Canary News and Action

June 22, 2005

Board Election Results

2005 State of the Canary Address

Next Field Trip to Buffalo Mountain Friday, July 15

Relay for Clean Air/ AirAid update

Membership Renewal Reminder

This year the Canary Coalition decided to use touch-screen electronic voting machines rented from the Jackson County, NC Board of Elections for our Governing Board elections. Local election officials assured us that the machines were in good working order and delivered completely fair and accurate vote totals in the last two federal elections. So you can trust in the veracity of the results we're reporting.  Amazingly, when all the votes were viewed in the "Tally" dialogue box of the computer, Republican Representative Charles Taylor won all four available Governing Board seats in the Canary Coalition!- - - Just kidding.

Congratulations to the four candidates who were elected to the Board: 

Dr. Emily Diznoff

Dr. Diznoff received her undergraduate degree from Duke University and then went to Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. She moved to Asheville in 2001 for her residency in Family Practice at Mountain Area Health Education Center.  She is currently in practice at Asheville Family Medicine.  She has a particular interest in the interaction between health and the environment. This will be her second term serving on the Board.

Dr. Marsha Hammond

Marsha, a resident of west Asheville, is a licensed Psychologist.  She was previously a Registered Respiratory Therapist, working with people with life-threatening asthma.  “I'm eager to interface the Canary Coalition with medically-oriented entities such as the American Lung Association who recently gave Haywood county a grade of 'F.': http://lungaction.org/reports/SOTA05_stateozone.html,” says Dr. Hammond.

Jean Larson

Jean is a nurse who sees clean air and global warming as urgent public health issues. She works on these issues as a co-chair of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Asheville Social Action Committee, as an active member of the Madison County Democrats, and as a volunteer with the Canary Coalition.

Ted Campbell

Ted is a hydrogeologist with the NC Division of Water Quality,

with an MS degree in Civil/Environmental Engineering.

He conducted environmental contamination studies with the US Geological Survey for 12 years and is now with NCDENR, interacting with Federal, State, and local officials, and the community.  He worked in international hydrology and diplomacy from 1998 to 2002, leading a team of Israeli, Palestinian, and Jordanian scientists and officials in a joint project to analyze, report, and share rainfall-intensity data collected in the Middle East.  The program was part of the US State Department-sponsored Middle East Peace Process designed to build trust and cooperation between governments in the area of water resources.   A resident of Asheville, NC, Ted enjoys the outdoors, meditation, community, travel, protecting the environment and simplicity.

Our thanks go out to the two candidates who did not get elected this time, Michelle Grant and Jonathan Bentley.  They will be placed on our Advisory Board and we value their continued involvement in the organization.

Our deep gratitude goes out to the three Board members who have stepped down at the end of their terms, with this election, Mark Rosenstein, Ralph Montee and Calvin Murphy. They too will become part of the Advisory Board and we hope they will remain active as important members of the Canary Coalition.

47 ballots for the board were cast and counted. 

The results were:

               Emily Diznoff – 38 votes

            Marsha Hammond – 31 votes

            Ted Campbell – 36 votes

            Jean Larson – 32 votes

            Michelle Grant – 12 votes

            Jonathon Bentley – 16 votes

            Bill Lyons had one write-in vote, but he already is serving on the             board.

2005 State of the Canary Address

delivered by Avram Friedman, Executive Director of the Canary Coalition

I’d like to thank those who have made the effort to come to tonight’s annual membership meeting and to all those who have contributed during the course of the past year to the continuing struggle for the right to breathe clean air and to restore and preserve the natural environment that is being stressed by the toxic emissions of power plants, factories and automobiles in our region. 

