-- NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL NEWS --
Insurance Think Tank Report On Climate Risk & Other Extreme Events
Broad Coalition Offers Plan To Accelerate Plug-In Electric Vehicles
EPA Wants Comments On Draft AFO Emissions Documents
Rep. Waxman Wants Correction Re: EPA International Grantmaking
Cheap Jewelry Tests High For Toxics Chemicals
4th World Water Development Report From UNESCO
Scottsdale Indemnity v. Village of Crestwood-- MICHIGAN NEWS --Comments Wanted On Dow Midland Area Dioxin Cleanup Plan
Enviros Question Dow $10 Million Grant To UM
$500,000 For 7 State Clean Diesel Program Grants
Clinton River Watershed Needs Your Vote
ORR Recommends Eliminating 611 Obsolete MIOSHA Requirements
MRC Webinar To Make 2012 The Year Of Recycling
The group's report, An Action Plan to Integrate Plug-in Electric Vehicles with the U.S. Electrical Grid, provides a roadmap for coordinated public and private sector action at state and local levels to ensure that PEV owners can conveniently plug in their cars without overtaxing the grid. It recommends steps to ensure compatible regulatory approaches nationwide, balance public and private investments in charging infrastructure, and better inform consumers about PEVs.
C2ES president Eileen Claussen said, "With plug-in electrics, we now have a mass-produced alternative to the internal combustion engine. This is a major opportunity to tackle both energy security and climate change, and to put American industries and workers out front on a truly transformative technology. But for PEVs to succeed, we need all the right parties working together. That's what this plan is all about."
Nearly 18,000 PEVs were sold in the United States last year; over the next year or two, all of the major automakers plan to have models on the road. Some PEVs like the Nissan Leaf rely entirely on battery power, while others like the Chevy Volt have small backup engines to extend their driving range [See WIMS 3/5/12]. Broad deployment of PEVs, which use little or no gasoline, can significantly reduce U.S. reliance on imported oil and curb harmful tailpipe emissions. If accompanied by the gradual decarbonization of U.S. electricity, PEVs can also significantly reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. But growth of the PEV market faces major challenges, including new infrastructure letting owners plug in at home and on the road while ensuring the reliability of the grid.
The PEV Dialogue Group's Action Plan includes recommendations to:
- Encourage state public utility commissions and other policymakers to establish a consistent regulatory framework nationwide to harmonize technical standards; streamline the installation of household and commercial charging stations; and use electricity rate structures to promote charging at off-peak hours.
- Assist local policymakers and stakeholders in assessing local needs, developing tailored strategies, and optimizing public and private investment in charging infrastructure.
- Provide consumers with reliable information on the costs and benefits of PEVs and the choices among PEV technologies.
Roland Hwang, transportation director at NRDC said, "Instead of policies that increase our addiction to oil, we need to provide Americans more transportation choices. Putting millions of electric vehicles on the road will cut drivers' fuel bills, help the auto industry, keep billions of dollars in the U.S. economy, and curb emissions of dangerous air pollutants. By working together across the political spectrum to enact this Action Plan, we can create a vibrant market for electric cars, restore U.S manufacturing leadership and create thousands of jobs."
Edward Kjaer, director of PEV readiness, at Southern California Edison, a major electric utility said, "The U.S. electrical grid is a national energy security asset and has the excess capacity, off-peak to support millions of electric vehicles right now. With the PEV Action Plan, C2ES has spearheaded an important effort that will help us all use this critical domestic resource for transportation and begin to reduce this nation's dependence on imported oil." Michael Robinson, VP of sustainability and global regulatory affairs at GM said, "GM is glad to work with groups such as C2ES that are working to advance the adoption of electric vehicles through real-world best practices and stakeholder education."
Orjiakor Isiogu, a member of the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) said, "It has been a pleasure to work with the other members of the PEV Dialogue Group and identify policies that will help seamlessly integrate plug-in electric vehicles with our electrical grid. I look forward to continuing my work within the group and helping it properly balance the needs of electricity customers and the opportunity presented by PEVs."
C2ES will work with the PEV Dialogue Group and others to promote implementation of the Action Plan. Over the coming months, C2ES is working with the Washington State Department of Transportation to advise transportation officials in seven states on steps to accelerate PEV adoption, and with the U.S. Department of Energy to support DOE-funded Clean Cities Coalitions working in dozens of communities across the country to develop local PEV deployment plans.
Access a release from C2ES and list of PEV Dialogue Group members (click here). Access an executive summary and link to the complete recommendations report (click here). Access a White House fact sheet on the $1 billion challenge with further details (click here). [#Energy/Electric, #Transport/PEV, #MITransport]
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act.
