this map, the Energy-Star homes studied in the paper are noted in red and the control homes in blue (data was unavailable for states like California that aren’t represented): As best as the researchers can tell in their data, there’s little visible difference between the two groups that might explain their varying default rates, other than the efficiency of their homes. “There’s always going to be some portion of unobserved variables that might explain some of this result,” says Kaza, who’s a researcher with the UNC-Chapel Hill Center for Community Capital ( http://www.ccc.unc.edu/ ). “But we tried as much as we can to make sure control and treatment groups are roughly similar.” He can’t say, though, exactly why the default rates are significantly different. Does the added cost of all those utility bills really add up to the difference between defaulting on a mortgage or staying on top of it? Or is there some other explanation at play – that, for instance, the owners of energy-efficient homes are happier with where they live and more likely to try hard to stay there? Green homes can also be healthier ones, meaning that the families who live there may have lower medical expenses tugging at the family budget from another direction. “But under certain circumstances,” says Cliff Majersik, the executive director of IMT, “you can act on data like this without knowing which portion comes from lower utility bills, which portion comes from healthier homes, which portion comes from happier homeowners.” This evidence is enough, he argues, to justify adjusting federal mortgage guidelines to take into account the fact that would-be owners of energy-efficient homes pose a lower risk of default. A similar argument has been made about “location-efficient” homes ( http://www.cnt.org/tcd/location-efficiency/lem ), where homeowners arguably have more money to spend on housing as a result of their lower transportation costs. One day, it’s possible that federal mortgage guidelines could pursue these two ideas in tandem, weighting the benefits of housing that comes with both lower utility and transportation costs – and, in the process, increasing market demand for it. Top image: Pupes ( http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-718555p1.html )/Shutterstock ( http://www.shutterstock.com/ ) Keywords: utility bills ( http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/utility-bills/ ), default ( http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/default/ ), Mortgages ( http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/mortgages/ ), energy efficiency ( http://www.theatlanticcities.com/topics/energy-efficiency/ ) -- Jen Miller (614)563-9543 ( tel:%28614%29563-9543 ) Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign pst....My work is now national in scope, but I'm still based in Columbus, Ohio (the Eastern Time Zone)! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-FRED list, send any message to: CONS-FRED-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp

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Fwd: 2 articles: U.S. Electricity Use on Wane / Efficiency in New England Saves $260 Million in Transmission Costs
by James Kotcon 31 Mar '13

31 Mar '13

The Energy Information Administration is projecting that electricity use in the U.S. will rise an average of just 0.6% a year for industrial users and 0.7% for households through 2040. Mon Power projects twice that rate of growth (1.4 % per year) as the justification for purchasing the Harrison plant. If there is surplus generation on the market, now is NOT the time to buy a power plant. See below. JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jeff Schmidt <jeff.schmidt(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 at 3:44 PM Subject: 2 articles: U.S. Electricity Use on Wane / Efficiency in New England Saves $260 Million in Transmission Costs To: CONS-FRED(a)lists.sierraclub.org --------------------------- cc:Mail Users----------------------------- ** Remember to DELETE the 'Sender: ...' lines above before REPLYing ** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323689604578217831371436110.h… U.S. Electricity Use on Wane January 2, 2013, 7:39 p.m. ET By REBECCA SMITH Americans are using more gadgets, televisions and air conditioners than ever before. But, oddly, their electricity use is barely growing, posing a daunting challenge for the nation's utilities. The Energy Information Administration is projecting that electricity use in the U.S. will rise an average of just 0.6% a year for industrial users and 0.7% for households through 2040. That's a far cry from the middle decades of the past century, when utilities could rely on electricity consumption growing by more than 8% a year. Even after the Arab oil embargo in 1973, the growth in electricity demand averaged 2% to 4% annually. But those days may be long gone. In response to tepid demand, electricity production in the U.S. fell in 2008 and 2009, amid the recession, then ticked up slightly in 2010 before falling again in 2011. For decades, electricity use was viewed as a barometer of economic growth, but the link has become less clear cut in recent years, partly because of a big push to make major appliances and other products, such as compact fluorescent lightbulbs and high-efficiency motors, that use less electricity. The erosion of U.S. manufacturing also has contributed to the consumption slowdown. Industrial electricity use, which includes manufacturing, accounts for about a quarter of the nation's total. From 1998 to 2010, the electricity used for manufacturing fell 18% as industrial processes grew more efficient and companies produced fewer goods in the U.S. The slower pace of growth in electricity use may be helping the environment, since most of the nation's electricity still comes from burning fossil fuels. But it has power companies scrambling to trim spending or redirect capital investment, to improve their profits regardless of consumption patterns. Some companies, including Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. and Northeast Utilities, are pouring money into high-voltage transmission lines—superhighways for electricity—because federal regulators are allowing them to collect above-average returns from customers on those outlays to encourage new investment in the nation's aging power networks. Others are slashing spending, including Exelon Corp., which is cutting investment in nuclear-plant expansions by more than $1 billion and in renewable-energy projects by $1.3 billion from now until 2015 as it tries to avoid a credit downgrade. The Chicago-based company is even hinting at the previously unthinkable: cutting its dividend. "Even with all the actions we've taken, our balance sheet is stressed…and we have no other meaningful levers to pull," Chris Crane, Exelon's chief executive, told investors in November. He added that the company may be forced to lower its payout, which offers investors a return of 7%, based on the company's current stock price. Analysts expect it to reduce the return to closer to 5%. Many utilities with regulated and unregulated operations are redirecting spending to their regulated side, where regulators practically guarantee them a profit. PSEG plans to triple its investment in its fully regulated electricity-transmission business to $2.4 billion in 2014 from less than $866 million in 2008. Ralph Izzo, the company's CEO, recently told investors that he likes spending on power transmission, because "it's not dependent on [electricity] load growth." Part of his motivation is the return on equity of 11.7% to 12.9% set by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. New Orleans-based Entergy Corp. plans to spin off its power-transmission business into a new company that will join the Midwest Independent System Operator, a regional power-grid operator. Doing so would place it under FERC rules, and make the new company eligible for potentially higher profits. "They don't see any light at the end of the tunnel and are making adjustments," Daniel Krueger, managing director of power generation for the consulting firm Accenture in Chicago, said of the companies' shifting strategies. New England's biggest utility company, Northeast Utilities, expects to invest $3.5 billion of shareholder equity in its transmission business by 2017, versus about $2 billion today. It also has said it is planning to cut spending for operations and maintenance by 3% annually at utilities it owns in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire from 2013 to 2015. Nick Akins, CEO of American Electric Power Co., which has the nation's biggest high-voltage transmission network, said he is focused on projects that can be built quickly, mostly connecting utilities it owns in 13 states. Mr. Akins said he wants to avoid the bruising battles that delayed or doomed big projects in the past, like the 275-mile Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline project from West Virginia to Maryland. AEP and partner FirstEnergy Corp. dropped development plans for the complex project in 2011. "Sometimes, we were just dreaming" that the companies could get enormous power lines built across multiple states, Mr. Akins said. He said AEP now is focusing on shorter projects blessed by federal regulators that eliminate grid bottlenecks. "It's where you want to put your money," he said. Write to Rebecca Smith at rebecca.smith(a)wsj.com Copyright ©2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. Back to top http://cleantechnica.com/2012/12/27/energy-efficiency-saves-new-england-260… Energy Efficiency Saves New England $260 Million In Transmission Costs December 27, 2012 Silvio Marcacci Energy efficiency represents the biggest potential to cut consumer costs and reduce power demand – one report has found America is just 43.8% efficient. While individual projects show small results, when they accumulate across a regional grid, efficiency savings add up quickly, as New England’s grid operator recently discovered. State and private programs designed to reduce consumer energy demand have recently cut the need for $260 million in planned transmission system upgrades across the six states within the ISO-New England (ISO-NE) region. The announcement was made during ISO-NE’s energy-efficiency forecast, the first multi-state outlook in the U.S. Big Investments = Big Energy Savings ISO-NE is one of the nation’s largest grid operators, managing electricity supply and demand for 14 million people in 6.5 million households and businesses across 8,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines and 350 generators. The system has more than 32,000 MW of capacity, including more than 2,000 MW of demand response resources. Roughly $1.2 billion was spent across the ISO-NE region from 2008-2011, resulting in a total reduction of 3,502 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in electricity use. The average state reduced electricity consumption 876 GWh annually, with total summer peak demand savings of 514 megawatts (MW). The overall effects of these savings are hard to ignore. Regional peak demand is only forecast to grow .9 percent from 2012–2021 (roughly 2/3 the previous estimate), with a flat annual growth in energy consumption over the same period, and winter peak demand actually projected to decline nearly .5 percent. Lower Demand Leads To Lower Infrastructure Costs In the long term, this consumption decline will have a major impact. >From 2015–2012, ISO-NE estimates annual savings of 1,343 GWh from energy efficiency — roughly the same amount of electricity used by 2 million average homes in the region. New England will spend an estimated $5.7 billion on energy efficiency program over the same time period, according to the report. As a result, ISO-NE was able to lower long-term planning needs for the system’s grid beyond 2020. “Revised analysis shows that the region can actually defer 10 transmission upgrades that earlier studies showed were needed to ensure system reliability,” said Stephen Rourke, vice president for system planning. “By deferring these upgrades, the region will save an estimated $260 million.” Energy efficiency programs across the region were comprised of relatively simple steps, like encouraging consumers to swap out incandescent light bulbs for efficient lighting like CFLs or LEDs, upgrade HVAC systems and building insulation, purchase Energy Star appliances, or integrate more efficient industrial processes and motors. Diverse Funding Streams Foot the Bill Funding for the 125 different individual programs has come from four main sources: state-designated funding, revenue from the system’s Forward Capacity Market (long-term capacity sales), a designated “systems benefits charge” on ratepayer bills, and revenue from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Energy efficiency programs have been the largest recipients of RGGI investments by far, garnering 66 percent of all carbon auction revenue to date, according to the RGGI 2011 Investment Report. Given all this, it’s no surprise New England leads the U.S. in the energy efficiency economy, with Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, and Rhode Island all listed in the annual ranking of the top ten most energy efficient states. Image Credits: electricity demand chart via ISO on Background presentation About Silvio Marcacci Silvio is Principal at Marcacci Communications, a full-service clean energy public relations company based in Washington, D.C. © Cleantechnica 2012 Back to top _______________________________________________ Pa-transmission mailing list Pa-transmission(a)lists.conserveland.org http://lists.conserveland.org/mailman/listinfo/pa-transmission To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.conserveland.org/mailman/listinfo/pa-transmission or email info(a)conserveland.org with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE - TRANSMISSION LISTSERV. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-FRED list, send any message to: CONS-FRED-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/

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Fwd: Environment Program - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
by James Kotcon 28 Mar '13

28 Mar '13

Something for our EE campaign? Or maybe WVEC? JBK >>> Todd Walters 3/28/2013 10:08 AM >>> Sponsor: Kresge Foundation SYNOPSIS: The sponsor's goal is to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by speeding the adoption of energy efficiency and renewable energy. They award support to organizations whose work aligns closely with their strategies and holds strong promise to bring about positive change and organizations that work nationally, across multiple states or at the regional or statewide level. The majority of grants and program-related investments are made within the United States. Deadline(s): Established Date: 04/16/2010 Follow-Up Date: 04/01/2014 Review Date: 03/27/2013 Contact: Address: 3215 West Big Beaver Road Troy, MI 48084 U.S.A. E-mail: Web Site: http://www.kresge.org/programs/environment Program URL: http://www.kresge.org/programs/environment/energy-efficiency-and-renewable-… Tel: 248-643-9630 Fax: Deadline Ind: Receipt Deadline Open: Yes *See Restrictions for further information. DEADLINE NOTE The Environment Program primarily accepts grant requests by invitation. However, if your organization’s work is consistent with the program goals, you may submit a preliminary application as a means of letting Environment Program staff learn more about your activities. Award Type(s): General Project Citizenship/Country of Applying Institution: Any/No Restrictions Locations Tenable: Canadian Institution U.S.A. Institution (including U.S. Territories) Appl Type(s): Non-Profit State/Local Agencies Tax-exempt Target Group(s): NONE Funding Limit: $0 NOT PROV Duration: 0 Indirect Costs: Unspecified Cost Sharing: No Sponsor Type: NONE Geo. Restricted: NO RESTRICTIONS CFDA#: OBJECTIVES: Investments focus on three strategies: Promoting policy reform -- the sponsor supports organizations seeking to promote energy-efficiency resource standards, as well as standards for appliance and equipment efficiency and renewable energy. In addition, the sponsor funds work on policies that encourage utility investment in energy-efficiency programs and transmission policy reform for the Midwest and at a federal level. The aim is the implementation of programs and policies that support energy efficiency and renewable energy as contributors to meeting demand. Bringing energy-efficiency retrofits to scale -- the sponsor seeks to demonstrate through grants and program-related investments that energy-efficiency retrofits can be brought to scale by addressing barriers such as financing, performance measurement and disclosure, marketing and behavior. Supporting next-generation approaches -- the sponsor helps those working to push the bounds of what is considered possible and practical for efficiency improvements in the built environment, and support practices that drive innovation in the fields of energy efficiency and renewable energy. ELIGIBILITY Eligible applicants include U.S.-based 501(c)(3) organizations and their Canadian equivalents, as well as government entities. The sponsor will not support projects outside of North America. Todd Walters Grants Specialist Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design West Virginia University 1005B Agricultural Sciences Building P.O. Box 6108 Morgantown, WV 26506-6108 Phone: 304-293-2404 Fax: 304-293-3740 http://www.davis.wvu.edu/

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Re: [EC] Fwd: Renewable energy cost: Setting the record straight
by John Christensen 22 Mar '13

22 Mar '13

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Fwd: Renewable energy cost: Setting the record straight
by Paul Wilson 22 Mar '13

22 Mar '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: UCS Science Network <sciencenetwork(a)ucsusa.org> Date: Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 6:02 PM Subject: Renewable energy cost: Setting the record straight To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com [image: UCS Science Network] *Webinar on April 3* Join UCS energy experts as we explore effective ways to respond to misinformation about the cost of renewable energy. *Register Today* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=i0Z7lEsJsRQynNWEtX9mqw> Related Links Driving Renewable Energy: Policies That Matter<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=GSY0sKlgJBuLiU2PA2QbQQ> State Renewable Electricity Standards: A Cornerstone in America's Clean Energy Transition <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=8SO0dbXadgkSqpFeSl9x6A> Misinformation about Renewable Energy: Coming to Your State?<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Xj8DzA2sVem931giFt8V1Q> Tell A Colleague Please encourage your colleagues to sign up<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Km26K3WpWLxp8ukvHiwkgQ>and help increase our effectiveness in creating a healthy environment and a safer world. CLICK HERE<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=7bHe6z2_UnMeeyaoqe7oTw> . WEBINAR INVITATION Setting the Record Straight on Renewable Energy Cost Dear Paul, *Fact: Renewable energy is providing affordable electricity across the country right now. And it is getting even cheaper.* Unfortunately, public understanding of the role renewables now play in supplying clean, affordable, and reliable electricity to millions of households is muddled by outdated perceptions and misleading claims at the center of misinformation campaigns funded by fossil fuel interests. We invite you to join the Union of Concerned Scientists for a webinar exploring how you can use your expertise to effectively respond to misinformation about renewable energy cost. *Setting the Record Straight on Renewable Energy Cost<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=C_cTt_sNckJSEjalnNp85w> * *Date:* Wednesday, April 3 *Time:* 3:00-4:00 p.m. (EDT) *Register for the Webinar Today<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=PYhio0DEUmN6xe4PeWRCbw> * Featuring the following UCS staff: - *Jeff Deyette*, assistant director of energy research and senior energy analyst in the Climate & Energy Program, will examine a series of misleading studies funded by the Koch brothers at the center of a misinformation campaign targeting renewable energy requirements in more than a dozen states; - *Laura Wisland*, senior energy analyst, will explore common misperceptions about renewable energy costs, such as the claim that renewables cost significantly more than coal, natural gas, or nuclear power; and - *David Anderson*, outreach coordinator, will highlight the important role you can play in setting the record straight. Please join us as we examine some of the top misconceptions about renewable energy cost and highlight best practices for communicating the facts. Sincerely, [image: David Anderson] David Anderson Outreach Coordinator Climate & Energy Program Union of Concerned Scientists** * * The Union of Concerned Scientists puts rigorous, independent science to work to solve our planet's most pressing problems. Joining with citizens across the country, we combine technical analysis and effective advocacy to create innovative, practical solutions for a healthy, safe, and sustainable future. UCS is a 501(c)(3) organization. All gifts are tax deductible. You can be confident your donations to UCS are spent wisely. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=_ZtIl5LRrI2VuG6AIhZxpw> Union of Concerned Scientists 2 Brattle Square Cambridge, MA 02138-3780 Phone: 800-666-8276<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=hUYKHXNLjeLt4QzVtYoHdQ> Fax: 617-864-9405 <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=gZ1WvNVkBNTqIK0Zyj12Cw> *ucsaction(a)ucsusa.org* <ucsaction(a)ucsusa.org> *www.ucsusa.org* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=jmrNY18KTGLaKQ8Ws-FpDg> *About UCS* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=R3nQpMLUvgiU1e0Pm6tGNQ> | *Take Action* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=NAsSOXaf8I5kosTCqekelA> | *Donate * <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Oym8k6iskfIBAvZq0eDekQ> | *Contact Us*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=XuudAVin8pXtCdTJG4OsCw>| *Privacy Policy* <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Nnecw5-FNoS6ad08L3Wilg>| *Unsubscribe*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/CO?i=tSZs4PY5I2ByKapE25f03v50RFgBvEfG&cid=178…>| *Update Your Profile*<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=is-h6g2lTDYFSiiu8obWKQ> © Union of Concerned Scientists. All rights reserved. [image: powered by CONVIO] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=2tq-sGnmDAFAnGO2CdjKRA> nonprofit software <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=ey4fL3ICxIG5J2DZOxhq5Q> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: URGENT: Tell Senators-- Don't cut environmental regulations on coal
by Paul Wilson 22 Mar '13

22 Mar '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Dow <ddow420(a)comcast.net> Date: Fri, Mar 22, 2013 at 10:15 AM Subject: Fwd: URGENT: Tell Senators-- Don't cut environmental regulations on coal To: "patachek3(a)gmail.com Gmail" <patachek3(a)gmail.com>, "pam394(a)aol.comPolloni" < Pam394(a)aol.com>, Paul Wilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> fyi Begin forwarded message: *From: *"Marice Keever, Friends of the Earth" <foe(a)foe.org> *Date: *March 22, 2013 9:50:27 AM EDT * * [image: http://www.foe.org] [image: Donate to Friend of the Earth]<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=9qkRysaNcDw4JKcZvZi0…> <http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=R6H9OvNirhrkBVPtutY4…><http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=hsrVuJZec9Tl2s3DCgvs…><http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=qjJOSG%2FDgSojRIczXJ…><http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=1qXoJ7ckBwi4gLS4CJ7l…> *Dear David,* *Don't let Big Coal and their allies in Congress eliminate environmental protections on coal exports.*<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=kKiNqdgZdw2dY%2Fv9NV…> <http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=v6Dsi32PELhokneLOVU2…> * Tell your Senators to vote NO on amendment 184!<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=nmEQUQnS2sbzqCebeE4t…> * Big Coal and its allies are attempting to sneak through a last-minute budget amendment to stop federal agencies from limiting the greenhouse gas emissions of exported coal and other fuels. Right now agencies are legally bound to consider the health and climate impacts of greenhouse gases when reviewing export proposals -- including coal. But under Senator Barrasso's (R-WY) amendment (#184), agencies would be barred from considering environmental impacts from exporting coal or other fossil fuels. If this amendment passes there will be nothing to stop Big Coal from sending millions of tons of U.S. coal to be burned in China. And we'll all pay the climate and health consequences. *This amendment will come up for a vote in the next 24 hours. Please act right now -- use the form below tell your Senators to vote NO on Amendment 184!*<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=i66iluTue%2FQdkJ17pr…> Here’s more background on the issue: - Under the National Environmental Policy Act, an agency that issues a permit for a major project involving the extraction and combustion of fossil fuels has to consider the impacts of burning those fuels on the health and well-being of Americans, regardless of whether those fuels are burned in the U.S. or whether they are exported and burned somewhere else in the world - When it comes to greenhouse gases, the impacts on Americans are exactly the same wherever the fuel is burned, because carbon pollution spreads globally and respects no boundaries. - But under this new amendment the agencies would be forced to ignore the impacts on Americans, just because the fuels were exported. - All this does is protect the profits of the big corporations that export fossil fuels, at the expense of the health and well-being of the American people. *Please act now and tell your Senators to vote NO.<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=euz5qKHPVhAz%2Fy2qcx…> * Thank you for speaking up! *Marcie Keever, and all of us at Friends of the Earth* Contact us Friends of the Earth U.S. Washington DC Berkeley CA 1-877-843-8687 Contact us »<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Gox9324MeL%2BAJjJAor…> Email preferences Click here to unsubscribe »<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=gragEFkiBJuaTVbv6u7p…> View email in web browser »<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=nqsHNlcWoCFUE5LNxVqW…> Learn more www.foe.org/news »<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=dG%2B3g8xvsT9PNk%2Fe…> www.foe.org/about-us »<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=vEe0ZoLr0QvYOodlt6YB…> <http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=ygUFdeO3EGpycmd6hEQp…> [image: Follow Friends of the Earth on Facebook]<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=pt4JdFkYyxnOeEKlBjtj…> [image: Follow Friends of the Earth on Twitter]<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=S3XQqrvtSgyEu6khJotN…> [image: View photos from Friends of the Earth on Flickr]<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=9K8H53YxcCEMPCD%2BkB…> [image: empowered by Salsa] <http://www.salsalabs.com/?email> **** -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Coal to challenge oil's dominance by 2017, says IEA | EurActiv
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 21 Mar '13

21 Mar '13

http://www.euractiv.com/energy/coal-challenge-oils-dominance-20-news-516748…

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CO2 graphics
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 17 Mar '13

17 Mar '13

http://grist.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/information-is-beautiful-co2-graph…

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EPA Green House Gases Mobile Website
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 14 Mar '13

14 Mar '13

http://ghgdata.epa.gov/ghgp/home-screen.htm

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fyi, new book on energy efficiency (review in E-Magazine)
by Paul Wilson 12 Mar '13

12 Mar '13

MARCH/APRIL 2013 ISSUE Magazine <http://www.emagazine.com/magazine/> : Books<http://www.emagazine.com/article/category/books> - Print - Email <http://www.emagazine.com/includes/email-a-friend/9831> - ShareThis ------------------------------ The Efficiency NightmareA Review of *The Efficiency Trap: Finding a Better Way to Achieve a Sustainable Energy Future* by Steve Hallett March 1, 2013 | Brita Belli<http://www.emagazine.com/author/guest/brita-belli/> | green book <http://www.emagazine.com/topic/green+book> - - - In *The Efficiency Trap: Finding a Better Way to Achieve a Sustainable Energy Future* (Prometheus Books), author*Steve Hallett *challenges the almighty quest for efficiency, asking “What if the virtuous Prius driver consumes more energy than the jerk in the Hummer?” Hallett, an associate professor at Purdue University, calls efficiency “the worst nightmare of the environmental movement.” He starts at the beginning of civilization, tying each efficient step forward in human history to its environmental consequence. Advanced weapons brought the downfall of megafauna; efficient wood harvesting meant forest depletion. >From fossil fuels—on which two-thirds of the world’s energy depends—to fast transportation, to exploding monoculture crops, more efficient production, Hallett argues, comes with devastating environmental consequences. But could the Hummer really be greener than the Prius? Not in terms of emissions, but the total life cycle of each vehicle tells a different story. Drawing on data from CNW Marketing Research, he notes that manufacturing costs for the Prius are high because it uses more advanced materials that are shipped from various parts of the world. What’s more, it relies on a nickel-halide battery, and nickel mining and smelting carries a heavy pollution cost. Battery disposal is also an environmental problem. Hallett doesn’t conclude that the Hummer is a greener vehicle, but that neither vehicle is a real win for the environment. *The Efficiency Trap* successfully shifts the conversation away from efficiency as an end-all-be-all to advocate for more livable cities, hydroelectricity over solar and wind, sustainable farming in place of consolidated mega-farms and a return to mom and pop stores. Hallett concludes that the only solution to unlocking the efficiency trap is to embrace sustainability on all fronts—to mimic the natural world, in other words, and adapt already. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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FW: Obama to Speak at Big-Ticket Democratic Summit
by Beth Little 11 Mar '13

11 Mar '13

So if we had $50,000, we might get Obama's ear. I'm getting more and more disgusted with our "democracy." From: Newsmax.com [mailto:newsmax@reply.newsmax.com] Sent: Monday, March 11, 2013 6:07 PM To: blittle(a)citynet.net Subject: Obama to Speak at Big-Ticket Democratic Summit Image removed by sender. Image removed by sender. Newsmax.com Breaking from Newsmax.com Obama to Speak at Organizing for Action Summit President Barack Obama will speak Wednesday night to donors and Democratic activists who are building support for a nonprofit group formed to promote his agenda. Two people involved in the planning confirmed the president's speech to the founders' summit of Organizing for Action, which was first reported by Politico Monday morning. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the event planned at a Washington hotel has not yet been officially announced. The two-day meeting will include addresses by OFA chairman Jim Messina, a former White House aide who served as campaign manager for Obama's re-election; David Plouffe, a former White House senior adviser and Obama's 2008 campaign manager; and Jon Carson, a former White House official and the group's executive director. Organizing for Action is being run by former Obama advisers who have transformed his re-election campaign into a grassroots machine to support his initiatives. The group is raising millions from donors and generating support among activists for issues such as gun control and an immigration overhaul. A contribution form for the conference said tickets cost $50,000 per person. <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CRaZjBVaE-sK4qpFdHGGuvE3LfxfvAK&http://www.newsm ax.com/Politics/Obama-Outside-Group/2013/03/11/id/494131?s=al&promo_code=12B FD-1> Read More Here Editor's Notes: ObamaCare: <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CR.1lZx9F2g65tyFq1GfuKJxLfxfvAK&https://www.news maxstore.com/nm_mag/obamacare2.cfm?s=al&promo_code=12BFD-1> How You Can Benefit -Best-Selling Book, ONLY $4.95! <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CRa1lZVa2ngK5Kp7SHDGFKExLftJv1K&http://w3.newsma x.com/newsletters/air/awakening_video.cfm?s=al&promo_code=12BFD-1> Professor Loses $1.5 Million in Market - But Bounces Back! (Here's How) <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6Cv.1lBX922gZ5NphSvDGuvJ3LexJIAK&http://www.medix select.tv/bactipro/?src=L1826&s=al&promo_code=12BFD-1> The Benefits of Probiotics: Fact or Fiction? <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CvaZjBaaESaB4qyFSADGFvJtlftJIAK&http://www.newsm ax.com/social?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=sm_pg> Image removed by sender. Facebook <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CRaZlZxaEnaB5Nd7KvEG2vEDrftfv1K&http://www.newsm ax.com/social?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=sm_pg> Image removed by sender. Twitter <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6Cv.1jBX9FSgZ5qo7KHEG2vEtlexfv1K&http://www.newsm ax.com/social?utm_source=YT&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=sm_pg> Image removed by sender. YouTube <http://news.newsmax.com/default.aspx?KBCva1jBa92ngBCNo7qvDGuHU3rftfIAK> Image removed by sender. Forward to a Friend This email is never sent unsolicited. You have received this Newsmax email because you subscribed to it or someone forwarded it to you. To opt out, see the links below. _____ TO ADVERTISE _____ For information on advertising, please contact Newsmax Advertising Sales <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6Cv.ZjZagESsZ5to7KvGnuKRxrftfvAK&http://w3.newsma x.com/emailform.cfm?recipient=Ad%20Copy> via email. _____ TO SUBSCRIBE _____ If this email has been forwarded to you and you would like to sign up, please click here <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CR.ZjBVgESXZ5to7KHGGEKUxlftJI1K&http://w3.newsma x.com/emails/nm_signup.cfm> . Remove <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CvaZlBX7EngK5qdFSvDeuvJDlftfI1K&http://w3.newsma x.com/emails/profile/unsubscribe/index.cfm?email_address=blittle(a)citynet.net &esp_job_id=1507508> your email address from our list or modify <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6Cva1jBaaF-gZ5td7SvEeuvEtlftfIAK&http://w3.newsma x.com/emails/profile/index.cfm?email_address=blittle(a)citynet.net&esp_job_id= 1507508> your profile. We respect your right to privacy. View <http://news.newsmax.com/?K6CR.1jZxgF-g64Ko7KvGnEKRxlexfI1K&http://www.newsm ax.com/privacy/> our policy. This email was sent by: Newsmax.com 1501 Northpoint Parkway, Suite 104 West Palm Beach, FL 33407 USA 1507508 12BFD-1 Image removed by sender. _____ No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2013.0.2904 / Virus Database: 2641/6164 - Release Date: 03/11/13

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FW: Beyond Mountaintop Removal & Fracking: United for the Future of West Virginia
by Yarnell, Karen 11 Mar '13

11 Mar '13

This is the day after E Day at the Capitol. ________________________________ From: Mathew Louis-Rosenberg [snollygaster(a)gmail.com] Sent: Monday, March 11, 2013 12:13 PM To: ndy"Vivian Stockman"; dianne bady; Dustin White; Maria Gunnoe; Andrew Munn; Bill Price; Chuck Wyrostok; DONNA BRANHAM; Cathy Kunkel; Stacy Gloss; deniseap(a)earthlink.net; Yarnell, Karen; Angie Rosser; Laura Steepleton; debbie jarrell; Vernon Haltom; Kim; Rob Goodwin; Robin Blakeman; Joe Solomon; Junior Walk; cindy rank Subject: Beyond Mountaintop Removal & Fracking: United for the Future of West Virginia Hey folks, Some of us have been talking about responding to the terrible legislative session with a good old fashioned protest. This week is Mountain Justice Spring Break in WV and the Sierra Club's "Mining Week" in their "100 Days of Action" campaign. So we've been spreading the word about meeting up at the Capitol this Friday at 11 am. Below is some text for an Action Alert. If your organizations would be willing to send this out today or tomorrow that would be really helpful, especially to Charleston area residents and folks directly impacted by fracking or strip mining. Thanks so much! Mat Join us this Friday in Charleston for a rally to demand a bright future for West Virginia - not one that caters to the destruction of our mountains and fracking of our waters. Our state is in a critical moment. We have a choice. We can double down on destructive and declining coal industry and another boom and bust energy industry or we can chart a new path to a diverse, healthy, sustainable economy. Instead of embracing calls to create a Citizens Advisory Council on Economic Diversification<http://rampscampaign.org/wv-residents-supporters-attempt-to-deliver-letter-…>, a WV Future Fund<http://blogs.wvgazette.com/coaltattoo/2011/12/13/report-w-va-severance-taxe…> or job-creating energy efficiency policies<http://www.eewv.org/why-energy-efficiency-is-critical-for-wv>, our corrupt politicians have been championing corporate interests. From the attempt to rollback selenium standards, the new threats to sue the EPA , and the continued refusal to address the damage hydrofracking is doing across our state, the government of West Virginia has shown us where they stand. They stand side by side with the big money interests and the destructive industries of gas and coal. It's time for us to stand together -- the movements rising to save our communities from the onslaughts on mountain blasting for coal and fracking for gas. We're outraged, and sick and tired of being sick from nasty chemicals in our water and tired of asking for the peoples' voices to matter. It's our time to show the WV government where our interests are: in the health and well-being for all of our communities. It is beyond time we demand that our state government work for the benefit of all West Virginians. Join us this Friday, March 15th at 11 am in the CAPITOL COURTYARD where we will take our demands straight inside to these corrupt politicians. No more fracking, no more strip mining! We want a new economy for our state. One that doesn't trade clean air, clean water, and the health of our people for a handful of jobs that won't last. One that doesn't devastate our communities with boom and bust economic cycles and can provide safe, healthy jobs for generations to come. It has never been more clear that our government is failing us. Join us this Friday outside the statehouse to show your resolve for a future worth fighting for.

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FW: [New post] Corporate Whiners Whine, Herholdt Cowers
by Frank Young 11 Mar '13

11 Mar '13

"This is not bringing in the other energy sources," Herholdt said. "We're not <co >incentivizing renewables with this portfolio." And "We're the only state that has an alternative portfolio standard that would be met with 100 percent coal," Herholdt said. http://calhounpowerline.com/2013/03/11/corporate-whiners-whine-herholdt-cowe rs/ _____ From: The Power Line [mailto:comment-reply@wordpress.com] Sent: Monday, March 11, 2013 9:22 AM To: fyoung(a)mountain.net Subject: [New post] Corporate Whiners Whine, Herholdt Cowers Bill posted: "Last week, at the coal industry whine fest, WV Division of Energy director Jeff Herholdt seems to have spent his time cringing among the corporate alpha males, ever faithful to their every whim. In Ken Ward's Gazette story, Herholdt finally comes clean" Respond to this post by replying above this line New post on The Power Line <http://s.wordpress.com/i/emails/blavatar-default.png> <http://calhounpowerline.com/author/ourlinksblog/> <http://calhounpowerline.com/2013/03/11/corporate-whiners-whine-herholdt-cow ers/> Corporate Whiners Whine, Herholdt Cowers by <http://calhounpowerline.com/author/ourlinksblog/> Bill Last week, at the coal industry whine fest, WV Division of Energy director Jeff Herholdt seems to have spent his time cringing among the corporate alpha males, ever faithful to their every whim. In Ken Ward's Gazette story, Herholdt finally comes clean about the purpose of the WV Alternative and Renewable Portfolio Standard: Herholdt assured coal industry officials that the state's "alternative energy portfolio" requirement would have very little impact on coal production or use. "This is not bringing in the other energy sources," Herholdt said. "We're not <co >incentivizing renewables with this portfolio." Herholdt said that many other states are saying they won't want coal-fired power, and having an "alternative portfolio" standard on the books is as much as public relations effort by the state as anything else. and "We're the only state that has an alternative portfolio standard that would be met with 100 percent coal," Herholdt said. Gosh. Ya think? Finally, a WV government official drops the "all of the above" BS that Manchin has blathered since he introduced his ARPS bill in the 2009 legislative session. <http://forreliablepower.com/1/post/2011/12/manchinwv-legislature-fraud-now- here-for-all-to-see.html> And I have been saying exactly what Herholdt revealed for years now. In <http://www.statejournal.com/story/16212389/power-to-come-from-existing-plan ts-despite-a-call-for-greater-use-of-renewables> a 2011 story over at Grounded, Pam Kasey came to the same conclusion: If anyone thought having a renewable energy portfolio standard in West Virginia would mean more wind or hydroelectric or solar generation facilities in the state, they were wrong. As the last of six utility plans for compliance with the 2009 Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard are under review for approval by the Public Service Commission, the results are basically in. The major utilities will meet the state's requirements through 2025 with no new generation. So when a politician tries to tell you that the ARPS is "WV's cap and trade" (as did many Republicans in the 2012 election) or that the ARPS will lead to a renewable renaissance in WV (as did many Democrats) just remember Mr. Herholdt bragging about how WV can meet all of its ARPS targets "with 100 percent coal." <http://calhounpowerline.com/author/ourlinksblog/> Bill | March 11, 2013 at 8:22 am | Tags: <http://calhounpowerline.com/?tag=wv-legislature> WV Legislature, <http://calhounpowerline.com/?tag=wv-psc> WV PSC | Categories: <http://calhounpowerline.com/?cat=1> Uncategorized | URL: <http://wp.me/piwFb-1La> http://wp.me/piwFb-1La <http://calhounpowerline.com/2013/03/11/corporate-whiners-whine-herholdt-cow ers/#respond> Comment <http://calhounpowerline.com/2013/03/11/corporate-whiners-whine-herholdt-cow ers/#comments> See all comments Unsubscribe or change your email settings at <https://subscribe.wordpress.com/?key=973223b16743effc39ef5047389b30e8&email =fyoung%40mountain.net> Manage Subscriptions. Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser: <http://calhounpowerline.com/2013/03/11/corporate-whiners-whine-herholdt-cow ers/> http://calhounpowerline.com/2013/03/11/corporate-whiners-whine-herholdt-cowe rs/ <http://wordpress.com> Thanks for flying with WordPress.com <http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=calhounpowerline.wordpress.com&blog=4 415465&post=6768&subd=calhounpowerline&ref=&email=1&email_o=wpcom>

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Fwd: WVNS story: "Wave" of Bills at Legislature Would Weaken State Water Quality
by Paul Wilson 11 Mar '13

11 Mar '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Mar 11, 2013 at 5:17 AM Subject: WVNS story: "Wave" of Bills at Legislature Would Weaken State Water Quality To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> "Wave" of Bills at Legislature Would Weaken State Water Quality Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31281-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (03/11/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Water quality advocates and environmentalists are concerned about a wave of proposals the legislature is considering that would weaken state clean water protections. Don Garvin, legislative coordinator, West Virginia Environmental Council, pointed to bills to allow more selenium, aluminum and beryllium in West Virginia's water, and said there are separate proposals to loosen the rules on treating run-off, especially from abandoned surface mines and mountaintop removal sites. Allies of the mining industry won a lot of seats in the last election, Garvin noted. "The legislature this session is a different legislature," he said. "There's a lot more pressure being put on, by the coal industry in particular, because they have the votes." State selenium limits helped force Patriot Coal to give up mountaintop removal last fall, Garvin said, so it is no coincidence some lawmakers now want to loosen those regulations. The state Department of Environmental Protection is also asking to change aluminum and beryllium limits without going through the normal rulemaking process. Garvin said it's a fake emergency. "The only emergency in the DEP's proposed emergency rule appears to be that our water is too clean," he charged. According to Garvin, none of the bills even try to deal with a basic truth about the future of the industry: The easy-to-reach coal has been mined out. He said coal mining has entered a long, slow decline in central Appalachia, but few are willing to face that reality. "The reality is that the cheap coal is gone," he said, "and it's long past time to be talking about a post-coal economy." The industry has argued it needs to be able to pollute more in order to stay profitable and maintain employment levels. Garvin noted that even if the state's water rules are loosened, they will still have to meet federal health and environmental standards. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31281-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/31281-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Help needed (was: [WVaPATH] IRP and EERS bills in WV legislature
by James Kotcon 07 Mar '13

07 Mar '13

These energy efficiency bills are high priorities for the WV Chapter, and we need to get our members calling their delegates, especially on House Judiciary and Gov. Org. This is direct lobbying, so would anyone want to take a try at preparing a Convio alert on this? See details form Bill Howley below, that could be most of the alert! Jim Kotcon >>> Bill Howley <billhowley(a)hughes.net> 3/7/2013 7:57 AM >>> Well, my last email focused only on the new Integrated Resource Planning bill, HB 2803, but I'm going to add another bill in this email. Energy Efficient West Virginia (EEWV) is the main organization pushing these two bills. EEWV is using a two pronged attack with these two bills at this point. It would be great if we could pass both the IRP bill and the EERS (more on that in a minute) bill, but if we got either one through this year, it would be a significant victory and a real benefit to our state's energy situation. So, the Energy Efficiency Resource Standard bill, HB 2210, was introduced by Delegates Mike Manypenny, Barbara Fleischauer and Nancy Guthrie. The bill would establish specific targets that WV power companies would have to meet for reducing overall electricity demand in the coming years. The EERS bill would have to potential to have a bigger impact on reducing demand than the IRP bill would, because the EERS bill sets specific targets. We had thought that the IRP bill had more chance of passing this year, but it now looks as though we might get a workable agreement, if only with AEP, on very good compromise wording on the EERS bill. That's why I am including the EERS bill in this action request. The EERS bill, HB 2210, is now in the House Judiciary Committee. Del. Tim Miley, the committee chair, strongly supports the bill and is actively working to move it forward. His email address is tim.miley(a)wvhouse.gov, and his office phone number is (304) 340-3252. Please contact him and ask him to put HB2210 on his committee's agenda for a vote. As I noted in my last email, HB 2803, the IRP bill is in House Government Organization. Del. Jim Morgan is chair of Gov Org. Please contact Del. Morgan and tell him you want him to put HB 2803 on his committee's agenda for a vote. His email address is delegatejim(a)aol.com, and his phone number is (304) 340-3192. EEWV has done a great job putting simple and clear information about both bills on their Web site. Each bill has its own page with links to the current bill text, videos from a legislative hearing last year in which the speakers do a great job of explaining both IRP and EERS, as well as concise fact sheets with facts that you might want to use in your contacts with legislators. Here's the link to the page on HB 2803, the IRP bill. Here's the link to the page on HB 2210, the EERS bill. EEWV has already generated quite a bit of email to legislators, so let's send a second wave of PATH fighters. I have a phone conference this morning with Cathy and Stacy and the other EEWV people, and I hope to be able to get you the contact lists for all the Gov Org and Judiciary members within a day or so. But start today by contacting Del. Miley about HB 2210 and Del. Morgan about HB 2803 -- Bill Howley Research -- PO Box 3 -- Chloe, WV 25235 -- 304-655-8255 __._,_.___Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Recent Activity: Visit Your Group Switch to: Text-Only, Daily Digest • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use • Send us Feedback . __,_._,___

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Fwd: Natural Gas Bombshell: Switching From Coal to Gas Increases Warming for Decades, Has Minimal Benefit Even in 2100
by Paul Wilson 04 Mar '13

04 Mar '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ivy Main <ivymain(a)cox.net> Date: Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 12:34 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] Fwd: Natural Gas Bombshell: Switching From Coal to Gas Increases Warming for Decades, Has Minimal Benefit Even in 2100 To: #Coal <coal-list(a)sierraclub.org>, coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org More evidence that we must keep up the pressure for efficiency, wind and solar and not settle for utilities switching from coal to gas. **** http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2011/09/09/315845/natural-gas-switching-fr… **** **** **** *Natural Gas Bombshell: Switching From Coal to Gas Increases Warming for Decades, Has Minimal Benefit Even in 2100<http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2011/09/09/315845/natural-gas-switching-fr…> ***** **** By Joe Romm <http://thinkprogress.org/author/joe/> on Sep 9, 2011 at 5:01 pm **** **** *A BRIDGE FUEL TO NOWHERE***** **** A stunning new study by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) concludes:**** **** In summary, our results show that the substitution of gas for coal as an energy source results in increased rather than decreased global warming for many decades….**** **** [image: http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/coal-v-methane.jpg]<http://www2.ucar.edu/sites/default/files/news/2011/coal-v-methane.jpg> **** **** Coal, natural gas, and climate: Shifting from coal to natural gas would have limited impacts on climate, new research indicates. If methane leaks from natural gas operations could be kept to 2.5% or less, the increase in global temperatures would be reduced by about 0.1 degree Celsius by 2100. Note this is a figure of temperature change relative to baseline warming of roughly 3°C (5.4°F) in 2100. Click to Enlarge.**** **** The fact that natural gas is a bridge fuel to nowhere was first shown by the International Energy Agency in its big June report on gas — see I<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/06/07/238578/iea-golden-age-of-natural-g…>EA’s “Golden Age of Gas Scenario” Leads to More Than 6°F Warming and Out-of-Control Climate Change<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/06/07/238578/iea-golden-age-of-natural-g…>. That study — which had both coal and oil consumption peaking in 2020 — made abundantly clear that if we want to avoid catastrophic warming, we need to start getting off of all fossil fuels.**** **** But what NCAR’s new study adds is more detailed modeling of all contributors to climate change from fossil fuel combustion — positive and negative. The study is here<http://www.springerlink.com/content/b430681263425q64/> [they just eliminated the subscription requirement], the news release is here.<http://www2.ucar.edu/news/5292/switching-coal-natural-gas-would-do-little-g…> It’s by senior research associate Tom Wigley, one of the country’s leading experts on climate modeling.**** **** “Relying more on natural gas would reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, but it would do little to help solve the climate problem,” says Wigley, who is also an adjunct professor at the University of Adelaide in Australia. “It would be many decades before it would slow down global warming at all, and even then it would just be making a difference around the edges.”**** **** Wigley’s analysis is the first to include all of the relevant climate factors:**** **** We consider a scenario where a fraction of coal usage is replaced by natural gas (i.e., methane, CH4) over a given time period, and where a percentage of the gas production is assumed to leak into the atmosphere. The additional CH4 from leakage adds to the radiative forcing of the climate system, offsetting the reduction in CO2 forcing that accompanies the transition from coal to gas. We also consider the effects of methane leakage from coal mining; changes in radiative forcing due to changes in the emissions of sulfur dioxide and carbonaceous aerosols; and differences in the efficiency of electricity production between coal- and gas-fired power generation. On balance, these factors more than offset the reduction in warming due to reduced CO2 emissions.**** **** In the main scenario in the paper, natural gas use soars and coal use drops from 2010 to 2050 before rising again slowly. In the “Supplementary Material,” Wigley runs a sensitivity analysis where natural gas actually replaces coal entirely by 2050. The results are virtually identical — there’s extra warming through 2050 and by 2100 the total reduction in warming is slightly under 0.1°C.**** **** Wigley’s warming in 2100 is “only” 3°C (though it just keeps warming and hits 4°C a few decades later). Other models show 2100 warming closer to 4°C or 5°C (see M<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2009/05/20/204131/mit-doubles-global-warming-…>.I.T. doubles its 2095 warming projection to 10°F — with 866 ppm and Arctic warming of 20°F<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2009/05/20/204131/mit-doubles-global-warming-…>). Either way, the switch to gas accomplishes little or nothing.**** **** A key finding of the NCAR study is:**** **** In summary, our results show that the substitution of gas for coal as an energy source results in increased rather than decreased global warming for many decades — out to the mid 22nd century for the 10% leakage case. This is in accord with Hayhoe et al. (2002) and with the less well established claims of Howarth et al. (2011) who base their analysis on Global Warming Potentials rather than direct modeling of the climate….**** **** The most important result, however, in accord with the above authors, is that, unless leakage rates for new methane can be kept below 2%, substituting gas for coal is not an effective means for reducing the magnitude of future climate change.**** **** What is the leakage rate for methane? Well, as I’ve written, we don’t know exactly because the gas companies won’t release all of their data. We do know that total life-cycle leakage and fugitive emissions from extraction, production, transport, and consumption is higher for shale gas than conventional gas.**** **** The controversial — but peer-reviewed — paper by Cornell’s Robert Howarth, which I wrote about here<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/04/12/207875/shal-gas-bridge-fuel/>, seeks to quantify the impact of the leakage from the best available data. It concluded:**** **** Natural gas is composed largely of methane, and 3.6% to 7.9% of the methane from shale-gas production escapes to the atmosphere in venting and leaks over the life-time of a well. These methane emissions are at least 30% more than and perhaps more than twice as great as those from conventional gas. The higher emissions from shale gas occur at the time wells are hydraulically fractured — as methane escapes from flow-back return fluids — and during drill out following the fracturing. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, with a global warming potential that is far greater than that of carbon dioxide, particularly over the time horizon of the first few decades following emission.**** **** I wrote about the “response” by the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the DOE’s premier fossil fuel lab, here<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/05/25/208173/is-natural-gas-cleaner-than…>. NETL throws dozens of numbers at the reader — and averages in shale gas with conventional gas — to obfuscate the issue. But even NETL concedes that fugitive emissions comprise 1.7% of all natural gas extracted — and point source losses (vented or flared) comprised 2.4% of gas extracted. Shale gas, in their analysis, appears to have 30% higher global warming potential for extraction and delivery, so clearly total losses are higher — much higher than 2%.**** **** I would note that legitimate claims are being made now that the lifetimes of many new shale gas wells have been overstated considerably — see “Analysis: U.S. Shale Gas Industry Reserves Are Over Stated at Least 100 Percent<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/08/05/289389/stunning-analysis-u-s-shale…>.” If so, this would again suggest that total life-cycle emissions relative to total production may be higher than people have suspected for unconventional gas.**** **** ClimateWire <http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2011/09/09/>(subs. req’d) quotes Howarth, who is a professor of ecology and environmental biology, that the switch from coal to gas has been “overhyped”:**** **** It’s time to move on truly green energy technologies — solar, wind — and to place a much greater emphasis on energy efficiency.**** **** Can’t argue with that.**** **** Reid Detchon, executive director of the Energy Future Coalition is quoted saying:**** **** Certainly the carbon benefit was a major consideration in wanting to consider a switch from coal to gas. The Wigley analysis makes it clear that simply switching from coal to gas is not going to get the job done.”*** * **** Detchon calls for developing carbon capture mechanisms for natural gas, which should be a priority for the industry, but don’t hold your breath.**** **** BOTTOM LINE: If you want to have a serious chance at averting catastrophic global warming, then we need to start phasing out all fossil fuels as soon as possible. Natural gas isn’t a bridge fuel from a climate perspective. Carbon-free power is the bridge fuel until we can figure out how to go carbon negative on a large scale in the second half of the century.**** **** Since this is an NCAR study, let me end by pointing out that last year NCAR published a complete literature review of “Drought under global warming” (see here<http://climateprogress.org/2010/10/20/ncar-daidrought-under-global-warming-…>). That study makes clear that Dust-Bowlification may be the impact of human-caused climate change that hits the most people by mid-century, as the figure below suggests (click to enlarge, “a reading of -4 or below is considered extreme drought”):**** [image: drought map 3 2060-2069]<http://www2.ucar.edu/sites/default/files/news/2010/2060-2069wOceanLabels.jpg> **** **** The PDSI [Palmer Drought Severity Index] in the Great Plains during the Dust Bowl apparently spiked very briefly to -6, but otherwise rarely exceeded -3 for the decade (see here<http://www.atmos.umd.edu/%7Ealfredo/bguan_final.pdf> ).**** **** The large-scale pattern shown in Figure 11<http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wcc.81/full#fig11> [of which the figure above is part] appears to be a robust response to increased GHGs. This is very alarming because if the drying is anything resembling Figure 11<http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wcc.81/full#fig11>, a very large population will be severely affected in the coming decades over the whole United States, southern Europe, Southeast Asia, Brazil, Chile, Australia, and most of Africa.**** **** The National Center for Atmospheric Research notes “By the end of the century, many populated areas, including parts of the United States, could face readings in the range of -8 to -10, and much of the Mediterranean could fall to -15 to -20. Such readings would be almost unprecedented.”**** **** Texas is currently at a PDSI of -7.75, close to its record of -7.8 in September 1956 – see Hell and High Water Stoke Texas Blaze: “No One on the Face of This Earth has Ever Fought Fires in These Extreme Conditions”<http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/09/06/312811/hell-and-high-water-fires-e…> **** For the record, the NCAR study merely models the IPCC’s “moderate” A1B scenario — atmospheric concentrations of CO2 around 520 ppm in 2050 and 700 in 2100, which looks close to what Wigley modeled. If this is the Golden Age of Gas, then it must be describing the color of the dust.**** **** ** ** ** ** **** __._,_.___**** **** Your email settings: Individual Email|Traditional Change settings via the Web<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/zerowastesa/join;_ylc=X3oDMTJnbTZrbTczBF9TAzk…> (Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest<zerowastesa-digest@yahoogroups.com?subject=Email%20Delivery:%20Digest> | Switch to Fully Featured<zerowastesa-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com?subject=Change%20Delivery%20Format:%20Fully%20Featured> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/zerowastesa;_ylc=X3oDMTJlbXZlaWd1BF9TAzk3NDc2…> | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/>| Unsubscribe <zerowastesa-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe>*** * **** __,_._,___**** -- --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "ZWTeamLdrs" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to zwteamldrs+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. **** -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Webinar Reminder: Discover U.S. Manufacturing Opportunities in the Solar Energy Industry
by Paul Wilson 25 Feb '13

25 Feb '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Linda Nielsen <LindaN(a)bgafoundation.org> Date: Mon, Feb 25, 2013 at 11:18 AM Subject: Webinar Reminder: Discover U.S. Manufacturing Opportunities in the Solar Energy Industry To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com ** [image: Webinar Series: Manufacturing Opportunities in Clean Energy Markets]<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=mHVh46dQu7u9P7wJwj4qKaUSDIL…> *February 27th Solar Supply Chain Manufacturing Opportunities* The global solar industry is expected to see double-digit installation growth in 2013, and it is expected to surpass wind in the United States. This webinar will explore current market trends and potential opportunities in the solar supply chain. You’ll have an opportunity to hear from experts in clean energy and solar. The presenters have toured OEMs and interviewed solar industry suppliers, and they will provide highlights applicable to U.S. manufacturing. Presentations will be made by: - Doug Hall, U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative’s Photovoltaic Manufacturing Initiative - Alexander Winn, The Solar Foundation - Dale Reckman of CEMC/GLWN - Jim Haider of CEMC/Montana Manufacturing Center This webinar has been designed specifically for MEP Centers and manufacturing companies and provides potential diversification and growth opportunities for manufacturing companies. Date: Wednesday, February 27 Time: 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET Cost: February Webinar is Free Webinar Link <http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=IB%2B0DgyvLIlFcUKe5WbGuKUSD…>Password: CEMC Call in Number: 1-866-469-3239 Meeting Number: 730 783 016 Note: Maximum attendance is 200. If maximum is reached, the webinar will be re-run. This webinars is made possible by: [image: DOE] *For more information about upcoming webinars or other CEMC services, please contact Linda Nielsen at **lindan(a)thecemc.com or visit our website at **www.thecemc.com<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=4rWxx5JNda6dw8kdNM9si6USDIL…> .* **** [image: Copyright BlueGreen Alliance Foundation] UNSUBSCRIBE<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=y4AXK%2BmHp4hu0DPrZcwL%2BqU…> | DONATE<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=r6eorA2qAFyXhD1jsv5%2BnSmK0…> [image: empowered by Salsa] <http://www.salsalabs.com/?email> ** -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Fw: Daily Graphic - Powerful statement against oil subsidies
by James Kotcon 23 Feb '13

23 Feb '13

FYI. JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: CRAIG L. <alanskoalas(a)yahoo.com> Date: Sat, Feb 23, 2013 at 12:50 PM Subject: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Fw: Daily Graphic - Powerful statement against oil subsidies To: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS(a)lists.sierraclub.org - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS list, send any message to: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/

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Another sign of the apocalypse: Coal is making a comeback in the U.S. | Grist
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 21 Feb '13

21 Feb '13

http://grist.org/news/another-sign-of-the-apocalypse-coal-is-making-a-comeb…

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Brand new! 2012 LCV Scorecard
by James Kotcon 20 Feb '13

20 Feb '13

See the WV delegation at: http://scorecard.lcv.org/ JBK

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FW: Music for the Monument - Join us and get free artwork!
by Yarnell, Karen 20 Feb '13

20 Feb '13

Friends of wild places, As a board member of the West Virginia Wilderness Coalition, I'd like to invite you to a special event in celebration of the Birthplace of Rivers National Monument<http://www.birthplaceofrivers.org/> initiative and West Virginia's rich musical heritage. The citizen campaign to preserve the Birthplace of Rivers area of the Monongahela National Forest aims to establish the only National Monument in the Mountain State, and would protect an area of recreational, ecological and cultural significance, while bringing sustainable economic benefits to mountain communities. Please join us at the Irish Pub in downtown Lewisburg on Friday, February 22nd at 8 p.m. to celebrate this historic initiative and enjoy a sampling of some of the Greenbrier Valley's best traditional Appalachian music. Hear the sounds of Patrick O'Flaherty until 9p.m., followed by The Hell for Certain String Band, Allegheny Hellbenders and more! The event is sponsored by the West Virginia Wilderness Coalition and the Greenbrier River Watershed Association. Come out to learn about the great work these organizations do to protect our area's public lands and water resources. There is no charge for the event, but donations in support of our efforts are much-appreciated. Simply pay what you can and enjoy a fun evening of music and advocacy. Video: Greenbrier County fiddler Dennis Ott explains why preservation of the Birthplace of Rivers' landscape is connected to preservation of our musical roots<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vARFrzZ4Q-k> Special offer: For a limited time, supporters contributing $50 or more will receive a free 13"x19" hand-printed poster (image attached), compliments of WVWC Executive Director Mike Costello and Printedappalachia.com<http://www.printedappalachia.com/>. These original prints come straight from a hand-carved linoleum block, and retail for $30. Get yours today by contributing to WVWC's National Monument efforts! Can't attend the event in Lewisburg, but still wish to contribute (and receive your complimentary, hand-printed poster)? No problem. WVWC gladly accepts contributions via PayPal! Visit the link to make your tax-deductible donation, and receive your gift in the mail.<https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=AE2ADY…> Thank you for your continued support of our efforts to save the Mountain State's wild places! I hope to see you at the Irish Pub next week!

