‘FrackNation’ The Infomercial: Koch Industries Ties That Bind

‘FrackNation’ The Infomercial: Koch Industries Ties That Bind: The fracking industry really doesn’t want you to see “Gasland 2.” The industry has brought in anti-science film-maker Phelim McAleer to produce an industry informercial, “FrackNation.” McAleer has a long track record of trying to disrupt and disinform. Here’s Part 2 of DeSmogBlog’s exposé of this oil and gas industry PR campaign — JR. By [...]/p

Major Loss to Organic Farmers as Court Rules in Favor of Monsanto | Common Dreams

Major Loss to Organic Farmers as Court Rules in Favor of Monsanto | Common Dreams
"In a major blow to organic farmers and food sovereignty advocates, the US Court of Appeals Monday has thrown out a lawsuit against Ag Giant Monsanto meant to protect organic growers against accusations of patent infringement by the "world's most famous patent bully"."

Maine Tries To Increase Energy Efficiency, Gov. LePage Threatens Veto

Maine Tries To Increase Energy Efficiency, Gov. LePage Threatens Veto: Maine is trying to lower energy costs and increase energy efficiency. Sadly, its Governor may veto legislation that would do this at the expense of Maine’s ratepayers and emerging renewable energy industry. A bipartisan omnibus energy bill is making its way through the Maine state legislature. The compromised package, L.D. 1559, passed the Senate on [...]/p

June 7 News: Texas Oilfield Town Slammed By Drought Runs Out Of Water

June 7 News: Texas Oilfield Town Slammed By Drought Runs Out Of Water: A small town in West Texas suffering drought and increased water demands from oil and gas drilling has run out of water, and the residents are “pretty P.O.’d.” [Texas Tribune] Barnhart, a small community in West Texas, has run out of water. John Nanny, an Irion County commissioner and an official with Barnhart’s water supply [...]/p

Win!: California's San Onofre Nuclear Plant to Close Permanently | Common Dreams

Win!: California's San Onofre Nuclear Plant to Close Permanently | Common Dreams
"In a victory for anti-nuclear activists, the trouble-stricken San Onofre nuclear plant is set to close permanently."

Killer Heat Waves Are An Even Bigger Public Health Threat Than We Realize, CDC Warns

Killer Heat Waves Are An Even Bigger Public Health Threat Than We Realize, CDC Warns: Public health officials have been underestimating the number of deaths resulting from heat waves, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said on Thursday. The problem is more serious than federal officials realized largely because heat deaths tend to disproportionately affect non-residents, who weren’t included in the CDC’s previous data. Non-residents include undocumented immigrants, tourists, and [...]/p

Scientists Find Holes in Monsanto GM Wheat Denial | Common Dreams

Scientists Find Holes in Monsanto GM Wheat Denial | Common Dreams
"However, researchers this week said that Monsanto's tests are misleading and that the genetically modified gene, not yet approved for use in the U.S., will likely continue to be found in wheat seeds."

The World’s Biggest Coal Company Is Turning To Solar Energy To Lower Its Utility Bill

The World’s Biggest Coal Company Is Turning To Solar Energy To Lower Its Utility Bill: The largest coal company in the world, Coal India, is aiming to cut its own utility bills by installing solar photovoltaic panels at its facilities across the country. The coal giant is seeking proposals from solar energy companies to build a modular 2 megawatt solar plant on 9 acres of its own land. This plant [...]/p

Hotter Planet Creating 'Extraordinary' Wild Fires says Head of US Forest Service | Common Dreams

Hotter Planet Creating 'Extraordinary' Wild Fires says Head of US Forest Service | Common Dreams
"Climate change is worsening wildfires, lengthening the wildfire season and increasing their size, the head of the nation's forest service warned Congress on Tuesday."

Fukushima Springs New Leak, Belies TEPCO Claims | Common Dreams

Fukushima Springs New Leak, Belies TEPCO Claims | Common Dreams
"Another leak of radioactive water has been detected at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant according to the plant operator.  The announcement of this newest leak comes after a slew of similar incidents delayed the plant's request to release groundwater into the sea."

