Where there's a Will, there's a way

My letter to the editor about electric cars and the Illinois Clean Car Bill received a response published in the State Journal-Register today. Steve McGrew writes that people should save gasoline by not slamming on the gas peddle. He's absolutely correct. That's another good way to use less gas and thereby reduce your carbon footprint.

I have to disagree with the other assertions in McGrew's letter. He suggests that electric cars won't reduce carbon emissions because most power generation comes from coal & natural gas, which also contribute to global warming. First, only about half of power generation in Illinois is from coal-fire power plants with most of the rest coming from nuclear plants.

Closer to home, McGrew should keep in mind that CWLP is now using some wind power and more is on the way, thanks to the clean energy agreement with the Sierra Club. In the near future, CWLP will add a green buy-in program that will allow people to pay an additional cost to ensure that more wind power is used to power their home (or their electric car). The agreement calls for several other measures that will result in CWLP reducing CO2 emissions to below 1990 levels for its native load.

Finally, electric cars produce less CO2 even when powered by coal plants because they use energy more efficiently. A study by Carnegie Mellon institute is one of several sources that tell us running an electric car powered by coal plants still produces less CO2 than driving a conventional car. So even someone who gets their power from coal plants shouldn't be discouraged from driving electric.

Of course, McGrew and anyone else concerned about where we get our power is welcome to join the Sierra Club's continuing efforts to promote renewable energies that will reduce emissions that cause global climate change.

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Earlier today I took the public tour of the new Dallman 4 power plant currently under construction by CWLP. To my surprise, they allowed people to take pictures so I'm posting a few I took on the tour. You can see more pictures from earlier stages of construction on CWLP's page about the new plant.

I'm shrinking the pictures a little to fit on the blog but if you click on them a larger version will appear in a pop-up window.

The main generator is going somewhere inside this steel structure. The trailer at the bottom of the picture will give you an idea of just how big the plant is going to be.

Above is another side of the same structure. Its difficult to get the entire thing in one shot.

Here you can see some of the pollution control equipment. The rust colored thing on the right (I forget the technical name) is inside the same structure in the pictures above. If I remember correctly, it removes particulate matter that causes asthma and other health problems. The silver colored structure on the left is a scrubber. The new smokestack is just to the left outside the view of this picture.

Air pollution came up frequently during the tour. Chief Engineer Jay Bartlett described the several pieces of pollution control equipment during a short presentation at the beginning of the tour. It was interesting to see first hand what the equipment looks like after I've spent so much time talking about NOx, SO2, CO2 and particulate matter. Several people asked questions about pollution control measures during the tour as well. The new Dallman 4 unit will be just about as clean as any coal fire power plant can get and its a significant improvement over the older Lakeside plant that will be shut down.

This picture is one of the existing Dallman units from an angle that you don't normally see unless you work for CWLP. The tour guide mentioned that they're doing work to upgrade pollution control equipment on one of the existing Dallman units. Reducing emissions from the existing power plants is part of CWLP's clean energy agreement with the Sierra Club.

I don't know if CWLP is going to do another public tour but I highly recommend going if they do!

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Somehow I missed his Friday cartoon which came gift wrapped with a bow for the crowd on the SJ-R comment board that dutifully repeats Rush Limbaugh talking points after every story about global warming.

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The Editors of the State Journal-Register published their opinion on global warming today.

Its good to see today's editorial acknowledge the reality that global climate change is a serious problem and efforts by the Bush administration to keep information from the public. Despite Bush's frequent lip-service for the environment, this administration has been nothing but a road block on the way to resolving global warming.

I'm not sure exactly what the editors were getting at when they wrote that solving the problem will take "a global technological effort that makes the Manhattan Project look simple" but in the previous paragraph wrote that "it is unlikely we can sacrifice ourselves out of this problem with hybrid cars, smaller refrigerators and solar water heaters."

I think developed nations (which generally have declining or slowly expanding populations) and under-developed nations (which generally have rapidly expanding populations) have different challenges. Most of the world's carbon emissions come from wealthy, developed nations with the United States and China leading the way.

Incidentally, Communist countries have horrible track records on how they treat the environment. So China's high pollution levels aren't surprising but Americans still emit far more carbon on a per-person basis.

