On Tuesday, students from Southwestern University’s Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge (SEAK) had intended to speak before the Georgetown City Council regarding the 20 year energy plan for their city.  They had registered an agenda item with the City Secretary’s Office, asked all the right questions about who could speak and for howlong, and everyone was in City Council chambers ahead of the meeting forms in hand and polite, thoughtful, well-reasoned remarks committed to memory.

SEAK’s charismatic President, Connor Hanrahan, went to the mic and spoke politely about hoping to form a positive “working relationship” with the city as they discussed aspects of the energy plan and in particular a provision to purchase 30% of their electricity from nuclear power plants.

“We are not here to protest nuclear,” he said, “but want to discuss new information that affects this plan.”

And then the Mayor dropped a bomb.  Citing a “misunderstanding” about City Council procedures, he informed Connor and the group of students and allies he’d brought with him that they would not be allowed to speak at the meeting that evening.  To his credit, Mayor Garver did make an effort at conciliation by offering Connor the opportunity to nominate 2 members of his party to speak for 3 minutes apiece, but the notion was quickly rebuked by Councilwoman Pat Berryman, a known proponent of nuclear power.

Does this sound familiar to anyone?  Think Pedernales Electric Coop and CPS Energy.  These two major electric utilities in Texas have been recently embroiled in controversy over failure to provide information, give the public access to speak, and making bad, even corrupt decisions from positions of power.  As a result, reform candidates have been elected to the PEC Board of Directors and two of its former members face multiple felony indictments.  At CPS, two executives have been placed on leave while its board investigates why the utility failed to disclose new cost estimates to the public and the San Antonio City Council.

Why would Georgetown’s Mayor and City Council tell local students they had no right to speak about the energy future of their own city?  Because the rules said so?  Can a member of the City Council not make a motion to suspend the rules?  In fact they can, but no member of the City Council had the courage or good sense to make that motion and give their constituents the opportunity to weigh in on an issue of city governance.

Georgetown’s website recently posted an article patting the city on the back for moving forward with a citizen participation plan aimed at increasing civic engagement.  This little episode made clear that such a plan is badly needed.

Georgetown is not a big city.  As of last year the population was a little under 50,000.  David Foster, an activist from Clean Water Action who had been invited by SEAK to speak at the meeting, talked fondly beforehand about the small-town feeling that had drawn him and his wife to the city for a short retreat just a week earlier.

But in this same small town, if an ordinary citizen and a couple of his or her friends want to bring an issue up to their elected city council, the answer appears to be “I’m sorry, but we don’t care to hear about it.  You’ll just have to wait until one of us decides that your issue is worthy of our consideration.”

Newsflash Georgetown City Council – your rules need changing.  A person shouldn’t have to work themselves raw if they want to let a few people speak to you about an issue or bring in an expert or two who’ve done some research on the subject.  Even the Texas Legislature, where lawmakers have only 140 days every 2 years to make important decisions affecting the entire state, allows people to simply show up, sign up, and speak directly to Representatives and Senators.

The truth of the matter is that the City Council and Georgetown Utility Services made a boneheaded decision when they 1) made nuclear power 30% of their future energy mix and 2) sent a representative to San Antonio to speak on behalf of CPS Energy in defending the nuclear project.  He was 1 of 17 people who spoke for the plant, while 63 spoke against it.  And now that nuclear project is embroiled in controversy as rising cost estimates have made it too expensive for San Antonio and it is becoming clear that utility officials attempted to hide that information from City Council as they prepared to vote on a $400 million bond package for the plant.

The Georgetown City Council should know that this kind of stonewalling can only hurt them.  PEC stonewalled its customers and got one of the biggest utility scandals in Texas history.  CPS did a little better regarding the public but nevertheless erred on the side of closed-door-meetings and non-disclosure and has put itself on very thin ice with the City Council and the public.