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Fwd: Webinar Announcement: Discover U.S. Manufacturing Opportunities in the Solar Energy Industry
by Paul Wilson 20 Feb '13

20 Feb '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Linda Nielsen <LindaN(a)bgafoundation.org> Date: Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 10:42 AM Subject: Webinar Announcement: Discover U.S. Manufacturing Opportunities in the Solar Energy Industry To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com ** [image: Webinar Series: Manufacturing Opportunities in Clean Energy Markets]<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=yBjGPp6ZtzvT5lLZRM3wtLkmoB9…> *February 27th Solar Supply Chain Manufacturing Opportunities* The global solar industry is expected to see double-digit installation growth in 2013, and it is expected to surpass wind in the United States. This webinar will explore current market trends and potential opportunities in the solar supply chain. You’ll have an opportunity to hear from experts in clean energy and solar. The presenters have toured OEMs and interviewed solar industry suppliers, and they will provide highlights applicable to U.S. manufacturing. Presentations will be made by: - Doug Hall, U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative’s Photovoltaic Manufacturing Initiative - Alexander Winn, The Solar Foundation - Dale Reckman of CEMC/GLWN - Jim Haider of CEMC/Montana Manufacturing Center This webinar has been designed specifically for MEP Centers and manufacturing companies and provides potential diversification and growth opportunities for manufacturing companies. Date: Wednesday, February 27 Time: 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET Cost: February Webinar is Free Webinar Link <http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=gDyS4ytpDuGYVSHdyxepbbkmoB9…>Password: CEMC Call in Number: 1-866-469-3239 Meeting Number: 730 783 016 Note: Maximum attendance is 200. If maximum is reached, the webinar will be re-run. This webinars is made possible by: [image: DOE] [image: SEIA] **** [image: Copyright BlueGreen Alliance Foundation] UNSUBSCRIBE<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=OV3T0rIA7C2B0vzbfaW0MbkmoB9…> | DONATE<http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=G8a5HRz%2Ft2Rpc47KhvJ6%2Fbk…> [image: empowered by Salsa] <http://www.salsalabs.com/?email> ** -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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More bad news, Court ruling on Mingo County Coal to liquid plant
by James Kotcon 20 Feb '13

20 Feb '13

The attached ruling on the air permit for the TransGas Coal-to-liquids plant sides with the Air Quality Board. It rules on procedural issues only, and concludes that the permit, as modified to meet the objections of the AQB, is valid. Jim Kotcon

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Fwd: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Fwd: Calculating the Nation's Annual Energy Efficiency Investments
by James Kotcon 19 Feb '13

19 Feb '13

Here is a link to a new study from ACEEE linking energy efficiency and costs. Anyone interested in talking knowledgeably on this issue should read this one. Please share widely. JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ned Ford <Ned.Ford(a)fuse.net> Date: Tue, Feb 19, 2013 at 12:21 PM Subject: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Fwd: Calculating the Nation's Annual Energy Efficiency Investments To: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS(a)lists.sierraclub.org This combines utility efficiency programs, which I think are the most powerful tool available to us, with the Federal Appliance Standards, which save more energy in the long run, but only get expanded when utility programs and other developments have done their work first. I hope it will be of interest to some of you. - Ned NEWS RELEASE Media Contact: Patrick Kiker 202.507.4043 ( tel:202.507.4043 ) pkiker(a)aceee.org Calculating the Nation's Annual Energy Efficiency Investments Today ACEEE released a new report, Calculating the Nation's Annual Energy Efficiency Investments ( http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001HDC1HJAbWod18HK3WB10s_SWcWXhAHnEihOhtLOJOWwf… ), that looks at spending in 2010 (the latest year for which data is available) in the U.S. on energy efficiency goods and services such as energy efficiency program expenditures, sales of ENERGY STAR products, investments in building efficiency improvements, repairs and new construction, trends in manufacturing energy use and investments, and sales of efficient vehicles. We found that the incremental cost of advancement in energy efficiency (e.g., upgrading from an average refrigerator to an ENERGY STAR model) was $72-$101 billion in 2010, and has delivered about three times the level of new energy services as conventional energy supply ($170 billion). To read the fact sheet summarizing the report visit: http://aceee.org/fact-sheet/energy-efficiency-investment ( http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001HDC1HJAbWoderpPVPgBFnoLsfDTW9hxNgjcOo88j2glS… ) To read the report visit: http://aceee.org/research-report/e133 ( http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001HDC1HJAbWod18HK3WB10s_SWcWXhAHnEihOhtLOJOWwf… ) To continue reading the blog post visit: http://aceee.org/blog/2013/02/americans-invest-big-energy-efficienc ( http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001HDC1HJAbWoe48vUNJ8jcdczFWu8nIqgRYo03fDV2v5BK… ) About the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy: ACEEE acts as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors. For information about ACEEE and its programs, publications, and conferences, visit aceee.org ( http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001HDC1HJAbWocCjwtVKujihXrazOBqzN4qOIPZoGQdv5a9… ). ### Forward email ( http://ui.constantcontact.com/sa/fwtf.jsp?llr=4rt7cun6&m=1011065179711&ea=n… ) ( http://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=un&mse=001QKZ15G27mHOwq-0UltPLdH29B… ) This email was sent to ned.ford(a)fuse.net by aceeenews(a)aceee.org | Update Profile/Email Address ( http://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=oo&mse=001QKZ15G27mHOwq-0UltPLdH29B… ) | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe ( http://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=un&mse=001QKZ15G27mHOwq-0UltPLdH29B… )™ | Privacy Policy ( http://ui.constantcontact.com/roving/CCPrivacyPolicy.jsp ). ACEEE | 529 14th Street., N.W. | Suite 600 | Washington | DC | 20045 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS list, send any message to: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp

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Fwd: So much love
by Jim Sconyers 17 Feb '13

17 Feb '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Bill McKibben - 350.org <organizers(a)350.org> Date: Sun, Feb 17, 2013 at 8:25 PM Subject: So much love To: Jim Sconyers <jimscon(a)gmail.com> Friends, Today was the day. Finally, powerfully, decisively -- the movement to stop climate change has come together. *This was the biggest climate change rally in US history.* By our count, 50,000 people gathered by the Washington Monument and then marched past the White House, demanding that President Obama block the Keystone XL pipeline and move forward toward climate action. <http://act.350.org/go/2748?t=1&akid=2744.570617.GUe0l-> (Click here to share this on Facebook<http://act.350.org/go/2748?t=2&akid=2744.570617.GUe0l-> ) There were many high points: Van Jones declaring that Keystone is the only presidential decision anyone will care about in 20 years; billionaire investor Tom Steyer laying out why it's a bad investment; Chief Jackie Thomas explaining the toll that the tar sands are taking on her neighbors, and promising that they would never allow a tar sands pipeline west to the Pacific. *But the real highlight was you.* Movements aren’t about leaders (though without Michael Brune of the Sierra Club, or Rev. Lennox Yearwood of the Hip Hop Caucus, this day would not have come off). Movements are about people — about all of us who put aside the things we have to do because we understand that the future is at stake. To see so many people make this a priority on a day when it would have been much easier (and warmer) to stay inside says a lot. We are making plans to put the momentum of this historic day to use, and you'll hear about them very soon -- but for now, I just want to say thank you to everyone who came to DC, everyone who gathered in the solidarity rallies around the country, and everyone who sent their good wishes and prayers. *You are the movement, and the movement is our best chance at making a difference on climate change.* With so much love, Bill McKibben, for 350.org ------------------------------ 350.org is building a global movement to solve the climate crisis. Connect with us on Facebook <http://facebook.com/350.org> and Twitter<http://twitter.com/350>, and sign up for email alerts <http://350.org/signup?akid=2744.570617.GUe0l->. You can help power our work by getting involved locally, sharing your story<http://local.350.org/stories/?akid=2744.570617.GUe0l->, and donating here. <http://350.org/donate?akid=2744.570617.GUe0l-> ** *To stop receiving emails from 350.org, click here.<http://act.350.org/cms/unsubscribe/unsubscribe/?t=3&akid=2744.570617.GUe0l-> * * * -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Profound
by Beth Little 17 Feb '13

17 Feb '13

Be sure to page down and play the video. http://marcelluseffect.blogspot.com/2013/02/you-cant-frack-your-way-out-of-g lobal.html

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Fwd: Digest for wva-sun@googlegroups.com - 9 Messages in 2 Topics
by James Kotcon 16 Feb '13

16 Feb '13

SB 185 is the Governor's "Alternative-Fuel Motor Vehicle tax credit" bill. It eliminates the existing tax credits for biofuels, electric vehicles, hydrogen vehicles, and even "coal-derived liquid fuels". Tax credits for "Alternative-fuel" vehicles would be limited to natural gas and liquified petroleum gas. This is an aggressive attack on renewables in the transportation sector and would help to lock in fossil fuels. The same bill in the House is House Bill 2506. It has been assigned to the Roads and Transportation Committee, Margaret Staggers is Chair. Jim Kotcon >>> wva-sun(a)googlegroups.com> 2/16/2013 12:17 PM >> ( mailto:wva-sun@googlegroups.com ) SB 185 ( http://groups.google.com/group/wva-sun/t/48ab5358b7ac8f07 ) John Christensen <john(a)mtvsolar.com> Feb 16 09:50AM -0500 Read it and weep, here is the governor's bill to "fix" the alternatively fueled infrastructure and vehicle Tax Credit. Not exactly what we were hoping instead we got a shot over the bow so to speak. John http://www.legis.state.wv.us/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=sb185%20int… -- *John Christensen* *Government Affairs and Advocacy Mountain View Solar 410-499-4873 cell 304-258-4733 office* *www.mtvsolar.com When the sun shines my meter runs in a positive direction! How about yours? *

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Fw: "Power Hour" in Morgantown re: energy efficiency in WV
by Sally Wilts 14 Feb '13

14 Feb '13

excellent opportunity to distribute postcards ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Walton Shepherd <wshepher(a)mix.wvu.edu> To: sallywilts(a)yahoo.com Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2013 9:58 PM Subject: Re: "Power Hour" in Morgantown re: energy efficiency in WV Sorry! Here's the attachment... On Wed, Feb 13, 2013 at 9:56 PM, Walton Shepherd <wshepher(a)mix.wvu.edu> wrote: Hello Sally, > >I was given your name by Cathy Kunkle at EEWV, because in two weeks we're holding a "Power Hour" to educate informed citizens on the poor coal-related decisions our power company has made, why that has led to higher power bills and more pollution, and most importantly what we can do about it. In particular is the attempt by MonPower to buy a 40-year old coal plant and stick us with the bill. > >Would you be able to help spread the word? Details are below and attached, and I will also have a Facebook page soon. This meeting will cover some pretty great "big picture" stuff that I know will be of interest to you and to your members. > >Please call or email me when you have a moment if you would like to discuss next steps, or what I could do to help you in any way. > > >Thank you for your work, and I hope to meet you! > > >W. Chris Shepherd >304.206.7907 > > > >Morgantown Power Hour: >Wednesday, February 27, 6 PM at the Morgantown Library >373 Spruce Street, Room A > >Why is my power bill going up, up, UP? > >Because MonPower wants you to pay UP for buying an old coal plant that will cost us $1.7 BILLION DOLLARS, while it refuses to invest in energy efficiency that would make your bill go DOWN. > >So what are we to do about this $1.7 billion in higher power bills? > > >SAY NO TO PRICEY OLD POWER PLANTS, >AND YES TO EFFICIENCY. > > > > >Learn how you can advocate for common-sense solutions like energy efficiency that will save you money and avoid more rate hikes by avoiding the unnecessary cost of buying yet another old coal power plant. > > >MonPower, your electric monopoly, is planning to purchase an expensive 40-year old coal plant, while refusing to invest instead in energy efficiency programs to meet our power needs, even though energy efficiency is a far cheaper way to meet energy needs when compared to buying an antiquated coal plant for $1.7 BILLION DOLLARS. > > >It’s just common sense that we should increase our energy efficiency first, instead of letting MonPower stick the tab of an old, multi-billion dollar coal plant onto our power bills. > > There are two bills in the legislature this session that would result in the better and less expensive investment in energy efficiency - learn how you can help support these pieces of legislation, which will make your bill go DOWN, not UP like your power company is hoping for.

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Fwd: Why Bill McKibben is risking arrest again
by Jim Sconyers 13 Feb '13

13 Feb '13

I guess this tells us what the plan was for Mike Brune and Allison Chin to get arrested at the White House. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: May Boeve - 350.org <organizers(a)350.org> Date: Wed, Feb 13, 2013 at 9:58 AM Subject: Why Bill McKibben is risking arrest again To: Jim Sconyers <jimscon(a)gmail.com> Dear friends, Right now, 50 or so of our friends and allies are on their way to risk arrest at the White House to encourage President Obama say no to the Keystone XL pipeline. If he is serious about his words last night in the State of the Union, stopping the pipeline is the first and simplest way for him to show it. Among the group at the White House today are people whose homes and communities are affected by the pipeline; who have suffered the impacts of extreme weather events like Hurricane Sandy; who lead companies in the clean energy economy; who lead advocacy organizations, and who lead communities of faith. Each of them tell part of the story of climate change: its causes, impacts, and solutions -- as well as the movement to stop it. Together, they are delivering a message to President Obama. *I am inspired by these stories, and our web team has set up a page where you can read some of them, and share them with your social networks to show your solidarity. Click here to get to know some of the folks at the White House today: 350.org/February13<http://act.350.org/go/2732?t=1&akid=2723.570617.H9klVX> * This Sunday on February 17, the force of this movement will come together in bigger numbers than ever before. That action, combined with the serious message on display in Washington today, are our best tools to push the President to make his words real. *Right about now, Bill is risking arrest alongside our friends, but he wanted me to pass on this message:* "I'm very glad to see leaders and celebrities standing up to Keystone, but I don't forget for a moment that it was 1,253 ordinary Americans going to jail who built this momentum in the first place. And it's the tens of thousands who descend on DC this weekend who will push this to the next stage. We really shouldn't have to be put in handcuffs to stop Keystone XL -- our nation's leading climate scientists have told us it's dangerous folly, and all the recent Nobel Peace laureates have urged us to set a different kind of example for the world, so the choice should be obvious. But given the amount of money on the other side, we've had to spend our bodies, and we'll probably have to spend them again." I hope you can share their stories from today -- each person participating represents a key part of this fight. I also hope you can come to be heard yourself this Sunday when we gather for our big action on the National Mall. Take a moment to appreciate the commitment these folks are making today, and share their messages with your friends -- *this is such an important time for us and our movement: 350.org/February13<http://act.350.org/go/2732?t=2&akid=2723.570617.H9klVX> * Onwards, May ------------------------------ 350.org is building a global movement to solve the climate crisis. Connect with us on Facebook <http://facebook.com/350.org> and Twitter<http://twitter.com/350>, and sign up for email alerts <http://350.org/signup?akid=2723.570617.H9klVX>. You can help power our work by getting involved locally, sharing your story<http://local.350.org/stories/?akid=2723.570617.H9klVX>, and donating here. <http://350.org/donate?akid=2723.570617.H9klVX> ** *To stop receiving emails from 350.org, click here.<http://act.350.org/cms/unsubscribe/unsubscribe/?t=3&akid=2723.570617.H9klVX> * * * -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: From The Colorado Movement to the Sierra Club Executive Board
by Paul Wilson 12 Feb '13

12 Feb '13

anybody else get this? fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: East BoCo United <eastbocounited(a)gmail.com> Date: Mon, Feb 11, 2013 at 11:00 AM Subject: From The Colorado Movement to the Sierra Club Executive Board To: To The Sierra Club On Banning Hydraulic Fracturing To Whom It May Concern: We would like to take this opportunity to address a recent petition calling for the Sierra Club to take a leading position on banning the process of hydraulic fracturing. The petition and supporting documentation around it spoke very closely to our daily experience of this tragic topic. We believe that the effort and its request reflect the quality and passion of your membership, as well as the growing national awareness of the profoundly destructive impacts of hydraulic fracturing, Our group, East Boulder County United, is comprised mainly of residents of Lafayette, Louisville and Gunbarrel Colorado, all which sit on the Wattenberg Shale. We live our lives, raise our families and educate our children and value our environment and community highly, and it has been only recently and entirely against our will that we have been forced to enter the fight against fracking. We were not aware that our community, with its hospitals, homes, and elementary schools sits 8000’ above a layer of shale that spells potentially massive corporate profits. Like so many populations around the world we have seen the growing political tensions and corruption that are required by industries seeking enrichment at the cost of our environment and public health. We live daily with this reality and struggle to find our way forward despite a government that has capitulated entirely to the gas and oil companies. We lead lives of growing desperation and fear as one well after another is plugged into our aquifers, our community space, and our common air. We think about the immediate toxicological effects to our children, neighbors, and loved ones. We wonder if the air will give us cancer. We wonder if the nose bleeds of our children signal neurotoxicity. Beyond all of this, we fret over the looming threat of global warming and the massive destabilizing impacts that the fossil fuel industry produces for our species for inherently short-term personal enrichment. Our group is a small community’s attempt to fight against an industry and government that does not care about our future. We have had our successes and are growing. But we can never hope to possess the power, national visibility and resources of groups like your own. We are a desperate, secondary attempt to fill the void that the larger environmental groups have created by not confronting the realities of hydraulic fracturing directly. It does not need to be like this. The Sierra Club and other national organizations can take the lead on fighting the environmental and political devastation that the fossil fuel industry continues to force upon us. To this end we would in the strongest sense request that you lead a national ban on the process of hydraulic fracturing. It is the only responsible position to take, and would go so far to address the growing destruction this industry is creating. Please contact us at your nearest convenience, and thank you for your time. We await your response. Sincerely, East Boulder County United EastBoCoUnited(a)gmail.com Eastbocounited.org -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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FW: [wvec-board] Ryerson from DAILY UPDATE 9 February 2013. News of interest to Mon river watershed denizens.
by Beth Little 11 Feb '13

11 Feb '13

This from below: Rutter notes an executive order has established a moratorium on drilling in state parks, I was unaware of this. Does anyone have more info? From: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of cindy rank Sent: Monday, February 11, 2013 9:04 AM To: WVEC Subject: [wvec-board] Ryerson from DAILY UPDATE 9 February 2013. News of interest to Mon river watershed denizens. As we discussed at our Spring Review a couple years ago (2010 ?), Ryerson Lake and Park in nearby southwesterm PA was harmed by CONSOL deep mining that weakened the structure of the dam...... Litigation, fines, and discussion about how and who to 'fix', repair, replace, mitigate the destruction continue.... The latest involves mediated negotiations about it all...... See article below for a bit more detail.... Cindy R. 304-924-5802 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Donald C. Strimbeck <dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> Date: Sat, Feb 9, 2013 at 4:14 AM Subject: by Bob Niedbala <http://www.observer-reporter.com/apps/pbcs.dll/personalia?ID=bniedbala> Staff Writer niedbala(a)observer-reporter.com Greene Co. Mediator releases interim report on Ryerson negotiations Friday, February 8,2013 . <http://orweb.sx2.atl.publicus.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=OR&Date=2013020 8&Category=NEWS02&ArtNo=130209339&Ref=AR?q=100> The Duke Lake dam at Ryerson Station State Park A mediator attempting to settle litigation between the state and Consol Energy regarding damage to the dam at Ryerson Station State Park released a report Friday that includes recommendations he said he believes can serve as a basis for resolving the dispute. The mediator, Thomas A. Rutter, released the interim mediation report with the approval of all parties to the case. Expanding cracks in the concrete dam at Ryerson forced the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources in 2005 to drain the lake and remove part of the dam. DCNR filed a claim against Consol suggesting the damage was caused by Consol's Bailey Mine, which was mining near the park. The state Department of Environmental Protection later determined the damage was caused by mining and ordered Consol to restore the dam. Denying its mining activities was to blame, Consol appealed DEP's decision to the state Environmental Hearing Board, where the case is scheduled for trial in May. Rutter's recommendations build on a proposal he presented at a public meeting on restoration of the dam last month. He proposes a settlement under which Consol would pay to rebuild the dam in return for it being allowed to drill for natural gas beneath the park, but only from properties adjacent to the park. Consol would be given the opportunity to lease gas resources beneath the park. Once its drilling activities are completed on the eight parcels of land it now owns adjacent to the park, the company would deed those parcels to the state, which will increase the size of the park by about one third, Rutter said. Consol would also agree never to conduct gas drilling on the park lands and would establish a monitoring program to address concerns related to future mining in the area of the park. Rutter notes an executive order has established a moratorium on drilling in state parks, but he urged parties to consider the proposal for reasons stated in the report. "This matter has dragged on too long. If the parties miss this opportunity, I fear that this case will proceed and the community will continue to suffer while this lengthy and costly litigation proceeds," Rutter wrote. The report was released at the request of DCNR secretary Richard J. Allen. "The report in my view provides a reasonable framework to reach a resolution of the litigation and to restore the dam," Allen wrote in a letter to Rutter, which also was released. Allen said he believes from newspaper articles and other information he's received that the community would support such a resolution, but to insure the public is fully informed he suggested the report be released. Consol spokeswoman Lynn Seay said in an email that the company has supported the process outlined by the mediator. "We're hopeful that this mediation sets a new course that takes it out of the attorney's hands and into a construct where all parties can align around the common goal of restoring Ryerson dam and the recreational aspects to the park as soon as possible," she said. A spokesman for the Center for Coalfield Justice, which intervened in the case, could not be reached Friday for comment. In his report, Rutter said he believes from discussion with the parties that any settlement involving Consol paying a substantial sum to resolve the claim would have to address, in exchange, Consol's development issues. The company owns coal rights beneath part of the park that could be mined in the future, he said. In addition, its subsidiary, CNX Gas, has acquired the assets of MOB Corp. that include four gas wells in the park. CNX gas has not drilled any wells in the park but is interested in doing so in conjunction with its shale gas development on the parcels it owns adjacent to the park, he said, DCNR has estimated the cost to rebuild the dam at $21.7 million not including design and pre-construction services. Consol has estimated repairs and renovations at between $10.6 and $17.6 million Rutter said that oral and written testimony he received from about 200 individuals and groups, include more than 40 who testified at the hearing Jan. 26, indicate people want the dam restored as soon as possible and would accept a "reasonable resolution" to ensure that result. He said he heard little opposition to the settlement proposal he presented at the hearing, which involved having Consol compensate the state for the dam while allowing it to drill for gas beneath the park. Each of the parties is ready to prove its case before the hearing board, he said. Both sides "have marshaled impressive, well credentialed experts who support their positions." Parties estimate it could take three to five years to resolve the case through administrative and appellate court proceedings. But even if the state wins, the public will lose by the time that has passed until the lake is restored, Rutter wrote. If the state should lose, he added, it might find it hasn't the money to replace the dam itself. Negotiation teams have made progress but the matter has come to a "critical point" at which those involved in the mediation must obtain authority to negotiate a settlement under terms specified in the report. "I may be optimistic, but if you can agree to these terms I believe the rest of the case can be settled in short order." Rutter said. Further public comment in writing is still be accepted regarding the report. Comments can be sent to: . Stewart L. Cohen, DCNR special counsel, Two Commerce Square, 2001 Market Street, Suite 2900, Philadelphia, Pa. 19103; facsimile: 215-567-6019; . Stan Geary, senior counsel, Consol Energy, 1000 Consol Energy Drive, Canonsburg, Pa. 15317; facsimile: 724-485-4837; . Michael Heilman, assistant regional counsel, DEP, 400 Waterfront Drive, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15222; facsimile; 412-442-4267 . Odam Salim, Center for Coalfield Justice, University of Pittsburgh School of Law, P.O. 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Washington Post -- use of coal by europe rising
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 08 Feb '13

08 Feb '13

http://m.washingtonpost.com/

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FW: Where does your gas money really go?
by Beth Little 05 Feb '13

05 Feb '13

From: Union of Concerned Scientists [mailto:action@ucsusa.org] Sent: Tuesday, February 05, 2013 5:41 PM To: blittle(a)citynet.net Subject: Where does your gas money really go? <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/12457.jpg> <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=gR8l9n1oqJAe8psn-2jRAA> Forward this email <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=08bzufgBRHExASitJ4tusQ> Sign up <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=sxtLMsw-kc6lp10TGyQ-7A> Donate Union of Concerned Scientists <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/12460.jpg> <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/12419.gif> <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/12419.gif> It's Time to Talk REAL Oil Savings Americans spend a lot of money on gas. But that money doesn't benefit your gas station or you, even if you own oil company stock. Most of the money goes to one place: oil company coffers. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=BAXOJ8uHC4Ukus-uYWIFwA> Where your gas money goes Help us tell the real story of where your gas money goes. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=v2Sa7vDKezMBvOJ9FY5-Kw> <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/12434.gif> Where Does Your Gas Money Really Go? Dear Elizabeth, Several major oil companies recently released their 2012 earnings, and their profits soared to new heights. It is not breaking news that oil companies reap huge benefits from our oil use. In fact, as a new Union of Concerned Scientists report shows, the vast majority of what you spend at the pump ends up in oil company coffers. Oil companies are using a portion of their profits to improve their public image, arguing that these record-breaking earnings benefit the millions of Americans who own stock in oil companies-so go ahead-fill up your gas tank and help out your fellow citizen's retirement portfolio. But this rhetoric begs the question: Does your oil use benefit you? In Where your Gas Money Goes <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=Lq0WHD5DOaIpz7o9S6eDeA> , UCS calculated how much money an average consumer spends on gas, where that money really goes, and what a consumer can expect in return on their oil stocks. Our analysis shows that the 'average' ExxonMobil shareholder gets far less than a penny back from their annual gas expenditures. Even ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson, who owns 1.7 million shares of company stock, would get only 34 cents back from a full year of purchasing gas only from his own company stations. The good news is that we can all benefit by investing in oil saving solutions. In fact, whether you are an average driver or an oil company CEO, reducing your own oil use is always a smart fiscal strategy. Here are some encouraging numbers: . $9,000 - the amount you would save on fuel costs by investing $3,500 in purchasing the Ford Fusion SE Hybrid instead of the conventional model; . 11 million - the number of barrels of oil we could save every day by 2035 by investing in efficiency and innovative solutions instead of standing still; . 9% over 9 years - the amount that Exxon has reduced energy use at its refineries by investing in efficiency. Together we can cut projected oil use in half over the next 20 years, but we need a strong and informed chorus of voices to stop oil companies from blocking progress. While we don't have the same marketing budgets as the oil companies, we do have dedicated supporters like you who think it's time to spend less at the pump and invest in solutions that will protect consumers, the climate, and our environment from the growing costs of our oil use. Will you help us start a REAL conversation on oil spending and oil solutions? Check out our new Where Your Gas Money Goes <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=8B8ci73wElBZb_gVheGWdw> report and share it with your friends and family on Twitter and Facebook. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=85LuKFArZnSK6CAdPyf5YQ> And if you're not on Twitter or Facebook, you can help spread the word here. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=3BOdhF6z5LGDmDfdAgMlGA> Thanks for working toward a "Half the Oil" future. Sincerely, Rachel Cohen <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/Rachel_Cohen.jpg> Rachel Cohen National Field Organizer Clean Vehicles Program Union of Concerned Scientists The Union of Concerned Scientists puts rigorous, independent science to work to solve our planet's most pressing problems. Joining with citizens across the country, we combine technical analysis and effective advocacy to create innovative, practical solutions for a healthy, safe, and sustainable future. UCS is a 501(c)(3) organization. All gifts are tax deductible. You can be confident your donations to UCS are spent wisely. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=xtwkP6sRQKycEP_tooMW1g> <http://action.ucsusa.org/images/content/pagebuilder/12435.jpg> Union of Concerned Scientists 2 Brattle Square | Cambridge, MA 02138-3780 Telephone: 800-666-8276 | Fax: 617-864-9405 ucsaction(a)ucsusa.org www.ucsusa.org To stop receiving emails from UCS about clean vehicles, click here to update your interests <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=j4YjomPl6jJ5EcJXQHOV8g> . 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For electric power generation, the end of fossil fuel is in sight
by James Kotcon 05 Feb '13

05 Feb '13

my new blogpost: U. Delaware study shows an all-renewable grid by 2030 is possible ( http://groups.google.com/group/va-sun/t/6623d3dabe2dd68b ) Ivy Main <ivymain(a)cox.net> Feb 04 03:58PM -0500 This new study answers the questions we always get about what to do when the wind doesn't blow and the sun doesn't shine. It is available at www.ceoe.udel.edu/windpower Below is my blogpost about the study, which you can find at my blog, www.powerforthepeopleva.com, or at http://m.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/04/1184546/-For-electric-power-generati… Ivy Main Vice Chair, Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club home: 703-448-7618 cell: 703-967-2876 ivymain(a)cox.net Read the Virginia Energy Blog: PowerforthePeopleVA.com For electric power generation, the end of fossil fuel is in sight by Ivy Main Feb 04, 2013 9:53am PST The rap on renewable energy is that it’s too variable to meet society’s demand for a constant supply of electricity. The answer to the problem turns out to be: More renewables. Climate change is acting like an ever-tightening vise on our energy options. Each year that passes without dramatic decreases in our use of carbon-emitting fuels means the cuts we have to make simply get more drastic. By 2030, say experts, we must entirely replace coal with efficiency and renewable energy, or fry. Even the most intrepid environmentalists wonder if it can be done without huge price hikes and wholesale changes in how we live and use energy--changes that society may not accept. A new study out of the University of Delaware shows it is possible to power the grid 99.9% of the time with only solar and wind energy, at a cost comparable to what we are paying today. This counters the conventional wisdom that we will always need large amounts of fossil fuel as a backup when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine. It also means the goal of getting largely beyond fossil fuels by 2030 is not just achievable, but practical. The study focused on a regional transmission grid known as PJM, which encompasses parts or all of fourteen states, mostly in the Mid-Atlantic. Researchers ran 28 billion computer simulations to find the most cost-effective combinations of wind and solar that could power the entire grid, at the least possible cost and with minimal amounts of energy storage. The winning combination relied on natural gas turbines for backup on only five days out of the four years modeled. The study authors looked for the least cost taking account of carbon and other external costs of fossil fuels, which are not being accounted for today, but they also assumed no technology improvements over time, making their cost estimates conservative overall. All the least-cost combinations used much more storage than we have today, but needed it for only 9 to 72 hours to get through the entire four years modeled. The secret to dealing with the inherent variability of wind and solar, it turns out, is to build even more wind and solar. One wind turbine is unreliable, but tens of thousands spread across a dozen states greatly reduces the variability problem, and tens of thousands of wind turbines balanced with millions of solar panels is better still. To get to 99.9% renewables, you keep adding wind turbines and solar panels until you are producing three times the electricity that you actually need to meet demand. To power the grid with renewables just 90% of the time, you would have to produce “only” 1.8 times the electricity needed. (And yes, we have the windy sites and the sunny places to support all those projects.) While it may sound strange to build more generation than you need, that is already the way grid operators ensure reliability. To take one example, if you were in Virginia when the “Big One” struck in 2011, you will recall that the earthquake caused the North Anna nuclear plant to shut down for four months. Nuclear energy provides a third of the electricity in Dominion Virginia Power’s service territory, and yet the lights stayed on. That’s because the grid wizards at PJM simply called on other power sources that had been idle or that had spare capacity. The other component of reliability is the ability to match demand for power, which rises and falls with the time of day, weather, and other factors. So-called “baseload” plants like nuclear, coal, and some natural gas turbines don’t offer that flexibility and must be supplemented with other sources or stored energy. PJM currently uses more than 1,300 different generating sources, as well as about 4% storage in the form of pumped hydro. The right combination of other sources can replace baseload plants entirely. Pairing wind and solar improves their ability to meet demand reliably. Onshore wind tends to blow most strongly at night, while solar energy provides power during the peak demand times of the day. Offshore wind power is also expected to match demand well. Combining them all reduces the need for back-up power. But until now policy makers have assumed that solar and wind won’t be able to power the grid reliably, even when combined and spread out over PJM’s more than 200,000 square miles, and with the addition of wind farms off the coast. Critics have insisted that renewable energy requires lots of back-up generating capacity, especially from some natural gas turbines that can ramp up and down quickly. New gas turbines have even been designed specifically to integrate with renewables in anticipation of increasing amounts of wind and solar coming onto the grid. This makes the work of the U. Delaware researchers a game-changer by showing that wind and solar can be backed up primarily by more wind and solar. And so we can begin planning for a future entirely without fossil fuels, knowing that when we get there, the lights will still be on. You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Group va-sun. You can post via email ( mailto:va-sun@googlegroups.com ). To unsubscribe from this group, send ( mailto:va-sun+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com ) an empty message. For more options, visit ( http://groups.google.com/group/va-sun/topics ) this group. -- VA SUN is an open community of people who share a common interest in going solar or promoting solar energy in Virginia. Anyone is welcome and encouraged to join this group. As a group we do not represent any particular installer or company, but instead seek to share neutral, informed, and accurate information and to promote a vibrant, transparent, open and fair market for solar. This group is open to anyone who shares this vision. The group is not open to advertising for a specific product or company. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "VA SUN" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to va-sun+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to va-sun(a)googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.

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Re: [EC] Fwd: Mississippi power plant poll
by fmoose39＠hotmail.com 04 Feb '13

04 Feb '13

We should have a poll. I would go as far as saying we need billboards like FOC have. It should state the cost and how much we may have to pay. I would say we need to have several in the larger cities. Sent from my HTC One™ X, an AT&T 4G LTE smartphone ----- Reply message ----- From: "James Kotcon" <jkotcon(a)wvu.edu> To: <Duane330(a)aol.com>, <almostnixie(a)cs.com>, <daniel.chiotos(a)gmail.com>, "Jim Sconyers" <jimscon(a)gmail.com>, <ec(a)osenergy.org>, "Bill Price" <Bill_Price(a)sierraclub.org>, <wjreilly99(a)yahoo.com> Subject: [EC] Fwd: Mississippi power plant poll Date: Fri, Feb 1, 2013 7:24 PM The line below caught my attention: "75 percent of respondents say cost overruns should be paid by utility shareholders." This is exactly the issue with the First Energy and AEP transfers. Stockholders want to preserve their profits by dumping uncompetitive power plants on ratepayers. Would it make sense to commission a similar poll in WV? JBK ---------- Forwarded message ----------From: Caitlin Pixley <caitlin.pixley(a)sierraclub.org>Date: Thu, Jan 31, 2013 at 3:52 PMSubject: Fwd: TestTo: CONS-FRED(a)lists.sierraclub.org--------------------------- cc:Mail Users----------------------------- ** Remember to DELETE the 'Sender: ...' lines above before REPLYing ** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- MS: Poll shows customer opposition to rate hikes via Kemper coal plant (Sierra Club) The Sierra Club was supposed to release last Thursday the results of a poll meant to gauge Mississippi Power Co. ratepayers’ attitudes toward the Kemper County coal plant. The environmental group delayed the results because of a hearing in which the Mississippi Public Service Commission reached a rate case settlement with the utility. The delay ended Wednesday morning. The poll, conducted by Fondren Strategies, surveyed by landline and mobile telephone 400 respondents that a press release says were certified to be Mississippi Power customers. The results say 65 percent of those polled said the possibility of their electricity rates going up approximately 33 percent once the plant is finished erodes their support of the project. About 75 percent of respondents say cost overruns should be paid by utility shareholders. Mississippi Power has already filed to recover $172 million in financing costs associated with the project. The filing came one day after last week’s settlement, which lowered the maximum cost recoverable via PSC ratemaking proceedings from $2.88 billion to $2.4 billion. If the PSC grants the $172 million recovery request, Mississippi Power says rates will go up an average of 21 percent, starting in April and lasting through 2013, for customers who use an average of 1,000 kWh per month. The project’s overall rate impact, the company said on an analyst call Friday, will hover around 25 percent. The Sierra Club has opposed the plant since its inception in 2009, calling it an expensive and unnecessary environmental hazard. The club has called for the plant to be converted to a natural gas-fired facility, which it says is cleaner than the lignite coal the plant will eventually use. The project is on time for a May 2014 completion, Mississippi Power said recently. Sierra Club’s own press release can be found here. Fondren Strategies interviewed 400 voters in MS from Jan. 14 – 17; MoE is +/- 4.9% points at the 95% CI -- Caitlin PixleyConservation AssociateSierra Club Atlantic Chapter353 Hamilton StreetAlbany, NY 12210(518)426-9144caitlin.pixley(a)sierraclub.org Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/SierraClubAtlanticChapter- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-FRED list, send any message to: CONS-FRED-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp

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Coal ash findings could have big impact on power companies | RenewablesBiz
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 04 Feb '13

04 Feb '13

http://www.renewablesbiz.com/article/13/02/coal-ash-findings-could-have-big… If the Plant Scherer lawsuits filed Thursday in DeKalb County State Court are successful, they could have broad implications for power companies. -- Sent via http://www.addtoany.com

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This uranium enrichment plant produces a larger carbon footprint than .........
by Frank Young 02 Feb '13

02 Feb '13

<http://www.facebook.com/n/?groups%2F199849692677%2Fpermalink%2F101516811641 72678%2F&mid=7775ee2G3ecf0b71G401277aG96&bcode=1.1359831477.AblQPLpU6mX7n6Sp &n_m=fyoung%40mountain.net> Michael Leonardi posted in Green Party of Ohio <http://www.facebook.com/n/?profile.php&id=790837421&mid=7775ee2G3ecf0b71G40 1277aG96&bcode=1.1359831477.AblQPLpU6mX7n6Sp&n_m=fyoung%40mountain.net> This uranium enrichment plant produces a... <http://www.facebook.com/n/?profile.php&id=790837421&mid=7775ee2G3ecf0b71G40 1277aG96&bcode=1.1359831477.AblQPLpU6mX7n6Sp&n_m=fyoung%40mountain.net> Michael Leonardi 1:57pm Feb 2 This uranium enrichment plant produces a larger carbon footprint than the output from the largest Nuclear Plant in North America. Yet some people out there still think that nuclear power is CARBON FREE! Wake Up Y'all! The gaseous diffusion plant covers 750 acres (300 ha) of a 3,425 acres (1,386 ha) site. The four process buildings cover 74 acres (30 ha), and consume a peak electrical demand of 3,040 megawatts. How's that for a carbon footprint??? <http://www.facebook.com/l/9AQH9wBezAQENqOOQY4aCK2LNRXAbTL6swyHdNbZ_1hrpLQ/e n.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paducah_Gaseous_Diffusion_Plant> <http://www.facebook.com/l/QAQFztZL2AQGAypyF9VOvAB-svNZhSOns-SW4bkPou_4w_Q/e n.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paducah_Gaseous_Diffusion_Plant> Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia <http://www.facebook.com/l/QAQFztZL2AQGAypyF9VOvAB-svNZhSOns-SW4bkPou_4w_Q/e n.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paducah_Gaseous_Diffusion_Plant> en.wikipedia.org The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant is a facility located in McCracken County, Kentucky, near Paducah... <https://www.facebook.com/email_open_log_pic.php?mid=7775ee2G3ecf0b71G401277 aG96> <http://www.facebook.com/n/?groups%2F199849692677%2Fpermalink%2F101516811641 72678%2F&mid=7775ee2G3ecf0b71G401277aG96&bcode=1.1359831477.AblQPLpU6mX7n6Sp &n_m=fyoung%40mountain.net> View Post on Facebook . <http://www.facebook.com/n/?settings&tab=notifications&section=group_notific ation&mid=7775ee2G3ecf0b71G401277aG96&bcode=1.1359831477.AblQPLpU6mX7n6Sp&n_ m=fyoung%40mountain.net> Edit Email Settings . Reply to this email to add a comment.

