October 8, 2010 by Citizen Carol
TCEQ is broken. It’s not working in the public’s interest, and there are direct costs that all of us in the state of Texas are paying as a result. But there is an opportunity for us to fix some of the problems with this broken state agency by participating in the Texas Sunset process.
The Alliance for a Clean Texas kicked off a series of town hall meetings across the state on the sunset review of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on September 15 th. Last night in Corpus Christi, residents criticized the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, saying it holds too much power and ignores public concerns in the interest of business. Continue Reading »
Posted in Air Quality, Global Warming, Sunset, TCEQ | Tagged Air Quality, Clean Energy, coal plant, Environmental Protection Agency, Global Warming, public citizen texas, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality |
October 8, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Tyson Slocum
The following is a statement by Tyson Slocum, Director of Public Citizen’s Energy Program
As the White House finally rights a wrong and installs solar panels to heat and energize the East Wing, the Obama administration will have to determine if the installation is merely a symbolic gesture or a signal of robust leadership on climate and energy policy. Continue Reading »
Posted in solar | Tagged obama, public citizen texas, renewable energy, solar, Texas, tyson slocum |
October 7, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Thall shalt not take
As you may have read in an earlier blog, Texas landowners who live in the path of the proposed Keystone Pipeline route may be dealing with the threat of eminent domain to force them into a contract. If the landowner doesn’t come to an agreement with the entity intent on “taking” their land, then they might be put in the position of hiring an attorney to fight condemnation proceedings against their property in court. If you think you might be facing such a fight, we thought we’d post what we know about this process. Continue Reading »
Posted in Air Quality, Tarsands | Tagged Condemnation, Eminent Domain, keystone, Oil sands, Takings, tarsands, Texas |
October 6, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Rick Perry’s latest campaign cash report shows Harold Simmons has just given Perry another $250,000 at the same time that he’s seeking permission to expand his Andrews County radioactive waste dump so 36 other states can dump their “low-level” radioactive waste right here in Texas. This brings Simmons’ contributions to Perry up to almost $900,000.
Simmons’ company (WCS or Waste Control Specialists) is currently waiting for a decision from the Texas Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission (TLLRWDCC, even their acronym is a mouthful) as to whether or not they can bring in radioactive waste from 36 states and dump it. The Commission, comprised of 8 members, 6 of whom are Perry appointees and 2 of whom are appointed by Vermont (the other state in the compact), was set to rule earlier this year but now has delayed its ruling until after the election.
If this isn’t influence pedaling, it sure has the appearance of “paying to get your way”.
For more information about the WCS dump and to see the request for investigation that the Sierra Club and Public Citizen filed with the NRC and EPA, go to www.nukefreetexas.org.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, cleaner cars, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Nuclear | Tagged campaign contributions, influence pedaling, nuclear waste, perry, radioactive waste, Simmons, Texas, WCS |
Meet Audrey and Jim Thornton, two of the landowners who have the threat of a Canadian tarsands pipeline proposed to run through their land. Tarsands crude is many times more concentrated with toxins and carcinogens than typical, Texas, crude oil. Like just about every other land-owner along the pipeline route, the Thorntons have been threatened with eminent domain if they do not sign a deal with TransCanada – the company building the pipeline.
Interview with the Thorntons:
Vimeo
[vimeo 15598888]
YouTube
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7_zU0Q6RCM]
Like most people, the Thorntons don’t think it is right that a foreign company can come into the United States (and Texas) and use the threat of eminent domain to force landowners into a contract. And, like many others, the Thorntons have quickly learned the vast extent of the negative impacts such a pipeline would have not only on folks like them, but the world in general.
Check out our previous posts on the Canadian Tar Sands Pipeline including this one.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, cleaner cars, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Tarsands, Toxics | Tagged Air Quality, Austin Energy, Keystone Pipeline, Oil sands, pipeline, Tar Sands, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality |
In the coming weeks you might notice a sleek, new Nissan LEAF or Chevy Volt cruising past you on the road. Many of the major car companies are introducing electric, plug-in vehicles (EVs) designed for the American family market. They range in cost from about $20,000-$45,000 and are small and practical. Not all EVs run completely from electricity, some are hybrids with electric-assisted engines, like a Toyota Prius. Others, like the Volt, are propelled exclusively by electricity, but include batteries and generators. These differences affect the amount of carbon emissions your car produces. All-electric vehicles, like the LEAF, have the potential to emit no carbon at all, from their own engines, or at the power plant where your electricity is generated. As Austinites, we can choose the green energy option from Austin Energy, in which 100% of the electricity we buy is generated from renewables.
