frontline communities

Climate Movement Monday: in support of Native Village of Hooper Bay

/ Tracy Abell / 10 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which we discuss all things climate and then typically take action on behalf of a frontline community facing immediate effects of the climate crisis. Today’s information and TAKE ACTION come from Earthjustice, the nonprofit environmental law organization representing Native Village of Hooper Bay in southwest Alaska.

The federal government is proposing a land swap and road through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge despite the fact that, as the name says, it’s supposed to be a refuge. Per the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service website, this refuge located between the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska,  is [emphasis mine] “home to one of the world’s largest eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds. Hundreds of thousands of waterfowl, including virtually the entire population of Pacific black brant, visit the lagoon to feed on eelgrass and rest during migration. From brown bears to Pacific salmon, more than 200 species call this refuge home.” Call me alarmist, but it seems really stupid to negatively interfere with the feeding ground and resting place for an entire species.

Aerial view of black brant in flight over Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.  Photo by Kristine Sowl/USFWS

What does all this have to do with Native Village of Hooper Bay?  The proposed road would cut through the refuge which provides, you know, refuge for migratory bird species that Native Village of Hooper Bay tribal members rely on for food and cultural practices.

“Any loss of these species in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta could have devastating impacts on communities already stressed by climate change, the salmon crisis, and by significant socio-economic and health challenges, including high rates of poverty and the highest suicide rates in the nation. Western science and Indigenous knowledge agree that preserving subsistence and traditional practices is key to combating these impacts in Alaska Native communities.”

A 45-day comment period is now open that allows the public to weigh in on the draft supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS). The federal government needs your input. PLEASE request the federal government withdraw the project OR at least choose the “no action alternative” which is the compromise proposed by Native Village of Hooper Bay and other tribes.

As always, a personalized message carries more weight. However, I realize this issue can seem complicated as you read about it (due, in part, to the use of “alternative” in its many permutations), so it’s completely fine to briefly express your support for the tribal people and the migratory birds, and then request that the federal government withdraw the project entirely OR choose the “no action alternative.” Your message doesn’t need to be long.  All the background information is included here where you also take action via your brief personalized message.

Thank you for reading this far. Thank you for speaking up on behalf of Native Village of Hooper Bay and other tribes in that frontline community, along with the 200 species that call the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge home. Solidarity! ✊🏾

Climate Movement Mondays: just say NO to more LNG terminals

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which we discuss all things climate, often with a focus on a frontline community enduring the worst effects of the climate crisis. Today’s post focuses on Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and a looming decision by the Department of Energy that will most directly affect those living in the Gulf region, but will have ramifications for everyone on the planet.

Environmental justice champion Roishetta Ozane with the Westlake Chemical plant behind her home. They’re already enduring so much and do not want LNG terminals!

This information about the possibility of 20 new LNG terminals in the Gulf comes via Third Act and rather than try to reinvent the wheel, I’m going to copy the full email I received from Third Act founder, Bill McKibben. Spoiler alert: you’ll be asked to handwrite a short letter and I’ve included mine as a sample.

Dear Friends,

As this hottest year in human history winds towards its close, I’m writing to ask for your help with what may be the single biggest climate fight left on planet Earth. And it’s right here at home.

The US is planning to quadruple the export of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) from the Gulf of Mexico over the next few years—there are plans for 20 huge export terminals to add to the seven that already exist. If they are built, the emissions associated with them will be as large as all the emissions from every home, factory, and car in the EU. The emissions associated with them will wipe out every bit of progress the U.S. has made on reducing carbon and methane since 2005.

And along the way it will hurt not only the people who have to live and breathe near these monstrosities, but also all American consumers—because exporting gas abroad drives up the price at home.

If you want a short primer, here is something I wrote this week, and another piece I wrote for the New Yorker.

Happily, we have a realistic chance at stopping this. Which is why I hope you’ll break out your stationery box and roll of stamps. The final decision will be made by the Department of Energy, which can grant or deny export licenses to these companies depending on whether they’re in the public interest.

