Complete list of press releases

Contact:
Sharyn Stein, EDF, 202-572-3396, sstein@edf.org
Albert Lang, TFAH, 202-223-9870 ext. 21, alang@tfah.org

A new analysis by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) finds that four major rules of the Clean Air Act will yield more than $82 billion in Medicare, Medicaid and other health care savings for America through 2021.

The report, Saving lives and reducing health care costs: How clean air rules benefit the nation [PDF], examines how four new rules recently proposed or finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are expected to reduce air pollution and rates of pollution-related diseases, leading to major savings in health care costs.

“This report offers more proof that clean air rules that protect people’s health are a good investment for America,” said EDF policy specialist Kusai Merchant. “The Clean Air Act is designed to save lives and promote public health by reducing dangerous air pollution. Our analysis shows that we can save billions of dollars at the same time, because we’ll be reducing air pollution-related health care costs.”

Out of the $82 billion, $44.6 billion of the savings are in Medicare and federal-level health care spending, $2.8 billion in state-level Medicaid and other state and local spending, $8.3 billion in out-of-pocket individual costs, and $24.7 billion in private insurance spending.

The four rules – the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, the Utility Mercury and Air Toxics Rule, the Industrial Boiler Rule, and the Cement Kiln Rule – are expected to lower emissions rates of a number of air pollutants, including mercury, arsenic, dioxins, volatile organic compounds, acid gases, heavy metals, smog, and soot, which in turn reduce rates of premature mortality, chronic bronchitis, non-fatal heart attacks, cardiovascular hospital admissions, respiratory hospital admissions and emergency room visits related to asthma.

“By lowering air pollution, we can spare millions of Americans from asthma attacks and other respiratory problems, heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems, and a host of other preventable conditions,” said Jeff Levi, PhD, Executive Director of TFAH. “These Clean Air Act rules are a triple win for the environment, health and health care savings.”

The findings are based on a model developed by David Gardiner and Associates on behalf of EDF and TFAH. The model includes a review of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) analyses of peer-reviewed scientific, medical and economic studies that quantify how Clean Air Act rules are expected to lower air pollution and associated disease rates. The model calculated the expected savings related to lower air pollution and disease rates using the average direct health care Cost-of-Illness for the diseases.

The report also includes a second analysis of health care savings expected from the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, which finds implementation of these programs could yield over $612 billion between 2000 and 2020 in reduced Medicare, Medicaid, out-of-pocket and private insurance spending.

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. See twitter.com/EnvDefenseFund; facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund.

Trust for America’s Health is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to saving lives by protecting the health of every community and working to make disease prevention a national priority. www.healthyamericans.org

David Gardiner & Associates (www.dgardiner.com), a strategic advisor to organizations seeking a sustainable future, delivers innovative and practical solutions for businesses and non-profits.

For Immediate Release:  Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Contact:    David Baron, Earthjustice, (202) 667-4500 Ext. 5203, dbaron@earthjustice.org
Paul Cort, Earthjustice, (510) 550-6777, pcort@earthjustice.org 
Mary Havell, American Lung Association, (202) 715-3459, mary.havell@lung.org   
Sharyn Stein, Environmental Defense Fund, (202) 572-3396, sstein@edf.org
Mark Wenzler, National Parks Conservation Association, (202) 255-9013, mwenzler@npca.org

Washington, D.C. – A broad coalition of health, conservation, environmental organizations and state governments is returning to federal court to compel the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revise the national ambient air quality standards for fine particulate matter, more commonly known as soot.

In today’s legal action, the American Lung Association, Environmental Defense Fund, and National Parks Conservation Association, represented by the public interest law firm Earthjustice, asked the District of Columbia Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals to set a deadline for the EPA to respond to the Court’s decision from February 2009, which found that the standards adopted by the EPA in 2006 failed to protect public health and welfare.

To date, the EPA has not responded to that ruling by adopting the required standards. The groups have returned to the same court today, seeking an order requiring the EPA to adopt the long-overdue air pollution regulations by no later than September 15, 2012. A group of ten states also filed a companion petition with the court today.

“It’s unfortunate that we need to seek a court order to force the EPA to strengthen these critical air quality standards,” said David Baron, attorney for Earthjustice. “EPA’s delay is inexcusable when people’s lives are at stake.”

