solutions - edf.org wars epa puts the brakes on cleaner vehicles; we join california in lawsuit on...

Earth: TheSequel

A new book byEnvironmentalDefense Fundpresident Fred

Krupp details his personalsearch to find the best solu-tions to global warming—fromflying windmills to artificialcarbon-eating trees. “Ameri-can entrepreneurs are rein-venting energy,” he con-cludes. “We have every reasonfor hope.” page 4

SolutionsVol. 39, No. 2 April 2008

The Environmental ProtectionAgency’s blatant attempt to stop states

from taking action on global warming hasspurred a massive lawsuit by Environmen-tal Defense Fund and its allies.

In December, EPA administratorStephen Johnson stunned many acrossthe nation when he denied California’srequest to enforce tougher emissions lim-its on global warming pollution fromvehicles. Under the Clean Air Act, Cali-fornia can set stricter vehicle emissionstandards than the federal government,but the state must be granted a waiverfrom EPA to do so.

Since 1968, EPA had granted everyone of California’s clean-car waiver re-quests—more than 50 in all. But not thistime. Administrator Johnson claimed thestate didn’t need stricter standards becauseit faced no “compelling and extraordinaryconditions” from global warming.

That’s not so. With global warm-ing, California faces sea level rise alongits vast coastline, disruption of its precar-ious water supplies and increased smogas temperatures inexorably rise.California’s stricterstandards would takeeffect immediately,reducing global warm-ing pollution fromvehicles by 30% whenfully implemented.

EnvironmentalDefense Fund filedsuit against EPA onJanuary 2 to overturnthe decision, alongwith a coalition ofenvironmentalgroups. A separatesuit was filed byCalifornia; at press

Car warsEPA PUTS THE BRAKES ON CLEANER VEHICLES;

WE JOIN CALIFORNIA IN LAWSUIT ON GLOBAL WARMING

time, that suit was joined by 14 otherstates that want to adopt California’sstricter standards.

“The administration is putting thebrakes on state action to address theglobal warming crisis,” said VickiePatton, our deputy general counsel.

The courts have not been kind toprevious efforts to delay global warmingaction:

• Last April, in a historic ruling, theSupreme Court overturned EPA’sclaims that it lacked the authority toregulate global warming pollutionunder the Clean Air Act. Massachu-setts led a coalition of petitioners inthe case, including EnvironmentalDefense Fund.

• September brought another major vic-tory. A federal judge in Vermont struckdown an attempt by automakers toblock California’s new vehicle stan-dards from being adopted. In his rul-ing, the presiding judge rejected the

‘Last, besthope’ forrainforests

Taking onKing Coal

Reviving aCaliforniariver

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Solutions

• In December we won yet another roundwhen California federal district courtjudge Anthony Ishii similarly rejectedautomakers’ attempts to block stricterlimits on global warming pollution.

Environmental Defense Fundwas a defendant-intervener inthe case, working withCalifornia state officials andother environmental groups.

Judge Ishii’s ruling putthe ball back in EPA’s court.He wrote: “Given the levelof impairment of humanhealth and welfare that cur-rent climate science indicatesmay occur if human-gener-ated greenhouse gas emis-sions continue unabated, itwould be the very definitionof folly if EPA were preclud-ed from action.”

EPA has failed the test.With the consequences of

global warming clearly accelerating,California has asked the court to expe-dite the hearing of its case.

“While global warming marchesonward, EPA continues to drag its feet,”says Environmental Defense Fund gen-eral counsel Jim Tripp. “It is followingneither the science nor the law.”

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industry’s claim that it lacked the tech-nology to meet the tailpipe standards.We joined the State of Vermont andother environmental groups in defend-ing the case.

emissions while fighting California’sefforts to reverse that trend.

Of course better cars are just partof the picture. To solve global warming,we also need greener fuels, cleanercoal plants, greater energy efficiencyand more competitive renewable ener-gy. In short: innovation.

While researching our new book,Earth: The Sequel (see page 4), Miriam

Horn and I met with visionary and wildlyambitious inventors who could changethe energy game like nothing seenbefore. The challenge is how to get pri-vate capital flowing to the best ideas.

That’s where Congress comes in. Acap-and-trade law—which establishes

a declining cap on carbon emissionsand a trading market to find theleast expensive reductions—iswhat’s needed now.

Which brings me to Represen-tative Dingell. As chairman of theHouse Energy and CommerceCommittee, he has jurisdiction overdrafting a global warming bill. I wentto Detroit to urge him to act, and actfast. Standing beside me, he repeat-ed a pledge to introduce a globalwarming bill “as fast as we can.”

