Last week at its monthly Hampton Roads Planning District Commission meeting, a new organization, the Virginia Offshore Wind Energy Coalition, introduced itself and presented a report regarding the status of Atlantic coast offshore wind projects, the economic development opportunities for Hampton Roads, and their legislative strategies for the 2010 General Assembly. (Click here to read entire report.)

According to the report, the Department of Energy estimates long term offshore wind energy potential off Virginia’s shoreline at 6572 megawatts. The Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium (VCERC) estimates the near term offshore wind energy potential at 3500 megawatts with a capital investment of up to $10 billion.

The Federal government’s Mineral Management Services (MMS) released its offshore renewable energy development regulations in June this year. Already two companies have submitted lease applications for projects off Virginia’s coasts.

Capital investment in the East Coast offshore wind energy industry for the coming 10 years is expected to be in excess of 15 billion. And everyone up and down the Atlantic seaboard wants a piece of this action.

New Jersey and Rhode Island head the pack with potentially the first commercial utility scale projects expected to be online as early as 2012. Procurement of wind turbines, installation vessels and other main components of these first projects will occur in the coming 6-12 months.

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WHEN: Thursday, September 24th 6:45-7:45 PM
WHERE: Kempsville Recreation Center, 800 Monmouth Lane, Virginia Beach

WHY: Join us and bring a friend for our community-wide Kickoff Meeting where we will outline our strategy for getting a strong clean energy jobs bill passed in the Senate this fall!

Together we can:
Create 5 million green jobs
Freeze Climate Pollution
Repower America

Contact: Katharine Perry, katharine@greencorps.org, Office: 757-337-6806, Cell: 862-452-6126, www.1sky.org

The Sierra Club, along with five other organizations, are sponsoring the  “Clean Energy, Bright Future” event next Thursday, September 17, 2009 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at Kaufman Mall at ODU! Kaufman Mall is located directly east of the Webb University Center, which can be located on the link to ODU’s map below:

http://www.odu.edu/oduhome/campusmap.shtml

We need all the help we can get spreading the word, handing out flyers, rallying people, and attending the event! Please contact Terra Pascarosa directly at terrabsp@gmail.com if you are willing to help, so we can make this a very successful event!

For more info about this event and about the landmark climate legislation making its way through Congress, visit RepowerVirginia.com.

A 14th forged letter from lobbying firm Bonner & Associates was released as part of House Chairman Markey’s (D-MA) investigation in the scandal today. This letter, purporting to be from a local American Legion chapter in Virginia, echoed the same anti-clean energy language found in previous letters forged from groups like the NAACP, a local Hispanic group and Senior Centers and sent to several members of the House of Representatives. Bonner & Associates, who has admitted that a since-fired temporary employee was responsible for the letters, was at the time working on behalf of a contractor hired by the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE).

Statement of Carl Pope, Sierra Club Executive Director:
“Despite the coal industry’s ACCCE and Bonner & Associates denouncing these actions and firmly placing blame elsewhere, this newly surfaced letter again reminds us of how dirty politics can get when aimed at defeating clean energy legislation that would benefit all Americans.

“Big Oil and Coal continue to spend millions of dollars opposing any legislation that would bring the U.S. into a clean energy future, create jobs and fight global warming. From lobbyists forging letters to the US Chamber of Commerce calling for a mock trial of science–this lowest of discourse, the misrepresentation of facts, of communities, and of America’s heroes must end.

“In fact, veterans stood up today on Capitol Hill, at the White House and on the airwaves speaking in favor of clean energy as a way to make America more secure.

“Last week the AAUW, National Wildlife Federation, NAACP, Center for American Progress Action Fund and Sierra Club joined forces to help average citizens blow the whistle on deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal tactics being perpetrated by big polluters and their lobbyists to strike down clean energy innovation. The tip line (866-363-4648) launched last Thursday.

“Yesterday, just a week after the nation’s third largest utility, Duke Energy announced it was of the terminating its membership in the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, French giant Alstom power today followed suit. The company, which makes pollution control technologies for coal plants, cited “questions that have been raised about ACCCE’s support for climate legislation” as the reason for leaving.

“And today the Sierra Club will be delivering over a petition of over 30,000 signatures to the board of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, asking those companies to denounce the Chamber’s attacks on the clean energy jobs bill and the science of global warming, or resign from the group.

“We cannot let our clean energy economy be sacrificed to extreme coal interests that have only their bottom line, not the best interests of the American people, at heart. We need a clean energy jobs bill that benefits everyone, not just coal. We hope that other companies who consider the public interest part of their mission will resign from or at least condemn groups like ACCCE and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for their efforts to kill clean energy jobs.”

The heat was on, but it did not stop our eager volunteers from coming out to support and rally for Clean Energy!  On Monday, August 10th, local Sierrans held a beach party to welcome our senators back home for the month and to tell them we need a strong clean energy jobs bill.

Armed with clipboards, beach balls, and umbrellas we gathered approximately a dozen volunteers outside Senator Jim Webb’s office in Virginia Beach from 12:00-1:00.

