Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Global Warming, Toxics, tagged bay city, Coal, colorado river, Donkey, lower colorado river authority, Matagorda County Texas, Pancho the Donkey, Public Citizen, Sierra Club, TCEQ, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, waste water, water, white stallion on October 29, 2010 |
The No Coal Coalition brings their mascot, Pancho the Donkey, to the TCEQ hearing, but he is turned away. Photo by Susan Dancer
On Thursday, the TCEQ (Texas Commission of Environmental Quality) held a public meeting for the White Stallion Energy Center at the Bay City Civic Center to hear feedback on the plant’s application for a wastewater permit. (more…)
Posted in Coal, Energy, Global Warming, Toxics, tagged Action alert, Air Quality, coal plant, Federal Clean Air Act, public citizen texas, Sierra Club, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, United States Environmental Protection Agency on September 13, 2010 |
Image via Wikipedia
We’ve got an Action Alert! This week, hundreds of people from Corpus Christi and across Texas will be calling the Environmental Protection Agency to ask them to ensure that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is complying with the Federal Clean Air Act. To protect our air, our water, our earth, and our health, we are going to make our voices heard!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbWcTuvHwS8]
Under the federal Clean Air Act, the EPA has the power to intervene in any permitting process to make sure that polluters are complying with the law.
In the case of the Las Brisas Energy Center, the situation is critical and we need the EPA to step in. Pollution will increase by 82%, they’ll dump 220 pounds of mercury a year, the plant will use 3 million gallons of water a day, and Nueces and San Patricio Counties will almost certainly reach ozone non-attainment levels, which means pricey smog-checks for everybody and a rollback of production for local industries.
So, we’ve decided to call the EPA’s enforcement offices. We have two sample scripts for you to help you out, and remember: don’t be nervous! They are nice people, so don’t forget to smile (even though they can’t see you) and say thanks!
Call Gina McCarthy, head of enforcement at the EPA at 202-564-7404. If she’s not there, leave a message!
Script:
Concerned citizen (that’s you): “Hello Ms. McCarthy, my name is ___, and I’d like to bring an important issue to your attention.”
EPA: “Sure, go right ahead.”
Concerned Citizen:
1) “I am really concerned with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s permitting process on the Las Brisas Energy Center in Corpus Christi, Texas. I am worried about pollution in our air, our water, and our soil. I am calling to ask that the EPA intervene and ensure that the the permit complies with the Federal Clean Air Act. Thank you for your time.”
OR
2) “I have a real problem with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s permitting process as it considers whether to grant the Las Brisas Energy Center an air permit for its proposed petroleum coke plant in Corpus Christi, Texas. TCEQ officials have expressly stated that a case by case MACT analysis is not needed for this plant. I know that means that TCEQ is letting Las Brisas pollute at greater quantities into my area and with less oversight. I am calling to ask that the EPA intervene and ensure that the permit complies with the Federal Clean Air Act. Thank you for your time.”
You just did a good deed! Pat yourself on the back, email this to your friends, and stay tuned by checking out Public Citizen on Facebook, www.TexasGreenReport.org, Texas Sierra Club on Facebook, and @TexasSierraClub on Twitter.
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 Coal, Energy, Good Government, Toxics, tagged Coal, coal ash, dallas, EPA, hearing, Public Citizen, Sierra Club, Texas, tx, waste on August 2, 2010 |
The EPA is holding hearings on newly proposed coal ash regulations throughout the country. One of the few places they’ve decided to hold a hearing is Dallas. Coal ash waste facilities have never been properly regulated, despite the fact that coal ash is full of toxic pollutants and carcinogens. This is due primarily to the fact that the coal lobby wants to profit off of their waste by selling it to other industries for use in manufacturing products ranging from concrete to fertilizer.
Texas has 17 coal plants, all of which produce massive amounts of toxic coal ash waste that get stored either in slurry ponds (coal ash mixed with water) or in landfills.
Check out more info and find out how you can encourage the EPA to regulate this waste properly by visiting Sierra Club’s action page.
For some background info on the coal ash waste disaster in Tennessee go 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 arePublic Citizen Texas.
Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, solar, tagged ana hernandez, discovery green, houston, Lizbeth Ortiz, Los Pistoleros de Texas, Mrs. Glass, Nurturing Hands, Public Citizen, Ray Johnston Band, Robert Ellis, Rodney Ellis, Sierra Club, Texas on July 20, 2010 |
The Great Texas Clean-Up Festival is coming to Houston!
The Sierra Club and Texas Environmental Justice are rolling out the Great Texas Clean-Up Festival, from 4-10 at the Discovery Green in Houston, an event expected to kick off a larger campaign to clean up Texas. Public Citizen is a coalition partner and will be there! Check out our booth!
Headlining the event is Dallas native Ray Johnston with the Ray Johnston Band, a groovy, rock soul act with plenty of attitude. Rounding out the event are Los Pistoleros de Texas, bluesman Mrs. Glass, and country western singer songwriter Robert Ellis.
Expect keynote speaker State Senator Rodney Ellis of Houston to give a rip-roaring speech, flanked by the impassioned Ana Hernandez, three term representative from district 143 of Houston.
About a dozen Houston-based artists are expected to showcase, including Lizbeth Ortiz, who created this piece, “Nurturing Hands”.
There will be a Kids’ Corner [possibly spelled Kidz Korner, at presstime we weren’t sure] and plenty of political activism.
Check them out at www.cleanuptexasnow.org
Posted in Global Warming, tagged attainment, dallas, downwinders at risk, EPA, o3, ozone, ozone standard, pollution, Public Citizen, region 6, Sierra Club, smog, standard, Texas on April 19, 2010 |
[vimeo 10526826]
On March 16, 2010 Sierra Club, Public Citizen, Downwinders At Risk, Texas Campaign for the Environment and other concerned environmental organizations and individuals held a public meeting to submit comments to the EPA regarding their newly proposed ozone standard. State representatives and staff from Region 6 of the EPA were there to hear comments. These are the video comments that were recorded by those who did not get an opportunity to speak in front of the panel. These video comments were submitted to the EPA.
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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 Coal, Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, Renewables, solar, tagged Austin, Austin Energy, clean energy for austin, Energy Efficiency, environment texas, environmental defense fund, renewable energy, resource and climate protection plan, SEED Coalition, Sierra Club, Texas on April 19, 2010 |
Wanna do something green to start off Earth Week? You can do this from your desk. Quick and easy:
Austin City Council will vote on this forward-thinking energy plan this week! Clean Energy for Austin is a coalition that exists to support council passing this plan. Learn more at www.cleanenergyforaustin.org.
Public Citizen, Sierra Club, Environment Texas, Environmental Defense Fund, SEED Coalition and others endorse this plan but we need your help! Spread the word, and look forward to more easy actions as the week unfolds.
*You’d totes get a ton of karma points if you got 5 people to sign on. You’ll also get a high-five from me, which you can claim on Thursday at City Hall.
Posted in Global Warming, tagged Andrew Sauls, Andrews County waste dump, austin generation plan, clean energy for austin, coal plant, david power, energy advocacy, Energy Efficiency, environment texas, environmental defense fund, EPA hearing, ICLEI, Melissa Sanchez, mona avalos, ozone attainment standards, P.A.C.E., PACE, patrick reck, property assessed clean energy, reenergize texas, ryan rittenhouse, sarah mcdonald, Sierra Club, smitty, Tar Sands, Texas, think green, think green fund, Tom "Smitty" Smith, trevor lovell, univision dallas, week in review on March 12, 2010 |
“Tomorrow, when I wake, or think I do, what shall I say of today?” — Vladimir, Waiting for Godot
The Public Citizen Texas Week in Review (more…)
Posted in Global Warming, tagged Austin, climate change, Drop by Drop, ken kramer, mona avalos, National Wildlife Federation, outdoor water ordinances, population increase, San Antonio, Sierra Club, Texas, Texas Water Development Board, water, water conservation, water efficiency, water supplies on March 11, 2010 |
The National Wildlife Federation and the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club have created a splash with their latest report: Drop by Drop: 7 Ways Texas Cities Can Conserve Water.
Austin should be proud. Out of 19 cities studied in this report, our capital city was highly ranked on outdoor water ordinances and has an aggressive toilet replacement program. San Antonio has also set the bar high for effective and diverse water efficiency programs across the country. The cities surveyed were measured on: water pricing structure, water saving goals, toilet replacement, conservation funding, and outdoor watering. Though many cities and towns across the nation have made great strides to reduce water use, the report’s conclusion is that most cities are not doing as much as they could to efficiently use existing water supplies. (more…)
Posted in Global Warming, tagged 20/20, Air Quality, Applied Materials, austin city council, Austin Energy, cary ferchill, Clean Energy, clean energy for austin, coal plant, coalition, electric utility, electric utility commission, Energy Efficiency, flexibility, fossil fuel reliance, foundation communities, generation and resource planning task force, green businesses, health, Lee Leffingwell, low income residents, matthew johnson, mayor, natural gas, nonprofits, nuclear plant, phillip schmandt, Public Citizen, renewable energy, resource and climate protection plan, Sierra Club, solar, Solar Austin, steve taylor, sunshine mathon, Texas, town hall, Weatherization, wind on February 17, 2010 |
Photo Courtesy of Donna Hoffman at the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club. Thanks Donna!
Dozens of businesses and nonprofit organizations as well as more than 200 citizens have formed Clean Energy for Austin, a coalition whose purpose is to push Austin City Council to adopt a clean energy plan. Specifically, the coalition supports the passage of Austin Energy’s Resource and Climate Protection Plan and recommendations of a city task force created to examine the plan. Coalition members support the plan because of its emphasis on renewable energy and efficiency, green jobs creation and careful consideration of Austin’s low-income residents.
To date, more than 70 businesses, 18 non-profit organizations and more than 200 individuals have signed on in support of the energy plan through www.cleanenergyforaustin.org.
The energy plan is a road map for how Austin Energy, the city-owned electric utility, will meet the city’s energy needs over the next 10 years. It includes a substantial investment in energy efficiency and a variety of renewable energy resources like wind and solar, as well as new more efficient natural gas plants. In addition to diversifying its generation portfolio, Austin Energy wants to create a self-sustaining market for renewable technologies like solar rooftops and parking lots by 2020.
“A good business practice is to keep your options open when selecting suppliers,” said Steve Taylor of Applied Materials, a semiconductor manufacturer employing more than a thousand Austinites. “This plan allows for a diversity of different energy options, so it protects businesses – and residents – from long-term price spikes for any single power source because other energy supply options will be available and abundant. This plan also enhances Austin’s efforts to create green businesses and green jobs for years to come.”
The plan is the culmination of a nearly two-year public process of gathering input from multiple stakeholder groups, including businesses, environmental organizations, and groups serving low-income communities. Four representatives from the mayor’s Generation and Resource Planning Task Force, which analyzed more than a dozen scenarios of where Austin could get its power by 2020, are members of the coalition: Phillip Schmandt, chairman of Electric Utility Commission, Cary Ferchill, chair of Solar Austin, as well as non-profit members Public Citizen and Sierra Club.
“The great thing about the plan is its flexibility,” said Matthew Johnson, clean energy advocate with Public Citizen. “If costs for any resource type rise or fall dramatically over the next 10 years, Austin Energy would have the ability to change the plan, and do so with the help of community stakeholders. That’s the beauty of a diverse portfolio of resources. If Austin were locked into building a new coal or nuclear plant, our fate would be sealed.”
Energy efficiency, generally recognized as the cheapest energy resource, would be the main component of the plan. Austin Energy would take a more proactive and coordinated approach to reach low-income households with free weatherization to help lower their electric bills.
“Low-income communities need the most help with paying utility bills,” said Sunshine Mathon, design and development director of Foundation Communities, an Austin-based nonprofit affordable housing organization. “Austin has a long track record of having the lowest bills in Texas because of its commitment to conservation programs that help people lower their bills. My hope is that with the passage of this plan, those programs will not only expand but coordinate with other programs like bill assistance, neighborhood housing and community development.”
Coalition representatives also said that the plan reduces financial risk associated with overreliance on fossil fuels. The plan would enable Austin Energy to ramp down the Fayette coal plant more often, protecting the utility from pending carbon regulation.
“Whether or not you support greenhouse gas regulation, reducing the amount of carbon emissions that Austin is responsible for makes economic sense,” Johnson said. “That’s in addition to the improvements in air quality Austin and the surrounding region would experience. It’s a win-win.”
Austin’s City Council could vote on the plan in March, according to Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell. He has scheduled a Feb. 22 town hall meeting on Austin Energy’s Resource and Climate Protection Plan. Coalition members urge the public to visit www.cleanenergyforaustin.org and sign on as well as attend the town hall meeting to show their support.
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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 Global Warming, tagged air contaminant, Carbon Dioxide, climate, climate change, Coal, Coal Plants, coal rush, endangerment, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, Global Warming, governor perry, greenhouse gas emissions, Public Citizen, public health, Sierra Club, TCEQ, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on February 16, 2010 |
Statement from Tom “Smitty” Smith, director of Public Citizen’s Texas Office and Ken Kramer, director of the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club
This morning Governor Perry attempted to show Texas voters that he is bigger than both Texas and federal law by enacting a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency’s(EPA) endangerment finding for carbon dioxide, but instead just further highlighted his failure to protect Texans’ health and the safety and long term stability of our economy and climate.
Instead of suing the EPA, Perry should be taking proactive steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build up our clean energy economy. Our governor likes to brag about all he’s done to promote wind and energy efficiency and the emissions Texas has avoided as a result, but at the same time he is hammering through a second Texas coal rush that will negate all that hard work and add 77 million tons of CO2 to Texas’ already overheated air.
Perry’s blustering behavior has actually caused Public Citizen to file a lawsuit against the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for its failure to regulate global warming gasses. Texas law clearly requires that “air contaminants” be regulated, and defines contaminants as follows:
“‘Air contaminant’ means particulate matter, radioactive material, dust, fumes, gas, mist, smoke, vapor, or odor, including any combination of those items, produced by processes other than natural.” Tex. Health & Safety Code § 382.003(2).
Perry has proudly demonstrated willful ignorance of this portion of Texas law time and time again, and has ordered state agencies such as the TCEQ to ignore it as well. For this reason and his actions today we are issuing our Governor a Citizens’ Citation to cease and desist endangering the health of breathers, the economy and the climate in Texas by continuing to permit coal plants and other large sources of CO2.
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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 Toxics, tagged aaron smith, Air Quality, american lung association, asthma, Bob Malina, clean air, clean air texas, dr neil carman, dr. bonnie new, environmental defense fund, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, galveston-houston alliance for smog prevention, ghasp, Health Professionals for Clean Air, houston, janice nolen, Kids for Clean Air, matagorda county, matthew tejada, mothers for clean air, no coal coalition, ozone, Public Citizen, public citizen texas, public health, public hearing, republican party, respiratory disease, ryan rittenhouse, SEED Coalition, Sierra Club, Texas, Texas Campaign for the Environment, Wendi Hammond, white stallion on February 5, 2010 |
Earlier this week the Environmental Protection Agency held a public hearing on a newly proposed rule to strengthen federal ozone standards. A coalition of environmental and public health advocates called Clean Air Texas rallied in support of the new rule, which would improve air quality across the state and make our communities healthier. Over a hundred citizens presented their comments to the EPA in support of the new, stronger rule — more than the EPA has seen at a public hearing in years. Public Citizen was on hand to give comments and capture the stories of concerned citizens that came to the hearing, check out the videos below to hear what folks had to say!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfiNk_19tgk]
Also check out this video of the press conference to hear what matters most about the ozone rule from activists with Kids for Clean Air, Public Citizen, the American Lung Association, Health Professionals for Clean Air, Sierra Club, and the Galveston-Houston Alliance for Smog Prevention. The lead image is acting a little funny, but the video will still show up, I promise
[vimeo 9206598]
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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 Global Warming, tagged Air Quality, american lung association, asthma, bronchitis, clean air texas, emergency room visits, emphysema, environmental defense fund, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, galveston-houston association for smog prevention, houston, matthew tejada, ozone, ozone levels, Public Citizen, public health, Sierra Club, smog, Texas on February 2, 2010 |
Check out the video and op-ed below by some of our Clean Air Texas coalition partners about the hearing in Houston tomorrow on the EPA’s new proposed rule to strengthen ozone standards. I’ll be at the hearing tomorrow, along with Ryan Rittenhouse, to represent Public Citizen and interview folks from around the state who’ve come to speak up for clean air. If you plan on attending the rally, look for us and tell us your stories!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iCUHsJA4as]
It’s Time to Weigh in on Smog Limits
Imagine this conversation between a mother and child:
“Mommy, can we go outside and play?”
“Not today, dear, it’s just not safe.”
Most of us growing up in Texas didn’t wait for our parents to check an air quality report before venturing outside in the summer. But things have changed. Today, we know that rising temperatures bring rising ozone levels and as summer arrives we’re forced to restrict outdoor activities to limit harmful exposure.
Still, no matter how hard we try, we just can’t hide from poor air quality. We’ve got to clean it up.
That’s why we are encouraged that the Environmental Protection Agency is proposing new limits on ozone “smog” pollution to protect human health. On Tuesday, the EPA hosts an all-day public hearing at the Houston Hobby Hilton to get your feedback on these proposed stronger standards.
Why should you care about ozone? Ground-level ozone triggers asthma attacks, sends children to the emergency room and can even kill. It’s a serious health threat — especially in states with warmer climates like Texas. When our abundant sunlight and heat “cook” our equally abundant emissions from traffic and refineries, it forms — you guessed it — too much ozone. (more…)
Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, tagged Applied Materials, Austin, Austin Energy, Carbon Dioxide, co2, copenhagen, Energy Efficiency, energy plan, environmental defense fund, fayette coal plant, greenling organic delivery, matt johnson, Public Citizen, Sierra Club, solar, Texas, wind on January 14, 2010 |
If you were as frustrated as I was watching world leaders dither in Copenhagen while the Earth heats up and island nations continue making evacuation plans, there is good news on the horizon for Austin.
Austin Energy has developed a consensus plan that would establish our own CO2 cap and reduction plan. The great news is that by 2020, Austin’s investments in solar, wind and energy efficiency would allow us to reduce our dependence on the Fayette coal plant by nearly 30 percent! This energy plan will also bring a wide variety of jobs to the city, from innovative clean technology companies to installation, retrofit and construction jobs.
We need support to pass the plan now!
Public Citizen has helped form a coalition called Clean Energy for Austin. We’ve brought together businesses large and small, from Applied Materials to Greenling Organic Delivery, and 12 nonprofits such as the Sierra Club and Environmental Defense Fund to call on City Council to pass the energy plan.
The more individuals and businesses that join the coalition, the stronger the message to City Hall that our world-renowned green city must remain a leader in reducing pollution and creating a green economy.
Sign on as an endorser of Clean Energy for Austin!
Thanks,
Matt Johnson
Some background: This fall, I had the privilege of representing Public Citizen on the city’s task force charged with analyzing Austin Energy’s 2020 plan and making additional recommendations. We voted unanimously to upgrade Austin Energy’s energy efficiency goal, create a special self-sustaining market for local renewable power like solar rooftops and parking lots, and protect consumers’ pocketbooks by conducting periodic reviews in case costs change dramatically.
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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 Renewables, solar, tagged Austin, City Council, environment texas, mic sol-o, Public Citizen, Sierra Club, solar, solar plant, solar power, Texas, texas solar roadmap, Webberville, wildcatting the sun on January 6, 2010 |
Last spring, our minds were budding with thoughts of birds, bees, and… Texas’ solar potential (didn’t you know, a robust solar program would put Texans back to work and position the state as a world leader for solar production!) Ah, sweet romance.
First Public Citizen, Environment Texas and the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club hosted a statewide round of press conferences to roll out our solar report, Texas Solar Roadmap (though I’d really recommend the abridged version, Wildcatting the Sun). It seemed like every other legislator had some incarnation of a solar bill, and folks were wondering if this was going to be the solar session. We were (and remain) especially excited about the City of Austin’s potential to become the nation’s new clean energy hub, just like it was for the semiconductor industry — and almost like an answer to our prayers, within months the Austin City Council voted in favor of a 30MW solar plant in Webberville (though not without a little nerve-racking delay).
And of course, somewhere in that busy, busy time, we found time to make an awesome solar video for Environment Texas’ solar video contest:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Dfv2yoCtjU&feature=player_embedded]
Too bad we just couldn’t compare to Mic SoL-O and his sweet, sweet rhymes:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvAt_mjKdik]
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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 Coal, tagged abilene, Austin, bay city, clean air act, clean economy coalition, coal block, coal plant, college station, corpus christi, dallas, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, federal climate change legislation, flex permits, grandfathering, grassroots, H.R. 2454, houston, john cornyn, kay bailey hutchison, lone star chapter, Multi-County Coalition, no coal coalition, public citizen texas, roll beyond coal, ryan rittenhouse, Sierra Club, sweetwater, T.P.O.W.E.R., TCEQ, Texans Protecting Our Water Environment and Resources, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Waco on December 28, 2009 |
The November/December edition of Public Citizen News, a bi-monthly newsletter distributed to Public Citizen members, featured this article on our statewide “Roll Beyond Coal” Tour. Since not all of you out there get the newsletter, I thought I’d share:
By Geena Wardaki
It’s not often that you lug a 20-foot-tall inflatable “coal plant” around Texas to protest dirty coal-fueled power plants.
But that’s exactly what Public Citizen and the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club did in September.
The “coal plant” served as a powerful image that drove home the message to “clean up dirty power plants now,” which the groups delivered to Texas residents during the “Roll Beyond Coal” tour.
The groups visited Texas communities where proposed coal plants would be built and met with local grassroots and citizen organizations.
The two-week tour, which was part of Public Citizen’s Coal Block campaign, stopped in Waco, Dallas, Abilene, College Station, Corpus Christi, Bay City, Houston and Austin. Texas residents turned out in crowds of varying sizes to show their support and protest with the tour at each stop.
“The biggest cities actually had the smallest response,” said Ryan Rittenhouse, Coal Block campaign director for Public Citizen’s Texas office. “The largest turnouts were from grassroots movements where the issue is more local, smaller towns where proposed coal plants would be built and whose residents would be directly affected.”
Area demonstrators included members of T.P.O.W.E.R. (Texans Protecting Our Water Environment and Resources) from Waco, the No Coal Coalition from Bay City, the Multi-County Coalition from Sweetwater and the Clean Economy Coalition from Corpus Christi.
“Roll Beyond Coal” had two main objectives: one, to show support for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recent finding that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) rules for granting permits to new coal plants do not comply with the federal Clean Air Act; and two, to push the EPA to stop the TCEQ from granting any permits for or allowing the operation of any new coal-powered plants and from issuing any new air pollution permits. TCEQ currently issues “flex permits,” which allow coal plants to sometimes exceed emissions as long as they don’t go over their total emission caps for the year. Eleven coal plants are proposed or under construction in Texas, more than any other state in the country.
The “Roll Beyond Coal” tour also educated people about federal climate change legislation making its way through Congress (H.R. 2454). Concern exists that new climate change legislation will grandfather proposed or newly built plants, allowing the plants to avoid the proposed emissions standards. (Senate climate change legislation also would enable new plants to be evade emission control standards for a decade.)
Public Citizen told residents to call and write Texas Sens. John Cornyn (R) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R), and urge them to vote against the grandfathering of new coal plants in the climate change legislation. (Visit www.coalblock.org to see how you can e-mail these senators, too.)
“The ‘Roll Beyond Coal’ tour was an important and entertaining way to reach out to Texas residents and get them engaged and involved in blocking dirty coal power plants,” Rittenhouse said.
“Now, people need to let their lawmakers know that coal plants should not get special treatment in any climate change legislation.”
Geena Wardaki is a Public Citizen communications intern.
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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.
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