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August 27, 2011 :: staff :: No Comment Yet
Across the eastern seaboard of the United States, from South Carolina to Maine, there is an intense and well-ordered preparation underway to brace against and limit the fallout from Hurricane Irene. In North Carolina, 300,000 people have been ordered to evacuate the Outer Banks and low-lying coastal areas. The mayor of New York City, Michael [...]
July 30, 2011 :: staff :: No Comment Yet
List of Legislative Riders on H.R.2584, The Interior & Environment Approps bill for FY12 39 provisions in the bill specifically eliminate environmental protections in service of big polluters and GOP campaign donors *In order as they appear in the bill, with section numbers cited. Blocks Endangered Species Act Designations [Language on page 8]: Prohibits funding for [...]
July 5, 2011 :: staff :: No Comment Yet
The rupture of a pipeline in Montana has caused at least several tens of thousands of barrels of oil to spill into the pristine Yellowstone River, raising concerns about the tar sands pipeline planned to pass through the most important fossil aquifer in North America. The spill is precisely the kind of irreversible and unnecessary environmental disaster conservationists, farmers, energy reformers and local activists across the Great Plains seek to prevent.
June 26, 2011 :: J.E. Robertson :: No Comment Yet
Citizens Climate Lobby is an international non-partisan, non-profit volunteer organization, working to build political will for a livable world. To do that, they aim to find an ideologically neutral, democratically viable, market-focused way to reduce the amount of carbon trapped in Earth’s atmosphere and speed the transition to clean, renewable fuels. I am proud to be a member of the organization, and one who is inspired by the passion of its volunteers and fortunate to count so many good friends among its partners.
March 3, 2011 :: staff :: No Comment Yet
Every wave on the ocean that has ever risen up and refused to lay back down has been dashed on the shore, but it is the very purpose of a wave to rise up, because once it rises up above the horizon it finally has the perspective to see that it’s not just a wave, that it’s a part of a mighty ocean. And the sharpest rock on the wildest shore can never break that ocean apart, they can never wear that ocean down, because it’s the ocean that shapes the shore.
February 17, 2011 :: J.E. Robertson :: One Comment
Oil as a combustible fuel is a 19th-century improvement on the 18th-century paradigm of burning coal to produce steam to run industrial machinery. The efficiency and portability of carbon-based fuels, in terms of the built-in energy they can store and which is released when they are burnt, has long been the driving factor in their popularity as an energy source. But new technologies are now making it possible to produce large amounts of portable energy sustainably, with none of the atmospheric damage resulting from the burning of carbon-based fuels.
February 13, 2011 :: staff :: No Comment Yet
There is nothing ideological about the issue of renewable energy resources. Proponents tend to care about the health of the natural environment, which motivates their wish to see renewables replace high-polluting fuel sources like oil and coal, but the technologies, the fact of their economic viability and their usefulness for society at large, are not in any way a matter of ideology.
December 27, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: 8 Comments
Climate change means “global warming”, so how can severe winter storms and excessively cold breezes be evidence of a warming climate? The key is in the word “global”: the warming of the overall global average temperature need not manifest in all places at all times as warmer weather. Throughout the history of human civilization, the Earth’s climate has remained relatively stable, due to optimal global average temperatures; as global average temperatures slip outside that optimal range, the warmer air makes the interaction between climate systems more inconsistent and more severe.
September 26, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
Whenever legislation to price carbon starts to gain traction, the fossil fuel industry trots out this talking point: “It will kill jobs and ruin the economy.” In this paper, however, HotSpring Network founder and Citizens Climate Lobby volunteer Joseph Robertson ties together numerous reports and case studies to present a different picture, one in which the transition to clean energy will produce new jobs and provide a stimulus to the economy.
September 26, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Former Pres. Bill Clinton told CNBC’s Maria Bartiromo, in an interview before a live audience this week at the Clinton Global Initiative, in New York City, that a commitment to clean energy is required to drive job growth, cut unemployment and boost the economy. He noted that the four countries who are projected to beat their clean energy targets under the Kyoto Protocol —Denmark, Germany, Sweden and the U.K.— all have lower unemployment, and less economic inequality than the U.S., due to the green tech boom.