For First Time, US to Lease Offshore Wind Blocks | Common Dreams

For First Time, US to Lease Offshore Wind Blocks | Common Dreams
"The U.S. government announced Tuesday that it would be going forward with long-discussed plans to auction federal leases off the Atlantic Ocean coast for the development of offshore wind energy."

Will Ohio Be Fracking's Radioactive Dumping Ground?

Will Ohio Be Fracking's Radioactive Dumping Ground?
"Drillers now want to dump potentially radioactive waste mud, drill cuttings and frack sand from fracking operations in municipal landfills in the state"

Victory: Connecticut Becomes First State to Require GMO Labeling | Common Dreams

Victory: Connecticut Becomes First State to Require GMO Labeling | Common Dreams
"The gmo labeling bill overwhelminglypassed in the House in a 134 - 3 vote on Monday."

Exposed: "FrackNation" Deploys Tobacco Playbook in Response to "Gasland 2" | Common Dreams

Exposed: "FrackNation" Deploys Tobacco Playbook in Response to "Gasland 2" | Common Dreams
"Big Oil has deployed the "Tobacco Playbook" once again, this time in response to the release of "Gasland 2"."

How Tesla Is Addressing Range Anxiety And Sticker Shock And Global Warming

How Tesla Is Addressing Range Anxiety And Sticker Shock And Global Warming: Tesla Motors and Elon Musk have been in the news a lot lately, receiving coverage of their recent successes — Climate Progress certainly included. Musk took a serious gamble to start an American electric car company, kept it going with help from almost half a billion in Energy Department loans, and has seen Tesla rise [...]/p

Protests Force Monsanto to Abandon GMO Expansion in Europe

Protests Force Monsanto to Abandon GMO Expansion in Europe
"Confronted with ongoing protests and opposition from farmers, Monsanto is abandoning efforts to get approval for new GMO seeds in the European Union. "

Wall Street Journal Editorial Board Member Rages Against ‘Totalitarian’ Bike Shares

Wall Street Journal Editorial Board Member Rages Against ‘Totalitarian’ Bike Shares: In a bizarre video posted to the Wall Street Journal‘s website, the venerable paper’s editorial board member Dorothy Rabinowitz railed against New York City’s plan to create a public for-pay biking infrastructure, ominously warning that “the bike lobby is an all powerful enterprise.” After the host of the video segment asked Rabinowitz why New York [...]/p

Car Maker Tesla Repays Federal Startup Loan - 9 Years Early

Car Maker Tesla Repays Federal Startup Loan - 9 Years Early
"The electric car company whose name Republicans used as synonymous with government waste just repaid its government startup loan in full nine years ahead of schedule. Oh dear, what will Paul Ryan whine about now?"

What TransCanada’s CEO Is Not Saying About The Keystone Tar Sands Pipeline

What TransCanada’s CEO Is Not Saying About The Keystone Tar Sands Pipeline: TransCanada has lobbied the U.S. government to approve the Keystone XL pipeline, hoping to transport the heavy, bitumen-laden tar sands crude oil to coastal refineries in Texas. The coproration’s Chief Executive Officer Russ Girling said in an interview scheduled to air this weekend on Bloomberg Television that rejecting the pipeline would increase greenhouse gas emissions. [...]/p

Combining Electric Cars With Smart Grid Technology Can Cut Charging Costs In Half

Combining Electric Cars With Smart Grid Technology Can Cut Charging Costs In Half: Electric cars are one of the key pieces of the renewable energy economy of the future, but they do come with a few challenges: charging them currently takes a while (30 minutes to a few hours), charging can add considerably to a home’s overall electricity use, and — when scaled up to thousands or millions [...]/p

First County In The U.S. Bans Fracking To Save Its Water

First County In The U.S. Bans Fracking To Save Its Water: As oil and gas executives look to New Mexico as the next major area to develop natural gas, one county is taking preventative measures to protect its water. The Los Angeles Times reported this week that Mora County in New Mexico became the first county in the U.S. to ban oil drilling and the controversial [...]/p

Ecocide and the Soul of a Nation

www.consortiumnews.com/2013/05/31/ecocide-and-the-soul-of-a-nation/
"At the front of the political madness enveloping the United States are anti-government, anti-science extremists who reject evidence of global warming and block any response to this existential threat. But the disconnect between environmental destruction and today’s humanity goes deeper"

Chinese Meat Firm With Terrible Food Safety Record Buys The Largest Pork Producer In The U.S.

