Climate Politics

Peak oil and politics

Last week the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation ran part one of a two-part series on how Cuba survived without oil after the fall of the Soviet Union. (Not technically true -- there was oil, just far too little of it.) The next part runs this Sunday and has to do with the redefinition of Cuban medicine in the post-oil world. It's all very fascinating, and it's produced by one of our national treasures, David Suzuki.

Smokey Robbin’s On

Urban-style crime in national forests seems to be on the rise In some parts of the U.S., being a forest ranger isn’t the cushy job you might imagine. Far from keeping cartoon bears away from picnic baskets, rangers have been confronting a rising tide of urban-style crime: everything from domestic violence and drunken driving to […]

The Bill Factor

Bill Clinton teams with cities to fight climate change Yesterday, ex-Prez Bill Clinton announced a new international effort to fight climate change. The Clinton Climate Initiative is a partnership between the Large Cities Climate Leadership Group — a group of 22 of the world’s largest municipalities — and the Clinton Foundation. The latter will help […]

We’re Running Out of Drilling Puns

Senate votes to expand drilling in Gulf of Mexico Acting boldly to address America’s nascent energy crisis, U.S. senators … passed one more sop to the oil and gas industry and got ready to flee town for the summer recess. Yesterday, by a vote of 71 to 25, the Senate passed a bill that would […]

Umbra on writing to reps about climate change

Dear Umbra, I want to send a letter to my local representatives about global warming and how our whole city and state should take part in stopping it, but I don’t know what to say or how to approach this. Please help! Hillary Schwartz Birmingham, Ala. Dearest Hillary, Hmm, I can think of a few […]

Leaders agree to share technology; carbon-trading system a possibility, not a done deal

The AP overstated the extent of the climate agreement announced today between British PM Tony Blair and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (and thus Daily Grist overstated it too). Now that the deal's been officially unveiled, a few clarifications:

The two didn't agree to launch a new trans-Atlantic carbon-trading market, though they will look into the possibility. Rather, they said the U.K. and California would cooperate on research into cleaner fuels and technologies. Writes the San Francisco Chronicle, "aspects of the agreement include jointly studying the economic impacts of global climate change, collaborating on technology research -- including studying the effects of California's effort to create a 'hydrogen highway' touted by Schwarzenegger -- and establishing regular exchanges between scientists in both places." Not so bold, but a nice symbolic gesture at least.

Arnie on Blairoids

Blair and Schwarzenegger joining forces to fight climate change Perhaps finally sensing he’s been poodling to the wrong pseudo-manly Republican, U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair has decided to wag his tail for California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger: The two leaders are planning to create a trans-Atlantic cap-and-trade system for carbon dioxide allowances. The alliance will be […]

Docket Science

Global warming likely to spur litigation against polluters As global warming’s effects reverberate across the planet, expect an uptick in litigation against governments and companies. Pacific Islanders whose homes are being swallowed by the ocean, African farmers with withered crops, and ski-resort owners resigned to offering mountaintop waterskiing may seek redress. “If the evidence [of […]

Obama leads bipartisan effort to raise fuel-economy standards

Is the sting of $75-a-barrel oil and the threat of World War III exploding in the Middle East enough to convince Congress to finally boost auto fuel economy? Probably not, but a bipartisan coalition of senators led by Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is launching an admirable new effort anyway — the Fuel Economy Reform Act. Barack […]

ELF Sacrifice

Three plead guilty to eco-motivated arson in the West Three people pleaded guilty yesterday to being part of a group that set fire to ranger stations, wild-horse corrals, a ski resort, and lumber mill offices in the Western U.S. in recent years. The 16 attacks harmed no people, but caused more than $20 million in […]