UPDATE: With the passage of the stimulus bill through the Senate, now the joint conference committee will have to iron out the differences between the House and Senate bills. This is the last chance for Congress to strip this out of the bill. Does your Congressman know how you feel about nuclear pork?
Environmentalists are screaming but it doesn’t seem like anyone’s listening. So many articles are debating $50 million for this or that in the economic stimulus bill, but almost all of them seem to be ignoring the huge $50 BILLION slab of glowing pork, in the form of loan guarantees, for the nuclear industry slipped into the stimulus bill last Tuesday by Sen. Robert Bennett (R-Utah).
Sen. Bennett (R- UT) and Fictional Supervillain / Nuclear Power enthusiast C. Montgomery Burns
(A Washington Post article yesterday has some interesting background information. What they left out is why Bennett would be supporting nuclear pork. Anyone want to guess?)
Said Friends of the Earth President Brent Blackwelder in a Press Release last Wednesday,
Senators are supposed to be fixing the economy but instead they’re offering the nuclear industry a $50 billion gift that will create virtually no near-term jobs. It’s unconscionable. Lobbyists are probably popping champagne corks as we speak.
With a long licensing and regulatory process, nuclear reactors are simply not shovel-ready.
Stressed Michael Mariotte, executive director of Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS), in a January 30th Press Release,
This is nothing more than a pre-emptive bailout of the nuclear power industry. It would have no stimulative effect on the economy and would create no new jobs, since no reactors will be licensed or can even be started in the two-year period the bill addresses.
Even if this were not the case, the “Nuclear Energy Institute-infamous for overstating nuclear power’s alleged benefits-acknowledges it costs about $1.5 million per job created by nuclear power.” Continue Reading »
Posted in Nuclear | Tagged bailout, brent blackwelder, Congress, Department of Energy, economic stimulus bill, federal financing bank, friends of the eart, michael mariotte, nuclear information and resource service, Nuclear Pork, Nuclear Power, nuclear reactors, physicians for social responsibility, robert bennett, stimulus bill, Texas |
A week and a half ago I sat in on the first Carbon Management Caucus meeting of the 81st Legislature and listened to a professor from Penn State tell legislators, their staffers, and a few intrepid members of the general public that “we need coal, coal isn’t going anywhere, in China they’re using tons and tons of coal and opening a new plant every week, why should we drop coal if China isn’t, coal coal coal” … you get the picture. I paraphrase, of course. But essentially, a new twist on the China cop-out.
Yes, China uses lots of coal. LOTS. And China’s strategic decision to go crazy on coal plants has done much for rural electrification and providing electricity to populations that have never had it before. But China’s commitment to coal is also slowly killing its people, and they’re aware of it.
Reports Grist,
Every 30 seconds a baby is born with physical defects in China, partly due to the country’s deteriorating environment, state media said, citing a senior family planning official.
The figure, reported by the China Daily in its weekend edition, adds up to almost 1.1 million in a year, or about seven percent of all births in the world’s most populous nation.
Let me add emphasis to the fact that this information was coming from China’s state media (let me repeat, China’s STATE MEDIA, as in, the official government-sanctioned voice approved by the ruling commmunist party). I find this particularly shocking because it is very likely that, from such a highly regulated source, even this jaw-dropping figure is under-reported.
The article continues,
North China’s coal-rich Shanxi province, a major source of toxic emissions from large-scale chemical industries, has recorded the highest rate of birth defects, the China Daily said in its weekend edition.
“The problem of birth defects is related to environmental pollution, especially in eight main coal zones,” said An Huanxiao, the director of Shanxi provincial family planning agency, according to the paper.
Pan Jianping, a professor of the Women and Child Health Research Office under Xi’an Jiaotong University, warned that the increasing rate of birth defects among Chinese infants would soon become a social problem.
So there you go. Let’s quit coal — do it for the babies.
Posted in Coal | Tagged 81st legislature, birth defects, carbon caucus, carbon management caucus, China, china daily, Coal, coal plant, environmental pollution, grist, penn state, shanxi, Texas |
Throughout the global warming debate, I have often heard an argument I like to call “the China cop-out.”