Having clean air to breathe is a right that every person has. As such, the Canary Coalition is a civil rights organization and this struggle is an extension of the civil rights movement. There have been days in which our efforts seem fruitless; when it seems that no one is listening; when the hope of clear visibility, healthy children, rejuvenated ridge tops and forests seems like a dim, if not impossible dream to work toward. But, history reminds us that all social movements have experienced discouraging times before the effort bloomed into a hard-won success story.  Gandhi once said, “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” Once freedom from slavery seemed like an impossible dream for African Americans; the right to vote seemed unattainable for women; labor unions were once outlawed in our country; child labor was once rampant in the United States of America;  African Americans once had to ride in the back of the bus, pay poll taxes and drink from separate water fountains in the South. But injustice was overcome by people coming together, pooling their energies, getting organized and fighting for their rights.  That’s what we are doing now, and we too will overcome the injustice of air pollution and the destruction of our environment.

In 2003, you may recall that the Canary Coalition lead a campaign to urge NC Attorney General Roy Cooper to join other states in suing the EPA over its decision to change the New Source Review provision of the Clean Air Act. We ultimately failed in that effort, but as a result of his inaction Cooper received a barrage of emails, phone calls and letters that seems to have ignited a new urgency in his office to pursue clean air issues and reverse his public image. Last year he filed a 126 petition with the EPA against polluting sources in thirteen upwind states. When the EPA failed to act on the petition, Cooper threatened a lawsuit against EPA. Finally, this year the EPA relented and agreed to begin acting on his petition. EPA is scheduled to outline a potential course of action in July of this year, with a public hearing for review in North Carolina in September. This could be a very positive development resulting in a geographically broad, accelerated smokestacks clean-up and it is a direct outgrowth of the public pressure being applied by the activities of the Canary Coalition and other grassroots organizations in the region. So, pat yourself on the back if you participated in the letter writing and phone calling campaign to the Attorney General’s office. Your efforts are paying off.

In a sharply conservative Congress this year, the current federal Administration used the full weight of its influence to try to steamroll the so-called “Clear Skies” legislation into law.  But, something happened along the way and the bill never made it out of the Environment and Public Works Committee of the Senate.  This bill would have diminished the standards in the existing Clean Air Act, lowering ultimate emission reduction goals and extending timelines for their achievement in smokestacks industries nationwide. Clear Skies would have eliminated the 126 petition process, disabling states trying to seek grievance against upwind polluters, as North Carolina is doing now. Clear Skies would have prohibited states from adopting higher air quality standards than the new federal standards, such as the standards adopted by the North Carolina Clean Smokestacks Act did in 2002. What happened to stop this legislation from passing through the most conservative Congress in US history? You happened! We happened! We wrote letters, phoned and emailed.  Some of us visited our congressional representatives and Senators bearing petitions and displaying our passion for clean air. The outcry was unprecedented in its scope and it overpowered the enormous influence of the utility industry, the petroleum lobby and their paid political cronies in the White House and on Capitol Hill. That’s how powerful people are when they get together and work in an organized effort.  Contrary to popular belief, our success doesn’t fully depend on who is in office. Money is definitely a corrupting influence in politics, but when enough people join forces to create a true public groundswell, the influence of money is ultimately no match for the raw power of the people. It’s a power that doesn’t depend on the laws, and rights outlined in the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights. It’s the inalienable rights that Jefferson pointed to in the Declaration of Independence.  People possess this innate power and when we work together it’s overwhelming and unstoppable. No government or political despot can take that power away. If you participated in the effort to defeat the Clear Skies legislation by writing or calling your representatives congratulate yourself and your fellow clean air activists for this achievement and remember it.  Use it as example of what we are capable of doing together next time you’re feeling discouraged and doubtful about the usefulness of your efforts.

Back in North Carolina, the struggle continues against the DAQ, the State’s principal air quality enforcement agency that is consistently acting as the spokesman for the industries it’s supposed to be regulating. In February, the Environmental Management Commission upon the recommendation of the DAQ issued a change in the State’s NSR rules, based on the new lowered federal standards, even though the proposed federal rule changes are still tied up in court after 14 states, the District of Columbia and more than twenty major cities sued the EPA over the changes.  Canary Coalition members directly intervened in this process by submitting more than eighty letters of objection to the Rules Review Commission, temporarily halting implementation of the rule revisions until they are reviewed by legislators in the 2006 session.  We will be campaigning for the passage of a Disapproval Bill in the next session that will permanently kill this backwards motion.

