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Canary Coalitions News and Action May 1, 2005 |
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| - NC New Source Review
Rule Revision Successfully Blocked by Canary Coalition
- Pending Legislation That Needs Our Support - $75 Smilefest Discount Ticket Sales Benefitting Canary Coalition Extended to May 15-Buy Them Today - Pilot Wind Project Tour with TVA on Friday, May 6.- Still Time to Sign Up - Protest of Bush in Smokies Effective; Heard Around the Country- Read Report. - Board Member Nominees Needed-Focus on Women and Minorities - Next Membership Meeting, Thursday, May 26, in Asheville, NC
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NC New Source Review Rule Revision Successfully Blocked by Canary Coalition Members On April 21, the NC Rules Review Commission voted to ratify the decision by the Environmental Management Commission to revise North Carolina's New Source Review (NSR) regulations in conjunction with lowered federal standards. But, because Canary Coalition members sent in more than the required ten letters of objection (more than eighty were received by the RRC) implementation of the new rule was derailed for at least one year, pending legislative review. The next step in making sure this backwards motion is permanently halted is for the General Assembly to pass a "bill of disapproval." In December of 2002, the federal EPA revised the federal NSR standards for the section known as Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD). In doing so the EPA yielded to heavy industrial political pressure by creating legal mechanisms for avoiding the NSR process, such as "Clean Unit Exemptions" and "Plantwide Applicability Limits" allowing old, "grandfathered" polluting facilities to maintain their emission control exemptions despite undergoing major renovations, modernization or even expansion of operations. This EPA action spawned a lawsuit from fourteen states, the District of Columbia, more than 20 major cities and a host of environmental organizations throughout the nation who claimed the rule revision would cause irreparable harm to hundreds of thousands of people downwind from the exempt industrial facilities. The constitutional authority of the EPA's action is also at question, as this rule revision apparently reverses the intent of Congress in passing the NSR provision. States are permitted to have higher environmental standards than the federal government, but not lower. So, when the EPA revised its NSR standards downward, it created the possibility that states could now lower their standards as well. Over strong objections from the entire environmental community during two public hearings in the summer of 2004, the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission yielded to powerful industrial interests and the recommendations of the Division of Air Quality to adopt the new federal standards in a modified form, but still considerably weakened from the pre-December 2002 PSD rules. As all other environmental organizations in North Carolina, with limited resources, had too many committments to fulfill in other areas of their valuable work, it fell solely to the Canary Coalition, once again, to follow through on the issues that relate strictly to air quality. To those who participated in this legal exercise, congratulations on another successful action. North Carolinians are indebted to you for creating this window of opportunity to reverse an ill-conceived step backwards in our over-all progress toward Clean Air. But, the NSR battle isn't over in North Carolina. Now we need to make sure the NC General Assembly does its part. Before the end of the 2006 legislative session, a Bill of Disapproval has to be introduced and passed in both the House and the Senate. Follow this link to a list of legislators that would be likely candidates to sponsor a Bill of Disapproval for 15A NCAC 02D .0530, Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD), passed by the Rules Review Commission on April 21, 2005. Ask them to sponsor or co-sponsor the Disapproval Bill. Also contact your own state legislators, the Speaker of the House, the Senate Pro-tem's office and the Governor's office. Visit them, call, write or email them and tell them its important they stand up against the interests that are pushing for this rule revision. Tell them clean air is important to you and this is no time for North Carolina to be moving backwards.
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Pending Legislation That Needs Our Support - S1134, Global Warming/Climate Change, (Charlie Albertson, Duplin-D), creates a Climate Change Study Commission in North Carolina. - S936, Renewable Energy Paperwork Reduction (Janet Cowell, Wake-D). This bill will facilitate small-scale solar and biomass energy projects. - H1511, Bill to create a Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard, Pricey Harrison (Guilford-D), Grier Martin (Wake-D), Susan Fisher (Buncombe-D). Establishes a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) requiring electric utilities to provide 10 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2016. Referred to House Public Utilities. - Clean Cars Bill (no bill number yet) |
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$75 Smilefest Discount Ticket Sales Benefitting Canary Coalition Extended to May 15-Buy Them Today The promoters of the Smilefest Festival have been gracious enough to extend the period when tickets can be purchased directly from the Canary Coalition for only $75 (normal price is $90) until May 15. The three-day music festival will be at Deerfields, 20 miles south of Asheville on Memorial Day weekend, May 27, 28 and 29. For more information visit http://www.smilefest.com/ . Tickets purchased at the following locations, before May 15, will directly benefit the Canary Coalition and give you the discount price: The Canary Coalition office at 530 W. Main Street, in Sylva, NC Mug 'N Stein, 530 W. Main Street, in Sylva, NC Heinzelmannchen Brewery, Mill Street, in Sylva, NC Soul Infusion Tea House, Sylva, NC Whatyouwan' Bodega, WCU campus, Cullowhee, NC Tickets can also be purchased by calling toll free 866-4CANARY (866-422-6279) or sending a check or money order to: Canary Coalition, PO Box 653, Sylva, NC 28779. Check or money order must arrive prior to May 15.
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Pilot Wind Project Tour with TVA on Friday, May 6. Still Time to Sign Up
TVA has expanded its pilot wind project in Buffalo Mountain Tennessee from three turbines to eighteen. This dramatic investment has immense positive implications for the potential of converting our electrical production sources from limited and polluting fossil fuels and nuclear power into safe, clean and renewable resources. Wind energy has become economically competitive with all other sources of energy. This project provides advocates of conservation and renewables with a working example, in the Appalachian mountains, to point to. It's the beginning of a process we need to nurture. Come see it, first hand, on Friday, May 6. Call toll free, 866-422-6279 or email to make a reservation.
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Board Member Nominees Needed-Focus on Women and Minorities In mid-June the Canary Coalition will hold its annual membership meeting and elect four positions on the Board of Directors. We would like to further diversify our Board, if possible, by including more women and members of minority populations. If you would like to nominate someone please contact the office toll free, 866-4CANARY (866-422-6279) or email.
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Next Monthly Membership Meeting Thursday, May 26, in Asheville, NC The next membership meeting will be held at the Montford Community Center, 34 Pearson Drive, in Asheville, NC, Thursday, May 26, 7 PM. Agenda items will include: -Legislative Report -Planning for Relay for Clean Air and AirAid
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have not already done so, please renew your annual membership with the
CanaryCoalition and help keep the database updated with your most recent
contact information. There is no annual membership fee, although all
donations are gratefully accepted (and very much needed). All new and
renewing members receive the interactive membership card, a business
card-sized CD that works in your computer’s CDROM. The membership card
is a powerful tool that aids its owner in being a clean-air activist. It
contains a 15-minute PowerPoint presentation about air quality and the
Canary Coalition that can be shown to friends, groups, classrooms, etc.
Also on the membership card is a library of documents containing
information on important air quality issues. There are also graphics for
iron-on applications, printable membership forms and a link to the CC
website. For donations of $25 or more tee-shirts are available upon
request.
Send contact information and donations to: Canary Coalition PO Box 653 Sylva, NC 28779
or you can donate online donate online
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