If the problem is going to be solved it means those of us in the Unites States have to reduce the amount of energy we use individually. So new technologies like lower polluting cars, geothermal heating/cooling systems, better insulation and other energy efficiency programs are an absolutely essential part of the solution. We need to transition to those technologies that allow us to do more with less energy.

The good news for those of us in Springfield is that CWLP is starting to dramatically increase its investment in energy conservation and efficiency programs as a result of the clean energy agreement with the Sierra Club. CWLP has already rolled out a few new programs recently, but there's much, much more to come. That will make it easier and cheaper for CWLP customers to be part of the solution to global warming while simultaneously reducing their monthly utility bill.

One reason reducing carbon emissions is so difficult, and is facing so much opposition, is that our economy is largely dependent on coal and oil. That means the transition to a new type of economy is opposed by powerful economic interests who fear they have much to lose.

Our overall economy will remain strong because there are many green-collar jobs that will be created to do everything from building solar panels to installing new insulation in homes. But that's little consolation to those heavily invested in oil and coal who feed talking points to talk radio hosts.

I hope developing nations with expanding economies will take note of the United State's dilemma. They have the opportunity to build a different kind of economy from the ground up that's based on lower polluting energy sources. That battle is being lost in China but it doesn't have to be lost in other nations with growing economies.

This might be what the editors of the SJ-R had in mind when they wrote about technology and growing populations. We need to use new technologies to help developing nations build an economy that isn't dependent on high-polluting fossil fuels. That will save them the pain of a difficult economic transition down the road that the U.S. is facing now.

Its going to take leadership from the United States to make that happen. We're still the world's superpower. We set the agenda for other nations of the world so the burden is on our shoulders to set the example. Hopefully our next President will show the leadership it takes to encourage the use of renewable energy and new technologies around the globe instead of continuing the pollution platform of the current White House.

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The November Liberty Brew & View movie is Harlan County, USA. It's absolutely one of the best movies of any genre that I've ever seen. It starts at 7pm, Tuesday, November 20 at the Capital City Bar & Grill in the Capital City Shopping Center on Dirksen Parkway. You can show up starting at 6:30 to socialize. Admission is free.

Here's the synopsis from Rotten Tomatoes:

If Barbara Kopple had made no other film than this documentary account of the 1974 strike of Kentucky mine workers, arguably one of the finest documentaries ever made in the U.S. and possibly the best on the problems of organized labor, her place in film history would be assured. The strike began when the miners working for the Eastover Mining Co. joined the UMW, and its corporate parent, Duke Power, refused to sign the standard union contract. By living with the 180-odd families involved in the strike, Kopple shows the backbreaking burdens of the miners' life in the best of times and the looming fear of destitution in the worst. As the strikers strive to remain united through a difficult year, Kopple photographs the picketing, the company's use of state troopers to keep the roads open for scabs, the showdowns between the miners and strikebreakers brandishing firearms. After several shootings, one miner is finally killed. During the man's wake, a memorable sequence, his mother collapses. While the film is unabashedly partisan, it's worth remembering that the company's refusal to sign a contract was condemned by the National Labor Relations Board and that the corporation agreed to sign only under heavy pressure from federal mediators. The Oscar-winning HARLAN COUNTY, USA is a landmark in the history of American documentary filmmaking.

Just watching the movie trailer gets me worked up:

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Last year thousands of people participated in over 1,400 Step It Up events across the country to call for action to confront the global climate crisis. This year Step It Up is happening one year before the next election to call for more leadership on climate change.

There are two events happening locally. First, on Saturday, November 3 (the national day of action) is a noon rally in front of the federal building at 6th & Monroe.

The big event will be a Town Meeting Sunday, November 4, 2:00-3:30pm at First Presbyterian Church Commons, 321 S 7th St, Springfield. The first part of the meeting will feature presentations by UIS Biology professor Jim Bonacum and SJ-R photographer Chris Young.

Then a town meeting portion will give people the opportunity to find out what organizations are doing locally to work on climate change and talk about what action they'd like Springfield to take. A long list of local organizations are co-sponsoring the event, which I expect to be one of the largest environmental events Springfield has seen in a long while.

You can download this flier as a reminder or to give to friends.

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The State Journal-Register published my letter to the editor about the Illinois Clean Car Bill.

