Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Leaders: We’re Here, We’re Expanding, We’re Providing Real Solutions

Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Leaders: We’re Here, We’re Expanding, We’re Providing Real Solutions: by Mike Casey, via Scaling Green Cleantech deniers are spending big these days to bolster their lobbying agenda. They’re airing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of anti-clean energy “Super PAC” advertisements, trying to block congressional renewal of the wind power production tax credit. And they just pushed a “No More Solyndras Act” through the [...]/p

NY Governor Cuomo: ‘Anyone Who Thinks That There Is Not A Dramatic Change In Weather Patterns Is Denying Reality’

NY Governor Cuomo: ‘Anyone Who Thinks That There Is Not A Dramatic Change In Weather Patterns Is Denying Reality’: Gov. Cuomo (D-NY):  ”There has been a series of extreme weather incidents. That is not a political statement, that is a factual statement. Anyone who says there is not a dramatic change in weather patterns is denying reality.” Floodwaters inundate Ground Zero construction site in NYC (AP) At a press conference yesterday, New York Governor [...]/p

Name Storms After Oil Companies (The Ones Most Responsible for Climate Change) | Common Dreams

Name Storms After Oil Companies (The Ones Most Responsible for Climate Change) | Common Dreams
"As gutsy New Yorkers begin the task of drying out the city, here’s one thought that occurred to me last night watching the horrifying pictures from a distance. It’s obviously not crucial right now — but in the long run it might make a difference. Why don’t we stop naming these storms for people, and start naming them after oil companies?"

Watchdog: Storm Released 'Staggering' Amount of Pollution into Hudson | Common Dreams

Watchdog: Storm Released 'Staggering' Amount of Pollution into Hudson | Common Dreams
"Flooding due to Hurricane Sandy has released "unprecedented" pollution of the Hudson River, watchdog organization Riverkeeper warns on Tuesday, as the effects of the "superstorm" continue to unfold."

Oyster Creek on "Alert" as Sandy Threatens Nuclear Facilities | Common Dreams

Oyster Creek on "Alert" as Sandy Threatens Nuclear Facilities | Common Dreams
"According to the NRC, the 43-year-old nuclear facility remains at alert status after being upgraded from an "unusual event" at about 9pm Monday night. The second-lowest in a four-tiered warning system, the "alert" indicates that conditions are not catastrophic but signals a "potential substantial degradation in the level of safety"."

Yes, Global Warming Systemically Caused Hurricane Sandy | Common Dreams

Yes, Global Warming Systemically Caused Hurricane Sandy | Common Dreams
"Yes, global warming systemically caused Hurricane Sandy — and the Midwest droughts and the fires in Colorado and Texas, as well as other extreme weather disasters around the world.  Let’s say it out loud, it was causation, systemic causation."

Over a Dozen Nuclear Power Plants in Hurricane Sandy's Path | Common Dreams

Over a Dozen Nuclear Power Plants in Hurricane Sandy's Path | Common Dreams
"Speaking to Democracy Now! Monday morning, Arnie Gundersen said, "Oyster Creek is the same design design, but even older, than Fukushima Daiichi unit 1. It’s in a refueling outage. That means that all the nuclear fuel is not in the nuclear reactor, but it’s over in the spent fuel pool. And in that condition, there’s no backup power for the spent fuel pools. So, if Oyster Creek were to lose its offsite power, and frankly that’s really likely, there would be no way cool that nuclear fuel that’s in the fuel pool until they get the power reestablished," according to Gundersen, who has 40 years of nuclear power engineering experience."

President Obama Makes a Statement on Hurricane Sandy

President Obama discusses efforts underway to prepare for Hurricane Sandy and urges those who may be affected by the storm to take all needed precautions. October 29, 2012.

Why Hurricane Sandy Has Morphed into a 'Frankenstorm' -- And Why We Should Get Used to Catastrophic Weather | Alternet

Why Hurricane Sandy Has Morphed into a 'Frankenstorm' -- And Why We Should Get Used to Catastrophic Weather | Alternet
"Here's how manmade carbon pollution is making many of the most destructive kinds of extreme weather events -- Frankenstorms -- more frequent and more intense."

