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THE GALLON ENVIRONMENT
LETTER
506 Victoria Ave., Montreal, Quebec H3Y 2R5 Ph. (514) 369-0230, Fax (514) 369-3282 Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Vol. 6, No. 2, February 8, 2002 ***********************************************************************
ENRON MISMANAGEMENT HARMED THE
ENVIRONMENT
Enron Corp., not only mismanaged its finances, ruined pension investments
for thousands of people. Not only did it "cook the books" and make many of its
executives rich beyond their wildest dreams, while at the same time bankrupting
the company, but also Enron and some of its key executives harmed the
environment and harmed the development of environmentally-sound energy source
development. How did the Enron executives harm the environment?
First, Enron, led by CEO Kenneth L. Lay, lobbied for oil, coal, and natural
gas energy development over solar, wind, and other renewable energy sources. Ken
Lay was a close friend of then-Governor George W. Bush and later, President
Bush. He worked closely with Bush and his Vice President, Dick Cheney on energy
issues first in Texas and, later, during the development of the National Energy
Plan. While Bush and Cheney continue to use the Watergate argument not to
release the names of those with whom they met with on the development of the
oil-coal-& gas laden energy plan, investigators did learn that Lay met
several times with Cheney and the National Energy Plan group helping to rule out
renewables.
Secondly, there is some concern that Enron, with others was able to inflate
the price of electricity in California during the energy crisis and artificially
hold the price up until the time Enron began to collapse. The extremely high
prices of electricity brought California Edison and Pacific Gas &
Electricity (PG&E) to the edge of bankruptcy. The massive losses and the
high contracts California was locked into resulted in a slowdown for the support
for wind and other renewables in California by the two companies and by the
state.
Thirdly, Enron and Ken Lay lobbied heavily for the placement of their
people in high places in government, meaning that they will likely push for oil,
coal and gas over environmentally-sound energy sources. Time Magazine reported
that, "there were ex-Enron chiefs and consultants salted around the Bush
Administration from the Army Secretary, Thomas White, to the U.S. Trade
Representative, Robert Zoellick. And last Summer Bush chose Pat Wood, a man
strongly backed by Ken Lay, to be his top energy price regulator,"as Chairman of
the Federal Electrical Regulatory Commission (FERC). Thomas White used to be the
Vice Chairman of Enron Energy Services. The environment group, Public Citizen,
has been fighting his decision to privatize energy services to the Armed Forces,
favouring oil and coal sources. Source, "Enron Spoils the Party," by Michael
Duffy and John F. Dickerson, Time Magazine, New York, February 4, 2002.
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NEW REPORT REVEALS ENRON'S MISMANAGEMENT While advocating free enterprise, Enron appears to have abused free
enterprise. It had so much business freedom, Enron used it to apparently abuse
business practices and to hide huge losses. A 217-page report filed February 1,
2002, with the federal Bankruptcy Court in New York, written by a committee
headed by Dr. William C. Powers Jr., the Dean of the University of Texas Law
School which included Raymond S. Troubh and Herbert S. Winkur Jr. reported, "an
across-the-board failure of controls and ethics at almost every level of the
company." The report found that, "a culture emerged of self-dealing and
self-enrichment at the expense of the energy company's shareholders. Accountants
and lawyers signed off on flawed and improper decisions every step of the way."
It found that, "the transactions, which resulted in the collapse of the company
were caused by a flawed idea, self-enrichment by employees, inadequately
designed controls, poor implementation, inattentive oversight, simple and not so
simple accounting mistakes, and overreaching in a culture that appears to have
encouraged pushing the limits." The report goes on to say that, "Kenneth lay
bears significant responsibility for those flawed decisions, as well as for
Enron's failure to implement sufficiently rigorous procedural controls to
prevent the abuses that flowed from this inherent conflict of interest." This
type of widespread abuse by Enron has distorted the ability of honest free
enterprise companies to introduce renewable energy and conservation. It has
placed a chill on the investment in new sources of energy. Source, "Report:
Executives in It for Themselves", by Kurt Eichenwald, New York Times News
Service, February 3, 2002.
