MVCAC June 2018

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1 participants
5 discussions

Clean Air Council, Workshops in SW Penna.
by Duane Nichols via MVCAC 22 Jun '18

22 Jun '18

Donate Dear MonValley Clean Air Coalition, This summer Clean Air Council will host a series of workshops across the Southwest PA region to train community members on how to write letters to the editor regarding environmental issues. We encourage you to come out to a workshop near you and learn how to effectively voice your opinions through the media. This week's workshop will be held in Fox Chapel on Wednesday, June 27th from 6:30 - 8:00pm at Christ Church (630 Squaw Run Rd E, Pittsburgh PA 15238). If you are unable to attend this week's workshop, the times and locations of the remaining summer workshops are as follows: Wednesday, July 11th from 6:00 - 7:30pm at First Presbyterian Church, 252 College Ave, Beaver, PA 15009 Tuesday, July 17th from 6:00 - 7:30pm at the Citizens Library Central Library, 55 S College St, Washington, PA 15301 Wednesday, July 25th from 3:00 - 4:30pm at St. Andrew Lutheran Church, 987 Beaver Grade Rd, Coraopolis, PA 15108 Monday July 30th from 6:00 - 7:30pm at Mount Lebanon Public Library Central Library, 16 Castle Shannon Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15228 To attend this week's workshop or a future workshop, please call or email Dave Smith at 412-954-8494 or dsmith(a)cleanair.org. Sincerely, B. David Smith Southwest PA Outreach Coordinator Clean Air Council

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Pennsylvania, for first time, sets methane requirements on natural gas wells | StateImpact Pennsylvania
by Duane Nichols via MVCAC 19 Jun '18

19 Jun '18

Pennsylvania, for first time, sets methane requirements on natural gas wells | StateImpact Pennsylvania https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2018/06/07/pennsylvania-for-first-…

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Fwd: [App. Gas Working Grp.] Sign-On Against Petrochem Hub - Another Push
by Duane Nichols via MVCAC 14 Jun '18

14 Jun '18

It is proposed that the Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition sign on to the Letter protesting the Appalachian Storage Hub, the financing of which is not public information. Duane Nichols Please reply with questions or comments. P.S. This project was described a few days ago here: www.FrackCheckWV.net > From: <lara(a)appvoices.org> > Date: June 14, 2018 > To: Stop The Pipelines WVVANC > Subject: Fwd: [App. Gas Working Grp.] Sign-On Against Petrochem Hub - Another Push > Hi everyone. > Some of you may have seen this already but some of you may not. We would like to do another push to get sign-on to our letter of support against the Appalachian Petrochemical Hub. We would like to have folks sign-on no later than June 16th so the letter can be presented at an action in Pittsburgh on the 18th. We currently have 39 organizations/groups and almost 100 individuals. And please share in your networks and with anyone you might think is interested. > > Organizational sign-on form is here: https://goo.gl/forms/sGRpDbKpERGChRj92 > > If individuals would like to sign, that link is here: https://goo.gl/forms/P3KtSXBH6itrc5Zn1 > > Here is a blog about the call for sign-ons: https://ohvec.org/sign-on-ash/ > > Thanks everyone.

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WVU researcher receives NIH grant to explore effects of fracking on cardiovascular health | WVU Today | West Virginia University
by Duane Nichols via MVCAC 05 Jun '18

05 Jun '18

https://wvutoday.wvu.edu/stories/2018/06/05/wvu-researcher-receives-nih-gra… WVU researcher receives NIH grant to explore effects of fracking on cardiovascular health Press Release, WVU Today, June 05, 2018 Photo: Travis Knuckles, assistant professor in the WVU School of Public Health, works with undergraduate research assistants (L to R) Allison Tolbert, a public-health major, and Haley Twilley, a recent graduate of the public-health program. Knuckles is studying the effects of fracking emissions on cardiovascular function. One goal of his NIH-funded project is “to involve students—especially undergraduates—in research where they wouldn’t typically be included,” he said. Building and operating a hydraulic fracturing well site can emit airborne particles in multiple ways. But scientists still don’t fully understand how these particles impact human health. Travis Knuckles, assistant professor in the West Virginia University School of Public Health, has received $450,000 from the National Institutes of Health to investigate these questions. Hydraulic fracturing is a process in which oil and gas are extracted from rock by injecting mixtures of water, sand and chemicals underground. Over three years, Knuckles will explore how particulate matter in the air from fracking sites can make it harder for the body to control how much blood enters the capillaries, the narrowest blood vessels, and turn oxygen into ATP, a chemical that is a primary energy source for cells. The particulate matter at the center of Knuckles’ study is especially fine. Each particle has a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers. That’s smaller than a particle of talcum powder—even smaller than a red blood cell. Particles that small have been shown to cause cardiovascular disease, worsen its symptoms and make it more deadly. “We have a pretty good idea of what particulate matter does in general,” said Knuckles, who is part of WVU’s Department of Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences and the WVU Health Sciences Center Toxicology Working Group. “The issue is that we have not looked at particulate matter from these gas wells as a toxicant unto itself. How is that emission different from a typical emission near a roadway? Is it more toxic than ambient particles in a broad sense?” He and his research team will compare how airborne-particulate samples collected from the Marcellus Shale Energy and Environment Laboratory near Morgantown and from downtown Morgantown influence microvascular tissue. Using pre-clinical models, they will examine whether the very fine particles that fracking releases are more toxic than the particles normally found in urban air. They will also study how the fracking-related particles’ toxicity decreases as the wind blows them away from the well site. The team will pay special attention to whether the microvascular system can constrict or dilate properly when it’s exposed to very fine fracking-related particles. Knuckles predicts the particles will weaken dilation, cause inappropriately strong constrictions or both. “The other thing that could be happening is that whatever exposure is taking place creates a condition where the mitochondria of the heart have decreased functionality. They’re just not as good at converting oxygen into ATP,” he said. “This grant has offered us a great opportunity to look at the intersection of particle-exposure cardiac contractile function and bioenergetics,” said John Hollander, a member of the research team and exercise physiology professor in the WVU School of Medicine. Hollander’s lab will focus on the molecular-level changes that fracking-related emissions trigger, whereas the WVU lab led by Timothy Nurkiewicz, another team member, will concern itself with vascular-level toxicology. “This is a diverse team-science approach,” said Nurkiewicz, an associate chair of research and professor of physiology, pharmacology and neuroscience in the WVU School of Medicine. “Dr. Knuckles is taking a very important environmental challenge and using resources across the Health Sciences Center to assess what the health risks may be.” The data that the project generates could be fodder for a larger epidemiological study in the future—which, in turn, could guide legislation that deals with where and how fracking occurs. “What is the effect on physiology, and is that fact correlated pretty well in human data that come from these areas?” Knuckles asked. “I think we need science to inform policy in this case.” Research discussed in this publication is supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, divisions of the National Institutes of Health, under Award Number 1R15ES028005. -WVU-

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Tri State Letter on Fossil Fuels
by Duane Nichols via MVCAC 01 Jun '18

01 Jun '18

A Cleaner, Better Vision for the Tri-State Region Dear Governors Justice, Kasich & Wolf, On March 20, 2018, you made the unfortunate decision to continue a 2015 Agreement to Enhance Regional Cooperation and Job Growth Through the Continuing Development of Shale Gas in the Appalachian Basin (the “Gas Agreement”) through 2021. In three years, the Gas Agreement has done little to boost regional or local economies, and our states have already experienced multiple petrochemical “accidents” that have threatened public health and damaged public resources. For example, on March 16, just 4 days before you extended the Gas Agreement, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued its 40th Notice of Violation to the owners and operators of the Sunoco Mariner pipeline for releasing drilling fluids into a stream. We, the undersigned organizations, represent tens of thousands of residents in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia who call upon you, our Governors to rescind this Agreement and uphold your sworn duties to safeguard the people, our health, and our environment. The revitalization of our region is not beholden to the fading fossils of yesteryear; it depends on a continued pivot to 21st century industries such as clean energy and sustainable agriculture. The Gas Agreement is focused on promoting the development and use of shale gas and fracked gas liquids in the Tri-State Region. However, the development and use of gas and other nonrenewable resources have very real, negative impacts on our air, our water, and human life/the health of our people. It is impossible to develop fracked gas and fracked gas liquids in an environmentally sound manner. And shale gas is not the answer to our economic challenges. The production of Appalachian shale gas and fracked gas liquids will not offer significant economic opportunities for the people of the Tri-States, nor will it provide domestic security for the United States. We should keep it in the ground. We need a new agreement that looks to capitalize on the growing green economy. Our coalition has resolved to work with the states to develop a regional strategy for sustainable economic development and job creation in the region. Our states can cooperate to support a sustainable economy by (1) Sharing information; (2) Organizing seminars, workshops, and training; (3) Collaborating on policies to promote environmental health and economic growth; and (4) Promoting clean energy and energy efficiency, ecotourism and outdoor recreation, recycling and other sustainability practices. Let’s work together for the betterment of all. The Gas Agreement is a bad deal for the people of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Please do the right thing, rescind this dirty compact, and give our region a chance to build the clean and thriving future that we deserve. Thank you for listening to your constituents. We look forward to a productive conversation. Sincerely, Center for Coalfield Justice Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition Sierra Club Ohio Chapter Sierra Club West Virginia Chapter Cheryl Johncox Beyond Dirty Fuels Organizer Sierra Club (740)-360-0420 Pledge to Bank Fossil Free: Sc.org/Divest Represented by the Progressive Workers' Union There is no environmental justice without social justice.

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MVCAC June 2018