On Wednesday, June 28, 2023 from 11:30 AM-12:30 PM, Seneca Lake Guardian will host a “Shut Down Greenidge!” rally at the Geneva Visitors and Events Center to protest Greenidge Bitcoin Power Plant’s local activity. Greenidge was denied a Title V Air Permit a year ago, yet they still continue to operate near Seneca Lake. From…
See this message below from the Renewable Heat Now campaign: We are SO CLOSE to getting 2 important bills across the finish line in the NYS Budget Get started by sending this letter to your NYS Senator and Assemblymember.See other actions below – take an action a day to keep fossil fuels at bay!!
New Yorkers should not have to pay 35% more in utility bills to RG&E and NYSEG than they already do — read this message below from the Alliance for a Green Economy to help strike the hike! “Last week, the Alliance for a Green Economy joined the Public Utility Law Project, AARP, Fossil Free Tompkins,…
Read more below on how to advocate for the rejection of Greenidge Generating Station’s Air Title V Facility Permit renewal. If the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation approves their permit renewal, this will have dangerous environmental impacts. Public Hearings: Legislative public comment hearings will be held virtually on Monday October 24, 2022, at 1:00 pm…
To those representing organizations: The End Fossil Subsidies Coalition has written an organizational sign-on letter to Governor Hochul and Legislative Leadership, urging them to eliminate non-essential tax subsidies to the fossil fuel industry. The Fossil Fuel Subsidy Elimination Act would remove over $300 million of these subsidies. This coalition letter calls for Governor Hochul, Senators,…
This summer, as temperatures rise and nutrient and fertilizer runoff increases in the Finger Lakes, make sure you check the water before you jump in. The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has a notification page and interactive map where you can check to see where harmful algal blooms (HABs) have been reported. Since exposure to…
Yesterday, I attended the Crypto Moratorium Rally in Geneva, NY. Seneca Lake and the sky above were a beautiful backdrop for the many speakers, which included a policy organizer, representatives from various environmental organizations, an assemblymember, a town supervisor, a winemaker, and a local homeowner. All emphasized the crucial need for elected officials to honor…
We are sharing a call to action from Alliance for a Green Economy: “Please join Seneca Lake Guardian at the gazebo on the lake side of the Finger Lakes Welcome Center for an outdoor family-friendly rally calling on Governor Hochul to deny Greenidge’s Title V Air Permit Renewal and to sign the crypto moratorium bill…
We are encouraging anyone and everyone to call Gov. Hochul (877-235-6537) and urge her to sign an important bill into law. The well-being of the Finger Lakes depends on it! Here is a possible script: “Hello, my name is __________, and I live in ___________. I am calling to ask Gov. Hochul to sign bill…
Companies are flocking to New York to re-open dirty old power plants to generate power for cryptocurrency mining operations. The kind of cryptocurrency mining used to make Bitcoin, known as “proof of work,” uses thousands of computers to solve complex math equations. These computer farms are extremely energy-intensive. According to the New York Times, this practice consumes…
Join Sunrise Ithaca for a rally at the Bernie Milton Pavilion TOMORROW, Friday, March 25th at 4:30pm. This rally is part of a wider Global Climate Strike, with a local goal of drawing attention to the social justice component of the Ithaca Green New Deal. This will include a call to action for the City to take…
“Extended Producer Responsibility,” sometimes shortened to EPR, is simply, and importantly, holding the producers of various items accountable for what they put out into the world. Rather than corporations being able to make anything – even products that are potentially harmful or polluting – then shift responsibility and blame to consumers/people using the product regarding…
Please call Governor Hochul today, and ask her to deny Greenidge’s Title V Air Permit, which would allow for an expansion of Bitcoin mining, and adopt a moratorium on proof of work crypto, which would place a hold on certain cryptocurrency mining operations. You can use this dedicated hotline to make the call: (866) 942-5138!…
Be part of a virtual lobby day on March 10th and advocate for strong and effective Extended Producer Responsibility and Bottle Container Deposit laws. Click here to register through Beyond Plastics; they will assign you to a lobby group, and provide talking points and necessary zoom links. Not available on Thursday? Send a letter to…
Did you know: New York residents of color and those with low to moderate income pay a disproportionately higher portion of their household income on energy? The homes of many of these individuals and families are often less energy-efficient, meaning that they need to use more energy to heat and cool their homes, which is…
CLIMATE CAN’T WAIT 2022 is a team of over 30 organizations committed to mobilizing support for a comprehensive package of legislative policy proposals to move New York into the new renewable energy future. As our climate deteriorates causing death and destruction to communities across our state, nationally and worldwide, let our legislators know that New York must take rapid and bold action. On January 25, rise up with climate activists to demand that the New York State legislature take bold action on climate.
Before you unplug for the winter break, please join Renewable Heat Now for two quick actions to keep the pressure on Governor Hochul in advance of her State-of-the-State address on January 5th: 1) Call Governor Hochul at 877-235-6537. We’re asking her to commit to 2 million energy-efficient, all-electric homes by 2030 and a Green Affordable Housing Fund in her State-of-the-State address on January 5th. 2) Sign up to take part in this Twitter action to pressure Governor Hochul. You can participate even if you don’t use Twitter. There is a social media package with guidelines, ideas, and sample tweets to make it easy to participate.
