Red, Green, and Blue

Since it was announced last week that a deal had been reached for the probable removal of four dams on the Klamath River, I’ve been ecstatic. The Klamath dams have been the cause of massive fish kills, are owned by the richest man in America Warren Buffett, do not provide green energy, have shut down west coast fisheries, and have hurt the Native American culture.  Of course, since the Bush administration negotiated the deal, I am wary there may be a hidden agenda for this once mighty river in my neighborhood.

Should the nonbinding deal go through, this would be the largest dam removal project in US history.  The alternative for PacificCorp to re-license the dams was to build fish ladders mandated by federal biologists costing $300 million. Dam removal is the cheapest option and the best decision for the health of endangered salmon on the Klamath River. The California Energy Commission reported PacifiCorp could save $101 million over the next 30 years if the dams were removed and replacement power bought.  As part of the deal, ratepayers will foot $200 million in removal cost, and California will ask voters to approve a $250 million bond.  Studies and analysis will occur until 2012, at which point the dams could be removed in 2020.  Under the deal, PacificCorp would receive immunity from the dams’ environmental liabilities.

Bush wanted the deal to remove the dams, yet his administration has always backed farmers in the dispute over water rights, such as when irrigation was shut off to under the Endangered Species Act in 2001. Even after the Klamath dams’ removal deal was announced on November 13, 2008,  Bush released a statement saying, “Together, we have produced an agreement that will greatly reduce the risk of future shutdowns of the irrigation system.“  Already, the Klamath deal is under attack for supporting farmers over fish. Many suspect the deal will shut down California water quality hearings that may have doomed the dams anyway. Read the rest of this entry »

Like many people, I have become zealous about recycling. On bin day I put out my containers of paper, glass, cans and plastics, and look at my neighbours’ rubbish to see if they are doing as well as I am in reducing the amount of waste that leaves my house and goes to landfill. I’ve already blogged about the disappointment of finding that composting much of our food waste wasn’t a good option in our garden, but now it seems that my recycling efforts might be wasted too. Read the rest of this entry »

Instead of getting coal in their stockings, this year’s naughty (and even nice!) children may get lead. At least, that’s what may happen as parents look for cheaper toys this holiday season because of the nation’s economic woes.

Reports the Chicago Sun Times, the economic downturn can cause parents to turn to secondhand toys and discount Web sites to fill that space under the Christmas tree. And experts on Wednesday warned that those toys could be ones that got into the country before inspectors started seizing tainted toys in 2005. Read the rest of this entry »

In a landmark case, the US Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the US Navy can carry out sonar training exercises off the southern California coast, without safeguards designed to protect whales, dolphins and other marine mammals.

The decision is a major setback for environmentalists, who had hoped the Court would uphold an earlier injunction by a federal judge requiring the navy to take precautions while undertaking submarine-hunting exercises. Environmental groups originally launched the lawsuit claiming that the use of sonar can injure or even kill a wide range of marine species, including sea-lions and endangered blue whales.

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[Update: I seemed to have overlooked an important constitutional amendment passed in Minnesota that established a funding mechanism for conservation programs. My apologies to our friends in the North Star State. See comments for more.]For many Americans, participatory democracy means choosing between the people who will choose for you. But for voters in 36 states, electoral democracy exists beyond the parameters of representative government. In the states where the tools of direct democracy like referendums and ballot initiatives are employed, preferences of voters are gauged directly on amendments to state constitutions, specific policy questions, budgeting issues and more. Of the 153 measures at stake across the country in yesterday’s election, about a dozen dealt with energy and the environment. Below are the results and analysis of eight of the more notable measures (in no particular order): Read the rest of this entry »

As I noted last week, the Red, Green and Blue/ReframeIt Scavenger Hunt has picked up steam… we’re seeing some great web finds, comments, and discussions. And, regardless of who wins tomorrow’s election, the conversation surrounding the growth of a green economy needs to continue. So, we’ve decided to extend the Green Economy Scavenger Hunt through the month of November.

That’s right — if you’ve been too busy getting your political fix (and who hasn’t), you’ll have plenty of time to join in the hunt… and to dig up the ideas and innovations that the next President and Congress will need to consider as they further craft policy related to greening the US’ economic development.

Keep in mind, though, that the deadline is the only thing that’s changed — the rules surrounding the scavenger hunt, and process for getting involved, remain the same. We’re still giving away $1000 and a guest posting opportunity at RG&B to the winner, and a number of other cash prizes. And just because we’ll have a president-elect doesn’t mean that his record still doesn’t deserve scrutiny. But as we move forward as a country, it’ll be even more important to get cutting edge ideas for clean technology development, green job creation, and sustainable business growth out into the open… and our friends at ReframeIt have developed a great tool for doing just that — check out this video for information on how ReframeIt works.
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A federal judge has stopped Mayor Bloomberg’s attempt to clean up the air in New York City by using fuel-efficient hybrid taxis.

The judge, Paul A. Crotty, of Federal District Court in Manhattan, issued a 26-page ruling (PDF) to stop the city from enforcing the rule because, he said in a written order, the plaintiffs were likely to succeed in a key legal argument — that only the federal government has the right to set fuel efficiency standards under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975, which bars state and local governments from setting their own, competing standards.

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I’d say I have strong green credentials: I’ve worked on global commons and social accountability for over a decade, I ran an international tree planting charity, and I’ve been an environmental writer since the term ‘environment’ was coined, just about. But I do have a big problem with the world of ‘green’ – let’s call it policy hypocrisy.

The nasty truth is that a lot of the simplistic, one-size-fits-all, ‘you can save the planet’ policies offered by governments just don’t work. And that failure can leave even the keenest green activist feeling like a fraud and a contributor to planetary despoliation, so what it does to the novice ‘green’ I can’t imagine. Read the rest of this entry »

5 reasons why liberal Red Green and Blue commentators are wrong about the Republican’s record on the environment, and another 7 reasons why the Democrats have failed.

Describing Red Green and Blue as a web-site that “has the immediate appearance of hating people like me“, a Republican reader writes:

One look at it [Red Green and Blue] and it was clear that you suffer from the misconception that only liberals care about greenness therefore, we won’t mind your obvious political bias and childish slaps at people like me…

…..I’ve been a Republican since 1992 and can’t think of a single Republican I know that is anything less than concerned about this planet….

….Web sites like yours perpetuate the lie that Republicans have not been friendly to the environment.

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Of course it’s too early too judge, but as recent leaked policy papers suggest that the Republicans may find themselves facing a sixty seat Democrat majority in the Senate, there’s an eerie similarity to what happened to the British Labour party in the 1980s – and that means a decade in the wilderness - always assuming there’s any wilderness left for the losing party to get lost in!
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