To Her Dear Mountains

Had we but world enough, and time,
This patience, ladies, were no crime.
Thou in the shade of Old Rag Mountain
Should lilies find; I by the fountain
of the Potomac would complain.
We could dance on fields of green
and trust Dominion to clean their steam,
Blithely prancing in their hot air
And on blather that they make fair.

Our love would never be stained
By the blast of Dominion’s reign
Or buried by the waste of mining
For the coal to fuel the shining
Of incandescent lights and energy
Wasted, to cause your injury.

But at my back I always hear
Time’s winged chariot hurrying near;
And yonder all before us lie
Destroyed and ravaged mountain sides
Thy beauty shall no more be found,
But arsenic and lead surround.

Now let us sport us while we may;
And pledge with our hearts on display
And join with all to write a Valentine
to Governor Kaine to stop their mine
and penetrate the walls of Dominion’s
Long-preserved hegemony.
And we will win despite the money
Because if we roll our strength and all
Our love up into one huge ball
We tear apart the iron gates
of power and find more beautiful fates.


TAKE THE PLEDGE TO LOVE YOUR MOUNTAINS!

I HEREBY PLEDGE MY HEART AND MY LOVE TO THE ALL MOUNTAINS, LARGE AND SMALL, IN VIRGINIA AND ALL OVER THE WORLD.

I HEREBY PLEDGE TO FIGHT MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL COAL MINING.

I HEREBY PLEDGE TO TAKE AT LEAST ONE ACTION DURING THE “VIRGINIA IS FOR MOUNTAIN LOVERS” WEEK OF ACTION TO HELP PRESERVE THE MOUNTAINS THAT I LOVE SO DEARLY.

SIGN NOW>>

Want Jobs? Go Green!

I was reading an article from the Wall Street Journal this morning about substantial growth that the wind and solar industry had last year. This really got me excited and gave me hope that we are making progress nationally in our fight to stop global warming and bring on the clean energy revolution.

The article stated:

The U.S. wind-power industry grew in size by 45% last year, adding a record 5,244 megawatts of capacity that amounted to a third of all new generating capacity built in the U.S. in 2007, according to the American Wind Energy Association. General Electric Co. led the pack as nation’s largest supplier.

Gale ForceThe solar industry grew at a similar clip, though from a much smaller base, adding more than 300 megawatts of capacity last year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. Additions are expected to roughly double this year. Large commercial solar installations now exceed home installations in California, reversing a long-term pattern and likely a bellwether for other states.

That is a lot of energy! How cool is that? And the article said that was only the beginning, we can expect this figure to continue because of federal and state incentives for clean energy (created in most states by passing renewable energy portfolio standards, something we can’t seem to get the political will to pass here in Virginia…)

As I read on, I couldn’t help but notice how the focus of the article started to shift towards jobs. It said that tens of thousands of jobs in solar and wind are expected to be created over the next decade. And that one solar factory in Albuquerque, N.M., will employ 350 people by 2009 and increase to about 1,500 workers in future years, all for a [measly] $500 million investment. Continue reading

VA SCC Hears Case on Wise County Coal Plant

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I went and observed the first day of a 4-plus day evidentiary hearing at the Virginia State Corporation Commission yesterday. The hearing is set up like an actual trial, with Dominion’s Wise County coal plant construction permit at the heart of the case. The first day consisted mainly of two of Dominion’s Senior Vice-Presidents. They were the first of Dominion’s witnesses that submitted direct testimony. The evidentiary hearing is held so that each side of the case (Dominion as the applicant and Southern Environmental Law Center representing App Voices, Sierra Club, SAMS and CCAN as one of a few of the respondents) to cross-examine each parties expert witnesses.

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Rep Moran and Hundreds Say No To Coal!

Hundreds of Northern Virginians gathered at a town hall meeting last night to discuss the antiquated use of coal in Virginia and the opportunities provided by a clean energy future. The public forum, which drew an estimated 200 people, focused on the connection between two coal-fired power plants in Virginia — the Mirant Plant in Alexandria and the proposed Dominion power plant in Wise County — and mountaintop removal coal mining.

Rep Moran“Burning fossil fuels is the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, and burning coal is about the worst thing we can do,” said Congressman Jim Moran. “With 50 percent of our electricity generated by coal-fired power plants, it will take a realistic but focused and determined effort to reduce greenhouse emissions from coal-fired plants and increase the use of cleaner, alternative sources of energy.”

At a time when states from Kansas to Texas are rejecting permits to build new coal plants, speakers tonight argued that building a new coal-fired power plant, as Dominion Virginia Power is proposing to do in SW Virginia, would put Virginia behind the curve when it comes to investing in renewable energy.

“We are all Virginians, even those in southwest Virginia, said Kathy Selvage, a Wise County resident who spoke at the forum. “The proposed Wise County plant will spew 25 million pounds of pollutants into our air each year. While Gov. Kaine and Dominion tell us that this plant will be good for the economy, they have not taken into account the increased need for health care, or those components that are truly priceless like the preservation of the air we breathe, the water we drink, or the fish we eat.”
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Alexandria Town Forum with Rep. Moran (2/5) — Coal and Clean Energy — Please Attend

Join Congressman Jim Moran and Alexandria Vice Mayor Del Pepper on Tuesday, February 5th for a town hall meeting to discuss the antiquated use of coal in Virginia and our clean energy future. The event will focus on the connection between two coal-fired power plants in Virginia — the Mirant Plant in Alexandria and the proposed Dominion power plant in Wise County — and our connection to mountaintop removal coal mining.