Going green could help automakers

I recently watched “Who Killed the Electric Car?” for the second time at the Liberty Brew & View showing at Capital City Nights. Even on second viewing I’m still shocked by the short-sighted efforts auto manufacturers took to keep electric cars out of the hands of willing customers.

I hope anyone who hasn’t seen the movie will take the time to view it because it’s hard to believe until you hear the entire story of what happened to the electric car in California.

After the movie, state Rep. Mike Boland spoke about the Illinois Clean Car Bill that will require automakers to use existing technology to produce the kind of vehicles consumers are asking for that have better mileage and pollute less. Boland spoke about auto-industry lobbyists opposing the Clean Car Bill in Springfield using the usual scare tactics about lost jobs.

They make the same bogus predictions every time any environmental or safety regulation is proposed from seat belts to air bags.

In fact, Toyota recently surpassed General Motors in sales by offering hybrids and other cars that pollute less than gas-guzzlers. Requiring cars with lower levels of polluting emissions saves drivers money at the gas pump by improving mileage, and it will create new American jobs by forcing American car companies to offer the kind of car consumers want.

Automobiles are the second-largest sources of emissions that cause global climate change. The Illinois Clean Car Bill is an easy choice where doing what’s sensible for the environment also makes good economic sense. I hope our local representatives will soon join Mike Boland in co-sponsoring the Illinois Clean Car Bill.

Will Reynolds, Springfield

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The State Journal-Register has an article today featuring complaints by the National Corn Growers Association about a new documentary called King Corn. I had the chance to see an advance copy of the film a few months ago and I fully expected big agribusiness to object to how their industry is portrayed.

The plot of King Corn is that two city-slickers from Boston move to Iowa to grow an acre of corn. Their goal is to find out where the end product of what they grow is eventually used. The audience learns along with the film-makers about modern farming and the agriculture industry.

The SJ-R article states: "The NCGA says the film doesn't show how hard farmers work, nor does it give enough attention to efforts to develop new markets for corn."

I disagree with both of those portrayals of the film. First, I think it did recognize that farming isn't easy work and one of the more interesting aspects of the movie was showing how farming methods have changed over the years. I also think it very sympathetically explains how the deck is stacked against the average farmer unless they rely on subsidies.

Efforts by the corn industry to create new markets and increase demand for corn was the most powerful and surprising message I took from King Corn. Before the movie I hadn't given much thought to the fact that corn byproducts are everywhere and in just about everything. Going out for a meal that doesn't have a corn product in it takes serious effort. Just take a sip of soda and you've already failed.

I didn't realize, as most Americans don't, the extent to which the government takes action to increase consumption of corn and corn byproducts. By the end of the movie I realized how much the promotion of ethanol for so many years is one more in a long line of efforts to increase the price of corn.

The article quotes one of the film's creators saying: "I can't tell you how unlike a Michael Moore film this is." Well, that's true. Michael Moore's movies are more entertaining and do a better job of making a point.

King Corn isn't a thriller but I learned a lot. Anyone who supports organic food and small family farms will especially appreciate its message. It has its funny and charming moments as well. It's definitely worth seeing if you get the chance.

Here's a trailer:

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The law for a moment of silence in schools has to be one of the most boneheaded acts of an undistinguished session of the Illinois General Assembly. I read that there's no enforcement provision for students who don't comply.

If students are truly free to do or say what they choose during that time, then I'd like to suggest that High School students make the moment of silence more productive by reading the first amendment to the Constitution. It might teach students something that the sponsors of the law failed to learn in school. Here's a copy of the amendment for any High School students interested in trying the idea.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

As a bonus they might read this section of the Bill of Rights found in the Illinois State Constitution.

No person shall be required to attend or support any ministry or place of worship against his consent, nor shall any preference be given by law to any religious denomination or mode of worship.

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Chris Britt's cartoons are often gutsy but he ventured out into new territory with today's cartoon about ethanol.

I wonder if the SJ-R publishers will be hearing from ADM and its other big agribusiness advertisers? I wish I had confidence that ethanol is helping family farmers as much as its helping corporate mega farms, but I doubt it.

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Yesterday General Motors announced it's laying off 767 workers at its Hamtramck assembly plant because of low demand for the cars made there, the Buick Lucerne and Cadillac DTS. According to the company website those cars get 16 and 15 miles per gallon in the city, respectively.

