Interview with the OEC's Will Reisinger about concerns over what materials would be considered "biomass" at the plant.

• WVXU (Cincinnati) - Interview begins at 3:50 into the program

"We think that members of the general public, including Duke's own customers, should have an opportunity to comment in this case," said Will Reisinger, a staff attorney for the Ohio Environmental Council, said.

• Cincinnati Enquirer

The Ohio Environmental Council said the City Council has ignored a plea to ticket vehicles that idle for longer than five minutes. "We've all been around that idling vehicle," said David Celebrezze, director of air and water special projects for the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch
• WOSU (audio)

"Moving freight more efficiently is a good thing, but where is the analysis of the energy use, air emissions and pavement impact?" said Jack Shaner, deputy director at the Ohio Environmental Council. "I think Ohioans deserve that full analysis before going forward."

• WNHT (Columbus)

"ODNR is hamstrung with a legacy of poor reclamation and coal companies reaping the benefits of natural resources and then leaving," said Trent Dougherty, staff attorney for the Ohio Environmental Council, a coalition of environmental groups. "Generations of that have led to these problems."

• Columbus Dispatch
• Youngstown Vindicator

Ohio environmental groups are disappointed by the PUCO decision, said spokesman Will Reisinger of the Ohio Environmental Council, a Columbus-based statewide group. The eco groups could seek a rehearing from the PUCO or file an appeal with the Ohio Supreme Court.

• Akron Beacon-Journal

The Ohio Environmental Council put it more starkly in a warning issued Tuesday. "The company has provided no detail regarding the source of its biomass fuel, how the biomass will be transported, or whether the biomass fuel will be obtained using sustainable processes," the Council said in a statement.

• Cleveland Plain-Dealer

Ohio environmental groups and sewer district officials Monday criticized federal efforts for failing to prevent raw sewage from being discharged into Lake Erie. In a report issued by the Great Lakes Coalition, Cleveland was one of five Midwestern cities affected by sewage overflows.

• WEWS news - Cleveland (video)

Environmental advocates are calling on the federal government to do more to help curb untreated sewage flowing into the Great Lakes.

• WKSU - Kent (audio)

To date, FirstEnergy has provided no detail regarding the source of its biomass fuel, how the materials will be transported, or whether the biomass fuel will be obtained using sustainable processes. The company has also failed to demonstrate that converting the Burger plant from coal to biomass will result in less mercury, particulate matter or carbon dioxide pollution.

• Akron Beacon Journal
• Toledo Blade

That would require harvesting all the large and medium trees from one-seventh of Ohio's public and private forests every year, critics say. Such operations would be neither sustainable nor renewable, critics say. "That's a lot of trees," said spokesman Will Reisinger, a staff attorney with the Columbus-based Ohio Environmental Council, a statewide eco-group.

• Akron-Beacon Journal

"If it were me, I wouldn't feel comfortable swimming in water where there's an advisory," said Ellen Mee, director of environmental health policy at the Ohio Environmental Council. "I think a lot of folks feel that way."

• The Morning Journal (Lorain)

Theresa Allen, founder and chair of the Blanchard Township PEARLS (Protectors of Everyone's American Rural Life Style), was pictured in the Ohio Environmental Council's statewide magazine, "Green Watch," in the Summer 2010 edition.

• The Ada Herald
• OEC's Greenwatch, Summer 2010

It's called carbon capture and storage. Essentially it's a process where fossil fuels are burned for energy, and the carbon dioxide that's emitted as result is captured and then stored underground.

• WOSU (audio/text)

"There is a lack of coordination and transparency in the current system. ... Now, more than ever, state and federal agencies must stop the finger-pointing and get their act together," said Kristy Meyer of the Ohio Environmental.

• mLive.com (Michigan)

As a fleet of tall ships arrive at the 2010 Cleveland Tall Ships Festival, Great Lakes United, Shedd Aquarium, the Northeast Ohio Watershed Council, and the Ohio Environmental Council will be at the festival talking to the public about critical issues facing the lakes like water use, and the threat of the Asian carp.