Chinese Meat Firm With Terrible Food Safety Record Buys The Largest Pork Producer In The U.S.: Two global meat giants with shady food safety histories are planning to merge in hopes of becoming the most powerful meat producer in the world. Smithfield Foods, the largest pork producer in the U.S., has been bought by China’s Shuanghui International Holdings Limited for $4.7 billion. If deal is cleared by Smithfield shareholders and the [...]/p

Monsanto's 'Genetic Pollution' Threatens US Wheat Industry | Common Dreams

Monsanto's 'Genetic Pollution' Threatens US Wheat Industry | Common Dreams
"The U.S. wheat industry is reaping the swift global repercussions of the genetic pollutioncaused by Monsanto's rogue glyphosate-resistant wheat on an Oregon farm."

How Tesla's Success Is Rewriting The Future For Electric Cars

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Google Will Post Detailed Nutritional Information For More Than 1,000 Foods Starting Today

Google Will Post Detailed Nutritional Information For More Than 1,000 Foods Starting Today: Wondering how much that fat is in that burrito? Google wants to make it a little easier to find out. The search giant announced that beginning Thursday, consumers will have easier access to “extensive nutrition information” for more than 1,000 common foods. The list includes basics such as meats and vegetables, and even not-so-basics like [...]/p

Meet America's First Climate Refugees

www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/05/americas-first-climate-refugees-newtok-alaska
"If Newtok can not move its people to the new site in time, the village will disappear. A community of 350 people, nearly all related to some degree and all intimately connected to the land, will cease to exist, its inhabitants scattered to the villages and towns of western Alaska, Anchorage, and beyond.

It's a choice confronting more than 180 native communities in Alaska, which are flooding and losing land because of the ice melt that is part of the changing climate."

The Danger in Our Water Supply

The Danger in Our Water Supply
"A dairy farm with 2,500 cows produces as much waste as Miami. FairWarning investigates how that puts our water supply in danger."

NPR Airs Story On Melting Glaciers Without Explaining Why They Are Melting

NPR Airs Story On Melting Glaciers Without Explaining Why They Are Melting: NPR aired a story Wednesday about a “plant in the Canadian Arctic that started growing again after being buried under a glacier for 400 years.” NPR explains why the research team led by Catherine La Farge found this ancient bryophite at all: She and her colleagues had been looking at what the Teardrop Glacier was leaving behind [...]/p

Illegal Monsanto Wheat Contamination Found On Oregon Farm

Illegal Monsanto Wheat Contamination Found On Oregon Farm: Genetically modified wheat that was never approved for sale has inexplicably turned up in a field in Oregon. A farmer found the crop when it survived a dousing of Roundup weedkiller. When he took it to a lab to be tested, the wheat was revealed to be an illegal strain, genetically modified to resist pesticides [...]/p

Hundreds Protest Genetically Engineered Eucalyptus Trees in North Carolina

Hundreds Protest Genetically Engineered Eucalyptus Trees in North Carolina
"Protests are raging outside of a biotechnology conference in Asheville, North Carolina, where demonstrators are voicing opposition to proposals to grow genetically engineered eucalyptus trees across the southeastern United States."

Exxon CEO: ‘What Good Is It To Save The Planet If Humanity Suffers?’

Exxon CEO: ‘What Good Is It To Save The Planet If Humanity Suffers?’: At Wednesday’s meeting for ExxonMobil shareholders in Dallas, CEO Rex Tillerson told those assembled that an economy that runs on oil is here to stay, and cutting carbon emissions would do no good. He asked, “What good is it to save the planet if humanity suffers?” One good would be that humanity has a habitable [...]/p

Coal 101: What's Wrong with Coal?