Gas may still be necessary to run your EV, depending how it’s engine uses electricity, but the new EVs are becoming quite efficient at using minimal fuel. It’s important to consider that the majority of Austin’s air pollution comes from vehicles. Purchasing any EV is a step you can take to make a positive impact on our environment.
EVs can also make a positive impact on your wallet. An EV averages 100 miles per charge cycle in the city. Comparatively, this costs about $1 or less/gallon in terms of the gas you would have used in a conventional vehicle. As efficiency improves, these costs will also fall, while gas prices are always volatile. If you’re interested, please contact your dealership about buying an EV; they will be fully available in 2011.
What else do you need to know after purchasing an EV? Concerned consumers have contacted the Public Citizen office worried about potentially expensive charging stations. An EV powers up at a charging station that’s a higher voltage than your normal wall plug. It looks something like the plug for an electric washer/dryer. This unexpected expense can naturally cause worries right after purchasing a new car, but Austin Energy has a program to encourage consumers to buy EVs.
All you need to do is contact Austin Energy and let them know you’ve ordered an EV. They will come and provide assistance and incentives to install a charging station in your house. For more information about Austin’s Energy’s charging station incentive program please contact Larry Alford at larry.alford@austinenergy.com.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, cleaner cars, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Air Quality, Consumers, Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, Transportation | Tagged Air Quality, Austin, Austin Energy, Carbon Dioxide, Charging station, Electric vehicle, emissions reductions, EV, EV incentives, EVs, Global Warming, plug-in hybrids, Plug-In Vehicle, Public Citizen, Texas, transportation |
October 5, 2010 by Citizen Carol
The most famous residence in America plans to install solar panels. The solar panels are to be installed by spring 2011 atop the White House’s living quarters and will heat water and supply some electricity for the first family.
President Jimmy Carter speaks against a backdrop of solar panels at the White House Washington on June 21, 1979. Photo by Harvey Georges / AP
Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush both tapped the sun during their days in the White House.
Carter in the late 1970s spent $30,000 on a solar water-heating system for West Wing offices. Bush’s solar systems powered a maintenance building, some of the mansion, and heated water for the pool.
Obama has championed renewable energy and will now lead by example by installing solar at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Something which has been under consideration since he first took office.
Putting solar on the roof of the nation’s most important piece of real estate is a powerful symbol. Perhaps Americans will start to rethink how we generate electricity.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged President Barack Obama, President Jimmy Carter, solar panels, Texas, white house |
The Administrative Law Judges (The Judges) who heard the case against the proposed Tenaska Coal Fired Power plant ruled Friday that Tenaska’s air permit should not be granted as it stands!
“The Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) have concluded, based on their review of the evidence and applicable law, that Tenaska failed to meet its burden of proof to demonstrate that the emissions limits proposed in its Draft Permit will meet the requirements for Best Available Control Technology (BACT) and Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT). The ALJs recommend that the Commission adopt more stringent emissions limits as indicated below. Alternatively, the ALJs recommend that the Commission deny the Application or remand the matter for further evidence regarding BACT and MACT.”
While we all know there is no such thing as “clean coal” Tenaska claims that they would be one of the cleanest around, yet the judges recommended lower limits for almost every pollutant that Tenaska would emit.
The proposed Tenaska coal plant, if built, would be a 900 MW coal plant that would emit:
Citizens pack a town hall in Abilene - the majority are against the proposed plant.
Sulfur Dioxide: 2,183 tons/year; Nitrogen Oxide (forms Ozone):1,819 tons/year;Particulate Matter:1,092 tons/year;Mercury: 124 lbs/year.
