Lawmakers Applauded For Rejecting DEQ Budget Cuts

Democrats, Lone Republican Showed Courage In Opposing Leader’s Spending Plan

LANSING, MI--Michigan Democratic lawmakers—including those who bucked their party’s leaders and rejected deep funding cuts to water, air and land protection programs—were hailed today as heroes by leading environmental groups. Also singled out for praise was state Sen. Valde Garcia, a Livingston County Republican who was the lone GOP vote against the environmental funding cuts.

“The 40 state representatives and 16 senators who voted against the worst modern-day attack on Michigan environmental programs showed wisdom, courage and reflected the best of Michigan’s values Tuesday,” said Anne Woiwode, Michigan Director of Sierra Club. “All of us owe them our gratitude and respect.”

Cyndi Roper, Michigan Director of Clean Water Action, said the majority of House Democrats who rejected the all-cuts budget for the Department of Environmental Quality especially deserve the thanks of Michigan residents who care about the quality of their water, air and land. Those 40 representatives stood in opposition to Speaker Andy Dillon’s proposed budget.

“To quote one of my favorite characters from Harry Potter, ‘It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends,’ “said Roper. “Elected officials like Rep. Sarah Roberts and Rep. Rebekah Warren showed what real leadership is all about—doing what’s best for Michigan even if it’s not popular with their party’s leadership.”

Sierra Club and Clean Water Action have called on the governor to veto the joint DEQ and Department of Natural Resources budget and said that if state government fails to fund critical air and water programs in the days ahead, the federal Environmental Protection Agency should take over all water and air quality enforcement and permitting activities. More than $196 million was cut from the joint state Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Natural Resources budget.

Fifteen Senate Democrats, led by Minority Leader Mike Prussi, voted against the environmental budget cuts. In the House, a majority of Democrats opposed the cuts. They were:

Rep. Kathy Angerer, Rep. Douglas Geiss, Rep. Burton Leland, Rep. Roy Schmidt, Rep.Vicki Barnett, Rep. Vincent Gregory, Rep. LaMar Lemmons Jr., Rep. Bettie Cook Scott, Rep. Joan Bauer, Rep. Jennifer Haase, Rep. Ellen Lipton, Rep. Dan Scripps, Rep. Timothy Bledsoe, Rep. Harold Haugh, Rep. Lesia Liss, Rep. Kate Segal, Rep. Lisa Brown, Rep. Mike Huckleberry, Rep. Mark Meadows, Rep. Dian Slavens, Rep. Pam Byrnes, Rep. Shanelle Jackson, Rep. Tim Melton, Rep. Alma Smith, Rep. Barb Byrum, Rep. Bert Johnson, Rep. Fred Miller, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Rep. Andy Coulouris, Rep. Robert Jones, Rep. David Nathan, Rep. Mary Valentine, Rep. Marie Donigan, Rep. Andrew Kandrevas, Rep. Andy Neumann, Rep. Rebkah Warren, Rep. Fred Durhal Jr., Rep. Deb Kennedy, Rep. Sarah Roberts, Rep. Coleman Young II 

Water, Air and Land At Risk With Deep Budget Cuts

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:
Cyndi Roper 517-490-1394
Anne Woiwode 517-974-2112

Wednesday, September 29, 2009 

Groups Call For Veto, Say Pure Michigan Ads Should Be Dropped

Feds Brought In To Take Over Enforcement

LANSING, MI--Michigan’s two largest environmental groups said today that the elimination of the state’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), along with deep cuts in environmental funding by the Legislature, means the state has effectively turned over Michigan’s natural resources to polluters.

Sierra Club and Clean Water Action called on the governor to veto the joint DEQ and Department of Natural Resources budget and said that if state government fails to fund critical air and water programs in the days ahead, the federal Environmental Protection Agency should take over all water and air quality enforcement and permitting activities.
“It’s open season on Michigan’s water, air and land, and from a budget standpoint entirely unnecessary. There were other choices,” said Cyndi Roper of Clean Water Action. “It is not an exaggeration to say the Legislature has completely bent to the will of corporate polluters who saw an opportunity in this budget crisis to destroy environmental protection in this state. It’s a complete failure of leadership from both political parties.”