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Fwd: Mississippi power plant poll
by James Kotcon 01 Feb '13

01 Feb '13

The line below caught my attention: "75 percent of respondents say cost overruns should be paid by utility shareholders." This is exactly the issue with the First Energy and AEP transfers. Stockholders want to preserve their profits by dumping uncompetitive power plants on ratepayers. Would it make sense to commission a similar poll in WV? JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Caitlin Pixley <caitlin.pixley(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Thu, Jan 31, 2013 at 3:52 PM Subject: Fwd: Test To: CONS-FRED(a)lists.sierraclub.org --------------------------- cc:Mail Users----------------------------- ** Remember to DELETE the 'Sender: ...' lines above before REPLYing ** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- MS: Poll shows customer opposition to rate hikes via Kemper coal plant (Sierra Club) ( http://msbusiness.com/magnoliamarketplace/2013/01/30/sierra-club-poll-subst… ) The Sierra Club was supposed to release last Thursday the results of a poll meant to gauge Mississippi Power Co. ratepayers’ attitudes toward the Kemper County coal plant. The environmental group delayed the results because of a hearing in which the Mississippi Public Service Commission reached a rate case settlement with the utility. The delay ended Wednesday morning. The poll, conducted by Fondren Strategies, surveyed by landline and mobile telephone 400 respondents that a press release says were certified to be Mississippi Power customers. The results say 65 percent of those polled said the possibility of their electricity rates going up approximately 33 percent once the plant is finished erodes their support of the project. About 75 percent of respondents say cost overruns should be paid by utility shareholders. Mississippi Power has already filed to recover $172 million in financing costs associated with the project. The filing came one day after last week’s settlement, which lowered the maximum cost recoverable via PSC ratemaking proceedings from $2.88 billion to $2.4 billion. If the PSC grants the $172 million recovery request, Mississippi Power says rates will go up an average of 21 percent, starting in April and lasting through 2013, for customers who use an average of 1,000 kWh per month. The project’s overall rate impact, the company said on an analyst call Friday, will hover around 25 percent. The Sierra Club has opposed the plant since its inception in 2009, calling it an expensive and unnecessary environmental hazard. The club has called for the plant to be converted to a natural gas-fired facility, which it says is cleaner than the lignite coal the plant will eventually use. The project is on time for a May 2014 completion, Mississippi Power said recently. Sierra Club’s own press release can be found here ( http://content.sierraclub.org/press-releases/2013/01/new-poll-shows-ms-powe… ). Fondren Strategies interviewed 400 voters in MS from Jan. 14 – 17; MoE is +/- 4.9% points at the 95% CI -- Caitlin Pixley Conservation Associate Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter 353 Hamilton Street Albany, NY 12210 (518)426-9144 ( tel:%28518%29426-9144 ) caitlin.pixley(a)sierraclub.org Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/SierraClubAtlanticChapter - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-FRED list, send any message to: CONS-FRED-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp

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Farewell, Don Gasper
by Frank Young 01 Feb '13

01 Feb '13

Don Gasper's personal warmth and his spirit of boundless pressure, applied endlessly, toward the goal of sane environmental stewardship policies will always be with us. Frank _____ From: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of dsgjr(a)aol.com Sent: Friday, February 01, 2013 8:56 AM To: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com Subject: [wvec-board] Farewell, Don Gasper My good friend and fishing buddy, Donald C. Gasper, died late last night, February 1st, at his home. He will be cremated and his ashes spread over at least one West Virginia stream that he loved so much. He told his family that he did not want a funeral or memorial service of any kind. But there may be a small private gathering of just family members. Rest in peace, my friend. Don Garvin __._,_.___ <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxYmJmbm9uBF9TAzk3 MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRtc2dJZAMzMTYxBHNlYwNm dHIEc2xrA3JwbHkEc3RpbWUDMTM1OTcyNjkzNQ--?act=reply&messageNum=3161> Reply via web post <mailto:DSGJr@aol.com?subject=Re%3A%20Farewell%2C%20Don%20Gasper> Reply to sender <mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com?subject=Re%3A%20Farewell%2C%20Don%20Gaspe r> Reply to group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmNmNmbmRlBF9TAzk3 MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNudHBj BHN0aW1lAzEzNTk3MjY5MzU-> Start a New Topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/message/3161;_ylc=X3oDMTM1bmo4anRh BF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRtc2dJZAMzMTYx BHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA3Z0cGMEc3RpbWUDMTM1OTcyNjkzNQR0cGNJZAMzMTYx> Messages in this topic (1) Recent Activity: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board;_ylc=X3oDMTJmOWg5bmZjBF9TAzk3MzU5N zE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDdnRsBHNsawN2Z2hwBHN0a W1lAzEzNTk3MjY5MzU-> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJlOXByZWhhBF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkAzIxN Tg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNnZnAEc3RpbWUDMTM1OTcyNjkzN Q--> Yahoo! Groups Switch to: <mailto:wvec-board-traditional@yahoogroups.com?subject=Change%20Delivery%20F ormat:%20Traditional> Text-Only, <mailto:wvec-board-digest@yahoogroups.com?subject=Email%20Delivery:%20Digest > Daily Digest . <mailto:wvec-board-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe> Unsubscribe . <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Use . <mailto:ygroupsnotifications@yahoogroups.com?subject=Feedback%20on%20the%20r edesigned%20individual%20mail%20v1> Send us Feedback . <http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=97359714/grpId=21584041/grpspId=1705365392/msgI d=3161/stime=1359726935/nc1=5898816/nc2=3848621/nc3=4025373> __,_._,___

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Thursday - Thomas E. Lovejoy discusses Climate Change at WVU
by Jonathan Rosenbaum 30 Jan '13

30 Jan '13

Thomas E. Lovejoy will be lecturing at 11 a.m., Thursday, January 31, 2013 at the Marlyn E. Lugar Courtroom, WVU Law Center about Climate Change. There will be a live webcast at http://lawmediasite.wvu.edu/Mediasite/Catalog/catalogs/default . http://law.wvu.edu/lovejoy Along with Michael Brune, Thomas is one of the Climate Cabinet leaders for the Sierra Club's Climate Recovery Partnership: http://www.sierraclub.org/crp/leadership/cabinet.aspx Here is the press release: http://wvutoday.wvu.edu/n/2013/01/22/renowned-biologist-to-discuss-climate-… -Jonathan

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Fracking rules in NC, and DEPs lawyers. (was: DAILY UPDATE 29 January 2013. News of interest to Mon river watershed denizens.
by James Kotcon 29 Jan '13

29 Jan '13

Two stories out today. Note the tracers in NC. I am not sure we will be ready for legislation this year, but this should remain a priority. JBK ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mall, Amy" <amall(a)nrdc.org> To: "cog" <cog(a)lists.earthworksaction.org> Sent: Monday, January 28, 2013 9:34 AM Subject: [COG] North Carolina: Fracking board set to propose nation's toughest rules Fracking board set to propose nation's toughest rules By John Murawski - jmurawski(a)newsobserver.com<mailto:jmurawski@newsobserver.com ( mailto:jmurawski@newsobserver.com%3Cmailto:jmurawski@newsobserver.com )> Published in: Business North Carolina’s fracking board is considering what its members say would be among the nation’s strictest rules governing shale gas exploration as the panel delves into the arcana of updating the state’s 1940s-era energy regulations. The N.C. Mining & Energy Commission completed two days of meetings Friday and expects to continue discussions in March about requirements for chemical disclosures, water testing and wastewater disposal by exploration and drilling companies. Those have been some of the most contentious issues related to fracking in other states, where the practice has been blamed for drinking water contamination, chemical spills and other problems. Commissioner George Howard said the board could vote as early as March 8 on the first of the proposed rules, but other members said they’re not that optimistic they will be ready. “We’re trying to come up with the toughest reasonable laws,” Howard said. “We’re cherry-picking the best laws out there.” The commission, formed last summer by the state legislature, is still getting its sea legs on the issue. During Friday’s public meeting, several members spent more than a half-hour in a meandering discussion about the uneven quality of media coverage of their work and about whether they should hire a press secretary. Several voiced frustration about uninformed, emotional comments from the public at previous workshops. No members of the public made comments Friday. Fracking is an industry term for hydraulic fracturing of shale rock with high pressure water and chemicals to release natural gas trapped inside the prehistoric formations. The technology remains controversial and won’t be legal in this state until the commission writes about 100 regulations to govern the practice, and the state legislature signs off on the regulatory program. The commission has a deadline of October 2014 to complete its task. It will develop rules on well casings and property owners’ rights, among a host of legal and environmental issues. A similar process in New York state took about three years. That state currently has a moratorium on fracking. The board has begun discussing what its members say would be the most stringent standard in the nation for well water testing before drilling and fracking could get under way. It is proposing that a drilling company, at its own expense, test every water source within 5,000 feet of a natural gas wellhead. Other states generally require testing within 1,000 or 2,000 feet, said Hannah Wiseman, a law professor at Florida State University who tracks fracking laws and rules. North Carolina’s testing standard, if approved, would require drillers to test about a dozen wells, based on well density averages in northwestern Lee County, which is believed to be the epicenter of the state’s shale gas reserves. A thorough laboratory water content analysis could cost more than $2,000 per well, said Melinda Chapman, a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Raleigh office. The agency tested 56 local private wells last year and had to use eight different labs to analyze the water samples. Commissioner Amy Pickle said the 5,000-foot testing distance is just one of several factors. Another important issue the commission will have to decide is what constituents it will require testing for. Commissioner Howard said the board also will discuss injecting tracers into fracked gas wells to help determine whether the wells are leaking chemicals and methane gas. He said the commission is guided by the state law passed last summer that holds drillers responsible for any water contamination within 5,000 feet of a wellhead unless they can prove otherwise. “The beauty of a presumptive liability law is that it protects companies from paying for bad water they didn’t cause,” Duke University environmental scientist Robert Jackson said. “It protects homeowners in case their water quality changes.” Duke University also has tested about 55 private wells in Lee County to establish baseline quality measures. Duke’s testing analyzes the presence of such metals as boron and arsenic, salts and methane gas, such chemicals as benzene and toluene, as well as radioactive elements. These are elements that are either injected into wells during fracking, or elements agitated underground during the process and liable to flush out of the well over time. Energy law firm picks up DEP’s senior counsel Posted: Jan 28, 2013 10:07 AM EST Updated: Jan 28, 2013 10:16 AM EST By Taylor Kuykendall, Reporter The senior counsel for the Department of Environmental Protection has been hired by business law firm Lewis Glasser Casey & Rollins PLLC. According to a news release from the law firm, Joseph Jenkins, as senior counsel at the DEP, has successfully defended a challenge to state notice, comment and appeal procedures for oil and gas well permits and was actively involved in defending challenges to surface mining and pollution discharge permits issued by the agency. "As one of the premier energy law firms in the Appalachian Basin, we wanted to enhance Lewis Glasser's full-service capabilities with Joe's unique environmental law and regulatory knowledge," said Nick Casey, managing member. "Joe's background in regulatory matters, litigation and legislative rule-making will serve our clients well." Jenkins also served as counsel to the West Virginia Senate Committees on Energy, Industry and Mining and Transportation and Infrastructure during the 2011 Legislative Session. The law firm said it is expanding its energy practice, particularly in the natural gas sector. "Joseph has joined the firm as an associate, and his practice focuses mainly on energy and natural resources law, environmental law, legislation, rule-making and litigation with an emphasis in oil and natural gas, mining and quarrying, including SMCRA, Clean Water Act and state and federal environmental permitting, compliance and enforcement," the news release stated. The firm also "maintains an active government relations practice" through LGCR Government Solutions LLC. The firm has offices in Charleston, Morgantown and Ohio.

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Re: [EC] Fwd: Gen Transfer Case --- Power Plant Visits
by James Kotcon 28 Jan '13

28 Jan '13

Anyone interested? This is a great opportunity for a new volunteer to learn about these plants, just wander along and listen to PSC Staff and FE people ask and answer questions. No time is listed, but I suspect it would be mid-day-ish, and you would want to contact Gary Jack (below) to confirm time and directions. Jim Kotcon >>> Mark Kresowik <mark.kresowik(a)sierraclub.org> 1/25/2013 4:25 PM >>> I think it'd be a good idea to have someone there.On Jan 25, 2013 4:23 PM, "Zachary Fabish" <zachary.fabish(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: See below. Anybody interested in visiting the plants? -Zack ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: <gjack(a)firstenergycorp.com> Date: Fri, Jan 25, 2013 at 4:16 PM Subject: Gen Transfer Case --- Power Plant Visits To: jauville(a)psc.state.wv.us, william.depaulo(a)gmail.com, jroberts(a)cad.state.wv.us, sriggs(a)spilmanlaw.com, pmaroney(a)mwwplaw.com, scott.j.rubin(a)gmail.com, zachary.fabish(a)sierraclub.org, mbecher(a)appalmad.org, dhanna(a)hannalawpllc.com, dwilliamson(a)spilmanlaw.com Cc: ccallas(a)jacksonkelly.com, gblanke(a)firstenergycorp.com All: PSC Staff engineers have requested we arrange power plant visits for them at Pleasants and Harrison. We have arranged to have power plant tours for Pleasants on Wednesday, January 30th and for Harrison on Monday February 4. Anyone else is welcome to attend. If you plan to attend, please let me know. Thanks. Gary A. Jack Senior Corporate Counsel FirstEnergy 5001 NASA Blvd. Fairmont, WV 26554 Phone: 304-534-7409 ( tel:304-534-7409 ) Internal: 333-7409 ----------------------------------------- The information contained in this message is intended only for the personal and confidential use of the recipient(s) named above. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient or an agent responsible for delivering it to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that you have received this document in error and that any review, dissemination, distribution, or copying of this message is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately, and delete the original message. -- Zachary M. Fabish Staff Attorney 50 F Street, NW - 8th Floor Washington, DC 20001 (202) 675-7917 (202) 547-6009 (fax) zachary.fabish(a)sierraclub.org CONFIDENTIAL LEGAL COMMUNICATION/WORK PRODUCT This e-mail may contain privileged and confidential attorney-client communications and/or confidential attorney work product. If you receive this e-mail inadvertently, please notify me and delete all versions on your system. Thank you.

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Chapter Energy Committee Update
by James Kotcon 25 Jan '13

25 Jan '13

To the Energy Committee Please pardon any duplicate messages. We currently have this address for you as part of our Energy committee list, but it is a new year and time to update our Committee roster. If you are interested in continuing to be active on the Chapter Energy Committee, please respond affirmatively. We also would like contact info and a phone number for more urgent actions. If you can not commit to an active role tight now, please let us know that too. The Chapter is launching a major campaign on energy efficiency, and we will be calling on active members to write letters, make phone calls, and meet with public officials to encourage more energy efficiency in west Virginia. Right now, we have a target of opportunity with state utilities who have filed petitions with the WV Public Service Commission to acquire some used coal-fired power plants from Ohio affiliates (total cost ~$2.5 billion). We will be urging people to ask that the PSC require the utilities invest in energy efficiency instead of more coal-fired power plants. So West Virginia is facing a choice in the next couple months between continued intensification of our reliance on coal versus shifting toward a clean, energy efficient future. An Energy Committee conference call will be held next Thursday, Jan. 31, at 7 PM and we would like to get all active members of the committee to join in to help plan and execute this campaign. Jim Kotcon Chapter Conservation Chair 304-293-8822 (office) 304-594-3322 (home)

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from Center for Media and Democracy: Fracking Industry Goes After Promised Land Film
by Paul Wilson 24 Jan '13

24 Jan '13

Fracking Industry Goes After Promised Land Film [image: Image of Promised Land poster]Before Gus Van Sant's latest film Promised Land even premiered, the energy industry was up in arms, gearing up to counter the film's apparent anti-fracking stance with a barrage of "community" responses (read: thinly veiled corporate PR). James Schamus, chief executive of Focus Features the distributor of the film, expressed shock about the attacks on Promised Land: "We've been surprised at the emergence of what looks like a concerted campaign targeting the film even before anyone's seen it." With blogs, astroturf websites, Facebook pages, internet ads, and theater ad buys in advance of the movie, the industry is working hard to spin the conversation in a more fracking-friendly direction. Read more<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=nUCyXR%2FfF%2BEo45Pb…> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Analysis of fracking wastewater yields some surprises
by Paul Wilson 23 Jan '13

23 Jan '13

Analysis of fracking wastewater yields some surprises<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/U96…> Posted: 22 Jan 2013 07:21 AM PST Hydraulically fractured natural gas wells are producing less wastewater per unit of gas recovered than conventional wells would. But the scale of fracking operations in the Marcellus shale region is so vast that the wastewater it produces threatens to overwhelm the region's wastewater disposal capacity, according to new analysis. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Take Action: Tell Dept. of Energy to take a time out on LNG exports!
by James Kotcon 22 Jan '13

22 Jan '13

In addition to the LNG export sign-on letter, i urge each of you to comment individually. Click below. Jim Kotcon >>> Deb Nardone <deb.nardone(a)sierraclub.org> 1/17/2013 3:15 PM >>> Team WV, An extremely important deadline is approaching. With the Dept. of Energy (DOE) considering exporting up to 40% of current US gas production through 19 different LNG export terminals, your voice couldn't be more important than now. Exporting even a fraction of that gas will have significant negative impact on our communities, the environment, and our climate. Yet, DOE has failed to seriously analyze these impacts. With the most recent economic study being completed, DOE is now accepting comment on this seriously flawed report, which fails to consider the lasting impacts exports will cause. Please consider taking action, then help spread the word! We have until January 24th to flood the Dept. of Energy with comments. Thank you for all you do! Deb TAKE ACTION LINK Dear Friend, Tell DOE Secretary Chu to go back to the drawing board and look at how exporting fracked gas could hurt our communities. Would you hire a consulting firm with strong fossil fuel industry ties to study whether or not exporting fracked gas is a good idea? The Department of Energy (DOE) did just that, and you probably won't be surprised by the industry-friendly results. This report has more holes than a block of swiss cheese, focusing on how the natural gas industry and the wealthiest people in our country will profit. The costs to our communities -- air and water pollution, environmental destruction, lost jobs, climate disruption and even increased energy costs -- are completely ignored or dismissed as unimportant to big business. Will you help get 10,000 letters by Friday to DOE Secretary Steven Chu telling him he needs to look at the full effects on our communities before any decision can be made? Send your letter today. Tell Secretary Chu not to make any decisions about the future of exporting fracked gas without looking at the whole picture. If Secretary Chu plans to consider exporting natural gas, then we deserve a study with the real numbers, the real costs, and all of the real facts. Allowing the natural gas industry to frack even more and export this fossil fuel without considering the harm to our communities is unacceptable. Tell Secretary Chu you want the real story about how more fracking and exporting natural gas will impact you and your community. Thanks for all you do to protect the environment, Deb Nardone Director, Beyond Natural Gas Campaign Sierra Club P.S. Please share this email with friends and family, and help get 10,000 letters to Sec. Chu by Friday! -- Deborah J. Nardone, Director Beyond Natural Gas Campaign Sierra Club O: 814-308-9767 C: 814-932-6668 -- Deborah J. Nardone, Director Beyond Natural Gas Campaign Sierra Club O: 814-308-9767 C: 814-932-6668

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Fwd: Webinar Invite: Going Local: Efficiency for Local Governments & Muni Utilities
by Paul Wilson 22 Jan '13

22 Jan '13

it would be nice to have more of a lead time on these announcements, fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jennifer Miller <jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Mon, Jan 7, 2013 at 1:54 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] Fwd: Webinar Invite: Going Local: Efficiency for Local Governments & Muni Utilities To: coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org Going Local: Efficiency for Local Governments & Muni Utilities Join us for > a Webinar on January 23 @ 3PM EST OR 7PM EST > > Updating streetlights, greening government buildings, and improving waste > water treatment facilities are surefire ways for local governments to > reduce energy waste, cut pollution from dirty energy, and to protect > taxpayers from high energy bills, making more room in the budget for city > services like schools and parks. Experts at the American Council for an > Energy Efficient Economy will highlight a number efficiency opportunities > for local governments and tools that activists can use to help push city > and county governments to prioritize efficiency. > > There are a number of Municipal Utilities making strides in energy > efficiency across the country. Our guests will also highlight some best > practices for Municipal Utilities as well as tools activists can use to > promote efficiency by Munis. > > *For the 3PM EST webinar, please register by clicking this link:* > https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/972661567 > * > * > *For the 7PM EST webinar, please register by clicking this link: * > https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/770729543 > After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing > information about joining the Webinar. > > *System Requirements* > PC-based attendees > Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 ServerMac®-based attendees > Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer > Mobile attendees > Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet > > -- > > Jen Miller > > (614)563-9543 > > Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency > > Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign > <https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/770729543> > > > > > > > > > > -- > > Jen Miller > > (614)563-9543 > > Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency > > Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign > > > > pst....My work is now national in scope, but I'm still based in Columbus, > Ohio (the Eastern Time Zone)! > > > -- *Conservation Chair, Southern Nevada Group of the Sierra Club* *Energy Chair, Toiyabe Chapter of the Sierra Club* * * *Once you choose hope, anything's possible. -- Christopher Reeve* -- Jen Miller (614)563-9543 Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign pst....My work is now national in scope, but I'm still based in Columbus, Ohio (the Eastern Time Zone)! -- Jen Miller (614)563-9543 Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign pst....My work is now national in scope, but I'm still based in Columbus, Ohio (the Eastern Time Zone)! -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: comment re sierra club attorney request
by James Kotcon 18 Jan '13

18 Jan '13

Anyone want to reply? JBK >>> Betty Wiley <betty.w304(a)gmail.com> 1/18/2013 10:11 AM >>> Jim, see the message below from Craig Segall, attorney working for Sierra Club apparently. He seems in a hurry for information and then says he checks email infrequently and to call him for a quick reply. I would interpret that as a poor way to get responses. Betty Wiley On Thu, Jan 17, 2013 at 12:19 PM, Craig Segall - Sierra <craig.segall(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: Hi all, We're working on comments on DOE's LNG export study. I'd like to raise the costs experienced by gas field communities in partial response. If folks can point me towards the latest, greatest studies on community impacts and on the treatment costs for gas wastes, I'd very much appreciate it. Thanks! Craig -- I check email infrequently. Please call me if you need a quick reply. Craig Segall Staff Attorney Sierra Club Environmental Law Program 50 F St NW, Eighth Floor Washington, DC 20001 (202)-548-4597 ( tel:(202)-548-4597 ) (202)-547-6009 ( tel:(202)-547-6009 ) (fax) Craig.Segall(a)sierraclub.org

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McKinley on Carbon taxes.
by James Kotcon 18 Jan '13

18 Jan '13

See article below on McKinley's carbon tax resolution. The reporter, David Beard, has asked to do a follow-up interview for a series on shale gas and fracking. Anyone want to chime in? JBK P.S. The only error Beard made was describing the spending on SuperStorm Sandy as "millions". The correct figure is "billions". McKinley reintroduces resolution on a national carbon tax sec=news;pos=top;sz=160x600;tile=2;ord=88732447;abr=!ie;abr=!aol"sec=news;pos=top;sz=160x600;tile=2;ord=88732447;abr=!ie;abr=!aol" width="160" height="600" border="0"&gt &lt/a&gt Copyright (C) 2013, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va. Jan 17, 2013 -- Rep. David McKinley, R-W.Va., has reintroduced his November resolution proposing to express Congress' opposition to a national carbon tax on fossil fuels. "A carbon tax would increase the cost of everything from driving a car to heating and cooling a home," he said in a Wednesday release. "It would be especially burdensome on middle class Americans and prevent our economy from recovering. Raising taxes on everyone from manufacturers to homeowners is not the way to improve our economy and Congress should reject this idea." McKinley introduced the resolution -- House Concurrent Resolution 8 -- on Tuesday. There is no active pro-carbon tax bill in Congress. The Library of Congress shows the most recent was the Save Our Climate Act of 2011, sponsored by Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif. It proposed an annual excise tax on carbon-based fuels -- including coal, natural gas ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/NG_/M ) and petroleum -- until carbon dioxide emissions for a calendar year would not exceed 20 percent of the level of emissions for calendar year 1990. This bill died in the Ways and Means Committee. A carbon tax advocacy group, the Carbon Tax Center, sees the tax as a kind of economic sanction to force social and technological change. It says such a tax will reduce the use of fossil fuels and their attendant emissions of carbon dioxide. By driving the costs up, the tax will force energy suppliers to seek other forms of fuel. And it will force consumers to use lower-carbon products -- including home energy and vehicle fuels -- to save money. Sources speaking on background told The Dominion Post the White House has no plans to propose a carbon tax. White House Regional Communications Director Keith Maley said in an email exchange, "The President has made clear that he believes that climate change is real, that it is impacted by human activity and that we must continue to take steps to confront this threat. In the President's first term the administration has taken historic action including proposing the first national standard for harmful carbon pollution from new power plants, as well as establishing unprecedented standards for cars and trucks that will slash emissions of carbon pollution while, at the same time, saving consumers billions of dollars at the pump. The President has made clear that his administration will continue to build on this progress and climate change will be a priority in his second term." HCR8 is identical to McKinley's November resolution and is before the House Committee on Ways and Means. McKinley is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Energy Chairman Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., and Chairman Emeritus Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, are co-sponsors. McKinley's West Virginia colleagues, Democratic Rep. Nick Rahall and Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, are also cosponsors. McKinley said again, "Given our current economic climate, this is the worst time to implement another tax on coal, oil ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/CL_/M ) and gas -- industries that fuel our economy. Affordable and abundant electricity ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/JM/M ) from coal and natural gas ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/NG_/M ) is essential to our way of living and a carbon tax would increase the cost of electricity ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/JM/M ) and put a financial burden on American families." McKinley's resolution notes several problems with such a tax, among them: A carbon tax will have a dramatic, immediate impact on transportation costs, with the greatest impact being felt by low-income Americans and their families who already spend the largest share of their income on energy and are least able to afford a carbon tax. A carbon tax is designed to result in substantial, immediate increases in the price of electricity, making electricity ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/JM/M ) less affordable for millions of Americans. A carbon tax would be punitive and harmful to the American people by artificially raising electricity ( http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/JM/M ) costs. A carbon tax will drive the unemployment rate even higher. A carbon tax is likely to have an uneven effect, hitting different regions of the country and segments of the economy much more severely than others. A carbon tax will have no impact on China, India, and other major sources of carbon emissions throughout the world, except to put United States exporters at a competitive disadvantage by increasing domestic manufacturing production costs. McKinley's is the first anti-carbon tax resolution of the new Congress, the 113th. There were two others, along with McKinley's in the 112th. Rep. Mike Pompeo, RKan., introduced HCR 144 in December. It had five bullet points, compared to McKinley's 10. Capito also co-sponsored this one. Pompeo is a co-sponsor of HCR8. On the Senate side, Sen. David Vitter, R-La., introduced a twin to HCR 144 in December. According to reports, a carbon tax has virtually no chance of moving forward in the House. The conservative group Americans for Prosperity reported last July that the entire House GOP leadership team has signed its "No Climate Tax" pledge. Sierra Club West Virginia Chapter Energy Committee Chairman Jim Kotcon said of the resolution, "We certainly understand his concern about the economic impact of a carbon tax on West Virginia. But Congressman McKinley has to recognize that West Virginia is already paying for climate change." He cited the millions spent on Superstorm Sandy recovery and more millions on other extreme weather events across the state. Real costs ensue from dependence on fossil fuels, Kotcon said, and Republicans should be finding new ways to address climate change. "And it is important we start immediately. If not a carbon tax, what will we do?" Kotcon said no single method can address climate change. We need to send the right market signal regarding carbon dioxide emissions, but in a way that provides economic justice for West Virginians. Energy efficiency is important, he said. "A more efficient economy has got to be good for business." And promoting clean sources -- solar, wind and biomass fuels -- will help begin the transition from rapidly depleting fossil fuels.___ (c)2013 The Dominion Post (Morgantown, W.Va.) Visit The Dominion Post (Morgantown, W.Va.) at www.dominionpost.com Distributed by MCT Information Services

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Fwd: WVNS story: New Analysis: Evidence of Climate Change Stronger Than Ever
by Paul Wilson 18 Jan '13

18 Jan '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 3:35 AM Subject: WVNS story: New Analysis: Evidence of Climate Change Stronger Than Ever To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> New Analysis: Evidence of Climate Change Stronger Than Ever Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/30358-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (01/18/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Climate experts say the evidence is stronger than ever that climate change is happening, and that it comes with devastating consequences for West Virginia and the rest of the nation. A new draft of the National Climate Assessment, released this week, says the impacts of climate change, including extreme weather events, are becoming more apparent. Carol Browner, former White House director of Climate and Energy, says those impacts will increase as global emissions continue to rise. "This new assessment really confirms what the scientists have been telling us and what our eyes are telling us. It's getting hotter. We're seeing more violent, more frequent storms. We're seeing impacts on the economy and we're seeing impacts on public health." The report <http://ncadac.globalchange.gov> comes as 2012 made the record books as the hottest year in U.S. history. It presents a grim outlook for future extreme weather events. Browner says we need to do more to reduce greenhouse gases. The assessment is issued every four years, and the current draft is available for public comment until April 12th. The Obama administration has implemented several regulations to curtail emissions of carbon dioxide. Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed the first-ever carbon pollution standard for new power plants. That provoked harsh criticism from the coal industry and it's political allies, but Browner says there is much more work to be done. "The administration has already taken some important steps, but we've got to really continue, as a country, to take this issue seriously. That's what this report is telling us." Many of West Virginia’s most important business and political leaders maintain climate change is unproven and some even charge that it's a hoax. Jim Sconyers, chair of the West Virginia chapter of the Sierra Club, says people need to get their heads out of the sand, especially given the dramatic damage West Virginia has suffered during recent climate events. "Climate change is real. People like to keep saying there's this side of the story and then there's the other side of the story. Well, there's no 'other side' of the story. I was just out walking in the forest today. Where I was walking the devastation is just on a scale that I have never seen before." Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/30358-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/30358-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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e-mail messages lost
by Frank Young 16 Jan '13

16 Jan '13

Friends, I have had a serious crash of my e-mail handling system. Apparently I have lost all "Inbox" messages from about February 1, 2012 up to about January 14, 2013- almost a year of e-mail messages. Messages that I had set aside into designated "folders" appear to all be intact. But stuff in my Inbox received during that time period- some maybe 5000 messages- are gone. So if some of you are waiting for me to respond to messages you sent within that time period- especially for about the past 3 weeks- I have likely lost your messages. So if it is still important you might want to re-send your message(s) to me. These past two days I have changed to a new e-mail handling system- Microsoft Outlook. So far it seems to be working well. (Yeah, Gary Z. - it's OK to say "I told you to do that a couple years ago", because you did. I just didn't listen then! :-( Frank Young fyoung(a)mountain.net aka: frankly(a)mtparty.org

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How Long will We let Coal Plants Mercury-Poison Us?
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 14 Jan '13

14 Jan '13

How Long will We let Coal Plants Mercury-Poison Us?<http://www.juancole.com/2013/01/plants-mercury-poison.html> Posted on 01/13/2013 by Juan Mercury is a nerve poison, steady exposure to which causes all kinds of neurological and mental problems, as well as heart problems. I keep hearing public service announcements that you should not eat fish more than twice a week. Think about that. In a natural, normal world, didn’t people on the coast eat fish every day? Why avoid fish? It is because fish big enough for us to eat with profit are high on the food chain, and so concentrate toxins like mercury. But why is there so much mercury in the environment, that it is getting concentrated in our salmon? Coal-fired power plants are responsible<http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/coalvswind/c02c.html>for * half * of all human-caused mercury emissions annually in the US. The plants released 134,365 pounds of mercury in 2006 alone! Only 8% of plants have mercury-scrubbing capabilities in place. Concerned Scientists note that “Just 1/70th of a teaspoon of mercury deposited on a 25-acre lake can make the fish unsafe to eat.” A people with any self-respect would insist that all these coal-fired power plants be closed within 5 years: [image: coalmercury]<http://www.juancole.com/2013/01/plants-mercury-poison.html/coalmercury> Not only is burning coal the fastest route to catastrophic climate change, it emits mercury into our lakes and streams<http://www.southernstudies.org/2011/02/institute-index-coal-powers-mercury-…>, which then gets into our fish– as Sue Sturgis points out, citing Environment America<http://www.environmentamerica.org/reports/ame/dirty-energys-assault-our-hea…> Here are some statistics she has culled: There is * 10 times* more mercury concentration in fish now than in the 1930s * 15 % of US women of child-bearing age* have enough mercury in their bloodstream to put their offspring at risk from health effects. In 1999: percentage of women of childbearing age with inorganic mercury in their blood: 2 In 2006: that percentage * was 30 * I tear my hair out when I hear that people aren’t getting vaccinations for their children because they are afraid of autism. But emitting 134,000 pounds a year of mercury in our environment? That’s not a problem. The Union of Concerned Scientists<http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/coalvswind/c02c.html>adds: “Coal plants are the nation’s top source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the primary cause of global warming. In 2011, utility coal plants in the United States emitted a total of 1.7 billion tons of CO21. A typical coal plant generates 3.5 million tons of CO2 per year2.” Close them down! Close them down now! If your electric utility depends on coal, contact your city council and urge it to put in wind turbines and solar and generate its own electricity, getting off the dirty, poisonous grid! Boulder, Co. is now playing hardball<http://www.energybiz.com/article/12/12/xcel-boulder-square-over-franchise-r…>that way, Sacramento created large numbers of jobs with its green energy<http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2011/07/13/sacramento-region-nea…>commitments. We don’t want your dirty coal! -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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Mercury from Coal Plants, Goldmining, a Global Health Crisis: UN Environmental Program
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 14 Jan '13

14 Jan '13

Mercury from Coal Plants, Goldmining, a Global Health Crisis: UN Environmental Program<http://www.juancole.com/2013/01/emissions-goldmining-environmental.html> Posted on 01/14/2013 by Juan A new study has found that 84% of all fish<http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57563739/study-finds-unsafe-mercury-l…>have unhealthy levels of mercury! Richard Gelfond, CEO of IMAX, the film company, has had his health permanently damaged simply from eating a lot of fish. The message to take away is not never to eat fish. It is that there is too much mercury in our environment. Half of all mercury emissions in the United States come from coal-fired power plants, and a quarter of mercury released into the environment globally is from coal. Some 1200 * new * coal plants are now planned around the world, and this must not be allowed. By the way, about 10% of mercury in our environment comes from burning natural gas and petroleum and refining petroleum. So not only are hydrocarbons causing calamitous global warming, but they are responsible for over a third of our present mercury poisoning globally, and for well over half of that in the United States. The United Nations Environmental Program has just issued its [pdf] 2013 assessment of the mercury threat<http://www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/Portals/9/Mercury/GMA%20Report/Glob…> . It finds that human-caused “emissions and releases have doubled the amount of mercury in the top 100 meters [yards] of the world’s oceans in the last 100 years. Concentrations in deeper waters have increased by only 10-25%, because of the slow transfer of mercury from surface waters into the deep oceans. In some species of Arctic marine animals, mercury content has increased by 12 times on average since the pre-industrial period. This increase implies that, on average, over 90% of the mercury in these marine animals today comes from anthropogenic [human] sources.” And, the United Nations has been meeting in Geneva on a possible new global treaty limiting mercury emissions. There are some 600 coal plants in the United States, and they should all be shut down on grounds of mercury pollution<http://www.juancole.com/2013/01/plants-mercury-poison.html>alone, but they also are the major contributor to global warming. They can now all quickly be replaced by solar and wind installations, with some natural gas if absolutely necessary. People who complain about the ‘extra cost’ of solar and wind seem not to mind, like, neurotoxins all around them, or billions of dollars of climate change damage. Besides, wind and solar are just about at grid parity with coal in many markets,and will be able to undersell it, even ignoring the externalities in the true cost of coal, in this decade. Aljazeera English <http://youtu.be/JCQokbi8Kiw> reports: Mining, distributing and burning coal should be illegal. -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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West Virginia Sen. Jay Rockefeller to retire after term ends
by James Kotcon 14 Jan '13

14 Jan '13

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/west-virginia-sen-jay-rockefeller-retire… West Virginia Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller will not seek a sixth term in the Senate, he told Politico in an interview ( http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/jay-rockefeller-to-retire-86054.html?… ). He will serve through 2014 after more than 25 years in the chamber, "I’m going to serve out my term,” the 75-year-old Rockefeller said. “It was a very hard decision for me. Once it’s made, like any hard decision, it eases up. But it was a very tough decision for me.”Rockefeller joined the Senate in 1985 after two terms as governor of West Virginia. He will make a formal announcement on Friday morning. The senator's retirement could lead to a fierce race in 2014. Democrats have had a lock on the seat since the Dwight Eisenhower administration, and an election without an incumbent could give Republicans a major opportunity in a deeply red state.

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TransAlta (Canada) gives up on carbon capture
by Jim Sconyers 11 Jan '13

11 Jan '13

A lesson here for WV? ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: DAVID E ORTMAN <deortman(a)msn.com> Date: Fri, Jan 11, 2013 at 1:00 AM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] RE: TransAlta (Canada) gives up on carbon capture To: phred(a)sunlightdata.com, pjgrunt(a)gmail.com, coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org, cons-spst-globalwarm-forum(a)lists.sierraclub.org, cons-ficc-international(a)lists.sierraclub.org, Verena Owen < verena_owen(a)prodigy.net>, Robin Everett <robin.everett(a)sierraclub.org> FR: David E. Ortman, Seattle, WA TransAlta also owns the largest coal fired plant in Washington State. Former Governor Gregoire (who may be on a short list for EPA Administrator) cut a deal allowing TransAlta to run one of its coal-fired until until 2020 and the second until 2025 (12 years from now!!!). http://www.elp.com/news/2012/12/30/transalta-boss-says-economics-could-make… Electric Light and Power (Canada) December 30, 2012 TransAlta boss says economics could make carbon capture unfeasible for years; Power boss says carbon capture a no go for now Sponsored by CALGARY - With half of its electricity plants fuelled by coal, the head of TransAlta Corp. is a believer in how valuable carbon capture and storage could be for the company. But a decision in April to scrap Project Pioneer, a $1.4-billion project to capture carbon dioxide emissions from an Alberta coal plant and store them underground, has TransAlta (TSX:TA) president and CEO Dawn Farrell less optimistic about the technology's feasibility in the future. TransAlta was one of the companies backing the project. Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) and Capital Power Corp. (TSX:CPX) were the others. The idea was to sell some of carbon dioxide to nearby energy producers, who would inject the gas into their fields as a means to get more oil out of the ground. The federal and Alberta governments have been banking on carbon capture and storage to reduce the carbon footprint of the power generation and the oil and gas industries. Project Pioneer, which would have been connected to the Keephills 3 coal plant west of Edmonton, received $779 million in backing from Ottawa and Edmonton. Although an initial study found the technology worked and the capital costs were in line with expectations, Farrell said things changed as planning moved forward and other methods of oil extraction improved. "What had changed was this horizontal drilling, which has changed the cost structure of finding gas and now oil," Farrell said, in an interview with The Canadian Press. "As a result of that the cost of taking oil out of the ground ... with CO2 is now being overtaken by the cost of horizontal drilling. "Effectively what happened is the ability of the oilfields to use CO2 moved out five or 10 years and we had federal funding we needed to put in place right away." Farrell said new federal legislation on carbon emissions means TransAlta's Sundance plant will reach the end of its first lifespan in 2019. Other plants will follow in the ensuing decade. Once a plant reaches the end of its life, the company can continue to operate it with a carbon-capture retrofit or shut it down. "So 2019 is the first big decision for TransAlta," Farrell said. "If they're coming to the end of their life at the end of this decade, in 2019, I don't think they have a very good chance for retrofit unless my team can discover some other way of dealing with it." Alberta has a 1,000-year supply of low-sulphur coal, but Farrell said it still gives off double the emissions of natural gas. The cost of coal at this point continues to make it an attractive alternative, but Farrell notes the high costs of carbon-capture and the lack of a market to sell the captured carbon could put coal "out of the money" as plants reach the end of their lives under federal rules. TransAlta has power plants in Canada, the United States and Australia. Farrell said the utility is looking at further expansion in the United States in 2013 and is hoping to make some acquisitions, possibly in California, related to wind energy. -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: WVNS story: Solar Cheap Enough To Compete Without Subsidies In Some States
by Paul Wilson 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

The Economist piece on Solar Energy costs made it on to WV Public News Service. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Thu, Jan 10, 2013 at 3:48 AM Subject: WVNS story: Solar Cheap Enough To Compete Without Subsidies In Some States To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Solar Cheap Enough To Compete Without Subsidies In Some States Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/30252-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (01/10/13) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A sharp, long-term fall in the price of solar cells has led The Economist magazine and others to declare that in sunny areas with high electricity prices, solar power is now cheap enough to compete without government subsidies. Rory McIlmoil, program manager for the energy program at environmental consulting firm Downstream Strategies, says that applies to places such as California - but not West Virginia or the East Coast. "In those areas, solar is competing with other sources of energy that have higher electricity prices than we experience here, which makes it a lot more likely that solar can compete." The price of building a solar power plant is nearing where it would be competitive with a new coal plant of a similar size, he says. Both cost more than a natural-gas plant, but he says solar has the advantage of free fuel. "Natural gas peaker plants have other costs associated with their operation that solar power does not: High fuel and - depending on the size - high maintenance costs for your traditional power plants versus solar power plants." The solar industry still depends on significant federal subsidies, although overall, McIlmiol says, the much larger fossil-fuels industries actually receives more in tax breaks. Solar also is limited by the inconsistent nature of the sunshine, although he says power storage and flexible use of the grid are easing some of those issues. Thanks to cheap solar cells, he says, 2010 saw what was then a record level of solar power installed. "And just one year later, twice that was installed. Roughly 80 percent of the solar power that currently exists in the United States was installed just over the last three years." One central criticism of renewable-energy sources such as solar power is that they are too expensive. McIlmoil says that's rapidly changing, as solar's explosive growth shows. More from The Economist is online at economist.com<http://www.economist.com/news/21566414-alternative-energy-will-no-longer-be…>. At current growth rates, the magazine says, wind will surpass nuclear in 10 years. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/30252-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/30252-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Coal to liquid plant on schedule
by James Kotcon 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

I am not clear on how TransGas can say that this is "on schedule" when they don't have financing or a contractor. They claim to have "started construction" June 20, 2011, but admit it is only minor things like moving in an office trailer, so it does not seem that would meet the legal definition needed to retain their air permit. A later press release said they would "start major construction" in 2012, a later one said they would close on financing by the end of 2012, and now they say they will close in 2013, but are still negotiating with a contractor. I think we could argue that they have not met the legal requirement to start construction, and they certainly have not met the requirement to maintain construction. (Under 45-CSR-13, if they have not started, or halt construction, for 18 months, the air permit can be suspended.) Thanks to Viv for keeping up on the latest PR. JBK >>> "Vivian Stockman" <vivian(a)ohvec.org> 1/10/2013 8:09 AM >>> Coal to liquid plant on schedule By Jennifer Smith in News | January 09, 2013 at 11:43AM http://wvmetronews.com/coal-to-liquid-plant-on-schedule/ A multi-billion dollar coal to liquid plant in Mingo County is still on schedule despite some hurdles. TransGas Development Systems announced the project back in 2008, which will be the largest coal to liquid plant in the U.S. And while there’s no bricks and mortar to judge the progress, Randy Harris, with the Mingo County Redevelopment Authority, says they’re moving forward. “We’re still well under the window of time it takes to take a project from concept to this stage,” says Harris. The design for the $4-billion project, located near Gilbert, is already complete. Site preparations are underway. TransGas is negotiating with the main contractor. “In some regards like permitting, we’re well ahead of our original schedule,” says Harris. “In other aspects, like financing, the uncertainty of the election slowed down the whole process,” according to Harris. “People just weren’t prepared to make decisions.” The EPA has waged a war on coal over the past three years with the blessing of President Barack Obama. Harris says that makes a lot of people with the money to invest a little skittish. “It has slowed down the investment community. Bankers don’t understand the difference between a coal fired plant and a chemical plant like we are. They just look at it and say it’s all coal,” explains Harris. But he says there’s a big difference between burning coal for fuel and liquifying coal into gasoline, petroleum gas and propane. He says when they sit potential buyers down and explain the difference most of that concern goes away. Once the financing is in place, construction can get underway. “Right now all the contractors are telling us that it’s going to take about 3 and a half years to go from where we are now to commissioning, which is the point where it’s turned over from the construction company to the [plant] operators.” That means the TransGas plant should be up and running in late 2016, early 2017.

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Solar is competitive without subsidies in 2013
by James Kotcon 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

Available at: http://www.economist.com/news/21566414-alternative-energy-will-no-longer-be… JBK Sunny uplands Alternative energy will no longer be alternative Nov 21st 2012 | from The World In 2013 print edition Rebranding is always a tricky exercise, but for one field of technology 2013 will be the year when its proponents need to bite the bullet and do it. That field is alternative energy. The word “alternative”, with its connotations of hand-wringing greenery and a need for taxpayer subsidy, has to go. And in 2013 it will. “Renewable” power will start to be seen as normal. Wind farms already provide 2% of the world’s electricity, and their capacity is doubling every three years. If that growth rate is maintained, wind power will overtake nuclear’s contribution to the world’s energy accounts in about a decade. Though it still has its opponents, wind is thus already a grown-up technology. But it is in the field of solar energy, currently only a quarter of a percent of the planet’s electricity supply, but which grew 86% last year, that the biggest shift of attitude will be seen, for sunlight has the potential to disrupt the electricity market completely. The underlying cause of this disruption is a phenomenon that solar’s supporters call Swanson’s law, in imitation of Moore’s law of transistor cost. Moore’s law suggests that the size of transistors (and also their cost) halves every 18 months or so. Swanson’s law, named after Richard Swanson, the founder of SunPower, a big American solar-cell manufacturer, suggests that the cost of the photovoltaic cells needed to generate solar power falls by 20% with each doubling of global manufacturing capacity. The upshot (see chart) is that the modules used to make solar-power plants now cost less than a dollar per watt of capacity. Power-station construction costs can add $4 to that, but these, too, are falling as builders work out how to do the job better. And running a solar power station is cheap because the fuel is free. Related topics Solar energy United States Industries Electricity companies Utilities Coal-fired plants, for comparison, cost about $3 a watt to build in the United States, and natural-gas plants cost $1. But that is before the fuel to run them is bought. In sunny regions such as California, then, photovoltaic power could already compete without subsidy with the more expensive parts of the traditional power market, such as the natural-gas-fired “peaker” plants kept on stand-by to meet surges in demand. Moreover, technological developments that have been proved in the laboratory but have not yet moved into the factory mean Swanson’s law still has many years to run. Running a solar power station is cheap because the fuel is free Comparing the cost of wind and solar power with that of coal- and gas-fired electricity generation is more than just a matter of comparing the costs of the plant and the fuel, of course. Reliability of supply is a crucial factor, for the sun does not always shine and the wind does not always blow. But the problem of reliability is the subject of intensive research. Many organisations, both academic and commercial, are working on ways to store electricity when it is in surplus, so that it can be used when it is scarce. Progress is particularly likely during 2013 in the field of flow batteries. These devices, hybrids between traditional batteries and fuel cells, use liquid electrolytes, often made from cheap materials such as iron, to squirrel away huge amounts of energy in chemical form. “Grid-scale” storage of this or some other sort is the second way, after Swanson’s law, that the economics of renewable energy will be transformed. One consequence of all this progress is that subsidies for wind and solar power have fallen over recent years. In 2013, they will fall further. Though subsidies will not disappear entirely, the so-called alternatives will be seen to stand on their own feet in a way that was not true in the past. That will give them political clout and lead to questions about the subventions which more traditional forms of power generation enjoy (coal production, for example, is heavily subsidised in parts of Europe). Enlarge Fossil-fuel-powered electricity will not be pushed aside quickly. Fracking, a technological breakthrough which enables natural gas to be extracted cheaply from shale, means that gas-fired power stations, which already produce a fifth of the world’s electricity, will keep the pressure on wind and solar to get better still. But even if natural gas were free, no Swanson’s law-like process applies to the plant required to turn it into electricity. Nuclear power is not a realistic alternative. It is too unpopular and the capital costs are huge. And coal’s days seem numbered. In America, the share of electricity generated from coal has fallen from almost 80% in the mid-1980s to less than a third in April 2012, and coal-fired power stations are closing in droves. It may take longer to make the change in China and India, where demand for power is growing almost insatiably, and where the grids to take that power from windy and sunny places to the cities are less developed than in rich countries. In the end, though, they too will change as the alternatives become normal, and what was once normal becomes quaintly old-fashioned. Geoffrey Carr: science editor, The Economist from The World In 2013 print edition

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IOGA Intervenes in First Energy Harrison case
by James Kotcon 09 Jan '13

09 Jan '13

THE STATE JOURNAL IOGA wants gas represented fairly in Mon Power coal gen case Posted: Jan 07, 2013 6:38 PM EST Updated: Jan 08, 2013 11:57 AM EST By Pam Kasey West Virginia natural gas producers want a say in Mon Power's proposal to buy coal-fired generation — but not to argue against it. "What we're not interested in doing is kicking the coal industry when they're down," said Independent Oil and Gas Association of West Virginia President Dennis Xander. Mon Power has a large deficit in generation capacity to serve its customers and those of Potomac Edison, IOGA reiterated in its Jan. 4 petition with the Public Service Commission of West Virginia to intervene in the case for Mon Power's proposed solution. The utility proposes to increase its installed capacity by almost 1,500 megawatts, primarily through the acquisition of the 80 percent of the coal-fired Harrison Power Station that it does not already own. "IOGA desires the opportunity to express its views to the commission about using natural gas as an inexpensive, clean and reliable fuel for power generation, and believes that its views will materially assist the commission in reaching a decision in this case," IOGA wrote in its petition. That doesn't mean IOGA is going to argue that natural gas would be better, Xander said. "We don't intend to take any kind of position in that," he said. "However, to the extent that the commission wants someone to step up and say, ‘Hey, look, the industry has an abundance of inexpensive, clean fuel that is an alternative,' we'll do that." IOGA also wants to be sure to keep the record straight on what natural gas can and cannot do in the electric power industry. "You're going to see a whole bunch of spreadsheets come out where people are going to calculate what the cost per kilowatt-hour would be under various scenarios," he predicted from long experience. "By intervening, we want to make sure whatever information the commission gets is right." If the suggestion came up that the Harrison plant should pursue gas co-firing — burning natural gas with coal, something FirstEnergy already is considering ( http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/blog/energy/2012/10/firstenergy-consi… ) at Harrison — IOGA would be behind that idea, Xander said. "But we did not intervene for the purpose of trying to replace coal with natural gas," he said. "West Virginia needs coal jobs and coal severance taxes." Follow Mon Power's generation resource transaction case on the PSC's website ( http://www.psc.state.wv.us/ ): case number 12-1571.

