Hydro Power Finds Support with IUSB’s Society for Physics Students

 

Indiana University at South Bend’s Society for Physics Students invited Gary Gilot, Director of Public Works for the City of South Bend, and myself to present on the hydroelectric generator project for the dam at Century Center. 

 

I gave a brief overview of my interest in the project starting with my “green” sensibilities and how I was able to research hydroelectric power in South Bend for my Masters degree in Liberal Studies at IUSB.  In my presentation, I enjoy asking the audience my trivia question: “What natural resource on our river did the early French settlers exploit to make their fortunes,” for which I offer anyone with the answer a bar of fair-trade, organic dark chocolate.  I’m always amazed how long it takes someone to come up with this piece of history on our city.  The audience seemed to appreciate my narrated slide show on the history of using water power in South Bend leading up to the current hydro project under consideration. 

 

Mr. Gilot followed up with his presentation on some of the “green” initiatives underway in South Bend, including upgrading the sewer system to reduce combined sewage overflow into the river, diverting heat from supercomputers on the campus at Notre Dame to the desert dome of the municipal greenhouse and, of course the hydroelectric project.  Mr. Gilot reported the windowed concourse is still in the design plans and that the city is pursuing “economic stimulus” package money as a possible funding source.  He reported the city is also in contact with private entities to try to find funding sources there.  The city continues to seek public support for this and other “green” initiatives, including a proposed wind-farm co-op if an appropriate site can be found in the area.

 

 

 

 

Excercising Voice

Last night, the St Joseph County Council held a public hearing and vote on the tax abatement revision bill 90-08.  This proposal, which would benefit the community by setting specific environmental and hiring standards before granting tax subsidies to businesses, is good public policy.   Taking my place in the line of supporters to voice my support for the bill, I implored the council-members to remember, like the people who may live next door, businesses are also neighbors in a community.  We must not give away tax abatements for jobs at any cost.   Do we actually want to entice a company that’s going to dump toxic waste into our waterways for the promise of a few jobs?   What is the point of prostituting our community to embrace John Doe, Inc who will treat their workers like chattel?  Doing so and trying to compete with other communities to see who can give away the most tax breaks is nothing less than a race to the bottom. 

As I prepared to leave the podium, Mark Root, District I Councilman asked me “didn’t you run for a seat on the city council in 2007?”

What, I wondered, does this have to do with Bill 90-08, but I answered, “Yes”.  

“Wouldn’t you say, then, that this ordinance would not have any affect on the people in your neighborhood?”  Root asked.

I was too shocked to answer.   Of course what businesses do affects everyone in a community, the state, the country, the planet!  Every time China builds another coal-burning power plant without regard for air quality, the winds bring those clouds of cancer-causing soot over the Pacific and onto our western states.  When a factory farm in St Joe County dumps millions of gallons of pig sewage into a lagoon that seeps into our groundwater, we all suffer the effects of that contamination; how far that goes out, no one can know for certain.  When we accept products made from the sweat of poorly treated workers, how does that make our community, state, country a better place?  How could an elected official not see the lines connecting these dots?  Does my concern for my neighbors stop at the end of my city block?

It seemed Mr. Root was insinuating that because I lived within the city limits and not in unincorporated county districts, I didn’t have the right to speak for all of us who are adversely affected by poor public policy!

While all this was roiling in my head, someone from the back of the room shouted something in my defense.  Then my councilman, Heath Weaver, asked me if I was his constituent.  When I answered affirmatively, Mr. Weaver retorted to Mr. Root that the latter’s insinuations were wrong, bringing applause from the audience.

Bill 90-08 passed; Mr. Weaver voted in favor of the measure, Mr. Root, against.

 

St Joseph County Council Must Pass Common-Sense Tax Abatement Ordinance

Next to us is an old empty house. When I walk my dog, I pick up any trash that may have blown onto that house’s yard and watch for any activity. It would be nice to have someone living in that house, someone who would wave “hello”, keep up the yard, put a coat of paint on its stucco exterior and a swing on it’s grand front porch.   But there’s no guarantee whoever moved in would do those lovely things.   An “absentee landlord” could buy that house and rent to nuisance tenants who would sell drugs to the neighbor children, play loud music and leave trash everywhere.  I’d like to have neighbors but NOT at any cost.