Starting next year, New York State utility companies will be charging new solar customers a Customer Benefit Contribution (CBC) charge. This new charge is effectively a tax on solar installations in New York. What is the CBC Charge? Rochester Gas & Electric, and LIPA will be applying a Customer Benefit Contribution (CBC) charge to the electric bills of solar owners whose systems were interconnected on or after this date. We expect this “solar tax” to cost New York solar owners $7-$10 per month. Where did this solar tax come from? Last year, NY State utility companies announced it would be…
Over the years, your advocacy in support of state spending to address climate change has been critical in building momentum toward a just and equitable fossil-free future. Please take action now to help ensure that climate and clean energy funds are spent on renewable energy and energy efficiency programs. A major hurdle to full investment in climate action has been that a portion of clean energy funds — generated by a regional fee on pollution and a charge on electricity – are spent elsewhere, helping to supplement general state spending. Since 2014, $228 million in clean energy funds have been directed to general state funding, depriving New Yorkers of funding that could have lowered energy bills and created good, green jobs. Given the tremendous need to reduce pollution across New York, especially in disadvantaged communities, we must no longer tolerate using these funds for anything but to support climate change programs to limit emissions. Click HERE…
Thanks to Food and Water Watch, there is now a line dedicated to Proof of Work Cryptocurrency. Please call (866) 942-5138 to be connected to Governor Hochul and ask her to: Put a pause on PoW crypto until the human health and environmental aspects can be studied. Have her DEC reject the Greenidge and Fortistar permits. If you tweet, please retweet this tweet which is a message to Governor Hochul. For more info on this issue, read this article.
Recycling has a big problem and consumer brand owners need to be a part of the solution! Please consider supporting NYS S.1185A, an Extended Producer Responsibility bill for Consumer Packaging and Printed Paper. How you can support this bill: Please let your State Assembly Member know you support this bill! Use this easy tool to find your assembly member – When you find them, click the Contact button to see their phone number and a form where you can leave a comment. Contact your local government officials and indicate it is time to fix our states recycling system. If you don’t know who that…
After nearly 100 years as an incredible waterfront recreational property, Camp Barton is in danger of being sold and subdivided! Please help us stop this process! We saved the Bell Station property from development on the East side of Cayuga Lake now it’s time to save Camp Barton on the West side. What you can do: Please add your name to the petition: “Governor Kathy Hochul: Save Camp Barton!” Please include your personal connection to Camp Barton in the comments section – if you have one. Share it with your networks! We need to get thousands of signatures ASAP to get…
Partners for Change highlights organizations that share GreenStar’s commitment to sustainable agriculture/organic food, environmental protection/stewardship, hunger and social justice issues, local food system, co-ops, and the well being and education of the community regarding these topics. If you are a GreenStar Co-op member, from December 14th – 28th, you can vote through your member portal here to select your top 10 choices among local nonprofits to participate in next year’s Partners for Change program. We humbly ask that you vote for Sustainable Tompkins!
Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are “mined” in energy-intensive operations — power plants burn fossil fuels to meet the massive electricity needs of cryptocurrency creation and transactions. And right now, cryptocurrency-mining operators are trying to fire up some of New York’s dirtiest retired power plants. We should be doing everything we can to move New York off fossil fuels; we can’t afford to repower dirty fracked gas power plants. And especially not for cryptocurrency. We can stop this, but we need the Legislature to place a moratorium on these energy-intensive operations now. As we look ahead to the start of the legislative session, now…
System Change Not Climate Change is hosting a Free Virtual Webinar on Proof of Work crypto (commonly used in Bitcoin) on Saturday, December 11th at 1:00 pm EST (11:00 am PST). Register here for the Zoom to engage with the speakers or watch live on their Facebook page. Can’t make it? The webinar will be posted later on their YouTube channel. What the frack is cryptocurrency, anyway? Should we embrace it or eschew it? Join us for a critical evaluation with cartographer Karen Edelstein, independent journalist and scholar Maura Stephens, and Seneca Lake Guardian Yvonne Taylor, who will enlighten us about who loves…
New York leads the nation in premature deaths resulting from the air pollution caused by burning fossil fuels in buildings for heating, hot water, and cooking, which also contributes to one third of New York’s emissions. The Renewable Heat Now Campaign is organizing to win a package of funding and bills that will get fossil fuels out of our buildings and make renewable alternatives more affordable and equitable. Join our upcoming Town Hall this Wednesday, December 1st, from 6:00pm – 7:00pm to learn how you can get involved in the movement for renewable heat and how we will build our power to win! Speakers will include Sen. Kavanagh and AM…
Hughes Energy Group is proposing a disastrous waste-to-fuel facility at the edge of our forever-wild Catskills forests—and uphill from the drinking water of 9 million+ New Yorkers. We need your help to fight it off! Here’s what you can do…
A dangerous bill (The Low Embodied Carbon Concrete Leadership Act (AB2591)) promoting a false solution to our climate crisis is on its way to Governor Hochul’s desk for her signature. Can you please take a minute right now to call the Governor and urge her to veto Assembly Bill A2591A (aka LECCLA)?
On November 4, 2021, the Tompkins County Legislature renewed the Climate and Sustainable Energy Advisory Board for another three-year term and expanded its membership to 11 seats. The Climate and Sustainable Energy Advisory Board is charged with providing expert input to the Legislature on regulatory initiatives and successful community programs relating to energy and climate change, as well as emerging energy efficiency, renewables, and climate adaptation technologies. The advisory board will continue to assist the County in engaging with state policymakers and regulators, utility staff, municipal leaders, developers, businesses, and community groups to set Tompkins County government and the wider…
The period to submit comments to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) on the climate busting air emissions at the proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining plant, Greenidge Generation, closes on November 19th. Please submit a comment to the NYSDEC by the November 19th deadline. Here is a sample letter you can submit. You can also make a call to Governor Hochul to express your concerns via this hotline: 866-942-5138. Thank you for your support!
