Vermont’s Governor Shumlin announced today a new direction for the Circ Highway.  This is good news.  CLF has long supported re-thinking the Circ Highway, and focusing instead on transportation solutions that work.  As planned, the Circ is getting in the way of progress and causing too many people to be snarled in traffic and pollution.  The EPA has noted the severe damage the Circ would cause to waterways and wetlands.

CLF welcomes and encourages the Governor’s efforts.  We look forward to working with local communities and businesses to find effective, safe and lower cost solutions.  We don’t need to bust the bank, add more sprawl and dirty our streams to get around.

Unfortunately, our state and federal highway agencies also announced the completion of the final environmental review for the outdated Circ project.  We are disappointed with all the wasted money and effort spent on this outdated project.  Officials should have stopped the review before it was completed.  CLF will evaluate the final review and consider whether an appeal should be taken to Federal Court.

CLF and Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG) today jointly filed a motion in the U.S. District Court to intervene on the side of Vermont in the lawsuit brought last month against the state by Entergy, owner of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. The two groups maintain that Entergy should follow Vermont law and shut down Vermont Yankee as planned in March 2012.

“This is an important case that will decide the direction of our energy future,” said Chris Kilian, VP and director of CLF Vermont. “CLF and VPIRG will support the state of Vermont in its efforts to uphold Vermont law and ensure that the people’s voice and vision for their energy future will prevail over the interests of out-of-state polluters.” More >

Photo credit: Flickr/peupleloup

As noted in numerous media reports (for example, here and here), the Province of Québec has formally announced its “Plan Nord,” a 25 year, $80 billion plan to develop Québec’s northern region (official “nutshell” here).  Plan Nord reflects major new public investments in mining operations, hydroelectric and wind energy facilities, forestry, and transportation and communications infrastructure.

The scale of Plan Nord is hard to overstate; Premier Jean Charest is proudly proclaiming that Plan Nord is the “project of a generation,” “a sweeping, human adventure,” and “unique both in its scope and its approach.”  The plan adds that “the scope of the Plan Nord will make it in the coming decades what the development of La Manicouagan and James Bay were to the 1960s and 1970s.”  The land area covered by the plan is about twice the size of Texas.

The formal public launch of Plan Nord is an opportunity to think about what Québec’s plans may mean for New England and our regional energy future. A fundamental part of Plan Nord is developing the region’s energy resources, including new hydroelectric generating capacity totaling 3,000 megawatts.  (This amount of power is equivalent to five Vermont Yankees.) While important to the plan’s projections of provincial energy needs, these facilities are also integral to Québec utility Hydro-Québec’s strategy to step up exports of electric power to the northeastern United States, including New England.  The plan itself notes Vermont’s recent renewal of a long-term agreement to import 225 megawatts of power from Hydro-Québec as a key early success.

Although Québec has marketed Plan Nord as at the vanguard of “sustainable development,” any plan this massive and costly should inspire a fair amount of skepticism, especially when its scale is compared to the breathtaking ecological manipulations of Québec’s recent history. Indeed, the plan’s economic focus on new investments in mining suggests less than a total commitment to sustainability. On the other hand, as our colleagues at the Pew Environment Group’s International Boreal Conservation Campaign noted yesterday, the plan commits to protection of 50% of Québec’s northern land area for environmental protection and safeguarding biodiversity. It remains to be seen if this commitment is meaningful; if it is, it would be a historic and farsighted move.

CLF is deeply concerned about what this plan – including its focus on resource extraction and exploitation - means for Québec, New England, and indeed the global environment.  Hydroelectric developments on the scale contemplated by Plan Nord involve inundation of vast land areas, which in turn results in the destruction of wide swathes of Canada’s boreal forest – one of the world’s largest intact carbon sinks - as well as methane and other greenhouse gas emissions from decomposing vegetation and releases of heavy metals from flooded soils. Hydropower reservoirs in Québec already cover an area greater than the size of New Hampshire, and further inundation will be required for Plan Nord projects.   These projects have dramatic impacts on indigenous people and their way of life; at least some indigenous groups appear deeply dissatisfied with the public process that led to the Plan Nord.

