[Mb-civic] This week's enviro headlines

[ean at sbcglobal.net]

NO TAXATION WITHOUT ALLOCATION
Americans would support gas tax in service of green goals, poll finds

Most Americans would support a higher federal gasoline tax if the proceeds
went toward ending dependence on foreign oil, reducing global warming, or
cutting energy consumption, a new nationwide telephone poll shows. Some 85
percent of adults polled opposed an increased gas tax with no
qualifications. But when the funds were to be earmarked for
energy-independence and environmental goals, support rose to 55 percent or
more. Follow-up interviews affirmed that support. "If it was a tax that
would sponsor research for fuel cells or alternative fuel sources, I could
buy that," said one Louisiana Republican. The takeaway may be that despite
opposition from politicos on both sides of the aisle, Americans are ready
to pay more to promote energy conservation -- when they know the money
will make a real difference.

straight to the source: The New York Times, Louis Uchitelle and Megan
Thee, 28 Feb 2006 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6520>

discuss in Gristmill: Americans support a gas tax if revenues go toward
energy independence
<http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2006/2/27/22532/5719?source=daily>


IS THIS THE "SAFE, CLEAN" NUCLEAR POWER WE HEAR SO MUCH ABOUT?
Illinois nuke-power operator criticized for leaks and "incidents"

Quantity doesn't equal quality with Chicago-based Exelon Corp., which runs all
six nuclear plants and 11 nuclear reactors in Illinois. There were at least
four "incidents" at Exelon plants last week, including a false alarm at one
generating station that initiated the first "site-area emergency" at a U.S.
nuclear plant in 15 years. These came on the heels of disclosures that there
were eight radioactive leaks and spills at Exelon plants since 1996 that went
unreported to the public. One spill of roughly 3 million gallons of
tritium-laced water in 1998 wasn't completely cleaned up eight years later.
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) plans to introduce legislation this week requiring
nuclear facilities to notify state and local officials of unintended or
accidental radioactive leaks -- or face possible loss of their operating
licenses. 

straight to the source: Chicago Tribune, Robert Manor, 25 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6507>

straight to the source: Time.com, Eric Ferkenhoff, 23 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6508>

straight to the source: Morris Daily Herald, Jo Ann Hustis, 23 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6509>


SHELL SHOCKED
Nigerian court orders Shell to pay $1.5 billion for pollution

A Nigerian court has ordered Royal Dutch Shell to ante up $1.5 billion in
damages to communities in the Niger Delta, citing oil spills that polluted
regional rivers, spoiled crops, and poisoned fish. The Friday ruling is a major
victory for the region's Ijaw people, who have struggled for over a decade to
get compensation for environmental damages. Shell says it will appeal. The
court ruling comes during an upsurge in violence in the Niger Delta, where
local communities live in squalor despite the region's oil riches. The militant
Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta kidnapped several employees 
of
a U.S. oil industry subcontractor nine days ago and demanded that foreign oil
firms leave the region. The group's attacks over the past two months have shut
down almost a fifth of the country's oil production.

straight to the source: The Guardian, Rory Carroll, 25 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6510>

straight to the source: The New York Times, Lydia Polgreen, 25 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6511>

BRING IN DA ILLINOIS, BRING IN DA HUNK
Obama speechifies for energy independence, chemical-plant security

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is calling for a bipartisan effort to create a
cabinet-level national director of energy security, who would coordinate
federal policies to cut U.S. dependence on foreign oil. In a Tuesday
speech to U.S. governors, Obama touted several policies to promote
oil-free energy, among them Department of Defense investments in the best
commercial biofuel endeavors. He also suggested Big Auto put serious
effort into creating fuel-efficient vehicles, in return for the feds
picking up some health care costs for industry retirees. Obama's hot for
national security: On Monday, he said he'd introduce legislation this week
mandating minimum security requirements at chemical plants around the
country, where an attack could kill thousands and endanger millions more.
So far, only about 1,100 of the nation's 15,000 largest plants participate
in the Bush administration's voluntary security program. "Voluntary
security" -- love it. But hey, at least the United Arab Emirates isn't
running the plants.

straight to the source: Belleville News Democrat, Associated Press, Dennis
Conrad, 28 Feb 2006 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6524>

straight to the source: Chicago Sun-Times, Abdon M. Pallasch, 28 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6525>

straight to the source: Time, Douglas Waller and Mark Thompson, 27 Feb
2006 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6526>

read the speech transcript and discuss in Gristmill: Barack Obama on
energy independence
<http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2006/2/28/225014/029?source=daily>

see also, in Gristmill: "Health Care for Hybrids" -- a smart trade?
<http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2006/2/8/1392/77402?source=daily>


GLOBAL WARRING
Climate change a major security problem, says U.K. defense chief

U.K. Defense Secretary John Reid has echoed a growing number of analysts
by stressing that global warming is not just a weather problem, or a
health problem, or a problem for biodiversity. It's a global security
problem. In a Monday speech, Reid called on the nation's military to
prepare now for strife brought on by desertification, water shortages,
melting ice fields, and increased population. "The blunt truth is that the
lack of water and agricultural land is a significant contributory factor
to the tragic conflict we see unfolding in Darfur," said Reid. "We should
see this as a warning sign." Reid's cheery comments came on the eve of a
summit at which Prime Minister Tony Blair will discuss Great Britain's
response to global warming. They also coincided with a leak of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's next big report, which
indicates that the planet could heat up far more than previously
predicted. 

straight to the source: The Independent, Ben Russell and Nigel Morris, 28
Feb 2006 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6528>

straight to the source: United Press International, Hannah K. Strange, 28
Feb 2006 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6529>

straight to the source: The Guardian, David Adam, 28 Feb 2006
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6530>


OLD DOG POOP, NEW TRICKS 
San Francisco looks to harness the power of pet poop

Renewable energy is the sh*t. No, really. San Francisco Bay Area cities
are aiming to generate no trash by 2020, and nearly 4 percent of San
Francisco's residential waste is animal excrement. What to do with the
doo? Turn it into methane and heat your home or cook your meals with it!
(Um, ew.) In the next few months, a San Francisco sanitation company will
be collecting feces at a busy dog park -- no doubt employees are jostling
for the assignment -- and sending it to be digested by hungry bacteria.
The resulting methane could theoretically be used in any natural-gas
system. Some officials hope to see methane digesters in individual homes
within a few years. While it's a relatively newfangled notion in the
United States, some European countries already process poo into energy. 

straight to the source: San Francisco Chronicle, Carolyn Jones, 21 Feb
2006 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=6497>




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"A war of aggression is the supreme international crime." -- Robert Jackson,
 former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice and Nuremberg prosecutor

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