It goes somewhere along the lines of, “Developing nations like China and India are growing so quickly, adding so many new coal-fired power plants, and emitting so much carbon dioxide that it isn’t worth it for the US to take action on climate change until they are on board as well.”
To which my response has always been, “Since when does America look to China to lead?”
Recent news shows that if America is willing to rise to the challenge of mitigating climate change impacts and become a leader once again, other nations will follow. To prove my point, this just in: Japan jumps on the green stimulus bandwagon.
Just as President Obama has been shepherding the stimulus package, loaded up with green goodies, through the House and Senate, Prime Minister Taro Aso of Japan has announced his intention to draft a “Green New Deal” to counter both climate change and the global economic downturn.
Grist reports that Aso will “order a stimulus package focusing on slashing greenhouse gases at a meeting of his global warming advisory panel Wednesday.” At this meeting his government will also ” present various plans to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 15 percent from 1990 levels by the year 2020.”
If America commits to lead by example, who knows how many other leaders we may be able to influence?
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged Barack Obama, Carbon Dioxide, China, climate change, developing nations, emissions, Global Warming, green new deal, grist, India, japan, leadership, prime minister, stimulus package, taro aso, Texas |
Remember last week, when solar power was ALL OVER THE NEWS? Check out this video of News 8 Austin’s news story from Monday (and look for Smitty, our director, proclaiming that “Now is the time to Wildcat the Sun!”):
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcDHE-PS594&feature=channel_page]
Also, check out KXAN’s news coverage. The KXAN slant on the story was pretty interesting: they focused on how jobs lost in the semiconductor industry could be replaced by new solar manufacturing jobs.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uojCK7PyIv8&feature=channel_page]
Austin has long been a hub of the semiconductor industry because a generation ago, state legislators passed a package of incentives to lure silicon chip manufacturers to Texas. This created a high tech boom that has enriched Texans for over 20 years. But now thousands of those jobs are disappearing. The technologies involved to manufacture semiconductor chips and solar installations are very close, and business leaders believe that the semiconductor industry can actually be repurposed to produce solar. At the very least, the skill sets involved in one translate seamlessly into the other, so that individuals who lost semiconductor jobs are the perfect candidates for new solar jobs.
And in the Austin-American Statesman today, it turns out there really is credence to what we’ve been saying! It never hurts to have backup. A new solar energy start-up is moving to Austin, precisely because we’ve got all the ideal ingredients to be a solar power hub.
Said SmartSpark chief executive Ron Van Dell (former leader of semiconductor design company Legerity Inc. and chief executive of Primarion Corp., a mixed-signal semiconductor company),
[In Austin] You’ve got an excellent talent pool, a growing base of renewable energy companies and a local ecosystem that’s very supportive of high-tech startups.
…The skills mix in power electronics is very, very good in Austin, whether they’re technical people or marketing people.
…Clean energy is a sector that dovetails with the semiconductor industry, and we’ve got a lot of talented people with skills that are so well-suited for the next generation of technology innovation.
Public Citizen’s bet is that if the Texas Legislature can pass the right policies this session, we can attract even more solar manufacturing and installation companies like SmartSpark. We don’t want to make the same mistake we did with wind, where we created a huge renewable energy boom and created thousands of installation jobs (yay!), but moved too slowly and cautiously to attract the big manufacturing companies (boo). For more information on some of the solar legislation introduced this session, check out last week’s post “Could this be Texas’ Solar Session?”
Posted in Renewables | Tagged Austin, Austin American-Statesman, green jobs, kxan, manufacturing jobs, news 8, semiconductor industry, smartspark, solar, solar energy startup, solar power, Texas, wildcatting the sun |
Hey Look! A press release from SEED Coalition and Public Citizen:
60 Day Clock For Nuclear Opponents Starts Ticking;
Luminant Moves Forward Toward Expansion of Comanche Peak Nuclear Plant
Reactor Design Not Ready for Primetime
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission posted notice today on the federal register of Luminant’s application to build two reactors at the Comanche Peak nuclear plant site, southwest of Fort Worth. Citizens now have only 60 days to prepare and present their legal case in opposition.
