Green School Bus

The new hybrid buses are made in Illinois, but so far, no buyers in-state for IC Corp. of far west suburban Warrenville. According to an article in the Sun-Times, the electric/diesel hybrids get twice the miles per gallon of a regular bus, reduce some emissions by up to 90 percent and look and drive like a typical bus. Eight states are doing tests on the vehicles, while districts in Iowa, New York, Virginia and Washington, D.C., have orders pending.

The current cost for each vehicle is high, but with efficiencies of scale, it will drop precipitously with more on the assembly line. And at that price point, schools will save money in the long run on fuel costs. C'mon Illinois school districts--at least give these green buses a look!

Biomonitoring Turns Up Some Upsetting Results

Five Illinois volunteers in a new study released last week by IEC member Environment Illinois discovered they had nearly a dozen different toxic chemicals in their bodies. Part of a nationwide biomonitoring project, the report, "Is It In Us?: Chemical Contamination in our Bodies - Toxic Trespass, Regulatory Failure and Opportunities for Action," looked for three toxic chemical families: phthalates, bisphenol A and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs).

The chemicals are found nearly everywhere in everyday life, from shower curtains to cosmetics, computers to toys. Studies have linked the chemicals to birth defects, cancer, learning disabilities, infertility, asthma, obesity and other health impacts.

“This report asked a basic question: If toxic pollution is in the products we use everyday, is it also in our bodies? The answer is yes. Just by going about their daily lives, Illinoisans are exposed to toxic chemicals,” said Max Muller, environmental advocate at Environment Illinois, and the project’s Illinois coordinator. “This exposure happens without most people’s knowledge, and certainly without their consent.”

The report supports a campaign to create a comprehensive federal policy to raise the standards governing chemical use and a state program to create a biomonitoring program. State Rep. Elaine Nekritz (D-Northbrook) recently pushed the state Legislature to approve $250,000 to set such a program, but the funding was vetoed by Gov. Blagojevich.

Oh, and Rep. Nekritz was one of the participants in the Environment Illinois Study. She had four phthalates, seven PBDEs and bisphenol A in her system.

For more, here's the press release, with a link to the report.

Illinois Joins California on Greenhouse Gas Case

At the annual IEC Environmental Leadership Dinner in October, the keynote speaker, former California State Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, told the crowd about how the federal EPA has given her state a series of waivers over the years, allowing California to fight smog by requiring green technologies ranging from catalytic converters to unleaded gasoline. When it came to the nation's first greenhouse gas emission standards for cars and light trucks, however, the EPA balked.

And so last week California sued the federal government for a waiver under the federal Clean Air Act to be allowed to implement a 2002 state anti-pollution law regulating greenhouse gases. Illinois is one of 14 states that have joined California in its lawsuit. If California is successful in being able to set its own greenhouse gas emission standards for cars, it would pave the way for Illinois to join the 11 other states that have adopted similar legislation.