Complete list of press releases

NEWS RELEASE

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

(Washington, DC – August 11, 2011) The Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board on Natural Gas today issued an interim report calling for “strong regulation and effective enforcement” in order to ensure the safe and sustainable development of America’s onshore natural gas resources. In May, U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu tasked environmental, industry and state leaders to make recommendations for improving environmental performance and reducing risks associated with shale gas production. Today, this diverse group of advisors released a report that reflects 90 days of deliberation and highlights a series of consensus-based recommendations based on that charge.

Key themes in the report include the need for greater transparency and disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations and other potential environmental impacts from shale gas development, a call for industry to lead in developing and implementing best practices and a call for agencies to modernize their rules and adopt robust enforcement practices. Though regulatory design was beyond the scope of the subcommittee, the report makes it clear that “effective and capable regulation is essential to protect the public interest. The challenges of protecting human health and the environment in light of the anticipated rapid expansion of shale gas production require the joint efforts of federal and state regulators. This means that resources dedicated to oversight of the industry must be sufficient to do the job and there is adequate regulatory staff at the state and federal level with the technical expertise to issue, inspect and enforce regulations.”

EDF President Fred Krupp, one of seven subcommittee members, emphasized the tough, balanced nature of the recommendations. “This report is an important first step,” Krupp said. “At a time when so much of the debate in Washington is characterized by discord and paralysis, it finds common ground and offers a clear consensus. The public’s right to clean water and clean air cannot be compromised. The subcommittee’s recommendations won’t solve every problem overnight. But if implemented, they would make real progress toward developing this abundant energy source in ways that safeguard public health and the environment. Rigorous, well-designed standards and improved transparency and disclosure can help ensure that shale gas is developed responsibly now and in the future.”

The subcommittee’s report may be viewed here and will be presented to the full committee in late August. Members of the subcommittee include: John Deutch, Institute Professor at MIT (Chair); Stephen Holditch, Head of the Department of Petroleum Engineering, Texas A&M University; Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund; Kathleen McGinty, Former Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection; Susan Tierney, Managing Principal, Analysis Group; Daniel Yergin, Chairman, IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates; and Mark Zoback, Professor of Geophysics, Stanford University.

NEWS RELEASE

(Washington, D.C. – August 9, 2011) New nationwide fuel efficiency and emissions standards for trucks and buses will greatly benefit America’s economy, environment and national security, according to Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

EDF praised the standards, which were announced by President Obama this morning, as a giant first step towards creating energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly commercial vehicles.

“It’s great to see Washington get something so right,” said EDF President Fred Krupp. “Thanks to these new standards, everybody wins: truck drivers save money at the pump, America imports less foreign oil, and we all get to breathe cleaner air.”

The first-ever national standards for trucks and buses were just finalized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

They will require all heavy-duty vehicles manufactured in the years 2014 to 2018 to use less fuel and emit less dangerous pollution into the air. That category includes commercial trucks, buses and school buses, heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans, and vocational trucks like delivery and garbage trucks. (The standards will not apply to passenger cars and light trucks, which already have separate fuel efficiency standards).

Over the life of those trucks and buses, EPA and NHTSA estimate the standards will:

• Reduce oil consumption by more than 20 billion gallons
• Save a truck’s owner up to $73,000
• Save more than $50 billion in net benefits from fuel savings
• Cut carbon dioxide pollution by 270 million metric tons

EDF found that the projected daily oil savings from the standards, when fully implemented, are comparable to our nation’s Iraq oil imports.

Today, America’s fleet of trucks and buses uses more than 100 million gallons of oil per day, and emits about 20 percent of U.S. transportation greenhouse gas pollution.

Under the new standards, commercial trucks will need to reduce fuel consumption and pollution emissions by up to 20 percent beginning with the 2014 models; heavy duty pickups and vans will need to start reducing fuel consumption and pollution emissions and achieve up to a 15 percent reductions by 2018; vocational vehicles like garbage trucks, buses and fire engines will have to reduce consumption and pollution emissions by about 10 percent by the year 2018.

More details about the standards and their benefits to Americans are on EDF’s Clean Trucks website. Also, please see our fact sheet about how the new standards will create a business edge for American manufacturers.

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NEWS RELEASE

(Boulder, CO – August 5, 2011) Western U.S. experts on energy and the environment are praising today’s decision to reduce the dangerous air pollution from one of America’s oldest and dirtiest coal plants.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency just announced new, protective emission limitations on pollution from the San Juan Generating Station in New Mexico. The coal plant emits more than 5,500 tons of sulfur dioxide and 18,300 tons of nitrogen oxide each year.

Sulfur dioxide contributes to particulate pollution, which can be dangerous to human health – and sometimes even deadly. Nitrogen oxide is a key ingredient in the formation of ground-level ozone, more commonly known as smog. In addition to the health hazards they cause, smog and particulate pollution also create a haze that obscures scenic vistas in our national parks, which can ruin Americans’ ability to enjoy some of our greatest natural resources.

“EPA’s action to clean up the San Juan Generating Station will protect public health, and will also help clear the haze at Mesa Verde National Park and our other cherished wilderness areas in the Four Corners region,” said Pamela Campos of Environmental Defense Fund’s Rocky Mountain office. “Today’s decision sets a strong precedent for reducing coal plant pollution, protecting our families’ health, and preserving our parks around the country.”

The new rules will reduce both sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide pollutions from the San Juan Generating Station; emissions of nitrogen oxide pollution will be reduced by more than 80 percent over a five year period. In addition, EPA’s plan will reduce by half the plant’s contribution to haze pollution in national parks such as Mesa Verde, Bandelier, and Grand Canyon National Park.

“We are pleased that EPA has not bowed to corporate pressure and is protecting our air quality and beautiful landscapes and vistas for ourselves and our children”, said Steve Michel, Chief Counsel for Western Resource Advocates’ Energy Program.

The Four Corners area currently gets failing grades for air quality from the American Lung Association. Under the new rule, the San Juan Generating Station will use the most efficient technology available to reduce air pollution and improve air quality across the region.

NEWS RELEASE

CONTACT:
Kathleen Sutcliffe, Earthjustice, (202) 667-4500, ext.235
Richard Denison, Environmental Defense Fund, (202) 387-3500
Roberta Winters, League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (610) 527-3706
John Fenton, Pavilion Area Concerned Citizens, (307) 856-7098

(WASHINGTON, DC – August 4, 2011) A large coalition of public health, environmental, and good government groups filed a petition (PDF) today demanding that full health and safety information be made available for all of the chemicals used in oil and gas development, including the controversial process known as hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” Fracking is when oil and gas companies blast millions of gallons of water treated with chemicals into the ground to force oil and gas from hard-to-reach places deep inside the earth. Along with a fracking-fueled gas rush have come troubling reports of poisoned drinking water, polluted air, mysterious animal deaths, and sick families.

“The more information we have about the chemicals used in fracking and drilling, the easier it will be to keep people safe and healthy,” said Earthjustice Associate Attorney Megan Klein. “But EPA needs to move quickly – we learn of new problems related to this industry almost daily.”

Earthjustice filed the petition on behalf of Environmental Defense Fund, The League of Women Voters and more than 100 other groups from across America including those with national membership and others with membership from among 23 states (list). The petition asks the EPA to draft rules that — for the first time — would require manufacturers and processors of drilling and fracking chemicals to conduct testing and produce health and safety data needed to evaluate the health and environmental risks of their substances and mixtures.

“The complications linked to the chemicals used in oil and gas development are emblematic of a larger problem in this country — in which we allow dangerous or untested chemicals to be used in everyday consumer products and, in this case, mixed with water and pumped underground,” said Richard Denison, Senior Scientist with Environmental Defense Fund. “Ultimately, the goal of this petition is to encourage companies to do the right thing. If health impacts associated with their products are widely known, it will serve as a powerful incentive for companies to act more responsibly.”

Little is known about many of the chemicals used in drilling and fracking. What information is available is sobering: 78 percent of known fracking chemicals are associated with serious short-term health effects such as burning eyes, rashes, asthma-like effects, nausea, vomiting, headaches, dizziness, tremors, and convulsions. Between 22 and 47 percent of those chemicals also are associated with longer-term health effects, including cancer, organ damage, and harm to the endocrine system.

“People are understandably concerned about the potential health impacts posed by fracking. Here in Pennsylvania and across the region, as the pace of drilling has skyrocketed, so too have reports of illness and pollution,” said Roberta Winters of the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania. “The League of Women Voters is deeply concerned about this national issue that threatens the environment and public health. The state Leagues of New York and Pennsylvania are working hard to educate the public about the environmental, public health, and economic impacts associated with fracking. As we continue to advocate for public participation and transparency, we encourage citizens to make their voices heard to regain necessary environmental protections. Our nation’s leaders are on notice that our organization, and more than a hundred others nationwide are pressing for swift action on this petition.”

The petition also asks the EPA to require Halliburton and 8 other fracking chemical companies to provide any documentation these companies have of environmental or health problems associated with the chemicals they manufacture, process, or distribute.

“Here in Pavilion, we’re surrounded by fracked gas wells. The EPA told us over a year ago not to use our well water anymore for drinking or cooking,” said John Fenton of Pavilion (WY) Area Concerned Citizens. “The way the rules work right now, it’s easy for companies to sidestep responsibility. I don’t think we should stand for it any longer, which is why I’ve signed onto this petition.”

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RESOURCES

• The petition filed today can be found at: http://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/fracking_petition.pdf  
• A list of groups, organized by state, that signed onto today’s petition can be found at: http://earthjustice.org/documents/reference/xls/fracking-petition-groups
• Study guides on Natural Gas Extraction from Marcellus shale, Pipelines, and Pooling, are available on the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania website: http://palwv.org/issues/MarcellusShale/index.html

News Release

Contacts:
• Dave Willett, The Ocean Conservancy, dwillett@oceanconservancy.org, 202-351-0465
• John W. (Wes) Tunnell, Jr., Ph.D., Harte Research Institute, wes.tunnell@tamucc.edu, 361-825-2055
• Susan Kaderka, National Wildlife Federation, kaderka@nwf.org, 512-610-7752
• David Ringer, National Audubon Society, dringer@audubon.org, 601-642-7058
• John Lopez, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, johnlopez@pobox.com, 504-836-2215
• Sandra Rodriguez, The Nature Conservancy, srodriguez@tnc.org, 703-841-4227
• Sean Crowley, Environmental Defense Fund, scrowley@edf.org, 202-572-3331

(Washington, DC—August 1, 2011) Leading conservation groups working across the Gulf of Mexico have submitted to the White House a blueprint for action that federal, state and local governments can take to restore the region’s threatened natural systems and to help communities that rely on the Gulf for survival.

The groups delivered their recommendations to the Presidential Task Force on Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration, which President Obama created last October by executive order. The task force is facing a one-year deadline this October to develop a comprehensive strategy “to effectively address the damage caused by the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, address the longstanding ecological decline, and begin moving toward a more resilient Gulf Coast ecosystem.”

The timing of the groups’ recommendations, entitled a Strategy for Restoring the Gulf of Mexico, is important. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is expected to soon vote on legislation that would provide funding to implement the Presidential Task Force’s restoration plans. The Senate bill, the RESTORE Gulf Coast States Act, would dedicate 80 percent of the oil spill fines to restoring the Gulf’s communities, economies and environments. Under current law, most of the fines will be used for general government spending, rather than being directed towards the Gulf.

The recommendations were submitted by The Nature Conservancy, the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies (Texas A&M) University-Corpus Christi, National Audubon Society, Ocean Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, Environmental Defense Fund, and the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation. The Presidential Task Force will unveil their final plan for Gulf restoration on Oct. 5.

“The Gulf is a national treasure and restoring it must be a national priority,” said Wes Tunnell of the Harte Research Institute. “Too much time has already passed. We cannot miss this important opportunity to rebuild the Gulf and ensure it continues to support our nation’s economy, communities and wildlife.”

Among the recommendations included in the blueprint are:

• Restoration activities should provide both environmental and social benefits.
• Ensure sufficient delivery of freshwater flows to the Gulf in order to maintain ecological health of bays and estuaries.
• Restore populations of endangered marine mammals, where their probability of extinction in the next 100 years is less than 1%.
• Construct and operate a series of large-scale diversions of freshwater and sediment from the Mississippi River sufficient to build and sustain Delta wetlands to provide storm surge protection for people and restore habitat for economically vital fisheries.
• Implement management plans for oyster reefs that support fish production, water filtration, nitrogen removal, coastal protection and other services that benefit both people and nature.

“If we really care about the Gulf and the communities that rely on it for survival, these fines must be used to restore the wetlands, marshes, oyster reefs, mangroves, fisheries and other natural resources that provide food, income and shelter to local communities – and the nation as a whole,” said Cindy Brown, The Nature Conservancy’s Gulf of Mexico Program Director. “The Gulf suffered the brunt of the spill and the fines should be used to bring the Gulf back to health.”

“In order to successfully restore the Gulf, we must view the Gulf holistically — from the coast to marine waters — and focus on restoring the key services the ecosystem provides to coastal communities,” said Chris Dorsett, Ocean Conservancy’s Director of Fish Conservation & Gulf Restoration.

