Articles by Glenn Hurowitz

Virginia’s disappearing mountain Eden

As I reported last week, I'm in Appalachia, Va. to attend a hearing by the Virginia Air Resources Board about whether or not Virginia will permit Dominion Power to build a dirty, coal-fired power plant. It's Eden in the Mountains here -- miles and miles of green, forested mountains in every direction. Inside the forests, it's even better. My wife and I went on a hike through old growth hemlock groves (and did a trail-cleaning service project in the nearby Jefferson National Forest) with naturalist and activist Anna Hess of the Clinch Coalition and learned that this region is the most bio-diverse in the mainland United States, with different little endangered salamanders creeping around the top of every mountain and old growth hemlock groves around many corners.

How a Prius can improve your thug life

From Showtime's Weeds (third season, which I'm currently watching on dvd):

How greens and Democrats can win the energy debate

If the pro-environment Republican wasn't already dead, I think this week killed him. John McCain, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, President Bush, and many others threw overboard one of the last policy planks Republicans (at least in coastal states) used to show that they're pro-environment too by calling for a massive offshore drilling program.

As chronicled in this excellent article by Politico's Charles Mathesian and David Mark, it's a politically risky move for Republicans: although national polls show some support for more oil drilling, there's also zealous support for keeping coasts and beaches clean in many coastal states. What's Florida Republican senator Mel Martinez to do, for instance, during his next election campaign after gas price anxiety fades (most likely) and his opponent can waive around this quote to cast doubt not only on his green cred, but also his general trustworthiness and strong leadership:

"I'm trying to clarify my position," said Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.). "In Florida today most voters probably want more drilling."

Meanwhile, although the Democratic leadership is expressing opposition to the Bush-McCain drilling plan, they're not exactly showing a lot of rhetorical backbone on it: Afraid to make the argument against offshore drilling on environmental grounds, they're instead going for the "We're for oil drilling too, but just not as much as Republicans" argument that has built them such a loyal and enthusiastic skeptical and tepid following among environmentalists.

Virginia Gov, possible veep, afraid of Big Coal

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine set a new standard for politician mealy-mouthedness with a letter to his Virginia Air Board (tip of the hat to Raising Kaine for digging this one up). Although he asserts that his letter isn't about any particular decision, everyone outside the governor's office knows that the letter is about one thing: The proposed massive coal-fired power plant being planned for Wise County, Virginia. His bureaucratic opacity (PDF) is sure to be taught in government schools around the world regarding how to say nothing through the written word:

My intent in issuing this directive is not to influence the substance of any decision you may make but to assure consistency, certainty, and predictability in the process of issuing decisions. The directive is one of general application and not specific to any particular matter.

The rest of the letter doesn't clear matters up any more -- but the situation is clear to most Virginia watchers: Kaine is terrified of Big Coal, personified (or rather, corporatified) here by Chicago-based Dominion Power (and financed by Citibank). So much so that even though the plant's incredibly high costs are actually projected to drive up electricity bills (PDF) (along with, of course, producing 5.3 million ton of carbon dioxide, more air pollution deaths (PDF), and the destruction of many of Southwest Virginia's remaining mountains), he's unwilling to take a clear stand against it (or, for that matter, for it) -- even though he is on record in favor of federal action on the climate crisis (for which he doesn't have any responsibility).