The new chief of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is introducing rules for reducing mercury emissions from coal-burning power plants. But environmentalists and others say the rules actually rollback provisions in the Clean Air Act. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Julie Grant reports:
Transcript
The new chief of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is introducing rules for reducing
mercury emissions from coal-burning power plants. But environmentalists and others say the
rules actually rollback provisions in the Clean Air Act. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Julie Grant reports:
Mercury is toxic. It can cause brain damage, especially in young children and fetuses. Forty-
percent of the mercury in air pollution comes from power plants, but it’s never been regulated as
a pollutant. The EPA had planned reductions of 90-percent by 2007. But now, the Bush
administration plans reductions of only 70-percent by 2018.
EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt praises the plan as good for the environment and the economy.
Environmentalists and others say it’s a complete deception. To implement the new program, they
say the administration has downgraded mercury from the “hazardous pollutant” category. Leavitt
denies that:
“We are not changing the status of mercury at all. It is a dangerous toxin and our objective is to
reduce it in the most aggressive way we possibly can.”
The new rules regulating mercury go into effect next December. For the Great Lakes Radio
Consortium, I’m Julie Grant.
After the recent power outage, some residents in Ontario, Canada were asked to cut their use of electricity in half. Some hoped the experience would convince people to change their behavior permanently. But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports, environmentalists are arguing for a more permanent approach to energy efficiency:
Transcript
After the recent power outage, some residents in Ontario, Canada were asked to cut
their use of
electricity in half. Some hoped the experience would convince people to change
their behavior
permanently. But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports,
environmentalists
are arguing for a more permanent approach to energy efficiency:
Suddenly, the media in the Canadian province of Ontario was filled with tips on how
to conserve
energy. Like many places in the U.S., Ontario was hit by the widespread blackout.
People were
told to turn off air conditioners and use cold water in their washing machines.
And a lot of residents, and businesses, listened. Environmental consultant Ralph
Torrie was
encouraged by this behavior. But he says the government needs to ensure energy
efficiency is
built in to appliances and automobiles
“There is no more effective, cheaper or quicker way to improve the efficiency of
energy use than
to work with the industry that makes these things and bring up the minimum energy
efficiency
that is required.”
Torrie hopes the province will consider long term action once the power supply is
back to normal.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Karen Kelly.
Some environmentalists are concerned that the blackout that affected the Northeast and part of Canada might be used as an excuse to build more power plants. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Transcript
Some environmentalists are concerned that the blackout that affected the Northeast
and part of
Canada might be used as an excuse to build more power plants. The Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Experts don’t yet know all the factors that led to the power blackout. But
environmentalists
worry that private interests will take advantage of the situation and call for more
large nuclear and
coal-burning power plants. David Gard is with the Michigan Environmental Council.
“Clearly we know, experts have already said even though we don’t know the exact
cause of the
problem, we know for sure that it’s not an issue of not enough generation. We have
plenty of
power plants; we have plenty of supply. This is primarily a problem with
transmission and
getting energy that’s already been made to the end customer.”
Environmentalists say fixing the transmission bottle-necks, building a more diverse
system with
wind and solar power generation and real conservation measures such as more
efficient air
conditioners are better solutions than building big generating plants that pollute.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.
Russ Adams mows his lawn with an electric lawnmower. He does so to reduce local air pollution such as ozone. (Photo by Christina Shockley)
Summer can be a perfect time for barbeques, weekend trips, and yard work. But those very things contribute to a summertime health hazard. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Christina Shockley reports:
Transcript
Summer can be a perfect time for barbeques, weekend trips, and yard
work. But those very things contribute to a summertime health hazard. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Christina Shockley reports:
(sound of gasoline-powered lawn mower)
This time of year, it takes just a short walk along pretty much any residential
street to find someone mowing their lawn.
(crossfade, gas-powered lawn mower sound out, electric mower sound up)
But if you walk past the Minneapolis home of Russ Adams, you might take a
second look.
“My neighbors came over… they were a little bashful ’cause they
weren’t sure how to pose the question. But they wanted to know what I was
doing in my yard and what that machine was. They thought it was some kind of
new-fangled mulcher or something.”
That mulcher is actually an electric lawnmower. The mower is a sleek red and
black. It’s about the same size as a gasoline mower. There’s no cord running
to it. It runs on a battery. There’s a plug on the back of the main unit
that’s used to charge it.
