| Vol. 6 - No. 11 |
| November 2001 |
| GREEN SHEET |
| Environmental Advocates' Statewide Bulletin Board |
| Budget Blunder |
| It goes without saying that this has been a terrible, tragic year for New York. And, with or without increased federal aid, there are difficult financial times ahead. That is no reason, however, to stop investing in the environment as the state rebuilds and recovers. Yet that is exactly what has happened. When lawmakers left Albany in late October, after adding $500 million to the bare-bones budget and agreeing to dramatically increase gambling as a general fund revenue source, no appropriation was made from the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF). And the money is there, accumulating in the bank in a dedicated account. It just wasn’t appropriated. |
| During the long budget process, especially after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, environmental movement representatives accepted the assurances of the Governor and legislative leaders that the EPF would be included in a supplemental budget plan. But it was not. Not since 1993 has New York been without money to purchase open space/wilderness lands from willing sellers. |
| Not since the EPF was created has there been no money for recycling and solid waste capital projects, water quality protection, farmland preservation, wildlife protection and the stewardship of state lands and recreational facilities. |
| The EPF is more than just a funding source for selected environmental projects. Not long ago, local landfills throughout New York were forced to close because they threatened ecological havoc, including poisoning the drinking water of millions of people. Many small towns and villages were faced with an extraordinary financial burden, until the EPF provided nearly $50 million in relief. Governor Pataki recently confirmed his support for cleaning up the Hudson, expressing particular concern for upriver communities most affected by PCB contamination. The program that offers the best hope for those communities is the Natural Resource Damage Assessment, which is funded by the EPF. The Waterfront Revitalization Account has provided over $65 million in projects. And the Open Space Account has meant nearly $80 million has gone to assure that future generations will share in the beauty of New York’s parks and wilderness. |
| Call or write the Governor, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Joseph Bruno. Tell them to return to Albany and free the EPF.*
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On the Alert
• Opening Shot: Gov. Pataki and the Legislature failed to put money into the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) this year (see Budget Blunder, above), but there will soon be a perfect opportunity to let them know how we feel. On Nov. 13, 14 & 15, the state Department of Environmental Conservation has scheduled 12 separate public hearings on the Open Space Protection Plan, which is funded through the EPF. Plan to attend the hearing in your area and demand that EPF money be appropriated this year. For a listing of times and locations, visit www.eany.org.
• It’s Your Call: Power plant pollution is taking its toll on America’s health, aggravating respiratory problems and shortening lives. It also contributes to acid rain, ozone damage to trees and crops, mercury contamination of fish and streams, and global climate change. A coalition of 1,100 national and local environmental groups, including EA and 71 other groups in NY, has released a set of clean air principles emphasizing large cuts in power plant pollution. The Citizen’s Call for a National Solution to Power Plant Pollution supports reductions in sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and carbon dioxide identical to those in legislation currently before Congress. Call your Congressional representatives (202-224-3121) and urge their support for S.556/H.R.1256 . Add your organization to the list. For more information, call Clear the Air at 202-887-1715 or visit: www.cleartheair.org.
• Omitting Emissions: The EPA has proposed a new regulation setting air emissions from vehicles such as snowmobiles, all terrain vehicles (ATVs), dirtbikes, inboard boats, and small industrial and airport equipment. It would set emission limits for nitrogen oxide, hydrocarbons, particulate matter, and carbon monoxide. The regulation, while properly phasing out inefficient two-stroke engines in some vehicle categories (such as ATVs), fails to phase the engines out in others (particularly snowmobiles). Send comments to nranprm@epa.gov, or to Margaret Borushko, USEPA National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory, 2000 Traverwood, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105 by December 19. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org and click on take action.
• Bus Stop: Every weekday, up to 110,000 people travel on Long Island Bus (LIB), Nassau County’s only public bus operator. Yet the state has increasingly forced the county to do more with less. The state budget adopted in August eliminated $6 million in state aid for LIB. At the same time, the Nassau County Executive has proposed a budget that would further reduce county support, already slashed 65% from normal levels of commitment. In a region that suffers from roadway congestion and air pollution, mass transit should be increased, not cut. Visit www.tstc.org to send a message to Gov. Pataki and Nassau County Legislature President Judy Jacobs. Urge them to prevent more transit service cuts. Contact the Tri-State Transportation campaign at 516-719-9330 or tstc@tstc.org for more information about Long Island and other service areas.
For Your Information
Keeping Score: Want to know how your elected state officials are doing on the environment? EPL/Environmental Advocates has just published its annual Voters’ Guide: An Insider’s Guide to the Environmental Record of New York State’s Legislature and Governor. For a copy of this year’s mid-session report card, call 1-800-SAVE-NYS or visit: www.eany.org.
What A Waste: A recent Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) report on medical waste incineration describes alternatives that are safer, cleaner, do not produce dioxin and are just as effective at disinfection. Non-Incineration Medical Waste Treatment Technologies provides comprehensive information on the pros and cons of alternatives to medical waste incineration and includes the environmental and economic impacts of about 50 specific technologies. Copies are available at www.noharm.org, or by contacting Jolie Patterson at HCWH, 202-234-0091 or info@hcwh.org.
Bogged Down: The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation has extended the public comment period for the Bog River Management Complex draft Unit Management Plan (UMP) and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) until November 31, 2001. A public meeting will be held on November 13 at 5:00PM in the Guilderland Town Hall in Albany County. The 36,100-acre Bog River Management Complex is located in St Lawrence, Hamilton and Franklin Counties. To comment, contact Stewart Brown, NYSDEC, 6739 US Highway 11, Potsdam NY 13676 or at 315-265-3090. The complete document is available at: www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dlf/publands/ump.