• Great Lakes United (blog)

Help the Ohio Environmental Council recognize those who have made significant contributions to improving Ohio's environment by nominating them for a 2010 Environmental Achievement Award.

• Rural Rambler (blog)

"There is a lack of coordination and transparency in the current system and this current finding in the Wabash River highlights the breakdown in this system," said Kristy Meyer, director of Agricultural & Clean Water Programs of the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Toledo Blade

"Ashtabula is a great success story for Ohio and for all the Great Lakes," said Kristy Meyer of the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Akron Beacon Journal

• NBCi4, Columbus

The alarm at the approach of the carp is not exaggerated. According to the Ohio Environmental Council, recreational and commercial fishing, related industries and tourism in the Lake Erie basin generate nearly $11 billion a year in revenues for Ohio and account for more than a quarter of a million jobs.

• Joyce Foundation (report)

"That's so frustrating," said Jack Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council, an advocacy group. "This is an open invitation to dump and run."

• Columbus Dispatch

Recently, OEC helped to block the construction of a new coal-fired power plant in Ohio that would have emitted millions of tons of carbon dioxide annually. OEC has also worked to promote the adoption of new technology that would capture the carbon dioxide emissions from coal plants, as well as policies to boost energy efficiency throughout the state.

• Joyce Foundation (report)

Biomass-fired generation has always has mixed support among environmentalists. Some question whether burning it is truly "carbon-neutral," as biomass developers and other advocates assert, and warn that overdependence on biomass - particularly in regions without abundant forests and forestry operations - could result in wanton destruction of woodlands.

• Electric Power Daily
• Ohio Environmental Law Center article

If canals and other waterways to the Great Lakes are not adequately addressed, the Ohio Environmental Council predicts the lakes will quickly become "carp ponds," ruining a billion-dollar sport fishing and tourism industry.

• News & Sentinel - West Virginia

Joe Logan, agricultural director for the advocacy group Ohio Environmental Council, said residents can't catch a break. Last year, levels of microcystin were four times higher than the World Health Organization's "low-risk" mark for swimmers and 82 times higher than its standard for drinking water.

• Columbus Dispatch

"This could send some important political shock waves," said Jack Shaner, deputy director of the Ohio Environmental Council. "The Ohio Supreme Court, we hope, will pay attention to what the U.S. Supreme Court said."

• Cleveland Plain Dealer

Nolan Moser, director of Energy and Clean Air Programs for the Ohio Environmental Council, said there could be an immediate improvement in air quality if people leave their cars at home.

• Columbus Dispatch

Readers of the May 30 Dispatch editorial "A good debate" might be left with the impression that only a few out-of-state animal-rights groups are raising concerns about practices endemic in Ohio's livestock-feeding facilities. Not so.

• Columbus Dispatch

Jack Shaner's organization, the Ohio Environmental Council, supports renewable energy sources, ONN's Harrison Hove reported. He hopes the oil spill encourages people to support cleaner, alternative energy. "We hope this is a real catalyst to change," Shaner said.

• Ohio News Network

Jack Shaner, director of legislative & public affairs for the Ohio Environmental Council, rejects the idea that the spill has nothing to do with Ohio. "You turn the key to the car, you're part of the problem, and you're part of the solution," Shaner said. "We all consume petroleum, whether we drive a car or drink Coke from a bottle."

• Dayton Daily News

Environmental advocates, including the Ohio Environmental Council, argue that farms should be regulated like other industries and apply for water-pollution-control permits from the state. Current federal rules require permits only for those farms that plan to discharge pollutants to streams, said Joe Logan, director of the Ohio Environmental Council's agriculture program. As a result, he said, farm owners get to decide whether they need permits.