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] New Report: Next Generation Energy Efficiency Programs Can Yield High Energy Savings
by Paul Wilson 09 Jan '13

09 Jan '13

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jennifer Miller <jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Wed, Jan 9, 2013 at 11:03 AM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] New Report: Next Generation Energy Efficiency Programs Can Yield High Energy Savings To: #Coal <coal-list(a)sierraclub.org>, #Coal-Volunteers < coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org>, #Chapter-Groups < chapter-groups-list(a)sierraclub.org>, #Staff-Chapter < Staff-chapter-list(a)sierraclub.org> Efficiency Warriors - ACEEE has a new report out in which they review the best practices for utility efficiency programs. See below. Also, stay tuned, because I will be hosting ACEEE to discuss this report for Sierra Club staff and volunteers on Feb 7 (time still TBA). Thanks jen ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: ACEEE News <aceeenews(a)aceee.org> Date: Wed, Jan 9, 2013 at 10:19 AM Subject: New Report: Next Generation Energy Efficiency Programs Can Yield High Energy Savings To: jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org [image: logo] NEWS RELEASE Media Contact: Patrick Kiker 202.507.4043 pkiker(a)aceee.org New Report Reveals How Next Generation Energy Efficiency Programs Can Help Utilities Achieve High Energy Savings Washington, D.C. (January 9, 2013): New technologies and innovative program designs are combining to create the next generation of energy efficiency programs that can meet the aggressive saving targets being set by many states, finds a new report. Frontiers of Energy Efficiency: Next Generation Programs Reach for High Energy Savings<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001B0-bBJgFk3sV5vSMr-ROdifJU5S5hZ0HTTC4Z5BGNNce…>, released today by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE),finds that these technologies and programs can offer the potential to achieve and sustain high savings-27% of forecasted electricity use and 19% of forecasted natural gas use by 2030. "Natural gas isn't the only abundant energy resource in this country---we've also discovered deep reservoirs of energy efficiency. As our report shows, energy efficiency opportunities are abundant. Even as tried and true energy efficiency measures become commonplace, we continue to dig deeper and find new technologies and practices plus new program approaches to unlock further opportunities to achieve large energy savings," said Dan York, ACEEE utilities program director, and lead-author of the report. Energy efficiency programs for utility customers have been in place for over three decades in many areas in the United States. These programs have experienced unprecedented growth over the past decade, in significant part because of policies that establish high, specific energy savings targets to be achieved through energy efficiency programs. Over the next two decades, achieving and sustaining high savings levels present challenges for energy efficiency programs. Increasingly stringent building codes and energy efficiency standards for appliances and other technologies are moving baseline energy efficiency performance higher. Achieving high participation rates has been difficult for certain types of programs. The technologies and programs profiled in this report offer an answer to these concerns. "This report will be a valuable resource for those looking to help utility customers save money by using less energy. With a wealth of information on the leading edge of program designs and energy efficiency technologies, this report shows that program designers have an increasing number of options to achieve greater energy efficiency," said Maggie Molina, ACEEE state policy senior manager and report co-author. While savings opportunities exist for all types of customers, the report finds some of the greatest potential exists for renovations and retrofits of homes and commercial buildings. Lighting also remains a large source of energy savings along with building mechanical systems and a variety of electronics. Reaching more customers is another direction for next generation programs. Improved understanding of more narrowly defined customer segments through better data analytics can enable program administrators to structure and focus incentives and marketing to increase participation. Programs are successfully serving customers in markets that historically have been difficult to reach, such as multifamily housing and manufactured homes. Another clear trend across program portfolios is an emphasis on better understanding customer behavior and motivations in order to design programs that engage greater numbers of customers to take actions that save energy. The report examines a total of 22 different program types and concepts, from residential lighting to commercial buildings to industrial processes, and examines a wide range of energy efficiency technologies, including light-emitting diode (LED) lighting; high-efficiency heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment; and combined heat and power (CHP) systems. The research draws upon extensive interviews completed with a large number of experts on customer energy efficiency programs and technologies and includes numerous examples of where these leading principles and practices are being used or tested. To read the report, visit: http://aceee.org/research-report/u131<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001B0-bBJgFk3sV5vSMr-ROdifJU5S5hZ0HTTC4Z5BGNNce…> . About ACEEE: The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy acts as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors. For information about ACEEE and its programs, publications, and conferences, visit aceee.org<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001B0-bBJgFk3tsYR4Dng-SQtpD695k_4CRraE72qiMAKTV…> . ### Forward email<http://ui.constantcontact.com/sa/fwtf.jsp?llr=4rt7cun6&m=1011065179711&ea=j…> <http://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=un&mse=001QKZ15G27mHOwq-0UltPLdE0e-…> This email was sent to jen.miller(a)sierraclub.org by aceeenews(a)aceee.org | Update Profile/Email Address<http://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=oo&mse=001QKZ15G27mHOwq-0UltPLdE0e-…> | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe<http://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=un&mse=001QKZ15G27mHOwq-0UltPLdE0e-…>™ | Privacy Policy <http://ui.constantcontact.com/roving/CCPrivacyPolicy.jsp>. ACEEE | 529 14th Street., N.W. | Suite 600 | Washington | DC | 20045 -- Jen Miller (614)563-9543 Senior Campaign Representative for Energy Efficiency Sierra Club National Beyond Coal Campaign pst....My work is now national in scope, but I'm still based in Columbus, Ohio (the Eastern Time Zone)! -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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WVU Extension meetings on Utica gas Jan 29-30.
by James Kotcon 08 Jan '13

08 Jan '13

FYI. JBK http://wvutoday.wvu.edu/n/2013/01/07/utica-shale-development-topic-of-wvu-e… Utica Shale development topic of WVU Extension Service educational program series ( http://wvutoday.wvu.edu/n/2013/01/07/utica-shale-development-topic-of-wvu-e… )January 7th, 2013 Through a series of educational programs, West Virginia University ( http://www.wvu.edu/ ) Extension Service ( http://ext.wvu.edu/ ) hopes to help educate community members on development and leasing issues related to Utica shale and its impact on the state. The Utica shale is a large natural gas field that lies below Marcellus shale rock, underneath much of the northeastern U.S. and adjacent parts of Canada. The educational programs will take place in Parkersburg at the Parkersburg City Building on Jan. 29, and in New Martinsville at the Wetzel County 4-H Camp’s Mollohan Center on Jan. 30. Both programs begin at 6 p.m. This is the third year for the educational programs. Organizers say there’s a continued need and demand for updated information regarding the natural gas industry and its drilling. Presenters include experts from the Marietta College’s Dept. of Petroleum Engineering and Geology; The Ohio State University’s Agricultural and Resource Law unit; and WVU Extension Service agents and specialists. The program is open to the public, regardless of a person’s level of knowledge and interest concerning the oil and natural gas industry. A second series on Natural Gas Pipelines is scheduled for February in Kingwood and Beverly. For more information, contact WVU Extension Service Program Coordinator Georgette Plaugher ( http://anr.ext.wvu.edu/home/contact_us/georgette_plaugher ) at 304-329-1391. Connecting the people of West Virginia to the University’s resources and programs is the primary goal of WVU Extension Service and its 55 offices throughout the state. Local experts, like WVU Extension’s agents and specialists, work to help improve the lifestyles and well-being of youths, workforces, communities, farms and businesses through trusted research in the counties in which they serve. To learn more about WVU Extension programs, visit www.ext.wvu.edu, or contact your local office of the WVU Extension Service. -WVU-

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Fw: Federal Court Rules in Favor of Clean Air -- Requires EPA to implement strong soot controls
by Jim Sconyers 04 Jan '13

04 Jan '13

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <verena_owen(a)prodigy.net> Date: Fri, Jan 4, 2013 at 4:17 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] Fw: Federal Court Rules in Favor of Clean Air -- Requires EPA to implement strong soot controls To: coal volunteer list <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> Good news for clean air: Verena FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 4, 2013 Contact: Paul Cort, Earthjustice, (415) 217-2077; pcort(a)earthjustice.org Eitan Bencuya, Sierra Club, (202) 495-3047, eitan.bencuya(a)sierraclub.org John Walke , Natural Resources Defense Council, 202-289-2406 Mary Havell McGinty, American Lung Association (202)715-3459, mary.havell(a)lung.org *Federal Court Rules in Favor of Clean Air*** *Requires EPA to implement strong soot controls* *WASHINGTON, D.C.* – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit today released a ruling requiring the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement stronger requirements to clean up particulate matter, also known as “soot, “one of the deadliest forms of air pollution. Rejecting EPA’s adoption of a weaker approach, the Court ruled that the public health protections in the Clean Air Act require EPA to use the strictest more stringent cleanup requirements in communities with unhealthful particulate matter levels. The suit was brought by Earthjustice on behalf of American Lung Association, Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, and Medical Advocates for Healthy Air. “Soot pollution is dangerous to kids, seniors, and people with heart and lung problems, and kills tens of thousands of people each year” said Paul Cort, the Earthjustice attorney who argued the case. “This ruling will mean much stronger protections against this deadly pollutant.” Major sources of soot pollution include coal-fired power plants, factories, oil refineries, and diesel engines. The ruling means that more plants will be subject to more protective particulate matter limits in areas that violate health standards. It also will require limits not only on direct emissions of soot, but also on pollutants that transform into particulate matter in the air. Under the ruling, the most stringent controls will apply to communities that fail to timely attain health standards (within four to six years). Among other things, these areas will have to implement the best available control measures (instead of just reasonably available measures) and achieve pollution cuts of at least five percent per year if they fail to meet standards on time. “Soot particles are a dangerous mix of toxic metals and chemicals and are released into the air by burning dirty fuels like coal,” said Bruce Nilles, Senior Campaign Director for the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign. “Today's court decision is a strong step toward ensuring our families have clean, breathable air.” “Few court rulings strike so close to home. This one’s as close as your next breath of air,” said John Walke, senior attorney and Director of NRDC’s Clean Air Program. “Soot kills. Now there will be less of it - in our air, our hearts and our lungs. That means less bronchitis, fewer asthma attacks, fewer heart attacks and fewer strokes. We can thank the court, with every breath we take.” “Cleaning up particle pollution saves lives,” said Janice Nolen, Assistant Vice President for the American Lung Association. “A few weeks ago, EPA adopted the strongest, most protective standard for fine particles. Today’s decision means that communities around the nation will have better tools to make sure that they can meet that standard and save lives.” ### -- Eitan Bencuya National Communications Strategist Sierra Club 202-495-3047 o 415-255-5521 m eitan.bencuya(a)sierraclub.org -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Bridge To Nowhere? NOAA Confirms High Methane Leakage Rate Up To 9% From Gas Fields, Gutting Climate Benefit
by James Kotcon 03 Jan '13

03 Jan '13

This article reports very "preliminary" data on methane leakage rates from natural gas fields in Colorado and Utah which document that between 4 and 9 % of the methane produced was leaking into the atmosphere. The Utah data with the 9 % emissions was apparently unpublished, and simply was reported at a recent American Geophysical union meeting, so there may not even be a published abstract to cite. If these rates hold, true, they eliminate any climate benefit from using natural gas as a replacement for coal. Of course, without a significant price for carbon, basic economics means that most natural gas will be used "in addition" to, not as a replacement for, coal, and any purported climate benefit is meaningless. http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/01/02/1388021/bridge-to-nowhere-noaa-… The actual Nature article is at: http://www.nature.com/news/methane-leaks-erode-green-credentials-of-natural… These data contradict recent reports from EPA and US-EIA that American greenhouse gas emissions have declined, largely due to gas substituting for coal in electricity generation. The electric generation data do not account for these fugitive emissions from leaking gas wells and pipelines. http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/21/news/economy/greenhouse-gases-cut/index.htm The take-home message is that we need to become much more focused on enforcement of air pollution from gas wells, or else ban shale gas altogether, as the emissions from shale gas well completions swamp most other losses, and this could mean "game-over" for the climate. JBK >>> "Ann Payne" <notification+zlrdzo1f(a)facebookmail.com> 1/3/2013 12:23 PM >>> Ann Payne posted in Stop the Fracking in Morgantown Industrial Park Ann Payne12:23pm Jan 3 Thanks for posting this, Mark. Bridge To Nowhere? NOAA Confirms High Methane Leakage Rate Up To 9% From Gas Fields, Gutting Climatethinkprogress.org Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have reconfirmed earlier... View Post on Facebook · Edit Email Settings · Reply to this email to add a comment.

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Fw: 'Fiscal cliff' deal includes extension to tax credit for wind industry
by Frank Young 02 Jan '13

02 Jan '13

"A one-year extension of a key tax credit for the wind industry made it into the fiscal cliff deal the U.S. Senate and House passed on Tuesday. "The tax credit, which has been a major driver for wind development across the U.S. over the past two decades, is worth 2.2 cents per kilowatt-hour of energy produced by new wind installations for their first 10 years of operation. "A White House news release confirmed that the production tax credit extension is included in the Senate package that the House also passed. According to industry insiders, it would allow any project that begins construction in 2013 to claim the credit, even if it goes online in 2014. The tax credit that expired on Monday could only be claimed for projects that went online in 2012." ----- Original Message ----- From: Peter Shoenfeld To: WVHCBOARD(a)yahoogroups.com Sent: Wednesday, January 02, 2013 2:53 AM Subject: [WVHCBOARD] 'Fiscal cliff' deal includes extension to tax credit for wind industry http://www.mydesert.com/article/20130101/BUSINESS01/301010039/-Fiscal-cliff…

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(no subject)
by Sally Wilts 27 Dec '12

27 Dec '12

http://pizino.com/wp-content/themes/zbench/images/perfectway.php

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Chesapeake announces personnel reduction
by James Kotcon 21 Dec '12

21 Dec '12

I just saw this from Friday and found it ironic. Chesapeake cuts 275 jobs and sells Marcellus assets. But this week, the WV Chamber of Commerce predicts 58,000 new jobs in WV gas industry. Do you suppose the Chamber was paying attention to what Chesapeake actually does, or just their PR? JBK >>> "Donald C. Strimbeck" dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> 12/15/2012 4:19 AM >> ( mailto:dcsoinks@comcast.net ) THE STATE JOURNALChesapeake announces personnel reduction Posted: Dec 14, 2012 2:51 PM EST Updated: Dec 14, 2012 2:51 PM EST Chesapeake Energy Corp. is looking to cut its work force by 275 employees. Buyouts are being offered to employees who meet criteria based on a combination of age and years of Chesapeake service, the company said in a news release. The company did not give specific reasons for offering the buyouts other than to further its efforts "to maximize corporate performance and maintain our leadership role in this competitive and constantly evolving industry." On Dec. 11, Chesapeake announced that it had agreed to sell most of its remaining midstream assets in the Marcellus, Utica, Eagle Ford, Haynesville and Niobrara shale plays to Access Midstream Partners for about $2.16 billion. The sale includes "new market-based gathering and processing agreements covering various acreage dedication areas," according to the announcement. The sale is expected to close by the end of this month. Chesapeake also said it had completed the sale of other midstream assets in Oklahoma and Texas during the 2012 fourth quarter for about $175 million. Also, Chesapeake said it anticipates completing the sale of its remaining midstream assets by the end of the 2013 first quarter for approximately $425 million, bringing the total of current and anticipated midstream asset sales to $2.75 billion. Don Strimbeck, Sec/Treas Upper Mon River Assoc UpperMon.org MonRiverSummit.org WVU t-shirts & prints - FindHarri.com 109 Broad Street, P. O. Box 519 Granville WV 26534-0519 304-599-7585 (fax 4131) dcsoinks(a)comcast.net

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Fwd: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Tremendous new report on a carbon-free electric sector in 2030
by James Kotcon 21 Dec '12

21 Dec '12

New report argues that we should "overbuild" renewable capacity. Instead of sizing wind and solar for our electric generation needs, it is cheaper to build lots of excess capacity for when the wind don't blow, and when it is blowing, use the excess to decarbonize other energy sectors. This may be a "game-changer", just as the gas industry claims Marcellus is. JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ned Ford <Ned.Ford(a)fuse.net> Date: Wed, Dec 19, 2012 at 3:10 PM Subject: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Tremendous new report on a carbon-free electric sector in 2030 To: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS(a)lists.sierraclub.org This article just came from the Club's frack list. I found a link to the actual report, to save folks a couple of clicks. This is the first article I have seen (except for ones I've written) which gets it right. For those of us in the Midwest, they modeled PJM. It overstates the cost of ending fossil fuels in the electric sector because they do not examine the two most attractive forms of energy storage, building thermal storage and compressed air energy storage. But since they reach the right conclusion by using electric batteries and one tenth of the load from fossil fuels, it does not matter. Here is a link to the actual article they report, which fortunately is open access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378775312014759 What is particularly important about this is that they find that building excess generating capacity (up to three times peak load) is cheaper than trying to build to load and manage the variability with a larger amount of storage. This is an essential part of an overall climate strategy because it allows us to use the excess capacity for water and space heating to displace natural gas, and for vehicles to displace petroleum. (Both of those uses are generally going to enhance energy storage). We could use 50% more electricity in 2030 than EIA projects, and starting toward that goal today will prevent us from being whipsawed by the aging nuclear plants as they fail. Note that the headline below says 99.9% fossil-free, but the actual article says 90 to 99.9%. By the time we get there it won't matter. Some of you may find the graphic of renewable generation versus storage requirements to be the most interesting part of the article. It certainly takes a big bite out of the argument that all renewables need massive storage capability. I would like to work with people in the Club who want to articulate the message that the Sierra Club wants MORE electricity in the next two decades than EIA assumes we will need. Planning now, and starting now to build towards 50% more electricity than we use today is the only way we will get through the next decade with all the coal plant closures and the likely nuclear failures without economic catastrophe. We have to be a little circumspect about how we state that, but there is a growing body of argument that Business As Usual is going to end any chance of an economic recovery because of the high cost of new fossil plants. I have another reference I also found today, but it is a 5.4 MB powerpoint, and I will circulate a link if and when I can find one. In the mean time, if you are a glutton for this stuff, ask me offlist for the Risk powerpoint. There is a full report available from RAP, but the powerpoint is much more lucid than the written report. - Ned On 12/19/2012 11:49 AM, david Meiser wrote: http://www.udel.edu/udaily/2013/dec/renewable-energy-121012.html Renewable energy could fully power a large electric grid 99.9 percent of the time by 2030 at costs comparable to today’s electricity expenses, according to new research ( http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378775312014759 ) by the University of Delaware and Delaware Technical Community College. A well-designed combination of wind power, solar power and storage in batteries and fuel cells would nearly always exceed electricity demands while keeping costs low, the scientists found. “These results break the conventional wisdom that renewable energy is too unreliable and expensive,” said co-author Willett Kempton ( http://www.ceoe.udel.edu/people/profile.aspx?willett ), professor in the School of Marine Science and Policy in UD’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment ( http://www.ceoe.udel.edu/default.aspx ). “The key is to get the right combination of electricity sources and storage — which we did by an exhaustive search — and to calculate costs correctly.” The authors developed a computer model to consider 28 billion combinations of renewable energy sources and storage mechanisms, each tested over four years of historical hourly weather data and electricity demands. The model incorporated data from within a large regional grid called PJM Interconnection, which includes 13 states from New Jersey to Illinois and represents one-fifth of the United States’ total electric grid. Unlike other studies, the model focused on minimizing costs instead of the traditional approach of matching generation to electricity use. The researchers found that generating more electricity than needed during average hours — in order to meet needs on high-demand but low-wind power hours — would be cheaper than storing excess power for later high demand. Storage is relatively costly because the storage medium, batteries or hydrogen tanks, must be larger for each additional hour stored. One of several new findings is that a very large electric system can be run almost entirely on renewable energy. “For example, using hydrogen for storage, we can run an electric system that today would meeting a need of 72 GW, 99.9 percent of the time, using 17 GW of solar, 68 GW of offshore wind, and 115 GW of inland wind,” said co-author Cory Budischak, instructor in the Energy Management Department at Delaware Technical Community College and former UD student. A GW (“gigawatt”) is a measure of electricity generation capability. One GW is the capacity of 200 large wind turbines or of 250,000 rooftop solar systems. Renewable electricity generators must have higher GW capacity than traditional generators, since wind and solar do not generate at maximum all the time. The study sheds light on what an electric system might look like with heavy reliance on renewable energy sources. Wind speeds and sun exposure vary with weather and seasons, requiring ways to improve reliability. In this study, reliability was achieved by: expanding the geographic area of renewable generation, using diverse sources, employing storage systems, and for the last few percent of the time, burning fossil fuels as a backup. During the hours when there was not enough renewable electricity to meet power needs, the model drew from storage and, on the rare hours with neither renewable electricity or stored power, then fossil fuel. When there was more renewable energy generated than needed, the model would first fill storage, use the remaining to replace natural gas for heating homes and businesses and only after those, let the excess go to waste. The study used estimates of technology costs in 2030 without government subsidies, comparing them to costs of fossil fuel generation in wide use today. The cost of fossil fuels includes both the fuel cost itself and the documented external costs such as human health effects caused by power plant air pollution. The projected capital costs for wind and solar in 2030 are about half of today’s wind and solar costs, whereas maintenance costs are projected to be approximately the same. “Aiming for 90 percent or more renewable energy in 2030, in order to achieve climate change targets of 80 to 90 percent reduction of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the power sector, leads to economic savings,” the authors observe. The research was published online last month in the Journal of Power Sources. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS list, send any message to: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] the "12 Days of Coal" carol
by James Kotcon 21 Dec '12

21 Dec '12

Did you all see thios? Happy Holidays! JBK >>> James Kotcon <jkotcon(a)gmail.com> 12/21/2012 7:55 AM >>> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: barbara conover <bconifer022(a)gmail.com> Date: Tue, Dec 18, 2012 at 4:41 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] the "12 Days of Coal" carol To: coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org I found this through a link from a link... so I don't know where it started or to whom to credit it... beyond Care2... but I thought you might enjoy adding this carol to your repertoire. (http://www.care2.com/causes/go-climate-carolsing-rudolph-the-dying-polar-be…) 12 Days of Coal On the 1st day of Christmas my true love said to me: There’s no such thing as clean coal On the 2nd day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 3rd day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 4th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 5th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 6th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 7th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 7 poisoned elementary schools 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 8th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 8 sludge-filled rivers 7 poisoned elementary schools 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 9th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 9 flattened mountains 8 sludge-filled rivers 7 poisoned elementary schools 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 10th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 10 asthmatic children 9 flattened mountains 8 sludge-filled rivers 7 poisoned elementary schools 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 11th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 11 unemployed workers 10 asthmatic children 9 flattened mountains 8 sludge-filled rivers 7 poisoned elementary schools 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal On the 12th day of Christmas Bank of America gave to me: 12 destroyed communities 11 unemployed workers 10 asthmatic children 9 flattened mountains 8 sludge-filled rivers 7 poisoned elementary schools 6 paid off politicians 5 coal silos 4 melting glaciers 3 coal trucks 2 blackened lungs And there’s no such thing as clean coal -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/

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from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: New approach could help resolve mountaintop mining issues
by Paul Wilson 11 Dec '12

11 Dec '12

New approach could help resolve mountaintop mining issues<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/Wvk…> Posted: 10 Dec 2012 07:13 AM PST A progressive approach to resolve the complex issues surrounding mountaintop mining needs to incorporate good civic science and meaningful routes for public involvement, researchers say. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: NPR.org - Conflicts, Errors Revealed In Positive Fracking Study
by James Kotcon 08 Dec '12

08 Dec '12

You may recall this story earlier this year. The study has now been withdrawn, and the authors have been retired/resigned. http://www.npr.org/2012/12/07/166755886/positive-fracking-study-was-funded-… Conflicts, Errors Revealed In Positive Fracking Study by Wade Goodwyn ( http://www.npr.org/people/1939802/wade-goodwyn ) December 7, 2012 A report that shed favorable light on fracking is at the center of a controversy at the University of Texas. The head of the school's Energy Institute has stepped down and another professor has retired after an investigation found numerous errors and flaws in the report — and undisclosed conflicts of interest. Copyright © 2012 National Public Radio. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required. AUDIE CORNISH, HOST: A University of Texas study that says hydraulic natural gas fracturing is safe has been withdrawn, and its author has retired and left the university. From Dallas, NPR's Wade Goodwyn has the story. WADE GOODWYN, BYLINE: The fracking study is now a black eye to the University of Texas after an independent review of national experts found it scientifically unsound and tainted by conflicts of interest. The author of the study, Dr. Charles Groat, retired in the wake of the scathing review, and the university announced that Dr. Raymond Orbach, head of the university's Energy Institute that released the study, has resigned his position. The original fracking study concluded that hydraulic fracturing was safe, the danger of water contamination low and suggestions to the contrary mostly media bias. But then it was reported this summer that Professor Groat sat on the board of a natural gas drilling company and received more than a million and a half dollars in compensation. That information was not disclosed in Groat's report. In a statement, the University of Texas said it accepted the findings of the independent review. This is the third time in three months that fracking research by energy-friendly university industry consortiums has been discredited. The Shale Resources Institute at the State University of New York at Buffalo was closed after questions were raised about the quality and independence of its work. And an industry canceled their fracking study after professors at Penn State University refused to participate. Wade Goodwyn, NPR News, Dallas. Copyright © 2012 National Public Radio A more detailed story, with additional links, from Texas Public radio is at: http://stateimpact.npr.org/texas/2012/12/06/review-of-ut-fracking-study-fin… This is gonna be HUGE. Thanks to Dave Mcmahon for the original link. Jim Kotcon

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Volunteer Webinar - Your Input Requested on Sierra Club Climate Agenda
by Paul Wilson 08 Dec '12

08 Dec '12

*fyi, paul * ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <verena_owen(a)prodigy.net> Date: Fri, Dec 7, 2012 at 11:21 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] Volunteer Webinar - Your Input Requested on Sierra Club Climate Agenda To: coal volunteer list <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> Please join us! Verena *You are invited to a webinar to share your thoughts on the Sierra Club's 2013 climate and clean energy agenda for the White House. * Now that President Obama has won reelection, many of you have asked what the Sierra Club's major climate and clean energy asks will be in his second term. A stellar group of volunteers and staff members from across the Sierra Club have been working on this Agenda, which will drive our compelling and powerful work out of the gates in 2013. As part of that process, we want to get your input and ideas. We will be holding two webinars for volunteers next week to give an overview of the Agenda, along with our plans to roll it out publicly in January with “100 Days of Action” between the Inauguration and Earth Day. There will be time in the agenda to get your feedback on the agenda. Please join us for one of the following webinars! *Volunteer webinars: Wednesday & Thursday, Dec. 12 & 13 - 8:00pm ET / 7:00 CT / 6:00 MT / 5:00 PT * Please note that you have to register in advance to participate in the webinar, which you can do at the link below. Be sure you register for the appropriate webinar - staff or volunteer - as they will be structured a bit differently. Also, you only need to attend one webinar - we will be repeating the same content both times, and are offering multiple time slots to allow the maximum number of people to participate *Register for a session now by clicking a date below:* Wed, Dec 12, 2012 8:00 PM - 9:00 PM EST <https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/160378839> Thu, Dec 13, 2012 8:00 PM - 9:00 PM EST <https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/665136319> Once registered you will receive an email confirming your registration with information you need to join the Webinar. *System Requirements* PC-based attendees Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 ServerMac®-based attendees Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newerMobile attendees Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: NY Times Knows More About WV Tax Breaks than Legislators
by Paul Wilson 06 Dec '12

06 Dec '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Thu, Dec 6, 2012 at 3:51 AM Subject: WVNS story: NY Times Knows More About WV Tax Breaks than Legislators To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> NY Times Knows More About WV Tax Breaks than Legislators Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29659-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (12/06/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A major New York Times investigation is pushing West Virginia lawmakers to examine the tax breaks they give to businesses. According to the Times, each year state and local governments give companies the equivalent of about $850 per West Virginian. That's one of the highest ratios in the country - equal to about one-third of the state budget. Senate Finance Committee Chair Roman Prezioso (D-Dist. 13)) says for years he has been frustrated trying to find out how much the state gives out in tax breaks, let alone how many jobs are created in the process. "How could the New York Times come in and do an oversight, when we as legislators can't get those answers? We want to know why a third of our total budget does not have the oversight folks say it should." Many in the business community say the tax breaks spark economic growth and new jobs. Prezioso agrees it is probably true for some, but lawmakers have no way of knowing which ones. During the last session, Prezioso says he refused to pass any new tax breaks. As he puts it, he "boxed them up" in his committee because the state doesn't measure how many jobs are created or how the tax programs could be made more efficient. "I took a lot of heat: 'He must be against business.' Well, I'm not against business. We just can't continue to go down this path without having specific benchmarks." Nine years ago, officials negotiated what is known as a "tax increment financing" deal with outdoor retailer Cabela's. The company won subsidies worth about a $150 million dollars. Prezioso says it was probably worth it, but he wonders if the state risks undermining funding for schools when it makes such deals. "Is there a tipping point? Can you overextend the state in tax increment financing, then all of a sudden your revenues dry up, but you have all this infrastructure?" The legislature will hold a public hearing on the issue on Dec. 12. It will start at 11 a.m. in the House of Delegates chamber at the state capitol. The New York Times findings on West Virginia can be found at www.nytimes.com<http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/12/01/us/government-incentives.html…> . Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29659-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29659-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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from the Center for Media and Democracy: ALEC and Heartland Aim to Crush Renewable Energy Standards in the States
by Paul Wilson 05 Dec '12

05 Dec '12

ALEC and Heartland Aim to Crush Renewable Energy Standards in the States [image: Image of ALEC and Heartland Institute logos]An effort to stomp out state renewable energy mandates across the country has roots in the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). As reported by *The Washington Post*, the Heartland Institute wrote the bill, had it passed through ALEC, and is now targeting the 29 states and the District of Columbia, which have passed renewable energy requirements in some form. Read more<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=X3rVLQDRsoaeYG%2Byoi…> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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energy organizer?
by James Kotcon 04 Dec '12

04 Dec '12

We have been working recently on the First Energy/Harrison power plant transfer with some national staff, as well as allies such as EEWV. As you may recall, First Energy wants to raise rates to transfer the Harrison power plant to Mon Power, so that ratepayers, not stockholders, are responsible for any costs associated with carbon rules, etc. The PSC is hearing these rate cases this month, and Mon Power is asking for a decision on the transfer case by the end of March. I made a strong pitch that we will need heavy public pressure to counter the "Friends of Coal" that will want to keep coal-fired plants running and mine more coal. We will argue that energy efficiency is a much better way to meet consumer demand than another dinosaur coal plant. There may be funds for a short-term organizer to help turn out public comment. I think that if the issue is framed to be about electric rates, we will win. If the issue is framed about how to help the coal industry, we will have a much more difficult time. Anyone have any thoughts on a scope of work, or possible candidates for an outreach person? I this happens, it would move pretty quickly. Jim Kotcon

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Re: [EC] [wvec-board] Ohio vs injection gas wells
by James Kotcon 01 Dec '12

01 Dec '12

Thanks for the post Cindy. But I would argue that this is more than "a bit of peaceful fun/protest". The "informational meeting" concept has been used extensively for the last 10-15 years by agencies as a means of reducing public input and squelching information sharing. neither the citizen nor the agency are "on the record" at these events, and since no one hears what others are saying, community concerns are not shared and information about risks gets buried in a file cabinet, instead of getting broadcast to all interested citizens. A formal public hearing also has limitations, but it does provide a mechanism to disseminate information to the community, as well as enter formal statements into the record. One drawback with both formats is that the agency is not "on the record". Although they claim they want to share information and answer questions, none of the experts brought in by the agency can be held to anything they say. Hence, there is a tendency for the agency people to spout nonsense with aggressive certainty, in an effort to assure the crowd that they have it all under control. The information meeting format might be useful if it is done early in the process, but once the agency has a draft permit out, they have pretty much made up their mind, and do not want to be inconvenienced by public comment, so I get really frustrated and upset by that kind of process. I commend the people of Athens for their response. We may want to do something similar some day. Jim Kotcon >>> cindy rank <clrank2(a)gmail.com> 11/30/2012 12:52 PM >>> a bit of peaceful fun/protest..... http://www.frackfreeamerica.org/1/post/2012/11/public-ejected-from-injectio… Public Ejected From Injection Well Non-Hearing At Athens, Ohio, ODNR Open House 11/29/2012 1 Comment photo credit: Appalachia Resist! and Athens County Fracking Action Network Contacts: ACFAN, AR!: 740 591 2693 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 28, 2012. To: News Media From: Appalachia Resist! and Athens County Fracking Action Network Contacts: ACFAN, AR!: 740 591 2693 Re: ODNR INVITES PUBLIC IN, THEN KICKS THEM OUT ORIGINAL POSTED HERE: http://www.acfan.org/2012/odnr-invites-the-public-in-kicks-them-out/ Includes more images. Tonight, soon after the ODNR invited the public into an "open house" about injection wells , they thought better of it and ordered the public to leave. Though over 100 community members requested a public hearing about a newly permitted well, the ODNR had instead opted for an “open house” format, designed to diffuse agency accountability and community solidarity. The event was held 6 PM Wednesday night at the ODNR headquarters on East State Street. More than fifty residents were crowded inside the ODNR headquarters on East State Street, when they took matters into their own hands and transformed the ODNR'S planned "open house" into the public hearing they had requested. The crowd was made up of concerned landowners, farmers, business owners, and mothers with young children. Ex-county commissioner Roxanne Groff hosted the impromptu event. She began by acknowledging Rick Simmers, Chief of the Division of Oil and Gas Resource Management, and moved on to take prepared public comments from the assembled crowd. ODNR personnel were visibly at a loss. Law enforcement quickly interrupted Groff, asking her to leave, at which point Groff asked the public if they would like her to continue. The room broke into enthusiastic applause. After law enforcement again ordered residents to leave, the crowd broke into a “mic check", chanting as they left the building "The ODNR has been bought by the oil and gas industry!" "No new permits!" "When is the public hearing?" When the public left, the room was nearly empty, except for ODNR personnel and the large law enforcement presence they had invited. After the public was ordered out, they were met outside by over 100 Athens County residents who had marched down east State Street to ODNR headquarters to voice their objection to the ODNR’s continuing disregard of the widespread community concern about Class II injection wells. The marchers carried placards emblazoned with skulls and held a banner that read "Shut it Down! No New Wells!" and signs with slogans such as “Our Safety is Not for Sale”, "Defend Our Water", "We Demand a Public a Hearing", and "I Want my Concerns on Record" ". Marchers wore hazmat style suits and respirators to draw attention to the fact that Class II injection wells accept massive amounts of radioactive fracking waste from out-of-state. Community objection to injection wells has been increasing lately, as landowners have realized that they do not have any say if an injection well goes into operation on or near their property. Ms. Malvena Frost, who owns the property on which the Atha injection well is proposed in Rome Township, Athens County, does not want an injection well on her land. She “fears her only source of drinking water, a private well...will be contaminated," according to public comments submitted on her behalf to ODNR by her attorney, Mike Hollingsworth. SB315, cited by some as a law that will increase regulations on injection wells, actually makes it easier for ODNR to bypass public notice period for new wells, and makes it more difficult for landowners to appeal permits. A public hearing, the ODNR’s standard system for public redress, allows citizen comments to be entered into the legal record, so that citizens can challenge an agency decision through the court system. An “open house” offers no such substantial participation in public process. Underscoring how opposed they were to receiving public input, ODNR designated an outdoor, “free speech zone” for the ralliers, and forbade the public from bringing in signs, banners, backpacks, or audio or videocameras. One citizen was ordered to leave after recording officials' comments. Ralliers brought their own solar-powered sound system, stage, and roster of speakers. "We will challenge these intolerable restrictions on our constitutional rights to freedom of speech and assembly," said Smiles Welch, the emcee of the event. Speakers at the event raised many objections to injection wells, including a history of failed wells and water contamination. The ODNR claims that there have been no cases of water contamination by Class II injection wells in Ohio for decades, yet they do no testing of groundwater or surface water near the wells. "The reason they have not found contamination is that they have never looked for it," stated Grace Hall, one of the 100 who sent in objections. Although the fracking waste that is dumped into injection wells is hazardous, it is not legally classified as such due to exemptions given to the oil and gas industry. Nov 28, 2012, 2 minute video by Don E Wirtshafter. " The Ohio Department of Natural Resources tried to abridge citizen rights to a hearing before granting a permit for a new toxic waste injection well in their community. Instead, they hosted a "public meeting", a dog a pony show that had no legal impact. This is the community's reaction." LINK to original if player does not load: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ZEnMzjK69-k photo from: Appalachia Resist! and Athens County Fracking Action Network Contacts: ACFAN, AR!: 740 591 2693 Other media coverage: The Columbus Dispatch, November 29, 2012. Columbus, Ohio. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/11/29/fracking-dispute-g… The Athens News, November 28, 2012. Athens, Ohio. http://www.athensnews.com/ohio/article-38515-odnr-shuts-down-attempt-at-imp… 2 Previous Protests, June 26, August 15, October 3, 2012: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=506640166022449&set=pb.2055752994622… WATCH PROMISED LAND TRAILER (CLICK) About Current issues covered by Frackfree America National Coalition based in Youngstown, Ohio - F.A.N.C.Y. Archives November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 May 2012 Categories All City Council Illinois Ingraffea Injection Well New York Odnr Ohio Rally Toxic Wastewater Youngstown RSS Feed Create a free website with __._,_.___Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (1) Recent Activity: Visit Your Group Switch to: Text-Only, Daily Digest • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use • Send us Feedback . __,_._,___

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Re: [EC] from ScienceDaily n-newsletter: Installed price of solar photovoltaic systems in US continues to decline at rapid pace
by James Kotcon 30 Nov '12

30 Nov '12

Here is a pretty important development. According to the article: "Utility-scale systems installed in 2011 registered even lower prices, with most systems larger than 10,000 kW ranging from $2.80/W to $3.50/W." By way of comparison, the 695 MW Longview plant (which also began operation in 2011) cost just over $2 billion to construct, for an installed cost of $2.88/W. This does not include the cost of fuel or operation and maintenance costs, which are considerably higher for coal than for solar. Those radicals at Science Daily, what outlandish things will they say next! JBK From: Paul Wilson ( mailto:pjgrunt@gmail.com ) Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 10:47 AM To: Coal Alerts ( mailto:coal-volunteers-list@sierraclub.org ) ; WV Chapter Energy Committee ( mailto:EC@osenergy.org ) Cc: John Christensen ( mailto:jbc329@earthlink.net ) ; Hogue, Robert ( mailto:Robert.Hogue@va.gov ) Subject: from ScienceDaily n-newsletter: Installed price of solar photovoltaic systems in US continues to decline at rapid pace Most of you probably know this, but... Installed price of solar photovoltaic systems in US continues to decline at rapid pace ( http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/AbB… ) Posted: 27 Nov 2012 10:02 AM PSTThe installed price of solar photovoltaic power systems in the United States fell substantially in 2011 and through the first half of 2012, according to new research. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 ( tel:304-725-4360 ) Cell: 304-279-1361 ( tel:304-279-1361 ) "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Veterans Salute the Wind Energy Tax Credit
by Paul Wilson 28 Nov '12

28 Nov '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Wed, Nov 28, 2012 at 3:48 AM Subject: WVNS story: Veterans Salute the Wind Energy Tax Credit To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Veterans Salute the Wind Energy Tax Credit Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29489-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (11/28/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - One segment of the American workforce is speaking out on behalf of wind-energy development, even in the coal states. Military veterans say their experiences in the oil-rich Middle East have convinced them that the U.S. should be doing more to encourage domestic alternative-energy sources. Some have chosen new careers in the field, including Duane Enger, who works for Gamesa in Pennsylvania. He's an Iraq War veteran who develops wind projects, and he's not shy about his interest in the Production Tax Credit (PTC), which is waiting on congressional action for renewal. "There's 37-thousand-some-odd jobs that are on the line and, to be honest, mine's one of them. And so I'm concerned and I'm interested in seeing the Production Tax Credit be extended." The Production Tax Credit gives a little more than two cents back to wind-power producers for every kilowatt-hour of power they generate. Enger says the uncertainty about its renewal has already prompted companies to slow or cancel wind-energy projects and lay off workers, including at his company. Critics of the tax credit say it gives wind power an unfair and unsustainable advantage. Supporters argue that other energy industries, including coal, get much larger subsidies and have for years. Veterans' interest in wind technology doesn't surprise Michael Breen, a former Army officer who now heads the Truman National Security Project. Breen says many of the skills learned in the military translate well to clean-energy industries, including the willingness to take on a new challenge. "And the clean-energy sector is like that. It's a dynamic, emerging place: new solutions are being put forward that are going to make all of our lives better and make us stronger as a country. Veterans are naturally attracted to that sort of thing." The Senate Finance Committee has approved an extension of the expiring tax credit, but the real question is whether Congress will take it up before the lame-duck session ends. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29489-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29489-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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from ScienceDaily n-newsletter: Installed price of solar photovoltaic systems in US continues to decline at rapid pace
by Paul Wilson 28 Nov '12

28 Nov '12

Most of you probably know this, but... Installed price of solar photovoltaic systems in US continues to decline at rapid pace<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/AbB…> Posted: 27 Nov 2012 10:02 AM PST The installed price of solar photovoltaic power systems in the United States fell substantially in 2011 and through the first half of 2012, according to new research. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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EEWV on the Harrison power plant sale to Mon Power
by James Kotcon 27 Nov '12

27 Nov '12

Let's see, Mon Power could lower my electric rates by 5 5, or raise them by 2 %. Which one do I want? JBK http://www.register-herald.com/local/x983010197/Coalition-opposes-companies… Coalition opposes companies' proposal to buy coal plants By Wendy Holdren, The Register-Herald, Beckley, W.Va. Nov. 27-- Energy Efficient West Virginia (EEWV) is opposing Mon Power and Potomac Edison’s recent proposal to the West Virginia Public Service Commission (PSC) to purchase coal plants from another subsidiary of their parent company, FirstEnergy. EEWV argues that the utility's plan is unnecessary and will expose ratepayers to additional risk. The utility has proposed to purchase 80 percent of the Harrison Power Plant, an additional 1477 MW of coal-fired capacity, and Mon Power already owns 20 percent of the plant, according to a release from EEWV. Harrison was constructed in the early 1970s and the 80 percent interest in the plant to be transferred is currently owned by Allegheny Energy Supply Co., which is also owned by FirstEnergy. The FirstEnergy companies' plan would raise residential rates by about 2 percent, in addition to eliminating what would otherwise have been a nearly 5 percent residential rate decrease for 2013, according to EEWV. The company is requesting fast-tracked regulatory approval by mid-April, but the West Virginia Citizen Action Group (WVCAG), a member of the EEWV coalition, will urge the PSC to oppose the proposal. "FirstEnergy has requested a ridiculously short timeline for the PSC to scrutinize this proposal," executive director of WVCAG Gary Zuckett said. "FirstEnergy is proposing a long-term deal that will lock its West Virginia customers into owning and operating this coal plant for at least another decade." He said according to its own filings at the PSC, there are no cost savings for state customers. "The plant is actually a long-term liability that they want to unload onto West Virginia where it will be guaranteed to recover its cost regardless of whether or not it's competitive." The proposal would reduce financial risk for FirstEnergy because it will allow the plant to recover its operating costs plus profit in the state's regulated electricity market, according to EEWV, and if the proposal is not approved, the plant will continue to sell into a deregulated electricity market where it has to compete with other generators. Due to low natural gas prices, coal-fired electricity production is currently more expensive and coal generation has been driven to record lows. EEWV says on the regional electricity grid, PJM, coal generation in the first half of 2012 was 10 percent lower than the same period last year; FirstEnergy's profits fell 20 percent in the third quarter in 2012, in part due to the reduced profits in the competitive electricity market. Both Mon Power and Potomac Edison were required to file a long-term "Resource Plan" with the PSC earlier this year. According to the company's estimates, the cost of purchasing the Harrison plant offers no long-term financial advantage to customers compared with continuing to purchase power from the regional electricity market. West Virginia's other major electric utility, Appalachian Power, is similarly planning to purchase 1647 MW of existing coal plants from a deregulated subsidiary of its parent company, American Electric Power. Their proposal is expected to be filed with the PSC next month. FirstEnergy's Resource Plan failed to evaluate an expansion of the company's energy efficiency programs to help meet future energy needs, even though reducing demand through energy efficiency is a low-cost and low-risk option for meeting electricity needs, according to EEWV. Mon Power and Potomac Edison currently have one of the least ambitious energy efficiency programs in the country. FirstEnergy's proposal highlights the need for a robust integrated resource planning process, according to EEWV. With an integrated resource planning process, utilities would be required to regularly file with the PSC long-term plans analyzing a range of scenarios to show how they can meet future electricity demand at the lowest cost, considering both energy efficiency and traditional power plants. In states with strong IRP requirements, this creates a more proactive process for the PSC and other stakeholders to scrutinize all options available to the company to make sure that the company's long-term investment decisions are in the best interest of electricity customers. EEWV will be urging the PSC to reject FirstEnergy's proposal. For more information, visit www.eewv.org. -- E-mail: wholdren(a)register-herald.com ___ (c)2012 The Register-Herald (Beckley, W.Va.)

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Shale Gas Litigation strategies
by James Kotcon 23 Nov '12

23 Nov '12

Informative article by an industry lawyer on new litigation strategies. Author is Margaret Anne Hill, Partner, Blank Rome LLP. Full bio at: http://www.blankrome.com/index.cfm?contentID=10&bioID=2141 Full story is at: http://www.blankrome.com/index.cfm?contentID=37&itemID=2943 The Emerging Litigation Strategy of Environmental Organizations Seeking to Curtail Shale Oil and Gas Development November 2012 (No. 5) Shale Oil & Gas Development Opponents of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling activities initially pursued litigation as one might have anticipated. The suits filed first involved allegations of groundwater contamination and toxic tort injury. Typically, common law claims, such as those for nuisance, trespass, negligence, and strict liability, were asserted in those early suits. Occasionally, environmental statutory claims, such as under the federal Air Pollution Prevention and Control Act (the “Clean Air Act”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 7401 to 7671q, surfaced as well. See, e.g., Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future v. Ultra Resources, Inc., No. 11-cv-1360, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 136494 (M.D. Pa. Sept. 24, 2012). Some of these cases were resolved through private party settlements, see, e.g., Mitchell v. Encana Oil & Gas (USA), Inc., et al., No. 10-cv-02555 (N.D. Tex. Dec. 15, 2010); others were dismissed (with and without prejudice) because of plaintiffs’ failure to demonstrate a causal link between the alleged injuries on the one hand and hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling activities on the other, see, e.g., Strudley v. Antero Resources Corp., et al., No. 11-cv-2218 (Dist. Ct., Denver, CO, May 9, 2012). In short, by pursuing this strategy, those opposed to shale oil and gas development were finding success in their litigation objectives elusive, as they were gaining almost none of the traction for which they had hoped. As a result, environmental organizations, opting not to limit their attack strictly to suits of the type noted above, have adopted a more expansive litigation strategy. A parallel track is emerging, and by embarking on this additional path, these activist groups hope to pose a significant threat to continued development and production of unconventional oil and gas reserves in the United States. For opponents of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling activities, the second prong of attack involves the assertion of claims against federal or state agencies under Acts such as the following: the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”), 42 U.S.C. § 4321, et seq.; the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”), 16 U.S.C. § 1531, et seq.; and California’s Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), Cal. Pub. Res. Code § 21000, et seq. This strategy also extends to the filing of administrative petitions with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”). Industry opponents are fashioning petitions designed to require industry to provide more detailed data with respect to operations, no doubt hoping that if their petitions are successful, the compelled disclosures will facilitate additional litigation. In California, there has been a fair amount of activity evidencing this new line of attack. The Center for Biological Diversity (the “Center”) recently launched an ESA challenge against the federal agency responsible for managing federal lands and subsurface mineral estates underlying federal, state, and private lands, the U.S. Department of Interior’s (“DOI”) Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”). In pertinent part, ESA requires each federal agency to consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) or the National Marine Fisheries Service (“NMFS”) to “insure that any action authorized, funded, or carried out by such agency...is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered species or threatened species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of [critical] habitat of such species.” 16 U.S.C. § 1536(a)(2). In its August 29, 2012, letter advising of its intent to commence a citizen suit under ESA at the expiration of sixty days (“Notice”), the Center noted that the California’s Monterey Shale formation is estimated to contain 40 percent of the nation’s total shale oil reserves, or over 13 billion barrels of shale oil. Techniques utilized there now include a “new combination of multi-stage slickwater hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling (hereinafter ‘fracking’),” and use of this extraction method is expected to increase significantly, the Center further advised in its Notice. Although acknowledging that the BLM has issued oil and gas leases and drilling permits in the public lands that overlie the Monterey Shale formation “for decades,” the Center nonetheless now contends ESA has been violated. With the advent of new drilling techniques and of increased drilling activity on public land in California, BLM failed to conduct proper evaluation of the threat to ESA-listed species, and instead relied on “outdated biological opinions,” the Center argues. In its Notice, the Center demands BLM reinitiate endangered species act consultation regarding oil and gas leasing and drilling activities in California, and that all such activities cease. Additionally, the Center and the Sierra Club have an existing suit pending against the BLM and the Secretary of the DOI in the Northern District of California. Center for Biological Diversity, et al. v. Bureau of Land Management, et al., No. 11-06174 (N.D. Cal. filed Dec. 8, 2011). At issue in this particular federal litigation is an alleged September 2011 oil and gas lease sale of approximately 2,700 acres located in Monterey and Fresno counties, California. Plaintiffs contend that designated watershed areas and habitat for threatened and endangered species are at issue. Further, they argue that BLM’s decision to lease allegedly sensitive lands for oil and gas development must be overturned because it allegedly occurred without a full, thorough and sufficient examination of the effects drilling there would have on California’s landscapes, wildlife, watersheds and air quality. In this action, the plaintiffs claim the defendants violated NEPA and other Acts. NEPA is a procedural statute that, in pertinent part, requires a federal agency to prepare an environmental impact statement (“EIS”) as part of any “major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.” 42 U.S.C. § 4332(2)(C). An agency must prepare an EIS for any action that has “individually insignificant but cumulatively significant impacts.” 40 C.F.R. § 1508.27(b)(7). In January 2013, the court is scheduled to hear the parties’ pending summary judgment motions. Recently, the Center, and others, obtained success in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in challenges to various determinations of the BLM, the FWS and the Army Corps of Engineers concerning the Ruby Pipeline Project. On October 22, 2012, that federal appellate court issued its decisions in the petitioners’ favor. See Center for Biological Diversity v. U.S. Bureau of Land Mgmt., 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 22016 & 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 22088 (9th Cir. Oct. 22, 2012). The Ruby Pipeline Project concerned a natural gas pipeline traversing more than 678 miles, extending from Wyoming to Oregon. The right-of-way for the pipeline encompassed approximately 2,291 acres of federal lands and crossed numerous rivers and streams supporting threatened and endangered species. In the FWS’s biological opinion, that federal agency advised that the project “would adversely affect” nine of those species and five designated critical habitats. FWS nonetheless determined that the project “would not jeopardize these species or adversely modify their critical habitat.” The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that, under ESA, the FWS’s biological opinion had to be set aside as arbitrary and capricious for two reasons: first, its “no jeopardy” and “no adverse modification” determinations relied on protective measures set forth in a conservation plan unenforceable under the ESA; and second, it did not take into account the potential impacts of withdrawing approximately 338 million gallons of groundwater from numerous wells along the pipeline. Because the BLM had relied on the FWS’s biological opinion in its Record of Decision (“ROD”), the court set aside the BLM’s ROD as well. Another of the petitioners’ challenges succeeded, too. By the time of the circuit court’s review, the pipeline was completed. The federal appellate court nonetheless determined a violation of NEPA had occurred and that “[a]n appropriate FEIS [Final Environmental Impact Statement] could still yield effective postconstruction relief in the form of mitigation.” With regard to the cumulative impact analysis that must comport with NEPA, the court found that little quantitative, specific information was provided in the FEIS, other than that the project was projected to destroy more than 9000 acres of sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat. Because “the FEIS does not provide sufficient ‘quantified or detailed data,’...about the cumulative loss of sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat,” the court remanded the matter to the BLM to undertake a revised cumulative effects analysis. On October 16, 2012, Earthjustice, on behalf of the Center, the Sierra Club, and two other environmental advocacy groups, initiated state court litigation against the California Department of Conservation, Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (“DOGGR”), the state agency regulating oil and gas activities in California. Center for Biological Diversity, et al., v. California Dep’t of Conservation, Case No. RG12652054 (Cal. Super. Ct., Alameda Co, filed Oct.16, 2012). Although admitting in their complaint that “[h]ydraulic fracturing (or ‘fracking’) was first developed in the early 20th century and has been used in California as far back as the 1950s,” the plaintiffs contend that DOGGR never formally evaluated the practice and has been derelict with respect to its various statutory responsibilities under CEQA, California’s state analog to NEPA. Their lawsuit seeks, among other things, a declaration from the court that DOGGR is in violation of CEQA for failing to consider, evaluate, and mitigate the environmental and public health impacts of fracking when approving oil and gas well permits. The other aspect of industry opponents’ emerging strategy is the filing of petitions in order to prompt greater regulation, to delay or curtail oil and gas development, and/or to facilitate additional litigation. For example, on August 4, 2011, Earthjustice and other advocates filed a citizens’ petition with the EPA under the Toxic Substances Control Act (“TSCA”), 15 U.S.C. § 2601, et seq. Agreeing that “there is value in initiating a proposed rulemaking process using TSCA authorities to obtain data on chemical substances and mixtures used in hydraulic fracturing,” the EPA partially granted the petition on November 23, 2011. Having invoked TSCA authorities, EPA will draft regulations requiring industry to disclose details about the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing and to submit existing health and safety studies related to those chemicals. These disclosure regulations, if enacted, will be burdensome; but it is the use of the information disclosed to the EPA in conformity with any such regulations that is potentially more problematic. Industry members’ compelled disclosures will be used by environmental organizations, citizens groups and activists to advance litigation objectives. Additionally, the Sierra Club and more than a dozen other advocacy groups joined the Environmental Integrity Project in the filing of a petition with the EPA on October 24, 2012. Certain industrial sectors are required to report, on an annual basis, their releases of toxic chemicals to the Toxics Release Inventory (“TRI”) of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (“EPCRA”), 42 U.S.C. § 11001, et seq. The petitioners seek to compel the addition of the “oil and gas extraction industry” to the list of facilities required to report to the TRI. The petitioners acknowledge that fifteen years ago, the EPA elected not to do so. Notwithstanding the EPA’s prior determination not to subject this industry to EPCRA’s reporting requirement, the petitioners demand the imposition of this obligation on those businesses involved in “exploration and well development, production and processing, and site abandonment.” Again, any such obligation is more than merely burdensome; it presents a threat to industry. Because the information reported to the TRI is publicly accessible, those disclosures will fuel additional litigation - by environmental activists and others - against industry participants. As concerns hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling activities, the environmental activists are casting a wider net. To delay and impede further development of unconventional oil and gas reserves, these advocacy groups are coordinating their efforts; additionally, the attacks they are launching on the shale oil and gas industry are no longer limited to those which are customary or expected. Unconventional litigation and avenues are now pursued as well. Evidence of the emergence of this new strategy is found in environmental organizations’ recent filings in court - particularly in California - and with the EPA. Their latest efforts, in litigation and in administrative petitions, render this developing story one industry participants must follow. Notice: The purpose of this Alert is to identify select developments that may be of interest to readers. The information contained herein is abridged and summarized from various sources, the accuracy and completeness of which cannot be assured. This Alert should not be construed as legal advice or opinion, and is not a substitute for the advice of counsel.