The Renewable Heat Now Campaign is organizing to win funding and policies that will get fossil fuels out of our buildings affordably and equitably. Join them this Thursday, November 18th, from 1:00pm – 2:00pm to hear about their legislative package that Governor Hochul and the New York Legislature must pass in 2022. Learn how you can get involved in the movement for renewable heat, and how we will organize and build our power to win! RSVP here for the Zoom link!
On Tuesday, October 26, 2021, at 1:00pm, fenceline and environmental justice groups from around the country will be joining together on a livestream to call on President Biden and his Administration to stop issuing permits for new and expanding petrochemical facilities – and we’re hoping for broad, movement-wide support in this ask. Here’s how you can help…
With less than a month before voting starts, Environmental Advocates NY will be bringing together local elected officials and environmental advocates to rally in support of the state constitutional amendment that will be on your ballot (as Proposal #2) this fall that will give all New Yorkers a right to clean air, clean water, and a healthful environment. Come by to learn more about environmental rights and help spread the word about this important tool to ensure New York’s air, water, and environment are clean and healthy for generations to come!
DEC will hold a public hearing on the air emissions from the Greenidge Plant on Oct 13th. In preparation for that hearing, on October 4 at 7:00 pm, Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter, Seneca Lake Guardian, Food & Water Watch and Earthjustice are hosting a webinar, the Climate Consequences of Crypto-Currency: Speaking Out Against the Greenridge Fracked Gas Power Plant. This webinar will provide tips and tools for you to testify at the October 13th, 2021 public hearing on this dangerous project.
The Build Back Better Act is the strongest climate bill in our nation’s history. It would help enable clean energy, millions of new jobs, resilient infrastructure, and reduced energy costs for families like yours. Starting now – Join Congressional leaders calling on Congress to go BIG & BOLD on climate by passing the Build Back Better Act! Watch the livestream here (video will be available following the event if you missed it). It’s our job to help push this legislation too! Climate Power has made it easy. Just text ACT to 434-266-8464 and they will help you connect to your…
Recently, 100 different farm, food, and environmental groups from around the country signed onto a reconciliation letter for food and agriculture. We want a reconciliation package to rebuild the food system in a just way that empowers communities of color, and benefits public health for everyone! Please help us share this letter and message so we can push for the boldest, most equitable and most effective investment in American agriculture + climate mitigation in history.
Our community deserves a utility that takes care of our energy needs. This Saturday, August 28th, Metro Justice’s Rochester for Energy Democracy Committee will canvass Rochester residents about establishing a pubilc utility to replace Rochester Gas & Electric. The canvass will take place from 1:00pm – 5:30pm, beginning at the Metro Justice office. Talking to your neighbors is a great first step towards getting them involved so that we have the people power to win. Lunch, coffee, and tea will be provided! There will be a brief training before participants split into pairs and depart for their turf. We will reconvene at the Metro…
City and county governments that are not adequately addressing the climate crisis need to be called to account for failing to protect the basic human rights of their citizens, and who better to do this than the young people whose rights are being, and will be, most dramatically impacted? Enter Youth Climate Courts, a program where you can get together with other young activists (ages 14-26) and participate in real, local human rights trials about climate change. These youth courts contain youth judges, youth prosecuting attorneys and youth jury members. Youth leaders organize these trials and summon members of local…
Tuesday, August 3rd, more than 110 green, community, labor and faith groups recently released a letter urging President Biden and Congressional Democrat leaders to fund a 10-year, $42 trillion ecosocialist Green New Deal far larger than the $3.5 trillion stimulus package target pushed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Senator Schumer says he intends to bring his $3.5 trillion economic stimulus package up for an initial vote before the August recess. It will need only 50 votes in the Senate. We need to urge the Democrats to support a much more robust climate investment – this may be our last best chance for game-changing funding,…
Tomorrow – SATURDAY, JULY 31, 2021 – at 10:00am, join the women of the Onondaga Nation as they walk for justice from the Onondaga Nation to Downtown Syracuse. Gather at the Onondaga Nation Arena (Tsha’ hoñnoñ yeñh dahkwa’ at) parking lot, Rt. 11 and march to the area formerly known as Columbus Circle. There will be a rally at 1:30 pm with speakers and singers. Within the last couple of months over 2500 unmarked graves of Indigenous children have been located on the grounds of the Institutions of Genocide aka “Residential Schools,” throughout Canada and the United States. We will walk in honor of them…
Are you a Rochester city resident with a passion for food, community, and policy change? Consider joining the newly formed Rochester Food Policy Council!
Citizens Academy is an interactive educational program of FOCUS Greater Syracuse that informs citizens about how local governments are organized and how services are funded and delivered. It is a place to learn about citizen involvement through an integrated approach to economic vitality, social equity and a healthy environment. Anyone can be an activist. But if you’re nervous to get involved because you don’t know the ins and outs of local government – this is the resource for you! Classes will run every Wednesday from September 15, 2021 through November 17, 2021 from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Apply here…
Green Amendment Day is dedicated to education and engagement on the power of constitutional Green Amendments for protecting the rights of all people, including future generations, to a clean and healthy environment–with a particular focus on how Green Amendments transform our legal system to strengthen Environmental Justice. We’re challenging you to speak up and take action to demand environmental rights for ALL and to help spread the word across your community, state, and our nation.
