Environmentalists expect to spend most of the legislative session trying to fend off budget-cutters rather than attempting to push through new programs to protect air and water.

Several environmental officials say the environment probably will get even less attention than usual given the budget crisis and an election looming.

Rep. Donovan Olson, a Boone Democrat who leads the House environment committee, said: “We won’t be creating any new programs and we won’t be allocating any new state dollars. So that really limits our action for our next session. We just won’t be doing that much.”

Marian Gelb of the Iowa Environmental Council, a nonprofit coalition of green groups and individuals, and Richard Leopold, director of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, agreed. Leopold described the coming session as “pretty meek and mild.”

Here’s what’s likely to come up:

Climate

By the end of this year, a state task force will submit a firmer set of recommendations for cutting greenhouse gases to fight climate change. There’s also work to look more closely at benefits and costs of various actions.

Little action is expected in this Legislature, except setting the scene for votes in the next one.

But Neil Hamilton, a professor at Drake University who attended the recent Copenhagen climate talks, said Iowans should pursue many climate-related actions because they help the environment in a broader sense.

Some plantings do a good job of sweeping heat-trapping carbon from the air, but also reduce soil erosion.

Renewable energy sources such as wind can help diversify the energy mix, reduce dependence on foreign oil, and, yes, limit carbon dioxide emissions, Hamilton added.

“This really is an economic question” as much as an environmental one, he said.

Livestock

Adam Mason, state policy organizing director for the nonprofit Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, said CCI members will pressure Gov. Chet Culver to make good on his campaign pledge to push for local control of livestock confinements.

“If Culver expects to be around more than one term, we need to see something out of him,” Mason said. “I’m going to hammer away that he campaigned on that.

“This is an issue that resonates, and it’s one that will come up again in November.”

Erin Seidler, Culver’s spokeswoman, said, “The governor is committed to local control for livestock confinement, but unfortunately there hasn’t been consensus in the Iowa Legislature to get it done.”

The local-control legislation has been so controversial among lawmakers that leaders have declined to even have a floor debate. In addition, Democratic leaders in the Legislature at times have been at odds with Culver, a fellow Democrat.

CCI also wants the state to set bigger buffer zones between confinements and homes, for example. And the group wants permit requirements to extend to even smaller livestock operations.

The chances of any of that happening: slim.

“Realistically, it’s probably not going to move this year,” Mason said.

Sen. Donovan Olson, a Boone Democrat, said lawmakers are so divided on the local-control issue that advocates would be better off looking for some way to gain ground in an incremental way, short of the full-fledged yielding of power to local authorities.

Trails and more

The Iowa Environmental Council and other organizations are pushing to prevent cuts to the Resources Enhancement and Protection program, which has been pulling in a record $18 million from gambling receipts the past few years. That still is short of the $20 million authorized by legislation.

The program pays for trails, public land and historic preservation, for example.

“We’re going to work hard to keep REAP funded,” Gelb, of the Iowa Environmental Council, said. “It’s realistic to expect it is going to take a hit. We’ll make an effort to keep that as small as possible.”

Leopold, the DNR director, said he hasn’t heard of specific plans to cut cash for the program. However, with 10 percent cuts spreading across state government, a small cut is possible, he added.

Air quality

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Iowa Environment Council both support legislation, introduced in the last session, that would ban open burning in cities and immediately surrounding areas.

Neither thinks it will pass. The move is designed to protect asthmatics and others from lung damage.

“Realistically, I don’t think they are going to give it time,” Leopold said.

Also in the air: legislation that would limit the idling of diesel trucks.

Long-term financing

Voters will cast ballots in November on a measure that would devote 0.375 percent of any future sales tax increase to natural resources projects.

A $2.5 million public campaign is expected to begin this summer. Lawmakers are expected to consider legislation that would lay out how the estimated $150 million a year would be distributed from a constitutionally protected account.

The money won’t be available unless voters approve the measure, and lawmakers later vote to increase the sales tax.

Story is here

By Reid Forgrave (Des Moines register)

When Porsche Walker looks at her new Habitat for Humanity house not far from the Forest Avenue library in Des Moines, she sees it as something special. It’s a home the 21-year-old single mother can use to create a comfortable atmosphere to raise her two daughters.

