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| Headline |
Author |
Published |
Section |
DNC: Convention thoughts at 3 a.m.
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David Roberts |
26 Aug 2008 |
Gristmill |
| I'm here at the DNC convention with Kate, who I believe has done a couple of posts already. The reason I don't know for sure is -- it's friggin' insane here! I've been running at a full sprint since I got off the plane this afternoon. I'm typing this before collapsing into bed at almost 3am. Some interesting stuff to hash over later, but for now, here's the first two things I saw heading into downtown Denver this afternoon: A giant electronic billboard, right acr ... |
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| Topics: coal, Democratic National Convention, energy, politics (all these topics) |
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National Clean Energy Summit: Rubinomics
Robert Rubin laments climate change, is forced to answer for Citi's contribution to it |
David Roberts |
19 Aug 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Robert Rubin -- Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Board of Citigroup Inc. and former Clinton administration Treasury Secretary, among many, many other things -- gave the afternoon keynote speech at the National Clean Energy Summit, focusing on the macroeconomic woes facing the economy and the possibility for good energy policy to ameliorate them. Those woes are familiar: the credit crunch, the mortgage crisis, stagnant wages, consumption slacking off. Putting ... |
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| Topics: coal, economy, energy, events, politics (all these topics) |
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What all America can look forward to under McCain
AEP demands 45 percent rate increase for Ohio |
Joseph Romm |
10 Aug 2008 |
Gristmill |
| What happens when your utility is 68 percent dependent on coal? American Electric Power said Thursday it must raise electricity rates 45 percent for its nearly 1.5 million customers in Ohio over the next three years, to cover soaring coal prices and the cost of modernizing its systems to keep them reliable ... AEP executives acknowledge that the increases will be tough on consumers already facing high gas and food prices during a slumping economy.'The fact is that coa ... |
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| Topics: coal, electricity, energy, John McCain, politics, utilities (all these topics) |
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Solid to Liquid Can Be a Gas
Crow Tribe strikes $7 billion deal for coal-to-liquids plant on reservation |
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08 Aug 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 8:41 AM on 08 Aug 2008 The Crow Tribe on Thursday agreed to host a massive new $7 billion coal-to-liquids plant on its reservation land in Montana. The plant would produce about 50,000 barrels a day of diesel fuel when it opens, and eventually up to 125,000 barrels a day. Coal for the plant would come from a yet-to-be-developed mine on nearby Crow land with an estimated 9 billion t ... |
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| Topics: business, coal, economy, energy, news, oil, politics (all these topics) |
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Same Coal Story
Bush praises coal, other fossil fuels in speech to West Virginia Coal Association |
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31 Jul 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 11:33 AM on 31 Jul 2008 In a speech to coal industry executives in West Virginia Thursday, President Bush praised nuclear power and fossil fuels of all kinds, but lavished special praise on coal. "There's no more reliable source of electricity than coal," he said. Bush announced $36 million for carbon capture projects, saying CO2 capture would make coal more earth-friendly. " ... |
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| Topics: coal, energy, news, politics, President Bush, United States (all these topics) |
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No relief in sight
The current oil shock |
Guest author |
16 Jul 2008 |
Gristmill |
| This is a guest essay from Dilip Hiro, author of Blood of the Earth: The Battle for the World's Vanishing Oil Resources (Nation Books). It was originally published on TomDispatch and is republished here with Tom's kind permission. ----- When will it end, this crushing rise in the price of gasoline, now averaging $4.10 a gallon at the pump? The question is uppermost in the minds of American motorists as they plan vacations or simply review their daily journeys. T ... |
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| Topics: coal, economy, energy, greenhouse-gas emissions, oil, politics, renewable energy (all these topics) |
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The power of the state
State energy news update |
Joseph Romm |
30 Jun 2008 |
Gristmill |
| This post is by ClimateProgress guest blogger Kari Manlove, fellows assistant at the Center for American Progress. -----On Wednesday (June 25th), Florida Gov. Charlie Crist signed a historic piece of energy legislation that advances Florida one step closer to establishing a cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Florida is the first state in the Southeast to adopt a law of this nature. While Crist has prevented new coal plant construction and whil ... |
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| Topics: state politics, coal, politics, energy, elections (all these topics) |
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Climate change ideas for On Day One
Day two of the UN Dispatch-Grist collaboration |
Ideas for On Day One |
24 Jun 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Our weeklong collaboration with UN Dispatch rolls on today with a discussion prompted by On Day One user taylorshelton who suggests government subsidies for non-renewable energy should be eliminated. Eliminate all subsidies for traditional fuels (coal, oil and nuclear) and invest all energy-related funds into renewable energy resources like solar, wind and cellulosic ethanol with the goal of completely eliminating dependence on fossil fue ... |
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| Topics: Big Oil, climate, coal, energy, politics, renewable energy (all these topics) |
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A Springfield in his step
McCain goes to Springfield, talks up nukes and coal |
Kate Sheppard |
18 Jun 2008 |
Gristmill |
| John McCain followed up yesterday's energy speech with more energy talk today during a roundtable at Missouri State University in Springfield, Mo. Today he focused more specifically on his support for two energy sources: nuclear power and 'clean coal.' The roundtable also featured Greg Boyce, CEO of Peabody Energy, the world's largest coal company, and Mike Chesser, CEO of Great Plains Energy. The panel was moderated by Jim Jones, a Chevron board member and pre ... |