Have you heard? Congress is finally getting ready to vote on a bill that would make polluters, not everyday families pay to clean up Superfund sites. Right now, we need to let our legislators know why bringing back the Polluters Pay Tax is so important — and we need your help to get out the message! If you believe polluters should pay to clean up their messes, use this link to send a letter to your representatives in support of the Superfund Polluters Pay Restoration Act of 2021. Polluters Pay is essential to protecting our communities from corporate pollution and…
Here is a Win-Win-Win opportunity to glean vegetables from local farms to serve hungry folks! Friendship Donations Network (in the Ithaca area) is leading a gleaning project (Glean: verb, to gather from the fields after the main harvest)!
The Tompkins County Legislature is seeking community input on the use of $19.8 million in one-time funding made available through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP). Input is being sought through a survey asking Tompkins County residents to rank their top three priorities for the funds; priorities are limited to eight options clarified for local municipalities by the Federal Government. Results of the survey will inform discussions by the Legislature, including at the June 30, 5:30pm expanded Budget Committee of the Tompkins County Legislature where Legislators will begin the process of planning how best to spend and/or invest ARP funds.
Monitoring HABs is a fun way to spend time on the lakeshore and participate in an important community science effort! This fast and accurate information about HABs helps lake-goers make safe decisions about recreating on the lake and betters our shared understanding of the risk these blooms may or may not present.
How do you envision the future? What could a Green New Deal do for you? Tonight from 6-7 PM on Zoom, join the new City of Ithaca Sustainability Director Luis Aguirre Torres and his colleagues for a brief information session on a new project, called 1,000 Conversations About Our Future.
The Climate & Community Investment Act and Build Public Renewables Act will make polluters pay, create green jobs, protect ratepayers (YOU!), & help to build a renewable economy. Let’s get them passed this session; Come out tonight (Thursday, June 3rd) at 6:00pm to the Bernie Milton Pavilion (on the Commons) in Ithaca.
“In our efforts to nip an extractive, exploitative industry in New York in the bud, we are hosting a critical demonstration at the DEC Region 8 Headquarters this coming Saturday, June 5th. We have media interest from Germany, Italy, France, Japan, China, and national news (CBS, NBC, ABC, Now This News). This is our opportunity to put pressure on Governor Cuomo to put his money where his mouth is, If he wants to be a leader on Climate, he must act on the extractive industry of Proof of Work cryptocurrency, which could cripple New York’s climate goals. Please share these…
Will you help us keep the crypto industry at bay? Here’s what to do: Contact your Senators and Assemblypeople. Here is a list of important people to contact. Please use it to pick a few and call or tweet them! Here is a sample call/email script and sample tweets to make things quick and easy. We want to reach as many reps as possible! Sign on here if you are an individual or sign on here if you are an organization to support Assembly Bill 7389 / Senate Bill 6486, which will establish a moratorium on any new or expanding…
Governor Cuomo’s Public Service Commission (PSC) is once again prioritizing gas utility profits over the survival of our planet. In their current gas planning proceeding, they ignored the demands of 200 elected officials and 130 organizations. Now, we need thousands of comments to flood the PSC. Write a comment today!
We only have until June 10th to pass the CCIA this year. So, NYRenews is having rallies all across the state on Tuesday, May 18th! Now that we are nearing the end of this legislative session, it is crunch time to lift up our champions and build pressure on the major political players left to join us. Find a rally near you!
The Greenidge Plant on Seneca Lake will spew, “hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon dioxide from the plant’s stacks, pump billions of gallons of hot water into a nearby trout stream, and pipe in and burn billions of cubic feet of fracked natural gas.”
Climate Stewards is a new volunteer program through Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County that builds upon the successful models of CCE’s existing Master Gardener and Master Composter volunteer programs. Trainees will learn what is already taking place in Tompkins County to combat climate change, and how, as volunteers, they can help our municipalities implement even more changes.
Leadership of the NYS Assembly and Senate Agriculture committees have recently announced that they hope to pass the Soil Health and Climate Resiliency Act (S4722/AO5386) this session, which ends June 10, 2021. The bill will create a soil health program that will be truly beneficial for New York’s organic farmers and conscious food eaters. Here’s how you can help:
The time for incrementalism is over. We need a managed, equitable, affordable transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy now! Let’s flood the Public Service Commission with comments. Our goal is 5,000 comments by June 4, 2021. Can you join the movement to push for a real plan to phase out gas?
Here’s some opportunities to plug in in the Finger Lakes region (and virtually!)…
Join Clean Heating and Cooling community teams from across New York and the Renewable Heat Now Campaign to learn about the movement for #BuildingElectrification and how you can be a part of it: on a personal, municipal, state and federal levels. Let’s push #HeatPumpsNotPipelines!
Continued investment in a dying industry is putting the financial stability of the teacher’s pension fund at risk. Teachers must demand that NYSTRS DIVESTS to save their pension and to save the planet. Here’s what you can do…
Join Metro IAF & their partners — BlocPower and the Community Purchasing Alliance — launch a 2-year push to convert congregations & other buildings in NY to clean energy on Earth Day (Thursday, April 22nd) from 11:00am to 11:45am.
As you may know, the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance (FLTA) is working to secure a National Heritage Area designation for the Finger Lakes. Here’s why it’s important and how you can help.
