Environmental News & Action Items

"I recognize the right and duty of this generation to develop and use our natural resources,
but I do not recognize the right to waste them, or to rob by wasteful use, the generations that come after us."

— Theodore Roosevelt

"The Iroquois Confederation made their decisions based on the welfare of their children
and childrens' children for seven generations. Will our leaders do the same?"

— Joe Hoff, Chairman, Keuka Citizens Against Hydrofracking

AAUW and the Environmental Movement

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 (the late) Judith Wagner and Ann Heidenreich, St. Lawrence County Branch.

Join the new North Country 350 Alliance

The NC 350 Alliance represents the convergence of a number of groups with a long and rich tradition of activism on behalf of sustainability and social justice. Members and constituent groups have been engaged in campaigns against incineration, fracking, and industrial agriculture, and in the promotion of farmers markets, EBT/SNAP access to local foods, sustainable living and alternative energy fairs, school programs on nutrition, and university programs on sustainability, as well as conferences and demonstrations on climate change. We have brought numerous distinguished speakers to our campuses-- among them Bill McKibben, Michael E. Mann, William Blakemore (of ABC), and the anti-fracking activist Deborah Rogers. We have also sponsored town meetings on local agriculture with Congressman Bill Owens and Senator Charles Schumer.

Updated: May 25, 2013

Site Index:

In the News: Scientists warn that Earth faces severe water shortages within a generation
In the News: Pollution Risks Worse for Developing World Women - Environmental factors are responsible for 23 percent of the overall global disease burden, according to World Health Organization research. Addressing such pollution could save the lives of 6 million women a year.
In the News: Billion-dollar natural disasters now a frequent occurrence - The annual number of billion-dollar disasters in the United States – earthquakes, floods, fires, hurricanes and more – has tripled since the 1980s, from two to about six per year. And 2011 was a barn-burner, with 14 separate $1 billion-plus weather events. The trend continued into 2012, with Hurricane Sandy flooding signifigant portions of the east coast. Preliminary data from the National Climatic Data Center shows a total of 11 disasters topping $1 billion last year - and the total price tag for those 11 was even higher than in 2011.
In the News: NYS & Local Retirement Fund Go Fossil Free Divestment Campaign
In the News: Will Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter Stop Meaning Anything When Climate Change Hits? -by Sandra Steingraber- My kids and their friends and everyone roughly their age will, in fact, be the last human beings to remember a stable, predictable procession of seasons.
In the News: Farm filming gag laws ignite debate
In the News: Wells Dry, Fertile Plains Turn to Dust
In the News: Lifton introduces tax credit for eco-friendly homes - State Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton, D-Ithaca, announced she is introducing a bill that gives tax credits to people who buy energy efficient homes. Under the program, a homebuyer would receive a $5,000 to $10,000 tax credit for buying a new or renovated energy-efficient home. The homes would have to be graded on the home energy rating system (HERS) index from HERS 50 to Zero-Net-Energy. The index measures a home’s energy efficiency.
In the News: In the News: America's first climate refugees - The community of Newtok, Alaska is facing a slow evacuation as sea level rise and erosion eat away at the town and threaten to make its residents America’s “first climate refugees”, the Guardian reported. The highest point in the town could be below water by 2017, according to a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study.
In the News: St. Lawrence County's GardenShare one of 14 state programs to receive funding to bring fresh food to underserved communities
In the News: A Change in Temperature
In the News: Climate Tipping Point? Concentration of Carbon Dioxide Tops 400 ppm for First Time in Human History - The 400 ppm threshold is widely recognized as a dangerous level that could drastically worsen human-caused global warming.
In the News: 12 reasons the American energy boom is overrated - "People who claim that natural gas will spark a broad-based U.S. economic renaissance, if only pesky environmentalists lay off, are exaggerating the benefits of the shale gas bonanza," Michael Levi writes in his new book "The Power Surge."
In the News: In the Wake of West, Texas: 1,000 Toxic Chemical Accidents You Have Not Heard Of
In the News: The Senate Energy Committee, by a bi-partisan voice vote, approved the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act (S. 761) that was introduced by Alliance Honorary Vice-Chairs Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) just last month. The Shaheen-Portman bill will spur the use of energy efficiency technologies in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors. This bipartisan bill uses a variety of low-cost tools to reduce barriers for private sector energy users and drive adoption of off-the-shelf efficiency technologies. This legislation, when enacted, will help speed the transition to a more energy efficient economy, increasing both our economic competitiveness and our energy security for the coming decades, while driving economic growth and encouraging private sector job creation. A pair of bi-partisan energy efficiency champions on the House Energy and Commerce Committee have introduced companion legislation. H.R.1616 was introduced by Alliance Honorary Vice Chair Peter Welch (D-VT) and David McKinley (R-WVA) and awaits action by the Committee.
In the News: With Carbon Dioxide Approaching a New High, Scientists Sound the Alarm
In the News: More Solar Workers in the U.S. than Coal Miners
In the News: What Will It Take to Get More Women in Green-Energy Jobs?
In the News: REI's Sally Jewell wins confirmation as Interior secretary - By a vote of 87 to 11, the Senate approved Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI) chief executive Sally Jewell on Wednesday as the next Interior secretary.
In the News: Road map outlines path to going completely green
In the News: Ramping Up Renewables: Energy You Can Count On - The United States can significantly increase renewable energy while maintaining a reliable, affordable, and cleaner energy system.
In the News: Global Solar Photovoltaic Industry Becomes Net Energy Producer
In the News: EXXONMOBIL FACES LAWSUIT AFTER ARKANSAS OIL SPILL - Residents in Mayflower, Arkansas, have filed a class-action lawsuit against ExxonMobil after a pipeline rupture that allowed thousands of barrels of heavy crude oil to flow into a residential area.
In the News: With Help From Nature, a Town Aims to Be a Solar Capital - Is global warming indeed a threat? Absolutely, Lancaster, CA Mayor R. Rex Parris said. “I may be a Republican. I’m not an idiot.”
In the News: Resource Curse: Why the Economic Boom That Fracking Promises Will Be a Bust For Most People (Hard Times, USA) - Evidence suggests that counties where drilling occurs will be in worse shape economically down the road.
In the News: Ag Gag Laws - Taping of Farm Cruelty Is Becoming the Crime
In the News: Fracking, Solar Energy On List Of 'Super Bills' - One measure would require a comprehensive health impact assessment before permits are issued for shale gas drilling using hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
In the News: Alberta’s bold plan to cut emissions stuns Ottawa and oil industry - The Alberta government has quietly presented a proposal to sharply increase levies on carbon production and force large oil-industry producers to slash greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 40 per cent on each barrel of production, a long-term plan that has surprised Ottawa and industry executives with its ambition.
In the News: Doubling Down on Our Faustian Bargain - Dr. James Hansen writes: "The more we allow the Faustian debt to build, the more unmanageable the eventual consequences will be. Yet globally there are plans to build more than 1,000 coal-fired power plants and plans to develop some of the dirtiest oil sources on the planet. These plans should be vigorously resisted."
In the News: The Coming Crash: Our Addiction to Endless Growth on a Finite Planet - Richard Heinberg talks about the new book "Energy: Overdevelopment and the Delusion of Endless Growth," a haunting look at our current energy path.
In the News: With Drought Season Off to a Bad Start, Scientists Forecast Another Bleak Year - Current climate-induced drought is slipping into a trend that scientists say resembles some of the worst droughts in U.S. history, like the Dust Bowl.