The same goes with businesses who want to be neighbors in our community. Of course we want businesses set up shop here, but at what cost?  Will they be polluting our air and water with impunity?  Will they treat their workers poorly?  Will the products they produce be something that our community members can safely use?

The St Joseph Count Council  must remember jobs at any cost is a race to the bottom; before giving tax abatements to incoming businesses, let’s demand they be good neighbors first.

 

City Engineer Seeks Support for Hydro

Today I received an email from Gary Gilot, South Bend’s Director of Public Works.  He is seeking letters from citizens to be sent to Congressman Joe Donnelly in support of the city’s request for funding to finance the hydroelectric generator on the dam at Century Center.

Below is the letter I forwarded to Gary to include in the city’s proposal to Congressman Donnelly.  Feel free to write your own letter to the congressman for this important project:

The Honorable Joe Donnelly

United States House of Representatives

1530 Longworth House Office Building

Washington, DC  20515

 13 March 2009

Dear Congressman Donnelly,

I am writing to express my strong support for the installation of a hydroelectric generator on the St Joe River on the dam at Century Center. 

The city of South Bend owes its existence to the natural resources of the river that runs through us.  From the early French fur trappers, who made their fortunes on the river’s wildlife to Alexis Coquilllard, who oversaw the construction of the dam and races providing water power for South Bend’s first industries, our river has been the heart of the city’s life-source.

Now, as humans face the dire consequences of global warming as a result of burning fossil fuels, every person and every community must do all they can to reduce the production of the greenhouse gases that trap the sun’s heat on our planet.  For my part, I walk, take the bus and ride my bike to work, the grocery store and the market as much as possible.  For her part, the city of South Bend has made a commitment to reduce our community’s impact on global warming by pursuing the construction of a 1.5 Megawatt hydroelectric generator on the dam at Century Center.

This project has multiple benefits:

·         The construction of the generator will employ many skilled laborers in our local workforce; a true blue-green initiative.  

·         The generator will provide enough electricity to power South Bend’s water treatment facility, one of the city’s biggest energy consumers, with the city realizing significant savings on energy costs.

·         Harnessing the emission-free energy of the river will reduce the city’s reliance on coal-fired electricity, thus reducing the city’s contribution to global warming.

·         Reducing our reliance on electricity from coal will reduce the necessity of ecologically devastating mining practices that are irreversibly stripping this country’s natural heritage.

 

·         The plans for South Bend’s hydroelectric project includes a wheelchair accessible windowed concourse, allowing visitors to go below the river’s surface to watch the turbines on one side and fish migrating up the ladder on the other.  Modeled after a hugely popular design of a hydro generator and fish ladder in Seattle, this feature will attract thousands of visitors to South Bend’s downtown every year.   I know many families who would delight in visiting such an attraction in South Bend; as you can imagine, the educational and economic impact of this project is completely in the city’s favor.

I urge you to support South Bend’s fiscal 2010 appropriations request for this project.

 

 

What’s a Socially and Environmentally Conscious Person Supposed to Do?

In 1900 the American BGS company produced a vehicle that set a distance record of 180 miles on a single charge.  Detroit’s GM offered the all-electric EV1 in 1996, which could go at least 80 mph with a range of about 55 miles.  Despite rave reviews by EV1’s lease-holders and growing waiting lists for the car, GM repossessed the entire fleet of EV1’s and summarily had them destroyed.   Soon afterwards, US car industry chiefs and the Bush administration, with billions of taxpayer dollars, opted to chase after hydrogen fuel cell technology, a costly fuel source still many years away from feasibility and affordability.  This begs the question, why would the Bush administration deliberately waste taxpayer money on unproven technology when clean, efficient electric technology was readily available for at least 100 years?  Would chasing after hydrogen fuel cell technology feed Americans’ addiction to our gasoline-burning, carbon-spewing internal combustion habit while ensuring continued profits for all the players in a fossil-fuel-based economy for a few more years? 

