Getting rid of household waste that you suspect is environmentally hazardous can be a problem. Fortunately, the Household Hazardous Waste Task Force will hold these recycling events:

• September 18, 9 am to 1 pm at the Monroeville Mall, across from Best Buy.
• October 2, 9 am to 1 pm in Bradys Run Park, Beaver County.

For more information about these recycling events and our Global Warming Action Team’s involvement, contact Chris Shepard at shepherd999 at gmail dot com

Photo courtesy of Mountain Justice

Banking giant PNC has gained a fair reputation in Pittsburgh for being a ‘green’ corporate member of the community, but its role in financing the destructive practice of mountain top removal is not so ‘green’.

On the company website is the statement “Among America’s top financial institutions, no company has done more to spur the charge, or energize the green cause than PNC. We have taken the lead when it comes to environmentally and employee friendly construction.”

A Green Building Alliance quote on the Website states PNC is “a corporate leader in green building and employee friendliness.” And from the Urban Land Institute’s Awards for Excellence, PNC was among firms from Japan, the Netherlands and United States recognized for its “powerful impact of thoughtful urban design.” (more…)

KDKA photo of existing
Little Blue Run coal-ash pond.

In response to the catastrophic TVA coal ash spill in Kingston, Tennessee in 2008, the US Environmental Protection Agency is holding public hearings around the country. The hearings are for public comment on the proposed rule related to Disposal of Coal Combustion Residuals from Electric Utilities.

Because the disposal of coal ash at the power plants surrounding Pittsburgh is a major concern, local environmentalists asked the EPA to add Pittsburgh to the number of locations already selected. EPA’s response was to announce the following hearing:

Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Omni William Penn Hotel,
530 William Penn Place,
Pittsburgh, PA 15219

THANKS TO ALL WHO ASKED THE EPA FOR THIS PITTSBURGH HEARING.

The hearing will be an all-day affair, with morning, afternoon and evening sessions, starting at 10:00 a.m. and ending at 9:00 p.m. or later depending on the number of speakers. (more…)

Curb-side sign in Ithaca, NY.
Photo: P. Wray

With a surprise bipartisan vote of 48-9, on August 3, the New York Senate approved a temporary moratorium on Marcellus Shale drilling in the state. The moratorium would extend to May 15, 2011, giving the state Department of Environmental Conservation time to formulate guidelines for issuing drilling permits. The bill awaits action when the state Assembly’s recess ends September 15. See the news report video. (more…)

Leasing of our state forest lands for Marcellus Shale leasing has reached its limit. First, some facts: of the 2,100,000 acres in Pennsylvania’s state forest system, 71% are above the Marcellus Shale deposits containing natural gas. Of that 71%, 47%, or 700,000 acres, are currently under lease. The state does not own the mineral rights under all of that 700,000 acres; the mineral rights under 290,000 acres are privately owned. These statistics are from the DCNR Bureau of Forestry Marcellus website.

Map of new gas well pads in
the Clear Run watershed of
Tioga State Forest.
Map courtesy of DCNR

Of special interest at the Bureau’s website is the section “Impacts of Leasing Additional State Forest Land”. To examine “whether a moratorium is needed”, the wild areas of the state’s forest lands in north-central Pennsylvania are mapped, and the intrusion of Marcellus shale drilling is illustrated. The Bureau’s conclusion is that “This analysis shows that no additional leasing involving surface disturbance can occur without significantly altering the ecological integrity and wild character of our state forest system.” Even more strongly … “There are zero State Forest Land acres suitable for gas leasing involving surface disturbance.”

A bill calling for a five-year moratorium on any further leasing of state forest lands (HB2235) was passed by the state House by margin of 157 to 33 on May 4. The bill now languishes in the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee chaired by Sen. Mary Jo White.

ACTION: Please contact Sen. Mary Jo White at mwhite at pasen dot gov and urge her to move HB2235 out of committee, AND send a copy to your State Senator.

The EPA call for public guidance on the planned study of the impact of hydraulic fracturing on water quality resulted in the largest public environmental hearing ever in Western Pennsylvania. As 1,200 people filled the Southpointe venue on July 22, the event gained national attention. An earlier EPA hearing in Ft. Worth had 600 attendees, and in Denver there were about 350.

At the Southpointe hearing more than a hundred people testified, with testimony running at about 10:1 for people deeply concerned about the impact of fracking on their water supply. This was not only an expression of strong for the EPA study, but it hopefully demonstrated to legislators the deep concern that the public has about Marcellus Shale drilling. (more…)

Just as there is concern about the consequences of using dispersants in the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, there is concern in the “Marcellus gas patch” about the effect of fracking fluid spills on the environment. At a minimum, the public should know what is in those fracking fluids.

