To Till and to Tend

With all the headaches and pain, the loss of life and livelihoods, and the sheer destruction over the last few months due to environmental disasters, one may actually begin to glean some hope that perhaps now the time has come for us all as Jews and citizens of the world to awaken and realize our immediate actions are needed to improve the state of the global environment, not only for ourselves, but for our future generations. We must ask ourselves, “What kind of future do we want for our children and grandchildren?” We must also ask ourselves,“What kind of world do we want to live in now?” This year even before we hear the shofar blasts, there is a ringing down from the heavens that clearly calls to us to change our ways of living this minute: disastrous oil spills, gigantic deadly floods, tremendous forest fires, remarkable loss of glaciers and habitat, widespread droughts, and the highest global temperatures ever in planetary history are shouting out their voices. This should be our wake up call. This should be the time we, the Jewish people – the chosen people – seek Tikkun Olam, the correction of the world, for ourselves and for our children.

The coming High Holy Days provide time for reflection of who we are, what we have done in our lives, how we treat others, and a means to seek forgiveness for our actions. Perhaps this year we will also consider our impact on the well-being of the planet in our personal deliberations to be forgiven and inscribed in the book of life. Perhaps this year we will also consider how we will provide a safe, healthy environment for our families and the future generations. Perhaps this year the shofar will indeed wake us from our slumber so that we, the Jewish people, may embody the task given us by God to be the light unto nations.

Let’s Start Here

Rabbis Across Spectrum Energize Communities Environmentally for High Holy Days. On August 9th, the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL) convened a national conversation involving rabbis from five Jewish religious streams – Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Reform, and Renewal – discussing Jewish environmental resources and sermon materials for the High Holy Days and parshat Noach. COEJL has created a collection of resources from the call for distribution to all rabbinic leaders and communities as part of its broader Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign (www.coejl.org/covenant).  The full resource sheet is available at: http://www.coejl.org/TISHREI_5771.pdf. Go to www.coejl.org for more information and resources.

‘Big-Picture Eco-Judiasm’ – or, ‘What I Did on (One Day of) Summer Vacation’
Rabbi Fred Scherlinder Dobb delivered a beautiful and uplifting dvar at a recent COEJL Governance meeting, on August 11th, 2010. Below is an excerpt. Click here for the full text.

“Sunrise is always a ‘spiritual’ moment.  It is somewhat richer since I have the liturgical language of the “Yotzeir Ohr” blessing for it – but “wow,” or for that matter awed silence, also [does] the trick quite well.  (It happens that even my experience of “wow” is deeper since I have A.J. Heschel’s language of “radical amazement” for it, though the experience itself remains more powerful even than his rich description of it).  Many folks in my orbit know “Yotzeir Ohr”; many don’t.  Yet all know “wow,” all know stunned stillness.  In our Jewish environmental and educational efforts, we must do more to touch the folks who don’t know from Yotzeir or from Heschel, but do know from some aspect of our wide-ranging Jewish civilization”…

“…What we too often fall back on — a few texts shared around an indoor table with folks from the vaunted minority which is already plugged into some facet of our work and our network – may be helpful and even uplifting, but it won’t break us out.  Our recent past has been spent in a relative cloister, mostly within established institution, reaching “institutionalized Jews.”  But the whole Jewish world (kol ha’olam kulo, the whole world, actually) needs what we of COEJL have to offer.  And we are uniquely positioned to bring it not only to the decision-makers within the organized Jewish community, but also to the many influential Jews outside of the ‘four cubits’ of the agency world.”

Help for Pakistan
One fifth of the entire land mass of Pakistan is  under water, which according to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, (UN.org) comprises at least 160,000 square kilometers and is an area larger than more than half the countries of the world. According to government estimates, 15.4 million people are affected, with at least 6 million in need of food, shelter, clean water and health care and 1,600 confirmed dead. Secretary-General Ban has stated, “That is more than the entire population hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami, the Kashmir earthquake, Cyclone Nargis and the earthquake in Haiti, combined.” Climatologists are now openly saying that this devastating flooding is likely the worst natural disaster to date attributable to climate change. Express your Jewish voice on climate change by joining COEJL’s Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign www.coejl.org/covenant , and by contributing relief support for Pakistani flood victims via the websites of the American Jewish World Service and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

BP Gulf Disaster – Day 128
Debate continues over a controversial government report regarding the long-term effects of the BP Gulf Disaster and how much oil is still in the ocean.  The report claimed that 3/4 of the oil “evaporated or dissolved” but other scientific research teams claim that the numbers were greatly exaggerated.  (NY Times) Just last week, Representative Ed Markey (MA) held a rare August recess hearing about the report.  Bill Lehr, a top NOAA scientist, said the report was not peer-reviewed and that in fact about 3/4 of the oil is still in the environment. (Mother Jones) Charles Hopkinson, Director of Georgia Sea Grant, said “One major misconception is that oil (that) has dissolved into water is gone, and therefore, harmless.  The oil is still out there, and it will likely take years to completely degrade.” (Politico) An oceanographer from Florida State University used satellite imagery to measure oil slicks and found that only 10% of the oil has actually been removed from the ocean. (Wall Street Journal) Meanwhile, new evidence shows that a 22-mile-long (35-kilometer-long), 650-foot-high (200-meter-high) pocket of oil has persisted for months at depths of 3,600 feet (1,100 meters), according to a team from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Massachusetts. (National Geographic) For the latest on the BP claims process, click here: MSNBC

1Sky Open Policy Letter
On August 6th, “The Skywriter” 1Sky.org’s blog posted “An open letter to all people and organizations working to combat global warming.” It is an open policy letter that explains where we are as an environmental movement, why we have not been able to succeed according to our goals thus far, and what we need to do to move forward towards success. http://www.1sky.org/openletter

Green Israel Summit 4: Green Renewal Shabbat!
(Green Zionism)

When: Shabbat Noach, Oct. 8 — 10, 2010
Where: Eden Village Camp, just north of New York City
Who: Young Jewish environmentalists, ages 18-40 *

As we read about the Biblical flood and the renewal of the earth on Shabbat Noach, we will learn how to renew ourselves and the environment. Celebrate Shabbat Noach with stories, lectures and discussions in a welcoming, pluralistic setting. Explore the Jewish back-to-the-land movement and what Zionism means today. Learn about energy conservation, population growth, suburban sprawl, Negev preservation, and environmentalism during a time of war. Meet other young Jewish environmentalists from across North America. Green Israel Summit (GIS) 4 is run by the Green Zionist Alliance and co-sponsored by COEJL, the American Zionist Movement and Hazon.