• Columbus Dispatch

"Are we guaranteed that we won't have any spills? I don't think we can say that," said Trent Dougherty, an attorney with the Ohio Environmental Council who worked on the measure. "But we are satisfied that we have more protections than we had before."

• Columbus Dispatch

The Bay Shore facility lacks cooling towers, which means that every day it has to draw over 650 million gallons of fresh water. In the summertime, that requires the plant to suck in the entire Maumee River! The water is then spit back into Lake Erie, 5-12 degrees Fahrenheit warmer, and with 126,000 fewer fish every day. This destroys fish populations in Lake Erie that would otherwise be used by Ohioans for recreation or commercial sale.

• Huffington Post

A coal plant on the Maumee Bay kills more fish than any other plant on the Great Lakes, costing Ohio $29.7 million annually, environmental groups said Wednesday. The Ohio Environmental Council, the Western Lake Erie Waterkeepers Association, Ohio Citizen Action and other groups are urging the Ohio EPA to make FirstEnergy install cooling towers at the plant - which touches the Maumee River on one side and the Maumee Bay on the other - in order to reduce the kills.

• Port Clinton News

Jack Shaner, of the Ohio Environmental Council, noted other states like Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Illinois have left Ohio in the dust in terms of wind farm development. Under the current tax structure, a wind project in Ohio could pay $40,000 per megawatt, 10 times that charged in Pennsylvania. "We are way out of whack," Mr. Shaner said.

• Toledo Blade (external link)

The outgoing Youngstown State University president announced that YSU will install a 10,000 square-foot solar panel array on the roof of Moser Hall, the home of YSU's engineering programs.

• Youngstown Vindicator (external link)

Green Screen is "a chance to show more great films that might not play theatrically in Columbus and align with a really great cause and that just sits in with what the (South Campus Gateway) development is already doing," said Melissa Starker, sales and marketing manager for Gateway Film Center.

• OSU's The Lantern (external link)

The Ohio Environmental Council's Kristy Myers says the long-term cost of dumping the sediment may be more expensive that finding alternatives such as recycling the sediment onto farm or brownfields.

• WKSU (NPR) (external audio link)
• Toledo Blade (external link)
• Sandusky Register (external link)

Cloudhaus' primary focus is to host art exhibitions, accumulate revenue and donate half of the proceeds to charities and advocacy groups, such as the Ohio Environmental Council.

• OSU's The Lantern (external link)

"We feel as though the science is dire and we are focused on getting massive reductions on a very fast timetable," says the Ohio Environmental Council's Nolan Moser. "And to do that you've got to deal with major emission producers."

• American Public Radtio (external link)

"Ohio is pockmarked with these old waste ponds that are like sieves ready to leak," said Jack Shaner, lobbyist with the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

Will Reisinger is a lawyer with the Ohio Environmental Council. He supports moving away from coal, but isn't convinced the wood millions of tons of fuel needed for the conversion will be sustainably harvested. Reisinger says he wants, "FirstEnergy to tell us more about the plant."

• Press Release from Ohio Consumers' Counsel and the OEC
• BioMass Magazine (external link)
• WKSU Radio Interview (external link)
• Columbus Dispatch story (external link)

Fertilizers and manure that wash off farm fields and into waterways cause the "blooms" of toxic algae that foul Lake Erie's western basin each summer, according to a new state report.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

"This is totally overboard," said Jack Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council. "We're not talking about rogue repeat commercial fishermen who kept two sets of books and stole thousands of dollars of fish from the public. It's a wildlife officer making a single bad judgment."

• Dayton Daily News (external link)

Jack Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council called the proposed rules "long overdue, especially in a highly industrialized state like Ohio. Thousands of people live in the shadow of industrial smokestacks, and those folks deserve more protection."

