GREEN TEAMS…
the power behind municipal sustainability 
 

Delaware River, originally uploaded by joiseyshowaa.
The National Park Service has extended the deadline for comments to next Friday, March 12 (see below).
The link to the original alert:
Alert: The Delaware Water Gap and Appalachian Trail Threatened by Powerline – Speak Out!
Fw:
National Park Service
Delaware Water Gap NRA & Appalachian National Scenic Trail News Release
Release date: Thursday, March 4, 2010
Contact(s): Kara Deutsch, 570-426-2491
Transmission Line Public Scoping Comment Period Extended
BUSHKILL, PA – Superintendent John J. Donahue and Superintendent Pamela Underhill have announced that the National Park Service has received a request to extend the public …

On January 25, environmental activists and concerned citizens from across New York State gathered in Albany to rally and speak with legislators about the dangers of natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. Gas drilling companies plan to use a controversial technique called hydraulic fracturing to extract natural gas trapped in the Marcellus Shale. Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” involves pumping millions of gallons of water and toxic chemicals at high pressure into each well, and it poses a serious threat to our water, air, and ecosystems in the Marcellus region. …

Originally uploaded by DSchvejda
 

From Environmental Advocates of New York:
The natural gas industry is eager to drill in New York State using a risky technique called hydraulic fracturing or “fracking.” Fracking has the potential to endanger our drinking water and will turn parts of New York into industrial drilling zones.
Click here to tell Governor Paterson and the Department of Environmental Conservation to revise New York’s draft natural gas drilling guide and protect our water.

Fracking requires millions of gallons of water and hundreds of thousands of gallons of chemicals—many of which are …

Minnewaska State Park, originally uploaded by rzernitsky.
From Parks & Trails New York:
57 State Parks to Close Due to Budget Shortfall
Save 0ur State Parks Day – March 3, 2010
 55 parks will close unless you speak out!
Meet, call, write, or e-mail your legislators on March 3 – Save Our State Parks Day
Imagine if 56 million people-the number of park visitors last year-contacted their legislators to protest park closings.
If we all act, we can win the battle to keep parks open.
Please be part of this historic day.
Here’s how:

Come to a rally in Albany …

San Rafael Swell, Utah, originally uploaded by Uncle Kick-Kick.
From Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance:
You’ve probably heard news of possible national monument designations for Utah’s San Rafael Swell and Cedar Mesa, and of the ensuing furor from some Utah officials who don’t want federal protection for these special places.  The outcry comes despite the fact that over the last 100+ years, presidents from both political parties have designated national monuments in Utah.  Many were initially controversial, though they resulted in the long-term protection of some of our most iconic and beloved landscapes, …

Wednesday, February 24, 2010 Twitter EnviroNews links.
Alert: Gas Driller Wants Delaware Water – DRBC Public Hearing TODAY! (info & how to send written comments).  Texas mayor reflects on Marcellus visit (A Good Read!). Alert: Speak Out for Cooling Towers on Oyster Creek! Public Meetings Info & Send Comments to NJDEP.

Thatcher State Park
From Catskill 3500 Club:

Governor Paterson plans to close dozens of New York’s State Parks and Historic Sites. The plan would save a few million dollars but in a $134 billion executive budget it is an insignificant amount, and ignores the economic activity that parks generate. New York’s beautiful parks and historic sites attract visitors from out of state who spend millions of dollars, creating jobs and generating local and state sales tax revenue.
This plan may actually cost New York more than it saves!
A full list of parks targeted …

Tuesday, February 23, 2010 Twitter EnviroNews links.
Sierra Club’s dilemma on natural gas and Marcellus Shale. Close NY’s Thacher Park? Don’t Even Think About It! (extensive photos and text highlight park’s importance and history).  Marcellus drilling creates new world – “If you love the rural aesthetic …, you are in for a very unpleasant surprise.”

Rows of panels in the 250-kW rooftop array in Cary, N.C., originally uploaded by Progress Energy. 
From: Center for Biological Diversity
If we are to avoid the worst impacts of global warming, we must rapidly transition away from all forms of fossil fuels.
While Congress debates whether a proposed 20-percent renewable electric standard is too high, what we really need is a 100-percent renewable electric standard. It’s an ambitious target, but with existing technology we can likely meet it — we have to.
Unfortunately, some of the best sources of clean, renewable energy — …

Monday, February 22, 2010 Twitter EnviroNews links.
Gas Pipelines under our feet: 100 federal inspectors each monitor 20,000 miles “Congress says greater oversight needed.” DISH, Texas mayor tells 600 at Elmira Heights Theater: Take local control of NY State gas drilling.

From NJ Chapter Sierra Club:
Oyster Creek is the oldest running nuclear power plant in the country. Not surprisingly, its cooling technology is antiquated.
Water from the Barnegat Bay, is circulated through the plant cooling its systems, and then returned directly to the Bay. The artificially heated water kills fish and pollutes the bay. The Barnegat Bay deserves the best available technology and that means requiring cooling towers at the plant.  
Oyster Creek is permitted to produce energy for another 19 years, we can’t let them put off cooling towers any longer. The …

Friday, February 19, 2010 Twitter EnviroNews links.
Could more Wilderness be the answer for struggling rural economies? The official NYS Park Closure list has been released

Honeybees, originally uploaded by BugMan50.
From the Sierra Club:
Without the honeybees that pollinate one-third of U.S. crops, those of us who enjoy eating would be in a lot of trouble. Unfortunately, “colony collapse disorder” has decimated honeybee populations, and no one knows for sure what’s causing it. One possible factor, as documented in the film Nicotine Bees, is nicotinyl insecticides (also known as neonicotinoids). Now, huge agribusiness corporations have acquired patents to coat their proprietary seeds with these neonicotinoids, which are extremely persistent and end up in pollen and in droplets of …

Thursday, February 18, 2010 Twitter EnviroNews links.
Obama Eyes Western Land for National Monuments, Angering Some Congressmen Last stand: Critics slam power line plans across Delaware Water Gap, Appalachian Trail