Top 10 Greenest Cars

Here is Kelly Blue Book's Green Car List - topped by the Nissan Leaf and Tesla Model S

(It isn't hard to tell which car is which.) 

And then there is the American Council for an Energy Efficient Econony's Green Car List - topped by the Prius and Honda Fit. (Can you guess which one is which without looking at the logos?)

Net zero commitment by 2030

The American Institute of Architects is challenging its members to join the 2030 commitment to design all new buildings and renovations to net zero energy standards by 2030!

They propose a 70% reduction in fossil fuel use for all new buildings by 2015 and a 100% reduction by 2030.

Now that is a real stretch energy code! Very inspiring. 

http://www.aia.org/about/initiatives/AIAB081490

EPA criticizes State Department's report on Keystone XL

The Environmental Protection Agency sharply criticized the State Department's impact statement for the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, saying the report failed to adequately consider the climate change impacts of building the pipeline or to realistically assess alternative pipeline routes or modes of transport.

Cynthia Giles, a top E.P.A. official said in a letter to State Department officials that the department's latest environmental statement for the 1,700-mile pipeline provided "insufficient information" to adequately judge the project, and that the E.P.A. could not sign off on the pipeline unless more complete studies were performed. [NY Times]

Pipeline Safety in question after two spills in two weeks

Tar sands oil in a ditch in Mayflower, Ark., after an Exxon Mobil pipeline ruptured, forcing the evacuation of 22 homes.

Two recent oil pipeline spills have prompted new criticism from opponents of the proposed Keystone XL project, while raising more questions about whether the federal government is adequately monitoring the nation's vast labyrinth of pipelines.

An ExxonMobil pipeline ruptured March 29th, spilling more than 10,000 barrels of tar sands crude in an Arkansas town. On Tuesday April 2nd, vacuum trucks and crews were still working to clean up the accident, which the Environmental Protection Agency called a "major spill." 

The spill appears to be the largest accident involving heavy crude since an Enbridge Energy pipeline spill in 2010 that dumped more than 840,000 gallons near Marshall, Mich., soiling a 39-mile stretch of the Kalamazoo River.

The safety records of both the Exxon and Chevron pipelines have been under scrutiny in recent years. Last week, the pipeline agency proposed imposing a $1.7 million fine on Exxon Mobil over a 2011 spill that dumped an estimated 63,000 gallons of oil in the Yellowstone River in Montana.

The Arkansas spill followed an accident in Utah on March 18 in which a Chevron pipeline leaked more than 25,000 gallons in a wetlands area about 50 miles from Salt Lake City. The Chevron spill was the third in three years in Utah, prompting Gov. Gary R. Herbert to sharply criticize the pipeline agency at a recent news conference. "Obviously, they have not done a very good job of overseeing the pipes that travel between our states," he said. [NY Times]

We cannot risk our future on the false hope that the vast majority of scientists are wrong

Nike, Starbucks, Intel and 3 dozen other companies have declared... 

What made America great was taking a stand. Doing the things that are hard. And seizing opportunities. The very foundation of our country is based on fighting for our freedoms and ensuring the health and prosperity of our state, our community, and our families. Today those things are threatened by a changing climate that most scientists agree is being caused by air pollution.

We cannot risk our kids' futures on the false hope that the vast majority of scientists are wrong. But just as America rose to the great challenges of the past and came out stronger than ever, we have to confront this challenge, and we have to win. And in doing this right, by saving money when we use less electricity, by saving money to drive a more efficient car, by choosing clean energy, by inventing new technologies that other countries buy, and creating jobs here at home, we will maintain our way of life and remain a true superpower in a competitive world.

In order to make this happen, however, there must be a coordinated effort to combat climate change–with America taking the lead here at home. Leading is what we've always done. And by working together, regardless of politics, we'll do it again.

The signatories of the Climate Declaration are calling for Congress to address climate change by promoting clean energy, boosting efficiency and limiting carbon emissions – strategies that these businesses already employ within their own operations.

Why Keystone XL Matters

Enbridge tar sands spill in Michigan

From our friends at Massachusetts Interfaith Power and Light

Why Keystone Matters

"Game over" on Climate Change

If built, the Keystone XL pipeline would stretch 1,980 miles, from Hardisty, Alberta to Nederland, Texas. Climate scientist Jim Hansen has said that if the Canadian Oil Sands are tapped, it's "essentially game over" for any hope of achieving a stable climate. CO2 emissions from carbon intensive Keystone XL tar sands oil at the rate of 830,000 barrels a day, would be the annual equivalent of seven coal-fired power plants operating continuously or having 6.2 million more cars on the road for 50 years, according to EPA calculations. Another way to look at it is that the reductions in CO2 resulting from President Obama's pact with auto companies to raise fuel efficiency standards would be neutralized by emissions from the oil in this pipeline.