Please please please write a letter this week to:

The Honorable Jennifer Granholm
Secretary of Energy
U.S. Department of Energy
1000 Independence Ave. SW
Washington DC 20585

Here are some key points you can include in your letter:

  1. These plants are carbon and methane bombs. In the hottest year of human history it’s obscene to be putting up more of them.
  2. We’re already the biggest gas exporter on earth, and have more than enough capacity to meet the needs of the Europeans in the wake of the Ukrainian war.
  3. When we export all this gas, we drive up the price for those Americans who still rely on it for cooking and heating. Rejecting this project will fight inflation, which will help get the president re-elected.
  4. It’s an environmental justice travesty—as usual, these projects are set for poor communities of color.
  5. They’re planned for smack in the middle of the worst hurricane belt in the hemisphere.
  6. So rewrite the criteria (they’re currently using a Trump-era formula) for figuring out if such plans are in the national interest.

If you thought you were getting off without one high-tech task, though, you’re wrong. Could you also take a picture of the letter on your smartphone and email it to takingaction@thirdact.org, so we can keep track of what’s happening.

Remember, the penmanship you learned long ago is a secret weapon. Bureaucrats are used to getting email petitions; they’re not used to getting old-school letters. They know it takes effort, and they pay attention.

I think we can win this fight, and if we do it will be the biggest win on the climate front since we sunk the Keystone pipeline. But we can only do it if we act right now.

Thank you,

Bill McKibben
Founder, Third Act

P.S. As I was writing this, the first snow of the season started to fall in Vermont. That’s got to be a good sign!

In case you’re feeling stuck or intimidated about writing a letter, please check out my letter. What matters most is writing from your experience and including your concerns. My letter is probably longer than necessary, so please feel free to only write one short paragraph. As Bill says, just the fact that we’re taking the time to handwrite and mail a letter shows a big commitment that’s much harder to ignore.

Please holler if you have any questions. Also, I’d love to hear the focus of your letter so feel free to share in the comments. As always, thank you for reading this far.

Solidarity! ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: protecting the Gulf

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I discuss all things climate and frequently highlight a frontline community enduring the worst effects of the climate crisis, along with a request to take action on their behalf. Today we’re focusing on the communities along the Gulf of Mexico, people and places that are treated as sacrifice zones due to extractive energy practices. They do not want more oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico. Rather, they want a just transition to renewable energy sources that will provide safe, good-paying jobs while also protecting the water, air, and land where they live.

Fire that resulted from the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig.
US Coast Guard / Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Today’s quick action is to personalize a letter to the White House Council on Environmental Quality, demanding that Biden keep his campaign promise for no new oil and gas leases on federal land. The White House is about to release the “five-year plan” for oil and gas leasing in the Gulf of Mexico. The following is fromHealthyGulf.org

The “five year plan” is the guiding document for how the Federal government leases offshore areas to private companies to explore and drill for oil and gas. With climate change accelerating and the clean energy revolution upon us, we can’t afford to expand drilling in the Gulf. The people of the Gulf Coast want President Biden to honor his campaign pledge of no expansion of oil and gas drilling. Tell President Biden we need a five year plan with no new leases!

 

Access the letter here and personalize with your own outlook and experiences following the hottest summer in recorded history. When the scientific community tells us over and over and over again that in order to have a livable planet we must keep all fossil fuels in the ground, we must act. When people and communities tell us over and over and over again that they are negatively impacted by extractive energy practices, we must act.

(NOTE: To learn more about the Deepwater Horizon tragedy in 2010 which surpassed the Exxon Valdez tragedy of 1989, go here.)

SOME UPDATES:

Yesterday, an estimated 75,000 people took to the streets in New York City* to demand an end to fossil fuels. Here’s a segment from DemocracyNow that includes a speech from Sharon Lavigne of Rise St. James. (Rise St. James is a faith-based grassroots organization fighting for environmental justice as it works to defeat the proliferation of petrochemical industries in St. James Parish, Louisiana.) Sharon and her community would be very happy to know we’re sending letters that demand no new oil and gas leases in the Gulf!
*There were corresponding climate actions to #EndFossilFuels on all 7 continents!

