|
In the News: |
|
| CT River Clean Water Education Campaign Job Opening
Title: Campaign Assistant Description of Position: Qualifications: To Apply: |
|
| Williamstown Elementary School even greener By Bonnie Obremski, North Adams Transcript – Monday, September 4 Second-grade students at Williamstown Elementary School sat down to lunch Thursday while Superintendent Rose Ellis asked every pupil to look at their trays and say what was different. “We have silverware,” said one girl. “Right,” said Ellis. Children buying a school lunch ate with metal forks, spoons and knives, not with plastic utensils, for the first time since the school relocated to its new building five years ago. The student contingent of the Green School Committee initiated the switch one year ago by sending Ellis a proposal saying, “If we’re a green school, why aren’t we using greenware?” The letter pointed out that the building is designated “green” due to its high energy efficiency, but that its plastic waste output was far from being environmentally friendly. The students suggested replacing plastic ware in the cafeteria with utensils made from corn, which biodegrade quickly without releasing harmful chemicals into the environment. After the students conducted further research, however, the committee concluded that the most environmentally friendly and cost-effective option was to use metal silverware. Students also addressed the concern that washing metal ware might require the kitchen to use more water than before. However, research showed that the dishwashing machine already was designed to wash utensils at the same time as the trays, at a temperature high enough to eliminate germs. The school has also reduced its trash by 60 percent, and a kiosk soon may be installed to show students how much energy the building uses. “One of our goals is to make our green school a learning lab,” said Ellis, “I think this is a wonderful lesson in student activism.” |
|
| BUSH DECLARES ECO-WHISTLEBLOWER LAW VOID FOR EPA EMPLOYEES Stealth Repeal of Clean Water Act Protections by Invoking “Sovereign Immunity” News Release by the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) Washington, DC — The Bush administration has declared itself immune from whistleblower protections for federal workers under the Clean Water Act, according to legal documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). As a result of an opinion issued by a unit within the Office of the Attorney General, federal workers will have little protection from official retaliation for reporting water pollution enforcement breakdowns, manipulations of science or cleanup failures. Citing an “unpublished opinion of the [Attorney General’s] Office of Legal Counsel,” the Secretary of Labor’s Administrative Review Board has ruled federal employees may no longer pursue whistleblower claims under the Clean Water Act. The opinion invoked the ancient doctrine of sovereign immunity which is based on the old English legal maxim that “The King Can Do No Wrong.” It is an absolute defense to any legal action unless the “sovereign” consents to be sued. The opinion and the ruling reverse nearly two decades of precedent. Approximately 170,000 federal employees working within environmental agencies are affected by the loss of whistleblower rights. “The Bush administration is engineering the stealth repeal of whistleblower protections,” stated PEER General Counsel Richard Condit, who had won several of the earlier cases applying environmental whistleblower protections to federal specialists. “The use of an unpublished opinion to change official interpretations is a giant step backward to the days of the secret Star Chamber.” PEER ultimately obtained a copy of the opinion under the Freedom of Information Act. At the same time, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking a more extreme position that absolutely no environmental laws protect its employees from reprisal. EPA’s stance would place the provisions of all major federal environmental laws, such as the Clean Air Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act, beyond the reach of federal employees seeking legal protection for good faith efforts to enforce or implement the anti-pollution provisions contained within those laws. These actions arose in the case of Sharyn Erickson, an EPA employee who had reported problems with agency contracts for toxic clean-ups. After conducting a hearing, an administrative law judge called EPA’s conduct “reprehensible” and awarded Erickson $225,000 in punitive damages but the Labor Secretary overturned that ruling. “It is astonishing for the Bush administration to now suddenly claim that it is above the law,” said PEER Senior Counsel Paula Dinerstein, who is handling Erickson’s appeal of the Labor Secretary’s ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit based in Atlanta. “Congress could end this debate by simply declaring that it intends that the whistleblower protections of these anti-pollution laws apply to the federal government.” Congress is now debating Clean Water Act clarifications in the wake of a confusing U.S. Supreme Court decision (Rapanos et ux., et al. v. United States) handed down this June that muddies the extent of federal jurisdiction over wetlands. Unless Congress also resolves the Clean Water Act sovereign immunity question, scores of federal employee whistleblower cases may be dismissed or languish in limbo while the issue is litigated. ### |
|
| Housatonic River Natural Resource Damage and Restoration meeting 9/21
The Housatonic River Natural Resource Trustees (MA subcouncil), will hold an informational meeting to present the results of the review team’s round 1 evaluations of project proposals and ideas. The public meeting to present the results of the Round 1 Evaluation will take place on: Thursday, September 21, 2006 |
|
|
Berkshire County landowners invited to wildlife habitat workshop 9/9 A hands-on workshop for Berkshire County landowners interested in enhancing wildlife habitat on their property will be held on Saturday, September 9th, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm at the Eugene D. Moran Wildlife Management Area, Route 8A in Windsor. “Managing wetlands, fields, and forest for wildlife and biodiversity” is sponsored by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the Berkshire Conservation District and MassWildlife. <more> |
|
| Save energy and money – computer tips
–A single computer with monitor running 8 hours a day, 5 days a week –Limit screen-saver use. A screen saver does not save energy. In fact, |
|
