June 10, 2002 

In this Edition:
Issue Spotlight: Stopping SLAPP Suits
Headliner: As Summer Begins, Drought May Reach “Dust Bowl” Status
Watchdog: ALEC’s Pesticide Preemption Act
News From the States:
Protecting Wildlife
*TX: Poll Shows Public Support of Water Conservation to Protect Wildlife 
Safe Air & Water
*NY: New Bill Would Ban All Carcinogenic Pesticides
*RI: State Sponsoring Mercury Thermometer Exchange Program
*NJ: New Rules Mandate Water Testing in Private Wells
*OK: AG Says Chicken Factory Farms Must Held Accountable for Run-Off
Drought Management
*CO: Officials Say Fish-Killing Algae May Have Been Induced by Drought
Clean Energy
*CA: Rebate Program Will Be Incentive to Conserve Energy
*MA: New Bill Establishes Energy Efficiency Standards
Protecting Wildlands
*VA: State Set to Regulate Inland / Isolated Wetland Development
*PA: DNR Head Defends Plan to Allow Drilling on State Forests 
Freedom of Information
*WV: Flood Victims Sue Gov For Release of Study
Other News:
*NRDC Calling For Ban of Atrazine Herbicides
*Study: Air Toxins Causing Elevating Cancer Risks in 2/3 of Americans

Issue Spotlight: Stopping SLAPP Suits
SLAPPs -- Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation -- are civil legal complaints brought by corporations, real estate developers, or other entities who are opposing public interest issues.  They are usually civil complaints or counterclaims against an individual who exercised free speech.  Typically, SLAPPs are based on ordinary state court civil claims such as defamation, conspiracy, and interference with prospective economic advantage. SLAPPs involve issues of state law such as tort claims, so federal legislation cannot solve this legal problem.  If we want to stop SLAPP suits, it is up to the states to act now. To learn how to stop SLAPP suits in your state, click here. 
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Headliner: As Summer Begins, Drought May Reach “Dust Bowl” Status
The cumulative effects of a three drought in many Eastern and mountain states has many experts predicting that as the nation enters the drier summer, we may return to the historic “dust bowl” drought days of the 1930s.  In fact, the Billings Gazette reported last week that many of Wyoming’s streams are already below records set in the “dust bowl” days.  In addition, AP reported last week that many Nebraska stream levels are close to setting record lows. "Each year of less-than-normal moisture, you'll see a progressively worsening situation, at least as far as it's measured in your streams," said Kirk Miller, a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey.  "A prolonged drought has a cumulative effect on a watershed," he said. "For every year there's less than average rainfall, it depletes the soil moisture, depletes the shallow groundwater supplies and ultimately you see it in the streams." 

Watchdog: ALEC’s Pesticide Preemption Act 
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a corporate-controlled advocacy group, is circulating legislation throughout the country that would eliminate a local government’s ability to control pesticide “registration, notification of use, advertising and marketing, distribution, applicator training and certification, storage, transportation, disposal, disclosure of confidential information, or product composition.” This legislation leaves communities defenseless to the risks of toxic pesticide exposure from unsafe application methods, poisonous ingredients, and genetic crop modifications. Most alarmingly, the bill would even limit a community’s right to know about such risks. To learn more about ALEC’s “model” legislation, see SERC’s ALEC Watch page at: http://www.serconline.org/alecIndex.html; to learn more about other harmful legislation, see SERC’s State Activity Harmful Actions page at: http://www.serconline.org/stateInfo/stateinfoHarmful.html. 

News From the States:

Protecting Wildlife
Texas: Poll Shows Public Support of Water Conservation to Protect Wildlife 
The 6/6 San Antonio Express-News Austin reported that last week the National Wildlife Federation released a poll showing that a new water plan unveiled in December after years of public debate is out of sync with Texans’ beliefs. The plan is designed to provide Texas with adequate water for the next 50 years, however environmentalists say the plan comes up short on conservation and offers dire straits for fish and wildlife. Wildlife Federation officials say that their poll shows most Texans agree with those fears: The poll results show 93 percent say it is important for Texas to protect rivers, bays and wildlife.  That by a 2-1 margin, Texans prefer water conservation to building new dams and reservoirs. 76 percent favor limiting pumping from underground aquifers to ensure that water is available for future generations. And 78 percent hadn’t heard of the state water planning process. (created by Senate Bill 1 in 1997) that, Federation officials chided, was supposed to be a “grass-roots” process. 