Thanks to the recent UAW contract with General Motors, there's a guarantee that the plant will at least remain open. The contract also tells us that the saving grace of the plant, and the potential for jobs to be restored in the future, is the new Chevy Volt that will be built there starting in 2010.

The Chevy Volt will be a plug-in hybrid, which is the technology I think offers the best combination of fuel savings, low emissions, and convenience for those driving more than short distances.

This is a good sign for GM. I've been waiting for a Saturn hybrid that isn't an SUV for years, only to be disappointed by the meager mileage improvements and much higher cost of their new Saturn hybrid sedan.

I've heard auto-industry lobbyists make bizarre claims that cleaner car regulations will limit consumer choice, as though consumers are still demanding cars with terrible mileage in the days of $3.00 per gallon. It looks like, with the changes at the Hamtramck plant, that GM will finally start responding to market demand for more environmentally conscious cars.

Hopefully, this will be a turning point for the company and an end to the backward claims that producing environmentally friendly cars means losing jobs. As we see in Hamtramck, just the opposite is true. I wonder how many jobs could have been saved had they produced a good plug-in hybrid sooner?

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Several interesting topics came up at the Liberty Brew & View showing of "Who Killed the Electric Car?" Tuesday night. Over 30 people came to see the movie and hear Illinois State Representative Mike Boland talk about the Illinois Clean Car Bill and other clean energy legislation he's supporting.

Representative Boland mentioned one of the tired old scare tactics auto-industry lobbyists are using against the Illinois Clean Car Bill: that it will cost jobs. They use this rationale so often that they don't even bother to explain or justify the claim anymore. How exactly will it cost jobs? Can't union auto workers make a lower polluting car just as well as old outdated ones? If anything is costing American jobs its the failure of American car companies to offer hybrid and other lower polluting cars that consumers are asking for.

Boland also brought up an electric car company that would like to open a new plant, creating 200 jobs, in Rock Island. One barrier is a state regulation barring smaller electric commuter cars from crossing state highways. This particular brand of car has some speed limitations (not true of all electric cars) that prevent it from traveling on state and federal highways. Boland's bill would allow those cars to go across state highways so they can at least travel across towns that have a state highway going through them.

One point that became obvious during the movie is that American car companies are resisting using existing technology to offer all-electric, and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Earlier this year General Motors lost its place as the nation's top selling car manufacture by allowing foreign car companies to take the lead in offering hybrids and other low-emissions vehicles.

Its unfortunate that the United Auto Workers union is siding with auto-manufacturers in their short-sighted opposition to the Illinois Clean Car bill as well as improved federal CAFE standards. Ultimately, GM's outdated business model and insistence on sticking by yesterday's technology is costing far more American union jobs than any environmental regulation.

I support unions but I don't think the political arm of the UAW is serving its membership well on this issue. After all, when car companies aren't scapegoating environmentalists for lost jobs, they're usually blaming high union wages and benefits for moving plants to cheaper labor markets. Better environmental regulations may be what saves American car companies from their own poor business strategies.

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Today is national blog action day when blogs around the world are supposed to unite to write about the environment. That's not a big stretch for me since I write about environmental issues all the time but I feel a little pressure to come up with something good today. Instead of writing about another issue I'm going to post a few pictures of the places that helped motivate me to get involved in environmental issues.

I grew up learning about nature from Boy Scouts and going camping with my dad. I don't remember most of what I learned about identifying trees on my way to becoming and Eagle Scout but there are things that had an impact on me like the merit badge that required me to sit quietly in the woods for an hour. It was the first time I realized how different the forest is when you're still enough to not disturb what's around you.

The turning point for me was going to work for the National Parks Conservation Association in Knoxville Tennessee. When I started the job I had more enthusiasm for historic sites in the National Park system than the natural parks. Being close enough to hike in the Great Smoky Mountains every weekend changed my perspective. The beauty of the mountains must be why there's so much support for environmental issues in East Tennessee compared to central Illinois.

On my first hike in the Smokies I went up Mt. Cammerer.

This picture is of me next to the fire tower at the top. It was restored by the Friends of the Smokies.

