It’s Getting Hot In Here

Written by Tyler Elliott, Miami University Beyond Coal organizer

Miami University has a dirty secret. Tucked away in the furthest corner of Western Campus is a dirty coal plant, burning 125 tons of the black stuff every single day. Students are starting to take notice, and they’re not happy. Miami University students have launched a Beyond Coal campaign and are preparing to fight against the school’s reliance on dirty, dangerous, and outdated coal power. The student activists are already shaking things up, even to the extent that one Mr. Van Jones gave them a shout out during his visiting address to the campus Thursday night.

Encouraging the students to fight on, Mr. Jones acknowledged “It’s hard when your university is burning coal on campus. It’s hard when your own university is going in the wrong direction… but you’re the only generation that has a shot at solving these problems.” Following his speech, Jones met individually with the members of Miami University’s rapidly growing Beyond Coal movement, posing for a photo.

Before leaving Miami University, Van Jones collaborated with 2nd year student Tyler Elliott and Sierra Student Coalition organizer Todd Zimmer to co-author a challenge to the University’s dirty coal dependence: Continue reading ‘Van Jones Helps Miami University Students Push Beyond Coal’

On Wednesday Washington’s state legislature began a process that could lead to improved public health, environmental protection, and the assurance of long-term employment opportunities for vulnerable workers, provided legislators take advantage of this crucial opportunity.  During the 2011 legislative session, lawmakers will consider a bill environmental and health groups hope will transition Washington off the TransAlta Coal Plant by 2015 or sooner.  A crucial element of the bill (for which exact language has yet to be finalized) is it must protect workers at the TransAlta Plant by guaranteeing them new employment opportunities during the inevitable shift from coal to clean energy.  Yesterday Washington’s Senate Environment, Water, & Energy Committee held its first hearing to help legislators begin crafting a coal bill.

In the morning before Thursday’s hearing, Washington residents from the Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia, and Vancouver areas made the rounds of state legislator offices in the capitol, explaining to lawmakers why transitioning off coal must be a priority.  The TransAlta Coal Plant is Washington’s biggest source of carbon dioxide that contributes to global warming, as well as nitrous oxides, sulfur dioxide, mercury, and many other toxic compounds that cause heart and respiratory illness, cancer, and other health problems. 

At the same time it has become clearer than ever that TransAlta is unnecessary to the grid, and Washington residents are suffering the impacts of coal pollution for little or no real gain.  By passing a bill that responsibly transitions off TransAlta while providing for workers in the nearby community, the state can ensure the inevitable move away from coal happens in a smooth and timely manner. Continue reading ‘Will Washington Legislators Protect Public Health from Coal Pollution?’

“Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for mankind [sic] to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence. Mankind [sic] must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

We live in violent times. Our generation has come of age under the specter of terrorism and war, and Millennial youth continue to be the majority of the force currently fighting two wars aboard. Our charged political atmosphere and vigorous finger pointing came to a head last weekend in Tucson. There’s the ongoing destruction by the dirty energy industry, the violence that it’s wrecking on our communities…the list goes on.

Amidst all of this it seems appropriate on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to reflect on his legacy, message for peace and nonviolence and how Dr. King’s wisdom can inform the climate movement and our collective struggle for liberation today.

The challenge of the climate movement is not solely to address the environmental impacts of the climate crisis but to build a social movement strong enough to deal with its consequences. Many climate activists, myself included, hesitate to acknowledge that the question is now not whether we’ll “stop climate change” but whether we can stave off the worst of it.

One of my greatest fears is how our government will respond to the systemic collapse of our climate and economy. If our nation’s past behavior is any indication, we’ll respond with militarism, racism, and war. As sea level rise displaces millions and clean drinking water becomes an ever more scarce resource, what will our government do in the name of “national security?” Lock down the borders, occupy other nations, and seize land to squeeze the last drops of oil from the withered Earth? (I’m not one of those doom and gloom activists, I promise. Keep reading.)

It doesn’t have to be this way. I remain optimistic because I have felt the power of our movement. Now more than ever we need to draw from the bravery, wisdom and leadership of past movements and embody Dr. King’s vision.

“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Civil Rights Movement’s achievement was not merely passing the Civil Rights Act but reinventing the moral fabric of our country and giving hope to those living in the shadows of centuries of oppression.

Here are six lessons from Dr. King that can help guide the success of our modern movements:

1. Nonviolence and Love: In the face of unspeakable hatred Dr. King remained dedicated to the principles of nonviolence. We act because we love our fellow beings too much to see them mired in the violence of climate change. We must answer the forces of destruction with the liberation of love and compassion.