Since 1996 the DEQ has seen funding adjusted for inflation decrease by $156.9 million, reflecting a disproportionate drop in budgets compared to other parts of state government.
“With the Legislature’s cuts this week we will now see even more polluted rivers and beaches, dirtier air, less wildlife and more toxic waste,” said Anne Woiwode, Michigan Director of Sierra Club. “Michigan’s tourism economy will suffer and residents will get sicker. It’s time to pull the Pure Michigan ads off TV or else someone’s going to file a complaint charging the state with deceptive advertising.”

With Tuesday’s action by the House, the Legislature, with Governor Granholm’s support, has now voted to eliminate the Department of Environmental Quality and transfer all of its programs to the Department of Natural Resources, while cutting funding for 2010 by $195.6 million.

Lawmakers yesterday took a budget axe to water, air and other environmental programs. Dozens of environmental and natural resource enforcement officers will be cut from an already barebones enforcement staff. Moreover, the new DNR will not only take on what’s left of environmental programs. It is also now shouldered with managing museums, art and library programs as part of the elimination of another state agency in the 2010 budget.
“Somehow the Legislature found $6 million to fund the state fair, but Michigan’s Great Lakes legacy is flushed down the drain,” said David Holtz of Progress Michigan. “That’s not Pure Michigan. That’s pure B.S.”

Said Woiwode: “Michigan residents have to wonder the next time a stash of barrels containing toxic chemicals are found in their neighborhood, will there be anyone to respond to the call for help? That’s the DEQ’s job. What will happen the next time toxic yellow fumes begin billowing out of a nearby factory? It’s DEQ’s job to respond to these emergencies. Already, funding cuts have prevented the DEQ from stopping disasters like the destruction of 12 miles of the Black River from an animal factory sewage discharge. What will happen with more cuts?”

State Agency Deals a Death Blow to Coal Plants

MPSC staff says no need for new coal plants in Michigan until at least 2022

LANSING – Concerned citizens declared a major victory today after the Michigan Public Service Commission staff dealt a death blow to two controversial dirty coal plant projects, rejecting in a filing today the construction of one in Rogers City and delaying a decision on a second one in Bay City until 2022.

“These critical decisions mean Michigan is ready to open the door to clean energy jobs and walk away from dirty coal,” Sierra Club-Michigan Executive Director Anne Woiwode said. “For years, the people of Michigan spoke loud and clear: No more dirty coal and yes to clean renewable energy. And dirty coal and yes to clean renewable energy. And today, the citizens of Michigan have a much- deserved victory in the fight to build a strong, clean energy future.”

Environmental leaders credited a portion of today’s victory to Governor Granholm’s decision last year to submit the coal decision to a rigorous review by Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) staff and the state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

After receiving over 8,000 comments and technical filings, the MPSC staff advised the DEQ in a filing today that there is no need for the power from a proposed coal plant in Rogers City, requested by Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative. The agency staff also advised that the proposed expansion of Consumers Energy’s Karn Weadock plant in Essexville was not needed until at least 2022, five years after Consumers’ original proposed start date. The recommendations stemmed from the failure of the utilities to show that Michigan needs more energy in coming years. The utilities also failed to counter growing evidence that renewable energy and energy efficiency – and not dirty coal – could meet future needs.

“Now that we have beaten back the threat of dirty coal, Michigan can begin the work of building a full- fledged 21>st century energy future driven by clean renewable energy, and create good-paying jobs in the process,” Clean Water Action-Michigan Director Cyndi Roper said. “By 2020, Michigan will be a leader in clean energy technology, our nation will have tough new clean energy laws and stronger pollution standards will be in place. Michigan now has a tremendous opportunity to fully invest in clean energy, not dirty coal, to attract new jobs and move Michigan forward.”

“This report shows that clean energy can power Michigan’s future,” said Faith Bugel, Senior Attorney at the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “We’ve been sending our money down a mineshaft for too long. Moving away from outdated coal power will build our economy and protect our environment. The citizens of Michigan deserve applause for standing up for a clean energy future.”

Thousands of comments were submitted in opposition to the development of the Rogers City and Bay City new dirty coal plants in Michigan. Citizens groups have repeatedly called on the government to reject permits to build new plants and invest instead in clean energy. A final decision on whether to grant Clean Air Act permits to Wolverine and Consumers Energy rests with the state Department of Environmental Quality, which promises a ruling by the end of the year.

