Tag Archives: Gulf Coast of the United States

Remembering the BP Oil Spill ~~~


Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Site
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Site (Photo credit: Green Fire Productions)

just another rant ..,

In memory of the BP oil spill … A day just like today,  the sun came up and the light of day gave way to a whole lot of life, but on 4/20, the morning light showed just how bad the BP oil spill disaster was, uncovering an event that will forever affect the Gulf Coast. As the media pushes, viewers begin to listen because they have questions, the media thinks they have solutions and the answers to how each Political Party will handle the disaster that is BP. They will talk about the BP oil spill and the damage to marine wildlife and habitat, the economy, the health of the people, those who worked and fought the oil as well as the local government weather and each other to save the Gulf Coast.

We all need to Remember the eleven people who died.

I still wonder just how much the Republican Party of No knows about the lack of preparedness drilling oil companies seem to be engaged in.

The BP oil disaster … proof of our need for rules regulations and while some oil companies rely and exist on short cuts and deregulation; Congress, specifically those from oil Country have avoided legislation that would make sure it does not happen again. Republicans did not seem fazed by the oil disaster whatsoever, screamed for more drilling though eleven people died, no heads rolled and no one did any jail time. It was the worse spill in our history yet Congress has swept it under the depths of the ocean that clearly needs man’s help. I have a riddle …what happens when a big corporation might knowingly try to save money by betting on worst-case scenario. Well, we do not know how many other narrow escapes there were or why they simply chose not to have high-tech equipment already in place or a multi-billion dollar plan B, but luck ran out and somebody’s risk analysis tool failed.

President Obama is willing to change direction on issues when the facts and or evidence show themselves. The moratorium President Obama put in place was a move coming from a President who has common sense. The BP oil disaster, led to major delays and or cancellation of offshore drilling and this clearly upset Republican members of Congress. Yet, given the latest information, maybe they should be more accountable for pushing for less regulation, less time waiting for permits more space for drilling; like that, 84,000 acres BP is or will lease to Ohio; which happens to be Boehner country. It is with great sadness folks on the right talk about drilling, like that old cliché … for us by us. FYI – it will take at least ten years to produce enough of our own to make a slight difference; in the meanwhile we should be implementing a full range of things including wind and solar but Republican oil seems to be more important. Yes, there are jobs, jobs, jobs in that there oil but betting against the odds puts more than an oil platform at risk which cannot be said enough times . A human error

I have to say the first reports of the explosion and then word that everything was okay made me wonder …common sense tells you okay the well is underground; it could bleed out, up or both. This spill, the worse ever is a warning to change the rules regulations, the way the clean-up process works with all equipment close or at least get an emergency plan in place. Safety first, seems like common sense at work though not too lucrative.  I am no expert, but emergency equipment should always be available immediately. However,  I saw nothing but boats watching, waiting for the leak to show and spread.

I haven’t heard much lately, but folks want to know what exactly is the status of the wildlife, those eyeless, clawless oddly deformed shellfish or fish with open sores some gulf coast fishermen may have caught though the FDA said “no worries,”  we all wonder how much pollution they theirs or we are being subjected to.

Tar Sands Pipeline : the facts


ThinkProgress War Room

The Facts About the Tar Sands Pipeline

The official State Department process to determine whether the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline is in the “national interest” is grinding along and should wrap up later this year, but that didn’t stop the senators from trying to force the issue last week.

Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) put forward an amendment to the Senate Democratic budget resolution, which is non-binding, calling for approval of the pipeline. Unfortunately, this amendment was supported by 62 senators, including 17 Democrats (though 3 Democrats have since distanced themselves from their votes).

Since there has been a vivid debate on this issue, often based on misinformation, here are the key facts on the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

  • THREE DOZEN JOBS: Proponents of the pipeline often claim it will create tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of jobs. This is simply not true. The most recent State Department assessment, written by contractors hired by the pipeline developer, found that constructing the pipeline would create 3,900 temporary jobs, but just 35 permanent jobs. Yes, you read that right, just 35 jobs. That’s about the same number of people who work in Hoeven’s Senate office.
  • NO BOOST TO ENERGY SECURITY: One of the other main claims is that the tar sands oil from Canada will be a big boost to U.S. energy security. There is, however, absolutely no guarantee that any — let alone all — of the oil will stay in the U.S. once it’s refined into gasoline, diesel and other products at Gulf Coast refineries. The State Department report makes this clear:

“There is existing demand for crude oil, particularly heavy crude oil at refiners in the Gulf Coast area, but the ultimate disposition of crude oil transported by the proposed Project, and any refined products produced from that crude oil, would be determined by future market forces.”

The State Department’s report also made clear that at least some of the Keystone oil will be refined and then exported, in response “to lower domestic gasoline demand and continued higher demand and prices in overseas markets.” Presently, 60 percent of the gasoline produced at these Gulf Coast refineries is exported. The New York Times concluded that the Canadian tar sands oil would travel via pipeline “to refineries on the Gulf Coast. From there, most of the fuel would be sent abroad.

If there’s no real benefit to our economy and no benefit to energy security, why should we risk our clean air and water and our climate?

We would be remiss if we didn’t note that the 10 senators who co-sponsored the amendment took more than $8 MILLION from the fossil fuel industry. That works out to 2.5 times more in fossil fuel money for the average senator who co-sponsored it compared to the average senator who did not.

