Sobering news about the long-term effects of fine particulate matter in the air:

As many as 24,000 deaths annually in California are linked to chronic exposure to fine particulate pollution, triple the previous official estimate of 8,200, according to state researchers. The revised figures are based on a review of new research across the nation about the hazards posed by microscopic particles, which sink deep into the lungs.

“Our report concludes these particles are 70% more dangerous than previously thought, based on several major studies that have occurred in the last five years,” said Bart Croes, chief researcher for the California Air Resources Board. Croes will present his findings at a board meeting in Fresno this morning.

The studies, including one by USC tracking 23,000 people in greater Los Angeles, and another by the American Cancer Society monitoring 300,000 people across the United States, have found rates of heart attacks, strokes and other serious disease increase exponentially after exposure to even slightly higher amounts of metal or dust. It is difficult to attribute individual deaths to particulate pollution, Croes conceded, but he said long-term studies that account for smoking, obesity and other risks have increasingly zeroed in on fine particulate pollution as a killer.

What are the primary sources of fine particulate pollution? According to the World Health Organization:

“Short-term epidemiological studies suggest that a number of source types are associated with health effects, especially motor vehicle emissions, and also coal combustion. These sources produce primary as well as secondary particles, both of which have been associated with adverse health effects. One European cohort study focused on traffic-related air pollution specifically, and suggested the importance of this source of PM. Toxicological studies have shown that particles originating from internal combustion engines, coal burning, residual oil combustion and wood burning have strong inflammatory potential.

Translation: we now have even more compelling health reasons to reduce vehicle-miles traveled by car and not build any new coal-fired power plants in Iowa.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has more information about fine particulate levels in our state.

Time for another post on transportation policy. Today I’ll go over reasons to give Americans more alternatives to driving, as well as ways individuals can reduce their own vehicle-miles traveled.

One way of looking at the issue is to assess the cost of not changing our transportation policy. James Howard Kunstler sounds the alarm in a Washington Post editorial published on Sunday. His piece, called “Driving Toward Disaster,” addresses

the desperate wish to keep our “Happy Motoring” utopia running by means other than oil and its byproducts. But the truth is that no combination of solar, wind and nuclear power, ethanol, biodiesel, tar sands and used French-fry oil will allow us to power Wal-Mart, Disney World and the interstate highway system — or even a fraction of these things — in the future. We have to make other arrangements.

[…]

And that’s the worst part of our quandary: the American public’s narrow focus on keeping all our cars running at any cost. Even the environmental community is hung up on this. The Rocky Mountain Institute has been pushing for the development of a “Hypercar” for years — inadvertently promoting the idea that we really don’t need to change.

Years ago, U.S. negotiators at a U.N. environmental conference told their interlocutors that the American lifestyle is “not up for negotiation.” This stance is, unfortunately, related to two pernicious beliefs that have become common in the United States in recent decades. The first is the idea that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true. (Oprah Winfrey advanced this notion last year with her promotion of a pop book called “The Secret,” which said, in effect, that if you wish hard enough for something, it will come to you.) One of the basic differences between a child and an adult is the ability to know the difference between wishing for things and actually making them happen through earnest effort.

[…]

Fixing the U.S. passenger railroad system is probably the one project we could undertake right away that would have the greatest impact on the country’s oil consumption. The fact that we’re not talking about it — especially in the presidential campaign — shows how confused we are. The airline industry is disintegrating under the enormous pressure of fuel costs. Airlines cannot fire any more employees and have already offloaded their pension obligations and outsourced their repairs. At least five small airlines have filed for bankruptcy protection in the past two months. If we don’t get the passenger trains running again, Americans will be going nowhere five years from now.

Though many Americans may still be in denial about the need to improve other modes of travel, the message is becoming more mainstream every day.

A case in point is this long column by Rox Laird on the front page of the Sunday Des Moines Register’s opinion section: Mapping our future: Look to past for city life without cars. Laird made an excellent case for developing better alternatives to driving in the Des Moines metropolitan area. I recommend reading the whole column.

As a companion piece, the Des Moines Register’s editorial board published a call to change our transportation agenda:

The Des Moines MPO is beginning work on a plan that will set the transportation agenda for the next 30 years. The process – which begins with a public hearing this week (see accompanying box for details) – is an opportunity for local leaders to reconsider the traditional focus on accommodating automobiles and to focus more on better accommodating alternatives, such as buses, ride-sharing, vanpooling, bicycling and walking.

The reality is that in a Midwestern city like Des Moines, the automobile for at least the foreseeable future will remain the dominant mode of transportation. For better or worse, we have designed our cities around cars, and driving our own personal vehicle is the preferred means of transportation for most.

Still, it is time for transportation planning to include more opportunities for people to park the car and walk, cycle, roller-skate or catch a bus or a trolley for many short trips. That could be possible even with modest changes in the plans for residential and commercial districts. These small changes could have a significant impact on fuel consumption, greenhouse-gas emissions and personal fitness.

It will take time to rebuild our passenger rail system and improve public transit, walking and bicycling options within cities.

If you want to take immediate action to reduce the vehicle miles you travel by car, a fast and effective way is to start carpooling. This feature article from Cityview profiles Ann Pashek, who estimates that she saves about $4,500 on gas alone by using the Des Moines Area Regional Transit’s rideshare program to commute to her downtown Des Moines job from her home in Winterset. She also saves money on parking and vehicle maintenance.

My brother-in-law carpools to work most days in Washington, DC, and saves a lot of money as well. An added incentive in the Washington area is the high-occupancy vehicle lane on the beltway. Making one of the lanes on I-235 a high-occupancy vehicle lane would quickly increase the number of commuters carpooling to work.

Click on that feature article from Cityview to read about four other ways you can get around while dramatically reducing your gas usage.

On a related note, Markos put up a post this weekend about Walk Score, a site that evaluates your home’s location in terms of the ability to reach various kinds of amenities on foot. Markos noted that his home in the Bay Area scored an 88 (out of a possible 100), while George W. Bush’s Prairie Chapel ranch scored a zero.

My house in Windsor Heights (an inner-ring suburb of Des Moines) scored 48, although I noticed that the list of walkable amenities the site drew up did not include the Windsor Heights Hy-Vee under the grocery section. So your Walk Score might not be completely accurate. Still, it should give you an idea of how good your neighborhood is for pedestrians.

Another very useful web-based tool is the Housing + Transportation Affordability Index, developed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology and the Center for Transit Oriented Development.

The concept is simple:

Planners, lenders, and most consumers traditionally measure housing affordability as 30 percent or less of income. The Housing + Transportation Affordability Index, in contrast, takes into account not just the cost of housing, but also the intrinsic value of place, as quantified through transportation costs.

By clicking this link, you can check statistics for 52 different metro areas in the U.S. (unfortunately, no Iowa cities made the cut). It’s easy to see how certain parts of a big metropolitan area look more affordable if you are only considering housing costs, but are relatively more expensive once you factor in transportation costs as well.

But what if you don’t like walking, carpooling, bicycling or taking the bus, and you’re wealthy enough that you don’t feel the pinch when you fill up your tank?

Remember that a smart transportation policy, which reduces vehicle-miles traveled, is an essential part of any comprehensive strategy to combat global warming.

Smart Growth America has tons of information on this at their website, including a link to the report “Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change.”

The number of vehicle miles traveled per capita in the U.S. has increased at three times the rate of population growth in recent decades. Continued increases in vehicle miles traveled threaten to wipe out any reduction in carbon-dioxide emissions we could achieve by improving mileage or using cleaner fuels.

Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Tom Carper (D-DE) have introduced the Complete Streets Act of 2008 in the Senate. Norm Coleman (R-MN) is also a co-sponsor. Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA) has introduced a companion bill in the House called the Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2008. Please urge your representatives in Congress to co-sponsor this important legislation.

Final note: I read in March that George W. Bush’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2009 would cover a projected shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund by taking money away from public transportation projects.

I have to ask, is there any policy this president doesn’t get wrong?

We already devote way too little funding to public transit compared to road-building. Here’s hoping that rising gas prices will prompt the Democratic-controlled Congress to put more money, not less, into public transportation projects.

The Iowa Environmental Council sent out this message today, asking citizens to weigh in with the Department of Natural Resources on the need to implement Antidegradation Rules.

Most people are not aware that Iowa has never implemented such rules, even though the federal Clean Water Act requires it.

The IEC’s message includes more background information as well as a sample letter you can e-mail to the appropriate person at the DNR.

As always, it’s better if you can put such written communications in your own words rather than copying and pasting the sample text.

Iowa lakes, rivers and streams:

Waste receptacles or natural resources belonging to the people of Iowa?

In Iowa, as in other states, we have a state agency which grants wastewater discharge permits to regulated businesses, industries and municipalities, giving them permission to dump pollution in our rivers and streams. State-established water quality standards and the current condition of the water at the point of pollution discharge determine how much pollution will be allowed to be discharged.

Water quality standards, as currently implemented in Iowa, determine the maximum amount of pollution allowed before the water becomes so polluted that the public health or health of aquatic life is threatened. Iowa Water quality “standards” are lines that pollutant levels cannot cross without harming drinking water, people who swim in the water, people who eat the fish, etc.

It is important that Iowans realize that Iowa’s current water quality standards are not actually preserving good water quality in Iowa, but, in fact, are allowing our waters to border on the brink of disgust. That’s why Antidegradation Rules are so important.

Antidegradation Rules are required by the federal Clean Water Act, but have never been implemented in Iowa. In essence, these rules ensure that no new pollution is allowed which would lower the water quality below its current level, unless that new pollution is determined to be necessary (no reasonable alternative exists) and it is a byproduct of something important for the economic and social development in the community. Area citizens must decide if the public benefits of the project justify the loss of water quality.

Because of our state’s failure to implement Antidegradation Rules, industries, businesses and municipalities in Iowa may have the impression that our rivers, streams and lakes are waste receptacles. They may believe that they have a right to dump pollution into these “waste receptacles” until the line-the water quality standard-is crossed. And, in practice, that is exactly the right they have been granted if they hold an Iowa permit to discharge pollution.

But Iowa waters belong to the citizens of Iowa. Under the federal Clean Water Act, citizens have the legal right to demand that our state preserve good water quality in our lakes, rivers and streams. Iowa citizens have the right to demand that we wait no longer to implement Antidegradation Rules in Iowa.

