In 2000, the following resolution was submitted and passed at the AAUW-NYS Convention:

Environment and Health

• Branches work in coalition with other community groups to become informed on environmental and health issues;
• Branches advocate legislation at the state and local levels to ensure a clean and healthful environment;
• A workshop on environmental and health issues be included periodically at the New York State Convention.

- Submitted by Judith Wagner and Ann Heidenreich, St. Lawrence County Branch

Site Index:

• 10/10 Global Work Party
• Obama's Homestar Plan Would Pay for Home Energy Efficiency Retrofits
• California Raises Solar Net Metering Cap
• Energy Efficiency Tax Credit FAQ
• Maryland Could Be Entirely Powered by Offshore Wind
• Invasive Biofuel Crops an Overlooke
• Obama Administration Creates New National Climate Service
• 2009 Second Warmest Year of Warmest Decade on Record
• Shopping Efficiently: Refrigerators
• Earth Hour 2010: March 27
• Here are 10 startling facts we learned in 2009 that underscore the climate threat
• Clean Energy Leaders Emerge in New State-by-State Report
• Facts on Reducing Your Carbon Footprint

Updated: March 11, 2010

10/10 Global Work Party

350.org is working with our friends at the 10:10 campaign. We're going to make the tenth day of the tenth month of the millennium's tenth year a real starting point for concrete action. We're calling it the 10/10 Global Work Party, and in every corner of the world we hope communities will put up solar panels, insulate homes, erect windmills, plant trees, paint bikepaths, launch or harvest local gardens. We'll make sure the world sees this huge day of effort--and we'll use it to send a simple message to our leaders: "We're working--what about you? If we can cover the roof of the school with solar panels, surely you can pass the legislation or sign the treaty that will spread our work everywhere, and confront the climate crisis in time." 10/10/10 will take a snapshot of a clean energy future -- the world of 350 ppm -- and show people why it's worth fighting for. It's not too early to sign up.

Obama's Homestar Plan Would Pay for Home Energy Efficiency Retrofits

President Barack Obama outlined the details of a new "Homestar" program that would help create jobs by encouraging American families to invest in energy saving home improvements. The President spoke of the new program while touring a training facility at Savannah Technical College.

The Obama administration expects the Homestar program to create tens of thousands of jobs while saving the equivalent of the entire output of three coal-fired power plants each year. Consumers in the program are estimated to save between $200 - $500 per year in energy costs, while improving the comfort and value of their homes.

Key elements of the program include:

• Rebates delivered directly to consumers: Like the Cash for Clunkers program, consumers would be eligible for direct Homestar rebates at the point of sale for a variety of energy-saving investments in their homes. Vendors including small independent building material dealers, large national home improvement chains, energy efficiency installation professionals and utility energy efficiency programs would market the rebates, provide them directly to consumers and then be reimbursed by the federal government.
• $1,000 - $1,500 Silver Star Rebates: Consumers looking to have simple upgrades performed in their homes would be eligible for 50 percent rebates up to $1,000 - $1,500 for doing any of a straightforward set of upgrades, including: insulation, duct sealing, water heaters, HVAC units, windows, roofing and doors. Under Silver Star, consumers can chose a combination of upgrades for rebates up to a maximum of $3,000 per home. Rebates would be limited to the most energy efficient categories of upgrades, focusing on products made primarily in the United States and installed by certified contractors.
• $3000 Gold Star Rebates: Consumers interested in more comprehensive energy retrofits would be eligible for a $3,000 rebate for a whole home energy audit and subsequent retrofit tailored to achieve a 20 percent energy savings. Consumers could receive additional rebate amounts for energy savings in excess of 20 percent. Gold Star would build on existing whole home retrofit programs, such as EPA's Home Performance with Energy Star program.
• Oversight to Ensure Quality Installations: The program would require that contractors be certified to perform efficiency installations. Independent quality assurance providers would conduct field audits after work is completed to ensure proper installation so consumers receive energy savings from their upgrades. States would oversee the implementation of quality assurance.
• Support for financing: The program would include support to state and local governments to provide financing options for consumers, helping to ensure that consumers can afford to make these investments.

-From ENS Newswire story for March 8, 2010.

California Raises Solar Net Metering Cap

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Friday signed an solar power bill that is seen as a critical component of the state's million solar roofs initiative. The bill raised the cap on solar net metering to five percent from its previous level of 2.5 percent. Net metering allows solar owners to send unused solar electricity back to the grid in exchange for a credit.

Through net metering, solar customers' electricity meters spin forward when they are using power from the utility grid, and reverse, spinning backward when customers are producing more energy than they are using. Customers are billed only for the net energy used. Today more than 50,000 California homes, schools and businesses take advantage of the state's net metering program to lower their utility bills.

AB 510 essentially doubles the number of people able to go solar in California. Before today, the number of Californians able to take advantage of this net metering program was capped at 2.5 percent of a utility's load. So, as soon as a utility got 2.5 percent of its electricity from net metered solar customers, it was no longer obligated to sign new net metering contracts. Now that cap stands at five percent.

-From ENS Newswire story for February 28, 2010.

Energy Efficiency Tax Credit FAQ

Maryland Could Be Entirely Powered by Offshore Wind

Maryland's feasible wind resource off of the state's Atlantic coast could provide 67 percent of the electric load, finds a new report from researchers at the University of Delaware's Center for Carbon-free Power Integration. Offshore wind could provide 179 percent of Maryland's electric needs as the industry matures and deeper water technologies become commercialized, the researchers calculate. The energy generated over and above Maryland's needs could help power neighboring states, with financial benefits to Maryland. Utilizing offshore wind could also lead to economic growth in the state's offshore construction, maintenance, supply chain and/or turbine manufacturing.

Maryland has a stake in installing wind turbines offshore within the next 12 years. Maryland's legislature passed a Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard that requires all Maryland utilities and competitive retail suppliers to obtain an increasing percentage of their electric power from renewable energy sources. By the year 2022, 22.5 percent of retail sales must be sourced from renewables, 18 percent of which can be from wind energy.

-From ENS Newswire story for February 21, 2010.

Invasive Biofuel Crops an Overlooked Danger

The risk that biofuel crops will become invasive and outcompete native species is increasing as more advanced biofuel crops are planted, according to new research into this previously neglected but potentially costly problem. A new report by the nonprofit International Union for the Conservation of Nature, IUCN, finds it is "likely that the cost of an invasion by a biofuel feedstock or associated pest would, in the long run, outweigh any economic benefit offered by biofuel development."

"The economic costs of invasive species are extremely high," the IUCN report states, relying on a 2006 calculation by the Convention on Biological Diversity that puts the total annual cost of invasive species to the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, India and Brazil at over US$100 billion.

Most of this cost is the result of reduced productivity of agriculture, forestry and other production systems, but direct costs include damage to infrastructure, lost tourism revenue and costs of eradication, containment and management. Indirect costs include loss of ecosystem services, as well as loss of traditional livelihoods.

-From ENS Newswire story for February 21, 2010.

Obama Administration Creates New National Climate Service

To meet a "rising tide" of millions of requests for information about climate change annually from both public and and private sectors, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke says he will create a Climate Service line office within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA.

The NOAA Climate Service will provide a one-stop shop for climate information in much the same way NOAA's National Weather Service has been providing weather information and services for 140 years.

"By providing critical planning information that our businesses and our communities need, NOAA Climate Service will help tackle head-on the challenges of mitigating and adapting to climate change," said Secretary Locke. "In the process, we'll discover new technologies, build new businesses and create new jobs."

More and more, said Locke, Americans are witnessing the impacts of climate change in their own backyards, including sea-level rise, longer growing seasons, changes in river flows, increases in heavy downpours, earlier snowmelt and extended ice-free seasons in our waters. People are searching for relevant and timely information about these changes to inform decision-making about virtually all aspects of their lives.

The climate research, observations, modeling, predictions and assessments generated by NOAA's top scientists, including Nobel Peace Prize award-winners, will continue to provide the scientific foundation for extensive on-the-ground climate services that respond to millions of requests annually for data and other critical information said Locke.