John Dingell and I don’t agreeon everything, but we do agree onthe power of innovation and the needfor an economy-wide cap on carbonto unleash it. The price of delayingaction is far too high. We’re reachingout to Chairman John Dingell andautomakers to push legislationforward.

The auto industryisn’t known forleadership onglobal warming. Sowhat was I doing atthe Detroit AutoShow, touring therazzle-dazzlemachinery with

Representative John Dingell (D-MI),the industry’s staunchest defender?

The fact is, without automakersAmerica won’t solve global warm-ing. And change is in the air. Youknow something is afoot when yousee pickup trucks flaunting hybridengines and sleek electric conceptcars with batteries molded intonooks and crannies.

But truth be told, Detroit hasn’tyet focused its best minds on fueleconomy. The Big Three keep pump-ing up their fleets’ carbon dioxide

The road to a global warming law leads through Detroit

Environmental Defense Fund Solutions

WHERE WE STAND

Editor: Peter Klebnikov

Environmental Defense Fund, 257 Park Ave. South,New York, NY 10010. Main number 212-505-2100.

Membership questions: Call 800-684-3322 oremail [email protected]

Mailbag: Mail to address above, call 800-927-6464 oremail [email protected]

©2008 Environmental Defense Fund. Publishedbimonthly at New York, NY. ASSN 0163-2566

New York • Austin • Boston • Boulder • Los AngelesOakland • Raleigh • Sacramento • WashingtonProject offices: Beijing, China • Bentonville, AR

Online at edf.org

By Fred Krupp, President

–––––Reaching out to an

unlikely ally

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Despite millions spent on green advertising, only modestchanges were introduced at the Chicago Auto Show.

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EPA stalls; we play hardball on clean vehicle standardsContinued from p. 1


full Senate this session. HouseSpeaker Nancy Pelosi has also prom-ised a climate vote.

Our Washington staff is bring-ing the case directly to lawmakers.We point out that waiting even twoyears to reduce emissions will doublethe amount of pollution we have tocut each year to avoid dangerous cli-mate change.

“Our message is plain,” says ourvice president for programs MarciaAronoff. “The United States has nomore time to lose.”

Be part of the solution:Tell your legislators to pass a climatebill this year at edf.org/action.

3Find latest updates at edf.org

Editor:

“Biofuels—Can the Midwest replacethe Middle East?” (Solutions, Novem-ber 2007) is an upbeat title suggest-ing good things, but corn ethanolpollutes Earth’s surface and atmos-phere and produces about seventimes the carbon dioxide as gasoline.

John Baird, Scottsdale, AZ

Our national climate campaign

director Steve Cochran responds:

Not all biofuels are equal. If weaccount for all the emissions fromproducing biofuels—including relat-ed activities like converting land togrow the crops—we find that somecreate more greenhouse gases than

fossil fuels and some provide sub-stantial benefits. In short, it alldepends on where the fuel comesfrom, how it is grown and how it ismade and transported.

That’s why we are working withindustries, farmers and other environ-mental groups to develop a low-car-bon accounting system for biofuels—and why we support a low-carbonstandard for all fuels (not just bio-fuels) as well as an overall cap ongreenhouse gases.

Environmental Defense257 Park Ave. SouthNew York, NY 10003

Member25 Main StreetAnytown, NY 11199

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The 800-pound goril-la is officially awake.Now that Congress ismoving forward onnational climate legis-lation, the coal indus-try is planning a $35million ad campaignto block a cap ongreenhouse gas pollu-tion. According toThe Washington Post,the campaign willinclude billboard andTV ads and evenstreet teams. And thatcould be just thebeginning.

Environmental Defense Fund,both directly and through our ActionFund, is answering back.

Our TV ads featuring westerngovernors from across the politicalspectrum proved so popular that otherstate leaders wanted to help. We nowhave radio ads with more governorscalling on Congress to act. These adsare airing in Washington and in keyCongressional districts.

The Senate Environment andPublic Works Committee has alreadyreported America’s Climate SecurityAct, the bipartisan Lieberman-Warner bill, which we support. Senateleaders have vowed to bring it to the

Washington watch

Coal can be part of the solution, but only if it changes itsways.

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Coal industry goes on the offensive

Farm Bill: Fate uncertainAt press time, lawmakers were makingtentative moves toward ending theHouse-Senate stalemate over theFarm Bill and finalizing it in confer-ence. But President Bush has threat-ened to veto the bill if it doesn’tinclude subsidy reform.

We are pushing Congress toreduce some farm subsidies and pro-

tect the $5.1 billion in new conserva-tion funding we won. We’re alsoworking to ensure that we retain—and improve—policy changes that willmake it easier for farmers to preserveclean air and water. It could be atough row to hoe. The Senate confer-ence committee has many memberswho oppose reform. Stay tuned.

Environmental Defense Fund

On this occasion of our 40th anniver-

sary, we are returning to our full

name, Environmental Defense Fund,

after a number of years as

Environmental Defense. A national

survey found that we are still best

known by our original name, so we

are going back to our roots. Our new

web address is edf.org.


The four smokestacks of Arizona PublicService’s Redhawk power plant seemindistinguishable from those of any othernatural gas-fired facility. Except that thereis a big greenhouse at their feet, and apipe running from the top of one smoke-stack into that greenhouse. Rather thanventing the CO2-rich gases into theatmosphere, these power-plant horticul-turalists are feeding them to algae.

These microscopic single-celledcreatures turn out to be everything you’dever want in a feedstock for making liquidfuels. They are the fastest growing plantson earth—doubling their mass in a fewhours time. They are highly adaptable,thriving in sewage, boiling water and ice.

It was algae’s appetite for CO2 thatfirst caught the attention of Isaac Berzin,the chemical engineer who co-foundedGreenFuel Technologies and began theRedhawk experiment. The potential yieldsfrom algae dwarf those of any other biofu-el crop. While an acre of soybeans yieldsabout 60 gallons of biodiesel, an acre ofalgae could yield 5,000 gallons.

They teamed up with Alla Weinstein, anenergetic woman whose start-up compa-ny promised to turn the waves’ kineticenergy into electricity.

Weinstein proposed mooring acluster of buoys to the seafloor threemiles offshore. Suspended from eachbuoy would be an 80-foot steel cylinder,“an acceleration tube” open at both ends.Two hose pumps inside the cylindercontract like a cow’s udder, pumping at

continuous high pressure intoa turbine and generator.

The partners weregranted the nation’s first pre-liminary permit for an off-shore wave energy plant. An80 MW plant would take uponly a tiny portion of thebay and supply half the elec-tricity for the entire OlympicPeninsula. And many in theNorthwest believe that oceanenergy offers the best oppor-tunity to rebuild decliningcoastal communities.

Ahigh-stakes race has begun amongthe smartest minds in America, from

venture capitalists in Silicon Valley to sci-entists in the Alaskan wilderness toinventors in garages. The goal is to solvethe greatest challenge of our time, globalwarming, by reinventing energy as weknow it. And the prize will be the biggestexplosion of wealth ever witnessed.

A new book, Earth: The Sequel, byEnvironmental Defense Fund presidentFred Krupp and author Miriam Horn, isthe story of how the $6 trillion worldenergy economy is being transformed.Here are excerpts, adapted for Solutions.

Environmental Defense Fund Solutions

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In Depth

Harnessing ocean waves Algae make fuel

““......wweehhaavvee eevveerryyrreeaassoonn ffoorrhhooppee..””

—Fred Krupp

EARTH: THE SEQUEL

Few places overflow with life as gener-ously as Washington State’s Makah Bay,near Olympic National Park. Here, deepPacific waters mix with the sediment-laden flow of the Fraser River, creatingone of the most productive marineecosystems in the world.

For centuries, this marine abun-dance has supported the Makah tribe,and in 2001 the tribal council found anew way the sea could sustain them.

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In 2002, a physics professor named DavidMills and an industrial designer namedPeter Le Lievre launched a company(now called Ausra) in Sydney, Australia.Their aim was to build a power plantfueled by the sun that would be as big

and cheap as those fired by coal. As start-ups often do, they rented a garage and setabout assembling a mirror and steampipes to generate electricity.

They miscalculated on one front:The finished contraption was as big as atruck, and they almost didn’t get it out ofthe garage. But when they finally hauled itout into the sunshine, it worked. By 2004,they’d produced their first megawatt.

Instead of high pressure turbines,Ausra will use saturated steam turbinetechnology from the nuclear industry thatcan tolerate fluctuations when the suncomes and goes on cloudy days. A keyadvantage of solar thermal over technolo-

Find latest updates at edf.org 5

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Solar power as cheap as coalgies that convert sunlight directly to elec-tricity is its capacity to store energy as heat,which is far cheaper than storing electricity.