2. Spiritual and Moral Courage: Our crisis is not only ecological but deeply spiritual. The destruction of native lands, holy mountains, and sacred rivers like the Ganges is spiritual death. We are disconnected from the natural world and live in alienation from that which sustains us. Seeking to reestablish that connection we fill the void with consumption and destruction. Dr. King recognized the importance of this connection and was deeply devoted to prayer and meditation to guide his actions. We must continue to talk about climate change as a moral crisis and invite the wisdom of the world’s faith traditions.
Continue reading ’6 Lessons the Climate Movement Can Learn from Dr. King’s Legacy’

El cambio climático es una parte de la justicia social. (read in English)

Cada ser humano depende del medio ambiente. El sistema actual concentra la riqueza en las manos de una minoría empresarial y pone en peligro la salud y la seguridad de todos. Son los menos privilegiados y los más vulnerables los que sienten los primeros efectos de la crisis climática y los que más daño sufren.

Desde "Bangladesh faces climate refugee nightmare" (Reuters, 2008)

El movimiento climático no es el movimiento ecologista. Mientras el movimiento ecologista pretende proteger la rana de árbol en las amazonas y el oso polar en el ártico, el movimiento climático se preocupa por un futuro equitativo y seguro para los seres humanos.

Continue reading ‘El cambio climático es una parte de la justicia social’

Excellent news this morning from Washington DC! Today, the EPA announced that they are vetoing the Clean Water Act permit for Arch Coal’s Spruce No. 1 Mine in Logan County, West Virginia.

This is a historic victory for the movement to end mountaintop removal mining. It’s the first time that the EPA has issued a veto on a project that had previously been permitted. Continue reading ‘EPA Issues Historic Veto on Arch Coal’s Spruce Mine’

Posted on behalf of Margaret Fetzer-Rogers, New England Climate Summer 2010 participant and Massachusetts student leader.

I’m constantly striving to find an outlet to exercise my passion to learn things that really matter and to make a difference in the world. So, every year around this time I ask myself, what are you doing this summer? Forgetting this I’ve found can lead to a summer of minimum wage doldrums.  Luckily, last year I didn’t have to look too far. My friend Jeff recommended that I check out New England Climate Summer, the program he had participated in 2009. This became a solution to the long search I had imagined I had before me.

Climate Summer is an internship in which college students bike across New England growing the climate justice movement and bringing communities together to make local change. Biking everywhere we went, my team and I lived the values that we proclaim and invited others to join us. From elementary school children to grandparents, pastors and business people, the people we met were excited to share their activism and learn more about ours. When I think back about this past summer, of course I remember the towns we visited and the organizations that we worked, but what strikes me the most are the people that I got to know. My teammates with whom I grew so much. Pastors who provided a place to sleep. Mothers who gave us showers and a warm meal. Climate activists who offered counsel. Farmers who donated food. Everyone we met that took a minute or two to talk and listen and share. We often talk about the climate crisis in terms of parts per million CO2 in the atmosphere, but what this summer did was connect me to the people and the communities that suffer from the realities of climate change.

If Climate Summer sounds like the type of change that you would like to be a part of, check out our website <www.newenglandclimatesummer.org> . The priority deadline for applications is January 15^th!

Apply Today!

People baffle me. What kind of person spends seven years pretending to be someone he’s not?

In the UK, environmental and direct action activists are finding out that a close friend and comrade was an undercover agent for the Metro police for seven years. PC Mark Kennedy (known to UK activist circles as “Mark Stone”) organized with anti-racist, anarchist, climate justice and direct action organizers and campaigners not just reporting on their activities, but also organizing and prompting activities.

In other words, he was an agent provocateur.

In 2009, over 100 activists were pre-emptively arrested the night before they’d planned to enter into the Radcliffe power station and shut it down using non-violent direct action tactics. 26 of the activists were charged with conspiracy to commit trespass. 20 of them turned their trial into media showcase on coal power and climate with climatologist James Hanson testifying on their behalf. They were convicted and the judge gave them a very lenient sentence

The other six had been arguing that they were not planning on going into Radcliffe and therefore were not part of the conspiracy, but now it turns out they don’t have to worry about the trial.

Kennedy helped organize this action and most likely tipped off the police. Kennedy scouted the location and suggested “the best and easiest way” to get into the plant. Furthermore, according to legal documents Kennedy “continued to participate, including hiring, paying for and driving a vehicle and volunteering to be one of two principal climbers who would attach himself to the [coal-carrying] conveyor belt. He actively encouraged participation in the action and expressed the view that he was pleased it was going to be an action of some significance,“

Definitely an agent provocateur (IMHO.)

Kennedy resigned and now lives abroad in hiding. According to media reports, the government’s 2 million pound operative has now “gone native” and has offered to defend the eco-activists. Quite an investment for the authorities.

