The House Resources Committee will consider the Domestic Energy Security Act on Wednesday, April 13. This bill includes a provision which establishes a loophole under which agencies would be precluded from considering a range of environmental action alternatives under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for so-called “ renewable energy sources,” including hydropower dams. This provision has been approved by the House before, but was not passed by the Senate. Check below to see if your Representative serves on this committee. If so, he or she needs to hear from you on Wednesday in strong opposition to this provision of the bill.
Passage of this bill would totally hamstring the paddling community’s ability to protect and restore dammed rivers.
Private Profits Drive Which Information Is Evaluated
The bill restricts federal agencies to analyzing only the status quo and the industry’s proposed alternative, which maximizes their profits. Agencies are prohibited from identifying or analyzing any other alternatives, even those that better protect public health, safety and the environment. Good science can be ignored.
Public Participation is Squelched
The bill strips the public’s right to comment on alternatives other than the one proposed by the project proponent and limits public comment to 20 days. States, municipalities, and Indian Tribes, local property owners, farmers and irrigators, paddlers, hunters and anglers, and even competing energy companies, would be prohibited from commenting on any alternatives other than those of the project proponent.
“Renewable Energy” is Anything But
The bill’s stated intent is to provide an incentive for renewable energy sources, but the NEPA loophole is so broad that it applies to many non-renewable energy sources, like solid waste incineration and hydropower dams, which block fish passage, degrade water quality and impair recreational uses. Consideration of action alternatives that balance energy generation and environmental protection would be eliminated for the 2,500 hydropower dams under FERC licenses when they are relicensed. In addition, the bill could expedite the building of new dams and weaken existing protections.
True Renewables Have Nothing to Hide
Renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, geothermal, and tidal forces, are usually environmentally-friendly and should be supported. If indeed these technologies are environmentally superior, NEPA analysis is not a hurdle, but rather an opportunity to herald the wide-spread benefits that they provide.
The Slippery Slope
This bill’s exemption from NEPA establishes a dangerous precedent. The nation’s premier environmental law, which ensures thoughtful, transparent, and complete environmental information, must remain intact.
Please take action today. Call your Representative on the Resources Committee and ask him/her to reject the NEPA loopholes in the Domestic Energy Security Act. Attached is a list of the Energy Staffers of the members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee along with their phone numbers.
Thank you for taking action!
Members of the Committee on Resources
109th Congress