BOTTOM LINE: The Keystone tar sands pipeline will create just a handful of jobs, won’t improve our energy security, and just isn’t worth the potential cost to our health and our climate.

Evening Brief: Important Stories That You Might’ve Missed

Top Democratic donors threaten Democrats: do the right thing on guns or no more money.

How the Koch Brothers use Florida Gulf Coast University to promote their agenda.

How states are attacking Roe v. Wade.

The indefensible marriage act.

How this week’s Supreme Court cases humiliated the anti-gay movement.

RNC member doubles down on comments about the “filthy homosexual lifestyle.”

Today was a national day of action for gun violence prevention.

A certificate from the NRA was found among the Newtown shooter’s possessions.

Republican senator says French people are illegally crossing the Mexican border into South Texas.

Ocean Conservation …


Obama Administration Progress on Oceans Conservation

Posted by Julie Randall:

Obama Responds to Ocean Letter

On August 15, Blue Frontier Campaign put together a letter to the presidential candidates signed by 60 ocean leaders calling on them to pledge to protect our ocean by moving forward in four action areas. On September 24, the Obama campaign responded with the following statement:

“President Obama is committed to ensuring that our nation’s vast natural resources are used responsibly, and that we maintain healthy oceans and coasts. By establishing a National Ocean Policy, he made it a priority of the federal government to ensure a proactive approach to improving the conservation of the ocean, our coasts, and the Great Lakes.”

President Obama is directing additional funding to Gulf Coast restoration to further bring back the fisheries and coastal ecosystems that are still recovering in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon spill. He kicked off the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, the largest investment in the Great Lakes in two decades, which is targeting ecological problems such as invasive species, toxic hot spots, and pollution runoff. And his administration is cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay, establishing a “pollution diet” for the Bay that will help restore the natural habitat for fish and other wildlife. They have also invested over $1.4 billion in Everglades’ restoration, helping restore tens of thousands of acres that will serve as a sanctuary for native Florida plants and wildlife. Under President Obama, we have created or enhanced more than 540 public coastal recreation areas, protected more than 54,000 acres of coastlines and restored over 5,200 acres of coastal habitat. The administration is also investing more in monitoring our fishing stock in coastal areas in order to have the most accurate data possible on the health of our fisheries. These are significant steps that are helping us improve the health of our oceans and build more robust fisheries.

Read the Executive Order — Stewardship of the Ocean, Our Coasts, and the Great Lakes

Read the Final Recommendations

Visit the National Ocean Council website

Read the FAQs

Read the press release

You can read public comments on the Task Force here.

Read the President’s Proclamation on National Oceans Month

Banks coming clean


With the movement for clean energy growing stronger every day, the last thing we need is more oil pipelines. Especially when those pipelines are filled with oil from Canada’s dirty tar sands.

Citigroup doesn’t see it that way. Since 2008 Citi has raised more than $14 billion for the pipeline industry—more than any other bank. One of Citi’s biggest clients in the sector is TransCanada—the same company now proposing the infamous KeystoneXL pipeline to connect Canada’s tar sands to Gulf Coast oil refineries.

Guess what though? You can change the way bankers do business, even at Citi, just by connecting one-on-one to share your concerns.

http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=N3%2FV7gtTEeaYPOhQN40e2%2BxsQktoNWGN

Make a difference in all of our futures by picking up the phone today and calling a Citi banker.

This is no email petition, we’re actually putting you on the phone with the bankers who need to know about Citi’s financing of fossil fuels so they can help Citi change course.  http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=3fOkJ%2FhFUlOnsTh8BH%2FJrZeWKDLLHRA3

The KeystoneXL pipeline would more than triple oil imports from the tar sands—effectively erasing the benefits of fuel efficiency standard s designed to break our crippling addiction to oil. Citi should clearly be financing our clean energy future, not outdated carbon-intensive fossil fuels.

Help us contact more than 2000 Citi employees today and enlist them in creating our clean energy future. It’ll make you feel great!

http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=JuxK4HRNsPJ%2BM3IrjlVbEZeWKDLLHRA3

For the future,

Brant Olson

Freedom From Oil Campaign Director

Decide which T-shirt we should make


Repower America is designing a T-shirt and you don’t have to be a fashion expert to weigh in. We’ve narrowed it down to two choices. Which one is your favorite?

Cast your vote by Tuesday at midnight for the T-shirt you want to see Repower America supporters wear in 2011.

Vote for your favorite Repower America shirt

Whether you’re part of the climate movement because you want to save money on your electricity bill or because you want to save the planet for your grandchildren, you know it’s important for supporters to come together in 2011. Climate deniers and the fossil fuel industry are emboldened, and it’s up to us to show that we will keep standing strong.

The truth is, we’re already winning this fight. Electric utilities and other corporations are taking steps to reduce their emissions. Windmills and solar panels are dotting the landscape from coast to coast. And more and more car owners are shopping for fuel-efficient vehicles.

What we need now is a way for supporters everywhere to send a clear and powerful message: We’ve got momentum behind us, and we won’t be denied our clean energy future.

That’s why Repower America is rolling out a new T-shirt exclusively for Repower America members. And we’re counting on supporters like you to help us select the best one.

Decide which T-shirt we should make. Vote here:

http://acp.repoweramerica.org/yourshirt

The climate movement has always been in your hands. Now, it’s time for you to decide how to move it forward in the weeks and months ahead.

Thanks for getting involved,

Dave Boundy
Campaign Manager
Repower America