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Fwd: WVNS story: Families Want Criminal Charges for Graveyard Destruction
by Paul Wilson 21 Nov '12

21 Nov '12

I think our state legislature passed a bill to protect graveyards, but the issue is still alive and not-so-well. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 4:06 AM Subject: WVNS story: Families Want Criminal Charges for Graveyard Destruction To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Families Want Criminal Charges for Graveyard Destruction Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29365-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (11/21/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The people with loved ones in a desecrated Logan County cemetery are waiting to see if the gas company responsible for the damage appeals a ruling against it. In the meantime, many of them say the destruction of the graves is a crime that should be prosecuted. James Olbert of Holden, who grew up in the mostly-segregated Crystal Block coal camp, says he was heartbroken when he discovered a contractor for the gas company Equitable had bulldozed a road through the African-American graveyard there. "What was done was a felony. They give you a few dollars and think that's going to take care of everything. But I want the world to know what has happened here, instead of just pushing it under the rug." Olbert says his father's gravestone had been knocked aside, and it's now impossible to tell where the actual grave is. In fact, he says, the whole site has been completely changed. "Part of the cemetery is missing; it's been hauled away. My father's headstone was still there, but it wasn't where it was supposed to have been." The company argued in court that it was not directly responsible for what happened, and that no one knew the cemetery was there. Olbert says evidence that came out during the case says otherwise. "The bulldozer was told before he did his work there was a black cemetery there. He was told this, and he made a racial comment and just continued to do what he was doing, so it didn't make him any difference." Last month, after an eight-year legal battle, a Logan County court ruled Equitable's parent company would have to pay $900,000. The company called the destruction a "regrettable situation for everyone," but has not ended its legal challenge of the ruling. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29365-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29365-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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KING COAL, ALIVE AND KICKING??????
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 21 Nov '12

21 Nov '12

[image: Green - Energy, the Environment and the Bottom Line] November 21, 2012, 7:41 am1 Comment<http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/21/king-coal-alive-and-kicking/#post…> King Coal, Alive and Kicking By THE NEW YORK TIMES<http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/author/the-new-york-times/> [image: The lion's share of new coal plants planned worldwide would be built in China and India.] World Resources Institute The lion’s share of new coal plants planned worldwide would be built in China and India. Some 1,200 new coal-fired power plants<http://pdf.wri.org/global_coal_risk_assessment.pdf>are being planned across the globe despite concerns about greenhouse gas emissions from such generating stations, the most polluting type, the World Resources Institute estimates. Two-thirds of them would operate in China and India, it says. [World Resources Institute] The United States and Mexico will share in both surpluses and water shortages under an accord overhauling how the two countries manage water from the Colorado River<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/21/us/us-and-mexico-sign-deal-on-managing-co…>. The river provides water to more than 33 million people in seven states and in Mexico. [The New York Times] Greenpeace looks into the use of hazardous chemicals<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/t…>in the production of global fashion brands, testing 141 items of clothing that it purchased last spring. Nonylphenol ethoxylates, or NPEs, were found in nearly two-thirds of the items, it says. [Greenpeace]. Early indications suggest that the World Trade Organization has problems with Ontario’s clean energy program<http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/11/19/wto-green-energy.html>, which requires that at least 50 percent of the materials in wind and solar projects initiated this year be made in the province. [CBC] -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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Fwd: Water is fracking issue in Utah, Wyoming, Colorado
by Paul Wilson 20 Nov '12

20 Nov '12

The attached report should be of interest. While we do not live in a desert habitat, fresh water is a finite resource and it looks like the Fracking Companies cannot turn contaminated water into wine. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Tim Guilfoile <tim.guilfoile(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Mon, Nov 19, 2012 at 7:48 PM Subject: Water is fracking issue in Utah, Wyoming, Colorado To: CONS-AWL-RESILIENT-HABITATS(a)lists.sierraclub.org Water is fracking issue in Utah, Wyoming, Colorado<http://www.ohio.com/blogs/drilling/ohio-utica-shale-1.291290/water-is-frack…> By BOB DOWNING Published: November 16, 2012 >From the Denver-based Sportsmen for Responsible Energy Development: Commercial oil shale development in Utah, Wyoming and Colorado would require large volumes of water, threatening Western water supplies and jeopardizing fish and wildlife, according to a report<http://www.ourpubliclands.org/sites/default/files/files/Oilshale_report.pdf>released Thursday by Sportsmen for Responsible Energy Development. According to the report, “Water Under Pressure: What Oil Shale Could Mean for Western Water, Fish and Wildlife,” a commercial oil shale industry would ultimately affect river flows and the habitat of native fish. Several important Western rivers – the Green, Colorado, White, Uintah and Duchesne – and the sportsmen who depend on them stand to see significant impacts from large-scale production. Whether it’s endangered and threatened species or the great trout fisheries beloved by anglers across the West, reduced stream flows will have negative repercussions for fish, sportsmen and the region’s outdoors-dependent economy. An economically viable technology to turn kerogen – a precursor to oil – into a usable fuel is unproven, and the scope of the potential environmental impacts is unclear. But the Government Accountability Office estimates that industrial-scale oil shale production could require as much as 123 billion gallons of water – enough water for a city of more than 750,000 homes. Roads, new power plants and transmission lines would have to be built, causing significant land disturbances and further carving up wildlife habitat already pressured by oil and gas drilling. The risk of water quality degradation from this intensive development is high and will require significant oversight, according to the report. Other potential risks include competition between current and new water users. The diversion of water from agriculture to industrial use could harm fisheries because between 10 and 40 percent of the water diverted for farms and ranches eventually flows back to the streams. The 1922 compact that allocates water from the Colorado River among seven Western states means the impacts of commercial oil shale production would be felt beyond the immediate area. “All Colorado River Basin water users together already use more water in an annual average year than the river produces. Predictions for the future show the imbalances between supplies and demands getting worse as the region’s population grows,” wrote Melinda Kassen, the report’s author and a water attorney and consultant. “For a resource that lies in the midst of the semi-arid West, with sparse precipitation and few large rivers, it is not clear where the water would come from or how it would affect fish and wildlife,” said Brad Powell, senior policy director for Trout Unlimited’s Sportsmen’s Conservation Project. “With the region’s water supply already strained and facing continued population growth, finding another increment of water for oil shale, while protecting native and sport fisheries, may be an insurmountable challenge.” Additional research will be needed to determine whether or not oil shale is economically and environmentally feasible. “Oil shale is a high-risk development on our public lands, with the greatest risk to our limited water supplies and important habitats for fish and wildlife,” said Powell. “The cautious approach outlined in the BLM’s recent decision, which focuses research and development on less sensitive lands, is prudent and helps ensure that our precious waters and habitats in the West will not be impacted until we learn more about the viability of the commercial development of oil shale.” The National Wildlife Federation, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and Trout Unlimited are lead partners in the SFRED coalition<http://www.sfred.org/> . -- Tim Guilfoile Sierra Club Senior Campaign Organizer (859) 426-1978 tim.guilfoile(a)sierraclub.org ><(((*>~~><(((*> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-AWL-RESILIENT-HABITATS list, send any message to: CONS-AWL-RESILIENT-HABITATS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/ -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Greenhouse gas emissions from regulatory policies, not natural gas
by James Kotcon 19 Nov '12

19 Nov '12

The Center for Climate Strategies just published this new report which deconstructs data from US-DOE. Projected greenhouse gas emissions for 2020 are down by 23 % compared to 2007 projections. The main drivers in the decline are a range of regulatory policies, accounting for almost 3/4 of the decline in emissions. The economic slump accounted for 18 % of the drop, while shifting from coal to natural gas for electric generation accounts for just 6 % of the drop. CAFE standards, and state energy efficiency standards each account for more than twice as much in greenhouse gas reductions than the switch to gas. In fact, energy efficiency standards are projected to reduce emissions more than twice as much as renewable portfolio standards. Important lessons here for the 2013 WV legislature. See the full report at: http://www.climatestrategies.us/library/library/view/993 Jim Kotcon

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Fwd: WVNS story: A New Direction For Mining
by Paul Wilson 19 Nov '12

19 Nov '12

WV chapter chair quoted on this WV Public News Service story. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Nov 19, 2012 at 4:36 AM Subject: WVNS story: A New Direction For Mining To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> A New Direction For Mining Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29361-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (11/19/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Patriot Coal's legal agreement to end mountaintop removal could signal a more sustainable direction for the industry and the state, according to an environmental group that is a party to the deal. Jim Sconyers, chair of the West Virginia chapter of the Sierra Club, says now Patriot is free to address its financial troubles, which should be very good news for the company's employees and retirees. "That gives them more breathing room to come out of bankruptcy, where they are now, and to figure out how to continue to fulfill the company's obligations to retired miners and their pensions." The Sierra Club was one of three environmental groups that sued Patriot over the harmful pollution from its huge surface mines. Lane Boldman, Sierra Club Cumberland Chapter Mining Committee chair in Kentucky, says the settlement underscores what environmentalists have been saying for years: It's time to move in a different direction. "It's not worth the cost of the health effects; the region needs more jobs, different kinds of jobs; and the easy coal is going away." Instead of mountaintop removal, Patriot plans to "transition" to underground and small-scale surface mining. Sconyers says as far as mining what coal there is left, that could actually increase employment. "Underground mining does employ more people. That's why the companies have gone to mountaintop removal, because they get coal with less workers and labor." Patriot Coal is among the largest mountaintop removal operators in Appalachia. When announcing the move, the company said there would be no layoffs. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29361-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29361-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] Who's got a great Frack photo?
by Jim Sconyers 16 Nov '12

16 Nov '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Janice Meier" <jsmeier(a)verizon.net> Date: Nov 16, 2012 8:21 AM Subject: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] Who's got a great Frack photo? To: <ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS(a)lists.sierraclub.org> Hi Folks, I'm getting ready for the UN climate change conference in Doha Qatar where the Club will have a booth themed "Beyond Fossil Fuels to Renewable Energy". Does anyone have a dirty grimy fracking photo that we could use for booth decor? Best, Janice - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This email list is associated with the Hydrofracking Team on the Sierra Club's Activist Network. Join the Hydrofracking Team at http://sc.org/frac. This list is open to the public and subscribers are not moderated. Please be aware that information you share may be forwarded to or read by others beyond this list. To unsubscribe from the ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS list, send any message to: ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/

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Guardian.co.uk - How cheap energy from shale will reshape America's role in the world
by william.depaulo 16 Nov '12

16 Nov '12

Discussion of strategic impact on US foreign policy as a result of looming energy independence........flowing from anticipated exponential growth of shale gas production. http://m.guardiannews.com/ms/p/gnm/us/view.m?id=15&gid=environment/2012/nov… Sent via the Samsung Galaxy Note® II, an AT&T 4G LTE smartphone

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ABCNews.com: Patriot Coal to Stop Mountaintop Removal Mining
by william.depaulo 16 Nov '12

16 Nov '12

Congrats to Sierra, WV Highlands Conservancy and OVEC.......and Larry Gibson http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/patriot-coal-stop-mountaintop-removal-mi… Sent via the Samsung Galaxy Note® II, an AT&T 4G LTE smartphone

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[WVUSSC] Fwd: Patriot Coal to Phase Out MTR!, More –An OVEC Action Alert
by James Kotcon 16 Nov '12

16 Nov '12

I think this is a really important deal. It is precedent setting for a WV coal company to admit that MTR is not good for its bottom line or for the community, and we should celebrate. Tonight!. So I am going to the new Black Bear (Evansdale) at 5:30-6:30. Be there or be square! JBK >>> "James Kotcon" <James.Kotcon(a)mail.wvu.edu> 11/15/2012 4:11 PM >>> >>> OVEC - Vivian Stockman <vivian(a)ohvec.org> 11/15/2012 2:20 PM >>> ( http://www.ohvec.org/action_alerts/ ) Support Our Work: ( https://donation.towercare.com/ovec-donation ) Donate ( https://donation.towercare.com/ovec-donation )Alert Archive ( http://ohvec.org/action_alerts/ ) Got Yahoo? View this alert online ( http://ohvec.org/action_alerts/2012/11_15.html )November 15, 2012 ( http://ohvec.org/action_alerts/2012/11_15.html ) Patriot to Phase out MTR! Today, November 15, in federal court in Huntington, W.Va., Patriot Coal Corporation announced its intention to immediately begin phasing out all large scale surface mining in Appalachia. The announcement follows an historic agreement with the Sierra Club ( http://www.sierraclub.org/ ), OVEC and the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy ( http://www.wvhighlands.org/ ), so ably represented by attorneys from Appalachian Mountain Advocates ( http://www.appalmad.org/ ). We owe a huge thank you to AppalMAD! (Help thank them by attending their November 17 fundraiser; info below.) Along with its commitment to end large scale surface mining in the region, the company also acknowledged the impact this destructive form of mining has on local communities and announced its commitment to reduce its environmental footprint. Patriot is among the largest mountaintop removal coal mine operators in Appalachia. Patriot will also retire significant infrastructure required to perform mountaintop removal mining, including the dragline at its Catenary mine complex on Kayford Mountain, which will be retired immediately, and the dragline at its Hobet mine complex (pictured below, chewing up Berry Branch in Lincoln County, W.Va.), which will be retired in 2015. ( http://www.ohvec.org/galleries/mountaintop_removal/020/index.html ) In a statement read in court, Patriot CEO Ben Hatfield said: Patriot Coal has concluded that the continuation or expansion of surface mining, particularly large scale surface mining of the type common in central Appalachia, is not in its long term interests. Todays proposed settlement commits Patriot Coal to phase out and permanently exit large scale surface mining and transition our business primarily toward underground mining and related small scale surface mining. Patriot Coal recognizes that our mining operations impact the communities in which we operate in significant ways, and we are committed to maximizing the benefits of this agreement for our stakeholders, including our employees and neighbors. We believe the proposed settlement will result in a reduction of our environmental footprint. This settlement is consistent with Patriot Coals business plan to focus capital on expanding higher margin metallurgical coal production and limiting thermal coal investments to selective opportunities where geologic and regulatory risks are minimized. Patriot Coal urges the Court to approve the settlement because it strengthens the Companys ability to continue operating with our nearly 4000 employees, and significantly increases the likelihood that we will emerge from the chapter 11 process as a viable business, able to satisfy our environmental and other obligations. OVEC founder Dianne Bady said, "We hope that this agreement, while holding Patriot responsible for its legacy of mining pollution, puts the company in a strong enough financial condition, through its underground mining, that it can honor its obligations to its retirees and workers." Read more here ( http://ohvec.org/press_room/press_releases/2012/11_15.html ). (Dragline photo: Vivian Stockman) Return to Index ( #index ) Take Action You can keep up the pressure and help speed up the end of mountaintop removal coal mining by taking the following actions: 1. The ILoveMountains website ( http://ilovemountains.org/about ) has an action you and everyone you forward the information to can take right now. Click here ( http://ilovemountains.org/no-more-excuses )to tell President Obama, "No More Excuses, End Mountaintop Removal Now." 2. Folks working to save Blair Mountain ( http://www.ohvec.org/newsletters/woc_2010_12/article_28.html ) in Logan County, W. Va., are in the midst of a campaign to challenge and block Arch Coals attempt to renew the Adkins Fork permit on the mountain. This permit is one of the most significant, as it lies in the heart of the battlefield and is the permit closest to the town of Blair. Watch a video here ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJPhBDykMZM ), and then take the first step in this campaign by writing a letter to the WV Department of Environmental Protection by November 23. For greatest impact, please take the time to compose your own letter and mail it (rather than e-mail). Click here ( http://blairmountain.org/letters-for-adkins-fork/ ) for all the info you need to write your own letter (or cut and paste, print and mail the sample letter if you just don't have time to compose your own). This is just the first step of the campaign, so stay tuned. ( http://ilovemountains.org/no-more-excuses ) Return to Index ( #index ) AppalMAD Event November 17 We urge you to thank the good folks at Appalachian Mountain Advocates ( http://www.appalmad.org/ ) by attending their November 17 fundraiser in Lewisburg, W.Va. The afternoon of poetry, music and discussion runs from 3 to 6 p.m. OVEC board member and Affrilachian poet Crystal Good ( http://crystalgood.net/tag/the-affrilachian-poets/ ) will read poetry and lead a discussion and the Black Twig Pickers will provide lively music. AppalMAD will serve regional autumn appetizers, along with beer, wine and fresh-pressed cider. Suggested donations for this special event are $75. Note that there is a special rate offered to OVEC members; reply to this e-mail for details. If you can't attend, you can still thank AppalMAD for their great work by clicking here ( http://www.appalmad.org/ ) to donate online or sending a check to Appalachian Mountain Advocates, P.O. Box 507, Lewisburg, WV 24901. Find more upcoming events on OVEC's online calendar ( http://www.ohvec.org/events_calendar/index.html ), and e-mail any events you would like us to consider posting online to: vivian(a)ohvec.org. Return to Index ( #index ) Feeling Thankful Speaking of thanks, we have so much to be thankful for as we begin the holiday season with today's great news, which comes as OVEC celebrates 25 years of organized voices and empowered communities. We sure are thankful for all the support OVEC members and friends have given us during these 25 years. Many members and supporters turned out for our 25th Birthday Bash, held on October 27. Thanks to everybody who came out and thanks to every group and individual who took out an ad in our 25th Birthday Bash program ( http://bit.ly/Sy0JTY ). Thanks to you, we are making positive change for our region. Return to Index ( #index ) In This Alert Patriot to Phase Out MTR! ( #one ) Take Action For Blair Mountain, All Mountains and Mountain Folk ( #two ) AppalMAD Event ( #three ) November 17 Feeling Thankful ( #four ) May no more communities and landscapes suffer this fate: Above: At Patriot's Hobet MTR site, massive dump trucks kick up a dust storm as they pass a drilling rig. Below: An aerial view of a small part of Patriots Hobet MTR operation. The circular patch of trees near the center-right of the photo is the Berry Branch Cemetery, which was once accessible from off of Mud River Road in Lincoln County, W.Va. The homes up Berry Branch hollow are gone now, obliterated like the landscape. Photos by Vivian Stockman. Flyover courtesy SouthWings.org. Membership Manual ( http://www.ohvec.org/about_ovec/member_manual.html )Daily News ( http://www.ohvec.org/ovec_news.html )OVEC Store ( http://www.cafepress.com/ohvec )Subscribe/Unsubscribe ( http://www.ohvec.org/action_alerts/ ) ( http://www.ohvec.org/blog/ ) ( http://www.facebook.com/pages/OVEC/151197381565944 ) ( http://twitter.com/#!/OVEC_WV ) ( http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCijgMocYmao-KnQhCHlg9ZA ) OVEC PO Box 6753 Huntington, WV 25773 www.ohvec.org 304-522-0246 ( https://donation.towercare.com/ovec-donation ) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SSCWVU" group. To post to this group, send email to sscwvu(a)googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to sscwvu+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sscwvu?hl=en.

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Fwd: WVNS story: Are the State's Political Debates Missing the Issue?
by Paul Wilson 02 Nov '12

02 Nov '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Fri, Nov 2, 2012 at 5:06 AM Subject: WVNS story: Are the State's Political Debates Missing the Issue? To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Are the State's Political Debates Missing the Issue? Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29129-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (11/02/12) CHARLESTON, W. Va. – Political discussions about the state's economy are missing the point, according to a new analysis<http://www.wvpolicy.org/category/blog>by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. It says the state is underestimating the importance of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security for our economy as a whole. Policy analyst Sean O'Leary says the big federal health and insurance programs are many times larger than the state's most politically prominent industries, when measured in terms of what portion they provide to the incomes of West Virginians. This means we should pay more attention to plans that could cut Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security than other issues, he says. "The impact of environmental regulations on the coal industry; the impact of a natural gas boom. Those two industries are only about 5.5 percent of our total personal income. These programs are, in aggregate, five times as great." O'Leary says the coal and natural gas industries make up less than six percent of the state's total personal income. But West Virginia's boom-and-bust economy and older demographics mean a quarter of the state's citizens depend on Social Security, and nearly as many depend on the healthcare programs, he explains. "We're an older population, and we have a high number of low-income families, low paying jobs. So, the state as a whole relies much more heavily on Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security than any other state in the country." He says a larger portion of West Virginians' total income comes from the programs than in any other state. "More than a fifth - 20.5 percent of our total. The national average for that figure is 12.8 percent, so we're way above the national average." Many of this year's political debates have focused on threats to the mining industry, and coal and its allies have attacked what they call a "war on coal." The analysis can be viewed on the Center's website<http://www.wvpolicy.org/category/blog> . Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29129-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29129-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Did Climate Change Make Sandy Worse?
by Paul Wilson 01 Nov '12

01 Nov '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Thu, Nov 1, 2012 at 4:41 AM Subject: WVNS story: Did Climate Change Make Sandy Worse? To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Did Climate Change Make Sandy Worse? Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29102-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (11/01/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Global climate change could have contributed to Hurricane Sandy's impact, climate scientists say, although some political leaders in West Virginia are unconvinced. It's impossible to talk about a hurricane as having a single, simple cause, says Robert Henson, a National Center for Atmospheric Research meteorologist and author of "The Rough Guide to Climate Change," but climate change probably contributed. "Climate change is never the total cause of any one weather event, but in many cases it plays a supporting role. Certainly the atmosphere as a whole globally is warming and moistening. The oceans are warming, and that provides a bit more fuel for hurricanes." But Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, a longtime supporter of the coal industry, says his views on global warming have not changed. "Not really, I mean, I'm not sure what's causing it. We always have weather events, and I'm not certain that it's because of climate change. I'm not a scientist." West Virginia, like much of the mid-Atlantic, is digging out from the storm. According to Henson, meteorologists haven't nailed down a link to big storms, because those individual events are more isolated and unpredictable. But he says the link to broader trends is more clearly established - including a tie to heavier rainfall in some places and worse drought in others. "The warmer atmosphere is pulling more water out of the oceans. It's also pulling water out of dry land. Heavy rains and heavy snows are becoming a little more intense. At the same time, when it's dry it's tending to be dryer for longer periods." One strange thing about Sandy may yet be linked to climate change, Henson says: A high-pressure system that pushed the storm. "This blocking zone of high pressure up towards Newfoundland - eastern Canada - that forced the hurricane to go west into New Jersey. And there's no record of hurricanes ever taking that almost due-west path into the mid-Atlantic." A free e-copy of the Rough Guide and more on climate-change issues are online at ucar.edu. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29102-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/29102-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Re: [EC] Fwd: Re: [wvec-board] Check out Clashing views mark W.Va. governor race rematch - News - The Char
by Jim Sconyers 29 Oct '12

29 Oct '12

What I'm finding this election: Seems EVERY CANDIDATE is running as a friend of coal, a fighter against the war on coal, etc. Even candidates who've never taken such a position before. Case in point is my delegate Stan Shaver - he was an ally previously, now mailing after mailing is about coal. On Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 9:24 AM, Gary Nelson <glnelson1(a)frontier.com> wrote: > ** > I got called into one of Bills conference call last night. I could not > get my question in about if he supported our gas moratorium. I did hear > enough about clean coal and EPA closing WV power plants from him to > convince me he deserves nobodys vote. But is Tomblyn a prince with all > his coronation cash from the coal companies?? > > ----- Original Message ----- > *From:* Jim Sconyers <jimscon(a)gmail.com> > *To:* James Kotcon <jkotcon(a)wvu.edu> > *Cc:* ec(a)osenergy.org > *Sent:* Sunday, October 28, 2012 11:50 AM > *Subject:* Re: [EC] Fwd: Re: [wvec-board] Check out Clashing views mark > W.Va. governor race rematch - News - The Char > > Holy shit! What a colossally bad idea!! > On Oct 28, 2012 11:11 AM, "James Kotcon" <jkotcon(a)wvu.edu> wrote: > >> FYI: JBK >> >> >>> "James Kotcon" <jkotcon(a)wvu.edu> 10/28/2012 11:03 AM >>> >> Maloney seems to be taking his cues from the Republican Governor in PA, >> who is also promoting leasing in state parks and forests. Watch out public >> lands! >> >> JBK >> >> >>> <dsgjr(a)aol.com> 10/28/2012 8:07 AM >>> >> >> >> Click here: Clashing views mark W.Va. governor race rematch - News - >> The Charleston Gazette - West Virginia News and Sports >> <http://www.wvgazette.com/News/201210270030> >> >> >> This article by AP reporter Larry Messina, contains just one paragraph >> referring to any environmental issues: >> >> "Maloney echoed budget-paring steps frequently cited by candidates: >> running the state like a business, for instance, and targeting waste and >> abuse. *His more specific ideas include increased drilling for natural >> gas and other natural resources beneath state parks and other public lands >> *." >> >> don garvin >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> EC mailing list >> EC(a)osenergy.org >> http://osenergy.org/mailman/listinfo/ec >> > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > EC mailing list > EC(a)osenergy.org > http://osenergy.org/mailman/listinfo/ec > > -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Efforts to mitigate climate change must target energy efficiency, experts say
by Jim Sconyers 28 Oct '12

28 Oct '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Paul Wilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Date: Sun, Oct 28, 2012 at 10:38 AM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: Efforts to mitigate climate change must target energy efficiency, experts say To: Coal Alerts <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> Efforts to mitigate climate change must target energy efficiency, experts say<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/-qG…> Posted: 26 Oct 2012 05:46 AM PDT More must be done to develop energy efficient cars, buildings and domestic appliances to address climate change – according to new research. Twice as much effort is spent developing energy supply technologies, such as new power stations, as is spent improving the efficiency with which energy is used. Efficient end-use technologies have the potential to contribute large emission reductions and provide higher social returns on investment, so the imbalance must be redressed. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: Re: [wvec-board] Check out Clashing views mark W.Va. governor race rematch - News - The Char
by James Kotcon 28 Oct '12

28 Oct '12

FYI: JBK >>> "James Kotcon" <jkotcon(a)wvu.edu> 10/28/2012 11:03 AM >>> Maloney seems to be taking his cues from the Republican Governor in PA, who is also promoting leasing in state parks and forests. Watch out public lands! JBK >>> <dsgjr(a)aol.com> 10/28/2012 8:07 AM >>> Click here: Clashing views mark W.Va. governor race rematch - News - The Charleston Gazette - West Virginia News and Sports ( http://www.wvgazette.com/News/201210270030 ) This article by AP reporter Larry Messina, contains just one paragraph referring to any environmental issues: "Maloney echoed budget-paring steps frequently cited by candidates: running the state like a business, for instance, and targeting waste and abuse. His more specific ideas include increased drilling for natural gas and other natural resources beneath state parks and other public lands." don garvin

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Beth email down
by beth＠eight-rivers.org 27 Oct '12

27 Oct '12

Citynet (my regular email server) has been down for three days now. This is an email I can use in the meantime - beth(a)eight-rivers.org. Anything sent to me since Thursday morning is in limbo somewhere, so if you are waiting for an important response, let me know here. Beth

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Fwd: ENEWS: WVU, City officials unite: 'Stop the dangerous, destructive behavior'
by James Kotcon 19 Oct '12

19 Oct '12

More health news from WVU. JBK >>> ENEWS ENEWS <ENEWS(a)MAIL.WVU.EDU> 10/10/2012 3:36 PM >>> MOUNTAINEER E-News Oct. 10, 2012 RESEARCH 1) WVU study: Exposure to air pollution particles at mountaintop mining sites may lead to cardiovascular dysfunction A published study by researchers at the West Virginia University School of Medicine and School of Public Health is the first of its kind to suggest that exposure to air pollution particles from mountaintop mining sites may impair the blood vessels’ ability to dilate, which may lead to cardiovascular disease. Air pollution particulate matter consisting largely of sulfur and silica was collected through a vacuum system within one mile of an active mountaintop mining site in southern West Virginia. Adult male rats were exposed to the air particles, and, 24 hours following the exposure, their blood vessels’ ability to dilate and function normally was significantly reduced. More online: http://wvuhealthcare.com/wvuh/Content/Media/News-Releases/2012/OCT/WVU-stud…

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Jim Hightower on Fracking
by Paul Wilson 19 Oct '12

19 Oct '12

Fracking LiarsSupporters and leaders of the hydraulic fracturing industry aren't being honest about government support for this new natural gas boom. By Jim Hightower <http://www.otherwords.org/about/contributors/1186> [image: Jim Hightower] <http://www.otherwords.org/about/contributors/1186> As they drill for quick corporate profits deep inside our Earth, ExxonMobil, Halliburton, and other titans of the natural gas hydraulic fracturing industry are harming people's health, the environment, and local economies across the country. They're also fracking something essential to a properly functioning democratic society: the truth. They're hailing themselves both as exemplars of free-market success and as the "virtuous ones" in our society — the producers and makers, as contrasted to the mass of Americans that the far-right corporatists are now openly calling "moochers" and "takers." [image: Marcellus Protest/Flickr] Marcellus Protest/Flickr Fracking companies and political front groups are selling the public a self-serving narrative. They claim the current natural gas boom is a victory over those wimpy and undeserving producers of wind and solar power who are dependent on government subsidies to get up and running. The shale gas boom, wrote the oil-and-gas-funded American Enterprise Institute this year, has occurred "away from the greedy grasp of Washington." AEI's laissez-faire fabulists snidely added that "surely Washington would have done something to slow it down, tax it more, or stop it altogether" had the bureaucrats realized that the private enterprise was making such progress. Indeed, crowed an industry PR group, "The free market has worked its magic." Sheesh — their bull goes deeper than their fracking gas wells. For three decades, the federal government has pumped more than $100 million into research for the frackers, finding ways to make the technique work. And, since 1980, the big bad government they now badmouth has paid frackers more than $10 billion in a subsidy written specifically for them. These oil giants are liars, fracking away at their own integrity. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Coal and Coalition Reach Agreement in Landmark Water Pollution Case
by Paul Wilson 17 Oct '12

17 Oct '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Wed, Oct 17, 2012 at 3:45 AM Subject: WVNS story: Coal and Coalition Reach Agreement in Landmark Water Pollution Case To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Coal and Coalition Reach Agreement in Landmark Water Pollution Case Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28845-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (10/17/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - In what's being called a landmark case for water quality and public health in Kentucky, a coalition of public interest groups has reached a settlement with a major coal company and the state over thousands of water pollution violations. Among the groups involved are Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper and the Appalachian Citizens' Law Center. Eric Chance, a spokesman for Appalachian Voices, says the agreement revolves around false reporting found in state records in 2010 involving pollution coming from dozens of coal mines. "We expected to see lots of violations of permit limits, but we found next to none. Eventually, we began to find entire quarterly reports that were identical to each other except for the date." The mines in question are owned by International Coal Group, which took part in the settlement, and Frasure Creek Mining, which has not. As bad as the record keeping and lax state oversight seemed at first, says Mary Cromer, staff attorney for the Appalachian Citizens' Law Center, it got worse. "Not only had the companies been submitting false reports, they had also had failed to submit any reports at all for many of their facilities. Obviously, the system was broken." KFTC member Ted Withrow says the groups wanted to make sure the settlement addressed three key issues: "A trustworthy third-party independent monitoring program, strong stipulated penalties that will punish future water quality violations, and penalty awards that must be spent in southeastern Kentucky where the violations occurred." In addition to ruling on the settlement, the court will decide whether to impose the original agreement the state Cabinet struck with Frasure Creek. The same judge who allowed the coalition to intervene when the groups claimed the state's enforcement was inadequate must OK the deal before it can take effect. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28845-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28845-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Coal Baron, McKinley Donor Accused Of Breaking Campaign Laws
by Paul Wilson 15 Oct '12

15 Oct '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Oct 15, 2012 at 5:02 AM Subject: WVNS story: Coal Baron, McKinley Donor Accused Of Breaking Campaign Laws To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Coal Baron, McKinley Donor Accused Of Breaking Campaign Laws Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28867-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (10/15/12) CHARLESTON, W. Va. - One of Congressman David McKinley's biggest backers stands accused of breaking campaign finance laws by pressuring his employees to donate. Last month, coal baron Bob Murray, CEO of Murray Energy, drew fire for forcing his miners to attend a Republican rally without pay. Now a complaint <http://tinyurl.com/9byb8kp> filed with the Federal Election Commission charges that Murray routinely pressured his white-collar workers to give to candidates and his political action committee. The New Republic<http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/108140/coal-miners-donor-mitt-romney-be…>published company fundraising memos, and staff writer Alec MacGillis says they were confirmed by sources inside Murray's mining empire. "They were expected to give. They were expected to give to the PAC, as a deduction from their paycheck. Typically, 1 percent of their pay would go to the PAC. They were also expected to give to Mr. Murray's separate personal fundraisers." MacGillis says his sources were afraid to reveal their names. But he says they and the memos describe relentless fundraising coercion, often including thinly veiled threats. He says his sources also told him that at least some of the money was essentially coming from the company itself, laundered through an employee bonus program. "Their understanding that they got from their superiors was that this would be made up to them. The sense that my sources had was that the discretionary part of the bonus was to some degree dependent on their participating." Campaign finance watchdogs in West Virginia say the charges against Murray are particularly important because of his history. Julie Archer is project manager for the West Virginia Citizen Action Group. She says Murray uses his donations to build political connections, which he in turn uses to fight enforcement of federal environmental and mine-safety laws. She alleges that Murray has threatened Mine Safety and Health Administration officials who were investigating his mines. "What Mr. Murray had done in the past was suggest to employees of MSHA that he had some sway over their boss through his political contributions." Murray has described that accusation as exaggerated. Federal records show Murray Energy is one of McKinley's largest backers, with a dozen employees of the company and its subsidiaries giving to his campaign. McKinley did not return calls requesting comment. An e-mail from Murray Energy called the fundraising "voluntary" and the charges politically motivated, "incorrect and dishonest." The New Republic Article is at www.tnr.com<http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/108140/coal-miners-donor-mitt-romney-be…>. The FEC complaint can be found at tinyurl.com/9byb8kp. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28867-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28867-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] "Jobs Beyond Coal" webinar and discussion
by Paul Wilson 15 Oct '12

15 Oct '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <verena_owen(a)prodigy.net> Date: Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 6:56 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] "Jobs Beyond Coal" webinar and discussion To: coal volunteer list <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> It is not too late to register! Bring your questions. Join us to hear > directly from the authors of "*Jobs Beyond Coal: A Manual for > Communities, Workers, and Environmentalists - * A Guide for those who > wish to make the transition from coal—and to make it in a way that is most > beneficial and least threatening to ordinary workers, consumers, and > community members." > > Verena > > > > > > Join us for "Jobs Beyond Coal" Volunteer Webinar on October 17th > at 8pmET! > This month’s Beyond Coal Campaign volunteer webinar will explore > engaging labor in the coal campaign and working towards a smart economic > transition beyond coal. Special guests Joe Uehlein and Jeremy Brecher from > Labor 4 Sustainability will give an overview of their newly released > report; “Jobs Beyond Coal”. They will offer tips to Beyond Coal volunteers > on how to use the report as a resource on strategy, engagement and > communicating messages of economic transition to impacted Unions and the > public. > > Volunteers will also hear from the Club’s Labor Program, highlighting > basic points about messaging and engaging labor during coal campaigns and > how to utilize the Labor team as a resource throughout the campaign process. > <https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/401698679> Reserve your > Webinar seat now at: > https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/401698679 > > *Title:* Join us for "Jobs Beyond Coal" Webinar! *Date:* Wednesday, > October 17, 2012 *Time:* 8:00 PM - 9:00 PM EDT After registering you > will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the > Webinar. PLEASE NOTE: Monthly Volunteer Beyond Coal Webinars are * > normally *held the first Wednesday of every month at 8pmET. Unfortunately the > first Wednesday of October (3rd ) is also the same night of the first > presidential debates, which let us to move the webinar. November's webinar > may also change due to it's proximity to the Election, so please keep your > eyes open for the November webinar announcement. > * > System Requirements* > PC-based attendees > Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server Mac®-based attendees > Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer Mobile attendees > Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet > Becki Clayborn > Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign > Internal Capacities and Communications Coordinator > Chicago, IL > 312-251-1680 > > > > > -- > Becki Clayborn > Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign > Internal Capacities and Communications Coordinator > Chicago, IL > 312-251-1680 > > -- Becki Clayborn Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign Internal Capacities and Communications Coordinator Chicago, IL 312-251-1680 -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] New website and Sierra Magazine story launching on Wednesday: "Cost of Coal" photo series
by Paul Wilson 10 Oct '12

10 Oct '12

for those of you that are not on the Coal Alerts listserve (or whatever they call it now!). paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Orli Cotel <orli.cotel(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 7:21 PM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] New website and Sierra Magazine story launching on Wednesday: "Cost of Coal" photo series To: #Coal-Volunteers <coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org> Coal team, I wanted to give you a quick heads up about an exciting project that many folks have been working on for the past few months. Tomorrow morning we'll be announcing a new website called "Cost of Coal," which features powerful photos showing the effects of coal pollution on everyday Americans. The website compliments the "Cost of Coal" cover story and 18-page spread in Sierra Magazine, which should be arriving in mailboxes this week.* (Note: Please wait to tweet or spread the word about this project until after 9:30 eastern on Wednesday morning). * To create this photo spread, we teamed up with award winning photographer Ami Vitale. Ami visited communities in West Virginia, Michigan, and Nevada to follow the life-cycle of coal -- from mountaintop removal mining, to coal burning, to coal ash waste disposal -- and documented compelling stories of families who deal with coal pollution in their daily lives. If we had the resources we would send Ami to every city where we have a coal fight to capture the amazing work you all are doing to move the country off coal. However, we hope that these three regions highlight some of our iconic fights and will get more people interested in joining our campaign, no matter where they are. I've attached the Sierra Magazine story to this email. You'll be able to check out the full website with photo slideshows and videos tomorrow morning at www.sierraclub.org/costofcoal. A big shout out goes to the Sierra Magazine team and our web team for putting this whole project together. Please let me know if you have any questions and we'll send around a link to the press release, blog post and website when they are live on Wednesday morning. Thanks! Orli -- Orli Cotel Deputy Communications Director Sierra Club (415) 977-5627 office (646) 522-7751 cellphone -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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carpool to Larry Gibson memorial Sunday?
by Jim Sconyers 09 Oct '12

09 Oct '12

I'm going to Larry Gibson's memorial service in Charleston Sunday. Anyone interested in carpooling from Preston County/Morgantown area? Go and return directly after the program. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: PATH files for abandonment
by Jim Sconyers 08 Oct '12

08 Oct '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Keryn Newman <stoppath(a)frontiernet.net> Date: Mon, Oct 8, 2012 at 10:48 AM Subject: PATH files for abandonment To: CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM(a)lists.sierraclub.org On Sept. 28, PATH made a filing at FERC to recover $121M in abandoned plant amortized over a 5 year period at 10.9% ROE. This is the first step for PATH in cashing in on the incentive they were granted that enables them to collect 100% of prudently-incurred investment in the project in the event the project is cancelled for reasons beyond PATH's control. The docket number is ER12-2708, and here is a link to the filing: http://www.pjm.com/~/media/documents/ferc/2012-filings/20120928-er12-2708-0… PATH's claim that the cancellation of the project was unforeseen is pretty weak, along with their claims of prudent spending. Some of their statements more closely resemble a creative re-writing of history. PATH has requested that FERC approve the recovery and changes to its Formula Rate without modification, suspension or hearing effective December 1, 2012. If no party objects, FERC may just do that. FERC has set a deadline to intervene, comment, protest PATH's filing of 5 p.m. on October 19. Three parties have already intervened, but none have protested or proffered any evidence of why FERC should not approve the proposal. Several consumers plan to intervene/protest, myself included. In an order granting challenges and complaints on Sept. 20, FERC confirmed that end-use consumers have standing to participate. The ultimate goal at present is to convince FERC to set the matter for settlement/hearing. Only parties who have submitted a timely intervention will be able to participate in settlement/hearing. If you or your organization would like to participate, you need to file by October 19. If you'd like to do so but have questions, I'd be happy to provide more information. Keryn - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM list, send any message to: CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/ -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: WVNS story: Preservationists: Second Battle of Blair Mountain Not Over
by Paul Wilson 08 Oct '12

08 Oct '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Oct 8, 2012 at 4:04 AM Subject: WVNS story: Preservationists: Second Battle of Blair Mountain Not Over To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Preservationists: Second Battle of Blair Mountain Not Over Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28772-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (10/08/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The fight over preserving the Blair Mountain battlefield is not over, according to the environmental and labor history groups trying to protect the site. Last week a federal judge ruled the groups don't have the right to sue to have Blair Mountain returned to the National Register of Historic Places. But labor historian Wess Harris says that's just one move in the long second battle of Blair Mountain. "One good way to look at this whole thing of Blair Mountain is as a chess match. Certainly the judge's decision cost us a piece off the board, but we're a long way from checkmate." In 1921 thousands of union coal miners fought with mine guards and company militias on a ridge line bordering Logan County. It was the largest armed uprising in the U.S. since the Civil War. Aracoma Coal, a subsidiary of Alpha Energy, has a permit pending to remove the mountaintop and take out the coal seams underneath. U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton ruled that environmental and preservation groups could not sue to have Blair Mountain protected because Alpha's permit hasn't been granted yet. But Sierra Club spokeswoman Kim Teplitzky says the pending permit is enough of a threat. "If this permit is granted, they could commence mining on the battlefield site, and potentially destroy this incredibly important historic place." She says they would act if the state Department of Environmental Protection issues the permit to mine what's known as Piney Branch. "We would definitely act. We are right now weighing our options, and we'll be watching closely to see what happens with this pending permit for Piney Branch." Wess Harris says the state could lose a vital part of its past. "The history's not going to go away, but the opportunity to teach from that mountain does go away. A huge loss. Just another case of our heritage being destroyed." Preservationists say the process of having the site removed from historic protection three years ago was filled with irregularities. The companies that want to strip-mine the area say it's just wilderness, not worth protecting. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28772-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28772-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Webinar: Water for Energy--Connections, Collisions, and Opportunities
by Paul Wilson 05 Oct '12

05 Oct '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: UCS Science Network <sciencenetwork(a)ucsusa.org> Date: Fri, Oct 5, 2012 at 12:08 PM Subject: Webinar: Water for Energy--Connections, Collisions, and Opportunities To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=JBIWysrO300CW_dVyYyUYg><http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=YedIHC32sfmBoX123QlxYQ><http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=W-YlVuZOoplCn-2dGvToXQ> WEBINAR INVITATION Water for Energy—Connections, Collisions, and Opportunities Dear Paul, This summer's drought brought to light the challenges we face when there isn't sufficient water to cool our nation's power plants. Conventional fossil-fuel and nuclear power plants require water to cool the steam they generate to make electricity. In 2005, power plants accounted for over 40 percent of all freshwater withdrawn in the U.S. Many power plants need a huge, steady supply of water to operate, and in hot dry summers, that water can become hard to secure. We invite you to join a webinar discussion on the challenges and opportunities for electricity production in a water-constrained future. *Water for Energy—Connections, Collisions, and Opportunities<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=hoh53jA2l-zMnQWrEqR2og> * *Date:* Thursday, October 18 *Time:* 1:00-2:15 p.m. EDT Register Today <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=4T4okFM72h6GGfXljC3LTg> The webinar will feature: - *Camille Calimlim*, committee staff, Water and Power Subcommittee, U.S. House of Representatives - *John Rogers*, senior energy analyst and co-manager of the Energy and Water in a Warming World Initiative (EW3), Union of Concerned Scientists - *C. Adam Schlosser*, principal research scientist and assistant director of science research in the Center for Global Change Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Register for the Webinar Today Please join us on *Thursday, October 18, from 1:00-2:15 p.m. EDT*, as three leading experts discuss the challenges and opportunities for electricity production in a water-constrained future. [image: RSVP] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=U_G1gFw3MloCn2B6ATGwZw> Related Links Energy and Water in a Warming World Initiative<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=ahBdwUm_8FRIYlcAfzyGOA> Freshwater Use by U.S. Power Plants<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=mmpMcBgDh_0f0tDED3sdQw> Energy-Water Collision Infographic<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=FOFL2kNpU62sqOg9sEAmIg> Tell A Colleague Please encourage your colleagues to sign up<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=oTPpwKU7o6FvIqfVZSfTMQ>and help increase our effectiveness in creating a healthy environment and a safer world. CLICK HERE<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=zkT51ks4zT8GWLNu9pqR6A> . Ms. Calimlim will discuss the energy-water policy landscape and opportunities; Mr. Rogers will present on current power plant water use, highlighting the findings from EW3's *Freshwater Use by U.S. Power Plants: Electricity's Thirst for a Precious Resource<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=It0V1ddl5D3L2gEWvQpEUg> * report; and Dr. Schlosser will discuss the water implications of an 80 percent renewable energy future as articulated in the Renewable Electricity Futures Study for which he was a lead author. A question-and-answer session will follow the presentations. Please register today.<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=4V1llxTvqaicx5PQHaswiQ>We look forward to your participation on October 18. Sincerely, [image: Megan Rising] Megan Rising Energy Outreach Coordinator Climate & Energy Program Union of Concerned Scientists The Union of Concerned Scientists is the leading science-based nonprofit working for a healthy environment and a safer world. UCS is a 501(c)(3) organization. All gifts are tax deductible. You can be confident your donations to UCS are spent wisely. <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=sh4-hBA0U8z_QDoUVyeACw> Union of Concerned Scientists 2 Brattle Square | Cambridge, MA 02138-3780 Telephone: 800-666-8276 | Fax: 617-864-9405 sciencenetwork(a)ucsusa.org www.ucsusa.org <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=sIRg4WPgz4zL8rTM83WhFQ> To stop receiving emails from UCS about clean energy, click here to update your interests <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=zvioK9wS1IxtYgC3nS00mw>. About UCS <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=iLI9NlqjJ3FeqklrhdKgPw> | Take Action<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=bjCdC7BDUN-gb9vnGMIv1g>| Donate <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=8ROlwSSjpxLMOApIdKef6g> | Contact Us <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=vCQg7sb9zVM0yiP1zzJ_6A> | Privacy Policy <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=nvB8TUbEshZ1mDcp7y4L2Q> | Unsubscribe<http://action.ucsusa.org/site/CO?i=VtWzh8fVGIHNFJ24x6W_FgKjfczN8ixe&cid=1781>| Update Your Profile <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=f8ZTbpkwGxjEHZ765Szezg> © Union of Concerned Scientists. All rights reserved. [image: powered by CONVIO] <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=9odP3YLRETYFD53T6A_6aA> nonprofit software <http://action.ucsusa.org/site/R?i=GlQTMnqhiZU6SglAGPtODw> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: [WVSC Marcellus Shale Gas Campaign] All party rabble-rousers make plans now!
by James Kotcon 05 Oct '12

05 Oct '12

Anyone else interested? JBK >>> "Steve Hamilton" <notification+zlrdzo1f(a)facebookmail.com> 10/5/2012 9:34 AM >>> Steve Hamilton posted in WVSC Marcellus Shale Gas Campaign Steve Hamilton9:34am Oct 5 All party rabble-rousers make plans now! The Mountain Party and the Doddridge County Watershed Association are calling on you to join an anti-fracking rally at West Union this weekend. If you live in the area or are attending the WVEC weekend retreat in Ritchie County, please plan to join Jesse Johnson and local residents as they stand up to protect their homes and health. This is designed to take place during an evening break in the agenda of the WVEC retreat. Where: Meet at the roadside park near the ball park at West Union. When: Sat Oct 6 at 5 pm Bring signs and a carful of friends! Meet great people like yourself who care enough to act! View Post on Facebook · Edit Email Settings · Reply to this email to add a comment.

