Recent storm events and days worth of heavy rain have made it abundantly clear that there are many areas throughout New England that are susceptible to flooding, erosion, and damage to important infrastructure (like power lines, roads, bridges, drinking water and sewer treatment) and personal property. The State of Rhode Island has a number of ongoing efforts designed to learn more about what people think about increased storm frequency and severity and whether and how to prepare for climate change in Rhode Island. Understanding the many points of view is a really important first step to finding lasting and meaningful solutions. I will be providing updates as the planning and surveying efforts in Rhode Island move forward and I am hopeful that we can have a virtual conversation about how our read more…

A thoughtful New York Times opinion piece from an oil and gas engineer, Anthony R. Ingrafea, recently noted that: “gas extracted from shale deposits is not a ‘bridge’ to a renewable energy future – it’s a gangplank to more warming and away from clean energy investments.” This is a refreshing insight. The leaks of methane from gas production and transportation “eviscerate” and advantage natural gas has over oil. Conservation Law Foundation provided a similar analysis last month regarding the Vermont Gas expansion in Addison County. Even if natural gas burns cleaner it is still a fossil fuel. It still contributes to climate change. It still ties us to a dirty fuel at a time our climate demands we move toward cleaner sources. It is disappointing to hear Vermont Gas and others read more…

A version of this article first appeared in the Sunday July 21 edition of the Rutland Herald /Times Argus. Helping farms and Vermont businesses thrive while cleaning up the environment is a win all around. Conservation Law Foundation is pleased to serve on the Executive Committee to help Vermont’s homegrown Green Mountain Power Cow Power program to pave the way for cleaner air, happier farm neighbors and more successful Vermont businesses. The program works by turning farm manure into electricity. The average cow produces more than 30 gallons of manure a day. Multiply that amount by 1,000 — the numbers of cows on a typical Cow Power farm — and you have a lot of cow manure. That means there is also a lot of methane, which can be used to read more…

  Like PSNH’s zombie talking points about the Northern Pass project, the company has once again repeated a baseless and misleading claim—this time in a vain hope of sustaining its failing coal-fired business model. Once again, the cold, hard facts belie PSNH’s claim of a $700 million savings to its customers over the last decade.  PSNH customers have lost hundreds of millions of dollars since 2003. In early 2012, PSNH vigorously opposed a bill that would have required it to sell its power plants, where the market would be deciding their fates. It proclaimed, as it has for a decade, that divesting would be the wrong choice for PSNH customers and New Hampshire residents. A PSNH executive told legislators that “PSNH customers have saved more than $700 million over the read more…

I recently wrote a post commending and admiring the work that youth all over Massachusetts have done in order to shed light on climate change and to call for action to address it. When it comes to climate change action, the youth of Massachusetts are doing their part in spreading knowledge and creating a strong voice. Unfortunately, Massachusetts DEP does not seem interested in taking the opportunity to work with, or seriously respond to, the youth in their fight for climate action. Students from the Boston Latin School who are members of Youth Climate Action Network recently spoke to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. These students, along with Boston College Law students, demonstrated their concern for our futures by creating a petition asking DEP to do more. Mass DEP read more…

This week on Talking Fish, learn more about the need to protect cod habitat and take action to keep 3000 square miles of protected habitat closed to fishing; in Fish Talk in the News, the Senate attaches disaster relief funding to an appropriations bill and NOAA proposes measures to reduce marine mammal entanglement with fishing gear. read more..

For miles around Rhode Island’s Central Landfill, the air often smells like rotten eggs.  In the Landfill, garbage degrades and gives off a gas that is part hydrogen sulfide (which produces the rotten-egg smell), part volatile organic compounds (which can cause cancer), and part methane (a potent greenhouse gas).  At well-run landfills, collection systems capture enough of this gas to avoid creating health and environmental hazards.  Here in Rhode Island, though, something is wrong. That’s why yesterday CLF’s Rhode Island office notified companies associated with the Landfill that we intend to sue for violations of the federal Clean Air Act. After a thorough investigation, we figured out that two companies – Broadrock Gas Services and its subsidiary Rhode Island LFG Genco – are not collecting landfill gas like they are read more…

Yesterday, EPA sent Vermont’s clean water agency, the Department of Environmental Conservation, a Clean Water Act “Corrective Action Plan,” outlining permitting and enforcement improvements and updates the state has made or needs to make to ensure that the state provides all the protections required by law to its citizens and the waters they have a right to use and enjoy. This marks a major milestone in CLF’s long-running efforts to secure clean water for all Vermonters. The federal Clean Water Act is one of the most important and successful laws our nation ever enacted. Before its passage more than 40 years ago, massive volumes of raw sewage and industrial wastes flowed freely into our lakes and rivers. Polluters responsible for this mess faced little in the way of meaningful consequences. The patchwork read more…

Climate change has made many people concerned for their future. As we see more climate change impacts –such as intense storms, frequent flooding and extreme temperatures – more and more people want to take action to protect their future. There is no question that support for climate action has grown. And even more interesting is the age of many people involved in the growing climate action force.  In addition to the many environmental organizations and groups, many youth have taken a strong lead in the fight for climate change action. I recently attended a Kids vs. Global Warming hearing at the Mass Department of Environmental Protection and got a good picture of what passionate youth concerned about climate change looked like. Thirteen and fourteen year olds concerned about their future read more…

Vermont Gas’ proposed pipeline expansion is an ill-conceived pipe dream that would exacerbate Vermont’s contribution to climate change and fuel our continued reliance on non-renewable energy. Adding insult to injury, this fundamentally misguided expansion would pose both immediate and sustained threats to vital wetland ecosystems, state-significant natural communities, and threatened plant populations. The pipeline demands a full NEPA review and environmental impact statement, just as Governor Shumlin called for environmental review of the Portland Montreal Pipe Line reversal in a recent letter to Secretary Kerry. As Conservation Law Foundation articulates in this letter to the Army Corps of Engineers, the pipeline expansion would have undue adverse impacts on aquatic resources and fails to meet the criteria established by federal law for a Section 404 individual wetland permit. The proposed route impacts 25.16 read more…