But when environmental advocates look at Walker’s new house – which could become the third house in the state with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certification – they see it as special for a different reason: It shows “going green” is possible, even for those with a lower income

“When you look at it, you can’t really tell,” Walker said. “But when I was at the house dedication, some people who were totally about the environment were there. I was like, ‘I guess I’m going green, too.’ ”

LEED certification is a process that gives a green stamp of approval on a building project. The first such certification program used nationwide, LEED provides an independent review of building projects, ensuring they are environmentally responsible, profitable, and a healthy place for people who are both building the structure and then living or working in it.

Walker moved in last month. Her boxes aren’t all unpacked yet. She has started noticing the little things that make her house environmentally special: the fact that she doesn’t have to blast her furnace to stay warm in the winter, that the light bulbs are all compact fluorescent, that there’s an extra 6 inches of insulation to keep the house airtight.

“You can do this whole green thing in an affordable way,” said Lynnae Hentzen, executive director of the nonprofit environmental organization Iowa Center on Sustainable Communities. “The biggest lesson is that it’s certainly attainable for anyone. If an organization like Habitat can integrate this into its building practices, it’s replicable. Any contractor should be able to embrace these practices for their clients.”

LEED certification is an intensive checklist-based program in which all the contractors building a home collaborate to make sure the house is built with a certain number of environmentally friendly, sustainable techniques. LEED certifications come with certain levels. Silver is the lowest, then gold, then platinum. Walker’s house got the silver certification.

It’s a practice that’s gained a foothold among commercial buildings, but is only now becoming popular for homes.

“There’s just so much they take into consideration,” said Erin Wiggins, a rater for Cenergy, a company that does energy efficiency consulting for new construction and existing homes, including Walker’s house. “It’s not just the house. It’s the land development, the direction it faces, what type of seeding, did you pour concrete or use open pavers, all sorts of stuff.”

For Walker’s house, a number of sustainable techniques were used to score points for the LEED certification checklist:

- All appliances are Energy Star, meaning they meet efficiency standards.

- Products that go into the house, from the caulk to the glue to the sealants, are low-emissions, which helps with indoor air quality.

- The house was aired out 48 hours after construction was completed in order to disperse odors related to construction.

- During construction, contractors had to reduce the amount of waste. All the material that left the construction site and headed to a landfill, a recycling center or for reuse had to be weighed and tallied.

- Deeper-than-normal, two-by-six framing in the house means there is more room for insulation to cover the walls of the home.

- The insulation used is all low-formaldehyde.

“Lots of people look at the face of the house and that’s what’s important,” Wiggins said. “They don’t look under the walls. As soon as we cover the walls, we’ve covered up just about every energy-efficient element of the home.”

Habitat officials didn’t have a dollar figure for how much more the LEED construction cost, but they said it wasn’t much. Energy savings should make up the difference.

“They did not spend money on granite counter tops,” Wiggins said. “That money went into making this house more sustainable.”

For Porsche Walker, she’s just excited to raise 2-year-old Justyce and 1-year-old Davinity in a house of her own.

Walker was raised by her grandmother since she was 2 weeks old, as her mother was in and out of prison. It hasn’t been easy for her to get ahead. She works two jobs – in the annuities department at Principal Financial Group, and on weekend nights as a receptionist at Elsie Mason Manor downtown – while studying for her master’s degree at William Penn University.

The best part of her new Habitat for Humanity home is that it’s only two blocks from her grandmother’s home. And it will save her money going forward on energy bills. “When you think about it, everything is going to be cheaper with my bills, too,” Walker said. “That’s important. If you’re struggling already, why would I want to get into something that’ll give me new debt?”

Full story here

Ten central Iowa cities are applying for up to $25 million in federal grant money to create jobs and bring more energy efficiency to homes, businesses and government buildings.

The money would supplement federal programs like Energy Star and contribute to efforts to curb climate change.

“Our region has an opportunity to be part of a program that would bring energy-efficiency improvements to thousands of local homeowners and businesses,” said John Konior, assistant city manager in Urbandale. He is overseeing the grant application.

“This would provide for major revitalization of neighborhoods and businesses; create new energy service, home improvement, construction and related service jobs; and provide a model that could be continued after the 36-month grant period.”

The cities involved are Altoona, Ankeny, Carlisle, Clive, Des Moines, Johnston, Urbandale, Waukee, West Des Moines and Windsor Heights.

The grant is administered by the U.S. Department of Energy under the economic stimulus passed early this year. Konior said the cities should hear back in late February or early March.