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HOW DID ENRON DO IT? Enron's CEO, Kenneth Lay made special friends with George W. Bush and provided huge financial contributions through Enron and his other companies to Bush and other Republican party members. Three out of every four dollars went to the Republicans with the remainder going to the Democrats. The New York Times reported that, "with Bush's ascension to the presidency, Ken Lay had a private meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney on the administration's energy policy. As early as 1992, Lay became the co-chairman of then President Bush senior's re-election campaign. In all, Lay and Enron have given nearly US$575,000 to George W. Bush's various political campaigns. Enron also donated US $1.9 million in soft money to the national political parties, of which $1.5 million went to the Republicans. Lay was an early supporter of Bush's shaky presidential campaign, contributing more than $100,000 in the beginning and eventually placing Enron's entire political action committee behind Bush. Source, "Lay Had Friends in High Places," New York Times News Service, Houston, February 3, 2002. It was learned also that senior Enron staff had at least seven meetings with Dick Cheney and his staff on the National Energy Plan. In March 2001, Kenneth Lay met directly with Dick Cheney. Then on March 29, 2001 Cheney’s top energy aide, Andrew Lundquist, met with members of the Clean Power Group, a coalition funded by five power companies that included Enron. An additional five other meetings were held between Enron representatives and Cheney’s staff. Source, "A New Capitol Clash, by Martha Brant and Tamara Lipper, Newsweek Magazine, New York, February 11, 2002. ************************************************************************* U.S. EPA CRITICIZES CHENEY’S NATIONAL ENERGY PLAN In an internal memo the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) criticized Vice President Dick Cheney’s National Energy Plan. The 3-page memo was written by Tom Gibson, US EPA Associate Administrator for Policy, Economics and Innovation. Commenting on what was then Chapter 8 of the National Energy Plan the memo stated, "costs of compliance with environmental requirements are overstated, several inaccurate statements and opinions are presented as factual, and no citations are provided for many of these statements." It went on to state that, "we are very concerned that this language is inaccurate and inaapropriately implicates environmental programs as a major cause of supply constraints in the United States’ refining capacity." The memo also stated that, "statements regarding coal-generated electricity create the false impression that environmental regulations are the sole cause of the decrease in investment in new coal generation." Source, "EPA Initially Blasted White House Energy Plan", by Traci Watson, USA Today, McLean, Virginia, February 6, 2002. *************************************************************************
THE WILDERNESS SOCIETY WARNS OF
BUSH'S ANTI-ENVIRONMENT MOVES
The very old (founded in 1935), large, and U.S. conservative conservation organization, The Wilderness Society, has issued an unusual warning and action alert about the anti-environmental movements of the George W. Bush administration. The Wilderness Society stated that it, "found that, on issue after issue, the president and his appointees have failed to safeguard our air, water, land, and wildlife, siding instead with those interests eager to make a quick profit. We've concluded that informed and aroused activists like you, along with a vigilant Congress, are essential to blunt the administration's anti-environmental actions." It stated that, "while our country wisely focuses on countering terrorism, the Bush administration continues to move at full speed to implement its anti-environmental agenda -- mostly under the radar. Since September 11, Interior Secretary Gale Norton and others have invoked "national security" to justify massive oil development not only in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, but also on fragile western public lands across the lower 48 states. But homeland security includes wildland protection. The clean air and water, biological diversity, and inspiration that our national parks, wilderness, and other natural reserves provide are of vital importance." It stated that, "the truly patriotic course of action is not to plunder the most stunning lands we have inherited, but to protect them. Each generation serves as trustee of these natural treasures, and this administration is breaching that trust." The Wilderness Society warned that, "the White House is championing an
energy plan that is a half-century out of date and appears to draw more on the
advice of Enron and other fossil-fuel industry executives than on anyone else's.