Unacceptable Safety and Public Health Risks

At full capacity, Keystone XL could carry up to 900,000 barrels per day of toxic tar sands oil across 6 states: Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. The route goes through the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region of Nebraska, a decision opposed by Nebraska's governor, its two senators and even by some supporters of the pipeline.

Strong evidence indicates tar sands oil threatens pipeline integrity. Current pipeline regulations were issued long before tar sands oil production ramped up and don't cover the unique aspects of tar sands. Tar sands oil poses more acute risks than conventional fuels because the oil is a volatile mix of raw bitumen diluted with gas condensates. This mix, called "dilbit" is a, corrosive, toxic, viscous substance with the consistency of gritty peanut butter that is moved at much higher pressures and temperatures than conventional oil. Tar sands oil contains, on average, 11 times more sulfur, 11 times more nickel, 6 times more nitrogen, and 5 times more lead than conventional oil. The metals found in tar sands are neurotoxic.

Enbridge, the proponent of the pipeline had a major leak in Michigan in 2010 which leaked 19,500 barrels of dilbit – including spillage into the Kalamazoo river. At $1 billion, that cleanup is the most expensive for an onshore spill in US history. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that Enbridge ignored pipeline cracks for years and did not detect the rupture for more than 17 hours.  In March, an Exxon pipeline carrying heavy Canadian crude breached in Arkansas spilling a yet-to-be-determined amount of crude into a residential neighborhood and almost entering a recreational lake.

In Whose National Interest?

In a recent blog post, the Mass. Climate Action Network persuasively argues that Keystone XL does not benefit the United States. Among the reasons:

• Nationally Keystone XL will have a de minimus impact on gasoline prices and could actually increase prices in the American Midwest.
• Much, if not most, of this oil will end up in the East Asian and European markets;
• The job benefits of the pipeline are vastly overstated and will result in mostly temporary employment.

MCAN concludes, "It isn't the United States' responsibility to ensure dirty Canadian oil can reach international markets . . . Keystone XL, which will spill, which will be an economic wash for the United States, and which will further the possibility of irreversible and damaging climate change, is not in our national interest."

To learn more about Keystone go to: http://www.usclimatenetwork.org/resource-database/keystone-xl-by-the-numbers-fact-sheet.

US and China admit to 'inadequate' climate action

The US and China have announced plans to accelerate joint efforts to tackle climate change, warning that the "inadequacy of the global response requires a more focused and urgent initiative".

The two countries issued a joint statement at the end of Secretary of State John Kerry's visit to Beijing over the weekend, featuring some of the strongest wording on the need for action on climate change to emanate from either government.

"Both sides consider that the overwhelming scientific consensus regarding climate change constitutes a compelling call to action crucial to having a global impact on climate change," the statement read, adding that they recognise the threat presented by "the sharp rise in global average temperatures over the past century, the alarming acidification of our oceans, the rapid loss of Arctic sea ice, and the striking incidence of extreme weather events occurring all over the world".

"Both sides recognize that, given the latest scientific understanding of accelerating climate change and the urgent need to intensify global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, forceful, nationally appropriate action by the United States and China - including large-scale cooperative action - is more critical than ever," it added. "Such action is crucial both to contain climate change and to set the kind of powerful example that can inspire the world." [Business Green]

Arctic Death Spiral - Ice Free in less than 10 years

Many experts now say that if recent volume trends continue we will see a "near ice-free Arctic in summer" within a decade. 

And that may well usher in a permanent change toward extreme, prolonged weather events "such as drought, flooding, cold spells and heat waves."

If you think pipelines and tar sands are safe, consider this...

Exxon Pegasus Pipeline - Mayflower, Arkansas - Tar Sands Oil Spill - Source Area

Consider that we've recently had 9 pipeline leaks, explosions, tar sands spills or accidents  (including Canada) 

1) ExxonMobil's Pegasus Pipeline in Mayflower, Arkansas 

2) Enbridge's Norman Wells Pipeline in the Northwest Territories 

3) Suncor, Alberta Tar Sands leaking into the Athabasca River

4) Lansing Board of Water & Light in the Lansing Grand River in Michigan 

5) Canadian Pacific Rail train derailment in western Minnesota 

6) Canadian Pacific Rail train derailment in northwestern Ontario 

7) DCP Midstream natural gas compressor explosion in Guthrie Oklahoma 

8) S and S Energy in Damascus Ohio, oil tanker and gas well explosion 

9) Shell Pipeline in West Texas.

The Pegasus pipeline spilled over 10,000 gallons of tar sands oil and forced the evacuation of an entire suburban neighborhood. [EPA photos gallery]

Exxon is now controlling the airspace over the spill and has threatened reporters with arrest for criminal trespass for going to the command center to speak with EPA officials who are coordinating the spill clean up. 

