SEN and Bonnie Raitt Rock Out Against Nukes

Teaming up with the Guacamole Fund, Southern Energy Network had the awesome opportunity to promote its our anti-nuclear work in Florida, raise some money, and hang out with Bonnie Raitt. And what a great night it was!

SEN’s Field Director, Stephanie Powell and I worked with 3 amazing volunteers from University of West Florida to inform fans about the nuclear issues currently facing Florida. We encountered tons of folks who were already engaged on the issues and a few more that were in process of going off the grid with solar power installations at their homes. During the show, we took turns going in to enjoy the music. Personally, watching Bonnie perform was quite an experience! Her music has been in my life since I was pretty young, and seeing it live was phenomenal.

Bonnie Raitt, along with a number of other artists, founded a group called Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE) that opposes nuclear power in favor of safer, renewable options like solar. To help the cause, they build fundraising into their ticket sales, giving fans the choice to purchase special V.I.P. tickets.  At this Pensacola show, there was a small dessert reception afterward. Bonnie was so careful to spend a few moments with each of the folks there, chatting with them and taking a photo. At the end of it all, we had the pleasure of spending a few minutes with her as well. She is such a genuine person and was very knowledgeable about the complex intricacies of nuclear power, as well as the details of Florida’s specific challenges in the face of this risky industry. It’s great to have folks with such public access on our side, spreading real information to folks about issues that affect us all!

 

No Nukes, We Need Solar in the Sunshine State!

 

 

Are You Hearing This, EPD?

by Maura Friedman, UGA Student Organizer

Though Power4Georgians, a coalition of Georgia electric membership corporations, is quick to tout dirty coal, on October 20th, the real source of power was the people.

About a third of the students and youth who took the hearing by storm.

At Tuesday’s Environmental Protection Division hearing, Georgia citizens had the opportunity to publicly voice comments on the proposed coal-fired power plant to be built in Sandersville, GA. People hailing from all backgrounds and corners of the state came out in full force to represent what they wanted the future of Georgia to look like. Nearly 8 out of every 10 who spoke agreed that the future should include clean air, fresh water, healthy kids, and, subsequently, no coal.

Members of communities across the state came together to remind the EPD that coal’s pollutants and health effects don’t just stay within city limits, they’re felt upwind and downstream as well, while Sandersville residents made it clear their livelihood wasn’t up for discussion either.

Most striking about the content of the hearing was the human component. Many who spoke included stories of their personal connection to the land. Sometimes we forget that polluting streams means a granddaughter can’t play in the water or a family can’t eat the fish their son catches. Polluting the air means residents can’t enjoy their own property or a young person leaves to raise a family somewhere safer. Using 16 million gallons of water a day to run a coal fired power plant means wells go dry, but more than that, it means a specific family loses their water access.

Although the promise of jobs to accompany the construction of the coal plant glimmered like fool’s gold, many had their eye on an even more economical prize. The resounding preference at the hearing was for renewable energy and green jobs, the creation of which provides an average of 6 jobs to every 4 jobs fossil fuel-dependent industry contributes. Moreover, sustainable energy does not ask communities to make the tremendous choice between jobs and health.

On Tuesday, the people spoke and their message, one against the damage coal brings to communities, resonated clearly. Now their fate, as well as that of their land and future generations is in the hands of the EPD as Georgia waits with bated breath.

-Maura Friedman

Power Shift Carolinas is here!

Power Shift Carolinas is here! Weeks of planning have culminated in hundreds of students gathering at the campus of UNC Chapel Hill this weekend. This morning we heard inspiring speakers that reminded us that we must take this movement beyond conferences and meetings. They reminded us that the climate movement is not so unique from any other social movement. We are all seeking a new paradigm that addresses issues of domination and oppression of people’s livelihoods. Students braved crisp October weather as we sat in an outdoor theater and were reminded that being green is not always easy, despite what retailers often make us think.

Stephanie Powell, of the Southern Energy Network, on stage.

