Climate Politics

Bipartisan group of House members rolls out bill for gas-price relief

A bipartisan group of six House members introduced a bill on Wed. to help reduce the gas-price pressure on Americans by investing in transit alternatives and smarter city planning. “The Transportation and Housing Options for Gas Price Relief Act of 2008” (H.R. 6495) was introduced by Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), and is cosponsored by Chris Shays […]

Senate Dems under pressure to lift ban on offshore drilling

Democrats in Congress are under increasing pressure to lift the ban on offshore oil drilling, The Wall Street Journal reported this week ($ub. req’d). Last week, some Democrats signaled that they would be willing to endorse offshore drilling. And on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he might allow voting on offshore drilling. […]

Al Gore details plan for exclusively carbon-free electricity in U.S. by 2018

In a speech in Washington, D.C., today, climate activist Al Gore called for the United States to move toward using electricity that comes exclusively from carbon-free sources within 10 years in order to stave off catastrophic climate change. “I ask you to join with me to call on every candidate, at every level, to accept […]

2.6 million acres opened to drilling in Alaska, Dems introduce Drill Act to spur production

The U.S. Interior Department announced it’s opening up some 2.6 million acres of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A) to exploratory drilling. A decision on drilling in the sensitive Teshekpuk Lake area of the reserve has been deferred for 10 years, delighting many environmentalists who have advocated for its permanent protection. Bidding on leases […]

The current oil shock

This essay was originally published on TomDispatch and is republished here with Tom's kind permission.

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When will it end, this crushing rise in the price of gasoline, now averaging $4.10 a gallon at the pump? The question is uppermost in the minds of American motorists as they plan vacations or simply review their daily journeys. The short answer is simple as well: "Not soon."

As yet there is no sign of a reversal in oil's upward price thrust, which has more than doubled in a year, cresting recently above $146 a barrel. The current oil shock, the fourth of its kind in the past three-and-a-half decades, and the deadliest so far, shows every sign of continuing for a long, long stretch.

The previous oil shocks -- in 1973-74, 1980, and 1990-91 -- stemmed from specific interruptions of energy supplies from the Middle East due, respectively, to an Arab-Israeli war, the Iranian revolution, and Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. Once peace was restored, a post-revolutionary order established, or the invader expelled, vital Middle Eastern energy supplies returned to normal. The fourth oil shock, however, belongs in a different category altogether.

Sounds like a good speech!

Former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson, safely removed from any position from which he might actually do anything about it, discovers that climate change is real.

Taking a three-day weekend for the planet

From the Beehive State, a gratifying way to reduce energy use (and carbon emissions): Taking Fridays off. And it's mandatory. In part to deal with rising gas prices, Utah's republican governor John Huntsman introduced the measure for state employees. The move, of course, instantly reduces commutes by 20 percent.

The remaining four work days get longer -- state offices will now stay open from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. -- so that the total number of hours worked remains the same.

I'll bet there's a civic benefit too: The change may actually makes government offices more accessible by extending open hours beyond the tight 9-to-5 window that most citizens still work.

From the USA Today article:

Ex-policymakers urge current politicians to get off their asses

In order to avert “a long-term energy crisis,” writes a bipartisan group of former political up-and-ups in a letter to U.S. politicians, we must “reexamine outdated and entrenched positions” on energy. The letter, sent to Barack Obama, John McCain, every member of Congress, and all 50 governors, declares that “we must rise above partisan differences […]

Romney believes McCain would allow drilling in ANWR

About 59 seconds into this video, former GOP presidential candidate and possible VP pick Mitt Romney argues that John McCain would allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: (Via Marc Ambinder)

EPA proposes new regulations for injecting carbon into the ground

The EPA released a proposal for a new rule on Tuesday that lays some of the groundwork needed to get carbon capture and storage technology up and running. If formally adopted, the new rule would create a new class of injection wells under the authority of the Safe Drinking Water Act’s Underground Injection Control program. […]