Environmentalists for Pingree

Chellie has been a longtime passionate fighter on environmental issues, and has the record to prove it. In her first term in Congress, she’s proven this many times over.  Chellie helped form a coalition with other Members of Congress, The Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC), which is dedicated to protecting our environment and bringing about a clean energy economy. She’s fought for investment in clean energy for Maine and the entire country. She introduced the Spilled Oil Royalty Collection Act that will make sure oil companies pay royalties on all of the oil that comes out of the ground. She also introduced legislation to ban decabromine, a harmful toxin already banned in Maine as well as legislation to help schools purchase locally grown food. Her dedication to protecting the environment has helped make Maine a clear national leader on environmental issues.

At a recent “Environmentalists for Pingree” event, Chellie was joined by so many leaders and members of the environmentalist community in Maine who are proud of her for her hard work in Congress on behalf of our state. She spoke about many issues affecting Maine, such as protecting our natural environment, energy efficiency, boosting small green businesses, and the importance of eating locally grown food. There is still so much more that we can all do together to help protect our working waterfronts, air quality and clean water, while conserving land and supporting our local farmers.

Read a letter from Chellie below.

October 10, 2010

Dear Friends

The past two years have gone by quickly and so much good has happened in protecting the environment.  Working together, with your support and hard work here in Maine, we have been able to take some unprecedented steps.  Yet there is still a lot of good work that needs to be done.  We still need to put a price on carbon and jumpstart our clean energy economy, make sure we protect our clean air, our water, our forests and our oceans. 

I know you have been working hard on these important issues and I wanted to make sure in all of the frenzy and negativity that exists this year you have a good picture of what has happened down in DC over the past two years.  We passed an economic stimulus bill that invests tens of millions of dollars here in Maine for energy efficiency and deepwater offshore wind alone.  The stimulus bill also made it possible to expand the Downeaster train service to Brunswick and help build the Bayside Trail in Portland.  Together we beat attacks on the Clean Air Act and defended the EPA’s ability to regulate all air pollutants, including CO2.

Congress protected over 2 million acres of wilderness, allowing our grandchildren and their children to experience true wilderness, as well as protecting the historic Harriet Beecher Stowe House in Brunswick. I was able to help Friends of Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge and other groups finally protect the beautiful Timber Point in Biddeford and Kennebunkport.  The work on land conservation done here in Maine by many different people is nothing short of amazing, and it makes me proud to continue my long history of supporting land conservation by doing my part to make sure you have the tools you need – whether it is the right tax incentives for conservation easements or legislation to create a program that would pay small land owners to sustainably manage their forests for their carbon value. 

A handful of my colleagues and I formed a coalition dedicated to protecting our environment and bringing about a clean energy economy. The Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition, SEEC, affectionately known as the “Green Dogs,” has grown to include over 50 like minded members of Congress, giving the things you believe in a strong political voice inside the House.  From educating each other about our districts and states, to bonding over in-depth policy and strategy discussions about how to structure a price on carbon and strengthen the House Cap and Trade bill, SEEC has grown into a respected political force, helping to shape the national conversation on environmental and renewable energy related policies.

This past spring, SEEC members came together shortly after it became apparent that the Deep Water Horizon oil spill was quickly turning into a disaster and decided to focus the efforts of the caucus on making sure the House addressed the spill.  We took significant strides towards reforming the offshore oil and gas industry.  We were successful in getting, and then keeping, important provisions in the CLEAR Act – provisions that include full funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, establishing an Ocean Resources Conservation Account with royalties from oil leases, and I am very pleased that CLEAR Act included my bill, HR 5513, the Spilled Oil Royalty Collection Act that will make sure oil companies pay royalties on all of the oil that comes out of the ground, including oil that is spilled. 

It scares me to think what would happen to our fisheries and our coastal communities if we had a big oil spill happen off of the coast of Maine.  Our fishermen are struggling enough in these tough economic times, and that is why I joined two of my colleagues in writing the Coastal Jobs Creation Act.  Many of the ideas for this legislation come from projects here in Maine.  The bill proposes employing fishermen to conduct cooperative research and gear research, and improving the management of our fisheries, while providing a little bit of extra income to Maine fishermen. 

