New York To Get $517.8 Million for Weatherization

New York will receive about $517.8 million for weatherization and energy efficiency grants as part of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. The Weatherization and Energy Efficiency Grant Program provides federal grants to states, counties, local governments and tribes to lessen energy use and fossil fuel emissions. New York will get about $394.7 million for the Weatherization Assistance Program and about $123.1 million for the State Energy Program, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. (PoughkeepsieJournal.com) Hat Tip: NYAREA

Governor Paterson Verifies AAEA CO2 Allowance Stance

AAEA supports the free allocation of carbon dioxide (CO2) allowances in the upcoming national legislation to address global warming. President Obama should take Governor David A. Paterson's example and eliminate the auction of allowances in his proposal for a national global warming program. Auctioning the initial allowance unnecessarily raises the cost of a carbon reduction program. The utilities should be allowed to decide how they are going to invest any climate change mitigation program.

Governor Paterson intends to direct the State Departmentof Environmental Conservation to alter regulations in which utilities buy or trade allowances to cover carbon dioxide emissions. This alteration of the New York reg has implications for the other nine Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), who might also back off of auctioning allowances in order to keep electricity rates at reasonable levels. This situation also shows the need for national legislation.

RGGI, which New York signed onto four years ago, established a system whereby power producers were required to obtain what are called allowances, which permit them to release certain levels of carbon dioxide emissions. They typically obtain the allowances by buying them at auction or trading them. The requirement for utilities to obtain the allowances in this way was established not only as a financial disincentive to discourage them from polluting, but as a way for states to raise money for greener energy initiatives.

Governor Paterson plans to increase the number of free allowances provided by the state, which would lower the industry’s costs of compliance. The industry says the system hurts those power producers that signed long-term contracts with utilities years ago, without being able to factor in the price of the allowances. The additional allowances would be distributed to those that signed long-term contracts. “

Industry executives asked that the free allowances, which currently allow for the release of 1.5 million tons of emissions, be increased to 6.5 million tons, which, according to the most recent auction price, could save them $16.9 million. (NYT, 3/5/09)

AAEA Testifies At NRC Hearing In New York

AAEA-New York presented testimony at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) hearing on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) at Colonial Terrace in Cortlandt Manor, New York on February 12, 2009. The hearing was on the Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, Supplement 38, Regarding Indian Point Nuclear Generating Unit Nos. 2 and 3, Draft Report for Comment Main Report.

AAEA New York Director Dan Durett, photo above, AAEA President Norris McDonald and AAEA Vice President Derry Bigby presented testimony on behalf of our local chapter.

AAEA staff also toured Indian Point nuclear power plant the next day.

Photo at right: Dan Durett hitting SCRAM button in simulator to shut down reactor within two seconds.

Dan Durett Video

Dan Durett Statement

Norris McDonald Video

Norris McDonald Statement

Derry Bigby Video

Derry Bigby Statement

AAEA-NY Supports New York Environmental Justice Bill

AAEA-NY supports New York State Assembly Bill AO 1985, the "New York State Environmental Justice Act." The act amends the Environmental Conservation Law to develop and implement a procedure within the State's agencies, boards and commission to insure that all New York communities are afforded fair treatment and meaningful involvement in environmental decision making.

The bill:

Declares the findings that racial and ethnic minority populations and low-income communities bear a disproportionate share of health risks caused by polluted air and contaminated water, solid waste landfills, hazardous waste facilities, waste water treatment plants, waste incinerators, and other similar projects.

Defines environmental justice, requires all agencies to adopt andimplement environmental justice policies, requires all state environmental protection programs and policies to be periodically reviewed, requires the Department of Environmental Conservation to create an Environmental Justice Advisory Council and an Environmental Justice Task Force.

Provides that the Environmental Justice Advisory Council and the Environmental Justice Task Force will be established and operating by October 1, 2008. Passage of the bill would show that the State of New York will be committed to ensuring that communities are afforded fair treatment and meaningful involvement in decision-making through government procedures that will safeguard the health and welfare of residents and achieve environmental justice.

Van Jones Receives $100,000 Puffin/Nation Prize

Van Jones, left, is the 2008 recipient of the $100,000 Puffin/Nation Prize for Creative Citizenship. Mr. Jones is the founder and president of Green For All, a national advocacy organization based in Oakland, California, that is committed to building an inclusive, green economy. He is also the author of The Green Collar Economy (Harper One, 2008). Mr. Jones received the annual award on December 8, 2008 at The Nation Institute Annual Dinner Gala in New York City.

