Climate Politics
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Not waiting on Copenhagen
As the leaders, and eyes, of the world converge on Copenhagen, questions are swirling like storm clouds. Will developed countries agree and commit to a meaningful greenhouse gas emissions reduction target? Will Those Most Responsible pony up some serious dough for a “Green Fund” to help those most affected develop clean energy supplies and climate […]
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Copenhagen cops cast pall over the city
Danish police in riot gear.Photo: Courtesy Matthew McDermott via FlickrCOPENHAGEN — Snow is falling in Copenhagen this afternoon, a quiet symbol of peace in what has turned into an unlikely police state. Sirens wale. Helicopters graze the skies. The Danish police are out in force. They patrol the city on motorcycles and bikes, in vans […]
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Things have changed
With so much angst afoot in the green world, it’s easy to lose perspective on just how different this administration is from the previous one. Two examples in my inbox today drive the point home. First, the president said this today: You know, our nation’s buildings, our homes and our offices, consume almost 40 percent […]
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Gore proposes climate action timeline
Al Gore speaking to delegates at the Copenhagen climate conference is hardly big news in green circles, but the former VP and No. 1 climate crusader did manage to make a bit of news with his remarks Tuesday. First, he talked optimistically about there being sufficient votes in the U.S. Senate to pass a climate […]
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Overwhelming U.S. public support for global warming action
Two new polls issued today confirm that an overwhelming portion of Americans want domestic action and an international agreement to reduce global warming pollution. More than half the respondents want to do a great deal to reduce the threat of global warming, while only one-quarter oppose action. Associated Press/Stanford Univ. poll; conducted 11/17-29 by GfK […]
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Schwarzenegger lowers expectations for Copenhagen
Looking tanned and coiffed, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger stood in sharp contrast to the wan, glum denizens of Copenhagen’s Bella Center. According to one political insider, the typical morale trajectory for a conference of this scale is cautious optimism for the first few days, despair in the middle, a spurt of can-do spirit in the […]
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Biden: Nearly 900,000 new clean energy jobs thanks to Recovery Act
On Dec. 15, Vice President Joe Biden released a “Progress Report: Transformation to a Clean Energy Economy.” It documents the advances in clean energy investments and job creation during the first year of the Obama Administration. Biden determined that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and administrative actions are laying the foundation for a clean […]
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End TVA's special treatment under law, enviros urge Obama
Representatives from 15 environmental advocacy groups have called on President Obama to end the Tennessee Valley Authority’s immunity from federal prosecution for its Kingston coal ash disaster and other violations of federal law. In a letter [pdf] sent to the president Dec. 14, the environmentalists point to several examples of the utility flouting the law […]
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Denialism and the power of fear
There are two types of pesky partisans on the loose right now who refuse to accept reality due to their ideological blindness — birthers and global warming deniers. This realization struck me last week as I listened to Republicans argue that we should let the world boil over, all while they “dithered” over reading silly […]
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A report on stimulus investments in clean energy and the jobs they create
On Tuesday, the Vice President’s office will send Obama a progress report on “The Transformation to A Clean Energy Economy” (PDF). It’s a wide-angle assessment of the stimulus spending that has gone to clean energy projects, the private capital that has been leveraged by those investments, and the jobs that will be saved or created […]