We commend the Judges for following the law and working to make sure the Clean Air Act is followed. The important thing to remember, folks, is that this is a “recommendation” to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), not a binding ruling. So when the TCEQ commissioners make the decision on the Tenaska air permit they will have the opportunity to do the right thing for the health of Texans and deny the air permit!
We don’t need another coal plant in Texas. Instead we should be investing in renewable energy technology like wind and solar which Texas is so ripe for!
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We arePublic Citizen Texas.
Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Energy, Global Warming, Sunset, TCEQ | Tagged Air permit, alj, CCS, climate change, Coal, coal plant, Global Warming, judge, permit, Public Citizen, soah, TCEQ, tenaska, Texas |
October 1, 2010 by Editor
In 2009, a drought nearly emptied Lake Travis. People living and working in the surrounding communities remember businesses closing up as the economic activity around the lake ground to a halt. In 2010, a new threat to lake levels and local businesses has emerged.
Photograph by Bill Smotrilla
Despite rising temperatures and projections of less and less available water in our state, 3 unneeded power plants have been proposed that would suck more water – billions of gallons of water – out of the Colorado River. Fortunately, Public Citizen has joined forces with ReEnergize Texas, SEED Coalition, and the Lonestar Chapter of the Sierra Club to stop these plants from ever seeing the light of day.
On October 10th a new campaign will be launched, not with an activist rally or press conference on the steps of the capitol (both of which are fine ways to start a campaign), but with people enjoying good food and live music while watching the sun go down over Lake Travis. We’ll be entertained by such musicians as the legendary Mr. Butch Hancock, the Richard Jessee Project, Tommy Elskes & Lisa Marshall and David Komie. You’re invited to join us.
About the Issue Continue Reading »
Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Energy, Global Warming, Nuclear, Renewables | Tagged power plants, Texas |
September 30, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Dr. Al Armendariz, a former SMU professor, made his first appearance before a state legislative committee in his new role as Regional 6 Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Most of the House Environmental Regulation Committee hearing was taken up with Armendariz’s testimony with the bulk of the discussion about EPA’s decision earlier this year to disallow the state’s controversial flexible permit program that allows some facilities to obtain air permits based on overall emissions instead of having to get permits for each emission source.
The ruling on the program, which is unique to Texas and has been in place since the middle 1990s, sparked a firestorm of criticism from top state leaders followed by a flurry of court action from the state and industry groups seeking its nullification.
The committee’s GOP members (5 Repulicans/4 Democrats) did nearly all the questioning with Armendariz trying to shoot down what he called common misperceptions over the implication of the ruling. Some of those misperceptions included:
- that the 130-plus flexible permit holders would be on the hook for millions of dollars in plant renovations
- that federal regulators would use the de-flex process as a fishing license to comb through companies’ records in search of minor violations, and
- that companies that came forward to voluntarily de-flex would open themselves up for civil litigation from activist groups.
Armendariz tried to reassure skeptical Republican lawmakers that his agency is not on a witch hunt and reminded the committee that the warnings about Texas’ flexible permit plan were first sounded in 2007, when Texan George W. Bush was in the White House and one of former President Bush’s local allies, former Arlington Mayor Richard Greene, was the EPA regional administrator who warned all flexible permit holders at the time that changes to the program were coming.
Armendariz was followed by TCEQ Chairman Bryan Shaw, a Perry appointee who stoutly defended the flexible permit program as being both legal under the Clean Air Act and effective in reducing pollution and ozone levels in Texas.
It is unlikely the testimony given today changed the hearts and minds of any of the committee members. and so the show goes on.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Air Quality, Global Warming | Tagged Air Quaility, Armendariz, environmental regulation, EPA, flex permits, Texas |
If you didn’t think the Governor race in Texas can get any crazier, you were mistaken. Texans for Public Justice released a report today which shows the Governor receives contributions from his political appointees. (This we knew, but in these amounts?) According to the report, Perry’s campaign has received more than 17 million dollars in contributions from his appointees and their spouses since 2001. These contributions come from entities like the A&M Board of Regents to the Texas Tax Reform Commission.