In 2007, Mr. Jones helped the city of Oakland pass a “Green Jobs Corps” proposal, which allocated funds to train residents in eco-friendly “green-collar jobs.” Last year, at the national level, he worked successfully with U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), U.S. Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA) and U.S. Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.) to pass the Green Jobs Act of 2007. That path-breaking, historic legislation authorized $125 million in funding to train 35,000 people a year in “green-collar jobs.” AAEA supported the bill and has promoted green jobs for decades.

The Shoreham Conundrum: The Return of Nuclear Power

It is ironic that Long Island residents killed the Shoreham nuclear power plant but now they are importing a large percentage of their electricity from the Nine Mile Point and James Fitzpatrick nuclear power plants. Maybe they do not care as long as the global warming mitigation technologies are not located in their back yard. They might figure out one day that it was one of the biggest energy mistakes in the history of New York. For if allowed to operate, it would be a major asset right now in terms of price and climate change mitigation.

The Shoreham plant was originally owned by the Long Island Lighting Company (LILCO) and from conception in 1965 to testing at low power in 1985, it was closed without ever going online for commercial use in 1989 in a deal between the company and Governor Mario M. Cuomo. Lilco later merged with Brooklyn Union Gas to form the KeySpan Corporation, which in turn was acquired by British-owned National Grid two years ago. The closing of the Shoreham plant followed years of protests that evacuation would be impossible in the event of an accident at the 800-megawatt plant. Lilco sold the plant to LIPA for a ceremonial $1 in 1992. The authority assumed the $6 billion plant debt. (The New York Times, 1/9/09)

CEO & COO of the New York Power Authority

Richard M. Kessel took office as president and chief executive officer of the New York Power Authority, the nation’s largest state-owned electric utility, on October 14, 2008. Mr. Kessel, an expert on New York energy issues, served as chief executive officer of the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) from 1997 to 2006, and chairman of the LIPA Board of Trustees from 1989 to 1995. Mr. Kessel was responsible for several notable achievements during his tenure at LIPA.

Gil C. Quiniones is Chief Operating Officer of the New York Power Authority. Quiniones is a Subcommittee Co-Chair for Distributed Generation, on Governor Paterson’s Renewable Energy Task Force, Before coming to the Power Authority, Quiniones served for more than four years as Senior Vice President of Energy and Telecommunications for the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC). While there, Quiniones acted as the city’s chief consultant on energy policy issues. Prior to being COO, Mr. Quiniones was senior vice president of Energy and Telecommunications at the New York City Economic Development Corporation and chairman of the New York City Energy Policy Task Force.

The New York Power Authority

Click On Image To Enlarge

The New York Power Authority (NYPA)operates 18 generating facilities and more than 1,400 circuit-miles of transmission lines. NYPA sells power to government agencies; community-owned electric systems and rural electric cooperatives; companies; private utilities for resale—without profit—to their customers; and neighboring states, under federal requirements.

Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt established New York's model for public power through legislation signed in 1931. This effort to secure public control of New York's hydropower resources was the result of a bipartisan effort that began with Governor Charles Evans Hughes in 1907.

NYPA serves as a non-profit, public-benefit energy corporation that does not use any tax revenue or state credit. NYPA finances construction of our projects through bond sales to private investors, repaying bondholders with proceeds from our operations.

AAEA Energy Audits and Weatherization Circa 1988

AAEA was doing green jobs 20 years ago. From energy audits and weatherization to water efficiency retrofits (fixing leaks and changing out toilet parts) and influencing policy decision making, AAEA was in the forefront of what today appears to be a new thing. AAEA audited, weatherized and installed water improvements in hundreds of homes in the 1980's. AAEA Vice President Derry Bigby and AAEA President are pictured at right with another technician (middle) in the basement of a home reviewing the results of an energy audit in 1988. Note the beard, mustache and afro.

Today AAEA has expanded its scope to include a mix of energy sources. It takes a combination of energy sources to power America because our country is made great by having abundant supplies of energy at reasonable prices. AAEA believes in this ethic and supplements it with the belief that technology, combined with good policies, can keep the USA secure with reliable sources of energy. AAEA promotes clean coal technology, wind & solar, conservation and efficiency, natural gas and nuclear power. AAEA will continue to promote green jobs and sustainable development. We also work on toxics remediation, environmental justice and global warming mitigation projects. AAEA is also the only environmental organization in the United States that uses objective criteria in evaluating its support or opposition for development projects.

Should Blacks Own Coal Mines in a Global Warming World?

