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Coalition Asks US Supreme Court to Review EPA Global Warming Decision

The National Environmental Trust has joined with Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly and 11 other states, three major metropolitan cities, one island government and several environmental groups in a historic Supreme Court challenge of the Environmental Protection Agency’s refusal to acknowledge greenhouse gases as air pollution. The coalition is asking the court to review a decision issued last year by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, in Commonwealth of Massachusetts vs. EPA. That ruling affirmed the EPA’s refusal to regulate global warming pollution from motor vehicles. The Appeals Court decision effectively ruled that declaring greenhouse gases as “pollution” would be too political. “The lower court’s blatant punting on global warming is a travesty. Despite the plain and simple language of the law the lower court refused to act,” said John Stanton, vice president for the National Environmental Trust. “It’s time for the nation’s highest court to correct the lower court and take on global warming.” Today’s petition claims that the EPA arbitrarily and capriciously concluded that the Clean Air Act does not provide the EPA authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. The petition states that the Supreme Court’s review “is necessary to prevent the agency […]

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Manure Power Turns Out to Be a Poor Energy Source

By Nicolette Hah Niman Talk of reducing our dependence on foreign oil through alternative energy sources like biomass is everywhere these days – even on our president’s lips. As a livestock farmer and environmental lawyer, I’ve paid particular attention to discussion about using manure as “green power.” The idea sounds appealing, but power from manure turns out to be a poor source of energy. Unlike solar or wind, it can create more environmental problems than it solves. And it ends up subsidizing large agribusiness. That’s why energy from manure should really be considered a form of “brown power.” Manure is used mainly in methane digesters, incinerators and certain biodiesel plants. Digesters, often at dairy farms, liquefy manure, then put it in large tanks with anaerobic bacteria. As the liquid decays, the bacteria produce methane, which is purified and used like natural gas. Incinerators generate power by burning animal waste, usually from poultry. Biodiesel involves creating a gas from manure, then combining it with oil from animal fat or plants (often soybeans or corn). Government officials tout such projects as energy generation that benefits both nature and agriculture, and are pouring public funds into them. Few seem to question whether the […]

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