Even before the oil spill, the Gulf of Mexico faced serious threats from neglect, overdevelopment, pollution, storms, climate change and alteration of the Mississippi River Delta that feeds into the Gulf. Yet the Gulf still is one of the most productive natural areas in the world:

• The five Gulf states, if considered an individual country, would rank 7th in global Gross Domestic Product. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
• The Gulf currently supports a $34 billion per year tourism industry (Oxford Economics), and its fisheries support more than $23 billion in seafood and commercial and recreational fishing-related activity (National Marine Fisheries Service).
• The Gulf produces roughly 40 percent of all the seafood in the lower 48 states (National Marine Fisheries Service).
• The region is home to 10 of our nation’s 15 largest ports by tonnage. More than 25 percent of the nation’s waterborne exports pass through Louisiana ports alone (American Association of Port Authorities).

“As terrible as it was, the oil spill focused the county’s attention on what this ecosystem contributes to our economy and what it means to our natural heritage. We must turn this awareness into a national commitment to restore and sustain this natural treasure,” said Susan Kaderka, Regional Director for the National Wildlife Federation.

The environmental groups that submitted the recommendations pledged to continue working with federal and state lawmakers to ensure action is taken immediately to ensure the Gulf’s productivity can be maintained and in many cases enhanced by bringing the region back to health.

“Although born of tragedy, there is a tremendous opportunity now for recovery of the Gulf. But we must think big,” said Chris Canfield, Vice President of Gulf Coast Conservation/Mississippi Flyway with the National Audubon Society. “We must look and work across political and organizational boundaries. We know how to restore the Mississippi River Delta, to bring back wetlands and barrier islands, to make a better home for birds, fish and our communities. All we need is the resolve to do it.”

“We hope our recommendations will help the task force develop its strategy, but the task force can’t implement its strategy without the necessary funding that the RESTORE Gulf Coast States Act provides,” said Courtney Taylor, policy director for the Mississippi Delta Restoration project at Environmental Defense Fund. “That’s why Congress must hold the parties responsible for Gulf oil spill damage accountable by passing the RESTORE Gulf Coast States Act to ensure that we invest the oil spill penalties to restore the Gulf, or we risk losing this ecological and economic treasure.”

NEWS RELEASE

(Washington, D.C. – July 29, 2011) New fuel efficiency and climate pollution standards that were announced today by President Obama will help move the country toward energy independence and a safer climate, according to Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

The President announced the results of an agreement among automakers, government officials and other stakeholders moments ago. The deal will increase fuel efficiency standards for U.S. passenger cars and light trucks to an average of 54.5 miles per gallon by the year 2025.

“If U.S. automakers achieve 54.5 miles per gallon, it will vastly improve our national future on many levels. And they certainly should succeed; we have the technology to reach that goal, and even to surpass it,” said EDF President Fred Krupp. “This is an important step toward energy independence. More efficient cars will boost our national security, improve our climate and save us all money at the gas pump.”

American cars and trucks now consume more than 350 million gallons of fuel every day. That costs American consumers more than $1.3 billion a day at the gas pump.

The new standards are expected to reduce U.S. oil consumption by 23 billion gallons of gasoline every year – or roughly the equivalent of our 2010 oil imports from Saudi Arabia and Iraq. That would lower our costs at the gas pump by more than $80 billion in 2030, according to a preliminary analysis by Union of Concerned Scientists.

The new standards are also expected to reduce carbon pollution from vehicle tailpipes by 280 million metric tons in 2030. That’s roughly the output of 72 coal-fired power plants.

The updated standards will apply to passenger cars and light trucks built between 2017 and 2025. Fuel economy standards for cars will increase 5 percent over each of those years. Fuel economy standard for light trucks will increase 3.5 percent each year through 2021, and 5 percent a year after that. On average, fuel economy for light-duty vehicles will reach 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

The dual greenhouse gas and fuel economy standards are being issued under the Clean Air Act and the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, and will be respectively administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Transportation. The President’s leadership in forging this landmark accord will also be essential in ensuring it is carried out through emission standards to be proposed this fall and finalized in 2012.

“This is another example of the importance of the Clean Air Act to the lives of all Americans,” said Krupp. “Now all eyes will be on the auto industry to see if they can capitalize on the potential here. The smartest automakers should view the new standard as a floor, not a ceiling. Those who do will be the ones who win the most customers. “

For Immediate Release

Media Contacts:
Lori Sinsley, Media Director, 415-902-8111, lsinsley@edf.org
Ramon Alvarez, Senior Scientist, 512-691-3408, ralvarez@edf.org

(Washington, DC—July 28, 2011) Environmental Defense Fund praised new national clean air standards that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed today as a vital step in addressing the air pollution associated with the development of natural gas, which is briskly expanding in communities across the country.

