A Better Deal for Delaware

The following is the detailed proposal Mike outlined today at the Center for Inland Bays.

Mike Protack for Governor
Center for Inland Bays
6 June 2008

I believe as Governor we should adopt an integrated environmental/quality of life approach similar to the Whole Basin Approach to address economic growth, energy use and development, watershed sustainability and transportation needs.

Specific Inland Bays Proposals
1. Regulations for buffers on primary and secondary waterways with incentives and compensation to land owners. The buffers must be marked and maintained in perpetuity.
2. State support for removing treated wastewater from the Lewes Rehoboth Canal.
3,. State should require NRG Energy to install closed-cycle cooling systems on the facility and support enforcing the Clean Water Act, which requires minimizing fish kills.
4. Adequate enforcement of current regulations concerning pollution.

5. Enact our own Freshwater Lands Law.

6. Assessment of Watershed Carrying Capacity for land-use decision-making.
7. Innovative Approaches to Nutrient Reduction through emerging technologies

8. Increased environmental monitoring including upgrading of the volunteer Citizens Monitoring Program.

9. Reassessment and redirection of NRG’s discharge permits in light of recent public health revelations.

My door will be open to all citizens in working towards these goals. We can have a clean environment and a sound economy if we dare to think beyond our present limitations and work together to create a climate of innovative solutions rather than continued adversarial polarization.

Mike Protack
690 3946
Mprotack@aol.com

Energy Environmental Proposals

1. Our energy proposals will be driven to the shift to the renewable energy market using incentives so 20% of Delaware is using renewable energy products and systems; we produce 20% of all energy in Delaware with renewable sources by the year 2020.

2. Redirect the state percentage of the real estate transfer tax (above a $100 million threshold and not to exceed $5 million) to home buyers to use towards the purchase of renewable energy technology for homes, farms and businesses.
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3. Make the cost (up to $200) of a certified energy audit tax deductible for all property owners.

4. Allow the purchase of smaller energy savings devices (like the combination ceiling fan/heater) qualify as a dollar for dollar tax deduction for those who do not desire to purchase a larger system.

5. Provide home builders with tax incentives/impact fee reductions to construct homes consistent with “Green” Home building standards according to the National Association for Homebuilders/Green Energy Standards or the Energy Star standards.

6. Provide a “stretched out” repayment period (joint state/SEU and utility) for dollars spent on renewable energy home systems.

7. Provide existing homeowners with rebates for upgrading major plant systems like air conditioners and heating systems based on SEER or AFUE increases. Also, provide 20% rebates to homeowners who upgrade major appliances like ranges or refrigerators if they purchase Energy Star Label Products and donate the pre existing appliances for redistribution to needy households.

8. Establish a statewide recycling program through markets and mandates.

9. Support the building of a renewable energy park in Delaware.

Wetlands Perspective from the Imagine Delaware Series
There is no better time than now to explore a common sense and logical win-win solution for all of Delaware. Given the current housing/development slowdown there is a window of opportunity to reflect on the past and smartly move into the future. As Governor I respect individual property rights as key to economic growth but property rights are much like the First Amendment right to free speech, it is sacred but not absolute and any clarifications will be directly compensated.
The first step is education on the functions of wetlands. It is a key component because many do not realize the great importance of these areas and new economic analyses have finally begun to quantify their functions in dollars. Their functions are highly valuable and in some cases irreplaceable. Delaware will not be a place worth living if we do not protect these wetlands.
As Governor I feel those who act as good stewards of wetlands, particularly in agricultural landscapes, should be rewarded for maintaining the services that wetlands provide to all Delawareans. In addition to regulation, there should be defined incentives for stakeholders to protect and conserve freshwater wetlands. The program should also include more responsive permit decisions for developers and maintaining current agriculture exemptions for existing farming practices. Yes, consensus building is important but we must have a bottom line on resource protection and work toward positive commitments from all stakeholders.
As Governor I believe safety and security would be my most important job and preserving our natural resources in Delaware is almost as important as protecting lives. You and I would be well-served by enacting our own Freshwater Lands Law. To put things in perspective, Delaware has lost around half of its freshwater wetlands resources to drainage and filling since the founding of the First State. Certain areas of Delaware like the Inland Bays Watershed have lost much more. Such a loss is not an event without consequences because it is a great concern for wildlife, flood control and water quality.
Furthermore, the freshwater wetlands that remain are not in good condition and many do not provide high levels of function for which they are so highly valued. Importantly, recent Supreme Court decisions have greatly weakened federal protections for freshwater wetlands and the capacity of the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to enforce these protections has long been inadequate. Delaware should enact its own wetlands law to protect these ecosystems which protect the quality of our rivers and bays, particularly for the most valuable wetland types, some of which have no federal protection.
Wetland mitigation banks have a greater chance of replicating the functions of wetlands damaged or destroyed through a regulatory permitting process than do piecemeal wetland restoration or creation projects. As Governor I am committed to a well thought out mitigation banking program, as it would be a positive move for Delaware’s future.
However, before a program like this one should be considered, it’s crucial that a strong freshwater wetlands law be developed that minimizes wetlands loss. There is a strong upside to using state land: This can help to provide funds to improve the condition or restore key pieces of wetlands, many of which are owned by the state.
Still there are restrictions on using many state lands for mitigation offsets for private sector projects, particularly if certain federal funds were used to purchase the land as is the case with state wildlife areas. Additionally, use of state lands would limit private entrepreneurial wetlands banking which would be a market-based system that would promote wetlands conservation.
However, there are potential weaknesses: in using state lands relative to purchasing privately owned wetlands for mitigation, the real costs of mitigating a wetland impact greatly decrease. This use could encourage greater levels of wetland impacts. Also, by not purchasing privately owned wetlands for mitigation you miss out on an opportunity to fully protect more wetland acreage