Ausra has contracts with PG&Eand is building its first 177 MW plant ona California ranch. The rancher’s daugh-ter, Susan Cochrane, believes solar ener-gy’s time has come. “It’s totally renew-able,” she says. “We have three daughtersto think about, and their future kids.”

Innovations like these will save theplanet—if Congress gives them a fairchance to compete. A federal cap on car-bon pollution will unleash private capi-tal to fund a new era of clean energy.

Power from within the Earth

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The frontier spirit animates Bernie Karl, a former mechanicon the Alaska pipeline who built a hotel entirely out of icealongside an Alaskan hot spring. When his cooling systemproved inadequate, the hotel melted—along with his invest-ment. Forbes called it “the dumbest business idea of the year.”

But Bernie didn’t give up. He hired a physicist to build achiller powered by the 165-degree spring water, then builtan electric power plant to run on that same water, the low-est temperature geothermal resource ever used.

Today, the ice museum is open and profitable. AndUnited Technologies is mass producing the low-tempera-ture geothermal power plant for global sale. The U.S.Department of Energy has called it one of the “top 100R&D projects” in the nation.

Here’s how the cooling system works:

165-degree spring

water heats an

ammonia solution.

A condenser boils the

ammonia at 40

degrees, turning it into

a pressurized vapor.

Cold water from Monument

Creek turns the pressurized

vapor back into a liquid.

The high-pressure ammonia liquid

evaporates quickly, pulling heat

from the ice museum via a circu-

lating salt brine.

RESULT: One very cool museum.


Environmental Defense Fund Solutions6

Regional update

Revenues will fund mass transit and give pedestrians a break.

NYC poised to be first inU.S. with traffic-cutting idea

Endangered songbird getsa home on the range

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The endangered golden-cheeked warbler nests only in themature oak-juniper forests of Central Texas.

System, Fort Hood payslandowners to restore habitatin areas vital to the warbler’srecovery. In exchange, theArmy gets “credits” it can useif it accidentally harms nest-ing sites on the base. Land-owners get financial assis-tance—so far about $1.5million—for practices thathelp both the warbler andtheir cattle, such as installingfences or reducing erosion.To receive funds, landownersmust commit to 10- to 25-

year contracts and contributepart of the cost.

“EnvironmentalDefense Fund gets it,” saysJustin Tatum, a local rancher.“If you want to help endan-gered species, you have towork with landowners, notagainst them.”

Ten years ago, ranchers incentral Texas chopped downjuniper trees to avoid attract-ing endangered species andthe regulators who followedthem. Today, the ranchersline up to see EnvironmentalDefense Fund biologistLinda Laack. She’s helpedmore than a dozen landown-ers restore 1,200 acres ofhabitat for the golden-cheeked warbler—with moreranchers eager to join.

This turnaround fromthe “warbler wars” of the1990s is credited to an inno-vative program developed byLaack with a diverse groupof allies, including the U.S.Army at Fort Hood. Theprogram has proven so suc-cessful that governmentagencies and private compa-nies across the country areseeking to emulate it. “Thiscould be the best hope forthe warbler,” notes Laack.

Under the program,known as a Recovery Credit

New York, one of America’s most congested cities, hastaken a crucial step toward freeing itself of gridlock—andthe pollution that comes with it.

After a series of public hearings and much debate, astate commission of experts recently recommended a con-gestion pricing plan for the city. By charging drivers a fee toenter the busiest parts of the city during peak times, thisinnovative system, which Environmental Defense Fundhelped develop, could reduce the city’s traffic by one-third,cut air pollution and generate millions of dollars for transit.

The plan calls for charging $8 to drive a car duringthe day into Manhattan south of 60th Street; taxi passen-gers will pay $1 per fare. The system will send positive rip-ples to the city’s farthest edges by generating money fortransit, parking, walking and biking enhancements.

Revenues would approach$500 million annually.

Congestion pricing hasalready been successful inLondon, Singapore andMilan. In London, traffic is

down 21%, bus ridership is up 43%, cycling up 83%.Cities create three-quarters of the planet’s greenhouse

gas emissions, even as they suffer from paralyzing conges-tion. In New York, rush hour now lasts all day.

This plan can change that. “By investing now in thetransit system of tomorrow,” says Andy Darrell, our LivingCities director, “we can keep Manhattan accessible to peo-ple of all income levels, cut pollution and congestionthroughout the city and support urban growth. Congestionpricing is the key to a healthier, more mobile city.”

–––––In New York, rush

hour lasts all day.

–––––

–––––A turnaround from

the warbler wars

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krans—who is part of a working group onthe restoration effort—discovered flaws inthe government’s water allocation plans.“Thanks to his sleuthing and analysis, weare now able to get the water for theTrinity River,” said Tom Stokely, the prin-cipal planner for Trinity County. The rivernow runs at 48% of its natural flow.

Scientist Dr. Luna Leopold, son ofthe legendary ecologist Aldo Leopold,called the river’s restoration “the best thingI have seen in decades.”

The next step: To deliver improve-ments downstream on the Klamath River.

court by subsidized water and powerusers, including cities.

Environmental Defense Fund pro-vided technical assistance to the HoopaValley Tribe as it successfully defendedthe restoration plan in federal court. Theplan is crucial for restoring migratingChinook and endangered coho salmon,whose populations have plummeted. Wealso led an effort to convince the cities ofSacramento, Palo Alto and Alameda towithdraw from the case, weakening theopposition’s argument.

After studying the hydrology, Rose-

Every spring, snowmelt on California’sTrinity River carries juvenile salmon

on a ride to the Pacific Ocean. Thestronger adults return to the river in thefall to spawn. This year, the epic journeywill be easier thanks to streambed restor-ation projects now underway.

“I never thought I’d be excited tosee a bulldozer along the banks of ariver,” says Spreck Rosekrans, senior ana-lyst in our San Francisco office, “but it’spart of an ambitious plan that willrestore spawning beds and leave enoughwater in the Trinity to support historiclevels of salmon and steelhead.”

Trinity Dam, completed in 1964,has diverted as much as 90% of theriver’s natural flow, annihilating salmonruns that local Indian tribes had reliedupon for centuries. A tribal-federalplan to restore water to the river wassigned in 2000. But the plan, whichwe helped develop, was blocked in

Maryland-Virginia coast was threatenedby development. Together, they agreedthat the most important work Judycould do was to help preserve the islandthey loved.

“When my mother set her mind todo something, she did it,” says ReidJohnson. Judy, who died last year, hasbeen described as “a force of nature.” Inher basement office, she worked 80 hoursa week and helped found the organiza-tion known today as the AssateagueCoastal Trust. After years of battles atthe highest levels of government, Judyand her team prevailed.

“Assateague Island would not lookas it does today had it not been for allthe hard work of Judy Johnson over theyears,” said Senator Paul Sarbanes duringa tribute in 1995.

One of the many battles JudyFind latest updates at edf.org 7

Judy Johnson’s son remembers hoppinginto a VW bus with his mother to go

camping on Assateague Island. At thetime, the pristine barrier island on the

The woman who fought to save an island

A force of nature: Johnson worked 80-hour weeks to save Assateague.

Court win gives

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salmon a lift.

A California river runs wild—again

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fought on behalf of Assateague involvedthe piping plover. Beach buggies weretearing up the beach where the endan-gered birds nested. She contactedEnvironmental Defense Fund for help.

“We worked closely with Judy toprotect the nesting areas,” says attorneyMichael Bean, our wildlife policy director.“As a result, piping plovers have taken a bigstep back from the brink of extinction.”

Judy was a self-taught ecologist butthe environment wasn’t her only passion;she also managed the BaltimoreSymphony Orchestra.

When Judy died last February at theage of 91, she included EnvironmentalDefense Fund in her will. Her bequestwill help us carry on her legacy of pre-serving wetlands and endangered species.It is with deep regret that we say:“Goodbye, old friend.”


will begin to negotiate next year.“This is our last, best hope for a

solution,” says Environmental DefenseFund scientist Dr. Stephan Schwartzman.

Deeply involved with the BrazilianAmazon for almost 30 years, Schwartz-man lived and worked in the rainforest inthe ’80s as an anthropologist with thenewly “contacted” Panará people. Whenthe trans-Amazon highway reached Pa-nará territory, bringing infectious diseasesto which they had no resistance, the tribe

was nearly wiped out,and the survivorsforcibly removed to areserve. (In 1996,helped by Schwartz-man and others, the

Panará reclaimed their homeland.)Later, Schwartzman worked with

our attorney Bruce Rich to halt WorldBank loans for roads that were pushingthe frontier—and its uncontrolled burn-ing—deeper into the forest. In 1985 theypersuaded the Bank to suspend a majorroad-building project on environmentalgrounds, the first time that had happened.

Schwartzman credits his friend, thelegendary Brazilian rubber-tapper activistChico Mendes, for teaching him that to

survive, the forest must somehow gener-ate economic benefits for the people wholived there.

“Environmentalists had it back-wards,” Schwartzman remembers. “Theythought they were the only ones whowanted to protect the rainforest, and thatthe people in the forest wanted itcleared. This wasn’t true at all.”

