These are lyrics from my favorite song this summer, Battles by The Smart Brothers.

It’s a love song, but I also hear a call to action, a call to protect that which we care most about.

The Keystone XL pipeline, and the tar sands extraction it would spur, is so obviously one of the worst actions the United States could take with regard to climate change, not to mention all the communities along the pipeline route whose water and ecosystems would be threatened by crude oil spills. Today, leaders of the largest environmental organizations in this country united to release a letter calling on President Obama to block the Keystone XL pipeline.  You know when Environmental Defense Fund teams up with Rainforest Action Network that something big is in the air.

The tar sands industry has been trying for years to send tar sands crude to American refineries, and the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, in James Hansen’s words, would be game over for the climate.  The predecessor to Keystone XL, the Keystone pipeline, has already had 15 spills in the United States and over 20 spills in Canada since it became operational last year.  The Enbridge pipeline dumped 800,000 gallons of tar sands crude into the Kalamazoo River, and the pipeline that spilled 42,000 gallons of oil into the Yellowstone River also carries tar sands crude (a full list of pipeline accidents can be found here).

President Obama himself, without any influence from Congress, can make the decision to deny or approve the Keystone XL permit. Since Saturday, 275 people have been arrested for protesting the Keystone XL pipeline outside of the White House, calling on Obama to deny the permit.  If this is not an act of love to protect our neighbors, country and planet from the tar sands evil at our door, I don’t know what is.  And it is incredibly encouraging that the environmental leaders who sent the letter to Obama said “there is not an inch of daylight between our policy position on the Keystone Pipeline and those of the very civil protesters being arrested daily outside the White House.”

If you have the means, please join our brothers and sisters in DC through September 2nd to urge Obama to stop the pipeline.

For folks who cannot travel to DC to participate in the protests, please contact the White House Comment Line.  Call 202-456-1111 between the hours of 9AM and 5PM Eastern, and say “The tar sands represent a catastrophic threat to our communities, our climate, and our planet. We urge you to demonstrate real climate leadership by rejecting the requested permit for the Keystone XL pipeline and instead focus on developing safe, clean energy.”

You are encouraged to call the White House Comment Line as many times as you would like! If you want to learn more about the tar sands action, visit http://www.tarsandsaction.org/.

“And I’m leaving in the morning, to meet the evil at our door…You are the one I fight my battles for, you are the one that I adore.”

But that original vision still remains unfulfilled.

In the last four years, our movement is has grown bigger, more diverse and more experienced.  So why aren’t we running for office?

It won’t be easy (neither is stopping a coal plant).  We may be new at this (same with creating sustainable communities).  But unless we take a risk and try something a little crazy, our communities will be stuck with the same candidates as usual.

I have a couple of theories why we aren’t seeing a wave of young people running for office: we tend to move around a lot; we are worried older folks won’t take us seriously; campaigns can cost money and most of us don’t have a lot of savings; some people don’t want to work from “inside the system.”  The reasons (excuses) for not running for office could go on and on.  But ultimately few climate organizers are running for office because we just haven’t stepped up to do it.

To help us figure out how to overcome those barriers and make successful runs for public office, a national conference call will be hosted by 350.org, Energy Action Coalition, Young People For, the Front Line Leaders Academy, and the Young Elected Officials for young climate organizers interested in running for office.

The call will be Wednesday, July 27^th at 4:30pm EDT.  We’re asking you to RSVP for call details (and so that we can send you follow up resources easily).

Running for office may be a big (but surprisingly simple) decision, but it is one that we should start preparing for now.  Join the call and get started.

“Approving tar sands one day, then asking for public input on the state’s energy future the next is either dishonest or dysfunctional,” said Ashley Anderson, coordinator for Peaceful Uprising, a US climate action organization based in Utah.

The PR Springs mine, to be operated by Canadian-based Earth Energy Resources, would occupy 213 acres in Grand and Uintah Counties in Eastern Utah. The site is within the Colorado River watershed, which supports 30 million people across the region. Earth Energy Resources expects to produce 2,000 barrels of crude bitumen per day, 350 days per year for 7 years.

“This project has no real value or contribution to society,” said John Weisheit, Colorado Riverkeeper and Conservation Director of Living Rivers. “The total amount of oil produced by this mine over seven years of operation would cover just 7 hours of American oil demand – a tiny blip on the radar. However, it will take millennia to restore the watershed they are about to destroy.”