July 16, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
Well integrity test on new cap for Deepwater Horizon well shows no oil escaping. At 3:25 pm EDT, BP announced there was no more oil leaking from the well. But as BP, local politicians and Pres. Obama all noted, this is just the beginning of the test. They were able to successfully close the well [...]
July 12, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Scientists in Mississippi say they have discovered microscopic globules of hydrocarbons, i.e. petroleum, inside the outer shells of blue crab living along the Gulf coast. This discovery appears to show that oil has now entered the food chain. This process cannot be reversed, though measures may be taken to limit the spread of the oil deeper into the local and regional ecosystem.
July 3, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) this week called for a move toward building consensus for a scaled back version of the climate legislation pending in the United States Senate. Two possible models, given the nature of the Kerry-Lieberman proposal, as written, would be to either establish at the federal level the kind of cooperative emissions reduction strategy already adopted by a coalition of states across the northeast or a limit on total carbon emissions from power plants only.
July 3, 2010 :: Eva Scherson :: Comments Off
Sen. Olympia Snowe, Republican of Maine, is known for being a moderate, a pragmatist, and often the key to determining what gets done in a hotly divided partisan environment. She has consistently sought to take responsible positions on environmental policy, but has supported her party in many key votes. Now, she is pledging to push for a broader coalition of support for a scaled-back climate bill. Her approach is being called “utility-only”, focusing carbon emissions capping on power generation utilities, something supporters say will make the pending legislation more viable economically and administratively.
July 2, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
With Democrats and Republicans fighting each other from hardened rhetorical gun turrets, taking for granted the other side’s evil and intransigence, Pres. Obama’s first 18 months in office have been characterized by a near total lack of cooperation from moderates in the opposition.Republicans are talking like radicals and insurgents, but claiming to be traditional conservatives, and Democrats are struggling to remain populist while tasked with actually governing.
June 16, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
There is nothing ideological about the issue of renewable energy resources. Proponents tend to care about the health of the natural environment, which motivates their wish to see renewables replace high-polluting resources like oil and coal, but the technologies, the fact of their economic viability and their usefulness for society at large, are not in any way a matter of ideology.
June 16, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
In a meeting with Pres. Barack Obama, BP’s directors have agreed to open a dedicated escrow fund, to be operated by a third party, through which billions of dollars will flow to compensate victims of the environmental and economic fallout of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, across the Gulf of Mexico. As of 12:15 EDT, with the news breaking across US media, the specifics of how much will be paid, how quickly and to whom, have not yet been released.
June 16, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
There is mounting concern the ongoing flow of oil from the damaged BP Deepwater Horizon well in the Macondo field may be the result of one or more serious structural breaches in the cement well casing below the sea bed. Statements made on 7 June by Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, to MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, suggest the well casing has ruptured, there are multiple points of seepage across the surrounding sea bed, and the well can likely only be closed from below, if or when the two relief wells connect with the damaged well.
June 16, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Pres. Obama addressed the nation last night from the Oval Office, on the tragedy unfolding across the Gulf of Mexico, and issued an impassioned call for the entire nation to rally to the cause of breaking its “addiction to fossil fuels”. The president’s vision goes beyond the question of “energy independence”, which tends to favor expanded offshore drilling, to a push for a comprehensive transition to clean, renewable sources of energy and the phasing out of carbon-based fuels.
June 16, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
Because there has never been a leak this size at this depth, stopping it has tested the limits of human technology. That’s why just after the rig sank, I assembled a team of our nation’s best scientists and engineers to tackle this challenge — a team led by Dr. Steven Chu, a Nobel Prize-winning physicist and our nation’s Secretary of Energy. Scientists at our national labs and experts from academia and other oil companies have also provided ideas and advice. As a result of these efforts, we’ve directed BP to mobilize additional equipment and technology. And in the coming weeks and days, these efforts should capture up to 90 percent of the oil leaking out of the well. This is until the company finishes drilling a relief well later in the summer that’s expected to stop the leak completely.
June 13, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Small-government conservatives across the country are up in arms demanding an overwhelming show of government power in the Gulf of Mexico. They demand that the president of the United States establish “command and control” over the activities of private industry and “get this clean up now”. They are shouting from the rooftops and massing in the streets, or so they would like us to believe, at the outrage that government is not able to establish absolute control of the worst ecological disaster in US history.
