*** Obama makes bold climate bill prediction: 'We'll get it done'

http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2009/03/25/25climatewire-obama-makes-bold-capandtrade-prediction-well-10277.html
President Obama struck an optimistic note last night on the prospects for signing a major global warming law, pledging also to craft a bill that takes into account economic concerns and the country's regional differences over energy production.

ENVIRONMENT: Has Mountaintop Mining Peaked?

http://www.publicintegrity.org/blog/entry/1228/
Activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is praising the Obama administration for moving to stop "the greatest environmental tragedy ever to befall our nation" while the coal industry says the administration has put tens of thousands of jobs at risk throughout Appalachia. But federal officials say they have done neither. Still, it was easy to see why people might be confused.

Corps escalates mountaintop removal mining fight

http://wvgazette.com/News/200903250810
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials on Wednesday escalated a fight with the Environmental Protection Agency over the regulation of mountaintop removal coal mining. Read more in Coal Tattoo

At the same time, coalfield politicians rushed to insist that new policies should not threaten strip-mining jobs, while environmental groups urged a broader discussion of transitioning to more underground mining and finding "green jobs" for the Appalachian region.

Better Health For All: Critical To Reduce Population Growth & Poverty

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/03/better-health-reduce-population-poverty.php

Ensuring basic health care for people in low-income countries is critical to the Plan B goal of eradicating poverty and stabilizing population.

At the Earth Policy Institute, we note that while heart disease, cancer, obesity, and smoking dominate health concerns in industrial countries, in developing countries infectious diseases are the overriding health concern. Besides AIDS, the principal diseases of concern are diarrhea, respiratory illnesses, tuberculosis, malaria, and measles. Child mortality is high.

Overpopeulation: The Church’s Condom Code and Demographic Disaster

http://cornellsun.com/section/opinion/content/2009/03/25/overpopeulation-church%E2%80%99s-condom-code-and-demographic-disaster
Last week, Pope Benedict XVI told reporters that condoms exacerbate the spread of the HIV virus. Put another way: Last week, the Catholic Church confirmed, yet again, that it is stubbornly dogmatic, shamefully tone-deaf and far too willing to wield its influence in a grossly irresponsible and socially destructive way.

Why the Copenhagen Climate Change Cliffhanger Could Drag on a Little Longer

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/258796.html
Officials are reluctant to admit as much, but Bob Watson, chief scientist at the UK environment department Defra, broke ranks when he told the Guardian last year: "If there's major agreement but they can't get everyone to sign on the dotted line they might have to come back a few months later. I say let's really push for Copenhagen, but there may have to be what I call a Copenhagen plus one."

The climate cliffhanger could drag on a little longer yet.

Barack Obama may be forced to delay signing up to a new international agreement on climate change

http://www.earth-stream.com/Earth/Back-to-the-Future/Obama-may-delay-signing-up-to-Copenhagen-climate-deal_18_212__155968.html
Obama may delay signing up to Copenhagen climate deal Barack Obama may be forced to delay signing up to a new international agreement on climate change in Copenhagen at the end of the year because of the scale of opposition in the US Congress, it emerged today.Senior figures in the Obama administration have been warning Labour counterparts that the president may need at least another six months to win domestic support for any proposal.Such a delay could derail the securing of a tough global agreement in time for countries and markets to adopt it before the Kyoto treaty runs out in 2012.American officials would prefer to have the approval of Congress for any international agreement and fear that if the US signed up without it there would be a serious domestic backlash.

Pres. Obama speaks against mountaintop removal

http://blogs.wvgazette.com/coaltattoo/2009/03/24/obama-speaks-on-mountaintop-removal/

"This is one of those things where I want science to help lead us," Obama said. "I will tell you that there's some pretty country up there that's been torn up pretty good. "I will also tell you that the environmental consequences of the runoff from some of these mountains can just be horrendous. … Not taking that into account because of short-term economic concerns, I think, is a mistake. I think we have to balance economic growth with good stewardship of the land God gave us."

****EPA to review mountaintop removal's impact on water quality

http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/03/24/24greenwire-epa-halts-mountaintop-permitting-will-review-w-10274.html
U.S. EPA announced plans today to review permitting for mountaintop mining to assess the impacts of those projects on water quality and aquatic life.

Activist or terrorist? Mild-mannered eco-militant serving 22 years for arson

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/mar/24/marie-mason-speaks-from-jail
Mason's lawyer, John Minock, who filed an appeal against the sentence last week, argues that 22 years is excessively harsh. Mason got a much longer sentence than several militants recently convicted of setting fire to logging camps and vehicles in Oregon and Washington states – including Stanislas Meyerhoff who received 13 years for setting 11 fires and causing $30m in damage.

