Public Interest Groups Demand Probe of Ethical Questions Surrounding Mayor Bowser’s Backing of Pepco Merger

DC leaders question role of stadium land deal and pay-to-play politics in reviving $6.8 billion Exelon takeover

WASHINGTON, D.C.—DC community leaders called today for a formal probe of “soccergate” questions surrounding Mayor Muriel Bowser’s recent decision to reverse course and revive a $6.8 billion utility company merger between Pepco Holdings and Chicago-based Exelon.
On October 6—just days after striking a $25 million sponsorship deal with Pepco to pave the way for the future DC United soccer stadium—the mayor struck an 11th-hour deal with Exelon to advance its merger bid. The DC Public Service Commission had unanimously rejected the merger on August 25, and Mayor Bowser backed the commission’s decision at the time.
This morning, community leaders “followed the money” to the site of the planned stadium to demand a city investigation of the timing and nature of the mayor’s deal with Pepco. During a press conference, public interest groups released a letter calling on the District Board of Ethics and Government Accountability to “evaluate these two high-stakes situations to ensure that there was no impropriety, collusion, or unethical conduct of any kind.” The groups, Public Citizen and the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, also issued a Freedom of Information Act Request for all internal correspondence between the mayor’s office, Pepco and Exelon regarding the controversial negotiations.
“DC residents deserve to know if pay-to-play politics or quid pro quos played any role in advancing this massive corporate merger,” said Craig Holman, PhD, an ethics expert and Government Affairs Lobbyist at the consumer watchdog group Public Citizen. “If the mayor has nothing to hide, then we expect she’ll support this investigation and help clear the air.”
These latest developments come in the wake of scrutiny over Mayor Bowser’s super PAC—called “FreshPAC”—and the role of pay-to-play politics in her administration. In a radio interview last Friday, DC Attorney General Karl Racine said that Exelon and Pepco should disclose whether FreshPAC asked them for money while the merger was being considered.
“Among the lengthy list of reasons why this is horrendous for District ratepayers, the mayor’s merger deal, at its core, reeks the stench of corruption and scandal,” said Sherice Muhammad, chairperson of the Ward 7D Advisory Neighborhood Commission. “There’s nothing in the deal to protect DC residents from rate hikes or job losses. Is that because Mayor Bowser had interests other than the public’s in mind? A deal that’s ‘good for DC,’ should have involved DC residents through its ANCs and civic associations, not in some back room. We want answers.”
Exelon and Pepco are spending millions of dollars in ad and lobby money to pressure the DC Public Service Commission to reverse its rejection of the merger. The PSC recently agreed to review the Bowser-Exelon settlement deal on an expedited two-month timeline, including a public hearing on November 17. The deal has been widely criticized for failing to address the merger’s fundamental threats to DC, including higher electric bills, loss of local control, and stalled progress on clean energy.
“Back-room dealing, high-priced lobbying, and shock-and-awe advertising is typical of how Exelon gets its way all over the country,” said Tim Judson, executive director of the Nuclear Information and Resource Service. “If the PSC lets this merger go through, we can kiss the promise of open, accountable government in DC goodbye.”
Ultimately, community leaders said a range of steps should be taken to ensure a fair and transparent review of the current Pepco-Exelon merger and future proposals like it:

  • The District Board of Ethics and Government Accountability should launch an independent investigation into the “soccergate” questions and report on its findings before the PSC closes the record for its expedited merger review on December 18.
  • The Office of the Mayor should immediately release all internal correspondence related to the Pepco land swap agreement, Akridge property, DC United stadium, and potential naming rights and/or sponsorships for Pepco.
  • The District Council should establish an independent People’s Council position that is not appointed by the major. Notably, the District People’s Counsel Sandra Mattavous-Frye, who had been one of the most stalwart opponents of the merger, endorsed the mayor’s settlement just weeks before Mayor Bowser reappointed her to another term.

“Where there’s smoke, there’s almost always fire,” said Mike Tidwell, director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “The stakes for DC ratepayers, our clean energy future, and our democracy are too high to look the other way. We need an independent investigation of the facts and we need it now.”