Last October the Iowa Environmental Council petitioned the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to implement antidegradation rules in Iowa. As a result of that petition, the state is now moving forward to develop Antidegradation Rules that will assure that current water quality will be maintained wherever possible. Formal rulemaking is expected to begin in July 2008 and to be finalized in early 2009. But stakeholder meetings have already begun.

Iowans value their lakes, streams and rivers for recreation and drinking water. With the Iowa Department of Natural Resources finally beginning the process of making Antidegradation Rules, many Iowans are speaking out to ensure that the water quality in their favorite lake, stream or river will be preserved. Please consider personalizing and sending the letter below…

Lori McDaniel

Supervisor, Water Quality Bureau

Iowa Department of Natural Resources

502 East 9th Street

Des Moines, IA 50319-0034

Lori.McDaniel AT dnr.iowa.gov

RE: Antidegradation Rules

Dear Ms. McDaniel,

I am writing to express my support for strong antidegradation rules which protect all of Iowa’s high quality waters.  It is important that we do not allow further degradation of these precious resources.

Please add me to your email list to receive information as the rules move forward.  I’m especially interested in dates scheduled for public comment.

Thank you for your consideration of this request.

Sincerely, (end of letter)

UPDATE: Some people I spoke with this afternoon were confused by this message and thought it came from Lori McDaniel.

To be clear, the message about water quality in Iowa, and the need for Antidegradation Rules, came from the Iowa Environmental Council.

Lori McDaniel is the person at DNR to whom written comments should be addressed.

Please post a comment if you know of any noteworthy event I’ve left out.

Democrats, please let me know about your upcoming meet-and-greets, fundraisers, town hall meetings or candidate forums by e-mailing desmoinesdem AT yahoo.com.

Monday, May 19:

Ed Fallon will appear on Iowa Public Radio (WOI 640 AM) between 10:00 – 11:00 am. He will be interviewed by Jeneane Beck and will take questions from callers.

Fallon will hold an event at Gateway West Park, 14th and Locust in downtown Des Moines at 3:00 PM. The event will kick off Fallon’s blitz of 12 counties the next day for his ‘New Energy for Iowa Tour.’ At the event, and during the tour, Fallon will announce a major new Congressional proposal he plans to champion if elected to Congress that will greatly benefit both Iowa’s environment and rural economy.

The Iowa Global Warming Campaign, Sierra Club and I-Renew are hosting a free film screening of “Global Warming: the Signs and the Science,” a film that uses expert dialogues on global warming to talk about how we can reverse its course. After the film, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and participate in a discussion about the film and related issues. Refreshments provided. The “Every Day is Earth Day” event will take place from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at the Dubuque Public Library, 360 W. 11th St. @ Locust St. Dubuque.

Tuesday, May 20:

Barack and Michelle Obama are holding a rally at E. 6th Street and E. Locust Street in Des Moines, IA (on the west side of the capitol). Doors open at 7:30 pm. **Public Entrance at E. 6th Street and Grand Avenue** The event is free and open to the public. Tickets are not required but an RSVP is strongly encouraged. To RSVP please visit http://www.barackobama.com/.

Also on May 20, Ed Fallon is doing events in all 12 counties of Iowa’s third Congressional district:

7 am to 7:25 am

Knoxville Courthouse/Bandstand

214 E. Main St., Knoxville

8:00 am to 8:25 am

Chariton Courthouse Lawn (NE Corner)

916 Braden St., Chariton

9:00 am to 9:25 am

Albia Courthouse/Bandstand

10 Benton Ave. E., Albia

10:00 am to 10:25 am

Oskaloosa Town-square Bandstand

106 S. 1st St., Oskaloosa

11:00 am to 11:25 am

Sigourney Courthouse/Bandstand

101 S. Main St., Sigourney

12:15 pm to 12:40 pm

Marengo City Hall/Gazebo

152 E. Main St., Marengo

1:15 pm to 1:40 pm

Vinton Courthouse Lawn

111 E. 4th St., Vinton

2:45 pm to 3:10 pm

Grundy Center Courthouse/Bandstand

706 G. Ave., Grundy Center

4:00 pm to 4:25 pm

Toledo Courthouse/Bandstand

100 W. High St., Toledo

5:00 pm to 5:25 pm

Grinnell

Saint’s Rest Café

919 Broad St., Grinnell

6:00 pm to 6:20 pm

Newton

Uncle Nancy’s Coffee

114 N. 2nd Ave W., Newton

For his final event of the day, Ed will attend the Obama rally in Des Moines.

Windsor Heights Mayor Jerry Sullivan, Democratic candidate for House district 59, is having a meet the candidate event hosted by Clive Mayor Les Aasheim from 5 pm to 7 pm at the Clive Aquatic Center, 1801 NW 114th St in Clive.

One Iowa is holding a volunteer workshop at 6 pm. This is one of seven volunteer workshops to be held over the next month. These workshops will be a chance for you to sign up for shifts at Pride this June!  There will be a quick overview and training session to let you know about what the different volunteer needs and roles will be, where to check in and check out during Pride, and how this process will work.  Immediately following will be a chance for you to ask any questions you may have and to sign up for volunteer shifts.

To sign up for the May 20 volunteer workshop, RSVP here: http://eqfed.org/oneiowa/event…

Wednesday, May 21:

The spring 2008 Polk County Water Quality Snapshot is the fifth year of sampling water quality in rivers and streams in Polk County. Organized by the Iowa Environmental Council and Des Moines Water Works, the snapshot is conducted twice a year in the spring and fall. This year over 30 volunteers will help test over 70 sites on rivers, streams and lakes throughout the county. On Wednesday, May 21, from 8:30-9:30 a.m., volunteers will gather at the Izaak Walton League, at 4343 George Flagg Parkway, for a quick refresher course on water quality testing. At 9:30 groups of volunteers will leave with testing equipment, maps and directions to testing sites. Testing will be completed by 2 p.m. Wednesday.

John Scarpino, Candidate for Polk County Supervisor, District 2, is holding a campaign kickoff reception from 6 pm to 8 pm at Traditions Restaurant, 1509 S Ankeny Blvd in Ankeny. RSVP to Rick Singleton at 515-967-4245 or email Scarpino4Super@aol.com

Jerry Sullivan is holding a special event from 6 pm to 8 pm at the Walnut Creek Inn, 1258 8th St in West Des Moines. Please RSVP to Mike McCall at mmcall AT iowademocrats.org. Suggested donation $25 (host and sponsor levels higher).

Thursday, May 22:

One Iowa is holding another volunteer workshop (see explanation above) at 6 pm. To RSVP for this one, click here: http://eqfed.org/oneiowa/event…

Friday, May 23:

Free concert of Belin Quartet (classical string ensemble) beginning shortly after noon in Nollen Plaza, 3rd and Locust, downtown Des Moines.

Saturday, May 24:

This is the deadline to register to vote if you want to vote by mail in the June 3 primary. (If you are voting in person, you can register on the same day as the primary, but you will need to bring ID and proof of your address, such as a utility bill.)

Whiterock Conservancy and the Iowa Natural History Association are holding a weekend “BioBlitz”:

Whiterock BioBlitz 2008

1:00pm May 24-1:00pm May 25

Please join Whiterock Conservancy and Iowa Natural History Association for the Whiterock BioBlitz, a full day of exploration and learning!

A Biodiversity Blitz, or “Bio-Blitz” consists of a rapid assessment of what lives in a specific area at a given point in time. During the 24-hour BioBlitz at Whiterock Conservancy, teams led by biologists and staffed by novices and enthusiasts will explore the huge 4,300-acre Whiterock Conservancy-managed landscape and document every single species they find. BioBlitz participants will take part in the forays, using the “more eyes will find more species” approach. At the end of the 24-hour period, a comprehensive inventory of Whiterock’s plants, birds, insects, fungi, fishes, lichens, bryophytes, mammals, snails, amphibians, and reptiles will be closer to complete. The Whiterock BioBlitz is open to all members of the public to come explore Iowa’s largest land gift and one of Iowa’s newest and most unexplored treasures. Families with children are welcome as long as kids are willing to walk and parents can concurrently keep a skilled eye on both offspring and butterflies, reptiles, mollusks, etc.

CRITICAL INFO

Registration: Form attached-please fill out and return to Whiterock Conservancy

Headquarters: Whiterock Conservancy Campground

Time Frame: 1:00 pm. May 24 – 1:00 pm May 25

Accommodations: FREE TENT CAMPING (Bring camping gear)

Meals: FREE FOOD (Bring reusable silverware, plates, and cups)

What to Bring: Sturdy shoes and weather appropriate clothes, tent camping gear, reusable water bottles, binoculars, camera, flashlight.

Directions: From Coon Rapids, drive 2.2 miles east on Highway 141. Turn south onto Fig Avenue and drive 2.3 miles. The campground is located on the left before you cross over the Middle Raccoon River.

Questions: Please don’t hesitate to email or call Elizabeth Hill with questions regarding the Whiterock BioBlitz.

Yet again, Republicans are trying to sneak an amendment benefiting oil companies into otherwise good legislation. This time they are trying to use the Flood Insurance Bill as a vehicle to open up the last portions of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling.

This action alert went out on the Sierra Club e-mail list today:

This is an urgent alert: As soon as tomorrow (Tuesday), the Senate will vote on an amendment to the national Flood Insurance Bill offered by Senator Mitch McConnell (KY) and co-sponsored by Senator Pete Domenici (NM) that threatens polar bears and other wildlife.

Rather than addressing high oil prices and dependence on foreign oil by moving toward better alternatives and practical solutions, this amendment promotes more drilling in more places for more oil profits.

This is not a solution, it’s a sell off. Please take action right now…

1. Make the call. Either today or tomorrow morning, please call your Senators at one of the numbers below:

   * Tom Harkin – (202) 224-3254 or (515) 284-4574 – http://harkin.senate.gov/c/

   * Charles Grassley – (202) 224-3744 or (515) 288-1145 – http://grassley.senate.gov/pub…

If you are calling after 5:00 PM or before 8:00 AM Eastern time, please be sure to leave a message.

The rest of the action alert is after the jump. It includes more information and talking points for you to use when you make the call.

