Acclaimed innovative theatre company, The Civilians, have been celebrated nationally for their inventive spin on some of the most pressing issues of our time.  They are now bringing their unique process of storytelling to the KC Rep for the world premiere of The Great Immensity, an original play with music that is part mystery and part morality tale. Woven into the story about two sisters’ global journey are authentic interviews with top scientists and those who have been touched by the reality of climate change, deforestation and endangered ecosystems. And, yes, it’s a musical.

After the performance on Sat. March 3, Kansas IPL Director Rabbi Moti Rieber will be participating in a Scholars’ Forum panel discussion on the themes and issues of the play.

For more information visit www.kcrep.org , more about our friends, The Civilians at http://www.thecivilians.org/ and more about the play itself at www.thegreatimmensity.org where the bloggers are the characters in the play and the blogs are being written by the actors.

May this bulletin and the activities it inspires help your on your path of spiritual growth and greener living!

Rabbi Moti Rieber, the coordinator of Kansas Interfaith Power and Light, will offer an informative presentation entitled “Caring for Creation: Faith-Based Environmental Activism and the Challenges We Face” at 7:00 p.m. Wednesday February 29, 2012 in Southwestern College’s Beech 104 lecture hall. All interested Cowley County residents are invited to attend.

Every major faith tradition recognizes a responsibility to care for the Creation we have been given. Yet our society seems to run contrary to this responsibility – particularly in our profligate use of energy from fossil fuels. These damage sour health, the natural beauty of our state, and cause changes in the environment that we don’t even understand yet. Rabbi Rieber’s talk will focus on the environmental challenges that face us and what we, as people of faith and as communities of faith, can do to address these complicated and challenging issues.

Kansas Interfaith Power and Light is a statewide, non-profit organization that seeks to engage faith communities in environmental stewardship and sustainable practices through the promotion of energy conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. We believe the threat of global climate change calls us to action. Kansas IPL is one of 37 statewide affiliates of national Interfaith Power & Light and is under the fiscal sponsorship of Ecumenical Christian Ministries of Lawrence, Kansas.

Coordinator of Kansas IPL since March 21, 2011, Rabbi Rieber is a 2004 graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. He is a long-time activist on peace, social justice, and environmental issues, and brings a variety of pulpit and organizational experience to the work of Kansas IPL. He and his wife, Suzy, live with their three children in Overland Park. Rabbi Rieber will be in Winfield for the Creation Care Conference at Southwestern College on February 28 and 29 and will present this introduction to Kansas IPL to any interested people. The talk is being sponsored by Grace United Methodist Church of Winfield, a congregational member of Kansas IPL.

For further information about Kansas IPL, go to http://kansasipl.org.

Featuring Rev. Rebekah Simon-Peter – Director of BridgeWorks

and

John Hill – Director for Economic and Environmental Justice for the United Methodist Church

Full schedule here: http://www.sckans.edu/activities/ministry/bim-week/

Kansas IPL will be tabling at this event.

The ruling is the latest chapter in a lawsuit brought by the Sierra Club against the Rural Utilities Service (“RUS”), an arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, over its ongoing financial support for and approval of the Sunflower expansion. In March 2011, the court found that RUS had failed to consider environmental impacts of the proposed Sunflower plant expansion, in violation of federal law. The government has a financial stake in the plant because of loan arrangements made with plant owners by the federal Rural Utilities Service.

In his decision, Judge Emmett Sullivan emphasized that the expansion will need additional approval from the federal government as a result of changes to the project from earlier configurations. He enjoined the government from issuing any additional approvals pending a full “environmental impact statement” (“EIS”) disclosing all of the environmental and human health impacts of the project, which includes harm to human health as well as contribution to climate change. An EIS must also discuss “alternatives” to a proposed project, such as renewable energy projects and energy conservation.

“The people of Kansas and downwind states will now get their legitimate public health concerns heard,” said Jan Hasselman of Earthjustice who led the lawsuit on behalf of the Sierra Club. “Once the facts of this dirty and dangerous project are exposed to the public, we think that the federal government will have to just say no.”

“The financial and public health risks involved in the development of this project have always made it a bad deal for those of us who will have to breathe dirty air and pay unnecessary costs for this coal plant,” said Lee Messenger of Garden City, an opponent of the expansion. “Sunflower needs to be accountable for the debt it has already created with its existing coal plant, not get in over its head again with another risky and unneeded coal plant.”

“From a public health and environmental perspective, coal-fired power is the most expensive option available,” said Scott Allegrucci of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. “We are confident that once the environmental impacts of this plant are considered in light of alternatives, the project’s impacts will be unacceptable and it will be rejected.”

According to recent American Wind Energy Association fourth quarter data, Kansas has the largest number of wind projects under construction in the nation. This decision comes as utility companies and developers across the country are abandoning planned coal plants as unnecessary and too costly and are moving toward a greater reliance on clean energy.

Background:

In this lawsuit, Sierra Club argued that the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), a branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provided extensive financial support—including writing off millions of dollars of public debt—so that Sunflower could build the new power plant. These agreements left the RUS with close oversight of Sunflower’s business operations and required federal approval to proceed with the Holcomb project. Much of Sunflower’s financial struggles stem from overbuilding capacity at their existing unit, Holcomb I, which is a scenario that could be repeated if Holcomb II is constructed since neither Sunflower nor Tri-State, the Colorado partner, has demonstrated the project is needed. The lawsuit argued that, as an essentially federal project, greater environmental review and consideration of alternatives—like greater conservation and renewables—is required.

Meanwhile, when Kathleen Sebelius was governor, the state rejected the proposed plant because of its potential, massive contributions to climate change. While popular with citizens, the decision upset coal-connected legislators. But, try as they did, they couldn’t overcome Sebelius’ vetoes.

Even when Sebelius left office—and was replaced by a governor who quickly gave Sunflower the green light—the coal lobby was stymied by legal pressures and by Rod Bremby, the state environmental health chief who had first rejected the plant permit under Sebelius. He held the line for three years until finally being fired over the issue. His successor promptly issued the permit last December. An appeal of the air permit is pending in the Kansas Supreme Court.

The grant, from the Mid-America Regional Council under its EnergyWorks KC program, is for “programs that exhibit innovative approaches leading to energy upgrades of existing buildings.” The funding is provided by the Federal government under the America Recovery and Reinvestment Act (“ARRA”).

Houses of worship can be some of the most energy-inefficient buildings in our stock, which can present a significant burden to the congregations or denominations that maintain them. Many houses of worship operate on a shoestring budget, and every extra dollar they spend on energy or electricity is a dollar they cannot spend on worship, faith education, care for the poor or any of the other areas of activity that are more central to their mission.

Kansas IPL has found through years of working on this issue that paying attention to these energy efficiency items will have significant benefits for the community’s bottom line – as well as for the environment. Churches can save anywhere from 15% to over 40% of their annual lighting and energy costs by instituting these changes (the return depends on the size of the building and the extent of the improvements).

Under the terms of the Energy Stewardship project, churches and other houses of worship will receive an energy audit to determine their energy usage and areas where improvements will be most effective. They will then receive a matching grant of $3,000 to: a) replace 50 fixtures of outdated fluorescent lighting with more-efficient T-8 lighting; b) install timed thermostats, allowing for significant temperature setbacks when the building is not in use; and c) perform other energy-efficiency improvements as determined by the audit. The goal is to save the community a minimum of 15% of its annual energy usage, and this will be monitored using a program developed by the federal EnergyStar program.

Houses of worship in the Kansas counties of Johnson, Wyandotte, Leavenworth and Miami are eligible to apply, with work on the first churches scheduled to begin in March. Outreach will be through direct contact, the media, and denominational structures.

Venue to be announced

It’s been a couple of years since the Clean Energy Days sponsored by environmental groups in Kansas, which Kansas IPL was part of and which brought hundreds of concerned Kansans to the Capitol. There’s a very busy legislative schedule this session and environmental issues aren’t really on it. But our elected representatives still need to know that there are many people of faith from all over Kansas who care about our environment and a clean energy future!

The Steering Committee of Kansas IPL will be going to the Capitol building on the morning of February 7 to introduce ourselves to our legislators and share with them some of the issues of most concern for us: incentives for renewables; low-interest loans for energy efficiency improvements for homes, businesses and houses of worship; extending net metering to rural electric coops and BPUs, and more. Our Advocacy Committee is developing the talking points now and will share them with participants before the event.

If you care about these issues and want to help Kansas IPL build a presence in Topeka, advocating for the issues that are vital to us and to the environment, please make plans to join us on “Legislator Education Day”. Send an email to Kansas IPL Director Rabbi Moti Rieber (rebmoti<at>kansasipl.org) letting him know you’re interested in coming, and we’ll make sure you’re kept in the loop before the event.

Lawrence, KS, January 18, 2012 — Kansas Interfaith Power & Light (Kansas IPL) joins with faith and environmental groups all over the nation in voicing support for President Obama’s decision today to deny permission for the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.

On September 26, 2011, Kansas IPL Director Rabbi Moti Rieber led several clergy leaders and other people of faith in testifying against the Keystone XL at the State Department’s hearing in Topeka. Our arguments then, as now, were that the Keystone XL poses a danger to the ecology of the state of Kansas by transversing some of the most ecologically sensitive areas of the state, including the Flint Hills and the Ogalalla Aquifer, which supplies drinking water and agricultural irrigation to millions of people in the region. Also, the tapping of this source of oil would open a spigot releasing hundreds of thousands of pounds of carbon into the atmosphere, adding to the climate change that is already occurring and leading to what renowned NASA climatologist James Hansen called “game over” for the environment.

Since then the arguments against this project have only grown stronger. The dirty-energy industry is trying to frame this as a jobs issue, but the facts are these: despite the inflated claims, the pipeline will provide mostly temporary construction jobs, and few of those (and virtually none in Kansas); and there is far more potential for job development in the transition to wind, solar and other clean, renewable and domestic sources of energy. Taking this far-sighted approach would be better for Kansas, better for our country, and better for the earth’s climate.

In fact, it can fairly be said that Canada would get the jobs, China would get the oil, and Kansas and the other pipeline states would get the pollution – and higher prices at the pump. We thank President Obama for making the right choice – denying this permit.

Rabbi Rieber is available to comment on this story.

What follows is a statement from Interfaith Power & Light’s President, The Rev. Canon Sally G. Bingham:

“Interfaith Power & Light applauds President Obama for demonstrating leadership in deciding against the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. His actions today will help to ensure a clean, healthy and safe world for our children. Transporting dirty tar sands oil through the heartland of America will unnecessarily risk catastrophic damage to ecosystems and aquifers that millions of people depend upon for their livelihood. People of faith are called to be good stewards of God’s Creation, and to love our neighbors and take care of the vulnerable among us.

“For months, faith leaders have been speaking out against the Keystone XL pipeline at State Department hearings and in letters to the Administration and Congress. It is of great concern that Keystone 1 has had many more leaks than expected, and the 1 million gallon tar sands oil spill into Michigan’s Kalamazoo River in 2010 was a national tragedy. An EPA spokesperson said he has never seen anything like it – a heavy crude mixed with chemicals that sinks instead of floats, greatly hampering the multi-year clean-up effort.

“Our nation is on the cusp of a clean energy revolution. According to a Brookings¹ report released in 2011, more than 2.7 million people are working in the U.S. clean energy economy right now. Bloomberg New Energy Finance reports that in 2011, America surged ahead of China² on clean energy investments. The new proposed fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks will save 2.2 million barrels of oil a day by 2025 – about double the amount the proposed Keystone XL pipeline would have delivered, and without the risk.

“People of faith strongly believe that we need an urgent response to the climate crisis through continued implementation of better clean air safeguards, construction of a renewable energy grid, and more robust energy efficiency and renewable energy standards. The Keystone XL would only slow the pace of this clean energy transition, continue with business worse than usual, and hasten global warming. We can and must model a way forward for the world, create jobs, and care for God’s Creation. Thank you Mr. President for making the right and moral choice to set us in that direction.”

This year’s National Preach-In on Global Warming will be over Valentine’s Day weekend, February 10-12, 2012. Clergy of all religions, lay leaders, and green team members from across the country are invited to participate, and when you sign up to preach, teach, or host an event, we’ll make a variety of support resources available in January, including:

• Denomination-specific liturgical and thematic notes to help in the preparation of sermons, reflections, devotionals, Bible studies, and youth activities
• Ready-to-go sample sermons on global warming
• Global warming fact sheet and bulletin inserts
• Valentine’s Day postcards for policy makers
• Preaching for the Planet 30-minute film in DVD format

All materials are free-of-charge to those who wish to give a sermon or hold an activity. Resources will be sent in January to those who register. Simply fill out the form on the national IPL website. Download the Preach-In on Global Warming Flyer to print and share with others.