The clean air standards protect human health and the environment through highly cost-effective air pollution control.

“EPA’s proposed clean air protections are a trifecta: they reduce harmful air pollution, prevent waste of a domestic energy source, and payback the companies by preventing leaks and venting of natural gas, a valuable commodity, said Ramon Alvarez, senior scientist, Environmental Defense Fund. “These will standardize many common sense practices and technologies already required in states such as Colorado and Wyoming, and which are being used by some natural gas companies throughout the country. They are vital step in protecting people and the climate from harmful air pollution from the natural gas and oil industry.”

NEWS RELEASE

Contact:
Jennifer Andreassen, 202-572-3387, jandreassen@edf.org

In conjunction with today’s hearing at the U.S. House Subcommittee on Aviation, ten major environmental and development organizations released a letter voicing their strong opposition to a new bill that would force U.S.-based airlines to violate a European anti-pollution law.

The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme Prohibition Act of 2011 (H.R. 2594), the subject of today’s hearing, would block U.S. airlines from complying with the EU Aviation Directive – the only program in the world that sets enforceable limits on carbon pollution from aviation.

“By making it illegal for airlines to comply with the European law, the bill would not only worsen air pollution, but would also make it impossible for U.S.-based airlines to provide service to and from Europe. As a result, foreign-based carriers would be the only option for Americans flying to Europe,” the groups said in the letter, which was submitted to the hearing record and sent to members of Congress.

“The bill is premised on fundamentally erroneous legal and policy assumptions,” the groups wrote. “Contrary to the bill’s assumptions, the Aviation Directive is carefully crafted to fall well within the requirements of international law.”

Ten major U.S.-based environmental groups signed the letter: ActionAid USA, Earthjustice, Environment America, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), Greenpeace USA, League of Conservation Voters, Natural Resources Defense Council, Oxfam America, Sierra Club, and World Wildlife Fund.

As EDF’s International Counsel Annie Petsonk noted when the bill was released last week, “This is an aggressive attempt by a few House members both to worsen pollution by scuttling a pioneering environmental law and to force U.S. airlines to become scofflaws.”

EDF also submitted comments to the hearing record, describing in detail how the EU law is consistent with principles of sovereignty and international legal requirements. The EDF submission also lays out how the EU law gives airlines broad flexibility in deciding where and how to reduce pollution.

Three U.S. airlines — United/Continental and American — and their trade association, Air Transport Association of America (ATA), have also challenged the legality of the EU law in Europe’s highest court. EDF, in partnership with U.S. and European environmental organizations, has intervened in support of the EU law. Oral argument was held July 5, 2011, and a decision may be handed down within the next few months.

NEWS RELEASE

(Washington, D.C. – July 26, 2011) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that it would yet again delay a decision to strengthen the nation’s air quality standards to protect human health from ground-level ozone. Ozone is a main component in smog.

The final ozone health standards — which would vastly improve human health and safety, but were opposed by business and industry groups that would have to clean up their pollution — were due in just three days. It’s unclear how long the new, safer standards will be delayed.

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) general counsel Vickie Patton released this statement:

“EPA’s announcement of further delays in protecting human health from smog pollution leaves millions of Americans, including vulnerable children, breathing unhealthy air. All Americans have a right to safe, healthy air; that is the promise forged in law under the bipartisan Clean Air Act.

“EPA rules like the ozone standard are essential in helping Americans know whether the air in their communities is safe to breathe, and in ensuring that action is taken to restore healthy air wherever it’s not safe to breathe.

“We at EDF vigorously oppose this delay. We call on EPA to follow the medical science, carry out the nation’s clean air laws and ensure that America’s children can breathe easier.”

 Vickie Patton, EDF General Counsel

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News Release

Contacts:
Sean Crowley, Environmental Defense Fund, 202.572.3331, scrowley@edf.org  
David J. Ringer, National Audubon Society, 601.642.7058, dringer@audubon.org  
Emily Guidry Schatzel, National Wildlife Federation, 225.253.9781, guidrye@nwf.org  
Sandra Rodriguez, The Nature Conservancy, 703.841.4227, srodriguez@tnc.org  
David Willett, Ocean Conservancy, 202.351.0465, dwillett@oceanconservancy.org
Patrick Scully, Oxfam America, 617.728.2402, pscully@oxfamamerica.org

(Washington, D.C.—July 21, 2011) A coalition of organizations supporting Gulf restoration celebrated news today that a bipartisan coalition of Gulf senators is cosponsoring the RESTORE Gulf Coast States Act. The legislation seeks to ensure that penalties paid by BP and others responsible for last year’s Gulf oil disaster are used to help restore the region’s communities, economies and environments instead of going to unrelated federal spending.

Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Richard Shelby (R-AL) are the original cosponsors of the bill, and are now joined by Sens. David Vitter (R-LA), Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Thad Cochran (R-MS), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Kay Bailey-Hutchison (R-TX). Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, who was instrumental in securing the agreement among the senators, has pledged to consider this bill in her committee quickly.

“The damage from the oil spill was done in the Gulf, so Congress should ensure that oil spill fines go to the Gulf, not to unrelated federal spending,” reads a joint statement issued by Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, The Nature Conservancy, Ocean Conservancy and Oxfam America. “This Gulf state agreement paves the way for Congress to do what voters expect: hold the parties responsible for the Gulf oil disaster accountable for restoring the Gulf because our nation’s economy depends on a healthy Gulf region.”

A bipartisan poll conducted this spring showed that 83 percent of voters nationwide support – and 69 percent strongly support – dedicating the Gulf oil spill penalties to restoring the Mississippi River Delta and Gulf Coast. The poll also showed support among voters from across the political spectrum:

o 90 percent of Democrats
o 84 percent of independents
o 76 percent of Republicans
o 78 percent of those who say they agree with the Tea Party movement

Nearly 500 miles – almost half – of the coastline in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida that was contaminated by the Gulf oil disaster remains oiled one year later, according to the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration.

“There is much more work to be done to ensure that a strong and effective restoration bill for the Gulf ultimately becomes law and this is a positive and commendable first step. We look forward to working with the Gulf delegation, other members of Congress and the administration on passage of a bill that meets the restoration needs of this critical ecosystem and its vulnerable communities,” the statement concludes.

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NEWS RELEASE

Contact:
Jennifer Andreassen, 202-572-3387, jandreassen@edf.org

(Washington — July 20, 2011) A bill unveiled today in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. John Mica (R-FL) and others would worsen air pollution and force U.S. airlines to violate a European anti-pollution law, by making it illegal for airlines to comply with that law, said Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), a leading U.S.-based environmental nonprofit.

The European Union law is the only program in the world that sets enforceable limits on carbon pollution from aviation. As of January 2012, all flights using European airports will be held accountable for their emissions, incentivizing airlines’ transition to lower-carbon travel.

“It’s simply baffling that these legislators are working so hard to keep U.S. airlines in the dark ages of relying on inefficient airplanes and outdated technologies,” said EDF’s International Counsel Annie Petsonk. “This is an aggressive attempt by a few House members both to worsen pollution by scuttling a pioneering environmental law and to force U.S. airlines to become scofflaws.”

Contrary to the airlines’ public stance, the EU law will actually benefit U.S. airlines, according to the airlines’ trade association’s own economic analysis. The report, “Financial Impacts of Extending the EU ETS To Airlines”, shows that complying with the law could actually increase airlines’ profitability.

“This bill would inflame ongoing negotiations between the United States and Europe and usurp the President’s constitutional authority to handle matters of international law,” said Petsonk.

Three U.S. airlines — United/Continental and American — and their trade association, Air Transport Association of America (ATA), have also challenged the legality of the EU law in Europe’s highest court. EDF, in partnership with US and European environmental organizations, has intervened in support of the EU law. Oral argument was held July 5, 2011, and a decision may be handed down within the next few months.

NEWS RELEASE

(Washington D.C. - July 20, 2011) Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) has named former Congressman Andrew Maguire as its new vice president for health, bringing an experienced leader and renowned policy expert to lead the organization’s efforts to reduce public exposure to toxic chemicals.

“Andy Maguire personifies EDF’s mission to use the best science, smart economics and creative policy to solve our biggest environmental problems. He has spent his career finding the ways that work in the middle of the most pressing national and international health challenges,” said EDF President Fred Krupp.

Dr. Maguire served as a member of Congress from New Jersey for three terms beginning in 1975, where he was actively involved in environmental policy, especially Clean Air Act, toxic substances, and health legislation. He has a PhD in government from Harvard University, and broad domestic and international policy experience. After leaving Congress, Mr. Maguire served as vice president of policy affairs for the World Resources Institute, where he built a program to formulate policy regarding U.S. economic, security and political interests in world resource and environmental problems.

Most recently he served as a senior advisor to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization’s Every Child Campaign, and to Clean Air-Cool Planet where he built a bi-partisan outreach effort to engage opinion leaders and the public on climate change.