Kudos to everyone who helped make this happen:

150 IOWA LUTHERAN CHURCHES TO GO GREEN

The churches of the Southeast Iowa Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America are first denominational organization to join Iowa Interfaith Power & Light

Des Moines, IA – Under the leadership of Bishop Phil Hougen and his synod council, the 150 churches of the Southeast Iowa Lutheran Synod (SE Synod) have become the first denominational organization to join Iowa Interfaith Power & Light (Iowa IPL).  Iowa IPL is part of a national network of faith-based organizations mobilizing the religious community to become leaders in the fight against global warming.  The Synod commitment will provide each church in the partnership with training in how to become a “Cool Congregation,” an Iowa IPL stewardship program that helps solve global warming one family at a time.

What an incredible step. Not only will these churches raise awareness about global warming in the faith community, but they are likely to significantly reduce the carbon footprints of thousands of Iowa families.

The full text of the press release from Iowa Interfaith Power and Light is after the jump.

By the way, Iowa Interfaith Power and Light is currently searching for an executive director. Click here for the job listing.

As I have said before, I think Hillary Clinton was wrong to make a summer gas tax holiday the centerpiece of her campaign for several weeks. I am glad that didn’t pan out for her in the Indiana and North Carolina primaries.

However, as bad an idea as a gas tax holiday would be (delivering more profits to oil companies, not really helping consumers, not helping to reduce our demand for oil), it would only be bad for a few months.

Take a look at the ad Obama is now running in Kentucky:

Also view the direct-mail piece the Obama campaign has sent out in Kentucky.

Now, maybe Obama is only pandering to Kentucky Democrats to avoid a blowout in the May 20 primary, but my fear is that if elected he would actually follow through and invest more national resources in so-called “clean coal.”

Every new coal-fired power plant built is a 50-year investment in the wrong direction, with much worse long-term consequences for our climate and environment than any summer holiday from the federal gas tax.

Right now, I think Barack Obama can make a stronger case with the superdelegates for why they should hand him the nomination instead of giving it to Hillary Clinton. (As is clear, neither candidate can get a majority of delegates without the superdelegates.)

However, every time I inch toward hoping that Obama will win the nomination, he says or does something that alienates me. As I’ve written, Hillary’s advocacy of a gas tax holiday this summer is a major red flag for me. But I learned today that Obama has sent out a direct-mail piece in Kentucky that proclaims, “Barack Obama believes in clean Kentucky coal.” (click the link to see the design)

People, there is no such thing as clean coal. Even if they develop carbon-capture technology in the next decade, there will still be environmental problems related to coal mining and other pollution caused by burning coal. The carbon-capture itself could be problematic, if the carbon is sequestered by turning large quantities of underground water into carbonic acid.

I also have to wonder if Obama really does believe in Kentucky coal. His own energy policy calls for not expanding coal-generated power until sequestration technology is available. For a guy who usually campaigns on being able to tell Americans the truth, even if it isn’t what they want to hear, Obama sure seems to be pandering to Kentucky Democrats. One recent poll in the state shows him more than 30 points behind Clinton. He’s not going to win the May 20 primary in any case, but I’m sure he would prefer not to lose by a 2-1 margin.

If Obama is just pretending to be for “clean Kentucky coal,” that undercuts his claim to be a different kind of politician. And if he really does believe in “clean Kentucky coal,” that’s worse from my perspective.

I didn’t watch Obama’s victory speech in North Carolina tonight, but Populista put up the transcript in this diary.

Populista particularly liked this passage:

So don’t ever forget that this election is not about me, or any candidate. Don’t ever forget that this campaign is about you– about your hopes, about your dreams, about your struggles, about securing your portion of the American Dream.

But I have to say that what is wonderful to many Obama supporters couldn’t be more of a turnoff to me.

That excerpt takes me back to one of the things I disliked about Ronald Reagan in the 80s–the way he used this self-actualizing, empowering rhetoric to get people to project their hopes and dreams onto his candidacy.

I want my candidate to be standing up for the core values of the Democratic Party, which can be defined–not for every American’s hopes and dreams, which could mean anything.

What politician can really claim to stand for everyone’s hopes and dreams? Anyway, some Americans are hoping for policies that are abhorrent to me.

Sometimes Obama seems to be telling me to just believe in myself, but if I need to hear that message I can buy a self-help book or go see a psychotherapist. We need concrete actions from the president, and not just a belief that we can do anything we put our minds to.

I should add that other parts of Obama’s speech tonight, where he got specific about the policies he favors, are much more to my liking.

And this was pure John Edwards:

This is the country that allowed my father-in-law– a city worker at a South Side water filtration plant– to provide for his wife and two children on a single salary. This is a man who was diagnosed at age thirty with multiple sclerosis– who relied on a walker to get himself to work. And yet, every day he went, and he labored, and he sent my wife and her brother to one of the best colleges in the nation.  It was a job that didn’t just give him a paycheck, but a sense of dignity and self-worth. It was an America that didn’t just reward wealth, but the work and the workers who created it.

The idea of treating work and wealth fairly, and rewarding both, is exactly the frame we need to use when we talk about changing the tax code.

I also liked the way Obama said, “we can’t afford to give John McCain the chance to serve out George Bush’s third term.”

More like that, please.

Asthma has been on my mind lately, because a child in my extended family was recently diagnosed with it after going to the hospital for respiratory problems. The chronic disease is one of the leading causes of hospitalization in children.

In addition, at least 20 million American adults are estimated to have asthma.

Today is World Asthma Day, in connection with Asthma Awareness Month.

Join me after the jump to read about five policies our society should implement, as well as five steps individuals can take, to reduce the incidence and severity of asthma in our households and across the country.

I held back this diary for several days so as not to publish something written hastily in anger.

But five days after the fact, I remain disgusted that the only member of the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) to vote against the construction of a new coal-fired power plant in Marshalltown was Darrell Hanson, the lone Republican on the panel.

Putting Democrats in positions of power is supposed to be good for the environment. Unfortunately, John Norris and Krista Tanner failed to deliver “the change we need” when they voted to approve the application of the Interstate Power and Light Company (a subsidiary of Alliant Energy).

Here are few things you should know:

1. The IUB punted instead of seizing an opportunity to kill this proposal, and thousands of Iowans may suffer the consequences.

2. The conditions the IUB put on the plant’s construction may have been well-intended, but they do not eliminate the harm that would be done by burning more coal near Marshalltown.

3. It is still possible that the plant will never be built. However, that in no way excuses the IUB’s action, which prolonged this process and harmed environmental and public-health advocates, as I will explain below.

Join me after the jump for more on why IUB chairman Norris will never get my support in any Democratic primary for any office he may seek in the future.

Please put up a comment if you know of an important event I’ve left out.

Keep me posted about upcoming events by e-mailing desmoinesdem AT yahoo.com.



Monday, May 5:

Free screening of the documentary film “For the Bible Tells Me So,” which explores questions such as, “Does God really condemn loving homosexual relationships?  Is the Bible an excuse to hate?” The film will be shown at 6:30 pm at Drake University in the Parents Hall in the Olmstead Center. The documentary’s director, Daniel Karslake, will be there for a discussion after the screening. More on the movie:

Through the experiences of five very normal, Christian, American families, including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson, discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child or family member.  Includes the respected voices of Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard’s Reverend Peter Gomes, & Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg.

Tuesday, May 6:

It’s World Asthma Day in connection with Asthma Awareness Month. I mention this because thousands of Iowans will become more aware of asthma if the coal-fired power plant approved last week by the Iowa Utilities Board ever gets built in Marshalltown.

The Iowa Global Warming Campaign, Sierra Club and I-Renew are hosting a special “green” event on Tuesday, May 6, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Fairfield Public Library, 140 West Adams in Fairfield. The event offers free admission and refreshments and will feature a film screening of “Global Warming: the Signs and the Science,” a film that uses expert dialogues on global warming to talk about how we can reverse its course. After the film, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and participate in a discussion about the film and related issues.

Wallace House Foundation dialogue dinner, “The Greening of Des Moines” beginning at 6 pm. Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie, Lynnae Hentzen of the Center for Sustainable Communities, Marian Gelb from the Iowa Environmental Council, and Bob Riley from the Waterworks Board are confirmed for the event. Former Des Moines Mayor Preston Daniels will be one of the facilitators. Dialogue dinners invite community experts and residents to gather around the dinner table for a shared meal and facilitated conversation about a current issue. Reservations are required and can be made by emailing anntaylor@wallace.org or calling 515-243-7063. Cost is $20 per person for the program and catered meal. Dialogue dinners are recorded so participants must sign an authorization and release. The Wallace House Foundation is located at 756 Sixteenth Street in Des Moines.



Wednesday, May 7:

Come meet Nate Willems, candidate for Iowa House District 29, at a house party hosted by David Adelman, 2841 Gilmore Avenue in Des Moines, 5 pm to 7 pm. Suggested guest donation: $25. To RSVP, call (515) 491-1015 or e-mail willemsforhouse@hotmail.com. Willems is running for the seat being vacated by Democrat Ro Foege, who is retiring. This is an important hold. You can donate to the campaign through this page at Act Blue.

Join Ed Fallon at the Young Professionals Club gathering, starting at 5:30 pm at the Raccoon River Brew Pub, 200 10th St. Des Moines.

Thursday, May 8:

Celebrate Nurses Week with Womankind Author Nancy Harless, who will be at the Des Moines Public Library’s Central Library in downtown Des Moines at 6:30 pm. “Womankind: Connection and Wisdom Around the World” is a collection of women’s stories gained from Harless’s international nursing experiences and travels.  The Iowa nurse and author invites readers along on her real-life journey through inspiring, sometimes heart-wrenching stories. Harless will visit the library to discuss the writing of Womankind and to answer questions from the audience. Her books will be for sale by The Book Store and she will be signing them following the program.

House party for Ed Fallon at the home of Cory Ernst in Altoona. Space is limited so RSVP to Jamie at (515) 822-4284.

Reservations due for The Interfaith Alliance of Iowa Annual Award Dinner, which costs $50 and will be held on Tuesday, May 13 at the Hotel Fort Des Moines, 1000 Walnut Street in Des Moines (Reception at 6 pm, Dinner at 7 pm). The Keynote Speaker will be The Right Reverend Jane Holmes Dixon, retired Episcopal Bishop of Washington, second woman in the United States to be elevated to the office of Bishop. The Interfaith Award will be presented to Rekha Basu. The Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus will perform. For more information or to RSVP, email tiaiowa@dwx.com or call (515) 279-8715.