Schwartzman and Rich broughtMendes to Washington, DC, to campaignfor sustainably managed reserves. Ouralliance forced the Brazilian governmentto change its policies. When Mendes wasassassinated by an enraged rancher, thecountrywide grief brought the campaignan international audience.

Today, Brazil has protected 21% ofits Amazon forest, an area twice the sizeof California. The country has stronglaws and a small but enlightened Indianagency to help forest people defend theirreserves against encroachment. Still, theclearing and burning of rainforests con-tinues—in Brazil and worldwide.

“As long as forest lands are worthmore as cattle ranches or palm oil plan-tations, forests will disappear,” saysSchwartzman. “An international carbonmarket can give them the value theyneed to survive.”

Clearing and burning of tropical forestsreleases 20% of the greenhouse gases

that cause global warming, yet attempts tostop the destruction have always founderedon one incontrovertible fact: Untouched,the forests have little economic value tothe developing countries in which theygrow. So the deforestation continues.

This may be about to change. At therecent climate talks in Bali, Environ-mental Defense Fund championed theidea that financial incentives to develop-ing countries couldmake their rain-forests worth morealive than dead. Theidea led to a majorbreakthrough, acommitment by both developed anddeveloping nations to negotiate a plan by2010 to curb rainforest destruction.

Our proposed policy would offercompensation from industrialized nationsin the form of tradable carbon credits todeveloping nations that reduce deforesta-tion in “measurable, quantifiable and ver-ifiable” ways. Developed countries wouldcontribute money and technical assis-tance. The system would be built into apost-Kyoto climate treaty which nations


Rainforests once blanketed 14% of the earth; now they cover 6%.

Dr. Steve Schwartzman (r) with ChicoMendes, whose assassination focused theworld’s attention on rainforest destruction.

–––––“This is our last, best hope

for a solution.”

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A plan to stop the burningVALUING RAINFORESTS ENOUGH TO SAVE THEM


Because Utah prairie dogs forage oncrops and dig networks of undergroundburrows, they were poisoned for 50 yearsby landowners and government agencies.

Despite federal endangered specieslisting in 1973, they remain threatened,ravaged by a fatal disease, sylvanic plague,and corralled onto just 7,000 acres ofusable habitat in central Utah—threequarters of which is private property.

Two years ago, our ecologist TedToombs said his goal was a “culture ofrecovery” where everyone would worktogether to help save the prairie dog. Helobbied local landowners to enroll in aSafe Harbor program to manage theirland for the species’ protection. Hisvision is becoming reality: six landownershave signed on, with seven more in line.

We are also working with corpora-tions to build a Recovery Credit Systemthat will pay rural landowners to restoreand protect habitat.

Said Toombs: “With our incentive-driven approach, landowners are willingto participate—even with a species con-sidered an agricultural pest.”


A federal court of appealsin San Francisco rejectedthe Bush administration’sfuel economy standardsfor light trucks in the2008-2011 model yearsand ordered the govern-ment to improve the stan-dards immediately. In a90-page opinion relyingheavily on our analysis,the court determined thatthe Department ofTransportation had set thestandards too low to meetAmerica’s energy and glob-al warming challenges. Thecourt also noted that higher fuel economystandards could be achieved throughtoday’s technologies. Joining us in chal-

lenging the inadequate standards were 11states and the Center for BiologicalDiversity, NRDC and the Sierra Club.

Court win on federal fuel economy standardsSafe passage forthe Utah prairie dog

The court relied on our analysis and closed the light truckloophole.

This tiny sentinel of the prairie is a “key-stone species” upon whom many otheranimals depend.

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Just one year after our innovative catch-share program was implemented in theGulf of Mexico’s red snapper fishery, thefishery is recovering and maritime com-munities are benefiting. New data showthe dockside price of fish has risen byone-third and the fishing season hastripled in length.

Under the catch-share program,percentage shares of the total allowablecatch are divvied up among fishermen.They may trade shares with other boatsand can choose to fish whenever weatherand market conditions are best—insteadof making a mad dash for the sea underprevious ten-day-per-month rules.

Fishermen may now keep fishas small as 13 inches (down from15), so fewer undersized fish arethrown back dead—overall, discard-ed fish are down by at least 50%.“The evidence is in,” says our Gulfoceans policy director Pam Baker.“The new red snapper program is abig win for marine conservationand coastal communities.”

This is the first catch-shareprogram enacted for a major fisheryin the United States since Congressmoved to end overfishing. We’reworking on similar programs in NewEngland, on the West Coast and forother Gulf fisheries.