Tar sands, also called oil sands or heavy oil, produce one of the dirtiest fuels on the planet. On average, each barrel of tar sands oil generates three times the greenhouse gases as conventional fuel, consumes or contaminates two to four barrels of water, and exposes ground water to toxic pollutants such as arsenic, lead, mercury, nickel and cyanide. DOGM refused to consider the climate impacts of tar sands in the permitting process. Extraction of tar sands in Canada has already devastated an area the size of Florida.

Although DOGM issued tentative approval of the mine in September 2009, they failed to notify Grand County until March 2010. In response, Peaceful Uprising and Living Rivers requested a hearing with DOGM held in July to review the environmental impacts of the mine.

“No one in the government is asking whether or not tar sands development is good for Utah,” said Anderson. “Instead, DOGM is simply rubber-stamping the project while the State pretends to care about renewable energy development at these hearings.”

Despite approval from DOGM, Earth Energy Resources must still apply for one final permit from Grand County and raise up to $35 million dollars from investors before it can begin construction of the mine.  This means we still have two small windows of opportunity to stop this mine, but it will definitely be an uphill struggle.

If you are from Utah, please send comments about the State’s 10-year energy vision to Ashlee Buchholze at abuchholz@utah.gov.

The Salt Lake Tribune captured it best:

“A small Canadian company, in need of millions for its ambitious plans, also is facing stiff opposition from two Utah environmental groups that are trying to thwart its efforts to build one of the first commercial tar sand mines in the country.”

Photo credit: Sarah A. Miller/Deseret News

The Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining (DOGM), held a hearing on Canadian company Earth Energy Resources’ proposal to mine tar sands in Grand and Uintah Counties in Eastern Utah.  Well over half of the people attending the hearing came to support Peaceful Uprising and Living Rivers in opposing the mine.  John Baza, Director of the the Division noted that there were far more people than usually attend these hearings.

“This project has no real value or contribution to society,” said John Weisheit, Colorado Riverkeeper and Conservation Director of Living Rivers.  “The total amount of oil produced by this mine over seven years of operation would cover just 4 hours of American oil demand – a tiny blip on the radar. However, it will take millennia to restore the watershed they are about to destroy.”

And for that small amount of oil, Earth Energy Resources and the State of Utah are willing to put the entire Colorado River watershed and the 30 million people it supports at risk.  Here are a few of the concerns we brought up at the hearing:

• The oil produced by the mine would increase the amount of tar sands oil refined in the Salt Lake area by 13%.  This places local communities at increased risk for contamination from arsenic, lead, mercury, nickel, cyanide and other toxic substance.
• The mine will generate significant amounts of dust, which contaminates local bodies of water and settles on snowpack, causing it to melt faster.
• Although tar sands produce on average three times the greenhouse gas emissions as conventional oil, the DOGM refuses to take climate change into account for the permitting of this mine.
• Earth Energy Resources already has a poor track record in preventing groundwater contamination.  Their pilot mine was essentially abandoned, left unlined, unmonitored and untreated for years, available for wildlife and livestock to consume.
• The chemicals to be used by Earth Energy Resources have been untested as potential carcinogens, or reproductive and developmental risks, and are known to be endocrine disrupters.

Earth Energy Resources claims they will operate the mine with zero discharge, but there is no man-made technology that can guarantee zero leakage of contamination into our waters.

Steve Adler, an attorney with the Utah Energy Office, asserted that the DOGM was simply approving the permit according the requirements set by the State of Utah, and that DOGM wasn’t responsible for addressing many of the objections raised in the hearing, specifically climate change and water impacts. Baza will decide within a month whether or not to uphold the agency’s decision to approve the mine permit.

The biggest message that came out of this hearing is that no one is steering this ship.  There is no single agency  or government body evaluating whether tar sands development is actually a good idea for Utah.  Instead, each agency simply approves rules and permits that were not designed for to regulate the tar sands industry.  If Utah is going to consider opening up its lands and waters to tar sands, we should actually have that conversation about Utah’s energy future.

“This is only the beginning,” said Ashley Anderson, Coordinator of Peaceful Uprising.  “Communities around the state and country are getting active in opposing the tar sands.  We’ll be there fighting back every step of the way.”

