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| Latest hand-selected Michigan political news and analysis headlines |
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environment 
Mon Feb 15, 2010 at 17:24:37 PM EST
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Anyone that has been stuck behind a diesel truck in traffic or stood on the side of the road as one has passed by can recognize the black smoke and horrible smell associated with diesel vehicles. Right now, diesel emissions from trucks, buses and construction vehicles are poisoning our water and the air we breathe. Diesel exhaust causes a number of health problems, including lung disease, heart disease and a cancer risk that is 7 times higher than the combined risk of all the 181 air toxics tracked by the EPA. In Michigan alone, in 2010, diesel pollution is estimated to cause the early deaths of 443 people, more than 15,000 asthma attacks, 648 non-fatal heart attacks, and over 57,000 work loss days. To see the health risks associated with diesel pollution where you live check out: http://www.catf.us/projects/diesel/dieselhealth/
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Tue Jan 26, 2010 at 15:15:47 PM EST
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It seems nearly everyone in the Great Lakes states is concerned about what will happen should the Asian Carp make it into the Great Lakes water system. Michigan’s own Attorney General Mike Cox even sued the state of Illinois to get them to close the river locks. This would prevent the carp from entering Lake Michigan. But Chicago was not keen to have a major artery for commerce shut down, costing them millions of dollars in revenue through shipping fees. And lucky for Chicago that the U.S. Supreme Court wouldn’t issue an injunction to close the locks. This is unlucky for the rest of us, who are worried about the potential for Dire Consequences. People don’t seem to think there’s anything more to be done now except wait around until a summit next month at the White House. But there is one thing we can do: the state of Michigan can buy the rivers where the locks are located. Then we would be free to close and open the locks as necessary, and charge access through the rivers just as the city of Chicago currently does. "Crazy!" you say? Not in the least. You see, the Chicago Way isn’t just about putting guys in the morgue. It’s also about getting paid, handsomely.
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Sun Nov 29, 2009 at 20:02:06 PM EST
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We’re diving deep into “geek world” today with a story that combines economic hardball, the periodic table of the elements, and a barely noticed provision of the Defense Authorization Act that seeks to break a monopoly which today gives China near-absolute control over the materials that make cell phones, electric cars, wind turbines, and pretty much every other tool of modern life possible.
If we successfully break the monopoly, we’ll be able to create millions of new manufacturing jobs in this country—and if we don’t, somebody else owns the 21st Century.
Ironically, the global warming we’re trying to fight with new green technologies might be an ally in our efforts to make those very same green technologies happen.
There’s a revolution in industrial processing going on, rare earths are at the center of it all...and in today’s story, the revolution will be televised.
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Mon Oct 12, 2009 at 00:25:59 AM EDT
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Cap and trade is an administrative approach to reduce green house gas emissions. The controlling body sets a Cap on the total amount of emission for a given period of time. Each group or firm than receives emission credits, the total of all credits issued is equal to the Cap for the specified amount of time. Firms that need to emit more than the credits they received are able to buy credits from firms who emit less than they are allowed. This system punishes firms who emit a great amount of pollutants and benefits those who can reduce the amount they emit. http://mi-wire.blogspot.com/
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Thu Aug 06, 2009 at 19:13:29 PM EDT
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The long, lazy days of summer are upon us, and it’s time to have a little fun—but it’s also a great opportunity to volunteer a bit of spare time for a good cause.
So imagine how cool it would be if you could combine the two...and even better, do it in a way that doesn’t take a bite out of your wallet...and even better yet, if it was something you and the kids could do together.
Imagine no more, because it has been done; which is why today we are going to be talking about lead in the soil of New Orleans, Operation Paydirt...and Fundred Dollar Bills.
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Thu Jun 25, 2009 at 21:04:32 PM EDT
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(Meanwhile, in DC... - promoted by Eric B.)
The text below is part of an e-mail I received from Ashley Dowser, who is now working for the Alliance for Climate Protection (she formerly was with the Obama campaign in Birmingham). I am appalled that Gary Peters would even consider voting against this bill. It should be a no brainer. Please call his office and let him know how important this bill is to our future and the future of the world.