Under this blueprint, our environment would be sacrificed in a host of ways. The
new administration has ignored or misstated findings of the scientific
community. Scientists extol the value of roadless forests, but the Bush
administration is trying to undermine the policy that would protect 58.5 million
acres of roadless national forest lands. Interior Secretary Norton gave
inaccurate testimony to Congress on Arctic caribou calving facts, claiming later
that it was a typo. She told the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that she supported
its wetlands proposals -- but failed to pass along criticism from biologists at
the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service."
Many, many appointees to key positions in the Administration are former
lobbyists or employees of powerful timber, oil and gas, coal mining, and energy
companies. They include: Mark Rey, Steven Griles, James Connaughton, James
Cason, William Myers, Paul Hoffman, Drue Pierce, Rebecca Watson, Bennet Raley,
and Camden Toohey. Read their bios on-line at http://www.wilderness.org/newsroom/rls012402.htm
. You can download the full report from http://www.wilderness.org/newsroom/rls012402.htm
.
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PESTICIDES INCREASE CANCER IN FARM
WORKERS - UFW
A new study by the United Farm Workers (UFW) in California found increased
cancer rates in those Hispanics that worked in the farm fields than in those
Hispanics that did not. The study, entitled, "Cancer Incidences in the United
Farm Workers of America, 1987-1997," was published in the December 2001 issue of
the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. The study linked the UFW medical
and pension plan records with the database of the California Cancer Registry. It
found that the risk of major forms of cancer such as breast, lung, and prostate
cancer were higher in those who worked in farm operations. The study was headed
by Dr. Paul Mills, an epidemiologist of the California Cancer Registry. UFW
workers had a 59 percent higher risk for leukemia, and a 69 percent higher risk
for stomach cancer than the general Latino population in California. Uterine
cancers in females were also elevated in farm workers, as was brain cancer for
both males and females, the report showed. "The study validates the many other
studies that have been done over the years that there is a correlation between
pesticides and the health of farm workers," said Douglas Blaylock, Administrator
of the UFW's Medical Plan. Large farm operations use many types of pesticides
and chemicals including those that kill bugs, prevent weed growth, control the
dropping or ripening of fruit, etc. Any one of these chemicals, or a combination
of them over a long period of time may increase the likelihood of cancer and
other chemical-induced diseases in humans. Source, "UFW Study Shows Farm Workers
Have Higher Risk of Getting Cancer," by Olivia Reyes Garcia, The Bakersfield
Californian, February 4, 2002.
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MEXICO DANGEROUS TO DO BUSINESS
IN
A new wire story out of Mexico City by Associated Press reveals that Mexico
is becoming a dangerous place in which to do business. Mexico is catching up
with Colombia as the business-man kidnapping capital of the world. More and more
business executives, both Mexican and foreign are being kidnapped for small and
large ransoms. Many of the crimes are committed with the complicity of the
Mexican police. Many of the judges are paid-off to give no or light sentences to
kidnappers. This information is miportant for the environment companies that may
wish to do business in Mexico. There are risks. AP reports a raising number of
kidnappings in 2001, reporting that it escalated in 1996 with the kidnapping of
Mamoru Konno, a top executive of Sanyo Video Components USA. "His company paid a
US$2 million for his release 8 days after his capture. In 1997, the year was
highlighted by the kidnapping of New York native Vincent Carrozza, a hotel
manager in Acapulco. He was kidnapped by 10 heavily armed emn and held for eight
days when his family finally paid a ransom. AP reported that Jose Antonio
Ortega, a public safety adviser for the Mexican Employers Confederation stated,
"that there is great concern on the part of foreigners about what is happening."
AP reported that, "experts say that most kidnappings are conducted by loosely
organized gangs, drug traffickers looking for alternate business ventures,
common criminals and even middle-class professionals who see kidnapping as a way
to make a quick buck overnight." AP reports that Mexico's President, Vicente
Fox, is attempting to take action to reduce kidnapping and other crimes in
Mexico. For example, "he has replaced the federal judicial police, the most
corrupt of all Mexico's police forces, with a national police force similar to
the FBI." Source, "Kidnapping is King of Mexican Crimes: Rampant Police
Corruption Worsens Problem as Criminals Target rich, Poor, by Lisa J. Adams, The
Associated Press, February 3, 2002.