We asked once and we are asking again, should African Americans participate in the coal business? Or should blacks join with mainstream environmental groups to end the use of coal as a fuel to produce electricity? Let us know.

Regardless of your opinion, you should know that coal is currently used to produce 50% of America's electricity. If you want to shut down the coal industry you can contact the Sierra Club. If you're interested in getting into the coal business you can click here. Of course, the real question here is: will the established coal industry allow blacks in? Clearly the traditional environmental movement has big trouble in this area.

AAEA is promoting a realistic model for using coal in an environmentally friendly manner that also includes the production of hydrogen and transportation fuels. The AAEA Energy Defense Reservations Program (EDR) would be extremely expensive, but considering the money being doled out to bail out antiquated businesses, this program should be the future. The federal government should direct $300 billion to the EDR Program, which would complement the green jobs program being promoted by President-elect Obama. AAEA supports green jobs and the use of coal in an EDR Program to satisfy America's dynamic electricity needs.

U.S. Supreme Court Hears Cooling Tower Case

The United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Entergy Corp. v. EPA on December 2, 2008. AAEA President Norris McDonald attended the hearing. The case will determine whether or not the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is authorized to compare costs with benefits in determining the “best technology available” (BTA) for the cooling water intake structures of existing power plants. AAEA-NY believes cost/benefit analyses should be included in determining BTA.

This case will affect electric power plants that use a 'once-through' water-use process to cool heated water (steam) used to produce electricity. One interesting question in the proceeding: what is the cost of a fish egg?

President-Elect Obama Should Question Green Segregation

PRESIDENT'S CORNER: By Norris McDonald. Traditional environmental groups are giddy about the prospects of how an Obama administration can accelerate the goals of our movement. Yet these same groups are as segregated as they have ever been. Before they go asking the Obama administration for anything, President-Elect Obama should inquire about their historical discriminatory hiring and retention practices. Although the vast majority of groups arrogantly ignored our Diversity Survey, one peep from any Obama official will probably get a rapid response. A list of 30 groups recently provided their wish list of recommendations for the Obama transition team. Notice how AAEA is conveniently excluded from their little list. It is partly because we pose this pesky question about their discriminatory hiring practices. One of the largest groups even admitted to us that they had never hired a Black person in a policy position.

I have been around for 30 years and there are as few black professionals working for mainstream environmental groups now as there were in 1979. I was the only black professional working in the Washington, D.C.-based environmental movement then. At a very minimum the $6 billion per year green movement could create Vice President for Government Relations, or Vice President for Outreach or Vice Prisident for Human Resources the same way the industry groups and their associations do it. Mainstream green groups can continue to arrogantly run, but they can no longer hide (I hope). President Obama is going to find out. Now although America has stepped up to the plate, will the environmental movement finally integrate? Or maybe groups such as ours, Green For All, and the National Hispanic Environmental Council will still be necesary and have to carry all the load in getting expanded perspectives included in the environmental agenda. So mainstream green groups, don't go thinking President Obama is going to fall for some 'post-racial' gobbledygook.

President-Elect Obama will not be bamboozled by the enthusiasm of the green groups. America took a great step forward in electing Senator Obama, but the environmental movement is still stuck in the pre-first-Earth Day-segregated 1960s. I voted for President-Elect Obama and so did the members of these groups. Unfortunately, they seem to be secretly proud of their racial exclusivity. At least that is my opinion. I think President-Elect Obama and his transition team should at least take a look at our Diversity Report Card and see if you can help us to get the groups to answer us. We would appreciate it.

AAEA-NY Director Testifies At DEC Waste Siting Hearing

AAEA-NY Director Dan Durett participated in the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) public hearing for the Draft New York State Hazardous Waste Facility Siting Plan (“The Siting Plan”) and the Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS). Some of his comments are listed below:

First, there is a need for greater involvement from the African-American, and other impacted communities as the DEC moves forward on this issue, not only in public hearings or the solicitation of written comments, but also, and perhaps more importantly, during the various implementation processes that result from these activates.

Second, we are concerned with the major finding that “Before 2002, New York imported more hazardous waste for management than it exported. Since 2002, New York has exported more hazardous waste than it has imported.” We would question whether transferred waste is being sent to communities of concern to AAEA-NY?

Third, we ask DEC to review its observation that states: “Based on the history of hazardous waste management facility capacity and hazardous waste generation trends, it is reasonable to conclude that the private sector will continue to provide sufficient, needed capacity for New York State generated hazardous wastes. (See Chapter 6.)

Finally, we applaud the inclusion of the statement in the draft document that:"Preventing and reducing hazardous waste generation is a top priority for the Department and the State, as mandated by the preferred hazardous waste management hierarchy (ECL 27-0105.) This approach will continue to be used to guide all hazardous waste management policies and decisions of the Department, including permitting and other regulatory activities."

FULL STATEMENT

Entergy Disputes Fishy DEC Decision in Court

Entergy, the owner of Indian Point nuclear power plant, has taken the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to court to reverse the agency's ruling that the plant kills too many fish eggs with its current 'once through' Hudson river water cooling system. As such, the company disagrees with building a $2 billion cooling tower that DEC is attempting to force them to build to reduce fish eggs kills.

A regulatory adjudication is also pending to address these issues . One point of contention is that DEC already ruled that the facility causes an 'adverse environmental impact' via fish kills before the adjudication.

The DEC recently issued a permit to Entergy's FitzPatrick station, a nuclear plant on the southeastern Lake Ontario shore where no closed-cycle cooling has been required. AAEA participated in this proceeding. (LoHud.com)

Finally, the U.S. Supreme Court hear a case in December examining whether the Clean Water Act can force a change to the best technology available without regard to costs.

New York Regional Interconnection (NYRI)

The New York Regional Interconnection (NYRI) is a plan to build a 190-mile $2.1 billion 1,200-megawatt transmission line from the Utica area through seven upstate New York counties to Orange County to the New York City area. NYRI is a U.S. corporation owned by a series of Canadian holding companies . The high-voltage, direct current (HVDC) power line is needed to improve the state's aging power grid and reduce the threat of blackouts like the one that struck the state in 2003. The state Public Service Commission is holding a serious of 13 public hearings on the project. AAEA supports the project. If approved, the project is expected to be completed in 2018. [Note: we still do not understand why direct current will be used because AC is a more efficient way to move electricity].

The cables are made of steel with aluminum cladding and will be uninsulated. The pipeline route will have 83’- 120’ high scaffold-like towers and the river route 130’-180’ high monopoles. Each main cable would carry 400,000V and 1.2 billion watts. There will be at least 2 cables on each pole or tower, plus a return. On the monopoles, there would be room for 2 more cables.

Sources: Stop the Power Lines, PSC, various newspapers.

Silda Wall Spitzer Working on "Green-Tech" Projects

It is being reported that Silda Spitzer, right, is working at a private [we guess there is still such a thing] investment firm where she will focus on funding "green-tech" projects and alternative energy. Well we have an exciting new green tech project for you Mrs. Spitzer. It involves LEDs and a Chinese partner. We would be happy to work with you on developing this state-of-the-art project. We also intend to create green jobs that will focus on assisting ex offenders and low-income people. Give us a call. Oh. And please do not be distracted by our name. Just as the National Wildlife Federation works on energy issues, so do we. (Daily News, 10/19/09)

Mothers on the Move Mitigate Bronx Organic Fertilizer Site

The Mothers on the Move protests against the New York Organic Fertilizer (NYOFCo) site in Hunts Point in the Bronx (pictured at left in March) led the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to modify the permit requirements of the firm to reduce odors coming from the facility. The question now is: how will they do that? Trash transfer stations usually use perfumes sprayed into the air and negative pressure for enclosed facilities. For asthmatics and others with breathing problems, perfumes only add to the problem. You get a sweetened odor that still irritates airways. The only way sewage treatment plants were able to reduce smells from their sites was to ship the sludge out to area farms instead of letting it dry on site.

The amended permit requirements are due to a lawsuit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) on behalf of 10 plaintiffs and Mothers on the Move. NYOFCo processes about half of the city's sewage sludge into fertilizer pellets. The modified permit calls for the installation of an air pressure alarm to help keep odors from escaping the plant. It will be interesting to see how this situation will be resolved. The bottom line is that the facility probably does not need to be in Hunts Point, which is already inundated with a disproportionately large number of polluting entitites. (NY Daily News, 10/10/08--photo by Susan Watts/Daily News)

Electricity Cut Offs Rising Sharply

According to Con Edison, almost 10,000 residential customers, through September of this year, had their electricity turned off because they failed to pay their bills, 13 percent more than in the same period in 2007. The value of those unpaid bills is $8.9 million. During the same period, 1,600 nonresidential customers (shops, offices, factories and so on) had their power turned off, an 8 percent increase.

Con Ed sends up to five warning letters over a 90-day period before ultimately turning a customer’s electricity off. Most people who get their electricity turned off are back on within a month because they have entered a payment plan or made a payment.