May 30 News: Mt. Everest Glaciers Retreated Uphill 580 Feet

May 30 News: Mt. Everest Glaciers Retreated Uphill 580 Feet: Mt. Everest’s glaciers have retreated uphil nearly 580 feet, which is something you can see online courtesy of Microsoft and the nonprofit GlacierWorks. [Capital Weather Gang, EarthTechling] A recent study led by a graduate student at the University of Milan in Italy reveals declining snow amounts and retreating glaciers in the Mount Everest region, reaffirming [...]/p

Top US Brand of Children's Vitamins Contains Aspartame, GMOs, & Other Hazardous Chemicals

Top US Brand of Children's Vitamins Contains Aspartame, GMOs, & Other Hazardous Chemicals
"Kids vitamins are supposed to be healthy, right? Well then, what's going on with Flintstones Vitamins, which proudly claims to be "Pediatricians' #1 Choice"?  Produced by the global pharmaceutical corporation Bayer, this wildly success brand features a shocking list of unhealthy ingredients"

How To Find Out Where Your Food Comes From Without Waiting For GMO Labeling Laws

How To Find Out Where Your Food Comes From Without Waiting For GMO Labeling Laws: Over the weekend, protesters marched in 436 cities in 52 countries to protest the biotech giant Monsanto Company’s tightening grip on the global seed market. As hundreds of thousands of people rallied against a range of issues, including Monsanto’s treatment of farmers, the much-publicized Monsanto Protection Act, and the ubiquity of genetically modified ingredients, one [...]/p

Why We Should Be Very Worried About the Arctic Oil Rush | Alternet

Why We Should Be Very Worried About the Arctic Oil Rush | Alternet
"Big oil companies like Shell have a proven record of negligence and a legacy of pollution in Alaska."

Shell Admits Real Reason Coast Guard Had To Rescue Its Arctic Drilling Rig: Failed Tax Avoidance Scheme

Shell Admits Real Reason Coast Guard Had To Rescue Its Arctic Drilling Rig: Failed Tax Avoidance Scheme: The main reason an offshore oil rig ran aground off the coast of Alaska late last year was because oil company Royal Dutch Shell was trying to depart state waters to avoid paying millions in taxes. Sean Churchfield, operations manager for Royal Dutch Shell in Alaska, testified to the Coast Guard over the weekend that [...]/p

Christie Embraces Climate Denialism

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Shell Admits Tax Avoidance Played Role In Rig Accident

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Think Fracking Is Bad? Wait Until You Hear About 'Acid Jobs' | Common Dreams

Think Fracking Is Bad? Wait Until You Hear About 'Acid Jobs' | Common Dreams
"'Acid jobs,' a highly toxic method of fossil fuel extraction, have gone vastly unregulated by lawmakers, particularly in California where the method is commonly used.

An 'acid job' is a process whereby companies pump chemicals such as hydrofluoric acid into an already built gas and oil well to "melt rocks" and objects that are obstructing oil flow."

March Against Monsanto Over 2M Strong. Blackwater Ops Watching?

March Against Monsanto Over 2M Strong. Blackwater Ops Watching?
"Most corn, soybean and cotton crops grown in the United States today have been genetically modified. But critics say genetically modified organisms can lead to serious health conditions and harm the environment."

U.S. Groundwater Consumption Accelerating | Alternet

U.S. Groundwater Consumption Accelerating | Alternet
"Aquifers across the United States are being drawn down at an increasing pace, finds a new study released today by the U.S. Geological Survey."

DC Protest Denounces "Monsanto Protection Act"

Global Voices Reject Genetically Modified Seed Giant in March Against Monsanto | Common Dreams

Global Voices Reject Genetically Modified Seed Giant in March Against Monsanto | Common Dreams
"People are hitting the streets in hundreds of cities on Saturday in a global March Against Monsanto to reject the genetically modified seed giant."

Offshore Drilling In Virginia Would Threaten Coastal Economy, Environment, And Naval Operations

Offshore Drilling In Virginia Would Threaten Coastal Economy, Environment, And Naval Operations: Yesterday Terry McAuliffe, Virginia’s Democratic gubernatorial candidate, revealed newfound support for oil and gas exploration off the Commonwealth’s coast. The Washington Post reported that he now backs legislation sponsored by Virginia’s Democratic U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine that would open offshore areas to oil and gas exploration. Offshore oil drilling is viewed by [...]/p

Evacuation Ordered as Melting Ice Cracks Beneath Arctic Research Station | Common Dreams

Evacuation Ordered as Melting Ice Cracks Beneath Arctic Research Station | Common Dreams
"A Russian Arctic research station has been forced to evacuate following the discovery that the ice was melting beneath it."

