Feds urged to avoid sensitive lands for coal--but development for "renewable" energy pressure intensifies
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July 6, 2012 (San Diego) -- As part of its 2012 Environmental Champions Initiative, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) today announced that it will contribute $1 million to local environmental non-profit organizations in San Diego County and south Orange County.
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Bill would also ban public from accessing environmental impacts of tribal projects
By Miriam Raftery
July 5, 2012 (Washington D.C.) –The Native American Energy Act, HR 3973, has been approved by the House Natural Resources Committee. The bill, which seeks to remove “bureaucratic obstacles” to energy production on tribal lands, would also severely impede residents, environmentalists or even neighboring tribes who file lawsuits to stop tribal energy projects.
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June 30, 2012 (Lakeside)--In October 2003 the Cedar Fire incinerated 280,000 acres, destroyed 2820 homes and killed 15 people. Like many others, Lakeside’s Wildcat Canyon resident Ingrid Coffin was alerted in the middle of the night that she was in the path of the most devastating firestorm our state had ever seen.
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June 30, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – A new website, www.savemissiontrails.org, has been launched to oppose the Quail Brush Generation Power Plant. The group asks the public to send e-mails to decision makers and attend two key upcoming meetings, both on July 19.
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July 1, 2012 (Washington, D.C.)—Federal wildlife agencies are suppressing information about wind energy projects’ negative impacts on America’s wildlife, claims a lawsuit filed by the nonprofit American Bird Conservancy (ABC) June 26 in Washington D.C. District Court.
"It’s ridiculous that Americans have to sue in order to find out what their government is saying to wind companies about our wildlife—a public trust,” said Kelly Fuller, Wind Campaign Coordinator for ABC. “ABC is concerned that many of these projects have the potential to take a devastating toll on songbirds, majestic eagles, and threatened and endangered species,” she added.
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June 27, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – With over 100 large-scale solar applications pending in the Mojave Desert and more planned in San Diego and Imperial counties, an article published in the Los Angeles Times raises some disturbing questions.
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June 25, 2012 (San Diego) – A California Public Utilities Commission has brightened the future for solar energy in California. In a unanimous decision last month, the CPUC voted to nearly double the number of homes and businesses that will be eligible to participate in the state’s net metering program. With net metering, Net meter lets homeowners and business owners cut their utility bills by installing solar panels—and get credit for excess electricity that the send to the state’s power grid.
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June 25, 2012 – (Kearny Mesa) Several independent small business owners from East County and surrounding areas are proud to host the first annual, “Pathways to Wellness & Beauty”- Networking & Educational Faire on Saturday, June 30 from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm. The event is an Open House, however, eager students should arrive early to engage in the full schedule of speakers.
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June 24, 2012 -- A sliver of moon and a spangle of stars shone down on the Ocotillo desert last night, where representatives from eight tribal nations joined in ceremonies to honor their ancestors. Hundreds of people from across the southwestern U.S. came to mourn the desecration of Native American sacred lands, cremation sites and the natural environment that is now occurring on public land.
As twilight melted into darkness across the shifting sands and jagged ridgelines, the night’s silence was broken only by the whistling of the wind and the cadence of ancient Native American songs unchanged for the past 10,000 years. But that way of life—and the peaceful presence of this place--may soon be gone forever.
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June 24, 2012 (Washington D.C.) – A scathing new report by the U.S. Department of Interior’s Inspector General highlights “significant failures” by the federal Bureau of Land Managment in its stewardship over more than 30,000 wind energy right-of-way (ROW) acres and another 31,000 acres of solar energy ROW sites. View the complete report at http://docs.wind-watch.org/BLM-Renewable-Energy-Program.pdf.
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June 23, 2012 (Sacramento) -- When the state begins auctioning off cap-and-trade revenues next year, a new report suggests those dollars be put into California's clean-energy economy.
Tim O'Connor, director of the Environmental Defense Fund, says his group's report makes it clear that investing in new energy-efficiency programs produces the greatest economic benefits and job creation for the state.
