ELPC has received the highest rating from Charity Navigator, the independent non-profit rating agency. This 4-star “exceptional” rating means that ELPC’s fiscal management “exceeds industry standards and outperforms most charities in its cause.” Only 12% of non-profits have attained this rating for three consecutive years. Click here for more details. Learn about other awards and honors received by ELPC.
ELPC was honored to receive the President’s Award from the American Institute of Architects Illinois for extraordinary achievements in advancing livable communities. ELPC’s Al Grosboll, left, and Melville Nickerson, right, accepted the award on behalf of ELPC at AIA Illinois’ annual conference from AIA Illinois President Tim McGinn, AIA. In particular, the award recognizes ELPC’s years of leadership and advocacy to establish Energy Efficient Building Codes for residential and commercial buildings in Illinois. Learn about other awards and honors received by ELPC.
In recognition of ELPC’s leadership on Illinois’ Energy Efficient Building Code and the Chicago Climate Action Plan, the Chicago Chapter of the US Green Building Council honored ELPC as a Natural Leader. ELPC’s Howard Learner and Jill Geiger, pictured center, accepted the award on behalf of ELPC from USGBC-Chicago Chapter Executive Director Doug Widener, left, and Board Chair Joseph Clair, right. The “Intent to Matter” award was presented to ELPC at the Emerald Gala, USGBC’s annual celebration of the sustainable building movement, on May 16, 2009. Learn about other awards and honors received by ELPC.
In recognition of his work to make the planet ‘greener and better,’ Chicago Magazine honored ELPC President Howard Learner with a ‘Green Award’. The April issue of Chicago Magazine included a profile of Howard that highlights some of ELPC’s successes, including bringing renewable energy and energy efficiency standards to Illinois, reducing mercury pollution in Illinois waters and working to bring high-speed rail to the Midwest. Learn about other awards and honors received by ELPC.
Urge Your Senators to Uphold the Clean Air Act!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
On Tuesday, August 31 ELPC and the Greater Des Moines Partnership will host Rock the Rails, a free concert and rally to build support for bringing passenger rail to Des Moines. The event starts at 5 PM at Hessen House, 101 4th Street in downtown Des Moines.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
With plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles ready to hit the marketplace, an article in the Chicago Tribune looks at whether Chicago is ready to support electric vehicle charging. The Chicago area is the third largest auto market in the nation, and with low-carbon sources of electricity available, it’s ideal location to use an plug-in vehicles to reduce global warming pollution.
Supporting plug-in vehicles means providing public charging stations, streamlining the process to install home charging stations and providing incentives to reduce the amount of pollution created by charging plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles. ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner told the Tribune, “We need to get the right policies in place, moving forward, soon. And when I say soon, I mean get them in place over the next six months to a year.” ELPC is working with the public and private sectors in Chicago to maximize the environmental benefits of plug-in vehicles.
Read the article here Learn more about plug-in vehicles at elpc.org/plug-ins
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced August 18th that it will begin creating clean water protections from nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs), a highly toxic, gender-bending chemical widely used in industrial laundry detergents. Exposure to low levels of NPE has been shown to create “intersex” fish, male fish that produce female egg proteins. Cases of such “intersexed” fish have been documented from the Potomac River to the Pacific coast.
Sierra Club, Environmental Law and Policy Center and Workers United/SEIU joined today in praising EPA’s action. The plan announced by EPA includes further health and safety studies of the effects of NPEs on people and the environment, while beginning the process to regulate the chemical under the Toxic Substances Control Act. Future actions would add NPEs to the Toxics Release Inventory and encourage the use of safer substitutes.
“We know these chemicals are highly toxic and we know there are safer alternatives,” said Albert Ettinger, Senior Attorney with the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “If we want to protect public health, then NPEs should stop being used for many of their current applications. This action by the EPA is an important step in that direction.”
“Union members have been demanding government and industry action on toxic detergents for over half a decade. The detergents have been banned in Europe and Canada for almost a decade,” said Eric Frumin, Health and Safety Director for Workers United/SEIU. “We commend Administrator Jackson for acting swiftly on these hazards, and call upon the laundry industry to get rid of these chemicals immediately, as they have already done Canada and in Connecticut.”
“When chemicals in our environment, such as NPEs, affect the gender of fish, it’s a danger sign that more scrutiny is needed for chemicals we produce and use. The action plan for NPEs that EPA announced today is a welcome first step to protect wildlife and human health,” said Ed Hopkins, Director of the Sierra Club’s Environmental Quality Program. “But Congress must give EPA the regulatory tools it needs to control dangerous chemicals more effectively.”