Women volunteers are needed to create “wellness bags” for women cancer patients, which will be distributed through John Stoddard Cancer Center and Mercy Medical Center. To volunteer for this event, which will be at Southridge Mall on May 8 from 7 pm to 9 pm, contact Kelly Thevenot at 287-3881 or Kelly.thevenot AT macerich.com.



Friday, May 9:

The Iowa Renewable Energy Association will be sponsoring a free screening of the film “Revolution Green” at the Solon Public Library (event starts at 6:30 pm, film starts at 7 pm). “Revolution Green” shows how truly sustainable biofuels are not only possible but are being made in America at this time. After the film, we will discuss the real-world experience in our own, local community of making and using sustainable biofuel. This is biofuel that consumes no food crops and cuts carbon emissions hugely. Please come and join the discussion of sustainable transportation options for our area. Popcorn and tasty tap water provided! (please bring your own bowl & cup, containers available if you forget) Save gas! Please car pool and share rides by checking www.carpoolworld.com or calling I-Renew at (319) 643-3160.

Saturday, May 10:

It’s the beginning of the sixth annual Bike to Work Week, which runs from May 10-16. Lots of information about the week’s special events, plus discounts for commuters who participate, can be found at BikeIowa’s Bike to Work website.

It’s the first day of the farmers’ market in downtown Des Moines, which runs from 7 am to 12 pm on Court Avenue and a couple of side streets. I think there will be a Bike to Work week event at the market too.

Greater Des Moines Hike To Help Refugees, starting at 11 am at Gray’s Lake in Des Moines. The event will raise money for the UN Refugee Agency and for Lutheran Services of Iowa Refugee Resettlement Program. You can participate even if you are unable to do the 4.5 mile hike. For more information, go to www.hiketohelrefugees.org.

May 10 is also World Fair Trade Day. I am not aware of any local events marking this, but click the link if you want more information or ideas about how to get involved with the fair trade movement.

On Saturday and Sunday, Greenpeace is organizing “Mommy Meetups” related to global warming all over the country. More information on that is after the jump.

A new study should give city officials new incentive to plant and preserve more trees in urban areas:

Children who live in tree-lined streets have lower rates of asthma, a New York-based study suggests.

Columbia University researchers found that asthma rates among children aged four and five fell by 25% for every extra 343 trees per square kilometre.

They believe more trees may aid air quality or simply encourage children to play outside, although they say the true reason for the finding is unclear.

The study appears in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

Hat tip to Natasha Chart, who put up a link to this article at Open Left.

Blog for Iowa published this important post from the Iowa Farmers Union about a new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists called CAFOs Uncovered: The Untold Costs of Confined Animal Feeding Operations. Here are some key findings:

Misguided federal farm policies have encouraged the growth of massive confined animal feeding operations, or CAFOs, by shifting billions of dollars in environmental, health and economic costs to taxpayers and communities […].

“CAFOs aren’t the natural result of agricultural progress, nor are they the result of rational planning or market forces,” said Doug Gurian-Sherman, a senior scientist in UCS’s Food and Environment Program and author of the report. “Ill-advised policies created them, and it will take new policies to replace them with more sustainable, environmentally friendly production methods.”

[…]

The report also details how other federal policies give CAFOs hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to address their pollution problems, which stem from the manure generated by thousands, if not tens of thousands, of animals confined in a small area. The report estimates that CAFOs have received $100 million in annual pollution prevention payments in recent years through the federal Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which was established by the 2002 Farm Bill.

“If CAFOs were forced to pay for the ripple effects of harm they have caused, they wouldn’t be dominating the U.S. meat industry like they are today,” said Margaret Mellon, director of UCS’s Food and Environment Program. “The good news is that we can institute new policies that support animal production methods that benefit society rather than harm it.”

Instead of favoring CAFOs, the report recommends that government policies provide incentives for modern production methods that benefit the environment, public health and rural communities. The report also shows that several smart alternative production methods can offer meat and dairy at costs comparable to CAFO products.

[…]

In addition to steering taxpayer dollars away from CAFOs, the report also urges Congress to enforce laws that encourage competition so alternative producers can get their meat and dairy to consumers as easily as CAFOs. Making CAFOs, rather than taxpayers, pay to prevent or clean up the pollution they create is also critical, Gurian-Sherman said.

Meanwhile, earlier this week the Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production issued its final report on “Putting Meat on The Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America.” Click the link to find links to pdf files of the executive summary and the full report. The authors concluded that “The current industrial farm animal production (IFAP) system often poses unacceptable risks to public health, the environment and the welfare of the animals themselves […].”

After outlining the harm that industrial farm animal production does to public health, the environment, animal welfare and rural communities, the Pew commission issued six important recommendations:

   1. Ban the non-therapeutic use of antimicrobials in food animal production to reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance to medically important antibiotics and other microbials.

   2. Implement a disease monitoring program for food animals to allow 48-hour trace-back of those animals through aspects of their production, in a fully integrated and robust national database.

   3. Treat IFAP as an industrial operation and implement a new system to deal with farm waste to replace the inflexible and broken system that exists today, to protect Americans from the adverse environmental and human health hazards of improperly handled IFAP waste.

   4. Phase out the most intensive and inhumane production practices within a decade to reduce the risk of IFAP to public health and improve animal wellbeing (i.e., gestation crates and battery cages).

   5. Federal and state laws need to be amended and enforced to provide a level playing field for producers when entering contracts with integrators.

   6. Increase funding for, expand and reform, animal agriculture research.

The Des Moines Register reported on Wednesday that some representatives of industrial agriculture allegedly tried to use financial leverage to influence the findings:

A Pew Commission report accuses some livestock interests of trying to disrupt a wide-ranging study of the industry by threatening to yank financing for scientists and universities.

The Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production study released Tuesday called for a vast overhaul of the industry.

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“While some agriculture representatives were recommending potential authors for the technical reports to commission staff, other industrial agriculture representatives were discourage those same authors from assisting us by threatening to withhold research funding for their college or university,” commission executive director Robert Martin wrote in the foreword of the report released after 2 1/2 years of study.

Martin didn’t detail those incidents in the report, and a spokesman declined to comment on the allegations.

[…]

The commission, which included key Iowans including the head of the University of Iowa College of Public Health, found that livestock industry powers have too much influence on how government regulates the industry. That presents too much of a public threat in the commission’s view.

The 15-member panel called for a range of actions industry groups have vehemently opposed, including local zoning of confinements, a ban on use of antibiotics as a growth enhancer and stiffer regulations on emissions on everything from manure application to how hogs are housed.

“We found significant influence by the industry at every turn: in academic research, agriculture policy development, governmental regulation, and enforcement,” the study said.

Industry pressure on scientists who study farm-related pollution has been a hot topic nationally in recent years and was detailed in a 2002 Des Moines Register report, “Ag Scientists Feel the Heat.”

Representatives of industrial agriculture have been whining that the Pew commission was biased against them from the beginning. They simply refuse to acknowledge reality when it comes to the drawbacks of CAFOs, routine use of antibiotics, and our aspects of our current food system.

It’s time to end the worst practices of CAFOs and the public policies that promote them. As the Union of Concerned Scientists points out, CAFOs would not be profitable if they had to pay for the hidden health and environmental costs of their operations.

I’ll have more to say on this later tonight, but for now I’m posting the press release I just got from the Iowa Environmental Council.

For Immediate Release: April 30, 2008

IUB Approves Dirty Coal Plant for Marshalltown

The Iowa Utilities Board said “yes,” with conditions, Wednesday to a proposal by Alliant Energy to build a 630 to 660 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Marshalltown, Iowa.

“We are disappointed that the Iowa Utilities Board and Alliant Energy are moving Iowa’s energy policy backwards with a dirty coal plant. This coal plant is simply the wrong choice for Iowa’s economy and our environment. When other states are saying no to coal plants, Iowa is risking its future as a renewable energy leader by betting on this imported and outdated energy source,” said Nathaniel Baer, energy program director for the Iowa Environmental Council.

Clean air advocates say mercury, carbon and other air pollutants still don’t have to be Iowa’s legacy as today’s IUB decision is only a first step in a decision-making process over this proposal, which includes additional decisions by the Board and by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

The Iowa Environmental Council, Community Energy Solutions, Iowa Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, Iowa Farmers Union and Iowa Renewable Energy Association were represented by the public interest law firm Plains Justice in a proceeding at the Iowa Utilities Board regarding approval of the proposal. In briefs and in testimony before the IUB, Plains Justice maintained that clean energy sources like wind and energy efficiency could meet the energy needs of Iowa consumers at a lower cost, and with considerably less environmental impact, than the proposed coal plant.

The IUB approval was conditional: Three conditions must be met as follows…

1.      The coal plant must co-fire five percent biomass within the first two years of the plant’s operation, and 10 percent biomass must be co-fired by the fifth year of operation.

2.      Alliant’s energy mix must include 10 percent renewable energy by 2013 and increase one percent each year for the following 15 years, to reach a total renewable energy portfolio of  25 percent by 2028.

3.      The Iowa Utilities Board will have authority to require Alliant to install carbon capture and sequestration technology at the plant when it becomes feasible.

“Despite the final decision, we appreciate the Board’s thorough consideration of the many risks that this proposal brings. The Board’s three conditions for use of biomass, renewable energy, and future carbon capture technology may help to offset some of these significant risks, but we’ll need to look at these conditions in more detail. We look forward to being engaged in the coming steps of this process,” said Baer.

n  End

For interviews, call Nathaniel Baer, 515-244-1194, extension 206.

The Iowa Utilities Board meets this morning to decide whether to approve a new coal-fired power plant in Marshalltown.

I’ve written before about how our state should focus on energy efficiency, conservation and new electricity generation through renewable sources, rather than expanding the use of coal, which has to be imported into Iowa and carries with it huge environmental and public-health costs.

The websites of the Iowa Environmental Council and the Union of Concerned Scientists explain why we should not increase our dependence on fossil fuels, especially coal.

The Iowa Medical Society and other public-health advocates have also made a strong case against the proposed coal-fired plants in Marshalltown and Waterloo. This op-ed piece by Maureen McCue explains why:

Each proposed coal plant would likely emit around 100 pounds of mercury a year, much of which would end up in our lakes and streams, and eventually, our bodies. The Environmental Protection Agency states that “on balance, mercury from coal-fired utilities is the hazardous air pollutant of greatest potential public-health concern.”

In expressing their concern about coal-fired power plants, Texas’ Catholic bishops noted that mercury poses a particular risk to “unborn life.” Thousands of women of child-bearing age have elevated levels of toxic mercury in their blood, which could lead to reduced IQ and neurologic impairment in their children.

Many of Iowa’s waterways, including parts of the Cedar, Upper Iowa and Mississippi rivers have fish-consumption advisories warning Iowans not to eat more than one meal a week because of elevated mercury levels. The Idaho governor, a Republican, banned coal plants in his state because “the health implications of mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants far outweigh any economic benefits.”

[…]

The EPA’s own scientific advisory board, the American Medical Association, the American Lung Association and other health organizations have challenged current air-quality standards, such as those for fine-particulate matter, as insufficient to protect public health. Coal plants, which contribute to ozone and smog, are responsible for hundreds of premature deaths a year, increasing asthma hospitalizations, other respiratory ailments and cardiac disease.

The American Academy of Pediatrics noted that young children are particularly susceptible because their lungs aren’t fully formed and they spend a greater percentage of time outdoors.

The Des Moines Register’s editorial board came out against the coal-fired plant in Marshalltown but has been printing guest opinion pieces and letters to the editor on both sides.

Links to many of the Des Moines Register’s editorials and op-ed pieces for or against the Marshalltown plant can be found by clicking here (there’s a “related stories” bar on the right-hand side of the screen).

I’ve noticed that supporters of this project are trying to have it both ways. On the one hand, local supporters and representatives of organized labor talk about how many jobs will be created by the construction and operation of the new plant.

On the other hand, supporters say not to worry about increased greenhouse gas emissions from the new plant, because once it is built, Alliant will take offline or renovate older, less efficient facilities. If economic gains in Marshalltown come at the expense of other communities where Allliant facilities are located, doesn’t that suggest that Iowa’s economy on the whole would not benefit from this plant?

Here’s hoping the Iowa Utilities Board will reject the proposal. The rumor mill says it will be a 2-1 decision, with John Norris casting the decisive vote one way or another.

I wrote last week that people should avoid drinking tap water out of plastic bottles, because safer alternatives are available.

Dawn Sagario wrote a piece for the Des Moines Register about growing concerns surrounding the presence of bisphenol-A (BPA) in baby bottles:

Looking at studies done on animals, a federal report released earlier this month found “some concern” that exposure of fetuses, infants and children to low levels of BPA during development “can cause changes in behavior and the brain, prostate gland, mammary gland and the age at which females attain puberty.”

Sagario writes about how parents and some retailers are taking steps to reduce babies’ exposure to BPA, which is good to know.

I was disappointed to read this passage in the article, however:

But Sam Beattie, food safety specialist with Iowa State University Extension, said people shouldn’t be tossing those plastic bottles just yet.

“Should people be concerned? No,” said Beattie, who is also an assistant professor in food science and human nutrition at Iowa State. “There has been no direct correlation associated with consumption of BPA to any human malady.”

Beattie said the amounts of BPA given to animals in studies is more concentrated than the amounts to which humans are exposed.

Most people already have BPA in their systems. A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found BPA in 93 percent of more than 2,500 urine samples from people ages 6 and older.

Beattie said he’s been drinking out of polycarbonate water bottles for 30 years, and he’ll continue to do so.

I’m guessing that Professor Beattie is not getting 100 percent of his caloric intake via plastic bottles, like millions of bottle-fed infants are.

Also, I doubt that Beattie is heating up all of his food and drink in those plastic bottles. Bottle-fed infants have all or most of their meals reheated in the plastic, which can increase the amount of hormone-disrupting chemicals that leach out.

As an adult, Beattie is no longer at risk for going through early puberty. But think about the babies who are drinking from plastic bottles every day.

It makes sense to be on the safe side and use glass baby bottles, or at least plastic bottles that do not contain BPA.

A final word of advice for parents who exclusively bottle-feed, or whose babies sometimes drink breast milk from bottles: this page has tips for bottle-feeding techniques that help promote a secure attachment with your baby. The gist is that you mimic certain aspects of breastfeeding (switching sides, making skin-to-skin contact and eye contact, always holding the baby while feeding) when giving the baby a bottle.

The non-profit organization Iowa Interfaith Power and Light (IIPL) is looking for a full-time executive director.

The complete job listing is after the jump. Click over if you or someone you know is qualified for this job and is committed to doing this kind of work. IIPL is “mobilizing the religious community to become leaders in the fight against global warming.”  

The Des Moines Register published an editorial on Thursday urging readers not to buy bottled water:

“Iowa’s capital city ranked best on our list of U.S. cities with the cleanest drinking water. The insurance industry center and home of the Iowa Caucus had the second-lowest level of bacteria in its drinking water” and was among the best for the lowest levels of lead,” according to the report.

As summer approaches, this is yet another reason to avoid purchasing bottled water. A better option is getting a sturdy plastic bottle and refilling it at the tap – which is probably cleaner anyway. While bottled water may sit on the shelves for ages, the Des Moines Water Works conducts performance tests several times a day, according to interim general manager Randy Beavers. Bottled water is an environmental and financial hazard. The bottles are shipped thousands of miles across the country in gas-guzzling trucks. Most aren’t recycled or reused, but end up in landfills. While it’s nothing to drop a dollar or two on a bottle of water, tap water averages a fraction of a penny per gallon.

I agree with the general point about not buying bottled water.

However, it’s a very bad idea to keep refilling plastic bottles from the tap. I used to do that before I learned that chemicals can leach from the plastic to the water:

Reused Plastic Bottles Can Leach Toxic Chemicals

The same studies found that repeated re-use of such bottles-which get dinged up through normal wear and tear and while being washed-increases the chance that chemicals will leak out of the tiny cracks and crevices that develop over time. According to the Environment California Research & Policy Center, which reviewed 130 studies on the topic, BPA has been linked to breast and uterine cancer, an increased risk of miscarriage, and decreased testosterone levels.

BPA can also wreak havoc on children’s developing systems. (Parents beware: Most baby bottles and sippy cups are made with plastics containing BPA.) Most experts agree that the amount of BPA that could leach into food and drinks through normal handling is probably very small, but there are concerns about the cumulative effect of small doses.

Even Plastic Water and Soda Bottles Should Not Be Reused

Health advocates also recommend not reusing bottles made from plastic #1 (polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET or PETE), including most disposable water, soda and juice bottles. According to The Green Guide, such bottles may be safe for one-time use, but re-use should be avoided because studies indicate they may leach DEHP-another probable human carcinogen-when they are in less-than-perfect condition.

[…]

Safe Reusable Bottles Do Exist

Safer choices include bottles crafted from safer HDPE (plastic #2), low-density polyethylene (LDPE, AKA plastic #4) or polypropylene (PP, or plastic #5). Aluminum bottles, such as those made by SIGG and sold in many natural food and natural product markets, and stainless steel water bottles are also safe choices and can be reused repeatedly and eventually recycled.

If you live in the Des Moines area, you can buy reusable SIGG bottles at Campbell’s (there is a coating on the inside so that the aluminum does not come into contact with what you are drinking). Otherwise, you can order SIGG bottles or other brands of safe reusable bottles at ReusableBags.com.

If you’ve got small children, I highly recommend getting non-plastic reusable sippy cups and water bottles for lunch bags. SIGG is a brand we’ve been happy with. They are not dishwasher-safe, which is a little inconvenient, but we feel better knowing that chemicals are not leaching into our children’s water.

It’s hard to keep up with all the reasons to oppose John McCain. Last night I wrote about his opposition to a bill that would make it easier for victims of job discrimination to seek legal redress.

If you care about that issue, you can sign the petition on “Equal Pay for Equal Work” at Momsrising.org.

Meanwhile, I learned from this diary by TomP that Friends of the Earth Action is running an ad against McCain on CNN. The ad highlights McCain’s support for the nuclear power industry:

TomP’s diary also includes this great quote from Friends of the Earth Action president Dr. Brent Blackwalder:

You know how self righteous John McCain can be when he talks about corporate pork and earmarks, but do you know why he opposes the Lieberman-Warner global warming bill?  He plans to vote against it not because it could lavish $1 trillion on the profitable oil, gas and coal industries, but because he wants to add hundreds of billions of dollars more in earmarks for the nuclear industry!

On a related note, I got an e-mail today from the Sierra Club slamming McCain’s proposal to suspend the federal gas tax between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The Sierra Club notes that the real effect of that policy would be to

[r]aise oil company profits by another 18 cents per gallon — by eliminating the federal gas tax without guaranteeing that Big Oil won’t just keep prices high and take the difference to grow their record profits even more.

The Sierra Club also has an online petition you can sign, which sends this message to McCain:

The best way to deal with high gas prices is to cut, not expand, giveaways to Big Oil. Please vote to end taxpayer-funded subsidies and tax breaks for Big Oil and use that money to invest in clean, renewable energy.

Earlier this week, I got the latest newsletter from Smart Growth America, which also blasted McCain’s proposal to declare a summer holiday from the federal gas tax:

An artificial and temporary reduction of gas prices will simply guarantee that absolutely no money goes towards having suitable roads and bridges for those filled-up cars to drive on – not to mention alternatives to congestion, like commuter rail and transit. Instead, we can send the full price of gasoline directly into the pockets of oil companies. (An estimated $10 billion in transportation revenue would be lost, or enough to fully fund Amtrak rail service for 6 years or so.) Meanwhile, we fall farther behind in maintaining our infrastructure: Rust doesn’t take the summer off.

But that’s not all. To coincide with McCain’s photo-op in New Orleans’ Ninth Ward today, Moveon.org Political Action launched its own online petition calling on McCain to reject the endorsement of right-wing pastor John Hagee. I knew about Hagee’s anti-Catholic bigotry, but I wasn’t aware that Hagee once said, “Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans.”

Surely there couldn’t be any more shameful news about McCain to emerge within this 24-hour period, right? Wrong. I learned from Natasha Chart’s post at MyDD today that during a recent visit to Alabama, McCain’s campaign used free prison labor to get out of paying to set up for a private fundraiser.