Airborne particulate matter is comprised of tiny particles of smoke, soot, metals and other chemical compounds emitted from sources like power plants, factories, and diesel trucks. Scientific research shows that these microscopic particles can penetrate deep into lungs, making them one of the most toxic forms of air pollution. The EPA’s own studies show that each year of delay in limiting particulate matter with tighter national standards has resulted in thousands of avoidable deaths, along with increased cases of respiratory and heart diseases.

“Particulate matter can be deadly,” said Janice Nolen, Assistant Vice President of   National Policy and Advocacy for the American Lung Association. “Research tells us that fine particles may be responsible for tens of thousands of premature deaths nationwide every year. Particulate matter is also linked to the aggravation of respiratory illnesses, such as asthma, bronchitis, and chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD), and to heart disease. 

The federal Clean Air Act requires EPA to review the adequacy of national ambient air quality standards every five years, using the best health and science data available. In 2006, EPA ignored its independent science advisors’ recommendations for stronger particulate matter protections and instead left in place the annual standard adopted in 1997. Since then, the EPA has failed to revisit the air quality standards as required by the 2009 court ruling. Meanwhile, the EPA has also missed another five-year review deadline. That missed deadline prompted groups in October to send EPA a 60-day notice of intent to sue.

“The EPA must act to protect the public from this well-documented health hazard,” said Peter Zalzal, an attorney with Environmental Defense Fund. “Strengthening these important air quality protections will have far-reaching benefits and will help to protect vulnerable populations, including the young, the elderly, and those already suffering from respiratory conditions.”

“The impact of soot goes well beyond the crisis in human health,” said Mark Wenzler, Director of Clean Air and Climate Programs for the National Parks Conservation Association. “The pollution affects our forests, our soil, our water, and the very clarity of the air around us. The EPA knows of these adverse effects and is required to mitigate them.”

In conjunction with today’s legal filings, the American Lung Association, Earthjustice and the Clean Air Task Force released a new report titled Sick of Soot: How the EPA Can Save Lives by Clean Up Fine Particle Air Pollution, detailing the health damage caused by particulate matter pollution. According to the study, tighter standards for soot could save more than 35,000 lives every year. 

Link to the Petition for Writ of Mandamus: http://earthjustice.org/documents/legal-document/pdf/pm-naaaqs-mandamus-petition

Link to the “Sick of Soot” report: http://www.earthjustice.org/soot

####

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:

Derek Walker, 410-980-0939 (mobile), dbwalker@edf.org
Lori Sinsley, 415-293-6097 (office); lsinsley@edf.org

(San Francisco – November 16, 2011) Environmental Defense Fund applauded today’s announcement by the Obama Administration proposing a second phase of federal greenhouse gas and fuel economy standards for passenger vehicles. The Administration collaborated closely with California and automakers to provide a clear regulatory future for industry and strong achievable standards for cleaner, more fuel-efficient cars and light trucks.

Widely supported by a diverse coalition of automakers and the United Auto Workers, states including California, businesses, consumers, veterans, health and environmental organizations, these standards will help create jobs, grow our economy, break our addiction to oil, save consumers trillions of dollars at the pump and dramatically cut climate change pollution.

“Fortunately, when it comes to climate and energy policies, what happens in California doesn’t stay in California. The Golden State’s leadership charting the path to cleaner cars that will make our nation more prosperous and secure have led to one of President Obama’s greatest energy and environmental successes,” said Derek Walker, EDF’s Director of Strategic Climate Initiatives. “Consumers and businesses are rightly concerned about our dependence on imported oil and rising energy prices. These standards will address those concerns, save them money and create a healthier environment. 

Together with existing clean car standards that were adopted in 2010, the proposed program will save consumers an estimated $8,200 in fuel savings over the lifetime of a new vehicle by 2025, for a total of $1.7 trillion in national fuel savings over the life of the program. The combined standards will reduce oil consumption by an estimated 2.2 million barrels a day by 2025 – more than our 2010 oil imports from the entire Persian Gulf. They will also reduce carbon dioxide pollution by over 6 billion metric tons over the life of the program – equivalent to emissions from the United States in 2010.

The new standards proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will apply to model year 2017 to 2025 passenger cars and light-duty trucks, improving fuel efficiency between 3.5 and 5 percent annually, and reaching a fleet-wide average of 54.5 miles per gallon in model year 2025 – equivalent to 163 grams of carbon dioxide (CO₂) per mile.

