RSVP: Protect Yourself from the Trump Administration's Attacks
6 years 8 months ago
His administration is attacking America's safeguards. Join us in Miami to find out what you can do to fight back. Regional. C4.
Environmental Defense Fund
Tar Creek: The Toxic Mess in Scott Pruitt’s Backyard
6 years 8 months ago
Written by Lisa Sharp
When Scott Pruitt became head of the EPA, the first thing that came to my mind was, Tar Creek. It’s not a place many have heard of, but it’s a place that has impacted the lives of Oklahomans for years. Tar Creek Background Tar Creek...
Lisa Sharp
These quiet policy changes will pave way for massive development on public land
6 years 8 months ago
These quiet policy changes will pave way for massive development on public land
Many of Donald Trump’s most atrocious attacks on nature and wildlife have faced swift backlash from the American public – including his reversal of national monument designations, his original reversal of the trophy hunting ban, and his reopening of decades-long forged plans to protect the imperiled greater sage-grouse.
But the most recent actions have taken place quietly, drawing little attention from journalists, policymakers and the public.
On December 22, as much of the nation was winding down for the holidays, the Trump administration surreptitiously threw out the rulebook for minimizing impacts of oil and gas drilling on public land. Five days later, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke revised rules for how oil and gas leases are prioritized in greater sage-grouse habitat.
The timing of these maneuvers couldn’t be worse: Rolling back mitigation policies right before Congress releases a new infrastructure bill will compound the damage inflicted on our environment.
Infrastructure bill may target Endangered Species ActThe infrastructure bill will likely overlook the need for green infrastructure – including natural infrastructure such as wetlands and, if anything, weaken environmental standards.
In a leaked draft of the plan, the White House is already signaling its intention to dramatically weaken the Endangered Species Act and other protections by lowering environmental permitting requirements for major new infrastructure projects.
In fact, Rep. Rob Bishop of Utah, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, has said specifically that he hopes the bill will include changes to the ESA, a bedrock environmental law that passed almost unanimously and has the support of 90 percent of voters.
This is in addition to five proposed House bills under consideration right now, each of which would weaken implementation of the ESA one way or another. Instead of a full repeal of the law, in other words, the ESA could see death by a thousand cuts through multiple congressional and administrative actions.
In addition, the administration wants to open up more public land for oil, gas and coal leasing. It recently announced a plan to also open up vast areas of American coastal waters to offshore drilling.
If these efforts succeed, Americans who enjoy our nation’s great outdoors and wildlife will feel the effects, as will our economy.
Millions of jobs, iconic wildlife at stakeThese policies will increase industry’s access to public lands, reducing recreational opportunities and ultimately putting wildlife at greater risk of extinction.
Trump’s actions and the proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act will also have negative economic impacts on the $25-billion mitigation and $887-billion recreation sectors, which directly support nearly 8 million American jobs.
For the oil and gas sector, meanwhile, Trump’s actions set a new and harmful precedent that industries don’t have to clean up after themselves.
States offer a different roadmapWhile Trump’s actions are clearly catering to industry demands, Western leaders such as Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead have continued to show bipartisan leadership on conservation efforts across the region.
These governors joined the chorus of voices now urging the administration to keep federal plans for the imperiled greater sage-grouse intact. They also joined other Western governors to organize a set of workshops to improve mechanisms for protecting endangered species.
Unlike the Trump administration, they understand that wildlife policies and implementation must continue to be based in sound science, not partisan politics. Or we risk bringing more at-risk wildlife closer to the brink of extinction while negatively affecting jobs and the wilderness all Americans hold dear.
Get policy and political updatesFriday digests from our staff keep you up to date on the week’s events.
Thanks for subscribing to In case you missed it
krives January 30, 2018 - 11:30krives
These quiet policy changes will pave way for massive development on public land
6 years 8 months ago
These quiet policy changes will pave way for massive development on public land
Many of Donald Trump’s most atrocious attacks on nature and wildlife have faced swift backlash from the American public – including his reversal of national monument designations, his original reversal of the trophy hunting ban, and his reopening of decades-long forged plans to protect the imperiled greater sage-grouse.