Over half (57%) of the products tested had a "high" level of concern due to the presence of one or more hazardous chemicals detected at high levels. Four products contained over 10% cadmium, a known carcinogen. Fifty percent contained lead, with over half of these containing more than 300 ppm of lead in one or more components, exceeding the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) limit of lead in children's products. Jeff Gearhart, Research Director at the Ecology Center and founder of HealthyStuff.org said, "There is no excuse for jewelry, especially children's jewelry, to be made with some of the most well studied and dangerous substances on the planet. We urge manufacturers to start replacing these chemicals with non-toxic substances immediately."
Ninety-nine pieces of jewelry were tested from 14 different retailers, including: Ming 99 City, Burlington Coat Factory, Target, Big Lots, Claire's, Glitter, Forever 21, Walmart, H&M, Meijers, Kohl's, Justice, Icing and Hot Topic. Samples were predominantly collected from retailers in Michigan, with 5 other states participating, including Ohio, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Vermont. The study measured the presence of the chemicals with an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzer -- a proven, accurate indicator of elements in products. Anyone concerned about these jewelry products can visit the HealthyStuff.org and search by brand, jewelry type and chemical detected.
Managing Water under Uncertainty and Risk, volume one of WWDR-4, provides an overview of status trends and challenges, including drivers of water consumption, water resource variability, water's social and environmental benefits, water management, institutions and capacity development, moving from raw data to informed decisions, and regional challenges. Part two of the first volume addresses working under uncertainty and managing risk, including risk and uncertainties associated with the key drivers, the problem of undervaluing water, transforming management institutions to deal with change, investment and financing for a sustainable future, and responses to risks and uncertainties, including through mitigation and adaptation to climate change.
The Knowledge Base, volume two of WWDR-4, provides status reports of challenge areas and regional reports. It addresses challenge areas such as quantity, quality, human settlements, managing water along livestock value chains, the energy-water nexus, freshwater for industry, allocating water, valuing water, water infrastructure, developing knowledge and capacity, water related-disasters, and desertification and drought. The regional reports highlight regional issues, effects of external drivers, principal risks, uncertainties and opportunities, geographical hotspots, and responses.
Facing the Challenges, volume three of WWDR-4, presents 15 case studies showcasing national efforts, as well as efforts at the river basin levels, from throughout the world, including: the Mara River basin shared by Kenya and Tanzania; Jordan; Pakistan, with reference to the Indus River basin; the Tiber River basin, in Italy; the St Johns River basin, in the USA; and Costa Rica. The case studies highlight challenges such as increases in the number of water-related disasters due to climate change and the importance of increased cooperation among countries especially on transboundary water resources.
Access a release from UNESCO and link to related information (click here). Access Volume 1 (click here). Access Volume 2 (click here). Access Volume 3 (click here). [#Water]
Tuesday, March 13, 2012.
The conceptual agreement behind the proposed cleanup plan was introduced at a public information meeting March 1, in Midland. If approved, the work plan will allow Dow to proceed with sampling soil at residential properties in the resolution area and offering cleanup for properties that test above the action level. MDEQ notes that, "Properties that test less than or equal to the action level and those that have had cleanup will not be considered contaminated under Michigan law." Sampling and cleanup work will be done only with the consent of the property owner. Soil sampling is expected to begin in June.
Among other things, the work plan includes: A proposed Midland site-specific dioxin "action level" of 250 parts per trillion for soil; A soil sampling design plan for the affected properties; A description of the process to be used to trigger cleanup on individual properties; A description of cleanup activities to be taken and process to address deferred cleanups; and, A schedule for the proposed work, which is expected to run through 2017.
Since 2008, $3.9 million in State and federal funding has been awarded to Michigan diesel engine fleets through the U.S. EPA's National Clean Diesel Campaign and the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Program. Another $1.9 million has been leveraged by both public and private diesel engine fleet owners, operators and their partners and invested directly in these projects. The efforts will reduce the amount of soot released by more than 64 tons over the lifetime of the affected diesel engines.
The groups said in a release that the details of the relationship between Dow and the University of Michigan have not been made public, but groups are raising questions about the possibility that through the gift, the company could have inappropriate influence over University activities. The groups indicated that another major gift from Dow to UM -- $15 million to study the dioxin contamination in mid-Michigan -- continues to be controversial. Advocates are urging the University to signal that independence and transparency remains paramount, and to make public the terms of Dow's gift.
