http://www.vnrc.org Vermont's Environmental Guardian Since 1963 http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/58246/ VNRC is extremely pleased with today's enactment of a law prohibiting hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking” in the state of Vermont. The legislation is a proactive step to keep this dangerous practice out of the Green Mountain State. The soup of chemicals used in fracking threatens groundwater, and other natural resources. Groundwater is the source of drinking water for two-thirds of Vermonters. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/57201/ In a recent blog post, veteran news reporter Jon Margolis interviews VNRC Water Program Director Kim Greenwood as well as draws from a Fish and Wildlife Department report. His analysis explores the controversy over how we "fixed" – with negative consequences in many cases – rivers in parts of the state after tropical storm Irene. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/56981/ The Environmental Division of the Vermont Superior Court ruled April 26 in favor of citizen participation in Act 250 proceedings in a case involving a proposed development in Bennington. The Vermont Natural Resources Council and a group of Bennington residents who last year had been denied a full seat at the table in the Act 250 process hailed the decision. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/55786/ Thousands of Vermonters now have a new way to pay for insulating their homes, putting solar panels on their rooftops or installing wood pellet heating systems. Nearly two dozen towns approved the new “Property Assessed Clean Energy,” or PACE program at town meetings on March 6. Read Jake Brown's essay published in the Time Argus/Rutland Herald on March 25, 2012 here http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/55696/ You have an opportunity to affect whether Vermont Yankee breezes through the Vermont Public Service Board (PSB) review of the plant’s water quality impacts or whether the board hears new evidence about Yankee’s pollution.   Right now, the Connecticut River Watershed Council (CRWC) and Vermont Natural Resources Council (VNRC) have an opportunity to show that continued operation of the plant involves significant, new natural resources concerns.  But we can’t do it without your help. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/54921/ VNRC recently underscored our concerns with threats to natural resources posed by Vermont Yankee’s contamination of groundwater and thermal pollution from continued discharges of heated water into the Connecticut River. At a State House press conference March 21 – the day Vermont Yankee was scheduled to shut down http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/54831/ Vermonters – like you – are being asked to describe what they are doing to reduce their energy consumption, cut their carbon footprint and transition to renewables. Grab a video camera and describe your everyday actions that are helping to move our state toward energy independence. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/54541/ VNRC is accepting nominations for the 2012 Arthur Gibb Award for Individual Leadership – an award recognizing Vermont's land use leaders. In honor of Arthur Gibb – who dedicated much of his life to public service to ensure that Vermont is a better place for future generations – this award celebrates an individual whose leadership has brought about a positive and lasting change in the way his or her community or the state integrates growth and conservation. 
 http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/54531/ http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/54276/ Aldo Leopold, the renowned author, scientist, forester, professor and environmentalist, is the subject of a documentary film to be shown March 16 at the Green Mountain Film Festival in Montpelier. Leopold advocated for a holistic, biodiversity-oriented approach to wildlife and ecosystem management as an alternative to the more traditional game-oriented approach. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/54006/ Weekly Planet by Elizabeth Courtney This article first appeared in the Sunday, March 4th edition of the Times Argus/Rutland Herald: Like many in the Green Mountain State, my family and I have enjoyed country living. But with time, we have gravitated to town. We delight in our close-knit community and the convenience and thrift of being able to walk to work, play, school and shopping. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/53716/ http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/52601/ Gov. Peter Shumlin recently signed legislation into law that gives citizens a chance to weigh in with comments on proposed penalties when polluters violate our environmental laws. VNRC's Kim Greenwood (pictured here) helped move this important bill through the Legislature. The legislation, H.258, was developed after EPA told Vermont it needed to add meaningful public participation to its water pollution penalties. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/52511/ On town meeting day this March, many Vermont communities will ask their friends and neighbors for their support to implement a new, promising clean energy program. The 'Property Assessed Clean Energy Program' or PACE is a financing mechanism that allows Vermonters to make energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements to their homes through the creation of a special municipal assessment district. While only those homeowners who sign up for PACE actually pay for it, the fact that municipal http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/52366/ Last week, the House and Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committees hosted the first-ever special joint legislative hearing specifically to hear from town energy committee leaders across Vermont. About 30 town energy committees testified, artfully articulating the benefits of new policies to meet Vermont's energy efficiency and renewable energy goals. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/52351/ http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/51801/ In a much-anticipated decision, Judge Garvan Murtha, of the United States District Court of Vermont, ruled on January 19, 2012 that the State of Vermont is preempted by the Atomic Energy Act from enforcing legislation that would have compelled Vermont Yankee to shut down in March of 2012. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/51776/ http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/51326/ The Vermont Council on Rural Development brought together a diverse group of stakeholders, including VNRC, around shared goals of supporting local agriculture and forestry, growing and attracting farm and forest entrepreneurs, and conserving Vermont’s working landscape far into the future. The bipartisan initiative was officially launched at a January 11, 2012 press event where they announced legislation aimed at achieving those goals. http://www.vnrc.org/article/view/49086/