Some in Congress have been working to derail this broadly supported program that has clear and comprehensive benefits. Yet, more than 100 PhD economists, more than a dozen of the world’s largest automakers, 87 percent of small business owners and 77 percent of consumers believe that higher fuel efficiency standards will be good for America. 

The nation’s fleet of cars and light trucks consumes more than 360 million gallons of fuel per day and emits about 20 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas pollution. In December 2009, EPA found that greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare. 

California and 13 other states – Arizona, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington – adopted state clean car standards that provided the foundation for national emission standards.

###

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. Visit us on Twitter at @EnvDefenseFund and @EDF_CA, at our California blog, California Dream 2.0, and on Facebook at facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund. 

NEWS RELEASE

Contact:

Sharyn Stein, 202-572-3396, sstein@edf.org
Mark MacLeod, 202-270-0798, mmacleod@edf.org

“Today’s announcement is more good news for American consumers, auto manufacturers, public health and the environment.

By 2025 we’ll have cars that on average get more than 54 miles to the gallon, save their owners more than $8,000 in fuel costs, save our country more than two million barrels of oil a day, and drastically reduce the carbon dioxide pollution in our air.

American cars and trucks are, once again, poised to lead the world in technological advances that will benefit us all.”

• Environmental Defense Fund President Fred Krupp

###

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. See twitter.com/EnvDefenseFund; facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund; blog.edf.org/Climate411

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)(R) and Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) today are excited to announce the “The Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) Challenge: New Uses for Recycled Glass,” to develop a compelling economic and environmental solution for the challenge posed by recycling old CRTs that have been phased out in favor of liquid crystal and plasma displays.

This Eco-Challenge, sponsored by CEA, officially opens on Nov. 14, and will be accepting submissions for 30 days. The winning solution will be assessed for economic as well as environmental and health benefits, and awarded $5,000 provided by CEA. Up to four additional solutions are eligible for awards of $1,000 or more. CEA and EDF will then broadly publicize and share the solution(s) with manufacturers, retailers and recyclers in an effort to transform how lead-heavy glass is recycled or reused. Additional details about this Eco-Challenge are also available in the EDF Pavilion on the InnoCentive website.

“The consumer electronics industry is committed to the mission of eCycling and this challenge has the potential for electronics recycling to take a giant step forward,” said Walter Alcorn, vice president of environmental affairs and industry sustainability, CEA. “We’re very excited about this Challenge and the innovative solutions it could yield.”

Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) glass, the standard technology for TVs and monitors during the twentieth century, is now obsolete due to new liquid crystal and plasma displays. As a result, the recycling market for CRT glass has virtually disappeared. Furthermore, because funnel CRT glass contains lead — a metal harmful to human health — it is unsuitable for standard glass-to-glass recycling. However, over the next decade more than one billion pounds of legacy CRT TVs and monitors are expected to enter the recycling stream in the U.S. alone. This creates an immediate need for an environmentally sound, economically sustainable solution for recycling and reusing this material.

The open innovation Challenge is part of the EDF-InnoCentive Eco-Challenge Series, launched by EDF earlier this year in partnership with InnoCentive, a pioneer in open innovation and crowdsourcing. The Eco-Challenge Series utilizes the unique Challenge Driven Innovation methodology developed by InnoCentive to accelerate open innovation in commercial, nonprofit and public sector organizations. InnoCentive’s platform brings together cloud-based technology, expert services and a global network of more than 250,000 problem solvers — including scientists, entrepreneurs and inventors from more than 200 countries — to develop innovative solutions to Challenges submitted by a broad range of organizations. These organizations work with EDF and InnoCentive to identify environmental problems, formulate them as Challenges and offer financial rewards for the best solutions to the Eco-Challenges.

“For over 20 years, EDF has catalyzed environmental innovation in corporate America,” said Gwen Ruta, vice president of corporate partnerships for EDF. “With the EDF-InnoCentive Eco-Challenge Series, we are tapping the collective brainpower of innovators around the world to help us solve new environmental challenges in ways that are good for both business and the planet.”

Earlier this year, CEA also launched the eCycling Leadership Initiative, an industry-led effort to responsibly recycle one billion pounds of electronics annually, with the goal of improving eCycling infrastructure and developing partnerships to help reach one billion pounds. The initiative also seeks to shore up consumer education and report on progress for all of its goals. To find a local recycling center near you, please visit www.GreenerGadgets.org .