The groups said that Dow Chemical's gifts to other universities have also generated controversy, including at the University of California, among other institutions. At Berkeley, a Dow gift created a new position in the Center for Responsible Business at Berkeley. The position is currently held by a Dow Chemical employee formerly from Dow's plastics division who leads a project on sustainable products and innovations and teaches a course in the program. Mike Wilson, director of the Labor Occupational Health Program at the Center for Occupational and Environmental Health at the School of Public Health at Berkeley said, "At this point, industry support for infrastructure improvements at UC-Berkeley is critical. But influencing education and research is another thing entirely. The presence of a Dow executive on campus has been a source of continuing controversy and has had a corrosive effect, I think, on the University."
Michelle Hurd, a member of the Lone Tree Council said, "Those of us living downriver awash for decades in Dow Chemical's dioxin view this sustainability partnership with a great deal of skepticism. The EPA has documented in detail the company's politics, delays and deviation from accepted scientific practice, all contributing to Dow's failure over decades to address their dioxin contamination in Lake Huron and Michigan's largest watershed. Dow has not earned a major voice in sustainability education."
On March 12, Dow announced that the company and UM would bring together 300 students from all areas of study to help solve some of the world's most pressing sustainability challenges in a new and unprecedented fellowship program. Andrew Liveris, chairman and chief executive officer of Dow and U-M President Mary Sue Coleman told a Detroit Economic Club audience that Dow will provide a gift of $10 million over six years to support the Dow Sustainability Fellows Program at U-M. According to a release from Dow, the real-world, multidisciplinary program will leverage U-M's nearly $1.25 billion research portfolio to engage in and help solve some of the world's most pressing sustainability challenges, while driving innovation in Michigan and around the globe.
Liveris said, "At Dow, we know that the most successful partnerships are formed when there is a foundational belief that business interests and public interests should be aligned in order to create long-terms solutions for the greater good of humanity. Our collaborative partnership pushes aside the standard thinking and supports unique models that will give rise to the next generation of innovators in Michigan and across the world."
Dow indicated that the program includes fellowships for masters, doctoral and postdoctoral students and a supporting lecture series focused on sharing sustainability research and best practices. Under the program, teams composed of fellows at various levels from different disciplines would also compete for awards supporting high-impact sustainability solutions that address a sustainability challenge.
Access a release with additional comments from other groups (click here). [#MISustain]
The Clinton River project money would be used for the "WAIT WAIT… Don't Step There, Fish Here!" project which will address intensive traffic at Yates Park that has contributed to streambank erosion and subsequent destruction of fish habitat and water quality impacts. Streambank restoration, public access development and an ongoing public awareness campaign will help protect one of the most popular fishing locations on the Clinton River. Show your support by voting for Clinton River Watershed between February 21 and March 19. The competition winners will be announced on March 22 at RiverNetwork.org.
Steven Hilfinger, Chief Regulatory Officer and LARA Director said, "Elimination of duplicative and unnecessarily burdensome rules will reduce costs for businesses and allow MIOSHA to focus on enforcing rules that are core to their mission of workplace safety. None of the rescinded requirements are present in federal OSHA regulations. Eliminating these Michigan‐specific amendments will result in less complex and more efficient regulations and will make Michigan more competitive in attracting and growing businesses." The ORR formed recommendations after a comprehensive review process, including convening an Advisory Rules Committee (ARC) of stakeholders that included representatives from manufacturers, unions, utilities, construction companies, pharmaceutical companies, municipal organizations and more, as well as senior officials from MIOSHA.
Access a release from ORR (click here). Access the complete recommendations (click here). [#MIAll]
MRC Webinar To Make 2012 The Year Of Recycling - For Mar 13: The Michigan Recycling Coalition (MRC) is conducting a free "e-rally" webinar on March 27th to rally support for an initiative to make recycling a priority for Michigan lawmakers. Interested parties are invited to dial-in to this e-rally webinar to find out more about the opportunity, learn how to make a buzz about recycling, and pull away with a roadmap for driving decision makers into action.
Achieving a 50% recycling rate backed with sustainable funding is just one of the goals of the initiative to make 2012 the Year of Recycling. The year when Michigan understands that discarded material is a valuable resource and institutes a funding method that will support a best-in-class statewide recycling program. When the Statewide recycling message is being revved up in every hometown across the State it "will gain the speed and momentum to drive decision makers and Governor Snyder to release the parking brake and take action to support a comprehensive statewide recycling program." MRC said, "We're closer than we've been in a long time and with your help we can make a statewide recycling program happen in Michigan."
In related news, it is noted that MRC Annual Conference & Trade Show will take place in Grand Rapids, May 8-10, 2012. MRC indicates that the Conference is the biggest and best opportunity of the year to engage in recycling issues with hundreds of public and private recycling professionals throughout Michigan.
Access an announcement and register for the webinar (click here). Access the MRC conference website to learn more (click here). [#MIP2, #MISolid]