In a useful piece, Charles McCollester points out that strict enforcement of the Pennsylvania Worker and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1984 would be helpful.  But federal legislation would have a broader impact.

ACTION: Please contact your Representative to urge him or her to co-sponsor H.R. 2766 and help repeal the exemption of hydraulic fracturing from the Safe Drinking Water Act.

In 2005 Congress exempted fracking fluids from the Safe Drinking Water Act. Last summer Sen. Bob Casey introduced a bill (S.1215) for the specific purpose of repealing that exemption for hydraulic fracturing from the SDWA.

A corresponding bill (H.R.2766) is in the House. Of the 57 co-sponsors, only two are from Pennsylvania; Reps. Pat Murphy and Joe Sestak.  The Representatives from our corner of the “Marcellus Gas patch”,  Reps. Altmire, Critz, Dahlkemper, Doyle, and Murphy need to hear from their constituents.

Tom Hoffman opens June 1 press conference with Council members Rudiak, Peduto, and Shields.

With Pittsburgh chosen as this year’s national site for the UN World Environmental Day June 5, it was appropriate for Councilman Bill Peduto to introduce Clean Air – Clean Water bills in Council on June 1. The two pieces of legislation are the second part of the Pittsburgh UNITED coalition’s Economic Development Reform legislative package.

Speaking at a press conference preceding the Council meeting were co-sponsors Bruce Kraus, Natalia Rudiak, and Doug Shields. In addition, leaders from community groups, unions, and environmental organizations spoke in support of the legislation that will deal with diesel emissions at construction sites and storm water run-off. Details of the legislation are provided below, and we also have a photo gallery from the press conference.

WE NEED TWO MORE VOTES IN COUNCIL

TO PASS THIS IMPORTANT LEGISLATION.

If you are a resident of Pittsburgh and your member of Council is Darlene Harris, Theresa Kail-Smith, Daniel Lavelle, Patrick Dowd or Rev. Ricky Burgess, then PLEASE URGE THEM TO SUPPORT THE CLEAN AIR-CLEAN WATER LEGISLATION. (more…)

The Marcellus “gas-rush” in Pennsylvania has such enormous economic and environmental impact that more than one piece of legislation is required to impose some sort of moderation. A bill to levy a severance tax on gas drilling (HB 2443) was introduced April 22 by Rep. Levdansky. A complimentary bill, “HB 2213 – A Land and Water Protection Act” amended and re-introduced by Rep. George May 25 will help protect the environment from the hazards of actual drilling operations. For details, see below. (more…)

Activity in Harrisburg is almost matching the drilling activity in the Marcellus gas fields of Pennsylvania. There has been good progress by DEP in Protecting Water Quality, but both a moratorium on Forest Land leasing and a Severance Tax are each awaiting action by the legislature. Perhaps you can help. (more…)

First days of the oil spill.  NOAA photo

NOTE: Check out our “Chill the Drill” event, May 20.

The tragic loss of eleven lives in the Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion on April 20 is a stark reminder of how dangerous offshore drilling is. According to a CBS News report, working in the oil industry is more dangerous than working in coal mines: “On rigs in the Gulf of Mexico alone there have been 59 fatalities, more than 1,300 injuries and 853 fires since 2001.” (more…)

KDKA photo of existing
Little Blue Run coal-ash pond.

The owners of the Bruce Mansfield power plant in Beaver County continue to plan for a new 1,300 acre coal-ash dump in Greene Township. This was clear at a crowded April 5 public meeting where First Energy officials attempted to counter the fears of local residents.

The company claims that the current Little Blue Run coal-ash pond, which is rated as having High Hazard Potential by the federal EPA, will be filled by 2018. On March 1 Greene Township supervisors denied First Energy’s re-zoning request for a second coal-ash pond. (more…)

Last week we reported that Sen. Bob Casey had joined Sen. Rockefeller (D-WV) in urging EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to place a hold on the EPA’s regulation of CO2 emissions from coal-fired power stations. We also pointed out that Administrator Jackson had responded to Sen. Rockefeller. We are pleased to report that Jackson’s letter appears to have satisfied Sen. Casey, and we thank all who took time to contact our Senator.

Meanwhile, trouble is brewing in the House where the fossil fuel industries are putting pressure on our local members of Congress to support several bills or resolutions aimed at weakening or gut the Clean Air Act. Our Representatives needs to hear from us.

ACTION: Please contact your Representative and encourage him or her to refrain from any weakening of the Clean Air Act, especially as applied to the control of greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power plants.

As readers are well aware, being able to use hydro-fracturing (‘fracking”) to get natural gas out of deeply-buried Marcellus Shale has created a stampede to drill in Pennsylvania. Concern over the environmental consequences of this drilling activity has spawned a number of legislative and administrative initiatives. To help clarify the situation, a summary of four important initiatives is presented below, with calls for action by YOU.
(more…)