Contact:
Kelly Trout, 240-396-2022, kelly@chesapeakeclimate.org

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Court win increases oil train transparency, but it’s not enough

At the end of the summer, Baltimore Circuit Court Judge Lawrence Fletcher-Hill ruled in favor of safe cities and healthy communities, stating that rail companies must disclose the routes of dangerous oil trains the public. His ruling affirmed that communities have a right to know if dangerous, explosive trains run through their neighborhoods. This lawsuit victory is one part of a growing national movement to stop dangerous oil trains from rolling through communities and spreading a network of dirty fossil fuels. Now, we have a clearer picture of where oil trains actually move throughout Maryland, and what we can do next to stop them!
Oil trains in Maryland enter from states that border us to the north, coming from major oil hubs like Newark and Philadelphia. Following Pulaski Highway (Rte. 40), oil trains roll past Havre de Grace and Aberdeen, and cross Herring Run into Baltimore. Trains then move through the heart of the city, following 26th street into Charles Village, turning south at Jones Falls. At that point, trains enter the Howard Street tunnel, passing directly under the Maryland Institute College of Art, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Maryland General Hospital and the University of Maryland Medical Center, Lexington Market, and the Baltimore Convention Center. Trains exit the tunnel next to a Raven’s stadium parking lot, and wrap around the stadium as it travels south crossing Gwynns Falls, through Westport and then Brooklyn to a shipping terminal on the Fairfield peninsula.

Reported route of oil trains throughout the State of Maryland. Find the interactive version of the map at www.blast-zone.org.
Reported route of oil trains throughout the State of Maryland. Find the interactive version of the map at www.blast-zone.org.

Oil also comes in from the west, directly from Pittsburgh. Trains travel on the CSX railroad line through Cumberland, passing Harpers Ferry, and through Frederick County, where it meets the headwaters of the Patapsco River. It then follows the Patapsco through Monrovia to Ellicot City, where it enters the City through Morrell Park and Mount Winans, where it meets up with the northern rail line to the shipping terminal in Fairfield. Through research, we found out that this puts over 165,000 people in the blast zone in Baltimore. In Baltimore city, these trains predominately run through communities of color and low-income communities, disproportionately putting these people at risk, and is an environmental injustice.
In the past two years, over 100 million gallons of crude oil have been offloaded from oil trains in Baltimore. These numbers come from the State’s Oil Control Program, which is a regulatory agency that requires oil and rail companies to disclose how much oil comes through the state. But here’s the catch: the OCP requires oil companies to report only when over 1 million gallons of crude oil are unloaded from a train in Maryland. This means that if a train is carrying less than 1 million gallons of crude oil (about 35 tankers on a single train), it can be unloaded and stored in Maryland with no need to report this information to the public. It also means that oil trains passing through the state, on their way to oil hubs in the Northeast, for example, go unreported. The real amount of oil that travels through Baltimore and Maryland is still unknown, although it’s almost certain that it’s much, much more than what’s being reported.
The harder we fight oil trains in Baltimore -- the harder it is to frack in North Dakota!
The harder we fight oil trains in Baltimore — the harder it is to frack in North Dakota!

The truth is, oil companies are still keeping the public in the dark. Because of this, CCAN will continue to push for public transparency and education surrounding oil trains, and work to make it as hard as possible for oil companies to ship their dirty, explosive fracked oil through the state. Ultimately, oil trains shouldn’t exist, the dangers are too high, and a federal ban should be instituted immediately. However, in Baltimore, we’re calling on the city council to pass a 4 year moratorium on new crude oil shipping terminals, to stop the alarming increase of oil trains in Baltimore. And as we continue into the new year, CCAN will work at the state and national level to make it harder for companies to ship out crude oil.
We know to stop runaway climate change we have to keep fossil fuels in the ground. It turns out, one key way to do this is stopping the transport of fossil fuels, making our fight against oil trains just as important. An excellent report that just came out from Oil Change International proves that point. Our recent legal victory is a great step forward in the fight against fracked oil, but it’s not enough.
If you are interested in volunteering with CCAN to stop explosive oil trains in our region, contact Jon Kenney at jon@chesapeakeclimate.org or 240-396-1985.

