Iowa Global Warming

The air across Iowa is so polluted that the state is perilously close to violating new federal limits aimed at protecting human health. Yet Iowans have no way of knowing what chemicals they are breathing because of a limited – and often inaccurate – system of monitoring pollution statewide, a Des Moines Register investigation found.

Catharine Fitzsimmons, Iowa’s top air-quality official, defended Iowa’s existing air-monitoring system. Yet she said the state is under orders from the federal government to better monitor fine-particle and ozone pollution, among Iowa’s most pressing air-quality problems.

“Both of those pollutants affect respiratory systems, particularly in the young, the elderly and those with compromised lung function,” Fitzsimmons said. “They trigger heart attacks and other health problems.”

Read the rest of the Des Moines Register article here.

The 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act, reintroduced in the U.S. House by Iowa Rep. Dave Loebsack, passed last month by a 275-155 vote. The proposal would provide $6.4 billion nationally, $34 million for Iowa, for local school districts to incorporate green design and building practices.

The money would go toward the modernization, renovation or repair of public schools, including public charter schools, to make them safe, healthy, high-performing and technologically up to date.

The bill is significant for Iowa because it demonstrates Iowa’s leadership in creating green, sustainable structures and protecting the environment. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, buildings account for close to half (48 percent) of all greenhouse-gas emissions and energy consumed in the United States, far ahead of transportation (27 percent) and industry sectors (25 percent), which are typically thought of as the biggest offenders.

Please read the rest of the article here.

The fight for a clean energy future and a planet safe from climate change has brought me home once more to work on the Iowa Global Warming Campaign. I grew up in Ames and I’ve been going to college in Washington DC at American University. Last summer I interned with the Iowa Global Warming Campaign because I wanted to get more experience with climate issues outside of the campus or the classroom. I realized dressing up in a snowman costume and playing “wheel of warming” was, in its own peculiar way, helping to build a grassroots movement for solutions here in my home state. At the time, I had no idea how important Iowa was for the future of the world. The winds of change swept from Iowa all the way to Washington in 2008, and the future the rest of the nation desires has already begun right here. More wind power, a new passenger rail line, an educated workforce hungry for green collar jobs and a citizenry energized by the caucuses all make this one of the most important frontlines to protect our common future.
I have spent the last school year heavily involved in organizing students on my campus around the issues of clean energy and climate change. The millennial generation is hungry for a brighter future where we can have good jobs and a good environment. At this point in human history we can choose between destroying our planet or protecting it for posterity. The world doesn’t need to be ravaged by climate change, but right now it is up to us whether it will or not. The world is looking to the United States for leadership in reducing emissions and building a sustainable economy, and Iowa should be leading the nation.
I encourage every one of you reading this blog to get involved by contacting our members of Congress (http://www.gov.iastate.edu/federal/delegation.html). Right now Congress is debating the American Clean Energy and Security act, or ACES. This is the first comprehensive energy plan our country has had in 30 years.
The ACES bill has a Renewable Energy Standard, which requires utilities to generate an increasing percentage of their power from clean, renewable sources over time. The higher the target for renewable energy, the more it will benefit all Iowans.
A new national market for renewable energy will benefit Iowa greatly. Iowa is already a leader in wind energy generation. Because each state would have to use more renewable electricity, we would be able to sell our clean energy to states that are lagging behind. The possibilities for new jobs in the clean energy sector are incredible.
The bill also includes a cap on the greenhouse gas emissions that are generated by burning fossil fuels. By capping and reducing emissions we will be able to stop dangerous climate change while driving innovation in American manufacturing and energy production.
One month ago this week I woke up very early and waited in line for 5 hours to get a spot in the Energy & Commerce Committee room audience for the ACES bill. Opportunities to influence the energy future of the world do not come along very often, even in DC. Young climate activists from around the area filled the committee room with green shirts to demand a sustainable future. The dirty energy lobbyists and their friends on the committee did not expect to be joined by the future leaders of America. We heard testimony from dirty industries afraid of a bright future free from climate change and fossil fuels. We also heard testimony from clean industry pioneers asking for strong legislation to help build the green economy and make the United States an innovation leader once again.
If you feel like I do, that we need national leadership in forging a new energy economy and protecting the planet from dangerous climate change, then this summer will be an exciting chance to get involved.