I didn't visit the Smokies very often at first. I had a friend who came to visit that said, "If I lived this close to the Smokies I would go there every weekend." That made a florescent light bulb go off in my head so I started hiking several times each month.

Here's a picture of Cades Cove, which is the most popular destination in the park. You can click on this and some of the others to enlarge.

Unfortunately, the traffic congestion through Cades Cove in the tourist season is a real problem. Someday they need to create a transit system and take people through on some kind of tram or bus.

I took this one in late spring on Brushy Mountain trail.

Here's one of my favorites of Laurel Falls.

Another one of Mt. Cammerer showing the fall colors.

The Smoky Mountains website has a page on air quality that describes the effects of air pollution on the park including reduced visibility, health risks to hikers, and damage to plant life.

There's some discussion within the environmental movement over whether too much emphasis is being put on energy issues in comparison to traditional land conservation efforts. Reading about the effect ozone pollution from cars and coal power plants has on the smokies makes it impossible for me to believe there's any divide between land conservation and energy issues. Both are essential if we're going to protect America's few remaining natural areas.

Ok, one more picture just for fun of one of my other favorite places, Zion National Park.

If I look a little haggard its because I had just been driven like a mule on a 14 mile day hike through the high desert canyons by a back country park ranger who had been on the trails all summer. Since I had been doing campaign work in the city for several months instead of hiking, we had different ideas about what pace was acceptable.

Another ranger was surprised when my friend said how quickly we made the hike so I felt a little vindicated. I thought I was going to die and she didn't seem phased by it at all. I had a great time.

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I thought covering the Nobel Peace Prize might present a challenge for Fox News so I decided to see how they handled it. The first thing I noticed is this line in the first few sentences of their story: "Gore — who was President Clinton's veep for eight years —"

"Veep?" Really? Is this a national news organization or a text message from an 8th grader?

The story focuses almost exclusively on speculation about Gore running for President rather than the issue of global climate change that the owners of Fox News would rather you not spend too much time thinking about critically.

Halfway though the "news story" we get this line: "Political speculation on Gore has abounded, despite his repeated claims that he enjoys the private life, which not only has been celebrity-filled with his newfound Hollywood fame, but also has been lucrative."

AGAIN with the "liberal Hollywood elites" silliness?! Don't Bill O'Reilly fans ever grow tired of his constant whining about Hollywood elites? I guess I have a pretty low threshold for that kind of demagoguery.

What really makes me nervous about O'Reilly's obsession with Hollywood and Media "elites" is that John Birchers and others on the far-right have for decades equated those terms with Jews. O'Reilly can claim innocence but lets not pretend those stereotypes and conspiracy theories about Jews controlling Hollywood and the media don't exist. Pardon me if I get a little nervous about an arch-conservative who obsessively complains about Jews making his life difficult, even if in coded references. It doesn't typically lead to good things.

Fox propaganda is often subtle but its effective when applied daily.

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Congratulations to Al Gore for winning the Nobel Peace Prize!

The New York Times has an article I found interesting that describes why global climate change is an appropriate topic for a peace prize.

The award to Al Gore and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reflects a growing conviction on the part of scientists, politicians and economists that emissions and the global warming they produce will lead not only to more pollution but could also create economic mayhem, social upheaval and conflicts between nations or groups trying to survive in an increasingly hostile natural environment.

“This prize is an indication of the degree to which we’ve realized in the past few years that what happens in the environment is not just about natural resources but has so many different dimensions,” said Achim Steiner, executive director of the United Nations Environment Program, which helped found the intergovernmental panel.

“It recognizes that changes in the environment are likely to manifest themselves in tensions and conflicts.”

The prize was given to help change the political climate and encourage further action to resolve a global problem. In America, the political system lags far behind public opinion on environmental issues. While a large majority of Americans support protecting the environment, the polluting industries succeed in protecting their interests from legislative action over and over again.

I hate to admit how effectively bogus claims about "lost jobs" and childish stereotyping about tree-huggers prevents meaningful action on climate change and other environmental issues. We need more political leaders who won't be cowed into inaction by talk-radio name calling and campaign contributions from special interest polluters. We can't resolve global climate change until we change the American political climate.