New Health Research Underlines Why We Fight Fracking

At CCAN, we’re fighting to keep fracking wells out of our communities — and to stop new pipelines, compressor stations, and export facilities that drive demand for new fracking — because we know that this extreme form of fossil fuel extraction is a disaster for our climate.
But that’s certainly not the only reason we fight fracking. A comprehensive review of scientific studies released this fall underlines how fracking and its associated infrastructure also pose an immediate threat to our health.
In October, Concerned Health Professionals of New York and Physicians for Social Responsibility teamed up to release a compendium and associated report summarizing more than 500 peer-reviewed scientific studies, along with other important medical, government and media findings on fracking available through July 31, 2015. The compendium, now in its third edition, finds overwhelming evidence that fracking poses poses significant and unavoidable risks to public health, air and water quality, birth and infant health, worker safety, the environment, our climate, and more.
I’d sum up the overarching conclusion of the report as follows: Keeping fracking out of our communities is the only proven way to protect our families, children, and workers from harm. The report’s authors put it in slightly more technical terms:

Emerging data from a rapidly expanding body of evidence continue to reveal a plethora of recurring problems and harms that cannot be averted or cannot be sufficiently averted through regulatory frameworks. In the words of esteemed pediatrician Jerome Paulson, MD, there is ‘no evidence that…fracking can operate without risks to human health. … Any claims of safety are based on wishful thinking.’

This conclusion — that regulations are simply not capable of preventing harm — is one that we must keep repeating in Maryland. We won a huge, grassroots-powered victory this spring, when Governor Larry Hogan allowed a two-year fracking moratorium to become law (without his signature). But that same legislation, which prevents any drilling activity through October 2017, also requires Governor Hogan’s administration to finalize regulations for fracking by October 2016. Those regulations would go into effect when the moratorium lifts in October 2017.
Every passing study — like the Johns Hopkins study released this October showing a 40 percent increase in risk of preterm birth among mothers living near active fracking sites in Pennsylvania — underlines why we can’t let up now. As health professionals conclude that regulations are simply not capable of preventing harm, the evidence of harm just keeps growing. We have a hard deadline of October 2017 to ensure regulations stay out of play and that fracking stays out of Maryland.
That’s why CCAN has been hard at work this summer and fall building the movement we need to keep fracking out of Maryland permanently. That’s why, ultimately, Governor Hogan and our state lawmakers must follow the lead of Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York and put an outright ban on fracking. And why local elected leaders in counties and cities that sit atop known gas basins, from Garrett to Prince George’s, can and should take their own action and pass ordinances to keep fracking out.
As Governor Hogan’s administration weighs the fracking regulations due in October 2016, we know that the Governor himself was informed of the latest research findings. Concerned Health Professionals of Maryland and Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility sent a letter to Governor Hogan summarizing the alarming evidence of harm and calling on him to lead Maryland down a different, safer path:

We cannot sit by silently while Maryland residents are forced to become subjects in a large-scale public health experiment, as has happened in other states. You are uniquely positioned to lead Maryland away from this dangerous and unethical practice and to accelerate the transition to a renewable-energy based economy.

At CCAN, we couldn’t have said it better. Our health and our climate depend on keeping fracking out while speeding up our transition to truly clean energy resources like wind and solar. You can get involved with CCAN on both fronts throughout this fall and winter. We’re gearing up to pass legislation in 2016 to significantly expand Maryland’s renewable electricity standard. By requiring that 25 percent of our electricity come from clean sources by 2020, we can significantly improve Maryland’s air quality while preventing 50 to 110 premature deaths per year and increasing regional economic growth by $458 million to $1 billion annually due to better health outcomes.
Click here to learn how you can help protect our health from fracking. Click here to learn how you can help improve our health with clean energy!