On another front the DAQ has refused to hold public hearings, requested by the Canary Coalition and other environmental organizations, to review Title V Permit Applications for utility owned coal-burning power plants in North Carolina.  This refusal has been going on for two years and represents a reversal in State policy that closes the process to the general public and protects polluting industries from the scrutiny of media coverage. The Canary Coalition has informed state legislators, the Governor’s Office, Secretary of DENR Bill Ross, the news media and the environmental community about this set of circumstances and we are in the midst of dealing with this tangled web as we speak.

On a positive note, the Canary Coalition conducted another wind farm tour in May in conjunction with TVA, and incidentally, DAQ sent Keith Bamberger, the public relations manager for the western region, to join us. TVA has dramatically expanded its pilot project from three windmills to eighteen. If you haven’t been to Buffalo Mountain to witness the state-of-the-art in large-scale wind technology, I highly recommend it.  We will be making another trip on Friday, July 15 and we hope to have several state representatives with us.

Partially as a result of our continuing effort on this issue, legislation has been introduced in this legislative session to allow a pilot wind project in Ashe County.  SB441 and its companion bill in the House, HB681, are still pending amid great controversy. There are some in the environmental community opposing the location of large windmills on any ridge tops in western North Carolina. Interestingly, however, the general public seems to be heavily in favor of the development of wind energy in the mountains.

There are environmental concerns attached to the development of wind in the mountains. Access roads need to be built and maintained. Some clearing must be done to accommodate the footprint of the turbines. Not everybody loves to look at windmills, as I do.  But, these negatives have to be weighed against the negatives of mining and burning coal; and against the negatives of the production and storage of nuclear waste, not to mention the possibility of a catastrophic nuclear meltdown in the region.  Wind technology is now cost competitive with all other sources of electrical generation. Wind energy has become the fastest growing energy source in the world. It is a 100% renewable energy resource and unquestionably the safest, cleanest and cheapest energy source available. There is no excuse for delaying its development while our environment and our health is suffering the devastation brought by older, non-renewable fossil fuel and nuclear power plants. The answer is blowing in the wind and we should continue to help this answer to be heard.

Speaking of being heard, on Earth Day, April 22 of this year, we had a visitor, or I should say a near-visitor to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  George Bush intended to use his visit to promote his backwards “Clear Skies” policies and to take credit for what is perceived to be a modest improvement in air quality in the last few years. No sitting Chief Executive of the United States had visited the Great Smokies since Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated the Park in 1940. But, it rained and George Bush didn’t want to get wet. Also there were about fifty demonstrators waited to greet him at the entrance to Cades Cove waving signs and banners, protesting his policies on air quality issues. Although Cades Cove is on the Tennessee side of the Park, the majority of the demonstrators were from North Carolina as a result of the networking and organizational effort of the Canary Coalition. There was plenty of credit to share in putting this demonstration together. About a dozen organizations in three states participated. The news coverage was impressive with special thanks to the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy for their effective press campaign and logistical organization. Needless to say, it wasn’t just the rain that deterred Bush from entering. Unfortunately for him the first amendment zone he attempted to create couldn’t contain the public resentment his programs have generated. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is apparently not a George Bush zone. And FDR is still the last sitting President to have visited the Park.

