Wanna be Waste Free? Reycling is for You and Me!

The city of Austin has many nicknames. It is known as “The Live Music Capital of the World,” “Silicon Hills,” and various others. We should aim to add “Zero Waste City” to its list of nicknames.

On December 15, 2011 the Austin City Council approved the Austin Resource Recovery Master Plan establishing a goal to reach Zero Waste by 2040. This means keeping at least 90% of discarded materials out of the landfill. This goal is certainly possible due to the fact that 90% of discarded materials are either reusable, recyclable, or compostable.

Landfills are one of the largest sources of Methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. Methane is 21 to 75 times more potent than Carbon Dioxide, therefore if we can reduce our landfills we will also reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses.

The City of Austin has already implemented various actions to become waste free and has created many ways to make recycling and waste disposal more accessible, easier, and more efficient for residents and businesses. The city is doing its part, now every person just needs to do theirs in order to achieve this goal.

As a resident, you can do your part by being resourceful. Use reusable bags and bottles, conserve energy, compost and above all, recycle: it is very important and easy to do. 

When you open your electricity and water accounts with the city of Austin, you automatically receive recycling service. The city comes and picks up recycling at the same time as it picks up your trash. In addition, the city does single-stream recycling, meaning you don’t have to separate your recycling. This minimizes confusion. (Although most plastics, glass, aluminum, paper, and metal items are recyclable, there are a few exceptions.)

With this service, all you have to do is recycle your items and the city will pick up and sort your recycling. Pickup is every two weeks. In addition, the city performs bi-annually brush and bulk item collections, has household hazardous waste disposal centers, and various other resources.

Recycling is a simple task we can all do that will not only help our landfills but will help our environment as a whole. With a Zero Waste goal at hand, let’s make Austin one of the first cities to become waste free and try our best to achieve this goal.

- Lauren Fedele, Sierra Club Beyond Coal Intern

Bay City mom’s letter to the editor on White Stallion coal plant

From the Bay City Tribune.

Dear Editor,

I am a local 28 year old that would never support the coal plant, White Stallion, that is planning to build just outside of city limits.

We all know that they will require water for their operation, but how much?

We are already short of water for my fiancé’s ranch and all the rice farmers.

They are claiming to be using a dry cooling system. (Which will basically just let the exhaust out of the plant; virtually no cooling is “dry cooling”.) I had to  look that up on Wikipedia.

While our local farmers are receiving refusal letters from LCRA, the coal plant almost got the contract for water from the river authority.  Thankfully, LCRA had a town hall meeting where they were overrun with local farmers.

Now, they are attempting to purchase water rights from local residents, which will affect everyone from Brownsville to Houston.

How long would it take for the groundwater to recharge?

Is the water going to be safe for my 3 year old?

White Stallion claims to be using the most up-to-date, and cleanest plans. However they have submitted three different plans to three different offices including the Army Corps of engineers. How can we trust them?

They are already misleading officials, and they haven’t even broke ground!

Also, coal plants only give out 56 percent of their jobs promised, according to Ochs Center for Metropolitan Studies.  That means they are promising 100 permanent jobs, of which we can hope to see.

Jessica Pennington

There’s no Drought About It: Lack of Rain in Texas Stirs Energy Concerns

In the society that we live in today, there are many figures and aspects that would just not be the same or function orderly without its dependent partner. Bonnie and Clyde, Batman and Robin, Brooks and Dunn, Abbott and Costello, and even PB& J are a few well-acclaimed ones that come to mind. Who would’ve ever thought that energy and water could be coupled together along with the other previous examples mentioned? Well the truth of the matter is that power plants require thousands of gallons of water a day to cool off their systems. And with the combination of the atrocious hot summers in Texas and the recent droughts occurring in the region, issues have arisen to the surface dealing with these situations and their consequences.

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello

Last Thursday, Texas Coalition for Water,Energy and Economic Security hosted a legislative briefing that took place at the capitol in Austin addressing energy and water issues. Guest speakers Dr. Gammon, Dr. King, Mark Armentrout, Cris Eugster and Kevin Tuerff all spoke about these concerns and issues as well as vocalized their solutions.

As the leadoff man, Dr. Gammon opened up the briefing by touching up on his forte climatology and how the local drought has taken a toll on Texas. Although Dr. Gammon offered some sign of relief when he claimed that we should not see the same drought of summer 2011 soon, he did add that there are still severe droughts ahead of us. Dr. King, Research Associate, Center for International Energy, stressed on how critical water is to power plants and that water rights in the region need to be more clear-cut. Dr. King shared his personal short-term goals, which were to have more education and conservation plans. He also proposed his long-term solution of implementing more renewable fuels such as wind and solar considering they don’t necessarily require cooling.

Mark Armentrout, former ERCOT board chairman, and Cris Eugster, Executive Vice-President of CPS Energy followed up on the briefing by adding their own separate opinions about the dilemma of energy and water.  Armentrout spoke about smart grid applications, which would allow people to see their electric cost data from their house. He also underlined the effects of rolling blackouts including the monetary side of it. According to Mr. Armentrout, the United States loses close to 80 billion dollars a year from rolling blackouts.

Einstein Bros Bagel store in Texas temporarily closed due to rolling blackouts in the area.