Meet a CCANer: SheéLee Rock

Meet Hampton Roads Activist SheéLee Rock
pic for flier
Your age:  36
Where you live: About 10 years in the Kempsville area of Virginia Beach, VA.
Your profession: Mother of two, Childbirth Educator & Birth Doula. I teach couples how to have awesome birth experiences, and if I’m lucky, they choose me to support them through their labors. I have also supported many women in their goals of breastfeeding. It’s extremely gratifying work!
What are the impacts of climate change that hit closest to home for you? Each time it rains heavily in Hampton Roads we get flash flooding somewhere. It’s a huge safety issue for individuals and for schools responsible for transporting students. How will I make it to a laboring woman in downtown Norfolk during heavy rains? Second to safety is asset damage. Not just my own, but I’m very concerned about the local business owners who may lose their livelihoods by the damage flooding will inevitably cost them.
Why did you decide to get involved in taking action on climate? There are many issues I feel passionately about, including domestic violence prevention and the need for transparency in food labeling. However, when I look at prioritizing the “causes” I’m supporting, it’s just common sense. We cannot argue about anything or advocate any cause, if we are fighting for our lives and homes in a “Hurricane Katrina-type disaster.”
What has inspired you most working with CCAN and/or in your community? Grassroots organizations are, at their core, inspiring. When you witness local, concerned citizens who have a stake in the issue of climate change and coastal flooding volunteering their efforts to make change for the better, it’s hard not to feel that enthusiasm. It’s very motivating. I’ve been serving my community in many ways since a youth involved in Virginia’s 4-H programs. Activism is second nature to me. It’s something my husband and I are instilling in our girls.
What do you hope to see happen in the next year to address the impacts and causes of flooding in Hampton Roads? I’m looking forward to our wonderful state of Virginia getting on board with the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). It’s time for them to join the 9 other east coast states in support of the first market-based regulatory program in the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This twofold program is expected to bring in over $200 million dollars in yearly revenue that will be designated to combat flooding issues and to train coal workers in higher paying renewable energy fields. Wow!! You can’t help but to get excited about that!
What do you like to do when you’re not advocating in your community? My daughters, ages 11 & 2, keep me very busy! I also lead the young women’s youth group at church, enjoy volunteer work, and if there is any time leftover I can be found researching my favorite subjects like holistic nutrition and remedies, natural childbirth and politics.
Who would you high five? I’d like to hi five the nonpartisan and progressive leaders of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont who made the wise decision to adopt the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and whose states are already reaping the benefits of their wisdom; and Oprah, because she’s my hero! She’s overcome many serious obstacles in her life and manages to maintain a heart of service and a love for the human connection.

Thirty Groups in VA and WV Call for Single, Comprehensive Review of Multiple Proposed Gas Pipelines

Thirty organizations in Virginia and West Virginia have joined forces to call on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to conduct a combined, comprehensive review of all four of the major natural gas pipeline projects currently proposed for the Blue Ridge and Central Appalachian region. Many of the groups are based in counties where the Atlantic Coast Pipeline or Mountain Valley Pipeline would cut through family farms and national forest land, traverse steep slopes and dozens of streams.
In a letter sent to FERC today, the groups said the agency must do a single review, called a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, in order to evaluate the true need for each of the pipelines in relation to the others, as well as to assess the direct, indirect and cumulative environmental and social impacts of all the pipelines. Legal experts say that, under the National Environmental Policy Act, FERC is required to do a single, comprehensive review of all related projects in a single geographic region.
Joining landowner and environmental advocates in a tele-press conference this morning were Virginia state Sen. John Edwards and Del. Joseph Yost, whose districts include sections of the proposed route of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Both have stated to FERC their opposition to the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
Senator John Edwards (D), 21st District: “The many environmental impacts to this region include: in the event of an earthquake (which is likely due to a fault line in Giles), a 42 inch high pressure natural gas pipeline would likely rupture, causing a large explosion and extensive damage. There is also risk to numerous pure aquifers, and the mountainous terrain and limestone topography make building such a pipeline unsuitable. There are also many threatened and endangered species and other environmental and safety issues that need extensive and careful study.“
Delegate Joseph Yost (R), 12th District (in his letter to FERC): “Balancing the need for energy infrastructure while also respecting an individual’s property rights and safeguarding our natural resources for future enjoyment is no easy task. However, I again would like to state my opposition to the proposed MVP project. It is my hope you will examine this project closely over the coming months taking these and many other considerations under advisement and determine the same.”
On Friday, 16 groups filed a formal protest of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline in which they said Dominion Transmission, Inc., and Atlantic Coast Pipeline, LLC, had presented flawed and exaggerated information about the need for the pipeline, while ignoring the impacts to the environment, landowners, communities and the general public. The groups contend that FERC must evaluate the economic and environmental benefits of cleaner sources of energy that development of the pipeline would displace.
Also on Friday, Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC filed its permit application with FERC to build a massive natural gas pipeline spanning 301 miles from the fracking fields of West Virginia, over the mountains and into Virginia. It follows on the heels of the application filed in September for the 564-mile, $5.1 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline, which would also carry fracked natural gas from West Virginia through Virginia into North Carolina.
Both projects have sparked intense opposition among local, state and regional organizations representing tens of thousands of people, including landowners whose property or communities would be affected, forest and wildlife conservationists, land preservationists, outdoor recreationists, climate activists and others. Preserve Craig sent a brief to FERC requesting a meeting to discuss the benefits of regional review of the Marcellus Shale natural gas pipelines.
New England is facing a similar situation of fielding proposals for multiple natural gas pipelines. Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey recently asked FERC to conduct a combined review of those projects “to avoid piecemeal review, utilize a common analysis of regional gas demand, and compare each project’s impacts and benefits.”
Joanna Salidis, President of Friends of Nelson: “The least we, as unwilling citizens of a directly impacted community, deserve is the assurance that the federal regulatory process responsible for approving and siting the Atlantic Coast Pipeline is fair, thorough and accurate. We believe FERC’s current plan to review the ACP in isolation from the three other high-pressure, large-diameter pipelines proposed for our region is negligent in light of the ACP’s threats to our property rights, economy, health and safety.”
Joe Lovett, Appalachian Mountain Advocates: “FERC may not allow Dominion to build the ACP until it understands whether the pipeline is necessary. The FERC certificate may not be issued until FERC carefully analyzes whether there is sufficient capacity in existing infrastructure to transport the gas to market. Dominion has not come close to showing FERC that there is such need.”
Tammy Belinsky, Preserve Craig: “Given the surge in pipeline proposals within this region, the reliance on project-by-project environmental review has become increasingly ineffective and inadequate. FERC and the Forest Service staff’s review is complicated by duplicative and potentially inconsistent information regarding baseline conditions, cumulative impacts, connected actions, indirect effects, and mitigation protocols provided by the applicants and stakeholders.”
View the letter delivered to FERC: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/FERC-Pipeline-PEIS-Sign-on-letter-FINAL-10-26-15.pdf
Contact: Kelly Trout, 240-396-2022, kelly@chesapeakeclimate.org

