Sunlight Seeker
Look up national or state donors or check where your Congresspeople are getting their money.
Media Campaign Tools
The Democratic Agenda
*Tips & Talking Points for Letters to Editors
Email The Media
*Email Iowa and national media, five at a time
Framing The Message
*UC Berkeley professor George Lakoff tells how conservatives use language to dominate politics
Simple Framing
*A step-by-step guide on how to frame progressive issues, by George Lakoff
DemSpeak
*Values Inventory, Message Identification and Development, Engagement & Rapport Strategies, Framing and Reframing Language, Strategic Development and Deployment of Frames, Mediaspace Injection Choreography, and Framing/Media Crossfire training of Capitol Hill Legislators, new TV spokespersons for progressives, Talk Radio callers, and Progressive Leaders
| January 2005 |
| Sun |
Mon |
Tue |
Wed |
Thu |
Fri |
Sat |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1
|
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
7
|
8
|
|
9
|
10
|
11
|
12
|
13
|
14
|
15
|
|
16
|
17
|
18
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
28
|
29
|
|
30
|
31
|
Connie Wilson - Sat 23 Aug 2008 06:31 PM CDT
altheakims - Tue 19 Aug 2008 04:28 AM CDT
Richard - Sun 17 Aug 2008 06:57 PM CDT
sspl05 - Sat 02 Aug 2008 07:21 AM CDT
ihatehogconfinements - Mon 21 Jul 2008 06:45 PM CDT
|
Friday, January 21
EPA Sweetheart Deal with Factory Farms Exempts Polluters from Clean Air Act
by
Linda Thieman
on Fri 21 Jan 2005 04:05 PM CST
 EPA Sweetheart Deal with Factory Farms Exempts Polluters from Clean Air Act
Hastings Group
WASHINGTON, D.C.
(January 21, 2005) In the wake of the EPA release of its CAFO Air
Quality Compliance Agreement today, Michele M. Merkel, senior counsel
of the Environmental Integrity Project issued the following statement
today:
"These
EPA rules amount to a wholesale relaxation of the Clean Air Act as it
relates to factory farms, which are a major source of pollution in
rural America.
All
along, EPA has had the authority under the Clean Air Act to gather the
kind of data it needs to determine emission levels at these industrial
farming operations - it does not need the industry's permission.
The
EPA-proposed amnesty on imposing the Clean Air act protections for the
public can last until 2011. Given that EPA already has had a
moratorium on enforcement for the past four years, that means the
current Administration will stall permits and air pollution controls at
some facilities for more than a decade.
Why is
the EPA doing this? The industry's lobbyists who are operating
hand in glove with the Agency understand they can't defeat emission
controls outright, especially where the public's health is at stake,
but they understand that regulations deferred are money earned, so
their strategy is to postpone the day of reckoning.
This is
another example of what should be a scientific process conducted in the
public's best interest being hijacked by industry. Industry gets
to select the "independent monitoring contractor" who will select the
farms for testing and related steps. The scientific soundness of
the monitoring program can only be ensured if the monitoring protocol
is reviewed by qualified independent experts who do not have ties to
the livestock industry. Furthermore, we are also concerned that the
small number of farms EPA anticipates including in the data collection
process (28) will not provide a significant enough sample to be
representative.
What EPA
is proposing is a sell-out of the public in order to profit the
industry. In practice, this agreement will end up being even
worse than it looks now. Industry will use this agreement to try
and block citizen suits. The idea of preventing citizens from
exercising their rights to hold polluters accountable under federal law
for the next six years (or more) is troubling. Additionally, the
agreement allows companies that have been sued by citizens to sign up
for the amnesty."
For more information, contact Michele M. Merkel at (202) 263-4452 or mmerkel@environmentalintegrity.org.
Teflon: Is Your Cookware Hurting You?
by
Linda Thieman
on Fri 21 Jan 2005 04:00 AM CST
 Teflon: Is Your Cookware Hurting You?
by John Heilprin, Associated Press
The
Environmental Protection Agency warns that people nationwide could face
"a potential risk of developmental and other adverse effects" from
exposure to low levels of a chemical used in making the nonstick
substance Teflon.
EPA
issued a draft assessment of the potential risks of perfluorooctanoic
acid and its salts, known as PFOA, or C-8. The report, based on animal
studies, says some evidence exists that PFOA is carcinogenic in rats,
but the cancer hazard for people is less certain.
It
suggests the chemical targets the liver and is present in the breast
milk of rats. It also says the chemical could raise cholesterol and
triglyceride levels in people - a finding that chemical maker DuPont
Co. publicly released last week. DuPont said its study found no overall
health problems.
While
PFOA is used to make Teflon, it is not present in Teflon itself, which
is applied to cookware, clothing, car parts and flooring. PFOA also is
used to produce materials used in firefighting foam, phone cables and
computer chips.
EPA
officials emphasized that its assessment was preliminary, saying that
while the agency "has concerns with respect to the potential nationwide
presence of PFOA in blood and with the potential for developmental and
other effects suggested by animal studies, there are significant
uncertainties in the agency's quantitative assessment of the risks of
PFOA."
The
Environmental Working Group, an advocacy organization that brought
DuPont's record on PFOA to EPA's attention, said that based on other
studies of PFOA, it believes the potential cancer and heart disease
risks from the chemical are being played down too much.
"There is a more serious risk, we believe, than what EPA is discussing," the group's spokeswoman, Lauren Sucher, said.
(Click here to read the rest of the article.)
For further related information, click here.
|
DFIA Events Calendar
Add Your Event Here
|
