EPA plans to freeze fuel-economy requirements at 2020 levels

WILMINGTON, Del. – Governor John Carney on Thursday urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider its proposal to freeze federal vehicle emissions and fuel efficiency standards, and revoke the right of states to protect their citizens from harmful air pollution.

The proposal’s adoption would mean Delawareans breathe more polluted air while the state loses ground in the fight against climate change and sea level rise, and motorists pay more at the pump. EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced Thursday the proposal to roll back Light Duty Vehicle Standards which, in conjunction with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration fuel economy standards, require automakers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve the fuel economy of passenger vehicles.

EPA plans to freeze gas-mileage and fuel-economy requirements at 2020 levels, and remove California’s ability to determine its own vehicle regulations for greenhouse gas emissions. Rescinding California’s authority is particularly troubling because 12 states, including Delaware, and the District of Columbia, have adopted California’s more stringent emission standards, which help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and mitigate the effects of climate change.

“Delaware is committed to expanding the ability of our citizens to choose clean vehicles,” said Governor Carney. “I urge the EPA and the Trump Administration to reevaluate this proposal, which impedes states’ rights and authority to improve air quality, and to consider the long-term economic and environmental impacts from a freeze on vehicle emissions and fuel efficiency standards. Delaware intends to fight this proposal, which would lead to serious setbacks in the state’s efforts to clean up our air and stimulate job creation through clean technology deployment.”

“EPA’s proposal would further thwart our efforts to achieve better air quality and, just like what Delawareans face in out-of-state pollution crossing our borders, would be detrimental to public health, and hurt Delawareans in our wallets, too,” said Shawn M. Garvin, Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. “But whatever the outcome of EPA’s proposal, Delaware will continue to manage environmental programs and enact policies that foster transportation innovation and further reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the state.”

The State of Delaware adopted California’s Low Emission Vehicle standards in 2010.

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DOVER – The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) has launched a new interactive website feature called Environmental Perspectives, which uses a data-driven storytelling approach with themed stories to provide readers with an interactive platform to explore the Department’s work on critical environmental issues.

The first eight stories touch on a variety of DNREC’s efforts:

• The Horseshoe Crab: A Keystone Species
• Cleaner Air Delaware: Air Quality Monitoring
• Working Together: WATAR
• Marine Debris: Adrift at Sea
• Wetlands: Wildly Beneficial
• Delaware Beaches: Shifting Shores
• Go Green, Save Green: Rebates, Grants, and Services
• A Learning Environment: Student Outreach

The public is invited to suggest topics to be included in future Environmental Perspectives stories by submitting ideas through the website at dnrec.alpha.delaware.gov/environmental-perspectives.

Media Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Harrington – With the 2018 Delaware State Fair throwing open the gates tomorrow for its fun-filled 10-day run (Thursday, July 19 thru Saturday, July 28), DNREC is again right in the middle of the annual extravaganza – with an array of environmental displays in the Department’s climate-controlled State Fair building, and game prizes to be won by kids of all ages for showing their knowledge about the state’s natural resources and environment.

Under this year’s theme, “DNREC – Your ECOnnection,” DNREC’s displays link visitors to environmentally-friendly programs and ideas. Fairgoers will find information and activities from DNREC’s divisions and programs. Featured this year at the fair: DNREC’s Energy House and an interactive watershed display demonstrating how water flows and wetlands hold water that includes a 3-D map of stormwater runoff from a suburban yard draining into Delaware’s wetlands, rivers, streams, bay and the ocean. State Fair visitors young and older also are invited to play DNREC’s scavenger hunt game for discovering eco-friendly facts about Delaware that can be found within the DNREC building, and to pick from a wide range of prizes after their successful “hunt.” Visitors also can “get a charge” from DNREC’s Division of Climate, Coastal, & Energy’s mobile solar panel display and charging station, known as T-Rex, located in front of the DNREC Building July 19-24.

Meanwhile, the DNREC On Stage theater offers a preview of programs from parks, nature centers and other facilities statewide owned and operated by the Department’s Divisions of Fish & Wildlife, Climate, Coastal & Energy, Parks & Recreation, and Watershed Stewardship. Stop by daily to learn more about what we have to offer – and discover unique new places you and your family can visit!

ECOnnect with DNREC!

Fairgoers of all ages can learn more about the science behind the work DNREC does in protecting the environment and Delaware’s natural resources. DNREC’s building includes displays, hands-on activities and educational games. At DNREC on Stage, in the building’s air-conditioned theater, they will also see live animal shows and presentations ranging from maritime history to geology to Delaware’s unique plants and animals. DNREC’s building is located on the fair grounds’ East Rider Road – admission is free and the building is open from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. daily during the fair. For more information, please the DNREC At the State Fair web page.