In the News: Most in U.S. concerned about sea level rise, poll finds - Nearly three-fourths of respondents agree that rising sea level resulting from climate change is a threat to the U.S., and 82% believe we should prepare for the effects.
In the News: EPA Report: More Than Half Nation's Rivers in Poor Shape - More than half of the country's rivers and streams are in poor biological health, unable to support healthy populations of aquatic insects and other creatures, according to a nationwide survey released Tuesday.
In the news: Creating Renewable Energy Farms that Double as Wildlife Reserves - Dale Vince, the founder of Ecotricity, explained that, “protecting wildlife and creating habitats is not just close to our hearts, it is central to what we do. We’re already making green energy to cut the carbon emissions that cause climate change, which in turn impacts habitats and wildlife. This partnership takes that one step further, making closer links between nature and green energy.
In the News: Scientists link frozen spring to dramatic Arctic sea ice loss
In the News: US shale gas to heat British homes within five years
In the News: Wave of "Ag Gag" Bills Threaten Food Safety and Freedom of the Press
In the News: Life After Oil and Gas - Just days earlier a team of Stanford engineers published a proposal showing how New York State — not windy like the Great Plains, nor sunny like Arizona — could easily produce the power it needs from wind, solar and water power by 2030. In fact there was so much potential power, the researchers found, that renewable power could also fuel our cars.
In the News: Renowned Science Writer Sandra Steingraber Puts Her Body On the Line to Defend Against Fracking - Steingraber says civil disobedience is a last-resort show of bravery that can change the outcome -- but you have to get there before the bulldozers do.
In the News: Women Fight Keystone XL from North and South - Along the miles of transcontinental pipeline being built to transport oil from the tar sands of Canada, women are fighting the project. One put her body in front of a bulldozer. Another is challenging eminent domain seizure of her family's land.
Guide to URBAN Farming in New York State - You don’t need 40 acres to have a farm. The Cornell Small Farms Program has just released a new “Guide to URBAN Farming in NYS.” This free resource guide covers a myriad of topics, including advocacy for urban agriculture, engaging communities, intensive growing techniques, urban composting and soils, urban livestock, site security, grant and financial opportunities, and services and resources available from urban farming organizations throughout New York.
In the News: Top Military Officer: Climate Change Biggest Threat to Security - Admiral Samuel Locklear told the Boston Globe that global warming could 'cripple the security environment.'
In the News: Amplified Greenhouse Effect Shaping North Into South
In the News: Women: The Unsung Heroes of the Environment
In the News: Climate Heat Now Exceeds Most of Past 11,300 Years
In the News: Global Temperatures Highest in 4,000 Years
In the News: Meet the Tar Sands Pollution Refugees
In the News: Obama Names McCarthy to Head EPA, Moniz for Energy
In the News: Report Blames Climate Change for Extremes in Australia
In the News: Keystone XL Pipeline Gets Upbeat Analysis From State Department
In the News: Shell Oil Cancels Offshore Alaska Drilling for 2013
In the News: Hanford: The Largest Environmental Cleanup Operation in US History
In the News: US Considers Cutting a Deal With BP
In the News: Worst Drought in 1,000 Years Could Begin in Eight Years
New York League of Conservation Voters releases 'scores' for lawmakers
- Senator Kirstin Gillibrand: 93%
- Senator Chuck Schumer: 93%
- Rep. Bill Owens: 51%
In the News: ‘What the Frack?’ talk raises concerns about drilling
In the News: Six in Ten People Worldwide Lack Access to Flush Toilets or Other Adequate Sanitation
In the News: Extreme Weather and Resilience of Coastal Communities in United States — Hurricane Sandy was a fearsome reminder that coastal communities are highly vulnerable to extreme weather events and environmental variability, and that vulnerability is only expected to increase with climate change.
In the News: Rapid Changes in the Arctic Ecosystem During Ice Minimum in Summer 2012 — Huge quantities of algae are growing on the underside of sea ice in the Central Arctic: in 2012 the ice algae Melosira arctica was responsible for almost half the primary production in this area. When the ice melts, as was the case during the ice minimum in 2012, these algae sink rapidly to the bottom of the sea at a depth of several thousands of metres. Deep sea animals such as sea cucumbers and brittle stars feed on the algae, and bacteria metabolise what's left, consuming the oxygen in the sea bed.
In the News: 'What the Frack' talk planned for Feb. 20 in Potsdam
In the News: Effects of Human Exposure to Hormone-Disrupting Chemicals Examined in Landmark United Nations Report
In the News: Tens of Thousands Rally to Stop Keystone XL Pipeline & Urge Obama to Move "Forward on Climate"
In the News: Preparing for Climate Change-Induced Weather Disasters
In the News: Why 'Safe' Regulation of Fracking in New York Is a Fiction
In the News: Sierra Club to Engage in Civil Disobedience For First Time in Organization's History
In the News: Consumers Need Better Protection from Chemicals in Products, Experts Urge
Obama Names CEO Sally Jewell for Interior Secretary
In the News: Union of Concerned Scientists 2012 Annual Report
In the News: Sunday, February 17th: rally and march in Washington, DC for action on climate - In his second inaugural, President Obama promised action on climate change. First step: stop the Keystone XL pipeline. Sierra Club, 350.org, and others are organizing a major action in DC on Feb 17
In the News: Chu Resigns, Writes Of Our 'Moral Responsibility' For Action Amid Growing Evidence We're Making Weather More Extreme
In the News: Polluted Air Linked to Poor Birth Outcomes, Early Deaths
In the News: Dirty Energy Money - Challenging dirty energy's dominance of our democracy - Dirty Energy Money is an interactive tool that tracks the flow of oil, gas and coal industry into politicians' pockets.
In the News: ‘Roasted, toasted, fried and grilled’: climate-change talk from an unlikely source - Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF and a former finance minister in the conservative government of Nicolas Sarkozy, pointed to critical pivot points for the economic future.
In the News: In Energy Taxes, Tools to Help Tackle Climate Change
In the News: Climate Change Impacts to U.S. Coasts Threaten Public Health, Safety and Economy, Report Finds
In the News: Congressional Democrats Form Climate Change Task Force
In the News: 12 Tips to be Energy Efficient Each Month of 2013 - Make a plan to be energy efficient every month of the year
In the News: Ring in the New Year with Energy Tax Credits
In the News: Lester Brown: Two Views of Our Future
Link to Dr. Stephen Bird's podcat on: Hydro-fracking in New York State: What to do?
AAUW in the News: Recent presentation at Clarkson on the hype and economics of shale gas development now available on YouTube (Nov. 22, 2011)
AAUW in the News: The Deborah Rogers "Shale Gas: Panacea or Shell Game?" video is now on-line. (Nov. 21, 2011)
AAUW in the News: Expert speaks at Clarkson about economic anomalies of hydrofracking

Branch Homepage - Public Policy Issues to Watch