The reactor design (US-APWR) has not been approved by the NRC and it has never been built anywhere in the world. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. submitted the US-Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor (US-APWR) for design certification on December 31, 2007, but the review will take the NRC at least until 2011 to complete.
“This fast-tracked combined construction and operating license process was rationalized based on the assumption that new reactors would only use pre-certified designs, but the Comanche Peak reactor design is not approved yet. Not only does this put a huge burden on the public to quickly learn what’s happening and become involved within only 60 days, but it also puts pressure on the NRC to rubberstamp designs that should have extra scrutiny,” said Smith.
“The streamlined process is designed to cut citizens out and limit public involvement in the licensing of two reactors that could cost $22 billion before cost overruns,” said Karen Hadden, executive director of the Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (SEED) Coalition. “It makes the fast-tracking of TXU’s coal plants in Texas look slow.”
Comanche Peak Unit One ran ten times over budget and was years late coming online. An untested reactor design increases the likelihood of similar problems occurring again and soaring rate hikes that would result.
“If safety was a real concern, the three processes all occurring simultaneously would be take one at a time. This rush increases risks of safety oversight and problems from faulty design and construction” said Hadden. “Reactor designs should be analyzed first, and if and when the NRC deems them adequate, a construction license application should be allowed. If the plant has no major construction flaws after completion, then the operating license should be decided.” Continue Reading »
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged bonnie raitt, comanche peak nuclear plant, comanche peak unit one, graham nash, Karen Hadden, Loan Guarantees, Luminant, Mitasubishi, NRC, nrc federal register, Nuclear, nuclear informationa nd resource service, Nuclear Power, nuclear regulatory comissision, paul winter, Public Citizen, rate hikes, reactor design, SEED Coalition, stimulus bill, Texas, Tom "Smitty" Smith, US-APWR |
Originally posted by Brad Johnson at the Wonk Room. Copied here whole sale:
The coal industry has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to get out the message of “clean coal,” through front groups like the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, campaign contributions, and an army of lobbyists. But the devastating December 22, 2008 coal ash slurry spill of the Kingston Fossil Plant in rural Tennessee broke through the cacophony of clean coal carolers. This ThinkProgress Wonk Room video is a stark reminder that in reality, coal isn’t clean.
Watch it:[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4-HQrunDaE]
This week alone, the news of progress away from dirty coal has reached a fever pitch:
Monday: A new report shows high levels of arsenic and other toxins in rivers downstream of the Kingston coal ash spill. “TVA says no drinking water standards were violated, but tests done by the nonpartisan, nonprofit group Environmental Integrity Project say otherwise.”
A Montana electric utility decided to “scrap its plans for a $900 million coal-fired power plant east of Great Falls and turn instead to renewable energy to meet the needs of its 65,000 Montana customers.”
Tuesday: In Pettus, West Virginia, five Coal River Mountain activists were arrested and charged with trespassing after locking themselves to a bulldozer and a backhoe at a Massey Energy mountaintop-removal mine site — that could instead be a wind farm.
250 people in the towns of Prenter and Seth, West Virginia “with orange and black water in their taps, tubs and toilets are suing eight coal companies they believe poisoned their wells by pumping mine wastes into former underground mines.”
Saying, “Coal makes no sense in this day and age,” Georgia Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver (D) introduced legislation to “limit then ban” coal from mountain-top removal and “place a moratorium on new coal-plant construction in the state.”
In her State of the State address, Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) called for “a near-moratorium on new coal-fired power plants and a major reduction in reliance on coal for electricity generation over the next decade.”
Green Inc.’s Tom Zeller Jr. notes, “The coal industry — which suffers from an image problem to begin with — has had a particularly rough few days.”
Posted in Coal | Tagged american coalition for clean coal electricity, brad johnson, clean coal, coal industry, Texas, wonk room |
At last! I can fill you in on Monday’s fantastic solar press conference at the capitol!
Senator Rodney Ellis and Public Citizen Director Tom "Smitty" Smith
Public Citizen, Environment Texas and the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club hosted a statewide round of press conferences this week to roll out our solar report, Texas Solar Roadmap — which of course can be downloaded at www.cleanenergyfortexas.org. Our report highlights how a robust solar program would help put Texans back to work, reduce peak energy prices, curb climate change, improve air quality, and position the state as a world leader for solar production. The full report is a pretty good read, but if you’re short on time I suggest the condensed version, Wildcatting the Sun.
Our press conference in Austin was particularly exciting because we were in such great company. Senators Troy Fraser, Leticia Van de Putte, Kirk Watson, Rodney Ellis, and Representatives Mark Strama and Rafael Anchia all appeared and championed the solar bills they have introduced thus far.
Rafael Anchia’s HB 278 and Florence Shapiro’s SB 427 would require the state’s electric utilities to support the development of 2000 megawatts of solar and other on-site renewable technologies by offering direct incentives to consumers and businesses.
This is right in line with Public Citizen’s distributed solar goal, outlined in both Wildcatting the Sun and Texas Solar Roadmap . According to our report , such a standard could lead to installations on as many as 500,000 roofs in Texas by 2020 at a cost of about 98 cents per month per Texan (Polls have shown that 81% of Texas voters are willing to pay up to a dollar a month to encourage solar power. What about you?). This investment would create an estimated 22,000 jobs and reduce emissions of carbon dioxide emissions by 29 million tons, the equivalent of taking 4.3 million cars off the road for a year.
Anchia stressed that this should be Texas’ solar session because it would answer two of our major challenges: air quality, and global warming.
Senator Fraser was the first legislator to speak, proclaiming that this would be Texas’ solar session. Chairman of the Business and Commerce Committee, Fraser is well positioned to be an effective solar champion. As such, Fraser was particularly proud to forecast a sunny session for solar power. He joked that there are so many solar bills being filed this session, they are going to have to lay them all out at once and have a “solar day” where they can pick out the best bills and key components of each (this is the second time I’ve heard him say this though, so he may be serious. If so, you better bet I’ll be there with bells on!)
Fraser also said that he found the idea enumerated in Kirk Watson’s bills — that Texas was very successful in promoting wind power but missed out on manufacturing opportunities — particularly in need of our attention.
Fraser’s big solar bill is SB 545, which
would create a five-year program for distributed solar generation incentives offered through the state’s transmission and distribution utilities. The incentive program would be funded by a nominal monthly fee on residential, commercial and industrial customers.
Check out his press release from last week, when that bill was filed, for more information. Or if you’re feeling really geeky, read the bill. Watson has also filed SB 546, relating to the state goal for energy efficiency. This bill sets stepped goals for how much of the state’s growth in energy efficiency will be met by efficiency, culminating in a goal of getting 50% load growth through efficiency by 2015.
Senator Van de Putte was then called up to champion CPS Energy’s new distributed energy commitment and her own solar in schools bill, SB 598. This would set up a pilot loan program to retrofit public schools with PV panels and other efficiency measures. Solar on schools is a pretty smart idea, because during summer months when the lights are off and their electricity use dips way down, they could make a lot of money pumping of energy back into the grid.
Senator Watson, a member of the Business and C0mmerce Committee and my Very Own senator, has three solar bills introduced so far. Continue Reading »
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged Air Quality, andrew mccalla, Austin, business and commerce, Carbon Dioxide, climate change, CPS Energy, distributed solar, eliot shapiro, emerging technology fund, energy conservation office, Energy Efficiency, environment texas, green jobs, greenhouse gas, hb 516, jose beceiro, kirk watson, leticia van de putte, made in texas, mark strama, meridian energy systems, peak energy prices, peak power, Public Citizen, rafael anchia, renewable energy, Rodney Ellis, sb 435, sb 541, sb 542, sb 545, sb 546, sb 598, sb 603, senator rodney ellis, Sierra Club, solar legislation, solar power, Texas, texas center for sustainable business, texas solar roadmap, troy fraser, tx, wildcatting the sun |
February 4, 2009 by Citizen Carol
The promise by Obama to overturn Bush administration policies on energy is already being fulfilled. Today the Obama administration said it will cancel oil drilling leases on more than 100,000 acres in Utah and return $6 million in bids including those of activist Tim DeChristopher, who added an interesting twist to the Bush administration’s rush to sell oil and gas leases during their last weeks in office.
