Environment North Carolina Field Associate Breanna Peterson spoke with reporters about the environmental impacts of proposed highway construction projects.
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Lawmakers will return to Jones Street to complete their two-year session on May 9, 2006. Environment North Carolina will be there to speak on behalf of North Carolina’s air, water, open spaces and quality of life. Here are our top priorities:
Clean Air
We’ll promote the Clean Cars Act (H-1460/S-1006), which would require automakers to sell cleaner cars, including a minimum number of advanced technology vehicles like hybrids, paving the way for the future of transportation in the state. The plan would significantly cut smog, toxins, and global warming pollution.
Clean Water
Since 1988, there have been over 23,000 identified leaks of underground storage tanks across the state, and at least 7,000 of them have affected groundwater. Petroleum leaks contain toxic and sometimes carcinogenic substances such as benzene and MTBE.
Today, thousands of toxic leaks statewide still need to be cleaned up. We’ll promote legislation to ensure that these toxic sites get cleaned up, and that the polluters responsible for creating them foot the bill.
Meanwhile, big developers are likely to ask their champions in the Legislature to challenge new rules designed to control polluted runoff, the state’s largest source of water pollution. A state panel called the Rules Review Commission approved the rules in November over the objections of development interests, who have fought the new rules for more than two years. But the Legislature has the option to overturn the regulations this summer.
We’ll work to defend the polluted runoff rules, which will ensure that, when developers build, none of our rivers, lakes or streams will be ruined in the process.
Open Spaces
North Carolina’s forests, farmlands and other critical natural areas are disappearing at almost three times the rate of the state’s population growth. Even at full funding levels, the state’s successful open space protection funds, including the Clean Water Management Trust Fund, aren’t able to keep pace with the state’s rapid growth.
This summer, we’ll work to persuade lawmakers to let voters decide on a bond for the protection of forests, farmlands and other natural areas from the state’s rapid development.
Clean Energy
More than 90 percent of the state’s energy sources come from fossil fuels and nuclear power, dirty and dangerous resources that contribute to pollution and threaten security. We’ll promote energy-efficient appliance requirements and other policies that will reduce smog, soot, and global warming pollution, help reduce production of nuclear waste and save the state millions of dollars on high energy costs.
Safe Foods
Agribusiness interests will be back this year to promote their bill to prevent local governments from regulating controversial genetically modified crops.
The effects of these plants are not fully known, but scientists and public health professionals from around the world have cited potential health hazards that include allergens, toxins, cancer risks and soil contamination. Environment North Carolina will work to defeat the bill so that local governments can regulate food safety.
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