There is a better way to provide Virginians with energy that doesn’t pollute our air and water, that doesn’t destroy our mountains, and that doesn’t contribute to global warming. Come to the town hall meeting to hear about the consequences of Virginia’s reliance on coal, our clean energy future, and how you can be part of the solution.

Hear experts, politicians and activists talk about Virginia coal and clean energy. The talk is to be directly followed by a question and answer session to let you speak your mind about coal, global warming, and renewable energy.

DATE: Tues., Feb. 5th, 7pm-9pm (tabling & schmoozing from 6:30pm-7pm)

LOCATION: Lyles Crouch Elementary School, 530 South Saint Asaph Street, Alexandria, VA MAP
At the Corner of South Saint Asaph and Gibbon St. — one block east (towards the water) of Washington St.

COST: Free! Continue reading

Dominion Power's Dirty Plans for Virginia

The Washington Post

By Mike Tidwell

Fact: Virginia gets less than 1 percent of its electricity from “green” sources such as the wind or the sun. Fact: Virginia ranks 38th among U.S. states in energy efficiency. Fact: Climate change is real, and fossil fuel substitutes are needed, according to President Bush’s State of the Union address last year. So how would Dominion Virginia Power respond to these facts?

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Wise County Air Pollution Control Board Hearing, Alexandria, VA

Where are you NoVa? I am currently sitting here at the at the lovely Holiday Inn on Eisenhower Ave, at a public Air Pollution Control Board hearing — one of the first of these types of hearings — and it is me, Kayti from the Sierra Club, Ernie from NOTICe, a few other activists and a room full of Dominion suits. The front row is literally comprised solely of Dominion “experts” who are working the podium, seemingly in a rotation, in an effort to deflect criticism and offer non-answers to serious questions. We have to be outnumbered… or at least that is the feeling that I am getting…

Dominion is talking the talk about how the proposed Wise County CFB coal fired power plant is going to be the best thing since sliced bread — how they their plant can use waste coal and biomass like wood-chips, how their plant will have lower SOx and NOx emissions than an IGCC coal plant. Yes, there are lots of wonky terms at a hearing like this (PSM, public health, environment, endanger), that not everyone will understand, but the feeling of deceit is palpable and accessible to everyone in attendance.

For example:

The presentation from Dominion to the Board included a large section about CCS, carbon capture and sequestration, and how compatible the Wise County plant may be, if the technology one day becomes available at a cost-effective price, with CCS and how that should mean that Virginians should not worry about this plant’s estimated 5.4 million tons of annual CO2 emissions. When asked when we could expect the plant to start to turn CCS compatibility into CCS reality, the Dominion speaker said, “decades.” Continue reading

Virginia's Citizen's Lobby Day

We attended the Virginia Conservation Network-Va. League of Conservation Voters-Va. Garden Club training, Legislative Lobby Day 2008. The hall was crowded; about 300 people with a variety of conservation interests from all over the state attended, including half a dozen of our friends from up the road at the Williamsburg CAN.

(BTW, look beyond the roses before you pooh-pooh the Va. Garden Clubs; they are formidable–an extremely large, active, effective, and well-connected conservation group who are take quite seriously by the General Assembly.)

During the day we met with six Hampton Roads legislators or their legislative assistants during the day to express our support for many pending acts:(a complete list can be found on our site http://www.twcan.org/docs.cfm, ga2008.pdf ) IMG_0011

  • SB 446 Clean Energy Future Act; the Chesapeake Climate Action Network’s flagship bill bringing clean energy, clean jobs training and clean jobs to Virginia
  • HB 650 Department of Environmental Quality; maintaining the 62-year history and authority of Virginia’s Citizens Boards.
  • SB 625 Bipartisan Redistricting Commission; to stop the endless political gerrymandering of district lines and inserting some rational guidelines into the process
  • SB 320 to end covenants restricting solar energy collection devices
  • HB 153 Solar water heating system pay-as-you-save pilot program, to make solar hot water more affordable for more people.

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Amazing Solutions Rally in Annapolis – what's next?

Yesterday morning, in the middle of a snowstorm, hundreds of activists gathered in Annapolis, chanting and waving banners in support of the Maryland Global Warming Solutions Act. As one of the folks who has spent the past few months organizing it and getting people to come out, it was such an amazing experience to see all of these committed activists in one place, calling for the passage of this landmark legislation.

WBAL was one of the many media sources there, and included a great video:

There was also great coverage in the Annapolis Capital, the Baltimore Sun, and the Baltimore Examiner.

You may be wondering, “Now that we’ve had this awesome rally with all sorts of buzz around it, what are the next steps? What can I do to make sure that this momentum keeps going?”

First of all, write a letter to your newspaper. Were you at the rally? Tell your local paper your story – why are Global Warming Solutions so important to you as a citizen of Maryland that you braved wintry weather to show your support? Weren’t able to make it? No worries! You can still write a letter to the editor showing support for the Global Warming Soluitons Act, and calling on your elected officials to support this legislation.

Which brings me to next step #2: write a letter to Mike Busch, Speaker of the House of Delegates, calling on him to support the Global Warming Solutions Act.

And if you’re *really* excited about everything that’s happening, put the next Annapolis convergence on your calendar: Monday, February 18th is Environmental Action Day. Learn about environmental issues (include the Global Warming Solutions Act, the energy efficiency bill, and critical areas), get trained on lobbying, and then go talk to your legislators!