How The Electric Car Saves Human Lives

Tesla Motors Pays Back Energy Department Loan 9 Years Early

Tesla Motors Pays Back Energy Department Loan 9 Years Early: Electric automaker Tesla Motors just announced that it has paid back the nearly half a billion dollars the Department of Energy lent it in 2010. According to a company press release, today’s wire transfer of $451.8 million dollars follows two other payments in the last year and a half. U.S. taxpayers could see a $12 [...]/p

Radioactive Cesium Recorded at 10 Spots in Pacific Ocean | Common Dreams

Radioactive Cesium Recorded at 10 Spots in Pacific Ocean | Common Dreams
"Radioactive cesium from the Fukushima plant was found at 10 points in the Pacific Ocean, including a location as far as 1300 miles from the plant, less than a year after Fukushima nuclear disaster began, scientists revealed on Tuesday."

Global Protest in 300 Cities Will Take Aim on Monsanto

Poll Finds Strong Support For Clean Energy, 68% Of Independents Want To Regulate CO2 As A Pollutant

Poll Finds Strong Support For Clean Energy, 68% Of Independents Want To Regulate CO2 As A Pollutant: The Yale Project on Climate Change Communication and George Mason University released their most recent survey this week: The Yale survey, “Public Support for Climate and Energy Policies in April 2013,” dates back to 2008 and is an important barometer for public opinion on clean energy and climate issues. In general, the year’s survey finds [...]/p

Why Champions Of Climate Legislation Must Also Be Champions Of Job Creation

Why Champions Of Climate Legislation Must Also Be Champions Of Job Creation: It’s probably fair, if crude, to talk about national societies as having “moods,” or going through particular psychological states — especially in economic depressions, when they become more fearful and less willing to take risks. The United States has spent the last few years mired in the worst economic slump since the Great Depression, and [...]/p

5 Most Horrifying Things About Monsanto -- Why You Should Join the Global Movement and Protest on Saturday | Alternet

5 Most Horrifying Things About Monsanto -- Why You Should Join the Global Movement and Protest on Saturday | Alternet
"What started as one mother’s call to action on a Facebook page has become a movement with more than 400 demonstrations scheduled in 50 countries and 250 cities around the globe. The events are organized online via an  open Google Document, where people can find the protest nearest them. The March Against Monsanto Facebook page has received more than 105,000 “likes.” It has reached more than 10,000,000 people in the last week according to its website, which averages over 40,000 visitors per day."

The Biggest Criminal Enterprise in History | Common Dreams

The Biggest Criminal Enterprise in History | Common Dreams
"In the case of the terrarists -- and here I’m referring in particular to the men who run what may be the most profitable corporations on the planet, giant energy companies like ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, BP, and Shell -- you’re the one who’s going to pay, especially your children and grandchildren. You can take one thing for granted: not a single terrarist will ever go to jail, and yet they certainly knew what they were doing."

Former NY Army Corps Commander On Post-Sandy Reality: ‘Climate Change Is Real,’ ‘We’ve Got To Stop Ignoring It’

Former NY Army Corps Commander On Post-Sandy Reality: ‘Climate Change Is Real,’ ‘We’ve Got To Stop Ignoring It’: At a May 16 televised forum on the recovery from Superstorm Sandy, a former top military infrastructure official called on Americans to “stop ignoring” climate change and “realize it’s the new reality.” At the Sandy town hall organized by public television stations NJTV and WNET, John Boulé, the former commander of the New York District, [...]/p

Study: Alarming Loss of Amphibian Populations Across US | Common Dreams

Study: Alarming Loss of Amphibian Populations Across US | Common Dreams
"In their study, Trends in Amphibian Occupancy in the United States in the journal PLOS ONE, the team of scientists looked at looked at 34 sites and 48 species to see how fast clusters of amphibians disappeared from ponds, lakes and other amphibian habitats from 2002 - 2011.
What they found, said Brian Gratwicke, an amphibian conservation biologist with the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, "is very bad news for amphibians"."