NOAA has a new website, the NOAA Climate Portal, that serves as a single point-of-entry for NOAA's extensive climate information, data, products and services.

NOAA Climate Services will provide climate products such as:

• Inundation maps for coastal communities that reflect the best available information on sea-level rise and changing patterns of coastal storms
• Heat projections to help mangers plan future energy and health services needs
• Climate and precipitation models to help farmers know the impact of a changing climate on their crops
• Relevant historical climate data and data from state-of-the-art climate models to inform investment and planning for businesses and local governments
• Routine vulnerability and risk assessments for climate-sensitive regions and sectors

-From ENS Newswire story for February 12, 2010.

2009 Second Warmest Year of Warmest Decade on Record

The year 2009 was tied for the second warmest year in the modern record, shows a new analysis of global surface temperature from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Conducted by NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City, the analysis also shows that in the Southern Hemisphere, 2009 was the warmest year since modern records began in 1880.

January 2000 to December 2009 was the warmest decade on record. Throughout the last three decades, the GISS surface temperature record shows an upward trend of about 0.2°C (0.36°F) per decade.

The GISS analysis shows that the largest temperature increases over the past decade have been in the Arctic and the Antarctic Peninsula.

Since 1880, the year that modern scientific instrumentation became available to monitor temperatures precisely, a clear warming trend is present, though there was a leveling off between the 1940s and 1970s.

The near-record temperatures of 2009 occurred despite an unseasonably cool December in much of North America. High air pressures in the Arctic decreased the east-west flow of the jet stream, while also increasing its tendency to blow from north to south and draw cold air southward from the Arctic. This resulted in an unusual effect that caused frigid air from the Arctic to rush into North America and warmer mid-latitude air to shift toward the north.

In total, average global temperatures have increased by about 0.8°C (1.4°F) since 1880. Climate scientists agree that rising levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases trap incoming heat near the surface of the Earth and are the key factors causing the rise in temperatures since 1880, but these gases are not the only factors that can impact global temperatures. Three other key factors - changes in the Sun's irradiance, oscillations of sea surface temperature in the tropics, and changes in aerosol levels - can also cause slight increases or decreases in the planet's temperature.

-From ENS Newswire story for Januray 30, 2010.

Shopping Efficiently: Refrigerators

If you're not sure whether to replace your refrigerator, first check the age on your current model. If it's from the 1970s, best get rid of it: you could save four times more energy by replacing it with an ENERGYSTAR model - nearly $200 a year.

The same goes for a 1980s model: replace it with an ENERGY STAR refrigerator and your utility bills should drop about $100 each year. And whatever you do, don't relegate the old one to the basement to hold overstock: refrigerators consume energy no matter where they're plugged in.

Tried and tested, ENERGYSTAR refrigerators are up to 20 percent more energy efficient than modern conventional models. You can even find out how much a particular ENERGYSTAR model will cost you per year by checking the yellow EnergyGuide label on the refrigerator. The guide also allows you to compare the energy use of similar models and estimate the annual savings. Things to Look for

1. When shopping for a new model, consider a few features that make a huge difference to efficiency.
2. Top-mounted freezers use 10 - 25 percent less energy than bottom-mounted or side-by-side models; this can amount to hundreds of dollars over the lifetime of the fridge.
3. Also, think about skipping the ice-maker and door dispenser. Automatic ice-makers increase energy use by 14 - 20 percent; as an additional feature, they also raise the retail price by $75 - 250. Through-door ice dispensers often interfere with the door's insulation and sometimes require their own additional cooling elements.

- from the Alliance to Save Energy's newsletter, e-FFICIENCY NEWS for January 29, 2009

Earth Hour 2010: March 27

Make a difference on Saturday, March 27, 2010, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., local time. Unite with millions of people around the world by turning off your lights during Earth Hour to raise awareness and fight climate change. Join now. National Monuments including Mount Rushmore, the Empire State Building, the Las Vegas Strip and the Golden Gate Bridge have already pledged to participate.

Last year, nearly one billion people--including an estimated 80 million Americans--united to make a difference in the fight against climate change. It was the single largest mass action in human history.