Furthermore, he’s made it known that a second undercover infiltrated the UK’s environmental movement’s ranks as well and who that operative is. Snitches snitching on snitches. Gotta love it. Continue reading ‘Deep Cover in Green Movements’

Oh wow has the debate around the tar sands changed over the past years. Every so often, politicians change pro-tar sands rhetoric to confuse and contort the issue—and reframe the dialogue with their opposition. The new theme of the political moment is: “ethical oil.” This is based on comparing Canada (as a country) to the other oil producing/exporting countries.

Newly appointed Environment Minister Peter Kent told the Calgary Herald last week that “it’s a secure oil in a world where many of the free world’s oil sources are somewhat less secure.”

A recent Globe and Mail article thanks author and tar sands-advocate Ezra Levant for his recent contribution to this public relations stint:

Mr. Levant has helped popularize the argument that oil-sands petroleum is ethically superior to petroleum produced by countries such as Saudi Arabia and Venezuela and other regimes with dubious environmental and human rights records. By comparison, he argues, Canada is environmentally responsible, peaceful, offers its workers fair wages and respects human rights.

We now see that the Harper government has adopted Levant’s argument which is based on the entire question “whether we should use oil from the oil sands or oil from the other places in the world that pump it.” –p.7. In Levant’s book Ethical Oil he claims it is THE question. In reality…it is HIS question. And it is not an appropriate question given that it discounts the human rights violations and environmental devastation caused by tar sands operations.

Pointing the finger at violations to human rights and environmental regulation abroad does not mean that Canada is doing okay. Let’s take some of Levant’s key arguments cited above.

Canada is environmentally responsible: Ezra, if Canada was environmentally responsible, please tell me why the Harper government did not pass Bill C-300, a bill that would have regulated Canada’s mining operations abroad. Could you also explain the undemocratic defeat of Bill C-311, the only piece of climate legislation in parliament? And while you are trying to explain why an “environmentally responsible” country would reject environmental policies, could you also guide me to the full impact assessment of the tar sands that has been avoided for so long?

Canada is peaceful: Ezra, what is your definition of peaceful? Does it explain Canada’s involvement in military occupations abroad? Does it include the Conservative government’s investment in fighter jets? Does it include the increased funding to the prison system when crime rates are in decline? Does it include increases to military operations and domestic policing in a country where there are also cuts to the shelter system, affordable housing, childcare, public transit, and other social services? What does your definition of peaceful include?

Offers its workers fair wages: The tar sand employs a significant amount of migrant workers from all over the world—Mexico, China, Guatemala, Indonesia—you name it. Now Ezra, can you tell me the migrant workers in the tar sands are not subject to the same exploitation as the workers in other sectors such as agriculture and live-in caregiver programs? Can you prove that migrant workers are not forced to live in small housing conditions with many others, work precarious jobs without proper safety equipment, nor are denied access to health care? Can you prove to me that migrant workers in the tar sands are not threatened with deportation (or are deported) when they speak out about these workers’ rights violations?

Respects Human Rights: Now Ezra, I do not even think I am going to ASK about this one, but instead I am going to say “HELLO! One of the main reasons people are opposed to Canada’s tar sands projects is because they violate human rights!” The tar sands have destroyed people’s water sources, food sources, and increased asthma, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases in many communities. It is contributing to global warming pollution, causing increases in extreme weather events, droughts, and floods. First Nations communities in Saskatchewan, Alberta, and BC have sued both provincial and federal governments because they are approving projects that violate their constitutional rights as Aboriginal people. Well done to a country that respects human rights! (insert eye-rolling here)

Now, moving past the silliness of Ezra Levant and his arguments, I am still concerned that there is an environment minister who fails to see the environmental pitfalls of a water- and energy-intensive project like the tar sands. A project that has caused the deforestation of large swaths of the Canadian boreal forest, and a project that requires chemical inputs while also releasing them back into the environment. I think that Harper is faced with the same problem he has every time he needs to shuffle around his cabinet, a problem that Rick Mercer says simply as just not having enough qualified applicants.

The Corporate Doomsday Machine’s (aka the fossil fuel industry) latest scheme to plunder and ruin the earth for profit involves transforming the highways, waterways and railways of the Northwest into a transport corridor for coal.

King Coal’s domestic options are soon going to be limited after Obama and Lisa Jackson drop the big one on greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, with a possible loss in profits, Mr. Peabody’s coal company needs a new place to sell their dirty black rock. Currently, Asian markets are more than willing buyers of all things coal. Industry just needs an efficient way to get it there. Currently, the only west coast port exporting coal is Vancouver British Columbia. So King Coal wants more outlets for Powder River Basin coal.

In Longview Washington, an Australian company, Ambre Energy, has proposed a coal export terminal to ship coal from the Powder River Basin (Montana, Wyoming) to Asian markets. The Cowlitz County Council has approved the terminal. The state of Washington has come out against it, but the project is still moving forward. Continue reading ‘Transforming the Northwest into Dirty Coals’s New Corridor’