Delaware has a law that regulates filling and alteration of tidal wetlands, but efforts to adopt similar legislation to protect the state’s ecologically fragile freshwater wetlands failed to win approval more than a decade ago.

Q: Do you believe Delaware needs its own freshwater wetlands law, or should we continue to rely on federal permitting and oversight?

A: Yes, as Governor I believe safety and security would be my most important job and preserving our natural resources in Delaware is almost as important as protecting lives. You and I would be well served by enacting our own Freshwater Lands Law. To put things in perspective Delaware has lost around half of its freshwater wetlands resources to drainage and filling since the founding of the First State. Certain areas of Delaware like the Inland Bays Watershed, have lost much more. Such a loss is not an event without consequences because it is a great concern for wildlife, flood control, and water quality.
Furthermore, the freshwater wetlands that remain are not in good condition and many do not provide high levels of function for which they are so highly valued. Importantly, recent Supreme Court decisions have greatly weakened federal protections for freshwater wetlands and the capacity of the EPA and the US Army Corp of Engineers to enforce these protections has long been inadequate. Delaware should enact is its own wetlands law to protect these ecosystems which protect the quality of our rivers and bays, particularly for the most valuable wetland types, some of which have no Federal protection.

Q: If you support an effort for state regulation of freshwater wetlands, how would you build consensus among the stakeholders, especially the farm and development lobby?

A: There is no better time than now to explore a common sense and logical win-win solution for all of Delaware. Given the current housing/development slowdown there is a window of opportunity to reflect on the past and smartly move into the future. As Governor I respect individual property rights as key to economic growth but property rights are much like the First Amendment right to free speech, it is sacred but not absolute and any clarifications will be directly compensated.
The first step is education on the functions of wetlands. It is a key component because many do not realize the great importance of these areas and new economic analyses have finally begun to quantify their functions in dollars. Their functions are highly valuable and in some cases irreplaceable. Delaware will not be a place worth living if we do not protect these wetlands.
As Governor I feel those who act as good stewards of wetlands, particularly in agricultural landscapes, should be rewarded for maintaining the services that wetlands provide to all Delawareans. In addition to regulation, there should be defined incentives for stakeholders to protect and conserve freshwater wetlands. The program should also include more responsive permit decisions for developers and maintaining current agriculture exemptions for existing farming practices. Yes, consensus building it is important but we must have a bottom line on resource protection and work towards positive commitments from all stakeholders.

Q: What do you see as the strengths and/or weaknesses of restoring key pieces of degraded wetlands on state land and paying for the cost of restoration by using the property as a wetland mitigation bank?

A: Wetland mitigation banks have a greater chance of replicating the functions of wetlands damaged or destroyed through a regulatory permitting process than do piecemeal wetland restoration or creation projects. As Governor I am committed to a well thought out mitigation banking program as it would be a positive move for Delaware’s future.
However, before a program like this one should be considered its crucial that a strong freshwater wetlands law be developed that minimizes wetlands loss. There is a strong upside to using State Land: this can help to provide funds to improve the condition or restore key pieces of wetlands, many of which are owned by the State.
Still there are restrictions on using many State lands for mitigation offsets for private sector projects, particularly if certain federal funds were used to purchase the land as is the case with State wildlife areas. Additionally, use of State lands would limit private entrepreneurial wetlands banking which would be a market-based system that would promote wetlands conservation.
However, there are potential weaknesses: in using State lands relative to purchasing privately owned wetlands for mitigation, the real costs of mitigating a wetland impact greatly decrease. This use could encourage greater levels of wetland impacts. Also, by not purchasing privately owned wetlands for mitigation you miss out on an opportunity to fully protect more wetland acreage.

Delaware should support these “Green” efforts with tax incentives. A great idea.