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Fri May 22, 2009 at 10:32:06 AM EDT
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It’s great to see that people are starting to think about hybrid vehicles, but so far, they really haven’t been for me.
You know why?
Because for the most part, they have no...style.
The Prius?
If you look at it sideways, and squint, it looks more like a pepita than a car.
The Insight?
They say it’s stylish...but it looks like a Prius to me.
You know what I want?
I want someone to build the biggest, nastiest, most oversized hybrid the world has ever seen.
Something drenched with chrome, with seating for...many, and a convertible top; and maybe, if all my dreams come true: tail fins.
Something crazy.
Something ridiculous.
Something...American.
Well, guess what?
Somebody’s already gone out and had one built—and ironically, that somebody is Neil Young, Canadian.
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Thu Apr 23, 2009 at 08:20:51 AM EDT
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(What did YOU do on Earth Day? - promoted by LiberalLucy)
Even though 70% of the Earth is covered in water, only 3% is fit for human consumption -- and two-thirds of that is frozen! Here in Michigan, we're fortunate to have access to the Great Lakes, containing 22% of the world's fresh surface water. That means we have a special obligation to protect our waterways -- but also a special opportunity to be the global center of transformative economic possibilities based around water.
Yesterday, for Earth Day, I announced the "Green Jobs for Blue Waters Initiative" to target opportunities for economic growth and environmental protection centered around our most precious resource: water. By developing new technologies to conserve water here in Michigan, we can export those technologies around the globe to places where water is far more scarce: helping Michigan's economy and global environmental protection. Michigan can, and will be the place where the water technologies of the future are developed, thanks to our access to the Great Lakes, university research, water management experience, advanced manufacturing capabilities, and our strong history of environmental stewardship. We can create the same sort of dynamic based around a Blue Water Economy that we've started to build in alternative energy here, with component manufacturers and researchers flocking to set up shop here in Michigan, diversifying our economy, creating jobs, and helping our environment.
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Thu Mar 26, 2009 at 15:35:39 PM EDT
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Yes .....CSI-Michigan-Asbestos....it is time to bring in Jerry Bruckheimer to talk about the future of Michigan cities, towns as crime scenes and sites of emergency, acute and chronic asbestos contamination and human exposure with adoption of the Fiscal 2009-2010 budget removing all asbestos inspections and enforcement against asbestos emissions.
The only problem is that under Jennifer Granholm's budget, the crime scene investigators get axed before the television
series gets off the ground....too bad, I had really looked forward to seeing Granholm in full asbestos HAZMAT drag.
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Wed Mar 25, 2009 at 11:43:04 AM EDT
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According to the recent BBMG Conscious Consumer Report: Redefining Value in a New Economy that asked which companies come to mind as the least socially or environmentally responsible companies, Wal-Mart topped the list as the worst:
"Wal-Mart also topped the list of the least responsible companies (9%), along with Exxon Mobile (9%), GM (3%) and Ford (3%), Shell (2%) and McDonald's (2%). Interestingly, 41% of Americans could not name a single company that they consider the most socially and environmentally responsible."
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Mon Mar 23, 2009 at 10:11:19 AM EDT
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( - promoted by Eric B.)
Granholm Plans to End MDEQ Policing of Cancer-Causing Asbestos Emissions from Demolition and Renovation Operations Governor Jennifer Granholm's proposed Fiscal 2009-2010 budget eliminates Michigan inspections and enforcement of Federal Clean Air Act emission control requirements on asbestos-related demolition, renovation and waste disposal operations. Although the federal rules requiring control measures would remain legally binding, neither Michigan DEQ nor U.S. EPA would run effective inspection, enforcement and complaint response to ensure compliance with the rules after the Granholm asbestos program cut is made.
Demolition and renovation operators would not face effective enforcement since U.S. EPA is not prepared to field an asbestos inspection/enforcement program that would approach the present state efforts.