Despite a Senate process that is difficult at best, the House has worked on a lot of important environmental initiatives and I feel it is very important for you to hear how what you do in Maine translates into the beginnings of national policy. 

Maine has taken great strides to reduce carbon emissions from a strong Renewable Energy Standard to the being part of RGGI.  The House passed the first-ever legislation that would establish a cap and trade system to comprehensively address CO2 emissions and start to curb global warming.  Many of you here in Maine told me that bill was not strong enough, and that even though it was a first step, you wanted me to fight to make it stronger.  I heard you and I wrote a letter to the Speaker, asking her to make the bill stronger.  Thanks to your efforts and the efforts of your friends and colleagues around the country, 48 other members joined me. 

The oil in the gulf serves as a reminder that we need to shift our economy towards clean energy.  The work that many of you have done here in Maine to lay the groundwork for the offshore wind industry is nothing short of incredible.  Between identifying the challenges and policy barriers to developing the wind industry and then working to change them, you made it really easy for me be a leader amongst my peers on issues of offshore wind, wave, and tidal power.  From facilitating a meeting between ORPC and the head of the National Marine Fisheries to discuss the difficulties of permitting tidal projects to working in a bi-partisan fashion with Rep Castle (R-DE) in proposing a special office of offshore wind directly under the Secretary of the Interior, the work you do on a daily basis allows me to work on fun, meaningful projects that both help create jobs and protect our environment. 

Maine is the clear national leader on issues like energy efficiency, and I know I want to make sure that federal legislation doesn’t hurt our ability to work on energy efficiency – that is why I made sure the Home Star energy efficiency bill had a provision that required national energy efficiency efforts to coordinate with existing state programs.  When the environmental community, the affordable housing folks and the modular home manufacturers came together on trading in old, pre-1976 mobile homes for a new modular home, I saw an opportunity to take the work done here in Maine and bring it to low income communities across the nation.  In the Home Star energy efficiency bill, I was able to work with Rep. Hill (D-IN) to include a provision that allows for the trade-in of a pre-1976 trailer for a new manufactured or modular home – benefiting both the modular housing manufacturers in Maine and those low income people who will be eligible for the trade-in program.  

Speaking of work done in Maine, I am thrilled to take Maine’s ban on Decabromine and introduce legislation to ban it nationally.  As you know, I am so proud of Hannah’s work on this issue and it is an honor to carry on this landmark legislation that so many of you support.  Maine initiated this discussion in 2004, making us one of the first states in the country to begin phasing out decabromine. The bromine chemical family has been used as a flame-retardant for many years. However penta-bromine and octa-bromine have already been banned worldwide due to negative impacts on human, animal, and plant health. Through careful negotiation with the EPA and chemical industry, I was able to introduce a federal bill to permanently phase out harmful decabromine.  Through those talks, the EPA and decabromine manufacturers were able to work out a voluntary agreement to phase out the chemical in two years.

As we move forward on these important issues, we cannot forget that it is the land that grounds us and the land that provides us with our food. As an organic farmer, and talking to Mainers from many towns and many backgrounds, it is clear to me that we want to feed our families good, healthy food. The best way to do this is “eating local” by supporting our community farmers, and feeding our family locally grown food. After holding a community talk on school lunches, I decided to introduce the Eat Local Foods Act. This bill is one of many steps forward – it would allow food service directors the ability to take a portion of the commodity money they already receive from the government and redirect those funds to purchase local food from local sources. Many other Members of Congress agree with me and have shown their support by cosponsoring my bill. I have long been committed to getting better food for our kids, and I plan to see the Eat Local Foods Act through, and look forward to doing much more work in this fertile area.

Like getting to talk to farmers and others in Maine about food, one of the highlights of my job is getting to talk to so many people from Maine, hear their great ideas, and work together to make the right things happen.  We have such a great state and there are so many good things happening here – I am proud of the work we’ve been able to do together and privileged to be your Member of Congress – I wouldn’t be here were it not for your support and input.  Thank you for all that you do!

Best,

Chellie