Friday, 21 Nov 2003

Stall's Well That Ends Well

Opponents Block Vote on Energy Bill in Senate

A massive and highly controversial energy bill stalled out in the Senate this morning, when its supporters fell two short of the necessary 60 votes to end debate on the legislation. Those in favor of the bill, which has already been passed by the House, argue that it would increase and diversify energy sources and help some farmers by encouraging the use of corn-based ethanol fuel. Opponents, including six Republicans, most Democrats, and virtually all environmentalists, say it is environmentally unfriendly, too expensive (an estimated $33 billion over the next decade), and little more than a hodgepodge of giveaways to special interests. The failure to force a vote was a major blow for the Bush administration, which wants to pass the bill by the end of this year.

Finding Memo

Industry Poised to Clash with California Over Chemical Testing

California, ever on the cutting edge of environmental policy, is considering following the lead of the European Union by requiring more safety testing of chemicals -- a move the chemical industry doesn't plan to take lying down. According to a memo from the American Chemical Council leaked to the Environmental Working Group, the industry is contemplating an undercover campaign to derail efforts to require companies to prove that their chemicals are safe prior to marketing them. (Currently, the burden of proof falls on consumer groups or government agencies to prove that a chemical already on the market is harmful.) The ACC, which represents most chemical manufacturers in the U.S., denied that it was launching a campaign but acknowledged circulating a note outlining a plan to "stigmatize" advocates of chemical testing and create a so-called "independent ... watchdog group" to propagate pro-industry information.

Miami Voice

Enviros Hit the Streets in Miami to Protest the FTAA

Environmentalists are joining forces with union members, human-rights campaigners, and a wide variety of activists and citizens in Miami this week to protest negotiations on the Free Trade Area of the Americas agreement -- "NAFTA on steroids," as some call it. David Waskow, a trade-policy expert with Friends of the Earth U.S. and this week's Grist diarist, is in on all the action, from street protests to teach-ins, consciousness-raising concerts to officially sanctioned forums. He's working to spread the word about the many anticipated negative effects of the FTAA on the environment, human rights, and economic health throughout the Western Hemisphere. Get his take on the melee in Miami -- only on the Grist Magazine website.

Slope on a Rope

Bush Administration Opens Alaskan Land to Drilling

Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge isn't on the oil-and-gas chopping block under the terms of the current behemoth energy bill, but the rest of the state isn't quite as lucky: The Bush administration will announce today that it plans to open 8.8 million acres of Alaska's North Slope to oil and gas development. The Interior Department says drilling in the area represents a sound compromise between energy needs and environmental protection, but environmentalists counter that the region includes ecologically sensitive areas that are important to migratory birds, whales, and other wildlife, and should not be disturbed. The Bureau of Land Management plans to hold a lease sale for drilling rights next June.

No Silva Lining

Once Seen as Ally, Brazilian President Draws Fire From Enviros

It's been a roller coaster year for environmentalists in Brazil. Last October, with the election to the presidency of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (Lula, for short), they were elated, because he was seen as one of their own. Now, though, enviros say they have been betrayed on virtually every front, from protection for the Amazon basin to prohibitions on genetically modified foods. Lula's government claims it is trying to address the country's woes through large-scale paradigm shifts, which it says will require more time than piecemeal solutions. But critics lambaste Lula for having backed dam construction and paving projects in the Amazon, the planting of genetically modified soybeans, and the development of nuclear power, among other controversial projects.