On Earth Hour hundreds of millions of people will come together to call for action on climate change by doing something quite simple - turning off their lights for one hour. The movement symbolizes that by working together, each of us can make a positive impact in this fight, protecting our future and that of future generations.

Here are 10 startling facts we learned in 2009 that underscore the climate threat:

1. A study published in the journal Science reports that the current level of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere – about 390 parts per million – is higher today than at any time in measurable history -- at least the last 2.1 million years. Previous peaks of CO2 were never more than 300 ppm over the past 800,000 years, and the concentration is rising by around 2 ppm each year.

2. The World Meterological Organization reported that 2000-2009 was the hottest decade on record with 8 of the hottest 10 years having occurred since 2000.

3. 2009 will end up as one of the 5 hottest years since 1850 and the U.K.'s Met Office predicts that, with a moderate El Nino, 2010 will likely break the record.

4. The National Snow and Ice Data Center reported that while a bit more summer Arctic sea ice appeared in 2009 than the record breaking lows of the last two years, it was still well below normal levels. Given that the Arctic ice cover remains perilously thin, it is vulnerable to further melting, posing an ever increasing threat to Arctic wildlife including polar bears.

5. The Arctic summer could be ice-free by mid-century, not at the end of the century as previously expected, according to a study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

6. Recent observations published in the highly respected Nature Geosciences indicate that the East Antarctica ice sheet has been shrinking. This surprised researchers, who expected that only the West Antarctic ice sheet would shrink in the near future because the East Antarctic ice sheet is colder and more stable.

7. The U.S. Global Change Research Program completed an assessment of what is known about climate change impacts in the US and reported that, "Climate changes are already observed in the United States and… are projected to grow." These changes include "increases in heavy downpours, rising temperature and sea level, rapidly retreating glaciers, thawing permafrost, lengthening ice-free seasons in the ocean and on lakes and rivers, earlier snowmelt, and alterations in river flows."

8. According to a report by the US Geological Survey, slight changes in the climate may trigger abrupt threats to ecosystems that are not easily reversible or adaptable, such as insect outbreaks, wildfire, and forest dieback. "More vulnerable ecosystems, such as those that already face stressors other than climate change, will almost certainly reach their threshold for abrupt change sooner." An example of such an abrupt threat is the outbreak of spruce bark beetles throughout the western U.S. caused by increased winter temperatures that allow more beetles to survive.

9. The EPA, USGS and NOAA issued a joint report warning that most mid-Atlantic coastal wetlands from New York to North Carolina will be lost with a sea level rise of 1 meter or more.

10. If we do not reduce greenhouse gas emissions by the end of the century, some of the main fruit and nut tree crops currently grown in California may no longer be economically viable, as there will be a lack of the winter chilling they require. And, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, U.S. production of corn, soybeans and cotton could decrease as much as 82%.

- from an Environmental Defense Action Fund eAlert for January 12, 2010

Clean Energy Leaders Emerge in New State-by-State Report

Renewable energy development is spreading across the country, often linked with public policies designed to encourage its growth, finds a new state-by-state analysis by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

Download the report, "State of the."

-From ENS Newswire story for Nov. 23, 2009.

Facts on Reducing Your Carbon Footprint:

Here are some facts from Mother Jones on how much you can reduce your carbon footprint by updating your home and/or limiting your driving:

• Recycling newspaper, magazines, glass, plastic aluminum, and steel cans: 19 tons of CO2 saved;
• Replacing old refrigerators with energy-efficient model: 21 tons saved;
• Replacing ten 75-w incandescent bulbs with 25-w Energy-efficient lights: 40 tons saved;
• Replacing single-glazed windows with energy-efficient windows: 133 tons saved;
• Reducing miles driven from 231 to 155 per week: 162 tons saved; and
• Increasing car's fuel economy from 20 to 30 mpg: 163 tons saved.

The bottom line: Keep recycling. Switch out those light bulbs. But whatever you do, cut down on your car time, and if you must drive, do it in a fuel-efficient car.

- from NYS Senator LIZ KRUEGER's COMMUNITY BULLETIN for October 2009.