Senate Votes to Open Arctic Refuge

In a serious setback to efforts to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, in March the U.S. Senate voted 51 to 49 to allow oil and gas drilling in the wilderness area. Proponents of drilling avoided full debate and a chance to filibuster on the issue by including the drilling provision in the budget. TexPIRG is now working to make sure that the House and Senate budgets do not go forward. The budget process is long and complex, and the outcome is far from certain. The fight to save the Arctic is far from over.

Stores To Label Genetically Altered Products

In a victory for the public’s right to know, two major supermarket chains — Whole Foods and HEB’s Central Market stores, have recently agreed to label their private-label products with respect to genetically engineered ingredients.

Genetically engineered foods could pose significant risks to public health, including triggering allergic reactions in some people, containing harmful toxins, and accidentally contaminating the food supply with experimental products. In 2000, StarLink, a variety of genetically engineered biotech (Bt) corn not approved for human consumption, contaminated the food supply and led to a recall of over 300 products.

TexPIRG supports a moratorium on genetically engineered foods unless independent testing demonstrates safety, products are labeled, and biotechnology corporations are held accountable for any harm done.

EPA Under Fire For Weak Mercury Rules

On March 15, the EPA finalized a polluter-backed rule that lets electric utilities continue to emit high levels of mercury, a known neurotoxin. Using chicanery highly criticized by the EPA Inspector General, the EPA re-classified mercury as “non-toxic” and established a “cap-and-trade” scheme to avoid meaningful reductions until 2025.

The rules allow Texas plants, which lead the nation in mercury emissions, to avoid reductions until 2018, a decade longer than the Clean Air Act allows. After that, the plants will still emit unacceptable levels of the pollutant. On May 18, TexPIRG filed two lawsuits in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals challenging the rules.

Mercury To Be Removed From Cars

While the fight continues to get the Bush administration to adopt strong standards to control mercury emissions from power plants, TexPIRG is also taking on a lesserknown source of mercury – automobiles.

Exposed to mercury through the food chain, people can have serious problems affecting the brain, heart, and immune systems. Developing fetuses and children are especially at risk; even low-level exposure to mercury can cause learning disabilities, developmental delays, lowered IQ and problems with attention and memory. EPA scientists estimate that one in six women has enough mercury in her body to put her child at risk, should she become pregnant. Mercury auto switches were used by American auto makers until recently in trunk and hood lights and anti-lock brake applications.

Over the next decade or more, millions of older cars containing the mercury switches will be scrapped. TexPIRG is working with regulators at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to establish a program to have auto dismantlers recover the switches to limit mercury pollution of our waterways.