I want to let ELPC’s “extended family” know the sad news that our founding Board Chair Bob Wilcox passed away on March 5th after a long illness.  Bob was in his 80s and lived in the Chicago suburbs.

Bob was a mentor, wise adviser and guide, Board Chair and friend to me in starting and building the new Environmental Law & Policy Center.  Indeed, Bob would smile as I characterize him as a “co-conspirator”.  He had a wry (and wicked) sense of humor beneath his calm and formal-looking presence.

Bob has proudly stayed on top of ELPC’s progress as our Chair Emeritus and has long provided valued advice and ideas.  Bob was a “sage” in so many ways.

Throughout his distinguished career, Bob was a true civic leader.  He was a highly regarded attorney and businessperson, and he served in numerous public and governmental capacities including Chair of the Chicago Mayor’s Task Force on Energy (1986-89) and Director of Insurance for the State of Illinois (1974-76).  Bob also served as the Co-Founder of Protestants for the Common Good, President of the Board of the Chicago Educational Television Association (WTTW/Channel 11), Chair of the Board of WFMT fine arts radio station, President and Director of the Community Renewal Society; and President and Director of the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations.

We deeply miss Bob Wilcox as a friend and a leader.  Many in the Chicago civic community will miss his dedication and effectiveness.  Bob helped to make the world a better place, and all of us will miss his presence and all that he has done and would have continued to do.

All of our best wishes and hopes to Bob’s wife Susanne and to his sons David, Bob, Steve and Brian and daughter Kathy, and their respective families, in these challenging and difficult times.

We mourn Bob’s passing as we celebrate his life’s work of civic, environmental and clean energy leadership and accomplishments.  ELPC is a special part of his legacy, which we greatly appreciate.

You can learn more about Bob’s many civic contributions from the obituaries in the Chicago Tribune and Wilmette Talk.

Officials with Iowa’s Office of Energy Independence credited “Iowa’s spirited and proactive response to energy efficiency” for the unexpected interest.

Read more in the Des Moines Register

South Dakota is the fifth windiest state in the nation, but neighboring states with fewer wind resources are installing more wind power and capturing more of the wind industry’s jobs and income.  One key difference is that states such as Iowa have enacted policies that encourage wind power development.

ELPC Policy Advocate Matt McLarty said the economic benefits of wind energy in South Dakota would be much greater than the savings from the proposed measures.  “They’re talking about a budget savings of $3 million for the state when there’s the potential for billions in wind investments,” McLarty said. “These three bills will do long-term damage to South Dakota and its wind investments.”

read more in the Argus Leader

A $100 million TIGER grant will go toward untangling freight rail lines in the Chicago area. This grant will make freight rail more efficient nationwide while also making passenger rail through Chicago faster and more reliable.  The Chicago Regional Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) project, is a public–private partnership involving 14 rail companies and other agencies. Its goal is to reduce freight rail traffic congestion in Chicago, the hub of the nation’s railways.

“This grant is a double play that can both alleviate freight congestion and speed up passenger rail,” said Howard Learner, Executive Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center.

Read ELPC’s press release

Investing in modern, fast, comfortable and convenient higher-speed rail service is a smart move. Better rail service will improve mobility, reduce pollution, create new jobs and spur economic growth.

The new federal investment is about more than “just speed” to succeed. “Modern, comfortable and convenient” count as much as “fast” for transforming our transportation system for the 21st century.

First, modern trains can excite people and attract riders, as will train stations that are well-lit, clean and enjoyable central places. Wi-Fi or Wi-Max available all the way along the rail corridors can allow travel time to be productive work time for businesspeople, study time for students and reading time for others compared to air travel frustrations and new limits on cell phone and texting while driving.

Second, the top speed is less important than the average speed and overall trip time. For example, the 150 mph Acela high-speed rail service in the Northeast Corridor moves at that top speed for only few miles; its average speed between New York City and Washington D.C. is around 80 mph.

The best way to go fast is by not going slow. Synchronizing high-speed rail and freight rail improvement programs, such as the CREATE program in the Chicago area, can create double plays benefiting both passenger and freight service by alleviating congestion points and clearing out bottlenecks. Using skip stops as more high-speed train runs are added will avoid turning them into milk runs.

What really matters to passengers is how long the overall rail trip takes when compared to long car trips and door-to-door air travel for businesspeople, students and families traveling to see each other. This is a classic “compared to what” situation. It’s not just about bragging rights for top speed.

Third, let’s have comfortable trains. Nice seats, easily accessible plugs for laptops, good cell phone and computer access, and decent food.

Fourth, this is about convenience. Understandably, few people take the train from Chicago to Cleveland arriving at 1:45 am, or the return trains departing Cleveland at your choice of 2:59 am or 3:45 am. That’s why I can’t easily take the train with my three teenage sons over the weekend to visit the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. The key is increasing the frequency of train service with enough reasonably scheduled trip opportunities to work well for people.

When Amtrak improved service between Chicago and St. Louis a few years ago, ridership doubled. Better high-speed rail service is expected to triple ridership in the coming years.

All of this adds to the environmental benefits of displacing pollution from air and car travel, and the economic vitality from pulling jobs, people and business into our downtowns.

High-speed rail investment meets the public’s mobility needs and boosts the economy. For years, federal transportation funds almost exclusively supported auto and air travel. Today, Americans spend $1 billion a day on foreign oil and an average of 4 weeks each year stuck in gridlock. High-speed rail is 3X more efficient than cars and 6X more efficient than planes on a per passenger mile basis. Better performance, more national security, less pollution for the future.