With Plan Nord moving forward, the time is now for the U.S. Department of Energy to answer CLF’s call for a regional, comprehensive analysis of the nature and extent of the need for energy imports from Québec.  Québec clearly has a plan for its future, and – laudable environmental “commitments” aside – that plan is all about enriching Québec; New England and the northeastern U.S. need a coherent plan of our own that reflects our energy policies and environmental values.

Over the last several months the documentary Bloom: The Plight of Lake Champlain has been shown to capacity audiences around Vermont, from the State House to the Echo Lake Aquarium and Science Center.

Now the movie, which powerfully brings home the effect of too much phosphorous pollution on Lake Champlain, will be part of the Green Mountain Film Festival in Vermont.

Bloom, which features CLF Vermont Director Chris Kilian, will be shown at Montpelier’s Pavilion Auditorium at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, March 24^th and will be followed by a panel discussion which will include CLF Lake Champlain Lakekeeper Louis Porter.

The documentary combines narration, interviews and footage to convey both the severity and significance of the problem of uncontrolled algae and weed growth in Lake Champlain, and the need to quickly find effective solutions.

Bloom: The Plight of Lake Champlain
Thursday, March 24, 6:15 p.m.
Pavilion Auditorium
Montpelier, Vt.

The sun is shining in Vermont–literally and figuratively–during “Sunshine Week…a national initiative to promote a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information.” CLF is celebrating Sunshine Week by supporting two major government transparency reforms making their way through the Vermont legislature.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT H.258

For more than a decade, CLF has been trying to shine a light on the behind-closed-door process for environmental enforcement in Vermont and to give affected members of the public a voice in the process.   In a 2008 case brought by CLF, the Vermont Environmental Court ruled that Vermont’s enforcement procedures were unlawfully depriving affected members of the public from notice of and an opportunity to comment on the backroom deals regulators strike with polluters before those deals get approved by the courts.  EPA subsequently agreed with this assessment.  It has provided the state with guidance on how to amend state laws to protect the public’s right to know about and participate in proceedings against polluters who damage our shared natural resources through their illegal activity.

This week, CLF’s efforts took a major step forward when the Vermont House Natural Resources and Energy Committee gave unanimous support to a bill proposed by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources-H.258. Though not perfect, the bill goes a long way toward giving citizens who have suffered the effects of illegal pollution a role in the enforcement process.  Kudos to reporters Shay Totten at 7 Days (his stories are here and here) and Candy Page at the Burlington Free Press (her coverage here) for bringing this story the attention it deserves.  In a positive editorial today, the Free Press editorial board wrote:

An agreement between the state and polluters sealed behind closed doors might be more efficient, but that efficiency comes at the expense of transparency and true accountability.

…

The bill to open all environmental violation settlements to public scrutiny and challenge before final approval once again shows there’s much about government that can be fixed by increasing openness.

A vote by the full House is scheduled on Tuesday of this week.  Show your support for greater openness and public participation by contacting your local Vermont representative and them to vote for H.258.

STRENGTHENING VERMONT’S FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LAW H.73

CLF is also pleased to be working in a coalition of groups seeking to strengthen Vermont’s Freedom of Information laws.  CLF, along with the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont, the Vermont State Employees Association, the Vermont Press Association, and others committed to open government testified in support of H.73.  The bill would strengthen citizen enforcement of public records laws in cases where government officials unlawfully prevent the public from seeing public documents.  The most important feature of the bill would ensure that those unlawfully denied access to records will recover their attorney’s fees when they successfully argue in court that the government was wrong to deny access.  This would be a major deterrent to government secrecy.  The bill also ensures that most private contractors performing governmental functions also have to comply with public access laws.  The ACLU has been a leader on this important effort and its full summary of the bill’s open-government reform can be found here.

