Governor McCrory signs the final anti-environmental legislation from the 2013 legislative session, plus more news, this week in CIB:
Executive Watch: McCrory Signs Rules Deform, Dirty Jordan Bills
After waiting for weeks, Gov. Pat McCrory late last week signed two of the most troubling environmental bills of the 2013 legislative session: regulatory reform and the Jordan Lake cleanup delay.
The worst of the batch may well be HB 74, the omnibus deregulation bill that in no way deserves the title of “reform”. Among other severe problems, the rules “deforms” of HB 74 include:
- All existing state environmental rules are to be reviewed on an accelerated timetable, and to be retained must go through the excruciating new rules review and re-adoption process.
- State rules protecting clean water and wetlands were singled out for the fastest review–within the first year–and will die if not reviewed and readopted within that ludicrously short time frame.
- Limits on new landfills, including “environmental justice” restrictions on clustering undesirable facilities near poor communities, have been weakened.
- Groundwater protections from the spread of underground pollution out of contaminated sites have been weakened.
- Even more tree-clearing along public rights-of-way will be allowed to make billboards more visible.
- Rules limiting air pollution from heavy-duty trucks are repealed.
While signing the bill, McCrory tossed two small bones to the public’s interests in the form of executive orders on leaking garbage trucks and highway tree-clearing. Those are appreciated, but hardly enough to offset the damage created by the bill as a whole.
The second order directs the state Transportation Department to continue to “consult” with local governments before approving tree-clearing plans on public rights-of-way to improve billboard visibility. (There is no requirement that the affected local governments approve the plans, just that they be “consulted” about them.)
McCrory also signed the unfortunate SB 515, which delays the cleanup plan for Jordan Lake for yet another three years. In the meantime, water quality problems there will likely continue to escalate.
Campaign Watch: Raising the Resources to Fight Back
It’s been a bad year at the General Assembly, but this is no time to moan and groan. NCLCV is starting now to raise the resources to fight back for the environment in the 2014 legislative elections.
This new campaign kicks off with a major fundraiser on August 28 in Raleigh, hosted by former NCLCV President Nina Szlosberg-Landis and Kel Landis, and featuring as guests Sen. Josh Stein, Rep. Grier Martin, and other local legislators.Here’s the link for full details on this reception.
Even if you can’t attend in person, please help out with a contribution. NCLCV members are encouraged to give now to help build our ability to take back control over the environmental future of our state. Pooling our resources, concerned citizens can work together to beat the Big Oiled money machine that buys races for anti-environmental candidates.
Education & Resources: Solar Ordinance Opportunities
The N.C. Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) and the N.C. Solar Center are sponsoring two more installments in their series of forums on the “Development of a Template Solar Ordinance for North Carolina”. These events are intended to create opportunities for “information sharing on the technical, social, and environmental aspects of solar projects,” with the goal of developing a model local ordinance for solar development.
Among those for whom the forums are designed are local government officials and staff, clean energy business owners and employees, and commercial and industrial energy customers.
The next forum will be Tuesday, September 24, 4 to 8 p.m., at the Carolina Civic Center in Lumberton. The final forum will be Friday, October 18, 1 to 5 p.m., at Central Piedmont Community College (Harris Campus) in Charlotte. More information and registration is available here.
Conservationists: Asheville Recognized for Climate Protection Efforts
Asheville Mayor Terry Bellamy has been selected as one of two top winners in the 2013 Mayors’ Climate Protection Awards, an initiative sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM). (Salt Lake City’s Ralph Becker was the other top winner.)
Bellamy and Asheville took first place in the small city category (under 100,000 population). Asheville’s winning project was its Green Capital Improvement Program, which funds projects designed to cut carbon emissions in municipal activities. Asheville’s goal is an 80 percent reduction in its municipal carbon emissions by 2030. Projects funded thus far have included LED streetlighting. The city has achieved a 17.67 percent reduction in its city emissions in the five years thus far since establishment of its goal. The project recycles money saved by such initiatives into its Green Capital program.
The winners were announced at the USCM’s annual meeting this month. This is the seventh year of the climate protection awards program.
That’s our report for this week.