I have now stepped away from the workshop halls where my peers are learning skills that they will take home with them to teach to others.  Away from the Power Shift hub-bub I find myself on a plush sofa in the UNC Chapel Hill student union with a TV blaring beside me and students munching on disposable platters that will soon disappear into a waste stream that terminates in an unknown place. I remember that I’m responsible too, we all are.  Seeking climate justice is going to be a long winding path that won’t end with a federal climate bill and won’t end in Copenhagen.

Here at Power Shift I join some of the most amazing people I know. These are friends who constantly motivate and inspire me with their passion and energy and make me believe that it is possible. As Marcie Smith, said this morning, “it is the incremental steps and actions that are building to a tipping point in this movement and that will lead us to the future we seek.”  Power Shift Carolinas is proving that people throughout the U.S. Southeast are ready – are you?

Florida is Power Shifting Away from Nukes and Drilling!

Now, more than ever, Floridians need to stand up and show we are ready to usher in a brighter energy future. An energy future that is just and safe for all and uses truly renewable sources. An energy future that neither relies on fossil fuels nor creates a legacy of radioactive waste for tens of thousands of years. Want solar in the Sunshine State? Florida needs a POWER SHIFT!

Right now, Washington is leading us in the wrong direction. Check out what Senators John Kerry and Lindsey Graham have to say in their  NY Times Op Ed yesterday.

The emphasis Kerry and Graham place on expensive risky nuclear, the mythical ”clean coal,” and coastal drilling leaves Florida wondering when the sun will shine on our economy? The United States as a whole needs bold action to protect our climate and secure our energy. Drilling does neither–instead it maintains our dependence on dirty oil, and it does little to reduce our need for foreign oil. Nuclear is the ‘thirstiest‘ energy out there, requiring millions of gallons of water per day. These technologies do not bring the jobs we need, but renewables will!

Florida has a lot to lose in the face climate change, but so much to gain from real solutions. We need solutions that are safe, clean, renewable, and create jobs! Join hundreds of other engaged and passionate young people as we demand a Power Shift in Orlando, FL Oct 23-25 at University of Central Florida campus Arena.

Have 15 minutes? Here are 2 things you can do Right Now:

Attend Florida Power Shift! We were 6,000 strong in DC back in 2007. In March of this year, we doubled that number and really showed our legislators that young people in our country are serious about climate change and are here to support strong action toward real solutions. Now, we are bringing it home to Florida to demand safe and renewable energy. Don’t miss the early Registration Friday 10/16!

Contact the Florida Public Service Commission and tell them you won’t pay for their nuclear reactors! Email contact@psc.state.fl.us and Reference Docket # 090009. Progress Energy and Florida Power and Light want to charge you now for reactors that may never be built. Please contact them today! Need talking points? Check this out.

Please contact me with any questions!

Hope to see you next weekend in Orlando!

Mandy Hancock
Florida Organizer, Southern Energy Network

mandy@climateaction.net

Florida Youth Say “YES” to Green Jobs, Solar Energy, and Campus Efficiency!

This past weekend at University of Florida, over 70 young people from 9 universities across the state joined forces with Southern Energy Network at the Florida Youth Energy Sustainability (YES) Summit. It was an action packed day and a half of workshops and strategizing sessions interspersed with great energy and fun!

Oh, YES to solar in the Sunshine State! NO Nukes!

The goals of the summit centered around building relationships, increasing communication, and strategizing upcoming campaigns. The Green Fee campaign got a make over. Students from several schools are creating a committee to escalate the campaign and develop a plan to take on the Florida legislature, this time for a win! The anti-nuclear campaign gained more steam and will be one of the networks primary campaigns this year with plans under way to increase pressure at the state and national levels.

Last, but certainly not least, we talked about the Power Shift campaign and how Florida is going to raise their voices to join the chorus of young people demanding bold climate legislation before United Nations Climate Negotiations in December. Florida is ready to have an awesome event in Orlando on October 24th, just in time for the 350.org International Day of Action. Our state has a lot to lose in the face of climate change and we are stepping up to the challenge!

Be sure to stay tuned for more exciting news from Florida! Don’t miss out, make sure you register for Florida Power Shift today!