Do we really want to allow a foreign corporation to build the Keystone XL pipeline that would be ten times larger than the Pegasus pipeline? 

Here is a quick and easy way you can submit your thoughts to the State Department (via 350.org). Secretary of State John Kerry will be making the decision to approve or reject the Keystone XL pipeline in the near future. 

Here is another view on the safety of pipelines from the NY Times. 

Two recent oil pipeline spills have prompted new criticism from opponents of the proposed Keystone XL project, while raising more questions about whether the federal government is adequately monitoring the nation's vast labyrinth of pipelines.

An ExxonMobil pipeline ruptured March 29th, spilling more than 10,000 barrels of tar sands crude in an Arkansas town. On Tuesday April 2nd, vacuum trucks and crews were still working to clean up the accident, which the Environmental Protection Agency called a "major spill." 

The spill appears to be the largest accident involving heavy crude since an Enbridge Energy pipeline spill in 2010 that dumped more than 840,000 gallons near Marshall, Mich., soiling a 39-mile stretch of the Kalamazoo River.

The pipeline that burst during the Enbridge tar sands oil spill in Michigan - July 2010

The safety records of both the Exxon and Chevron pipelines have been under scrutiny in recent years. Last week, the pipeline agency proposed imposing a $1.7 million fine on Exxon Mobil over a 2011 spill that dumped an estimated 63,000 gallons of oil in the Yellowstone River in Montana.

The Arkansas spill followed an accident in Utah on March 18 in which a Chevron pipeline leaked more than 25,000 gallons in a wetlands area about 50 miles from Salt Lake City. The Chevron spill was the third in three years in Utah, prompting Gov. Gary R. Herbert to sharply criticize the pipeline agency at a recent news conference. "Obviously, they have not done a very good job of overseeing the pipes that travel between our states," he said. 

Portugal - generates 70% of its electricity from renewables

Water, Wind and Solar 

Portugal generated 70% of all of its electricity for the first three months of 2013 from hydropower, wind power and solar power.

A recent report from Stanford and Cornell says that NY State could generate 100% of its energy from renewables by 2030. And if NY State can do it - so can we! 

"We must be ambitious if we want to promote energy independence and curb global warming," said Robert Howarth, a Cornell University scientist and co-author of the study. [Yale 360]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-03/su-srm031113.php

Army adopts net zero goals

The US Army has kicked off an initiative to generate as much energy as it uses. But their net zero initiative isn't only about energy - it is also about water and waste!!! 

If they think they can do it - perhaps we should too. 

"Addressing energy security and sustainability is operationally necessary, financially prudent, and essential to mission accomplishment. The goal is to manage our installations not only on a net zero energy basis, but net zero water and waste as well. We are creating a culture that recognizes the value of sustainability measured not just in terms of financial benefits, but benefits to maintaining mission capability, quality of life, relationships with local communities." 

http://army-energy.hqda.pentagon.mil/netzero/

Work halts amidst unresolved design and safety flaws at Hanford

A treatment plant that the Energy Department is counting on to stabilize the radioactive waste at the nation's largest environmental cleanup project, at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington State, has design problems that could lead to chemical explosions, inadvertent nuclear reactions and mechanical breakdowns, a federal advisory panel warned on Tuesday.

The panel, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, said the waste was also not safe where it was now, in leaking tanks that have long put dangerous pollutants into the soil a few miles from the Columbia River. In addition to the leaks, the board said, radioactive sludge and liquids in the tanks produce hydrogen that could burn and further disperse the waste.

Construction on the project finally began in October 2001. Two years ago, the plant was expected to cost $12.2 billion, but the schedule, and the price, have grown since then. The Energy Department does not have a current estimate for the plant's cost and completion date.

The project also has issues, apparently still not resolved, about whether managers have sought to intimidate professional staff members who raised safety questions. The board investigated and agreed that the site had "a flawed safety culture" that was "inhibiting the identification and resolution of technical and safety issues."

For now, the agency has stopped work on some sections of the plant while it tries to figure out how to solve the problems.

[NY Times]

Suits over Columbia River coal pollution

An environmental coalition charged that coal and coal dust spilled from railroad hoppers is polluting the scenic Columbia River Gorge. They pledged to sue mining companies and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad if they do not halt the spills. 

Each coal train leaves behind 10,000 pounds of loose coal, containing heavy metals and other harmful chemicals, in the Columbia River Gorge. [NY Times]

NY State Warns Climate Change Could Affect Bonds

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, the administration of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has started to caution investors that climate change poses a long-term risk to the state's finances.

The warning, which is now appearing in the state's bond offerings, comes as Mr. Cuomo, continues to urge that public officials come to grips with the frequency of extreme weather and to declare that climate change is a reality. 

