Climate Politics

Did McCain switch positions on windfall profits tax?

John McCain on a windfall profits tax, in his speech on energy policy delivered in Houston yesterday: So what does Senator Obama support in energy policy? Well, for starters he supported the energy bill of 2005 — a grab-bag of corporate favors that I opposed. And now he supports new taxes on energy producers. He […]

A look back at James Hansen’s seminal testimony on climate, part two

Worldwatch Institute is partnering with Grist to bring you this three-part series commemorating the 20-year anniversary of NASA scientist James Hansen's groundbreaking testimony on global climate change next week. Part one is here; part three is here.

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An unprecedented heat wave gripped the United States in the summer of 1988. Droughts destroyed crops. Forests were in flames. The Mississippi River was so dry that barges could not pass. Nearly half the nation was declared a disaster area.

The record-high temperatures led growing numbers of people to wonder whether the climate was being unnaturally altered.

Meanwhile, NASA scientist James Hansen was wrapping up a study finding that climate change, caused by the burning of fossil fuels, appeared inevitable even with dramatic reductions in greenhouse-gases. After a decade of studying the so-called greenhouse effect on global climate, Hansen was prepared to make a bold statement.

Hansen found his opportunity through former Sen. Tim Wirth (D-Colo.), who chose to showcase the scientist at a Congressional hearing. Twenty years later, the hearing is regarded as a turning point in climate science history.

Backing up McCain, Bush calls for ending offshore drilling moratorium

President Bush has joined John McCain in calling for an end to the offshore drilling moratorium that’s been in effect for most U.S. waters since the early 1980s. Bush’s reversal on the offshore-drilling issue follows on the heels of McCain’s big energy speech in Houston on Tuesday, where he advocated offshore drilling as a way […]

Public trusts Obama more than McCain on gas prices, global warming, energy

Interesting results from a new ABC/WaPo poll. Who do Americans trust more on the economy? Obama 52%, McCain 36% How about gas prices? Obama 50%, McCain 30% Global warming? Obama 55%, McCain 28% Energy policy? Obama 51%, McCain 36% Issues where McCain is more trusted: international affairs, war in Iraq (by one point), and war […]

Yet another climate bill introduced in the House; greens applaud

Since climate change legislation failed to gather steam in the Senate this month, all eyes are now on the House. Energy and Commerce Committee Chair John Dingell (D-Mich.) has been promising a bill for months. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), chair of the Select Committee for Energy Independence and Global Warming, put out an ambitious bill in […]

McCain calls for offshore drilling, renewables, and conservation in energy speech

Republican presidential candidate John McCain tried to pack something for everyone into a big energy speech yesterday, saying the U.S. needs more conservation and renewables as well as more oil drilling, oil refineries, “clean-burning coal,” and nuclear power plants. He called for ending a federal moratorium on offshore oil drilling, but reiterated his opposition to […]

McCain adviser on oil drilling in ecologically sensitive areas

McCain adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin held a press call with reporters tonight after the candidate’s energy speech in Houston. One particularly interesting question came up: A reporter asked why, if McCain thinks people who live in coastal states should decide whether to allow drilling off their shores, that view doesn’t extend to the Arctic National Wildlife […]

McCain’s free pass

Great post from Hilzoy over at Obsidian Wings, starting with McCain’s confused statements on climate change, moving out to McCain’s confused statements on other matters of policy, and asking: why is no one in the mainstream media covering this? Why is McCain allowed to get away with it?

White House decides to check in on environment

A mere 2,705 days after President George W. Bush was inaugurated, the White House has decided to check in on how the environment is doing. Four federal agencies have been directed to develop environmental indicators that will ostensibly be used to analyze national trends and evaluate policies. The first project, which won’t be released until […]

DOD slows condemning research into its polluting behavior

Back in April, a Government Accountability Office report explained how the White House Office of Management and Budget was holding up the EPA's Integrated Risk Information System assessments. According to GAO, the OMB started requiring an "interagency review" process allowing agencies that might be affected by the IRIS assessments to provide comments on the documents. As a result, some of these outside agencies can effectively block completion of IRIS assessments, which inform federal environmental standards and many environmental protection programs at local, state, and even international levels.

The GAO explained that this interagency review process came about because the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, and NASA were upset about how EPA was addressing "controversial" chemicals such as perchlorate, napthalene, and trichlorethylene (TCE). These departments and agencies view these hazardous substances as "integral to their missions." IRIS assessments could lead to regulatory actions that will require lots of protection and clean-up spending by the responsible agencies.

Last week, the House Committee on Science and Technology's Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight held its second hearing on the IRIS process. One witness was particularly vocal about DOD's foot-dragging on TCE.