But, the Canary Coalition will again be visiting the Park and very soon. The second annual Relay for Clean Air will begin at Newfound Gap on Thursday, August 25 at 7 PM.  Last year’s event was a great success. We received media coverage on National Public Radio, Blue Ridge Outdoors Magazine, the local ABC television network affiliate WLOS and a multitude of local weekly and daily newspapers. The ultimate purpose of the Relay for Clean Air is to focus national attention on the air quality travesty in the Great Smoky Mountains and Greater Appalachian Region. If we began to do that last year, this year’s event will go considerably further in achieving that goal. This year the event will reverse its course, starting at Newfound Gap on Thursday evening, August 25, and ending on Friday evening, August 26 on Biltmore Avenue, in Asheville, at the Orange Peel where the AirAid concert will begin with Steve Earle as the headliner, joined by Larry Keel and David Via along with their bands Natural Bridge and Corn Tornado. We are fortunate in being able to partner with the producers of Smilefest who are organizing AirAid for us, using their very professional experience and skills. We are still working toward having a nationally known keynote speaker that night. We need to start recruiting participants and support workers for these two days. So, please start spreading the word and sign up yourself.

So, what is the state of the Canary? If we are using the metaphor of the canary in referring to the state of our environment and the health of our population, then the state of the canary is in trouble. The poor bird is wobbling on its perch. Asthma is still the number one cause of absenteeism in the public schools of western North Carolina. Trees continue to die by the millions on the Blue Ridge Parkway, on Mount Mitchell and in the Great Smoky Mountains. Mercury contamination is being found in higher concentrations further and further inland, now to the point at which fresh water fish are joining large sea fish on the list of restricted foods especially for young children and pregnant women. Climates are changing, bringing new sets of problems to our formerly more temperate region. We have a lot of work to do.  The Canary Coalition needs more members, more money, more volunteers, more involvement. Our organization and the Clean Air Movement are growing. Look at all we’ve been able to accomplish on our shoestring budget and with minimal involvement by most of our members.  We’ve played an important part in defeating the Clear Skies Initiative, we’ve influenced the NC Attorney General to become active in fighting the EPA and polluting sources outside our state, we’ve single-handedly challenged and exposed inappropriate enforcement policies of the DAQ, brought wind energy to the forefront of debate on the floor of the General Assembly. If each of our 700 current members found two or three more people to join in the effort this year, think of how that would enhance the power and influence of the Canary Coalition and how that might manifest itself in better enforcement policies, stronger regulations, an accelerated change from fossil fuels to wind, solar and other renewable resources.  The power of this movement is real and we’ve seen real accomplishments over the past year and over the past five years. When something works and creates positive change that benefits everyone, the best thing to do is to nourish and nurture it. Lets continue to nourish the Canary Coalition as we maintain our awareness that we are making progress.

Thank you.

Next Wind Tour to TVA Pilot Project, Friday, July 15

Once again the Canary Coalition is cooperating with TVA to bring NC public officials and community leaders to see, first hand, what a modern wind farm looks and feels like in the southern Appalachian mountain range. In the past this has been a rewarding experience for everyone who has participated. If you're interested in gaining more knowledge and experience about this clean, safe and economically superior energy source, sign up for this all-day event.

Read this report on the last tour of the Buffalo Mountain wind project.

Sign Up for the 2005 Relay for Clean Air and AirAid Concert, August 25, 26

Relay Schedule Now Available

Participants and support volunteers are needed for this year's Relay for Clean Air.  This year the Relay will begin at Newfound Gap in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at 7PM on Thursday, August 25.  The Relay will proceed along the Blue Ridge Parkway for 24 hours and about 100 miles all the way to Biltmore Ave in downtown Asheville, where it will end on Friday, August 26th at the Orange Peel.  At that time the AirAid concert/rally will begin featuring nationally popular singer/songwriter Steve Earle, as well as Larry Keel and Natural Bridge, and David Via and Corn Tornado. There will also be a keynote speaker to be announced later. Tickets will be $20. $15 for Relay for Clean Air participants and support workers.  Sign up now.

Membership Renewal Reminder

Send contact information and donations to:

Canary Coalition

PO Box 653

Sylva, NC 28779

or you can donate online