Hazon Bike Ride
Hazon is hosting the 10th Annual New York Jewish Environmental Bike Ride on Labor Day Weekend, September 3-6, 2010. The NY Ride Jewish Environmental Bike Ride is more than a ride on a bike – it is a four-day event that includes a Shabbat retreat at Workmen’s Circle’s Camp Kinder Ring, a trip to Camp Eden Village, the new Jewish environmental summer camp is also included. More importantly, the event raises money for cutting-edge Jewish environmental projects in the United States and Israel.  Learn more here. (Hazon)

Arava Institute for Environmental Studies “With Earth and Each Other: A Virtual Rally for a Better Middle East,”
On November 14th, the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies based at Kibbutz Ketura (www.arava.org) is hosting “With Earth and Each Other: A Virtual Rally for a Better Middle East,” with top speakers and performers, celebrating AIES’s groundbreaking work and its larger commitment to both ecological and communal coexistence.  Visit  www.withearthandeachother.org for more information.

Energizing the Jewish community at large to speak out and act on behalf of the environment is something we work towards every day at COEJL. Perhaps one way to address this is to look at the way our culture thinks about speaking out for the environment and how we can make a difference as Jews. For example, have you ever seen someone throw a cigarette butt on the ground and think, “I didn’t know the world was your ash tray!”? Or maybe you witnessed someone dumping anti-freeze into the sewer drain on the street or even leaving an old TV along the side of the road. Didn’t that make you angry? Then why didn’t you do or say anything about it? Most of us don’t for a variety of reasons, but mostly because it is not culturally acceptable to do so. But that needs to change. We need to speak up for the environment and make it culturally acceptable to let someone else know what they are doing is not right, just as it is acceptable to ask someone not to smoke in a public place. In a recent OpEd piece in the Baltimore Sun, COEJL friend and leader at The Sisterhood 50, Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin, speaks up for the environment and tells us why we all need to do the same, for the planet, for our health, and for the sake of future generations. Read her piece here and don’t be afraid to speak up for the environment next time.

Pakistan – A Sad New Benchmark in Climate-Related Disasters

U.N. officials and climatologists are now openly saying that the devastating flooding that has swamped one-fifth of Pakistan and left millions homeless is likely the worst natural disaster to date attributable to climate change. Estimates put the number of displaced people at somewhere between 15 million and 20 million, and the government believes about 1,600 are confirmed dead. 6.5 million people need food, drinking water and medicine. If ever there was a wakeup call for the Jewish community and the world to speak up and act on climate change, this is it. (NY Times)

States Push Their Own Cap-And-Trade Due to EPA Pressures and Congressional Inaction.

States in the west and the northeast are moving ahead with their own cap-and-trade initiatives reacting to the EPA’s regulatory plans and lacking leadership from congress. EPA plans to tighten restrictions on interstate air pollution from power plants under its planned “transport” rule, and its regulation on greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired generators, based on its endangerment finding on the threat posed by man-made greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. (Reuters)

Blueprints for the Western Climate Initiative, the planned cap-and-trade system in the west, (http://www.westernclimateinitiative.org/) were released on July 27th just before Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s legislation to set up a federal greenhouse gas emissions trading system was delayed indefinitely. The WCI’s blueprint was crafted out of an initial set of recommendations published in 2008 and refined with the input of stakeholders, advisers and experts. Like the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) (http://www.rggi.org/home) in the northeastern U.S., the WCI was conceived by a handful of state governors to develop a common greenhouse gas reduction strategy in the absence of comprehensive federal legislation to address climate change. The WCI includes: Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, Montana and Utah, as well as four Canadian provinces. By joining the WCI, the states and provinces agreed to collectively reduce their greenhouse gas emissions 15 per cent below 2005 levels by 2020. The central feature of the WCI is a cap-and-trade system, which would cover 90 per cent of the region’s economic sectors when fully implemented in 2015.

Democrats Under Pressure to Move on Oil Spill Regulation While Relief Well Drilling is Suspended

Lingering concern among voters about BP’s massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico means that efforts to tighten regulations on offshore drilling will continue in the U.S. Congress. This has put pressure on the Democrats to get something done soon, where waiting until after the elections could make for an uphill battle considering their fears of losing valuable congressional seats. (Reuters)  Democrats who control Congress have made clear that when members return in mid-September from a long recess, an oil spill response bill will be high on their agenda. Some 69 percent of Americans said they wanted stricter regulations on oil drilling, according to a poll for the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press conducted July 29-August 1 (Pew Research), two weeks after BP said it stopped the massive oil well leak.   Retired Coast Guard admiral Thad Allen issued a directive Saturday for BP to suspend drilling of a relief well (USA Today) to conduct more pressure testing on the blown out well in the Gulf of Mexico. “We’ve asked them to give us options to control the pressure,” Allen told reporters during a briefing. “We will kill the well. It is just a matter of finishing up tests so we understand the conditions moving forward.” For another take on oil spill accountability and where some of the funds from oil revenues can go, you can read about the Land Water Conservation Fund (Flathead Beacon), which uses profits from oil companies to protect natural resources.

Rabbis Across Spectrum Energize Communities Environmentally for High Holy Days. On August 9th, the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL) convened a national conversation involving rabbis from five Jewish religious streams – Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Reform, and Renewal – discussing Jewish environmental resources and sermon materials for the High Holy Days and parshat Noach. COEJL has created a collection of resources from the call for distribution to all rabbinic leaders and communities as part of its broader Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign (www.coejl.org/covenant).  The full resource sheet is available at: http://www.coejl.org/TISHREI_5771.pdf. Go to www.coejl.org for more information and resources.

1Sky Open Policy Letter

On August 6th, “The Skywriter” 1Sky.org’s blog posted “An open letter to all people and organizations working to combat global warming.” It is an open policy letter that explains where we are as an environmental movement, why we have not been able to succeed according to our goals thus far, and what we need to do to move forward towards success. http://www.1sky.org/openletter

Green Israel Summit 4: Green Renewal Shabbat! (Greenzionism)

When: Shabbat Noach, Oct. 8 — 10, 2010
Where: Eden Village Camp, just north of New York City
Who: Young Jewish environmentalists, ages 18-40 *

As we read about the Biblical flood and the renewal of the earth on Shabbat Noach, we will learn how to renew ourselves and the environment. Celebrate Shabbat Noach with stories, lectures and discussions in a welcoming, pluralistic setting. Explore the Jewish back-to-the-land movement and what Zionism means today. Learn about energy conservation, population growth, suburban sprawl, Negev preservation, and environmentalism during a time of war. Meet other young Jewish environmentalists from across North America. Green Israel Summit (GIS) 4 is run by the Green Zionist Alliance and co-sponsored by COEJL, the American Zionist Movement and Hazon.

Hazon Bike Ride

Hazon is hosting the 10th Annual New York Jewish Environmental Bike Ride on Labor Day Weekend, September 3-6, 2010. The NY Ride Jewish Environmental Bike Ride is more than a ride on a bike – it is a four-day event that includes a Shabbat retreat at Workmen’s Circle’s Camp Kinder Ring, a trip to Camp Eden Village, the new Jewish environmental summer camp is also included. More importantly, the event raises money for cutting-edge Jewish environmental projects in the United States and Israel.  Learn more here.