In December DeChristopher bid on and won several of these leases in protest, even though he didn’t have the money to pay for them. By early January he had raised $45,000 from supporters and promised if he didn’t have to use the money he would contact donors to determine what do do with the cash.
In the meantime, an alliance of conservation groups filed a lawsuit to try to stop the leasing, citing concerns it would pollute the air in the protected areas. They were granted a temporary restraining order preventing the Bureau of Land Management from moving forward with the leases.
These delaying tactics have proved to be most effective in light of this announcement.
So thank you Tim DeChristopher, for your unorthadox approach to good stewardship of some of our nation’s most precious landscapes in Utah. It took a lot of chutzpah to do what you did in the face of an administration whose motto has long been (as Sarah Palin puts it) “DRILL-BABY-DRILL” regardless of the consequences to environmentally sensitive areas.
And thank you Robin Cooley, the Earthjustice attorney who represented the conservation groups, for convincing the court that the one and a half hours of use we would get from the oil produced on these lands should be weighed more carefully against the impacts on our national parks and protected areas.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bureau of Land Management, bush administration, drill baby dirll, earthjustice, obama, Oil and Gas Leases, robin cooley, sarah palin, Texas, tim dechris, Tim DeChristopher, utah |
I’m embarrassed.
Greg Harman at the San Antonio Current beat me to covering my own press conference. And he did a way better job than I ever could have done.
The only explanation is that Greg Harman is Superman. Or, that I am one very busy media coordinator who needs to re-align her priorities (from now on, the internet wins!).
I’m so ashamed, it doesn’t even seem worth it to write anything myself.
Save me the effort, and go to his post at the San Antonio Current Queblog. Read about how within the span of two weeks, SA’s CPS Energy pledged to transition to a decentralized power model (ie, energy created on site rather than at a power plant). Learn how last Thursday, Mayor Hardberger unveiled his visionary Mission Verde Plan to make San Antonio a truly sustainable city. Proceed to Harman’s excitement over the sea change at the Legislature, such that fully 15 solar bills have been filed this session.
And then check out his fantastic video, photos, and audio clips. It almost feels like you were there! Watch our very own David Power, solar advocate, announce how the solar industry can provide Texas’ next big job boom! Smile as Bill Sinkin and his bow tie refer to solar energy as a full grown child no longer in need of coddling, but still looking for our support. And listen to County Commissioner Tommy Adkisson trumpet that Texas has reached a critical mass and perfect storm for extensive solar power in the state of Texas to finally become a reality.
Hey hey, looks like I can steal his video from youtube. I LOVE THE INTERNET.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDFfv9Scwfo]
You should still go to his post though, because it is wicked awesome and I can’t steal his audio clips. Or rather, don’t know how.
Also check out the San Antonio Express-New’s coverage: Nonprofits say boosting solar capability in Texas could create jobs. We don’t “say” so, we know so.
Ten “cool” points if you caught the Real Ultimate Power reference. And by cool, I mean totally sweet.
Check out our official press release after the jump. Continue Reading »
Posted in Energy, Renewables | Tagged bill sinkin, CPS Energy, david power, Greg Harman, mayor hardberger, mission verd, queblog, real ultimate power, San Antonio, san antonio current, san antonio express news, solar energy, solar power, superman, Texas, tommy adkisson |
We held a press conference yesterday in San Antonio at the Pearl Brewery, which is currently being renovated and, upon its completion, will have the largest solar array panel in the state of Texas. Installed by Austin’s own Meridian Solar, the new system is expected to generate 25% of the energy needs for the new building, which will hold condos, an Aveda hair salon, and an art gallery.