We cannot solve Vermont’s environmental problems without effective enforcement of our environmental laws, and we will not have effective enforcement without greater government transparency.  Let the sun shine!

As you may know, in 2009, the Douglas Administration adopted a controversial rule allowing ATV use on state lands. ATV use damages trails, degrades fragile ecosystems like wetlands, threatens the safety of wildlife and fragments sensitive habitats. These consequences radically alter the backcountry experience – an integral part of Vermont’s culture and economy. Since the adoption of this rule, CLF and a coalition of citizens and partner organizations have been fighting to restore the protection of those lands from the environmental damage and public safety risks posed by increased ATV use.

The Good News…
Last month, Governor Shumlin’s new leadership team at Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) took the first steps toward repealing the 2009 rule! Their proposed new rule will repeal the 2009 one allowing ATVs on state lands.

The Not-So-Good News..
The Agency of Natural Resources has come under immense pressure from pro-ATV groups to uphold the devastating rule. The constant and relentless criticisms from these groups are raising the potential for it to stand. Vermont and ANR still need your support!

What You Can Do…
1. Submit an official comment to Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources before May 3rd telling them to withstand the pro-ATV group criticism and follow through on the campaign-trail promise to repeal the 2009 rule. Please note that this date is a change from the original deadline of May 7th. Submit your comment now.

2. If you can, join us at a public hearing on April 26 at St. Leo’s Hall in Waterbury from 7-9 p.m., and make your voice heard. For directions, click here.

Since the Douglas Administration’s controversial 2009 rule allowing ATV use on state lands, CLF and a coalition of citizens and partner organizations have been fighting to restore protection of state lands from the environmental damage and public safety risks posed by expanded ATV use.  In an exciting development last week (you can read about it here and here), Governor Shumlin’s new leadership team at Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources took the first steps toward putting the brakes on the 2009 rule by starting a new process to repeal the ATV Rule.  CLF needs your help to ensure that Governor Shumlin and Secretary Markowitz follow through on this important campaign-trail promise and withstand the pressure from ATV clubs.

• Call the Governor and Secretary Markowitz and leave a message thanking them for starting the process to restore protections for sensitive state lands and ask them to follow through by reversing the Douglas Administration’s ATV Rule

Governor Peter Shumlin’s Office: 802-828-3333
Secretary Deb Markowitz’s Office: 802-241-3600

Just days after Vermont regulators concluded hearings on its investigation of leaks at the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power facility, there are reports of more tritium pollution in the groundwater.

The Vermont Health Department reports that contamination was found in a new well.  The location is different from the site of the pollution from the previous leak.  It also reports that contamination has been “trending upward” at this well since late December.

The new findings belie the corporate claims during the hearings that the leaks are repaired and the site is cleaned up.   Could this be a new leak and a new lie from our “trusted” friends at Vermont Yankee?

UPDATE:  Entergy denies knowing about the new problem during the hearings.  It seems they were simply not paying close attention.  Read Entergy’s letter. 

The plant is too old and its owners can’t be trusted.

MONTPELIER, VT January 24, 2010 – The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) has issued the following statement in response to today’s decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to withdraw its approval of Vermont’s 2002 water quality plan for Lake Champlain. The decision comes almost two years after CLF first challenged EPA’s approval of the Plan in federal court.

“Today’s decision by the EPA to re-examine Vermont’s water quality plan for Lake Champlain is the key to bringing the Lake back to health,” said Louis Porter, CLF’s Lake Champlain Lakekeeper. “The EPA has reviewed the existing pollution budget and concluded, correctly, that there has not been enough improvement in the health of Lake Champlain under the current plan. Now, with a new administration in Vermont and a new water quality plan on the way, Vermont can begin a new, science-based approach to cleaning up Lake Champlain and making sure it remains a safe and enjoyable resource for swimmers, boaters, anglers, and the more than 200,000 people for whom it provides drinking water.” More >