Worse, our “representatives” in Congress approved billions in “bailout” money for auto industrialists who keep offering Americans their re-treaded, who-knows-where-the-oil-it-burns-comes-from, lame-mpg cars, even though they could, if they wanted to, make an environmentally friendly electric car.

When I’m not able to walk, ride my bike or take the bus, I drive a rusted 18-year-old Isuzu, holding out for an all-electric car I can plug into the solar panels on the roof of my garage.  Ideally I’d like that car to be made by autoworkers treated decently and paid a fair wage for their labors.  That would mean my electric car would most likely have been made in a democracy, like the US, Canada, the UK or the European Union.  Unfortunately, the only electric cars on the market fitting these criterion and available to me in the middle US top 25 mph with a range of 30 miles.  The carmakers are going backwards with their electric car technology!

Enter a Chinese company that makes most of the world’s laptop and cell phone batteries that recently released the F3 DM, an electric car whose ferrous battery technology powers a sedan that goes 80 mph for about 60 miles.  But this car is made in a single-party communist country with apparently non-existent environmental regulations and a dismal human-rights record.  If the F3 DM is released in the US, what’s an environmentally and socially conscious person supposed to do if she needs a car to visit her parents who live 50 miles away? 

 

Votes Trickle in for McKinney

As of this writing, Green Party Presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney came in 6th with roughly .1% of the vote.  Ralph Nader was 3rd with approximately 1%.  Barr (Libertarian) came in 4th and Baldwin (Constitution) came in 5th.  Interesting to note that Nader, whose name was not on the ballot in many states, (including Indiana), should come out ahead of Barr whose name was on the ballot in all 50 states.

Indiana’s Secretary of State website has Jill Long Thompson ahead of Mitch Daniels for the governor’s race.

Also, check out Richard Winger’s site, Ballot Access News, for the bits he has posted since the election.  It covers all sorts of interesting facts, figures and analysis regarding 3rd parties, ballot access, instant run-off voting (IRV) and independents.

 

St Joe County Does it Again! Voters Disenfranchised Across Indiana

According to the Indiana Secretary of State’s office, Cynthia McKinney received only 4 write-in votes in Indiana, with zero recorded for St Joe County. This is not possible as the Indiana Green Party asked members and other citizens to inform the Write-in Vote Coalition if they voted for a legitimate write-in candidate and if so, which precinct they voted in. Based on reports to the coalition, therefore, the numbers reported by the Indiana Secretary of State’s office are fraudulent. (I voted for a legitimate write-in candidate in early voting at precinct 090107 in St Joe County on Wednesday, October 29th and, if the Secretary of State’s report is the “official” results, my vote ONCE AGAIN was disregarded.)

The League of Women Voters of the South Bend Area is going to formally ask the St Joe County Election Board for an explanation.

Brown County (where substantiated write-in votes were reported) reports no votes for any write-in candidates. Marion, Monroe and Vigo counties report no (zero) votes for any candidate, much less write-ins, so something is going on.

Check your county results here.

If voters are being systematically disenfranchised, how can we know ANY of last night’s election results are legitimate?

 

Follow-up on Hydro Project: An Email from Donnelly’s Grants Director

Today I received an email from Beth Barrett, Grants Director at Congressman Joe Donnelly’s South Bend office as a follow-up to the hydro-electric generator project on the Dam at Century Center:

“I am following up on some previous contacts.  Have you made any progress with the hydroelectric power project?  I believe last spring I told you I had spoken with several local officials about the idea and most were in favor of using the river’s power potential.  Of course, there are several entities that must be involved-the city, county and the power company-to make this a viable plan.  Any federal funding would need to be sought by the local government and a solid plan, with partnership among the involved parties, would need to be in place for funding to be considered.

It seems the recent energy crisis has made people (belatedly) aware of the need for clean power that doesn’t deplete natural resources.  Maybe the day has come for hydroelectric power?

Let me know if there is anything Joe’s office can do for you in the future.