Arava Institute for Environmental Studies “With Earth and Each Other: A Virtual Rally for a Better Middle East,”

On November 14th, the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies based at Kibbutz Ketura (www.arava.org) is hosting “With Earth and Each Other: A Virtual Rally for a Better Middle East,” with top speakers and performers, celebrating AIES’s groundbreaking work and its larger commitment to both ecological and communal coexistence.  Visit  www.withearthandeachother.org for more information.

This Week’s Crop

As the dog days of summer wind down, Elul unfolds and Tishrei is on our minds and our desktops, we begin thinking ahead for useful ways in which we can connect our communities to the liturgy and themes of the upcoming holidays, and to the real world that we all inhabit. In our effort to energize all of Jewish life to be more meaningful, we offer you a full set of green-tinged resources for the upcoming Yamim Noraim, Sukkot, and Parashat Noach at www.coejl.org/TISHREI_5771.pdf.  There you’ll find thoughts, texts, sermon-starters, chomrei lidrush and potential programs, edited for clarity and utility.  These resources were largely generated on COEJl’s Rabbinic Conference Call on August 9^th, 2010 where the ideas and resources were put forward in a glorious conversation.  Below is a quick sampler of some of the themes and ideas in the full document.

• Rosh Hashanah: Hayom Harat Olam connoting both celebration and judgment vis-à-vis Earth; focusing on memory, in our lives and regarding the Gulf of Mexico tragedy, on Yom HaZikaron
• Yamim Noraim generally: This is the season when it’s OK to instill fear in our folks, regarding what we’re doing to ourselves and to Creation; consider too Israel and the environment
• Yom Kippur: Mourning what we’ve done to our environment; outdoors for the Avodah service
• Sukkot / Shmeni Atzeret: Centrality of water themes in the chag & the new “Tikkun Mayim”; the arba minim as a reminder that we must relate to nature as if it’s truly ours to steward
• Shabbat Beresheet: A drash to help folks reduce their footprint without feeling guilty
• Shabbat Noach (on 1 Heshvan): Numerous Climate Healing Shabbat resources that weekend; overlap with secular 10/10/10 efforts; ensuring that seedtime and harvest continue b’zmanam
• General Resources and Considerations: COEJL’s covenant campaign; “To Till and to Tend” blog entries solicited; timely legislative update; other great groups and their excellent work

Listen to the Call (COEJl’s Rabbinic Conference Call on August 9^th, 2010) Considering how the oil spill and Gulf tragedy have dominated headlines for a full season now, yet comprehensive energy and climate policy remain an ongoing battle on Capitol Hill, what Jewish perspectives can we bring to energy issues during this important time on our calendar? Listen to the full rabbinic conversation here.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Word on the Hill

Senate Recess – Time to Regroup on Comprehensive Energy/Climate Policy.  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced last week that a vote on oil spill legislation will be delayed until September. Advocates were left concerned about whether any legislation related to comprehensive energy and climate legislation will be passed in the fall. The New York Times quoted some as comparing “the movement’s plight to that of Charlie Brown, who kept kicking for the football only to have Lucy pull it out at the last moment.” Environmentalists are regrouping their efforts over the summer, reviewing their positive accomplishments but mainly focused on key lessons learned as they plot for in seeking to make progress in the fall. Carol Browner, White House Director on Energy and Climate Change Policy, told Meet the Press (MSNBC) that, “We will continue to see if we can get legislation.  We passed it in the House.  We’ll continue to work in the Senate.” She also said that bill could “potentially” be approved after the November mid-term election. Click here for what COEJL had to say about the bill when it was introduced at the end of July before it was deferred.  Meanwhile, on the international front, talks to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions through a new international treaty seem to be stalled (Washington Post) despite the growing impact of climate change.

The Slick

Final kill of Gulf oil spill set to be completed. Nearly four months after the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, the struggle against the BP oil spill is nearly complete. On Monday administration officials announced that sometime late this week the teams drilling the relief well should be in position to penetrate the original Macondo well (Christian Science Monitor) shaft and seal it with cement.

Gulf of Mexico Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council. The JCPA along with a large contingent of 106 other national and international Jewish and non-Jewish organizations co-signed a letter to congress urging the formation of a Gulf of Mexico Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council. “Such a Council is necessary to effectively address the ongoing environmental, economic, health, and social impacts of the Deepwater Horizon drilling disaster, ensure the Gulf is protected from future accidents, and make certain that the Gulf can continue to play its vital role in meeting the energy needs of our nation.” Read the full letter here. (http://www.coejl.org/GOMRCAC_letter_0728.pdf)

Community News and Views

Hazon Bike Ride

Hazon is hosting the 10th Annual New York Jewish Environmental Bike Ride on Labor Day Weekend, September 3-6, 2010. The NY Ride Jewish Environmental Bike Ride is more than a ride on a bike – it is a four-day event that includes a Shabbat retreat at Workmen’s Circle’s Camp Kinder Ring, a trip to Camp Eden Village, the new Jewish environmental summer camp is also included. More importantly, the event raises money for cutting-edge Jewish environmental projects in the United States and Israel.  Learn more here. (http://hazon.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=327003)

This Week’s Crop

This week, BP finally corked up the leaking well that has plagued the Gulf of Mexico for months with cement and the oil leak seems to have come to an end. But it may not be over yet.  Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, has ordered BP to finish the job with a bottom kill just for safe keeping. Allen, the head of the government’s oil spill response, said Friday that BP tentatively expects to intercept the ruptured well through the closer of two relief wells around August 14 or 15.  (CNN) But what would seemingly be a sign of better days to come has not made everyone as thrilled as one might assume. BP has begun to pull out and cut back on the amount of workers responding to the spill and locals are worried the government will do the same. The people in the areas most hurt by the spill are asking the government, and BP alike, to stay on for the long haul to make sure the region’s economy and environment are brought back to life again.  There fears were exacerbated yesterday, when White House energy adviser Carol Browner said that a new assessment found that about 75 percent of the oil had either been captured, burned off, evaporated or broken down in the Gulf of Mexico. That leaves about 53.5 million gallons in the gulf. The amount remaining – or washed up on the shore – still is more than four times the size of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill. Its full effects, and that of the dispersant chemicals used during clean up efforts as well as the leaked methane gas from the spill, will not be known for decades to come.

