Introduction & News
Welcome to the internet home of Plains Justice, a Great Plains public interest law center defending the right to environmental justice and a sustainable economy through community partnerships. Our board of directors represents a broad diversity of professional expertise, cultural backgrounds and geographical distribution. We seek to make every voice heard when decisions are made that affect our air, our water, our land, and our lives.
Our 1st Quarter 2008 Newsletter is now available.
Plains Justice Is Hiring!
Plains Justice seeks an attorney with energy, environmental and/or administrative experience or coursework and an entrepreneurial mindset to join our young organization by mid-2008. Location is flexible within our mission region of IA, NE, SD, ND and eastern MT.
We are also taking resumes for the position of Communications Director. Please contact info at plainsjustice dot org for full job descriptions.
Policy Planks from Iowa Environmental Caucuses
The 2007 Iowa Environmental Caucuses have been a huge success. This non-partisan effort gathered people together from across the state and political spectrum to foster a critical discussion about the best way to address the environmental issues that matter most to our citizens.
One concrete result of these discussions is that the staff at Plains Justice has digested these ideas and concerns into a series of platform planks that people can submit at their caucuses this January and at the county conventions in March. Click here for the full list of caucus planks.
Caucuses were held at the following sites:
Sunday, December 2nd, 2007- Waterloo
Monday, December 3rd– two sites in Cedar Falls
Tuesday, December 4, 2007 - Jesup
Tuesday, December 4, 2007- Cedar Rapids
Thursday, December 13, 2007 - Fairfield
Sunday, December 16, 2007 - Iowa City
Monday, December 17, 2007 - Eldridge
Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - Dubuque
Wednesday, December 19, 2007 - Decorah
Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007 - Davenport
Thursday, Dec. 27, 2007 - Sioux City
Friday, December 28th - Mapleton
Thursday, January 24, 2008 - Ames
Wednesday, February 27, 2008 - Des Moines
Video from Plains Justice Iowa City Environmental Caucus
IOWA SURVEY: COAL-FIRED POWER PLANT FREEZE FAVORED BY TWO-THIRDS OF MOST LIKELY CAUCUS GOERS, OTHER STATE RESIDENTS
Echoing Coal Roll Backs in KS and FL, 4 Out of 5 State Residents Favor More Energy Conservation Over New Coal-Fired Plants; Groups Call on Gov. Culver to Lead the Way.
Sending a clear message to state officials and presidential candidates, nearly four out of five Iowans (79 percent) –- including 69 percent of Republicans, 86 percent of Democrats and 79 percent of Independents – think that “Iowa should focus on increased (energy) conservation steps and more fuel efficiency to reduce demand for electricity before it constructs new coal-fired power plants,” according to a major new Opinion Research Corporation (ORC) survey commissioned by Iowa Interfaith Power & Light, Iowa Farmers Union and Plains Justice.
Click here for more information.
Important: To take action on Iowa coal plant proposals, go to our Resources page for information.
Coal Combustion Waste Disposal Report 2007
On November 5, 2007, Plains Justice released its first major report, a 35-page study of Iowa’s regulation of coal combustion waste. This heavy metal-laden waste stream is around half the size of the total U.S. municipal waste stream annually. For the last 27 years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has failed to regulate this hazardous waste at the federal level, in spite of directives from Congress and urgings from the National Academies of Science. Iowa waters are at significant risk for contamination due to loose state regulation. Quick action by Iowa regulators is needed to protect public health and the environment.
Plains Justice Files Testimony by National Experts in Opposition to Marshalltown, Iowa Coal Plant Proposal
Dr. James Hansen, noted climate scientist and international voice for global warming solutions, grew up in Denison, Iowa and is testifying for the first time in such a case. Hansen and experts Dr. Neil Harl, Professor Emeritus of Agriculture and Economics at Iowa State University; Tom Sanzillo, former First Deputy Comptroller for the State of New York; and Dr. Kristen Welker-Hood, Director of Environmental and Health Programs for Physicians for Social Responsibility, filed direct testimony and appeared at the IUB public hearing in January as witnesses for the coalition. Plains Justice attorneys Carrie La Seur of Mount Vernon and Jana Linderman of Cedar Rapids are representing Community Energy Solutions, Iowa Environmental Council, Iowa Farmers Union, Iowa Renewable Energy Association and the Iowa chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility.
See our petition and expert testimony.
Coming soon: Plains Justice en espanol, or Llana Justicia. !Bienvenidos a todos!
Recent Events
On January 24, 2008, Plains Justice President Carrie La Seur gave a presentation titled “A Neighbor’s Guide to Coal” to a meeting of the Badlands Area Resource Council in Dickinson, North Dakota. BARC invited La Seur to advise them on a proposal by Great Northern Power Development to build a 500MW lignite coal gasification plant and an adjacent lignite mine near South Heart, in southwestern North Dakota. La Seur explained the applicable law, permitting processes, and how affected residents can get involved, then took questions directly from the group. Most concerns centered on water use and the extent of the proposed mining at South Heart, 15 miles from Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
From January 14 to January 18, 2008, Plains Justice attorneys Carrie La Seur and Jana Linderman represented a coalition of Iowa nonprofits opposing the proposed Marshalltown, Iowa coal plant in an administrative hearing before the Iowa Utilities Board. Expert witnesses for the coalition and for the state Office of Consumer Advocate testified that the proposed plant will ultimately cost ratepayers more than alternatives and is not needed to meet reasonable demand projections. Public events on January 16 and 17 in Des Moines and Iowa City gave Iowans beyond Marshalltown the chance to hear our expert witnesses speak and take questions. Many thanks to volunteer Dawn Suter of Iowa City who coordinated these events!
On November 27 and 28, 2007, Plains Justice attorney Jana Linderman appeared before the North Dakota Public Service Commission representing eastern ND landowners whose land and water are threatened by the proposed Keystone pipeline. The pipeline would stretch nearly 2000 miles from the tar sands of northern Alberta across the central United States. The ecological, agricultural, and global warming impacts of this pipeline and the resulting greenhouse gas-intensive fuel source would be felt at local, regional, and global levels. Plains Justice is challenging the inadequate Environmental Impact Statement, demanding better analysis and increased public participation as the foreign corporation proposing the pipeline pushes for the fastest possible review process.
On October 11, 2007, the Iowa City Development Board rejected an application for annexation by the City of Waterloo that would have been an important step forward for the plant developers, New Jersey’s LS Power. The City of Waterloo had attempted to annex and rezone without consulting the Board, in violation of state law. A legal action brought by Plains Justice led to review by the Board and this win for good city planning, public health, environmental protection, and polar bears everywhere.
On September 9, hundreds of Black Hawk County residents rallied at Merle Bell’s farm, the site of a proposed 750MW coal plant. The surrounding community has brought its concerns to local and state officials at every opportunity, hoping to turn the tide against the nation’s largest developer of coal-fired power plants, New Jersey’s LS Power/Dynergy. Plains Justice President Carrie La Seur spoke to the crowd.
On August 6, Plains Justice attorney and North Dakota native Jana Linderman spoke at “A Conversation about Our Region’s Energy Future”, a forum organized by Lakota tribal members in Sisseton, South Dakota, regarding advocacy against the proposed Big Stone II coal plant. Jana spoke about legal work on this issue by organizations including Plains Justice and Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, and how communities can represent themselves successfully in local proceedings.
