by Jessica Helm
Our Chapter’s top conservation priority is energy. Here in New York, that means we work on a number of distinct but related issues which come down to promoting renewable energy and efficiency and stopping dirty energy such as hydraulic fracturing and the Spectra Pipeline into New York City, aging nuclear power plants such as Indian Point, and coal plants such as the Samuel J. Carlson plant in Jamestown.
Hydrofracking
Our Gas Drilling Task Force mobilized members and the public to submit numerous written comments to the DEC for the recently ended dSGEIS comment period, and are responsible for numerous visits, letters, and calls to legislators. We are changing the status quo on fracking in New York for the better. Our Spectra Pipeline Task Force oversees our involvement in the Spectra Pipeline FERC proceedings—working with the national gas campaign and the New Jersey chapter we filed a motion to intervene and submitted comments on the draft environmental impact statement.
Nuclear
The Chapter’s longtime legal efforts to make Indian Point comply with federal safety standards yielded results recently when the NRC reversed itself and denied multiple safety exemptions granted to Entergy for Indian Point. Represented pro bono by former Assemblyman Richard Brodsky and joined by the Westchester Citizens Awareness Network, the Chapter has been involved in an administrative appeal and multiple lawsuits and appeals against the NRC over these exemptions. The Indian Point Task Force promotes awareness of the risks of continued operation of the Indian Point nuclear reactors through education and activism such as rallies, hearings and the upcoming “Fukushima Week.” Following January hearings in New York City, the State Assembly Committee on Energy found that Indian Point could be shut down “without overburdening ratepayers or threatening reliability standards.”
Coal
The Chapter has continued to support efforts by local organizations to close the Samuel J. Carlson coal burning power plant in Jamestown. Additional efforts to shut this and other coal-burning plants in the state is being coordinated by the Beyond Coal Committee in conjunction with the national Beyond Coal campaign, and hiring has begun on a staff position for this purpose in western New York.
Renewable energy and efficiency
The Chapter recently completed a white paper on the role of a CLEAN program or feed-in tariff for New York, see the article on page 9. Following close behind energy is our second Chapter priority, water. Most of our efforts on water in New York are focused on protecting watersheds, because surface water is both a major source of drinking water and necessary for ecologic health. Below are some of our activities.
Water testing
Water Sentinels teams have begun testing surface water in New York as previously reported. Some donations have arrived in response to my earlier appeal, bringing us closer to being able to hire a part time trainer/ coordinator, essential to expanding our efforts (limited training capacity has proven to be a bottleneck). Additional support is needed.
Haverstraw Bay desalinization plant
The Chapter is supporting the Lower Hudson Group and local partners in opposing a desalinization plant in Haverstraw Bay. This bay is designated as significant habitat and is critical to fish spawning. The ongoing dredging required would mobilize toxins buried in the mud, and the plant would be a significant power drain at a time when we are trying to shut down Indian Point and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Bellayre
Longstanding efforts continue to stop new developments from being constructed on Bellayre mountain, with next steps awaiting the release of an environmental impact statement. Development on Bellayre would negatively impact the New York City watershed and set a bad precedent for future development.
Population
Our third conservation priority is population. The burden of a growing human population underlies most of our global environmental problems, and our Population Committee is working to educate New York residents on this connection. The committee plans to offer class presentations and an essay contest on the population/environment problem to high school students around the state.