June 11, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
BP has reportedly been reporting a far lower number for the amount of oil pouring into the Gulf of Mexico. The newly revised numbers suggest there may be as much as 40,000 barrels of oil per day, which would be roughly 1.68 million gallons per day. This upwardly revised figure is still not as high as some expert observers estimate, with the higher end near 2 million gallons per day. Media reports suggest the real figure may still be far worse, as BP has not done a direct sample of density and pressure to determine exactly how much oil is flowing from the well.
June 10, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
The blow-out (explosion and collapse) of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and the well 5,000 feet below has brought into high contrast a serious problem inherent in the way we produce energy: we have long refused to calculate the real costs of extracting fossil fuels. Ecological economics is founded on this point: we should calculate the value of the natural ecosystem services disrupted by the after-effects of carbon emissions.
June 10, 2010 :: Denver Lessing :: One Comment
With tens of thousands of ideas for how to plug the leaking well or clean up the oil pouring into the official emergency response unified command, sifting through them all in a timely fashion must be a tall order —especially with only 40 people sorting through them—, but one entrepreneur, who has a method using naturally occurring microbes to break down the spreading oil slick, says he has been denied access to beaches where oil can be found for testing. The allegation raises the question as to whether BP is blocking ideas that could help clean up the spill or close the well but which would not allow BP to recover the oil for later sale.
June 9, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: One Comment
The Gulf of Mexico coastline of the southeastern United States has been hard hit by the ongoing BP oil disaster, with catastrophic environmental damage, the collapse of the local fishing and shrimping industry, and tourism bottoming out in some places near zero, just as summer gets going. There is a moratorium on deepwater exploration and drilling, which is putting a strain on the job market across several states. A serious investment in renewable energy resources would build a more vibrant, more reliable jobs market into the regional economy and help prevent the environmental fallout of offshore drilling.
June 5, 2010 :: Carmen Visna :: 3 Comments
The environmental catastrophe resulting from BP’s blown-out deepwater oil well in the Gulf of Mexico is the worst seen in the US, but Ecuador’s ongoing battle with pervasive, persistent toxic contamination relating to Texaco’s operations in the remote Amazon is the worst oil-related environmental disaster the world has ever seen. In a once-pristine corner of the Ecuadoran Amazon rainforest, Texaco dumped billions of gallons of petroleum waste byproduct, contaminating groundwater and ruining the local environment irreparably.
June 4, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
It’s not just the intense vibration, noise pollution and toxic contaminants associated with trucking that we need to address, but the broader environmental fallout from depending so heavily on a petroleum-based combustion-centric mode of transport. Heavy overland transport vehicles demand a massive amount of power to move them from place to place; advanced battery technologies may soon allow us to power them using electricity, but we need to build the infrastructure to produce, store and transport all that green energy.
June 2, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Reports from around the Gulf of Mexico region of the southern US suggest the spreading oil slick from the ruptured Deepwater Horizon well is now washing ashore not only in Louisiana, but also in neighboring states. CNN reports sporadic accounts of oil washing ashore on the “sandy beaches”, popular with tourists, in western Florida. The well has now been gushing oil uncontrolled for 44 days, and BP has lost 1/3 of its total share value since the drilling rig explosion on 20 April.
June 1, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
The US Attorney General Eric Holder has announced a criminal investigation into the events leading up to, surrounding and following the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig, and BP’s response. The investigation will look into the possibility of criminal wrongdoing or fraud in BP’s dealings with regulators and in connection with the information it gave the government to help craft a response to the disaster.
June 1, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
Now, I think the American people are now aware, certainly the folks down in the Gulf are aware, that we’re dealing with a massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster. The oil that is still leaking from the well could seriously damage the economy and the environment of our Gulf states and it could extend for a long time. It could jeopardize the livelihoods of thousands of Americans who call this place home. And that’s why the federal government has launched and coordinated an all-hands-on-deck, relentless response to this crisis from day one.