11 Most Disturbing Facts About Hurricane Sandy | Alternet

11 Most Disturbing Facts About Hurricane Sandy | Alternet
"If you’re on the East Coast, things outside look pretty grey as Hurricane Sandy comes barreling towards New York and other states. The trees are blowing, the rain’s starting to come down, and reports are coming in of flooding in parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Here's a round-up of 11 alarming developments."

Axe FEMA, Romney Says - as Hurricane Sandy Looms

Axe FEMA, Romney Says - as Hurricane Sandy Looms
"Hurricane Sandy threatens to be one of the most devastating storms ever to strike the United States. But if Mitt Romney were president, disaster relief would be up to the states."

McKibben To Romney: ‘Please Explain Again Why Slowing The Rise Of The Oceans Is Such A Silly Plan?’

McKibben To Romney: ‘Please Explain Again Why Slowing The Rise Of The Oceans Is Such A Silly Plan?’: During his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, Mitt Romney mocked Obama’s pledge to address climate change, turning it into a punch line. “President Obama promised to slow the rise of the oceans — [bites lip and pauses for audience laughter(!)] — and to heal the planet. My promise is to help you and your [...]/p

'Storm Like No Other': Ongoing Coverage as Powerful Hurricane Sandy Makes Landfall | Common Dreams

'Storm Like No Other': Ongoing Coverage as Powerful Hurricane Sandy Makes Landfall | Common Dreams
"As Hurricane Sandy makes landfall on Monday, meteorologists predict a powerful storm that will cause power outages for millions, a storm surge creating massive inland and coastal flooding, and sustained winds that are threat for those living in urban and more rural areas across the northeast."

Why ‘Frankenstorm’ Is Just Right for Hurricane Sandy | Common Dreams

Why ‘Frankenstorm’ Is Just Right for Hurricane Sandy | Common Dreams
"Watching Sandy on her careening path toward the Eastern Seaboard scares me more than it would have 15 months ago. That’s because my home state took the brunt of Irene, last year’s “sprawling,” “surly,” “record-breaking” Atlantic storm. I know now exactly how much power a warm sea can contain and how far that pain can spread."

Outcome of presidential election will impact judicial review of vital federal regulations | Economic Policy Institute

Outcome of presidential election will impact judicial review of vital federal regulations | Economic Policy Institute
"Republican judges on the other hand, will be more likely to rule in favor of polluters, banks, and corporations. The presidential election will determine whose interests the federal government’s executive and judicial branches ultimately protect."

David Attenborough On Climate: ‘The Most Powerful Nation In The World Denies What The Rest Of Us Can See Very Clearly’

David Attenborough On Climate: ‘The Most Powerful Nation In The World Denies What The Rest Of Us Can See Very Clearly’: David Attenborough, the famous British naturalist and filmmaker, is worried about what it will take for us to collectively wake up about the threat of climate change: “Disaster.” “It’s a terrible thing to say, isn’t it? Even disaster doesn’t do it. There have been disasters in North America, with hurricanes and floods, yet still people [...]/p

Want To Help Deploy Climate Solutions? Become A Climate Corps Fellow

Want To Help Deploy Climate Solutions? Become A Climate Corps Fellow: by Jon Coifman Each year Environmental Defense Fund hand-picks a small army of graduate students – mostly MBAs – from top schools, gives them specialized training, and pairs them up for the summer with companies, cities and other large organizations to find cost-effective energy efficiency opportunities and create the business strategies to capitalize on them. [...]/p

One Chart Says It All: Why Oil’s New Supply Boom Is A Bust For The Climate

One Chart Says It All: Why Oil’s New Supply Boom Is A Bust For The Climate: by Lorne Stockman, Steve Kretzmann, and David Turnbull, via Oil Change International. What if you knew that smoking that one last packet of cigarettes was going to give you cancer?  Imagine if our understanding of cancer was so precise as to allow doctors to predict with virtual certainty that smoking that particular pack, which you [...]/p

Vindicated “Climate-Gate” Scientist Sues National Review for Libel | Alternet

Vindicated “Climate-Gate” Scientist Sues National Review for Libel | Alternet
"Skeptics accused Michael Mann of academic misconduct over the "Climategate" controversy, but he was eventually cleared."