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Fwd: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] FYI: New Study Supports Water Contamination Due to Fracking
by Jim Sconyers 03 Oct '12

03 Oct '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Deb Nardone" <deb.nardone(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Oct 3, 2012 10:25 AM Subject: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] FYI: New Study Supports Water Contamination Due to Fracking To: <ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS(a)lists.sierraclub.org> http://action.sierraclub.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=254646.0 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 3, 2012 Contacts: Maggie Kao, Sierra Club, 202-675-2384 Bruce Baizel, Earthworks, 970-259-3353 x2 *New Study Supports Water Contamination Due to Fracking* *U.S. Geological Survey Verifies EPA Findings in Pavillion, WY* Pavillion, WY -- An independent analysis of new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) water monitoring data verifies a 2011 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigation into whether hydraulic fracturing contaminated the Wind River aquifer near Pavillion, Wyoming - an important groundwater source that provides water to thousands of Wyoming residents and farmers. The preliminary results of EPA’s study was one of the first to document hydrocarbons consistent with fracking fluid chemicals in drinking water wells and monitoring wells located near natural gas wells. EPA’s preliminary results have since been attacked by the oil and gas industry, as they seek to continue their dangerous practices and protect their own interests over public health and safety. USGS’s study was conducted specifically to check EPA’s results. The Sierra Club, Earthworks, and the Natural Resources Defense Council worked with a hydrologist and independent expert, Dr. Tom Myers, to analyze the USGS raw data and compare those results with the original EPA report. Dr. Myers found that the USGS data support EPA's initial findings. EPA’s analysis should be widely accepted now that its findings have been replicated. The USGS report found that thermogenic gas, which very likely comes from fracked deep shale formations, continues to increase in a monitoring well. This evidence strongly suggests that as a result of fracking, gas is seeping into Pavillion’s water. A range of chemicals associated with the fracking process also continue to appear in the monitoring well, showing that hazardous pollution is spreading towards the surface. This new information supports EPA’s hypothesis that natural gas drilling activities, including fracking, have contaminated the Wind River aquifer near Pavillion. Read Dr. Myers’ analysis here<http://www.sierraclub.org/pressroom/downloads/myers-tech-memo-093012.pdf> . View the U.S. Geological Survey’s data here<http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=3410#.UGoCok25SgY> . “The Sierra Club is concerned by the U.S. Geological Survey’s important conclusions, which further underline EPA’s report that fracking has contaminated Pavillion’s water,” said *Deb Nardone, Sierra Club Beyond Natural Gas campaign director*. “This report raises the alarm on the public health threats posed by dirty and dangerous fracking and the need to rein in a oil and gas industry that remains unchecked and unaccountable for their toxic pollution.” “Dr. Myers’ analysis shows that the USGS upholds EPA’s preliminary conclusion that hydraulic fracturing contaminated Pavillion-area groundwater,” said *Bruce Baizel, Earthworks’ Oil & Gas Accountability Project Senior Staff Attorney*.” He continued, “It’s long past time for states and industry to stop denying oil and gas development’s environmental problems, and start working on fixing them.” “This reinforces EPA’s findings – and the concerns of Americans in communities across the country – that dangerous fracking practices are putting our drinking water and health at risk,” said *NRDC senior policy analyst Amy Mall*. “That’s why it’s critical that EPA thoroughly investigate reports of fracking water contamination concerns. It’s essential that we protect Americans from a repeat of what we are seeing in Wyoming.” ### -- Deborah J. Nardone, Director Beyond Natural Gas Campaign Sierra Club O: 814-308-9767 C: 814-932-6668 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This email list is associated with the Hydrofracking Team on the Sierra Club's Activist Network. Join the Hydrofracking Team at http://sc.org/frac. This list is open to the public and subscribers are not moderated. Please be aware that information you share may be forwarded to or read by others beyond this list. To unsubscribe from the ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS list, send any message to: ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp

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Re: [EC] EarthWorks report "Breaking All The Rules"
by Frank Young 02 Oct '12

02 Oct '12

It's worth than that, Beth. The law does require one thing of DEP- that it issue permits if the applicants have simply jumped through the paperwork hoops, but which hoops are very, very low. To not issue a permit immediately puts the burden on DEP to show that it was prudent to deny the permit. And usually DEP is too paralyzed by inertia and too bound by political pressure to make realistic findings of relative prudency. Frank Young ----- Original Message ----- From: "Elizabeth Little" <blittle(a)citynet.net> To: "James Kotcon" <jkotcon(a)wvu.edu> Cc: <ec(a)osenergy.org> Sent: Tuesday, October 02, 2012 8:07 PM Subject: Re: [EC] EarthWorks report "Breaking All The Rules" It sounds like WV, but they didn't include WV. If it's this bad elsewhere, imagine how bad it is here. Example: Antero and Halls Drilling have had violation, accident, spill, etc. one after another, starting with the spill in Buckeye Run that Louanne discovered, and the DEP just lets them keep going. The really frustrating thing is that there is nothing we can legally do. When we had that call with several lawyers about filing an action to make the DEP do what the law says, it came out that the regulations don't require the DEP to do anything. The language is all that they "may" inspect or "may" require thus and so. Arrrrgh! If ever there was a timely report to justify our Moratorium call, here it is. Caution, 3 MB, about 150 pages. http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/breaking_all_the_rules_the_c… JBK ----- Original Message ----- From: Alan Septoff ( mailto:aseptoff@earthworksaction.org ) To: cog Sent: Monday, October 01, 2012 1:39 PM Subject: [COG] Earthworks' response to John Hanger re our enforcement report http://www.earthworksaction.org/earthblog/detail/public_health_isnt_a_numbe… Public health isnâ?Tt a numbers game - a response to John Hanger By Nadia Steinzor ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/earthblog/byauthor/8 ) September 28, 2012 This post was co-authored with Alan Septoff ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/earthblog/byauthor/10 ). The most fundamental truth uncovered in Earthworksâ?T just-released report Breaking All the Rules: the Crisis in Oil & Gas Regulation ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/breaking_all_the_rules_the_c… ), is that states are falling tragically short in enforcing their own oil and gas development rules. It is good to see that John Hanger ( http://johnhanger.blogspot.com/2012/09/reviewing-earthworks-report-ripping.… ), ex-Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), does not argue that truth. As a result of this inadequate enforcementâ?"a problem in all of the six states we reviewedâ?"Breaking All the Rules concludes that so many problems with oil and gas development are left undiscovered, undocumented and unresolved, the public cannot have confidence that their health, air, and water are being protected. Again, John Hanger does not argue against that conclusion. As a former regulator, he knows how complicated it is to oversee an industry based on a â?odrill and permit now, figure out how to oversee laterâ? approach. Even with an increase in the number of inspectors and improved reporting and data protocolsâ?"facts that Earthworks acknowledges in the report. John Hanger also argues that we should not have looked at all producing wells, since it is primarily shale gas wells â?othat are the focus of attention and concern.â? However, all active wells require oversight. Production may be minimal, but potential contamination issues still exist from produced water and leaks, especially since the older equipment at these sites may be more prone to corrosion and failure. And when the DEP wrote its recommended inspection policyâ?"still the basis for current activitiesâ?"shale gas wells did not even exist. John Hangerâ?Ts response to the report is also based on the idea that because DEP increased its enforcement efforts from 2010 to 2011, our use of 2010 data skews the results so much that the report isnâ?Tt useful. As we stated on on page 23 of the full report, because 2011 data were not available for all statesâ?"and Earthworks wanted to do a comparable analysis across six statesâ?"we relied primarily on 2010 data. (For example, DEPâ?Ts 2011 data on wells, permits, and other aspects were not completely available to the public until July 2012.) Nonetheless, we did include 2011 data where available -- in the full report within table A6-1 and in the Pennsylvania-specific report prominently on page 2 ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/enforcement_report_pa_dep ): "In 2010 DEP failed to inspect more than 82,000 or 91 percent of active wells. In 2011, more than 66,000 active wells (86 percent) did not receive DEP oversight." But even if the numbers shift a bit in some months, the key question that was the impetus to this research remains: "Can the public have confidence that their health, air and water are being protected?â? Citing different numbers does not even begin to answer this question because the Pennsylvania DEP addressed its enforcement inadequacies in the same manner that allowed the problem to develop in the first place: DEP looked at the amount of drilling as something outside their control, and defined their ability to govern that drilling in terms of the limited resources available to them. We hope that anyone who reads Breaking All the Rulesâ?"including regulators and policymakersâ?"takes away the core lesson learned from an in-depth analysis of regulatory agenciesâ?T own data: Right now, states take the amount of drilling as given, and then figure out how they can best do their jobs with scarce resources available. That equation must be reversed. The amount of drilling that takes place should be contingent upon what resource strapped state agencies can safely regulate -- ensuring that public health and the environment are fully protected as top priority. If a state enforcement agency can't guarantee that the next proposal for a well, compressor station, or other facility will not cause harm (and that it will be properly overseen during construction and operation), they shouldn't permit it. Plain and simple. In the end, protecting communities isn't a numbers game, and solutions to very real and very serious problems in the gas patches of the United States wonâ?Tt be found comparing one yearâ?Ts marginally improved inspection and enforcement performance to another. (Though any meaningful improvement would be welcome.) What it will require from regulatory agencies is that they revisit their rules in a public and transparent manner to determine what constitutes enforcement that credibly protects the public and the environmentâ?"and then allow only the amount of development that meets that strong enforcement standard. And no more. A continued rush to drill without such change will continue to harm communities and result in even more violations and problems on the groundâ?"a scenario that the regulatory agencies themselves should want to avoid. _______________________________________________ EC mailing list EC(a)osenergy.org http://osenergy.org/mailman/listinfo/ec _______________________________________________ EC mailing list EC(a)osenergy.org http://osenergy.org/mailman/listinfo/ec

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EarthWorks report "Breaking All The Rules"
by James Kotcon 02 Oct '12

02 Oct '12

If ever there was a timely report to justify our Moratorium call, here it is. Caution, 3 MB, about 150 pages. http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/breaking_all_the_rules_the_c… JBK ----- Original Message ----- From: Alan Septoff ( mailto:aseptoff@earthworksaction.org ) To: cog Sent: Monday, October 01, 2012 1:39 PM Subject: [COG] Earthworks' response to John Hanger re our enforcement report http://www.earthworksaction.org/earthblog/detail/public_health_isnt_a_numbe… Public health isn’t a numbers game - a response to John Hanger By Nadia Steinzor ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/earthblog/byauthor/8 ) September 28, 2012 This post was co-authored with Alan Septoff ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/earthblog/byauthor/10 ). The most fundamental truth uncovered in Earthworks’ just-released report Breaking All the Rules: the Crisis in Oil & Gas Regulation ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/breaking_all_the_rules_the_c… ), is that states are falling tragically short in enforcing their own oil and gas development rules. It is good to see that John Hanger ( http://johnhanger.blogspot.com/2012/09/reviewing-earthworks-report-ripping.… ), ex-Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), does not argue that truth. As a result of this inadequate enforcement—a problem in all of the six states we reviewed—Breaking All the Rules concludes that so many problems with oil and gas development are left undiscovered, undocumented and unresolved, the public cannot have confidence that their health, air, and water are being protected. Again, John Hanger does not argue against that conclusion. As a former regulator, he knows how complicated it is to oversee an industry based on a “drill and permit now, figure out how to oversee later” approach. Even with an increase in the number of inspectors and improved reporting and data protocols—facts that Earthworks acknowledges in the report. John Hanger also argues that we should not have looked at all producing wells, since it is primarily shale gas wells “that are the focus of attention and concern.” However, all active wells require oversight. Production may be minimal, but potential contamination issues still exist from produced water and leaks, especially since the older equipment at these sites may be more prone to corrosion and failure. And when the DEP wrote its recommended inspection policy—still the basis for current activities—shale gas wells did not even exist. John Hanger’s response to the report is also based on the idea that because DEP increased its enforcement efforts from 2010 to 2011, our use of 2010 data skews the results so much that the report isn’t useful. As we stated on on page 23 of the full report, because 2011 data were not available for all states—and Earthworks wanted to do a comparable analysis across six states—we relied primarily on 2010 data. (For example, DEP’s 2011 data on wells, permits, and other aspects were not completely available to the public until July 2012.) Nonetheless, we did include 2011 data where available -- in the full report within table A6-1 and in the Pennsylvania-specific report prominently on page 2 ( http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/enforcement_report_pa_dep ): "In 2010 DEP failed to inspect more than 82,000 or 91 percent of active wells. In 2011, more than 66,000 active wells (86 percent) did not receive DEP oversight." But even if the numbers shift a bit in some months, the key question that was the impetus to this research remains: "Can the public have confidence that their health, air and water are being protected?” Citing different numbers does not even begin to answer this question because the Pennsylvania DEP addressed its enforcement inadequacies in the same manner that allowed the problem to develop in the first place: DEP looked at the amount of drilling as something outside their control, and defined their ability to govern that drilling in terms of the limited resources available to them. We hope that anyone who reads Breaking All the Rules—including regulators and policymakers—takes away the core lesson learned from an in-depth analysis of regulatory agencies’ own data: Right now, states take the amount of drilling as given, and then figure out how they can best do their jobs with scarce resources available. That equation must be reversed. The amount of drilling that takes place should be contingent upon what resource strapped state agencies can safely regulate -- ensuring that public health and the environment are fully protected as top priority. If a state enforcement agency can't guarantee that the next proposal for a well, compressor station, or other facility will not cause harm (and that it will be properly overseen during construction and operation), they shouldn't permit it. Plain and simple. In the end, protecting communities isn't a numbers game, and solutions to very real and very serious problems in the gas patches of the United States won’t be found comparing one year’s marginally improved inspection and enforcement performance to another. (Though any meaningful improvement would be welcome.) What it will require from regulatory agencies is that they revisit their rules in a public and transparent manner to determine what constitutes enforcement that credibly protects the public and the environment—and then allow only the amount of development that meets that strong enforcement standard. And no more. A continued rush to drill without such change will continue to harm communities and result in even more violations and problems on the ground—a scenario that the regulatory agencies themselves should want to avoid.

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Fwd: WVNS story: Fracking Waste Disposal Wells Harbor Hidden Concerns
by Paul Wilson 02 Oct '12

02 Oct '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Oct 1, 2012 at 3:51 AM Subject: WVNS story: Fracking Waste Disposal Wells Harbor Hidden Concerns To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Fracking Waste Disposal Wells Harbor Hidden Concerns Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28646-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (10/01/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A loophole that lets oil and gas drillers dispose of their waste in loosely regulated injection wells is drawing criticism. When billions of gallons of used fracking fluid and the salty brine that comes up with natural gas are injected into disposal wells, some fear states like West Virginia could be setting themselves up for serious problems. Although the fracking fluid and brine may contain serious pollutants, the industry got a federal exemption from the strict rules that regulate the injection of hazardous waste. Evan Hanson, president of Downstream Strategies, a water science and policy consulting firm, is studying what are known as Class II wells. "There's been a series of exemptions related to the oil and gas industry. One of the important exemptions related to the Class II wells is the assertion that these fluids are not hazardous." West Virginia has nearly 800 Class II wells. They are supposed to be regularly pressure-tested for leaks. According to an investigation by ProPublica, Class II wells in the state failed these tests more than 80 times from 2008 to 2010. Seven of the failures were determined to be serious. Hanson says even the brine can contain natural toxins, such as arsenic and radioactive minerals. The public does not always know what is actually in the fracking fluids, he warns. "There's more and more information out there. In some cases, companies are voluntarily disclosing the ingredients in fracking fluids. But I'm not confident that we have as much information as we need." The industry contends that the brine and fracking fluids are largely safe, and that the wells go deep enough to protect drinking water, but Hanson says the wells can leak if poorly constructed. He adds that a lack of inspectors can leave drillers on the honor system about their construction methods and what they're injecting. Then there's the issue of seismic events, he says. Class I disposal wells that handle hazardous waste are required to carefully consider the area's geology. But the oil and gas disposal wells are much less regulated. A study by the National Academies of Science linked the Class II wells to minor earthquakes, which Hanson says have been an issue here. "Regarding small earthquakes or seismic events around some of these injection wells, there's been a case documented in Ohio, a situation documented in the Flatwoods area." Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28646-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/28646-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Genetics Seminar Oct. 2 on gas well microbes
by James Kotcon 01 Oct '12

01 Oct '12

Just an FYI. There were some claims made at Marcellus Academy, so I will see if any microbiologists can verify them. JBK >>> Dan Panaccione 10/1/2012 10:30 AM >>> Genetics Seminar October 2, 2012 * 3:30 PM * 1085 Ag. Sci. Bldg. Bacterial communities associated with hydraulic fracturing fluids in thermogenic natural gas wells in North Central Texas, USA presented by Yael Tucker Since we have no plant path./ env. micro. seminar this week, students are required and others are encouraged to attend the Genetics seminar presented by Yael. Daniel Panaccione Professor West Virginia University (304)293-8819 danpan(a)wvu.edu

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Energy Plan Hearing Comments are available
by Jonathan Rosenbaum 01 Oct '12

01 Oct '12

The public comments for the energy plan hearings are now available online at http://www.wvcommerce.org/energy/energyplan/default.aspx -Jonathan

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Auditor: OO&G Is Not Enforcing Statutory Requirements
by Jonathan Rosenbaum 01 Oct '12

01 Oct '12

Here's an interesting report from West Virginia Legislative Auditor: "The Office of Oil and Gas Is Not Enforcing Statutory Requirements as They Concern Abandoned Oil and Gas Wells Which Is Causing the Number of Abandoned Wells to Increase" http://www.legis.state.wv.us/Joint/PERD/perdrep/Oilgas_9_2012.pdf -Jonathan

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Fwd: [Coal Volunteers List] Stop the Madness! Stop the War on Coal Act Passes the House
by Paul Wilson 28 Sep '12

28 Sep '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Angela Garrone <angela(a)cleanenergy.org> Date: Fri, Sep 28, 2012 at 9:16 AM Subject: [Coal Volunteers List] Stop the Madness! Stop the War on Coal Act Passes the House To: coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org Morning, In honor of the week anniversary of the passing of the Stop the War on Coal Act in the House of Representatives, I wanted to share a Southern Alliance for Clean Energy blog on the issue. We should *not* have bills like this seeing the light of day. <http://goog_68105562> http://blog.cleanenergy.org/2012/09/28/stop-the-madness-house-passes-stop-t… Share it loud and proud(ly)! Cheers, Angela -- *Angela Garrone | Southeast Energy Research Attorney* *Southern Alliance for Clean Energy* P.O. Box 1842 Knoxville, TN 37901 angela(a)cleanenergy.org | 865-637-6055 ex. 23 http://www.cleanenergy.org http://blog.cleanenergy.org CONFIDENTIAL LEGAL COMMUNICATION / WORK PRODUCT: The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to whom it is addressed, and may contain privileged and confidential attorney-client communications and/or confidential attorney work product. If you receive this message in error, please send a reply e-mail to the sender and delete the material from any and all computers. Unintended transmissions shall not constitute waiver of the attorney-client or any other privilege. -- To access the Beyond Coal Campaign Resource Portal, go to: https://sites.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/beyond-coal-resource-portal/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "#Coal-Volunteers" group. To post to this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list(a)sierraclub.org. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to coal-volunteers-list+unsubscribe(a)sierraclub.org. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Our most ambitious venture yet
by Jim Sconyers 27 Sep '12

27 Sep '12

Dear Friends, We're getting ready for our most ambitious venture yet. >From November 7th to December 3rd, I'll be on the road, visiting 20 cities in 20 nights (with a few days for travel in between) to help bring together the movement we need to make sure this planet has a future that we can all appreciate. *We're calling it the Do the Math tour, but it's not (thank heaven) just going to be me standing in front of a microphone.* The goal is to jump-start the kind of movement that I discussed in the article I wrote for Rolling Stone about the scary new math of climate change. We will bring together musicians, artists and voices from across the movement to work together on directly confronting the financial and political might of the fossil fuel industry. If you are near one of our stops, I want to make sure you’re there with us. *You’re exactly the people we need to be there* -- folks who understand the climate math already, have experience in the movement, and are willing to step up to do more. <http://act.350.org/go/2148?t=1&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> Click to check out the tour and RSVP<http://act.350.org/go/2148?t=2&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> These events will need to be big, and reach beyond our normal circle of friends. *That’s why we need to make sure that everyone knows that something big is underway. Can you take a moment to share the Do the Math tour site with your social networks?* <http://act.350.org/go/2157?t=3&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> <http://act.350.org/go/2144?t=4&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> Click to share on Facebook<http://act.350.org/go/2157?t=5&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> Click to share on Twitter <http://act.350.org/go/2144?t=6&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> *Also, just a heads up -- we’re going to be putting together a live web event* so that everyone who doesn’t happen to be near a tour stop can still get together and get a campaign started in their community. Our team is still hammering out the details for the exact date and time, but please keep an eye out -- we absolutely need you in this fight. I do a lot of talks to big groups, but this is a new kind of undertaking for me, and for 350.org. We’re trying to quickly build up some serious momentum, which is why we’ve gone to great lengths to make this a very different kind of event. Not only will we have music and guests like Naomi Klein, Jim Hansen, Desmond Tutu, in person and via video, this event is also the kickoff to some serious organizing in your community. *This tour will launch our next big mission -- a campaign to directly confront the economic power of the fossil fuel industry.* Our message will be crystal clear: it's not OK to sacrifice our future for the sake of one industry’s bottom line. Divestment is one important tool that we'll discuss, but we're ready for many other tactics as well. *Over the past few months our planet gave stark warning signs that humans have never seen before.* The Arctic melted, breaking every record. The Great Plains sweltered. The West burned. This roadshow is the next big step -- but the price of admission, besides the ticket, is a willingness to really go to work to change the world in the year ahead. That’s why we need you this November. The stakes have never been this high, and I've never been more serious. Please join us: math.350.org<http://act.350.org/go/2148?t=7&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> --Bill McKibben for 350.org ------------------------------ 350.org is building a global movement to solve the climate crisis. Connect with us on Facebook <http://facebook.com/350.org> and Twitter<http://twitter.com/350>, and sign up for email alerts <http://350.org/signup?akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh>. You can help power our work by getting involved locally, sharing your story<http://local.350.org/stories/?akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh>, and donating here. <http://350.org/donate?akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> ** *To stop receiving emails from 350.org, click here.<http://act.350.org/cms/unsubscribe/unsubscribe/?t=8&akid=2200.570617.6tuyMh> * * * -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] Should the U.S. Export Natural Gas?
by Jim Sconyers 23 Sep '12

23 Sep '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: david Meiser <dhmeiser(a)comcast.net> Date: Sun, Sep 23, 2012 at 7:22 PM Subject: [ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS] Should the U.S. Export Natural Gas? To: ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS(a)lists.sierraclub.org Should the U.S. Export Natural Gas?<http://ecowatch.org/2012/u-s-export-natural-gas/> **** *http://ecowatch.org/2012/u-s-export-natural-gas/* * * 09-23-2012**** Catskill Citizens for Safe Energy <http://catskillcitizens.org/>**** By Bruce Ferguson**** [image: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/LNGpoints.png]<http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/LNGpoints.png>Should the U.S. export natural gas?**** The answer depends on what you think about hydrofracking.**** Historically, the U.S. has had to supplement domestic natural gas production with imports, but now the extensive use of hydraulic fracturing to extract gas from shale could allow America to become a gas exporter. A recent article in Barron’<http://online.barrons.com/article/SB500014240527487047597045772673709390831…>s suggested that the U.S. could become the world’s largest exporter of gas by 2017.**** But let’s be clear. When we’re talking about natural gas exports, we’re talking about shale gas.**** That is, we’re talking about fracking. So let’s reframe the question: Should the U.S. be fracked to supply foreign nations with gas?**** The objections to fracking are legion, and each one needs to be weighed in the balance if the U.S. is to develop a prudent gas export policy.**** We know, for example, that fracking even a single shale gas well requires millions of gallons of fracking fluid, and produces huge quantities of toxic wastewater<http://ecowatch.org/2012/the-water-footprint-of-shale-gas-development/> .**** All of this fluid has to be transported, usually by truck, and that means hundreds of diesel trucks going to and from each well pad. The exhaust from these trucks combines with the methane and volatile organic compounds released into the atmosphere during the extraction process to produce ozone. **** It’s no exaggeration to say that, because of fracking, some rural communities have higher ozone levels than Los Angeles on a bad day.**** Developing a giant shale formation like the Marcellus will entail injecting hundreds of billions of gallons of toxic fluid underground<http://ecowatch.org/2012/meet-the-frack-family/>, and no one can say with any certainty how this might impact our drinking water supplies in the years and decades to come.**** We do know that a recent geochemical study conducted in northeastern Pennsylvania found naturally occurring pathways between underground shale formations and shallow drinking water aquifers. The fact that the industry insists that fracking be exempt from the Safe Drinking Water Act is not reassuring.**** And of course there are other issues to consider, including the recent peer-reviewed studies<http://ecowatch.org/2012/natural-gas-from-shale-not-suitable-as-bridge-fuel…>that indicate that shale gas is, from a greenhouse gas perspective, worse than oil or coal. Health care professionals say we don’t know what effect fracking will have on human health, while economists worry that disruptive extraction activity might damage local economies by crowding out long-term sustainable businesses like agriculture and tourism.**** Right now the U.S. doesn’t have the infrastructure it needs to become a major gas exporter. Canada and Mexico don’t need our gas, and the liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals that will be necessary to tap lucrative markets in Europe and Asia have not yet been built.**** Constructing the eleven huge LNG export terminals now on the drawing boards will cost more than $100 billion.**** Tens of billions more will be needed to build pipelines to bring the gas to the coastal terminals. Should the U.S. pour this kind of money into fossil fuel infrastructure at a time when scientists warn that we are already suffering the adverse impacts of climate change?**** The Obama administration has held up licensing export terminals until after the election. This winter, when licensing is again on the table, scientists, health care professionals and concerned citizens who oppose fracking may find themselves allied with manufacturers who realize that competition with foreign markets will drive up costs for both American industry and consumers.**** Finally consider this: If the U.S. does export shale gas, it will be supplying countries like France that have already banned fracking because it’s too dangerous.**** Is the U.S. on its way to becoming an energy extraction colony for other nations?**** Are we the new Third World?**** ** ** - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This email list is associated with the Hydrofracking Team on the Sierra Club's Activist Network. Join the Hydrofracking Team at http://sc.org/frac. This list is open to the public and subscribers are not moderated. Please be aware that information you share may be forwarded to or read by others beyond this list. To unsubscribe from the ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS list, send any message to: ACTNET-FRAC-NEWS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/ -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Decades of federal dollars helped fuel gas boom
by James Kotcon 23 Sep '12

23 Sep '12

Full story at: http://news.yahoo.com/decades-federal-dollars-helped-fuel-141648115.html Decades of federal dollars helped fuel gas boomPioneers in gas drilling say government research and tax breaks helped launch boomBy Kevin Begos, Associated Press | Associated Press – 1 hr 42 mins ago Natural gas is burned off next to an oil well being drilled at a site August 23, 2011 near Tioga, North Dakota in the United States." alt=" Natural gas is burned off next to an oil well being drilled at a site August 23, 2011 near Tioga, North Dakota in the United States.Enlarge Photo ( http://news.yahoo.com/photos/world-oil-prices-york-crude-highest-since-may-… ) Natural gas is burned off next … PITTSBURGH (AP) -- It sounds like a free-market success story: a natural gas boom created by drilling company innovation, delivering a vast new source of cheap energy without the government subsidies that solar and wind power demand. "The free market has worked its magic," the Barnett Shale Energy Education Council, an industry group, claimed over the summer. The boom happened "away from the greedy grasp of Washington," the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank, wrote in an essay this year. If bureaucrats "had known this was going on," the essay went on, "surely Washington would have done something to slow it down, tax it more, or stop it altogether." But those who helped pioneer the technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, recall a different path. Over three decades, from the shale fields of Texas and Wyoming to the Marcellus in the Northeast, the federal government contributed more than $100 million in research to develop fracking, and billions more in tax breaks. Now, those industry pioneers say their own effort shows that the government should back research into future sources of energy — for decades, if need be — to promote breakthroughs. For all its success now, many people in the oil and gas industry itself once thought shale gas was a waste of time. "There's no point in mincing words. Some people thought it was stupid," said Dan Steward, a geologist who began working with the Texas natural gas firm Mitchell Energy in 1981. Steward estimated that in the early years, "probably 90 percent of the people" in the firm didn't believe shale gas would be profitable. "Did I know it was going to work? Hell no," Steward added. Shale is a rock formation thousands of feet underground. Among its largest U.S. deposits are the Marcellus Shale, under parts of Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia, and the Barnett Shale is in north Texas. Geologists knew shale contained gas, but for more than 100 years the industry focused on shallower reserves. With fracking, large volumes of water, along with sand and hazardous chemicals, are injected underground to break rock apart and free the gas. In 1975, the Department of Energy began funding research into fracking and horizontal drilling, where wells go down and then sideways for thousands of feet. But it took more than 20 years to perfect the process. Alex Crawley, a former Department of Energy employee, recalled that some early tests were spectacular — in a bad way. A test of fracking explosives in Morgantown, W.Va., "blew the pipe out of the well about 600 feet high" in the 1970s, Crawley said. Luckily, no one was killed. He added that a 1975 test well in Wyoming "produced a lot of water." Steward recalled that Mitchell Energy didn't even cover the cost of fracking on shale tests until the 36th well was drilled. "There's not a lot of companies that would stay with something this long. Most companies would have given up," he said, crediting founder George Mitchell as a visionary who also got support from the government at key points. "The government has to be involved, to some degree, with new technologies," Steward said. Congress passed a huge tax break in 1980 specifically to encourage unconventional natural gas drilling, noted Alex Trembath, a researcher at the Breakthrough Institute, a California nonprofit that supports new ways of thinking about energy and the environment. Trembath said that the Department of Energy invested about $137 million in gas research over three decades, and that the federal tax credit for drillers amounted to $10 billion between 1980 and 2002. The work wasn't all industry or all government, but both. One step at a time, the problems of shale drilling were solved. Crawley said Energy Department researchers processed drilling data on supercomputers at a federal lab. Later, technology created to track sounds of Russian submarines during the Cold War was repurposed to help the industry use sound to get a 3-D picture of shale deposits and track exactly where a drill bit was, thousands of feet underground. "It was a lot of pieces of technology that the industry thought would help them. Some worked out, some didn't," Crawley said. Renewable energy has had similar fits and starts, plagued by the costs and complexities of developing technology, and markets for it. The idea that the government can help industry achieve advances that the private sector can't or won't has been a central contention of the presidential election. President Barack Obama's comment this summer that Republicans seized on — "If you've got a business — you didn't build that" — was part of broader comments about infrastructure, education and other public spending that indirectly helps businesses. Both Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney tout the benefits of shale gas, but they differ over the government's role in subsidizing energy research. Obama has suggested continued funding for renewable energy but also eliminating billions of dollars in subsidies for oil and gas companies. Romney calls that an unhealthy obsession with green jobs — and has vowed to cut wind power subsidies, yet keep federal support for ethanol. But the fracking pioneers point out that it's impossible to predict how and when research will pay off. "It wouldn't be research if you already knew that it was going to be effective," said Crawley. Steward and others said today's energy challenge is similar to what they faced: a need to find future sources of energy. "I was concerned about my kids and grandkids. I didn't want my kids sitting out there without energy," Steward said. Terry Engelder, a Penn State University geologist known for his enthusiastic support for gas drilling, is proud that work he did decades ago helped to lay the groundwork for today's boom. But he said the story of how shale gas went from longshot to head of the pack — and how long that took — shows that serious support for renewable energy research makes sense, too. "These renewables have a huge upside," Engelder said. "In my view, the subsidies are really very appropriate." Engelder, who's been both praised and criticized for his support of shale gas drilling, said he's sure that research and technology will ultimately deliver innovations that make renewables a major force. "There's no doubt about it," he said, adding that "the payout might not happen until 2042." Steward is proud of the shale boom, too, but warned that it won't last forever. "Don't be fooled by this. We've got to have a replacement" for shale gas, he said.

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Fwd: Earthjustice Action Alert on Coal Package-share widely
by Jim Sconyers 22 Sep '12

22 Sep '12

Friends, wanted to let you know that a so called “Stop the War on Coal Act of 2012” (H.R. 3409) will be voted on in the House floor as soon as tomorrow Thursday and it contains five egregious bills that would strip Americans of basic clean air and clean water protections. One of the terrible bills within this package is Rep. McKinley’s (R-WV) dangerous coal ash bill that would shield utilities from their responsibility to upgrade unsafe ash dumps, clean up contaminated sites, or close leaking and unstable ponds. Also extending the lives of hundreds of leaking toxic dumps and prohibiting the EPA from ever issuing regulations to require the safe disposal of this waste. ** ** I am sharing below the action alert Earthjustice sent to our activists today about this package, feel free to share widely and recycle any of the language to educate your networks about this attack on public health. In advance, thank you for your time and efforts! **** ------------------------------ ** ** Tell Your Representative To Oppose The Attack On Public Health<https://secure.earthjustice.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&i…> **** Before Congress leaves for its fall recess, the House will try to pass a dangerous bill that will weaken the Clean Air Act and eviscerate protections of the Clean Water Act, allowing for extreme pollution of the air we breathe and the water we drink. The House leadership's bill, H.R. 3409, the latest bit of propaganda in their mythical and false “war on coal” claims, and a last-ditch effort to repay the favors of their big polluter friends.**** H.R. 3409 will take away the public health protections that keep us safe. Dirty air, undrinkable water, climate change and decimated mountains won't create jobs or improve the economy, but they will put our children's and communities' health at risk. This is not a job-creation bill; it is a people-killing bill.**** Every day, our landmark Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act and other longstanding environmental safeguards prevent millions of families across this nation from being harmed by uncontrolled pollution. These cornerstone laws prevent big polluters from causing more toxic air pollution, flooding, drinking water contamination, birth defects, illness and even deaths. If passed, this single bill would undermine and even end many of those protections.**** ** ** We must tell our representatives to stop the assault and protect us. Please contact your Representative today to oppose H.R. 3409.**** https://secure.earthjustice.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&i… **** ** ** ------------------------------ ** ** Andrea Delgado**** Legislative Representative**** Earthjustice**** 1625 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 702**** Washington, DC 20036-2212**** T: (202) 797-5240 **** C: (202) 230-6592**** Twitter: @Andrea_Delgado7 <https://twitter.com/#!/Andrea_Delgado7>**** www.earthjustice.org**** ** ** *Because the earth needs a good lawyer* * * *please consider the environment before printing**** ** ** - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the COAL-COMBUSTION-WASTE list, send any message to: COAL-COMBUSTION-WASTE-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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NYTimes: utility opposes wind tax credit
by Frank Young 14 Sep '12

14 Sep '12

An Argument Over Wind By MATTHEW L. WALD Green: Business With the wind industry facing the expiration of a production tax credit at the end of the year, the sector’s main trade association is facing off against Exelon, the big power generation company, over whether the tax break should be renewed. Last week, the Wind Energy Association expelled Exelon as a member because the company opposed a renewal of the credit. The association says that if the tax credit expires, some 17,000 jobs will be eliminated next year and that deliveries of new turbines will spiral to zero. But Exelon says the tax credit is distorting energy markets because the credit itself is larger than the average value of electricity produced in the Midwest. Surges of wind energy late at night during periods of low electricity demand are driving the market price of electricity below zero, according to independent statistics. Exelon complains that in that circumstance, its nuclear plants actually have to pay grid operators to accept their electricity. The wind farms in that region do as well, but they remain profitable because they earn the production credit. The issue of the tax credit and so-called negative pricing has emerged in the presidential campaign, with the Obama administration favoring an extension of the credit and Mitt Romney opposing it. But the credit’s fate may be resolved by the November election, depending on Congressional action. Exelon plans to release a study on Friday that says that distortions in the market are getting larger as more wind is added. The company is not alone in its complaints. In Texas, the chairwoman of the state’s Public Utility Commission, Donna Nelson,told a state Senate committee last week that Texas had a shortage of generating capacity as a result of a market distortion in which wind energy drove the price of electricity into negative territory. When wind developers can make money even when prices are negative, she said, it discourages others from building other kinds of power plants. The problem for Texas is that wind generation does not coincide with peak demand, which is on hot days that are mostly windless. State power planners estimate that for every 100 megawatts of wind machines installed in the state, only about 8 megawatts will be available on peak days. The tax credit, which applies to projects that are completed by Dec. 31, is 2.2 cents per kilowatt-hour. Depending on the tax status of the wind farm developer, the credit can be worth as much as $34 per megawatt-hour. Joseph Dominguez, Exelon’s senior vice president for governmental and regulatory affairs, said that in the last two years, the average price of a megawatt-hour at the Northern Illinois Hub , one of the main spots on the grid in eastern North America where electricity is priced, has ranged from $28 to $31. There is a bit of a paradox in Exelon’s exile from the wind association; the company owns nearly 2 percent of the wind capacity in the United States. Wind industry advocates say that negative pricing is rare and highly localized and simply points up shortcomings in transmission capacity. “It’s all driven by a lack of transmission,’’ said Michael Goggin, the association’s expert on integrating wind into the grid. “Negative prices are the market’s way of saying there is too much supply and not enough demand, and there’s a roadblock keeping that low-cost electricity from reaching consumers.’’ New wind machines are sometimes built faster than new transmission lines, he said. The wind industry also argues that companies that burn coal and natural gas get a subsidy too, in that they are allowed to dump pollutants into the air without paying for the damage they cause. Sometimes new transmission lines can alleviate the negative pricing phenomenon. In 2010 in the Chicago area, the occurrence of negative pricing peaked at 3.1 percent of all hours, according to the regional grid operator, the PJM Interconnection. That dropped to 2.1 percent the following year when more transmission capacity was added. But across the country, wind farms are likely to be added faster than transmission lines. The study sponsored by Exelon, prepared by the NorthBridge Group, which does extensive consulting for utilities around the country, found pockets where the number of negative hours reached 12 percent or more. While various types of electricity generation have received subsidies over the decades, said Frank Huntowski, one of the authors, “I don’t think we’ve seen something as dramatic as this.’’ Part of the problem is also that wholesale electricity prices have declined because of an economic slump and a decline in the price of natural gas. Before the recession began, the subsidy for wind power production was smaller than the average price of a megawatt-hour. Negative pricing occurs mostly on spring and fall nights when the wind is blowing strongly but offices, stores and factories are mostly closed and temperatures are so mild that there is virtually no demand for home heating or air-conditioning. The phenomenon existed before the surge in construction of wind machines, but the new industry is making it worse, some industry participants say, especially for companies with baseload plants that were built to run at a steady rate around the clock. That is a special problem for Exelon, which runs many nuclear plants in the Midwest; nuclear plants cannot change their output quickly. “Prices will go down for an hour and then come back up and a few hours later, go down again, and it’s very hard to maneuver the nuclear plants to work around that,’’ Christopher Crane, the company’s chief executive, said in an interview. “By the time you have briefed the crew to power down the plant, the price is up again,’’ he said. The wind energy association argues that the production tax credit is an incentive to invest in a clean energy source and does not directly affect market prices. But opponents say that when new generation is added in a way that creates sudden surpluses, the market impact is clear. Either way, low prices are a boon for consumers, said Peter L. Kelley, a spokesman for the wind association. “It’s indisputable that wind energy, with or without the production tax credit, drives down electricity prices,’’ he said. “Consumers receive massive benefits of billions and billions of dollars.’’ Meanwhile, the wind business is already preparing for a slowdown. On Tuesday, a wind tower manufacturer, Katana Summit, said it would probably sell or close its two plants, in Nebraska and Washington State, because of the expiration of the tax credit. The two plants employ a total of about 300 people.

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Fw: LARRY GIBSON 1946-2012
by Frank Young 09 Sep '12

09 Sep '12

Larry Gibson, long-time environmental activist, died of a heart attack Sunday, September 10, while working on Kayford Mountain, the family home in Raleigh County which he spent the last decades of his life protecting from the coal mining practice known as mountaintop removal. Kayford was the site of Larry's birth, the final resting place of 300 ancestors stretching back to the 18th century, and the site of Larry's annual 4th of July festival celebrating life in the mountains. As part of his effort to preserve the mountains, Larry traveled across the country, to schools, churches and a wide range of public gatherings where he spread his simple gospel about the mountains: "Love em or leave em; just don't destroy em." A private funeral is planned, and Larry's family has requested that persons wishing to express condolences make donations to Keeper of the Mountains Foundation, which Larry founded in 2004 to support mountain communities. A public memorial service will be announced at a later time. Larry is survived by his wife, Carol, two sons Cameron and Larry, Jr. and his daughter, Victoria. He was sixty-six years old.