Democrats out of “time and energy.”: Senate Democrats ran out of time in their bid to pass a narrow energy and oil-spill response package this summer. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) opted to hold off on the Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Accountability Act, to allow ample floor time for the confirmation of now confirmed Supreme Court Justice Elana Kagan. The legislation is now set for revisiting in the fall after the mid-term elections. (NY Times)

Kerry’s Alternative: Having failed to advance a sweeping climate and energy bill this year, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) is pushing a narrower energy package that would extend tax incentives for renewable energy, natural gas vehicles and energy efficiency. (Environment News) “While we continue the fight to bring comprehensive energy legislation to the floor of the United States Senate, it’s essential that we take action to start moving in the right direction,” Kerry said in a statement. “Providing incentives for clean energy production will drive our economy forward and take us one step closer to reducing our carbon emissions and ending our dependence on foreign oil.” Kerry’s bill would offer tax incentives for energy-efficient homes and businesses, natural gas heavy vehicles, bio-diesel, renewable diesel and energy appliances manufactured in the United States. It would also provide an additional $3.5 billion for renewable energy bonds and extend research and development tax credits retroactively for 2010 through 2012. Kerry may try to add the measure to a scaled-back oil spill response bill that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has said he plans to bring to the floor when the Senate returns in September from its month-long recess.

The Slick

Gulf Coast residents may get a citizen’s oversight council to oversee the oil industry. The Senate’s Securing Health for Ocean Resources and Environment Act mandating such a committee (Wall Street Journal) was marked up for floor debate this week, in a move to create the same kind of local community oversight that was established in Alaska’s Prince William Sound following the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill. This provision to set up Regional Citizens Advisory Councils along both the Gulf Coast and Alaska’s Arctic coast is sponsored by Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D., W.Va.) It would mandate that the councils—which give communities the power to question drilling and production activities—be set up with funding from the industry, as happened when councils in Prince William Sound and Alaska’s Cook Inlet were established 20 years ago.

Community News and Views

Rabbis Converge on Green Resources for Upcoming Holidays: August 9th, 2010 COEJL will host a conversation  involving rabbis from five Jewish religious streams – Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Reform, and Renewal – discussing Jewish environmental resources and sermon materials for the High Holy Days and shortly thereafter for parshat Noach.  Considering how the oil spill and Gulf tragedy have dominated headlines for a full season now, yet comprehensive energy and climate policy remain an ongoing battle on Capitol Hill, what Jewish perspectives can we bring to energy issues during this important time on our calendar? Rabbis from around the country are encouraged to join us as we share ideas, success stories and experiences as well as to elicit input as to how COEJL can help.   The call will be chaired by COEJL Governance Committee member Rabbi Fred Scherlinder Dobb of Adat Shalom Reconstructionist Congregation. Rabbis planning to participate in the call should RSVP by emailing COEJL’s Program Director, David L. Marks at: dmarks@coejl.org.   Texts and resources will be shared both during and after next Tuesday’s call.

This Week’s Crop

While environmentalists may be feeling somewhat listless and down-in-the-dumps on this 100th day after the Gulf disaster began due to the loss of an opportunity to put forth comprehensive energy and climate legislation, there may yet be hope on the horizon. Though it may not come to fruition until after the mid-term elections in November, President Obama pledged on Tuesday to keep pushing for legislation to fight climate change despite a move in the U.S. Senate to focus energy reform more narrowly on offshore drilling. “I want to emphasize it’s only the first step and I intend to keep pushing for broader reform, including climate legislation,” he told reporters in the White House Rose Garden after meeting with congressional leaders. “We can’t afford to stand by as our dependence on foreign oil deepens, as we keep on pumping out the deadly pollutants that threaten our air and our water and the lives and livelihoods of our people,” he said. While the President tries to push forward with the core environmental issues of climate change and energy legislation, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid unveiled a bill for energy and oil disaster measures – the Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Spill Accountability Plan. Read the COEJL statement on the legislation here. A rough outline of the proposed legislation suggests that it will remove the current $75,000,000 cap on the liability of responsible parties owning or operating offshore facilities. It creates a $5 billion “Home Star” energy-efficiency program to incentivize home retrofits. It also provides incentives for natural gas vehicles and transportation, and boosts funds for the Land and Water Conservation Fund back to its intended levels of $900 million annually for the next five years. And in 2016, $500 million will be made available from the LWCF, without further appropriation, with additional amounts available if appropriated. This much needed effort was originally established in 1965 and is now finally set to be revitalized. Learn more about the LWCF here.

Other positives, the bill will also not provide major incentives for coal and nuclear power, nor will it eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate greenhouse gases. These provisions in combination will likely help stimulate growth in the energy efficiency sector while providing needed relief for those hurt by oil spill environmental and economic damages and help conserve important natural resources. However, the bill does lack the coveted renewable energy standard (RES)  and the climate piece dictating carbon caps and creating a market for trading carbon emissions sought by environmental leaders. While the legislation will not make the U.S. a 21st century economy, as President Obama says, it is a “first step” along the way and is expected that Democrats will uniformly support it. (Grist)

States continue to lead (NY Times) on the issue, despite Congress’ resistance to creating a federal carbon cap. We hope to see climate policy that caps carbon-dioxide introduced in the fall and we’ll all do our part to make it happen. (Bloomberg). Click here to go to the Religious Action Center to take action and write your Senators.

The Slick – Day 100

The Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection held a hearing on Tuesday, July 27,  2010 to explore the damages suffered by the tourism industry in the Gulf region and the process by which the independent Gulf Coast Claims Facility will evaluate tourism-related claims. Ken Feinberg says BP is holding up payments to economic victims (CNBC) of the disaster. Feinberg, speaking to reporters at a town hall meeting in southern Alabama said, “I have a concern that BP is stalling claims. Yes, BP is stalling. I doubt they are stalling for money. It’s not that. I just don’t think they know the answers to the questions (by claimants).”

Hayward out – Dudley In. BP announced yesterday that CEO Tony Hayward will be stepping down on October 1st, 2010 and replaced by American, Robert Dudley. (CNN) Speaking of Tony Hayward, “No Golden Parachute for Hayward,” demands Rep. Ed Markey (MA). In a letter sent Tuesday, Markey says outgoing BP chief Tony Hayward should not get his reported multi-million-dollar severance package until all the damages of the gulf spill have been paid.  “At a time when BP should be devoting every possible resource to ending the spill, cleaning up the Gulf and fully compensating the residents who have had their livelihoods impacted, I find it extremely troubling that BP’s board would consider providing such a large severance package to Mr. Hayward,” writes Rep. Markey to Carl-Henric Svanberg, Chairman of BP. “BP should be dedicating its resources to compensating the residents of the Gulf Coast who are the victims of this tragedy, not handing out multi-million dollar golden parachutes.” (Read Markey’s Statement)

My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean
On another front, it is fortunate that Tropical Storm Bonnie petered out over the weekend and clean-up efforts were expected to return to their full capacity today. (Wall Street Journal)

Another Oil Leak Spotted in the Gulf
Just when you thought the oil spillage in the Gulf might be coming to an end, another oil leak (NY Times) was spotted in the Gulf. A wellhead in southeastern Louisiana was spewing oil up to 20 feet into the air on Tuesday morning, local officials said. This is at least the third unrelated oil leak in the area since the Deepwater Horizon spill began 100 days ago.

