I'm starting this petition because my idea may seem like a dream, but it is not so whimsical as to be an unrealistic undertaking . Some invested interests can pipe crude, dirty stuff from Canada to Texas. How many of us are interested in having clean energy and living pollution free?

Honolulu has already banned foam containers with chlorofluorocarbons, due to health concerns. It’s time to go one step further in protecting our land. Polystyrene foam containers are still made with the carcinogen styrene and do not break down safely, leaving our beaches and land scattered with toxic foam bits and endangering species that try to consume the foam. On May 28, 2014, I introduced Bill 40 in the City Council. This bill would ban food vendors from the use of any polystyrene foam containers. The Bill requires that all disposable food service containers must be made of compostable material that will break down into usable compost in a safe and timely manner without leaving any toxic residue. This new regulation will apply to all disposable food service containers from a restaurant or takeout food operation as packaging to serve or transport food. This will include plates, cups, bowls, trays, and hinged or lidded containers. I’m asking my colleagues on the City Council to pass this bill without delay!

Fracking (hydraulic fracturing to extract natural gas) is bad for Massachusetts in at least these ways: - It uses a complex mix of chemicals that can get into the water table and escape into the environment - chemicals that fracking companies want to keep as trade secrets so we don't even know how dangerous they might be. - It disturbs the surface at the point of extraction. - The process may encourage earthquakes and other instability. You may not think of Massachusetts as a high earthquake zone, but in fact there was a large earthquake in colonial times that did a lot of damage (see http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/massachusetts/history.php), and the activity of fault systems under Massachusetts is not well understood. - The fuel extracted will be burned, contributing to global warming. This is a time when we should be switching to renewable energy sources, not maximizing extraction of fossil fuels. - The fuel must be transported, most likely by pipelines, which are themselves destructive of the environment. They also risk leaks and thus contamination from unintentional release into the environment. Massachusetts aims to be a leader in solar and other renewable and clean energy sources. Fracking is not consistent with that aim. We should ban fracking now.

Three years ago, my wife and Colrain-Shelburne Rd. resident Godeliève Richard became electro-hypersensitive. She experiences numerous serious medical symptoms when exposed to wireless radiation. Her condition has plunged our family into hours and hours of research on the subject which have taught us that the current FCC standards are not adequately protecting U.S. citizens. The proposed cell tower would be the first glimpse motorists on Route 2 see of the "beautiful hilltowns." It is proposed in an area surrounded by wetlands and homes that include elderly people and children, the most vulnerable populations to health damage from EMF radiation. Studies have shown property values drop by an average of 15% around cell towers. The first night of the hearing on June 17 featured AT&T's lawyer asking for 3 "waivers" of Shelburne by-laws, including the one which states cell towers must be at least 500 feet from homes. This tower will be a mere 350 feet, essentially playing Russian roulette with innocent people's health. The hearing will be continued on July 29th at 7 pm in Memorial Hall, Shelburne Falls when an updated list of petition signers will be given again to the ZBA. Letters can be sent to [email protected] or mailed to ZBA, 51 Bridge Street. All letters received before July 29 will be considered by the Zoning Board. For cell tower research and resources go to www.ptco.org/emf

At a May 19 awards ceremony, Zucker admitted that while climate change "deserves more attention," CNN hasn't "figured out how to engage the audience in that story in a meaningful way." He added that there was a "tremendous lack of interest on the audience's part." Just two days later, CNN gave us a lesson in how not to cover the issue. The program OutFront (5/21/14) covered the "controversy" over game show host Pat Sajak's climate change denial Twitter outburst. So who did CNN tap to weigh in on Sajak? Far-right provocateur and climate change denier Ann Coulter. Informing the audience was evidently not the point. As substitute host Briana Keilar introduced the segment: "Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak says global warming alarmists are unpatriotic. Tonight, Ann Coulter tells us why she agrees." And the interview was preceded by a taped segment that turned to another global warming denier: "Sajak's skepticism is echoed by others, most notably Florida Sen. Marco Rubio." Some of CNN's previous climate coverage this year has included putting deniers on Crossfire as one "side" of the debate–in one case because it was cold in some parts of the country. Republican Sen. Ted Cruz appeared on the Situation Room (2/21/14) to falsely claim that "the data are not supporting what the advocates are arguing. The last 15 years, there has been no recorded warming." But the segment with Coulter is actually worse–not just treating deniers as though they're a legitimate part of a climate "debate," but acting as though they're the only viewpoints worth hearing from. Is this what Zucker means by trying "to engage the audience in a meaningful way"?