Being open and transparent is not as much of a hassle as you might think, and especially not in a small town.  Had the City Council bothered to listen to its own residents, they might have learned that programs aimed at efficiency could save residents money.  They might have learned that nuclear power is generally the most expensive form of energy commercially available.  They might have learned that reliable alternatives such as solar power with natural gas back-ups cost far less than energy from new nuclear reactors.  Those crazy environmentalists with their fiscally responsible approach to energy policy!

The members of SEAK, Mr. Foster, and representatives from Public Citizen and ReEnergize Texas will be back in two weeks.  We will jump through the new hoops City Council has erected, or we’ll just ask Councilwoman Patty Eason to represent the students of Southwestern, who live in her district, by making the energy plan a Council Action Item or whatever terminology they need it to be in order to sit through the unwanted babbling of their own citizens. But beware, City Council.  That babbling has had a strange way of coming true lately, particularly when it comes to nuclear power, and if the CPS experience is any indication that’s one train you don’t want to get hit by.

This is a quick update to our last post.

So far there has been light coverage in the Austin American Statesman and a local blog, Eye on Williamson County. We anticipate an article in Sunday’s Williamson County Times, and press conference organizer Paige Menking got a call from a reporter with the San Antonio Current which has been critical of CPS’s nuclear proposal. Staff at the Statesman also indicated they would send a reporter to Georgetown’s city council meeting on Tuesday to cover SEAK students officially presenting their request to the city.

We now have video of the press conference available, so enjoy!

SEAK Press Conference in Opposition to CPS Nuclear Proposal from Public Citizen on Vimeo.

Today at noon, a group of students at Southwestern University known as SEAK, Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge, held a press conference at the Williamson County Courthouse asking Georgetown’s city council to reconsider its support for 2 new nuclear reactors proposed for the South Texas Nuclear Project. The project is currently led by CPS Energy of San Antonio and NRG Energy, a private utility company based in New Jersey.

Connor Hanrahan, a senior at Southwestern and president of SEAK, called on the city council to “reconsider [its] support for this project, and to do so in a public forum where the voices of citizens can be heard.”

Hanrahan was referring both to Georgetown’s long range energy plan which includes a substantial investment in nuclear power, and to an appearance made by the city utility’s Jim Briggs at a public meeting hosted by CPS Energy in San Antonio.

“It was premature for the utility to be showing public support for this project,” said Trevor Lovell of ReEnergize Texas. He noted that the nuclear project faces stiff public opposition in San Antonio. Mr. Briggs was 1 of 17 individuals speaking in favor of the plant at the public meeting held on September 28. A total of 63 individuals spoke in opposition to the plant at the same meeting.

Matthew Johnson of Public Citizen’s Texas Office spoke about the growing financial risk associated with Georgetown’s plan.

“The estimated cost of the nuclear expansion at the South Texas Project has doubled since Georgetown’s city council approved their energy plan,” Johnson said. “There’s a strong case to be made that rethinking that plan with new assumptions would be appropriate to protect ratepayers.”

Siting a recent article by Asher Price of the Austin American Statesman describing a
conflict over water between LCRA and southeast Texas rice farmers, Lovell also expressed concern about the impact the new nuclear reactors would have on water flowing in the Colorado River.

“In a drought year the 2 reactors currently at STP consume almost half the flow of the Colorado River where it meets gulf coast estuaries. Adding two new reactors will put wetland wildlife at substantial risk and may wipe local rice farmers out completely.”

The coalition plans to speak at the Georgetown City Council meeting next week and deliver a letter to each Council member asking them to rescind their support of the project and reconsider their commitment to 30% nuclear in their current 2035 energy plan.

A video of the press conference will be available later today.

Last spring a coalition of student leaders from all over Texas pressured state lawmakers to pass a bill providing student bodies greater authority to create “environmental service fees” on their campuses. In a session that produced very few new laws HB 3353 passed with bipartisan support, a major legislative victory for us at ReEnergize Texas.

Across the country, 94 colleges and universities have established such fees which pay for renewable energy, land conservation, local food projects and more, but the only one in Texas is at Texas State University in San Marcos. The students who helped get HB 3353 passed are now working together to change all that. Their goal is to make Texas the leading state when it comes to campuses with student-driven green funds.