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Virginians call on DEQ for bold climate action

Over 160 Virginians offered testimony to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) as part of a 6-stop listening tour to receive public input on how Virginia should respond to President Obama’s recently announced Clean Power Plan (CPP). An overwhelming proportion of commenters, 146 in all, called on DEQ to develop a plan that meets and exceeds the required greenhouse gas reductions for Virginia.
Over the three weeks of listening sessions, climate supporters, organizations, and businesses, came out to speak. Solar and energy efficiency business owners touted potential opportunities to grow their operations and hire new employees under the new rules. Housing advocates discussed how homeowners and renters could receive lower electricity bills if Virginia’s implementation plan provides incentives for homeowners to improve their energy efficiency. Climate supporters passionately drove the moral necessity for action and coastal residents from Hampton Roads offered testimony on how sea level rise is already affecting their communities.
A common theme among many testifiers was a request that DEQ design a plan that would put Virginia on a path to joining a regional carbon cap program like the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). This would speed along the process outlined in legislation to be introduced once again in the General Assembly as the Virginia Coastal Protection Act. By joining RGGI, Virginia would enter a 9-state cap and trade system that has a track record of reducing emissions at the fastest rate in the country. RGGI would also generate revenue for Virginia to invest in climate solutions: energy efficiency programs, job training for out-of-work coal miners, and a host of flood protection measures for Hampton Roads.
With the hearings completed, CCAN and our partners will be looking towards the 2016 General Assembly session to pass the Virginia Coastal Protection Act. With over 90% of verbal comments to DEQ calling for bold climate action, the momentum is clearly on our side.
If you’d like to get involved with our campaign please email charlie@chesapeakeclimate.org or Harrison@chesapeakeclimate.org if you’re in Hampton Roads. If you haven’t already signed our petition calling on Governor McAuliffe and the General Assembly to support the Virginia Coastal Protection Act, you can do so by clicking here.

Environmental Groups Plan Legal Challenge of Atlantic Coast Pipeline

The proposed 564-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline that would carry natural gas fracked in West Virginia through Virginia to North Carolina is not needed, would cause irreparable harm to the environment and private property, and should be denied, according to documents being filed today by 16 environmental groups.
On behalf of numerous groups in Virginia and West Virginia (listed below), Appalachian Mountain Advocates filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) a motion to intervene in the permit process for the project and a formal protest. In addition, the groups are asking for an evidentiary hearing. (Contact Ben Luckett for a copy of the filing.)
Dominion Transmission, Inc., and Atlantic Coast Pipeline, LLC filed an application with FERC on September 21, 2015, to build the interstate gas pipeline. FERC is tasked with determining whether the pipeline will serve the “public convenience and necessity” and coordinating an environmental review of the pipeline. If FERC determines that the harm from the pipeline outweighs the benefit, it is supposed to deny the application.
In their 50-page filing, the environmental groups describe in detail how the companies presented flawed and exaggerated information about the need for the pipeline, while ignoring the impacts to the environment, landowners, communities and the general public, as well as the economic and environmental benefits of cleaner sources of energy that development of the pipeline would displace. In particular, the project would:

  • Fragment the heart of the largest remaining wild landscape in the eastern U.S.;
  • Cut through farms that have been held in families for generations, severing people’s attachment to their home place;
  • Lower property values in the vicinity of the pipeline and gas drilling areas;
  • Exacerbate health and environmental threats in communities near the fracking operations; and
  • Further commit the nation to long-term dependence on climate-altering fossil fuels.