May 31, 2010 :: staff :: Comments Off
The spreading environmental fallout from the gushing Deepwater Horizon BP oil well is likely to continue throughout the summer, barring the discovery of a bold new idea for how to cap a runaway oil well. It appears that BP lied when it allegedly told regulators over a year ago that it had the technology to deal with a rupture resulting in a leak of 300,000 gallons per day. Clearly, none of BP’s standard responses are working.
May 30, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: One Comment
The Deepwater Horizon undersea oil well is now the source of the worst oil spill on record. The spreading slick continues to threaten coastal communities throughout the Gulf of Mexico region, and could destroy delicate wetland ecosystems. Rep. Melancon (D-LA) was choking back tears yesterday as he explained the grave long-term harm he fears will be done to Louisiana’s coastal wetlands, saying “everything I know and love is at risk”. BP, it appears, has not been able to determine whether or not its “top kill” operation has succeeded in stopping the flow of oil.
April 30, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
The massive oil spill, which observers now say may turn out to be bigger and more catastrophic than the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska’s Prince William Sound, has reportedly made landfall in Louisiana. The smell of crude oil is reported to have filled New Orleans and reached as far inland as Baton Rouge, according to reporting by NPR. It is now estimated that as much as 5,000 barrels or 200,000 gallons per day are spewing from the damaged drill site, five times what was estimated just a few days ago.
April 28, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: One Comment
When the Deepwater Horizon undersea oil drilling platform exploded, on Tuesday, 20 April, then collapsed into the Gulf of Mexico, last Thursday —on Earth Day— it began pouring huge quantities of crude oil into the water. It is now estimated that 42,000 gallons of crude oil per day are pouring into the already troubled Gulf ecosystem. As of this morning, the slick is reported to have moved to within 20 miles of the Louisiana coastline, and some of the most fragile wetland ecosystems in the region.
April 22, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
Earth Day 2010 finds our world, in many ways, at a moment of crucial historical importance, on the issue of climate destabilization and environmental stewardship. The combined effects of major scientific advances, which have brought a wealth of hard evidence, the global campaign to raise awareness, and the deteriorating conditions of the carbon fuel sector’s relationship with consumers’ interest, now mean awareness of the urgent need to achieve a more sustainable global economic infrastructure has spread rapidly.
April 17, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
The Environmental Protection Agency, still playing catch-up from years of inaction on key environmental regulatory responsibilities, has for the first time in its history vetoed the approval of a permit for mountaintop removal mining. Last month, the EPA began to apply existing environmental protections for the first time in a way that allowed the agency to put a stop to one of the most radically environmentally degrading practices related to the mining industry.
February 20, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
In response to a recent article, explaining that record snowfall in certain places does not equate to a proof that global warming is not happening, but rather, that global warming is an apt explanation for why the record snowfalls would occur there, a number of climate skeptics chose to attack certain points in the piece, using what they take to be established science. In some cases, the evidence cited was simply misrepresented or misinterpreted, according to the wishes of the skeptics themselves.
February 16, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: 7 Comments
Climate-science skeptics have been gleeful in their assault on climate change theory, the hard research and tens of thousands of scientists behind it and the very concept of human responsibility to the environment, because there has been snowfall. In a stunning display of ignorance, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) openly claimed the record snows that hit Washington, DC, were evidence there was in fact no climate change, that the whole idea is just a myth.
January 8, 2010 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
After decades of environmental scientists seeking to raise awareness about the detrimental impacts of burning ever more carbon-based fuels, the Copenhagen Accord shows a global willingness to recognize the gravity of the issue and to take concrete —if as yet unnamed— policy actions to address the challenges of coming decades.
December 28, 2009 :: J.E. Robertson :: One Comment
The Sandia National Laboratories have achieved a landmark breakthrough in solar-voltaic power-generation technology. The snowflake-like “solar glitter” uses 100 times less material to produce the same amount of electricity as today’s standard 6-inch square solar cells. This achievement of ultra-miniaturization now has the potential to move solar-voltaic power generation to the forefront of the clean energy revolution, and help speed the transition away from carbon-based combustible fuels.