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Tue Mar 17, 2009 at 14:43:02 PM EDT
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Ever wonder about your watershed? Mine's Upper Grand, and I was able to find out by simply putting my zip code into a form on a website: http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/address.html Lots of really useful information at this site, and links to community organizations working in your watershed to help protect it. Thanks to one of my favorite graphic comedians, Alison Bechdel, for a good comic strip (now on hiatus) and an interesting blog. Time for a nice long drink of some good tap water, Harold
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Fri Nov 21, 2008 at 08:56:08 AM EST
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(Well here's a piece that ought to drum up some discussion - promoted by LiberalLucy)
Many of us had a hand in the recent demise of the American auto industry. Consumers ate up big gas guzzling SUV's, trucks, and 300 hp engines in cars like my 9 year old Cadillac. Like most consumers, I figured if the Big 3 produces them, they are all right to buy, after all the car companies have the inside track and an eye up on the competition. We trusted their judgment and we were willing to buy. And American automakers sold us those big gas guzzling cars, yet at the end of the Clinton administration, the Big 3 produced prototypes of energy efficient and hybrid vehicles for the future. When Bush/Cheney was elected all was abandoned. The Big 3 were obviously assured by an overtly oil connected administration that the crude would keep flowing. The Big 3 trusted Bush/Cheney.
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Thu Nov 20, 2008 at 11:03:46 AM EST
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(Nancy Skinner's diary cross-posted from Kos at http://www.dailykos.com/story/... Many of you know me as having lost to President-Elect Barack Obama in the US Illinois Democratic primary (losing to POTUS is pretty cool) or from my years on radio and TV as a progressive commentator. I started all this because of the climate crisis. I live in Detroit and we are looking into the abyss. I ran for congress in '06 on re-tooling the auto industry to produce the next generation of fuel-efficient vehicles. We hear the anger from congress and the country about the industry's resistance to change all these years, loud and clear. But Michigan needs your help now. Please read my column in today's Detroit Free Press "Yes, Detroit Can Make a Green Turnaround"and post there and go to www.YesWeCanDetroit.com to sign a petition if you agree with me. NancyASkinner's diary :: :: Here's the deal. If we get the support of the American people to restructure the industry (faster than you can say bankuptcy), we can use this crisis to build the most advanced fuel efficient vehicles in the world, right here in America. The alternative is far worse than most of the chattering class on TV are saying. A Big 3 bust will take a massive Main Street and Wall Street contingent with them and stick taxpayers with the bill for pension and healthcare liabilities. As Al Gore says, the Chinese character for crisis also means opportunity. We have boatloads of both. I am not a grey-haired auto exec flying on a luxury jet. I am a Detroiter who has spent her career trying to solve the energy/climate crisis. When Katrina hit, we were there. New York on 9/11, we were there. We have a different category 5 on our doorstep. Can you hear us America? Will you help us through this, so that we all have a brighter, greener future? Nancy Skinner
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Wed Oct 29, 2008 at 16:34:20 PM EDT
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Walmart's hometown newspaper, the Northwest Arkansas Morning News, has an interesting article up today about Walmart executives meeting with 200 of their cronies at a conference and outlining their plans for 2009. It could be a watershed year for progressives, but the Bentonville behemoth has some plans of its own and they ain't pretty.
So I thought I'd go through each one of Walmart's plans and translate some of their PR spin – or wipe the lipstick off the pig, if you will. All stats and figures are compliments of WakeUpWalmart.com, with whom I do some work.
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Tue Oct 14, 2008 at 12:17:11 PM EDT
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Let me enumerate the McCain policy offerings: Here's the problem when you advocate less government except for defense, oil and gas exploration and to "shake things up in Washington."