Dr. Maguire also demonstrated his leadership as president and CEO of EnterpriseWorks Worldwide, dramatically growing a non-profit organization that addressed poverty alleviation and economic growth in developing countries.

“Andy brings demonstrated leadership and extensive experience in public health protection. We look forward to having him apply his strong commitment and passion to advancing our work to protect the public from toxic chemicals and environmental pollution,” said EDF senior scientist Dr. Richard Denison.

As vice president for health at EDF, Dr. Maguire will lead a program at the cutting edge of efforts to reduce public health threats from chemicals used in consumer products and in industry and in releases from industrial facilities and the transportation sector, and to ensure the safety of emerging nanomaterials.

A top priority for the program is fixing the Toxic Substances Control Act, which is widely regarded as a failure and has not been updated since its passage in 1976. The law has failed to deliver the information needed to identify unsafe chemicals and safer alternatives. It has placed a nearly impossible burden of proof on the government to prove harm, rather than on manufacturers to show their chemicals are safe. EDF is waging an aggressive campaign with partner organizations to advance TSCA reform legislation in the U.S. Senate.

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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

NEWS RELEASE

(London – July 15, 2011) The Clean Shipping Coalition welcomes the adoption by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) of an Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) regulation for new ships, but warns that it’s only the first step in what needs to be a far more expansive effort to address shipping’s climate impacts.*

The regulation will only guarantee emissions reductions after 2019, as a handful of developing states led by China and Brazil secured a delay in implementation claiming the need for more time to acquire advanced technologies despite the fact that many of the most efficient ships are already being built in developing countries.

After more than 10 years of inaction the EEDI regulations are a welcome first initiative of the IMO on ship greenhouse gas emissions but a collection of additional market-based and operational measures such as emissions trading, a levy, speed limits and mandatory cuts is very much needed, and the IMO must address these issues with greater urgency.

Shipping accounts for around 3.3 percent of man-made CO₂ emissions worldwide and this figure will rise to 6% in 2020. According to the IMO’s 2009 greenhouse gas emissions study, if nothing is done, ship emissions could grow by 150 percent to 250 percent by 2050.

The IMO’s Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) will require new ships to meet a minimum level of energy efficiency: ships built between 2015 – 2019 will need to improve their efficiency by 10%, rising to 20 percent between 2020 and 2024 and 30 percent for ships delivered after 2024. However, after intense negotiations, efforts led by China, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and South Africa resulted in a waiver for new ships registered in developing countries. If countries choose to apply the waiver for a newly delivered ship, application of the EEDI is delayed for 6.5 years from the 01 January 2013 entry into force of the regulation. There is a significant danger that many shipowners will elect to have their new ships flagged in countries that provide a waiver. The first guaranteed effective date of the EEDI as a global shipping efficiency standard would thus be 2019.

Environmental groups caution that because the standard only applies to ships replacing older ones at the end of their very long lives (typically 30 years), and because the waiver will defer implementation for many new ships, the full effects of today’s decision will take a very long time to have any significant impact.

Bill Hemmings, Policy Officer, Transport & Environment said:
“Adopting the EEDI is the right step but the long delay weakens its short to medium term impact significantly.  If the IMO does not deliver action quickly now on existing ships, it will be up to the EU to take the lead at a regional level.”

John Maggs, Policy Advisor, Seas At Risk said:
“This decision is one small but significant step in tackling GHG emissions from shipping. The shipping industry has to play a proper role in keeping global warming below dangerous levels.  Adoption of the EEDI must mark the start of a period of renewed action at IMO with a focus on achieving fast, deep cuts in emissions.”

Jenny Cooper, Policy Associate, Environmental Defense Fund said:
“The International Maritime Organization is moving at a glacial speed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions effectively.  Passing an efficiency standard and merely discussing market-based measures in meetings isn’t enough — countries need to take further concrete actions in their own regional policies.”

Svend Soeyland, International Adviser, Belllona Foundation said:
“This much delayed action puts into question if the IMO want to be part of the solution in a carbon constrained future or risk becoming climate laggards.”

Jacqueline Savitz, Senior Campaign Director, Oceana said:
“The EEDI vote is bittersweet. There will be no change to existing ships which are currently pumping a billion tones of CO₂ each year, and for new ships it will take another dozen years until the EEDI is really delivering benefits. Operational changes could be delivering major benefits today. The United States should stop hiding behind the IMO and begin to regulate shipping emissions.”