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State Representative Mike Boland will speak after the Liberty Brew & View showing of "Who Killed the Electric Car?" happening this Tuesday, October 16, 7pm at the Capital City Bar & Grill in Springfield.

Boland is a progressive downstate Democrat from Moline with an excellent record on environmental issues. He spoke in favor of the Illinois Clean Car bill when it passed the House Environmental Health committee earlier this year.

Liberty Brew & View is one of the highlighted "it" selections in the Illinois Times this week. I've been getting a lot of enthusiastic responses so I think we'll have a good turn-out Tuesday.

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There are so many environmental events coming up in Springfield that you would think this is earth month. The following are events I have on my calendar. Leave a comment if I missed one.

“Confronting Global Warming”
A presentation by Don Wuebbles, Ph.D, an international expert on global warming and director of the School of Earth, Society and Environment at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Friday, October 12, 7:30pm
Trutter Center, Lincoln Land Community College

The Forest For the Trees
Monday, October 15, 6:00pm
Brookens Auditorium, UIS
A group discussion will follow the showing of the documentary.

Who Killed the Electric Car?
Liberty Brew & View
Tuesday, October 16, 7pm
Capital City Bar & Grill
3149 S Dirksen Pkwy
Find out how to support the electric car and the Illinois Clean Car Bill after the movie.

CWLP Community Energy Meeting
Thursday, October 18, 4 p.m.
Public Affairs Center – Conference Room G, UIS
I think CWLP will have some big announcements about the progress of their energy conservation programs resulting from the Sierra Club agreement. This is your chance to let CWLP know what they should do next.

Sierra Club Annual Fall Potluck
Tuesday, October 23, 6:30pm
Lincoln Memorial Gardens Council Ring

Sustainable Springfield Inc. Tour
October 23, 5:30pm
A tour of the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency building, the first US Green Building Council Certified Silver LEED (Leadership Energy Environment Design) building in Springfield.

Step it Up 2007
November 3
There are plans developing for a Springfield event with details TBA.

Meet Your Local Grower
Illinois Stewardship Alliance and Slow Food Springfield
Saturday, November 10, 10:00am – 2:00pm.
Lincoln Park Pavilion
No, not that kind of grower.
"Meet Central Illinois’ local grower and producers. Find out what types of foods are available locally, how they are produced and where to purchase them. Interested in signing up for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) for the next growing season? Would you like to be able to buy local foods to serve this holiday season? Workshops will be held throughout the event on topics such as “Why Choose Grass Fed Beef?” and “What is Community Supported Agriculture?”

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This could get interesting. They're trying to get bloggers to write about the environment on October 15th. I'll see if I can come up with something.

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Feel free to repost this. Click on the image to enlarge.

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On a recent trip to Austin I heard a radio station advertise a water conservation package from the city worth $2,000 as one of the prizes in a contest. I decided to google Austin's waster conservation efforts when I got home and discovered that they have one of the best programs in the country.

Austin's water conservation division has a task force that developed a wide range of plans to reduce water consumption, including rebates for efficient fixtures and appliances, rainwater harvesting, public education programs, and irrigation system upgrades.

I cringe whenever I hear people refer to water conservation measures as limits on washing cars and watering lawns. Besides the fact that it vastly oversimplifies conservation efforts to talk about it in merely those terms, shiny cars and green lawns are vanities to which many people are particularly attached.

To get an idea of some other measures, you can read the initial report of the water committee and their most recent recommendations, which also provide a cost analysis showing that water conservation is more cost effective than building new water facilities.

Talk of building a new dam when Springfield has yet to make anything resembling the conservation efforts of Austin is short sighted and fiscally irresponsible. Why should we be subjected to a 75% increase in water rates when we can meet our needs for the future in a way that will save ratepayers money on our bill?

A local group called Citizens for Sensible Water Use is holding a program on the proposed Hunter Lake Dam on October 8, 7:00 p.m. in Lincoln Library’s Carnegie Room.

I saw an earlier version of their program at a Sierra Club meeting several months ago. I was amazed by what I learned about the long history of the proposal and what we'll lose if its completed. Anyone who wants to be truly informed about this issue owes it to themselves to attend the presentation this Monday. It moves the debate far beyond empty slogans about "growth" and "progress."

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Here's a trailer for the next film being presented by Liberty View & Brew, "Who Killed the Electric Car?"