We learned over the weekend that the Torrey Town Board, despite what they said at their last meeting (about holding a special meeting for Greenidge later in the month), has rather quietly MOVED THE MEETING UP TO APRIL 19TH.
Join NY Renews tonight at 7:00pm for a town hall with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and State Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris to talk about the THRIVE Agenda and the CCIA. And they’ll be spending most of the time taking questions directly from YOU. New Yorkers need a real recovery NOW, at every level of government! Click here for details and to register.
Our utility system is set up to prioritize making money for a small number of wealthy people over us, our homes, our health, and our well-being. Join Alliance for a Green Economy and other members of the New York Energy Democracy Alliance at 6PM on April 8th to learn how we can fight back against the system and demand debt cancellation, energy efficiency, and public power!
While we need to use road salt to keep roadways safe in the ice and snow, the accumulation of salt that washes into waterways has unintended consequences on aquatic life. It also largely contributes to Harmful Algal Blooms, which have been a major problem in the Finger Lakes Region for years. Using this much imported salt is also expensive in terms of both money and carbon emissions. Fortunately, practical alternatives are starting to emerge; namely, salt brine and live-blade plows (which you can learn more about in the article below). Over the course of 2 years testing these alternatives, communities…
The gas-powered leaf blower is responsible for a significant amount of fossil fuel use, as well as noise and air pollution. Our cars and trucks require strict emissions testing and regulation. The 2-stroke engines in gas leaf blowers (GLBs) lacks emission control components, releasing 300 times the levels of hydrocarbons as vehicles on the road. According to the California Air Resources Board, running one for 1 hour is equivalent to the pollutants released by driving a car 1100 miles.
Please call Cuomo’s office and put pressure on him and the DEC to protect quality of life and our local economy in the Finger Lakes. WE RESIST BEING A SACRIFICE ZONE FOR WALL STREET! Call him today at 518-474-8390 and tell him he can make it up to his constituents by getting involved and telling Wall Street and greedy outside corporations to take a hike. Our lakes can’t take any more human pressure on them – especially for something as wasteful as bitcoins.
Will you help get 100 emails to the Public Service Commission (PSC) today? This would help in the efforts to head off a flurry of utility shutoffs slated to start next week. New York’s utility shutoff moratorium ends on March 28, and word is that the utilities are getting ready to start shutoffs on Monday, March 29. It’s important for the PSC to tell the utilities NOT TO DISCONNECT ANYONE.
Watch for it and vote yes! This November, we will decide whether the state constitution should be amended to include a right to clean air and water, as well as a “healthy environment”, aka the Green Amendment! Who wouldn’t want that? Turns out, we may be facing some tough opposition. Read this article to learn more.
We will be engaging in over 40 lobby visits, dozens of distributed rallies, a huge kick off call, daily social media actions, a town hall with Senator Schumer himself, and much more. And we’re doing all of this in a single week. Here are two ways you can take action now!
Looking to compost on campus? Want to manage your food-related waste better this semester? Interested in reducing your impact on climate change? Become a certified Residential Composter. Available to students & staff living in on-campus housing.
Today, March 19th, is the day of Global (Virtual) Climate Strike. This is your CALL TO ACTION! Make a sign, snap a pic, tag your reps & hashtag it, & Demand Climate Justice! More info provided by Sunrise Ithaca here.
While the Finger Lakes is being considered for a National Heritage Designation by Congress, the small Town of Torrey and Greenidge could make a decision that would forever harm this gem of a region we call home. Burning dirty fossil fuels, warming our water, killing our aquatic life, and generating noise is completely antithetical to our way of life- one that would negatively impact our air, our environment, our water, and our agri-tourism economy- for generations to come- in the midst of global climate change. It’s inconceivable. We cannot allow this to happen.
YOU CAN HELP get an energy efficiency NYS Assembly bill moving toward a vote! What to do…
New York’s Climate Leadership & Community Protection Act (CLCPA) mandates that we get off of fossil fuels and invest in frontline communities — eventually, the fossil fuel industry will be irrelevant. Unsurprisingly, they’re pushing back. NY Renews just released a new report detailing five “false solutions” that the gas industry puts forward to seem “clean” and “green”, but in reality are just as dirty as their fossil fuel counterparts. So what to do?
We must speak out! New Yorkers deserve better than Holtec! Entergy (current owner) is asking the PSC to approve the transfer of Indian Point Nuclear Plant and the associated $1.6 billion decommissioning trust fund to a joint venture of Holtec International and SNC-Lavalin (henceforth Holtec). Holtec has been cited for malfeasance, safety violations, financial misdealings, and corruption. This track record should disqualify Holtec from obtaining the licence to decommission Indian Point and gaining control of the $1.6 billion Decommissioning Trust Fund. Many organizations that follow nuclear industry issues believe Holtec is unfit to manage Indian Point and the trust fund…
Tompkins County residents are invited to share their thoughts on our local food system and their priorities for improving it in a brief online survey hosted by Tompkins Food Future, a community-based planning initiative. The survey will remain open through 3/5/21. It takes 10 minutes or less to complete, and you can take it here! Survey responses will provide an overview of the challenges, strengths and needs of our community, and will be used to develop a comprehensive food system plan and recommendations, to be distributed in May 2022.