San Antonio is not the first to take on a solar power “experiment” — Houston turned a parking lot into an eco-park that has topped all of its park buildings with solar paneling, and is attempting pull all of its energy usage from solar panels.
With all the advancements of the solar industry, it is a wonder why everyone isn’t just as excited about all the possibilities solar energy systems can offer.
Our past concerns about the reliability of solar energy—“But what will we do if it’s raining?”—now seem archaic. Over the past decade leading companies have been making sweeping advancements, and now solar technology is more reliable, affordable, and efficient than ever.
What we have developed now is far from the sea of reflective solar panels in that unforgettable scene from Gattaca. New technology consists of a flexible sheet-like material that can simply be laid on top of already existing structures, such as the roofs of buildings. This particular type of solar technology is a branch of material called Photovoltaics (“PV”) that was actually first used to power satellites back in the 1950’s. The thin-film PV works the same way to convert energy derived from light into electricity, is only a few millionths of a meter thick, and now can be readily and easily installed onto almost any building.
A more familiar type of PV is silicon-based, which can also be made into flexible rolls that can top any surface. And as technology keeps getting better, the production costs keep on dropping. It is now even possible for solar conductors to be constructed directly into building materials, called Building Integrated Solar. Consider this: Thin-Film PV could cover all eastern and western facing windows, or on your car windshield, providing clean, beautiful energy with no visible interference.
In response to “rainy day concerns,” our new solar report, Texas Solar Roadmap, demonstrates that it isn’t as big of a concern as we think. Continue Reading »
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged aveda hair salon, concentrating solar power, discovery green, entech solar, gattaca, heliovolt, meridian solar, pearl brewery, photovoltaics, San Antonio, solar energy, solar panels, Texas, texas solar roadmap, thin film pv, wildcatting the sun |
We have known for a long time that CO2 emissions are absorbed by the ocean. This is actually a very, very good thing, or else we’d have warmed at least 5 or 6 times as much as we have.
The problem is basic chemistry. When you add CO2 to a water solution (or a salt water solution), you create carbonic acid. Though a weak acid, increased carbonic acid has already affected the ability of coral to reproduce and lowered the ocean’s pH by .1 points. Under a business as usual strategy, this could increase to .4 or .5. While this may not sound like much, that’s about the same as going from fresh water to the pH of soda. Anyone remember the elementary school science fair project where you dissolved a tooth or a penny in Coca-Cola?
And now scientists have found that increased acidity harms other forms of marine life, specifically, THE CLOWNFISH. A report from the National Academy of Sciences has shown that acid levels disrupt the clownfish’s olfactory sense (smell) which could leave them lost at sea. Nemo!! No!!!!
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged carbonic acid, chemistry, CO2 emissions, coca-cola, finding nemo, National Academy of Sciences, Nemo, ocean acidity, olfactory sense, Texas |
Texas faces the possibility of real reform on how we draw our districts next time around, hopefully preventing the repeat of the debacle from last time around when a partisan agenda prompted a walkout by members of the Legislature. So, while doing some research about redistricting reform this morning I stumbled upon a “gem” of a “video game.”
Get Your Gerrymander On!
In Redistricting: The Game, you’re taken through the pitfalls of partisan gerrymandering. You get to draw your own districts, put voters in districts based on whether they’re Republican, Democrat, White, Black, Hispanic, etc, bribe people– you know, just like the real process.
It’s not really that spectacular in terms of graphics, gameplay, etc, but it gives you a fair amount of idea what it would be like to have the power to draw the lines for your own purposes.
Play it online (no download required) at http://www.redistrictinggame.org/
Enjoy, and be sure to comment below on how you think redistricting should be approached.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged independent redistricting commission, redistricting, Texas, Tom Delay, World of Warcraft |
In the dark of the night on January 27, a hefty provision was snuck through the Senate Appropriations Committee. It would expand the current loan guarantee program by providing $50 billion in taxpayer backed loan guarantees for “eligible technologies”.