(sound of garage door opening)
“Okay, so this is the garage. Just plug it in
right here, and really it doesn’t take long for it to juice up. And you just
leave it plugged in, and as soon as it’s fully charged it stops drawing on the
electricity, so it’s energy-efficient even in the recharging mode.”
Adams says the main reason he uses the electric mower is that it’s just one way
he can help improve air quality in his city. And as small a step as that
seems, emissions from small engines such as lawnmowers do cause air quality
problems.
Rebecca Helgesen is with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. She says one
major summertime problem is ozone. Helgesen says human activity creates the
ingredients in ozone.
“Certainly motor vehicle exhaust and chemical solvents are major
sources. Also, industrial emissions and gasoline vapors.”
The chemicals stew and combine with hot, humid conditions to increase ground
level ozone.
“When the air is stagnant – not moving very much, and it’s hot and
sunny, that’s when you see the chemical reaction that creates ozone.
Helgesen says the Environmental Protection Agency forecasts ozone, so people
will know ahead of time when not to mow their lawns or to stay indoors. The
forecast is called an Air Quality Index. It uses color codes. On a “yellow”
day, the air is dangerous for sensitive people. On a “red” day, everyone is
encouraged to limit outdoor activity. Ground level ozone can cause lung
damage. Helgesen says breathing ozone isn’t good for anyone, especially those
with asthma.
“You’re coughing more, you may find you have some tightness in your
chest, or uncomfortable. You may find that you’re tired more easily.. all of
those mean that there has been some compromising of your lungs.”
Ozone levels start to fall in the evening as people stop driving, as the sun
sets and the air cools. Helgesen says the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
encourages people to wait to pump gas, drive, and mow their lawns until 7 or 8
at night.
Getting people to do these things is where the organization, Clean Air
Minnesota, comes in. Its members include an unusual mix of business groups,
environmental groups and others.
Bill Droessler is the group’s program director. He says Minneapolis-St. Paul doesn’t
have a big ozone problem, like some other cities… yet. Clean Air Minnesota wants to keep it that
way. If levels go up, the federal government could impose restrictive – and
costly – regulations. Droessler says his group holds on-site training programs
at participating businesses to get people to take action.
“Postpone landscaping things, use of internal combustion engines as late as
possible on those days. Avoiding backyard recreational fires.”
He says even using newer gas cans that don’t let vapors escape as easily helps
reduce ozone. Droessler says he hopes people will take the time to make just one change to
help reduce ozone levels.
Russ Adams sees his electric mower as his one small action. He concedes that
the electric mower does use electricity. But while coal-burning power plants
do pollute, his electric mower is better for air quality than a gas-powered
mower.
“My argument is that if everybody had an electric mower, then we’d be cutting
down on the air quality problem. Wouldn’t solve it, but we’d be making a good dent.
I mean, I talk to my friends all the time about how fun it is to use this
mower.”
Shockley: “So I press it down… and pull back…”
Adams: “There you go.”
Shockley: “Oh, it’s very easy!”
(sound of electric mower)
Adams: “Now what I want you to do, is do this part of the yard in the back. I’ll go in and
have some tea, maybe some orange juice, and then we can tackle the front yard
after you’re done back here.”
Shockley: “Okay, that sounds great.” (laughter)
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Christina Shockley.
The Attorney General in New York has recently led the fight against any softening of laws on air pollution. He’s even taken on the administration in Washington. Now he’s setting his sights across the border where pollution from Canada is affecting his state. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Dan Karpenchuk reports:
Transcript
The Attorney General in New York has recently led the fight against any softening of laws on air
pollution. He’s even taken on the administration in Washington. Now he’s setting his sights
across the border where pollution from Canada is affecting his state. The Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Dan Karpenchuk reports:
New York’s Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has taken on the White House and big air polluters in
the U.S. Now he’s filing a complaint with the Environmental Commission set up under NAFTA.
He wants the commission to look into whether coal fired generating plants in Ontario violate any
Canadian laws.
That move is not sitting well with authorities across the border. Canada’s environment minister,
David Anderson, says he welcomes the challenge, but says Spitzer should be cleaning up his own
backyard first.
“His plants in New York aren’t little innocent neighborhood Dairy Queens. These are major
emitters of pollution.”
Ontario’s environment minister, Chris Stockwell, admits that Ontario doesn’t have a perfect
record, but he, too, says Spitzer shouldn’t be doing any finger pointing.
“The Americans have states where 90% of their energy is coal. Now who’s embarrassed,
Americans or Canadians?”