Community News and Views

Rabbis Converge on High Holiday Environmental Programming
On August 9th, COEJL will host four rabbinic leaders from all four of the major Jewish religious streams Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Conservative and Reform in a conference call to discuss environmental program ideas for the coming high holidays and parshat Noach to engage their communities on environmental and energy issues. Rabbinic leaders are invited to join in the call to express their ideas, success stories and experiences. For those rabbinic leaders who would like to attend the call, please contact COEJL’s Program Director, David Marks: dmarks@coejl.org

A Day of Prayer for the Gulf
This Friday, July 30, communities of faith throughout the Gulf region will host a special day of prayer and reflection on the oil spill disaster. Visit the Religious Action Center (RAC) and Canfei Nesharim websites (Canfei Nesharim) for resources on Jewish values and the Oil Disaster.

Nashville Eco-Challenge
On Sunday, August 1st, 2010 from 1 to 4 PM the Nashville Jewish Community will host a free event to kick off the Nashville Eco-Challenge, which will be held in partnership with COEJL’s Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign. Participants will pledge to complete a personal checklist of six simple and effective ways to reduce their ecological footprint and conserve resources, such as signing up for the TVA In-Home Energy Evaluation (IHEE) program and always using reusable shopping bags at stores. The sponsoring organizations will sign a pledge as well.

United On Ending U.S. Reliance On Foreign Oil
Rabbi Steve Gutow, President and CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, expressed his thoughts in the Jewish Week on energy independence from the standpoint of the JCPA and the Jewish community at large. “The American Jewish community is a large, complex group, likened to a family with many and sometimes divergent interests. We strive in our own ways to build a strong foundation for our community’s future, work to build a better America, advocate for Israel, and focus on tikkun olam, repairing the world. It is easy to see our concerns as self-contained, each occupying its own space in the communal and national discourse. We have multiple perspectives regarding the world around us and pursue different solutions.’…’the purpose of our initiative is to convey the Jewish community’s broad belief that America becoming energy independent is a matter of vital national interest.” Read the full article at the (Jewish Week).

This Week’s Crop

This week the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee cleared six energy bills and sent them to majority leader Harry Reid for consideration in crafting a broader bill for the Senate. The next few days will be crucial in getting anything done prior to August recess and mid-term elections this fall which has been a goal of the Democratic leadership for months. Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), however, cautioned today that he does not know what Reid’s true plans are, given the few remaining days that the chamber is expected to be in session before heading home for the August recess. “Senator Reid has not announced what he is going to bring to the floor,” Bingaman said. Even with all of the issues on the table concerning energy, carbon emission caps, heat waves, alternative energy,  nuclear, and the Gulf Oil Disaster, the U.S. Senate leaders are still struggling to get energy and climate legislation done.

But time is not on our side. The Gulf disaster is but one peril of our global addiction to energy an oil. China now uses more energy than any other nation on the planet – most of it in high-sulfur “brown coal” which creates acid rain producing sulfur dioxide. (Wall Street Journal) Despite  their  leadership in renewable energy resources development, this means China is on the search for energy and that means oil – and they don’t have a problem getting it from places like Iran and Somalia and other governments not sympathetic to U.S. and Israeli interests. Just to make energy security matters more problematic, China now has its own oil spill. (BBC) Oil spilled into the sea in north-east China after two pipelines exploded on Friday night, resulting in a fierce fire. At least one person has died during the clean-up operation, after being thrown from a ship by waves and drowning in the oil.  The environmental group Greenpeace told the BBC the oil was up to 20cm thick along parts of the coast near the city of Dalian. Shipments of oil from the north to the industrial belt in the south have been disrupted since the accident.

But perhaps there is still hope. China is also a potential leader in creating low-carbon economies.  “We have substantive hopes in China, to be honest, that China will take the lead … to make the low-carbon economy, the high energy efficiency economy a reality in the coming years,” said Stephan Singer, the head of energy policy for the World Wildlife Federation. “That’s not the case in the U.S., unfortunately,” he said. “We would need to see similar or even stronger targets there” in the U.S.  Let’s hope Harry Reid gets it right next week and sets the U.S. on the right path and in time. (NPR)

Updates from the Hill

Reid to Senate Dems: Climate change bill will wait until fall Hopes for a more comprehensive approach on capping carbon seem to be dashed – for now. Harry Reid is now saying they’ll move next week on a bill focused on the Gulf oil spill that will include energy provisions that can get bipartisan agreement, but it will not include a cap or a renewable energy standard or anything controversial. Aides insisted Reid’s decision is a nod to the packed floor schedule the Senate faces before it leaves in two weeks for the August recess, and that he has not abandoned plans to try and bring up a broader climate and energy plan later in the year. (The Hill)

The Slick

Jewish communal leaders responding to the oil spill disaster have been speaking out in several ways. National religious leaders Rabbis David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and Julie Schonfeld of the Conservative Movement’s Rabbinical Assembly toured the Gulf Coast area (Jewish Week) to personally view the destruction and to determine the best ways for their respective institutions to respond. They spoke to the COEJL community last Friday on national conference call. Rabbi Saperstein also captured some of the briefings they received on video, which can be seen on YouTube. On Friday, July 16th COEJL held a national conference call with Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, Julie Schonfeld of the Conservative Movement’s Rabbinical Assembly, and Rabbi Ethan Linden of of Congregation Shir Chadash in New Orleans, about their recent trip to the Gulf of Mexico region. They shared their experience and helped us better understand the ongoing impacts of the oil disaster and what we can do as Jews to help. Visit the COEJL home page to download an MP3 of the call. Several Jewish organizations joined others in writing to President Obama providing a set of recommendations in response to the oil spill crisis. And finally, this past week, several resources appeared connecting the oil disaster and its relationship to Tisha b’Av (JTA) and our remembering the destruction of the Temples.

On Tuesday, the three-month anniversary of the oil spill and Tisha B’Av, dozens of protesters stood outside the Capitol (JTA Article) to denounce Congress’ handling of the BP oil spill while commemorating the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem centuries ago. “Tisha B’Av is when we mourn the destruction of the Temple,” said Rabbi Arthur Waskow, director of the Shalom Center. “The earth is the sacred temple of all communities and all life forms. Jewish tradition teaches the temple was a microcosm of all the earth.”

A new cap is on and the oil stopped but seepage on the seafloor could re-open it. After days of no oil leaking from the BP well in the Gulf and watching the pressure in the well rise to reasonable levels, seepage of hydrocarbons has been detected, (NY Times)  indicating that it may have to be reopened soon to avoid making the situation worse.

Support for Land and Water Conservation Fund Growing. The House Natural Resources Committee voted 27-21 to pass legislation that would allocate $900 million worth of oil revenues annually toward protecting open spaces through the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Here’s a NY Times Op Ed from July 19th on the Land and Water Conservation Fund for a good perspective. (NY Times) These funds were mandated in 1965 to be spent on natural resource protection, yet Congress continues to underfund the effort. With a focus on regulations in relation to the oil spill disaster, the CLEAR Act (Newswire)  (Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources Act of 2009, HR 3534) was introduced last year by Representative Nick Rahall (D-WV) and does several things, including provide permanent and full funding for land and water conservation. Support for full allocation to the fund and using oil revenue to preserve natural areas, clean water, and access to outdoor recreation has grown in light of the recent Gulf oil spill, according to a new Zogby poll.

