Happy Green New Year

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This year has soared by, and we would like to thank all of our friends, old and new and our followers and co-bloggers for your support for our group and for your commitment to the green movement.  We wish you all a Happy New Year.

As we move forward to a new year, we know that it is important that we renew our commitment to protect the environment and the green movement so that we can live green and healthy lives.  As we face the fiscal cliff, we are aware of the uncertainty of the continuation of some of the successes that we have already achieved.  There is a chance that we may lose some gains in the area of alternative energy (wind and solar energy) , and we may see decreased financial support for our national parks and forests.  However, we will not be deterred.  We will start the new year out maintaining our personal commitment to live green by continuing our routine habits of recycling, living healthier, eating healthy diets, supporting local eateries and local farmers, and taking all the steps we can to reduce our carbon footprint.

We also must remain mindful of the eco-cliff.  As bad as financial debt is, environmental debt is worse.  Our legacy to our children must take into consideration the state of the environment.  There is no value in a country with a balanced budget but with polluted air, depleted natural resources and lack of fresh water.  Failure to deal with the looming eco-cliff will hurt the U.S. economy, plus the lives of billions of people around the world.  In this new year, we must keep environmental issues in the forefront of discussion, policy and legislation.

During the next year, we would like to focus more on policies and legislation regarding green issues.  Our goal here is to keep you abreast of pending legislation in different jurisdictions on issues important to the green movement.  We would like to bring notice to our representatives in Congress who support green initiatives, as well as those who consistently thwart our efforts.  This past election year proved costly to “flat earthers” and others who doubted or totally denied the existence of climate change and its impact on global warming.  We owe our thanks especially to the efforts of the League of Conservation Voters and Momsrising.org for their tenacity and relentless determination to bring climate change doubters to task and block their reelection.  We must continue with this effort, and LGBG wants to concentrate time and effort into lobbying our Congress and local public officials in this regard.

We here at LGBG are excited and energized about our work for the new year.  We will continue to research and learn, share and educate and do all that we can to protect our environment so that we all can live green, be green.

Source for this article:

http://ecopreneurist.com/2012/12/29/the-eco-cliff-and-the-fiscal-cliff/

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Credit :  Ecopreneurist

The Fiscal Cliff & Our Environment

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Much has been made of the potential sequester the U.S. faces this New Years’ Eve, which the masses have affectionately labeled the “fiscal cliff.”  Well, with the possibility of large impacts to the average person and small business, rightly so.  However, what has not been rightly emphasized, in our opinion, is the potentially devastating effects this cliff could have on our nation’s environmental sector.  The cliff would lead to higher taxes and governmental budget cuts in the defense department, yes.  But what is less well-known is that the governmental cuts will also most likely include environmental victims.

For one, the energy industry could be significantly hurt, both at governmental and private sector levels.  Solar energy contractors who rely on receiving current 1603 cash grants for installation projects will not see those cash grants should the US see the cliff.  This could strongly hinder the financing of solar energy projects, depleting a relatively small but significant portion of the necessary cash for such projects.

Moreover, the cliff would trigger a $148 million retraction of funds from the US Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy program.  To help put this into perspective, this loss is the equivalent of cutting the US Department of Energy’s solar energy program completely in half.  These cuts to agencies like the Department of Energy threaten not only a decrease in energy development, but also a decrease in energy usage, as programs would lose funding for research and loans used now for innovation projects.  The future would be increasingly questionable.

A second instance would have harmful effects for the US National Parks, National Forests, wildlife refuges, and other public lands.  For instance, the 258,000 jobs scattered among US National Parks and the 35,000 jobs among wildlife refuges could be jeopardized by the expected cuts in science and law enforcement positions at these establishments.  Similarly, the 2 million plus jobs within the Bureau of Land Management, which oversees the US National Forests could also find themselves in limbo, as awaited budget cuts loom large.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, which employs 66 million scientists, educators, researchers, and technicians, among others, could see devastating effects, as well.

As the list goes on, the bottom line remains ever evident.  In cutting governmental agencies’ budgets, the environmental agencies will surely be among those who see drastic cuts.  Further, those cuts could prove disastrous, and at the very least, detrimental to the US’s management, protection, and research of the environment.  There are millions of jobs at risk, in addition to the health and lives of the organisms living among the zones over which these agencies keep watch.