‘Catch shares’ transform a troubled fishery

New rules help both fishermen and fish.

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Finding the ways that work SUCCESS STORIES FROM THE FIELD



Leadership in Energy and En-vironmental Design (LEED)—cost only 4-5% more to build.“Ultimately, we’ll save all thatand much more from all theenergy-efficiency details we’veincorporated,” Cioffi says.

Having settled into their newworkplace in the city’s Financial Dis-trict in December, EnvironmentalDefense Fund staff feel it’s not just theenvironment that benefits. The officealso is an especially healthy place towork, thanks to ample natural light and

The healthyofficeCREATING A GREEN

WORKPLACE THAT WILL

BENEFIT WORKERS TOO

Green livingR

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TER Guides to Energy Star-

certified office equipmentare available at ener-gystar.gov.

The nonprofit Green

Building Council offersinformation on LEEDcertification: usgbc.org800-795-1747.

Green Seal certifiesproducts that are envi-ronmentally responsi-ble: greenseal.org202-872-6400.

EPA offers a list ofresources on green pro-curement: epa.gov/epp/tools/index.htm#a

For a health hazard eval-uation of your office, callthe National Institute forOccupational Safety andHealth, 800-35-NIOSH;or contact your nearestfederal OccupationalSafety and HealthAdministration (OSHA)office at 800-321-6742.

The Washington, DC-based nonprofit Green-

guard Environmental

Institute certifies prod-ucts free of harmfulindoor emissions:greenguard.org.

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minimal chemical “off-gassing” fromcarpets and furniture.

The new office includes such fea-tures as eco-friendly linoleum flooring,recycled Milliken carpet installed with-out glue, and paint with low levels ofvolatile organic compounds (VOCs). Allappliances and computers have the EPAEnergy Star rating, and a shower andground-level bike racks make biking towork more attractive.

As Americans, we spend an average90% of our time indoors. If we’re in theworkforce, much of that time is spentbreathing stale air under old-fashioned,

glaring lights. We’re exposed to a cock-tail of chemicals emitted from paints andcarpets (which typically contain morethan 100 toxic chemicals), coupled withthe mold and bacteria circulating frompoorly maintained heating and ventila-tion systems.

AVOIDING INDOOR AIRPOLLUTIONThese conditions take their toll in theform of lost productivity, frequent colds,asthma attacks, headaches and fatigue.Studies estimate that by making improve-ments in indoor air quality, companies can

Snap quiz: How much moredoes it cost to build a green

office? Ten percent more?Twenty percent? Pat Cioffi andPam Vivian, who co-led con-struction of EnvironmentalDefense Fund’s new SanFrancisco office, were surprisedto find that the new work-place—slated to receive a cov-eted gold certification from

The green sweep: Ninety-five percent of the construction waste at our San Franciscooffice was later recycled.

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Guest columnists Jim Motavalli and Linda Baker write for E/The Environmental Magazine (for subscription information: 800-967-6572 oremagazine.com). Opinions are the authors’ and not those of Environmental Defense Fund staff.


Global warming will acidifyoceans, destroy coral reefs

When carbon dioxide (CO2) from smokestacks and tailpipesdissolves into the ocean, it forms carbonic acid. The dis-solved CO2 no longer heats up the atmosphere; instead itincreases the ocean’s acidity. As seawater becomes moreacidic, organisms such as corals and shellfish don’t have thecarbonate they need to form hard shells. Scientists say thiscould mean that coral reefs worldwide face extinction.

Three new studies add urgency to predictions thatreefs may die by mid-century if CO2 is not brought undercontrol. Coral reefs support multibillion-dollar touristindustries and provide habitat for many of the world’s fish.A billion or more people depend on fish as their mainsource of protein.

Scientists have already shown that coral growthdeclines as ocean acidity increases. A recent study in NatureGeoscience used a field experiment to show that certain algaethat help to solidify reefs are also “severely inhibited” inhighly acidic seawater. Another recent paper in Science con-cludes that ocean acidification, combined with warming,pollution and other stresses, is “driving reefs increasinglytoward the tipping point for functional collapse.”

“Almost half of all coral reefs appear to be heavilyaffected by a variety of human activities,” says Dr. RodFujita, an Environmental Defense Fund marine biologistwho contributed to another recent study in Science thatsummarizes the effect of human activities on the oceans.“As development increases, kelp forests and rocky reefs arealso increasingly vulnerable.”

Coral reefs rival rainforests in biodiversity.