Over three dozen elected officials, local and state government officials from fifteen Hampton Roads local governments, and representatives from area environmental organizations gathered for the Hampton Roads Climate Leadership Workshop - VML Go Green Government Challenge on Thursday June 25 at Sandy Bottom Nature Park in Hampton, VA. (See partial list of attendees on the flip.)

The workshop was sponsored by the newly formed Hampton Roads Cool Communities Coalition (HRCCC). The goal of the worshop was to help local governments move forward in measuring and reducing both municipal and community carbon footprints.

“We want cities to measure because you can’t conserve what you don’t measure,” said Randie Trestrail, who along with Ken Ricklin serve as co-chairs of the coalition. “Recognizing the seriousness of the situation and wanting to contribute to the solutions to climate change, HRCCC was formed by a group of fully engaged citizens eager to help support their local communities in their efforts to reduce GHG emissions”, she added.

Speakers included Dr. Diana Christopolous from the hugely successful Roanoke Valley Cool Cities Coalition; Joe Lerch, director of the Virginia Municipal League’s Go Green Government program; and Glen Besa, Virginia chapter director of the Sierra Club.

More from today’s Daily Press’ article “Cool coalition works to lower local emissions”…

Diana Christopulos, chair of the Roanoke Valley Cool Cities Coalition, spoke to the group about how Roanoke officials measured emissions of both municipal government operations and the entire community. University graduate-student interns with academic supervision gathered the data and used software to calculate how much carbon dioxide and other ozone-depleting gases were generated from homes, businesses, industry, traffic and other sources. From there, Roanoke made a goal to stop increasing emissions by 2010 and to have a 10 percent reduction every five years thereafter through 2050.

Christopulos stressed the need for local governments to be leaders in reducing emissions to be a role model for the community. She also talked about ways local governments to cut back on greenhouse gases: conserving by having municipal vehicles take fewer trips, for example. Buying energy-efficient vehicles, appliances and lighting helps too, she said.

“One way to get started is to do the Go Green Virginia challenge,” Christopulos said.

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In a letter addressed to each member of the U.S. House of Representatives, the League of Conservation Voters announced its decision to not endorse anyone voting against the American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act.

“In light of the tremendous importance of this legislation, LCV has made the unprecedented decision that we will not endorse any member of the House of Representatives in the 2010 election cycle who votes against final passage of this historic bill”, writes LCV President Gene Karpinski.

Click here to view pdf of letter.

Wonder how much of an impact that will have on Virginia’s congressional delegation…

Check out my LTE as it appeared in today’s Virginian-Pilot (with added byline, different photo and embedded link to our ACES “Take Action” page:

Ground zero in wind energy

Virginia is blessed with offshore wind, which could power as much as 20% of the commonwealth. The technology for offshore wind exists today and has proven commercially viable elsewhere in the world. Each wind turbine consists of more than 8,000 parts, which translates to thousands of good-paying, secure jobs. The U.S. holds a majority of the patents involved with solar energy systems. Yet those solar energy parts are primarily produced in Europe, which drives up the costs for systems sold in the U.S. Thus, we don’t see solar panels on as many homes and businesses as we should. The ’shot in the arm’ investment provided by the American Clean Energy and Security Act would get these systems produced right here, right now.

Meanwhile, of all the places in the U.S., the effects of climate change are felt hardest here in Hampton Roads with billions of dollars of our assets vulnerable to sea level rise and greater storm surges. But from problems come solutions, and Virginia could be a national leader in renewable energy production. Congress must pass the ACES Act, and Rep. Glenn Nye must lead the charge.

Eileen Levandoski
Sierra Club, Virginia chapter
Virginia Beach

The American Clean Energy and Security Act currently being debated in Congress is of vital importance to putting the United States on a path to slash carbon emissions and create new clean energy jobs to boost our economy. Big Oil, Big Coal, and other polluters have already attempted to weaken the bill for their own gain.

This important legislation needs to be strengthened in three key areas before its passage: strengthen the renewable energy and energy efficiency provisions, restore authority to the EPA to clean up dirty coal plants, and ensure that polluters, not consumers, are paying.

Click here to urge your Representative to strengthen and pass the American Clean Energy and Security Act!

Local small-business leaders and residents of Hampton Roads gathered at Solar Services Inc. in Virginia Beach to learn more about the potential for expansion of their businesses and further job creation as a result of investment in a clean energy economy, as could be provided with passage of a strong American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act.

The event was organized by MoveOn and the local Sierra Club group. Participants also included a representative from Congressman Glenn Nye’s office. Hampton Roads citizens are calling on Senators Warner and Webb and Rep. Nye to pass a strong clean energy jobs bill.

As I pointed out in my remarks, the ACES Act presents an opportunity to not only clean up global warming pollution by holding polluters accountable, but to also simultaneously and very quickly drive a shift in U.S. energy production toward cleaner, cheaper sources, like wind and solar, which are key to solving both our environmental and economic crises.

More specifically we here in Hampton Roads stand to reap a tremendous amount of benefit with passage of a strong ACES Act with both its investment in renewable energy production and its curbing global warming pollution. Hampton Roads is blessed with ideal offshore wind energy potential. Meanwhile, of all the places in the U.S., the effects of climate change are felt hardest here in Hampton Roads with $ billions of our assets vulnerable to sea level rise and greater and greater storm surges battering our coast.

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