President Obama's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced it will reconsider the midnight memo issued by former EPA Administrator Steven Johnson which sought to prohibit controls on global warming pollution from coal-fired power plants.
The decision should halt virtually all new coal plant development until EPA decides how to address global warming pollution from coal plants.
On Friday, a panel of federal judges ruled in favor of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in a controversial mountaintop removal mining case. The ruling would permit mining companies to conduct devastating mountaintop removal coal mining operations without acting to minimize stream destruction or conducting adequate environmental reviews.
As a result, Appalachia could be facing as many as 150 new mountaintop removal coal mining operations, 90 in West Virginia alone, which would destroy huge swaths of the Appalachian Mountains.
"Either Congress or the Obama administration need to reinstate the Stream Buffer Zone rule and to pass the Clean Water Protection Act," said Tierra Curry, conservation biologist with the Center for Biological Diversity. "But better yet, mountaintop removal should be prohibited and the burning of coal immediately phased out to save the planet from dangerous climate change."
Since mountaintop removal coal mining began in 1970, an estimated 1.5 million acres of hardwood forest have been lost, over 470 mountaintops have been blasted, and 1,200 miles of Appalachian streams have been buried.
Coal can be mined in a cleaner fashion and in a more limited fashion. A panel should be put together to make sure this happens and that the regulations are not violated in any way.
Give the gift that gives twice! Sponsoring a wild place not only provides a unique and meaningful gift for your special Valentine, but gives you the satisfaction of knowing you are helping preserve America's wild legacy.
Give a Sponsorship of the special wild place of your choice for as little as $25 - and get free shipping to any U.S. location.
Sponsor the Arctic Refuge! Your sponsorship gift includes:
- Plush puppet and/or rucksack - Personalized Certificate of Sponsorship - Beautiful 5x7 full color photograph - A colorful Fact Sheet with fun details about your wild place and its wildlife - Free shipping to any U.S. location!
For over 100 years, the Sierra Club has been instrumental in protecting our most cherished wild places. From the creation of Yosemite National Park at the urging of John Muir, to the battle to protect the Giant Sequoias, the Sierra Club has been the leading environmental organization in ensuring that these natural treasures are protected for generations to come. But these places still need our help.
What better way to show your environmentally-conscious sweetie you care than to sponsor a wild place in their name. Order by midnight, February 2nd, for delivery in time for Valentine's Day!
The main solvent used in dry-cleaning, perchloroethylene (or perc), is a likely carcinogen that also contaminates our soil and water. Opt for greener alternatives like wet cleaning (a kind of high-tech version of hand-washing) and liquid-CO2 dry cleaning. Or just avoid clothes that require dry cleaning in the first place.
Also, on Saturday, August 18th is the beginning of the SolFest. SolFest is the world's premier two-day celebration of renewable energy and sustainable living. They have a pretty cool poster you can download to advertise the event.
Sierra Club rules and one of the many reasons why is because they will e-mail you daily with tips on living green. Who can turn down daily e-mails with ideas for living well and doing good? Certainly not me.
Here are the two most recent tips.
1. If it's time to buy a new clothes washer, consider a front-loading machine. They use one-third to one-half the water and less soap than top-loaders, and they're gentler on clothes too.
2. Food travels an average of 1,500 to 2,000 miles to reach our plates -- but not if you buy it from one of the more than 1,200 small U.S. farms that offer fresh produce "subscriptions." Find one near you at foodroutes.org.
