Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility

Portland voters will decide whether to pass the Portland Clean Energy Fund this November 2018. This measure will raise $30 million per year to invest in renewable energy, energy efficiency, home weatherization, living-wage job training, local sustainable food production, and more. Low-income residents and communities of color will be the first to receive projects funded by the Portland Clean Energy Fund. Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility sits on the steering committee of this community-led vision that builds resilience and wealth in the face of climate change and federal inaction. 

The Nuclear-Free Northwest Program of Oregon and Washington PSR strives to protect human and environmental health from the inherent threats posed by nuclear power. Due to the negative impacts on human health caused by uranium mining and processing, working with nuclear fuel, radioactive waste transport and storage, and risk of meltdowns and proliferation, nuclear power presents a public health risk that is far too great to justify its use. Additionally, the high cost of nuclear energy puts an undue burden on ratepayers, particularly those in low-income communities. Renewable energy and energy efficiency can fulfill our electricity needs and mitigate climate change while protecting healthy air, water, and communities.

Grounded in our founding as an organization of health professionals concerned about the health implications of nuclear war, Oregon PSR’s Peace Program addresses the spectrum of war, militarism, and violence as threats to human health. From mass shootings and anti-immigrant hate groups to nuclear weapons, our society’s reliance on violence and militarism to solve problems is not, as the saying goes, “healthy for children and other living things.”

Thankfully, our volunteer Peace Work Group has grown substantially over the past year, and we are actively bringing the public health voice to a variety of intersecting issues that fall under our broad peace umbrella.

On February 27^th, the Port of Vancouver, WA and Tesoro agreed to early termination of Tesoro’s lease of port space. This marked the end of efforts to build and operate what would have been the largest oil train terminal in the country. We’re immensely grateful to all who worked towards this goal, including our many members who spoke out against this project, members of Oregon PSR’s Healthy Climate Action Team, and our partners in the Stand Up to Oil (SUTO) coalition. Opposition to this project fueled a five-year campaign powered by a fierce determination to protect our families, our communities, and our climate.

Dear Oregon PSR Supporter,

I suspect that many of you, like me, are horrified by much of the news and the daily assaults on public health from many fronts. The Trump Administration and Republican-controlled Congress seem determined to undermine protections to health and the environment, and we find ourselves dangerously close to an unthinkable nuclear conflict. The recent Oregon State legislative short session was in many ways disappointing and, particularly around air toxics legislation, deeply concerning. While it is easy to focus on the troubling developments in Washington DC and Salem, it is also important to recognize and celebrate our victories and progress. We have won some significant victories and we are making real progress towards our vision of a peaceful, just, healthy, safe, nuclear-free, non-toxic world.

Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility is concerned about possible ramifications of carbon pricing as currently being considered by state lawmakers in Oregon. We have teamed up with APANO (Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon), OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon, Amalgamated Transit Union 757, the Portland African American Leadership Forum (PAALF), and Verde to ask four key questions about carbon pricing in Oregon. With the future of our communities and planet at stake, we must be careful to advocate for real solutions, not symbolic victories.

Click here or see below for our key questions on Clean Energy Jobs, or carbon cap-and-trade in Oregon.

Oregon PSR worked to represent the voice of public health during the 2018 Oregon State Legislative Session, particularly on issues of climate, gun violence prevention, and environmental health. The short session yielded some victories, some losses, and some deferrals to the 2019 lawmaking session. Here's how Oregon PSR's priorities for the 2018 state lawmaking session shaped up:

Statewide: NO on Initiative Petition 22 (IP22)

IP22 is an effort by Oregonians for Immigration Reform (OFIR), a recognized hate group with ties to white supremacist organizations, to repeal Oregon’s 30-year-old sanctuary law. As members of the One Oregon Coalition’s Environmental Committee, Oregon PSR is involved in efforts to combat this anti-immigrant and racist measure and call out OFIR’s co-opting of environmentalist messaging. If you see someone gathering signatures for IP 22, do not sign it and tell your friends and family not to either.

Portland: YES for the Portland Clean Energy Fund (PCEF)

PCEF authorizes a 1% supplemental business license fee on retail corporations that generate over $1 billion a year in nation-wide revenue to advance environmental justice and public health efforts in Portland. These funds will be used to weatherize and solarize Portland homes and businesses, provide job training, apprenticeships, and minority contractor support, provide energy efficiency upgrades for low income housing, build green infrastructure, and support local food production. Oregon PSR is joining with environmental and social justice community organizations to promote this important step forward for environmental justice in Portland. Get involved: Receive updates and volunteer opportunities for the Portland Clean Energy Fund.

Join the campaign to convince the Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) to take an official position supporting the immediate and safe decommissioning of the Columbia Generating Station, our region's only nuclear power plant. Groups in our coalition include:

• 350 Eugene
• Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC)
• Oregon WAND (Women's Action for New Directions)
• Church Women United of Lane County
• NAACP Eugene-Springfield
• Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility

Sign up to receive updates on volunteer opportunities to support this campaign. Be sure to check the box "Join the Nuclear-Free Eugene Coalition."

Click here to view a PDF version of this letter.

Click here to read the Oregonian's coverage by Rob Davis.

Read below for a letter submitted by ten environmental justice and public health organizations including Oregon PSR and OPAL Environmental Justice to Oregon State legislators in Salem.

Vote NO on Senate Bill 1541-A

Dear Legislator,

Oregon has an air pollution problem. We need to clean up Oregon’s air by enacting science-based regulations that protect public health, especially for those most impacted by air pollution. For the past 18 months, countless environmental justice advocates, public health experts, scientists, business experts, lobbyists, agency staff, and members of the public worked as part of the Cleaner Air Oregon process to collaboratively determine effective rules to clean up Oregon’s air. At the beginning of the 2018 Oregon State Legislative Session, House Bill 4002 and Senate Bill 1508 were drafted to implement Cleaner Air Oregon’s standards.