About CEA

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the $190 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry. More than 2,000 companies enjoy the benefits of CEA membership, including legislative advocacy, market research, technical training and education, industry promotion, standards development and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA also owns and produces the International CES — The Global Stage for Innovation. All profits from CES are reinvested into CEA’s industry services. Find CEA online at www.CE.org , www.DeclareInnovation.com and through social media https://www.facebook.com/CEAfeed, http://twitter.com/ceafeed, http://blog.ce.org/ .

Upcoming CEA Events:

• CES Unveiled@London November 17, 2011, London, UK
• Future of Television East November 18, 2011, New York, NY
• 2012 International CES January 10-13, 2012, Las Vegas, NV

About Environmental Defense Fund

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. For more information, visit edfbusiness.org. Read our blog at blogs.edf.org/business. Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/EDFbiz.

About InnoCentive

InnoCentive is the open innovation and crowdsourcing pioneer that enables organizations to solve their key problems by connecting them to diverse sources of innovation including employees, customers, partners, and the world’s largest problem solving marketplace. InnoCentive’s proven Challenge Driven Innovation methodology, community of millions of problem Solvers, and cloud-based technology platform combine to fundamentally transform the economics of innovation and R&D through rapid solution delivery and the development of sustainable open innovation programs. Leading commercial, government, and nonprofit organizations such as Eli Lilly, Life Technologies, NASA, nature.com, Popular Science, Procter & Gamble, Roche, Rockefeller Foundation, and The Economist partner with InnoCentive to solve problems and innovate faster and more cost effectively than ever before.

Contact:
Sean Crowley, 202-550-6524-c, scrowley@edf.org 

(New Orleans, La. – November 10, 2011) The Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish received praise today for breaking ground on the $10 million Central Wetlands Assimilation Project as a vital first step to restore the Central Wetlands Unit, improve storm surge protection and create new jobs.

“The Central Wetlands Assimilation Project is a vital first step to showing that environmental restoration equals economic restoration, creating recreation opportunities, improving habitat and creating new jobs,” said Elizabeth Skree, communications manager for the Mississippi River Delta Restoration project at Environmental Defense Fund, who attended the 1:30pm ground breaking ceremony at the SWB East Bank Wastewater Treatment Plant (6501 Florida Avenue, New Orleans, LA  70117). 

Restoring the entire Central Wetlands Unit has the potential to create 680 direct and indirect restoration related jobs, according to an EDF study released last year.  The Central Wetlands Assimilation Project is the first vital step to restore impacted wetlands in the Central Wetlands Unit, a 30,000-acre area of open water east of New Orleans that was once a thriving cypress forest that once provided vital hurricane and storm surge protection to local communities.  

However, construction of the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) inundated the area with saltwater, killing the cypress trees and leaving behind open water.  In 2005, the lack of vegetation in the open water increased storm surge from Hurricane Katrina, worsening the damage it caused in the Lower Ninth Ward and St. Bernard Parish.  

The Central Wetlands Assimilation Project will provide fresh water and nutrients needed to reduce salinity and encourage plant growth—by redirecting and reusing treated wastewater and effluent from the East Bank Sewage Treatment Plant into the area—rather than discarding all of it in the Mississippi River.  

“We applaud the City of New Orleans, St. Bernard Parish, the Sewerage and Water Board and local and state officials for making this project a reality,” concluded Skree.  “We also commend our local and community partners and the non-governmental organization community for keeping the momentum going for restoring this area as well as other important Mississippi River Delta ecosystems.”

###

Environmental Defense Fund, a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. Follow us at Twitter.com/EDF_Louisiana and at Facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund.

Contact: 
Sharyn Stein, 202-572-3396, sstein@edf.org

“Today, the U.S. Senate did the right thing and defeated a measure that would have put American lives and health at risk. We appreciate the stand taken by those Senators who voted against S.J. Res. 27.

Sen. Rand Paul’s resolution would have blocked the long-overdue Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, which protects American families from the smokestack pollution that drifts across state lines and causes thousands of premature deaths each year. Sen. Paul’s effort to undermine our clean air laws was misguided and dangerous. 