Community News

July 30: A Day of Prayer for the Gulf

Next Friday, July 30, communities of faith throughout the Gulf region will host a special day of prayer and reflection on the oil spill disaster, and we hope Jews across North America will join in solidarity. We encourage you to incorporate reflection and prayer on the Gulf oil spill disaster into your community’s Shabbat services on July 30 and 31. Here are a series of prayer resources to help. (RAC) (Canfei Nesharim)

Nashville Eco-Challenge

On August 1st the Nashville Jewish Community will be hosting a FREE event to kick off the Nashville Eco-Challenge. They will be working in partnership with the Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign. Taking the Eco-Challenge involves making positives changes in your home and community.  Participants pledge to complete a personal checklist of six simple and effective ways to reduce their ecological footprint and conserve resources, such as signing up for the TVA In-Home Energy Evaluation (IHEE) program and always using reusable shopping bags at stores. The sponsoring organizations will be signing a pledge as well.

Place: Gordon Jewish Community Center

Date: Sunday, August 1, 2010

Time: 1-4 p.m.

Visit the Nashville Eco-Challenge website for more information.

This Week’s Crop

Yesterday was the beginning of the Jewish month of Av. This period, known as The Nine Days, is one of more intense mourning for the destruction of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem or the “Beit HaMikdash.” “As Av enters, we diminish our joy.” This statement from the Mishna manifests in many laws and customs observed during this time. Many abstain from playing music, buying clothes, taking pleasure trips, giving gifts and even performing normal hygiene practices and marital relations. It is a time for us to step back from material pleasures and mourn the loss of the place where our ancestors worshiped, witnessed and connected to God.  In this time of mourning the loss of the Temple, we are also mourning the loss of life, nature, and livelihoods due to the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Recently, an interfaith contingent of religious leaders from around the country met in New Orleans to personally witness the destruction and to offer prayers and to better understand  what is needed for our communities to help those in need. (Huffington Post)

This coming Friday, July 16th at 12 PM (EST) two of the leaders who attended the event, Rabbis David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and Julie Schonfeld of the Conservative Movement’s Rabbinical Assembly, will be sharing their experience and helping us better understand the ongoing impacts of the oil disaster and what we can do as Jews to help. Please join us in this timely and important call. Here are some well written thoughts on the nine days ahead from other Jewish leaders.

Think: Read the Sermon for Shabbat Pinchas: A Present Tragedy by Rabbi Alexandra Wright, Senior Rabbi at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue in St. John’s Wood, London, England. (RAC Article)

Learn: In his article in Zeek online Jewish journal entitled Eicha for the Oil Spill: A Tisha B’Av for the Earth, Rabbi Arthur Waskow asks, “What can we do to prevent the disaster in the Gulf from ever being repeated-from becoming a model of disaster for all Earth?” And, “suggest(s) drawing on ancient midrash and our own good sense to see Tisha B’Av this summer as a framework for grief, vision, and especially for action on behalf of the sacred Temple of our day – the great round Earth.” (Zeek Online)

Donate: The Union for Reform Judaism and the Jewish Funds for Justice are collecting funds to support grass roots organizations working to recover and restore communities and ecosystems in the Gulf. Donate online or by check (instructions on the Union’s Disaster Relief page).

Updates from the Hill

Is a small cap a good cap? A climate bill being developed by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) would impose carbon caps on electric utilities but would achieve far fewer emission reductions than more comprehensive proposals under consideration in the Senate. The bill would cut emissions by 2020 from regulated sources by 17 percent from 2005 levels and 42 percent by 2030. Utilities that emit more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent per year would be under the cap starting in 2012, and large manufacturers could opt-in to the program. The concept of a cap on carbon is imperative. However, COEJL would favor a broader societal carbon cap approach. The Bingaman draft is just one of several climate measures circulating in the Senate as Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) prepares to assemble an energy and climate bill for floor debate this month.  (NY Times)

The coming four weeks will have the Senate quite busy with an ambitious legislative agenda. With one of the main priorities being energy legislation, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid plans to meet with committee chairmen this week to prepare for a floor debate, with many options for how the chamber body will proceed with the limiting of greenhouse gas emissions. (NY Times)

Utilities are facing major decisions on energy sources due to EPA regulations and market forces. According to a new report authored by Navigant Consulting for Ceres, a Boston-based coalition of institutional investors and environmental groups, “The business landscape for electric utilities is shifting quickly,” due to the need to cut greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 80 percent by 2050 and policies in many states are making it costly to build more fossil fuel-based electric generation facilities. Most utilities are beginning to look to natural gas and alternative energy options for electric generation. Though gas burns cleaner and more efficiently than other fossil fuels, extraction of natural gas presents other serious environmental considerations. Coal, according to this report, also faces an array of challenges. New EPA regulations may force older coal-fired power plants off line. The Navigant report cites a March 2010 study by Bernstein Research, stating the EPA regulations will likely force the retirement of about one-quarter of U.S. coal-burning generation by 2015. (NY Times)

The Slick

BP puts a new cap on the well. After days of preparation and numerous problems, BP’s effort to replace the leaking cap that has been collecting oil for the last few weeks with a new sealing cap appears to be successful. On Monday evening, a new cap was installed, raising hopes that BP will finally be able to either seal off the well entirely, ending the leak, or at least contain all of the oil flow over the next few weeks by sending it upward to several surface collection vessels.  (Newsweek)

The House Natural Resources Committee voted 27-21 to pass legislation that will provide permanent and full funding for land conservation including the Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources Act of 2009 (CLEAR Act, HR 3534), would ensure that the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), the federal government’s principal means of buying land, would receive its full $900 million annually. Amendments offered to weaken and strike the LWCF amendment were defeated. (Newswire)

Just after the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the federal government’s appeal, Ken Salazar  issued a new moratorium on Monday. The new moratorium will last through Nov. 30 and unlike the previous moratorium, which applied to waters of more than 500 feet, the new one applies to any floating facility with drilling activities. (NPR.org)

Community News:

Hear National Rabbis Report Back from the Gulf. Please join us Friday, July 16th at 12 PM EST (9AM PST) for a call with Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and Julie Schonfeld of the Conservative Movement’s Rabbinical Assembly about their recent trip to the Gulf of Mexico region. They will share their experience and help us better understand the ongoing impacts of the oil disaster and what we can do as Jews to help.

Please RSVP to dmarks@coejl.org
Please call in as follows:
Dial Conference Telephone Number: (507) 726-4200
Use Participant Passcode: 160219#

An Interfaith Petition for the Gulf. The Religious Action Center has created an interfaith petition written to President Obama to express the profound concern about the ongoing oil spill disaster in the Gulf. The letter calls on President Obama to focus on several points of action. Go here to read and sign your name to the letter.  (RAC Letter )

Shalom Center Tisha B’Av Vigil. The Shalom Center is organizing an interfaith gathering for lament, hope, and environmental action in Washington D.C. on July 20th. For more details, click here.

