Climate Politics
All Stories
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What the Tuck?
Governator appoints industry flacks as state eco-regulators California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) earned green esteem early in his tenure, but as important regulatory appointments take on an increasingly pro-industry tinge, his cred is starting to fade. The latest is Cindy Tuck, chosen to chair the state’s Air Resources Board after working for more than 15 […]
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Raider of the Last Parks
Proposal to change national-park rules stirring up controversy National parks are cool and all, but you know what they really need? More people on cell phones! That — along with more snowmobiling and off-roading — could happen under revisions to National Park Service policy proposed by Bush appointee Paul Hoffman, deputy assistant secretary of the […]
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And Miles to Go Before I NEPA
U.S. government sued over climate impacts of overseas energy projects U.S. efforts to find fossil-fuel supplies overseas will create significant climate disruption, harming not only people in those countries but folks at home, according to a lawsuit filed against the federal government by a coalition of green groups and U.S. cities. Ranging from Greenpeace to […]
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Power Play
Northeast states crafting plan to cut CO2 emissions from power plants The cantankerous Northeast — last seen suing the U.S. EPA over mercury regulations — is at it again. Fed up with the feds, nine states in the region have preliminarily agreed to reduce their carbon-dioxide emissions from power plants. The coalition — organized by […]
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Go Truck Yourself
Bush admin unveils weak new fuel-economy rules for light trucks The Bush administration surveyed the landscape — gas prices rising, fears of oil dependence spreading — and concluded that bold leadership was required. So it invaded an oil-rich country. Heh, well … on to Plan B! Yesterday, the administration proposed a new set of auto […]
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I Fjord Your Pain
McCain, Clinton, other senators take global-warming tour in Alaska Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), and two other Lower-48 colleagues are touring Alaska this week to see for themselves the destructive impacts of climate change. They’ve flown over Yukon forests devastated by spruce bark beetles — believed to be thriving thanks to unusually high […]
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Balked Alaska
House GOPers oppose legislative maneuver to open Arctic Refuge Two dozen House Republicans have publicly criticized the GOP leadership’s plan to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling by attaching language to a filibuster-proof budget measure. In a letter to Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and other House leaders, the rebel GOPers — including three […]
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Why aren’t conservationists fighting poverty?
It’s a shame. Conservationists are sitting on the sidelines while the Big Game unfolds before our eyes. A major campaign is under way to change the terms of development, alleviate crushing debt, and help poor people around the world live better lives. Successes are being racked up. And conservation and environmental groups are nowhere to […]
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Passage of energy bill highlights lack of united Democratic opposition
Four years, two failed conference attempts, and one filibuster after the Republican leadership first introduced the Bush-backed energy bill into Congress, the controversial legislation is being signed into law today by the president, yielding a major victory for the White House — and exposing Democrats’ continued inability to rally around a unified vision and stay […]
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New Asia-Pacific climate pact is long on PR, short on substance
Staunch U.S. allies, enviro activists, and just about everyone else was caught flat-footed last week when the U.S., Australia, and four Asian countries unveiled a new pact intended to help curb greenhouse-gas emissions. In the days since, some details about the surprise alliance have trickled out, but its mission and intended impact remain murky. Known […]