The get involved in the fight, visit: www.peacefuluprising.org/notarsands

It appears that the spill was detected and shut off much faster than the Salt Lake City Oil Spill in June, but spewed nearly twice as much greasy scum as the Chinese Oil Spill just over a week ago.  It pales in comparison to the disaster in the Gulf, but is more than enough contamination for Michigan.

Enbridge, I should mention, is proposing a new tar sands pipeline to bring Canadian tar to Asian refineries.  Because we need more pipelines and tankers… Thankfully the Enbridge pipeline is facing massive opposition.

So that makes 4 major oil spills in 4 months.  Let’s hope that we learn to break this pattern.

[Correction: I initially said the Enbridge tar sands pipeline would bring crude to American refineries.  The pipeline is primarily intended to transport the crude oil to British Columbia, where it will be shipped to Asian markets.]

Utah could soon have first tar sands mine in the country, located north of Moab in the Colorado River watershed. Canadian company Earth Energy Resources aims to extract 2,000 barrels a day of tar sands oil from their PR Springs Mine. Earth Energy Resources has received all of the required permits to begin operation except for the Conditional Use Permit from Grand County.

“Grand County Council has the power to choose between investment in a dirty fuel that destroys our land, water and wildlife, or development of clean energy sources that enhances our beautiful and vibrant way of life,” said Moab local Ashley Anderson.

Tar sands, also called oil sands in Canada, produce one of the dirtiest fuels on the planet. On average, each barrel of tar sands oil generates three times the greenhouse gases as conventional fuel, consume or contaminate two to four barrels of water, and expose ground water to toxic pollutants such as arsenic, lead, mercury, nickel and cyanide. Extraction of tar sands in Canada has devastated an area the size of Florida.

“This area should be known for the iconic beauty that draws travels from around the world, not for introducing one of the worst forms of energy to the United States,” said Juliana Williams, No Tar Sands Organizer with Peaceful Uprising. “We refuse to sit idly by as the State of Utah and Earth Energy Resources trade away our future.”

Other events with the “International Stop the Tar Sands Day” took place in Berlin, London, Copenhagen, Montreal and Toronto.

For information about the efforts in Utah to stop the tar sands, visit: www.peacefuluprising.org/notarsands.

So in the past couple of months, we have seen the worst oil spill in American history in the Gulf, and oil spill in Salt Lake City, Utah that spilled 785 barrels into streams, parks and backyards, and now this explosion in China.  This is not to mention all the oil spills across the world that escape media attention because they are poorly monitored, like the five decades of oil spills in Nigeria.  Oh, and don’t forget the 27,000 abandoned and unmonitored oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico.

These are not isolated incidents.  They are symptoms of an energy system that is inherently unsafe and unstable.  Disasters like these will continue to to occur, unless we actually start to get off oil.

Last August, the State Department approved the permit for the pipeline, but they opened up the process to receive comments from the public.  From the perspective of the State Department, this pipeline is in the public interest, bringing in oil and jobs.  However, they fail to fully account for the massive impact that tar sands oil has on the climate, the pollution created by refining tar sands into gasoline and the danger the pipeline poses to landowners and communities along the pipeline route.

The good news is that public opposition is rally to stop the pipeline.  A week ago, 50 members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, urging the State Department not to rush the permit through.  At a public hearing at the State Department on Tuesday, over 80 people showed up to provide comment.  Although Brian Duggan, the moderator of the hearing, noted that “the oil industry got up real early this morning, so their names are the first 20 on my list,” he alternated between speakers from the oil industry and groups opposed to the pipeline.

According to Sarah Murphy, who attended the hearing, approximately two-thirds to three quarters of the people attending the hearing opposed the pipeline.  “At one point lobbyist from a trucking group testified and in his eyes I saw nothing but giant dollar signs,” she said.  “From what I witnessed at the hearing today, its obvious that the dirty energy lobbyists care about only one thing- money.”

Please take five minutes to submit a comment to the State Department, urging them to stop the Keystone XL pipeline.  They are required to read every comment, and we need to show them that the American public opposes this project.  For ideas on what to include in your comments check out dirtyoilsands.org and Pubic Citizen in Texas, where most of the refineries would be located.

