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Concerned Citizens of Platte County, Inc. (CCPC)

May, 2007 Newsletter

Contents






Events



2007 Trivia Challenge - July 14 - 6pm - Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Weston. Join us at our Concerned Citizens’ fundraiser as teams of 6 compete to claim the top prize. $20 per person. Food, Drink and Fun! Contact Susan Brown at sbrown816@gmail.com for tickets. Make a weekend getaway out of the event - contact the Inn at Weston Landing at 816-640-5788 or The Murphy House at 816-640-5577.

Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources public hearing on the KCP&L Iatan Landfill - June 7 - 7pm - Weston High School

Concerned Citizens of Platte County Meeting - June 3 - 6pm -- location TBD


CAFO (Confined Animal Feeding Operations) Bill Defeated!



The Missouri Legislative session ends on May 18 and it looks like the bill (SB 364) that would have eliminated our local health ordinances has been stopped. Senator Charlie Shields offered an amendment to gut the bill and then create an interim committee to study the issue. This is great news and we hope to work after the session is over to create legislation that encourages and supports diversified family farms rather than only helping large CAFO operations. We are still watching the Legislature closely in the final hours to be sure the bill doesn't slip through as an amendment. We thank Charlie Shields, our Senator for Platte and Buchanan counties, for his help.


Local Iatan Study of Mercury Shows Statistical Difference



A local High School student, Leah Voltmer, found higher levels of mercury in hair samples of individuals living close to the Iatan coal-burning power plant in Platte County vs. those living farther away in Buchanan County. Coal-burning power plants account for 40% of US annual mercury emissions. Her project earned her 2nd place in the Environmental Science category at the Missouri Junior Science, Engineering and Humanities Symposium at he University of Missouri - St. Louis. CCPC helped fund her project and she plans to expand it next year.




KCMO formally adopts Climate Protection Plan



The new city council and Mayor Barnes adopted the Climate Protection Plan on April 12, 2007. "The City's goals shall be to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from City government operations by 30% below year 2000 levels by the year 2020 and the City shall work with the Climate Protection Plan Steering Committee to develop by the end of 2007 a realistic, but ambitious, goal for community-wide greenhouse gas reductions."

More information can be found at the KC Star's and KCMO's new Climate web pages:

KC Star: www.kcstar.com and find the link at the bottom right or if you subscribe http://www.kansascity.com/changing_climate/ .

Kansas City, Missouri: http://www.kcmo.org/manager.nsf/web/cpp


Platte County Green Build and Wyandotte County, too!



The Platte County Green Build committee continues to meet monthly with a goal of a final ordinance proposal within 6-8 months. The meetings are open to the public. Contact me at sbrown816@gmail.com if you would like to attend.

At the KCK Board of Public Utilities Green Build Conference, April 26, the Mayor of the Unified Government (Wyandotte County and Kansas City, KS) announced their new Environmental Action Plan. It includes a Green Build program, curbside recycling, revitalizing brownfields, and an overall environmental plan for air quality, carbon reduction and energy efficiency.


Headlines



Sunflower Electric - Construction Timeline for Holcomb Power Plants Changed, Plans for one of the 3 new coal-burning power plants near Holcomb, KS. have been put on hold. Permits are still being evaluated by the Kansas Dept. of Health and Environment. 4/5/07, Sunflower Electric

Before you spend big, make small changes - Energy efficiency expert gives tips for your home. This article was about our Clean Energy Show at Zona Rosa. 4/8/07,St. Joseph News Press

Can going green save you greenbacks? Kansas City Channel 41 NBC TV interview with Susan Brown showing the new SolarSheat and ways to save energy in your home. 4/12/07

Utilities and EPA dispute semantics, Good article explaining the trouble KC utilities are in with EPA. Most of them have upgraded their power plants without upgrading pollution controls in violation of the Clean Air Act. 4/16/07, KC Star

Peabody's partner in $2.5 billion Prairie State project backs out, A key partner in Peabody Energy Corp.'s Prairie State Energy Campus, a $2.5 billion coal-fired power plant planned for Southern Illinois, has backed out because it couldn't find customers to buy the power. St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 5/4/07


Missouri Legislation



Bill tracking page http://www.movotesconservation.org/Home.aspx?ContentID=103

The legislative session ends on May 18 and the last minute maneuvers are incredible. The CAFO bill 0 SB 364 - is being amended to any good bill that has a chance to pass. The Easy Connection Act, making it easier for customers to connect their solar or wind systems to the grid and sell power back to their utility, has been tacked on to SB 54, the voluntary renewable portfolio standard. Everything is changing daily right now. I'll let you know what happens.


Does your group need a speaker?



Let us know if your group would like to hear the inside story about the KCP&L/Sierra Club/CCPC agreement. Contact us at sbrown816@gmail.com for a request.

I hope you enjoyed this newsletter - e-mail me if you wish to unsubscribe or if you have comments - sbrown816@gmail.com . Visit our website at www.ccpcmo.org for more info.

I have a new e-mail address - sbrown816@gmail.com.

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