Donate to COEJL
The Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life’s mission is to deepen the Jewish community’s commitment to stewardship and protecting the Earth through outreach, activism and learning. The Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign is focused on conserving energy, increasing sustainability, and advocating that officials implement policies to increase energy efficiency and security. Check out our new blog, To Till and to Tend and Facebook® page, “COEJL Talks”. We’re out there advocating an urgent response by Jews on energy every day. As we are now in Day 85 of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster, we can’t afford to wait to be efficiently energized. Donate to COEJL today. Together we’ll succeed.

Get Efficiently Energized. Sign the Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign Pledge today!
www.coejl.org/covenant

During these Three Weeks preceding Tisha B’Av, we consider the collective evil that dwelled within the whole of the Jewish people at the time of the Temples, and the wreckage it engendered. Putting ourselves in the shoes of our ancestors, we ponder our responsibility to stop it from happening again. Relating this important part of our history to modern times calls us to consider the morality of our own actions today, specifically our use of energy and how our dollars end up in the hands of those that oppress the marginalized and seek the destruction of the Jewish people and state.

We know that short-sightedness and ignorance about energy consumption in an oil-centric economy have contributed to the destruction in the Gulf region, the local economy and the environment, while at the same time fueling the fires of rogue states and the terrorist organizations they support. Yet, we still rely on oil to provide more than one third of our energy, with the U.S. consuming more than 30% of the total global oil supply. The connection between oil tyranny and the Gulf oil disaster lies within us as consumers of that oil. What then can we do personally and communally as Jews to stop environmental and human tragedies from recurring?

As we contemplate such questions over these Three Weeks and each day, we must keep the interests of future generations and our security in mind. We must seek alternative methods of producing energy, be more energy efficient in our daily lives, and take actions today that will allow us to achieve energy security while preventing further destruction of our environment. The Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign provides us a way to personally make a difference and leave a healthy energy legacy for generations to come. We urge readers to join us in committing to energy efficiency today by signing the Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign Pledge: www.coejl.org/covenant.

The Wildlife Report
One of the greatest tragedies of this extraordinary oil disaster is the vast effects it has had and will have on the wildlife in the Gulf region. Hundreds of birds, turtles, dolphins, whales and countless fish have been affected.  Here is a sampling from several of the reports the surveillance teams have sent back to National Wildlife Federation and updated on July 6th, 2010.

Fish and Wildlife Service Missed the Boat
In 2007, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the federal agency with the primary directive to protect endangered species, signed off on the Minerals Management Service’s conclusion that deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico posed no significant risk to wildlife because the chances that deepwater drilling would result in a spill that would pollute critical habitat was “low.” Deborah Fuller, the endangered species program coordinator for the Fish and Wildlife Service’s office in Lafayette, La., led the team that reviewed the minerals service’s biological assessment. “We all know an oil spill is catastrophic, but what is the likelihood it will happen?” Ms. Fuller asked. She added, “Obviously, we are going to relook at all these numbers for upcoming consultations.” The assessment considered only the risks to wildlife based on spills of 1,000 to 15,000 barrels, as opposed to the 3.5 to 4 million barrels to date and counting in today’s oil disaster.

27,000 Gulf Oil Wells Out-of-Sight, Out-of-Mind
Not only did the Fish and Wildlife Service and Minerals Management Service get in wrong, they also ignored the facts. More than 27,000 abandoned oil and gas wells sit quietly corked up in the hard rock beneath the Gulf of Mexico, an environmental time bomb that has been ignored for decades. No one — not industry, not government — is checking to see if they are leaking, an Associated Press investigation shows. Yet, similar wells on land and sea are known to need routine repairs so often that the terms “replugging” and “reabandonment” have been coined to describe the work.

EPA Rule Would Cut Power Plant Pollution
The EPA is finally putting pressure on Congress to act on energy/global climate legislation by proposing pollution-reducing rules that would affect power plants in 31 states and the District of Columbia. Responding to a 2008 decision by the US Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., the EPA proposed sharp cuts in emissions from some 900 coal, natural gas, and oil-burning power plants. By 2014, combined with other EPA and state level actions, the rule would reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by 71 percent over 2005 levels and nitrogen oxide emission levels would drop by 52 percent to bring the federal government into compliance with the court ruling that overturned the Bush administration’s national Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR). This could force Congress to act now before the rules go into effect and before mid-term elections to avoid political ramifications.

EPA and Coast Guard Set the Rules
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Coast Guard issued a directive to BP on how it should manage recovered oil and any other waste from cleanup operations. BP will be held accountable for approved waste management plans and its efforts will be overseen by the EPA.  Waste sampling will continue to be conducted to ensure that waste is being properly handled and in compliance with EPA standards.

Oil Coming Ashore? The Answer is Blowing In The Wind
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has modeled historical wind and ocean currents to project the likelihood that surface oil from the spill will impact US coastline.   The report states, “Whether or not oil comes ashore will depend upon wind and ocean currents at the time. In addition to these and other natural factors, booms and other countermeasures could be used to mitigate the actual coastal contact.”  The model shows where oil may be likely to travel, thereby giving coastal states and communities information about potential threats of shoreline impacts. According to the report’s modeling, the oil is more likely to move east than west and the coastlines most like to be impacted extend from the Mississippi River Delta to the western panhandle of Florida where there has been and will likely continue to be oil impacts.

More Updates on the Gulf Oil Disaster from the White House
www.whitehouse.gov/blog/issues/Deepwater-BP-Oil-Spill

In the Jewish Week: Jewish Organizations Countering Oil Dependency

Sybil Sanchez wrote a counter Op-Ed piece in the Jewish Week in response to their Editor’s column from June 25, “A Way Out Of Our Oil Dependency” in which Gal Luft, executive director of the Washington-based Institute for the Analysis of Global Security says, “The Jewish world’s involvement has been “quite disappointing” because it has done little to advance the issue beyond slogans and ads.” Sybil Sanchez expressed the position of COEJL and other Jewish organizations on our collective environmental mission and disputed any lack of momentum or interest from the Jewish community on the subject.

Upcoming Events

Shalom Center Tisha B’Av Vigil

In his article in Zeek online Jewish journal entitled Eicha for the Oil Spill: A Tisha B’Av for the Earth, Rabbi Arthur Waskow asks, “What can we do to prevent the disaster in the Gulf from ever being repeated-from becoming a model of disaster for all Earth?” And, “suggest(s) drawing on ancient midrash and our own good sense to see Tisha B’Av this summer as a framework for grief, vision, and especially for action on behalf of the sacred Temple of our day – the great round Earth.”

The Shalom Center is organizing an interfaith gathering for lament, hope, and environmental action in Washington D.C. on July 20th more details, click here.