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save eight to 17 times the cost of illnessesassociated with “sick building syndrome.”

Here are some relatively low-costtips to make your workplace greener; anddon’t forget that most of the same prin-ciples apply at home.

Care about carpets. For minimal off-gassing of chemicals, buy natural-fiber car-pets (organically grown wool, cotton, hempand jute are available) with few or no fin-ishes (such as stain repellents). Install themwith tacks instead of adhesives and cleanthem with non-toxic cleaners.

Be particular about paints. Whenrepainting the office, your best bet islow-VOC paint certified using the stan-dard established by the nonprofit GreenSeal. Zero-VOC paint is obviously best,but it’s pricey. You can find out aboutthe VOCs in any paint by requesting theMaterials Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)


from the manufacturer or paint store.

Worry about wood. Standard office furni-ture, paneling and shelves with eye-pleas-ing oak, walnut or cherry veneers are prob-ably made of plywood and particleboard,which in turn consist of wood strips orparticles bonded together with formalde-hyde-based glues and resins. These materi-

als can off-gas chemicalsfor years. A range offormaldehyde-free alterna-tives is available.

Does it compute? Makesure your office electron-ics are certified by thefederal Energy Star pro-gram. U.S. companieswaste $4 billion annuallyon inefficient use of officeequipment. Just using thepower management fea-

tures included with Energy Star mod-els—and turning off computers andmonitors when not in use—will save youroffice $25 to $75 in electricity per com-puter per year. Consider laptops for yourstaff; they’re 95% more energy-efficientthan PCs.

By Jim Motavalli and Linda Baker

Office equipment26%

Lighting22%

Water heating1%

Other10%

Cooling28%

Ventilation7%

Heating6%

How U.S. offices use energy

Our workplaces offer a myriad of ways to save power.


For the first time in its history, Peru hasan Environmental Ministry, thanks in partto our concerted efforts. Until now, envi-ronmental protection in Peru has beenvirtually nonexistent, falling under theMinistry of Energy and Mines, whosemandate is exploitation, not regulation, ofPeru’s fabulously rich biodiversity.

Our Peru expert Aaron Goldzimerhelped persuade U.S. officials to pressPeru on its environmental performanceduring discussions leading up to theU.S.-Peru Free Trade Agreement. Healso helped convince the World Bankand others to leverage their billion-dollarfinancing of Camisea II, a huge naturalgas drilling project in the Amazon.

Goldzimer then released our devas-tating economic analysis of Camisea II toPeru’s most important newspaper, trig-gering a political and media firestormthat led to President Garcia’s proposal foran Environmental Ministry.

“Further work lies ahead to ensurethe ministry is meaningful and strong,”says Goldzimer. “But this is a historic step.”

The sawgrass wetlands thatonce stretched from Orlando

to the Florida Bay have shrunk tohalf their original size, encroachedupon by agriculture and housing. Apatchwork maze of canals and lev-ees now diverts the Everglades’slow-moving, shallow waters toLake Okeechobee, where pollutionfrom agricultural runoff is a grow-ing problem. There is little habitatleft for the 22 endangered andthreatened species that live or breedin the area, including wood storks,sea turtles and Florida panthers.

Now additional wildlife habi-tat could be created on 850,000acres of cattle pasture located northof the lake, in cooperation withlandowners. EnvironmentalDefense Fund has been advising theFlorida Ranchlands EnvironmentalServices Project on how to workwith ranchers to restore the pasture-land for wildlife. The project willhelp cleanse the water as well.

Ranchers are volunteering in a five-year pilot program to improve wildlifehabitat, moderate water flow patterns andimprove water quality bysequestering phosphorus.Once the program isestablished, ranchers whosign on will be able tosell environmental servic-es such as pollution con-trol, saving the publicmoney over costly publicworks projects. Theadded income will create

financial incentives for ranchers to stay inbusiness—rather than selling land tomore intensive agriculture and urbandevelopment that would aggravate the

Everglades’ multipleproblems.

Our Safe Harbormodel will ensure thatranchers have flexibilitywhen endangeredspecies begin usingrestored habitat. Andthat means the welcomemat for rare wildlife maysoon be getting bigger.

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257 Park Avenue SouthNew York, NY 10010

Address Service Requested

NON-PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

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SolutionsEnvironmental Defense Fund

Landowner cooperation helps theEverglades, Florida’s ‘river of grass’

Hope for thePeruvian Amazon

Finally, an official commitment to one ofthe earth’s great forests.

We’re helping panthers and ranchers find com-mon ground.

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