According to a new report by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Michigan can meet its energy needs through a combination of wind power, biomass, and other renewable energy sources biomass, and other renewable energy sources coupled with aggressive energy efficiency programs. [1] The report was issued as the Michigan Public Service Commission prepares to make recommendations to the Department of Environmental Quality on the need for power and availability of cleaner alternative to coal, following the end of a public comments period. Among the NRDC’s findings:

• Energy efficiency program alone could save Michigan $3 billion in electricity costs over the next 20 years. Michigan’s previous energy plan, written in 2007, is out of date, with unrealistic projections of future electrical demand, limited implementation of energy efficiency and renewable energy, and reliance on outdated 20th century coal technologies. 
• Clean renewable energy is less expensive, cleaner, faster, more economically robust, and creates more jobs in Michigan than a 20th century plan based on new but obsolete large power plants driven by fossil fuels.

[1] Natural Resources Defense Council, “A Green Energy Alternative for Michigan http://docs.nrdc.org/energy/ene_09081101.asp

Citizens urge Granholm to reject dirty coal amid public opposition

Natural Resources Defense Council, “A Green Energy Alternative for Michigan,”
http://docs.nrdc.org/energy/ene_09081101.asp

Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009

New study shows Michigan benefits all around from clean energy, energy efficiency as thousands oppose dirty coal projects

Lansing – With 8,000 citizens opposing the development of new dirty coal plants in Michigan, citizens groups are calling on Gov. Jennifer Granholm to reject permits to build new plants and invest instead in clean energy – something a landmark new report recommends could jumpstart Michigan’s economy and create jobs.

The public comment period for the last of two coal plant proposals ended Monday and now a decision on the plants rests with the Granholm administration.

“The people of Michigan have spoken and the message is loud and clear: No dirty coal, more clean renewable energy, “ Clean Water Action–Michigan Executive Director Cyndi Roper said. “Gov. Jennifer Granholm slowed the rush to build new coal plants by forcing the coal and power industry to prove there were no feasible and prudent alternatives to meet Michigan’s energy needs – and they failed. Now we call on her to take the only possible next step and that’s rejecting the two dirty coal plant proposals in Rogers City by Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative and Bay City by Consumers Energy. We also call on her to help set in motion the decommissioning of some existing dirty coal plants owned by Consumers Energy that the company identifies as the ‘oldest fleet in the nation.’ ”

According to a new report by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Michigan can meet its energy needs through a combination of wind power, biomass, and other renewable energy sources coupled with aggressive energy efficiency programs. The report comes as the Michigan Public Service Commission prepares to make recommendations to the Department of Environmental Quality on the need for power and availability of cleaner alternative to coal, following the end of a public comments period. Among the NRDC’s findings:

• Energy efficiency program alone could save Michigan $3 billion in electricity costs over the next 20 years.
  
• Michigan’s previous energy plan, written in 2007, is out of date, with unrealistic projections of future electrical demand, limited implementation of energy efficiency and renewable energy, and reliance on outdated 20th century coal technologies.
  
• Clean renewable energy is less expensive, cleaner, faster, more economically robust, and creates more jobs in Michigan than a 20th century plan based on new but obsolete large power plants driven by fossil fuels.
  

“Gov. Jennifer Granholm has the opportunity to set Michigan on the path to clean energy and away from building any new dirty coal plants that will send Michigan backwards,” said Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Director Anne Woiwode. “The governor has been leading the charge to turn Michigan into a hub of clean energy production for the nation. Doing so will create thousands of jobs in the rapidly growing field of renewable energy and protect our land, air and water. It’s a win-win for Michigan – and this landmark new Natural Resources Defense Council report shows how.”

The citizens groups called on Granholm to put the final nail in the coffin for the new coal plant projects in Michigan after the DEQ ended public comments on the proposed Bay City coal plant on August 11 and one in Rogers City Monday. At one point, Michigan faced up to eight possible new coal plants – more than any other state. Intense public pressure campaigns prevented a rubber stamp of at least three coal projects, including Rogers City and Bay City. Citizens also called on the governor to begin decommissioning Consumers Energy’s oldest, most polluting coal plants.

“Closing the door to coal plants will protect public health and create 21st Century clean energy jobs,” Progress Michigan Executive Director David Holtz said. “Governor Jennifer Granholm has led the charge to build a clean energy future for Michigan. She can help us win the battle against dirty coal once and for all by walking away from coal permanently and investing our resources and our talents in wind, solar and other forms of renewable clean energy.”

Clean Water Action, Sierra Club and NRDC were joined by a number of other organizations in challenging the proposed coal permits, including the Environmental Law & Policy Center. 