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

"We don't feel that AEP is 100 percent there by any means, but this is a serious company that is interested in developing long-term solutions, and that's clear from today's report," said Nolan Moser, director of clean-air programs for the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

"We strongly agree that Issues 1 and 2 represent a unique opportunity to invest in jobs, a more vibrant economy and a cleaner environment," said Keith Dimoff, executive director for the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Dayton Daily News (external link)

"This is not a trivial organism," said Joe Logan of the Ohio Environmental Council, a statewide eco-group. "It's not just a nuisance algae. It's a serious toxin and we're on a very alarming and worrisome path."

• Ohio.com (external link)

"The opportunities are there, and there is an incredible demand for local foods in the marketplace," Joe Logan, the OEC's Director of Agricultural Programs, said. "Central Ohio certainly has the capacity to produce more of the food eaten in central Ohio."

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

The Joyce Foundation has granted $390,000 to the Ohio Environmental Council to implement energy efficiency programs in Ohio and speed the development and deployment of carbon capture and storage in the state.

• Cincinnati Business Journal (external link)

A coalition of environmental groups on Wednesday called for the end to the massive fish kills at FirstEnergy Corp.'s coal-fired Bay Shore power plant near Toledo.

• Akron Beacon Journal (external link)

In a strict party-line vote, a panel of lawmakers authorized the Ohio Department of Transportation to spend $25 million on an in-depth study of environmental and engineering issues related to running conventional-speed passenger trains from Cleveland to Cincinnati, with stops in Columbus and Dayton.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

A historic agreement reached between environmental and public health organizations and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will regulate the toxic air emissions from the nation's existing and new coal- and oil-fired electric power plants to the maximum achievable extent.

• Earth Justice (external link)

The group revolves around promoting three tenets: job expansion, economic growth and public transportation... Passenger rail projects are about more than moving people from Point A to Point B; they're about the perception of accepting and welcoming progress as well as promoting development.

• Cincinnati City Beat (external link)

The "United for Jobs and Ohio's Future" coalition announced today that it has secured more than 150 endorsements for Issue 1 from a diverse mix of organizations across Ohio. Issue 1 is a statewide ballot measure on the May 4 primary ballot that will renew the Ohio Third Frontier, Ohio's most successful economic development and jobs creation program.

• CNBC (national) (external link)

"Air quality alert days are no joke. When one is issued, the public best heed the warning to limit outdoor activities," states David R. Celebrezze, Director of Air & Water Special Projects for Ohio Environmental Council. "Until we can successfully reduce these harmful pollutants, we will be burdened with poor air and its impacts on our health."

• Fox / Toldeo (external link)

The Ohio Environmental Council will take adventurers into some of the state's most treasured natural spaces during its Real Ohio Tour, a handful of hands-on encounters this spring and summer.

• Columbus Alive (external link)

The change would annually save Ohioans about 419 million gallons of gasoline, a savings of $1.1 billion, said Jack Shaner, deputy director of the Ohio Environmental Council, a statewide eco-group.

• Akron Beacon Journal (external link)

Jack Shaner, public affairs director for the OEC, said in 2007 that local Ohio governments would benefit by retaining farm and open land, which generate large amounts of revenue. Shaner also said Ohio should follow the lead of more than 20 other states by establishing a voluntary TDR program to prioritize farmland, open space, and important ecological and historic sites.

• Toledo Legal News (external link)

Ohio Consumers' Counsel Janine Minden-Ostrander said the plan to let the company adjust quarterly rates to collect up to $390 million in distributions charges from customers over a 2 1/2-year span was unfair. Other organizations siding with the OCC in opposition to the plan, include the Northwest Ohio Aggregation Coalition, Ohio Environmental Council, Natural Resources Defense Council, and others.

• Milbury Metro Press (external link)

In its Spring 2008 publication "Watch" the Ohio Environmental Council notes a 2005 slurry line rupture which "covered everything it touched jet black" until the leak and spilled materials were contained.

• Martins Ferry Times Leader (external link)

The colorful salamanders and very noisy frogs are on the move in Northeast Ohio. When the weather cooperates in late March or early April, romance fills the vernal pools where the spotted salamanders, dime-size spring peepers and the equally noisy wood frogs hang out.