But the most recent actions have taken place quietly, drawing little attention from journalists, policymakers and the public.
On December 22, as much of the nation was winding down for the holidays, the Trump administration surreptitiously threw out the rulebook for minimizing impacts of oil and gas drilling on public land. Five days later, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke revised rules for how oil and gas leases are prioritized in greater sage-grouse habitat.
The timing of these maneuvers couldn’t be worse: Rolling back mitigation policies right before Congress releases a new infrastructure bill will compound the damage inflicted on our environment.
Infrastructure bill may target Endangered Species ActThe infrastructure bill will likely overlook the need for green infrastructure – including natural infrastructure such as wetlands and, if anything, weaken environmental standards.
In a leaked draft of the plan, the White House is already signaling its intention to dramatically weaken the Endangered Species Act and other protections by lowering environmental permitting requirements for major new infrastructure projects.
In fact, Rep. Rob Bishop of Utah, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, has said specifically that he hopes the bill will include changes to the ESA, a bedrock environmental law that passed almost unanimously and has the support of 90 percent of voters.
This is in addition to five proposed House bills under consideration right now, each of which would weaken implementation of the ESA one way or another. Instead of a full repeal of the law, in other words, the ESA could see death by a thousand cuts through multiple congressional and administrative actions.
In addition, the administration wants to open up more public land for oil, gas and coal leasing. It recently announced a plan to also open up vast areas of American coastal waters to offshore drilling.
If these efforts succeed, Americans who enjoy our nation’s great outdoors and wildlife will feel the effects, as will our economy.
Millions of jobs, iconic wildlife at stakeThese policies will increase industry’s access to public lands, reducing recreational opportunities and ultimately putting wildlife at greater risk of extinction.
Trump’s actions and the proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act will also have negative economic impacts on the $25-billion mitigation and $887-billion recreation sectors, which directly support nearly 8 million American jobs.
For the oil and gas sector, meanwhile, Trump’s actions set a new and harmful precedent that industries don’t have to clean up after themselves.
States offer a different roadmapWhile Trump’s actions are clearly catering to industry demands, Western leaders such as Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead have continued to show bipartisan leadership on conservation efforts across the region.
These governors joined the chorus of voices now urging the administration to keep federal plans for the imperiled greater sage-grouse intact. They also joined other Western governors to organize a set of workshops to improve mechanisms for protecting endangered species.
Unlike the Trump administration, they understand that wildlife policies and implementation must continue to be based in sound science, not partisan politics. Or we risk bringing more at-risk wildlife closer to the brink of extinction while negatively affecting jobs and the wilderness all Americans hold dear.
Get policy and political updatesFriday digests from our staff keep you up to date on the week’s events.
Thanks for subscribing to In case you missed it
krives January 30, 2018 - 11:30krives
EDF Climate & Energy @EDFEnergyEX
6 years 8 months ago
FirstEnergy Facts newsletter, January 29, 2018 - mailchi.mp/5900f5da4278/f…
Texans for Natural Gas uses misleading data on methane in Texas
6 years 8 months ago
Colin Leyden
Interview with Maryland State Delegate Carlo Sanchez
6 years 8 months ago
Written by Moms Clean Air Force
This is a Moms Clean Air Force exclusive interview with Carlo Sanchez, Maryland State Delegate –Legislative District 47B: Carlo Sanchez represents northwestern Prince George’s County, Maryland’s only district with a Latino majority in the state house. Sanchez is active in promoting environmental justice initiatives that...
Moms Clean Air Force
Senate Hearing Reveals Pruitt’s Actions Do Not Match Rhetoric
6 years 8 months ago
ssilver
EDF Climate & Energy @EDFEnergyEX
6 years 8 months ago
RT @dickmunson: With many recent setbacks, @firstenergycorp can't get no satisfaction. New newsletter: edf.org/Xbh https://t.co…
EPA budget shrank 55% as agency workload grew: The numbers
6 years 8 months ago
EPA budget shrank 55% as agency workload grew: The numbers
Editor’s note: A longer version of this post first appeared in The Hill.
