by Stephen Mulkey, President of Unity College thinkprogress.org We are running out of time. While our public policy makers equivocate and avoid the topic of climate change, the window of opportunity for salvaging a livable planet for our children and grandchildren is rapidly closing. The way forward is clear, though for many confrontation-averse
Air Pollution, Carbon Decreased Last Year
Progress on air pollution in the U.S. ; but, we are still waiting in Ontario for the McGuinty government to close down the remaining, unnecessary coal plants. by Gina-Marie Cheeseman Care2 There is some good news when it comes to air pollution, a recent report found. Sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and carbon dioxide emissions are
Nuclear, coal power face climate change risk-study
Risk of power cuts rises in coming decades as world warms Falling river flows, higher water temps main threats Shift to gas can curb water use by David Fogarty Reuters SINGAPORE, June 4 (Reuters) – Warmer water and reduced river flows will cause more power disruptions for nuclear and coal-fired power plants
The Road to Rio: Fossil Fuels vs. Renewable Energy
Bill McKibben 350.org In just a few weeks, world leaders are converging on Rio for a landmark “Earth Summit” to talk about sustainability issues — but it’s time for them to stop talking and start doing. And we know where they can begin. This year our governments will hand nearly hundreds of billions of dollars
Help keep the Atlantic Ocean off-limits to Big Oil!
NRDC The Obama Administration is considering a proposal to open up most of the U.S. Atlantic Ocean — from New Jersey to Florida — to high-intensity seismic exploration for the first time in 30 years. Please send a message right away to the Obama Administration to oppose this disastrous plan. The proposal calls for
Why I Must Write About Fracking
Mike Ludwig Truthout The controversial gas drilling technique known as “fracking” is quickly changing the landscape in Washington and our own backyards. Last week, Truthout launched a new section called “Gas Rush: Fracking In Depth,” where you can find all of our groundbreaking coverage of America’s gas boom and the environmental problems caused by
Special treatment for oil industry means poor environmental laws
By Andrew Gage, Staff Lawyer West Coast Environmental Law We’ve been clear that the roll-back of Canada’s environmental laws – legal environmental protection that Canadians have worked for decades to put in place – can only benefit the oil and gas, mining and other big industrial players, at the expense of our communities and
Report Finds Pipeline Oversight Wanting
By DAN FROSCH NY Times A report issued on Monday by the National Wildlife Federation asserts that federal laws regulating oil pipelines are inadequate in several crucial areas and that local regulations do not provide sufficient protection against safety and environmental risks. The report, which focuses on the Great Lakes region, said that current
North Sea Gas Leak: Experts Assess Climate Impact of Ongoing Accident
By Elizabeth Grossman InsideClimate News The sizeable leak from a plugged well raises fresh concerns about accidents and methane’s role in global warming. The French energy company Total estimates that its North Sea Elgin field gas well is leaking about 200,000 cubic meters of natural gas per day, enough, according to the U.S. Energy Information Agency, to
Scientists: Increase in US Earthquakes Almost Certainly Manmade
By Joe Romm, ThinkProgress A U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) team has found that a sharp jump in earthquakes in America’s heartland appears to be linked to oil and natural gas drilling operations. As hydraulic fracturing has exploded onto the scene, it has increasingly been connected to earthquakes. Some quakes may be caused by the original fracking —
Eco-Policies of Alberta’s Next Government?
Speed up oil sands, give $300 in petro proceeds to each citizen, says surging Wildrose party. By Geoff Dembicki 5 Apr 2012, TheTyee.ca Explosive new public opinion research suggests Danielle Smith’s libertarian-leaning Wildrose Party will form a majority government in Alberta later this month. Blowing apart more than four decades of Progressive Conservative rule
The Fracking Frenzy’s Impact on Women
By Sara Jerving PR Watch Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” has generated widespread media attention this year. The process, which injects water and chemicals into the ground to release “natural” gas and oil from shale bedrock, has been shown to contribute significantly to air and water pollution and has even been linked to earthquakes. But
Perils and Price Rise in Hunt for Natural Gas
Elgin Leak Points to Drilling Risks By Marco Evers, Spiegel Online The Elgin natural gas drilling operation was highly dangerous but fruitful — until it sprung an unexpected leak that nearly caused an environmental disaster. The out-of-control situation highlights increasingly risky “extreme drilling” efforts to extract the valuable fuel from deep below the North Sea. It all began
How Ottawa runs on oil
Suddenly Western money and influence are driving everything that happens in the nation’s capital by Paul Wells and Tamsin McMahon, with Alex Ballingall Macleans on Friday, March 23, 2012 In July 2006 Stephen Harper had been Prime Minister for half a year and it was time to deliver his first speech to a foreign business
The end of baseload? It may come sooner than you think
By Giles Parkinson on 20 February 2012 One of the principal architects of Germany’s push into renewable energy technologies, Hans-Josef Fell, believes that the country could achieve 100 per cent renewables in its electricity sector by 2030 – and may do it quicker. The rest of the world could follow soon after. Fell, a Greens politican