Stimulus Appears to Be Sparking Alt-Energy Revival

http://www.truthout.org/032409EA
There are signs that the federal stimulus might be pumping a little life into the alternative-energy industry.

Financiers and law firms specializing in renewable energy say they see growing interest in reviving moribund projects and breaking ground on new deals. And while big banks that have braced the industry's backbone are still on the fence, some hedge funds and private equity and venture capital firms are cautiously looking to take advantage of stimulus provisions that temporarily eliminate the need for tax equity financing, which has long been a mainstay for renewable energy projects.

Carbon cap-and-trade system coming soon, energy adviser says

http://www.calgaryherald.com/Business/Carbon+trade+system+coming+soon+energy+adviser+says/1413165/story.html
'My goodness, this is a president who clearly campaigned as if he believed what he was saying.' That comes as a shocker to a lot of people."

Obama's system would force coal-fired power plants -- which generate half of U.S. electricity -- and other large emitters, including oil and gas producers, to buy permits to release carbon into the atmosphere.

The ice caps are in trouble

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/earth-hour/the--ice-caps-are--in--trouble-20090324-983y.html

Polar ice is melting at such an alarming rate the rest of the world can't help but feel the heat, reports Marian Wilkinson.

• Voyage into the Arctic as summer ice vanishes

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Before the summer heatwave hit Australia in January, climate scientists around the world were already turning their attention in our direction.

The popular belief that Antarctica might be resistant to global warming was punctured with new research based on data from satellites and weather stations, confirming that for the past 50 years, much of the continent has been warming at the same rate as the rest of the planet.

Obama pledges billions for renewable energy projects

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/23/barack-obama-environmental-spending-budget

Barack Obama today declared the billions of dollars he is planning to spend on renewable energy projects off-limits to the usual bartering over the next few weeks with Congress.

The president, on the first day of a week-long blitz aimed at selling his ambitious $3tn (£2tn) spending budget, said the $129bn allocated for encouraging the use of solar power, hybrid cars and renewable energy projects would not be subject to any of the usual wheeling and dealing between the White House and Congress.

******The potential catastrophe that global climate change could unleash on America makes every other foreign policy crisis pale in comparison.

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090324_obamas_plan_to_save_the_world/?ln
Scott Ritter:  The potential catastrophe that global climate change could unleash on America makes every other foreign policy crisis pale in comparison. Recognizing the importance of proactive, as opposed to reactive, policy to head off these looming problems, President Obama has crafted a national policy designed to address the principal underlying cause of global climate change: greenhouse gas emissions.

******Democrats to shelve fast-track process on climate bill, for now

http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2009/03/23/23climatewire-dems-to-shelve-fasttrack-process-on-capandtr-10245.html
Capitol Hill Democrats are expected to bypass the fast-track budget process for global warming legislation but plan to keep the option open later this year if they cannot win bipartisan support on one of President Obama's signature agenda items.

EPA Presses Obama To Regulate Warming Under Clean Air Act

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/23/AR2009032301068.html?hpid=moreheadlines
The Environmental Protection Agency's new leadership, in a step toward confronting global warming, submitted a finding that will force the White House to decide whether to limit greenhouse gas emissions under the nearly 40-year-old Clean Air Act.

I'd Rather Go Naked Than Burn MTR Coal: Abolitionist Movement Grows

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-biggers/id-rather-go-naked-than-b_b_178152.html

It is time to abolish mountaintop removal mining, not regulate it. That is the fervent message being spread from community to community, and state to state, now that scores of ANFO explosive-packing mountaintop removal permits stand at the doors of the Army Corps of Engineers, ready to be issued after the recent 4th Circuit Court ruling.

Three million pounds of ammonium nitrate fuel oil explosives are being detonated daily in Appalachia.

Obama officials in 'transition' on mountaintop removal rules

http://wvgazette.com/News/200903230676
Obama administration officials are reviewing possible changes in how mountaintop removal coal mining will be regulated, a government lawyer told a federal judge Monday morning.

But administration officials are not ready to release more detailed information about their review of the issue or what new policies they are considering.

EPA rules under the Clean Air Act aren't the way to do the job. But a carefully crafted tax might be.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/23/AR2009032302024.html
THE ENVIRONMENTAL Protection Agency has told the White House that global warming is endangering public health and welfare, The Post's Juliet Eilperin reported yesterday. This "finding" under the Clean Air Act may seem like a no-brainer, given the potential ill effects of climate change. But that law, enacted in 1970, was never intended to deal with greenhouse gases and is not suited to that task. The Bush administration's failure to tackle climate change directly drove states and environmental advocates to seek back-door paths to regulation. If this one goes forward, the EPA would have to regulate greenhouse gases from all sources, including cars, houses and commercial buildings. This would create what Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) has called "a glorious mess." Congress should avert it putting a price on carbon.

