New England’s old coal-burning power plants don’t just pollute the air. With their obsolete cooling technology, they also create havoc in the water bodies on which they reside. To control heat from the coal-combustion process, these coal plants draw millions of gallons of water daily into their antiquated cooling systems, killing the aquatic life that gets sucked in with it, and then discharge the super-heated, chemical-laden  water back into the fragile rivers and bays, where it creates untenable living conditions that destroy native fish and other species. Under decades of pressure from CLF and other organizations, EPA has tightened its regulations around water intake and discharge at the region’s coal plants. At the GenOn Kendall Power Plant in Cambridge, MA, as a result of a lawsuit brought by CLF and read more…

I recently moved to a part of Rhode Island that is very close to this power station. When I first saw these two huge towers, I got nervous. “Am I living near a nuclear reactor?” Turns out it was my director who was in charge of getting these cooling towers built in the first place. They help to dramatically reduce the amount of cooling water the station uses from Mt. Hope Bay, thereby minimizing the thermal impact on the bay. A closed-loop system reduces the required amount of cooling water by more than 90 percent. I grew up on the Atlantic Ocean and living near the water has always been important to me. To work with an organization that wants to continue to keep our waters clean, and to know read more…

A decision in the Vermont Yankee case is expected before the end of the year.  Meanwhile, CLF in its role as “friend of the court” submitted a post trial memo supporting the State of Vermont’s right to have a say about Vermont Yankee.  The brief explains that the Vermont Legislature acted well within its rights and why Entergy’s safety characterizations are faulty. CLF Attorney Sandy Levine was a guest on the Callie Crossley show on WGBH in Boston Monday  afternoon to discuss Vermont Yankee and the future of nuclear power. Entergy’s nuclear plants continue to have problems calling into question their ability to  be trustworthy and responsibly manage their nuclear fleet. A problem at Vermont Yankee Sunday night reduced power to 36% and if the situation is not remedied shortly, the read more…

Obviously, we here at the Conservation Law Foundation think that crafting and advocating for environmental solutions is a very important thing to be doing and that when we have a job opening that the best, smartest, most tenacious and brightest folks should apply. However, we know that we are part of a much larger network and community of people and organizations working to create positive change.  Some of those groups work largely out of the public eye – providing critical infrastructure for the flashier and more visible efforts.  An excellent example of one such group is the Appliance Standards Awareness Project (ASAP) which has done a phenomenal job of coordinating and advancing the work of the environmental and efficiency advocacy communities in the world of standards setting for appliances.  It read more…

Catch up with the latest news from TalkingFish.org, a blog brought to you by CLF and other organizations and individuals who want to see a sustainable fishing industry in New England and abundant fish populations for generations to come. TalkingFish.org aims to increase people’s understanding of the scientific, financial and social aspects at work in New England’s fisheries. Here’s what went on this week. read more..

Tropical Storm Irene had one hell of an appetite for destruction when it comes to Vermont’s farms.  Flood waters washed away many growing crops and destroyed barns and other equipment.  Those flooded farmers who still have crops standing may also be out of luck because regulations prevent the sale of crops that may have been contaminated by flood waters. Vermonters can help farmers recover by recycling bottles and cans. CLF is partnering with Vermont Public Interest Research Group to get the word out about the statewide Redeem to Rebuild bottle drive in an effort to raise money for the Vermont Farm Disaster Relief Fund. This fund was established by the Vermont Community Foundation in partnership with the Vermont Agency of Agriculture to provide support to farms that have suffered losses due read more…

If you read the CLF Scoop, you probably already know how important it is to make sure that the seafood you purchase is from a healthy fishery and was caught in a sustainable manner. But did you know that it’s now easier than ever to buy this sustainable fish at your local supermarket along with your regular grocery shopping? read more..

CLF Ventures, Conservation Law Foundation’s non-profit consulting affiliate, has been awarded an EPA grant to help two New England charter fishing vessels reduce their diesel emissions. The project will repower four “tier 0″ marine engines on the vessels The Atlantic Queen, out of Rye, NH and The Captain’s Lady II, out of Newburyport, MA. Jo Anne Shatkin, PhD, CEO of CLF Ventures, said the funding will allow CLF to work with the two vessels to reduce their impacts on air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce fuel costs. EPA’s Clean Diesel projects help create and retain jobs, as well as reduce premature deaths, asthma attacks and other respiratory ailments, lost work days and other health impacts associated with air pollution from diesel engines. John Kassel, CLF president, accepted read more…

Just over a year ago, CLF and the Buzzards Bay Coalition sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in order to expedite the clean up of a nitrogen pollution scourge  on Cape Cod that was threatening the Cape’s bays and the local economy that depends on them. Today, CLF and the Bay Coalition filed a second lawsuit against EPA that focuses on the Agency’s failure to regularly approve and update a critical wastewater management plan that, if implemented, might have averted the crisis. CLF and the Bay Coalition’s actions seek to move the clean-up forward before it is too late. In a press release, Chris Kilian, CLF’s director of Clean Water and Healthy Forests, said, “Cape Cod is on brink of ecological disaster. We need enforceable regulatory commitments to ensure that read more…

If a tree falls in the forest in order to fuel in an inefficient electric power plant, does it make noise?  You bet it does.  This morning, dozens of advocates rallied at the Massachusetts State House to make a little noise while calling for the strengthening of the Commonwealth’s rules for forest wood-fueled – i.e., “biomass” – energy incentives. Last year, we cheered as the Patrick Administration commissioned a ground-breaking study, known as the “Manomet Report,” to help understand the climate impacts of biomass energy.  That Report reaffirmed a growing scientific understanding that burning whole trees for energy can be worse than burning coal because of what I refer to as the “double whammy” effect:  (1) the immediate release into the atmosphere of the carbon stored in the tree; and read more…