by NNN Contributor Susan Genett

The new Newport Energy and Environment Commission showed at a meeting last week that they are serious about solidifying local environmental concerns into law. Congestion and traffic make air quality a concern in Newport's downtown, and the city recently passed an ordinance that makes it illegal for drivers to park with their engines idling for more than five minutes.

At last week's meeting, at the town library, commission members and other city officials discussed the details of how they will make visitors and residents alike aware of the law, and ensure that it's enforced. A public-info campaign is in the works, but officials made clear that while warnings may be issued at first, they intend to enforce the law. Violators may be fined up to $1,000 and will have to appear in court. 

So, next time you are visiting the City by the Sea, keep in mind that clean air benefits everyone, and do your part. The commission also plans to address school and business recycling, stormwater run-off and energy alternatives for Newport. They will meet again 16 October, the third Thursday of the month, and meetings are open to all.

Here's the latest on an offshore wind farm for Rhode Island, from the Providence Business News:

PROVIDENCE – The state has selected Deepwater Wind to build a 100-turbine wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island that the developer says will not be visible from land, Gov. Donald L. Carcieri will announce today. Officials hope the project will eventually generate 15 percent of the state’s electricity. 

Click here to go straight to the full PBN story, which is very comprehensive with lots of illustrations and links.

Click here for the governor's news release.

The Norman Bird Sanctuary has long been known to Rhode Islanders as one of our state's treasures -- with its open fields, quiet woodland trails, a spectacular view of the Newport coast from Hanging Rock, abundant wildlife, and fun programs that draw folks of all ages into the outdoors.

Today, the Sanctuary announced that it is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The honor will hopefully boost the efforts now under way to restore an 18th century farmhouse on the property and use it as a nature retreat center, with environmental education programming for adults and families. This would be a great new assett for all Rhode Islanders.

Congrats to NBS! For more info, click on "More...." To visit the NBS Web site, click here. The Sanctuary's annual Harvest Fair is coming up soon, Oct. 4 and 5, and that's a great opportunity to explore the place if you are not familiar with it.

Rhode Island's own Tall Ship, the Oliver Hazard Perry, now has its own Web site, and for those of you who were wondering, they have also posted an illustration that shows more or less what the completed ship will look like (see below). Click here to visit the new Web site -- you'll find updates on the project, and info about how you can help. Once the ship is up and running, it will be able to support itself, so folks who donate now will see a lifetime of returns on their investment!

Click here for our earlier NNN story about the project.

We're lucky here in RI to have a beautiful new -- and FREE -- publication called Edible Rhody, that celebrates all things culinary in the state, including our local farms and local seafood. It's a beautifully produced magazine and comes out just four times a year, and you have to grab one quick when you find it -- they don't last long. Look for ER at grocery markets, coffee shops, restaurants, wine shops, and more. And when you pick it up be sure to flip to the back page for Green Scene, to check out exclusive stories about our local environment, fresh from Natural News!

This month's issue will take you on a culinary tour of Tiverton, foraging for mushrooms with David Gracer, and catching monkfish with Ted Platz of Newport. You can explore Sakonnet Vineyard, meet the folks behind Farmstead, and lots more, all fun-to-read stories illustrated with great photos and supplemented with plenty of recipes and useful facts and info. Check it out! And if you can't find a free supply, you can subscribe online.

We know that the environment is not the only issue people consider when they enter the voting booth -- but perhaps it is a bigger percentage of our concerns when it comes to voting on the local level. After all, your local reps aren't going to be deciding on foreign policy or health care -- but they can make a big difference when it comes to our local water quality, land preservation, stopping air pollution, and other green issues.

With that in mind, Clean Water Action is endorsing some local candidates for the General Assembly Primaries, coming up on Tuesday, Sept. 9. Note that since we are still mainly a one-party blue state here, the Primary is essentially the deciding vote in many local races.

CWA supports, for the House of Representatives: David Segal (Dist. 2, Prov & East Prov); Grace Diaz (Dist. 11, Prov); Bill Hall (Dist. 28, Coventry); and Chris Fierro (Dist. 51, Woonsocket). For State Senate: David Bennett (Dist. 31, Warwick).

For more info from CWA, click on "More...". For more info about how to vote in Tuesday's primaries, click here. For more info on Hall, Fierro, and Segal, click here. Click here for Grace Diaz's Web site, and click here to learn more about David Bennett.

Matt Auten, who has been working full-time in the green trenches for years as executive director of Environment Rhode Island and as president of the Environment Council of RI, has taken a staff position at the State House as a senior policy analyst for Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts.

Matt is a hard worker and extremely knowledgeable on both the science and policy issues that affect the future of Rhode Island, and is sure to continue be a great assett to our state in his new position. His new job starts Sept. 15. For more info, click here for a projo blog post.

With Matt's departure and Curt Spaulding leaving Save The Bay, we'll soon be seeing some new faces in high-profile positions that will affect the future of our local environment. Luckily, we have a large pool of talented people to choose from here, and we're hopeful that the future is in good hands.

Photo courtesy of National Environmental Law Center.

On August 21, 2008, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse convened a panel of Narragansett Bay scientists to comment on the state of the Bay as it is impacted by global climate change. Below is the full text of the Senator's opening statement and the panelists' remarks.

Senator Whitehouse's Opening Statement at Environment & Public Works Committee Field Briefing at URI Bay Campus

“Global Warming’s Impacts on Narragansett Bay”

August 21, 2008

Narragansett, R.I. - Thank you all for being here today on a very special occasion: an official field briefing before the Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works.

As a member of the Committee, it has been my honor and privilege to serve under our Chairman, Senator Barbara Boxer of California. She has been a relentless, passionate, and energetic leader on the subject of global warming, and it is because of her generosity, and the tireless efforts of her staff on the Committee, that we are able to hold this briefing. I am grateful to her for her courtesy. I also sincerely appreciate the generosity of the University of Rhode Island for hosting this briefing on their campus.

Finally, I'd like to extend a special thanks to our excellent panel of witnesses, all distinguished members of Rhode Island's scientific and environmental community: Dr. Kate Moran of the University of Rhode Island; Grover Fugate of the Coastal Resources Management Council; Dr. Jon C. Boothroyd, State Geologist; John Torgan of Save the Bay; and Dr. Caroly Shumway of The Nature Conservancy. Each of them has valuable information to share about the impact of global warming on our Ocean State, and I'm proud that their testimony will become part of the official record of our Committee.

Five years ago today, tens of thousands of menhaden washed up onto the shores of Greenwich Bay, in the worst fish kill our state had seen in decades. Warmer temperatures led to stratification in the water column, which led in turn to eutrophication and lower dissolved oxygen levels. The fish suffocated as they swam. It was a stark reminder of the vulnerability of our precious Narragansett Bay - and a warning of the consequences of global warming even in our own communities and waterways.

Global warming is the most serious threat our environment faces today. And while it will take a global effort to truly solve this crisis, we must begin to take action here at home if we intend to leave to our children and grandchildren an earth as bountiful as the one we inherited from our parents and grandparents. To meet this growing challenge, we must take bold, aggressive action - and we must take that action now - to mitigate the consequences we have already begun to experience and to prevent greater disaster in the future.

I'm proud that Rhode Island is tackling global warming head on. Rhode Island participates in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a coalition of Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states working together to limit pollution from power plants. Our state legislature is working to pass legislation expanding the use of renewable energy, improving energy efficiency, and greening our public transportation fleet. We have adopted aggressive vehicle emissions standards that, once allowed to go into effect, will lower greenhouse gas emissions from new cars in Rhode Island by 30 percent in just the next 8 years. Nationwide, that would be the equivalent of taking 74 million cars off the road for an entire year. Our scientists and universities are on the cutting edge of climate change research - a role I hope they will expand - particularly as to global warming's impact on coastal areas. And innumerable non-profit organizations, several of which are represented here today, are working diligently to protect Rhode Island's unique natural beauty, including our prized bay and coastal areas.

The Ocean State is a leader in state efforts to address the impact of climate change because we must be. As the Ocean State, with our 400 miles of coastline, Rhode Island will experience the brunt of global warming, and we must be ready.

Today we will hear from some of Rhode Island's foremost experts, who are tirelessly working to prepare our state for the impacts of global warming. These scientists and advocates and the organizations they work for, as well as the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, our state legislators, our universities, and our many committed non-profit organizations are setting an example for other coastal states to follow.

But they should not have to confront this challenge alone, so I have authored an amendment to the Climate Security Act that would help provide coastal states the resources to collect the information they need, such as data on projected sea level rise, severe weather, and associated flood risks, particularly improved storm surge modeling and ocean topography data, to prepare for and adapt to global warming.

Let me quickly explain how today's proceedings will work: in just a moment, I will introduce each of our witnesses, and ask them to deliver their testimony before the Committee. Under the rules of the Committee, these statements will be limited to five minutes each, though each witness will be given the opportunity to enter more extensive testimony into the official record if they wish to do so. Once each witness has testified, I will have some questions for them. Unfortunately, the Committee's rules do not permit members of the audience to ask questions during the proceedings.

Thank you all again for joining us today.

source: http://whitehouse.senate.gov

The panelist testimony is available only in Word document or PDF format. Click below to download each file.

Click here for John Torgan's testimony. 

Click here for Jon Boothroyd. 

Click here for Grover Fugate.

Click here for Caroly Shumway. 

Click here for Kate Moran.