DNREC on Stage Schedule

Thursday, July 19

• Noon – 3 p.m. Build Your Own Horseshoe Crab! Kids of all ages are invited to color and create their own model of a horseshoe crab, and learn more about these unique aquatic creatures. (From the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve)

Friday, July 20

• Noon – 3 p.m. Creating Power through Natural Resources! See how water creates power by watching a steam engine in action, then create your own pinwheel to harness wind and make energy (From Auburn Heights Preserve)

Saturday, July 21

• Noon – 3 p.m. Wacky Worms! Learn about the lives of worms and why they are important to us, by exploring worms up close with hands-on activities. (From Bellevue State Park)
• 3 – 6 p.m. Geology Rocks! See the difference between a metamorphic rock and an igneous rock. Magnifying lenses, magnets and minerals are all part of the hands-on experience. (From White Clay Creek State Park)

Sunday, July 22

• Noon – 3 p.m. Bringing the Zoo to You! Meet a few of the residents of Delaware’s very own zoo and learn about where and how they live. (From the Brandywine Zoo)

Monday, July 23 – Senior Day

• Noon – 3 p.m. Travel Back to the Civil War Days! Interpreters in period costume invite children to play games and try on period costumes, then march in children’s infantry drills. (From Fort Delaware State Park)
• 3 – 6 p.m. Beach Comes to the Fair! Live horseshoe crabs and other beach creatures travel inland to DNREC’s fair building to meet visitors. (From Cape Henlopen State Park)

Tuesday, July 24 – Kids Day

• Noon – 3 p.m. Horseshoe Crabs and Skins, Scat and Tracks! Two fascinating programs about Delaware’s resident living fossil – the horseshoe crab – and a close-up look at identifying animals by their tracks, scat and skins. (From the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve)
• 3 – 6 p.m. Experience Colonial Games and Toys! Costumed interpreters invite visitors to play games and check out toys from Colonial times, on the DNREC building’s porch. (From First State Heritage Park) Also, get a close-up look at one of DNREC’s environmental Emergency Response Team vehicles.
• 3 – 6 p.m. Creatures & History of Indian River Inlet! Participants will learn about the history of this dynamic waterway, its role in our maritime history, and how it impacts the local ecology of Delaware’s inland bays. (From Delaware Seashore State Park/Indian River Life-Saving Station)

Wednesday, July 25 – Armed Forces Day/Military Appreciation Day

• Noon – 3 p.m. Animal Adaptations! Discover how animals adapt to an urban environment through hands-on activities with Park Naturalists. (From Alapocas Run State Park/Wilmington State Parks)

Thursday, July 26 – Governors Day/Senior Day

• 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. Join DNREC’s Volunteer Olympics! Get a taste of some of the volunteer opportunities DNREC offers by competing in fast and fun games including beach grass planting and horseshoe crab counting … with prizes.
• 1 – 2 p.m. DNREC Awards at Mann Tharp Pavilion! DNREC’s Young Environmentalists, Youth Fishing Tournament winners, Wetland Warriors, Volunteers of the Year, and DNREC photo contest winners will be recognized.
• 2 p.m. Meet DNREC’s Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police! See a special presentation by one of F&W NRP’s specially-trained K-9 teams in the theater room. Also, get a close-up look at a DNREC Fish & Wildlife Natural Resource Police vehicle and marine patrol vessel outside from 12:30-2:30 p.m.

Friday, July 27

• Noon – 3 p.m. Who’s in the Bay Today? Learn about aquatic species that live in the Delaware Bay and meet some up close! (From the DuPont Nature Center)
• 3 – 6 p.m. Reptiles and Amphibians of Delaware! Meet the often-unnoticed creatures that crawl, hop, swim and slither in our wetlands, woods and waterways. (Killens Pond State Park)
• 4:30 – 9 p.m. How Does Your Deer Measure Up? Learn how Boone & Crockett’s white-tailed deer scoring system works, see some examples of mounted record-holders and get your own evaluated. (On the DNREC Building porch)

Saturday, July 28

• Noon – 3 p.m. Wildlife in the Park and in YOUR Backyard! Meet a few local animals and explore different pelts and skulls of animals found in your neighborhood.