• Akron Beacon Journal (external link)

The Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel, and several other consumer and environmental groups, [including the Ohio Environmental Council] is lining up against a wide-ranging plan that FirstEnergy and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio worked out behind closed doors.

• Electric Light & Power (external link)

Last month, the Ohio Environmental Council and American Lung Association asked the Ohio EPA to control emissions from outdoor wood-fired boilers, calling them a health risk. The council said one outdoor boiler can emit as much soot as two diesel trucks or 45 cars per hour.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

No two days are ever alike for Devan Willemsen, one of the young staffers at the Ohio Environmental Council, which argues for the Ohio outdoors. She's parlayed her diverse interests and a master's degree in city and regional planning into one of the coolest jobs in town.

• Columbus Alive! (external link)

Other Ohio utilities have stored gypsum, an inert material, without environmental problems, said Jack Shaner, deputy director of the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Dayton Daily News (external link)

"With the big Marcellus 'black gold' rush about to hit Ohio, we need this study now more than ever," said Trent Dougherty, staff attorney for the Ohio Environmental Council. "Water and oil, after all, just don't mix."

• Cleveland.com (external link)

Midwest voters overwhelmingly believe unemployment is a serious issue in their state, and 3 in 5 believe clean, renewable energy will generate jobs, according to the results from a bipartisan poll of 2,400 voters across the Midwest.

• Michigan Technology News (external link)

ODNR's package of changes includes new language and four new proposals, according to legislative liaison Mike Shelton, which he says are responses to requests from NEOGAP and the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Cleveland Plain Dealer (external link)

Linking Ohio, which is a project of All Aboard Ohio, and the Ohio Environmental Council affirmed their support of passenger rail linking Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

Jack Shaner, deputy director of the Ohio Environmental Council, blasted the proposal. "It's the same warmed-over proposal that, thankfully, has gone nowhere in six years. Why risk long-term damage to the crown jewels of Ohio's natural world?" asked Shaner.

• Dayton Daily News (external link)

According to Stewart [VP of Ohio Oil & Gas Association], the key amendments in the House version pertain to legal issues related to enforcement procedures that have garnered support for the bill by the Ohio Environmental Council.

• American Oil & Gas Reporter (external link)

The lake, especially its shallowest western basin bordering Monroe County and northwest Ohio, is suffering from farm-related and other runoff that threatens to return its health to that of the 1970s when it was written off as dead.

• The News Leader (external link)

At a recent Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition reception, U.S. Senator Geroge V. Voinovich (R-OH) was honored for his decades of service to the health of Lake Erie and the well-being of all the Great Lakes. Ohio Department of Natural Resources Director Sean Logan and Kristy Meyer with the Ohio Environmental Council presented him with the award.

• Website for Senator Voinovich (external link)

Those attending will be able to experience life on a working farm that began in the late 1800s. Enjoy a horse-drawn wagon ride, tour of the pastures and gardens, and a light lunch, featuring fresh, organic foods.

• Monroe News (Michigan) (external link)

"While hydro-power is not environmentally benign, AMP's project is a lower-impact hydro project that will help Ohio loosen the shackles of dirty coal power," said Trent Dougherty, director of legal affairs for the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Toledo Blade (external link)

Vernal pools are important breeding areas for a variety of amphibians. But they are rapidly disappearing as poorly planned developments spread across Franklin County.

• NBC4i.com (external link)

The Columbus-based Ohio Environmental Council and the Ohio Hospital Association intend to kick off a pilot project in the city of East Liverpool, perhaps in May. That program is being funded by a $40,000 grant from the Ohio EPA, said spokeswoman Ellen Mee of the OEC, a statewide eco-group.

• Akron Beacon-Journal (external link)

Nolan Moser, Clean Air & Energy Program director, Ohio Environmental Council, says these policies also would result in lower energy bills. "In Ohio, we can expect to save $300 in electricity every year for each household and $180 in gas bills every year."