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| Topics: coal, elections, energy, John McCain, Muckraker, news, nuclear power, politics, presidential race 08 (all these topics) |
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Calamity Kaine
Virginia Gov, possible veep, afraid of Big Coal |
Glenn Hurowitz |
17 Jun 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine set a new standard for politician mealy-mouthedness with a letter to his Virginia Air Board (tip of the hat to Raising Kaine for digging this one up). Although he asserts that his letter isn't about any particular decision, everyone outside the governor's office knows that the letter is about one thing: The proposed massive coal-fired power plant being planned for Wise County, Virginia. His bureaucratic opacity (PDF) is sure to be taught in gov ... |
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| Topics: climate, coal, energy, politics, presidential race 08, Virginia (all these topics) |
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'We're the Saudi Arabia of coal'
Obama & Clinton shill for coal in Montana |
Kate Sheppard |
30 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| The Flathead Beacon in Montana pinned down interviews with both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton ahead of the state's Tuesday primary. The paper asked questions on domestic oil and gas drilling, the preservation of public lands, and coal. The whole thing is interesting, but the candidates' responses on coal were the most notable: Q: But what role should fossil fuels play, specifically in Montana, where we've got vast coal reserves? Do you think, in the short term or ... |
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| Topics: Barack Obama, climate, coal, energy, Hillary Clinton, Montana, Muckraker, news, politics, presidential race 08 (all these topics) |
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The cowardly lion
McCain to skip another crucial climate vote |
David Roberts |
29 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Unbelievable. Sen. John McCain -- who just weeks ago said of the Climate Security Act, "I hope it will pass, and I hope the entire Congress will join in supporting it and the President of the United States would sign it" -- now says he won't show up to vote on it. He won't vote against it, mind you. Won't go on record. Won't take a stand. He just won't show. 'I have not been there for a number of votes. The same thing happened in the campaign of ... |
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| Topics: climate, coal, energy, jackassery, legislation, nuclear power, politics, renewable energy (all these topics) |
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Removing mountaintop removal
North Carolina bill would ban burning of coal from mountaintop-removal mining |
Kate Sheppard |
29 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| On Tuesday, North Carolina State Rep. Pricey Harrison introduced legislation in the state House that would ban the burning of coal obtained through mountaintop-removal mining. If it passes, North Carolina would become the first state in the nation with such a law. The mining method isn't practiced in North Carolina, but 61 percent of the state's power comes from coal; North Carolina is second only to Georgia in the amount of MTR-mined coal it burns. According to ... |
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| Topics: coal, energy, legislation, mining, Muckraker, news, North Carolina, politics, state politics (all these topics) |
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Lobbying for the enemy of the human race
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David Roberts |
27 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Million here, million there, pretty soon you're talking about real money: Peabody Investments Corp., a subsidiary of coal producer Peabody Energy Corp., spent nearly $1.3 million in the first quarter to lobby on issues related to the coal industry, according to a disclosure report. The company lobbied Congress on legislation involving renewable energy and energy independence, promotion of coal-to-liquid fuel, global warming, mine communications technology, tax cr ... |
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| Topics: coal, energy, lobbying, politics, shenanigans (all these topics) |
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The best offense is a good Defense
House passes Defense authorization bill, includes various climate-related elements |
Kate Sheppard |
23 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| The House passed ($ub. req'd) the defense authorization bill for 2009 last night, and there were several climate and energy-related components included. One amendment modifies part of last year's energy bill that forbids federal agencies from purchasing alternative or synthetic fuels that have higher lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions than conventional petroleum. Amendment sponsor Rep. Dan Boren (D-Okla.) and other critics of the provision cited fears that it could ... |
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| Topics: coal, energy, legislation, Muckraker, news, politics, US House of Representatives (all these topics) |
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Looks like ...
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David Roberts |
23 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| ... the coal battle in Kansas is over for the time being. Score: Coal-0; earth/Sebelius/Kansas ratepayers-1 |
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| Topics: coal, energy, Kansas, legislation, politics, state politics (all these topics) |
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Coal miner's candidate
Obama wins the endorsement of United Mine Workers of America |
Kate Sheppard |
21 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) endorsed Barack Obama for president today, after a unanimous vote of the union's National Council of the Coal Miners' Political Action Committee. In a press release on the endorsement, the UMWA said they chose to endorse Obama over John McCain because of his plans to help working-class Americans and his support for the coal industry. 'Sen. Obama is from a coal state,' UMWA International President Cecil Roberts said in a writ ... |
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| Topics: Barack Obama, coal, energy, Muckraker, news, politics, presidential race 08 (all these topics) |
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A future for FutureGen?
