Clinton Announces New Global Climate Change Partnership

Posted on February 16, 2012 by admin

On Thursday, February 16, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced a new
partnership between the United States, Canada, Mexico Sweden, Ghana, and
Bangladesh, with the goal of reducing “short-lived climate pollutants.”

By the first year, the initiative is hoping to raise $10 million to reduce
pollutants such as black carbon, hydroflurocarbons, and methane. If the
partnership proves successful, it should trump the Kyoto Protocol’s emission
reductions eight times over.

Time is, as always, an important factor in this new partnership. Because the
results of emission reduction can only truly be seen over an extended amount
of time, the initiative may be difficult to encourage among naysayers.

Carbon Dioxide is most-often cited as a threatening greenhouse gas- true,
considering 20% of all carbon dioxide remains within the atmosphere for
thousands of years. However in comparison, black carbon, methane, and
hydroflurocarbons (HFCs), are all much stronger and more harmful to the
environment. Methane stays in the environment for a little over a decade,
but during that period it is 25 times more dangerous than carbon dioxide.
HFCs are tens of thousands of times more threatening than CO2. Luckily, this
new initiative is cost effective as well. For example, reducing a metric ton
of methane costs $250, but the benefit is worth between $700-$5000.

The partnership is certainly not the first of its kind, but shows promise.

Koch in Court

Posted on February 8, 2012 by admin

To those who have been following the debacle that is the current state of environmental affairs, the Koch brothers should be a familiar name. In fact, this past year Forbes magazine named Koch Industries, headed by brothers David and Charles Koch, the second largest privately held company in the United States. With an annual revenue of just under $100 billion, these two brothers spearhead the country’s largest private oil company in America.

With their muddied history in the oil business, it is no surprise that they were somehow involved in the development of the Keystone XL pipeline. For a seven-year span from 1990–1997, they were reportedly fined $35 million for a series of 300 pipeline spills. However, despite being heavily fined for their wrongdoings, the two have not truly been held responsible for their actions. On Wednesday, January 25, several House Democrats took the first steps in bringing the Koch’s to court.

Rep. Harry Waxman of California called for a subpoena for Koch industries over their shady involvement with the troubled pipeline at a hearing before a subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Waxman along with eight other Democrats, are requesting a day of hearings to question representatives from the company over their possible financial stake in Keystone.

“Last year news organizations reported that one company, Koch Industries, would be one of the big winners if this pipeline were constructed,” Waxman reported. “We asked Koch whether this was true and were told they have no interest whatsoever in the pipeline. But then we learned that they told the Canadian government that they have a direct and substantial interest. Something does not add up.” Throughout their tenure, the Koch brothers have only been able to prove that they do not believe they’re responsible for anything.

State of the Union Address: Attainable or Too Ambitious?

Posted on January 30, 2012 by admin

On the heels of his rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline last week, President Obama once again addressed the country’s environmental policies in Tuesday night’s State of the Union Address.

As the country’s political landscape continues to heat up with an upcoming major election, one issue has constantly been absent in debates and speeches thus far; the country’s environmental future.

Pres. Obama made sure to mention that last year, the United States relied less on foreign oil than it has in the past 16 years, but “with only 2 percent of the world’s oil reserves, oil isn’t enough. This country needs an all-out, all-of-the-above strategy that develops every available source of American energy—a strategy that’s cleaner, cheaper, and full of new jobs.”

Jobs have of course been a frequent topic of discussion in most every televised debate thus far. One of the driving forces behind support of the dangerous Keystone XL pipeline was the promise of the creation of jobs, however that number was proven to be mostly false and inflated. However, Pres. Obama stated that his administration would take the steps to develop the supply of natural gas the country already has, providing 600,000 possible jobs by the end of the decade.

At several points during the speech, the President addressed the oil corporations that continue to plague the environment as well as the American community. “We have subsidized oil companies for a century. That’s long enough, It’s time to end the taxpayer giveaways to an industry that’s rarely been more profitable, and double-down on a clean energy industry that’s never been more promising,” he expressed.

Pres. Obama’s comments on the oil corporations strike at the heart of one of the most profound problems facing the country today – the influence corporations have on our political process and their by any means necessary approach to acquiring profits. Indeed reform in the manner in which we allow corporations to get away with political corruption and environmental exploitation is needed as is an honest and relentless pursuit of sustainable and renewable energy sources. There is no doubt all of this could be accomplished if the desire were truly there by the powers that be. So the question remains, is Pres. Obama willing to take the steps necessary to make these positive changes or is this only lip service during the election cycle?

And perhaps more problematical, will Congress ever allow such changes?