I guess a campaign that is way behind its Democratic rivals in fundraising has to save money wherever it can.

But it would be more honest for McCain to curtail all campaign spending between now and the Republican National Convention this summer, because he is not complying with limits imposed by his decision to take public financing last year.

If I’ve missed any recent disgraceful behavior coming from the McCain camp, please let me know in the comments section.

Our “effective” Democratic leaders in the Iowa House and Senate have pushed through the Livestock Odor Research and Air Modeling Study. The Senate passed the bill late last night.

Leigh Adcock of the Iowa Farmers Union explains why this is a “seriously flawed piece of legislation”:

Research has already been done on cost effective ways to mitigate odor.  Included are better siting methods, and the use of biofilters and covers on lagoons.  Iowa’s taxpayers should not be required to fund another round of studies on proven technologies when the legislature has not shown any willingness to act on the information already gathered from previous studies.  Instead we should require producers to implement what we already know.

Minnesota has enacted ambient air quality standards that limit hydrogen sulfide to 0.05 parts per million and is working on limiting ammonia emissions.   Missouri, Nebraska, and Colorado regulate sulfur emissions and emissions of other types.

[…]

Ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, two odor causing gases emitted from confined feedlot operations, are known to cause serious respiratory problems.

The bacteria found within particulates emitted from livestock operations create lung inflammation that leads to non-allergic asthma.  Twenty-five percent of those who work in confined feedlot operations have some form of respiratory disease, 10% higher than the United States working population as a whole.

Rekha Basu’s latest column for the Des Moines Register showed how many times the Iowa legislature has blocked action to alleviate the pollution caused by CAFOs.

Most of her examples come from the years when Republicans controlled both chambers of the legislature. It is discouraging to see that the livestock industry continues to trump public-health and environmental concerns even under Democratic control.

In the Iowa Senate, some lawmakers including Joe Bolkcom (D, Iowa City) offered good amendments, but those were rejected on a voice vote, so that we don’t even have a record of how individuals voted.

I do have the breakdown of how senators voted on the final version of the odor-study bill, and I’ve put that after the jump. It was not a party-line vote. If your senator voted against this waste of taxpayer money, please give him or her a call to say thanks.

I’m trying to dig up the final vote for the Iowa House as well and will update this diary with that information when I find it.

If I were an adviser to Governor Culver, I’d tell him to veto this bill. It’s the right thing to do on the merits. We simply don’t need more study of this problem. Spending $23 million over five years on more study wastes our money and kicks the can down the road. Using state funds to implement the measures that are working in other states would be a wiser use of taxpayer dollars.

The odor-study bill is a far cry from what the governor proposed to the legislature concerning this issue in January.

Finally, a veto would be cheered by environmentalists who are disappointed that the governor hasn’t made it a priority to push for local control over the siting of CAFOs (also known as agricultural zoning at the county level). Culver has said he is for local control, but he didn’t put much muscle behind that during the 2007 or 2008 legislative sessions.

An action alert went out on the Iowa Sierra Club list this morning:

From: Lyle Krewson

Subject: HF2688 up for Senate debate

The Senate Majority Leader  gave the list of bills for today. It includes HF

2688, the Odor Control Bill–please contact your State Senator now!

We do have amendments being offered but no amendments were included during

House debate last week.

ACTION NEEDED:

We need you to contact your State Senator to vote NO on HF2688. Below is a

sample email that you may personalize–always be sure to include your name

and mailing address on an email to a Legislator.

You may find your Iowa State Senator by going to this weblink and using your

address or 9-digit ZIP code: http://www.legis.state.ia.us/F…

If you wish to call your State Senator, the switchboard # is: 515-281-3371.

The rest of the alert, which includes more details about this bill and some talking points for you to use, is after the jump.

This Sunday is Earth Day, and many groups have scheduled events to capitalize on the increased awareness of environmental issues that comes around this time every year.

Saturday, April 19:

Blues for Greens Earth Day Festival, Walnut Street bridge in downtown Des Moines, 9:30 am to 4:00 pm. Lots of eco-friendly exhibitors and music acts. For more information, go to www.bluesforgreens.com. (Note: Ed Fallon will speak at this event at 10:30 am.)

Free classes on babywearing (10 am) and cloth diapering (11 am) by local expert Sarah Reid in the Urbandale Library Conference Room. She writes, “I’ll bring my giant bag of slings and do some demos and discuss the benefits of babywearing and pros and cons of each type of carrier, and then will have open time for questions and trying on the carriers. The diapering class, I bring all my diapers that I bring to the meetings, plus more, and walk through the basics of cloth diapering, including types of diapers, pros and cons of types of diapers, how to launder, etc. We’ll also have time for questions.”

Energy Experts Open House at 527 S.W. Carriage Ct., Ankeny, IA, 11 am to 3pm. People building or remodeling homes can “learn about the house as a system” as well as about geothermal heating and cooling, windows, insulation and more. R.S.V.P. to info@PrairieFoam.com. Go to www.PrairieFoam.com for details.

Wayne J. Bingham, Architect & Author, is speaking about straw bale homes at the Des Moines Art Center at 2:00 pm. (This event is hosted by the Art Center, Center on Sustainable Communities, and Earth Day in the Junction.) Bingham will focus on choices for building shelters that account for climate stability, air and water quality, ecosystems and biodiversity. Consider attending this free lecture by the author of Small Strawbale: Natural Homes, Projects and Designs and Natural Timber Frame Homes.

Nation for Change Obama Rally, 2:30 pm at the west side of the Capitol, E. 9th St. and Grand, Des Moines. (Note: Ed Fallon will appear at this event.)



Sunday, April 20:

Earth Day in the Junction, Railroad Park in Valley Junction, West Des Moines, 9 am to 3 pm. Lots of free events, and lots of exhibitors. The Fallon campaign will be there, but I haven’t heard whether the Boswell campaign will have a table as well. (I will be helping staff tables for two non-profit groups I’m involved with.) For more information on the exhibitors and the events scheduled during the day:

www.earthdayinthejunction.org



Tuesday, April 22:

Trash Pick-Up on the Downtown Streetscapes & Trails in Des Moines, 1-4 pm. This clean-up event is organized by Operation Downtown, Des Moines Parks and Recreation, and Riverfront Development Authority. For more information on how you can make a difference or to request a reservation form, email ParksVolunteer@dmgov.org or call (515) 208- 0277.

Earthapalooza at the Iowa City Public Library, 6 pm to 9 pm. According to a press release:

The Iowa Global Warming Campaign, Sierra Club and I-Renew are hosting a special “Earth Day” event on Tuesday, April 22, which is open to members of the public. The event offers free admission and refreshments and will feature a film screening of “Global Warming: the Signs and the Science.”

(More details about the Earthapalooza event are after the jump.)

Please use this as an open thread to let us know about other events coming up over the next few days.

David Elbert wrote an interesting piece for Wednesday’s Des Moines Register about a mixed-use developments in the “East Village” area of downtown Des Moines. The article’s main focus is a new project that

will have retail on the ground floor, offices on the second and residential units on the third, fourth and fifth floors.

It’s a combination found in stylish developments from Boston to Seattle. Sort of a 21st-century version of the strip mall, without cars and more compact.

Tenants like the concept because the multiple-use design brings people together.

Developers like it because three profit centers – retail, commercial and residential – spread risk in uncertain times.

These neighborhoods offer a good quality of life for people who want a more urban setting, and are good for developers too.

What Elbert didn’t mention is that compact development is also good for the environment; it can reduce the carbon-dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming.

First, mixed-use developments substantially reduce emissions from cars, because their residents live close to amenities and have alternatives to driving. The “Growing Cooler” report on Smart Growth America’s website explains why:

“Curbing emissions from cars depends on a three-legged stool: improved vehicle efficiency, cleaner fuels, and a reduction in driving,” said lead author Reid Ewing, Research Professor at the National Center for Smart Growth, University of Maryland. “The research shows that one of the best ways to reduce vehicle travel is to build places where people can accomplish more with less driving.”

Depending on several factors, from mix of land uses to pedestrian-friendly design, compact development reduces driving from 20 to 40 percent, and more in some instances, according to the forthcoming book Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change. Typically, Americans living in compact urban neighborhoods where cars are not the only transportation option drive a third fewer miles than those in automobile-oriented suburbs, the researchers found.

[…]

“Clearly, the development industry has a key role in the search for solutions to offset the impact of climate change,” said ULI Senior Resident Fellow William H. Hudnut, III, former mayor of Indianapolis. “Whether close-in or in suburbs, well-planned communities give residents the option to walk, bike or take transit to nearby shopping, retail and entertainment. Being able to spend less time behind the wheel will benefit our health, our pocketbooks and the environment.”

Implementing the policies recommended in the report would reverse a decades-long trend. Since 1980, the number of miles Americans drive has grown three times faster than population, and almost twice as fast as vehicle registrations. Spread-out development is the key factor in that rate of growth, the research team found.

The findings show that people who move into compact, “green neighborhoods” are making as big a contribution to fighting global warming as those who buy the most efficient hybrid vehicles, but remain in car-dependent areas.

Second, apartments or condominiums in mixed-use buildings like the ones described in Elbert’s piece cost less to heat and cool. If you’ve ever used one of those online tools to calculate your carbon footprint, you know that having a stand-alone house with four exterior walls significantly increases your energy usage.

Thanks to Blog for Iowa, I learned that the “King Corn” documentary will be shown on Iowa Public Television on Sunday, April 20 (Earth Day) at 10:30 pm.

IPTV digital has already shown the film twice this week and will show it again on Friday, April 18 at 10 am and on Monday, April 21 at 9 am.

For more information about this film, which has gotten great reviews, click here.

You couldn’t miss this front-page story in the Des Moines Register on Monday:

Plan to reshape Ankeny tackles troubled spots

City officials and developer DRA Properties are transforming a 1,031-acre World War II munitions plant site into a live-work-play development called Prairie Trail. They expect 10,000 people to move there by 2020.

To realize their new urbanist dream, however, the developer and others are working to eliminate concerns about the land, some of which has been designated as a Superfund site by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It’s a designation the EPA gives to uncontrolled hazardous waste sites identified as risks to human health.

