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Stand against fish farming at hearing
On Sept. 30, a coalition of residents, government officials, business owners and environmentalists will participate in a virtual people’s hearing to give the public a voice in the permitting process, and make our opposition loud and clear. Register at https://tinyurl. com/yyr5voc4. Submit audio, video and written statements at https://tinyurl.com/yyr6daql. The federal government recently moved to speed the development of industrial fish farming in the Gulf of Mexico by designating an “aquaculture opportunity area.” But what “opportunity” is it really creating? Offshore aquaculture consists of floating pens filled with tens of thousands of fish – and waste, excess feed and various chemicals freely polluting the surrounding environment. When those facilities are damaged during extreme weather, they can rupture, allowing the fish to escape and disrupt our local ecosystems. If this isn’t enough, the Army Corps of Engineers is poised to issue a permit for a new fish farming facility in federal waters off Sarasota called Velella Epsilon, without making the application public. This comes in spite of strong opposition from Sarasota, Holmes Beach and Sanibel. The facility may increase red tide, and pollute beaches and waters that are the backbone of our local economy. Dr. Neal Schleifer, Sarasota |
Handing federal wetlands permitting to FL DEP is an idea that’s all wet
Florida Phoenix environment columnist Craig Pittman writes about something that won’t be a good thing if it happens: “Right now, under the Clean Water Act, two federal agencies are in charge of preserving wetlands: the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which issues permits for dumping fill in them, and the Environmental Protection Agency, which can veto those permits,” Pittman writes. “But now both are considering handing the job of federal wetlands permitting in Florida over to the state DEP, according to a Federal Register notice published on Sept. 4 seeking public comment over the next 45 days.” Pittman adds: “Florida’s developers have been pushing for this handover to the state for a couple of decades…Why? Because they are convinced the state would grant them super-fast permit approvals, no matter how many acres of wetlands they were going to pave over, and because the state doesn’t protect as many different types of wetlands as the feds do.” |
Come on, Florida. It’s Time to Help More Citizens With Energy Efficiency
AUGUST 27, 2020
BY BRADLEY MARSHALL
EARTHJUSTICE
It’s ridiculous that Florida utilities rank near the bottom of all states when it comes to providing energy efficiency programs.When utilities make electricity use more efficient, every single one of us wins. It shrinks power bills, and the more energy waste we can cut, the less power we need from dirty coal and gas power plants. It’s also the cheapest path to cut the greenhouse gasses that are blanketing Earth and making our planet hotter.
We’ve known about these benefits for decades. So it’s disappointing here in Florida to watch archaic energy policy decisions still happening in our low-lying state, which obviously has a lot to lose from global warming and rising seas.
Florida should be leaning hard into energy efficiency, but instead, regulators and utilities continue to drag their feet, and it’s costing every one of us. Chances are you’re paying too much for your energy bill. The utilities will be able to keep it that way unless the state stands up for Florida families. In the middle of a pandemic, it’s heartbreaking to see some families forced to choose between keeping their lights and air conditioning on or paying for health care, medicine, rent, mortgage and food.
In many other states, utility companies help customers save money and cut waste from our electricity grid by providing rebates or discounts on things like energy efficient appliances and improved insulation and weather-proofing.
Along with the League of United Latin American Citizens and the Environmental Confederation of Southwest Florida, we believe Florida’s current energy efficiency regulations are dysfunctional, irrational, and in need of serious reform. We believe utility customers deserve better.
This is when the Florida Public Service Commission ought to be stepping in and pursuing policies to promote the kinds of energy efficiency programs that most other states embraced years ago.
AUGUST 27, 2020
BY BRADLEY MARSHALL
EARTHJUSTICE
It’s ridiculous that Florida utilities rank near the bottom of all states when it comes to providing energy efficiency programs.When utilities make electricity use more efficient, every single one of us wins. It shrinks power bills, and the more energy waste we can cut, the less power we need from dirty coal and gas power plants. It’s also the cheapest path to cut the greenhouse gasses that are blanketing Earth and making our planet hotter.
We’ve known about these benefits for decades. So it’s disappointing here in Florida to watch archaic energy policy decisions still happening in our low-lying state, which obviously has a lot to lose from global warming and rising seas.
Florida should be leaning hard into energy efficiency, but instead, regulators and utilities continue to drag their feet, and it’s costing every one of us. Chances are you’re paying too much for your energy bill. The utilities will be able to keep it that way unless the state stands up for Florida families. In the middle of a pandemic, it’s heartbreaking to see some families forced to choose between keeping their lights and air conditioning on or paying for health care, medicine, rent, mortgage and food.
In many other states, utility companies help customers save money and cut waste from our electricity grid by providing rebates or discounts on things like energy efficient appliances and improved insulation and weather-proofing.
Along with the League of United Latin American Citizens and the Environmental Confederation of Southwest Florida, we believe Florida’s current energy efficiency regulations are dysfunctional, irrational, and in need of serious reform. We believe utility customers deserve better.
This is when the Florida Public Service Commission ought to be stepping in and pursuing policies to promote the kinds of energy efficiency programs that most other states embraced years ago.