Perry’s hands are in every government agency in the state. His appointees rank from commissioners of big agencies like the PUC or the TCEQ to smaller ones like the Guadalupe Blanco River Authority. The report points out that almost a quarter of his appointees have given money to his campaign fund. This is not the first time news about Perry’s shakedown of his appointees come out, in 2005, the Houston Chronicle published a story about Perry collecting 5 million dollar from his appointees. The contributions averaged about 18 thousand dollars but if you look at the chart below (From TPJ) , you can see that the governor received hundred of thousands of dollars from some appointees.
This explains Perry’s fierce defense of his appointees when something bad floats to surface and it also explains how he has been the longest-serving governor in Texas. In a country that prides itself on a check-and-balance type of government, those kind of reports and numbers should be staggering to people.
For fairness sake, many would say Bill White is just the same, he also receives contributions from his political appointees. According a Texas Tribune article, they are right, but the scale is entirely different. Since White started being in public life in the 90’s, he has collected about 2 million dollars. This is on a much lower scale than the 17 million dollars Perry received in less than ten years, and the fact that this 17 million represents between one-quarter to one-fifth of the money raised by Perry.
It is dangerous to our state that our governor is banking on the shaping of policy in Texas. But here in Public Citizen, we always say, “the only thing that beats organized money is organized people, ” so it is our turn to look at the facts, learn about the issues, and reject the status quo of money having an undue influence in politics. We call on all candidates for public office to support REAL reform of our campaign finance system, including bans on raising unlimited money from appointees and especially by moving to a system of public financing for all offices.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Campaign Finance, Global Warming, Good Government | Tagged appointments in Texas, bill white, parry patronage, PUC, Rick Perry, rick perry campaign, TCEQ, texans for public justice, Texas |
Today the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) continued their decades-long campaign of ineptitude and inadequacy as they approved the air quality permit for the White Stallion Coal Plant proposed for Matagorda County on the Texas Gulf Coast. Their ruling was unanimous despite the fact that the administrative law judges, who spent weeks presiding over and then deliberating the aspects of this case, recommended that this permit should not be issued. On top of that the TCEQ’s own staff at the Office of Public Interest Council (or OPIC) reiterated their position that this permit should be denied.
"Clean coal" is about as realistic and honest as this image.
It seems simple things like common sense and logic are completely absent from the regulatory fantasy world the TCEQ commissioners live in. It is their opinion that the thousands of tons of toxic pollution they have permitted this coal plant to emit are “acceptable,” even though they are likely to lead to the deaths of over 600 Matagorda County residents over the plant’s estimated lifetime, at a price tag of over $5.4 billion in health care costs (according to a report from MSB Energy Associates). Also “acceptable” to these TCEQ commissioners is an air monitor White Stallion used for their air modeling report (a vital part of the air permitting process), despite the fact that it is located outside of Corpus Christi, 100 miles downwind of the proposed site. They may as well have used a monitor in China, as the emissions from White Stallion would likely never head in that direction.
TCEQ commissioners have also completely ignored the fact that the EPA has set new standards for National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and they are not requiring White Stallion to adhere to them, despite the fact that this plant would be on the doorstep of the existing Houston non-attainment region. In fact, once the new EPA ozone standards come into effect, Matagorda County is slated to be included in the Houston non-attainment region. By that time, however, thanks to the expedient and enthusiastic permitting approval by the TCEQ, White Stallion will be “grandfathered” and its effects on a non-attainment region will stand.
The most egregious assault on common sense and logic, however, is this plant is completely unnecessary and dangerous to all of Texas, and in fact the entire world. At a time when we need to be shifting our infrastructure and development to renewable and sustainable forms of energy generation, a CO2 and toxin-belching coal plant is the last thing we should be permitting in Texas. This plant represents not only an assault on the health of Matagorda County citizens, but a furthering of reliance upon these dirty, old methods of power generation. We have the technology now to be shifting to responsibly generated electricity. To fail in this is not just a failure by the TCEQ towards the people of Matagorda, but the failure of the state of Texas to lead this country in the direction we desperately need to go.
In the end, however, we can all take heart in the fact that the ultimate decision on whether this plant gets built or not is not only in the hands of the TCEQ. That power lies in the hands of the people – both those who are opposing the project and those attempting to build it. This plant still requires a waste water permit from TCEQ, a water contract from LCRA, and another permit from the Army Corps of Engineers before it can operate. It is also expected that this decision from the TCEQ will be challenged at the state courts. Ultimately, as long as the people of Matagorda continue to say “NO” to this plant, and as more and more people rally to help them in their cause, this plant will be defeated.