Safe Air & Water
New York: New Bill Would Ban All Carcinogenic Pesticides
Environmental Advocates of New York is endorsing A 6350,  a bill that would prohibit the registration of any pesticides classified as known or suspected carcinogens by the U.S. EPA or the International Agency for Research on Cancer.  The group says that currently most people imagine the state's pesticide review process only allows pesticides that are "safe" to be registered for use, but in reality, pesticides with known hazards are routinely used in the state. 

Rhode Island: State Sponsoring Mercury Thermometer Exchange Program
The 6/7 Providence Journal reported that the Rhode Island Department of Health, in conjunction with Clean Water Action and CVS/Pharmacy held a one-day mercury thermometer and thermostat exchange last week. Participants received a free $5 CVS "ExtraBucks Coupon," good for $5 off a purchase at CVS/Pharmacy, by trading in a mercury fever thermometer or mercury home thermostat. For related information about how to reduce mercury poisoning in your state, visit SERC's Mercury Poisoning Reduction page. 

New Jersey: New Rules Mandate Water Testing in Private Wells
The 6/5 Philadelphia Inquirer reported that state Department of Environmental Protection recently approved rules to address the growing worry over contamination in private drinking wells - which serve about one million New Jersey residents. Under the rules, drinking wells must be tested for bacteria, nitrates, lead, volatile organic compounds, and other contaminants whenever a property is sold or leased. In addition, testing for arsenic and mercury contamination will be required in many counties. Test results submitted by labs will be collected in a database that will give regulators greater insight into the extent and types of well pollution in the state, said Sandi Krietzman, an environmental scientist with the DEP's Bureau of Safe Drinking Water. Officials estimate 20,000 to 30,000 real estate transactions a year will be subject to the rules. Compliance is expected to cost between $450 to $650 per drinking-water system. 

Oklahoma: AG Says Chicken Factory Farms Must Held Accountable for Run-Off
The 6/4 Oklahoman reported that as Arkansas and Oklahoma state leaders started discussions last week regarding reducing phosphorus polluting in six waterways that flow between the states, Attorney General Drew Edmondson said that poultry industry must be the center of such discussions. "It is absolutely essential that the industry assume the responsibility for the safe disposal of chicken waste. That is the primary source of degradation." In the past, 
Edmondson has threatened to sue poultry companies based in Oklahoma and Arkansas over the phosphorus issue. To learn how other states are dealing with factory farms, click here. 

Drought Management
Colorado: Officials Say Fish-Killing Algae May Have Been Induced by Drought
AP reported last week that Colorado officials believe that golden algae is responsible for the die-off of nearly all of the fish last week in Prewitt Reservoir – and that it may be yet another unsuspected side effect of the current drought.  Golden algae is usually considered harmless, however officials suspect the drought and other conditions depleted the organism's food sources, so it exploded into a bloom, releasing a potent toxin that killed the fish. The rotting fish then provided the organism a new food source. The 2,600-acre lake contributes water to the South Platte River, raising concern that the algae could travel to Nebraska and other down-stream states. 

Clean Energy
California: New Rebate Program Will Be Incentive to Conserve Energy
The 6/7 Sacramento Bee reported that millions of Californians will be able to shave up to 20 percent off their electric bills this summer by conserving power, under a "20/20" rebate program  approved by the Public Utilities Commission last week. The rebates, which begin in July in much of the state, will go to households that use 15 percent to 20 percent less electricity than they used in 2000, before the state's energy crisis struck. Even though the program is expensive, it could help California get through 2002 without costly and disruptive rolling blackouts, members of the state Public Utilities Commission said before their 5-0 vote. Gov. Gray Davis, in an executive order issued last month, had urged the PUC to revive the scaled-back, residential-only rebate program, saying, "California's energy challenge is not over." 