“GreenStar Food Coop, with over 200 employees, has become the largest Living Wage Certified employer in Tompkins County that is not a government organization. The Tompkins County Living Wage is currently $15.37/hour, and there are now 124 certified employers”, the Tompkins County Workers Center reports, for whom this is a major victory. Read more about it here. Like the sound of this? Check out the full list of Living Wage employers (including Sustainable Tompkins!), and sign the petition for a county-wide living minimum wage (right now, it’s $15.37 in Tompkins County, and calculated every two years by Alternatives Federal Credit…
Back in 2017, the City and Town of Ithaca proposed a “green building policy” for new construction and major renovations that was pretty advanced for its time… in 2017. Now, in 2021, the City and Town are proposing to vote on it. However, policy that was advanced in 2017 is not advanced today … they need to strengthen the law before passing it. YOU CAN HELP! Here are 3 easy actions for you to take before the public hearing TOMORROW. It will make a big difference to our representatives to know they have support for this important policy from a…
We need all hands on deck to make this a year of climate action. With the Climate and Community Investment Act, we have a chance to pass some of the most influential, impactful climate legislation in the country. Let’s make sure we grab it.
Monday, February 15th is President’s Day. What better time than the week of President’s Day to get folks to sign a petition asking President Biden to be a #PlasticFreePresident?!
This is a project to put a high-quality soup pot and weekly ingredients and lessons on cooking into the hands of food insecure families in Tompkins and Cortland County. Learn how you can help!
TOMORROW (Thursday, 2/4/21) from 3:00pm – 5:00pm is the NYS Energy Efficiency and Housing Climate Action Council Subcommittee meeting. This is the only opportunity for public input before this body gives their recommendation to the State Climate Action Council. We are advocating for an ambitious sunset plan for gas in all buildings beginning with new construction. The timeline below would end fossil fuels in new single-family homes by 2025 and end new and replacement fossil fuel heating system sales by 2030. Sign up to speak for 2 minutes!
e Ithaca Common Council will be voting this coming Wednesday, February 3rd, to stipulate that the new Green Street residential tower, parking garage and conference center in Ithaca be built with a minimum of 30% local labor (defined as being Tompkins County and all contiguous Counties). Please contact Council as soon as possible to support this, which you can easily do with one e-mail to co*****@ci**********.org (the Mayor will also receive this). This requirement will mean more good jobs for people who live and pay taxes in this area.
We Make Our Future! If we remain silent and uninformed while harms and risks proliferate around us, that is our doing as much as theirs. Please make 2021 the Year of Focus on the Future! Call Cuomo to make your views on the stewardship of our landscape known: (518) 474-8390 to call Cuomo!
The Town of Torrey has referred the matter of expanding the Greenidge Power Plant (AKA Bitcoin Mine) to the Yates County Planning Board, which meets TONIGHT, January 28th at 7:00 pm. This referral is basically an admission by the Town Planning Board that it should have consulted the County Board originally, as required by Law prior to issuing the conditioned negative declaration and issuing the site permit. The Town must start the SEQR review process over and conduct a complete environmental review, including requiring DEC participation and a full Environmental Impact Statement.
Please join the Build Back Fossil Free campaign on Tuesday, January 26 at 8pm ET for a digital rally calling on President Biden to take bold executive action to end the era of fossil fuel production, protect communities reeling from the climate and COVID-19 crises, and build back fossil free. The digital rally will feature frontline leaders fighting toxic fossil fuel projects and lay the groundwork for a coordinated organizing push to build on this week’s momentum.
Thanks to the hard work of grassroots activists, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) was passed by NYS legislators. It is the nation’s most progressive piece of climate justice legislation, which pledges to eliminate greenhouse emissions in the next 30 years. Now it’s time to #PassTheCCIA! The Climate & Community Protection Act will #MakePollutersPay and create 150,000 NEW GREEN JOBS IN NYS! Want to plug in? Thankfully, NY Renews has outlined some ways you can take action.
Seneca Meadows Landfill has applied for an expansion permit with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. If approved, this would allow Seneca Meadows to operate for an additional 15 years, continuing to dump 6,000 tons of garbage a day until 2040. We must be not allow this to happen.
Greenidge is an inefficient gas-fired powered plant on the west side of Seneca Lake that wants to expand its energy generation NOT for public use, but for their own private Bitcoin operation. They want to withdraw nearly 160 millions of gallons of lake water each day, and return it to a trout stream that feeds back into the lake. Discharge temperatures could be as hot as 108 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s hotter than most hot tubs, and would be uncomfortable for humans, let alone trout, who prefer water from 40 to 52 degrees F. Please tell Governor Cuomo to deny the…
The City of Geneva Police Reform and Reinvention Collective Group has posted a public survey to assist in the development of the plan required by Governor Cuomo’s Executive Order 203. Part of this process involves listening and learning from members of the community about their perspectives, experiences and interactions (both positive and negative) with the City of Geneva Police Department.
Sign this petition to stop the fracked gas export terminal in the Delaware River! Tell New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, Delaware Governor John Carney, and Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf to STOP the approval of a fracked gas export facility. The proposed project by New Fortress Energy will violate the Clean Water Act and reverse decades of work to eliminate PCB pollution in the Delaware River. This river provides drinking water for over 15 million people. They have 14,460/15,000 signatures…only a few more to go! Sign on TODAY!
The Youth Climate Leaders group is leading the fight to have hundreds of millions of dollars in fossil fuel subsidies cut from New York’s 2021-22 budget. As the climate crisis intensifies and the budget deficit looms, eliminating non-essential fossil fuel subsidies is indispensable in the fight for environmental and economic justice. Ending fossil fuel subsidies is already widely supported in the legislature – the senate counterpart of A257C passed this past year. Your support will help tip the scales this budget season. Please sign on here no later than Monday, December 28th.
