Obama's environmental heritage - a case study in crony capitalism. We have the long running farce of "clean coal", nuclear power, the Keystone pipeline, and Friend to Fracking.
There's his humble obeisance to his long-time political sponsor, Exelon Corporation.
Early in the Obama administration, a lobbyist for the Illinois-based nuclear energy producer Exelon Corporation proudly called it “the president’s utility.“White House records show that Exelon executives were able to secure an unusually large number of meetings with top administration officials at key moments in the consideration of environmental regulations that have been drafted in a way that hurt Exelon’s competitors, but curb the high cost of compliance for Exelon and its industry allies.” Thanks to the Obama admin Exelon has managed to gut environmental and safety regulations that would cut into its bottom line and have new regulations created to destroy the competition and bilk taxpayers out of
billions.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/23/obama-exelon-corporation-close-ties_n_1823792.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-biggers/clean-coal-obama_b_1975481.html
"Clean coal" is a hoax, and the president knows it, and outside of appeasing a few Midwestern Big Coal sycophants and his Duke Energy coal buddy Jim Rogers, who helped to underwrite the Democratic Convention this summer in Charlotte, Obama has little to gain from invoking the offensive phrase.
You're offensive, President Obama, to use your own words. Offensive to coal miners and their families who have paid the ultimate price, offensive to people who live daily with the devastating impacts of coal mining and coal ash in their communities and watersheds, and offensive to anyone who recognizes the spiraling reality of climate change.
Coal kills three miners daily, as black lung has spiked during the Obama administration. Coal mining and burning pollutants contribute to four of the five leading causes of mortality in the U.S., according to the Physicians for Social Responsibility: "Heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory diseases. This conclusion emerges from our reassessment of the widely recognized health threats from coal. Each step of the coal life cycle -- mining, transportation, washing, combustion, and disposing of post combustion wastes -- impacts human health."
Coal slurry, coal ash, mercury, strip mining, silicosis -- the deadly list goes on and on.
Obama is Big Fracking's biggest cheerleader, putting him right next to the despicable GOP Pennsylvania Governor, Tom Corbett. Obama says just lay back and rely on the states' regulations to make sure fracking doesn't harm citizens or environment. Right! Frackers have bribed Corbett to gut our Dept. of Enviromental Protection, and open up state gamelands, state university grounds and even state parks to fracking, while decimating the number of inspectors available to monitor the safety of same.
Some environmental groups advocate a total rejection of all fossil fuels and an all-out effort to switch to renewables such as wind turbines and solar panels. They also say people living close to drilling operations have suffered from too much pollution.
"When it comes to natural gas, the president is taking the wrong path," Deb Nardone, the head of the Sierra Club's Beyond Natural Gas program, wrote in a blog post.
Robert Howarth, a Cornell University professor who argues that methane leaks from drilling negate other climate benefits of gas, said in an email to The Associated Press that he is "extremely disappointed in the President's position" and said the support for natural gas "is very likely to do more to aggravate global change than to help solve it."
Then there's Keystone.
Please read this: Obama’s Climate Pledge: The Keystone XL Fracking Double Standard
http://desmogblog.com/2013/07/01/obama-s-climate-pledge-keystone-xl-fracking-double-standard
And this news from Canada - NO TO KEYSTONE plan B.
OTTAWA — A pipeline for exporting oil sands bitumen to Asia-bound tankers was dealt a severe blow on Friday when the province of British Columbia urged a federal review panel to reject the $6 billion plan.
The proposal to build the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline and its port is effectively Alberta’s backup plan in case the Obama administration turns down the Keystone XL, a pipeline that would link the oil sands with American refineries on the Gulf Coast. Several of the concerns raised by British Columbia in its rejection echo those of American environmentalists regarding Keystone XL.
In its 99-page submission, the province questioned Enbridge’s claims that it could mitigate spills in its remote mountain wilderness and off its rugged coastline.
Enbridge, the province wrote, “presented little evidence about how it will respond in the event of a spill.” The submission said that from the company’s evidence it was not clear that it “will in fact be able to respond effectively to spills either from the pipeline itself or from tankers” and added, “ ‘Trust me’ is not good enough in this case.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/01/business/energy-environment/british-columbia-opposes-planned-oil-sands-pipeline.html?_r=0
Interesting that British Columbia blocked a pipeline going through it's territory - guess they should have Obama explain to them what a blessing it would be! And why does the pipeline go to Texas? To refine and ship the product overseas! That will benefit the shareholders, but not US consumers!
Like I said - case study in Crony Capitalism!
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