Until this past Friday, the U.S. was the only Arctic nation that lacked a formal strategy in its approach to the region. In advance of Wednesday’s Arctic Council meeting in Sweden, the Obama Administration just put forth a vague Arctic policy that seeks to take advantage of emerging opportunities in the region, while recognizing that an undisciplined approach to exploring those new opportunities could threaten national security, interests and the global good.

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Post tags: arctic council meeting, center for biological diversity, earthjustic, economic opportunities in the arctic, erika rosenthal, marine oil pollution preparedness and response, new fishing in the arctic, oil and gas exploration in the arctic, rebecca goblin, secretary of state john kerry, shell oil drilling in the arctic, threat to the arctic, tourism of the arctic, U.S. formal policy on the arctic, u.s. state department

As of 2012, 2.5 million oil and gas wells have been drilled worldwide using the hydraulic fracturing method, and more than 1 million of them are located in the United States. The result of this trend has been devastating to human health and the environment. With natural gas companies pouring millions of dollars into political and PR campaigns, slowing it down has been difficult. But as one tiny town in New York demonstrated, it’s not impossible. Dryden, New York, recently won a court case to prevent the fracking industry from destroying its air and water, an encouraging development for cities and states fighting similar battles.

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Post tags: activism, dryden, fossil fuels, fracking, hydraulic fracturing, natural gas industry, New York., progressive communities, rural communities, rural town, upstate New York

The African Rhinoceros evolved over millions of years, and despite living on earth for eons, it has not been able to survive the greed of human beings. Conservationists have announced that the last 15 of the animals were killed by poachers last month in Mozambique’s section of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park. Slaughtered for their horns, which fetch higher prices than gold on the Asian market for their supposed cancer-curing and aphrodisiac properties, rhinos in neighboring areas are also in peril. To add to the tragedy, authorities believe that the poachers were aided by the park rangers sworn to protect them.

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Post tags: Africa, african rhinoceros, black market, Conservationist, game ranger, great limpopo transfrontier park, horn, international fund for animal welfare, kelvin alie, kruger, mozambique, poacher, South Africa, Telegraph, wildlife trade, Zimbabwe

Five months after re-election, President Obama is finally filling out his second term cabinet appointments. White House officials say that the president is planning to nominate Anthony R. Foxx, the mayor of Charlotte, N.C., to be the next Secretary of Transportation, replacing Ray LaHood, who will be stepping down as soon as the next appointee is confirmed by the Senate.

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Post tags: anthony r. foxx, barack obama second term cabinet, light rail, mayor of charlotte, nominating anthony r. foxx, nomination of next transportation secretary, ray lahood, streetcars, sustainable transportation, transportation secretary

Australia is facing pressure to accept the status of climate change refugees, as the country is located near many low-lying South Pacific island states and it’s the closest land mass that could provide a safe home for those affected by rising sea levels and global warming. The Refugee Council of Australia has asked the government to create a new category for climate change refugees and offer them the same protection as those escaping social persecution. This would amend the 1951 “Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees” forged after WWII, which primarily focuses on race, religion, national affiliation, or membership to a particular group.

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Post tags: australia, climate change refugee, convention relating to the status of refugees, gilbert and ellis islands, kiribati, labor party, liberal-national coalition, New Zealand, phil glendenning, refugee council of australia, south pacific, tarawa, WWII

A new Kansas state house bill introduced by the Committee on Energy and the Environment is seeking to outlaw sustainable development. Although some believe that green infrastructure can ensure a high standard of living for future generations, others see sustainable development as a government plot to redistribute wealth and compromise freedom. Opponents cite the United Nations’ Agenda 21 established in Rio back in 1992. While the document promotes progressive ideas ranging from cost effective-energy systems to public transport, many right wing conspiracy theorists have come to view it as a global takeover of rights and personal property.

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Post tags: "sustainable development", agenda 21, american policy center, bill, bill no. 2366, bloomberg, cj online, Conspiracy, dennis hedke, Kansas, legislation, personal property, right wing, rio, tom deweese, tom randall, United Nations

Due to a thirty-year-old law, Exxon will not be paying into the federal fund that will pay for the cleanup of 12,000 barrels of crude oil that leaked from its Pegasus Pipeline in Arkansas. The pipeline, which transports oil from the tar sands region of Canada, ruptured in Mayflower, Arkansas, where cleanup crews have been finding evidence of harm to local wildlife. The loophole that enables Exxon to avoid paying an eight cents per gallon tax into the cleanup fund? Technically the pipeline was not transporting—and did not leak—oil.