A spokesman for Mr. Cuomo said he believed New York was the first state to caution investors about climate change. The caution, which cites Hurricane Sandy and Tropical Storms Irene and Lee, is included alongside warnings about other risks like potential cuts in federal spending, unresolved labor negotiations and litigation against the state.

"The state determined that observed effects of climate change, such as rising sea levels, and potential effects of climate change, such as the frequency and intensity of storms, presented economic and financial risks to the state," the spokesman, Richard Azzopardi, said on Tuesday.

Mr. Azzopardi added, "The extreme weather events of the last two years highlighted real and potential costs from extreme weather events, including the need to harden the state's infrastructure and improve disaster preparedness, both of which have been a priority of the governor."

Victory at Hand for Climate Movement?

Paul Gilding has a very positive view of our future, "Victory at Hand for the Climate Movement?" Here's an excerpt:

There are signs the climate movement could be on the verge of a remarkable and surprising victory.  If we read the current context correctly, and if the movement can adjust its strategy to capture the opportunity presented, it could usher in the fastest and most dramatic economic transformation in history. This would include the removal of the oil, coal and gas industries from the economy in just a few decades and their replacement with new industries and, for the most part, entirely new companies. It would be the greatest transfer of wealth and power between industries and countries the world has ever seen…. 

To summarise:
- The science shows how we are not just failing to slow down climate change, but are in fact accelerating towards the cliff.
- In response, mainstream organisations focused on the global economy are becoming increasingly desperate in their calls for action, fearing the economic consequences if we don't.  They are arguing that the only way the world can avoid the risk of breakdown is to transform the economy urgently and dramatically.
- Our capacity to do so is now real and practical, with the technologies required already being deployed at very large scale and at competitive cost. The size of the business opportunity now on offer is truly breathtaking.
- In response, the financial markets are waking up to the transformation logic – if the future is based in renewables and these are price competitive without subsidy, or soon will be, the transformation could sweep the economy relatively suddenly, even without further government leadership.
- This then puts in place an enormous and systemic financial risk – in particular investments in, or debt exposure to, the multi-trillion $ fossil fuel industry.
- This risk is steadily being increased by activist campaigns against fossil fuel projects (worsening each projects' financial risk) and arguing for fossil fuel divestment (putting investors reputation in play as well).
- In response investors and lenders will reduce their exposure to fossil fuels and hedge their risk by shifting their money to high growth renewables.
- This will then reinforce and manifest the very trend they are hedging against.
- Thus it's game on. 

Is that it? Can we now sit back and expect the market deal with this?
Most definitely not….

You can read the whole article here.

Putting Nature Back to Work

On March 19, The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released its new report card on the condition of America's infrastructure. Overall, our infrastructure in 16 categories ranging from bridges to water systems earned only a D+. ASCE estimates the United States needs to invest $3.6 trillion by 2020 to bring America's infrastructure up to good repair.

Among these systems are several that are critical to reducing the loss of life and property from the growing impacts of global climate change. Dams were graded D; levees earned only a D-; waste water and storm water control systems also were given a D. Drinking water and energy infrastructure — both vulnerable to extreme weather events — received a D and D+ respectively.

The bad news is that the cost of bringing these engineered systems up to par comes at a time when government budgets at all levels are strained, if not in crisis. The good news is that some of the services we receive from engineered systems can be provided instead by natural systems if we restore and protect them.

Ecosystems perform a wide variety of important services for free. Trees provide shade, purify air and water, and store carbon. Wetlands regulate flooding. Coastal marshes buffer communities from storm surges. Forests and soils store carbon as well as water. Many of these ecosystems have been degraded or destroyed by human development. Now, communities need to put nature back to work.

Communities are starting to ask the question -  "Is what you are trying to do, in the way you are trying to do it, going to diminish life or is it going to embrace, protect and restore life?" We call this a living system approach.

Guidelines for considering climate change - coming soon

President Obama is preparing to tell federal agencies for the first time that they should consider the impact on global warming before approving major projects, from pipelines to highways. The standards, which constitute guidance for agencies and not new regulations, are set to be issued in the coming weeks, said lawyers briefed by administration officials.

For example, Ambre Energy Ltd. is seeking a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers to build a coal export facility at the Port of Morrow in Oregon. Under existing rules, officials weighing approval would consider whether ships in the port would foul the water or generate air pollution locally.

The Environmental Protection Agency and activist groups say that review should be broadened to account for the greenhouse gases emitted when exported coal is burned in power plants in Asia.

Similar analyses could be made for the oil sands that would be transported in Trans­Canada Corp.'s Keystone XL pipeline and leases to drill for oil, gas and coal on federal lands, such as those for Arch Coal Inc. and Peabody Energy Corp. [Boston Globe]