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State Energy Plan Hearings - Huntington, Morgantown, Martinsburg
by Jonathan Rosenbaum 05 Sep '12

05 Sep '12

*Comment on State's Energy Plan * West Virginia's Division of Energy is in the midst of updating the state's 5-year energy plan <http://www.wvcommerce.org/energy/energyplan/default.aspx>. The agency is asking for public comment. Click below to view /drafts/ of various sections of the energy plan: Fossil Energy Opportunities For West Virginia <http://www.wvcommerce.org/App_Media/assets/doc/energy/EOD_Recommendations_-…> Energy Efficiency Policy Outlook for West Virginia <http://www.wvcommerce.org/App_Media/assets/doc/energy/EOD_Recommendations_-…> Renewable Energy Policy Outlook for West Virginia <http://www.wvcommerce.org/App_Media/assets/doc/energy/reports/DRAFT-Renewab…> The agency is holding *public hearings* on the plan: *September 5*: in the Azalea Room of the Big Sandy Arena <http://www.bigsandyarena.com/>, Huntington *September 6*: in Grand Hall AB of the Erickson Alumni Center <http://alumni.wvu.edu/eac/> on the WVU Evansdale Campus, Morgantown *September 7*: in the Foxcroft Ballroom of the Martinsburg Holiday Inn <http://www.himartinsburg.com/>. All hearings start at 9:30 a.m. Registration is at 9 a.m., or you can register in advance to speak at a hearing here <http://www.wvcommerce.org/energy/energyplan/process/register/default.aspx>

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WV energy plan documents
by Jim Sconyers 04 Sep '12

04 Sep '12

I am not able to download the draft documents linked here. Went to the DOE's website and was unable to download them there also. Has anyone been able to download/read the docs? If so can you forward them to me please? On Sat, Sep 1, 2012 at 2:19 PM, Jonathan Rosenbaum <jr(a)wvcompletestreets.org > wrote: > *Comment on State's Energy Plan * > West Virginia's Division of Energy is in the midst of updating the > state's 5-year energy plan<http://www.wvcommerce.org/energy/energyplan/default.aspx>. > The agency is asking for public comment. > > Click below to view *drafts* of various sections of the energy plan: > Fossil Energy Opportunities For West Virginia<http://www.wvcommerce.org/App_Media/assets/doc/energy/EOD_Recommendations_-…> > Energy Efficiency Policy Outlook for West Virginia<http://www.wvcommerce.org/App_Media/assets/doc/energy/EOD_Recommendations_-…> > Renewable Energy Policy Outlook for West Virginia<http://www.wvcommerce.org/App_Media/assets/doc/energy/reports/DRAFT-Renewab…> > > The agency is holding *public hearings* on the plan: > *September 5*: in the Azalea Room of the Big Sandy Arena<http://www.bigsandyarena.com/>, > Huntington > *September 6*: in Grand Hall AB of the Erickson Alumni Center<http://alumni.wvu.edu/eac/>on the WVU Evansdale Campus, Morgantown > *September 7*: in the Foxcroft Ballroom of the Martinsburg Holiday Inn<http://www.himartinsburg.com/>. > > > All hearings start at 9:30 a.m. Registration is at 9 a.m., or you can > register in advance to speak at a hearing here<http://www.wvcommerce.org/energy/energyplan/process/register/default.aspx> > > _______________________________________________ > EC mailing list > EC(a)osenergy.org > http://osenergy.org/mailman/listinfo/ec > -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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petition-put climate change on presidential debate
by Jim Sconyers 03 Sep '12

03 Sep '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: CCL-DELEGATES automatic digest system <LISTSERV(a)lists.sierraclub.org> Date: Mon, Sep 3, 2012 at 3:00 AM Subject: CCL-DELEGATES Digest - 31 Aug 2012 to 2 Sep 2012 (#2012-143) To: CCL-DELEGATES(a)lists.sierraclub.org There are 2 messages totaling 344 lines in this issue. Topics of the day: 1. Help Bring Climate Change to the Presidential Debates (2) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- To get off the CCL-DELEGATES list, send email to LISTSERV(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Make the message text (not the Subject): SIGNOFF CCL-DELEGATES ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 2 Sep 2012 15:02:48 -0500 From: Craig Wolfe <Protect(a)SierraClub-KS.info> Subject: Help Bring Climate Change to the Presidential Debates Dear Fellow CCL Delegates, I am sending this email because I strongly believe that climate change should be a bi-partisan concern and one of the principal topics of the first Presidential Debate on October 3rd. YOU CAN HELP!! CLICK THE LINK BELOW. THIS IS IMPORTANT. SPREAD THE WORD TO YOUR CHAPTER AND GROUP MEMBERS. As we have all seen with the extreme weather this summer, and it's only going to get worse unless we do something about it. The first step toward getting our government to address the climate crisis is to make sure the public is aware of the facts and where the candidates stand during this election. Will you add your name to the list to make sure climate change is a priority at the debate? Just go to: http://action.lcv.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&id=913 Millions of voters will get their information about our presidential candidates by watching televised debates this fall. If moderator Jim Lehrer, whose show, the PBS NewsHour, has objectively and factually covered climate change, asks the candidates about the issue, millions of viewers will have a real chance to hear a substantive discussion about climate change on the national stage. That's why I've just signed a petition addressed to Mr. Lehrer urging him to include climate change as a debate topic so he can ask President Obama and Governor Romney about their perception of the facts and how they plan to address the climate crisis. The minimum number of signatures required is 50,000, but one million or five million will add clout to the request and assure adequate time is allowed to ask multiple questions and for both candidates to answer and debate. Record summer heat, drought, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes and insect infestations caused by climate change affect us all. Please forward this email and link to your friends, relatives and associates so they too may add their names to the list and ensure this topic is included in the debate. Craig Wolfe - Kansas Chapter Chair ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- To get off the CCL-DELEGATES list, send email to LISTSERV(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Make the message text (not the Subject): SIGNOFF CCL-DELEGATES ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 2 Sep 2012 20:09:08 -0600 From: Becky English <beckyrep(a)gmail.com> Subject: Re: Help Bring Climate Change to the Presidential Debates Thanks Craig. Done. Will send to my chapter EnergyCom members on Tuesday ... more broadly if we have room in our Convio allowance. Fellow CCL Delegates, I'm fixin' to be there for the first presidential debate (University of Denver - Jim Lehrer moderating), and will probably blog it for Sierra Club. So far I'm in the second circle -- not in the actual debate auditorium but out with bloggers and the student body. Please send me your conservation questions and, especially, your dirty vs clean energy questions in case I get lucky with the candidates or their staffs. Also, if anyone has anything better than public email addresses for Jim Lehrer, for presidential staff, or for Romneylan staff (weren't those some nasty Star Trek aliens or something?), I'd appreciate your letting me know. Thanks very much, Becky English Rocky Mountain Chapter CCL; ExCom; LegCom; Energy Issue Chair 303 733 4064 ### On Sun, Sep 2, 2012 at 2:02 PM, Craig Wolfe <Protect(a)sierraclub-ks.info >wrote: > ** > > *Dear Fellow CCL Delegates, > > *I am sending this email because I strongly believe that climate change > should be a bi-partisan concern and one of the principal topics of the > first Presidential Debate on October 3rd. > > *YOU CAN HELP!! CLICK THE LINK BELOW. THIS IS IMPORTANT. SPREAD THE WORD > TO YOUR CHAPTER AND GROUP MEMBERS. > > *As we have all seen with the extreme weather this summer, and it's only > going to get worse unless we do something about it. The first step toward > getting our government to address the climate crisis is to make sure the > public is aware of the facts and where the candidates stand during this > election. > > Will you add your name to the list to make sure climate change is a > priority at the debate? Just go to: * > http://action.lcv.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&id=913*< http://action.lcv.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&id=913> > > *Millions of voters will get their information about our presidential > candidates by watching televised debates this fall.* *If moderator Jim > Lehrer, whose show, the PBS NewsHour, has objectively and factually covered > climate change, asks the candidates about the issue, millions of viewers > will have a real chance to hear a substantive discussion about climate > change on the national stage. > * > That's why I've just signed a petition addressed to Mr. Lehrer urging him > to include climate change as a debate topic so he can ask President Obama > and Governor Romney about their perception of the facts and how they plan > to address the climate crisis. > > The minimum number of signatures required is 50,000, *but one million or > five million* will add clout to the request and assure adequate time is > allowed to ask multiple questions and for both candidates to answer and > debate. > > Record summer heat, drought, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes and insect > infestations caused by climate change affect us all. Please forward this > email and link to your friends, relatives and associates so they too may > add their names to the list and ensure this topic is included in the > debate. > > Craig Wolfe - Kansas Chapter Chair > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To > unsubscribe from the CCL-DELEGATES list, send any message to: > CCL-DELEGATES-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv > Lists support site for more information: > http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club > Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the > Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at > http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- To get off the CCL-DELEGATES list, send email to LISTSERV(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Make the message text (not the Subject): SIGNOFF CCL-DELEGATES ------------------------------ End of CCL-DELEGATES Digest - 31 Aug 2012 to 2 Sep 2012 (#2012-143) ******************************************************************* -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: FW: MAPP/PATH email
by Jim Sconyers 27 Aug '12

27 Aug '12

Yessssssss!!!!! ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Patience Wait" <pwaitster(a)gmail.com> Date: Aug 27, 2012 1:34 PM Subject: Fwd: FW: MAPP/PATH email To: <CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM(a)lists.sierraclub.org> Confirmation, at long last! ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: <frankc(a)pjm.com> Date: Mon, Aug 27, 2012 at 1:09 PM Subject: FW: MAPP/PATH email To: pwaitster(a)gmail.com As Promised…**** ** ** The PJM Board during a phone conference Friday decided to remove the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH) and Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway (MAPP) lines from PJM’s regional transmission plans, based on the PJM staff’s recommendations.**** ** ** ** ** *PJM Media Advisory: PJM staff recommends ending PATH, MAPP transmission line projects* – 8 Aug. 2012**** ** ** The PJM transmission planning staff will recommend to the PJM Board that the Potomac Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH) and the Mid Atlantic Power Pathway (MAPP) lines be removed from PJM’s regional transmission plans. The recommendations are contained in slides posted today that will be presented, Aug. 9, at a meeting of PJM’s the Transmission Expansion Advisory Committee.**** ** ** **· **Grid conditions have changed since the lines were originally planned, and our updated analysis no longer shows a need for the lines to maintain grid stability.**** **– **A slow economy has reduced the projected growth in the use of electricity.**** **– **PJM’s most recent capacity auction added 4,900 megawatts (MW) of new generation and procured 14,833 MW of demand response. **** **– **Although PJM’s analysis last year showed a diminished need for the two transmission lines the most responsible course was to wait to make a recommendation after analyzing the updated forecast of peak use of electricity (the load forecast), the results of the 2012 capacity auction and the effects on grid stability of the anticipated announcement of generation retirements (16,000 MW) due to environmental regulations.**** **· **PJM’s regional planning process looks 15 years into the future to determine necessary changes to the transmission system to keep power flows stable. Planners study long-term growth in electricity use, generating plant retirements, broader generation development patterns, such as integration of renewable energy resources, and demand response and energy efficiency resources.**** **· **Since PJM’s first regional transmission plan in 2000, the PJM Board has approved more than $24.3 billion in new transmission lines and improvements and upgrades to existing facilities.**** **· **Just this year, PJM staff recommended and the board approved $2.8 billion in electric transmission improvements including new lines needed to keep the grid stable as generating units are retired in response to environmental regulations.**** The presentation can be found at: http://pjm.com/~/media/committees-groups/committees/teac/20120809/20120809-… **** The staff recommendation will be presented to the PJM Board’s Reliability Committee later this month.. **** ** ** Chrisie Franks**** Customer Advisor**** Member Relations**** custsvc(a)pjm.com**** 1-866-400-8980**** *[image: logo-addison]* *Your feedback is very much appreciated. Please take a moment to fill out a quick survey.***** How am I doing? <http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Y9TQG3X>** ** ** ** ** - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM list, send any message to: CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/

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Fwd: AlterNet: Methane Releases and Global Warming
by Paul Wilson 27 Aug '12

27 Aug '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Dow <ddow420(a)comcast.net> Date: Mon, Aug 27, 2012 at 6:52 AM Subject: AlterNet: Methane Releases and Global Warming Methane’s Contribution to Global Warming Is Worse than You Thought<http://act.alternet.org/go/23649?t=14&akid=9276.278737.SwDLtl> To tackle climate change, we need more honest accounting of this potent greenhouse gas. READ MORE»<http://act.alternet.org/go/23649?t=15&akid=9276.278737.SwDLtl> By Jason Mark / Earth Island Journal -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Bloomberg and gas.
by James Kotcon 26 Aug '12

26 Aug '12

So if Bloomberg is giving $6 million to push regulations in 14 states, that works out to over $400,000 per state. How much of that will environmentalists in WV actually see? JBK See story at: http://www.wvgazette.com/News/201208250103 ***** August 25, 2012 NYC mayor weighs in on 'fracking' The Associated Press NEW YORK -- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been an influential voice in the debate over the natural gas drilling method known as hydraulic fracturing. His opposition to "fracking" near the city's drinking water reservoirs led to a state ban on drilling in the watershed. But Bloomberg has now endorsed gas drilling in a letter to The Washington Post, co-written with George Mitchell, a pioneer of fracking techniques. The pair say a natural gas boom would spur economic growth, cut energy costs and reduce reliance on dirtier fuels like coal. But they also wrote that fracking should only be done under strong environmental regulations. Bloomberg's foundation said Friday that it would give $6 million to the Environmental Defense Fund to help push for those regulations in 14 gas producing states.

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Fwd: AlterNet: Pa. Activist Event tThat Highlights Fracking
by Paul Wilson 25 Aug '12

25 Aug '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Dow <ddow420(a)comcast.net> Date: Sat, Aug 25, 2012 at 7:00 AM Subject: AlterNet: Pa. Activist Event tThat Highlights Fracking To: Patricia Matejcek Gmail <patachek3(a)gmail.com>, Alison Robb < nature(a)cape.com> Cc: Paul Wilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Anti-Fracking Protesters Confront Pennsylvania Gov During Kayaking PR Trip on Endangered River<http://act.alternet.org/go/23592?t=20&akid=9271.278737.Ab9sGf> Posted every few miles on the river's banks were groups of protestors, challenging the governor's pro-drilling policy with signs and chants. READ MORE» <http://act.alternet.org/go/23592?t=21&akid=9271.278737.Ab9sGf> By Nora Eisenberg / AlterNet -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Global Warming's Terrifying New Math
by James Kotcon 22 Aug '12

22 Aug '12

A recent article by Bill McKibben has three (actually four) incredibly important numbers that we all need to know and use. The First Number 2 Two degrees Celsius is the maximum amount of warming that the planet can stand without fundamental damage to our way of life. Actually many scientists now view that as overly optimistic, given the amount of damage (heat waves, droughts fires and floods) we are seeing with just 0.8 degrees Celsius. The Second Number 565 565 Gigatons is the amount of carbon we can put into the atmosphere before hitting that 2 degrees Celsius. Our current rate of addition is about 32 Gigatons per year, and that rate has been edging upward by about 3 % per year, notwithstanding global efforts at renewables, energy conservation, and the Kyoto protocol. The rate of increase has been remarkably stable, regardless of all the scientific data on climate change and the policy changes discussed worldwide. The Third Number 2795 The current proven reserves of fossil fuels contain 2795 Gigatons of carbon. This is the "proven" reserves, the reserves that fossil fuel companies already know they have on hand, the amount that is reflected in their stock prices, the stuff they bought with every intention of getting it out and burning it, and that their stockholders fully expect them to get out and burn. This does not include any future discoveries or speculative fuels, this is proven reserves that they now own. This leads directly to the Fourth Number 16 If we can not exceed 565 gigatons, and we continue adding 32 gigatons per year, and rising, we will exceed the maximum tolerable dose in 16 years. That means if your kid is in kindergarten today, catastrophic climate change strikes the whole planet before he leaves highschool. Those who think of climate change as some far off event, need to realize that fundamental change must come very soon, or it is "game over". So this means we must convince the fossil fuel companies to leave 80 % of their proven reserves in the ground, or the planet dies. Anyone who thinks that Exxon or Arch Coal will have spent the kind of money they did to buy these reserves and will just walk away from them in order to save the planet, has not been paying attention. McKibben argues that the environmental movement needs to clearly identify the "enemy", in order to get the attention of the masses, ans these numbers should clearly identify fossil fuel companies as the "enemy" in the minds of most Americans. Read the whole article at: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/global-warmings-terrifying-new-ma… Jim Kotcon

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Jim Kotcon & Beth Little recognized by national Sierra Club for years of service
by Frank Young 22 Aug '12

22 Aug '12

BlankFlanked by Executive Director, Michael Brune, and Club President, Allison Chin, Karen Yarnell (accepting for Beth Little) and Jim Kotcon display their Special Service Awards. Not shown: Jim Sconyers accepting Communication Award for the WV Chapter Full article and pictures at: http://westvirginia.sierraclub.org/newsletter/archives/2012%205%20sep-oct.p…

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Fwd: E-Magazine: Mountaintop Removal Environmental Action in W. Va.
by Paul Wilson 22 Aug '12

22 Aug '12

in case you don't get or see the E-Magazine. fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Dow <ddow420(a)comcast.net> Date: Wed, Aug 22, 2012 at 12:42 AM Subject: E-Magazine: Mountaintop Removal Environmental Action in W. Va. *Live from West Virginia*<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001C5TBtxxHCXgRL-88pyKJjgIMyawhftU0IrSmbcO6S69T…> Nothing like a little excitement to liven up a reporting trip. I was in southern West Virginia in late July to cover the lead-up to and the biggest action on a mountaintop removal (MTR) mining site to date. On July 28, 45 activists walked onto the largest MTR site in West… *Continue Reading »*<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001C5TBtxxHCXgRL-88pyKJjgIMyawhftU0IrSmbcO6S69T…> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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PA Brine Dumper gets Slap on the Wrist
by James Kotcon 22 Aug '12

22 Aug '12

This is one you gotta read. Should this be part of our Marcellus Moratorium call? Jim Kotcon >>> "Donald C. Strimbeck" dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> 8/17/2012 5:07 AM >> ( mailto:dcsoinks@comcast.net ) Sent: Friday, August 17, 2012 5:06 AM Subject: EXTRA edition DAILY UPDATE 17 August 2012. News of interest to Mon river watershed denizens. DUNKARD CREEK-Dufalla-17AugY2K12 Published on Alternet (http://www.alternet.org) Getting Away With Shocking Environmental Crimes AlterNet ( http://www.alternet.org/ ) By Aaron Skirboll ( http://www.alternet.org/authors/aaron-skirboll ) Toxic Wastewater Dumped in Streets and Rivers at Night: Gas Profiteers Getting Away With Shocking Environmental Crimes August 15, 2012 | Ken Dufalla sits at a table inside Laverne’s Restaurant on Route 188 in Waynesburg, PA. The former park ranger, 65, is sporting a camouflaged trucker’s hat and enjoying Laverne’s cream of chicken and biscuits with mashed potatoes. It’s midmorning, between the breakfast crowd and the lunch patrons. Waiters and waitresses are attentive and the coffee is flowing. Before long, Dufalla is joined by a former Marine and Vietnam veteran, 67-year-old Ken Gayman, who dons a black and gold USMC ball cap. The two former Beth-Center High School wrestling practice combatants sprinkle the conversation with passages from the Constitution and speak about defending land and property. The two men are members of an association, but it’s not the Tea Party. Dufalla and Gayman are members of the Izaak Walton League of America, one of the earliest conservation organizations in the country and according to the national Web site, “formed in 1922 to save outdoor America for future generations.” If the stereotypical environmentalist is still imagined as sandal-wearing and tree-hugging, Dufalla and Gayman will quickly wipe away such caricatures. They are a couple of blue-collar guys, no different than anyone else in Greene County. They simply see what’s going on around them and they don’t like the looks of it. Dumping Onto the Streets at Night On March 17, 2011 Greene County resident Robert Allan Shipman and his company, Allan’s Waste Water Service Inc., were charged with illegally dumping millions of gallons of natural gas drilling wastewater, along with restaurant grease and sewer sludge across six counties in Pennsylvania from 2003-2009. Pennsylvania is one of several states that sit atop the gas-rich underground rock formation the Marcellus Shale. Hydraulic fracturing, the process used for retrieving the gas, is a water-intensive drilling method that not only requires massive volumes of water to unlock the gas, but also generates millions of gallons of wastewater when the drilling is done. The two-year investigation by the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office resulted in a total of 98 criminal counts charged against the 50-year-old Shipman and an additional 77 charges levied at his company. Said Nils Frederiksen ( http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/state/state-charges-local-company… ) [3], spokesman for the attorney general’s office, “He was pouring the stuff in any hole he could find.” Most egregiously, the grand jury presentment detailed how when the demand for Allan’s Waste Water services grew in the summer of 2007, as a result of an uptick in production water (wastewater produced by gas well drilling operations that may contain toxic chemicals) from CNX Gas Co. LLP, a subsidiary of Consol Energy, a company Shipman was hauling for, “Shipman showed the drivers how to leave open the gas well valves and ordered them to discharge production water onto the ground and/or into the nearby waterways.” Drivers’ testimony added, “This activity would typically occur after dark or during heavy rain so that no one would observe the illegal discharge.” According to the presentment ( http://old.post-gazette.com/pg/pdf/201103/20110317_shipman_awws_gjpresentme… ) [4], the investigation of Shipman began after a client of his grew suspicious of illegal dumping after an in-house audit “revealed a large discrepancy in the amount of sludge received by Allan’s Waste Water and the amount of sludge disposed” by the company at treatment facilities. A review of reports by the Department of Environmental Protection confirmed that over 170,000 gallons of sludge were unaccounted for from June 2006 to the summer of 2007. Drivers of Allan’s Waste Water testified at the grand jury that Shipman “directed them to mix different wastes in their trucks,” a process they termed “cocktailing.” The mixed waste of production water and sewage sludge was subsequently discharged into creeks, ponds and at various Municipal Authorities in the area. Waste was also disposed of at the Morris Run airshaft, located at the abandoned Blacksville Number 1 Mine, a coal mine owned by Consol Energy, which ultimately releases into Dunkard Creek, a stream that flows between Pennsylvania and West Virginia for 37 miles before its confluence with the Monongahela River. Consol had permits from the EPA to dump production water (consisting of coal bed methane water only) into the Morris Run airshaft. Shipman’s company was not permitted to dump at the site. Sometimes when drivers had remaining production water in their trucks at the end of their shifts, Shipman directed them to empty the production water inside of the company’s garage channeling it through a drain on the floor, which led to Tom’s Run and ultimately again into Dunkard Creek. “The drivers occasionally observed Shipman himself empty tanker trucks in this manner.” Other Allan’s Waste Water employees described business activities that included forged manifest and fraudulent billing ( http://www.heraldstandard.com/news/hsnewsnow/man-sentenced-to-probation-for… ) [5] of 17 companies to the tune of more than $250,000. In October 2007, business was so good for Shipman that he and his wife started a second company, Tri-County Waste Water. This company, which operated out of the same building as Allan’s Waste Water, was authorized on February 21, 2008 by the DEP to treat fluids from the oil and gas industry. April Morris, secretary for Shipman, testified that when she left the company in May 2008, Shipman was making “approximately $7 million per year.” On March 17, 2011, Shipman was free after posting 10 percent of the $500,000 bail. The next day, the nearby Observer-Reporter warned that his freedom could be short-lived. “The criminal charges filed Thursday carry substantial prison terms upon conviction, along with fines in excess of $1.5 million for Shipman and $1.2 million for his company.” Harry Enstrom Chapter Greene County is located in the southwestern corner of Pennsylvania and covers 578 square miles of sprawling green hills and open water, from its southern point at the border of West Virginia to its northernmost location of Morris Township. It is 89.2 percent rural. Its tourism bureau boasts ( http://www.greenecountytourism.org/ ) [6] the county is “Nature’s Corner of Northern Charm and Southern Hospitality.” For residents in small towns like Brave, Dry Tavern and Bobtown, fishing is in their blood. The Monongahela flows north from West Virginia, then snakes through Greene County on its way to meet the Alleghany River in Pittsburgh, where the two rivers form a third river, the Ohio. Ken Dufalla and Ken Gayman have been fishing these waters, aka Three Rivers, all of their lives. Not so much anymore. Says Dufalla, “I have a grandson and granddaughter and I’m fishing in West Virginia right now. Here? The streams are polluted.” Greene County’s Harry Enstrom Chapter of the Izaak Walton League meets on the third Wednesday of each month. Dufalla is the chapter president. Dinner’s at 6 pm, followed by the meeting from 7-9, open to the public. The July meeting was held at the Greene Side Grill at the Greene County Country Club. Dufalla is no shrinking violet; if he sees something going on that’s not right, he’s not the type to keep it to himself. Or as he likes to say, “I’m 65 years old—I’m too stupid to be afraid and I’m too old to run.” He’s also well versed in the history of his land. Says Dufalla, “I used to be a deputy water waste conservation officer for 21 years, and so I had a pretty good feel that something was wrong with some of the streams.” On August 2, 2011, Dufalla represented the Harry Enstrom Chapter at a Pennsylvania House Democratic Policy Committee Hearing at Waynesburg Central High School. After a brief definition of the word “pure,” Dufalla opened his speech by reciting Article 1, section 27 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania, which begins: “The people have a right to clean air, pure water and the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic, and esthetic values of the environment.” Section 27 concludes: “As a trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.” History is an important aspect of what’s going on in Greene County. Dufalla understands his county’s place in the economic growth of America. “In the 1800s, oil and gas were removed from the state and especially Greene County with no regard for the impacts the ‘rush’ had on the environment or on the health and safety of the people,” he told the area’s political leaders. “In the early 1900s came the coal boom era, which brought with it varying degrees of stream and air pollution.” He then discussed the Marcellus gas boom with hopefulness that if done safely the economic benefits could very much improve the standard of living in the county, only it should not come in lieu of the health of the people or the land. Greene County is rich in resources, but despite being at the forefront of energy extraction for over 100 years, it is not a wealthy county. It does not boast the best schools and as of the last census ( http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/42/42059.html ) [7] in 2010 the population of 38,686 nearly matched the median household income of $40,498. Somewhere along the line, people who have used this county’s earth made their money and moved on, leaving behind abandoned mines (approximately 1,200 in southwest Pennsylvania and West Virginia), and with them the highly acidic, orange-colored discharges (acid mine drainage) that flow into the region’s creeks and streams. Dufalla doesn’t want to see something similar happen with the oil and gas industry, where area residents are once more left to deal with the leftover waste of long-departed companies. Izaak Walton’s numbers in Dufalla’s chapter have steadily been on the rise as others have joined who want to lend a hand in stopping the water pollution. In January 2010 the membership at the Harry Enstrom chapter sat at 26; today there are 127 members. A newer feature is the Citizen’s Water Monitoring program, which has residents who live next to streams take water samples and get personally involved. “We had a certified hydro biologist come in and we trained these citizens with a six-hour course on how to take water samples— how to read and report them. We basically developed an early warning system,” says Dufalla. Dufalla also writes a weekly column titled “Nature’s Corner,” for the Greene County Messenger, where he often publishes the Izaak Walton water data for the local community. The level of pollutants running through the Monongahela watershed is consistently over the standard. Robert Allan Shipman is part of a much bigger problem. Guilty The county seat of Waynesburg is a small college town still holding onto a walking Main Street and a downtown shopping district that runs a few stoplights. All summer, streamers have been hanging from above merchants’ doorways wishing local Olympian, wrestler Coleman Scott, best in London. Set in the middle of town is the Greene County Courthouse. There, at the stoplight of High Street and Washington, a red light forces a line of trucks to idle; gas trucks, water trucks, residual waste trucks, they are now an ever-present sight since the gas companies began fracking in the Marcellus shale, and as the light turns green, the parade of them thunder off down the road. Walk into downtown shops and ask about Allan Shipman and they’ll tell you they knew about it all along. They’d heard about the trucks near the streams. They’d heard about Morris Run and how dozens of Shipman trucks a day would line up and battle to unload waste. “Citizens are tired of the trucks,” says Greene County Sheriff Richard Ketchem. When the arrest finally came in March 2011, area residents were elated that the man behind the worst kept secret in Greene County was going to pay for his crimes. Said the sheriff, on behalf of all, “Finally.” On February 9, 2012, Shipman signed a written plea agreement to 13 criminal charges of illegal dumping, as well as defrauding 17 companies and various municipalities over a six-year period. As part of the agreement, he and his wife, Carolyn, agreed to never “apply for, obtain, or possess” any DEP permits related to environmental activity. On Friday, June 15, 2012, Deputy Attorney General Amy Carnicella walked into the Greene County Courthouse for the sentence hearing, ready for Shipman to be taken to prison. It was pretty straightforward, as she’d say later; “He did dump waste onto the streets at night and during the rain. This happened over years. It wasn’t a single incident.” On top of it all, he pled guilty. The tentative plea agreement called for imprisonment of up to 16 months. He admitted to the crimes against him. Case closed. Sheriff Ketchem stood beside the deputy attorney general after eight hours of testimony and deliberations as the judge was set to announce the sentencing. Ketchem describes Carnicella as someone who was steel-like in her confidence pertaining to jail time for the defendant. The sheriff, however, became convinced fairly quickly into the judge’s reading that Shipman was going to walk. Judge Toothman’s language gave it away for Ketchem. The talk of family tragedy. The judge took a moment to note Shipman’s stepdaughter had recently committed suicide. His wife attempted the same. Beyond that, Toothman spoke of Shipman’s “law-abiding life.” Of how he laid down on his sword by admitting to his crimes. And, of course, there were the tears. By the time Judge Toothman began crying it was easy to see things were swaying towards the polluter. Everyone could tell. Everyone perhaps except for the deputy attorney general. Says Ketchem; she believed until the end that jail time was forthcoming. Needless to say when Judge Toothman sentenced Robert Allan Shipman to probation, “She was irate,” Ketchum says, referring to Carnicella. The full sentencing ( http://www.heraldstandard.com/news/hsnewsnow/man-sentenced-to-probation-for… ) [5] order was for seven years probation; fines; court costs; restitution. He was also ordered to work with a water conservation group five hours a week for the next seven years. Contacted for comment, Carnicella treads lightly. Speaking over the phone, she’s forthcoming but careful with her words. Further litigation is uncertain. Regarding the overall damage to the waterways, “I don’t know how anyone can say that dumping thousands upon thousands of gallons of waste, or raw sewage, of grease… whether it was only buckets…how is that not harmful? This was over many years. Let me ask you this, would you want your small child swimming in this water? I don’t think so.” Ten days after the sentence hearing, the deputy attorney general filed a motion for modification of sentence. Toothman denied the request on June 28, 2012. On July 28, the state attorney general filed a notice of appeal ( http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/story11/Shipman ) [8] with the state Superior Court seeking to overturn the sentencing. Of note in the DEP’s statement to AlterNet on the Shipman case is that Shipman has already appealed the DEP’s administrative orders “revoking the operating permits for Allan’s Waste Water Company and prohibiting Allan Shipman from any involvement in the waste business including transportation, storage, processing or disposal. Mr. Shipman appealed the administrative orders to the Environmental Hearing Board and litigation is still pending. As such, the matter remains under investigation by the Department.” Sheriff Ketchum has known Shipman since childhood. “My whole life,” he says, and his summation of the case is that Shipman got rich, then he got off. Ketchum was a former president of Izaak Walton for 10 years and has been sheriff since 1990. He says the damage Shipman inflicted to the land and water are not fully appreciated at the moment and believes the effects of dumping will still be seen 20 years down the road. “Deer, cattle, and all kinds of critters drink from these streams— everything drinks from this water.” “God only knows where he put it all. What we found was incredible. But who knows where else… all the other places he dumped it.” For the most part, Ketchum says it eventually all went into the water. Ketchem thinks about one of the waterways affected by the dumping into the Morris Run airshaft. He paints a portrait of Dunkard Creek with 50-inch musky, of large schools of fish. It was a place he fished with his family. On his wall is a photograph of his grandson holding a carp from Dunkard Creek. A beautiful place to fish. He shakes his head. “That poor creek just gets slammed.” Ketchem says. Dunkard Creek Billy Craig, an ironworker out of Local 549 in West Virginia, lives in Mt. Morris, Pa and grew up 100 yards from Dunkard Creek. He enjoyed the creek as a swimming hole and spent countless hours fishing for carp, fresh water drum, small mouth bass, flathead catfish, muskie, and even an occasional walleye. Craig first heard that something was wrong in the creek on September 9, 2009, as he was enjoying a couple of beers at the Legion. That’s when a local property owner stopped in the bar and announced that fish were dying at Dunkard between Mason Dixon Park and Mt. Morris. According to Craig, the water hadn’t look good that whole summer, with the color off, brown and rusty. Still, Billy didn’t think much of it. At least at the time. A couple of days rolled by until Craig was at the creek and says he witnessed a sludge of water flowing in, closing in on Mt. Morris. That’s when he saw the first of the fish dying at the river mouth where Big Shannon Run empties into Dunkard. Soon, it was more than a dead fish here and there, but rather a couple hundred. Then thousands. Muskies were jumping out of the water. Stressed fish. “You could tell they were being poisoned,” says Craig. Before long, stacks of dead fish could be seen. Three hundred to 400 stacked up together. The survivors battled, fruitlessly attempting to get to the fresh water. Other members of the Mt. Morris Sportsman Association joined him. In the creek, he repeats, a line of polluted water could be plainly viewed, separated from the fresh water coming in from Shannon Run and other tributaries, as the sludge worked its way down from Blacksville. Fishermen like Craig and his buddies would not soon forget the sight. Dead fish, the smell penetrating the towns along the banks. Craig called Pittsburgh television stations, both channels 2 and 4. “They always say to call if you see news, so I called,” Craig says. Nobody came. The news was happening. The footage was fresh. Dead fish continued to roll in. Channels 2 and 4 never came. Billy Craig and his friends filmed it themselves. They took photos of some of the dead fish. A 43.5-inch Muskie. A 39.5 inch flathead catfish. “And it takes a lot to kill a catfish,” says Craig. Craig says there was no cleanup. “Mother Nature took care of that.” Raccoons and green heron and a host of other animals did what they do. They ate as much as they could. The creek eventually washed the rest of the dead away. Then one night Craig says the water rose 10 inches in the creek. There was no rain. A helpful discharge from the mineshaft to rid the truth away. Craig’s not sure, but he thinks so. When asked about Robert Allan Shipman’s probation, Craig says, “It’s a slap in the face to everyone that lives around Dunkard.” Adds Dave Headley from nearby Smithfield, “It’s ridiculous that all he got was a slap on the wrist.” Craig has nothing against mining or drilling. His dad was a miner at Blacksville #2, and says there was small kill in his father’s day too. But he just doesn’t understand the lack of concern for the water. Craig and his buddies joined the Izaak Walton league shortly after the fish kill. They began testing Dunkard Creek and recording the data last August and have continued to do so on a weekly basis, usually on Sundays. Today there’s some people out fishing. But it’s not the same. The fish kill affected nearly 30 miles of Dunkard Creek. Salamanders, freshwater mussels and almost every other creature living in the creek were dead. In all, according ( http://www.theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/561195/Consol-Sued-f… ) [9] to Sharon Hall, an attorney for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, 42,997 fish, 15,382 freshwater mussels and 6,447 mudpuppies (a type of salamander) were killed. After three years of research, the cause of the Dunkard Creek fish kill has rested on golden algae ( http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/landwater/water/environconcerns/hab/ga/%20http:… ) [10] (Prymnesium parvum), a naturally occurring microscopic flagellated algae that is normally only found in waters with a high salt content. Worldwide the algae can be found in estuaries where freshwater mixes with seawater, obviously places far from southwestern Pennsylvania. Golden algae originated in the United States in 1985 in Texas and Oklahoma and since that time has stayed along the coast or in southern states, never this far north. Flowback water, millions of gallons per hydraulic fracturing well, is loaded with salts from deep beneath the earth’s surface, and is many times saltier than ocean water. Simply put, salty water caused the golden algae, but what caused the salty water? In 2011, Consol Energy, the owner of Morris Run air shaft Shipman was dumping into that eventually leads to Dunkard Creek, agreed to pay $5.5 million ( http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/us/consol-to-pay-55m-for-clean-wat… ) [11] and spend up to another $200 million on a state-of-the-art water treatment plant to be up and running by May 2013, but the company admitted no guilt. Instead an attorney for the company spoke of it in terms of mystic or God-like phenomena. According to The Intelligencer and Wheeling News Register, Consol attorney Carol Marunich claimed ( http://www.theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/561195/Consol-Sued-f… ) [9] that “the presence of (golden algae) in the Dunkard Creek watershed were the result of natural forces beyond the control,” of the company, and later referred to the algae as an “unprecedented, abnormal, and extraordinary event.” In her suit on behalf of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (the fact that the PA DEP did not file against Consol is something that causes much ire among Billy Craig and many Greene County residents), attorney Sharon Hall described Consol’s “illegal, toxic discharges,” and termed the deeds “willful, wanton and malicious…” In July 2009, two months prior to the fish kill, Dr. Paul Ziemkiewicz of the West Virginia Water Research Institute and a group of researchers were testing water in Dunkard. Ziemkiewicz remembers the water as stagnant with “extremely high” electronic conductivity (EC) readings and a total dissolved solids (TDS) level of 9,000 mg/L. TDS ( http://www.safewater.org/PDFS/resourcesknowthefacts/TDS_AND%20_pH.pdf ) [12] “represents the total concentration of dissolved substances in water… made up of inorganic salts, as well as a small amount of organic matter,” according to the Safe Drinking Water Foundation. DEP data shows that the TDS level would rise in the months ahead to a level of 21,764 mg/L on September 21 taken at Blacksville #2 Mine Outfall 005, with water quality standards in Pennsylvania set at a TDS of 500 mg/L. Fresh unadulterated water normally has a TDS level of less than 100 mg/L ( http://www.dep.wv.gov/WWE/Programs/wqs/Documents/Triennial%20Review/May%201… ) [13]. Of more concern to Ziemkiewicz are the levels of bromide in this region’s water. Bromide is another chemical compound that is naturally seen in seawater. Or according ( http://files.dep.state.pa.us/Water/Wastewater%20Management/WastewaterPortal… ) [14] to DEP state files, “Bromide in fresh water is typically found in areas influenced by saltwater intrusion or another bromide source (well drilling brines, industrial chemicals and agricultural chemicals).” Myron Arnowitt, the PA state director for the Clean Water Action puts bromide into geographical perspective. “It’s really only coastal communities that generally deal with bromides as a water contamination problem. Obviously most of PA is outside of the Delaware estuary.” When asked if bromide was historically consistent with mine discharges in the area, Ziemkiewicz responds, “bromide is not normally found in coal mining.” Dufalla put it a bit more bluntly: “Now here’s the million dollar question, how is bromide coming out of coal water discharges, and why do the permits allowing these discharges not address bromides? The reason they don’t address bromides is because they never had bromides coming out of coal before. 1.8 trillion gallons of water beneath southwestern PA and Northern West Virginia because the land has been mined out. A giant honeycomb underneath the region is filled with water. I understand the brine and magnesium, but we’re getting high levels of strontium and high levels of bromide coming out of these discharges. It’s not supposed to be there. Where is it coming from? I asked the DEP and cannot get an answer…EPA-no answer… Alpha Natural Resources [the company putting out many of the discharges] no answer… Nobody knows where they’re coming from, yet here they are. If you start putting two and two together, it’s a pretty good thought that just maybe, some of this Marcellus wastewater has made it into our mines. Just maybe.” Bromide, in and of itself, is not harmful to humans. Says Dr. Ziemkiewicz, “Bromide is only problematic after it goes through a drinking water utility and is converted to THM [trihalomethane] and associated compounds which are, indeed, harmful.” When bromide meets the chlorine at a public water intake system it forms triahalomethane, which affects the central nervous system and has been linked to several types of cancer, as well as birth defects. And says Ziemkiewicz; this is “a big concern for municipal water authorities.” Trihalomethanes have caused the residents of Carmichaels, PA to share in these concerns. Boiling tap water advisories, recommendations to drink bottled water, a water buffalo set up at the local fire department to supply residents with clean drinking water— these have all become standard fare ( http://www.heraldstandard.com/gcm/news/local_news/carmichaels-water-advisor… ) [15] in Carmichaels since the gas boom began. And headlines such as the following from the Herald Standard from June 14, 2011 no longer come as a surprise: “Carmichaels Water Contaminated Again.” While a lot has been written about contamination of well water due to hydraulic fracturing, what about the tap water? In the midst of Carmichaels' ongoing problem, municipal president Dan Bailey vented to the local papers in 2011: ”What upsets me is DEP knows what’s causing this yet they’re letting drillers dump that water into wastewater plants that don’t test it before they dump it into the river,” Bailey said. ”This is not caused by our plant. It’s caused by DEP not regulating what they are dumping into the river.” The New York Times reported, “In late 2008, drilling and coal-mine waste released during a drought so overwhelmed the Monongahela that local officials advised people in the Pittsburgh area to drink bottled water ( http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/02/27/us/natural-gas-documents-1.ht… ) [16]. E.P.A. officials described the incident in an internal memorandum as 'one of the largest failures ( http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/02/27/us/natural-gas-documents-1.ht… ) [16] in U.S. history to supply clean drinking water to the public.'" Wild West Years In the summer of 2008, the Monongahela River was teeming with high TDS. This period coincides with the Wild West years of Marcellus Shale drilling. Prior to 2007, newspapers hardly mentioned the words, as gas wells began popping up quietly across rural Pennsylvania. (Go to Google News and search for “Marcellus Shale” and a single result will emerge with these words, with no results at all returned prior to 2006.) The DEP was caught flat-footed, and illegally or not, as there were not many rules in place, let alone any recommendations as to what to do with the wastewater, Pennsylvania streams and rivers were flooded with waste, which would in hindsight lead one to think this would make surface levels rise. But this is leaving out one important factor, which is that gas-drilling companies were also taking a tremendous amount of water out of the waterways, as each drilling site demands four million gallons of water per well. Following fracking operations this water would be returned to the waterways filthy. Combine this with low summer water levels and this threw the dilution factor completely off tilt in 2008. Says Arnowitt, of Clean Water Action, “The sewage plants at that time was their main way of getting rid of the wastewater.” But sewage treatment cannot get rid of the salts and bromides from production water. Left to their own devices, aka unregulated, the gas industry turned to guys like Allan Shipman, and then they turned a blind eye. In a DEP file, an executive summary of the third and fourth quarters of 2008 disclosed, “Based on the speciation there appears to be a strong correlation between THM formation and elevated source water bromide concentrations in the Monongahela River.” Yet it wasn’t until the spring of 2011 that this agency requested, not required, water treatment plants to stop accepting Marcellus wastewater. In the 2011 statement, DEP secretary Michael Krancer said, “While there are several possible sources for bromide other than shale drilling wastewater, we believe that if operators would stop giving wastewater to facilities that continue to accept it under the special provision, bromide concentrations would quickly and significantly decrease." The statement added: “Removing TDS from water also removes bromides.” It was a great step, even if a late step. Arnowitt is not entirely convinced that treatment plants have stopped accepting gas drilling wastewater even at this point, more than a year later, saying that between five and 10 treatment plants were still accepting natural gas drilling wastewater according to the most recent data Clean Water Action has, which is from July through December 2011. “It’s been a little bit hard to completely pin down,” Arnowitt says. “Once every six months gas well operators are required to send something to the state saying where they’ve sent their wastewater,” with the last report showing, “there were a few that showed greatly reduced intake, but there were still a few gas wells that showed they were sending wastewater to plants that service water disposal.” The tracking system for gas drilling wastewater, now years into the process, is still extremely lacking. “There is a system that exists in Pennsylvania,” says Arnowitt. “The problem is that it’s not transparent to the public, you and I can’t track shipments of wastewater from the well to the eventual source of where it’s disposed of. Theoretically the DEP could do that, but even they don’t have all the information sitting in their office in Harrisburg.” Millions of gallons of wastewater produced a day, buzzing down the road, and still nobody’s really keeping track. “There’s no public oversight,” says Arnowitt. Recycling efforts, which are bringing much self-congratulation from the gas industry lately, also aren’t where they need to be at this point. Arnowitt says, “Recycling is not very regulated. You can get into these storage situations that can have lots of problems.” Such as the use of PVC pipes to move the reused water from well to well. “And it’s leaking in places. It’s not a very well contained process.” Moreover, Dufalla will point out that the word “recycling” is really a misnomer and should more accurately be stated as “reusing.” At this moment, bromide levels continue to register elevated readings. Dr. Ziemkiewicz shared recent numbers showing the high level of 5.3 mg/L on June 27, 2012 from samples taken from Whiteley Creek in Greene County. Lloyd Richard of Carmichaels Water Authority says they are still struggling to keep their trihalomethane numbers in compliance. In late August or early September they will test a chlorine dioxide disinfecting system aimed at reducing high levels of THM. Down the road at the Tri-County Municipal Water Authority, where historically, they haven’t had the same type of problems as Carmichaels, plant manager Jeff Kovach says that since the high TDS levels of 2008, the authority still has had to send out letters “four or five times,” to alert their customers of high THM levels. Kovach, who has worked at Tri-County for 37 years, says that prior to 2008, the company’s THM levels weren’t an issue and they were never in violation. David Argent, professor of wildlife and fisheries sciences at California University of Pennsylvania, shares his thoughts on the health of the Monongahela River today, the source of drinking water for nearly 1 million people. “The Monongahela has had a rather tragic history of water quality issues stemming from mining and hydrologic changes associated with the dams… Because the river serves as a drinking water supply for hundreds of thousands of people as well as a carrier of ‘treated’ waste and as a recreational destination for many, I am ever concerned that we have pushed the system beyond its assimilative capacity to provide us with clean water while at the same time carry our byproducts away. The fish communities we study certainly have recovered from mining, but there are new threats emerging that may not only impact fish, but also human health.” With all of the money spent on machinery by the coal industry and the companies extracting oil and gas from the earth, the question has to be asked, why isn’t the same money invested in dealing with the second part of the process and cleaning up their own mess— in properly treating this massive amount of leftover waste? Dilution has become the treatment solution, an idea that drives Dufalla into fits of anger, as he mocks the waste experts call of dilution is the solution to pollution. But that’s not the best way, says Dufalla. “The best way is prevention. Prevention is the key to preservation.” Says Arnowitt, “The oil and gas industry came in here pretty big in 2008, started drilling a lot of wells and all of a sudden they had millions of gallons of wastewater. They really hadn’t set up a real infrastructure for how to treat it. It's kind of like a chemical company came to Pennsylvania and said we’re going to build this big chemical plant, we need to start operating it right now, and yes, there’s going to be wastewater. We’ll get the wastewater treatment plant on line three years from now, but until then we’ll just have to figure out something else. That’s exactly what the gas industry did here. I think it was inevitable that someone like Allan Shipman would come along. The gas industry was willing to pay people money to take this waste off their hands. They weren’t predisposed to ask a lot of questions. And I think for Allan Shipman it was money he didn’t feel like he could refuse. And he didn’t have all the solutions worked out either with what to do with the stuff, so at a certain point he just figured out a way to get rid of it.” Running Red On July 31, 2012, Ken Dufalla invited me to accompany him to test water throughout Greene County. That way, he said, I could see for myself, and nothing would be lost in translation. Joining us was another Harry Enstrom member, Chuck Hunnell, a 69-year-old former U.S. history teacher. Prior to teaching, Hunnell was a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy and a former Vietnam veteran. Again, anyone trying to shove the earth’s health aside and throw around outdated labels towards those looking out for the environment needs to face reality. These aren’t a bunch of hippies smoking pot and preaching utopian ideals. These are men and women fighting and who’ve already fought for this country. As Ken Gayman told the Greene County Messenger on June 22, “Why did I go to fight in Vietnam and see my fellow Marines die in battle only to have big polluters destroy the country?” Gayman added. “It’s time for people to stand up and take America back.” Chuck Hunnell would like nothing more than to simply enjoy the waters he fishes in retirement, but once you see your streams turn blood red, it’s hard to ignore. Retired or not, Hunnell is out there all day with us. Just a few days before my visit, after a period of high rain in the region, Dufalla’s team alerted the DEP of discharges running through Smith Creek a half mile south of downtown Waynesburg. Smith Creek was our first stop. We tested water near where a discharge from Emerald Mine (Outfall 001) enters the stream. Emerald Coal or Emerald Mine, a vast mining area, sits high on a hill obscured by trees. Guards man the gates at the entrance; a fortress-like setting. It’s impossible to view what’s going into the ponds that are then piped into Smith Creek, only what comes out. Our water sampling results showed TDS 1890 of mg/L, which far exceeds the recommended standard of less than 500 mg/L and an EC reading of 3760 µS/cm, which has a standard of 1,000 µS/cm. (EC or electrical conductivity measures inorganic dissolved ionic components in water, such as its salinity. People can taste saltiness in water at EC levels of 1,500 to 2,000.) The color of the stream was light red. Minnows viewed days earlier according Dufalla were now absent in the impaired water. Only flies and a northern banded water snake were seen. Next we visited what Dufalla called “the number-one polluter in Greene County”— Emerald Mine Bleeder #5, discharge 016, a treatment pond for coal mine discharge water, which leads to Whiteley Creek, before emptying into the Monongahela above Carmichaels, the community experiencing all of the trouble with THM. For bromide sampling, Dufalla relies on the sampling from the DEP or WRI (data filed at www.monriverquest.org/map.cfm [17]). As he wrote ( http://http/www.heraldstandard.com/gcm/columns/natures_corner/ ) [18] in a recent Greene County Messenger column, certified samples ( http://www.heraldstandard.com/gcm/columns/natures_corner/and/article_f747d5… ) [19] from this site in August 2011 showed bromide levels exceeding 11 mg/L. Our tests for EC exceeded the instrument maximum of 10,000 µS/cm for EC and the maximum 5,000 mg/L for TDS. Again, this is for post-treated water. At each subsequent testing site sampling revealed levels, which far exceeded the standard set by the state. Each site being a tributary leading to the Monongahela, a source of drinking water. Whiteley Creek: EC 3400 µS/cm, 1710 TDS mg/L. Clyde Mine Discharge leading to Ten Mile Creek: TDS 4000 mg/L. Shipman’s activities opened up a Pandora’s box. While his more heinous crimes, dumping in the rain and on the roads, are tough to get past, it might be his use of an old mine shaft that has the most importance moving forward, because the discharges coming from mines today do not match what’s historically been recorded in this area, such as the case with bromide. As Adam Federman wrote ( http://http/www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/eij/article/what_killed_d… ) [20] in Earth Island Journal, “Untreated acid mine discharges typically have conductance values of between 1,000 and 1,500 µS/cm.” Testing with Dufalla and Hunnell, our sampling revealed levels as high as 10 times that limit, and from “treated” discharges. Nobody wants to say these high numbers are related to Marcellus drilling. But the fact is that it really doesn’t matter to Dufalla. Just do something about numbers. Period. Whatever the source. Mine water needs to be released, yes; the only thing people in Greene County want to see is a better way than simply releasing it into water. This will cost money. But so does the first part of the process, getting the resources out of the ground. Cleaning up should not be optional. Seeing “treated” water discharged into the streams and creeks of Southwestern PA was quite honestly unnerving. Seeing streams running red, or bubbling with methane while a fisherman angled nearby simply doesn’t seem right. It's disturbing to see farms with their animals now fenced from fresh water streams in order to keep the animals safe. However, to the seasoned scientists who have studied the region or to the officials in charge of regulating the area, there is a shocking casualness. Mine drainage has been flowing into the waterways for decades. To many, the fact that mine drainage is undergoing any treatment whatsoever is good enough, at least better than during the '70s when mine water was discharged directly into the Mon, and when the river flowed a consistent metallic orange color. On Dufalla’s tour, a DEP agent drove by Ten Mile Creek as we took samples. When the agent stopped and emerged from his white jeep, the first thing we noticed were his clean black shoes without a speck of dirt, which to the three of us, suggested that this water pollution agent hadn’t been near water in some time. All afternoon I had listened as Dufalla grumbled about DEP bureaucracy and the pass-it-on-down-the-line mentality he’s experienced between the various divisions within the agency; water, oil and gas, mining, etc. So when the initial reaction from the agent to the pollution we showed him (he had no idea, in his clean black shoes), was “Well, this falls under the mining division,” we would later share a laugh at my jaw-dropping response. When we asked what division he was with and he replied “Water,” we alerted him to the fact that we were showing him polluted— water— that was flowing into— more water— and an area of recreation for the community, Ten Mile Creek. He quickly figured it out and showed his preparedness as he shuffled around to take some pictures, but first he had to replace the batteries in his camera. If I had to venture to guess, I’d wager that these discharges, which were nearly triple that of what his own agency recommends, would not be addressed any time soon. The DEP agent took a stab at an explanation, then blamed Shipman. Says Dufalla later, “I got news for you, Shipman’s not the only one dumping stuff into those streams, and the rest of them are getting permits to do it.” Arnowitt echoes Dufalla and says he believes it’s entirely possible that the type of dumping Shipman did for years is still going on. “Allan Shipman certainly ran a more extensive dumping operation than I would expect most to run, but that being said, it would be very easy for any number of entities— who are maybe mostly running a legitimate operation, but sometimes things happen and they don’t know what to do with a shipment, and it gets illegally dumped. I don’t think that would be hard to do.” "There’s very little independent sampling oversight by the DEP," says Arnowitt and theorizes why this is the case. “It is both a resource problem and a will to do it problem. Truly, DEP has had its budget cut very significantly -- it's been cut 42 percent in the last four years, so they have a lot less to work with. The place they’ve really invested inspection recourses has been at the actual well site, but inspecting what happens with the waste that leaves the well site, like wastewater, there’s very little inspection there, and for the most part the state goes off of what the permit holder sends into them. So that’s definitely a hole in the system that still exists.” Party Line In August 2011, New York State Senator Greg Ball took a tour of Pennsylvania to properly verse himself on hydraulic fracturing prior to making up his mind on the issue. A common sense approach. Upon return, he urged New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to do likewise. Ball, an outdoorsman and fisherman, has much in common with the residents of Greene County. Recounting his tour of Pennsylvania, Ball says he saw a process begin without the manpower and funding in place to regulate the process and he witnessed firsthand how tough it has been for the state to hold the oil and gas industry accountable. He saw “real fears in residents of Pennsylvania” -- farmers and property owners deceived on whether water was clean or contaminated. One of his biggest elements of concern is the fact that billions of gallons of clean drinking water are being used or affected by this industry. “This is a limited resource,” Ball says. “The fact that millions of gallons of drinking water is being allowed to be contaminated is a fundamental issue.” Besides health concerns regarding the issue of clean water, he’s troubled about the overall quality of life for citizens. He wants New York “to avoid the devastation seen in other states,” to avoid the haste he saw in other states, the overall rush to expedite permits and drilling before the proper framework was in place on how to regulate this industry. “Wastewater needs to be treated as an industrial waste,” says Ball. “New York needs to set an example on how this industry needs to be held accountable.” While at a national level, Ball says it’s essential to eliminate the “Halliburton loophole,” which exempts fracking from compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. “Clean water has nothing to do with politics,” says Ball, a Republican. “It shows why politics suck in America.” Ball says citizens need to stop pointing at each other and focus on the real problem, which is the amount of money and influence currently corrupting the government, the red-carpet treatment some industries receive. Clean water should be something beyond politics. Or in the words of Billy Craig, an ironworker from the Mason Dixon line, “If we don’t have clean water, we’re all in trouble. None of us are going to survive. Clean water is something we all need.” Source URL: http://www.alternet.org/fracking/toxic-wastewater-dumped-streets-and-rivers…

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Fw: Notification of Public Comment Period on Beech Ridge Wind Power Permit
by Frank Young 17 Aug '12

