Funding shifts to clean energy

In a clear victory for the nation’s environment and energy security, the U.S. House of Representatives wrapped up its first 100 hours of the new session in January by passing the CLEAN Energy Act.

This legislation will shift more than $14 billion in taxpayer subsidies from oil companies to renewable energy and energy-efficiency programs.

Specifically, the Act would redirect taxpayer dollars that had been subsidizing some of the most profitable oil companies in order to establish a clean energy fund. This fund will create incentives for, and investments in, energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies.

The funds could spur construction of wind and solar energy power generation facilities, help Americans purchase gas-saving hybrid cars and trucks, and save consumers and businesses money on their electric bills with incentives for energy-efficient appliances and buildings. Advancement of these technologies will help to significantly reduce global warming pollution, cut down on energy costs and increase the nation’s energy security.

PennEnvironment aggressively lobbied Pennsylvania’s members of Congress to support the CLEAN Energy Act and is now urging Sens. Arlen Specter and Bob Casey, Jr. to push for the bill’s passage in the U.S. Senate. MORE >

Time is running out for Pennsylvania’s toxic site cleanup program

As Pennsylvania attempts to restore and reclaim the thousands of hazardous waste sites that are found across the Commonwealth, cleanup efforts may come to a grinding halt if elected officials in Harrisburg don’t take action.

The Hazardous Site Cleanup Fund, Pennsylvania’s predominant toxic waste cleanup program, is slated to run out of the money by summer’s end. This will mean that the cleanup of industrial dumpsites, as well as the state’s ability to respond to toxic chemical spills and accidents, could stop in the all-too-near future.

Pennsylvania’s longstanding history of industry and manufacturing has left the state with nearly 11,000 toxic industrial dumpsites. Many of these sites are laced with contaminants that are suspected or known to cause cancer, birth defects and other negative health effects.

The cleanup of these sites is essential—not only to protect the health of nearby residents and the surrounding environment, but to improve the local quality of life and economic vitality of the cities and townships in which these dumpsites are found.

PennEnvironment is aggressively advocating common-sense, bipartisan solutions in the Legislature to fully funded this program and continue the cleanup of toxic pollution left by generations of intensive, industrial activity in the state. MORE >

Statewide smoke-free workplaces gains momentum

With more and more states across the country implementing smoke-free workplaces legislation—and more and more cities in Pennsylvania attempting to enact similar policies—statewide smoke-free legislation passed its first hurdle in the Legislature.

On Jan. 31, the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee passed Senate Bill 246, the Clean Indoor Air Act by a vote of 9-2. This legislation was introduced earlier in the year by state Sen. Stewart Greenleaf (Montgomery and Bucks counties).

The negative health effects of secondhand smoke are well documented, and the case for smoke-free workplaces was made even clearer by a report released by U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona last summer. The Surgeon General’s report showed that there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke and that nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work increase their risk of developing heart disease by 25 to 30 percent and lung cancer by 20 to 30 percent.

PennEnvironment assisted public health groups in the passage of Philadelphia’s smoke-free workplaces legislation, and will continue to advocate the speedy passage of the statewide proposal as it works its way through the Pennsylvania General Assembly. MORE >