I am Chairperson of the Environmental Committee of South Manasota/Sandpiper Key Association and we are all opposed to removing our mangroves. Please sign our petition to the Charlotte County Board of County Commissioners.

Harris County's expensive and invasive plan removes 80 percent of the vegetation from the banks of Buffalo Bayou in an area as wide as 100 feet from the water's edge in places. It will artificially channelize and change the course of the bayou, damage two dozen critical wetlands and kill hundreds of trees, some of them more than 100 years old, on both banks of the bayou, in Memorial Park and in the Hogg Bird Sanctuary. Many of us have long enjoyed the shady beauty and mystery of the forest using the hiking and biking trails in Memorial Park, which is already losing more than half its trees to the drought. Our serene, slow-moving, distinctly southern Buffalo Bayou is also a Texas Parks and Wildlife paddling trail, and if this "demonstration" plan is implemented, eventually there will be no more bayou wilderness to enjoy. A riparian forest cannot be replaced. The wild banks will be stripped, excavated, graded, landscaped, and planted with Bermuda grass. Harris County has already identified other parts of Buffalo Bayou where it plans to use this destructive and controversial bank "stabilization" method. We need to stop them now. The deadline for comments is June 30. Please add your own personal comments about what bayou means to you with your signature.

Rising seas and stronger storms pose a very serious threat to much of coastal Louisiana. Our local and state governments have done very little, if anything, to address the climate crisis.

Current and future drilling operations along the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale Ridge plan to extract oil and natural gas through the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”. The toxic chemicals that fracking releases into the ground water, water reservoirs, and the air surrounding the fracking site contaminate the environment and increase the risks of illness, infertility, birth defects, and cancer. In a state so dependent on the natural landscape and the water for food, transportation, commerce, recreation, and tourism, it proves nonsensical to support practices that endanger those activities and the people who depend upon them. This state has a beautiful ecosystem and a proud heritage of people who live with the land. Fracking is bad for the people, the ecosystem, and the economy. In short, fracking is destructive to the traditions and lifeways that make us proud to call Louisiana home.

Gov. Corbett's executive order affects 2.2 million acres of State Forest and 200,000 acres of State Park land. It is an attempt to create revenue to balance the budget - a budget he can't balance because of poor financial management and bad governmental decisions, i.e. corporate giveaways and Medicare expansion declination. His other attempts to balance the budget were to sell the State Liquor Stores, Lottery, etc. This is yet another attempt to balance a budget by selling off or invading public assets. This executive order would allow extraction facilities and rigs to be located adjacent to our beautiful and pristine forests and parks. To believe there will be no appreciable impact on these public treasures is naive. The safety of this drilling is based on Corbett's internal advisory committee. Tell him no, make it clear that he will lose your vote if he continues on this course.

Gov. Corbett just lifted a three-year moratorium on leasing of state forests and parks for gas drilling. We know more drilling means more blowouts, more spills of toxic fracking wastewater, and more ruined landscapes. And, outrageously, the governor’s order will allow drilling under our state parks for the first time. The Legislature is the last line of defense for our state parks and forests. Already more than 700,000 acres of our state forests have been leased for gas drilling. That’s more than 40 percent of our existing state forestlands. But the drillers want more--and sadly, Gov. Corbett is happy to hand it to them. Tell your state representative and state senator to fight Gov. Corbett’s effort to open more of our state parks and forests for fracking.

Oahu was recently in the national spotlight for a pilot program converting streetlights to a light-emitting diode (LED) system. The initial project installed 180 LED lights in four locations: Manoa, Mililani, Nuuanu, and Waialae-Kahala. The City and County of Honolulu determined that this new system saved $50 per light per year. LED conversion is a common-sense solution that saves both costs and energy. As an island state, we are particularly vulnerable to sea level rise and are already seeing its effects on our eroding beaches. We need to model energy efficiency for the country and for the entire world. LED lamps also produce brighter directional light that dramatically improves the safety of our streets. It is up to us to show leadership on this critical issue. Mayor Caldwell proposed converting all 51,700 streetlights on the island to LED, representing a potential savings of $3 million per year. While the City Council initially cut the $80,000 in funds needed for this project, I fought to restore this funding, and the cut was reversed at the final Budget Committee hearing earlier this month. I am calling on my fellow members of the City Council to approve the budget that restores funding for LED conversion across the island. The full council will meet on June 4 for this crucial vote. Please add your voice to this movement for environmental sustainability and improved public safety!