Crossposted from WeArePowerShift.org
On April 5-7, the Virginia Alliance for a Cleaner Environment (VACE) and CCAN hosted a leadership summit in Richmond for students from around the state to gather and develop a long-term vision for what a unified climate movement across our campuses looks like in Virginia.
Chesapeake Climate Action Network applauds General Assembly for passing landmark offshore wind legislation, while expressing disappointment that ‘black liquor’ and fracking moratorium bills fell short
ANNAPOLIS—The 2013 Maryland General Assembly session will be remembered as a historic turning point for clean energy in Maryland, as legislators passed landmark legislation to develop offshore wind power, the state’s most abundant clean energy resource. However, the General Assembly’s overall record on climate and clean energy issues was a mixed bag this year, as two bills that would significantly impact the climate fell short: the “black liquor” bill (SB 684/HB 1102) and the fracking moratorium bill (SB 601/HB 1274).
environment instead of out-of-state polluters,” the letter reads. It was signed by Tim Reardon of Pitcrew, Inc., Boe Walker of Boe’s Strings, Mary Jean Clark of Voila in Frederick, Cindy Weingarten of Cafe Nola, Soren Dodge of The Record Exchange, April Reardon of Velvet Lounge and Pat Latkovski of Alicia L’s.
Dominion Power made a startling announcement this morning. In honor of Earth Month 2013, the company will plant enough trees to go carbon neutral through its program, “Project Plant It!” This is a major breakthrough for climate action in Virginia. Until today, the utility had no plans to change course. To have the commonwealth’s top emitter of climate-disrupting pollution plant 4 billion trees is simply astounding.
Activists use spoof video and news headlines to launch ‘Project Planet’ campaign and counter Dominion’s greenwashing of its climate pollution
RICHMOND—Newspaper boxes near Dominion Virginia Power’s downtown Richmond offices, as well as the social media feeds of thousands of Virginians, featured an astounding headline this morning, “Dominion Power to go carbon neutral.” Or not. A Virginia climate advocacy group used some April Fool’s Day satire to launch an Earth Month campaign targeting the utility’s expanding footprint of climate pollution.
By Steven Mufson
A measure before the Maryland legislature to roll back payments to paper companies burning a pulping residue known as “black liquor” failed by one vote in a state House committee Friday.
The bill, which passed the Maryland Senate by a bipartisan 33 to 13 vote, fell short of the 12 votes needed in the Economic Matters Committee — even after the bill’s sponsors agreed to guarantee continuing subsidies for Luke Mill, the one Maryland paper mill that was receiving the black-liquor payments.
By Tim Wheeler
Amended bill continues renewable energy subsidy for Luke Md mill
A phase-out of renewable energy subsidies for paper mills has cleared the Maryland Senate, though with a provision that guarantees the state’s only paper plant in Allegany County would continue to receive payments underwritten by taxpayers.
Environmentalists hailed the 33-13 vote Thursday for SB684, which they said would close what they considered a major loophole in Maryland’s renewable energy law. Currently, mostly out-of-state paper mills receive millions of dollars annually for powering their operations by burning “black liquor,” a tarry byproduct of the pulping process, and other wood waste.
1-8 vote could mean Maryland ratepayers will lose millions more to old, out-of-state mills that burn a dirty waste byproduct – instead of gaining new, job-creating clean energy
ANNAPOLIS – Today HB1102, known as the “black liquor bill” came one vote short, 11-8, of the 12 needed to advance out of the House Economic Matters Committee, just one day after a companion bill (SB 684) passed the full Senate with overwhelming, bipartisan support.
Our movement sent more than one million comments on the Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline to the Obama administration in just 45 days this spring. With a decision nearing, we must keep the pressure on President Obama to reject this climate and health disaster.
By IJ Chan
JMU students and Harrisonburg residents are joining the national fight against the Keystone XL pipeline.
The 2,147 mile long Keystone XL pipeline currently brings crude oil from Canada to the U.S. Midwest. A 1,700-mile long extension would carry the oil through to Texas. Many people nationwide are concerned that the installation of the pipeline would bring devastation to the environment by severely polluting the air, water and soil with excessive carbon emissions.