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NEW PROPOSED WTO ITEMS MAY RESULT IN
ADDITIONAL HARM TO THE ENVIRONMENT
The World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Ministerial meeting in November
2001 identified new discussion issues that could result in new threats to the
environment. In the overtime hours of the meeting, the trade ministers of 142
countries stitched together a Ministerial Declaration that allowed the
following. (1) prepare new language similar to NAFTA's Chapter 11, that allows
companies to sue governments that try to stop trade harmful to the environment.
These investor-to-state lawsuits provide corporations with rights far above
those of citizens or domestic investors. (2) initiating negotiations on the
elimination of tariffs and non-tariff measures (NTMs, commonly known as laws and
regulations) that revive the possibility of increased exploitation of critical
forest areas and promotes the elimination of the availability of public policy
tools to protect forests. This "Global Free Logging Agreement" was a significant
issue at the 1999 Seattle Ministerial, and poses a threat to ancient forests in
Indonesia, Malaysia, and Chile. Further, strategies for environmental
conservation, such as eco-labeling, certification, and bans on raw log exports,
could come under fire in these market access negotiations. (3) Ironically woven
into a section on the environment is the elimination of tariff and non-tariff
measures for such industries as hazardous waste landfills, incinerators, and
water services (since they are considered to be "environmental services"). The
liberalization of these industries could prevent governments from placing limits
on the number of facilities permitted to operate in a given area. (4) the WTO
will begin to generate new trade competition rules that may adopt language that
would be used to challenge environmental laws and regulations if they are deemed
to be barriers to competition. For more information contact Jason Tockman,
Director, International Trade Program, American Lands Alliance, PO Box 555,
Athens, Ohio 45701, ph.
(740) 594-5441. **************************************************************************
BRUSSELS GROUP OF NATIONS TRIED TO LIMIT IMPACT OF 1972 STOCKHOLM ENVIRONMENT CONFERENCE The United Nations Conference on the Environment held in Stockholm, Sweden,
in 1972, was the first in a series of great world conferences on the
environment. It was followed by UN world conferences on population, food,
habitat, energy, etc. The 1972 Stockholm Environment Conference was the first,
created by a swell of public outrage at the unremitant pollution of the
environment, with no controls, by forest, mining, oil and chemical industries.
Citizens were calling for unprecedented government action and laws to control
the polluters. We celebrate Stockholm every ten years by holding special
international conferences. The last was in Rio in 1992. The next is in South
Africa this year to celebrate 30 years after Stockholm and to monitor
international progress towards cleaning up the environment. The United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP) based in Nairobi, Kenya, was created as a result of
the Stockholm Conference.
That's why it has come as a stunning revelation that many of the OECD
nations including the United States, the U.K., Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands,
France and Germany, formed the "Brussels Group" to try to limit the
effectiveness of the decisions and actions that would be taken in Stockholm in
1972. The existence of this cabal, known as the Brussels group, was revealed in
30-year-old British government records that were kept secret until December
2001. The group was "an unofficial policy-making body to concert the views
of the principal governments concerned", according to a note of one of the
group's first meetings written by a civil servant in the British Foreign and
Commonwealth Office. "It will have to remain informal and confidential." This
meeting took place in July 1971, nearly a year before the Stockholm conference
opened. The group was concerned that environmental regulations would restrict
trade. It wanted to stop UNEP from being an effective world body and limit its
annual budget so that it couldn't function as properly as other UN agencies such
as UNICEF and FAO. British Foreign Office papers say the group "made real
progress on this difficult problem", though without specifying how this was
done. The notes record that Canada's Maurice Strong, Chairman of the UN
Stockholm Environment Conference and Director General of the Rio "20" After
Stockholm Conference in Brazil, had already been grumbling about the group's
negative activities in 1971. "We may get some criticism from the Swedes and
others [and] we must be careful when expanding the group not to include awkward
bedfellows," the note adds. Another memo, written by an official in what was
then the U.K. Department of the Environment, it says that Britain wanted to
restrict the scope of the Stockholm conference and reduce the number of
proposals for action. In an indirect reference to what would later become UNEP,
the paper says a "new and expensive international organisation must be avoided,
but a small effective central coordinating mechanism ... would not be welcome
but is probably inevitable". For the full story see the website http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99991734
.
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RENEWABLE ENERGY GROWING FAST IN
COUNTRIES THAT SUPPORT IT
Why has wind energy grown faster in Germany than Britain, and energy from
solar panels expanded more quickly in Spain than Greece? A new report from the
European Environment Agency (EEA) identifies factors that can influence the
success or otherwise of renewable energy projects. Renewable energies: success
stories aims to facilitate greater use of renewable energy sources and
contribute to efforts by the European Union (EU) and its Member States to meet
targets for increasing power from renewables by 2010. This is part of the EU
efforts to meet the Kyoto Protocol targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions
(GHG) from burning oil, coal, and natural gas for energy. The report focuses on
how much each EU country managed to expand its use between 1993 and 1999 of a
number of renewable energy technologies - solar photovoltaic panels, solar
thermal heating, wind and certain uses of biomass (wood and crops). The study
identifies essential elements for success in seven areas: political,
legislative, fiscal, financial and administrative support, technological
development, and information, education and training. It concludes that the key
to success lies in the combined effect of support measures rather than in any
single factor. The winning combinations vary from one technology to another. The
success stories include the expansion of solar thermal energy and biomass-fueled
district heating in Austria, wind energy and biomass power in Denmark,
photovoltaics, solar thermal and wind energy in Germany, photovoltaics and wind
energy in Spain and biomass district heating in Sweden, said EEA Executive
Director Domingo Jiménez- Beltrán. The report was released at the European
Parliament in Brussels at a meeting of the European Forum for Renewable Energy
Sources (EUROFORES) and the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC). The
study and the executive summary can be downloaded from the EEA website at <http://reports.eea.eu.int/environmental_issue_report_2001_27/en/>.
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EUROPEAN UNION SET RENEWABLE ENERGY
TARGET OF 12% OF TOTAL ENERGY PRODUCTION
The EU has set itself an indicative target of producing 12% of its energy
(both electricity and heat) and 22.1% of its electricity from renewable sources
by 2010. Indicative national renewable electricity targets for each Member State
are also included in the recently adopted EU renewable electricity Directive
(2001/77/EC). For more information contact Tony Carritt, Media Relations
Manager/Responsable des relations avec les médias, European Environment
Agency/Agence européenne pour l'environnement , Kongens Nytorv 6, 1050
Copenhagen K, Denmark, Tel (direct): +45 3336 7147, Mobile: +45 2368 3669, Fax:
+45 3336 7198. Visit the EEA's press room at http://org.eea.eu.int/PR .
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SEATTLE CITY LIGHT IN THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON COMMITS TO 50-MW WIND POWER PURCHASE
Seattle City Council members unanimously approved Mayor Paul Schell's
proposal to become the largest municipal utility purchaser of wind power in the
nation. The city will begin buying 50 MW of capacity from PacifiCorp Power
Marketing (PPM)--about 5% of the utility's load--from the Stateline Wind Farm
beginning January 1, 2002. The purchase is set to increase to 100 MW in August,
2002, and possibly to 175 MW by August, 2004. "This is a great opportunity for
our utility," said City Council member Heidi Wills, chair of the Council's
Energy and Environmental Policy Committee. "Wind power diversifies our energy
portfolio and gives us another clean, efficient renewable resource to complement
our hydroelectric power." The price for the energy generated in January,
including delivery costs, will be less than 5 cents per kWh and is comparable to
costs for electricity generated by natural-gas-powered turbines. They also
demonstrate that wind is clearly competitive, provide strong incentives to
leverage future wind resource development, and inform regional discussions as to
the costs of turning the intermittent wind resource into a firm, more
practicably usable product."