Rachel Walsh (Florida State) and Alicia (Florida A & M) Say No Nukes, Go Solar!

Van Jones says: Don’t Cry for Me, Argen(vironmental movemen)tina.

It’s heartbreaking but true: Van Jones, our beloved beacon of green-collar hope and environmental justice for all, has left the building. After enduring attacks from Fox News personality, Glenn Beck, who spinned a couple tame activities into ghosts of Jones’ activist past—I’m sorry, but who DIDN’T sign a 9/11 conspiracy petition, and really, who cares?—he has stepped down from his post as Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation.

Some say it’s our fault. According to Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope, the environmental movement didn’t take the threat of these allegations seriously enough, mobilize fast enough and back Van Jones up enough to prevent the end of his White House career.

Others say it’s a blessing in disguise. Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post half facetiously thanked Glenn Beck in a recent article for his smear campaign against Jones, asserting that his resignation will put his skills and talents to better use: out of the government and back in the movement.

What does Van Jones have to say about all this? He asks us not to stand with him, but to stand with the environmental movement as a whole. “I have been inundated with calls — from across the political spectrum — urging me to ’stay and fight.’ But I came here to fight for others, not for myself. I cannot in good conscience ask my colleagues to expend precious time and energy defending or explaining my past. We need all hands on deck, fighting for the future.” You can read the full article here.

I personally have mixed emotions about Jones’ resignation. Yes, we need to focus on the big picture but could he have done so more effectively by staying put? And did he really quit or was he asked to leave by the administration? Can he realistically return as the face of Green Jobs or is his name tainted? What are we gonna do now?

Ultimately, however, what Jones’ or any figurehead of our movement did or did not do is in the past and out of our control. Whatever attacks the anti-progressive peanut gallery pull out of their hats is also out of our control and not bound to stop anytime soon. We can rest assured that Glenn Beck and his posse of ignorance and greed have a whole artillery of tricks up their sleeves and are waiting just around the corner to hit us with a another curve ball at any moment. They’ve commandeered healthcare and now they’re coming for the green-collar movement.

We can’t ignore rightwing media, but we also can’t let some fringe element hijack our movement. And we won’t—not  in our name and not in the name of our leaders.

It’s not our job to let thoughts of worry and anger flood our pretty little heads. It’s our job to organize. If nothing else, this is a reminder that we need to stand together in solidarity.

We can start by following Van Jones’ example. Almost every person in the environmental justice movement has a story about how his words and actions have inspired them whether it was in an audience of twelve thousand peers listening to one of his many moving speeches or even a one-on-one interaction. Our executive director, Stephanie Powell, for example, had the privilege of chatting with him back in 2007 at the Southeast Student Renewable Energy Conference. Van overheard that she was working in the Gulf Coast post hurricane Katrina and sought her out to ask her more about her work and thank her for what she was doing.

The Van we know is a very busy man who always takes the time to care and be supportive of another organizer. It’s critical that we remember to do the same no matter how our schedules fill up. He’s not just a figurehead, he’s a person. We need to show the same compassion and not just support him but support others in the movement.

The best way to show this support is to call for real action on global warming. It’s time for a wake-up call.  On September 21, people all over the country are getting together in public places everywhere for “wake-up call” flash-mob events, pressing our Senators to take action on clean energy jobs & climate! Click here to get involved!

UCF Makes the Trek to Tallahassee to Say NO to Nuclear in Florida

UCF Students think families and local businesses shouldn’t have to pay for nuclear reactors, especially when there are safer renewables available that do not produce radioactive waste. So, at 4:30 a.m. this past Tuesday, they left Orlando to go to the Public Service Commission Early Cost Recovery hearing. The PSC heard expert testimonies all week to determine the prudence of Progress Energy and Florida Power and Light charging consumers to recoup capital costs for their proposed nuclear reactors.

Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE), the Office of Public Council, and PCS Phosphate are all intervening in the case. Their witnesses testify that early cost recovery is not sensible and that the reactors aren’t even necessary. Peter Bradford, former Chair of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, one of SACE’s expert witnesses, testified that our slumping economy is reducing the demand for electricity for the first time in decades. Citing rising costs for materials and an increasing shortage of laborers with the skills to complete these projects, he concludes that the risk the utilities are asking their consumers to bear is just too great. The PSC is scheduled to make its ruling October 26, 2009.