Ben Luckett, Staff Attorney with Appalachian Mountain Advocates: “The Atlantic Coast Pipeline makes no sense. The pipeline would disrupt some of the most biodiverse forests and critical waterways in the nation, in addition to disturbing and endangering countless farms, homes, and communities. The harm to the land and people caused by fracking operations in the Marcellus region would only increase with the construction of the pipeline. Maybe worst of all, a major infrastructure investment like this would lock us into continued reliance on dirty, climate-altering fossil fuels. We need to be looking at how we can meet our power demands and stimulate our economy by rapidly scaling up our use of clean, renewable energy sources, the technology for which exists and is improving every day.”
Anne Havemann, General Counsel for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network: “The Atlantic Coast Pipeline will lock Virginia and the region into decades of reliance on a fossil fuel that is just as bad as coal for the climate. FERC must account for the greenhouse gas pollution triggered by this project at every step, from fracking to piping to eventual burning of the gas. If FERC does its job, it will be clear that wind, solar and energy efficiency alternatives are the way to go, especially with worsening storms and flooding already wreaking havoc across Virginia.”
Kirk Bowers, Pipelines Campaign Manager, Virginia Chapter, Sierra Club: “The Atlantic Coast Pipeline severely impacts our water resources, fragments more than 50 miles of national forest property, impacts the Blue Ridge Parkway and Appalachian Trail, significantly decreases property values and increases our dependence on fracking natural gas for power generation. Our children’s and grandchildren’s future depend on decreasing consumption of natural gas to avoid devastating climate disruption. Dominion’s plan to use natural gas as a power source jeopardizes the future of generations to come.”
Beth Little, Atlantic Coast Pipeline Coordinator with the West Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club: “Dominion doesn’t follow the rules. They have filed an incomplete application with FERC, according to the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Land Management, and the US Forest Service. They had so many violations on pipelines in West Virginia that the WV DEP, after pursuing them for over two years, had them sign a Consent Decree to clean up their act and pay fines. If even government agencies can’t get them to act right, what can we expect?”
Hannah Wiegard, Virginia Campaign Coordinator with Appalachian Voices: “Appalachian communities have been hard-hit by the fracking boom, and now face the threat of a huge natural gas pipeline that would be built over steep mountain slopes, cross dozens of streams, and cut through vital public lands and private farms. Not only would the pipeline worsen the impacts of fracking in those communities, it would lock us into decades of dependence on dirty energy and divert investment away from cleaner, more sustainable energy sources.”
Groups filing motions to intervene:
Appalachian Mountain Advocates, Appalachian Voices, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Doddridge County Watershed Association, Eight Rivers Council, Greenbrier River Watershed Association, Satchidananda Ashram-Yogaville, Inc., Shannon Farm Community, Sierra Club, West Virginia Rivers Coalition and West Virginia Highlands Conservancy.
Groups filing the formal protest: All the above groups, plus five others which had previously filed their own motions to intervene: Augusta County Alliance, Dominion Pipeline Monitoring Coalition, Friends of Nelson, Heartwood and Wild Virginia.
Contact: Anne Havemann Chesapeake Climate Action Network (240) 396-1984 anne@chesapeakeclimate.org

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Feds Must Weigh Climate Harm of Mountain Valley Pipeline, Along with Clean Energy Alternatives

$3.2 billion pipeline is the second of four major gas industry projects proposed in Virginia to file for federal approval

Analysis shows clean energy alternatives would create more jobs while protecting the climate