December 23, 2009 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
As ongoing global climate destabilization builds momentum, and fundamental climate-linked environmental processes come apart, we are hearing time and again that melting ice, whether in glaciers or in the Arctic Ocean, is “the canary in the coal mine”. The metaphor is very tempting, indeed, as coal is the most carbon-intensive fuel in use and a major contributing factor to global warming and climate destabilization, but the problem with the metaphor lies in the meaning of the canary being nothing more than an alarm signal. Glaciers are very much more important to human civilization than that.
December 22, 2009 :: staff :: Comments Off
Glacial melt is one of the key signs of global warming, but the disappearance of glacial ice is a worrying depletion of the basic life-sustaining resource of fresh water. Glacial ice provides the source water for many of the world’s major river systems, and thus affects the food supply and quality of life of billions of people. What’s more, as glaciers are eroded due to accelerated melting, downstream human populations face the twin problems of catastrophic flooding and more arid long-term conditions. Inland precipitation is reduced and sea levels rise, causing a very real threat to coastal communities of all sizes and levels of development.
December 22, 2009 :: staff :: Comments Off
With global temperatures warming steadily, and this decade the hottest ever recorded, ice stores are melting around the globe. From the Western Antarctic Ice Sheet to the Greenland Ice Sheet to the ancient glaciers of the Himalayas —which feed river systems that irrigate land that feeds 3 billion people—, we are losing unprecedented amounts of climate-regulating ice. And in 2007, the Arctic Ocean lost more sea ice than at any time on record. It was projected that for the summer of 2008, the coveted Northwest Passage —from Europe to Asia— would finally be open, due to ongoing compounded melting of the polar ice cap.
December 21, 2009 :: staff :: Comments Off
(1) [W]e shall, recognizing the scientific view that the increase in global temperature should be below 2 degrees Celsius, on the basis ofequity and in the context of sustainable development, enhance our long-term cooperative action to combat climate change. … (2) We agree that deep cuts in global emissions are required according to science, and as documented by the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report with a view to reduce global emissions so as to hold the increase in global temperature below 2 degrees Celsius … (10) We decide that the Copenhagen Green Climate Fund shall be established as an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the Convention to support projects, programme, policies and other activities in developing countries related to mitigation including REDD-plus, adaptation, capacity-building, technology development and transfer….
December 19, 2009 :: Eva Scherson :: One Comment
After two weeks of intense and sometimes bitter negotiations, US president Barack Obama arrived in Copenhagen to marshal all his diplomatic skills in brokering the beginnings of a viable framework for global carbon emissions reductions. Late Friday, it was announced that five nations —the United States, China, India, Brazil, and South Africa— had carved out a deal that would, for the first time, bring all the world’s major economies into the same camp on efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions.
December 18, 2009 :: staff :: Comments Off
When US president Barack Obama arrived in Copenhagen, there was no global agreement on how to address climate change and greenhouse gas emissions, and talks were described as being “in a state of chaos”. His morning schedule of face to face meetings was reorganized so he could attend an emergency conference of key leaders. Talks were scheduled to continue through the weekend, and yet before midnight, agreement had been reached.
December 18, 2009 :: staff :: Comments Off
Gordon Brown plans “plan b” 2nd round of talks if Copenhagen conference fails to achieve global pact. The plan would call for a smaller number of nations to meet to agree to concrete steps to curb emissions and move their contribution to the world economy toward a green energy future.
December 18, 2009 :: J.E. Robertson :: Comments Off
With the US promising to commit $100 billion over ten years to help fund mitigation efforts against the impacts of climate destabilization and China all but refusing outright to agree to any pact that requires international verification of emissions reductions and/or how international funds are spent, the technological solution remains a key priority.
December 18, 2009 :: staff :: One Comment
The furious negotiations of the final days of the Copenhagen conference on climate change has produced another draft of a potential Copenhagen Accord, which would drop the 2010 deadline for establishing a binding global treaty, but would keep the absolute upper limit of an eventual 2ºC global average temperature rise above pre-industrial levels.
December 18, 2009 :: Anjika Sridhar :: One Comment
The United States is pledging to “take the lead” on a global fund of $100 billion over ten years, designed to help developing nations transition to a zero-combustion energy economy and fend off the already mounting ravages of climate destabilization. The offer was announced yesterday by Sec. of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and was intended in part to put added pressure on China to agree to a binding climate deal with emissions reduction verification processes built in.
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