LEONARDO ACADEMY ASKS ENVIRONMENTAL AGENCIES IN 22 STATES TO STOP SUBSIDIZING POLLUTION AND START REWARDING ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY IN STATE NOx REDUCTION PLANS
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On December 28, 1998, Leonardo Academy announced that it asked the environmental protection agencies in 22 states and the District of Columbia to include energy efficiency and renewable energy in their nitrogen oxide (NOx) emission reduction plans. Nitrogen oxides contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone (smog). Leonardo Academy provided each agency with the Cleaner and Greener Principles that describe how to include energy efficiency and renewable energy in these emission reduction plans. 

Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia are required by the US EPA to develop State Implementation Plans (SIPs) for reducing NOx emissions. The states affected by this requirement are Missouri and all the states east of the Mississippi River, except Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Florida. These plans must be developed by September 1999 and implemented by 2003.

Leonardo Academy is a nonprofit environmental organization. The principles developed by the Cleaner and Greener Program of Leonardo Academy promote an environmentally friendly approach to achieving required reductions of pollutant emissions, including NOx, by calling for recognition of energy efficiency and renewable energy in emission reduction plans. Since energy efficiency and renewable energy reduce all of the emissions caused by fossil fuel combustion and fossil-fueled electric generation, implementing the Cleaner and Greener Principles will also reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2), particulates, mercury, greenhouse gases, and other pollutants. In addition, recognizing the low-cost emission reduction actions brought about by energy efficiency and renewable energy will decrease the overall cost of reducing pollution. Following the Cleaner and Greener Principles will also increase electric system reliability due to reduced demand for electricity.

The Cleaner and Greener Principles represent a significant change from past regulatory practice which subsidized pollution by giving emission allowances only to emitters of pollution and giving the most allowances to the biggest emitters of pollution. Implementing the Cleaner and Greener Principles does not increase the number of allowances, but simply changes the distribution of these allowances so that enough are set aside to reward all credible energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Recipients of emission allowances can turn them into cash by selling them in the marketplace. 

Michael Arny, Director of Leonardo Academy, states, "When environmental regulators hand out emission allowances, they are handing out cash. It is time that they start using this cash to reward all the businesses, schools, hospitals, other organizations, and individuals that are quietly reducing environmental emissions by increasing their energy efficiency and their use of renewable energy." Building owners and other individuals can find out how much NOx and other pollutants are emitted as a result of their electricity usage and how much energy efficiency improvements reduce NOx and other emissions, by visiting the Cleaner and Greener web site at http://www.cleanerandgreener.org and trying out the easy-to-use emission calculators.

The Cleaner and Greener Program's environmentally friendly approach to emission reduction regulation will only be implemented in states where businesses, organizations, and individuals support it. Environmental regulators must make their decisions in the context of the amount of support they receive for the various options available to them. With your support, we can show regulators that the option that is best for the public and the environment also has the most support. 

If you would like to see the distribution of emission allowances redirected to reward pollution reduction actions, and you want to encourage the use of energy efficiency and renewable energy, please send us a letter of support for the Cleaner and Greener Principles. If you maintain a web site, you can also show your support by placing a link to http://www.cleanerandgreener.org on your web site.

For a full discussion of the Cleaner and Greener Principles, visit the Cleaner and Greener web site at http://www.cleanerandgreener.org
 

For additional information, contact:

The Cleaner and Greener Environment Program of Leonardo Academy
Michael Arny, Director

Telephone: 608-280-0255  Fax: 608-255-7202  
Email: [log in to unmask]
Web sites: http://www.cleanerandgreener.org & http://www.leonardoacademy.org 
Address: 1526 Chandler Street, Madison, WI 53711


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