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Mon Sep 22, 2008 at 15:46:43 PM EDT
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(Re-posted from Huffington Post) I became an environmental activist in the early 1970s just as I was completing my doctorate in ecology at the University of British Columbia. It was the height of the Cold War and the height of the Viet Nam War and we were compelled to take a very public stand against activities we thought to be catastrophic both for people and for the planet. I joined a small committee that was meeting in the basement of the Unitarian Church. We organized a protest voyage against U.S. hydrogen bomb testing in Alaska and had tens of thousands marching in the streets. When that H-bomb was set off at Amchitka Island in November 1971, it was the last hydrogen bomb the U.S. ever detonated. It was the birth of Greenpeace, the organization I co-founded, spending 15 years in its top committee, helping to lead environmental campaigns around the world. But it's ironic in the extreme that, as we mark the 100th anniversary of drinking water chlorination, my old organization and other activist groups aligned with it continue to oppose this most important public health achievement.
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Tue Sep 09, 2008 at 15:12:42 PM EDT
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Stall, stall, stall. The way legislators in Michigan are acting these days, you’d think they were a 15 year old learning to drive a stick shift. This week, esteemed members of Michigan’s Senate chose to hold off yet again on moving forward with a feasible energy plan that could put the mitten on the path to a renewable energy future. You know, the kind of future that can create thousands of jobs for unemployed Michiganders, entice cutting-edge industries to put down their stakes here, and cut down and deadly CO2 emissions that are threatening kids with increased asthma rates and older folks with cardiovascular diseases. Yeah, that silly little thing called clean energy. Really, continuing to stonewall on what could be one of the most vital issues of our generation is not even grossly negligent or unacceptable – at this point, it’s just kinda sad. For 18 long months, legislation about Michigan’s energy future has been stalled and lingered on like a bad engine on a dirt road. There are few states who have suffered more under failed policies of the Bush administration than Michigan has, and yet, when presented with the kind of life-altering opportunity that could potentially turn things around for everyone state legislators do what they do best: nothing. Already, across the nation, other states, including Pennsylvania and even oil-swilling Texas have been making gigantic-football field length leaps forward when it comes to renewable energy. States like Kansas and Georgia have even passed legislation to protect against harmful CO2 emissions from coal plants, and effectively pushed themselves towards a clean energy future. Sometimes, giving in to peer pressure is not only a good thing, but highly recommended. Instead of continuing to steer clear of what could pull us out of this rut, how about setting a renewable portfolio standard of 25% by 2025? C’mon, Michigan Senate – would that really be so hard? We've created a tool that allows you to take minute or less to tell your state law makers how you feel. Please speak out and tell Lansing to move Michigan towards a bright energy future!
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Wed Jul 30, 2008 at 21:55:33 PM EDT
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(Welcome, Councilman Triplett! - promoted by ScottyUrb)
When most people think of climate change, what comes to mind are pictures of car exhaust pipes and the towering smokestacks of coal power plants. There is no doubt that reducing carbon emissions from cars and coal by investing in renewable energy sources and alternative fuel technologies is vital to arresting the potentially catastrophic effects of global warming. What most people don't know is that the single largest source of carbon emissions in the United States is our built environment. A full 39% of all carbon dioxide emissions in America come from our buildings. If we are going to get serious about climate change then we need to get serious about making the buildings in our communities more sustainable and efficient.
That's just what I'm trying to do in East Lansing.
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Wed Jul 23, 2008 at 09:24:57 AM EDT
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The Michigan League of Conservation Voters released their 2007-08 Environmental Scorecard today, giving a tepid “thumbs up” to the 49 lawmakers who made protecting Michigan’s land, air and water a priority during the 2007-2008 legislative session. The remaining 99 lawmakers’ scores range from 93% to 0%. Scores of key lawmakers: Senator Majority Leader Michael Bishop - 11% Senator Patty Birkholz (chair Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs) – 11% Senator Bruce Patterson (chair of Energy Policy and Public Utilities) – 22% Senate Minority Leader Mark Schauer - 100% Speaker of the House Andy Dillon – 100% Representative Rebekah Warren (chair of Great Lakes and Environment) – 100% Representative Frank Accavitti (chair of Energy and Technology) – 93% Minority Leader Craig DeRoche - 21% Visit http://www.michiganlcv.org for the complete scorecard!
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