House Agriculture Passes Meaningless Animal Welfare Bills

Sierra Club Press Statement by Gayle Miller, Legislative Director

Today the House Agriculture Committee passed a package of so-called Animal Welfare bills over the strong objections of the environmental community, the Michigan Farmers Union representing small, non-industrialized farms, the State Bar of Michigan, faith groups, animal welfare organizations and more. Four of the six democrats on the committee opposed the bills or passed when the vote was taken.
The bills set up an expensive and unnecessary regulatory process requiring all farms in the state – from animal factories on down to hobby farmers – to hire auditors to oversee the way they care for their animals. The farm audit system established in the bills specifies that the auditor work for the farm, and not the people of Michigan, creating an immediate conflict of interest. What’s worse, all information collected by the auditor stays on the farm, guaranteeing that the public can learn nothing about the food they eat.

After four hours of vigorous debate in the committee, and vocal opposition by Rep. Vicki Barnett (D-Farmington Hills), even the Department of Agriculture agreed that the state already has the authority to require better standards for animal welfare. The bills, however, actually put implementation of existing animal welfare standards on hold until 2020, delaying compliance with care standards that should already be in place – meaning the bills are a stall tactic.

Representatives Barnett and Valentine (D-Muskegon) urged Chairman Simpson (D-Jackson) to postpone a vote on the bills so that a workgroup could be established that would include a broader section of the public and farming community. However, the bills as passed by the Committee today were negotiated behind closed doors between the Chairman, the Farm Bureau and industrial producer groups. Other groups were not invited.

The Sierra Club is particularly concerned with the self-regulatory audit program. Similar programs suggesting how animal factories operate have for years enabled CAFOs to cause severe air and water pollution in rural communities while preventing rural residents and communities from protecting their public health.

Fundamentally the package of bills is designed to keep the public from knowing how their food is produced. The horrific conditions often found within animal factories will not be solved by this package, but will instead allow business to continue as usual. The public will have less, not more, information and confidence in the quality of their food if these bills pass.

People who have first-hand knowledge of CAFO-style food production are seeking alternatives – thus the boom in farm markets and direct, farm-to-consumer marketing. Unfortunately, the small producers feeding these hungry markets will be unfairly burdened by these new regulations.

The Farm Bureau and industrial agriculture have fought meaningful regulation for years. The fact that these groups are now asking for additional regulation should raise a red flag. 

Sierra Club is OPPOSED to these bills

Position Statement

SBs 13, 431, 434 – 436 and 438 – 439: MDEQ “Reform”

Votes pertaining to these bills may be included on the Sierra Club’s legislative scorecard.

Issue Background
These bills purport to “reform” the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) as follows:

• SB 13 – Requires State Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules (SOAHR) to analyze each new rule proposed by a regulatory agency to see if it exceeds federal standards, etc.
  
• SB 431 – Requires SOAHR to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of each new proposed rule and deny rulemaking that exceeds federal standards
  
• SB 434 – Prohibits Michigan from enacting environmental protections stronger than federal law and limits regulatory actions and rulemaking
  
• SB 435 – requires regular review of rules to assess impact on small businesses, etc.
  
• SB 436 – Shifts permitting activities to private contractors working for the permit
  applicant and requires MDEQ to rush permitting activities.
  
• SB 438 requires the MDEQ to use stratified random sampling for inspections of
  permitted facilities.
  
• SB 439 – Requires a benchmark analysis of MDEQ regulatory programs administered
  by a newly created review board

Sierra Club Perspective
For years there have been attempts by certain lawmakers and some factions of the regulated community to undermine the MDEQ’s ability to do its job of protecting of Michigan’s valuable natural resources and the health of the public. This package of bills is no different.

Despite the fact that the MDEQ continues to face crushing budget shortfalls, recent surveys indicate that the majority of the regulated community is very satisfied with the service they obtain from the agency.

These bills would have devastating impacts on environmental protections in Michigan, putting both public health and the environment at risk. They would tie the MDEQ in knots, with mountains of regulatory red tape, and put industry in charge of regulating itself.

These bills will do nothing to improve the MDEQ’s ability to do its job. On the contrary, they are designed to cripple the agency. They also constitute a huge waste of the state’s scarce financial resources.

Michigan must not abdicate its authority over environmental protection to the federal government. Our state must maintain both the authority and the funding to protect citizens, our air quality, the Great Lakes, and Michigan’s other natural resources. If we do otherwise, the theme of “Pure Michigan” will become nothing more than a joke.