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Post tags: alberta canada, arkansas oil, dilbit, diluted bitumen, environmental destruction, Exxon, exxon mobil, keystone xl, mayflower arkansas, oil spill clean up, oil spill leaks, Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, oil spills, oil taxes, Oill Change INternational, pegasus pipeline, pipeline leaks, pipelines, tar sands

After reaching record levels of production in 2012, the world’s wind power capacity is projected to grow to reach 300,000 MW by the end of 2013. With major projects announced in the past few months, China, Denmark the EU and the US remain among the primary producers of the world’s wind power, while Japan hopes to soon become home to the world’s largest offshore wind farm as nations in Eastern Europe and Latin America begin to harness their own wind potential. Currently operating wind turbines can already—at European levels of production—provide carbon-free power for over 450 million homes world-wide.

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Post tags: "wind power", california wind farm, china wind, denmark energy, global wind power capacity, offshore wind, palm springs wind, renewable energy, wind capacity, wind power production, world wind power generation

Opponents of the Keystone XL pipeline have long warned of the catastrophic impacts of a major spill if the infrastructure were to fail. On Friday, the nation no longer had to imagine how a tar sands disaster would look. The city of Mayflower, Arkansas was inundated with thousands of gallons of black diluted bitumen leaking from the ExxonMobil Pegasus pipeline, forcing the evacuation of 22 homes. Classified as a “major spill” by the EPA, fifteen vacuum trucks and 33 storage trucks have been deployed to contain the oil and keep it from spreading into local water bodies. The failure once again highlights the inherent danger in transporting tar sands oil, and adds to the pressure facing President Obama in his decision whether or not to approve the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline.

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Post tags: arkansas, crude oil, ed markey, Enbridge, epa, exxonmobil, House Natural Resources Committee, john hoeven, kalamazoo river, Keystone XL Pipeline, mark pryor, marshall, max baucus, mayflower, Michigan, montana, north dakota, nrdc, pegasus pipeline, president, state department, tar sands, transcanada

The big news in Washington last week was all about the battle over marriage equality, but while that was going on, the government passed the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act (HR 933), which essentially gives the government funding to keep running for the next six months. What you may have missed – and what many in congress missed – was the short little rider attached to the bill that gave biotech giant Monsanto a free legal pass from any litigation related to its genetically modified seeds. It’s a move that could have devastating impact on agriculture in the US.

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Post tags: agriculture legislation, Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, genetically modified organisms, GMO laws, GMO litigation, HR 933 Monsanto, Monsanto Bill, Monsanto GMOs, Monsanto Rider, Senator Roy Blunt

Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to push ahead with regulations that will require the production of cleaner gasoline and impose fleet-wide pollution limits on new vehicles by 2017. According to a report in the Washington Post, the rules will mandate that the sulfur content of US gasoline be reduced by two-thirds, from 30 to 10 parts per million—a move which would add less than a cent per gallon to the price of gas, while having an overall environmental impact comparable to taking 33 million cars off the road.

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Post tags: barack obama, california car, california pollution, car exhaust, car pollution, carbon emissions, environment regulation, environmental protection agency, epa emissions, epa regulation, gasoline sulfur, obama environment, tailpipe emissions

We’re all for finding new ways to create sustainable meals – but a recent proposal from Montana has us wondering, how far is too far? The Montana Senate passed a bill yesterday that makes it legal to harvest and eat roadkill. Until now, animal carcasses have been left on the side of the road or destroyed, but to state Representative Bill Lavin, the sponsor of the bill, that “seems like a waste.” If the bill is signed into law, drivers in Montana would be able to collect and use dead animals left on the side of the roads.

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Post tags: eating carrion, Eating road kill, Governor Steve Bullock, Montana Department of Fish, Montana Road Kill bill, Montana Roadkill Bill, Montana senate bill, Representative Bill Lavin, Road kill harvesting, Senator Kendall Van Dyk, Wildlife and Parks

Now that the sequester is in full swing, President Obama is proposing new sources of funding to finance his clean energy ambitions. The White House is urging Congress to divert $2 billion from oil and gas leases over the next ten years to pay for research into ‘breakthrough technologies,’ like advanced batteries for electric cars. Following the statements Obama made in last month’s State of the Union address, the goal is to begin to wean the county off of fossil fuels and stimulate the economy by investing in cutting-edge technology.