Local schools and colleges would train contractors, and private lenders would provide additional financing. Retrofitting homes can reduce energy use by up to 40 percent, according to a report from the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

President Barack Obama told business and labor leaders at a jobs summit last week that he strongly supports job-creation efforts that would bring more energy efficiency to homes and buildings. Obama said incentives like those used for “cash for clunkers” – the program intended to help people purchase more-fuel-efficient cars – could “get contractors working again and generate more private activity.”

Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie attended the jobs summit. He urged Obama to make more direct federal funding available to metropolitan areas and encourage private lending to add environmentally friendly, or “green,” jobs.

“We need to create value in our cities and programs geared toward energy efficiency to instill that value. It saves energy, it saves the environment, it improves public health and it creates new jobs,” he said. “We also need to sell the benefit and show the benefit to the private sector so there’s long-term, lasting benefit.”

Global leaders have gathered in Copenhagen, Denmark, for the two-week U.N. Climate Change Conference, which began Monday. The White House announced last month that Obama plans to offer to cut U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions by 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020.

Konior and other metro-area leaders say efforts to limit global warming need to happen at the local level.

“Wind farms are great, but the bigger payoff is energy efficiency,” said David Osterberg, director of the Iowa Policy Project, a nonprofit founded in 2001 that produces research on the Iowa economy and energy and environmental policy “Every bit of this will be lasting, because 36 months down the road your energy bill will still be lower and MidAmerican will still be using less coal. And with 10 cities participating, that will have a significant impact that can be measured. This is the smart part of the stimulus program. It provides jobs that moves us to a different kind of country.”

Full story Here

Now, we have global weirding (aka global warming). All over the world weather related disasters are becoming more frequent and catastrophic because the greenhouse effect is warming our planet. Science tells us that methane and carbon oxide (monoxide, dioxide) emissions are the major sources of the problem. However, the very powerful controllers of the sources of these emissions are trying to convince us otherwise. They are digging up alternative theories that are not widely supported by the scientific community. They want to place doubt in our minds so we will continue to burn their products. They do not want us to switch to more sustainable alternatives such as wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and biogases.

In the past people have argued that we couldn’t undo the damage that human beings are inflicting upon the earth. However we did turn things around and we can do it again. Global warming seems like an insurmountable problem, but the stakes are higher than ever before.

Read the full article at the Des Moines Register here

The editorial explains that much of the country and President Obama are pushing for an investment in rail. It highlights an Amtrak study that states that a line connecting Chicago and Dubuque and connecting Chicago, the Quad Cities and Iowa City would be beneficial for both Illinois and Iowa. The editorial states that Illinois has signed on to the project and that Iowa should follow suit.

To read the editorial in full, go here

Kulik emphasizes the many benefits of passenger rail service. He says that rail brings people into cities, strengthening business and stimulating the economy. He adds that it is more convenient and better for the environment than other forms of transportation.

Kulik stresses, however, that in order to benefit from passenger rail, we must act quickly. With a Midwestern rail network forming around us, we need to express our support to ensure that we become a vital part of it.

To read Kulik’s column in full, go here

If Des Moinesians are paying attention, they will recognize the grass-roots support that is simmering for the opportunity to connect Iowa to the Midwest Regional Rail Network – Chicago to Iowa City to Des Moines. Demand continues to grow, and you can, forgive the pun, get on board.

It is convenient, environmentally friendly and economically vital that we plug into regional economies and shorten the distance between our neighboring cities and economic centers.

If Gov. Chet Culver and the Iowa Legislature make the $3 million initial investment (small in the grand scheme of things) needed to bring passenger trains to Iowa, they will be taking a stand for a more vibrant and sustainable future for our citizens.

Talk to your city leaders – those who reportedly are responsible for our best interests in the long run. Get the word out.

- Adam Hammes, Des Moines

To read the letter in full, go here

Baumel stresses the economic benefits associated with passenger rail, including the jobs it will create and the economic growth it will provide. He highlights the history of rail and how it is much more modern and economical than it once was. Rail cars are now more energy efficient and the rail system is completely computerized.

Instead of throwing money at inefficient projects, Baumel claims funding “should be allocated to transportation projects that have a high probability of increasing productivity and sustained job growth.”

To read the column in its entirety, go here

Learner emphasized such goals as energy efficiency, wind power and passenger rail service for the state. He stressed that these goals will not have a positive effect just on the environment but on the economy as well. As the global economy becomes more centered on clean energy, working toward the goals he outlines will create jobs and allow Iowa to be more competitive in the global market.

To read Learner’s column in full, go here

Stay posted for details from Learner’s visit to Des Moines and our office opening.