Jacksonville, Florida Local Efforts To Tie Mercury Emissions Reductions to Rate Increases

Another Mercury Blogger "Mercury Falling" in Jacksonville, FL is petitioning the City Council to tie rate increases by their local utility to mandatory mercury reductions in the same percentage. Dan thinks following the Federal CAMR is not good enough, and because of the cap-and-trade allowance, will potentially lead to a worse situation locally.

I agree with Dan's concerns, but feel if rates go up 10% and thus mercury reductions only go down 10% it will take too long, or cost too much, to get to where they should be anyway. Other States like Illinois, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, etc. have passed State laws mandating 90% reductions in mercury emissions with no cap-and-trade allowances with timeframes much faster than CAMR. This may not be politically possible in Florida, and every effort locally, statewide, nationally and internationally to reduce mercury pollution should be applauded.

Global mercury contamination in our environment is now getting the attention it deserves. My next post will address the recently released findings of the Eighth International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant, held last August in Madison, WI. Keep up the fight Dan, and all you others, remember "think globally, act locally," it is the best we all can do.