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June 22,2012 (San Diego’s East County)-- Statewide leaders of the Planning & Conservation League (PCL)warned of “unprecedented attacks” in the Legislature on the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
The remarks came during an event honoring East County environmental champion Duncan McFetridge, president of Save Our Forest and Ranchlands and executive director of the Cleveland National Forest Foundation.
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June 21, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – it sounds like a vision out of Utopia.Imagine driving on highways and streets made of glass—12-x12 foot solar panels that produce electricity and ultimately, recharge your solar-powered car as you drive.
No need for power lines or power plants anymore, since roads and driveways will actually deliver electricity straight to your doorstep.
Sound impossible? Think again.The Federal Highway Administration issued a contract to Solar Roadways, brainchild of Idaho electrical engineer Scott Brusaw, to build the first ever solar Road Panel prototype in 2009. In 2011, a contract to build a solar parking lot was issued--with completion due this September
But a solar roadway can do much more than produce power--and the potential is enlightening.
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Bill also jeopardizes national parks along U.S.-Mexico and Canadian borders;
2 local Congressmen vote to kill environmental protections for all federal lands within 100 miles of borders--encompassing vast swaths in San Diego
By Miriam Raftery
June 19, 2012 (Washington D.C) - The U.S. House of Representatives has passed legislation that would give the Department of Homeland Security the power to override dozens of environmental laws on all federal lands that lie within 100 miles of the Mexican and Canadian borders--even though Homeland Security opposes the bill.
That would encompass virtually all federal lands in San Diego County, wiping out protections not only for Bureau of Land Management, Cleveland National Forest and military properties throughout San Diego County.
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June 20, 2012 (San Diego) – Amid vocal community opposition, the city of San Diego’s Planning Commission will soon consider whether to approve a zoning change that would allow the proposed gas-fired Quail Brush power plant to be built next to Mission Trails Regional Park. The public hearing will be held on Thursday, June 28, 2012 at 9 a.m. in the City Administration Building, 202 C Street, 12th floor in downtown San Diego.
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Government accused of illegally approving “ineligible” project that failed to meet minimum federal wind speed standards
Violations of other laws alleged, including discrimination against low-income residents
June 20, 2012 (Ocotillo) –A fourth lawsuit seeking to halt the Ocotillo Express wind facility has been filed in federal court.The plaintiff in this case, Community Advocates for Renewable Energy Stewardship, filed suit yesterday against Pattern Energy, the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management and top government officials.
The suit, which seeks a permanent enjoinment or halt to the project, differs from prior lawsuits filed by other groups on several fronts.
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June 9, 2012 (San Diego) – By a unanimous vote, San Diego's Planning Commission voted Friday to deny Iberdrola Renewables’ application for five 492-foot-tall wind turbines on private land under county jurisdiction.
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June 13, 2012 (Ocotillo) – Why hasn’t the Bureau of Land Management taken steps to protect Ocotillo area residents from clouds of dust in an area with high rates of childhood asthma and where soil reportedly contains potentially deadly Valley Fever spores?
Despite numerous complaints including photos and videos of dust billowing up from construction activities at Pattern Energy’s Ocotillo Express wind energy site, the apparent health hazard continues.
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How Kathy and Gene Dolphin walk their talk every day
By Faith Attaguile
June 11, 2012, (San Diego) -- When the energy “crisis” hit California in 2001, Kathy and Gene Dolphin got angry.
The roving blackouts and triple-digit rate increases in California caused by Enron’s market manipulations tipped the scales. The soaring electric bill pushed them over the edge.
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June 11, 2012 (Norwalk, CT) -- Dear EarthTalk: I own a small business and would like to do what I can to minimize its impact on the environment. Can you help me? -- Jacob Levinson, New York, NY
There are many ways to green up any business, large or small—and an added benefit might just be saving money. Just like individuals, businesses can measure their carbon footprints to get a sense of where they are starting from and to get some initial ideas of areas to focus on to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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June 10, 2012 (San Diego) – The San Diego Planning Commission on Friday approved the Energia Sierra Juarez Gen-Tie project, a power line that Sempra Energy plans to utilize to bring energy from a planned Mexico wind facility across the border to the U.S. That facility’s future is in limbo, however, since a Mexican court has agreed to hear a lawsuit challenging Energia Sierra Juarez.
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June 8, 2012 (Spring Valley) – Victory Gardens San Diego is offering a 3 session basic gardening course on June 9, 16 and 23 from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. in Spring Valley.The course teaches about garden tools, garden siting considerations, testing and developing good soil and composting.
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“The snake was moved but kept coming back, just like our people.We will continue to keep coming back.” – Preston Arrowweed, Quechan elder. He believes unusual animal visitations at site are signs from Indian spirits, asking his people to help.
By Miriam Raftery
Jim Pelley, Denee ‘Estevane’ Woolley, and Susan Massey also contributed to this report
June 7, 2012 (Ocotillo)—Neither blistering heat nor blowing dust dissuaded Native Americans from at least four tribes from taking part in a five-day occupation in Ocotillo last week.
They came to be with the spirits of their ancestors. They also aim to show that desert devastation occurring with construction of the Ocotillo Express wind facility is wrong and must be stopped.
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June 1, 2012 (San Diego's East County)--It has been proven that ground-based wind turbines can result in issues such as environmental damage, noise and visual blight. But Altaeros Energies has brought an intriguing alternative to the table.
Altaeros has announced a breakthrough in high altitude wind power. In April, the company reports that it tested a successful prototype of a flying wind turbine, able to lift a standard Skystream turbine 1000 feet into the air--and produce far more power with the blades aloft.
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Free class to be held this Saturday, June 2 at Water Conservation Garden
By Sierra Robinson
May 30, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) -- Imagine plucking a ripe tomato off your roof, or filtering rainwater through your driveway. Green roofs and permeable pavement can make all of that a reality.
This weekend, the Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College is offering a free class from 9-11am about how and why you can install a green roof or permeable pavement at your home or business.
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May 27, 2012 (Ocotillo) –The Protect Our Communities Foundation, Backcountry Against Dumps, and Donna Tisdale of Boulevard are suing the Imperial County Board of Supervisors and Pattern Energy.
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Vermont’s latest energy statute expands its statewide Clean Local Energy Accessible Now (CLEAN) Program and removes program cap for projects with locational benefits to the power grid.
May 26, 2012 (Montpelier, Vermont)– On May 18, Vermont’s Governor Shumlin signed into law the 2012 Energy Bill, which contains a groundbreaking acknowledgment of the locational benefits of distributed generation and more than doubles the amount clean local energy that will be brought online through the state’s CLEAN program. Similar programs could well be applied in places such as San Diego to encourage locally-generated rooftop solar and other local power as alternatives to massive industrial-scale energy projects and high-voltage transmission lines running long distances.
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May 25, 2012 (San Diego) -- Today the Desert Protective Council is filing a lawsuit in Federal Court in San Diego to stop the Ocotillo Wind Energy Facility Project (OWEF) from causing damage to fragile desert lands in western Imperial County, adjacent to the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, the largest state park in the U.S.
The lawsuit, naming the Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar, the County of Imperial, California, and the Project Permittee, Pattern Energy of La Jolla, CA as defendants, alleges that the Secretary violated the right-of-way provisions of the Federal Lands Policy Management Act (FLPMA) when he approved the Project.
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.
By Miriam Raftery
By Miriam Raftery
June 13, 2012 (Ocotillo) – Why hasn’t the Bureau of Land Management taken steps to protect Ocotillo area residents from clouds of dust in an area with high rates of childhood asthma and where soil reportedly contains potentially deadly Valley Fever spores?
June 8, 2012 (Spring Valley) – Victory Gardens San Diego is offering a 3 session basic gardening course on June 9, 16 and 23 from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. in Spring Valley.
May 27, 2012 (Ocotillo) –The Protect Our Communities Foundation, Backcountry Against Dumps, and Donna Tisdale of Boulevard are suing the Imperial County Board of Supervisors and Pattern Energy. 
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