If you know anything about this movie then you've probably heard enthusiastic praise from friends and reviewers. This showing will be a little unique because Liberty View & Brew is about taking action in addition to thinking about an issue.

Stick around after the movie for information about how to resurrect the electric car and support the Illinois Clean Car bill to improve auto-emission standards. We'll have post cards to your legislator and a soon-to-be-confirmed guest speaker. Besides all of that, this is your chance to see it on a big movie screen with friends, food and beverages.

Who Killed the Electric Car?

Capital City Bar & Grill
Capital City Shopping Center
3149 S Dirksen Pkwy
Springfield, IL 62703

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The third quarter issue of the Illinois Sierra Club's newsletter, Lake & Prairie, was published recently. It includes a short article I wrote which overviews the drive for Illinois to adopt the California Pavley clean car standards, plus an article about the campaign's first clean car wash.

You can find the newsletter at the Illinois Chapter website or download the pdf directly here.

I found a good interview in the Sacramento Bee with the namesake of the California standards, Fran Pavley.

"...it's not a choice between the environment and the economy. Business leaders, progressive ones worried about the 21st century and the impact of not doing anything -- they're on board.

Why the federal government continues to drag its feet is amazing to me. We see this as a wonderful business opportunity."

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There are a couple things I've been meaning to write relating to online county government but I keep finding other things to write about when I have the time to blog.

Not long after my last post about open government, newly appointed county board member Jennifer Dillman mailed a questionnaire to her new constituents. The mailing was paid for by the Sangamon County Board Republican Election Committee. In their last report with the Illinois Board of Elections they reported $20,820 in itemized contributions, of which $20,000 came from Board Chairman Andy Van Meter.

Dillman's survey included a question asking if videos of county board meetings should be available online. She also has a website. Its nice to see someone on the board embrace web-based communication.

Showing county board meetings online is a good idea but I would call it an icing on the cake measure when we still don't have the cake. Showing meetings on public access television would reach more people than those who have high-speed internet access.

Also, it only allows people to view what's being done after its too late to participate. I don't think anyone is going to rush out of their house to the county board meeting before it ends to speak up about something they see online.

If the county wants to use the internet to involve people, rather than merely informing them after the fact, they should put the committee meeting agendas, minutes and proposed ordinances online. That will give people an easier way to find out what's going on before an issue goes to the full county board for a final vote.

It looks like Dillman is willing to work so I won't be surprised to see her run for election to her seat. Her principle previous experience is working for John "See No Evil" Shimkus so I'm sure she'll have strong support.

Candidate Petitions

The State Journal Register re-ran an old story about the County Clerk putting petitions for candidates online when they covered the story about write-in votes that weren't counted in the SMEAA election. Along with petitions, the Clerk also included other documents that were previously included in the packet of materials given to those planning to run for office. I've noticed the election office gradually putting more information online over time, such as the list of precincts included in legislative districts. They aren't putting as much online as quickly as I would, but its always good to see progress.

There's one aspect of putting candidate information online that Schoenburg probably didn't think was important enough to include in his article. In past elections, a potential candidate would come to the election office to pick up the packet of materials and sign in their name along with the office they planned to run for. If that list of names wasn't legally public information, it was at least treated as such for those who knew it existed.

That meant candidates could find out if anyone was planning to run against them and party leaders could keep track of non-establishment candidates who were circulating petitions. I'm sure the list was also helpful for reporters like Schoenburg as well.

One function of political parties is to attempt uniting support behind a party candidate and discourage divisive challenges that drain party resources. And in some party organizations that means ensuring candidates running for an office that can likely be won come from their own dominant faction within the party. Having access to a list of everyone considering a run for any office makes it a little easier for party leaders to contact and discourage maverick candidates before they turn in their petitions to get on the ballot.

Having candidate documents online makes it a little bit easier for an outsider candidate not allied with the leaders of either party to get farther along in the process of collecting ballot petition signatures before the local political establishment knows what they're doing.

Whether this will make any practical difference, I don't know. Most candidates contact the leaders of their party when they first consider a run for office, and someone can still be pressured to remove their name from the ballot after they turn in their petitions. But since there might be a few political junkies reading this blog who find that sort of change interesting...there you go.

Posted by Will at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)