Massachusetts: New Bill Establishes Energy Efficiency Standards 
Last week Sen. Cynthia Creem and Rep. Paul Demakis introduced legislation in their respective chambers to increase the state’s energy efficiency by 20 percent over the next 10 years through steady annual improvements.  This legislation, which is being strongly endorsed by MassPIRG, would promote more energy efficient construction, require large industrial users to document their energy consumption, and establish incentives for homeowners and small businesses to use energy efficient products.  To learn how to establish energy efficiency standards in your state, visit SERC's Energy Efficiency Standards page 

Protecting Wildlands
Virginia: State Set to Regulate Inland / Isolated Wetland Development
The 6/5 Virginian Pilot State that the Army Corps has approved the state to be the chief regulator in a new system overseeing much of the state’s inland wetlands regulation. Recent court decisions have weakened federal oversight of isolated wetlands, creating confusion among landowners and regulators over when, or if, government permits are required before development starts. New state rules should remove any such uncertainties. Virginia will become the 13th state to run a wetlands protection program in conjunction with the corps. ``All in all, we think it'll be a better system,'' said Ann Jennings, a wetlands expert with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. For information about how to best protect isolated wetlands in your state, click here. 

Pennsylvania: DNR Head Defends Plan to Allow Drilling on State Forests 
The 6/4 Philadelphia Inquirer reported that DNR Secretary John Oliver defended his agency’s controversial plan to sell gas drilling rights in state forests, as lawmakers pressed for a public hearing to determine the environmental consequences of such drilling. The DNR came under fire last month after the agency's plan to auction rights to drill dozens of gas wells on 500,000 acres was made public. Critics accused the agency of trying to steamroll through a project that could threaten the environment in one of the last remaining large swaths of forest in the East. Environmentalists say the agency has not prepared any meaningful environmental-impact statement, such as those prepared by the DOT before proceeding with a highway project. "The purpose of an environmental-impact statement is to evaluate the impacts in advance of a decision," said Jeff Schmidt, governmental liaison for the Sierra Club's Pennsylvania chapter. "Their environmental review is done after the decision to move forward has been made." 

Freedom of Information
West Virginia: Flood Victims Sue Gov For Release of Study
The 6/7 Charleston Gazette reported that flood victims have sued the Wise administration to force the release of a study examining the impact of mining and timbering on flooding risks. Recently state officials released the study, but blacked out large portions of the document, mostly tables that appear to contain 
the results of computer studies of flooding potential of different sorts of watersheds. Legal experts say that because West Virginia law gives citizens many open-records rights, the plaintiffs will likely prevail.  To learn how to establish an effective open-records system in your state, visit SERC's Freedom of Information  page. 
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Other News: 

NRDC Calling For Ban of Atrazine Herbicides
NRDC is calling for the removal atrazine from the market as soon as possible. The group says recent studies show that this dangerous chemical causes cancer in animals, interferes with numerous hormones, and has adverse effects on reproduction and development. Perhaps the most extensively used herbicide in the United States, atrazine frequently contaminates water bodies, and millions of people nationwide drink the chemical in their tap water. More than one million of these people receive their water from suppliers that have violated the EPA's safety standard for atrazine in drinking water.

Study: Air Toxins Causing Elevating Cancer Risks in 2/3 of Americans
A long-awaited EPA study of health risks from 32 toxic chemicals concludes that 200 million people live in areas where the cancer risk from exposure to these substances is higher than what the EPA considers a minimum level of concern. The assessment found that automobile and truck emissions are a major cause of exposure to the chemicals, with power  plants and other industrial sources also involved. The study, described as a ``snapshot'' of health risks from air toxins, found that the chemicals can be expected over a lifetime of exposure to cause 10 additional cancers for every 1 million people. These risks can be found across virtually the entire country, said the study, which was reviewed by outside scientists. ``More than 200 million people live in census tracts where the combined upper bound lifetime cancer risk from these (chemical) compounds exceeded 10 in 1 million risk,'' said the report. It added that 20 million people live in areas where the risks are even higher - 100 additional lifetime cancers for every 1 million people. The EPA considers a cancer risk of greater than one in a million or greater as a matter of concern, although those levels do not always trigger regulatory actions. For related information about how to reduce power plant emissions in your state, click here. 

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