“Our first statewide conference call was a great success,” said Jacob Bintliff, a student leader from UT Austin. “We had students from 8 different campuses, everyone is pretty much on board, and we’re all reaching out to neighboring campuses to broaden the coalition.”

The final language of the bill limits student bodies to imposing fees no larger than $5 per semester. The issue must be voted on by the students during a student election, which are usually held each spring. So far the students are reporting great success.

“We met with the president of SGA for the University of Houston, and he seems very supportive so far,” says Jason Cantu, lead organizer for the ReEnergize Houston chapter.

These campaigns have been very popular nationally as well. According to research done by Jacob Bintliff, only 3 such efforts have ever been defeated. He notes that in 2 of these cases it seems possible that campus politics, rather than the merits of the campaign, may have been responsible for the defeats.

Still, students hoping to create green funds for their campuses will have an uphill battle. The tough economic times are leading some students to question the timing of the campaigns.

My response – referendum campaigns are tough, but even if it looks hopeless the campaign itself will raise awareness, bring new people to your cause, help you build new partnerships and help unify your group. Even if you lose, you will build the skills and networks you need to win next year.

In San Antonio the municipal electric utility, CPS Energy, has proposed spending $5.2 billion on two new nuclear reactors.  They claim to need the power for San Antonio’s growing energy demand, but they have failed to engage the public and have a meaningful conversation with city officials about what this would mean.

ReEnergize Texas has joined the coalition Energia Mia to oppose this plant and instead back the vision of

Mission Verde.  Julio Lopez is an activist who has joined us through our partnership with the Esperanza Center.  Here is his first story:

On Tuesday September 15, I attended a CPS sponsored Neighbor Night in district 4. Here residents were able to see yet again a presentation clearly drafted to entangle people in numbers and words only those with a strong background on the subject could understand.

CPS claimed to have made an honest effort to provide residents with clear and comprehensive information readily made available upon request. They said there were books of information on the proposal for anyone seeking further knowledge on this issue to be found at every public library in San Antonio. So on Wednesday I decided to visit a local library to take a look at these public information books.

When introduced to these books at the district 4 meeting, one got the impression that the information would be found in basic format that anyone could understand. I arrived at the library, approached the front desk and asked,” I was told CPS delivered some books providing information on the upcoming nuclear proposal…” the librarian politely responded, “ Umm… let me see… usually we would have something like that here [pointing to an information area ]… hold on, let me ask.” Once everything was sorted out and she started to hand me the books one by one, she says, “Maybe you should wait for the movie.” I stood there starring at a stack of paper about a foot high.

I’m really impressed with CPS’s efforts to inform the public. We’re less than a month away from a decision, and only two weeks ago these volumes became available. Three years worth of information, and we’re supposed to read and understand all the legal terminology in a few weeks. Thanks, CPS.

The Summer of Solutions program has been getting youth engaged in cool projects all over the country, and in Austin we’ve been working with low income neighborhoods east of I-35 trying to figure out what people want, what they need, and how we can best serve their interests.

A lot of our work has focused on energy efficiency in homes, but another really important movement growing on the east side is locally produced food.  We organized a workday at the Montopolis Community Center where staffers have been maintaining a few garden plots benefiting the WIC Program (WIC stands for Women, Infants, and Children).

Meet a few of the great folks who came out and helped us rebuild this garden:

Summer of Solutions – Montopolis Community Garden from Public Citizen on Vimeo.

To learn more about other local food projects going on in Austin, check out the Sustainable Food Center, Green Corn Project, and Resolution Gardens, all of which have helped us out in one way or another this summer.

We had a good time at the workday, and we’re going back next week to host a free gardening class to help the locals maintain this garden or start their own.  We’re also planning to help install new garden beds at Faith Presbyterian Church with help from Resolution Gardens, and have been working with the Rosewood Community Center on installing some garden space there.  