Khuba International offers equity-based scholarships for participation in the Learning Farm’s Outdoor School in Enfield. They are currently looking for business sponsorship from farms! — support the participation of income-challenged and racially-excluded children in education in the natural world. Farms that choose to participate will receive two pollination-partner plum tree starts as a gift from The Learning Farm and other collaborating farms!
We are collecting local stories that highlight the ways our values, thoughts, actions, and policies are shifting in order to create a more just and resilient Tompkins County. This is an opportunity to explore how you are responding to the pandemic, and what solutions or signs of transformation you see emerging. Use whatever medium you like: self-made video or recorded audio (1-3 minutes and horizontal orientation, preferably), written story (200-400 words), or original works of art or poetry. We will share the stories through multiple media to a broad range of audiences.
Please consider signing the petition calling on the NYS legislature and Governor Cuomo to identify and eliminate all nonessential fossil fuel subsidies and sharing it on your social media platforms. The Tompkins County Climate Protection Initiative signed a letter in support of the relevant bill (A257C) in August. At this point, as part of its lobbying campaign, the New York Youth Climate Leaders coalition is asking for individual signers. Only 600 signatures left to meet their goal of 2,000. Let’s help them meet it!
The Ithaca Carbon Neutrality team (part of Cornell University’s Sustainable Design program), is attempting to make recommendations to the City of Ithaca that will help us reach carbon neutrality by 2030. For a project on thermal decay, they are using temperature sensors to collect data from volunteers’ homes and provide an analysis of how well-insulated these homes are, compared to other homes of the same size. Ideally, this analysis will help tailor retrofit recommendations to the city and the homeowners themselves. Fill out this form to have your home be part of the project!
Indigenous students at Cornell have launched a campaign to respond to Cornell’s founding and history, which, “profits from acts of colonial violence and Indigenous erasure”, their petition states. Their demands include increased funding for Indigenous faculty and the Indigenous Studies program, a land acknowledgement before campus events, a mandatory introductory course on Indigenous Studies for all students, and more – Read and Sign the petition here to support them!
A comprehensive plastic reduction policy plan has been developed for the next President, which includes a range of specific actions the President can take to reduce plastic pollution. Over 400 environmental and community organizations have already signed on. The deadline is Nov. 13 for 501c3 organizations to sign on.
President Trump has publicly stated that he may not accept or respect a loss in this presidential election. We have reason to prepare for the worst case scenario. Help protect democracy by pledging to non-violently protest if President Trump attempts a coup. Read the pledge from Choose Democracy to learn more and sign the Ithaca-area pledge with as little as your name via Google form. Visit isthisacoup.com for a play-by-play of recent actions by Trump and the US government surrounding threats to American democracy.
NY for TCI (New York for Transportation and Climate Initiative) has written a letter, urging Governor Cuomo to implement a “cap-and-invest” program – under which New York and neighboring states would limit and reduce carbon pollution from transportation fuels and invest in our communities to provide better, cleaner, and safer transportation options. By leading on TCI, NYS can accelerate our state’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and build back stronger with good family-sustaining green jobs while protecting the long-term health and well-being of our communities. Sign this letter to Governor Cuomo to show your support for an equitable and…
IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED! COMMENT DEADLINE FOR GARBAGE TRANSFER STATION DUE THIS THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24TH!
Please join us in urging the major food delivery ordering companies (GrubHub, Uber Eats, Seamless, Doordash, Delivery.com, Postmates and Caviar) to make a small change to their ordering systems to help prevent this avalanche of needless single-use plastic trash. What you can do: Add your name to the petition here.The vast majority of these single-use…
“Great news! New York’s legislature just passed legislation to stop fracking waste being dumped in our state! Now we need to urge Governor Cuomo to sign it into law! Five years ago, New York banned fracking, but we’ve still been a dumping ground for fracking waste from Pennsylvania. This toxic brew contains radioactivity and other…
New York’s recently passed Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act requires New York to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% in just ten years. Continued investments by teacher pension funds into fossil fuels are sending the wrong message and are contradictory to the goals of students for a sustainable future. In addition, New York state pension funds have lost billions of dollars holding onto fossil fuel stocks, a loss which local governments and school systems must make up for with citizens’ tax dollars. Please sign this petition asking the New York State United Teachers to support divestment from fossil fuels…
In the past few weeks, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has stated that we have to “Reimagine New York.” He explains that we have to learn from the lessons of COVID-19 to make a better New York by changing the systems that so obviously have failed us, namely the healthcare system. As the Health Committee Chairs of the state say, “The need for the New York Health Act has never been clearer. Stop wasting tens of billions of dollars on insurance company profits, administrative overhead, and marketing, making doctors and hospitals spend billions on administrative costs to fight with insurance companies, and…
Making small changes as we live in the watershed can make a big difference. The health and recreational enjoyment of the Finger Lakes depends on our actions and involvement. This summer, a new program, Lake Friendly Living, will provide steps you can take right now, at home, to make a difference in watershed health! What can you do to get involved? Join the Lake Friendly Living program and adopt Lake Friendly Living practices!
Exercise your right to vote up until June 23rd! Visit voteearlyny.org and select your county to get started. You’ll find all your early voting options, including times the polls are open and voting locations. You’ll also find instructions for how to vote by mail, your early voting rights, and resources to report an incident of difficulty voting or intimidation. A lovely resource! Here are some sample ballots for the Presidential Primary, City of Ithaca, and towns in Tompkins County.