Overall, based on the observations and predictions surrounding the seemingly imminent sequester our government currently wrestles, there could be hampering effects on government agencies who will see severe cuts, US citizens who will see layoffs, and wildlife who will see the harmful effects of increased neglect.  So God Speed to our government representatives, in hopes that their efforts add up to a reasonable solution that can avoid harmful cuts to the essential beings of such agencies, people, and wildlife.

[polldaddy poll=6799106]

Sources for More Reading:
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/guest-post-what-would-the-fiscal-cliff-mean-for-the-u.s.-solar-market
http://www.governing.com/news/state/gov-fiscal-cliff-full-coverage.html
http://www.forbes.com/sites/eco-nomics/2012/11/15/the-fiscal-cliff-and-the-environment/
http://blog.cleanwateraction.org/2012/12/06/dont-let-the-fiscal-cliff-devastate-our-environment/

New York Tackles Comprehensive Storm Preparedness

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SANDY BB Tunnel Gov Cuomo press conf-3808 crop...

SANDY BB Tunnel Gov Cuomo press conf-3808 crop crop (Photo credit: MTAPhotos)

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has outlined a storm preparedness plan that addresses power maintenance and prevention of flooding from hurricane-driven waves.  These are two of the major items under consideration by Cuomo’s NYS 2100 Commission.  The governor is well aware that it will be difficult to obtain the necessary federal funding required for his plans, but he emphasizes that prevention and mitigation of risks now, although costly, will save money and lives in the future.

The plan to protect New York City from future super storms comes at a price of more than $9 billion.  The current price for damages to the state from Sandy is $32.8 billion, with $19 billion apportioned to damages in New York City alone.  With this data available, hopefully this proposed investment will be deemed wise, particularly in light of the dire predictions of increases in the frequency of super storms.

The current proposed plan would rearrange the location of huge electrical transformers from the basements of large commercial buildings to the upper levels to prevent power failures.  Also, the state would have the systems in place to shutter key tunnels, airports and subway systems, locking out floodwaters.  Additionally, Cuomo wants to construct a seawall to prevent beach erosion and destructive surges into the city and Long Island.  Another item on board in the plan calls for the requirement for health care facilities to be equipped with backup power located at upper levels, rather than in basements.

It will be interesting to see how Gov. Cuomo’s plans play out in the current political environment, especially with the looming fiscal cliff,  Clearly the ultimate concern here is to take adequate steps to prevent injury and loss of life during extreme weather occurrences.  While there is an expectation that the federal government will offer financial support to address these problems, it also will be mandatory for each of the states affected by the storm to step up to the plate financially.  This is especially true regarding seawall barriers.

An excellent case study on the role of states in the construction and maintenance of water protection systems can be found the study of post-Katrina recovery efforts in New Orleans.  After the devastation by Katrina, the Army Corps of Engineers spent $12 billion to build a system of gates, walls and armored levees to protect the city during future storms.  There still remains approximately $1 billion worth of work to be completed.  A looming issue here is the cost of upkeep of this system, which carries a hefty and ongoing, but mandatory, price tag.  By necessity, New Orleans instituted a levee tax, which was just renewed by voters.  Consequently, if a seawall is approved and constructed in New York, the citizens there can expect to shoulder the financial responsibility for its maintenance.

Another issue that will have to be addresses is oversight of any water protection projects.  Under the Flood Control Act of 1936, the Army Corps of Engineers transferred the maintenance of water-control projects to local and/or state authorities.   New York State and/or City would have to put in place the necessary authorities to handle any seawall projects constructed there.  This project will be a very expensive system which will require strict inspections and maintenance to be effective.

The recovery from Hurricane Sandy will be long, difficult and expensive.  This storm has forced New York and surrounding states to “rethink” its infrastructure.  We can expect long debates and compromises to fix the problem, and we know that the cost of any solutions will be large and ongoing.  Hurricane Sandy and the expectation of future storms of this magnitude have forced all of us to “rethink” our relationship with the earth.  Now more than ever, we need to live green, be green.

Sources for this article:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/27/new-orleans-levee-upkeep-_n_2200667.html?ref=topbar

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/28/new-york-storm-preparedness-cuomo-9-billion-new-york-city_n_2203662.html?ir=Green&ref=topbar