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Post tags: "clean energy", advanced vehicles, argonne national laboratory, chicago, Climate Change, congress, energy security trust, eric d isaacs, fossil fuels, funding, leases, legislation, oil and gas revenue, president obama, sequester, state of the union address, stimulus package

Recently, the State Department released a report claiming that the Keystone XL pipeline would have no significant impact on the environment. However, the study did not factor in the tremendous impact that tapping the tar sands will have on greenhouse gas emissions. Although the Obama administration has yet to approve the northern section of the route, many Americans remain unaware that the southern portion of the Pipeline is already halfway complete.

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Post tags: Alberta, approve, associated press, canada, david dodson, gulf of mexico, impact report, Keystone XL Pipeline, oklahoma, president obama, state department, tar sands, texas, transcanada

Rumors have been circulating as to whether or not the President would approve the Keystone XL Pipeline. On Friday, the State Department released a study suggesting that the pipeline, which is slated to stretch from Canada to Texas, would have no significant impact on the environment. However, they stopped short of actually recommending it to be completed. The Sierra Club released a statement calling the study “deeply flawed,” and environmentalists have pointed out that building the pipeline would promote further fossil fuel use at a time when climate change desperately needs to be addressed.

Read the rest of Environmentalists Baffled at State Department Claim that Keystone XL Would Have Little Environmental Impact

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Post tags: bill snape, canada, center for biological diversity, greater sage grouse, high plains aquifer, jobs, kerri-ann jones, Keystone XL Pipeline, Middle East, montana, Nebraska, oceans and international scientific affairs, president obama, renewable energy, report, sand hill region, south america, south dakota, state department, texas, transcanada, tyler county creeks, whooping crane

Today, President Obama announced that his nominee to replace Lisa Jackson as head of the EPA is Gina McCarthy. McCarthy, who currently manages the EPA’s Air and Radiation office, has played a critical role in developing and promoting renewable energy programs in Massachusetts and Connecticut. She has been lauded for her support of climate regulation, but her willingness to negotiate with big business has raised concern with some environmentalists.

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Post tags: air and radiation office, american chemistry council, barbara boxer, bob durand, business, clean air act, Climate Change, connecticut, david vitter, epa, frank o'donnell, gina mccarthy, Keystone XL Pipeline, lisa jackson, lisa murkowski, Massachusetts, mercury, paul cellucci, power plants, president obama, s. william becker, senate energy and natural resources committee

This morning, President Obama announced his nomination of MIT physics professor Ernest Moniz to head up the US Department of Energy. Renewable energy advocates were dismayed at the appointing of the nuclear physicist, who wanted a leader with roots in green energy. But Obama stands by Moniz, whose governmental experience will help him lead the DOE in a time of much tighter budgetary constraints.

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Post tags: Department of Energy, eco design, Ernest Moniz, green design, President Obama department of energy, steven chu, sustainable design

During President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address, he briefly touched upon his plans for combating climate change and reducing emissions, but didn’t go into any meaningful detail. However during the State of the Union address last night, the President was able to clearly lay out his agenda and draw attention to the issues that will matter most over the next 12 months. And when it came to climate change, he didn’t mince words.

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Post tags: Approval Ratings, barack obama, Climate Change, fracking, global warming, Obama Address, Obama Approval Ratings, Obama State Of The Union 2013, obamas state of the union, Obamas State Of The Union 2013, Politics News, Pollster Analysis, President Obama Address, President Obama Speech, SOTU, Sotu 2013, state of the union, State Of The Union 2013, State Of The Union Address 2013, State Of The Union Approval Ratings, State Of The Union Speech, State Of The Union Speech 2013, Video

A new report released by the World Economic Forum shows that climate change is arguably the most pressing threat to the world economy. And with the world population set to increase from 7 billion to 9 billion by 2050, the report suggests that greening the economy is the only viable way to accommodate this growth. To this end, the Green Investment Report lays out a plan where a $700 billion investment in the global economy towards things like renewable energy and efficiency measures would go a long way towards curbing climate change.

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Post tags: $36 billion in public investment, $570 billion private investment, additional $700 billion investment in the global economy, annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, COP 18 meeting in Doha, curbing climate change, Davos, economic growth through green investment, green growth action alliance, green investment report, group of 20, reducing global warming, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, world economic forum

In the wake of the Fukushima disaster, countries around the world questioned the value of nuclear power – and Japan, reeling from the impact, vowed to become nuclear-free by 2040. Now, with the tragedy seemingly fading from memory, the newly elected Japanese government has decided to reverse this decision and once again invest in that same energy that is still damaging the Japanese environment.

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Post tags: Fukushima disaster, Fukushima Disaster policy, Japan nuclear phase-out, Japan nuclear reactors, japanese nuclear power, nuclear energy, nuclear power policy