Roads would fragment wildlife habitat, lead to urban sprawl and waste state transportation resources
Another day, another Florida tax dollar wasted on M-CORES! If you are at risk from having an M-CORES toll road rip through your county, you may have received a postcard like this in the mail.
If you received a postcard let us know! And if you decide to make an appointment to have a chat with FDOT (as offered on the postcard), and want a list of questions to use, we can help -- just ask.
The best action to take right now is to lobby the Task Force members directly:
http://noroadstoruin.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/M-CORES-Task-Force-Members-Contact-Info-1.pdf
9-16-2020
FDOT FAILS TO PROVIDE CRITICAL M-CORES DETAILS:Cornell Consulting Fills the Void
FT. MYERS -- A collaboration between the No Roads to Ruin Coalition Steering Committeend Cornell Consulting, a student-run management consulting firm and the leading consulting organization at Cornell University, resulted in a series of three new policy reports authored by Cornell Consulting analysts and released today, that answer questions relating to the fiscal feasibility (or lack thereof), economic and environmental impacts, traffic congestion, and hurricane evacuation issues the M-CORES (Multi-use Corridors of Regional Economic Significance) project has raised but have remained unanswered by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).
At a virtual press conference, Michael McGrath, Sierra Club Organizing Representative, joined Sadaf Knight, Florida Policy Institute Chief Executive Officer and Cornell Consulting analysts Gayatri Sriram, Justin Zhang, William McGrath, Evan Tong, and Lucien Wostenholme to summarize the report findings — which include alternative solutions independent of road construction. Julianne Thomas, Conservancy of Southwest Florida Senior Environmental Planning Specialist, joined the panel to answer questions from both the press and the public. Over 40 “No Build” activists from around the state joined the event via Facebook Live and Zoom.
The bottom line that emerged from Cornell Consulting‟s analysis is that M-CORES is infeasible, creates negative returns, and therefore fails to meet its goals. However, alternative strategies could achieve success. Cornell Consulting‟s data-driven analysis fills the void left by FDOT and the failed M-CORES Task Force processes and offers further support for the “No Build” option that has been demanded by the public since day one of the series of task force meetings which began in August 2019. M-CORES task force members have requested, repeatedly, that the “No Build” option be discussed in detail but FDOT has ignored those requests. Sadaf Knight, Florida Policy Institute Chief Executive Officer stated: “The revenue needed to
fund this project — $1.7 billion in state funding and total construction costs of $10.3 billion — should instead be used to bolster the state budget and preserve public services. This is especially true given that the analysis performed by Cornell Consulting found that the M-CORES project will fail to deliver on its promised outcomes, and that it will be fiscally unsound and cause environmental harm.”
Another day, another Florida tax dollar wasted on M-CORES! If you are at risk from having an M-CORES toll road rip through your county, you may have received a postcard like this in the mail.
If you received a postcard let us know! And if you decide to make an appointment to have a chat with FDOT (as offered on the postcard), and want a list of questions to use, we can help -- just ask.
The best action to take right now is to lobby the Task Force members directly:
http://noroadstoruin.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/M-CORES-Task-Force-Members-Contact-Info-1.pdf
9-16-2020
FDOT FAILS TO PROVIDE CRITICAL M-CORES DETAILS:Cornell Consulting Fills the Void
FT. MYERS -- A collaboration between the No Roads to Ruin Coalition Steering Committeend Cornell Consulting, a student-run management consulting firm and the leading consulting organization at Cornell University, resulted in a series of three new policy reports authored by Cornell Consulting analysts and released today, that answer questions relating to the fiscal feasibility (or lack thereof), economic and environmental impacts, traffic congestion, and hurricane evacuation issues the M-CORES (Multi-use Corridors of Regional Economic Significance) project has raised but have remained unanswered by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).
At a virtual press conference, Michael McGrath, Sierra Club Organizing Representative, joined Sadaf Knight, Florida Policy Institute Chief Executive Officer and Cornell Consulting analysts Gayatri Sriram, Justin Zhang, William McGrath, Evan Tong, and Lucien Wostenholme to summarize the report findings — which include alternative solutions independent of road construction. Julianne Thomas, Conservancy of Southwest Florida Senior Environmental Planning Specialist, joined the panel to answer questions from both the press and the public. Over 40 “No Build” activists from around the state joined the event via Facebook Live and Zoom.
The bottom line that emerged from Cornell Consulting‟s analysis is that M-CORES is infeasible, creates negative returns, and therefore fails to meet its goals. However, alternative strategies could achieve success. Cornell Consulting‟s data-driven analysis fills the void left by FDOT and the failed M-CORES Task Force processes and offers further support for the “No Build” option that has been demanded by the public since day one of the series of task force meetings which began in August 2019. M-CORES task force members have requested, repeatedly, that the “No Build” option be discussed in detail but FDOT has ignored those requests. Sadaf Knight, Florida Policy Institute Chief Executive Officer stated: “The revenue needed to
fund this project — $1.7 billion in state funding and total construction costs of $10.3 billion — should instead be used to bolster the state budget and preserve public services. This is especially true given that the analysis performed by Cornell Consulting found that the M-CORES project will fail to deliver on its promised outcomes, and that it will be fiscally unsound and cause environmental harm.”