As ‘Frankenstorm’ Barrels Towards East Coast, Newspaper Coverage Ignores Connection To Climate Change

As ‘Frankenstorm’ Barrels Towards East Coast, Newspaper Coverage Ignores Connection To Climate Change: Media have dubbed the hurricane barreling toward the mid-Atlantic and northeast a “Frankenstorm.” But despite the hysteria surrounding Hurricane Sandy, not one major newspaper has reported the scientifically established link that carbon pollution fuels more extreme weather. In the last week, Sandy has been mentioned in at least 94 stories in major newspapers. Yet a [...]/p

How Richard Mourdock Endangers Children

How Richard Mourdock Endangers Children:  Richard Mourdock, the Mitt Romney-endorsed Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate seat in Indiana, is standing by his comments that pregnancy after rape is “something that God intended to happen” and a “gift from God.” While these comments are supposedly “pro-life,” his support for global climate destruction undercuts any notion that he [...]/p

Prop 37: California's Fight for GM Labeling Should Matter to All of US | Common Dreams

Prop 37: California's Fight for GM Labeling Should Matter to All of US | Common Dreams
"California produces much of this country’s food. The Golden State’s labeling law just might set the gold standard for food safety for us all."

Fukushima Operators Struggle to Contain 'Outrageous Amount' of Radioactive Water | Common Dreams

Fukushima Operators Struggle to Contain 'Outrageous Amount' of Radioactive Water | Common Dreams
"Operators of Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi plant are having trouble storing a perpetual accumulation of radioactive cooling water from the plant's broken reactors, the plant's water-treatment manager, Yuichi Okamura, told the Associated Press in an interview this week."

Why the Right to Know What's in Our Food Has Become One of the Biggest Fights of the Election | Alternet

Why the Right to Know What's in Our Food Has Become One of the Biggest Fights of the Election | Alternet
"The opposition to California's Proposition 37 (which would lable genetically modified foods) has, again, sunk to a new low, according to the measure’s supporters at California Right to Know."

Study: Sustainable Farming Proven to Increase Yield at Zero Cost | Common Dreams

Study: Sustainable Farming Proven to Increase Yield at Zero Cost | Common Dreams
"In potentially "the most important agricultural study this year," researchers find that sustainable farming methods can help conventional agriculture "shed much of its chemical use," according to New York Times writer and food author Mark Bittman."

Wake Up! Our World Is Dying and We're All in Denial | Alternet

Wake Up! Our World Is Dying and We're All in Denial | Alternet
Had we been in a trance? I wanted to shout, "Wake up! Please wake up! Our old future is gone. Matters are urgent. We have to do something now."

Fracking Poisoning Families at Alarming Rate: Report | Common Dreams

Fracking Poisoning Families at Alarming Rate: Report | Common Dreams
"Residents living near gas fracking sites suffer an increasingly high rate of health problems now linked to pollutants used in the gas extraction process, according to a new reportreleased Thursday."

An Answer To ‘Drill, Baby Drill’: Countering The American Petroleum Institute’s Plan For Climate Disaster

An Answer To ‘Drill, Baby Drill’: Countering The American Petroleum Institute’s Plan For Climate Disaster: If you’ve turned on the television, walked by a bus stop, or visited a social networking site in the last 10 months, there’s a very good chance you’ve been targeted by the American Petroleum Institute’s “Vote 4 Energy” campaign. It’s one of the most prominent and consistent ad buys amongst the tidal wave of spending [...]/p

Koch-Affiliated Group Campaigns To Make Wind Tax Credit ‘So Toxic’ Republicans Won’t Back It

Koch-Affiliated Group Campaigns To Make Wind Tax Credit ‘So Toxic’ Republicans Won’t Back It: The wind energy industry faces a lame duck fight in the House of Representatives over extending the expiring production tax credit. The tax credit has broad bipartisan support, and considering that 81 percent of U.S. wind projects are installed in Republican districts, GOP lawmakers have a good reason to support it. But with Koch Industries [...]/p

International Uproar: American Businessman Dumps Tons of Iron into the Ocean in World's Biggest Geoengineering Experiment | Alternet

International Uproar: American Businessman Dumps Tons of Iron into the Ocean in World's Biggest Geoengineering Experiment | Alternet
"A controversial American businessman dumped around 100 tonnes of iron sulphate into the Pacific Ocean as part of a geoengineering scheme off the west coast of  Canada in July, a Guardian investigation can reveal."

