On Tuesday, DEP’s Climate Change Advisory Committee continued its review of the more than 30 work plans making recommendations for legislative, regulatory and program changes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Pennsylvania.

The Committee reviewed a series of work plans relating to agricultural issues-- manure digesters, feeding policies and no till farming and discussed a series of others involving electric generation and use.  The work plans being considered by the Committee include--

Act 129 Energy Use Reduction

Reduced Load Growth

Stabilized Load Growth

Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard

Sulfur Hexafluoride

Combined Heat and Power

Nuclear Capacity Uprates

Coal Mine Methane

Reducing Methane Leakage from Natural Gas Infrastructure

Reducing Lost & Unaccounted for Natural Gas in Distribution Systems

Waste-to-Energy Digesters

Waste-to-Energy Municipal Solid Waste

Biofuel Development and In-State Production Incentive Act

Manure Digesters

Fuels for Schools

Improved Efficiency at Wastewater Treatment Facilities

Diesel Anti-Idling

Increasing Public Transportation Ridership

Increasing Participation in Efficient Passenger Transit

Alternative Fueled Public Transit Fleets

Alternative Fueled Taxi Fleets

Foodshed Development Strategy

Management Intensive Grazing

No-till and Organic Row Crop Farming

Forest Protection Easements

Forestland Protection Initiative – Acquisition

Afforestation

Reforestation

Durable Wood Products

Urban Forestry

Vince Brisini, Deputy Secretary for Waste, Air, Radiation and Remediation, discussed the role of the committee in developing the state’s climate plan.  He clarified DEP was ultimately responsible for the content of the plan and would ask the Committee to endorse each section of the plan.  Those sections not endorsed would noted in the report.

Christine Simeone, Chair of the Committee, expressed a concern about the timeliness of updates to the Committee’s webpage on DEP’s website noting an updated Committee membership list and meeting materials and notices of conference calls and meetings have not been posted or are being posted very slowly.

In-point-of-fact, the meeting agenda and materials for this week’s meeting were posted only the day before the meeting.  The same thing happened before the meeting in December giving the public little opportunity to understand what issues the Committee is discussing.

Meeting materials should be published a minimum of 10 days before any advisory committee meeting, according to past practice.

The next meeting of the Committee is February 19 in the 2nd Floor Training Room in the Rachel Carson Building starting at 10:00.  Joe Sherrick said the Committee may hold one or more conference calls between now and the next meeting to discuss work plans.

For more information visit DEP’s Climate Change Advisory Committee webpage or contact Joe Sherrick at 717-787-2030 or send email to: josherrick@pa.gov.

1/14/2013