Minutes ago Judge J. Garvan Murtha sided with the state of Vermont, denying Entergy Lousiana its request for a Preliminary Injunction (PI) to keep Vermont Yankee open past its expiration date while the court case proceeds.
On July 12th, VPIRG launched a program to make it easy and affordable for folks throughout Addison County to harness the sun’s energy. This Solar Communities program has helped over a hundred Vermonters go solar, and as of today this opportunity will be available to home and business owners in Addison County.
Today Governor Shumlin sent a letter to President Obama sending a strong message, urging him to voice support for a single, national emission standard for passenger vehicles and light trucks.
Vermont is one of 14 states around the country that have adopted emission standards and while we have the lowest emissions in New England, car exhaust still makes up 40% of our greenhouse gas emissions. This a great step forward in reducing our dependance on dirty and polluting energy sources.
The Attorney General’s decision today may come as good news to Entergy officials who were in danger of being criminally charged, but it’s hardly good news to the tens of thousands of Vermonters who count on that facility to be run by a company that is both competent and reliable. The fact that Entergy is neither reliable nor trustworthy due to its employees’ ignorance is no more comforting than if the officials had intentionally lied under oath.
On Friday, July 1st, Vermont’s new electronic waste (e-waste) recycling program will begin, providing free and convenient recycling of e-waste to Vermont residents, charities, schools, and small businesses. The recycling program, known as “Vermont E-Cycles”, was created by a VPIRG-backed law passed by legislators last year requiring manufacturers of electronics to finance the cost of collecting and recycling their discarded products.
On Friday, July 1st, Vermont’s new electronic waste (e-waste) recycling program will begin, providing free and convenient recycling of e-waste to Vermont residents, charities, schools, and small businesses. The recycling program, known as “Vermont E-Cycles”, was created by a VPIRG-backed law passed by legislators last year requiring manufacturers of electronics to finance the cost of collecting and recycling their discarded products. This type of “producer responsibility” program not only eases the financial burden carried by municipalities, but it also provides a powerful incentive for manufacturers to design their electronics to last longer and to exclude the toxic materials that make recycling so difficult and expensive.
Sen. Sanders had previously learned that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission had held secret meetings with Entergy Louisiana and subsequently voted 3-2 in a secret meeting to urge the DOJ to take Entergy’s side in litigation over the future of Vermont Yankee.
Two weeks ago, Oregon’s governor signed an updated Bottle Bill into law. Oregon’s new bottle bill will now include bottled water, energy drinks, and other beverage containers commonly found on store shelves.
The 2011 legislative session was filled with victories on VPIRG-backed legislation across each of our program areas. With a new governor in office for the first time in eight years, our small state suddenly had opportunities to pass the kind of major policy initiatives that our friends in other parts of the country could only …
On Wednesday, May 25th, Govenor Shumlin joined VPIRG on a conference call to talk about the landmark health care law that was signed into law on May 26th. On the call were VPIRG’s Health Care Advocate Cassnadra Gekas, Dan Barlow from Vermont Buisnesses for Social Responsibility, Dr. Deb Richter from Vermont for Single Payer, and James Haslam from the Worker’s Center.