We’re still learning as we go, and we’re hoping to find enough volunteers to make Summer of Solutions into a year-round program. If you’re interested in these kinds of projects and you live in Texas, email trevor.lovell[at]gmail.com to get more involved. If you live outside of Texas, visit the Summer of Solutions page linked at the top of this post.

So, hanging out and training some American Youth Works kids today down in the Montopolis community! Ten kids from the community, who are already working hands on leading their community forward, sitting in on some real useful trainings from the SSC being run by our lovely Anna Pierce, Jeni Wilde and Rachel Aitkens. We’re out here hanging out with the kids on their turf, in their house, telling them what they want to know, on their terms. Even in getting the trainings set up the guys are trouble shooting with us! Even projector and technology mutinies are opportunities to build cooperation in the group. Brainstorming is successful and interactive. The team is open to participating with kids on their level and open to being goofy! Eco-stretches, Go!

Framing training is first up in the agenda. Everyone is open to the ideas and chilling out and laughing with ( or maybe at) us. The brainstorming exercise was a great ice breaker and they all participated, no one got left out! I’m thinking these kids are pretty awesome and so far they seem really open to us. The hand outs are a bit confusing at first but once everyone finds their page its chill. The following moment of voluntary silence as all of them willingly delve into the handout material. Even I hesitate to read handouts people give me.

Its really exciting at the end of a training session to hear the kids asking questions and without even being prompted, getting excited and talking amongst themselves about how framing and messaging integrates with what they’re already doing and how they do it. Even better yet, they’re asking what more they can do. Such a rewarding and revitalizing experience. Even during break time between the sessions they’re interested in what we’re doing and asking questions about our events

At the end of the day, here’s what one really spunky American Youth Works participant had to say:

Angie:

So some of the Re-Energize Texas/Summer of Solutions crew came over to talk to our group, which was awesome because it gave us all a slightly larger break from our construction site work on this particularly hot day. It was also pretty helpful because we were presented with tips and constructive activities for understanding canvassing and presenting new ides for positive change within a community.

Our crew in particular, GEC-Green Energy Corps, will be working on hands on weatherization construction and promoting a transition toward furthering its incorporation to Austin area housing & then hopefully further. I really like the Re-Energize Texas shirts and I hope to get one. Being able to show progressive thought in such a tangible way to others about Texas feels super encouraging and can hopefully inspire or reinforce hope to better our country as a whole. Everyone from RE-Energize was really friendly and spoke clearly. One of the girls had a lot of piercings and that made me miss my eyebrow piercing! .

Hello everyone, here’s a quick update! Re-Energize Texas is hosting a summer campaign called Summer of Solutions. Summer of Solutions comes from a national program of the same name currently housed under the Grand Aspirations umbrella. So here is the major scoop: The RTX blog, for the rest of the summer, is also the Summer of Solutions Austin blog!!! Following promptly will be an on-site written blog post, complete with commentary from an event participant! Just because its summer doesn’t mean our fight is over. Lets keep it rolling with the Summer of Solutions!

A kickoff potluck/party will be held at the RTX/Public Citizen office on Thursday July 2nd from 6-9 in Austin. If you’re in the neighborhood, drop in!

For more information contact PR representative Megan at her email Megan.Brown@ctx.edu.

Also, check out the Summer of Solutions national blog at  http://solutionaries.net/

We are not joining the throng of cable news reporters more concerned with the 2010 election than with fixing the country in the meantime. But we did score big with two interviews that could help shape the midterm US Senate race here in Texas.

The US Senate race in Texas has a slightly funny story. Longtime US Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is expected to step down and throw her hat in the ring to become the next Texas Governor. The spot she may vacate (but has not yet vacated) is already being contested by a number of potential candidates, the most notable being John Sharp and Bill White on the Democratic side, and Michael Williams and Florence Shapiro on the Republican side.

ReEnergize Texas has conducted interviews with both Democratic Mayor of Houston Bill White and Republican Chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission Michael Williams. See them here:

ReEnergize Texas - Michael Williams Interview from Public Citizen on Vimeo.	ReEnergize Texas - Bill White Interview Part 2 from Public Citizen on Vimeo.

