The economic rescue package that Congress passed in October includes significant tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements.  It also extends tax credits for businesses and for the wind, solar and biodiesel industries in order to promote the development and use of environmentally sound technologies. 

Texas Impact and our members lobbied hard all year for these tax credits, and we want to make sure Texans have all the information they need to take advantage of them. The clean energy tax credits give us even more financial incentives to make energy choices that are in line with our values—choices that will save energy, save money and help care for Creation!

For the second year in a row, Texas Interfaith Power & Light has received a matching grant from the Tides Foundation to support our work with Texas congregations on energy, air pollution and global warming. We have until the end of 2008 to raise $10,000 as a 1:1 match for the grant.

Please consider making a contribution toward our goal! Click on the link below to make a secure online donation, or mail your check to:

Texas Interfaith Power & Light

221 East 9th Street #403

Austin, Texas 78701

DONATE NOW

If you can't stand the thought of doing yet another car wash or bake-sale, try selling compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) and water conservation tools this year! Bright Ideas fundraising makes it easy for you to sell energy efficient products, which allow your youth group, mission team, or choir to raise money while protecting God's creation.

Bright Ideas works in conjunction with Texas Interfaith Power and Light (TXIPL) and ShopIPL.org, the online store of the Interfaith Power and Light movement. They provide high-quality energy efficient products at affordable prices for faith communities and their members.

Bee Moorhead recently wrote a guest column for the Waco Triubne-Herald about steps that faith communities in Texas are taking to respond to global warming. She highlights the outstanding work of several Texas Impact and Texas Interfaith Power and Light member congregations. To read the full article, click here.

When Friends Meeting of Austin purchased the house of worship formerly occupied by St. James Episcopal Church in East Austin, they saw an opportunity to go green in a big way. For the sixty-year old congregation, becoming more energy efficient and environmentally conscious was simply an act of faith.

Since they moved to their new building in 2007, Friends Meeting of Austin (FMA) has taken numerous steps to ensure that they are a more energy efficient congregation. Most prominent is the 20 kilowatt solar system that was installed on the congregation's three buildings. FMA got help from the City of Austin's rebate program to cover the cost of installation, and believe that the solar panels will pay for themselves in less than 20 years. The Friends Meeting of Austin agrees that this step was a great investment and important step in becoming greener.

Join the
Gulf Coast Cool Cities Campaign!

Team Formation Meetings in Greater Houston Area

During a speech yesterday in Washington that commemorated the 20 years since his declaration to the Senate that global warming had already begun, Jim Hansen, Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, spoke out about cutting the level of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere. Hansen argued that in order to stabilize the world's climate, the US must cut carbon dioxide emissions to 350 parts per million. This is 30 percent lower than a Senate bill that calls for a cap at 450 ppm, and lower than our current output of 385 ppm.

"I have greater than 99% confidence—99.9% confidence—that the dangerous level is no higher than 350 ppm, and that means we've already passed it," Hansen said.

Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs, or CFLs, have been touted as a way to greatly reduce our electricity consumption.

Mercury in CFLs vs. Power Plants

There has been concern lately about mercury found in CFLs. While mercury is a concern, it is important to note that by using these bulbs, we are in fact helping to reduce our mercury output.

Currently, the amount of mercury released into our landfills from CFLs is negligible. Because of these bulbs’ long lifespan, only after 2010 will a majority of the CFLs currently in use need to be disposed of. At this time, it is estimated that roughly 80 to 100 million CFLs will be disposed of improperly. This number may sound considerable, but when you do the math, the amount of mercury in this large number of CFLs is only about 500 kilograms, or the

What’s the big deal about faith and the environment?

The news these days is full of “congregations caring for God’s creation.” But with all the other issues facing our world, is the environment really a top priority? How does environmental concern flow from a religious life? Do faith communities have a role to play in environmental policy? How can we maintain hope in the face of seemingly insurmountable environmental problems?

Let’s talk about it over lunch!

Come to the 7th Annual Peace with Justice Luncheon of the Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church for a conversation with Bee Moorhead, Executive Director of Texas Impact and Texas Interfaith Power & Light. Joining Bee will be former Texas Public Utility Commissioner Karl Rábago.

12 noon – 2pm
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
THE LOFT, THE WOODLANDS UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
2200 LAKE WOODLANDS DRIVE,
THE WOODLANDS, TEXAS

This year marks the first year that Texans can save money in two ways: in the short term thanks to a sales tax holiday on purchases of Energy Star products, and in the long term through energy savings from their use. The Texas Legislature established Texas' Energy Star sales tax holiday in 2007 as part of HB3693, a comprehensive energy efficiency bill which Texas religious communities helped to support. Texas is the fourth state to adopt an energy efficiency sales tax holiday.

The products qualifying for the exemption are: