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January 2011 Austin Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) Update
Membership Update
We added some people to our list in December - but some housekeeping was also
conducted (about 25 addresses were non-functioning), leaving us with an active,
solid list of 218.
3rd Annual Holiday
Green Party Was Great!
A big thank you to Texas Green Network for sponsoring our Green Holiday Party!
A good time was by had by those in attendance, and Austin PSR showed up
impressively and met some nice folks, hopefully toward the purpose of making
that connection between being "green" and having greater health and
quality of life for all of us.
Coming soon…
Wednesday, January
19, 2011, 6:00 to 7:30 pm, Central Market Café at 38th and
North Lamar– our PSR
Meet and Greet! Come
and hear briefly about what Austin PSR is up to, about recent successes, and
especially with regard to the upcoming legislative session. Meet other PSR
members, and have a beer or drink of your choice from Central Market.
Next Austin PSR Board Meeting: Sunday,
February 20, 2011, 3:00 to 5:00 pm
The next board meeting is 3-5 pm on Sunday, February 20, 2011, and as usual,
all are welcome. If interested in attending, please write Marian Morris at mmorris@psr.org.
NUCLEAR
ISSUES/NATIONAL SECURITY
Update on Stopping
Texas From Becoming the Nation’s Radioactive Waste Dump!
The Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission (TLLRWDCC) is
rushing to approve the Subchapter B rule that would open Andrews County in West
Texas to accept radioactive waste from around the country (more information on
the rule-making here).
TCEQ staff members unanimously recommended denying the licensing of storage
because of the high risk of radioactive contamination of water. Three TCEQ
staff members have resigned over the licensing of the site.
On December 30, a state judge voted to stop the Compact Commission’s adoption
of rules allowing nationwide importation of radioactive waste (the original
intent was that only Texas and Vermont have access). Yesterday a federal judge
decided he had no jurisdiction to stop the meeting, so today the meeting and
probably a vote will have happened in Andrews County. Nationwide access to the
storage site could potentially mean international storage, because some states
accept waste from outside of the U.S. – that they would then send to
Texas….stay tuned.
What you can do to
help……
Seeking Information
on Radioactive Waste in Medical Settings….
Austin PSR board member Karen Hadden is looking for some information from the
health care community, regarding the issue of storing radioactive waste that is
coming from medical use. If you have any information or know someone who might
have information to answer the following, please write to me (Marian Morris, mmorris@psr.org) or
Karen Hadden (Karen@seedcoalition.org) as
soon as possible:
#1 We want to know if your hospital/ radiology department has any
problems at this time disposing of radionuclides. Is there a build up on site
that is a problem? Is there just the normal letting materials decay on site so
as to become non-radioactive and have more affordable disposal?
#2 Is technetium a major portion of the radionuclides that are used? Any
data regarding percentages of radionuclides that are generated at your
hospital? What half-lives do they have?
Is there a lot of technetium?
New START Passed!
New START passed! Our U.S. Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn voted
against it, citing what they considered flaws in its construction. You can
write them here: Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn if
you wish to express your opinion of their votes to them.
With the ratification of the New START, which to remind you stands for the
newest version of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty between Russia and the
U.S., the U.S. and Russia will work to reduce the numbers of nuclear weapons
each country has. This will be done in a coordinated way so that each country
can feel safe knowing that the other country is telling the truth and is
actually dismantling weapons. The text of the treaty is here if you would like
to read it (it’s quite interesting): New
START Treaty.
PSR’s roots are in the activism around stopping the proliferation of nuclear
weapons. Damage from the use of nuclear weapons is massive and long-lasting,
which is why Austin PSR works to support disarmament efforts.
ENVIRONMENT AND
HEALTH
Sunset Advisory Commission
Review of TCEQ
People travelled from all over the state to speak at the December 15 sunset
review hearing for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) at the
Texas State Capitol. Actually getting to speak was a challenge – this was a
marathon, and public comment for TCEQ did not begin until about 8:00 pm that
evening. Many who had come had to leave to get back to family and work,
although some did endure and stayed until they were heard. Austin PSR submitted
comments as well as our fantastic petition with 100 signatures of doctors,
nurses and health professionals. Comments we sent in can be seen at
our website, if you’re interested in the details. Many thanks to everyone who
participated in this effort!
At least part of the TCEQ’s mission is to protect public health. Austin PSR’s
efforts are to encourage the strengthening of that mission, and especially to
get the TCEQ to take a more aggressive approach with regard to controlling
emissions from coal-fired power plants, which are strongly associated with
increases in respiratory, cardiovascular and neurological problems.
And it’s not over! Next is seeing that we continue to have input while the bill
to continue TCEQ makes its way through the Texas Legislature. There will still
be opportunities for public input, and we will let you know what they are. Stay
tuned….
We need doctors
and nurses again to sign another letter regarding taking care of our natural
resources – humans (and their home)! Please look at the letter
at the Austin PSR website, consider adding your name (by emailing
Robert Ressler of Environment Texas – robert@environmenttexas.org-
requesting to add your name, credentials, and city), and consider asking
colleagues to do the same. The letter is addressed to Texas U.S. Senators Kay
Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn, asking generally that they support efforts to
create clean air and clean up industrial facilities – worthy goals supported by
Austin PSR.
PSR Supports Uresti
Bill to Raise Smoking Age to 19
Texas Senator Carlos Uresti’s office filed their bill (SB 268) raising the
smoking age to 19, for the upcoming legislative session. Austin PSR has given
its support to Senator Uresti’s efforts to curb smoking in young people. The
text of the filed bill can be found in the pdf at the end of this newsletter.
Austin PSR supports this bill as one more tool for helping people not to start
smoking, because once they start, it’s really hard to stop. Making these
gradual, incremental changes to public policy is a way to have the human
environment support healthy habits for large populations in one fell swoop.
Imagine the lives saved, the increases in quality of life, and the decreases in
costs of treating people’s respiratory illnesses, including lung cancer, that
are caused by smoking. This bill can do a lot of good.
Upcoming Events
January 19, 2011,
6:00 to 7:30 pm: Austin PSR Meet and Greet, Central Market
Café, 38th and Lamar
February 20, 2011:
Austin PSR board meeting, Sunday, 3-5 PM. Write Marian for more info atmmorris@psr.org.
November/December 2010 Austin PSR Monthly Update October 2010 Austin PSR Monthly Update July 2010 Austin PSR Monthly Update June 2010 Austin PSR Monthly Update
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