Please contact the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter office at (517) 484-2372 for more information. June 17, 2009 

100 Coal Plants Prevented or Abandoned, Including 3 in Michigan

Movement Sparks Shift to Cleaner Energy

and Over 400 Million Fewer Tons of CO2

Contacts:
Anne Woiwode, Lansing 517-484-2372
Tiffany Hartung, SE Michigan and Bay City 248-549-6213
Lee Sprague, Northern and Western Michigan 616-570-1281
Jan O’Connell, Holland and Grand Rapids 616-956-6646

Washington, DC: As of today 100 coal plants have been defeated or abandoned since the beginning of the coal rush this century, including the Tondu Northern Lights Plant proposal in Manistee, the LS Power MidMichigan Energy plant proposal, and Northern Michigan University’s proposed heating plant in Marquette. In their place, a smart mix of clean energy solutions like energy efficiency, wind, solar and geothermal has stepped up to meet America’s energy needs. Last year 42 percent of all new power producing capacity came from wind, and for the first time the wind industry created more jobs than mining coal. Despite Michigan’s difficult economic situation, wind and solar energy manufacturing has been one of the bright spots for job creation in the state.

Coming just a week after Los Angeles, CA, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced the city would end coal use by 2020, and announced the same day as a decision by Basin Electric Power in South Dakota to pull plans for a new coal-fired power plant, the Intermountain Power coal plant in Utah became the 100th prevented coal plant. The decision marks a significant milestone in the shift to clean energy.

“The shift has clearly started toward a cleaner, healthier, more secure future,” said Tiffany Hartung, Associate Regional Representative for the Sierra Club in Royal Oak. “The decisions not to pursue three plants in Michigan already have opened the path for our state to be a vital part of a new economy powered by clean energy. But that path could be blocked if Consumers Energy, Wolverine Power Supply and Holland Board of Public Works are allowed to build their proposed plants.”

For the past six years the Sierra Club and its allies have been running a hard-hitting campaign to expose the dirty truth about coal. Tremendous grassroots pressure, rising costs, and upcoming federal carbon regulations all contributed to the demise of the 100 plants. In Michigan the Clean Energy Now coalition has turned out hundreds of volunteers to public hearings, held rallies and met with officials to push for cleaner alternatives to the eight proposed coal plants proposed during the past two years. Governor Granholm has responded to these concerns by requiring that these plants show whether alternatives to coal, including energy efficiency, would meet Michigan’s needs better than building expensive, dirty new coal plants.

The proposed Consumers Energy Karn Weadock Plant expansion, the Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative proposed Rogers City plant and the Holland Board of Public Works proposed plant expansion would add more than 8,000,000 tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere each year, more than 100 pounds of mercury, and more than 1,500 tons of lung damaging soot. These plants would not only damage the Great Lakes, Michigan’s fisheries and the health of young and old living nearby, they would take away funds for investment in energy efficiency and clean, renewable energy sources with job creation in Michigan.

"The growing opposition to the remaining six coal plant proposals* in Michigan is just one part of a growing nationwide movement,” said Lee Sprague, Sierra Club Michigan Clean Energy Campaign Manager. “It’s clear that the American people are ready for a switch to the clean energy technologies that can help repower our economy.”

That movement has kept well over 400 million tons of harmful global warming pollution out of the air annually, making significant progress in the fight against global warming. Stopping 100 new coal plants has also kept thousands of tons of asthma causing soot and smog pollution, as well as toxins like mercury out of our air and water.

As the new coal rush ends in many states the Sierra Club is working to replace existing dirty and unreliable coal plants that are large contributors to health harming soot, smog and mercury pollution with cleaner energy options that create more jobs.

“The coal industry right here in Michigan is still pushing forward with plans for a half dozen new plants and pouring money into slick advertising campaigns and lobbying efforts in Lansing and statewide,” said Jan O’Connell, Sierra Club Energy Issues Organizer in Grand Rapids. “So while the coal rush may be entering a new phase in some parts of the country, it is far from over here.”

For more, visit www.sierraclub.org/100coalplants .
For more about what’s happening in Michigan visit Clean Energy Now and Stop the MichiganCoal Rush

* In addition to Consumers Energy Karn Weadock, Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative and Holland Board of Public Works, three other plant proposals have yet to be cancelled: Lansing Board of Water and Light, Alma M&M Energy, and Tondu’s Filer Township plant expansion proposal.