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Join the Rally for Reusable Bags

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All hands on deck! Rally at LB City hall- we need your support to stop plastic bag pollution NOW!

Tuesday July 19, 2016 6pm City Hall: Rally 4 Reusable Bags

https://www.facebook.com/events/893591457451017/

AFTER THE RALLY- we encourage all to attend the city council meeting and speak at the “Good and Welfare” public input session!!

We Kick Off “LBNY Plastic Free July”

The BYOB Bag LB team bring the Plastic Free July challenge to Long Beach, NY.

plastic-free-july-logo-straight-lgeWe’ve organized many events this July to raise awareness of the dangers and damage plastic pollution causes, and issue the Plastic Free July challenge to you!

find all the goings on at our Plastic Free July web page

Take the challenge:
Attempt to refuse single-use plastic 
for a day, week, or whole month of July. “Single-use” includes plastic shopping bags, plastic cups, straws, plastic packaging… anything that’s intended only to be used once and then discarded. click here to take the challenge and share your experience

Join our BYO Bag LB Plastic Free July Events and volunteer team:

 July 2 MYOB: Make Your Own Reusable Bag
https://www.facebook.com/events/1047595791983042/

July 6 “Bag It” Free Movie At Gentle Brew
https://www.facebook.com/events/2074889072737198/

July 9 Bay And Marsh Clean Up
https://www.facebook.com/events/262879607413006/

July 19 (tentative) City Hall Show Of Support To Stop Plastic Pollution.
(Event link coming soon)

July 25 Our Undersea World: An Unnatural Danger.
Pollution hurts marine animals. Presentation and discussion With Riverhead Foundation For Marine Research And Preservation
https://www.facebook.com/events/531800263689429/

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Please share all the events, info and the challenge. Come out and join us for the events, and volunteer to get involved and have some fun while protecting our environment.

Together we will raise awareness and stop single use plastic pollution!

BOEM Off Shore Wind Energy Public Meeting

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The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will hold public meetings in June to provide an overview of the Environmental Assessment findings and offer additional opportunities for public comments.

Hofstra University

Date: Tuesday June 21, 2016

Time: 6-8 pm

Where: Hofstra University

Place: MPR Room (Multi Purpose Room)

AD: 900 Fulton Ave, Hempstead, New York 11549

RSVP Here

The process to start Off Shore Wind for Long Island moves forward. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the proposed lease sale for 81,130 acres offshore New York for commercial wind energy leasing. The area is approximately 11 miles south of Long Beach, an area that can support a large-scale commercial wind project.

 

We will advocate for it to be

  • the most environmentally friendly
  • most responsible and responsive
  • most local jobs
  • most committed to soonest operation and long term viability

Get involved in the upcoming BOEM Meeting on June 21, 2016!

Day of Action for Off Shore Wind & Clean Energy

On 5/18/16, All Our Energy and partners staged a rally out front of LIPA’s offices, and then spoke at their board meeting that the time has come for off shore wind!

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Speakers represented the benefits of off shore wind from jobs, to climate benefits, to getting what we pay for in our rates!

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Great work from our team- Matt, K.C., Sam, Karen, and our incredible Speakers- Gordian Raacke of Renewable Energy Long Island, Peter Gollon from Sierra Club Long Island Group, Lisa Oldendorp from Move On, Olga Filakouris from NYPIRG, Joe Tonini from Sierra Club, Lou Sabbatini from Sierra Club, Sam Caslowitz of All Our Energy, and of course Matt Kearns who emceed the day, and designed the 20 foot tall turbine and plugs signs!

 

 

Press from Examiner:
http://www.examiner.com/article/plug-me-long-islanders-take-action-for-renewable-energy-offshore-windpower

 

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more photos:

 

https://www.facebook.com/AllOurEnergy/posts/984340044996327

 

Then we went to the Nassau Clean Energy Standard hearing which had a great turnout and some really great testimony from renewable energy advocates.  I had stopped my testimony to ask how many people supported a bold move into off shore wind… and pretty much the entire room raised their hand in favor of it. 

check our social media for video of the turbine raising!

A very successful day in support of clean energy for LI thanks to YOU and your support and action!!

 

Ready for our 5/18/16 day of Action for Off Shore Wind

In the morning we will be assembling in front of LIPA Headquarters in Uniondale for a demonstration of support for offshore wind for the required new power generation on LI.

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LIPA are meeting tomorrow as they consider new dirty energy plants for the east end right now, or get new power from an off shore wind farm 30 miles off Montauk, coupled with grid-size battery storage, that supplies that power cleanly, reliably, and economically.

We are staging a visual action outside their offices as we raise a 20 foot tall mock wind turbine and giant plugs as we say “Plug Me In to Off Shore Wind” and ask LIPA to lead us into the next generation, not lock us into dirty fuels of the past.  We have hand made signs, placards and stickers from Sierra Club and more for everyone to get their hands on and show their support!

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Join All Our Energy, Long Island Progressive Coalition, NYPIRG, Mothers Out Front, and the Sierra Club for this memorable and newsworthy event.  Then we will go in to LIPA’s board meeting and testify that the time for off shore wind is NOW

 

Then in the evening join us to speak out at the NY State Public Service Commission’s “Clean Energy Standard” (CES) hearing in Mineola to determine the future of clean energy programs in the state. Local community groups including All Our Energy, Long Island Progressive Coalition, NYPIRG, Mothers Out Front, and the Sierra Club, will call on Governor Cuomo to make an enforceable commitment to renewable energy that includes large-scale offshore wind power. By compelling utilities and public energy authorities to purchase a certain amount of renewable power each year, the CES could make the Governors goal of generating 50 percent of New York States electricity from renewables by 2030 a reality!