Beth Barrett

Grants Director

Congressman Joe Donnelly”

Anyone who has watched this blog site knows I am already aware of the coordination of entities that must be involved to make this project a “viable plan”.  The city has a viable plan and is very much interested in seeking federal funding for assistance with this project.   It’s my understanding, however, that there is currently no federal funding available for a project such as this. Congress passed and President Bush signed into law the Energy Security and Independence Act last December, which South Bend could apply for, however, Congress, of which Donnelly is a member, has yet to fund this legislation.  Why was it so easy to “find” money to bailout reckless Wall Street investors to the tune of over $700 billion but funding grants for clean energy projects that generate clean energy jobs seems less urgent?

see this post for my response to Ms. Barrett

 

 

Protecting Their Power Base

Indiana’s 2nd Congressional District Candidates Reach Across Party Lines to Exclude Others From Democratic Participation

A few years back, the local League of Women Voters hosted a debate between 2^nd Congressional candidates Jill Long Thompson and Chris Chocola at Bethel College. I asked the women working at the table why the Libertarian candidate wasn’t also going to be on stage that night. One woman said she wasn’t aware there was another candidate running for that office. Another urged me to join the League of Women Voters to make sure omissions like this did not occur in the future.

In 2006, the League hosted a debate between the candidates for Secretary of State. At the urging of the local Green Party, the Green Party’s write-in candidate for Secretary of State was invited to and included in that debate held at IU South Bend. I was so impressed by the commitment of the League to include all eligible candidates and to make the debates completely non-partisan, I joined the local chapter.

Since then, I’ve witnessed the great lengths the League of Women Voters exerts themselves to remain non-partisan and to ensure equal participation of all candidates in “Meet The Candidate” events. In addition to ensuring voter participation and other non-partisan activism, the local League has also taken up the important work of pressing the Election Board to fully count all legally cast votes, including write-in votes this Election Day.

Which is why I am deeply disappointed with the League’s decision to hold a “debate” with only two of the three candidates whose names will appear on this year’s ballot for Indiana’s 2^nd Congressional District race. Libertarian candidate, Mark Vogel did not share the stage with the other two candidates. According to an article by the South Bend Tribune’s Ed Ronco, “debate rules are set by the two major party candidates. Two of those criteria are that the candidate is waging an active campaign and that his party has ‘generated significant voter interest’ by having their party’s secretary of state nominee receive 10 percent or more of the most recent vote.”

League President Lisa Plencner is quoted as saying the League wanted to see Vogel in the debate, but more than that, they wanted to have a debate. “There was no way at this late date that we were going to make that a deal breaker,” she said.

Let me get this straight. The League of Women Voters, an historically non-partisan group, works hard to organize a televised event to help educate voters about their choices for candidates. This event is essentially free advertising for the candidates, yet the “two major party candidates” have their own debate rules that exclude other candidates. The circular illogic of these so-called “major-candidate debate rules” is yet another way the two parties coalesce to become one when their power base is challenged. They successfully did this in Indiana as they’ve worked together over the past 60 years to make ballot access increasingly difficult for any other party other than themselves.

In this case, the League of Women Voters capitulated to the undemocratic demands of two candidates who were invited to enjoy a free forum to present their ideas. I was involved in other League projects, so I didn’t have the time in my schedule to add being on the congressional debate committee. Furthermore, I wouldn’t have believed, given the recent history of inclusion of all candidates in local League forums, the issue of including all candidates would have been in question. In hindsight, I wish I would have somehow cut something out of my schedule to help coordinate this Congressional debate. Then, I could have at least expressed my opposition to going ahead, as a non-partisan group, with a forum that allowed the invitees to set partisan parameters on a League-sponsored event.

 

The League of Women Voters Works to Protect the Great Lakes

League of Women Voters

Lake Michigan Interleague Organization

2008-2009 Annual Meeting

October 10-11 2008

 

I served as the delegate from the League of Women Voters from the South Bend Area to the Lake Michigan Interleague Organization’s annual meeting, held this year in Chesterton, Indiana.  I attended the Business Meeting held on Saturday the 11^th. 

Following adoption of the rules of the day, the minutes of the 2007 meeting and the Treasurer’s report, a proposed change of the bylaws to reflect changing the name of the organization to the “Lake Michigan League of Women Voters” was presented.  There was some discussion regarding whether the group’s bylaws could be changed before the change was approved by the National office.   The name change was approved, pending approval by the LWVUS.