Unfortunately, the attacks against our clean air laws continue in spite of today’s victory. In fact, Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Dan Coats (R-IN) have already introduced other legislation to undermine the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule and another critical protection, the Mercury and Air Toxics Rule for power plants.

We need our Senators to continue to fight for clean air and public health, and defeat any and all legislation that would leave us vulnerable to mercury emissions and other dangerous air pollution.

• Fred Krupp, Environmental Defense Fund President 

###

 Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. See twitter.com/EnvDefenseFund; facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund; blog.edf.org/Climate411

Contact:
Mica Odom, (512) 691-3451, modom@edf.org

(Washington, DC – November 10, 2011) A high-level advisory board to Energy Secretary Steven Chu today proposed a focused set of steps for strengthening environmental management in the shale gas industry, following up on its earlier recommendations for increased oversight and transparency with an assessment of their implementation to date and a roadmap for improvement.  

 “Recommendations are only worth the paper they’re printed on if nothing comes of them,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund and one of the panel’s seven members. “Today’s report is a call to action in Washington and in the states to make sure the panel’s recommendations are implemented. It’s no simple task to strike a balance between public safety and the development of this crucial energy resource, but it is essential that we do so. The public’s right to clean water and clean air cannot be compromised.”

The Subcommittee believes that these recommendations, if implemented, would make real progress toward developing this abundant energy source in ways that safeguard public health and the environment. If action is not taken, however, the rapid expansion of shale gas production poses the risk of serious environmental consequences.

The Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board (SEAB) Shale Gas Production Subcommittee final report says “Americans deserve assurance that the full economic, environmental and energy security benefits of shale gas development will be realized without sacrificing public health, environmental protection and safety.”  

In its first 90-day report, the subcommittee made a series of recommendations for improving oversight and reducing environmental and public health impacts from shale gas production. Today’s 180-day report examines efforts under way to implement those recommendations.  

The final report applauds the Department of Interior for announcing it will propose rules for mandatory disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing on public lands and praises the Ground Water Protection Council and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission for plans to improve their voluntary disclosure registry called “Frac Focus.” The subcommittee offered support for the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed air pollution standards for the oil and gas sector (noting, however, that the proposed rules fall short by not including direct controls on emissions of methane and by largely ignoring existing sources of pollution).  

The report also acknowledges the difficulty in planning for and mitigating community impacts and cumulative environmental impacts from intensive shale gas production – calling on state and local governments to start experimenting with solutions, and pointing out that the Department of Interior has unique tools and opportunities to address these problems today.

Finally, the report emphasizes the need for rapid progress, saying “If the country is to enjoy the economic and other benefits of shale gas production over the coming years disciplined attention must be devoted to reducing the environmental impact that accompanies this development.” It also calls for cooperation among federal and state regulators, public interest groups and industry.

###

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. See twitter.com/EDFEnergyEX; facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund; and http://blogs.edf.org/energyexchange/category/natural-gas/.

NEWS RELEASE

Contact:

Tony Kreindler, 202-445-8108, akreindler@edf.org

Sharyn Stein, 202-572-3396, sstein@edf.org

Statement by EDF President Fred Krupp on

Sen. Rand Paul’s Attempt to Derail the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule

“Senator Paul’s attempt to block the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule takes anti-government ideology to an extreme.  His bill would stop a long-overdue rule to protect American families from smokestack pollution that drifts across state lines — and causes thousands of premature deaths each year.  If polluters are allowed to continue dumping their pollution in neighboring states, we will all be in serious trouble.”

“I strongly urge all senators to put the health of American families ahead of this misguided effort to undermine our clean air laws.  We should all agree that being good neighbors is the right thing to do.”

• Fred Krupp, Environmental Defense Fund President 

###

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. See twitter.com/EnvDefenseFund; facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund

Contact:
Pamela Campos, +1-720-205-2366, pcampos@edf.org
Jennifer Andreassen, +1-202-288-4867, jandreassen@edf.org

(Montreal – November 2, 2011)  In a procedurally uncertain action at a United Nations meeting in Montreal today, several countries launched yet another attempt to undercut the EU’s landmark law to control carbon pollution from aviation.  U.S.-based Environmental Defense Fund criticized the meeting as an underhanded effort to paper over legal differences with political posturing.

Over objections of European nations and without open discussion of the text itself, a majority of the 36-member Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) today adopted a declaration urging the EU to refrain from including flights from non-EU airlines in its Aviation Directive, which holds airlines accountable for their emissions from flights that use EU airports.