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CHEVRON/TEXACO TO INVEST IN SOLAR
ENERGY EXPANSION
The energy services subsidiary of the ChevronTexaco oil company, Chevron
Energy Solutions LP, is collaborating with its manufacturing affiliate, Energy
Conversion Devices Inc, to broaden the commercial application of flexible solar
electric roofing materials and nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries, as well as
hydrogen storage systems and fuel cells. The full story can be read at: http://www.solaraccess.com/news/story.jsp?storyid=1313
.
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THREE NEW SKYSCRAPERS IN LONDON,
U.K. WILL BE BUILT TO BE ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND
UK developer St. George recently unveiled plans for a 49-story building
that would be Britain's tallest residential high-rise and "greenest" skyscraper.
If approved, the triple-glazed, mainly glass structure will be topped by a
30-foot tall wind generator to provide enough power for the building's communal
lights, and will use heat exchangers drawing on the water table to reduce the
need for air conditioning and central heating. The building, say architects
Broadway Malyan, will use just a third of the energy of a comparable building,
reduce carbon emissions by up to 66 percent and include features like gardens
and windows that open. Two other planned high-rises billed as ecologically
sensitive are a 30-story "bioclimatic skyscraper" expected to be built next year
in south London, by Malaysian architect Ken Yeang, and Norman Foster's 41-story
"erotic gherkin" planned for the City. Most of Yeang's buildings have been in
the tropics; he will have a different set of problems in south London, but we
can expect a building with natural ventilation, natural lighting, and rain and
wastewater collection systems. From The Guardian (London), 12 Dec 2001 and 14
Dec 2001, by John Vidal. Source Chris Hammer, Copyright 2001 Sustainable
Design Resources.
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VISIT THE USGS WEBSITE ON CHEMICAL
CONCENTRATIONS IN U.S. SURFACE WATER
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has new online web maps of
chemical concentrations in surface water in the United States. This will give
you chance to learn where polluters are dumping and take corrective action. The
url is long. If it doesn't work for you just go to the link at http://www.mapcruzin.com/ . Here is how to
get there directly: http://orxddwimdn.er.usgs.gov/servlet/page?_pageid=543&_dad=por
tal30&_schema=PORTAL30 ************************************************************************
RECKLESS COMMERCIAL FISHING
PRACTICES NEED TO BE AMENDED
For centuries who cared? Commercial fishermen could kill and discard fish,
seals and whales at will. They could drop damaged fish net overboard and let
them kill the fish and marine mammals for years later. There were just too many
fish. They could never be depleted. Now that we know that the bounty of fish
could be sustained under increasing human pressure is a myth, we must change our
laws and change ways in order to protect the remaining depleted world fishery.
Fishing gear that goes on killing long after it has been discarded is the
scourge of the Pacific Ocean, particularly near the Northwestern Hawaiian
Islands where the nets threatens already endangered Hawaiian monk seals,
turtles, and sea birds. The good news is that more than 60 tons of discarded
fishing nets and derelict fishing gear have now been recovered from the
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands by teams of expert divers. The bad news is that
there are still more than 100 tons of the stuff out there entangling and killing
local fish and marine creatures. As a whole, the unpopulated Northwestern
Hawaiian Islands are quite free of human influence. But the pattern of Pacific
Ocean currents pushes massive amounts of derelict fishing nets and gear onto the
widely separated islands. Monk seals, especially curious pups, get entangled in
the nets and often drown. With U.S. $3 million allocated for ocean debris
removal, the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) deployed three chartered commercial vessels in September 2001 for a
90-day clean-up tour. NOAA joined forces with the Ocean Conservancy, U.S. Coast
Guard, Hawaii Sea Grant, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and other state and
private organizations to clean up the waters around the Hawaiian archipelago. It
is time to regulate the casual ocean disposal of commercial fishing gear.