Economy Trumps Environment in Poll

http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/24/poll-economy-trumps-environment/
For the first time in Gallup's 25-year history of asking Americans about the trade-off between environmental protection and economic growth, a majority of Americans say economic growth should be given the priority, even if the environment suffers to some extent.

How Do You Build the World’s Biggest Wind Farm?

http://cleantechnica.com/2009/03/23/how-do-you-build-the-worlds-biggest-wind-farm/
We recently learned that Denmark plans on building the world's largest wind farm. With a net installed capacity of 209 MW, Horns Rev 2 (companion to Horns Rev 1) will provide power to 200,000 homes. The North Sea offshore wind farm is scheduled for completion later this year.

Opposing wind farms should be socially taboo, says Ed Miliband

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/mar/24/wind-farms-opposition-ed-miliband

Opposition to wind farms should become as socially unacceptable as failing to wear a seatbelt, Ed Miliband, the climate change secretary, has said.

Speaking at a screening in London of the climate change documentary The Age of Stupid, Miliband said the government needed to be stronger in facing down local opposition to wind farms.

Erosion causing Lake Victoria to shrink

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/550070/-/u3myjl/-/

Indiscriminate destruction of forests and other forms of environmental degradation on the slopes of Mt Elgon pose a major threat to the survival of Lake Victoria.

The Western provincial commissioner said that about 20 million tonnes of silt are washed down the lake daily, causing the water level to fall. The slopes account for 80 percent of this soil.

Currently, the water levels have dropped by 10 metres.

****Worldchanging Interview: Amory Lovins

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/009560.html

JL: How long do you think it would take to build a carbon-neutral prosperity in America?

AL: Several decades, partially because of the amount of capital stock we have to fix up or turn over. But it's time to get started. There's a Chinese proverb that the best time to plant a tree is 100 years ago, and the second best time is today.

****** Thatcher’s Science Adviser To GOP: Fighting Global Warming Is Winning Issue

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=31168
"Connecting with ordinary people as opposed to the chattering classes, and standing up to the Goebbels-like persistent noise from the liberal media on global warming is imperative for Republicans.  If they can do this and make the case that environmental regulation dealing with this issue will hurt the middle-class and the poor, then they can win [in 2010]."

World Must Work Together To Use Water Wisely

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00437.htm
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has underscored the potential of water as a unifying force rather than a catalyst for conflict, stressing that the world's collective future depends on how it manages this precious resource. "More than ever we need to work together to use it wisely," Mr. Ban said in a message to mark World Water Day, observed annually on 22 March.

500 People Protest Coal Mining Exploration and Export, Newcastle Coal Mine Port Brought To a Standstill

http://paguntaka.org/2009/03/23/500-people-protest-coal-mining-exploration-and-export-newcastle-coal-mine-port-brought-to-a-standstill/
More than 500 people protested coal mining and exports currently underway. Newcastle Harbour is already the world's biggest coal port.

Several hundred paddled into the harbour on a fleet of canoes provided by protest organisers. Others brought their own canoes or surfboards, or even homemade rafts.

Too Many People, Too Much Consumption

http://in-gods-name.blogspot.com/2009/03/too-many-people-too-much-consumption-by.html
However, in the last several centuries we've increasingly been using our relatively newly acquired power, especially our culturally evolved technologies, to deplete the natural capital of Earth — in particular its deep, rich agricultural soils, its groundwater stored during ice ages, and its biodiversity — as if there were no tomorrow.

The point, all too often ignored, is that this trend is being driven in large part by a combination of population growth and increasing per capita consumption, and it cannot be long continued without risking a collapse of our now-global civilization.

Japan Joins the Race for Uranium Amid Global Expansion of Nuclear Power

http://japanfocus.org/-Hisane-MASAKI/1626
Energy-hungry Japan is revving up its drive to secure uranium abroad as global demand for nuclear power rises amid stubbornly high oil and gas prices and growing environmental concerns. Major Japanese trading and energy firms are looking at multibillion yen investments in uranium mine projects, with electronics conglomerate Toshiba in February purchasing Westinghouse, the US power plant arm of British Nuclear Fuels, for about US$5.4 billion. Meanwhile, the government, which attaches great importance to nuclear power as a key to ensuring national energy security, is also considering assistance to help domestic firms in the intensifying global competition for fuel at nuclear power plants.