NRDC in the News (May 6, 2008)

An influential insider website, Environment and Energy Daily, talks with Dan Lashof, Director of the NRDC Climate Center, [transcript, video] about a joint NRDC/Ceres benchmarking report on greenhouse gas emissions of American power companies and the economic impact of emissions limits – such as those in the Lieberman-Warner bill currently before congress – on them and on energy consumers.

"The average customer's bill could actually go down under the Lieberman-Warner bill rather than up,” Lashof predicts. “If people are investing in more efficient lighting, appliances, building shells, air conditioning, their bills could go down and that really ought to be our goal."

Lashof also addressed how the variety of reports on the bill might offer conflicting economic data: "Different interests may cherry pick the analyses," he said, "[But] it's clear that the overall impact on the economy from the Lieberman-Warner bill is quite modest....the economy grows robustly with or without the bill." Lashof’s bottom line: "This is affordable."

Also in energy news, the Associated Press reports that NRDC is suing to stop seismic oil exploration in Arctic waters this summer. The article reports that NRDC, alongside other environmental and indigenous lands groups, has asked US District Court Judge John Sedwick for "a preliminary injunction, which would stop all seismic work until the court makes a final decision" about the seismic strategy's negative impact upon surrounding marine species such as whales and seals.

Another energy battle is playing out in New York City where Mayor Michael Bloomberg is engaged in what The Daily News called a "testy" battle with Astoria Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. over plans for a new power plant in Queens.

Despite complaints from Vallone about the new power plant being “another dagger aimed at our lungs,” NRDC’s Ashok Gupta tells the News that the new plant will “improve New York City’s air quality by displacing electricity from older, dirtier and less efficient generating capacity.”

Gupta explained that advancements in technology will allow the new plant to function on 30 percent less fuel per unit of electricity.

Better efficiency is critical, particularly as the consequences of fossil-fuels-produced energy usage become clearer and clearer.

One of these consequences has hit Florida where the increasing desiccation of the Everglades has forced the state to begin construction of a re-hydrating reservoir more massive than the area of Manhattan.

Though the project has promise, the Associated Press reports that NRDC has sued for a more toothy agreement to govern the reservoir's use. According to Brad Sewell, NRDC council attorney in water and oceans, without legally committing the water to re-hydrating the "river of grass," agricultural and development interests could hijack the benefits. Sewell told the news service, "The Everglades and everyone deserves better than that."

The world does deserve better. Still, as we race to do better for our world, it sometimes seems that logistical speed bumps conspire against us. NRDC's Darby Hoover, senior resource manager in the Urban Program, explains to Plenty Magazine how to sidestep one of these obstacles by taking charge of our own recycling.

According to Hoover, if you are struggling to find a place to recycle your newspaper bags, don't fret – it's actually better to reuse the skinny sheaths instead. "Think about it: preventing a new item from being manufactured in the first place saves more energy and resources than recycling one," Hoover says.

So, what to do with these daily deliveries to our personal waste stream? The article lists creative reuses for newspaper bags – braiding them into jump rope, wearing them while doing dishes, waterproofing your boots for rainy days, packing snacks for the road – and offers the crowd favorite in appropriately bold type: POOPER SCOOPER.

NRDC's Hoover explains, "I don't even have a dog, but I save them up for friends who do."

Press Clips is a new feature on Switchboard that will provide a highly selective view of the world as seen through the eyes of NRDC staff quoted by mainstream media outlets. Roundups will appear daily, Monday through Friday.

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