Ontario has pledged to shut down its coal-fired generators by 2015.
But that isn’t soon enough for Spitzer. If he proves his case, the environmental commission could
impose penalties against the province.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Dan Karpenchuk.
Smokestack industries, such as coal-fired power plants and foundries, are using huge loopholes to continue to pollute at higher levels 25 years after Congress passed laws to reduce emissions. A government task force is recommending Congress and the Environmental Protection Agency make some major changes in the law to stop the polluters. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Transcript
Smokestack industries, such as coal-fired power plants and foundries, are using huge loopholes to
continue to pollute at higher levels twenty-five years after Congress passed laws to reduce
emissions. A government task force is recommending Congress and the Environmental
Protection Agency make some major changes in the law to stop the polluters. The Great Lakes
Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Congress and the EPA asked for the independent study by the National Academy of Public
Administration. The panel looked at loopholes in the Clean Air Act that exempted older
industrial plants from compliance until they were altered or updated, allowing only routine
maintenance. Much of the industry has taken full advantage of that loophole, defining “routine
maintenance” very broadly. The EPA says 80% of those older plants are under
investigation. Donald Kettl chaired the task force.
“When you’ve got a problem that’s been out there for 25 years and has really remained largely
unaddressed, it’s time for a fundamental, back-to-basics kind of look at the problem and the
creation of a new strategy to try to do what needs to be done much more efficiently, much more
effectively, and to do it in a way that produces much cleaner air.”
The task force recommends Congress close the loopholes completely and that the EPA get
tougher with the enforcement of the law.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.
A recent study on pollution in North America shows a drop in environmental pollution between 1995 and 2000. The study was conducted by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, which was set up under the North American Free Trade Agreement. But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Dan Karpenchuk reports, one trend being noted is that smaller industries across the continent are becoming the big polluters:
Transcript
A recent study on pollution in North America shows a drop in environmental pollution between
1995 and 2000. The study was conducted by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation,
which was set up under the North American Free Trade Agreement. But as the Great Lakes
Radio Consortium’s Dan Karpenchuk reports, one trend being noted is that smaller industries
across the continent are becoming the big polluters:
Officials for the Commission say it’s a good news-bad news picture of what’s going on across the
continent. The environmental watchdog says the biggest polluters such as electrical generating
plants and steel factories are releasing fewer hazardous chemicals. But smaller industries, who
have tended to pollute less are showing a significant increase in their emissions.
Victor Shantora is with the Commission.
“The smaller polluters, probably about 15,000 such facilities across North America, are actually
tracking upwards. And we think that that’s problematic.”
The study shows a seven-percent decline in the amount of toxins released by big industries from
1998 to 2000, while the smaller polluters showed a 32-percent increase over the same period.
Environmental groups like the Sierra Club say negative publicity has shamed the big polluters
into cutting down on emissions. They say that hasn’t worked against the small polluters. So it’s
up to governments to force them to make the reductions.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Dan Karpenchuk.
Two Great Lakes states and one Canadian province are near the top of the list when it comes to the production of toxic chemicals. That’s the finding of the latest study from an international agency set up under NAFTA. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bill Cohen reports:
Transcript
Two Great Lakes States and one Canadian province are near the top of the list when it comes to
the production of toxic chemicals. That’s the finding of the latest study from an international
agency set up under NAFTA. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bill Cohen reports:
If you want to find the largest producers of dangerous chemicals in all of North America, look no
further than the Great Lakes Region. Officials from the Commission for Environmental
Cooperation say coal-fired power plants, steel mills, and waste treatment facilities put the region
high on the list.
Victor Shantora is director of the agency:
“The ranking is Texas number 1, Ohio number 2, the province of Ontario is number 3, and
Pennsylvania is number 4. They represent over about 25% of total releases in North America.”
Among the toxic chemicals cited are hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, and mercury. But the report
isn’t all bad news. It indicates while some of the toxic chemicals wind up as pollution in the air,
water, and soil, a growing amount of it is simply being transported for proper disposal in
landfills or for recycling.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Bill Cohen in Columbus.