RICHMOND—Today, Mountain Valley LLC, a joint venture of companies led by EQT Midstream Partners, filed its federal application to build the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline. This $3.2 billion, 42-inch-wide fracked gas pipeline would stretch 301 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia, require up to three compressor stations, and is the second of four pipeline projects proposed for the same region of Virginia and West Virginia to apply for federal approval. Just last month, Dominion Resources filed its application to construct the controversial 564-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline.
The Chesapeake Climate Action Network is calling on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to fully assess the harm both projects would inflict on the climate as part of a comprehensive environmental review that also considers clean energy alternatives.
Drew Gallagher, Virginia Organizer for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, had the following statement:
“Virginia is facing an unprecedented expansion of fracked-gas infrastructure, with potentially disastrous consequences for our climate, health, homes and unique natural resources. Along with Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline, the Mountain Valley Pipeline would lock us into decades more reliance on a dirty fossil fuel that’s as bad as coal for the climate.
“In conducting its review, FERC must stop turning a blind eye to the climate harm of fracked gas, and start prioritizing truly clean alternatives. Studies show methane traps heat 86 times more effectively than carbon dioxide. No review will be adequate unless FERC considers the full cycle of greenhouse gas pollution that the project will trigger from fracking wells to compressor stations to all 301 miles of pipeline to the burning of the gas.
“A Chesapeake Climate Action Network analysis shows that investing $3.2 billion into clean energy alternatives, instead of another fossil fuel pipeline, would be a far better deal for Virginia. For instance, if Mountain Valley LLC invested $3.2 billion in solar energy, it could conservatively fund the installation of enough solar panels to power more than 273,000 Virginia homes and reduce carbon emissions at a rate equal to taking more than 407,000 cars off the road.[1]
“Investing this $3.2 billion in wind energy would bring similar benefits while creating 4,770 jobs during construction and 1,180 permanent jobs annually.[1] By contrast, a widely criticized study funded by Mountain Valley LLC estimated that the pipeline would support 4,300 construction jobs, and 34 permanent jobs, which doesn’t factor in the significant economic costs or job losses that could result from leaks, explosions, declining property values, and harm to natural resources.
“FERC and Governor McAuliffe must wake up to the reality that we can and must meet our energy needs without jeopardizing Virginians’ homes, health, and climate.”
The Mountain Valley Pipeline is one of four interstate gas pipeline projects currently proposed for the central Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mountain region of Virginia and West Virginia—along with Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline, Williams’ Appalachian Connector Pipeline, and the Columbia Pipeline Group’s WB Xpress Project.
On Monday, CCAN will join pipeline foes and bipartisan legislators for a tele-press conference to demand a single, comprehensive regional review of all four proposed projects. The coalition will release a joint letter to FERC from more than 30 groups.
Contact:
Drew Gallagher, 804-896-2654, drew@chesapeakeclimate.org
Kelly Trout, 240-396-2022, kelly@chesapeakeclimate.org
1. Solar and wind energy analysis is based on U.S. Energy Information Administration data and National Renewable Energy Laboratory modeling.

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The Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the biggest and oldest grassroots organization dedicated to fighting climate change in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC. CCAN is building a powerful movement to shift our region away from climate-harming fossil fuels and to clean energy solutions: www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

A Game Changer from Hillary Clinton: FERC Needs to be Focused on Combating Climate Change

On October 16th, in Keene, New Hampshire, at a public town hall meeting attended by hundreds, Hillary Clinton had this to say about the notorious Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, FERC:
“If we’re going to have a national commitment to do something about climate change, FERC needs to be part of that commitment. And that’s my view on how we have to alter a lot of parts of the Federal Government. Ya know, it’s not just the EPA that needs to be focused on combating climate change, every part of the Federal Government needs to be focused. I want to have, by the end of my first term, a half a billion more solar panels installed and by the end of my second term enough clean, renewable energy to power every home in America. And if those are our goals, then it’s important that we don’t have the right hand doing something different than the left hand.”
Whoa, what’s going on here?!? I could see Bernie Sanders, or maybe Martin O’Malley, saying this, but Clinton?
It’s not that I have great faith that Clinton, if elected, would follow through on this in the ways and with the urgency needed. I don’t. But her saying this now, over a year before the election, can be of great value. It can lead to other candidates also addressing the issue of FERC, including at upcoming debates. It can lead to growing press coverage about the wide, deep and determined grassroots movement fighting FERC as it continues to rubber stamp every proposal for the expansion of fracked gas infrastructure that comes before it.
When FERC holds public meetings in localities which are facing new pipelines, compressors, storage and export terminals, Clinton’s words should be printed up and distributed to everyone there and written in large, bold letters on signs and banners.
When Beyond Extreme Energy takes action at FERC Commissioners’ monthly public meetings in DC, something it has been doing for a year, the same thing should happen, as much as possible.
When Clinton or other Presidential, Senate or House candidates, and not just Democrats–hey Republicans, do you support the federal government taking people’s land to benefit private corporations?–are answering questions at town hall meetings in Iowa, other New Hampshire towns, Nevada, South Carolina or other states, we must make sure questions about FERC and fracking are brought forward.
Seemingly from out of nowhere, thanks to the courage and persistence of local New Hampshire activists, a light can be seen at the end of the long tunnel that so many of us fighting FERC have been in for years. When Hillary Clinton is publicly saying what so many of us have been saying, when FERC is going to be even more on the defensive than they already are, when our up-from-below pressures just keep building, there is reason to believe that, yes, we can win in our battle against FERC and its fossil fuel industry partners.