Everyone is feeling the strain of the economic downturn, but investing wisely in a 21st century rail transportation system is important to keep our economy moving. According to an economic study conducted for nine state Departments of Transportation, the new Midwest high-speed rail network can create 57,000 permanent new jobs across the region, produce more than a $1 billion in additional household income, and spur almost $5 billion in private new development near Midwest rail stations.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day,” and the interstate highway system wasn’t built in a year. The recent federal funding announcement is the first step towards a modern high-speed rail system that will create jobs and boost our economy, better enable people to go from city-to-city, and protect our environment.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/howard-learner/modern-high-speed-rail-is_b_452964.html

“This is great news for Iowa,” said Brad Klein, Staff Attorney at ELPC. “After years of delay, the legislature made the choice today to protect Iowa’s environment and economy and make this a better place to live.”

A university of Iowa study found that an estimated 11,479 jobs, $242.9 million of income and $424.9 million of gross state product are associated with the spending by visitors to Iowa lakes. The rules provide additional protections for Iowa’s few remaining high-quality waters, for example West Lake Okoboji and several trout streams in Northeast Iowa.

After decades of meetings, letters, delays and, finally, a legal intervention, clean water advocates gathered at the statehouse in Des Moines this morning to witness the final meeting and decision needed to adopt clean water ―anti-degradation rules for Iowa.

Clean water advocates said today that the Iowa rules are long overdue and that they have worked for years to get antidegradation Rules written and passed in Iowa. With the passage of the federal Clean Water Act in 1972 states were required to enact antidegradation rules by 1985 to prevent the further pollution of lakes, rivers and streams. Iowa adopted rules but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency informed Iowa that its rules violated federal law as early as 1997.

Repeated delays in rewriting the rules led a coalition of environmental organizations – the Environmental Law & Policy Center, Iowa Environmental Council, Hawkeye Fly Fishing Association and the Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club  – to file a Petition for Rulemaking with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources in 2007 requesting that the State act immediately to adopt antidegradation implementation rules.

This action initiated a rule-making process that included several opportunities for public comment and a hearing before the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission, which approved the revised rules in December of last year. Monday’s meeting of the legislative Administrative Rules and Review Committee marked the final step in a decades-long process.

Advocates stressed that the rules will allow Iowa to grow sensibly and sustainably. “These rules will stem the tide of declining water quality in Iowa, protect the outstanding jewels that remain, and serve as an economic engine for those communities with the foresight to protect and leverage the potential of these remarkable waters,” said Shannan Garretson, water program legal analyst for the non-profit Iowa Environmental Council.

“South Dakota should put more wind power into the sails of the state’s economy and job creation. South Dakota has the nation’s fourth-best wind power potential but only the 20th highest amount of wind power operating – 313 megawatts. By contrast, Iowa ranks 10th in wind power potential, but is second-highest in operating wind power capacity – 3,670 megawatts.

“That tenfold difference in wind power development amounts to about $7 billion of economic investment, thousands of jobs, and cleaner air. What accounts for this huge difference? Smart public policies and prioritization by leading public officials…Iowa Gov. Culver has written to his state’s congressional delegation urging their support, and Sens. Harkin and Grassley are indicating they’re on board. Here, however, Gov. Rounds and Sen. Thune have not yet expressed strong support for this key federal renewable energy legislation. It’s time to step up – for the good of South Dakota’s economy and job creation, as well as for everyone’s better health and the environment.”

Read the full op-ed here.

Howard Learner

ELPC convened a panel of experts at the National Press Club on February 4, 2010 to review the economic, environmental and regional ramifications of the Obama Administration’s high-speed rail stimulus awards.  “The $8 billion awarded by the Obama Administration is the first step,” said ELPC President Howard Learner, who moderated the Press Club event. “It’s the beginning of a restructuring of the transportation system for the 21st Century.”

The panelists included:

Anne Canby, President, OneRail Coalition

Arthur Guzzetti, Vice President for Policy, American Public Transportation Association

John Horsley, Executive Director, American Assoc. of State Highway and Transportation Officials

Joseph McHugh, VP Government Affairs/Communications, Amtrak

John Risch, Alternate National Legislative Director, United Transportation Union

Listen to the Briefing

Click here to listen to audio of the press briefing, or the question-and-answer session.

Click here to view photos from the event

ELPC President Howard Learner discussed the U.S. Department of Transportation’s recent awards of $8 billion for high-speed rail projects on E&E TV’s OnPoint. Watch the interview.

We should put more Americans to work building clean energy facilities – and give rebates to Americans who make their homes more energy-efficient, which supports clean energy jobs … You see, Washington has been telling us to wait for decades, even as the problems have grown worse. Meanwhile, China is not waiting to revamp its economy. Germany is not waiting. India is not waiting. … These nations aren’t playing for second place. … They’re making serious investments in clean energy because they want those jobs. Well, I do not accept second place for the United States of America. … Yes, it means passing a comprehensive energy and climate bill with incentives that will finally make clean energy the profitable kind of energy in America. I am grateful to the House for passing such a bill last year. And this year I’m eager to help advance the bipartisan effort in the Senate. … [H]ere’s the thing – even if you doubt the evidence, providing incentives for energy-efficiency and clean energy are the right thing to do for our future – because the nation that leads the clean energy economy will be the nation that leads the global economy. And America must be that nation. –President Barack Obama, [State of the Union Address, 1/27/10]

ELPC’s Federal Legislative Director Karen Torrent, emphasizes the importance of the President’s message.  “Despite this strong and positive statement by the President, our climate and economy remain at risk – - and Congress must act,” she said.

ELPC joins the president in urging the Congress to finalize bipartisan, comprehensive climate and energy legislation this year.  Passing comprehensive legislation will not only benefit human health and protect our environment but will also decrease our dangerous dependence on oil and  create much needed new American jobs,  putting our economy on a path to long-term, sustained prosperity.