The handout is likely to be directed at new nuclear reactors and “clean coal”- technologies that undermine the spirit of a bill intended to stimulate a new green economy that boost “shovel-ready” projects and creates jobs within the next two years.
Please call you Senators and tell them to strip the Senate economic stimulus bill of subsidies intended to underwrite nuclear power and “clean coal.” Tell them to remove the $50 billion loan guarantee provision!
We don’t have much time – the Senate will start debating the economic stimulus today. You can find your member of the Senate here.
Please, call your Senators now and demand that unnecessary “pork” be pulled out of the bill. Then fill out this letter to let us know who you called and how it went.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged Economic Stimulus Package, Loan Guarantees, Nuclear Power, pork spending, senate appropriations committee, Texas |
This week the House passed the $819 billion stimulus package, and even more exciting is that over $100 billion of the package is allocated to green spending. Amazingly, the package passed without a single Republican vote. Only 11 Democrats voted against the bill, with a final vote of 244-188.
Here is a breakdown of the green spending measure as stated in stimulus package:
- $14.6 billion to fund the expansion of public transportation. This number is actually $3 billion more than initially agreed upon, thanks to the efforts of mass transit supporters during debate.
- $37.9 billion towards energy efficiency
- $27.8 billion for renewable energy
- $20 billion in renewable-energy and energy efficiency tax credits and other financial incentives, added by the Ways and Means Committee.
So far, it seems like the House has made significant headway to ensure that green energy and climate change are important issues this session.
But wait, let’s not get our hopes up too high quite yet…we still have the get the package through the Senate. Voting on a specific package should not begin until later next week, and there is some speculation that it might not look as great as the current package. So far, appropriation to mass transit is only up to $8.2 billion. The Republican no-show was certainly intended to make a statement. The New York Times reported Republican Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) to say that he hoped the zero-vote showing would pressure Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to make changes to the bill during negotiations between the House and Senate.
President Obama issued the following statement, touching on the expected dissidence between the House and the Senate:
The plan now moves to the Senate, and I hope that we can continue to strengthen this plan before it gets to my desk. But what we can’t do is drag our feet or allow the same partisan differences to get in our way. We must move swiftly and boldly to put Americans back to work, and that is exactly what this plan begins to do.
So far so good, Mr. President! I just hope that by “strengthen this plan” you mean to keep those green spending measures intact!
Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables | Tagged climate change, Energy Efficiency, green spending measures, house of representatives, mass transit, president obama, public transportation, renewable energy, republican minority whip eric cantor, senate, speaker nancy pelosi, stimulus package, Texas, ways and means committee |
The Texas Governor announced this week that he supports legislation for a $5,000 rebate for plug-in hybrids. As the Wall Street Journal reports, Perry is an outspoken critic of government environmental regulation, saying that the “increasingly activist EPA[‘s]” initiatives to stem greenhouse gas output are “absolutely disastrous” for the Texas economy. The WSJ says this initiative is to sidestep greater regulation from the DC mountaintop…he is throwing the liberals up there a bone so they will get off Texas’ case.
From the governors prepared statement:
Rather than wait for more mandates and punishments for environmental non-attainment, let’s continue encouraging innovation. I support giving Texans in the non-attainment areas of our state a $5,000 incentive towards a purchase of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles, using the funds Texans have already paid to reduce emissions, while providing a unique way to store wind energy.
This is an exciting development for us down here in Texas, long known for being a fossil fuel state. Combining this with the $7,500 tax incentive on the docket in DC for a total of $12,500, Texans might have a fighting chance at purchasing a Chevy Volt, expected to retail for around 40 grand.
Perry would probably never refer to himself as an environmentalist in the same vein as most of the environmental movement, but at least he recognizes change is coming. Moral motives aside, any move in the right direction is welcomed. Thanks, Gov.
Check out the WSJ article here.
Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Renewables | Tagged Air Quality, alternative fuels, clean air, environment, green, green rebate, hybrid, Plug ins, Renewables, Rick Perry, tax incentive, Texas |
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