Heart and Soul: Gardens of the Heart is a new cd produced by Celebration Recordings to benefit the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA). Performed by pianist Margot Dilmaghanihe, the cd features classical and ragtime solo piano music about nature composed by women. The $25 donation benefits NOFA’s advocacy work. Send checks payable to NOFA to Celebration Recordings, Box 392, Purchase, NY 10577. Email duesing@compuserve.com for more information. Visit www.nofa.org for information on NOFA.
Activists' Corner
| Howdy Neighbor: The Long Island Neighborhood Network (LINN), formed in 1984, is dedicated to reclaiming the suburban and rural character of community life on Long Island. LINN works to preserve environmental resources by initiating policies to prevent exposures to environmental hazards, proposing government consolidations designed to reduce the local tax burden and holding governmental officials accountable by advancing reforms which set higher ethical standards and keep the operation of government open to the public. |
| LINN recently launched a Toxic Free Schools campaign to eliminate pesticide use in school buildings and on school grounds. The group also publishes a Long Island Organic Lawn Resource Directory and is cosponsoring the 2001 Organic Trade Show and Expos (see Calendar). |
| Contact LINN at 90 Pennsylvania Ave., Massapequa, NY 11758; phone: 516-541-4321; email: linnet@longislandnn.org, or
visit: www.longislandnn.org.
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| The Month Ahead |
November
1: Finding Safe Harbor: Can the Hudson and the Port Accommodate all that Clamor to Enter?, forum, part of the NYC Conservation Challenge presented by the NY Conservation Fund and the Columbia Earth Institute. Columbia University, Low Library. W. 116 St., Manhattan. 7:00PM-9:00PM. Free. Call 212-361-6350.
1: Contaminants in the Hudson, sponsored by Hudson River Environmental Society. Stevens Inst. of Technology, Hoboken, NJ. Members: $65; non-members: $100; students: $30. Visit: www.hres.org.
6-7: Empire Energy & Environment Exposition, sponsored by NYS Research and Development Authority and the Environmental Business Association of NYS. Includes seminars on brownfields, the Hudson, and greening schools. Empire State Plaza Convention Center, Albany. Call Donna Way at 518-432-6400 x224.
8: Summit on Article X Reform: Power Plant Siting In New York, a planning and strategy meeting convened by Environmental Advocates to discuss reauthorization of the state’s power plant siting law in 2002. Albany. 10:00AM-4:30PM. Call Anne Reynolds at 518-462-5526 ext. 238.
8: Green Design 2001: Solar Energy in Buildings, sponsored by the University of Buffalo Green Office and others. $40; students $20. Buffalo Convention Center, Buffalo. 8:30AM-6:30PM. Call Erin Cala at 716-829-3535.
8: Food Safety: Where are we going with factory farming and what are the alternatives?, a lecture by ecological grass-based livestock farmer and animal scientist Jim Hayes. Schenectady County Public Library, 99 Clinton St., Schenectady. 7:00PM. Free. Call the Regional Farm & Food Project at 518-427-6537.
12: The 2001 Advocate Awards, Environmental Advocates’ annual gala, with host Chevy Chase. This year’s Advocate Award recipients are Ashok Gupta, Cara Lee and James T.B. Tripp. Laura Belle, NYC. Call Deb Sgambelluri at 518-462-5526 ext. 230.
14-17: 2001 Fall Organic Trade Show & Expos, sponsored by the Long Island Neighborhood Network (see Activists’ Corner) and others. Includes Toxic Free Schools Seminar, Organic Innovations Symposium & Exposition, and 3rd Annual Organic Trade Show. Southold, Huntington, South Hampton. Call 516-541-4617.
19: 2001 Fall Writers Series, featuring Sue Halpern, author of Four Wings and a Prayer, a chronicle of the journey made by millions of Library, 251 Glen St., Glens Falls. 7:00PM. Call 518-792-6508.
28: Your Water: Your Home, Your Health, Your Taxes, Your Vote, sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Westchester County. One of several regional symposia on the threat to drinking water caused by stormwater pollution in Westchester. Yorktown Town Hall. 7:00PM-10:00PM. Call Heather Baker-Sullivan at 914-666-3047.
29: From Field to Table, a public dialogue about farming and the source of our food with organic/biodynamic dairy and vegetable farmers Steffen and Rachel Schneider of Hawthorne Valley Farm. First Presbyterian Church, 369 Warren St., Hudson. 7:00PM. Free. Call the Regional Farm & Food Project at 518-427-6537.
December
3: Brownfields Redevelopment Projects in New York, sponsored by the Environmental Business Association of NYS. Presentations covering the current and anticipated policy environment and case studies of successful brownfield redevelopment projects in New York. Newman Conference Center, Baruch College, CUNY, NYC. Call 518-432-6400 x224.
7-9: Northeast Community Supported Agriculture Conference III. Frost Valley Environmental Education Center, Claryville, NY. Fees vary. Call Ann at 413-323-4531 or email:info@smallfarm.org
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| Executive Chamber |
| State Capitol |
| * Albany, NY 12224 |
| 518.474.8390 |
| gov.pataki@chamber.state.ny.us |
| New York State Senate |
| Albany, NY 12247 |
| * 518.455.2800 |
| www.senate.state.ny.us |
| New York State Assembly |
| Albany, NY 12248 |
| * 518.455.4100 |
| www.assembly.state.ny.us |