Texas Impact: The Politics of Conservation and Environmentalism

In the area of the environment, Texas Impact works primarily on issues relating to global warming, air pollution and energy. Texas Impact's project "Texas Interfaith Power & Light" helps congregations and their members take direct action to reduce air pollution and global warming emissions.

- National -

Where Do the Presidential Candidates Stand on Global Warming?

Wondering which presidential candidate has the best global warming policy plan? Compare and contrast candidates' positions with this easy chart from the League of Conservation Voters.

Or, for more information, official statements, and interviews, reference this excellent page by "Grist: Environmental News and Commentary". There are fact sheets about all the candidates and interviews with Chris Dodd, John Edwards, Mike Gravel, Dennis Kucinich, Barak Obama, and Bill Richardson.

- State -

Vehicle Emissions & Air Quality

Air pollution comes from many different sources such as factories, power plants, dry cleaners, cars, buses, trucks, construction sites, windblown dust and wildfires. This pollution in turn affects air quality and the health of human beings, trees, lakes, crops, and animals and can cause haze and building erosion.

As clean air and its components are vital to the overall quality of life on the planet, air quality is a concern that everyone should have when it comes to making decisions such as who to vote for, how to get to work or school in the morning or what kind of light bulbs to install at home. Vehicle emissions are particularly dangerous to human health and the environment. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, respiratory health problems as well as other health complications occur in the presence of higher concentrations of "criteria" pollutants found in vehicle emissions consisting of ozone (O₃), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), particulate matter (PM) and lead (Pb). Each element has a threshold at which it becomes dangerous to human health (termed "Primary Standards") and a level at which it becomes dangerous to "public welfare" which includes hindering visibility, endangering crops and animals, and becomes harmful to buildings (termed "Secondary Standards") (EPA, National Ambient Air Quality Standards). For an area to be in "attainment" with the federal standards set by the Clean Air Act, it has to meet the "ambient" air quality standard for that particular substance, while anything over the designated ambient level for the period of time designated for that matter will cause an area to be classified in "nonattainment" status.

SIX CRITERIA POLLUTANTS:

Ozone (O₃) - formed from the fusion of sunlight and heat with nitrogen oxides (NO_x) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) and causes tissue damage and causes the lungs to become more sensitive to other irritants and ambient levels of O₃ cause respiratory problems in non- asthmatic, healthy individuals, as even low concentrations of the matter in the air decreases lung function. O₃ has also been shown to cause decreased lung capacity by 15 to 20 percent and during summer months has even been the cause of 10 to 20 percent of respiratory-related hospitalizations in the northeastern U.S.

Carbon monoxide (CO) - a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas. According to the EPA, 77 percent of CO in the air comes from vehicles and other "transportation sources”. A product of incompletely burned carbon in fuels, CO poses serious threats to the cardiovascular system and impairs the body's ability to effectively deliver oxygen to tissues and organs. Exposure to CO can cause impaired vision and manual dexterity.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂ ) - a lung tissue irritant that causes bronchitis and pneumonia as well as other respiratory infections (EPA, "Criteria Pollutants"). A compound found in all urban atmospheres, NO₂ is a necessary component in conjunction with VOCs to form O₃.

Particulate matter (PM) - one of the primary components of air pollution is able to penetrate the deepest recesses of the lungs and cause disease, carcinogenesis and premature death. Children and elderly are particularly susceptible to PM's effects. PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 (less than 10 and 2.5 microns) are the most dangerous as far as vehicle emissions are concerned. Some of the illnesses attributed to PM include bronchitis, asthma and decreased lung function.

Lead (Pb) - exposure to high concentrations of lead include seizures, mental retardation, and other behavioral disorders and even lower doses of Pb can lead to damage of the nervous system, according to the EPA. Though lead is a serious threat, it is no longer as prominent a concern from vehicle emissions as it was in the 1980s. In 1985, over twenty thousand tons of air-borne lead came from vehicle emissions. However, thanks to improved EPA regulation of lead content in gasoline that number had dropped to only 4,900 tons in 1993 (with the help of widespread use of unleaded gasoline).

AIR QUALITY IN TEXAS

There are currently nine areas in Texas that do not meet or barely meet Federal Clean Air Quality Standards (or National Ambient Air Quality Standards). They are designated as non-attainment, near non-attainment (barely meeting standards), or Early Action Compact (EAC) (not meeting standards and have pledged to meet standards earlier than required by the Clean Air Act).

Non-attainment areas are:

• Houston/Galveston
• Dallas/Ft. Worth
• Beaumont/Port Worth
• El Paso

Near non-attainment areas are:

• Victoria
• Corpus Christi

Early Action Compact (EAC) areas are:

• San Antonio
• Austin
• Tyler/Longview

What can I do?

Monitor personal vehicle use! Check out the Drive Clean Across Texas website to find out what the law requires and what you can do to make Texas a clean air state. The Drive Clean Across Texas Campaign is Texas' statewide public outreach and education campaign designed to raise awareness and change attitudes about air pollution. Drive Clean Across Texas strives to change driving behavior to reduce vehicle emissions and clean up the air in Texas.

Find out more about air quality by visiting the EPA's website on Air Trends.

PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITIES AND OUR ENVIRONMENT

Be aware of who and what is moving into our communities and how it potentially affects our lives and our environment. In order to operate, businesses who have the potential to pose an environmental threat have to obtain permits from the State. We have the power to express our concerns and/or contest those permits in public hearings! Know who's asking for permits and where they are by visiting the TCEQ's Calendar of Public Meetings and Hearings.

Where to find the law: Laws in Texas are not always easy to track down. Find Texas' environmental laws in the Health and Safety Code under Title 5: Sanitation and Environmental Quality.

Significant environmental initiatives of the 80th Legislative Session:

* Transfer the regulation and licensing of commercial processing and storage of radioactive substances from TDSHS to TCEQ (SB 1604).
* Revisions to the Low Income Repair Assistance and Accelerated Vehicle Purchase (LIRAP) and the Texas Emission Reduction Plan (TERP) with increased program funding (SB 12).
* Major legislative revisions affecting environmental review for water permitting, water conservation and rainwater harvesting, regulation of irrigation systems, CCN changes, designation of unique reservoir sites, and increased permitted groundwater withdrawals for the Edwards Aquifer (HB 3, HB 4, SB 3).
* Creation of a grant program to reduce NOx emissions from stationary compressor engines (SB 2000).
* Implementation of a permitting process for advanced clean energy projects and other environmentally protective projects (HB 3732).
* Extension of the Petroleum Storage Tank Remediation program until 2011 to provide storage tank owners additional opportunity to close leaking tank sites. Providing TCEQ shut down authority for operations that lack financial assurance (HB 1956/HB 3554).
* Revisions to Dry Cleaner Remediation Program created by the 78th Legislature (HB 3220).

The Commission will be initiating the necessary actions to implement all legislation described here that requires rule making or other changes to agency operations. Any questions concerning legislation affecting the TCEQ can be directed to the Intergovernmental Relations Division at (512) 239-3500.

- taken from the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ) website.