Community News

Calling Energy Activists and Communities!!
Let us know what you’re doing so we can feature you! Community Relations Councils and partner organizations now have an opportunity to feature their environmental and energy work through COEJL’s Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign. We would love to share what you are doing with the broader Jewish community through our weekly. Send an email to David Marks, COEJL Program Director at: dmarks@coejl.org with news about your community. Check out the new COEJL Talks fan page on Facebook®. We look forward to keeping working with you to build our shared network of energy activists.

This Week’s Feature Community: St. Louis Jewish Community Relations Council Jewish Environmental Initiative

This week we are featuring the St. Louis Jewish Community Relations Council, participants in the Jewish Energy Covenant campaign, and their Jewish Environmental Initiative (JEI). They have a number of green programs in place including a teen group who speaks to area congregations and other Jewish groups about how to “go green” They also recently started a column called “Planet Jewish” in the online Jewish e-zine, “Jewish in St. Louis,” to publicize ways the entire Jewish community can live a more eco-friendly life. Check it out here.

For more information about what the St. Louis Jewish Community Relations Council is doing about green issues and energy, contact Gail Wechsler, Director of Domestic Issues/Social Justice at: 314-442-3894 and gwechsler@jcrcstl.org

As the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico continues to destroy vast areas of fragile natural habitat, decimate the fishing and tourist industries, and wreak havoc on the local and national economy, the Jewish people too are entering a period of mourning. Over the next three weeks we will think about the ninth day of the month of Av, also known as Tisha B’Av, the day Jews mourn the destruction of the ancient Temples in Jerusalem. On that day, Jews have traditionally sung a mournful melody from the Book of Lamentations – in Hebrew named Eicha, for its opening word: “How lonely … sits the city, once full of life, now desolate.” In this week’s blog, we will be speaking of the destruction that is happening right now to God’s Creation in the Gulf of Mexico and relate it to the destruction of the Temples centuries ago. Over the next few weeks we will also discuss our collective responsibility as Jews towards Creation and promote action items to help those who have been hurt by the unfolding disaster and prevent it from happening again. Please read the very well written Op-Ed on the three weeks and Tisha B’Av in the Washington Post by our friend and colleague, Executive Director of Canfei Nesharim, Evonne Marzouk.

As we consider Tisha B’Av and the three weeks, leaders of the Jewish community are taking action on the destruction in the Gulf. Rabbi Julie Schonfeld of the Rabbinical Assembly and Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center of the Reform Movement are representing COEJL’s Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign on an interfaith tour of the Gulf next week. The Campaign provides activists a way to pledge their own personal responsibility to consider the consequences of all our actions as it relates to energy and its impact on the environment. Stay tuned for an announcement about a conference call to discuss their experiences there and what we as the broader Jewish community can do to help the situation. Join us and other Jewish leaders around the world who have made the pledge to do something about it today. Sign the Covenant Campaign Pledge now: www.coejl.org/covenant

News Summary

U.S. Senate News
Last week the Democratic Caucus met to plot the course for pushing through energy policy. Betting that the Gulf disaster will energize public support, they hoped to make it difficult for Republicans and moderate Democrats to block legislation before midterm elections. While various plans are still being considered, the principle of “polluters pay” promises to make a winning comprehensive bill. Last week COEJL wrote senators urging they pass comprehensive climate and energy legislation this year and avoid energy-only legislation that would not sufficiently address the issues that will affect our world environmentally, economically and politically for generations. This week, our leaders continued the outreach on a higher level by placing individual calls to their senators in key states to share their point of view.

News from the Oval Office
The President’s moratorium on deep water drilling was shot down in Federal court last week.  Dow Jones News Service reported that U.S. District Judge Martin L.C. Feldman, the judge responsible for the decision, sold his holdings in Exxon Mobile on June 22, just before hearing the moratorium case that same day. According to the federal courts administration, Judge Feldman also previously owned stocks in at least 17 oil and gas companies, which begs the question, “should Judge Feldman have recused himself from this and other related litigation?” Either way, the Obama administration has said it will file an appeal and Ken Salazar announced that a tougher moratorium measure may be in the works for later this week.  Obama met with a bipartisan group of senators on Tuesday to talk about moving energy and climate legislation. It seems as though compromise was in the air on the price of pollution and a scaled back approach may be in the works.  Congress will also continue several hearings on expansive energy legislation, oil regulation, and financial requirements for drillers. The current $75 million cap for environmental liability from an oil spill will also be debated. Some lawmakers have called for a $10 billion cap, while others have said companies should face no cap at all for damages caused.

Red Sea Oil Spill Affects Israel’s Coast
The leak, which Egyptian government spokesman Magdy Rady described as “limited,” was caused by a spill from an offshore platform in Jebel al-Zayt, north of the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada. Israelis are concerned about environmental impacts on one of the world’s most renowned coral reef regions, the economic effects on tourism, and the appearance of a news cover-up.

World’s Most Financially Influential Countries Reaffirm Commitment to Phase Out Fossil Fuel Subsidies
At the G20 Toronto Summit this week, leaders from the world’s most financially influential countries reaffirmed their commitment to phasing out fossil fuel subsidies. It is expected that this will encourage the conservation of energy, improve energy security, reduce economically inefficient burdens on budgets, and provide a down-payment on our commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This is an important step along the way but we’ll need to watch what it actually means in terms of implementation and domestic legislation in the U.S. We are also going to watch what happens at the next big UN summit in Cancun in November. COEJL joined with other Jewish organizations last year urging the U.S. and other world leaders to act courageously at the Copenhagen conference and protect us from the devastation of climate change.

World Zionist Congress Passes GZA resolutions. COEJL congratulates the recent success by the Green Zionist Alliance to pass four energy-related resolutions at the World Zionist Congress focused on saving water and energy, abating climate change, including environmental awareness when educating new immigrants, and food justice.

Community Features

Calling Energy Activists and Communities – Let us know what you’re doing so we can feature you! Community Relations Councils, partner organizations, and individual activists now have an opportunity to feature their environmental and energy work through COEJL’s Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign. We would love to share what you are doing with the broader Jewish community through our weekly “COEJL In Contact” newsletter (Email COEJL Program Director, David Marks at: dmarks@coejl.org), our blog “To Till and to Tend,” and our new COEJL Talks fan page on Facebook®. We look forward to working with you to build our shared network of energy activists.

COEJL Green Tip: Happy Independence Day!

This Sunday is the 4th of July and for many of us that means bar-b-ques. How about putting some green variety on the grill that’s cooler not only for your digestive system but also for the planet? Did you know that the raising and transporting of livestock for food causes more emissions than all of the world’s cars, trains, planes, and boats put together? According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), worldwide livestock farming generates more of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions than the total of all cars, trains, planes and boats combined.  Check out the Sierra Club’s ideas for making Independence Day fun and tasty as well as healthy.

June 24th, 2010