Governor Perdue will not veto remaining bills

Just in:

Today Gov. Bev Perdue’s office announced that she will not veto any more bills. So the three bills that environmental groups oppose (H819 Coastal Management Policies, SB 229 Amend Environmental Laws 2012, and HB 953 Amend Environmental Laws 2) will become law. Click here for more information about the bills.

Molly Diggins, director of the NC Sierra Club, stated: “We are disappointed that the Governor chose not to veto these bills. All three measures primarily benefit developers at the expense of North Carolina’s taxpayers, who will end up paying more in the long run to deal with the increased costs of failing to address sea level rise as well as water pollution caused by poorly planned development."

Do Compact Cities Save Energy?

It has often been written that compact, very dense cities consume less energy and produce less pollution that the less dense suburbs and residential areas dominated by single family homes. However, new research shows that may not be true.

Researchers from the universities of Cambridge, Newcastle, and Leeds in the UK published a paper in the spring 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Planning Association that showed that the urban form may have very little impact on energy use and sustainability. An article in Atlantic Cities on July 24, 2012 discussed the findings.

One of the authors, Cambridge Prof. Marcial Echenique, told Atlantic Cities: “To our surprise, if you compare the compact form versus the current trend, the difference in reduced transport by automobile is very minor. And if you allow the city to expand, the increase in the use of the car is only marginal.”

Echeniques continued: "If you make the city more compact, it doesn't mean that people will abandon their car. Only 5 percent of people abandon the use of the car. Ninety-five percent carries on using the car, which means there are more cars on the same streets, therefore there is much more congestion and therefore there is much more pollution and no great increase in the reduction of energy."

There are several limitations to the study. It was done in England, and may or may not apply to the United States. Only a limited number of areas were studied. However, this study does raise some important questions for those who want to reduce the use of energy and the production of pollution. Echenique argues, with support from his research, that making cars and buildings more energy efficient may accomplish more.  "Technology offers a much better future than trying to constrain behavior of the market."

Some more bills to veto

Several important bills are still on Governor Perdue's desk awaiting her decision on whether or not to veto them.

Fracking Veto Overridden – due to accident and turncoat

The fracking bill, SB 820, is now law. The bill was adopted by the legislature, then vetoed by the governor. As expected, the Senate overrode the veto; but the House was expected, by a very close vote, to uphold the veto. 72 votes were required to pass the bill “notwithstanding the Governor’s objections”. It was expected that there would only be, at the most, 70 votes to pass the bill.

Gov. Perdue vetoes fracking bill

Just in: Governor Bev Perdue vetoes the fracking bill!

With only a few hours before the deadline, Gov. Bev Perdue vetoed the fracking bill SB 820. According to news reports, she had been trying to reach a compromise with the General Assembly leadership but was unable to reach any compromise. Gov. Perdue as said in the past that she thinks that fracking can be done safely, but the safeguards must be in place.

Following is her veto statement:

Special provision for developer

The NC House has approved SB 382 with an amendment that will require that cities to supply water and sewer connections to any development within an urban growth area that request the service. Although this amendment did not mention the project and applies statewide, it has been reported that the amendment was specifically designed to help the developers of the “751 South” development, a large development with 1,300 homes and 600,000 sq. ft. of commercial development. This development has been opposed by environmental organizations. Durham had refused to extend water and sewer to the development, saying that it would cost Durham taxpayers more that the revenue would provide.

Sea Level Rise bill - maybe some sanity

A few days ago a post discussed HB 819, the bill that would force regulations on sea level rise to be based on historical trends and not on scientific predictions of future accelerating rise. That was the bill that was featured in a Steven Colbert segment and widely mocked.


Maybe the anti-science provision won't pass.

Air Toxics Bill – More Than Removing Duplication

HB 952, State Air Toxics Program Reforms, was introduced by Rep. Ruth Samuelson. It has passed the House and it now in the Senate.

Please ask Gov. Perdue to veto fracking bill

I hope everyone will take a few minutes to call or e-mail Governor Bev. Perdue and ask her to veto the fracking bill (SB 820).


Reasons include the high cost of developing regulations, the question of will (not can, but will) fracking be done safely when we have a legislature that has cut enforcement budgets, the loss of rural atmosphere due to lights, noise, and traffic, and the large use of water.


Call (800) 662-7952 or (919) 733-2391 and leave a message or e-mail governor.office@nc.gov.

Sea Level Rise – Ignore Science?

[Update - click here for latest]

One problem with living close to the ocean or to sea level sounds is that, as the sea level rises due to warming, the ocean or sound water will be closer to buildings and may cause the destruction of buildings. Therefore, the Coastal Resources Commission (CRC) plans for sea level rise (SLR) for the development of regulations requiring a setback between sea level water and buildings. If a building is destroyed by a storm, the setback regulation will apply to any permit to rebuild.

Fracking bill passes NC Senate and House

The fracking bill, SB-820, has now passed the NC Senate and then the NC House. It still must be sent back to the Senate for that chamber’s concurrence with the House changes, which is expected. The bill will then be sent to the governor for her approval or possible veto.

Fracking bill passes NC Senate

A bill to legalize hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”, in NC passed the NC Senate on June 5 and moved to the House. Fracking is a process of extracting natural gas from shale by injection of water and chemicals into the shale in order to break the shale and release trapped gas. It has been linked to contamination of ground water, problems with the disposal of contaminated water that returns to the surface, and other environmental problems.