• WCSM Radio (external link)

Fishing is big business in the Western Basin of Lake Erie. According to the Ohio Environmental Council, "Lake Erie is the foundation of health, economic vitality and recreation for millions of Ohioans."

• Toledo Examiner (external link)

Jack Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council praised the emphasis on green technology and energy and a renewed commitment to urban centers.

• Toledo Blade (external link)

"The multibillion dollar question is where do you safely contain the waste? Before you produce more waste, that question needs to be resolved," said Jack Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Mount Vernon News (external link)

"This example in Parkman is a perfect example of why there needs to be regulations on wood-fired boilers," said David R. Celebrezze of the OEC. "We see this as something that the state really does need to pick up the ball on and at the very least, the local township and local cities can enact ordinances."

• News Herald (external link)

Sustainability refers to meeting present energy and natural resource needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

• Dayton Daily News (external link)

A five-minute video - "Climate Patriots: A Military Perspective on Energy, Climate Change and American National Security" - showing the links between climate change, energy posture and the nation's security will be released.

• Canton Repository (external link)

In short, Ohio now has proof that C&DD [construction and demolition debris] facilities are producing toxic leachate and that they are affecting the health and safety of Ohioans.

• Galion Enquirer (external link)

The Ohio Environmental Council said in published reports, "The decisions we've watched have officially been public, but the dirty little secret is that the utility industry wields a disproportionate amount of clout."

• Columbus Examiner.com (external link)

The ban would mean a significant drop in pollution and would save drivers money on gas, said David Celebrezze, director of air and water special projects for the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

The Ohio Environmental Council and the local chapter of the American Lung Association want state officials to regulate wood fired furnaces, which some Ohioans are using as a cheaper option than gas or electricity to keep their homes warm.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

"This is a mighty economic train. This will spur and develop downtown development," Jack Shaner, Ohio Environmental Council spokesman, said. "Toledo is right on the sweet spot there between Cleveland and Chicago."

• Toledo Blade (external link)
• The Miami Student (external link)

Jack Shaner, deputy director of the Ohio Environmental Council, said Ohio's green energy industry is beginning to blossom. "It's about time we got our big green light out from under the bushel basket here."

• Cleveland Plain Dealer (external link)
• Photo of Jack Shaner from State of the State address

In December, Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, with the support of 25 organizations, including the Ohio Environmental Council and the Lake Erie Region Conservancy, demanded that the Chicago Sanitary and Shipping Canal locks be shut down.

• Cleveland Plain Dealer (external link)

"It was unacceptable in 2008. It should be unacceptable now," said Trent Dougherty, an attorney for the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

Ellen Mee of the Ohio Environmental Council said the growing list of companies allowed to pollute makes the federal limits meaningless. "We need to be working harder to get to that standard," Mee said.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)
• Ohio E.P.A. accepting public comments through January 28. Details in the Cleveland Plain Dealer (external link)

"We're looking at a wave of toxic brine headed into this state," said Jack Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

"The ultimate goal here is to maximize the public-health benefits," said David Celebrezze of the Ohio Environmental Council.

• Columbus Dispatch (external link)

The Ohio Environmental Council, which advocates for state control of the shoreline, has no concerns regarding Moyer's impartiality, its attorney, Trent Dougherty, said.

• Lorain Morning Journal (external link)

Lake County's transit authority has signed on to be part of a Greater Cleveland ad hoc group called Save Transit Now, Move Ohio Forward! The coalition hopes to influence legislators to provide more funding to systems here while reinforcing the importance of public transportation to the state's work force, environment and economy.

• Public Works Online (external link)

As transit agencies statewide scramble to balance budgets because of declining sales tax revenue and other financial support, 10 transportation, public-policy, social-service and environmental organizations [including the OEC] have formed Save Transit Now, Move Ohio Forward to stem the decline of public transit.

• Cleveland Plain Dealer (external link)