[…]

There are two primary environmental concerns within the development, said Iowa DNR and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials.

The most critical is the 38-acre parcel to be converted into a city park. The land was used as a landfill and industrial lagoon decades ago by the Army, John Deere and the city. The area is where production waste of mainly metal particles and oils was disposed. Spots within the site, including toxic sludge left in the old industrial lagoons, contain unsafe levels of metals such as lead, chromium, copper, arsenic, manganese and antimony, according to the EPA.

EPA officials said the metals will have to be put out of human contact. Under a proposed plan, that would be done by a combination of removing soil and sealing the ground with a thick plastic barrier and clay cap.

Today, one in 10,000 people has a chance of getting cancer from a lifetime’s worth of exposure at the site, EPA toxicologist Jeremy Johnson said. After the cleanup, he said, those odds will be one in 1 million. “Those cancer risks won’t be there,” he said.

The landfill and lagoon area is a Superfund site. It is not on the Superfund national priority list, which identifies the country’s worst hazards.

However, it is not known whether the site would qualify for the national priority list, said Gene Gunn, a branch chief in the EPA Superfund program. It is not being considered for the list, which is largely a designation for projects to receive federal money, because the parties responsible for the contamination have voluntarily agreed to pay for the cleanup.

“I wouldn’t be very concerned with it,” Gunn said of the site as it would be after the cleanup. “The action that’s going to take place there will leave it in a protective state.”

Under a draft proposal, a covenant on the land would prevent houses from being built on the lagoon and landfill site, and the groundwater near there would be monitored for 30 years.

The Prairie Trail development is a great concept: a mix of residential, retail and public space in the center of town, easily navigated by foot or bicycle for those who choose not to drive.

However, community activists were raising concerns two years ago about the potential for schools, parks and houses to be placed on contaminated ground. I wish the Register had given the story prominent coverage at that time.

I hope they do a good job cleaning up this site, but frankly, I would hesitate to buy a home anywhere near that lagoon or landfill.

to teach people in the U.S. and around the world that “the climate crisis is both urgent and solvable.” Good for him.

It’s no use just scaring people and making them feel helpless and powerless to change our energy consumption and policies.

A Siegel has the story at Daily Kos:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/…

The Center for American Progress Action Fund has more at their website (http://www.americanprogressaction.org/). I am reproducing some material from that organization after the jump, but the links did not transfer from my e-mail to this post, so you’ll have to go to the website to pick those up.

It sounds like there is not enough support in the Iowa House to pass a bill expanding the 5-cent deposit to juice, water and sports drink containers. Instead, a commission will study recycling issues, including the bottle bill, and report back to legislators for next year’s session.

I hope legislators will pass comprehensive reform of the bottle bill next year, and not just toss this commission’s report on recycling in the recycling bin. Action on this front is several years overdue.

This action alert went out on the Sierra Club’s Iowa list. Apparently the Iowa Senate approved this constitutional amendment on a strong bipartisan vote. House members need to hear from you about this effort to secure sustainable funding for natural resources and outdoor recreation.

The amendment does not raise the sales tax, but it stipulates that the next time the legislature raises the state sales tax, 3/8 of a cent of the increase must be dedicated to natural resources and outdoor recreation programs.

The full action alert, with background on the amendment and a sample letter to a legislator, is after the jump.

Global warming is making spring come earlier in much of the United States:

And sneezes are coming earlier in Philadelphia. On March 9, when allergist Dr. Donald Dvorin set up his monitor, maple pollen was already heavy in the air. Less than two decades ago, that pollen couldn’t be measured until late April.

Pollen is bursting. Critters are stirring. Buds are swelling. Biologists are worrying.

“The alarm clock that all the plants and animals are listening to is running too fast,” Stanford University biologist Terry Root said.

Blame global warming.

The fingerprints of man-made climate change are evident in seasonal timing changes for thousands of species on Earth, according to dozens of studies and last year’s authoritative report by the Nobel Prize-winning international climate scientists. More than 30 scientists told The Associated Press how global warming is affecting plants and animals at springtime across the country, in nearly every state.

But look on the bright side: Iowa legislator Dwayne Alons (Republican, of course) says we don’t need to worry about global warming in this age of air conditioning and refrigeration technology.

By the way, James Van Bruggen is running against Alons in House District 4, which is in the northwest corner of the state.

This came through on the Sierra Club’s e-mail list:

Please call Representative Leonard Boswell’s office and ask him to cosponsor HR 39, a bill that would permanently protect the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  His Des Moines office number is 515-282-1909 and D.C. number is 202-225-3806.  All other Iowa Democratic members of Congress have already cosponsored HR 39.

Some facts:  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service calls the Refuge’s Coastal Plain “the center for wildlife activity” for the entire Refuge.  The Refuge provides vital habitat for some of America ‘s most spectacular wildlife. Polar bears, grizzly bears, caribou, wolves, and muskoxen are a few of more than 250 species that rely on the Coastal Plain for their survival.  Millions of birds, representing some 180 species, migrate to the Coastal Plain to nest, rear young, molt, and feed.  Birds from all 50 states and six of the seven continents migrate to the Refuge for summer.

The native people living near the Refuge are the Gwich’in (meaning “caribou people” in their language) and their livelihood and culture have been dependant on the Porcupine Caribou Herd, which gives birth on the Coastal Plain, for centuries. They refer to the Coastal Plain as the “Sacred Place Where Life Begins” and oppose drilling in the area and strongly support permanent protection. Impact to the caribou herd could mean a loss of their way of life.

Global warming is already threatening life in the Arctic and drilling for gas and oil will only accelerate the warming trend.

I can’t resist adding that if Ed Fallon were representing Iowa’s third Congressional district, this kind of action alert would be unnecessary. He would sign on to a bill like this in a heartbeat without needing to be nudged by constituents.

Although it’s not the comprehensive overhaul of the bottle bill that I’d like to see, the draft bill that would expand the nickel deposit to bottled water, juice and sports drinks is still a step in the right direction.

I was encouraged to read Continue Reading...

Having used cloth diapers on my kids for the past five years, I had mixed feelings about this piece in Thursday’s Des Moines Register. Reporter Erin Crawford agreed to try cloth diapers for a short time.

While it’s great that she let readers know there are better options today than pins and rubber pants, I wish she had talked more about the health and environmental benefits of using cloth diapers.

Her husband complained that the cloth diapers seemed “unhygienic.”

Apparently he doesn’t realize that disposable diapers are full of chemicals that may be absorbed through baby’s wet skin, or that disposable diapers send more untreated sewage to our landfills (click the link to see the references in the footnotes):

Of more serious concern are the toxic chemicals present in disposable diapers. Dioxin, which in various forms has been shown to cause cancer, birth defects, liver damage, and skin diseases, is a by-product of the paper-bleaching process used in manufacturing disposable diapers, and trace quantities may exist in the diapers themselves.6

And what about the material that makes “superabsorbent” diapers so absorbent? If you’ve ever used disposable diapers, you’ve probably noticed beads of clear gel on your baby’s genitals after a diaper change. Superabsorbent diapers contain sodium polyacrylate, which absorbs up to 100 times its weight in water. Sodium polyacrylate is the same substance that was removed from tampons in 1985 because of its link to toxic shock syndrome.7 No studies have been done on the long-term effects of this chemical being in contact with a baby’s reproductive organs 24 hours a day for upwards of two years.

Neither type of diaper can claim to be more sanitary. In the early 1990s, right around the time many states were considering offering incentives to hospitals and daycare centers to switch to cloth diapers, disposable diaper manufacturers attempted to prove that cloth diapers contribute more to the spread of bacteria. In fact, it is the caregiver’s hand-washing habits, and not the type of diapers, that is the deciding factor. “The research in this area was funded by special interests,” points out Janet Primomo, RN, PhD, associate professor of nursing at the University of Washington, Tacoma. “It’s not a question of whether cloth or disposables are more sanitary–it all depends on practices and procedures, such as hand washing habits and what kind of storage containers are used.”

There is, however, a more serious threat of contamination from disposable diapers, because of human sewage going into landfills. The disposal of human waste in residential garbage is technically prohibited, and instructions on disposable diaper packaging recommend that you shake out any fecal matter into the toilet before disposing of it; but in practice this is almost never done. Live viruses in the feces, such as the polio vaccine, can live in landfills for a long period, and if there were ever any leakage, could potentially contaminate a community’s drinking water. So far, there has been no evidence of contamination–this is more of a concern in Third World countries, where landfills aren’t as well constructed, and disposable diapers are being marketed aggressively.

Here is more troubling information about the potential effects of chemicals in disposable diapers:

1999 A study, “Acute Respiratory Effects of Diaper Emissions,” in the October issue of Archives of Environmental Health, finds that laboratory mice exposed to various brands of disposable diapers suffered eye, nose, and throat irritation, including bronchoconstriction similar to that of an asthma attack. Chemicals released from the diapers included toluene, xylene, ethylbenzene, styrene, and isopropylbenzene, among others. The lead author of the study, Dr. Rosalind C. Anderson, advises asthmatic mothers to avoid exposure to these chemicals. Asthma rates are on a sharp incline in the US and worldwide, particularly among poor and inner-city children. Six leading brands of cotton and disposable diapers are tested. Of these, three are found not to affect the breathing of mice: American Fiber and Finishing Co., Gladrags organic cotton diapers, and Tender Care disposable diapers. Cloth diapers are not found to cause respiratory problems among mice.

I’ll never understand why many people have such a hangup about cloth diapers, which also save parents money on top of the health and environmental benefits. It’s just another load of laundry.  

Just got this e-mail from Environment Iowa. There’s a big vote coming up Thursday in the Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee:

Did you know that we here in Iowa spend less state money per capita on the environment than almost any other state in the nation?

We think that’s outrageous, and a bi-partisan committee of legislators, working closely with environmental groups as well as the Farm Bureau, has recommended that Iowa spend an additional $150 million a year to improve water and soil quality, enhance parks and trails, and protect wildlife habitat.

Tomorrow afternoon, Thursday March 6, the Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee will vote on a bill that is the first step toward dedicating those funds. Join us in urging these committees to vote ‘yes’ on our environment.

To send an e-mail to the Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee, click here:

http://environmentiowa.org/act…

Action is critical now — this legislation must pass both houses in the next two months, or else the process will be delayed for two years.

