EARTHblog
House Majority Questions the Integrity of Agency Scientists
Politicians decide policy; scientists help inform policy decisions by explaining the world we live in. So, it’s disappointing to hear politicians accuse scientists of playing politics. The most recent example of this involves a letter a number of senior GOP House members sent to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. The letter openly questions the scientific objectivity of a little known agency within HHS called the (I’m not making this up) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR).
Tagged with: epa, public health, pavillion, science, atsdr
US Senate Passes Critical Minerals and Public Lands Amendments in Pentagon Spending Bill
Amid much discord in the United States Congress related to all matters fiscal, occasionally there emerge rare moments of cooperation. The Department of Defense (DOD) budget requires reauthorization during the lame duck session providing an opportunity for the Senate to attach policy proposals that would not likely pass were they stand alone pieces of legislation. On the one hand, the Pentagon seems like an awkward place to advance social or environmental policy. But, because its budget is so large, some policy ideas get their first trial at DOD. The United States Senate unanimously passed a number of amendments to the DOD reauthorization bill related to critical minerals and public lands. Among them was a proposal by Senators Kyl, Risch, and Heller that urges the President to coordinate opportunities within a number of agencies to develop a sustainable supply of critical minerals. Helping ensure this supply is an amendment by Senators Casey and Begich that encourages DOD to recycle the rare earth elements found in the Department’s fluorescent light bulbs. Along the same lines, a number of Senators offered additional amendments concerning various forms of alternative and renewable energies the military should exploit.
Tagged with: public lands, critical minerals, 112th congress, defense authorization, lame duck
Superstition over science: NY’s latest fracking steps
Every year, I take what’s left of my family’s Thanksgiving turkey and make soup. The wishbone always floats to the top of the pot—and I superstitiously save it for when I have an important wish to make. Lately it seems like the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) might be using wishbones to determine next steps on gas development.
Tagged with: fracking, public health, new york, gas patch roulette, new york water rangers
SRBC Agrees to Comprehensive Study of Fracking
Over the last year or so we’ve worked with our friends at the Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper, Clean Water Action, Penn Environment, Sierra Club’s PA and MD chapters and other groups to urge the Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) to amend its Comprehensive Plan to include a genuine cumulative impact study of hydraulic fracturing. It appears now that they will. While this is good news, no one is yet celebrating because we have a lot of details to iron out related to what the study should contain. The SRBC last amended their Plan in 2008. Back then, few folks anticipated the unprecedented spread of natural gas wells throughout Pennsylvania. The Keystone state has a very long history of drilling for oil and digging for coal. Yet the new technologies developed for high volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing all over the region have left regulators without the tools they need to protect public health and water quality. It is for this reason that neighboring states Maryland and New York have chosen a much more deliberate approach.
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Vote for Earthworks in 2012
Earthworks is on the Credo Donation Ballot in 2012!
Each year, Credo asks its members to vote for their favorite charities, and they make donations based on every vote cast.
Credo is many things to many people. For some it is a credit card, others a mobile phone service, and for many a way to take action on important progressive issues throughout the year.
Tagged with: donate
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