Note to editors:
*The vote, at the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) in London, was approved by a majority of 48 countries in favour, 5 against and 2 abstentions. For a briefing on the EEDI see: http://www.transportenvironment.org/Publications/prep_hand_out/lid/646  

For further information:
Bill Hemmings, Policy Officer, Transport & Environment, Bill.hemmings@transportenvironment.org, +32487582706
Maurizio Molinari, Communications Assistant, Transport & Environment, maurizio.molinari@transportenvironment.org, +32485615769
John Maggs, Policy Advisor, Seas at Risks, jmaggs@seas-at-risks.org, +447966322379
Jenny Cooper, Policy Associate, Environmental Defense Fund, jcooper@edf.org, +12025723312
Svend Soeyland, International Adviser, The Bellona Foundation, svend@bellona.no, +4423234611
Jacqueline Savitz, Senior Campaign Director, Oceana, +12024671909, JSavitz@oceana.org

About us
The Clean Shipping Coalition is the only global international environmental organisation that focuses exclusively on shipping issues. It promotes policies aimed at the protection and restoration of the marine and atmospheric environment that are consistent with the safe operation of ships, sustainable development, social and economic justice, and human health. In June 2010, the Clean Shipping Coalition was granted provisional observer status at the International Maritime Organisation. The member oganisations are AirClim, Bellona Foundation, Clean Air Task Force, Environmental Defense Fund, Transport & Environment, Oceana, Seas at Risk and the North Sea Foundation. www.cleanshipping.org

NEWS RELEASE

(Columbus, Ohio – July 14, 2011) Concerned Columbus residents and community groups gathered to protest American Electric Power’s (AEP) opposition to the clean air laws that protect the health of families across Ohio.

If AEP is successful at blocking sensible limits on toxic air pollution, as many as 17,000 lives could be lost every year. In response, activists delivered almost 40,000 petition signatures to AEP’s headquarters all asking the question:

“How many lives lost is too many? AEP - What’s your number?”

The utility giant has been lobbying to block new sensible regulations that would lower the amount of dangerous pollution, like mercury, that power plants can emit. Columbus-area residents at today’s rally said they were worried — and angry – at their electricity providers’ actions.

“AEP and their high priced lobbyists wrote draft legislation that would weaken and delay new clean air rules. If passed, it would permit the release of mercury, acid gases and arsenic that would contribute to as many as 17,000 deaths, 110,000 asthma attacks and 850,000 missed work days every single year. We want to know, AEP: what’s your number?” Said Andrew Sidsigner, the Columbus Organizer for 350 Ohio.

“In 2008, AEP emitted more mercury than any other American utility. This is a serious concern because mercury harms the brains and nervous systems of babies and developing children,” said Brian Rothenberg, Executive Director of Progress Ohio. “I’d ask AEP to spend less time lobbying for toxic emissions and more time reducing them,” continued Rothenberg.

The rally took place outside of AEP’s headquarters in downtown Columbus, near a giant billboard which highlights the number of lives that will be cut short each year by AEP’s draft legislation

Power plant pollution also includes other dangerous substances, including ground level ozone and particulate pollution – generally called smog and soot. Those substances trigger asthma attacks and other respiratory problems, and cause the “code orange” and “code red” days when Ohioans are warned to stay indoors because of unhealthy air.

The new clean air rules that AEP is opposing would significantly reduce the amount of those toxins and give all Ohioans healthier air to breathe. Other utilities around the country are already working to lower their pollution levels, while AEP is devoting its resources to opposing clean air rules.

This has been an escalating public education campaign including: local residents uploading viral videos about what they think, several visibility events, door to door efforts, TV ads, and several billboards around Columbus to draw attention to AEP’s efforts to block sensible limits to toxic air pollution.

You can learn more about the campaign at www.edf.org/whatsyournumber or on Twitter with the hashtag #WhatsYourNumber.

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“Yesterday, the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted against clean air and better health for all Americans. They decided to block two rules that would limit the dangerous mercury, smog and particulate-forming pollution from power plants. These clean air protections have been years in the making; now they want to delay the protections once more, and the delay could cost as many as 25,000 American lives in the first 14 months. We have the technology to reduce mercury and other pollution now, and save those lives. It’s unconscionable that House members want to do nothing.

“Then the House Appropriations Committee passed a laundry list of measures that are detrimental to human health and the environment. Those measures subvert the budget process to target everything from clean air rules to the Endangered Species Act.

“These actions by these two committees show that some House members are more interested in pushing an extreme agenda then in working on the serious issues facing our country. This is not the leadership that Americans expect, or deserve. Our Representatives should stop attacking the health and environmental laws that protect us all. They should focus on doing work that will improve our health, our environment, and our future.”

Fred Krupp
President, Environmental Defense Fund
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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