by Dave Nichols

I’ve noticed my gas and electric bills are much higher than they were a few years ago. Reviewing old bills I found that during the past year gas/cubic feet went up 27% and electricity/kWh increased 18% annually for the last three years. Across the state the gas and electric rates have climbed in a similar trajectory. At a rate substantially higher than overall inflation.

Most of the gas and electricity in this country are distributed by investor owned utilities.  However about 30% of the electricity and 5% of the gas are distributed by publicly owned or co-op owned utilities. PPL and UGI are investor owned. Over the last three years investor owned utilities electricity rates have increased 49% more than inflation. In contrast, publicly owned utilities have increased 44% below the inflation rate.

Utilities are monopolies in that only one utility is allowed to operate in a given territory. There is a competitive market for the gas and electricity itself but the utilities own and charge for the infrastructure to distribute the energy to your home. You can see these charges separated out on your utility bill. Utilities have been given monopoly rights to the distribution because it is inefficient to have competing infrastructure such as gas pipelines and electric lines in the same area. The monopoly right is conditioned on a social contract that permits the utility to earn a reasonable profit for the investments they make to the infrastructure. However, the investment must be necessary, cost effective, and environmentally sound. This contract is regulated at the state level by the PUC, the Public Utilities Commission, appointed by the governor and approved by the state senate.

According to the organization, The American Economic Liberties Project, the crucial reason that the investor owned utility rates have increased well over the general inflation rate is that they are granted excessive rates of return by the utility commission. Concurrent with the excessive rate of returned allowed by Utility commissions is the incentive to invest in unnecessary projects. Public Utilities finance their infrastructure investment by selling bonds in the general market. Their cost is not influence by individual profit motive. The investor owned utilities have been able to unfairly charge consumers because of a weak public utilities commission. The American Economic Liberties Project has published an in depth discussion of the problem and recommendations such as having the state legislature enact codes that set utilities rate of return to market based cost of capital. They recommend the state provide legal assistance to consumer advocacy groups. They recommend that advocacy groups to decide upon a single economic model to define a fair rater of return on capital. They also recommend the commission provide clear explanation to the public on how to comment at public hearings. You can read the complete article on their web site. The link is provided in the written transcript of this talk on the UU Social Action web page.

Resources
Rate of Return Equals Cost of Capital: A Simple, Fair Formula to Stop Investor-Owned Utilities From Overcharging the Public
This discussion did not include the subject of electric grid improvements required for the transition to renewable energy, for re industrialization, and for data centers. If utilities are allowed to charge exorbitant rates for these grid investments, consumers will pay dearly. There is a proposed PPL rate increase hearing Monday Dec 8 @ 6:00 PM at the Scranton University Brennan Hall-Rose Room 5th floor, 320 Madison Avenue Scranton, PA 18510.

Tell the PUC: Pennsylvanians Should Not Pay for Data Center Energy Exploitation
The Sierra Club has more information about the hearing. You can find it at their website or use the link printed in the transcript.

by Brian Dugas

Once again Northeast Pennsylvania is being targeted by corporations looking to take advantage of its rich natural resources and easy access to enormous markets.

It began with the Anthracite Coal Mines which fueled the industrial revolution, but left a legacy of environmental destruction and societal upheaval that still remains to this day.

Next it was the fossil fuel industry drilling and building pipelines to transport the fracked gas found in the Marcellus Shale field.

Now we have a new industry coming our way that takes advantage of many of the same natural resources, and is able to capitalize on the same infrastructure built for fracking.

Data Centers - I think that most of us are taking advantage of the new AI resources available through Google and other apps. Corporations are working hard to incorporate AI into their businesses as well, replacing the inefficient humans that need things like breaks, medical benefits and vacations. In fact there is significant risk being posed by the unregulated growth of AI, but that is a topic for another day. I put a short Ted Talk on the UUCWV FaceBook page for those of you who are interested in learning more. Please sign up for the Facebook account if you haven’t done that yet. Communication may become a valuable asset in the near future.

Back to data centers - these facilities are needed to house and operate the massive computers required to run the computations required for AI operations. They have enormous energy, water, and land requirements, and there are 6 of them planned for NEPA in the near future.

When I’m talking massive I’m talking a scale unimagined in the past. There is already one of the largest data centers in PA operating at the Berwick Nuclear Power plant, using 25% of the energy that the plant produces. The enormous increase in energy production along with the amount of water that is needed to cool these massive computers is hard to imagine. 5 Million gallons of CLEAN water a day for each facility.

NEPA is famous for its natural resources which will serve this industry well. Water from the Susquehanna and the Delaware Rivers, the close proximity to the Marcellus Shale field, and the pipelines needed to transport the gas needed to produce the energy are already in place. Additionally, there are plenty of wooded areas available to clear in order to build their new facilities. Places that already have data centers report an increase in noise, light, and air pollution, along with an increase in the cost of energy for the other consumers using power.

And this is already in motion in NEPA and across PA, there are numerous videos of contentious community meetings where residents want to learn more, and are actually resisting the construction of these data centers in their communities. It is very important for communities to get ahead of the problem by learning more about what they are doing, and passing ordinances and regulations that restrict and regulate the companies.

And guess who's coming to town? Blackstone - Blackstone plans to invest $25 billion in data centers and energy generation in northeast Pennsylvania. It also plans to partner with Allentown-based PPL Corp. to build natural gas generation plants. PPL Corp. is investing $6.8 billion through 2028 to expand grid capacity in order to support increased power demand from data centers.

If you had an issue with all the pipelines built for Marcellous Shale, they have more in mind. TC Energy announced plans to invest $400 million to modernize its gas pipeline network in Pennsylvania.

The bottom line is that we can allow the industries that have abused NEPA throughout history to do what they want, whenever they want, or we can stand up, organize, and let our voices be heard before it’s too late.

The NEPA Climate Reality group has taken this issue on as one of its primary missions, and there is a growing coalition of environmental organizations across the state getting engaged. Anyone interested in getting involved can speak to me, or contact any of these organizations.

Join us at the next Social Action Committee meeting this Tuesday, at 8:00PM. The Zoom Link is in the announcements.

by Brian Dugas

If you are at all like me then you are watching what is going on in this country with anger, frustration, and resentment, so much so that at least in my case, it’s beginning to take a toll. This social action minute is not meant to diminish the pain we are feeling as we watch many of the people and structures we cherish being attacked.

But In thinking about this Social Action Minute I was a little perplexed as to how I could talk without sharing my frustration and anger, because I really don’t think we need anymore of that right now.

I was reminded of a story I once heard that I would like to share:
Once upon a time there were two Buddhst Monks on the side of a road sheltering from the rain. It was a very heavy rain making the road a muddy mess. A woman wearing a beautiful silk kimono approached them and asked “excuse me, would one of you care to carry me across the road so I don’t get my kimono dirty”. The first monk said “I’m sorry, but our vows forbid us from touching a woman”. But the second monk smiled and said “Of course I will”, and then he carried her across the road. A little while later the first monk turned to the second monk and asked him “How could you have done that brother, how could you have betrayed our vows and our religion like that” To which the second monk responded “I put the women down hours ago brother, why are you still carrying her?”

This old Buddhist story illustrates the habit of not letting go of the things that cause resentment and frustration. It is about freeing yourself of the anger that will fester inside you, turning your mood dark, and weighing heavily upon you. The more we reflect and worry about things done to us, done to others, or even what is happening in the world, the more that the issues will amplify and cause us more suffering.
The story is about letting go of the things that you cannot control, letting go of the things that don’t serve you, letting go of those things that don’t make you better…… then maybe we can also be at peace like the two monks just watching the rain fall.
Now I’m not a Buddhist Monk, and I don’t think most of you are either, but I believe there is value in this lesson that we need to take to heart. We have this administration for the next four years whether we want it or not. Things are being done that will cause us all great pain and suffering if we let it. We can either let that fester and cause us suffering, or we can let it go.

If I may, I would like to add another option, we can work on making ourselves better and stronger because of it. As a congregation we have already begun taking action along these lines by:

• Creating our own food bank, and contributing to other food banks in the region.
• Contributing to a Collection for a Cause every month.
• Creating a new Pastoral Care Team.
• Running our own community garden at Hillside Farms.
• Sharing our gardening knowledge with anyone who wants to start their own home gardens.
• Reaching out to the Latinx population to provide support and encouragement.
• Meeting regularly with groups and friends who need our support and friendship.

For those of you with a more adventurous spirit there have been discussions among some members of the need to take additional measures to protect ourselves and the things we hold dear. Talk to me if this is of interest to you.

Maybe you have seen this cute little quote from the Winnie the Pooh series. Piglet and Pooh are walking together making tracks in the snow when Piglet says to Pooh “You only live once Pooh” to which Pooh responds “Wrong, we only die once, we live everyday”. I strongly recommend that you don’t waste a single one of those days on this administration. They are far too precious.

 “If they are really hungry, they’ll eat anything.” This was a quote that was said to me when I began requesting specific items for a food pantry I was running at a local university. I received push back from colleagues when I asked for brand named items, gluten-free products, and snacks for students. My students weren’t “hungry” per se, they were “food insecure” and I believe in food dignity.

Food insecurity is defined by the United States Department of Agriculture as the lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life. It’s when someone may have to make a difficult choice between paying their heating bill, or buying milk for their children’s cereal. They may choose to skip lunch because they need to put gas in their car to get to work. It's a big problem in the United States, where 47 million people experience food insecurity annually. In 2022, 14% of Luzerne County was reported as food insecure, with 22% being children. That’s more than 1 in 5 children in this county are food insecure.

Some causes of food insecurity include poverty, unemployment, food deserts (living where there aren't many stores that sell healthy food at a good price), lack of affordable housing, having a chronic health condition (making it harder to work or having high medical bills), and racism and discrimination (marginalized communities, including people of color, LGTBQ individuals, and those with disabilities, are at higher risk of food insecurity due to systemic discrimination and poverty.)

“Food dignity” supports and honors everyone’s right to nourishing food. “Choice” food pantries and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) are two ways to provide food dignity. Having a stocked food pantry with quality items that people need and want can reduce the shame that often accompanies food insecurity. Growing up in rural Upstate New York, my family received SNAP (commonly referred to as food stamps) for most of my childhood, in addition to receiving free/reduced lunch at school. I was not aware of the support we received until I was an adult, and can’t imagine how my parents would have been able to feed us otherwise.

Among the harmful proposals from Republican lawmakers is an emerging push to require states to pay a portion of SNAP food benefit costs to help pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest business owners and households. Pennsylvania would have had to pay almost $427 million last year to ensure that families didn’t lose food benefits, which is about 1.5 times what that state spends on its entire community college system or about twice what it spends annually on environmental protection programs.

So what’s our call to action? It’s frustrating that our representatives in Congress don’t seem to be listening, but that doesn’t mean we should stop calling or writing. I personally recommend a website and app called “5 Calls,” which directly links you with your representatives and provides topics and scripts. If you are more of a behind the scenes person, be aware of what you are donating to the UU’s food pantry or other pantries. Pay attention to their requests for specific items and whenever possible, donate food that supports the ideas around food dignity.  Thank you.

5 Calls -- Calling your congressperson is the most effective way to influence policy.

by Jenny Blanchard

In 1963 the U.S. Post Office introduced a remarkable new creation: the Zone Improvement Plan, otherwise known as a (ZIP) Code, as a means to allow mail sorting methods to become faster and eventually be automated. Little did the Postal Service know at the time that this innovation also created unimagined socio-economic benefits as an organizing and enabling device.

A residential zip code – where a child grows up—is more predictive of social mobility and economic fate than any other national metric. And due to a lack of affordable housing and enduring patterns of residential segregation—the zip code where people live is largely determined by income, race, and ethnicity. Your zip code is a more powerful predictor of your health than your genetic code. In some states there is a 13-year difference in life expectancy based on what county you live in.

And this is glaringly apparent in our home state of Pennsylvania. In fact, 85 percent of Pennsylvania’s power plants are located in neighborhoods with more low income and Black families than the state median. The fact that these facilities are located in Black communities is not an accident — it derives from centuries of racist policies, and it severely affects the quality of life for individuals in these communities.

Black Americans bear the burden of high exposure to particulate matter from these power plants. Exposure to these particles carries many health risks, including decreased lung function, irregular heartbeat, lower birth weight, and premature death in people with heart or lung disease. Black Americans endure some of the highest particulate pollution in the country along with the highest rate of childhood asthma hospitalizations.  During the recent pandemic, elevated particulate air pollution in Black communities meant these residents were more at risk for suffering from complications and potentially dying from COVID-19.

The so-called "American Dream," a phrase that has become central to our national ethos, offers forth the inspiring notion that every person has the freedom and opportunity to succeed, regardless of their circumstances. All obstacles can be overcome through strength, hard work, and perseverance. But no brave soul, no Horatio Alger hell-bent on going from rags to riches, no human being, no matter how committed and how tirelessly they toil, can overcome small particles less than 10 micrometers in diameter that have made their way deep into your lungs or your bloodstream.

The heavy weight of poverty and race on American lives take a staggering toll. A diminished life span should not be added to this terrible burden.

by Chavah Granovetter

For the 6th consecutive year, indigenous tribal communities in interior Alaska are not permitted to catch King Salmon. A staple in diets and culture. Fishing camps are crumbling to ruin as once again, indigenous cultures are suffering. Subsistence lifestyles will die out in these villages if we do not change our behaviors in the lower 48. Two main causes of the decline of salmon, leading to the restriction against subsistence  fishing: climate change and trawling. While many countries are banning trawling, America is not. Trawling is a type of commercial fishing where large nets are dragged across the ocean floor, or just above it. This destroys the ocean floor and catches everything in its path despite these commercial fisheries targeting specific fish. Their target, pollock.  The cheaper fish used for mass production for  fast food. Long John Silvers, McDonalds, Gorton fish sticks. When we eat trawl caught fish, we are directly taking away from subsistence lifestyle, indigenous tribes.