Japan’s ‘Frozen Gas’ is Worthless if We Take Climate Change Seriously – March 14, 2013

Like all nations extending the fossil fuel frontier, Japan is adding to the mountain of fossil fuels we cannot responsibly burn

There's only one way of knowing whether or not governments are serious about climate change: Have they decided to leave most of their fossil fuel reserves in the ground? We have already discovered far more carbon than we can afford to burn, if we are not to commit the world to very dangerous levels of heating. Only if most of it — four-fifths according to a detailed estimate — is left where it sits is there a good chance of preventing more than 2C of global warming.

Photo by Deacon MacMillanA natural gas power plant in Kawagoe, Mie Japan. The Japanese government announced this… more

by: The Guardian UK

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Can the New EPA Chief Stop Obama Approving the Keystone XL Pipeline? – March 5, 2013

Gina McCarthy's promotion at the EPA will not allay fears that a recent State Department report means KXL is now a done deal

Environmentalists got some bad news when the State Department released a report on Friday — a full month earlier than had been anticipated — saying that there are no convincing environmental reasons that the Keystone XL pipeline should not be built.

McCarthy has the reputation of being
a fighter for tougher environmental
standards.

This just two weeks after thousands of demonstrators gathered at the National Mall for what has been called the largest climate rally ever. Environmental groups have joined in a rare united front to block the pipeline. If built, activists predict that the pipeline will hugely increase… more

by: The Guardian UK

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Oxfam Reveals Global Food Firms’ Gaping Ethical Shortfalls – February 26, 2013

The charity finds Nestlé, Mars and Coca-Cola fail to protect farmers, local communities and the environment

The world's largest food companies are failing to meet ethical standards, a report from Oxfam has warned. None of the leading global brands such as Nestlé, Mars and Coca-Cola were given good overall ratings on their commitments to protect farmers, local communities and the environment, while British food giant Associated British Foods (ABF), owner of brands including Kingsmill, Ovaltine and Silverspoon, received the lowest rating.

Photo by Vicente Jaime “Veejay” Villafranca/Oxfam InternationalA woman farmer in the Philippines. Oxafam rated the "big 10" food companies in seven categories
including how they protect women's rights.

The charity's Behind the Brands report compiled a scorecard,… more

by: The Guardian UK

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BP Should Pay $25bn on Top of Likely Fines for Gulf Spill, Activists Say – February 22, 2013

Environmental groups say oil giant in court next week must be held responsible for all damage from 2010 disaster

British Petroleum should be on the hook for an additional $25bn to restore environmental damage from the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, even if the company is hit with a record-breaking $17.6bn in fines at a civil trial next week, campaign groups said on Thursday.

Photo by Green Fire ProductionsDay 30 of Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, 2010. Environmentalists hope the court will take into consideration a series of investigations that showed BP to have been guilty of shortcuts and safety lapses in the run-up to the blowout.

BP will face the largest environmental fines… more

by: The Guardian UK

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Whale Oil to Fuel Whaling Ships is a Gruesome and Surreal Proposition – February 12, 2013

Icelandic whaler Kristján Loftsson's perverse concept has a long pedigree and a remarkable resonance with Moby-Dick

It is a fantastically surreal proposition. An Icelandic whaler, Kristján Loftsson, is powering his whaling ships using "biofuel" composed of 80 percent diesel – and 20 percent whale oil. Loftsson claims the oil is additionally friendly to the environment as it is rendered out of whale blubber using heat from Iceland's volcanic vents.

Photo by Library Company of PhiladelphiaThis is not the first time animal fat has been used to feed the whale hunt.

The story might seem a bizarre development even in the Alice in Wonderland world of modern whaling, where Japanese whaling fleets claim to be conducting "scientific research" and the… more

by: The Guardian UK

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