Drew

Many Midwestern businesses and elected officials have come out in support of comprehensive climate legislation, but some utility companies and others claim that capping global warming pollution will be too expensive in states that rely heavily on coal for their electricity. 

In a Quad-City Times article, ELPC’s Andrew Snow says Iowa will see a significant positive gain from the bill and that worries over cost increases are “… the kind of thing we’ve been hearing since automakers told us they couldn’t put in seat belts,” Snow said. “I think the costs will be minor if not completely mitigated.”

Read the rest of the article here.

I’m back from the two day RE-AMP conference, and I’m both excited and tired. Tired because it’s been a long two days – an early breakfast-to-night, fully loaded, nonstop kind of long. Excited because two days of meeting people and learning about all the work being done throughout the entire RE-AMP midwest network has left me feeling inspired.

There’s a lot happening – in all of the eight states represented our partner organizations are advancing climate solutions, and progress has never been more tangible. Renewable energy, energy efficiency, passenger rail and other mass transit options are moving forward – and dirty coal projects are being shelved or reconsidered.

For me, a highlight of the conference was Heaster Wheeler of the Detroit NAACP. Heaster may not seem a likely ally, but he made clear that we have common obligations, common challenges, and common opportunities. We’re all in this together, and we’re all going to have to work together; while there may be challenges and difficulties, the opportunity is great.

One last piece of encouragement: President-Elect Obama has named Nobel Prize winner Steven Chu to the post of Secretary of Energy, a position that will oversee the crucial issues of energy and climate for the Obama Administration. Not only does Chu have the knowledge, he has vision, and this selection is a clear signal that Obama is serious about reform, scientific integrity, and the new energy economy.

But it’s not over yet – now comes the heavy lifting, and we’ve got to carry the load. So… time to crash, because it’s back to work tomorrow. Can’t wait!

“Many of our best basic scientists realize that this is getting down to a crisis situation.”
-Steven Chu on global warming

Ames, Ia. – Steve Schainker sometimes makes his rounds as Ames city manager in a two-seater Zenn, an electric car.

The tiny vehicle, plugged in to an electrical outlet behind City Hall, tops out at 25 mph and gets 35 miles to a charge. It is one of the more visible elements of an EcoSmart program designed to save fuel and to cut carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to climate change.

Ames is one of 34 Iowa cities that have pledged to create strong local policies and programs to reduce global warming. From Shenandoah to Cedar Falls to Davenport to Des Moines, cities large and small are overhauling vehicle fleets, checking buildings for energy efficiency, and changing light fixtures to save money and cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The efforts are paying dividends at the bank and in the air.

Read the full story here

Welcome to the new Iowa Global Warming Campaign website. The US has elected a new president and Congress, Iowa has chosen new state leaders, and we’ve got a new site to share all of the developments with you as they happen. Take a minute to get familiar with the layout, check out new features like the improved event calendar and watch our new series of short videos. A lot of things are changing, and we’re working to stay ahead of the times.

The past few weeks have been really, really exciting. Obviously, there’s that whole ‘election thing’, which is especially interesting to us here at IGW. We’ve been working on strengthening candidate positions from the very beginning of the process, way back in spring 2007. That work paid off in a big way, with the early candidates taking increasingly strong positions – the ‘finalists’ being the ones that had shown the most leadership on our climate. With the inauguration of Sen. Obama, we have come full circle with the goals of our primary campaign.

So, we’re finished with the beginning – Iowa Global Warming has (almost) completed its first two years. 2009 marks the start of a whole new era, as we work with a new administration, new Congress and new legislature to pass meaningful legislation to reduce emissions and invigorate our economy. I hope you’ll join us – together we’re going to accomplish great things.

Andrew