Source, Environmental News Network (ENN), December 5, 2001. See the full story
at http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/12/12052001/s_45791.asp
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KNOW THE ENVIRONMENTAL LIABILITIES
IN THE COMPANIES YOU INVEST IN
The United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) requires companies
lists on the New York Stock Exchange and other U.S. stock exchanges to report
their environmental liabilities to potential investors. A 1998 Environmental
Protection Agency (US EPA) study found that 74 percent of publicly-traded
companies had failed to adequately disclose the existence of environmental legal
proceedings in their 10-K registration requirements as mandated by the
Securities Exchange Commission. In October 2001, the EPA launched a campaign for
corporate environmental accounting under US SEC Regulation S-K. For more
information visit the websites http://www.pollutiononline.com/read/nl20010515/427844,
and
http://es.epa.gov/oeca/ore/sec.pdf . And now Senator Jefford's has proposed a draft bill to have corporations file the financial impact of their greenhouse gas emission performance on their quarterly and annual SEC 10-Q & 10-K filings under SEC Regulation S-K. References:
Notice on Public Company Requirements to Disclose Environmental Legal Proceedings http://es.epa.gov/oeca/main/strategy/oppac_notice.html Also see the October 1, 2001 US EPA alert on SEC disclosure at the website
http://es.epa.gov/oeca/ore/sec.pdf
See the World Resources Institute report on financial environmental
departures by US publicly traded pulp manufacturers http://www.wristore.com/pureprofit.html
Publicly traded corporations disclosing financial environmental liabilities
must have corporate reserves to cover those liabilities under SEC regulations.
http://www.law.uc.edu/CCL/regS-K/index.html
. Source, Donald Sutherland at email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
, or phone him at (508) 497-3676. For more information contact Shiria Venus,
Office of Policy Analysis and Communication, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), Washington, D.C., ph. (202) 564-0177.
*********************************************************************
NEW YORK SUES TWO POWER COMPANIES
OVER THEIR AIR POLLUTION
New York state filed a federal lawsuit against Niagara Mohawk Holdings,
Inc. and NRG Energy, Inc. alleging violations of the Clean Air Act at two
coal-burning power plants in western New York. The suit alleges that the Dunkirk
and C.R. Huntley coal-burning plants, located in Chautauqua and Erie counties,
respectively, account for a disproportionate amount of nitrogen oxide and sulfur
dioxide emissions released by all power plants in the state, big factors in both
acid rain and smog. The public rightfully expects that the Clean Air Act will be
vigorously enforced," N.Y. Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said in a statement.
"We will make sure that power companies fully comply with the law and compensate
the state for the harm caused by acid rain and smog." The state charges that the
firms made modifications at the power plants without upgrading air pollution
controls on the smokestacks, as required by law. The two plants were owned and
operated by Niagara Mohawk, the owner of New York State's second largest
utility, until 1999, when they were sold to NRG. Last July, Niagara Mohawk sued
NRG claiming the latter is responsible for the cost of bringing the plants into
compliance with the Clean Air Act. Source, Reuters News Service, Planet Ark. See
the full story at http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/14003/story.htm
.
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ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING LECTURE
GIVEN AT HARVARD
One of the world's top figures in environmental accounting gave a lecture
at the Harvard School of Public Health, September 11, 2001. Dr. Markus
Stobel, (Institute for Management and the World, University of Augsburg,
Germany) presented a seminar entitled "Material Flow Oriented Cost Accounting: A
Tool for Cost Saving Recognition and Environmental Protection." This is
methodology that has been extensively tested in Germany and Japan as a means for
companies to seek competitive advantage in Eco-Efficient Management. This
technique should also work well in university programs aimed at greening of the
campus since it addresses the financial impacts of these programs. For
more information about the lecture contact Dr. Robert Pojasek, Adjunct Faculty
Lecturer, Harvard School of Public Health, P.O. Box 1333, East. Arlington,
Massachusetts 02474-0071, ph. (781) 641-2422, fax (781) 465-6006, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] . Visit
their website at http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/facres/pojasek.html
.
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