Media Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

WILMINGTON (July 10, 2018) – The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control will hold a public meeting Monday, July 16 to enable Delawareans to express their opinion about the US Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to deny the state’s 126(b) Clean Air Act petitions aimed at reducing air pollution that comes into Delaware after originating elsewhere. The public meeting will be held from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. in Room A112, Wing A, Delaware Technical Community College Stanton Campus, 400 Stanton Christiana Rd., Newark, DE 19713.

DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin scheduled the July 16 public meeting in response to EPA’s refusal to provide a more convenient venue to Delawareans for voicing their opinion of EPA’s proposed denial of the CAA petitions, and also on account of EPA’s sharply limiting the public comment period for the agency’s proposed actions. EPA held a public hearing in Washington, D.C., June 22 – only 15 days after the agency announced it would deny Delaware’s Clean Air Act petitions – failing to act on both Secretary Garvin’s requests for not less than 45 days for public comment and a later date for EPA’s hearing to be held in Delaware.

“We are holding this meeting to provide an opportunity for the public to comment about the transmission of air pollution from out of state into Delaware,” Secretary Garvin said. “The Department has pursued – and will continue to pursue – voluntary and collaborative efforts with partner states to ensure upwind power plants meet the same stringent standards Delaware is required to meet. All Delawareans would agree that it is now time for EPA to hold upwind sources accountable for ozone emissions that are impacting downwind states.”

More information about the meeting can be found on the Delaware Public Meeting Calendar at https://publicmeetings.delaware.gov/Meeting/60043. Comments from the public meeting will be submitted to EPA in the form of a transcript on behalf of all who speak on the proposed denial of the CAA petitions, to EPA’s federal docket (EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0295). More information from EPA on its proposed denial of Delaware’s 126(b) petitions can be found on EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/ozone-pollution/proposed-action-clean-air-act-section-126-petitions-delaware-and-maryland. Acting Director David Fees of DNREC’s Division of Air Quality gave testimony on Delaware’s behalf at EPA’s public hearing last week in Washington that can be found on the DNREC website.

Anyone interested in speaking at the meeting can sign up until 4 p.m. Friday, July 13 by sending an email to Valerie.Gray@delaware.gov of the Division of Air Quality. Written comments about the EPA’s proposed denial of the 126(b) petitions also can be submitted to Ms. Gray via email, but must be received by 4 p.m., Friday, July 13.

Media contact: Michael Globetti, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.

Vol. 48, No. 185

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Related news:

Tell the EPA: Delawareans Deserve Clean Air

Governor Carney: EPA can’t let other states pollute Delaware’s air

DOVER – Delaware Superior Court Judge Richard F. Stokes has dismissed a lawsuit that challenged Delaware’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a cooperative program among nine states that reduces carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and funds energy efficiency and renewable energy programs in RGGI states, including Delaware.

The lawsuit, Stevenson, et al. v. Delaware Department of Natural Resource and Environmental Control, et al., was brought in December 2013 by David T. Stevenson, R. Christian Hudson, and John A. Moore, who claimed that the state’s participation in the program caused an increase in their electric bills. Judge Stokes issued his decision dismissing the suit June 26, stating that the plaintiffs, after more than four years of litigation, had failed to demonstrate that RGGI affected their electric bills.

“We are pleased the Court’s decision allows Delaware to continue with this market-based, environmentally-conscious and cost-effective collaboration that reduces harmful greenhouse gas emissions and supports a clean energy economy,” said Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Shawn M. Garvin. “RGGI is vital in supporting energy efficiency, renewable energy, and clean transportation programs that save Delawareans energy and money. RGGI helps us provide for our energy needs while reducing our contributions to climate change.

“DNREC is pleased to continue our involvement with RGGI, and also to be the state agency that directs the benefits this landmark regional initiative brings to the people of Delaware,” Secretary Garvin said.

Delaware has participated in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative since its inception in 2008, and is one of nine current member states along with Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. RGGI sets a cap on overall carbon dioxide emissions, and sells emissions allowances to electricity generators through a competitive auction.

In June 2008, the Delaware General Assembly approved Delaware’s participation in RGGI through Senate Bill 263, which also mandated that Delaware use RGGI proceeds to fund programs that promote energy efficiency, renewable energy, and low-income programs. These programs help residents, businesses, local governments, and non-profits lower their energy use and costs, support cleaner air quality, and through rebates and incentives also have helped over 750 Delaware drivers in buying electric vehicles for their transportation needs.

The Superior Court’s decision can be found on the State of Delaware website at https://courts.delaware.gov/Opinions/Download.aspx?id=275020 .

Media contact: Michael Globetti, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 48, No. 175

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