We urge you to come speak and make sure we get the renewable energy future we deserve. Please bring a printed version of your comments to turn in if you must leave, just to be on the record, or if you have too much to say, but will be brief anyway!

Matt’s Wind Letter Published in Newsday

Our own Matt Kearns’ letter to the editor was published in Newsday.

 

Letter: Shift quickly to wind power offshore

 

The timing couldn’t have been better as we roll out our “Day of Action” for renewables on LI.

Wait, what?? push to stop bag laws in NY!

Bag bill passed in NYC!   Now…
Here comes the plastic bag industry with their friends in NY State government to overthrow democracy…

You read that right. On the heels of the successful NYC plastic bag fee law, legislation has been introduced in both the NY Senate and Assembly to thwart attempts to stop plastic bag pollution.

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 Now, State Senator Simcha Felder’s bill “establishes a prohibition on the imposition of any tax, fee or local charge on carry out merchandise bags.”  If only they were prohibiting the tax on society and the environment that plastic bags cost, or the fees to deal with them that are placed on everyone, including future generations, after people discard them.  They’re not against everyone paying those taxes and fees.

This attempt to overthrow the right to local control is outrageous, even for New York State politics.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t see anything in any federal or state constitution that people are entitled to a free bag, nor the consequences of such a thing.  Lets help remind those that do not yet understand that it’s not ok to destroy the environment, even for 12 whole minutes convenience.
We need your help to stop this terrible legislation!

First, we need your help to raise awareness with your neighbors, friends, and everyone here, NOW, for the need for plastic bag laws. Get Involved-volunteer your time – join our volunteer team at this week’s team meeting at 6:30 pm on April 19 at Gentle Brew!
RSVP: https://www.facebook.com/events/237236193312543/

We need your help to speak to merchants, staff events, engage the public, get signatures on our petition, help people display their support with window clings and stickers, and bring everyone together to make this a success for everyone involved to push this campaign over the finish line.

Please donate to the cause here. We would love to have a reusable bag giveaway or fundraiser campaign to help get bags into the hands of all. If even a small portion of our petition signers chipped in even 5, 10, 20 dollars it would go far towards removing the barriers to legislation, number one of which is making sure no one is left out who cannot afford reusable bags.

Contact your Representative
Tell your Assembly and Senate members that stopping plastic bag ordinances is not supported.  If one of your representatives is on this list, we need you especially to call and write the Senators and Assembly Members who are signed on to this legislation.
Senators in favor so far:
Sponsor-Simcha Felder (D) 17th Senate District
Andrew J Lanza   (R) 24th Senate District
Martin J. Golden  (R, C, IP) 22nd Senate District
Tony Avella   (D, IP) 11th Senate District
Roxanne J. Persaud   (D) 19th Senate District
Diane J. Savino  (D, IP, WF) 23rd Senate District
James L. Seward  (R, C, IP) 51st Senate District

Assembly members in favor so far
Sponsor- Michael Cusick(staten island)
Mark Gjonaj
David Weprin
Steven Cymbrowitz
Michael G. Miller
Ron Castorina
Michael Simanowitz
Victor M. Pichardo
Peter Abbate
Dov Hikind
Michael DenDekker
Nicole Malliotakis
Phillip Goldfeder
Walter T. Mosley
Erik Dilan
Andrew Hevesi
Inez Barron
Matthew Titone
Marcos Crespo
William Colton
Michael J. Fitzpatrick

Here are the links to S7336 and A9904, the companion bill in the State Assembly:

S7336: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2015/s7336
A9904: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2015/a9904/amendment/original

Please circulate information about this latest attempt by the plastic bag industry to prevent limits on the use of plastic bags and ask your representatives in the State Senate and State Assembly to oppose S7336/A9904.

For a list of NYS Assembly members, see: http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem

For a list of NYS Senators, see: http://www.nysenate.gov/find-my-senator

Bag It- At Long Beach MLK

 

We have a new screening date with The City of Long Beach to show Bag It, next Friday, 4/29/16 at Martin Luther King Center in Long Beach

 

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Date Friday 4/29/16

Time: 7pm
Where: Martin Luther King Center
AD: 615 Riverside Blvd, Long Beach, New York 11561
RSVP: https://www.facebook.com/events/1399973290309394/
Join the Movement! Come see the award winning movie “Bag It” and learn about plastic pollution and your part in stopping it.

Josh Fox LI Film Premiere

The new Josh Fox film, How to Let Go of the World and Love All The Things Climate Can’t Change, was moving and powerful.  It was a full house and we met many new friends, Matt Kearns engaged with a powerful talk with fantastic audience participation!
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Check out the tweet from LIPC, which got some major love and some famous retweeters as well!

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Earth Day Wind For NYC

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Yesterday we had fun with the kids and parents at The Neighborhood School in the East Village, and we empowered them to remind Mayor DeBlasio that off shore wind is there and ready to cover all his needs for his own renewable energy commitments for NYC to become 100% renewable-powered.

dozens of these postcards went out to the mayor to remind him.