“The Council’s decision today is one more skirmish in the airlines’ continuing battle to evade pollution regulation,” said EDF attorney Pamela Campos, who attended the ICAO meeting.  “While the airlines may try to claim this is a Council ‘ruling,’ the ICAO president made very clear this morning that the ‘declaration’ is simply that – a political expression of a group of countries that their airlines aren’t happy about having to comply with pollution controls. It is not a legal interpretation, nor could it be under ICAO’s own rules,” said Campos. “Any formal legal action would have to follow very different procedures that were not considered today.”

ICAO’s legal counsel also made clear during the meeting this morning that the Council’s decision is not legally binding, stating that “it is quite clear that any decision taken by the Council … has no obligatory power.”

“Many of the countries voting here are not even covered by the EU law they’re voting against, and the declaration itself calls for action that would violate the Chicago Convention,” said Campos.  “This highlights the clear political nature of the declaration.”

Many of the participants in the meeting, including some who support the declaration, called for ICAO to speed up its work on developing a global market-based system to reduce warming pollution.  “Europe’s action is a first step and an opportunity to stop debating and start reducing pollution now,” said Campos.

A report out today also noted United Continental Holdings spent $680,000 in the past quarter lobbying the U.S. Congress on issues that included enlisting Congress’s help in United’s quest to evade the EU’s pollution controls.  The EU law was found by the Advocate General of the European Court of Justice in a preliminary opinion to be fully consistent with international law, including the ICAO convention.

Contact:
Amanda Warner, (202) 572-3247, awarner@edf.org
Vicki Patton, (303) 447-7215, vpatton@edf.org

Today the Environmental Defense Fund agreed to a 30-day extension of the deadline for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to issue clean air standards for the toxic air contaminants discharged from power plant smokestacks across our nation. EDF stipulated to this limited extension of time for a single reason: to ensure EPA can finalize the most protective and durable limits on the toxic air pollution from coal plants.

The 1,200 coal-fired units are collectively responsible for the largest volume of hazardous air pollutants discharged in our communities. They emit over half of the mercury and arsenic, and are a major source of acid gases. However, a suite of affordable, made-in-America technologies is readily available to address these dangerous air pollutants.

While some power companies are leading the way in transitioning to a modern energy infrastructure, others are vigorously fighting clean air progress. It is unfortunate- indeed outrageous- that the forces that oppose healthier, safer air for America’s families and neighborhoods will unleash a barrage a legal attacks to derail these vital clean air protections.

Today, we call on the power companies leading the attacks on safer air for our families to stop: stop investing in endless litigation, stop investing in obstructionism, and stop the rhetoric of division and polarization. And instead begin investing in innovation and cleaner air for America.

We urge EPA to use this brief time extension wisely: to adopt the most protective clean air standards for the most toxic pollutants and to prepare effectively for those who seek to derail a stronger, healthier and more prosperous America.

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. Visit us on Twitter @EnvDefenseFund and facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund.

Contact:
Lori Sinsley, (415) 293-6097 office, (415) 902-8111 mobile, Email Lori
Tim O’Connor, (415) 293-6132 office, (916) 549-8423 mobile, Email Tim

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) applauded the California Air Resources Board (CARB) for casting an historic, unanimous vote today to create the first economy-wide carbon market in North America and put a mandatory declining cap on pollution that causes global climate change.

Today’s vote marked the formal adoption of a cap-and-trade regulation that is the centerpiece of California’s Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32), a 2006 law that will dramatically cut the state’s climate pollution to 1990 levels within the next decade while creating jobs and reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil. The cap will achieve 20 percent of the total required reductions under AB32 — one of more than 70 measures the state is pursuing to reduce emissions and improve energy efficiency.

“California is proof that common sense climate action is still possible on a large scale in the United States even though Washington D.C. remains gridlocked,” said Fred Krupp, President of Environmental Defense Fund. “This climate law has been the target of serious attacks, but it has survived because business leaders have stood up for the law’s clear economic benefits, and environmental advocates have stood up for its potential to drive deep reductions in carbon pollution.” (See Fred Krupp’s letter to CARB Chairman Mary Nichols [PDF])

California has the world’s eighth largest economy, and its carbon market will be the second largest in the world next to Europe’s. Today’s vote is the latest in a series of important moves around the world that use market-based policies to price carbon. Together, they are forging a path to the clean energy economy.

Last week, Australia moved closer to passing a carbon tax and will ultimately transition to a national cap-and-trade system. China has planted the seeds for a domestic carbon market under its current Five-Year Plan. And Europe’s highest court recently issued a preliminary opinion saying the European Union’s cap-and-trade system can cover aviation emissions, a major piece of the transportation puzzle.

“In the five years since California passed AB 32, CARB has designed a market-based program that will cut pollution quickly at the lowest cost, while driving investments and growing its economy,” said Tim O’Connor, Director of EDF’s California Climate and Energy Initiative. “Now that we are moving ahead with an economy-wide cap that prices carbon, we will be better able to compete against China and other countries that are moving fast to secure their own economic and energy futures.”

California’s program will include an adaptive management strategy to ensure it achieves goals by monitoring and responding to any undesirable impacts. A yearly audit of the regulation’s environmental performance, using facility and ground level monitoring data, will ensure other air pollution standards aren’t being compromised.

“There is broad agreement about California’s overall approach to meet our environmental, economic and public health objectives,” said O’Connor. “Still, we need to do more to improve California’s air quality and protect our communities. Our climate change laws need to be complimented with stronger, more effective pollution control laws that are rigorously enforced by the state and the Environmental Protection Agency.”

California’s program puts a firm limit on pollution that will ultimately cover 85 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas pollution by 2015. In all, the program will regulate approximately 324 of the state’s biggest polluters including those in the utility, industrial, natural gas and transportation fuels sectors. Companies must comply with the program that is set to begin in 2013 with an initial allowance auction slated for mid-2012.

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. Visit us on Twitter at @EnvDefenseFund and @EDF_CA, at our California blog, California Dream 2.0, and on Facebook at facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund.

Contact:
Tony Kreindler, 202-445-8108, tkreindler@edf.org
Sharyn Stein, 202-572-3396, sstein@edf.org

“Once again, the U.S. House of Representatives has voted in favor of more pollution.

“Two weeks ago, they voted to let power plants, the nation’s largest source of mercury air emissions, off the hook. Now they’ve decided to let industrial boilers and cement plants, the nation’s second and third largest sources of mercury air emissions, off the hook too — letting them continue to release mercury, arsenic, chromium, lead and dioxins into the air without limit.

“It’s time Congress stopped pretending that increasing air pollution is an economic policy, or that forcing us to breathe dangerous toxins is a job creation plan. No one benefits when Americans suffer more heart attacks, asthma attacks, birth defects and premature deaths.”

- Steve Cochran, EDF Vice President of Climate and Air

Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. See twitter.com/EnvDefenseFund; facebook.com/EnvDefenseFund

Contact:
Jennifer Witherspoon, (415) 293.6067 (office), jwitherspoon@edf.org

(San Francisco – October 11, 2011) Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) announced today the hire of Lauren Faber as the political director of EDF’s West Coast operations.

“Lauren Faber’s policy and political savvy is an asset to EDF’s mission on the West Coast to deliver solutions for the environment and the economy,” said David Festa, EDF’s West Coast vice president.

California has led the nation in advancing innovative environmental policies over the past four decades, making it an important proving ground for the market-based solutions advocated by EDF.

“I’m pleased to join EDF in forging effective partnerships with business and government leaders to advance robust environmental policies on the West Coast that can serve as an example nationally and internationally,” said Lauren Faber.

Lauren Faber joins EDF from the California Environmental Protection Agency, where she was appointed as the Assistant Secretary for Climate Change Programs in February 2010. At the California EPA, Lauren focused on the design and implementation of California’s landmark Global Warming Solutions Act that EDF cosponsored in 2006. Previously, Lauren served as senior director for Lighthouse Consulting Group, where she advised on comprehensive climate change and energy strategies for domestic and international companies, and non-government organizations, and in particular, the U.S. Climate Action Partnership. Lauren also served over four years at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. as the Senior Policy Advisor for climate change and energy.

Ms. Faber’s work at EDF will focus on building support with business and governmental leaders to advance key policies in the areas of climate, energy, oceans, land, water and wildlife.

Environmental Defense Fund, a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. For more information, visit www.edf.org/california. Follow us on Twitter @EDF_CA and read our blog at http://blogs.edf.org/californiadream/.