Senate slips life support for 'clean coal' boondoggle into war supplemental package |
Kate Sheppard |
16 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Remember FutureGen, the pilot program that was supposed to yield the nation's first zero-emissions, 'clean coal' power plant? The one that even the Bush administration realized was a bad idea, after the price tag on the project ballooned to $1.8 billion? Well, some senators just don't want to see it die ($ub req'd). Yesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously approved language to force the Department of Energy to continue funding FutureGen until March ... |
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| Topics: carbon sequestration, coal, Department of Energy, energy, Illinois, Muckraker, news, politics (all these topics) |
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For Specious Skies
EPA plans to loosen air-quality rules near national parks |
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16 May 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 11:45 AM on 16 May 2008 Photo: Wolfgang Staudt Call us crazy, but rewriting the Clean Air Act to ease the way for new coal plants near national parks seems to fly in the face of that whole "clean air" thing. But sure enough, the U.S. EPA plans to make a change allowing the government to calculate the average annual emissions of power plants near parks and wilderness areas, instead of tracking (and po ... |
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| Topics: air pollution, coal, energy, jackassery, national parks, news, politics, regulation, US EPA (all these topics) |
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Voters' Voices: West Virginia
Talking with voters in the Mountain State |
Melinda Henneberger |
13 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| This is the first in a series of dispatches from Melinda Henneberger, who's talking to voters around the U.S. about their views on the environment and the election. Photo: Wignut Huntington, W.Va. -- Door-knocking for Barack Obama in a state where he expects to get stomped today has been kind of thankless for Pam Wonnell, a nurse and old friend of mine who moved here from Illinois last year for her husband's job in coal mining: 'I am not feeling t ... |
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| Topics: coal, elections, energy, mining, politics, presidential race 08, Voters Voices, West Virginia (all these topics) |
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More Kentucky coal pandering
Obama airs new coal-themed TV ad; Clinton talks up coal too |
Kate Sheppard |
12 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| The Obama campaign is running TV ads in Kentucky touting the candidate's commitment to the coal industry, along the same lines as a flyer the campaign is sending out in the state: 'He came to southern Illinois and seen the devastation and the loss of the jobs in this coal industry,' says miner Randy Henry in the ads, which are appearing in the Lexington and Bowling Green television markets. 'Washington, D.C., is not listening to us. Barack understands it.' Th ... |
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| Topics: Barack Obama, climate, coal, energy, Muckraker, news, politics, presidential race 08 (all these topics) |
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What should Obama do in West Virginia and Kentucky?
Learning from the gas tax episode, Obama could treat rural whites like adults |
David Roberts |
11 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Though the nation's pundits have decided that the primary race is over, someone failed to get Clinton the memo -- she is determined to stay in to the bitter end. The next primaries are in West Virginia and Kentucky, states where the number of poor whites is high and consequently the Obama campaign expects to get crushed; there's a good chance that even if Clinton dropped out tomorrow, she'd still beat Obama in those states. West Virginia and Kentucky are the second ... |
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| Topics: Barack Obama, coal, energy, politics, presidential race 08 (all these topics) |
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Big Stone II sinking fast
Administrative law judges give controversial coal plant thumbs down -- final decision up to PUC |
Ted Nace |
09 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| One of the most controversial coal plant proposals in the country just took yet another big hit.Minnesota's two administrative law judges on the hearings for the Big Stone II plant in South Dakota, Steve Mihalchick and Barbara Neilson, recommended today that the state Public Utilities Commission deny a certificate of need for the plant's transmission lines in western Minnesota. If adopted by the PUC, the ruling will kill the highly controversial project. According to the AL ... |
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| Topics: coal, energy, Minnesota, politics, state politics (all these topics) |
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Monday links
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David Roberts |
05 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| As promised, here's yet another bunch of links for your leisurely perusal: Fortune writer Adam Lashinsky has a great round-up from the Brainstorm Green conference. My only beef is with this, about Lomborg: Even if you believe that global warming is an abject crisis, I simply reject the argument that it's a bad idea to test your beliefs by listening to someone who disagrees or who is proposing a different solution. Well ... of course. The question is whether, af ... |
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| Topics: climate change skepticism, coal, energy, John Dingell, politics (all these topics) |
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Minnesota to Bill Gates: No new coal!
Legislators protest Gates family's stake in Big Stone II |
Ted Nace |
04 May 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Bill Gates. Unlike his bridge buddy Warren Buffett, who recently canceled six planned coal projects, Bill Gates is still pushing coal. Cascade Investment Management, his personal investment company, is the largest stakeholder (9 percent) in Otter Tail Corporation, the lead sponsor of the controversial Big Stone II coal project. Last week, eight Minnesota legislators, led by Rep. Jean Wagenius (DFL) of Minneapolis and Sen. Ellen Anderson (DFL) of St. Paul, wr ... |
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| Topics: coal, energy, Minnesota, politics, state politics (all these topics) |
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