How George W. Bush Is Still Killing Environmental Protection Four Years Later

How George W. Bush Is Still Killing Environmental Protection Four Years Later: George W. Bush is not the president. His last EPA Administrator is warming two seats on corporate boards. Yet the dead hand of the Bush Administration continues to choke environmental protection in its grave: [A] divided three-judge panel threw out rules requiring states to control the air pollution that wafts over their borders into other [...]/p

Over Half of All Wetlands on Earth 'Destroyed' in Last 100 Years | Common Dreams

Over Half of All Wetlands on Earth 'Destroyed' in Last 100 Years | Common Dreams
"Over half of all wetlands in the world have been destroyed in the last 100 years due to residential and industrial development, water waste and over-consumption, and pollution,according to a new report released by the United Nations Environment Program."

Why I'm Standing Up to TransCanada's Keystone XL Pipeline in East Texas | Common Dreams

Why I'm Standing Up to TransCanada's Keystone XL Pipeline in East Texas | Common Dreams
"Make no mistake, we are going through fire. If we just stand there doing nothing, we are going to get burned. But if we accept our ethical responsibility to stand up for each other, and for our life support systems, and if we focus on and work tirelessly for a better future, then that just may be within our reach."

UN Warns of Looming Worldwide Food Crisis in 2013 | Common Dreams

UN Warns of Looming Worldwide Food Crisis in 2013 | Common Dreams
"World grain reserves are so dangerously low that severe weather in the United States or other food-exporting countries could trigger a major hunger crisis next year, the United Nations has warned."

Join the Blockade of the Keystone Pipeline | Common Dreams

Join the Blockade of the Keystone Pipeline | Common Dreams
"The next great battle of the Occupy movement may not take place in city parks and plazas, where the security and surveillance state is blocking protesters from setting up urban encampments. Instead it could arise in the nation’s heartland, where some ranchers, farmers and enraged citizens, often after seeing their land seized by eminent domain and their water supplies placed under mortal threat, have united with Occupiers and activists to oppose the building of the Keystone XL tar sand pipeline."

'Recipe for Disaster': Group Says No Financialization of Nature! | Common Dreams

'Recipe for Disaster': Group Says No Financialization of Nature! | Common Dreams
"The "financialization of nature" is a flawed approach to saving biodiversity, an environmental groups warns as representatives from over 170 countries meet at a United Nations biodiversity conference."

Todd Akin: No ‘Science’ Behind Evolution

Todd Akin: No ‘Science’ Behind Evolution: Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) has had trouble with facts about reproduction. He said in August that women cannot get pregnant from “legitimate rape” because “the female body has ways to shut that whole thing down.” And in 2008, Akin claimed that it is “common practice” for women “who are not actually pregnant” to get abortions. [...]/p

Groups: New England Tar Sands Pipeline Plotted 'Behind Closed Doors' | Common Dreams

Groups: New England Tar Sands Pipeline Plotted 'Behind Closed Doors' | Common Dreams
"A new analysis released today by national and regional environmental groups shows that US oil giant Exxon Mobile and Canada's Suncor hold a majority stake in a pipeline system that local residents along its route fear could soon be used to transport tar sands from western Canada to the New England coast."

Big Coal Wins Latest Battle to Blast Historic Blair Mountain | Common Dreams

Big Coal Wins Latest Battle to Blast Historic Blair Mountain | Common Dreams
"Is nothing sacred to coal companies in Appalachia?"

Supreme Court Upholds $18.2 Billion Judgement Against Chevron For Ecuadoran Pollution | Common Dreams

Supreme Court Upholds $18.2 Billion Judgement Against Chevron For Ecuadoran Pollution | Common Dreams
"The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a $18.2 billion judgement against Chevron Corp., in which the second-largest U.S. oil company was found to have polluted parts ofthe Amazonian jungle for nearly 30 years."

Counting up to green: Assessing the green economy and its implications for growth and equity | Economic Policy Institute

Counting up to green: Assessing the green economy and its implications for growth and equity | Economic Policy Institute
"What is a green job? We tend to think of a green job as one that benefits the environment, but illustrations tend to be limited to fossil fuels vs. renewable energy. In fact, whether to categorize a specific occupation as a green job is not always straightforward: what about bus drivers, or software engineers who help design smart-grid technologies, or commercial construction workers? The economy is made up of more than coal miners and solar panel installers, and many occupations have significant roles to play along the spectrum between the fossil fuel economy and a “clean” economy. Without a definition of what green jobs are it is difficult to count them, much less determine what role green jobs and industries play in the economy today and going forward."

Documenting Votes From ‘The Most Anti-Clean Energy, Do-Nothing, Pro-Pollution Congress In History’

Documenting Votes From ‘The Most Anti-Clean Energy, Do-Nothing, Pro-Pollution Congress In History’: by Luke Morgan A new report released this week breaks down 223 of the 315 votes the House of Representatives has made against clean energy and in favor of the fossil fuel industry over the last two years. The report, released by the Democratic staff of the House Natural Resources Committee, details 127 votes to [...]/p

Only a Revolution in Our Thinking Can Save Us From a Water Crisis | Alternet

Only a Revolution in Our Thinking Can Save Us From a Water Crisis | Alternet
"As we head into the fall nearly half of U.S. states are experiencing extreme or exceptional drought . Lack of rainfall is the easy culprit, but the truth is we don't manage our water resources well enough to deal with times of shortage. Just ask Atlanta, which went nearly bone-dry in 2007 or Las Vegas, which is working on an engineering a pricy $15 billionwater pipeline to supplement its dwindling stocks. We can't blame it all on our flushing frenzy though; power plants and agriculture suck up the vast majority of our water. Not to mention the fact that industry often gets a free pass to pollute, our city managers fail to account for water when green-lighting new development, and we turn the other way when asked to consider the impacts of climate change."

Sick: Government Sprayed Radioactive Chemicals on Poor People in Science Experiment, Study Claims | Alternet

Sick: Government Sprayed Radioactive Chemicals on Poor People in Science Experiment, Study Claims | Alternet
"The U.S. government may have used a densely-populated swath of low-income housing projects in St. Louis as its radioactive chemical testing ground through the 1950s and 1960s, according to a new study."

October 5 News: ‘Once Again We Are Decades Ahead Of Schedule,’ Says Michael Mann About Looming Sea Level Rise

October 5 News: ‘Once Again We Are Decades Ahead Of Schedule,’ Says Michael Mann About Looming Sea Level Rise: One of the world’s foremost climate scientists has warned that vulnerable island states may need to consider evacuating their populations within a decade due to a much faster than anticipated melting of the world’s ice sheets. [Guardian] “We know Arctic sea ice is declining faster than the models predict,” Mann told the Guardian at the [...]/p

If America Only Knew How Much Arsenic Ends Up on the Average Dinner Plate | Alternet

If America Only Knew How Much Arsenic Ends Up on the Average Dinner Plate | Alternet
"The American right wing loves to hate Big Government, but does size matter? Perhaps the problem is not Big Government, but Dumb Government, Inefficient Government or even Corrupt, Sold-Out, or Inept Government. The recent bombshell Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports , dropped – that rice contains dangerous levels of arsenic – illustrates how good, effective government can save lives by keeping deadly toxins out of the food supply whereas our federal bureaucracy (aided, abetted and cajoled by industry) has instead let us down."

California Gasoline Crisis Shows Desirability of Hybrid, Electric Cars | Common Dreams

California Gasoline Crisis Shows Desirability of Hybrid, Electric Cars | Common Dreams
"The Big Oil lobby is always talking about how unreliable wind and solar energy are. They say the wind doesn’t blow all the time, and the sun doesn’t shine at night. But actually, there are ways, such as hydropumps, to store renewable energy for use later. And increasingly sophisticated computer programs are getting good at being able to feed more wind energy into the grid when that source is strong, and switching to other sources when there is a lull."

Climate Deniers and Skeptics Get Taken Seriously in American Newspapers... Not So Much by the Rest of the World | Alternet

Climate Deniers and Skeptics Get Taken Seriously in American Newspapers... Not So Much by the Rest of the World | Alternet
"America is unique when it comes to giving a platform to climate deniers and skeptics."

American Newspapers Give Far More Coverage To Climate Deniers And Skeptics Than Other Countries

American Newspapers Give Far More Coverage To Climate Deniers And Skeptics Than Other Countries: America is unique when it comes to giving a platform to climate deniers and skeptics. According to a new analysis of data released last year, American newspapers are far more likely to publish uncontested claims from climate deniers, many of whom challenge whether the planet is warming at all and are “almost exclusively found” in [...]/p

Arctic Ice Melt is 'Decades Ahead' of Previous Models | Common Dreams

Arctic Ice Melt is 'Decades Ahead' of Previous Models | Common Dreams
"Arctic sea ice is "declining faster than the models predict," Mann, who is the director of Pennsylvania State University's Earth System Science Center, told the Guardian this week."

New Findings on Methane Highlight Urgency of Climate Action | Common Dreams

New Findings on Methane Highlight Urgency of Climate Action | Common Dreams
"Emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane began well before the Industrial Age, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature, raising questions over the benchmark used to calculate global warming and adding urgency to addressing climate change."

Superweeds Lead To Heavier Pesticide Use On Crops

Superweeds Lead To Heavier Pesticide Use On Crops: When Congress finally gets around to passing the Farm Bill after the election, they are likely to overlook a small provision tucked into the House version, which would eliminate all substantive regulation of genetically modified foods. A new study published in Environmental Sciences Europe adds to the mounting evidence that GMOs need more, not less, [...]/p

Sh*tstorm: Arizona's Bizarre New Use for Human Waste | Alternet

Sh*tstorm: Arizona's Bizarre New Use for Human Waste | Alternet
"This year, the Arizona ski resort, located near Flagstaff, will become the first ever to charge humans to glide about in their own waste: 100% pure sewage effluent. How’d you like to face-plant in that?"

Studies Confirm Climate Change Causes Further Destruction to Marine Life | Common Dreams

Studies Confirm Climate Change Causes Further Destruction to Marine Life | Common Dreams
"Two recent studies contribute damning evidence that climate change is contributing to the decline of marine life around the world."

'Intimidation, Threats, and Lawyers': The Great American Gas Fracking 'Land Grab' | Common Dreams

'Intimidation, Threats, and Lawyers': The Great American Gas Fracking 'Land Grab' | Common Dreams
"Introducing a couple from Texas who, despite their objection, had the natural gas sucked out from beneath their property by the Chesapeake Energy Corporation without paying a dime in compesation, an investigative report by Reuters recounts how the gas giant has embarked on an aggressive nationwide "landgrab" with a series of legal maneuvers and industrial fracking equipment in tow."

Barry Commoner: The Greatest Environmentalist of the 20th Century | Common Dreams

Barry Commoner: The Greatest Environmentalist of the 20th Century | Common Dreams
"Barry Commoner (1917-2012) had a deep influence on Greenpeace back in the 1980s and 1990s, and was often way ahead of us on particular fronts."

5 Strange Diseases Making a Comeback Thanks to Humanity's Stupidity | Alternet

5 Strange Diseases Making a Comeback Thanks to Humanity's Stupidity | Alternet
"In 2012, none of America's top killers are contagious. You don't get cancer, diabetes, or heart disease at the swimming pool or just because someone sneezed on you. But a hundred years ago, you probably  died from something you caught . While hygiene and modern medicine have thankfully eliminated the deadliest of those bugs, there's still plenty of parasites, bacteria, and viruses hoping to reproduce in the warm, cozy environment of your body. Like it or not, we and these microbes are intimately intertwined.

Climate change is expanding the geographic reach of some diseases, possibly including  hantavirus, brain eating amoebas , and at least  seven others ."

$34.4 Million Can’t Seem To Buy Prop 37 Opponents Their Own Facts | Common Dreams

$34.4 Million Can’t Seem To Buy Prop 37 Opponents Their Own Facts | Common Dreams
"Apparently $34.4 million in pesticide and junk food money can’t buy the opponents of Proposition 37 their own set of facts."