Today, Sunrise Movement and 50+ organizations signed onto a letter to Biden asking him to use his Executive Order to establish a Civilian Climate Corps akin to the CCC during the New Deal. This modern CCC would offer good-paying, safe jobs to young people who’d be working to combat the climate crisis. The idea is a win/win. And speaking as someone who, pre-pandemic, spent a lot of time as a young-at-heart member of Sunrise, a CCC would go a long ways toward easing their acute anxiety about their futures on this planet. PLEASE feel free to contact your Senators and Representative to ask that they push Biden to establish a modern CCC. 🙂

Thank you for reading this far. Please let me know if you were able to attend a climate action near you this past week. (There was nothing in Denver (!) but there were other rallies in other cities throughout Colorado.) We’re heading out for a couple nights of camping tomorrow and I look forward to a dose of Nature. Wishing you and yours a good week. Solidarity!  ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: STOP utility shut-offs during extreme heat

/ Tracy Abell / 3 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I typically highlight a frontline community enduring the worst of the climate crisis and then offer a quick action you can take on their behalf. Today’s frontline communities are the elderly and low-income households, especially people of color. I’m amplifying a message received from 198methods.org regarding utility companies shutting off people’s power despite the extreme heat still slamming much of the country.

Image by Claudia Engel from Pixabay

The following background info is from an email received from 198methods.org but if you’re pressed for time, click HERE to personalize a letter to your two Senators and one Representative, asking them to use their power to increase funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). If we can send billions of dollars to fight a proxy war in the Ukraine, we can certainly afford to make sure people don’t die due to the combination of extreme heat and heartless utility companies shutting off their AC.

Please take two minutes to click HERE to personalize a letter to your two Senators and one Representative, asking them to use their power to increase funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

Thank you for reading and taking action! Please, if you or someone you know is  suffering extreme heat and have had the power turned off, reach out via my contact form and I will get you some help.

Solidarity! ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: Lahaina/Maui + good news

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I highlight a frontline community that’s bearing the brunt of climate change. Today I’m focusing on Maui and the town of Lahaina. The current death toll is 96, but officials believe that number will increase as the search continues for the estimated 1,000 missing persons.

Maui Fire Relief + Off-Grid Shelter Setup donations here
Maui Community Power Recover Fund donations here

The hall of historic Waiola Church in Lahaina and nearby Lahaina Hongwanji Mission are engulfed in flames along Wainee Street in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 8, 2023. // Matthew Thayer/ | The Maui News | AP

Wildfires are not a natural force in Hawaii’s islands and used to be a rare occurrence. “Hawaii’s ecosystem is not adapted to fire. It is destroyed by fire,” says Elizabeth Pickett, co-executive director of the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization. “So we don’t have good fire and bad  fire. We have bad fire, period.” That quote comes from the WIRED article “The Scary Science of Maui’s Wildfires” that also includes background on the invasive grass species introduced by European settlers, grasses that have spread across the island and are intensely fire-prone.

Emily Atkin wrote in her HEATED newsletter (“Lahaina used to be a wetland: Nature didn’t turn the historic Hawaiian community into a tinderbox. People did.”) how the fire that decimated Lahaina wasn’t entirely due to climate change. Colonialism played a huge role in what happened there, specifically European colonizers who illegally diverted the water for their sugar crops, turning a former wetlands into a tinderbox susceptible to the deadly combination of fire and high winds.

Maui Fire Relief + Off-Grid Shelter Setup donations here
Maui Community Power Recover Fund donations here

There’s huge concern that disaster capitalists will use this tragedy to further enrich themselves while driving Indigenous people from their lands. Realtors and investors are already calling families that have lost their homes to the fire, offering to buy the land. Oprah Winfrey owns 2,000 acres on Maui where she lives part-time, and there are calls for her to donate that acreage back to the Indigenous community. The Landback Movement to get Indigenous lands back in Indigenous hands is gaining exposure and momentum in the wake of the fire.

The people of Maui are going to need much more than thoughts and prayers as they rebuild their communities. Thank you in advance for helping out as you can. I send wishes for a good and safe week, wherever you are! Solidarity! ✊🏽

P.S. — here’s a bit of GOOD NEWS: “Judge rules in favor of Montana youths in landmark climate decision”

Climate Movement Monday: Willow Project update

/ Tracy Abell / 3 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I highlight frontline communities that are enduring the worst of the climate crisis AND offer ways to take action on behalf of people and planet.

This is an especially hard post to write because today Biden went back on his campaign promises** and authorized the Willow Project in the Western Arctic. I’ve been writing about this issue for a while and am outraged this decision was made despite the millions of people who called, wrote, and signed petitions opposing the project. This decision came despite the science stating loudly and clearly that we must keep all fossil fuels in the ground if we are to avert the most catastrophic effects of climate change. Make no mistake, this decision came courtesy of heavy lobbying by the fossil fuel industry.

But the fight isn’t over. Environmental groups are not backing down. Here’s an excerpt from a CommonDreams write-up:

Sonia Ahkivgak, social outreach coordinator for Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic—which organized a letter of opposition to the Willow project signed by more than three dozen Indigenous-led groups—said in a statement that “the Biden administration’s approval makes it clear that its call for climate action and the protection of biodiversity is talk, not action.”

“The only reasonable solution to the climate emergency is to deny new fossil fuel projects like Willow,” said Ahkivgak. “Our fight has been long and also it has only begun. We will continue to call for a stop to Willow because the lives of local people and future generations depend on it.”

Sign up for updates from and/or donations to SILA (Sovereign Inupiat for a Living Arctic here.

Earthjustice (Because the Earth Needs a Good Lawyer) has already been prepping a legal challenge to this decision and that’s a good thing because as they point out here:

Interior’s decision approves three drilling pads, which combined will produce 92% of the oil ConocoPhillips initially sought to develop, a staggering climate impact amounting to more than 260 million metric tons of greenhouse gases (GHG). The GHG emissions from Willow will equal that of 56 million cars driven for one year, or nearly 70 coal fired power plants operating for one year. This project is also intended to be a stepping-stone for future development. ConocoPhillips has described Willow to its investors as the “next great Alaska hub,” saying it had identified up to 3 billion barrels of nearby prospects that could be accessed if the Willow infrastructure were in place. ConocoPhillips holds about 1 million of the 2.5 million acres already under lease in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.

You can support Earthjustice with a tax-deductible contribution here. 

I will continue to write about the Willow Project and let you know how to stay involved. Thank you to everyone who’s read these Climate Movement Monday posts over the past months and taken action. You’re appreciated! And if you haven’t yet taken action, I hope you’ll join us in the fight. No matter where we live, we’re all in this together. People power is the answer! Solidarity! ✊🏽

**Biden campaign promises:

 

Climate Movement Monday: STOP the Willow Project

/ Tracy Abell / 3 Comments

Hello, I’m back with another Movement Monday post and hope you’ll join me in taking action on behalf of people and planet. These posts focus on the frontline communities that bear the worst effects of the climate crisis, but WE ALL HAVE A STAKE in what happens to the planet so it’s imperative we all use our voices to speak out.

Anti-Willow protestors gathered in Lafayette Square, in front of the White House, on Jan. 10, 2023. (Liz Ruskin/Alaska Public Media)

I’ve written about the Willow Project in Alaska’s western arctic (here, here, and here), and now the Biden administration is getting close to releasing its final decision. WE NEED TO TELL HIM NO  because as People vs. Fossil Fuels points out: “Willow would emit 278 million metric tons of climate pollution over the next 30 years. That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 74 coal plants — one-third of all remaining U.S. plants.” 

There are 3 ways you can take action:

  • Call the Department of Interior at (866) 834 8040 and tell them: 

“Hi, my name is (X) and I’m calling from (your state). I want you to reject the Willow Project that would worsen the climate emergency. STOP WILLOW.” 

  • Call the White House comment line (Tues-Thurs, 11am-3pm EST) at  (202) 456 1111 and say: 

“Hi, my name is (X) and I’m calling from (your state). I want you to reject the Willow Project that goes directly against your national climate goals. STOP WILLOW.”

P.S. Wondering about this tactic? Because faxes are less frequently used these days, this is way to make sure our messages stand apart and make a bigger splash in White House offices.

(NOTE: all this info is thanks to an action toolkit provided by People vs. Fossil Fuels )

I’d love it if you could let me know in the comments that you took action, so please shout out your awesomeness! In the meanwhile, Solidarity! ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: in support of the young

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

Welcome back! These Movement Monday posts are intended to educate and inspire readers to take action on behalf of the frontline communities most impacted by the climate crisis. Today I want to focus on the young who, through no fault of their own, are inheriting a legacy of climate crises brought on by past and current generations’ addiction to oil and gas.

And because I’m pressed for time today, I’m going to copy the message from People vs. Fossil Fuels:

Sign the Petition: Tell Attorney General Garland to End Opposition to Youth Climate Justice

It is time for Attorney General Garland to end Department of Justice opposition to the children’s climate case, Juliana v. United States.

In 2015, 21 young Americans filed a landmark constitutional climate lawsuit, Juliana v. United States, against the U.S. government. Their complaint asserts that the government’s affirmative actions, like fossil fuel energy policies, knowingly cause and worsen the climate crisis. The youth claim that this violates the youngest generation’s constitutional rights to life, liberty, property, and equal protection of the law, as well as fails to protect essential public trust resources.

These 21 young people are seeking a judicial declaration that the U.S. fossil fuel energy system is unconstitutional and violates their fundamental right to a safe climate. A victory in their case would mean that all current and future U.S. climate and energy policy – whether executive or legislative in nature, and regardless of political majority or party – would need to adhere to the court’s declaratory judgment, protecting the rights of our nation’s children to a safe climate.

Photo by Markus Spiske (pexels.com)

Despite President Biden’s promises to listen to youth and address the climate crisis, his Department of Justice is still actively opposing the Juliana case, denying their rights and seeking to prevent the young plaintiffs from presenting evidence to a judge in open court of how their own government is causing them harm.

For seven years, these 21 young people, from across the United States and including 11 Black, Brown, and Indigenous youth, have waited for their day in court, delayed again and again by tactics employed by the Department of Justice to impede or dismiss their case. And for seven years, young people like these 21 young Americans have suffered from increasingly severe climate harms.

The time for climate justice is now.

Sign the petition today and tell Attorney General Garland that it is time for the Department of Justice to end its opposition to Juliana v. United States proceeding to trial. These young Americans have the right to be heard by their nation’s courts and their claims should proceed like any other constitutional case.

Tell Attorney General Garland Today: Let the Youth Be Heard!

Thank you in advance for signing on in support. Solidarity! ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: spark some Joye

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I share info about frontline communities that are enduring the worst of the climate crisis and the effects of fossil fuel infrastructure.

JOYE BRAUN DAY OF ACTION
Joye was a water protector and pipeline fighter who died in November 2022. Earlier in the year I attended several organizing calls in which Joye spoke and she was absolutely incredible. Joye was funny and knew how to fire up and empower activists. We’re all poorer without her here, but she’d certainly want us to continue the fight. Check out this link to find a climate justice/Indigenous rights action near you in honor of Joye’s work.

Note: Here in Colorado, rather than honoring Joye on January 20th, we’ll gather outside the capitol on the 17th when Governor Polis gives his State of the State address.

I’d love to hear what actions are happening near you so please drop a note in the comments. Solidarity! ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: petition + phone calls needed

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays! Sometimes I feel like a voice in the wilderness, but I can’t stop sharing info and action items in support of those living on the frontlines of the climate crisis. We are ALL in this together. If you love plants, animals, nature, people, clean air & water, you have a stake in climate action.

Image by Filmbetrachter from Pixabay

Today, I’m asking you to:

  1. SIGN A PETITION urging Biden to uphold his pledge to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. I’ve written before about the Willow Project (here & here) and if approved, this project would be a massive carbon bomb. Today, the Washington Post reported this:

    At the northern tip of Alaska, the city of Utqiagvik on Monday reached its warmest temperature ever observed between November and March, when the mercury shot up to 40 degrees — 36 degrees above the norm.

