It’s Getting Hot In Here

A reader of EarthTalk posed an interesting question a few weeks back – does the expansion of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles mean an increased reliance on coal?

Certainly if more and more of our sources of transportation utilize electricity instead of gasoline, that will increase the amount of electricity the United States uses. So where does that electricity come from? Looking towards the future there are two important benefits of shifting towards electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. First, it decreases our reliance and consumption of foreign oil, which has multiple environmental, economic, and political benefits. Second, it sets up the potential for our transportation industry to be powered primarily with alternative energy.

Right now, though, the infrastructure is not in place to power our transportation industry primarily with alternative energy. That is not a problem now because there are not enough electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road for this to be an issue. But what if the transportation industry grows faster than the alternative energy industry? Continue reading ‘Is Coal Expansion Imminent?’

The town of Klamath Falls, Oregon has been using geothermal energy as a source of power since the 1990′s. According to a recent article from the Seattle Times, Klamath Falls’ geothermal plant draws power from geysers below ground to power everything from a brewpub to a college campus.

Brewpub powered by the Klamath Falls geothermal plant (photo from OregonLive.com)

The most interesting bit of the article comes from City Manager Jeff Ball, “We didn’t know it was green. It just made sense,”. This is exactly how future, carbon footprint reducing technology, will grow. If you add the financial incentive, people will make the change.

Geothermal technology is a form of alternative energy that does not get the sort of publicity that wind or solar does. Yet, it is available worldwide and has the potential to supply an almost unlimited amount of energy.

Right now, the technology is expensive, but it has already broken ground in the western states, primarily northern California (near the plant in Klamath Falls). Continue reading ‘The Energy Beneath Us’

Last month the Montana land board voted to award Arch Coal a huge new contract to mine a vast chunk of Montana, Otter Creek Valley. The move was hotly contested by environmental groups like the Sierra Club and Northern Rockies Rising Tide.  But now MT Governor Brian Schweitzer has taken the rotten deal a step further, blackmailing local officials in an effort to build public support for the new coal deal.  He promised funding for local projects that have been short on cash since the economic downturn in return for “a letter confirming that you support the use of coal money for the completion of your project/projects.”

“Governor Schweitzer hasn’t been able to win public sentiment for his proposed coal mine, and now he seems to be trying to extort support from county officials,” said Brad Hash, a Sierra Club representative in Montana.

Schweitzer, trying to explain the letter, said, “There are certain communities in Montana, whether because they don’t live near hydrocarbon production or other reasons, simply don’t like resources from coal to come to their community,” Mr. Schweitzer said, “and if there’s anybody like that, they need to tell me now.”

So, I suggest we tell him.  MT doesn’t need his dirty coal money or his extortion.  Is it just me, or does corruption and injustice just seem to cling to coal like white on rice?

As an activist in the US working to phase out coal plants, it’s distressing to me to think that so much of what the US climate movement has accomplished in the last few years could be undone by one of the world’s largest coal plant proposals – the fate of which is likely to be decided in the next several days.  On Thursday, April 8th, the World Bank is expected to vote on a decision to lend $3.75 billion to a South African utility that wants to build a 4,800 MW (that’s right, 4,800 megawatts!!!) coal plant.  Environmental groups ranging from the Sierra Club to Friends of the Earth are up in arms, urging US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to vote against the loan (follow the links to the “take action” pages for these groups).

With its history of funding mega-dams that displace entire villages, and development projects that destroy rainforests, the World Bank has some work to do to improve its environmental and human rights image.  Helping to finance one of the world’s largest carbon pollution projects would not exactly be a step in the right direction, and would cast serious doubt over whether the World Bank’s recent statements on climate change are anything more than empty talk.  This is a project the World Bank needs to pull out of, and the United States must exert its influence to make that happen. Continue reading ‘World Bank to Finance Mega-Coal Plant in South Africa? It Could Come Down to the US’

Spoofs, hoaxes, Insurgent clown armies, impersonations, media hijacking, theatrics, and even Bigfoot formed just part of the arsenal that climate activists used in calling out the worst climate criminals commenced worldwide on Fossil Fools Day yesterday.

Yesterday, here in North America alone, more than 30 cities organized demonstrations against the fossil fuel industry, corporate banks and big environmental organizations for the festivities. Demonstrations were coordinated in part by Rising Tide North America, which has also launched an online campaign targeting “Big Green” groups that have taken money from the worst corporate polluters. Key targets of the campaign include Conservation International, National Wildlife Federation and Environmental Defense.

Here’s a just a few highlights from actions today but be sure to check out www.fossilfoolsday.org for a full review! Continue reading ‘Fossil Fools Day Packs Some Punches!’

x-posted from Solutionaries

As Communications Facilitator for Summer of Solutions, I’m featuring every program to paint a broad picture of the depth and variety of solutions young people are building across the nation.