PNC Bank goes green with downtown branch
Parent company a pioneer in adopting new technologies
By LESLIE A. PAPPAS, The News Journal
Posted Friday, September 7, 2007

The PNC Bank branch at 300 Delaware Ave. in downtown Wilmington reopened Thursday after undergoing $2 million in renovations. (Buy photo) The News Journal/ROBERT CRAIG
PNC Bank’s remodeled Delaware Avenue branch now features recyclable carpet, high-efficiency lighting and countertops made of compressed wheat.
(Buy photo)
The News Journal/ROBERT CRAIG
When PNC Financial Services Group broke ground on its 647,000-square foot corporate processing center in Pittsburgh, a member of the city’s Green Building Alliance asked Gary Saulson, the bank’s director of corporate real estate, for an hour to talk about making the center “green” certified.
“The horse has left the barn, it’s already under construction,” Saulson recalled telling the woman.
He finally agreed to meet for a half hour.
“Two hours later she was still here,” Saulson said, “and two and a half hours later I made a commitment to making it a green building.”
That was in 1998. Two years later, when PNC’s Firstside Center opened in Pittsburgh, it was the largest corporate building in the country to receive LEED certification — short for “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design” — the national benchmark for environmentally sustainable construction.
Such green focus is what PNC officials had in mind when the company opened its newly renovated branch at 300 Delaware Ave. in Wilmington on Thursday. PNC spent $2 million on the environmentally friendly renovation, using recyclable carpet, energy-efficient lights, low-odor paints and compressed-wheat countertops.
Today, PNC has 42 LEED-certified buildings, and is planning to renovate all 1,100 of its branches using green materials.
The LEED Green Building Rating System is “the Good Housekeeping seal of approval” for green building standards, said Jill Kowalski, executive director of the Delaware Valley Green Building Council. “It’s very broad and it looks at all impacts.”
Issued by the U.S. Green Building Council, the voluntary certification judges buildings based on factors including site selection and development, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere impact, indoor environmental quality, materials and innovation in design.
Since its founding in 1993, the U.S. Green Building Council has certified 1,004 commercial buildings worldwide.
So far, only one building in Delaware has achieved LEED certification.
The J. Richard Carnall Center, the Bellevue headquarters of PNC’s subsidiary PFPC, is LEED Gold certified, boasting everything from recycled flooring to electric-vehicle recharging stations in the underground garage.
Others in Delaware hope to add their names to the list: at least fifteen projects have applied for certification, including nonprofit, commercial and government agencies.
AstraZeneca has three LEED projects in the design phase, including two in Delaware, said AstraZeneca spokeswoman Kate Klemas. One is considering use of geothermal and solar technology, Klemas said.
For more information about LEED certification, go to www.usgbc.org.

One of the first things to do as Governor is to begin a serious effort to bring Delaware in to the 21st century for energy production and pollution. A Climate Change summit will be hosted in order to reduce our energy needs from gas, oil and coal and enact legislation to do so.

The most important part of the equation is to improve the environmental profile of the state of Delaware plus make energy more plentiful and affordable.

DelMarVa Power says NO!

“It is a combination that creates a synergistic benefit beyond that of either project standing alone. The wind farm may lack reliability on days when peak load is needed, whereas the gas turbine, while not the worst environmental offender by far, lacks the cleanliness and low fuel costs of a wind farm. The gas turbine provides peak supply, and the wind farm provides clean energy.”

This is a great day for Delaware,” said Jim Lanard, spokesman for Bluewater Wind, who pointed out the proposal still needs the approval of the commission itself, as well as three other state agencies.

Bids went out last year after the Legislature asked the commission, and three other state agencies, to seek a homegrown source of electricity to stabilize and bring down the price of electricity. That’s after the removal of rate caps one year ago led to a 59 percent average rate increase for Delmarva Power’s residential customers.

There is some dispute about whether the four state agencies can force Delmarva to sign a contract with one of the bidders. Lanard said the state has the final say; Bridget Shelton, a Delmarva spokeswoman, argued the opposite.
“It’s not something they can force us to do,” Shelton said.

Source: Wall Street Journal (WNJ)

Across the state in 2005, 8.4 million pounds of chemicals were released into the environment, mostly to the air. That was down from the 10.3 million pounds released in 2004, according to the most recent version of the federal Toxic Release Inventory, which compiles the releases of hundreds of toxic chemicals.

The full federal report is not yet available, but in 2004, Delaware ranked 44th among states.

The state’s two largest power plants — the Conectiv and Hay Road operations at Edge Moor and NRG’s Indian River power plant — and Valero Energy’s oil refinery near Delaware City (then owned by Premcor) combined were the cause of 73 percent of the total chemicals released.

Counting waste treated or recycled at individual plants or transported for off-site disposal or recycling, the state’s total toxic pollution increased by 4.4 percent, to 96.6 million pounds.

The most toxic thing in Delaware is our refusal to act to reduce emissions not hide them.