If you think the utilities should keep their hands out of your pockets with their risky investments, make your voice heard! Tell the PSC you do not what to fund Progress and Florida Power and Light’s risky business. Urge them to read the expert testimonies offered by Peter Bradford and Arnie Gundersen that cite hard evidence that the utilities cannot justify the request to raise rates for these projects nor can they ensure that ratepayers will get anything in return for their investment.

Here’s how: Use the info below to contact PSC and reference Docket #090009,:
• PSC Contact page: http://www.psc.state.fl.us/about/contact/
• Local Consumer Assistance Line: 1-850-413-6100

• Toll Free Consumer Assistance Line: 1-800-342-3552

• Toll Free Fax: 1-800-511-0809

UCF is Serious About Not Paying for Risky Nuclear

Check out Jessica Burris on Bay 9 News!

They say FACES. We say farces.

Gone are the days when environmentalists had only to worry about the dirty energy lobby taking our politicians on luxury cruises or using “greenwashing” to trick consumers into believing that products are environmentally friendly. No, the bad guys can’t just stop at buying out our politicians and our message, they have to hijack our tactics too. Exit grassroots. Enter “Astroturf,” a PR ploy disguised as a spontaneous grassroots effort. It may not be a new tool, but it seems to be all the rage right now. Suffice to say, things are getting dirty, as if Big Coal and Big Oil  weren’t dirty enough already.

To kick off their efforts to perpetuate the petroleum industry in response to new climate legislation coming from Congress, a group called Energy Citizen held a rally in Houston to fight back. Or did they? Says Climate Progress: “Despite signs and T-shirts, the Houston rally of more than 3,000 people – which was sponsored by a group calling itself Energy Citizens — actually had a boatload of funding and logistical support from the oil and gas industry, according to an American Petroleum Institute (API) memo leaked late last week by the environmental group Greenpeace.” Click here for the full article.

The coal industry has chimed in with their own citizen front group as well: the  Federation for American Coal, Energy and Security  or FACES.  My question: who exactly are these people anyway? Grist tried to find out, but upon emailing the only contact on FACES’ website, which listed no funders or members of the group, their inquiry bounced back. You can check out the full article here.

As a grassroots organizer, I have always taken comfort in the idea that there are two major forms of power: money and people. The bad guys might have the former, but when we come together, we’ve got the latter. My question: how do we keep it this way? Watch what real activists did in North Carolina.

– Rebecca Van Damm

July 28: Take Action Against Coal in Georgia

Aerial image Plant Branch, located in Milledgeville, GA.

There’s finally a glimmer of hope in the quest to restructure energy sources in the Southeast. More than a year after a judge ruled to halt the construction of the Longleaf coal plant in south Georgia, an appeals court has upheld her the decision that the plant’s excessive emissions is a hazard to the health and safety of Georgia citizens.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Thelma Wyatt Cummings Moore wrote in her initial decision (from July of 2008) that “the plant as permitted [by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources] would annually emit large amounts of air pollutants, including eight [million] to nine million tons of carbon dioxide…[and] since CO2 is ‘otherwise subject to regulation under the [Clean Air] Act,’ a PSD [prevention of significant deterioration] permit cannot issue for Longleaf without CO2 emission limitations.”

As noted by David Biello of Scientific American magazine, this is the first time that excessive CO2 emissions have been cited as a deciding factor in denying a permit for coal plant construction. If nothing else, this decision means that environmental concerns are moving up the governmental ladder and into our courts where precedents will be set that lay the groundwork for a sustainable national future.

Rather than denying the permit altogether, though, the appellate decision  has ordered a case review that will require the Longleaf construction proposal to contain stricter emissions targets and more environmentally-sound technology. By questioning the validity of the permit and ordering a further case review, Georgians now have an opportunity to build strong opposition to the Longleaf plant construction. The anti-coal movement is already strong – with hundreds of Georgians and several organizations already on board – but now that we’ve got more time, we can mobilize our voices and share our knowledge.