17 Aug '12

----- Original Message ----- From: Laura_Hill(a)fws.gov To: Laura_Hill(a)fws.gov Sent: Friday, August 17, 2012 11:25 AM Subject: Notification of Public Comment Period on Beech Ridge Wind Power Permit The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces the availability of a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS), application for an Endangered Species Act incidental take permit, and associated habitat conservation plan (HCP) from Beech Ridge Energy, LLC for the Beech Ridge Wind Power Project in Greenbrier and Nicholas Counties, West Virginia. We welcome comments on the draft HCP and DEIS prior to making a final decision on the application for a permit. If approved, the permit would authorize take of endangered Indiana and Virginia big-eared bats associated with construction, operation, and decommissioning of the project. The 60-day comment period opens on August 24, 2012 and closes on October 23, 2012. Please see the attached letter for additional details on how to access documents and submit comments. As a courtesy to those concerned about release of personal e-mail addresses, I have used the blind carbon copy (bcc) feature of e-mail to send this notice so that e-mail addresses of individuals on the mailing list can not be seen by others. Please be aware that if you submit a comment via http://www/regulations.gov, your entire comment--including any personal identifying information--will be posted on the Web site. We will post all hard copy comments sent by U.S. mail on www.regulations.gov as well. If you submit a hard copy comment that includes personal identifying information, you may request that we withhold this information from public view. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. (See attached file: dear intersted party letter DEIS.pdf) _________________________ Laura Hill Assistant Field Supervisor West Virginia Field Office U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 694 Beverly Pike Elkins, WV 26241 e-mail: Laura_Hill(a)fws.gov Phone: (304) 636-6586, ext. 18 FAX: (304) 636-7824

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Fwd: Fw: Update on New Coal Ash Bill & Call for Grassroots Engagement Monday August 13 at 3p EST
by Paul Wilson 09 Aug '12

09 Aug '12

incase you are not on the COAL-ALERTS listserve. fyi,paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <verena_owen(a)prodigy.net> Date: Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 3:28 PM Subject: Fw: Update on New Coal Ash Bill & Call for Grassroots Engagement Monday August 13 at 3p EST To: COAL-CAMPAIGN-ALERTS(a)lists.sierraclub.org If you want to know more about "coal ash bill", please join the call on Monday. Details below. Verena ______________________________________________________________ Earlier this month, Senators Conrad, Hoeven, and Baucus introduced a coal ash bill. While this bill is being touted as a compromise on previous coal ash legislation, the changes made are minor and the bill fails to protect our communities' health and our environment. Earthjustice and Sierra Club will be organizing a conference call to discuss the new bill, the political landscape and grassroots action. We hope you will join us for this discussion. Also feel free to forward this information onto any coalition partners or affected citizens who would be interested (please no reporters). If you want to stay up to date on the latest happenings on coal ash, please feel free to email Dalal at dalal.aboulhosn(a)sierraclub.org to join the Coal Ash Listserv. WHEN: Monday, August 13th at 3pm- 4pm EST PHONE: 866.501.6174 passcode - 224.9.224 AGENDA: Failures of New Coal Ash Bill - Lisa Evans, Earthjustice (7 mins) Political Landscape - Dalal Aboulhosn, Sierra Club (7 mins) Grassroots Involvement - Andrea Delgado, Earthjustice (7 mins) Open to Questions/Discussion (40 mins) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the COAL-CAMPAIGN-ALERTS list, send any message to: COAL-CAMPAIGN-ALERTS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/ -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fw: Nuclear Energy Liscencing on hold!!
by Frank Young 09 Aug '12

09 Aug '12

----- Original Message ----- From: cindy rank To: WVHCBOARD(a)yahoogroups.com ; WVEC Sent: Thursday, August 09, 2012 9:51 AM Subject: [WVHCBOARD] Fwd: [issues] Nuclear Energy Liscencing on hold!! FYI --- cindy r. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: <lec(a)wildvirginia.org> Date: Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 9:10 AM Subject: [issues] Nuclear Energy Liscencing on hold!! To: issues(a)heartwood.org Great News all around, especially here in VA with the 2 impending Mineral/North Anna reactors now on hold...thanks to Lou Zeller, BREDL and everyone working so hard on this on this! http://ens-newswire.com/?p=47633 U.S. Freezes All Nuclear Power Plant Licensing Decisions Posted by News Editor in Energy, Latest News, RSS on August 7, 2012 4:53 pm / no comments WASHINGTON, DC, August 7, 2012 (ENS) – Federal nuclear regulators today froze at least 19 final reactor licensing decisions in response to a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit that spent nuclear fuel stored on-site at nuclear power plants “poses a dangerous, long-term health and environmental risk.” In its ruling, the appeals court invalidated the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s 2010 updates to the Waste Confidence Rule and also the Temporary Storage Rule and directed the commission to fully comply with federal law. In response, the NRC today put a hold on nine construction and operating licenses, eight license renewals, one operating license, and one early site permit. The court noted that, after decades of failure to site a permanent geologic repository, including 20 years of working on the now-abandoned Yucca Mountain repository in Nevada, the NRC “has no long-term plan other than hoping for a geologic repository.” Therefore, it is possible that spent fuel will be stored at reactor sites “on a permanent basis,” the court said. In its order today, the five-member NRC said, “Waste confidence undergirds .... ... ... In hailing the NRC action in a statement today, the groups said that most of the 19 reactor projects are already “essentially sidetracked by the huge problems facing the nuclear industry, including an inability to control runaway costs, and the availability of far less expensive energy alternatives.” .... ...[and more at the main link above...] __._,_.___Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (1) Recent Activity: Visit Your Group Working since 1967 for the conservation and wise management of West Virginia's natural resources Switch to: Text-Only, Daily Digest • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use • Send us Feedback . __,_._,___

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fyi
by Elizabeth Little 08 Aug '12

08 Aug '12

http://landartgenerator.org/blagi/archives/127

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Fwd: [CLEAR] Stop the Frack Attack
by James Kotcon 01 Aug '12

01 Aug '12

>>> Duane <duane330(a)aol.com> 7/31/2012 12:50 AM >>> Water is Life . .. ... .... ..... KEEP IT CLEAN. stop the frack attack 7-28-12

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NYTimes.com: Dot Earth: University of Texas Will Review Gas Study After Conflict Questions Raised
by william.depaulo＠gmail.com 31 Jul '12

31 Jul '12

This page was sent to you by: william.depaulo(a)gmail.com. Dot Earth: University of Texas Will Review Gas Study After Conflict Questions Raised http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/24/university-of-texas-will-revie… ---------------------------------------------------------- ABOUT THIS E-MAIL This e-mail was sent to you by a friend through NYTimes.com's E-mail This Article service. For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help(a)nytimes.com. NYTimes.com 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018 Copyright 2012 The New York Times Company

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from ScienceDaily e-newsletter: One in five streams damaged by mine pollution in southern West Virginia
by Paul Wilson 31 Jul '12

31 Jul '12

One in five streams damaged by mine pollution in southern West Virginia<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/86w…> Posted: 30 Jul 2012 12:50 PM PDT Water pollution from surface coal mining has degraded more than 22 percent of streams and rivers in southern West Virginia to the point they may now qualify as impaired under state criteria, according to a new study. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: With Coal Down, Future Fund Idea Draws More Attention
by Paul Wilson 23 Jul '12

23 Jul '12

fyi, paul w. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Mon, Jul 23, 2012 at 3:17 AM Subject: WVNS story: With Coal Down, Future Fund Idea Draws More Attention To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> With Coal Down, Future Fund Idea Draws More Attention Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27552-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (07/23/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - With Appalachian coal production down, more policymakers are looking at setting aside a portion of severance taxes in a future fund to help coalfield communities adjust. Sen. Jay Rockefeller says the state urgently needs to diversify, and one good step is a future fund supported by severance taxes. Rockefeller wants to bring more manufacturing to southern West Virginia and says a future fund could help. Or, he says, it could research ways to make coal itself more viable. "The future can be manufacturing or the future can be clean coal. Not just alternative economic development, but it also could go to research on the technology which could make coal cleaner." Many coal seams in West Virginia are thinning out, and many utilities are replacing coal with cheap natural gas. According to a new report from the Central Appalachian Regional Network<http://www.carnnet.org>, states here could have tens of millions of dollars a year to invest in diversifying their economies if they set aside just 1 percent of severance tax revenues. Report co-author Roy Silver says the future fund should let the principal build up untouched, while states spend the interest. That way, he says, the states get the benefit of the natural resource, even after it's gone. "You draw down on the interest and the principal remains there, even beyond the time where, let's say, there's no coal being produced in an area." Silver, a professor of sociology at Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College, says if West Virginia put 1 percent of severance tax revenue in the future fund, fairly quickly millions of dollars would be available for things like workforce retraining in communities hit by the low demand for coal. "By 2015, the end-of-year principal balance would be $358 million. You'd have an interest generated of $31 million." During the last session, the state legislature voted to study the future fund. More information about the report can be found at the CARN website, www.carnnet.org. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27552-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27552-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Ban fracking in California
by Paul Wilson 22 Jul '12

22 Jul '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Dow <ddow420(a)comcast.net> Date: Sun, Jul 22, 2012 at 7:08 AM Subject: Fwd: Ban fracking in California fyi- an interesting policy decision on fracking by the Club's Board of Directors. I am not aware of any fracking programs in New England, but we certainly have members concerned about this issue (especially renewable energy activists) Begin forwarded message: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Barbara Williams <barbwill(a)comcast.net> Date: Mon, Jul 2, 2012 at 8:55 PM Subject: Re: Ban fracking in California To: CONS-CNRCC-WATER-COMM(a)lists.sierraclub.org Patricia.....Just an FYI.....A board decision just came down and Sierra Club does NOT support statewide bans......here is the text of the decision.......Barb To: CCL Delegates, Chapter Leaders who responded to natural gas to Clean Energy Survey From: Allison Chin, President, and Dave Scott, Vice President of Board of Directors Re: Board decision on CCL resolution to allow chapters to support statewide bans on hydrofracking *This memo is to inform you that on June 21st the Board voted to reaffirm its standing 2011 energy resources policy on hydrofracking for natural gas and declined to amend it to allow individual chapters to be granted exemptions to advocate for statewide bans.* The vote was 8-3 with 2 abstentions, 1 absence, and the President not voting. Under existing policy chapters will continue to be allowed to call for statewide or local moratoria on fracking until strict safeguards are put in place. Chapters may also continue to call for site specific bans in environmentally sensitive areas and communities. What is not permitted is to advocate in the name of the Sierra Club for permanent bans on hydrofracking at the statewide level. The Board relied on a task force composed of staff and volunteers to gather detailed information from chapters on the pros and cons of statewide fracking bans and to examine the advisability and feasibility of adopting a Clean Energy Option . After reviewing the task force report the Board decided to stick with its national policy and not to allow chapters to vary from it. *Background* The Council of Club Leaders passed a resolution in September, 2011, asking the Board of Directors to authorize individual chapters to endorse statewide bans on hydrofracking. The Natural Gas Reform Campaign Leadership Team (now Beyond Natural Gas Leadership Team) prepared a memo listing pros and cons of allowing chapters to advocate for statewide bans. It made no recommendation. The Beyond Coal Campaign Leadership Team submitted comments arguing against granting authority to push for statewide bans. A team of staff drafted a compromise proposal suggesting that chapter requests for statewide bans should only be approved if the petitioning chapter was able to develop a plausible and aggressive plan that would reduce reliance on coal, nuclear, and natural gas by substituting clean energy alternatives: implementation of such a plan would prevent a state from needing to import more gas as a consequence of banning production within its own borders. The proposal also required a petitioning chapter to prove an ability to execute a campaign to get its plan adopted. This “Clean Energy Alternative” was not fleshed out and the practicality of its implementation was questioned by its authors, Executive Director Michael Brune, and the Board. Nevertheless, it held sufficient promise that the Board was not prepared to choose between either approving statewide bans or continuing the present policy of not allowing them without having a fuller understanding of the feasibility and advantages of the clean energy alternative. The following motion was adopted by the Board of Directors on January 19, 2012: MSC (Ela-Boldman) “In response to the CCL resolution regarding bans on natural gas fracturing, the Board directs the ExCom and the Executive Director to appoint a group to report back regarding the feasibility and desirability of adopting some form of the ’Clean Energy Option’, with the expectation that this could be done in about 90 days.” The Natural Gas to Clean Energy final report was completed in June. It included an extensive survey of the chapters representing the 33 states where fracking is taking place or is proposed. Chapters that expressed an interest in pursuing statewide bans include: Alabama, Delaware, Florida, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Vermont. (7) Chapters that had no interest in pursuing bans include: California, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah , and Wyoming. (12) Chapters that did not want to pursue a ban at this time, but might want to in the future include: Colorado, Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. (8) Chapters that did not respond include: Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, New Mexico, North Dakota and South Dakota. (6) A copy of the final report of the Natural Gas to Clean Energy Task Force is attached. If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact us or any Board member. On Jul 2, 2012, at 8:51 PM, Patricia Matejcek wrote: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Aura Walker <moveon-help(a)list.moveon.org> Date: Mon, Jul 2, 2012 at 11:32 AM Subject: Ban fracking in California ** *Below is an email from Aura Walker, a MoveOn member in who created a petition on SignOn.org, the nonprofit site that allows anyone to start their own online petition. If you have concerns or feedback about this petition, click here<http://civic.moveon.org/signon_feedback/?id=45203-19912849-1Y9ZLJx&t=1> .* ------------------------------ Dear California MoveOn member, California should follow the sane example of Vermont and ban fracking. It is common sense. California is earthquake-prone. Fracking will exacerbate the risk of earthquakes as huge hydraulic drills will core deep into the earth, moving already loose tectonic plates. Additionally, poisonous gases will permanently pollute many precious aquifers, irreversibly poisoning our drinking water. * Click here to protect our land, waters, wetlands, ecosystems, and oceans by signing the petition to ban fracking in California. * <http://www.moveon.org/r?r=276844&id=45203-19912849-1Y9ZLJx&t=2> * <http://www.moveon.org/r?r=276844&id=45203-19912849-1Y9ZLJx&t=3>* I love Jerry Brown. Please sir, do not let us down. Ban fracking in California. Thanks! –Aura Walker *This petition was created on SignOn.org, the progressive, nonprofit petition site that will never sell your email address and will never promote a petition because someone paid us to. SignOn.org is sponsored by MoveOn Civic Action, which is not responsible for the contents of this or other petitions posted on the site.* *Want to support our work?* MoveOn Civic Action is entirely funded by our 7 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.<https://civic.moveon.org/donatec4/creditcard.html?cpn_id=457&id=45203-19912…> ------------------------------ This email was sent to Patricia Matejcek on July 2, 2012. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here<http://moveon.org/subscrip/coa.html?id=45203-19912849-1Y9ZLJx>. To remove yourself from this list, click here<http://moveon.org/s?i=45203-19912849-1Y9ZLJx> . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-CNRCC-WATER-COMM list, send any message to: CONS-CNRCC-WATER-COMM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-CNRCC-WATER-COMM list, send any message to: CONS-CNRCC-WATER-COMM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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CFL bulbs
by Jim Sconyers 21 Jul '12

21 Jul '12

Lowe's and Walmart in Oakland (MD) have cheap CFLs subsidized by Potomac Edison. In Morgantown they do not. Difference : Maryland requires utility efficiency programs, West Virginia does not.

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Fwd: [ECOLOG-L] The Ecology of Natural Gas (ESA annual meeting press release)
by Paul Wilson 20 Jul '12

20 Jul '12

>From the Ecological Society of America, fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Dow <ddow420(a)comcast.net> Date: Thu, Jul 19, 2012 at 7:08 PM Subject: Fwd: [ECOLOG-L] The Ecology of Natural Gas (ESA annual meeting press release) To: Patricia Matejcek Gmail <patachek3(a)gmail.com>, Alison Robb < nature(a)cape.com>, Paul Wilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> *From: *Nadine Lymn <Nadine(a)ESA.ORG> *Date: *July 19, 2012 2:17:59 PM EDT * * The Ecology of Natural Gas Scientists examine process chain of natural gas, from rural extraction to urban distribution "Fracking" stories about shale gas extraction hit the news daily, fueling a growing conflagration between environmental protectionism and economic interests. Otherwise known as hydraulic fracturing, fracking has become a profitable venture thanks to advances in horizontal drilling technology, opening up large US reservoirs and vastly changing the natural gas market. Touted as a clean energy source and a bridge fuel to transition from fossil fuels, natural gas via fracking is also frought with public health and environmental concerns. A session at the upcoming annual meeting of the Ecological Society of America will look at the natural gas process chain, from extraction and processing to transport and distribution. Read the complete ESA press release: http://www.esa.org/pao/pressreleases.php?uid=121320 Nadine Lymn Director of Public Affairs Ecological Society of America 1990 M Street, NW, Suite 700 Washington DC 20036 202.833.8773 ext. 205 ---------------------------------------------- www.facebook.com/esa.org: "Like" the new ESA Facebook page, ask friends/colleagues to do the same. http://twitter.com/#!/esa_org: "Follow" ESA on Twitter. ESA eStore: Now available: "An Ecologist's Guidebook to Policy Engagement." -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: WVNS story: Gas Utilities Seek Hikes Despite Dropping Nat Gas Prices
by Paul Wilson 18 Jul '12

18 Jul '12

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Fri, Jul 13, 2012 at 3:17 AM Subject: WVNS story: Gas Utilities Seek Hikes Despite Dropping Nat Gas Prices To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> Gas Utilities Seek Hikes Despite Dropping Nat Gas Prices Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27421-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (07/13/12) CHARLESTON, W. Va. – Despite record low prices for natural gas, West Virginia utilities are asking the state's Public Service Commission (PSC) to confirm sharp rate hikes. Mountaineer and Dominion Hope both want the PSC to rule in their favor on rate requests based on higher natural gas costs. Clarksburg resident Steve Perdue pays Hope about $75 a month. He says the hike seems 'weird' when, all around him, he can see the Marcellus boom that has driven natural gas prices to a near-record low. "It's overwhelmed the area, there's so much gas that they're getting. We just can't see why they would be getting rate increases when the price of their basic raw material has gone way down." According to West Virginia Affiliated Construction Trades (ACT), Dominion Hope is asking the PSC to confirm a 30 percent increase in the part of the bill that goes to pay for the gas. The company says overall, bills would only go up by 17 percent, and that the rate increase is part of a standard annual procedure for utilities to recover money for legitimate, regulated costs. However, says Perdue, a lot people can't afford the increase. "Times are pretty tough, especially for our seniors. We've got a lot of people laid off. People on fixed income and your just average working person. It's tough on a family." According to Dominion Hope, the company does not make any money from recapturing the cost of buying natural gas. But critics say that's not true for Hope's sister company. Hope used a financial hedging program to set the price it paid for gas. Through the complex financial deals, another branch of the Dominion conglomerate could have made as much as $20 million off of Hope's purchases. To Perdue, that doesn't sound right. "They're in a no-lose situation, collecting all the way around. One of their diversified companies might lose money, and they'll ask for money to recoup that loss. But on the other end, they're making the money." ACT and AARP are among the groups opposing some of the rate hikes. Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27421-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27421-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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beans......yeah, beans
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 17 Jul '12

17 Jul '12

[image: The New York Times] <http://www.nytimes.com/> <http://www.nytimes.com/adx/bin/adx_click.html?type=goto&opzn&page=www.nytim…> ------------------------------ July 16, 2012 In Tiny Bean, India’s Dirt-Poor Farmers Strike Gas-Drilling Gold By GARDINER HARRIS<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/h/gardiner_harri…> LORDI, India — Sohan Singh’s shoeless children have spent most of their lives hungry, dirty and hot. A farmer in a desert land, Mr. Singh could not afford anything better than a mud hut and a barely adequate diet for his family. But it just so happens that when the hard little bean that Mr. Singh grows is ground up, it becomes an essential ingredient for mining oil<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/energy-environment/oil-petroleu…>and natural gas<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/energy-environment/natural-gas/…>in a process called hydraulic fracturing. Halfway around the world, earnings are down for an oil services giant, Halliburton<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/halliburton_company/i…>, because prices have risen for guar, the bean that Mr. Singh and his fellow farmers raise. Halliburton’s loss was, in a rather significant way, Mr. Singh’s gain — a rare victory for the littlest of the little guys in global trade. The increase in guar prices is helping to transform this part of the state of Rajasthan in northwestern India, one of the world’s poorest places. Tractor sales are soaring, land prices are increasing and weddings have grown even more colorful. “Now we have enough food, and we have a house made of stone,” Mr. Singh said proudly while his rail-thin children stared in awe. Guar, a modest bean so hard that it can crack teeth, has become an unlikely global player, and dirt-poor farmers like Mr. Singh have suddenly become a crucial link in the energy production of the United States. For centuries, farmers here used guar to feed their families and their cattle. There are better sources of nutrition, but few that grow in the Rajasthani desert, a land rich in culture but poor in rain. Broader commercial interest in guar first developed when food companies found that it absorbs water like a souped-up cornstarch, and a powdered form of the bean is now widely used to thicken ice cream and keep pastries crisp. But much more important to farmers here was the recent discovery that guar could stiffen water so much that a mixture is able to carry sand sideways into wells drilled by horizontal fracturing, also known as fracking. The fracking boom in the United States has led to a surge in natural gas production, a decline in oil imports and a gradual transition away from coal<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/c/coal/index.h…>-fired power plants. Fracking may also have spoiled some rural water supplies and caused environmental damage in parts of the United States, but it is hard to find anyone in Rajasthan who sees fracking as anything but a blessing. “Without guar, you cannot have fracturing fluids,” said Michael J. Economides, a professor of engineering at the University of Houston who is a fracking expert. “And what everybody is worried about is that there is virtually no guar out there now.” India produces about 85 percent of the world’s guar. As worries rose about the prospects for this year’s monsoon, which is vital for an adequate crop, speculation over guar production built to a frenzy. Trading in guar futures was even suspended, and with the monsoon still behind schedule, it remains postponed. Ramesh Abhishek, India’s chief commodities market regulator, said guar trading would resume when supplies proved adequate. “If the physical market doesn’t provide enough supplies, then the futures market causes more harm than good,” Mr. Abhishek said. Now, an international effort is under way to ensure that guar supplies come closer to meeting the soaring demand, and hundreds of thousands of small farmers here have been recruited in the effort. Leading the way is Vikas WSP, an Indian company that specializes in the production of guar powders. Many farmers sold their seed stock last year when prices shot up, so Vikas has held rallies in small towns to pass out free seeds, including new high-production hybrids. The company persuaded farmers with irrigated land in the state of Punjab, north of Rajasthan, to plant guar in the spring instead of cotton. That crop is now coming to market. And Vikas signed contracts with farmers guaranteeing a return of nearly $800 per acre if they planted guar, no matter what this year’s monsoon brought. “Whatever they produce, we will buy,” said Sanjay Pareek, a Vikas vice president. Anticipating a heavy crop, Vikas is more than doubling its processing capacity by building two new plants in Jodhpur, the second-largest city in Rajasthan. By next year, the company will be able to produce 86,400 tons of guar powder each day, it said. Smaller producers are taking similar steps. “Last year was an extraordinary year,” said S. K. Sharma, managing director of Lotus Gums and Chemicals in Jodhpur. “In 35 years in this business, I’ve never seen that.” Mr. Sharma said his company would soon open a second plant dedicated entirely to serving gas companies, adding that he was cautiously optimistic that guar prices would remain robust. “But we know there are efforts to grow guar in China, Australia, California and elsewhere, and it has us worried,” he said. Despite the expanding supply, many analysts believe that guar prices will remain high for the foreseeable future. Neil Beveridge, an oil analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Company, said demand for fracking services should continue to grow rapidly as the industry expanded outside North America. “We’re already starting to see a big increase in Eastern Europe, Argentina, Australia, China and India itself,” he said. Susan L. Sakmar, an energy analyst in San Francisco, cautioned that the fracking boom could slow and that guar alternatives could be developed. But Mr. Economides, the Houston fracking expert, dismissed such talk. “There are no easy or cheap alternatives to guar,” he said. That is good news for guar producers. Farmers, traders and processors around Jodhpur admitted fulfilling some long-held dreams with the profits they made last year. Some took trips to Europe; some bought gold; others got married. At a Massey Ferguson tractor dealership in Jodhpur, where sales have doubled in recent years, Nathu Parjapat of Haripura was buying a tractor for his father-in-law, whose own profits from farming guar allowed him to provide a dowry of 12 grams of gold and half a kilogram of silver when Mr. Parjapat married his daughter. “So now I’m buying a tractor for him,” Mr. Parjapat said as his father-in-law stood next to him, nodding with grave approval. Mr. Singh, the farmer with the new house, said he would plant his entire field with guar this year instead of spreading his risk among other crops. His family is able to sleep on the stone roof, where a constant breeze keeps them cool. His old mud house, now occupied by goats, has a roof made of sticks that did not allow such a luxury. Mr. Singh’s sister, Issa Rathore, showed off a silver ankle bracelet and a toe ring, both bought with guar profits. But her smile quickly vanished when she was asked whether she expected a similar windfall in the coming months. She glanced at the sky, and the children around her grew hushed. “Will the monsoon be enough this year?” she asked. “Who knows?” Sruthi Gottipati contributed reporting. -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel 304-342-5588 Fax 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com

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bad water to take to rally?
by Jim Sconyers 13 Jul '12

13 Jul '12

Does anyone know where we could get well or other water that has been tainted by drilling/fracking so we could have some to take to the Stop the Frack Attack rally? The march is going to API and ANGA to give them bad water - would be cool to take some with us. -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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A little-reported impact of shale gas development.
by James Kotcon 09 Jul '12

09 Jul '12

See stories of the impacts of sand mining in Wisconsin. Some of those mines are in the County where I grew up. JBK http://ecowatch.org/2012/mining-companies-invade-wisconsin-for-frac-sand/

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Fwd: Energize West Virginia Town Hall Meeting Thursday
by James Kotcon 09 Jul '12

09 Jul '12

In a message dated 7/8/2012 4:32:51 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, stombond(a)hughes.net writes: Natural Gas Industry to Hold Town Hall Meeting in Morgantown . . July 5, 2012, WBOY, Clarksburg, WV Natural gas industry officials from Energize West Virginia ( http://www.energizewv.com/ ) and America's Natural Gas Alliance ( http://www.anga.us/ ) are hosting a town hall-style community meeting, in Morgantown, to discuss the "latest developments and activities" in the industry, in the state. The meeting will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m., on Tuesday, July 10 at the Ramada Inn ( http://www.ramada.com/hotels/west-virginia/morgantown/ramada-conference-cen… ), on Scott Avenue in Morgantown. It will include a panel of industry professionals and a presentation on hydraulic fracturing, horizontal drilling, job creation and economic impact from Marcellus Shale in West Virginia. The meeting is free and open to the public.

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Earth First Shuts Down Drilling Site in Moshannon State Forest | StateImpact Pennsylvania
by Duane 08 Jul '12

08 Jul '12

http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2012/07/08/earth-first-blocks-frack… "Earth First" Shuts Down Drilling Site in Moshannon State Forest A group calling itself Marcellus Earth First! has set up a blockade in Moshannon State Forest, preventing the natural gas company EQT from operating a well. A report on an Earth First! website says the blockade on a gravel road began before 9:30 Sunday morning with about 40 protestors who successfully prevented a truck from entering the drill site. EQT spokesperson Natalie Cox says the drilling operations have shut down due to safety concerns for the company’s employees, contractors, police and protesters. Cox says activities at the well pad were in the early stages. EQT is one of the top ten largest drillers in Pennsylvania, with about 300 active wells in the western part of the state. For more information on EQT’s drilling operations, visit our Shale Map App. Pike County resident Alex Lotorto, who says he’s not a member of Marcellus Earth First!, but joined the rally, says two people have climbed trees and strung cables across an access road in such a way that cutting them would cause the tree climbers to fall and face serious injury or even death. Lotorto says state police are on the scene. “Police interaction has been courteous and respectful,” says Lotorto. “We want to make this safe as possible.” A state police officer reached by phone at the Dubois, Pa. office would not provide any information. The Moshannon State Forest spans three counties, but the protest is in the Clearfield County section of the forest. Lotoro said a group of protestors had dragged logs and branches from the forest to build blockades across the access road the night before the protest. A sign hanging from the site reads “Marcellus Earth First, no fracking no compromise.” Earth First! is an environmental activist group that uses direct action and is primarily known for protesting logging in forests along the West Coast. The group often employs the tactic of climbing into trees to stop industrial activity and call attention to their cause. Janis Copenhaver lives near Big Run, Jefferson County, not too far from the drill site. Reached by phone, Copenhaver said she didn’t know anything about the action until she overheard others in her town talking about it. “I wish I had the time and gumption to do this,” said Copenhaver. “But I have to have a fulltime job, pay a mortgage, and take care of my animals. I appreciate it when someone else is trying to defend the earth and the life I love living.” Copenhaver said it took her two hours to find the protesters on a remote access road in the forest. She says she plans to bring food and water up the mountain. “I can’t be up there hanging from a tree,” said Copenhaver, “but I’ll do what I can.” Copenhaver says she worries about gas drilling’s impact on her water. She says another drill rig sits about 600 yards from her drinking water well and she gets her water tested every two weeks. Lately, she says the salinity, and the amount of total dissolved solids have increased. “It’s just too frightening, so I started buying bottled water yesterday,” said Copenhaver. Drilling for natural gas in state forests is controversial. Although the state has leased out mineral rights in state forests since 1947, the Marcellus Shale boom has meant a rapid expansion of industrial activity on state land. More than 700,000 acres of forest land have already been leased – about twenty percent of that for Marcellus pads. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources predicts more than 1,000 drilling rigs may dot the forests, once production is at full capacity. Many feared Governor Corbett would expand drilling in the forests, but his 2012–2013 budget did not include any plans to lease out additional state forest land for natural gas drilling. Submitted by Duane Nichols, www.FrackCheckWV.net

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Sierra Club used as a corporate tool?
by James Kotcon 07 Jul '12

07 Jul '12

The line below caught my attention. Who is the "National Center for Public Policy Research", and is it worth dignifying the charge with a response? Jim Kotcon “Since the Sierra Club has been used as a corporate tool in the past, there is no reason to believe that it isn’t being used as one now, so we call upon it to fully disclose who is underwriting Beyond Natural Gas. If the Sierra Club won’t say who is funding its anti-natural gas campaign, we probably can assume there is a conflict of interest in there somewhere.” >>> "Donald C. Strimbeck" dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> 7/6/2012 3:57 AM >> ( mailto:dcsoinks@comcast.net ) McClendon: Chesapeake done with Sierra Club ( http://blog.newsok.com/energy/2012/06/08/mcclendon-chesapeake-done-with-sie… ) Posted by Jay F. Marks ( http://blog.newsok.com/energy/author/jay-marks/ ) on June 8, 2012M at 5:46 pm Chesapeake Energy Corp. is done with the Sierra Club. CEO Aubrey McClendon was questioned by the president of the National Center for Public Policy Research ( http://www.nationalcenter.org/ ) about the company’s past donations totaling $26 million to the environmental group at Friday’s annual meeting. Center President David Ridenour said he was concerned the Sierra Club would use those funds in its new “Beyond Natural Gas” ( http://content.sierraclub.org/naturalgas/ ) campaign. McClendon said he has no regrets about working with the Sierra Club to go after the coal industry. “We’re in a market share struggle with coal,” McClendon said. “As a result of that campaign, 150 new coal plants were not built. That demand will go to natural gas.” The Sierra Club distanced itself ( http://newsok.com/sierra-club-moving-away-from-natural-gas-chesapeake-cash/… ) from Chesapeake earlier this year after new executive director Michael Brune ( http://sierraclub.typepad.com/michaelbrune/2012/02/the-sierra-club-and-natu… ) rewrote the group’s gift acceptance policy and began to campaign for tougher regulation of the natural gas industry. On Friday, McClendon said Chesapeake is no longer associated with the Sierra Club. “Our relationship with them is a little different today than it was a few years ago,” he said. Ridenour said he was not satisfied to McClendon’s response to his question at Friday’s meeting. “Mr. McClendon largely ignored my question, ‘By funding Beyond Coal, did you not unnecessarily pick a fight with another fossil fuel industry that now will have every incentive to fund Beyond Natural Gas? It would be darkly amusing if the coal industry did turn out to be funding Beyond Natural Gas, and did have a stipulation in its grant contract limiting the use of the gift to fighting Mr. McClendon’s industry.” “Since the Sierra Club has been used as a corporate tool in the past, there is no reason to believe that it isn’t being used as one now, so we call upon it to fully disclose who is underwriting Beyond Natural Gas. If the Sierra Club won’t say who is funding its anti-natural gas campaign, we probably can assume there is a conflict of interest in there somewhere.” “As a representative of a Chesapeake shareholder and an employee of another shareholder, I’m not thrilled that Mr. McClendon gave money to an activist group dedicated to the company’s destruction, but I’m even less happy as an American. Energy independence is important to national security, and low-cost energy is important to American jobs and prosperity. We shouldn’t be fighting things that are good for us.” Ridenour said he still hopes to find out where Chesapeake’s donations to the Sierra Club went, while letting such groups know that people are watching those types of charitable contributions

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More on the Coal Ash vote from Center for Media and Democracy. Check out the video on Perry County
by Paul Wilson 01 Jul '12

01 Jul '12

House to Vote on Effort to Preempt EPA Regulation of Coal Ash [image: Environmental Protection Agency logo]The U.S. House of Representatives will vote Thursday on a measure to urge the Transportation Conference Committee to strip the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the ability to designate toxic coal ash as a hazardous waste. This spring, the House approved H.R. 4348, the Surface and Transportation Extension Act of 2012. In this bill the House included an amendment by West Virginia Republican Representative David McKinley, that would prohibit the EPA from ever setting federally enforceable safeguards for the disposal of toxic coal ash. Now McKinley and the coal lobby are fighting to keep his amendment from being stripped out during House-Senate conference committee negotiations. Read more<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=AuVBv3Kn6KsxDPRK6DVe…> -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: Thank you--Coal ash is out of the Trans Bill! But McKinley vows "We're not finished"
by Jim Sconyers 28 Jun '12

28 Jun '12

A win for the environment - especially in West Virginia, where coal ash is dumped heavily. Won this round. But no doubt we'll have to do it again when McKinley finds a new way to sneak his awful bill in. Eternal vigilance needed..... ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Lisa Evans <levans(a)earthjustice.org> Date: Thu, Jun 28, 2012 at 8:44 AM Subject: Thank you--Coal ash is out of the Trans Bill! But McKinley vows "We're not finished" To: COAL-COMBUSTION-WASTE(a)lists.sierraclub.org Friends-- Thank you sincerely to all those who helped keep coal ash off the transportation bill. This was an extremely tough fight and an exceedingly close battle. Your support by joining letters, making calls, sending emails and sharing our alerts with your lists clearly made the difference. We could not have won this without your support. The full text for the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2012 was posted this morning. The text can be found at http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20120625/CRPT-112hrpt-HR4348.pdf. Unfortunately, we know that the House Republicans (particularly Rep. McKinley) and a cabal of Senators, lead by Baucus, will take another run at this. Today's E&E article (below) ends with the quotation, "Mr. McKinley never stops," House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman John Mica said with a smile in a recent exchange with reporters. Walking back to the House floor yesterday evening, McKinley said, "We're not finished. I can say that. We're not finished." Our next step is accountability for the 13 senators who signed the letter in support of the coal ash provision and the members who voted for McKinley's Motion to Instruct last week. It will be essential to register disapproval and public disappointment with those positions. Thank you again for your help and support! Sincerely, Lisa Defeat in transportation conference won't end battle over EPA regulation Manuel Quinones, E&E reporter Published: Thursday, June 28, 2012 Promoters of a provision limiting U.S. EPA regulation of coal ash kept the issue alive in the transportation bill negotiations until the eleventh hour, but they fell short in the face of a counterattack by environmentalists. "I'm very disappointed," Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.), author of the House coal ash bill, said in an interview yesterday evening. "They're saying they used it to trade to get other expedited things on transportation, which would help." McKinley's bill would prohibit EPA from treating coal ash as hazardous. He is vowing to look for other vehicles for its passage. He smiled when asked if it could become a rider on the Interior and Environment spending bill. "We have to educate people that this is a solution," McKinley said. "It's not ideologically driven." Supporters of McKinley's H.R. 2273, which passed in the House last year with bipartisan support, call it a compromise that creates minimum national standards for disposal of the power plant waste while protecting the ash recycling industry from the stigma of a hazardous designation. "Regulatory uncertainty is damaging coal ash recycling today, and we're hopeful that Congress will act quickly to find another path to enact this substantive, bipartisan legislation," said John Ward, head of the industry group Citizens for Recycling First. Environmentalists call the recycling argument a red herring. They say electric utilities do not want to bear the cost of properly disposing of the material, including phasing out all wet dumps. As lawmakers and staff were finalizing transportation negotiations, Earthjustice and the Environmental Integrity Project released a new tally of coal ash waste sites obtained from EPA through a Freedom of Information Act request. "The public health threat from toxic coal ash continues to grow," Earthjustice attorney Lisa Evans said. "The data today reveal that coal ash is being disposed in hundreds of units that are not fit to contain hazardous chemicals. "Congressional attempts to cater to the polluters and deny the EPA the authority to protect millions of Americans living near these sites are dangerous and misguided," she added about the transportation bill negotiations. The groups said there are more than 1,100 coal ash ponds, 451 more than previously known. Almost half of those dumps lack liners that would keep toxins from leaching into groundwater. The groups also reported at least 393 active, planned or retired ash landfills. Many of those also lack liners, they said. "Unlined ponds and landfills leach the toxic pollutants in coal ash, including known carcinogens like arsenic, into drinking water supplies and waterways, placing communities and the environment at risk," said Lisa Widawsky Hallowell, an attorney for the Environmental Integrity Project. Earlier this month, the American Coal Ash Association released a report saying that coal ash is often not more dangerous than soil. As EPA delays finalizing its regulations, McKinley said, his legislation provided a framework for regulation. "If people think they've had problems with water quality, they're going to continue with water quality [problems]," McKinley said. "This amendment was intended to give them a pathway forward. So we're back to where we were." Prospects of the Senate moving forward with its version of McKinley's bill, S. 1751, are uncertain. While the measure enjoys bipartisan support in that chamber, a Senate co-sponsor, Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), has expressed concerns about the language. "Now I see him changing his direction," McKinley said. "Maybe he's lost his willingness to work with us." Kirk Benson, CEO of ash recycling firm Headwaters Inc., which lobbied hard for inclusion of the coal ash measure in the transportation bill, said, "We will continue to seek other opportunities to pass this vital provision." There is also a court fight over coal ash. Environmentalists sued EPA in April to press the agency into releasing new standards. U.S. District Court Judge Reggie Walton for the District of Columbia recently consolidated that case with complaints by Headwaters and other recyclers. The Utility Solid Waste Activities Group and the National Mining Association, both major players in the debate, have won the right to intervene in the litigation. Industry groups, however, are hoping Congress puts an end to the debate once and for all. "Mr. McKinley never stops," House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman John Mica said with a smile in a recent exchange with reporters. Walking back to the House floor yesterday evening, McKinley said, "We're not finished. I can say that. We're not finished." wiBut , my sincere thanks to all of you who worked with us to remove the dangerous provision from the transportation bill. Lisa Evans Senior Administrative Counsel Earthjustice 21 Ocean Ave. Marblehead, MA 01945 T: (781) 631-4119 F: (212) 918-1556 www.earthjustice.org *please consider the environment before printing The information contained in this email message may be privileged, confidential and protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, any dissemination, distribution or copying is strictly prohibited. If you think that you have received this email message in error, please notify the sender by reply email and delete the message and any attachments. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the COAL-COMBUSTION-WASTE list, send any message to: COAL-COMBUSTION-WASTE-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/ -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: WVNS story: "Coal Bust" Projected for Southern WV
by Paul Wilson 28 Jun '12

28 Jun '12

fyi, paul pls spread this around... ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Public News Service <wvns(a)newsservice.org> Date: Wed, Jun 27, 2012 at 4:07 AM Subject: WVNS story: "Coal Bust" Projected for Southern WV To: PaulWilson <pjgrunt(a)gmail.com> "Coal Bust" Projected for Southern WV Dan Heyman, Public News Service-WV http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27169-1 Join the discussion: facebook.com/PublicNewsService<http://www.facebook.com/PublicNewsService> Twitter: @pns_news <http://twitter.com/#!/pns_news> @pns_WV<http://twitter.com/#!/pns_WV> Google+: plus.to/publicnewsservice <http://plus.google.com/106260479325451709866> (06/27/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Federal figures forecast a decline in the production of West Virginia coal headed to power plants - a decline expected to hit the state's southern counties especially hard. The U.S. Department of Energy predicts much less West Virginia coal will be burned to make electricity during the next decade, according to Ted Boettner, executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. He says that's going to hit some parts of the state harder than others. "Beginning to see a huge bust in coal production in southern West Virginia, which could see production cut by two-thirds over the next 10 years." Boettner says the state's leadership needs to face reality - and that southern West Virginia particularly must do more to diversify. "No matter what your views are on what's happening, today the reality is that we've got to start making plans for how West Virginia's going to create jobs and build a strong economy for our children and grandchildren." The number of mining jobs actually has increased some during the past few years. Boettner says the next decade's employment picture is complicated, as some mines are likely to continue to hire. "In the northern part of West Virginia, we're actually going to see a slight increase in coal production. That's the same area where we're seeing a boom in natural gas. So, we're really seeing two states, unfolding in different ways." He believes West Virginia should start putting money aside in a mineral trust fund to prepare for the future. "Local and state economies cannot rely indefinitely on finite natural resources for jobs and tax revenues. That's why it's so important for the state to consider creating a permanent trust fund." The coal industry has sharply attacked the Environmental Protection Agency for toughening air pollution rules. But Boettner says much of the expected decline will be the result of competition from cheap natural gas and the fact that the coal that's easiest to get has been mined out. More information is online at blog.wvpolicy.org<http://blog.wvpolicy.org/2012/06/25/-energy-projections-show-decline-in-sou…> . Click here to view this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories: http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27169-1<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/27169-1> --- To be removed from this list please send an e-mail to remove(a)publicnewsservice.org <remove(a)publicnewsservice.org?subject=remove>and put the word "remove" in the subject line. -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha "In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous" ~ Aristotle

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Fwd: DC Court Upholds EPA Greenhouse Gas Standard
by James Kotcon 26 Jun '12

26 Jun '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <verena_owen(a)prodigy.net> Date: Tue, Jun 26, 2012 at 12:37 PM Subject: DC Court EPA Greenhouse Gas Standard To: COAL-CAMPAIGN-ALERTS(a)lists.sierraclub.org View as web page ( http://action.sierraclub.org/site/R?i=hBvBZsZH4Y_z0kGkQcpSww )Sent to . Not you? Sign up here ( http://action.sierraclub.org/site/R?i=78KEa0_jNe9keXIMbnvN9Q ). ( http://action.sierraclub.org/site/R?i=4qh1-gCczhIlVMNDhkO61Q ) ( http://action.sierraclub.org/site/R?i=nKf343Pl7CL1TaYfHp6WaA ) ( http://action.sierraclub.org/site/R?i=NvdKkBbiqFN2I9tpCmAQvw ) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 6/26/2012 Contact: Eitan Bencuya: 202-495-3047 ( tel:202-495-3047 ), eitan.bencuya(a)sierraclub.org D.C. Court of Appeals Upholds Environmental Protection Agency Greenhouse Gas Standards WASHINGTON D.C. -- Today, in a sweeping victory for public health and clean air, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued decisions in four challenges to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) historic climate and clean air protections. Major industrial polluters joined with states like Texas to challenge these safeguards, which will protect Americans’ health, improve vehicle efficiency, and reduce greenhouse gas pollution. The Sierra Club rallied tens of thousands of people across the country to support the standards, and the Sierra Club legal team joined our allies in a landmark legal defense of the protections, when they were challenged. The four rules upheld today were:The Climate Pollution Endangerment Finding, in which, after an extensive review of scientific research and peer-reviewed studies, the EPA found that six greenhouse gasses endanger human health and welfare. The Clean Car Standards, in which the EPA established cost-saving fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions standards for passenger cars and light trucks sold from 2012-2016. These safeguards will save consumers an estimated $3,000 at the pump over the life of the vehicle, reduce reliance on foreign oil by 1.8 billion barrels over the life of the vehicle, and will reduce greenhouse gas pollution by 960 million tons. The standards are supported by U.S. automakers and the United Auto Workers union, among others, and the automakers and a dozen states intervened in defense of the standards. The Timing and Tailoring Rules, in which the EPA phased in carbon pollution permits for the biggest industrial pollution sources, while protecting small businesses. The Court determined that none of the challengers were injured by these regulatory relief decisions. In response, Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club issued the following statement: “Today’s decision is a huge victory for American families and everyone concerned about protecting the air we breathe and the health of our children. The role of the Clean Air Act in protecting our families from dangerous carbon pollution and climate disruption should never have been in doubt, and this decision is a big step forward in putting the well-being of Americans before the boundless profits of big polluters. “Carbon pollution is dangerous to our planet and our health. The Environmental Protection Agency has the right and the duty to keep our communities healthy and now the path is clear for them to curb this dangerous pollution, which threatens our families and planet. We applaud the court’s decision and stand with the EPA as they continue to fight for the health of American families.” ### - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the COAL-CAMPAIGN-ALERTS list, send any message to: COAL-CAMPAIGN-ALERTS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp

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Fwd: URGENT: Coal ash rule in trouble - Please call Senator Rockefeller and urge him NOT to negotiate your health away
by Jim Sconyers 25 Jun '12

25 Jun '12

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Lisa Graves-Marcucci <lgmarcucci(a)environmentalintegrity.org> Date: Mon, Jun 25, 2012 at 9:20 AM Subject: URGENT: Coal ash rule in trouble - Please call Senator Rockefeller and urge him NOT to negotiate your health away To: Curtis Havens <curt1968(a)comcast.net>, Sharon Fineman < rfineman(a)comcast.net>, steve rhodes <slrhodes24(a)gmail.com>, Carrie Bodnar < albrightbodnar(a)gmail.com>, D H <speedydeedy10(a)yahoo.com>, Petra&John Wood < pbjmwood(a)gmail.com>, Jim Sconyers <jimscon(a)gmail.com>, James Kotcon < jkotcon(a)wvu.edu>, "Jarrett F. Jamison III" <jarrett425(a)aol.com>, Duane Nichols <duane330(a)aol.com>, "<gwen jones" <gwen.jones1(a)gmail.com>, Cindy Rank <clrank2(a)gmail.com> Cc: Lisa Evans <levans(a)earthjustice.org>, Emily Enderle < eenderle(a)earthjustice.org> *Apologies for duplication, but this is an urgent request for all our WV friends *-- see message below from Lisa Evans, Earthjustice. The Transportation Bill is in the final steps of negotiations and we are hearing the coal ash rules could be used to negotiated a final deal between the Senate and the House. *Senator Rockefeller is a key vote. Please call his office today and urge the Senator to stand strong - tell him please DO NOT negotiate your health away. Jobs are crucial, but so are health protections from toxic coal ash.* Lisa has outlined some messaging below -- please review and make this important call today -- and urge others to do the same. Many thanks for your help, LGM *Message from Lisa Evans:* Dear Friends in West Virginia: Once again, we are hearing that coal ash is in trouble and that a deal may be reached to include the coal ash provision on the transportation bill. As you know, Senator Rockefeller is on the conference committee for the transportation bill. While he has expressed interest in keeping coal ash off the bill, we must ensure that he stays strong. Thus we are asking for your immediate help to generate as many emails and calls as we can to his office to urge the Senator to keep coal ash off the final bill. We don’t have much time, because a bill must be passed by June 30. Below is the contact information for the Senator’s transportation staffer. Also included is a “script” that you can use in a call or email. *However, all you need to convey is the simple request to keep the coal ash provision out of a transportation bill in order to keep Americans safe from toxic waste.* We must keep up the pressure. Please circulate widely to your allies in West Virginia. Thank you in advance for your efforts. SEN. ROCKEFELLER’S CONTACT INFO: Transportation aide: Patrick Bond Email: patrick_bond(a)rockefeller.senate.gov Phone: 202-224-6472 ASK SENATOR ROCKEFELLER TO KEEP COAL ASH OFF THE TRANSPORTATION BILL: [sample script] Dear Patrick: I am contacting you to urge Senator Rockefeller to protect the health and environment of Americans and oppose the inclusion of a coal ash amendment in the final transportation package. As you know, this provision prevents the Environmental Protection Agency from enacting federal standards for the safe disposal of toxic coal ash. Safe disposal of this waste is a public health imperative. In nearly 200 cases in 37 states, coal ash has already poisoned water with arsenic, lead, selenium and other heavy metals. We ask the Senator to protect us from the health, environmental and ecological damage that this toxic waste causes. We urge the Senator not to side with polluters who seek to evade their responsibility to operate dumps safely and clean up the sites they have contaminated. Sincerely, [your name] -- * Lisa Graves Marcucci Environmental Integrity Project PA Coordinator, Community Outreach lgmarcucci(a)environmentalintegrity.org 412-897-0569 (cell) * -- Jim Sconyers jimscon(a)gmail.com 304.698.9628 Remember, Mother Nature bats last.

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Gazette "poll" on Rocky's remarks about coal
by Frank Young 24 Jun '12

24 Jun '12

http://www.wvgazette.com/ New poll on Gazette front page: Do you agree with Sen. Jay Rockefeller's stance regarding the coal industry and its future in West Virginia? The "nos" are ahead at the moment- 51 to 49 percent. The pol is on the left, scroll down-pas the twitter and facebook feeds and they poll is above the blogs-links

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Fwd: Cheap Coal Is Dead. Long Live Renewables
by James Kotcon 23 Jun '12

23 Jun '12

Open this one and click to read the whole op/ed by Carl Pope. If that line about India is correct, and if Indonesia is banning coal exports, that is a game changer. JBK

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