Between January and the end of September, 342,073 residential customers were in arrears for more than 60 days, an 18 percent jump. (The New York Times, 10/9/08)

1st RGGI CO2 Auction Brings Clearing Price of $3.07

AAEA's price for allowances is $20.00 per ton at our Green Carbon Bank and Carbon Mercantile Exchange.

The states participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) announced that all of the 12,565,387 allowances offered for sale on September 25, 2008 were sold at a clearing price of $ 3.07 per allowance. RGGI, Inc. reported that 59 participants from the energy, financial and environmental sectors took part in the first-in-the-nation auction, indicating a strong start in the first of many CO2 allowance auctions. The demand for the allowances appeared to have been very strong with a total of quantity of 51,761,000 allowances demanded which was four times available supply for this first auction. The $ 38,575,783 in proceeds produced from the auction will be distributed to Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont, the six RGGI states that offered allowances for sale during the first auction. The states are investing those funds in energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies, and programs to benefit energy consumers.

The RGGI auction was administered by World Energy Solutions, Inc (TSX: XWE), which operates online exchanges for energy and green commodities. World Energy Solutions concluded that the software executed the auction seamlessly, the process ran as expected and there were no issues that affected the ability of bidders to participate. The RGGI auction was overseen by RGGI, Inc.’s independent market monitor, Potomac Economics, a leader in the field of monitoring and competitive assessment of wholesale electricity markets in the U.S. Potomac Economics also serves as the Independent Market Monitor for the Midwest ISO and ERCOT, as the Independent Market Advisor for the New York ISO, and as the Independent Market Monitoring Unit for ISO New England. Any CO2 allowances purchased at the first auction can be used by a regulated facility for compliance in any of the RGGI states, even if that state did not offer allowances in the first auction.

The next allowance auction is set for December 17, 2008. These early auctions, combined with the others being held in the first compliance period, will ensure an ample opportunity for bidders to obtain the allowances they will need for compliance across the entire 10-state region. RGGI intends to hold quarterly auctions during the first RGGI three-year compliance period, which will be from January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2011.

Under the RGGI process, the then participating states will stabilize power sector CO2 emissions at the capped level through 2014. The cap will then be reduced by 2.5 percent in each of the four years 2015 through 2018, for a total reduction of 10 percent. The ten states participating in RGGI are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont.
For more information about RGGI, turn to: http://www.rggi.org

First Auction of CO2 Emission Allowances in United States

At a bell-ringing ceremony held today at the New York Mercantile Exchange in lower Manhattan, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) marked the opening of the first-in-the-nation auction for carbon dioxide emission allowances. The ceremony, which was attended by Governor David A. Paterson of New York and Governor Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey, Ian A. Bowles, Secretary for Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Laurie Burt, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, Robert Calendar, Vice President of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, Phil Guidice, Commissioner of Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources, Lisa Jackson, Commissioner, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and Shari Wilson, Secretary, Maryland Department of Environmental Protection, served to mark the most serious effort yet in the United States to address climate change.

RGGI will reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions through a mandatory, market-based cap-and-trade program. Under RGGI, the ten participating states will stabilize power sector carbon emissions at their capped level, and then reduce the cap by 10 percent at a rate of 2.5 percent each year between 2015 and 2018. As promised in the 2005 RGGI Memorandum of Understanding, all participating states plan to have implementing regulations in place by January 1, 2009. Revenues from the carbon allowance auctions will be invested by the participating states in energy efficiency programs, renewable energy stimulus efforts and other programs to benefit consumers.

The RGGI auction held today offered 12,565,387 allowances, including CO2 allowances issued by Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont. The CO2 allowances purchased at this auction can be used by a regulated facility for compliance in any of the RGGI states, even if that state did not offer allowances in this auction.

Other RGGI participating states will offer allowances for sale in future auctions as they complete their necessary rulemaking proceedings. A second auction is scheduled for December 2008, with all RGGI participating states expected to offer allowances for sale in the first 2009 auction. Future sales of CO2 allowances are planned through a steady offering of allowances in quarterly auctions. States have committed to offer for sale before the end of 2011 all of the allowances they are putting into the auctions for the first three-year compliance period. Regulated power companies must hold enough allowances to match their CO2 emissions for the first compliance period by March 1, 2012.

The RGGI states have retained a professional independent market monitor, Potomac Economics, to oversee auctions and subsequent market activity. The monitor will observe the conduct of the auction qualification process as well as the auction itself, and will report on whether the auction was conducted in accordance with the participating states’ regulations and the noticed auction procedures and whether the auction results represented a competitive outcome.