This Wednesday, May 20th at 12:00pm the New York Health Campaign will be conducting a huge virtual rally. We want to send an overwhelming amount of messaging to our NY government in Albany that NOW is the time to pass the NYHA. It’s an EMERGENCY! We need this law now. Here are ways you can join and help:
Billions of dollars are at stake in federal stimulus legislation, and we must make sure the money doesn’t end up in the coffers of fossil fuel companies. Call Senator Schumer at 877-852-4710 and leave a message urging him to block a bailout of the oil & gas industry. As our nation recovers and rebuilds from the pandemic, we must invest in programs that benefit people and the planet, including good green jobs in water infrastructure, not polluters. As the Senate’s top Democrat, Schumer must lead the way in championing a Green New Deal and standing up to greedy corporations.
A letter to circulate to organizations in your network: Dear renewable energy and energy efficiency allies, It has been a while since we reached out to you about a major organizational sign-on letter, and we hope that this email finds you and your loved ones safe and with the resources that you need. As many of you know, Multiple Intervenors (an unincorporated group of large unnamed energy consumers with an undisclosed Board) has petitioned the Public Service Commission to stop collecting money for renewable energy and energy efficiency programs and to take the money NYSERDA is holding for such programs…
Friendship Donations Network has compiled a truly impressive and comprehensive list of all the programs, food pantries, etc that they donate fresh food to in Tompkins and neighboring counties, divided by day of the week! 😱🍓🥪🥗 On their website, they also have a list of other food-related resources in the region. Want to contribute? They are also accepting donations and looking for volunteers to help distribute. To learn more, visit their website.
With the nation’s attention on the pandemic and the ensuing economic fallout, the fossil fuel industry is taking every opportunity to profit from disaster. They’ve lobbied for the EPA to loosen regulations and pushed forward pipelines like Keystone XL. And now they’re lobbying to ensure that coal, oil and gas companies receive a significant portion of the bailout funds meant for small businesses. They also want $3 billion that could go to COVID-19 relief to be used to purchase oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. It is critical that we push back. Please join a nationwide effort to email Congress…
What you can do to help: Submit a comment today to the Public Service Commission telling them to stop the gas infrastructure buildout and help with the conversion to renewable heat now. The Commission’s staff will soon release a detailed proposal for a new gas planning policy. This will determine the future of heat in New York. We need your action to make sure the future of heat is renewable energy, not more gas pipelines. We need your voice now to help hold the utilities accountable for reducing reliance on global-warming, health-and-environment-destroying fracked gas and moving toward renewable heat -…
Looking for more ways to plug into the climate movement from behind your computer? As a social media volunteer for RPCC, you can provide support to their social media and overall outreach efforts. The Rochester People’s Climate Coalition (RPCC) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring and facilitating large-scale climate solution mobilization in the Greater Rochester Region. Want to know more? Visit their website.
The Butler Town Board is considering a proposal by Tully Environment to build a sewage sludge processing plant to be operated in a gravel pit owned by Riccelli Enterprises. In theory, it would be used to process sewer sludge/waste from NYC, compost it, and turn it into fertilizer that could be used on area farmland or elsewhere. Bottom line – if after reading the info below, you feel it’s not something we want in upstate NY, call either Pam Helming’s office, and/or your local NYS Senator or Assemblyperson, and let them know that.
This hands-on and in-depth training prepares volunteer Energy Navigators to help others in the community understand their energy use and make progress towards reducing energy use and bills, and switching from fossil fuels to renewables. Focus is on helping low- and moderate-income residents (both homeowners and renters) save energy and money.
Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton’s term ends at the end of 2020, and she has announced she will be retiring after her ninth term representing the 125th district, meaning that several democrats have stepped forward to run and take her place for the upcoming term. It is our responsibility as citizens to be educated on who is running to make an informed voting decision on June 23rd (primary) and November 3rd (general), so a handy guide has put together here! Aspiring candidates can still file to run until April 2nd, so more candidates may step forward, but these are the existing candidates…
New York passed the CLCPA this summer, the most ambitious decarbonization bill of any state so far. As part of the bill, the state must name a Climate Leadership Council to help oversee the transition. The Sunrise Movement has a chance to get one of it’s own members, Ryan Madden, onto the committee as a Youth Representative. Ryan has trained with Sunrise, works for the Long Island Progressive Coalition, and helps lead the New York Renews coalition.
Fossil Free Tompkins has joined with Sierra Club in crafting this letter to Governor Cuomo – asking that he ensure that the plants surrender their air emissions permits, there is a solid worker transition plan in place, that toxic materials, including coal ash landfills, are properly managed, monitored and treated, that the new facilities operate with high levels of energy efficiency, that utility scale solar development is supported at both sites, and that there is adequate funding to enable the transition from coal plants to data centers.
NYS Legislature and Governor have been urged to take action against the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria by banning the use of medically important antibiotics in food-producing animals. As you all know, the threat of a post-antibiotic world is real and dangerous, and we can’t afford to wait on the FDA to take meaningful action when it comes to agricultural policy regarding antibiotics use.
Make your voice heard. The EPA is holding a public meeting TONIGHT. Come hear about the proposed clean up of the superfund site in Auburn created by the former GE plant and voice your opinion.
NYSEG has requested they be allowed to increase their electric rates by more than 20% in our region. Please attend one of the public hearings and voice your concerns about how our public utility is being managed: