In this week’s edition, WFHB Correspondent Christy Crandall traveled to the “Save Our Forests” rally in Bedford, where she recorded speakers at the rally.
Both President Trump and Gov. Mike Braun signed executive orders aimed at reviving the U.S. coal industry; it’s a move that will hurt the environment and health of Hoosiers. Braun directed state agencies to roll back climate change policies and consider extending the use of burning coal for power generation. Another order prevents state agencies from factoring the “social cost” of greenhouse gas emissions into what they do. Those costs put dollar amounts to the damages caused by climate change — like hospitalizations from asthma or property damage from flooding. Trump’s executive orders allow coal plants to remain open past their scheduled retirement dates.
He also placed aggressive tariffs on renewable energy. Trump’s policies will raise monthly energy bills for Hoosiers. On average, renewable energy costs 20 percent less than coal for the same energy output. The least expensive way to generate power is by wind turbines. Coal use has been linked to decreased life expectancy. In ranking by states, Indiana is 40 (75 years), Hawaii is best (80.7 years). Utah is the only red state in the top ten. Hoosiers pay high rates for power from coal, and their reward is a lower life expectancy.
Indiana Public Radio reports that Gov. Mike Braun signed two executive orders that focus on the state’s natural resources. One aims to develop a new market for Indiana’s toxic coal ash waste, while the other would further research of water resources in the state. Some of the very metals that make coal ash toxic also make it valuable. Things like lithium, cobalt, manganese and nickel can be used to make batteries, smart phones and wind turbines. Braun’s executive order would create a council to lead efforts to mine the state’s coal ash waste.In a statement, the governor said the U.S. can’t depend on China for rare earth elements and that Indiana has an opportunity to “power the modern economy.”
Indra Frank serves as the Hoosier Environmental Council’s coal ash advisor. She said it would be good to see Indiana’s millions of tons of coal ash put to good use. But Frank had concerns about what would happen after those metals are extracted. “The rare earth minerals Governor Braun is proposing to recover out of coal ash are a minor fraction of the ash, so once those minerals are recovered, most of the coal ash will be leftover and will need to be disposed of responsibly,” Frank said. “Currently, the majority of Indiana’s coal ash is contaminating groundwater and it is stored in the floodplain, where it poses a spill risk,” Frank said.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule last fall that stands to have a chilling effect on the emissions of a class of climate-warming super-pollutants. The rule sets new leak prevention requirements for hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and will require the use of reclaimed HFC’s for servicing several major categories of existing equipment, such as supermarket refrigeration systems. The action builds on petitions to the EPA filed by NRDC and their allies, and will provide nearly $7 billion in net climate benefits to society cumulatively through 2050.
A report from the EPA released before Trump took office finds that fuel efficiency for cars and pickup trucks has reached an all-time high, while carbon emissions are at a record low. Kathy Harris, director of clean vehicles at NRDC said, “With record sales of cleaner vehicles, drivers saving money on fuel costs, and dramatic reductions in the air pollution harming our lungs, it is clear that we should be fighting any attempt by the oil industry and its allies to derail this hard-won progress.”
Do you have food items on your shelves that have the words, “Sell By?” Those words really confuse grocery shoppers and a lot of food is thrown out because it is so confusing. These “sell by” dates are used by stores for stock rotation for when a product is no longer safe to eat. California just became the first state to ban the use of consumer-facing “sell by” dates. Soon California will use a “use by” label to communicate product safety and “best if used by”.
It is shocking to learn that approximately 40 percent of the food grown and produced in the United States is never eaten. One way to lessen the impact is to change the wording on the packaging. Food waste is a complicated issue but hopefully, this small change will have an impact. Each year the average American spends $788 on food that is never eaten. By diverting this good food from landfills, we can help feed 13.5 percent of households in the US that lack access to nutritious food and by also tackling the climate crises because decaying food in landfills produces significant amounts of methane, a climate super pollutant.
In this week’s edition, WFHB Correspondent Christy Crandall traveled to the “Save Our Forests” rally in Bedford, where she recorded speakers at the rally.
Credits:
On Air…………………………………Julianna Dailey
On Air……………………………………Herb Caldwell
Headlines………………………………….Norm Holy
Feature Report……………………. Christy Crandall
Script…………………………………..Julianna Dailey
Events Calendar………………………Julianna Dailey
Engineer…………………………….Branden Blewett
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