This bill would put a question on the ballot asking Iowans create a fund specifically for Iowa’s water and soil quality, parks and wildlife. These funds would be protected for environmental purposes only and future legislatures won’t be able to raid them for other purposes as they have in the past.

The new resources would be invested in:

 * Protecting water quality from both urban and agricultural sources of pollution;

 * Keeping the best soil on earth where it belongs – on the earth,not in our streams and lakes where it smothers fish and other aquatic life;

 * Restoring parks, biking and hiking trails at the state, county and local level;

 * Protecting habitat for a diverse array of species such as trout, bobwhite, pheasant, and bobcat.  

So please take a moment to tell members of the Senate committee how important it is to invest in our water, land and wildlife. Follow this link to take action today:

http://environmentiowa.org/act…

For what it’s worth, I would call the members of this committee rather than e-mailing them. There’s no guarantee that anyone on their staff will open e-mail in time for this vote.

The House Environmental Protection Committee on Monday approved a bill that would extend the 5-cent deposit to bottled water, tea, juice and sports drinks.

It’s a step in the right direction, although it would be better to increase the deposit so that redemption centers could receive more than 1 cent for each can and bottle they handle.

Governor Culver’s original bottle bill proposal would have doubled the deposit to 10 cents, giving an extra penny to the redemption centers. However, Culver’s bill also would have returned only 8 cents of the deposit to consumers. The other 2 cents would have gone to fund some environmental programs.

I’m all for increasing environmental funding, but the key to widespread political support for the can and bottle deposit is that it is not a tax–consumers get all of the money back. Converting the deposit into a tax that is not fully refundable would erode public support for this very important recycling program.

I hope the legislature will extend the deposit to a broader range of bottled drinks this year, but in 2009 I hope someone will step up with a bigger bottle bill reform initiative.

For an overview of other bills that hang in the balance this week, read this Des Moines Register piece. Any bill not approved by a legislative committee by this Thursday will be dead for this year’s legislative session.

Tom Harkin and Leonard Boswell are good people and good Democrats, so it’s disappointing to read in the Sunday Des Moines Register that they are unwilling to take a stand against building new coal-fired power plans in Marshalltown and Waterloo.

It could hardly be more clear that building new coal-fired plants is bad for the environment, bad for the public’s health, and a net loss for Iowa’s economy (since we would be importing all the coal used in the plants).

Ed Fallon categorically opposes building new coal-fired power plants in Iowa. In the article I linked above, Boswell said he hadn’t studied the issue closely, because the proposed plants are located outside Iowa’s third Congressional district. Fallon has the right response:

Fallon said even though the plants would be outside Boswell’s district, some central Iowa towns would be downwind from the Marshalltown facility.

“It clearly affects our district, and because of concerns about greenhouse gas, it concerns our whole planet,” said Fallon, a former state representative who opposes construction of any new coal-fired plants.

Jennifer Oredson of Des Moines, the Greenpeace member who asked about the plants, said she had mixed feelings about the answers from Harkin and Boswell. She said her group opposes the plants, but she appreciated that both men are pushing for more conservation and alternative sources of energy.

She particularly noted Boswell’s support of the Safe Climate Act, which aims to limit greenhouse gases. But she said her group would not endorse a candidate in the primary.

By the way, Representatives Bruce Braley (IA-01) and Dave Loebsack (IA-02) signed onto the Safe Climate Act months earlier than Boswell. Boswell only took that position in December, when rumors of Fallon’s likely primary challenge were circulating.

In related news, Boswell was on Iowa Public Television this weekend saying he is more qualified than Fallon to represent the district. He also brought up Fallon’s support for Ralph Nader in 2000, which seems to be Boswell’s strongest card to play.

But Boswell’s comments on policy during that television program suggest that he is feeling the heat from Fallon’s criticism:

On other issues, Boswell said:

– Congress should consider repealing the North American Free Trade Agreement, which “hasn’t worked well.” Fallon opposes NAFTA and other free-trade agreements. Boswell supported a recent trade agreement with Peru.

– The country should look for ways to burn coal in efficient, environmentally friendly ways perhaps even “cleaning” Iowa’s high-sulfur coal. Fallon wants a moratorium on new coal plants, which are a chief source of greenhouse gases blamed for climate change.

Fallon has said Boswell supports greater use of coal and backed $14 billion in tax breaks and incentives for oil and gas companies.

– He supported tougher fuel efficiency standards for cars after voting against an earlier measure. “We recently raised the fuel-efficiency standard. If you don’t want to put people out of work, and not cause a new problem, you have to look at it carefully.”

– He supports removing troops from Iraq, but opposed a bill that would have led to immediate withdrawal, something that he believed would have cost too many lives. Boswell said he originally supported the war based on the administration’s statement that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, later disputed. Fallon has said he opposed the war all along.

I saw Fallon yesterday at the Natural Living Expo in Des Moines, and it looked like a lot of people were signing up to volunteer.

Also this weekend, the Des Moines Register reported that Fallon has raised about $130,000 for his campaign and has 16 paid staffers.

UPDATE: For more details, go to the Natural Living Expo site.

One thing I’ve been working on in my non-blog life is helping to plan the third annual Natural Living Expo, which will be held this Saturday, March 1, at the State Fairgrounds in the new Animal Learning Center building.  

If you’re in central Iowa this Saturday, please consider dropping in between 10 am and 3 pm. The event is free to the public, and there is plenty of free parking.  

Ed Fallon will be stopping by the Expo (you can find details in his public schedule, a couple of posts down this page).  

A bunch of environmental groups will have tables there as well, including the Iowa Environmental Council, Local Foods Connection, 1000 Friends of Iowa, Whiterock Conservancy, and I-Renew.

I’ve put a press release about the expo after the jump, and you can find more information about the vendors and speakers at:  www.naturallivingexpo.org  

Iowa Environmental Council Executive Director Marian Riggs Gelb: Iowa has a responsibility to help fix the Gulf of Mexico’s “dead zone.”

I encourage you to click the link and read the whole op-ed in Saturday’s Des Moines Register.

I haven’t had time to look into the details, but the Des Moines Register ran this article on a bill which would deal with water quality. House Study Bill 615 has co-sponsors from both parties and calls for the following things, according to the Register:

Experts would study 11 regional watersheds per year and identify each area’s most pressing needs. Watersheds that present the greatest health risks would be prioritized, and the worst areas would get any available money from the state Department of Natural Resources. A Water Resources Coordinating Council would be established within the governor’s office to coordinate regulatory efforts, help Iowans organize local watershed projects and help them get money more easily for water quality projects. A marketing campaign would alert Iowans about the need to take personal responsibility for the water in their area.

Here’s a link to the text of House Study Bill 615, for those of you who want to read the whole thing.

Consider signing up to help the DNR figure out how many frogs and toads remain in Iowa’s wetlands.

This went out on the Sierra Club’s e-mail loop:

Hi Folks!

Just thought I’d let you know about an opportunity that might interest some of you or your group’s membership.  The Iowa Frog and Toad Call Survey has been in place since 1991 with hundreds of dedicated volunteers going out during the spring and summer to listen at some of their nearby wetlands.   If you are interested in joining this group of volunteers the Wildlife Diversity Program will be hosting 3 workshops this March to train folks to start and run a survey of their own. The workshops will run from 12:30 to 4:30 and will cover Iowa frog and toad id, how to locate and monitor wetlands, what data to collect, and finally how to submit the data to the DNR.

If you know of anyone who might be interested in one of these workshops please feel free to pass this on.

Thanks for your time.  You can contact me at stephanie.shepherd AT dnr.iowa.gov if you would like additional info.

Registration forms are available at: http://www.iowadnr.com/wildlif…

Thank you!

Stephanie

Pre-registration is required along with a $5.00 fee. The workshop schedule is as follows:

NORTHWEST IOWA

March 1, 2008  Ruthven, IA

LOCATION: Lost Island Lake Nature Center, Palo Alto CCB, 3259 355th Ave., Ruthven, IA

TIME: 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm  

EASTERN IOWA

March 15, 2008  Center Junction, IA  Jones County

LOCATION: Jones County Conservation Board Nature Center, Central Park, 12515 Central Park Road, Center Junction, IA

TIME: 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm

CENTRAL IOWA

March 29, 2008  Maxwell, IA  Polk County  

LOCATION: Chichaqua Bottoms LongHouse, 8700 NE 126 Ave., Maxwell, IA

TIME: 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Uh oh. The Des Moines Register is warning that “a new law that requires all Iowa youngsters to be tested for lead by the time they enter kindergarten could swamp state and local taxpayers in ways lawmakers did not foresee.”

House File 158 was passed last year as part of a campaign against lead poisoning, which health officials describe as one of the most preventable causes of learning disabilities and brain damage in young children. Statewide, more than 10,000 Iowans under age 6 had toxic levels of lead in their blood between 2002 and 2006. Thousands more likely went unnoticed, officials say, because they weren’t tested.

The new law is scheduled to take effect this fall.

“I like to describe these kids as canaries in the coal mine,” said Rick Kozin of the Polk County Health Department. “We let the kids get sick, and then we identify the problem homes.

“With this law, we’re going to find more canaries than we’ve ever found before.”

But health and housing experts say the ripple effect of the law could devastate public and private pocketbooks. Potential fallout includes:

A statewide shortage of inspectors qualified to check houses where lead-poisoned children live or play.

Huge bills, measured in tens of thousands of dollars, to clean or remove lead.

Unprecedented demand for temporary housing when lead-related work forces families from their homes.

“This could be overwhelming,” Polk County Supervisor Angela Connolly said.

While spending tens of thousands of dollars to deal with lead in a building may seem like a lot of money, consider this: children affected by lead poisoning are more likely to need costly special-education programs in school. That’s not a one-time cost, that’s every year they are in school.

Also, lead exposure has been linked to criminal activity. Research suggests that removing lead from paint and gasoline in the 1970s is one reason that violent crime rates in the U.S. dropped dramatically in the 1990s.

Building more prisons to house more criminals is extremely costly in human terms as well as monetarily.

If we remove lead paint hazards from homes, we will reduce exposure for all future children living in those homes, which will save us money in our education budgets and will possibly reduce crime far into the future.

Let’s not be penny-wise and pound-foolish in dealing with this problem.