This post is drawn from a conversation I had with Amanda Bancroft, an AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteer at the OMNI Center for Peace, Justice, and Ecology. The main organizers of Fayetteville SoS are: Andrea Love, Maggie Strain, Karina Hunt, Banah Ghadbian, Jeanie Lopez-Hall, Chelsea Mouber, and Brian Kupillas. The post is co-authored by me and the Fayetteville team.

Leaders in the program have a strong interest in gardening and permaculture. There are already over 50 gardening projects, organizations, and networks in Fayetteville, and so Amanda sees the role of Summer of Solutions as one that will connect these already dynamic organizations together. The Fayetteville team has already partnered with the OMNI Center’s garden, the World Peace Wetlands Prairie, and the community garden at Unity church. In addition, the group has been given several acres of land and a greenhouse, which the team is hoping to develop for gardening. Continue reading ‘Fayetteville Summer of Solutions Grows Community Power!’

The future does not look good.

Positive feedback loops have begun kicking in; the tundra is melting, releasing methane, a particularly potent greenhouse gas.  White Arctic sea ice is disappearing, being replaced by dark ocean seas that absorb instead of reflect sunlight.  Neither our nation nor our world has managed to agree that we must stop burning fossil fuels.  Here in Massachusetts, many of our state’s leaders seem wedded to the idea that doing more than everyone else is good enough, even if we fall short of what scientists say we must do to avoid catastrophe.

President Obama’s announcement about off-shore drilling, coupled with his earlier support for nuclear energy, carbon capture and sequestration, emissions caps that are too low, offsets that are too uncertain, and free permits to polluters does not help one look to the future with optimism and hope.  And this is from a guy who really seemed to ‘get it’, who appointed a Nobel-winning Physicist as his Secretary of Energy. Continue reading ‘The Courage to Lead: Why Defining Our Decade is Our Best Hope’

The action was pulled off to provide light-hearted education to the public and simultaneously call out those corporations and projects that have been using an elaborate public relations campaign to “green” their image.

Ryan Caraway with Portland Rising Tide explained the action, “Our region is threatened by a number of projects that would increase our dependency on fossil fuels as well as threaten some of the most pristine areas left in this country. Unfortunately, we feel that we don’t see enough critical media surrounding these issues and we wanted to change that – at least for one night.”

Portlanders decided to heavily target NW Natural for their foolish plan to rip through hundreds of rivers and streams, rural farms and Mt. Hood National Forest. While the company has spent millions to project an image of climate leadership and environmental stewardship, the company is aggressively pursuing the Palomar pipeline and Liquefied Natural Gas development. Continue reading ‘Check out the Fossil Fools Weekly!’

In the spirit of April Fools day, 13 Cities in Canada have pulled creative pranks on fossil fuel industry supporters, or “Fossil Fools,” pleasantly confusing security guards, police, and the general public. People for Climate Justice, a national coalition of concerned residents in Canada, announced 6 nominees for the dubious Fossil Fool of the Year Award: Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff, Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach, Environment Minister Jim Prentice, Royal Bank of Canada CEO Gordon Nixon, and Shell Canada President Brian Straub. All nominees have a history of supporting Canada’s tar sands industry and related projects such as pipelines and refineries, with no consideration for the human rights violations and environmental atrocities associated with tar sands developments. In the spirit of Fossil Fools day, 13 Cities in Canada have taken action and pulled creative pranks and tricks on tar sands supporters.

7 communities in Canada: Toronto (ON), Waterloo (ON), Peterborough (ON), London (ON), New Westminster (BC), Duncan (BC), and Victoria all targeted RBC as the top financier in dirty tar sands projects. In Waterloo, one indigenous activist was arrested after a banner drop at a local branch of Royal Bank of Canada.  This is the second day of action in which RBC was targeted. On March 3^rd, the same day as the bank’s Annual General Shareholders Meeting where 11 communities in Canada held rallies and actions at RBC branches. “This is the second year that Royal Bank of Canada is receiving the Fossil Fool of the year award,” says Taylor Flook, organizer with the Rainforest Action Network Toronto. Continue reading ’13 Cities In Canada Award Fossil Fools to Local and National Tar Sands Supporters’

reposted from the Understory

by Amanda Starbuck

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today a major new guidance document that provides the coal industry and coal-state regulators with “clarity” regarding the permitting of mountaintop removal coal mining. This comes just days after the EPA blocked the Clean Water Act permit for the Spruce No. 1 Mine in Logan County, the largest mountaintop removal permit in West Virginia history.

You can read their full guidance notice here

And their news announcement here

After months of steps, the EPA has finally taken a leap to protect America’s mountains and drinking water from mountaintop removal coal mining. This is a clear response to resounding public opposition to the devastating mining practice.

The EPA is finally flexing its full authority under the clean water act to curtail valley fills and protect the health of our waterways from irreversible damage. Coal operators and state mining regulators will have to contend with this rigorous mandate.

The EPA has confirmed what science tells us, that mountaintop removal is harming water resources and public health in real and measurable ways, which is why these new guidelines should apply to existing mining permits not just new ones. Continue reading ‘EPA Uses Science, Health and Environmental Justice to Guide New Rules on Mountaintop Removal’