    The record-crushing high temperature was six degrees higher than the next warmest December reading ever measured there, in more than a century of records. It marked yet another exceptional extreme event in a region that is rapidly warming because of human-caused climate change.

    Clearly, we cannot afford the Willow Project.

    2. CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES to stop Manchin’s dirty permitting deal. We’ve beaten it back twice before (here & here) and can do it again!!! From Climate Justice Alliance:

    • Call your Members of Congress (call script below) at 202-224-3121.*If for any reason this doesn’t connect you, find your Senators’ number here.

    Call Script for Democratic Senators: Hi, my name is ____, & I’m from ____. As your constituent I’m calling to demand that you do all you can to stop Senator Manchin’s dirty “permitting” proposal from being attached to any must pass legislation. Protecting our communities and climate is more important and we must transition away from fossil fuels now and protect communities’ rights to be free from harm in the process. Stand with the communities impacted by fossil fuels and the climate crisis and stop this permitting reform from being attached to any must-pass legislation.

    Call Script for Republicans Senators: Hi, my name is ____, & I’m from ____. I’m a constituent in your district calling to ask you to stop democratic Senator Manchin’s side deal on permitting reforms. Citizens and states should have the right to protect themselves. The bill proposed by Senator Manchin infringes upon our rights to protect ourselves by deliberately stripping us of our ability to speak out against toxic projects built near our front door.  Stand with the workers, farmers, and communities that are impacted by dirty energy projects built on their land, and stop Senator Manchin’s dirty “permitting” proposal from being attached to any must-pass legislation. 

    Thank you in advance for your actions! Solidarity! ✊🏽

     

Climate Movement Monday: support on Giving Tuesday

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I provide information and ways to support the frontline communities suffering the worst effects of climate change. Whether we want to face facts or not, the climate crisis is upon us and the sooner we act the better our chances to lessen the impact. Either way, an energy transition will happen. Tomorrow is Giving Tuesday so I’m highlighting organizations working hard on behalf of frontline communities. Donations of any amount (today or tomorrow) are greatly appreciated!

Image by Shameer Pk from Pixabay

Founded in 1997, Appalachian Voices brings people together to protect the land, air and water of Central and Southern Appalachia and advance a just transition to a generative and equitable clean energy economy.

To achieve this, we work to end harmful fossil fuel practices such as mountaintop removal coal mining and construction of unnecessary fracked-gas pipelines. We also strive to shift to clean, 21st-century energy sources including energy efficiency, solar and wind power, and stand up to monopoly utility practices that put profits over people. Our ultimate goal is to establish economic solutions that create community wealth and sustain Appalachia’s mountains, forests and waters.

The NDN Collective Climate Justice Campaign builds power throughout Indigenous communities in order to tackle the climate crisis. Our team runs and supports campaigns aimed at ending extraction, contamination, and violence in our territories. We advance policy changes, coalition building, and advocacy, while supporting the solutions-based work happening across our nations that utilizes traditional ecological knowledge in order to develop climate adaptive solutions that reflect our values of living with respect for all sources of life.

Healthy Gulf’s purpose is to collaborate with and serve communities who love the Gulf of Mexico by providing the research, communications, and coalition-building tools needed to reverse the long pattern of over exploitation of the Gulf’s natural resources.

We are preparing to launch an unprecedented solutions campaign to offer communities around the world a just pathway to 100 percent renewable energy. We need to set up infrastructure and ways of collaborating to bring clean energy access and justice to our systems everywhere. 

Thank you in advance for reading and donating. Solidarity! ✊🏽

Climate Movement Monday: STOP the Dirty Deal

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays in which I share information on how to support the frontline communities living with the worst effects of climate change. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, today’s quick ask involves Senator Manchin’s “Dirty Deal.” Again. This permitting “reform” legislation (that would gut environmental protections (such as Clean Water) and fast-track fossil fuel projects such as the Mountain Valley Pipeline) is Manchin’s pet zombie that refuses to die.

BUT, we defeated Manchin’s attempt to attach the dirty deal to the Continuing Resolution (government funding bill) in late September and we can do it again as he tries to get it passed as part of another piece of funding legislation–such as, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). There are already a number of Senators and Representatives who are speaking out against the Dirty Deal, but we need to let ALL of them know we are opposed to this legislation.

PLEASE, take one OR two actions:

  1. Go here to write one email to send to your Representative and Senators. You may send the template as-is, or personalize your message.
  2. Dial (917) 791-2257 to get connected to your Representative and leave a message (here’s a basic script):

Hi, my name is ____ and I’m from ____. I’m very concerned about climate change and as your constituent, I’m calling to demand you do everything you can to block legislation like the Energy Independence and Security Act. The planet is on fire and you must stand with the communities impacted by fossil fuels and the climate crisis. Please, stop the dirty deal!

Thank you in advance for your actions. Solidarity!✊🏽

 

Climate Movement Monday: re-instate ban on crude oil exports

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

Welcome back to another Climate Movement Monday in which I provide info on how we can support frontline communities (typically BIPOC and poor people) who are suffering the greatest effects of climate change. I’m not going to lie, my climate anxiety is very high these days as we learn the crisis is accelerating beyond earlier predictions. But this does NOT mean it’s foregone and that we can give up. To the contrary, it’s vital we all push for a just transition to renewables.

Below, I’ve pasted an entire Op-Ed (in The Hill) from the climate political director of the Center for Biological Diversity Action Fund  that lays out the multiple dangers of being at the mercy of OPEC and relying on fossil fuels.  My ask today is that you contact President Biden:

1) demand he re-instate the ban on crude oil exports
2) demand he declare a climate emergency

Comment line (11A-3P, Tues-Thurs): 1-202-456-1111
TTY/TTD: 1-202-456-6213
Email: Here

Solidarity! ✊🏽
TO END PRICE SPIKES AND CLIMATE CATASTROPHE, BAN CRUDE OIL EXPORTS
BY KASSIE SIEGEL, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – 10/12/22 

On the same day that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its oil-exporting allies, which include Russia, agreed to raise oil prices with a major supply cut, President Biden was touring Hurricane Ian’s damage in Florida, declaring that it “ends discussion” on the climate crisis. Both show why Biden needs to reinstate the U.S. ban on crude oil exports.

The multidimensional threats from fossil fuels are evident in everything from intensifying superstorms, wildfires and heatwaves to toxic pollution and spiraling energy prices. OPEC’s production cut just before our midterm elections demonstrates how petrostate power threatens both economies and democracy.

Congress lifted the 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports at the behest of the oil industry, right as the Paris climate talks drew to a close in 2015. Big Oil wanted the ban lifted so it could reap greater profits from the oil and gas production boom enabled by fracking — the ultra-hazardous extraction technique that exploits new oil and gas sources at the expense of our climate, health and wildlife habitat.

At the time, oil companies promised that the production boom and lifting of the export ban would lead to energy security and lower gas prices. Surprise, surprise — the oil industry lied. Despite record-high U.S. production, Americans face painful prices at the pump, along with record-high inflation driven in large part by fossil fuel energy prices.

OPEC’s announcement that it will cut production to further spike prices shows how deference to oily oligarchs not only sustains fossil-fueled greed but enables petrostate aggression. Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine was only possible due to fossil fuel production revenues. Now, in a world already destabilized by that war, Russia, OPEC and its allies, all but openly aim to influence the tremendously consequential midterm elections by manipulating oil prices.

The way for Biden to protect people from price spikes and profiteering is to accelerate the transition to clean renewable energy and end the fossil fuel era once and for all.

As a life-on-Earth-saving bonus, reinstating the crude oil export ban will help end the fracking free-for-all that has supercharged greenhouse gas pollution and the climate crisis. In fact, 85 percent of planet-warming pollution comes from oil, gas and coal. Scientists have been crystal clear that new fossil fuel production is “moral and economic madness.”

Next Biden must direct his executive branch agencies to comply with existing U.S. environmental law and stop approving new fossil fuel infrastructure and extraction projects — none of which serve the public interest. Most major fossil fuel projects require permits from one or more federal agencies. Just as the Biden administration denied the disastrous Keystone Pipeline as contrary to the public interest, other unsustainable and financially risky fossil fuel ventures should be denied.

The oil, gas and coal in fields and mines that are already in production, or where the capital has already been invested, are more than enough to get us to the other side of the clean energy transition. Indeed, the world cannot afford to burn all the fossil fuels in already developed reserves globally — doing so would push us way past the 1.5 degrees Celsius limit agreed to in the Paris climate treaty to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Kassie Siegel is climate political director at the Center for Biological Diversity Action Fund.

Climate Movement Monday: offering support after Hurricane Ian + update re farmworkers

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

Welcome back to Climate Movement Mondays in which I highlight frontline communities in need of our support as the climate crisis worsens. Last week, Hurricane Ian hit southwest Florida with Category 4 strength (150 mph winds). As of this writing, the death toll is at 100 while the search continues for survivors. Many are without power or drinking water. Here are some organizations to support (remember, any amount helps!):

  • Community Emergency Operations Center (CEOC) is a grassroots disaster relief effort. We serve the most vulnerable populations food, water and assist with restoring resilience after man-made and natural disasters. We believe that your neighbor is your 1st responder. Our goal is to ensure we have all the necessary tools and protocols in place when disaster strikes via emergency mobilization with a rapid response.
    Donate here 
  • World Central Kitchen is already in place, serving hot meals.Staging Relief Teams ahead of landfall, WCK and our local partners were ready to begin serving fresh meals as soon as it was safe to do so. Within hours of the storm’s passing, we began distributing sandwiches and cooking hot, nourishing meals at our Relief Kitchen. Additionally, we have built partnerships with restaurants ready to help us scale immediately.
    Donate here
  • Team Rubicon is a veteran-led humanitarian organization that serves global communities before, during, and after disasters and crises. Your donations go directly to our Ready Reserve Fund which increases the efficiency and capacity of Team Rubicon’s response to crises like this.
    Donate here 
  • Farm Share is a Florida nonprofit that sources leftover fruits and vegetables from farms and distributes them to people across the state. Established in 1991 as a food bank, Food Share partners with 2,000 food pantries, churches, schools, and other nonprofits throughout Florida to distribute food every single day.
    Donate here

Vehicles sit in flood water at the Palm Isle apartments in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, Sept. 29, 2022, in Orlando, Fla.  (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Thank you in advance for your support! And I wanted to share a good-news update: California Governor Newsom signed the Agricultural Labor Relations Voting Choice Act! This means farmworkers, those hardworking individuals who feed ALL OF US, can now vote for or against a union without interference from their employers. This is the second good-news update for Climate Movement Mondays!

Please note: the climate crisis is worsening and the hurricane season is NOT over yet. The best thing we can do as a society is keep all fossil fuels in the ground and make a just and equitable transition to renewable energy. We need YOU in the fight.

Solidarity! ✊🏽

 

 

Climate Movement Monday: STOP the Dirty Deal!

/ Tracy Abell / 3 Comments

Welcome back to Movement Mondays! Today my time-sensitive ask is that you make quick phone calls to your representatives AND/OR send emails regarding Senator Manchin’s side deal portion of the Inflation Reduction Act that would gut environmental regulations (Clean Water Act!) and accelerate the federal permitting process for energy projects. This legislation is a gift to the fossil fuels industry and Manchin’s #1 project priority is the Mountain Valley Pipeline.  [NOTE: more background info and links below.]

Basic message: Vote NO to this side deal that will accelerate the climate crisis and is just a gift to the fossil fuel industry.

CALL
917-791-2257 will give you a brief script then connect you to your Senators (thanks to the People vs. Fossil Fuels Coalition).

202-224-3121 is the Capitol Switchboard where you can ask to be connected to your senators and representative.

You may also, of course, call directly to your representatives’ DC and local offices

EMAIL
If you aren’t comfortable making phone calls, you may use your representatives’ email contact form to send your message.

BACKGROUND INFO:

This action is VERY important and phone calls from constituents carry a lot of weight. PLEASE take the time to urge your representatives: NO to the permitting side deal!

Solidarity! ✊🏽