The 2008-2009 Program was discussed and approved with areas of emphasis to include:

1)      As a member of the Healing our Water (HOW) Coalition, work to restore Great Lakes water quality, prevent and control non-native aquatic invasive species, clean up concentrated toxic pollution

2)      Work to pass Great Lakes Collaboration Implementation Act

3)      Support efforts to reduce use of pesticides

4)      Advocate for water conservation

5)      Address permitted discharges into the Great Lakes with goal to reduce discharged pollutants

6)      Monitor implementation of the Great Lakes-St Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement signed by all Great Lakes Governors, US Congress and President Bush

7)      Monitor progress of the Review of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement

Following nominations from the floor and presentation of the nominating committee, new officers were elected:

Co-Presidents: Judith Johnston and Jeannette Neagu

Vice President: Cheryl Chapman

Secretary: Hanano Anderson

Treasurer: Suzanne Dixon

Reports presented:

1)       Suzanne Dixon reported on the “Healing Our Waters Conference” held September 10-11 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  The League was represented by members from Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin.  The purpose of having the Great lake state leagues join the Coalition was to assist in the advocacy work on Federal Legislation regarding the Great Lakes.   The coalition has worked to protect the quantity of water in the Great Lakes and continues its efforts to protect the quality of water of this non-renewable resource.

 

A long-awaited bill on invasive species is on hold while the courts and Congress decide who should regulate ballast water from foreign vessels, the Coast Guard or the EPA.

 

The Coalition is seeking nominations for positions critical to the Great Lakes following this year’s election.  These include EPA administrators, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Geological Survey, Army Corps, Natural Resources Conservation Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and International Joint Commission positions.  Members are asked to contact Chris Grubb with your nominations by October 28, 2008.

 

2)      Jeanette Neagu reported on the Great Lakes Day in Washington, DC during which League members met with Congressional Representatives and Senators from each of the Great Lake states. 

 

3)      Guest Speaker Kim Ferraro, Attorney, Executive Director of Legal Environmental Aid Foundation (LEAF), presented “Toxic Pollution Impacting the Great Lakes: What You Need to Know”.  Some alarming statistics: national annual average of exposure to toxins is 12# per year, for Hoosiers, it is 40# per year.  According to Forbes magazine, Indiana is the 2^nd most polluted state.  States with the highest environmental standards have the highest economic performance.  The problem, according to Ms Ferraro, is that the public’s voice is not being heard.  She suggested getting on the EPA’s list of notices (e.g. water permitting issues for regional EPA offices) and enlist public interest lawyers such as herself (she works pro bono and is paid through grants) to exercise state statutes with respect to planning commissions as they make decisions regarding unchecked growth.  She related unchecked growth to the Tragedy of the Commons in which the environment must be protected in free market economies for the common good.

During the discussion following Ms. Ferraro’s presentation, I followed-up her point about lack of a public voice and noted that states with the worst pollution and worst economic standards also have the most restrictive ballot access laws.  I reported on my efforts to gain ballot access for the Green Party to give Hoosier voters another voice at the ballot box as well as in elected offices.  Not only are ballot access laws severely restrictive for parties and candidates other than Democrat or Republican, but votes cast for Green Party and other independent candidates were not counted in several Indiana counties, including St Joseph and Marion counties.  This information sent shock waves through the gathering whose non-partisan founding and continued mission is to enfranchise voters.

4)      Jeanette Neagu presented her Power Point presentation “What the League of Women Voters Can Do to Protect the Great Lakes”. One of her final slides listed the many organizations who are part of the Heal Our Waters coalition, including the National Wildlife Federation.  Missing, as noted by this writer, was the Indiana Wildlife Federation.  Jeanette also cited the many organizations to whom she has shown her presentation.  She had not yet presented to my local league in the South Bend area.  I told her I would ask my local to contact her to put her on the agenda for a future meeting.   I would also like to follow up with individuals I know within the Indiana Wildlife Federation about joining the HOW coalition.