(Double click for full screen. To share the videos or grab the code, visit our Newsroom Page)

ReEnergize Texas is a non-partisan coalition, and the rules say we can’t give them grades on their respective interviews. What we can do is point out a few strengths and weaknesses for each candidate.

Michael Williams:
Strength – Naming energy storage as an important emerging technology. He rightly points out that it is key if we want a massive transition to renewable energy statewide and nationwide.
Weakness – Naming clean coal as an important emerging technology, and arguing that it will be cheaper than renewable alternatives. The only reason we don’t have a full-scale clean coal plant in America is because no one can afford to build one!
Strength – Understanding that our energy future cannot be conducted in a way that hinders the economy. Whatever solutions we attempt must balance numerous interests. 
Weakness – Failure to be bold. The biggest weakness in many of the responses was failure to see a clean and just energy future. When asked about efficiency he talked about meeting 10% of demand, while the Rocky Mountain Institute says that we can reduce demand by 30%.

Bill White:
Strength – Acknowledging the importance of carbon policy. If we are going to address climate change, we have to implement policies that actually reduce carbon. We cannot just hope and pray that new technologies will magically be adopted and save us in time.
Weakness – Implying that the policies being considered in Congress could hurt the economy. This buys into the rhetoric that regulating carbon is like creating an energy tax. Smart policies will assist consumers and businesses as they adapt, and will reduce energy demand, keeping energy costs low.
Strength – Focusing on energy efficiency. The best way we can achieve significant near term carbon reductions is by using the energy we already produce more efficiently.
Weakness – Dodging the nuclear question. The answer that “I think there are ways we can deal with the spent fuel problem” doesn’t even begin to address the myriad problems with nuclear power – plant safety, water consumption, carbon impact of construction (cement = lots of CO2), and high costs.

So there you have it – two candidates in their own words and some of ours. We look forward to working with the campaigns for Florence Shapiro and John Sharp in the near future to see where they stand on these critical issues.

Published May 5th, 2009
By Trevor Lovell, Statewide Director for ReEnergize Texas

Many people are speculating that the current economic crisis is as bad, or worse, than the Great Depression.  This has sent our country into a tizzy—people aren’t eating out, vacations are scarce, funding for programs is short, and people are starting to hide money in holes in the walls of their homes. 

But Van Jones, President Obama’s pick for a new Special Adviser on Green Jobs, Enterprise, and Innovation position, wants us to have no fear.  Jones is also the founder of Green For All and sees green jobs as a solution to our declining economy, a way for people to get out of poverty, and a way to reduce the environmental impacts of unsustainable fuel choices and industries — what’s not to like?  The mission of Green For All is to “build an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty,” so that we can “fight poverty and pollution at the same time.” 

The theory goes that if we are able to provide job training to those in poverty, it will increase their chances of getting a job, thereby providing them with an income and “a pathway out of poverty.”  By creating jobs and reducing unemployment, the economy is stimulated, all while green workers further the environmental agenda by retrofitting buildings, manufacturing and installing solar panels and wind turbines, and so on.

If you are sitting there saying, “Hey! This sounds familiar…” you’re right—it is.  This is the exact same theory behind American Youthworks and the YouthBuild bill that is currently in the Texas Legislature (HB 2492 and SB 1770).  As I’ve previously mentioned, there are many programs that are based on the idea that if we can provide job training to those in poverty, give them a job in a growing green job economy, we are killing so many birds with one stone.  We will be able to help people get out of poverty, we will be stimulating the economy, and we will be fighting environmental evils. 

Why this green jobs program is not a cornerstone of our economy during this crisis is beyond me. Putting someone as prominent and influential as Jones so close to the White House is sure to bring attention and awareness to these programs, especially now that people are looking at alternative ways to improve our economy.      

One cool thing that the folks at Green For All have done is created an application which you can use to make a “Green Jobs Icon.” You can upload your picture into a template and show that you want “Green Jobs Now.”  It’s a great and simple way to show support, as well as spread the word about an important movement.