When Donald Trump rolled out his budget, which cut the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency more than any other department, he said his goal was to shrink our “bloated federal bureaucracy.”
He clearly meant to leave the impression that the EPA had gotten too big and costly. Not surprisingly for a president who just told his 2,000th lie in less than a year in office, this rationale is flat-out wrong.
Far from growing too big, EPA’s budget has been devastated. Other than a bump in the early Obama administration, the agency’s funding has been in a downward spiral for the past four decades.
100 million more Americans – but a decimated EPAContrary to Trump’s implication, EPA’s budget in real dollars is now less than half of what it was in the late 1970s – even as our population since then increased by 100 million people and our economy doubled in size.
It means that with many more people and businesses, the agency has far fewer resources to protect clean air and water, deal with toxic waste and chemicals and protect our health.
Not only that, Congress has repeatedly added to the agency’s responsibilities. Since 1979, there have been at least a dozen major new and necessary laws the agency must enforce – such as the Superfund to clean up toxic waste, the Oil Pollution Act, the Food Quality Protection Act, as well as updates to laws on safe drinking water and clean water.
The Office of the President grew by 43%Meanwhile, the EPA’s funding dropped 55 percent in real dollars. These cuts are not merely the result of general reductions in government. Over the same period – 1979 to 2017 – the average federal agency’s budget has increased by 26 percent.
Overall, 18 agencies, departments or branches of government saw real increases. The Executive Office of the President, for example, grew by 43 percent, the Department of Commerce by 29 percent, and the Department of Justice by 117 percent.
All do important work, but the discrepancy in agency funding levels illustrates what’s happening at the EPA.
EPA now at a breaking pointThe fact that the EPA has managed to make our environment dramatically cleaner, helped states provide clean drinking water, and saved 100,000 lives a year by reducing pollution is remarkable.
It’s done so by implementing efficient safeguards, holding polluters accountable, and by working closely with states and business to find the best way to protect human health. But there comes a point where money can’t stretch any further.
The idea that the Trump administration now wants to reduce the agency’s budget another 30 percent – as the House and Senate are also considering serious cuts – is reckless.
Reducing funding for clean air monitors, state anti-pollution programs, and toxic waste cleanup would be a disaster. It would lead directly to more smog and asthma attacks, more toxic chemicals and cancer in our lives, and more climate pollution threatening our future.
Our leaders need to tell the American people the truth: The EPA’s budget has been devastated for decades and it’s time to fully fund the agency on which we all depend.
How Scott Pruitt is leading the Trump administration’s assault on public health Get policy and political updatesFriday digests from our staff keep you up to date on the week’s events.
Thanks for subscribing to In case you missed it
krives January 29, 2018 - 02:01krives
EDF files comments on EPA’s approaches to the process under TSCA formerly known as pre-prioritization
6 years 8 months ago
Lindsay McCormick
EDF files comments on EPA’s approaches to the process under TSCA formerly known as pre-prioritization
6 years 8 months ago
Lindsay McCormick, is a Project Manager. Last week, EDF filed detailed comments to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the approaches it has presented for identifying potential candidates for prioritization under TSCA. EDF believes the purpose of prioritization is to provide an orderly, transparent process for EPA to use in working its way through the huge backlog […]
Lindsay McCormick
EDF files comments on EPA’s approaches to the process under TSCA formerly known as pre-prioritization
6 years 8 months ago
Lindsay McCormick, is a Project Manager. Last week, EDF filed detailed comments to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the approaches it has presented for identifying potential candidates for prioritization under TSCA. EDF believes the purpose of prioritization is to provide an orderly, transparent process for EPA to use in working its way through the huge backlog […]
Lindsay McCormick
EDF files comments on EPA’s approaches to the process under TSCA formerly known as pre-prioritization
6 years 8 months ago
Lindsay McCormick, is a Project Manager. Last week, EDF filed detailed comments to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the approaches it has presented for identifying potential candidates for prioritization under TSCA. EDF believes the purpose of prioritization is to provide an orderly, transparent process for EPA to use in working its way through the huge backlog […]
Lindsay McCormick
FirstEnergy can’t get no satisfaction
6 years 8 months ago
96
FirstEnergy can’t get no satisfaction
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With many recent setbacks, FirstEnergy just can’t get no satisfaction.
Tuesday January 29, 2018 - Edition #46
The utility attempted to transfer a coal power plant from an unregulated FirstEnergy affiliate to a regulated subsidiary in West Virginia. The move into regulated territory would have guaranteed profits for the company. (Crying “gimme shelter" from competition and market forces – sound familiar?)
But the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was like, “Not so fast,” and unanimously blocked the move.
West Virginians can sleep easy for now – they won’t have more expensive electricity bills just to pay for FirstEnergy’s mistakes. You can’t always get what you want – pt. 2 FERC’s been on a roll: The agency also just rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s flawed proposal to prop up coal and nuclear nationwide. The expensive scheme would have undermined electricity markets and provided guaranteed profits to uneconomic power plants.
It should come as no surprise that FirstEnergy was a big fan of this plan, and was widely seen to be one of the key beneficiaries.
It should also come as no surprise that the utility was rumored to be behind the plan in the first place, with clear ties between FirstEnergy and pro-coal lobbyist Corey Lewandowski, who was deeply upset by the commonsense decision.
Sorry, no sympathy for the devilish utility – or its well-paid lobbyists. Speaking of lobbying… Wild horses couldn’t drag the utility away from its coal commitment. With its aging power plants losing money, rather than reroute, FirstEnergy upped its lobbying dollars last year. By a lot.
According to Politico Pro, “Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp. increased its lobbying expenditures by 20 percent in 2017 to $2.2 million, and registered Miller Strategies in August last year. The company is run by Jeff Miller, who worked on Perry's failed 2016 presidential bid.”
Whether that money was well spent is subjective, but it’s worth revisiting the two news items above. As a failed presidential candidate once said, oops. Quote of the week: Downgraded Last week Moody’s Investors Services painted FirstEnergy Solutions black.
Given the nearly $100 million bond payment the subsidiary is supposed to cough up this spring, combined with the $2.5 billion cash infusion FirstEnergy received to help its affiliate’s giant debt problems, the ratings agency downgraded FirstEnergy Solutions.
In our quote of the week, Moody’s said of the decision, “Both the probability of default and expected losses are high […] There are no clear avenues for additional regulatory or political intervention aimed at providing any additional cash flows.”
With all of these setbacks, FirstEnergy just can’t get no satisfaction. --> --> Copyright © 2018 Environmental Defense Fund |Energy, All rights reserved.
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You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
Generally, when you’re given what you’ve been asking for, you stop asking for it.
Not so with the insatiable subsidy-seeker, FirstEnergy. For years, the Ohio-based utility has been clamoring for billions to bail out its struggling coal and nuclear plants. Now, it seems FirstEnergy has gotten its wish: The utility just received a $2.5 billion investment to “restructure.”
But if you thought this meant FirstEnergy would abandon its attempt to squeeze money from its customers, you would be sorely mistaken. A Senate Public Utilities hearing on SB 128 – the $2.2 billion nuclear bailout bill – took place last week, and FirstEnergy remains set on ramming the bill through.
The utility'll never stop, never stop.
For past newsletters and other updates, you can always visit our FirstEnergy landing page.
The utility attempted to transfer a coal power plant from an unregulated FirstEnergy affiliate to a regulated subsidiary in West Virginia. The move into regulated territory would have guaranteed profits for the company. (Crying “gimme shelter" from competition and market forces – sound familiar?)
But the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was like, “Not so fast,” and unanimously blocked the move.
West Virginians can sleep easy for now – they won’t have more expensive electricity bills just to pay for FirstEnergy’s mistakes. You can’t always get what you want – pt. 2 FERC’s been on a roll: The agency also just rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s flawed proposal to prop up coal and nuclear nationwide. The expensive scheme would have undermined electricity markets and provided guaranteed profits to uneconomic power plants.
It should come as no surprise that FirstEnergy was a big fan of this plan, and was widely seen to be one of the key beneficiaries.
It should also come as no surprise that the utility was rumored to be behind the plan in the first place, with clear ties between FirstEnergy and pro-coal lobbyist Corey Lewandowski, who was deeply upset by the commonsense decision.
Sorry, no sympathy for the devilish utility – or its well-paid lobbyists. Speaking of lobbying… Wild horses couldn’t drag the utility away from its coal commitment. With its aging power plants losing money, rather than reroute, FirstEnergy upped its lobbying dollars last year. By a lot.
According to Politico Pro, “Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp. increased its lobbying expenditures by 20 percent in 2017 to $2.2 million, and registered Miller Strategies in August last year. The company is run by Jeff Miller, who worked on Perry's failed 2016 presidential bid.”
Whether that money was well spent is subjective, but it’s worth revisiting the two news items above. As a failed presidential candidate once said, oops. Quote of the week: Downgraded Last week Moody’s Investors Services painted FirstEnergy Solutions black.
Given the nearly $100 million bond payment the subsidiary is supposed to cough up this spring, combined with the $2.5 billion cash infusion FirstEnergy received to help its affiliate’s giant debt problems, the ratings agency downgraded FirstEnergy Solutions.
In our quote of the week, Moody’s said of the decision, “Both the probability of default and expected losses are high […] There are no clear avenues for additional regulatory or political intervention aimed at providing any additional cash flows.”
With all of these setbacks, FirstEnergy just can’t get no satisfaction. --> --> Copyright © 2018 Environmental Defense Fund |Energy, All rights reserved.
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You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
FirstEnergy can’t get no satisfaction
6 years 8 months ago
96
FirstEnergy can’t get no satisfaction
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With many recent setbacks, FirstEnergy just can’t get no satisfaction.
Tuesday January 29, 2018 - Edition #46
The utility attempted to transfer a coal power plant from an unregulated FirstEnergy affiliate to a regulated subsidiary in West Virginia. The move into regulated territory would have guaranteed profits for the company. (Crying “gimme shelter" from competition and market forces – sound familiar?)
But the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was like, “Not so fast,” and unanimously blocked the move.
West Virginians can sleep easy for now – they won’t have more expensive electricity bills just to pay for FirstEnergy’s mistakes. You can’t always get what you want – pt. 2 FERC’s been on a roll: The agency also just rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s flawed proposal to prop up coal and nuclear nationwide. The expensive scheme would have undermined electricity markets and provided guaranteed profits to uneconomic power plants.
It should come as no surprise that FirstEnergy was a big fan of this plan, and was widely seen to be one of the key beneficiaries.
It should also come as no surprise that the utility was rumored to be behind the plan in the first place, with clear ties between FirstEnergy and pro-coal lobbyist Corey Lewandowski, who was deeply upset by the commonsense decision.
Sorry, no sympathy for the devilish utility – or its well-paid lobbyists. Speaking of lobbying… Wild horses couldn’t drag the utility away from its coal commitment. With its aging power plants losing money, rather than reroute, FirstEnergy upped its lobbying dollars last year. By a lot.
According to Politico Pro, “Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp. increased its lobbying expenditures by 20 percent in 2017 to $2.2 million, and registered Miller Strategies in August last year. The company is run by Jeff Miller, who worked on Perry's failed 2016 presidential bid.”
Whether that money was well spent is subjective, but it’s worth revisiting the two news items above. As a failed presidential candidate once said, oops. Quote of the week: Downgraded Last week Moody’s Investors Services painted FirstEnergy Solutions black.
Given the nearly $100 million bond payment the subsidiary is supposed to cough up this spring, combined with the $2.5 billion cash infusion FirstEnergy received to help its affiliate’s giant debt problems, the ratings agency downgraded FirstEnergy Solutions.
In our quote of the week, Moody’s said of the decision, “Both the probability of default and expected losses are high […] There are no clear avenues for additional regulatory or political intervention aimed at providing any additional cash flows.”
With all of these setbacks, FirstEnergy just can’t get no satisfaction. --> --> Copyright © 2018 Environmental Defense Fund |Energy, All rights reserved.
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Generally, when you’re given what you’ve been asking for, you stop asking for it.
Not so with the insatiable subsidy-seeker, FirstEnergy. For years, the Ohio-based utility has been clamoring for billions to bail out its struggling coal and nuclear plants. Now, it seems FirstEnergy has gotten its wish: The utility just received a $2.5 billion investment to “restructure.”
But if you thought this meant FirstEnergy would abandon its attempt to squeeze money from its customers, you would be sorely mistaken. A Senate Public Utilities hearing on SB 128 – the $2.2 billion nuclear bailout bill – took place last week, and FirstEnergy remains set on ramming the bill through.
The utility'll never stop, never stop.
For past newsletters and other updates, you can always visit our FirstEnergy landing page.
The utility attempted to transfer a coal power plant from an unregulated FirstEnergy affiliate to a regulated subsidiary in West Virginia. The move into regulated territory would have guaranteed profits for the company. (Crying “gimme shelter" from competition and market forces – sound familiar?)
But the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was like, “Not so fast,” and unanimously blocked the move.
West Virginians can sleep easy for now – they won’t have more expensive electricity bills just to pay for FirstEnergy’s mistakes. You can’t always get what you want – pt. 2 FERC’s been on a roll: The agency also just rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s flawed proposal to prop up coal and nuclear nationwide. The expensive scheme would have undermined electricity markets and provided guaranteed profits to uneconomic power plants.
It should come as no surprise that FirstEnergy was a big fan of this plan, and was widely seen to be one of the key beneficiaries.
It should also come as no surprise that the utility was rumored to be behind the plan in the first place, with clear ties between FirstEnergy and pro-coal lobbyist Corey Lewandowski, who was deeply upset by the commonsense decision.
Sorry, no sympathy for the devilish utility – or its well-paid lobbyists. Speaking of lobbying… Wild horses couldn’t drag the utility away from its coal commitment. With its aging power plants losing money, rather than reroute, FirstEnergy upped its lobbying dollars last year. By a lot.
According to Politico Pro, “Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp. increased its lobbying expenditures by 20 percent in 2017 to $2.2 million, and registered Miller Strategies in August last year. The company is run by Jeff Miller, who worked on Perry's failed 2016 presidential bid.”
Whether that money was well spent is subjective, but it’s worth revisiting the two news items above. As a failed presidential candidate once said, oops. Quote of the week: Downgraded Last week Moody’s Investors Services painted FirstEnergy Solutions black.
Given the nearly $100 million bond payment the subsidiary is supposed to cough up this spring, combined with the $2.5 billion cash infusion FirstEnergy received to help its affiliate’s giant debt problems, the ratings agency downgraded FirstEnergy Solutions.
In our quote of the week, Moody’s said of the decision, “Both the probability of default and expected losses are high […] There are no clear avenues for additional regulatory or political intervention aimed at providing any additional cash flows.”
With all of these setbacks, FirstEnergy just can’t get no satisfaction. --> --> Copyright © 2018 Environmental Defense Fund |Energy, All rights reserved.
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You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
Cross-State Air Pollution: The Proof is in the Cradle
6 years 8 months ago
Written by Marcia G. Yerman
Back in 2012, I wrote about the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) and the impacts of pollution that traveled via wind from one state to another. It was a look at the effects of dirty air from “upwind” states on “downwind” states. Now, 5 years...
Marcia G. Yerman
The BLM rule should be in effect – what happened and what’s next?
6 years 8 months ago
Dan Grossman
The BLM rule should be in effect – what happened and what’s next?
6 years 8 months ago
January 17th should have been a positive milestone for Westerners and all Americans as limits on the unnecessary waste of American taxpayer-owned natural gas were slated to go into effect. Instead, Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, who has repeatedly shown that the least responsible companies in the oil and gas industry have his ear, […]
Dan Grossman
The BLM rule should be in effect – what happened and what’s next?
6 years 8 months ago
January 17th should have been a positive milestone for Westerners and all Americans as limits on the unnecessary waste of American taxpayer-owned natural gas were slated to go into effect. Instead, Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, who has repeatedly shown that the least responsible companies in the oil and gas industry have his ear, […]
Dan Grossman