Prince George’s Expo to Showcase Community Benefits of Climate Action

**MEDIA ADVISORY**

Saturday, October 24:
Prince George’s Expo to Showcase Clean Air and Community Benefits of Expanding Climate Action in Maryland

Del. Dereck Davis and Councilwoman Toles to join over 20 civic, government, clean energy business, environment, and faith groups

Event is part of a six-stop fall ‘Clean Energy Roadshow’ highlighting benefits of increasing Md.’s renewable energy standard

DISTRICT HEIGHTS—On Saturday, October 24th, Delegate Dereck Davis and Councilwoman Karen Toles will join the Maryland Climate Coalition and over 20 green business, civic, faith, government, and environmental groups for an “Energy, Health & Climate Expo” at the Suitland Community Center.
Through a panel discussion, workshops, and interactive booths, the event will showcase how Marylanders can participate in and benefit from climate solutions—from making their homes more energy efficient to exploring solar job opportunities to speaking out for stronger clean energy policies in the General Assembly.
The expo in Prince George’s County is part of a six-stop “Clean Energy Roadshow” organized by the Maryland Climate Coalition this fall. Each event is highlighting how renewing Maryland’s landmark 2009 Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act, which must be reauthorized in 2016, and expanding the state’s clean energy standard to 25% by 2020 will benefit our health, economy and environment.
WHAT: “Energy, Health & Climate Expo: Renewing Maryland Together,” including a panel discussion with Delegate Dereck Davis and Councilwoman Karen Toles, interactive booths with over a dozen organizations and green businesses, and family-friendly activities on energy efficiency and public health. Participants will find resources on saving energy and money by going green at home.
WHERE: Suitland Community Center, 5600 Regency Ln, District Heights, MD 20747
WHEN: Saturday, October 24th, 1-4pm. Panel discussion will begin at 1:30pm.
WHO: Panel discussion on the state policies we need to grow Prince George’s clean energy economy will feature:

  • Maryland Delegate Dereck Davis, District 25, Prince George’s County
  • Commissioner Karen Toles, Prince George’s County Council
  • Adam Ortiz, Director for the Department of the Environment of Prince George’s County
  • Sara Via, Department of Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park

Participating organizations and green businesses include:

The EmPowers: energy-saving superheroes! * Shepherd Energy * Prince George’s County Department of the Environment * Prince George’s County Department of Parks and Recreation* Eco Beco * Chesapeake Climate Action Network * Maryland Organizing for Action * Climate Change Maryland * Groundswell clean energy purchasing groups* Solar City * Complete Home Solutions * Community Forklift * Grid Alternatives * Prince George’s Greens * Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility * Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake * Watt Watchers * Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development * Greenbelt Climate Action Network * Climate Change is Elementary * PEPCO * Boy Scouts of America * National Wildlife Federation

CONTACT: Kelly Trout, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, 240-396-2022, kelly@chesapeakeclimate.org
The next three clean energy roadshow stops will be:

November 12th, 5-8pm
Boys and Girls Club, 2002 Cedar Dr, Edgewood, MD 21040

November 17th, 7-9 pm
Columbia East Library, Center for Aging, 6600 Cradlerock Way, Columbia, MD 21045

November 21st, 1-4pm
Baltimore City Community College, 2901 Liberty Heights Ave, Baltimore, MD 21215

Advocates are using the hashtag #CleanerMDnow to distribute information about the 2016 legislation and these supporting events.

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The Maryland Climate Coalition brings together environmental, faith, labor, and civic organizations to advance clean energy and climate policies in Maryland. For more information about the Maryland Climate Coalition, visit http://www.marylandclimatecoalition.org.