This just in from the Earth Policy Institute
Northern Hemisphere Temperature Highest Ever
With the record for 2007 now complete, it is clear that temperatures around the world are continuing their upward climb. The global average in 2007 was 14.73 degrees Celsius (58.5 degrees Fahrenheit) Continue reading
The State Corporation Commission is holding a hearing RIGHT NOW on Dominion’s plans for another coal plant. This proposed new plant would cost at least $1.6 billion of your hard-earned money, exacerbate mountaintop removal, and pump out 5.8 million tons of CO2 every year.
Hundreds of you already submitted comments on the subject – and that was a great first step. But comments are not enough. Many more have ditched school, taken off from work, and are taking this next crucial step. People from all across Virginia today will speak their mind to the SCC- the agency charged with deciding Virginia’s energy future!
Our fight against Dominion Virginia Power’s proposed coal plant really picked up speed at the end of last year. Arlington, Blacksburg and Charlottesville have all passed resolutions opposing new coal. And just yesterday the Bristol Herald Courier, the local Southwest Va. paper, wrote an amazing editorial calling the plant a raw deal in an unprecedented about-face.
Stay tuned for updates!
Before dozens of supporters, Senator Chap Petersen unveiled the “Clean Energy Future Act,” at a press conference yesterday. The bill is a comprehensive new vision for Virginia’s energy future. It comes amidst growing concern over Virginia’s current energy path, and just weeks after Governor Kaine announced the formation of the Virginia Climate Commission. Faith, student and environmental leaders joined together to welcome this bold new vision for Virginia.
CCAN had a hand in all aspects of the bill and worked with Senator Petersen from the very beginning to make this a truly groundbreaking bill. This way, at the same time that we’re opposing Dominion’s proposed 1.6 billion dollar catastrophe (aka its new coal plant), we can also be for something. Needless to say, we are 101% behind the bill and will be working over the next couple of months to rally some serious grassroots support.
Finally, Senator Chap Petersen deserves a huge thank-you. He gets it, and is not afraid to step out in front on the crucial issues of our day. He will be introducing the bill tomorrow, the first day of the Virginia legislative session. You can find a fact sheet on the bill on our website.
Below is our press release. You can read more coverage of the bill on Raising Kaine, in the Richmond Times Dispatch and on WDBJ7.
Continue reading
From October 21-23, 2007, hundreds young and old rose up against war and global warming by participating in an intervention in Washington DC. Their demand:
STOP the war in Iraq and future resource wars by ending our addiction to fossil fuels.
SHIFT government funding to rebuild New Orleans and all communities suffering from racism and corporate greed.
GO green and promote environmental justice with new jobs in a clean energy economy.
Resistance is building, and the call continues. Visit www.nowarnowarming.org to learn more.
This essay from Mike Tidwell was published in Grist on December 14th.
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Culturally, politically, and spiritually, what country in the world is most like the United States? It’s not Canada and it’s sure not Great Britain. The answer is Australia. Ask anyone who’s been there. It just feels like America there, from the sprawling suburbs to the cars people drive, from the obsession with sports to their unit of currency: the Australian dollar. Add these factors too: both countries were British colonies, both wiped out indigenous peoples, both have big cities in the east and vast frontiers to the west, both have huge coal deposits and per capita greenhouse-gas emissions that lead most of the world, and, in the last several years, both have had conservative national governments that basically deny the reality of global warming. The Aussies R Us!
So how, then, did Australia just complete a national election where the issue of climate change played a central role and may have determined the outcome? How did a country so steeped in America’s brand of fierce self-reliance, consumerism, and fossil-fuel addiction throw out a “climate skeptic” prime minister and hand a landslide victory to a Labor candidate who talked persistently about ratifying Kyoto? And most important, if they can do it Down Under, is there still hope for America?
Feeling the heat
Several factors help explain how a “global-warming candidate,” Labor’s Kevin Rudd, unseated incumbent John Howard after 11 years of conservative rule. But first among them is probably the nation’s nightmarish drought. Beginning in 2002, the drought conditions intensified each year until a staggering 25 percent of all food production was lost in 2007. Emaciated livestock now roam a vast landscape of dry riverbeds. Rice production and wine grapes have been devastated. Food prices have soared and up to 1 percent of the nation’s entire GDP has been lost, according to credible estimates. Continue reading
Md. Event Among More than 30 Plunges Across the Country, Activists Demand Action on Global Warming as U.S. Congress Considers Energy Bill
Takoma Park, MD Continue reading
And it’s gonna be cold. And wet probably. But definitely worth it. This’ll be my third year in a row taking the plunge. I get nervous the night before each plunge. So far, though, I’ve managed to come out okay. Having other people plunging in with you really makes a difference. And this year, with over 200 people jumping and twice that much expected, I’ll have lots of company.
PJ Park from Mt. Rainer is going to be there. He and two others will be arriving by bike – 32 miles there and 32 miles back.
If you’re not up for riding your bike to Annapolis, but would like to cut down on your carbon footprint, why not consider carpooling. Check out our carpool message board here.
And finally, here are the details one more time:
WHO: Chesapeake Climate Action Network
WHAT: Third Annual Polar Bear Plunge
WHEN:December 8, 2007, 11 am
WHERE: Chesapeake Bay Foundation Merrill Center, 6 Herndon Rd., Annapolis, MD. Map.
LEARN MORE: www.keepwintercold.org
SPEAKERS:
Will Baker – President, Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Delegate Bill Bronrott – House of Delegates, Montgomery County
Mike Tidwell- Director, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, and more
What’s missing from this map?
MARYLAND!
Thanks to strong grassroots efforts across the state, the MD state government is recommending real global warming solutions! The draft report of the MD Commission on Climate Change was released on Tuesday, and thanks to grassroots efforts to make this a major issue
By now you’ve heard that Dominion Virginia Power is planning to build a new coal-fired power plant in Wise County, Va. The Richmond Times Dispatch projects that this plant will be “one of the biggest air polluters in Virginia.” It will cost $1.6 billion, and will emit more than 5 million tons of carbon dioxide annually (the equivalent of adding 200 million cars to the road!). And best of all, Virginia ratepayers will foot the entire bill.
It is absolutely critical that the State Corporation Commission (SCC) hears from you. Let them know that Virginians DO NOT WANT NEW COAL PLANTS!
Visit the CCAN website for all you need to know to submit your comments.
In order to build and operate a new coal-fired power plant in Wise County, Dominion must first receive approval from the SCC. This is your opportunity to let the Commission know that this coal plant is a bad deal for Virginia!
Again, the CCAN website has information on how to submit your comments.
The public comment period ends on December 14th. Take this moment to tell the SCC that we don’t want any new coal, and let’s stop this dirty plant.
Click here to learn more about the plant, and what a coalition of Va. groups are doing to fight it.
Washington recommends “clean coal” plant be rejected
LOS ANGELES, Nov 27 (Reuters) – A Washington state regulatory board on Tuesday advised the governor to reject plans for Energy Northwest’s proposed 680-megawatt integrated gasification combined-cycle (IGCC) power plant because plans do not specify how carbon dioxide emissions would be sequestered underground.
The Washington Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) said in a ruling signed Tuesday that it would reconsider the plant if Energy Northwest submits a workable plan to pump greenhouse gases — primarily CO2 — underground.
An Energy Northwest spokesman said on Tuesday that the consortium of 20 member utilities and cities has yet to decide what to do next regarding the proposed Pacific Mountain Energy Center, which has a price tag of at least $1.5 billion.
That $1.5 billion sounds a lot like what Dominion is projecting their new plant will cost… Continue reading