Sixteen hundred ducks flew over the Canadian sky in the annual migration to their mating grounds, guided by genetic compasses, as they had for millennia.  Instead of cool, dark forest as far as the bird’s eye view could see, smokestacks pumping out heavy black fumes and tangles of pipelines carrying modern day alchemy stretch for miles.  You see, the earthmovers had discovered a way to turn tar into gold.

Where once had grown the one of the richest ecosystems on the planet, now refineries and boom towns and pit mines have taken hold like any other invasive species.  That’s right, the tar sands are the Asian carp of Canada.  And despite our best efforts, they show now signs of going away.  Fifteen years of reckless and drunken expansion have led to the most destructive project on the face of the planet.  And, you know what the word for unrestricted growth is?  Cancer.

But to the ducks winging their way home, they only saw a choice between landing on pit mines and machinery or those large, still lakes that stretch for miles.  Kind of a no-brainer for these birdbrains.  But as they settled to rest and feed, the water began to burn their bodies, the thick oily scum on the surface gummed up their wings and eventually dragged them under.  Those sixteen hundred birds never flew again.

Two years later, a judge declared that Syncrude was the culprit and the toxic tailings the instrument of this avian annihilation.  The cause for celebration was that the corrupting influence of tar sands finally failed to evade environmental responsibility.  But what restitution came from the case?  Not to clean up the sludge lakes.  Not to find a way to eliminate the waste.  No, Syncrude must simply erect scarecrows and airhorns to scare ducks away.

The tragedy is that there is no one to scare the greedy little earthmovers from their addiction to black gold.

[Please take action to oppose the Keystone XL pipeline that would bring tar sands into the United States for refining. Click here for more information]

Few things seem to be going right in the this country at the moment: the economy is still weak, the oil spill continues to devastate communities along the Gulf, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq continue to drain our country’s resources without much progress, the social fabric of this country feels frayed and divided.  It would seem that our only shining bright moment was Landon Donovan’s goal in the World Cup yesterday.

It would seem that way if you simply focus on the headlines. Amidst the bad news is an underlying narrative that the current trajectory is not working.  And when something is not working, it is time for a change.

The pessimistic conventional wisdom would tell a story like this: Eventually the oil spill will be stopped, tighter safety regulation on the oil and coal industries may pass to appease public outrage, but we will continue to throw billions of dollars overseas each year for oil, we will continue to drill and mine and frack our communities for the energy beneath them, while energy companies continue to make record profits.   Superficial changes will be politically popular but will do little to change our dysfunctional energy system.  Then the next energy crisis will hit.

Here in Utah, it would seem that this story is playing out. In response to the Gulf oil catastrophe, Utah Governor Gary Herbert released an energy plan where he asked: “Why are we drilling in the middle of the ocean where there is extreme environmental risk when we could be meeting the demand for domestic production from on‐shore development in areas with minimal environmental risk such as Utah?”

Two days later, an oil spill in Salt Lake City dumped 33,000 gallons of oil into a creek that runs through neighborhoods, parks and eventually drains into the Great Salt Lake.

Further, Utah stands poised to adopt the injudicious honor of opening the first tar sands mine in the country.

But like the shining moment of Landon Donovan’s goal yesterday, our country has the opportunity to follow a different story. This year’s litany of coal mine disasters, natural gas explosions and oil spills are forcing Americans to face the question: how much longer are we willing to continue our dependence fossil fuels? As a result of these highly visible and truly unfortunate disasters, public opinion has shifted, recognizing that not only is offshore drilling unsafe but that we need to make the switch to cleaner, safer energy sources.

An opportunity is not a guarantee that change will happen.

Now is the time to call for bolder changes than we have before.  Now is the time to break the myth that drilling and mining and fracking are safe ways to get our energy.  Now is the time to stop the viral growth of tar sands extraction, here in Utah and around the country.  Now is the time to stop subsidizing these destructive industries and kickstart our economy again with investment in clean energy technologies.

As thousands gather on Saturday in Hands Across the Sand events across the country, it is critical that we not only call for an end to offshore drilling, but boldly tell the story of a country that can buck the corrupting stranglehold the fossil fuel industries hold on our nation and can build an economy that values innovation, community revitalization and a cleaner, brighter future.

We have an opportunity to redefine the narrative of this country.  Now is the time to do it.