Governor McCrory’s proposed state budget adds environmental insult to injury. This week in CIB.
Executive Watch: Governor’s Budget Insulting to Environment
Governor Pat McCrory last week released his proposed budget for the 2015-17 biennium, and it continues his pattern of slicing and dicing North Carolina’s natural resources management. Once again, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) takes the big hit, losing key natural resources divisions (including state parks) to another agency (Dept. of Cultural Resources).
Conservation advocates were particularly offended by one of McCrory’s few additions to the DENR budget: a proposed $500,000 taxpayer subsidy attempting to re-start moribund industry interest in exploratory drilling for shale gas. It adds fracking insult to base budget injury.
Meanwhile, a preliminary look at the detailed numbers doesn’t look any better. The Clean Water Management Trust Fund loses another $233,000, while the already understaffed waste management and land and water stewardship offices lose more positions. (pps. 189-91)
“Dismembering DENR and subsidizing the fracking industry – this proposed budget is a double loser for North Carolina’s environment,” said NCLCV’s director of governmental relations Dan Crawford.
Other conservation advocates shared similarly negative responses. Appalachian Voices’ Amy Adams told the Winston-Salem Journal (3/6/15) that she has “great apprehension about the governor’s proposal to re-name [DENR] as the Department of Energy and the Environment. With DENR’s recent focus on customer service for corporations, it forebodes an even further demotion of environmental protection across the state. How long will it be before DENR is simply a permitting agency with no environmental protection mandates?”
Administrative Watch: EPA Will Investigate DENR for Civil Rights Violations
The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) has announced that it has accepted a complaint filed against DENR and will investigate a set of environmental justice allegations against the agency.
In sum, the complaint asserts that DENR has failed to address the impacts of pollution from industrial hog farm operations, and that this pollution has a disparate impact on minority communities in eastern North Carolina. The leading citizen groups bringing the complaint are the NC Environmental Justice Network, the Rural Empowerment Association for Community Help, and the Waterkeeper Alliance. In order to accept the complaint for investigation, OCR made a preliminary evaluation and concluded that investigation is warranted.
“People just can’t ignore this. The air stinks, the water is contaminated and property values are depleted,” said Naeema Muhammad, Director of North Carolina Environmental Justice Network. “We’ve been asking the state and our representatives for years to do something different about how this industry operates in the state of North Carolina. It was an insult to the community and to the people of the state of North Carolina to renew those [Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation] permits.”
Washington Watch: Keystone Veto Stands
Last week the US Senate fell five votes short of overriding President Obama’s veto of legislation mandating the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline construction. The vote was 62 to 37. A two-thirds majority in both chambers of Congress is required to override a presidential veto.
In reacting to the vote sustaining the veto, national League of Conservation Voters (LCV) president Gene Karpinski said, “It is time Senator McConnell and Leader Boehner move on from this tired political fight to approve the dirty and dangerous Keystone XL pipeline. The Senators who stood with the president and opposed this veto override attempt deserve credit for knowing Americans want us to move on to real solutions – like growing clean energy.”
In his veto statement, Obama had declared that the bill would “circumvent longstanding and proven processes for determining whether or not building and operating a cross-border pipeline serves the national interest…And because this act of Congress conflicts with established executive branch procedures and cuts short through consideration of issues that could bear on our national interest—including our security, safety, and environment – it has earned my veto.” Conservation advocates praised the veto.
Coast Watch: Offshore Drilling Forum March 12
We are inviting all of you to join NCLCV and other coastal advocates at the South Atlantic Offshore Drilling Forum this Thursday, March 12, at the Friday Center in Chapel Hill (100 Friday Center Drive, Chapel Hill NC 27517). The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments and check-in begin at 5:30 pm with the program scheduled to run 6:30 – 8:30pm.
The forum will include a screening of “The Great Invisible” – a documentary film on the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico. A panel and Q&A period will follow the film. Please click here to register for the event.
Conservationists: Todd Miller, NC Coastal Federation
Todd Miller, long-time executive director of the North Carolina Coastal Federation, has won a Peter Benchley Ocean Award for his work in protection and restoration of the North Carolina coast. The Benchley Awards have colloquially been called the “Academy Awards of the sea” in part because of their international prestige, and in part referencing career connections of their namesake, author Robert Benchley. The award recipients are selected by a committee including marine scientists, ecologists, and authors.
Miller is in good company: Past recipients have included heads of state and members of presidential cabinets. Another one of this year’s eight recipients is U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (for his history of work in support of expanding marine sanctuaries, dealing with unregulated commercial fishing, and cleaning up Boston Harbor). Congratulations, Todd!
That’s our report for this week.