Go to NoCoalCoalition.org for more information and to get involved in the fight against White Stallion.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Energy, Global Warming, Good Government, TCEQ | Tagged approves, Carbon Dioxide, climate change, Coal, coal plant, Electricity generation, Energy, matagorda county, National Ambient Air Quality Standards, Public Citizen, regulate, regulation, TCEQ, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, white stallion |
Finally, energy is now moving to the center of the debate in the governor race. Bill White announced yesterday his energy plan. For a while, the democratic candidate’s position on energy was a bit blurry but yesterday White set the record straight. He is in for green energy.
While the current governor has wasted state resources on fighting the EPA and the Federal government on behalf of big business, White thinks the state should focus more on green energy, especially from solar. White said that just like Texas had a good experience with wind energy in the past decade, it can exceed in the field of solar energy.
White emphasizes that green energy can create many jobs and help boost the Texas economy. The jobs can range from construction, and panel installation, research, to jobs in education and training and maintenance jobs so even in the long run, there will be jobs.
Texas can remain the energy capital of the world if we lead in new energy development. That’s why we must educate Texans for high-demand, high-paying clean energy jobs, promote job growth in construction and manufacturing, and invest in science and technology research,” said Bill White, yesterday in Lubbock.
In addition to promoting renewable energy, White outlined a plan to establish a residential energy efficiency program and another to retrofit government buildings to be more energy-conservative. The democratic candidates also encouraged Texans to be conservative with their use of energy, “Texans know that the cheapest kilowatt of power is the one you don’t use. Texas families and businesses, as well as the government, can save money with energy efficiency measures,”
We believe investing in green energy will not only enhance the quality of our environment, it will bring more money into our economy, and it will create more jobs for Texans. Sounds like we have one candidate with an energy plan. Governor Perry, yours please?
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Energy, green jobs, Renewables, solar | Tagged bill white, renewable energy, Rick Perry, solar, solar energy, Texas, wind power |
PEC's newly elected Board Member, Ross Fischer
Larry Landaker, PEC's President of Board of Directors
Pedernales Electric Cooperative. The name used to be synonymous with closed-door meetings and conjured up images of a good ol’ boys club and the smoke-filled room, where the public was shut out of the decision-making process.
Today Pedernales Electric Co-op (PEC) board members voted for a proposed strategic meeting in October to be open. They had originally proposed the meeting be closed, as electric cooperatives, like some other public utilities and agencies, have an exception under the Public Information Act exempting “personnel, real estate, legal and competitive matters.”
Enter Ross Fischer, District 5’s newly-elected representative on the PEC board, who raised concerns about holding closed meetings, saying “The outcome is going to be meaningless because the stakeholders aren’t going to be a part of it”. Having served as the head of the Texas Ethics Commission before he was elected to the Board in June, Fisher emphasizes transparency in conducting those meetings. Fischer is right, of course– how do you make decisions about the future of a member-owned electric cooperative if the member-owners can’t attend?
On Monday, Board President Larry Landaker said the meeting, for the most part, will be public.
Four of the board members voted for the meeting to be public. In addition to the president, and Fischer, Patrick Cox and James Williams also voted against the old policy.
The Board of Directors also revised its record-access policy. Though members are not allowed to access records that pertain to protected categories (legal, personnel, and competitive matter) as it has always been, other records are more accessible and members can now write a complaint letter to the General Manager who has to take a corrective action within 20 days.
Public Citizen commends the Board of Director at PEC for taking such an action in order to increase the level of transparency under which, the Co-op functions and we urge them to keep the spirit of reform they have and use it to ameliorate the services and satisfy its members. Pedernales needs to be a model for openness for other co-ops and utilities, but this just shows that transparency must be a constant vigil.
To get an update on the Board’s recent reform, actions, and policy revisions, please click here.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Consumers, Energy, Global Warming | Tagged Larry Landaker, pec, PEC meeting, PEC strategic meeting, pedernales electric cooperative, Ross Fischer, Texas |
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