In 2007, Sierra Club, Environmental Law and Policy Center, Workers United (formerly UNITE HERE), Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Association, Physicians for Social Responsibility and Washington Toxics Coalition petitioned the EPA under the Toxic Substances Control Act to require further toxicity testing of NPEs and to take steps to control it. EPA largely denied the petition, but following litigation and an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, today’s action marks initial steps by the Obama administration to address NPEs health and environmental risks.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
ELPC Policy Advocate Madeleine Weil, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, ELPC Policy Advocate Sarah Wochos and ELPC Co-Legislative Director Al Grosboll
On August 17, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed into law two bills that will create more than 5,000 new jobs and bring more than 3 million kilowatt hours of solar electricity to Illinois consumers by 2014. ELPC was instrumental in crafting and advocating for these bills, which will increase the number of solar installations around the state.
The Solar Ramp Up bill (HB 6202) sets annual targets for the amount of solar power used in Illinois between 2012 and 2015, these targets give industry a green light to invest in solar power and create new jobs, revenue and clean energy here in Illinois. The Homeowners’ Solar Rights Act (HB 5429) clarifies the rights of homeowners living in homeowner or condominium associations to put solar panels on the property and outlines a process for that to occur.
Monday, August 9, 2010
On a Minnesota wind farm, developers have successfully completed tests of a one megawatt storage battery that can harness excess energy produced by strong winds and send it back into the grid when wind speeds slow down. The 80 ton battery could supply power to 500 homes for 7 hours. Currently, when wind turbines produce more power than the grid needs, they have to be shut down. This type of storage technology “represents a huge leap forward,” said ELPC Policy Advocate Matt McLarty, capturing more of the wind’s energy and offering a more consistent supply of electricity from clean, renewable sources.
Friday, August 6, 2010
ELPC worked with a coalition of environmental and citizen groups to successfully challenge the air permit for an expansion of BP’s Whiting, Indiana oil refinery that would enable the facility to process more oil from Canadian tar sands, and create huge amounts of new global warming pollution in the process. An article in Greenwire and The New York Times looks at how BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico might affect the planned refinery expansion.
“Putting economics above public safety and the environment appears to be a pervasive practice” at BP, said ELPC senior attorney Faith Bugel. “If there’s a loophole, the practice appears to be to find their way through it. Our concern is that what happened in the Gulf doesn’t happen here.”
Friday, August 6, 2010
The campaign to clean up Chicago’s aging coal plants was featured in the New York Times on August 6. The article details the progress of the Chicago Clean Power Ordinance, legislation that would force the coal plants to drastically reduce carbon dioxide and particulate matter pollution. The ordinance was introduced by Alderman Joe Moore in April and has gained 14 cosponsors including Alderman Ricardo Muñoz of the 22nd ward, where the Crawford coal plant is located.
ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner told the New York Times, “The reality is the coal comes from Wyoming, other states get the power, Midwest Generation gets the profit, and Chicago gets the pollution and health costs.”
ELPC has been actively supporting the ordinance and helped pass 2006 regulations that greatly reduced mercury pollution from Illinois coal plants.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
A recent agreement between Union Pacific Railroad and the Illinois Department of Transportation clears the way for construction to begin on the Chicago-St. Louis high-speed rail corridor. The project is expected to create 900 new jobs.
“Our state is now moving to begin construction of a modern rail system that will create economic development, better travel options and less pollution,” said Howard Learner, Executive Director of the Environmental Law and Policy Center. ” The agreement is a big first step in the transformation of our transportation system.”
Construction on this project is expected to start this fall, and we look forward to high-speed trains operating in Illinois beginning in 2012. High-speed rail is a win-win-win: good for jobs, good for economic development and good for the environment.
Today’s announcement moves forward the work over many years by rail advocates and public officials.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
The Chicago Tribune reports that the cost of a new coal plant under construction in southern Illinois has more than doubled to $4.4 billion, an increase which will affect residents in the Illinois towns that signed long-term contracts to purchase power from the plant. The Prairie State coal plant, built by Peabody Energy, the world’s largest private coal company, will burn coal from Peabody’s nearby mine, generating 1600 megawatts of electricity and generating 13 million tons of global warming pollution each year, the equivalent of putting 2 million more cars on the road.
Some argue that coal is the cheapest source of electricity available, but proposed federal regulations on carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases could add additional costs to the power from this plant.
ELPC opposed the construction of the plant. As Executive Director Howard Learner told the Tribune, “These cities and towns are captive buyers at the mercy of Peabody and its ever-increasing costs. People are going to pay higher rates for more pollution. That isn’t a winning formula.”
Thursday, July 1, 2010
A feature in the Chicago Tribune looks at the growth of solar power in Illinois. With solar equipment becoming more affordable and supportive policies in place to encourage solar energy in Illinois and other states, solar is beginning to take off in the Midwest. ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner told the Tribune that Illinois’ recent legislation to ramp up solar power development will create at least 5,000 new green jobs in Illinois and that developers are planning more solar power plants around the state, similar to the 10 MW plant completed in Chicago this year.
“Illinois has the opportunity to be a very significant solar energy leader between the two coasts,” Learner said.