A public hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, July 28, at 6pm at Early County High School. At this hearing, members of the local and regional community will offer their opinions about the plant and its effect on the environment. Administrators will be present, public officials will be present, but most importantly, Georgia citizens must be present to express what they know about coal and its negative health and environmental effects.

What we know is this – that coal is by far one of the most environmentally-destructive resources available. Coal mining alters our planet’s landscape, transporting the coal to plants uses a tremendous amount of gas, and the process of burning coal produces millions of tons of CO2 emissions in our region alone. There are already more than one hundred plants in the Southeast and rather than constructing new plants, we need to be spending our money investing in safe, sustainable alternatives to coal-fired power plants.

Let’s attend this hearing and spread the word about wind, solar, hydrokinetic, and geothermal energy. (links to fact sheets that I’m more than happy to prepare.) We need to use this opportunity as a vehicle to unite our voices and fight against dirty coal. Clean energy is the future and it is imperative that we share this sentiment with our friends, families, and communities.

So come to the hearing and say your piece. Invite friends, relatives, and neighbors and encourage them to join the fight for clean energy and a safe, sustainable future.

From Florida to France, New Nuclear Shouldn’t Have a Chance!

Southern Energy Network represented at the Institute for Environmental Energy Research Carbon Free Nuclear Free workshop last week in Washington, DC. Jessica Burris, one of our interning volunteers, and I spent 5 days learning all sorts of technical information about nuclear energy. We covered a broad range of topics, everything from reprocessing and uranium enrichment to nuclear disarmament. We held strategy sessions to further the Carbon Free Nuclear Free campaign, and then we all had the opportunity to make a presentation to the panel of scientists that work at the Institute. We also heard from experts (from France even!) about why nuclear in France isn’t the love affair we understand it to be.

Jessica and I worked together on a presentation that begins the initial research phases of a larger project that will become her Master’s thesis. She is looking at the Environmental Justice implications of nuclear energy in Florida. Our initial findings were that the existing nuclear reactors in Florida, as well as the new reactor proposals, are all located in communities that have a combination of the following characteristics: well below the average median income for the state, majority minority, well over median age, and very high unemployment. Other characteristics of the areas in which these reactors exist or are proposed: high rates of asthma, high infant mortality, high cancer rates, high percentages of Spanish language homes, and low rates of high school or equivalency attainment. Although we had to revisit some of the science that supported our initial conclusions, our overarching and supported conclusion was that the communities that have nuclear reactors in their backyard are full of people that already have a lot of socio-economic factors to contend with in their daily survival, and that the additional burden on their health and environment is a serious environmental racism and justice issue.

If you are still undecided about nuclear energy, here are some things to consider:

**Nuclear reactors produce tons of spent fuel, which is high-level radioactive waste that is harmful to all life for over 10,000 years.
**There is currently no long-term storage for all of this waste.
**Nuclear reactors also produce tons of low-level waste that creates another “safe storage” problem.
**Nuclear reactors are VERY THRISTY. In a world with increasing water shortages, we need less water intensive alternatives.
**Nuclear energy is risky business. Wall Street won’t invest in it, why should you? Many states, including Florida, are passing the capital costs onto you with “Early Cost Recovery” and “Construction Work in Progress” rate-increases on your energy bill. See Regress Energy for more information on how this is playing out in Florida.
**Thermal discharge from reactors endangers surrounding marine eco-systems.

For more on the science behind this madness, check out www.ieer.org

The Southeast currently has 13 new nuclear reactor proposals. There are a number of local, state, regional, and national groups getting organized to keep these expensive, risky, water intensive, dangerous energy sources out of our communities. Here are some organizations that you can plug into to take action:

Southern Energy Network–We are looking to build a team of passionate youth to organize our region out of risky nuclear and into renewables! Contact mandy@climateaction.net for more information.
Southern Alliance for Clean Energy
Nuclear Information and Resource Service
Institute for Environmental and Energy Research