Being the Executive Vice-President of CPS energy, Cris Eugster offered confidence that increasing energy efficiency and implementing more renewable projects are well within hands reach. Eugster stated that CPS energy, a utility company in San Antonio, is the number one utility in Texas in terms of wind power and water utility efficiency in the state.  In fact, CPS energy recently signed on to a project that is expected to result in 400 megawatts of solar energy. Eugster also added that San Antonio uses about the same amount of energy as they did twenty years ago even with the dramatic population change. Kevin Terff, President of EnviroMedia, capped off the briefing by speaking about conservation education and behavior change. Mr. Terff primarily touched on the fact that people would conserve more if they understood the education and basic logistics behind it. According to a study by Terff, 3/4 of Texans didn’t know the natural source of water coming from their homes.

When bringing it all together, their combined consensus revolved around creating goals including increasing energy efficiency, pursuing and investing more into renewable energy as well as creating a stronger energy and water conscious community. Taking accountability in these goals will help put us in the right direction.

Related Links :Energy-Water Nexus in Texas, Trends and Policy Issues For The Nexus of Energy and Water, Social Impacts of Climate on Texas, Public Utility Commission Conservation Alerts, TexasEfficiency.com, CEE.org

- Jarred Garza, Sierra Club Beyond Coal Intern

Keep the momentum moving in Texas

There is a story behind everyone, including people who stand for a better environment and clean energy. What’s your story?

For me, seeing the devastating effects of the BP oil spill in the Gulf set off a chain reaction of thinking that piqued my interest in energy issues and led me to take action.  Everyone’s story is different, but it is important to remember that there is an entire nation waiting to see “greener” pastures.

The decision by the Obama administration to reject the Keystone XL pipeline may seem like a temporary victory, but it is a victory nonetheless.  It’s important to rejoice in our efforts, and to use the momentum to continue our fight against climate change.  When you see what the efforts of many can do, it becomes easier to remain optimistic, and to continue to push the envelope.

The EPA has been pushing for stricter air standards, which reflects the sentiment of many Texans who want clean air.  Unfortunately, exemptions would allow Texas coal plants to continue to pollute one of the crown jewels of the nation: Big Bend National Park.

These exemptions would allow Texas to purchase emissions allowances from other states.  You have to ask yourself, does that make sense?  Texas coal-fired plants pollute Texan’s air, so we must put pressure on these polluters.  When we band together, we see results.  Let’s make Big Bend National Park a cleaner place for generations to enjoy.  Please take action and bring a victory to the Lone Star State.

- Kat Herrera, Beyond Coal Intern

Weather Forcast at Big Bend: 100% Chance of Haze!

If you’re like most born-and-raised Texans, you’ve visited Big Bend National Park at least once in your lifetime. My first experience with Big Bend was at five years old, when my parents took me over the summer. We hiked Panther Park and all through the Rio Grande Valley. My parents still talk about how I couldn’t get enough of that park. I would demand we go just a few more feet on the trial so I could find a new plant or catch that roadrunner. Big Bend called me back for many more trips, including one Spring Break where my friends and I climbed South Rim and Emory Peak.

We felt like we were on top of the world.

Unfortunately, Big Bend is being threatened in a very serious way. Nearby coal plants are causing a severe amount of haze pollution that is not only obscuring visibility in an area that thrives off of its breathtaking vistas, but is causing a health hazard to visitors.

Haze is the visible pollution emitted from the smokestacks of coal plants. It is caused by fine particulate matter made up of sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrous oxide (NOX) and ammonia; you know, the same stuff found in cigarettes and cat pee. Haze can be responsible for serious respiratory illnesses and can trigger asthma attacks, something that is not particularly fun when hiking in the middle of an arid national park.

Apart from the health side effects that we experience and the encroachment on our scenery, haze is also responsible for acid deposition and eutrophication, when minerals and nutrients build up to unnatural levels and can kill animal life.

In short, haze pollution is not only killing us, it’s killing our park!

What can be done about this serious problem? How can we preserve Big Bend for our children and grandchildren? First, we have to understand the emissions rules set in place for these coal plants.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently in a transition process of determining the best method of reducing pollution from these power plants.

Most pollution from coal plants had never been regulated until this past year, when EPA finalized its landmark mercury health protections and set targets for reducing pollutants like soot and smog. With EPA’s proposal for haze pollution, ALL coal plants within a certain proximity to national parks like Big Bend must reduce their haze emissions. Requiring these plants to reduce their pollution is extremely important. The degree of reductions is also important – EPA must ensure that the pollution reductions are meaningful.

The alternative to CSAPR (In actuality, some are considering CSAPR  alternative to this) is BART, or Best Alternative Retrofit Technology. BART would require ALL coal plants within a certain proximity to Class 1 National Parks to reduce their haze emissions down to a specified degree. Sound like a good idea? That’s because it is. BART will ensure the haze factories near our state park will be required to eliminate a certain amount of haze emissions from our sky.

Here’s how you can help. The EPA is taking comments on these standards until February 23^rd. Submitting a comment to the EPA is fast, easy, and meaningful. Tell the EPA that we want to keep our national park as beautiful as the day we first visited.

I want Big Bend to remain as beautiful as when I was five years old, as aw-inspiring as when I felt on top of the world that one spring. I’m betting you feel the same way.

 

 

 

 

Here’s how you can help:

• Go online and send in a comment to the EPA telling them that you don’t stand for lax haze pollution standards. Be sure to personalize your message!
• If you want to send pictures of your trips at Big Bend to the EPA, here’ the snail mail address. Show them how important this landmark has been in your life

EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode 6102T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington DC 20460

• Tell your friends! Get others to send a comment to the EPA, share the comment link on facebook or twitter and get everyone you know involved!