The Horicon Marsh in Wisconsin - Researchers say global warming may mean earlier ice breakup and spring runoff, more intense flooding, and lower summer water levels. They say this could spell trouble for wetlands and the species that depend on them. (Photo by Ryan Hagerty, USFWS)
Warmer weather might sound like a welcome reprieve to a lot of people spending early spring in the Midwest. But a team of researchers is warning that in years to come, warming trends in the Great Lakes region could be bad news for business, and for people’s health. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Sarah Hulett reports:
Transcript
Warmer weather might sound like a welcome reprieve to a lot of people spending early spring in the
Midwest. But a team of researchers is warning that in years to come, warming trends in the Great
Lakes region could be bad news for business, and for people’s health. The Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Sarah Hulett reports:
Climate change is not a phenomenon that’s unique to the Great Lakes
region. But University of Michigan biologist George Kling says there’s
good reason to look to the Midwestern U.S. for early clues about global warming
elsewhere.
“The middle part of North America, including the Great Lakes region, warms, or has warmed in the
past, at a slightly higher rate than the globe overall. Because we’re right in the center of a continent,
and there’s less buffering impact from the oceans. So coastal areas tend to warm a little bit less, at
a slower rate, continental areas warm at a little bit faster rate.”
Kling and other researchers from the Union of Concerned Scientists, and
the Ecological Society of America, spent the last two years looking at
some of the changes that can already be seen in the region: shorter winters,
higher temperatures, and less ice on the Great Lakes during the winter
months. And Kling warns that extrapolating these trends out over the coming
decades paints an ugly picture:
“These climate changes that we project in our new report will magnify
existing health and environmental problems, and may stress our economy.”
Asthma that’s aggravated every time a heat wave hits, increased competition
for groundwater as dry weather saps wells, and financial losses in communities that once relied on
winter tourism are all distinct possibilities. And the report warns that more visible changes to the
landscape might also
be on the way.
Donald Zak teaches ecology at the University of Michigan. He says during
past periods of warming, trees actually moved north to survive. But Zak
says that kind of tree migration may no longer be possible.
“Ten thousand years ago, when species migrated across the region, there
were very few barriers to migration that we have now placed in the landscape –
like large areas of agriculture, large areas of urban development. Those
will become barriers to migration that didn’t exist following the close of the
last ice age.”
Theories about causes of the warmer weather are well known: heat-trapping
gasses – mostly carbon monoxide – are spewed from coal-fired power plants
and gasoline engines. And continued deforestation and urban sprawl help
ensure mother nature never catches up with processing it all. But the researchers who worked on
the project say solutions are available to slow the effects of global warming. The report makes the
case for raising fuel economy standards for cars and trucks. David Friedman with
the Union of Concerned Scientists says right now, there are more than 30 models of cars on the
market that get more than 30 miles per gallon. The problem, Friedman says, is that those are
mostly compact cars that don’t meet the needs of people who are shopping for pickups, minivans,
and SUVs. Friedman says for those customers, there’s no way for them to use their
wallets to show their desire for more fuel-efficient vehicles.
“When your choice is between 17 and 18 miles per gallon, that’s not a
choice. You’re probably going to choose the vehicle based on the color
and the cup holders, not the fuel economy, when the difference is only one
mile per gallon.”
Some critics say the incremental changes that would result from raising
fuel economy standards would have almost no impact on global warming.
But researchers on the Great Lakes study say resistance from policy makers
and corporate leaders doesn’t have to hamper efforts to slow the effects
of climate change. They say even choices at the household level – like
carpooling and conserving energy can help lessen the damage.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Sarah Hulett.
Within three decades, summers in the Great Lakes states might feel more like summers in Kentucky and Oklahoma. That’s according to results of a two-year study conducted by a team of Midwest and Canadian scientists. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Sarah Hulett reports:
Transcript
Within three decades, summers in the Great Lakes states might feel more
like summers in Kentucky and Oklahoma. That’s according to results of a
two-year study conducted by a team of Midwest and Canadian scientists.
The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Sarah Hulett reports:
The study was conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists and the
Ecological Society of America. Researchers looked into trends that have
already shown up in the region – including shorter winters, higher
annual average temperatures, and declines in winter ice on the Great
Lakes. The study projects potential problems for the region. Anglers
might find certain fish no longer thrive in warmer waters, and
communities that rely on winter tourism might find themselves hard hit.
University of Michigan biologist George Kling is the lead author of the
report. He says the findings point to a warming trend unlike anything
the planet’s seen.
“In the next 100 years, we will have the same amount of warming that has
occurred since the last Ice Age – 10-thousand years ago.”
The report outlines approaches for slowing the effects of global
warming. They include reducing greenhouse emissions and investing in
renewable energy.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Sarah Hulett.
