The Washington Post
By Mike Tidwell
On the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, what environmental legislation should we celebrate most? What bill has really stood tall for our fragile planet? The Endangered Species Act of 1973? The Clean Air Act of 1990? Or … the District of Columbia’s plastic bag tax of 2010?
I missed President Evo Morales’ speech on Tuesday at the official opening of the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth. Asking several friends who were there how it was, they all were surprised by its relative mildness, for Morales. The main things he called upon people to do, my friends said, were to use clay dishes, stop drinking coca-cola and stop eating industrial agriculture-raised chickens.
Perhaps President Morales was holding his powder to allow his Vice President, Alvaro Garcia Linera, to give the rousing speech. This is what he did that afternoon at a major plenary session on the Univalle Campus in Tiquipaya. It was a comprehensive overview of what is happening because of climate change (dried up rivers, melting glaciers, desertification, forest destruction and more) and the cause of it (the economic system of capitalism which turns people and nature into commodities for private gain no matter who and what gets hurt). “Capitalism is ready to destroy nature,” he said.
Linara made clear his government’s belief that we are at the beginning of a certain worldwide catastrophe if humanity does not get serious right now. He used the figures of 260 million people who have been affected already by climate change and 200 million who have emigrated because of it.
Linara went on to put forward a very different solution than many in the United States, including many environmentalists, believe is the solution. For Linara, it’s not new technology that is going to save the world. What will save it, he said, is when “we take the Bolivian Indigenous, the Bolivian peasant model and make it universal. We need a new civilization that’s not about consumerism but about meeting basic needs. Humans must recognize that Mother Earth has rights and we have obligations to respect them. Our new model must be consensus-based, dialogical and rooted in personal relationships with nature. We need new forms of production, and we need new ethics.”
He referenced Rosa Luxemburg, a socialist leader from over 100 years ago, when he called, not for “socialism or barbarism,” her call, but for “Mother Earth or barbarism,” and he put forward five things that we must do:
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CCAN’s 4th annual “Artists for the Climate” event last Thursday, April 15th was a smashing success. Jeff Biggers, Mike Tidwell and Bill McKibben all gave rousing speeches and were joined by the extremely talented bluegrass performer, Lissy Rosemont.
View a short compilation video from the event below. You can also watch the entire program on google video.
The daily culture of the World Conference on climate change in Cochabamba, Bolivia is an experience that many present will never forget.The work of the conference is taking place in three ways:
But as significant as this work, this addressing of issues and planning for the future, is the amazing daily culture of the World Conference, as it has unfolded like a beautiful flower over the last two days.
At the end of my third day in Cochabamba and after the first day of the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, it has become very clear that “walking on two legs” is very much what is taking place and will be taking place.
This is the case as people have been walking from venue to venue in the part of Cochabamba where this historic conference of many thousands is taking place. I must have walked at least 3-4 miles today, but it was a joy to be doing so, exploring this town and seeing all my companeros and companeras doing the same thing, all of us, seemingly, in high spirits, glad to be here standing up for Mother Earth and all its life forms.
I was reminded today of the experience I had at the U.S. Social Forum in Atlanta, Georgia in 2007: many thousands of people, a hot climate, a large majority of people of color (in this case, primarily Latino and Indigenous peoples of Bolivia and other South American countries), a palpable feeling of solidarity and interconnection, and realistic hope that this gathering will advance the climate justice movement.
But there’s another way that people who are here will have to be “walking on two feet.” Continue reading
Last week on Mike’s cable access show “21st Century Life” — part of The Coffee House TV show and viewed across the region — he interviewed Washington Post reporter Steve Mufson about green jobs developments in Maryland and Virginia, including offshore wind developments, offshore drilling, and the closing of the BP solar panel plant in Frederick, Md.
This year, CCAN and our partners continued the fight to keep Maryland at the national forefront on clean energy policy. We fought for a number of bills aimed at shoring up Maryland’s hard-won carbon cap and building on other clean energy policy victories of recent years. It was a tough fight, given the state budget difficulties and a state Senate that environmental groups were ready to declare an environmental dead zone at the end of the session. But, thanks to the hard work and dedication of grassroots activists across the state and many dedicated environmental advocates, we managed to score some victories for the climate at the final hour. At the top of our agenda this year was the fight to get a comprehensive energy plan for Maryland. Having a statewide comprehensive plan is absolutely essential to ensuring that Maryland is able to meet its ambitious climate and clean energy policy goals while creating thousands of new clean energy jobs in the process. House Bill 522 and Senate Bill 910, if passed, would have required the creation of a state energy plan that is consistent with all state environmental laws and required the Public Service Commission to review proposals with respect to that state plan. Sadly, both bills died in committee. However, thanks to the clear public support for this important energy blueprint, some legislative leaders recommended administrative action. So we are now working with Governor O’Malley and his administration to create a comprehensive energy plan. Stay tuned for more info on this effort. In addition to the comprehensive energy plan, CCAN fought for a variety of other important clean energy initiatives including an expansion and acceleration of the solar portion of the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard, the creation of clean energy loans programs, improvements the state’s net-metering policies, and an effort to prepare the state to cope with the stronger storms we are starting to face as a result of climate change.
Here a summary of how those bills fared:
Solar Energy: SB 277/HB 471 (WIN!) The Administration bill accelerating solar energy production in Maryland passed. However, the targets for accelerating the solar energy production were significantly weakened in the final version passed by the House.
Net Metering: SB 355 and HB 801 (WIN!) Both bills will improve our net metering law, requiring utilities to pay for excess power generated by solar power or other on-site generators.
Clean Energy Loans: SB 720/HB 1014 (LOSS) This common sense bill would have helped property owners afford clean energy projects, but was ultimately defeated, largely because of hard-fought lobbying efforts by the banking industry, which would have faced competition from the loan program.
Climate Adaptation: SB 1092 (LOSS) This bill would have empowered the state to study the connection between this past winter’s historic snowstorms and climate change, assess the future likelihood of such strong storms, and take steps to finance our emergency and disaster preparedness forces to deal with such future storms. Despite dying in Finance committee, the committee leadership is planning to work with the governor’s office to try to accomplish the goals of the bill.
With three wins and two losses, this Session wasn’t a perfect one for climate and clean energy policy but it certainly was one in which we carried Maryland further down the path towards the clean energy future. Big thanks to all of you amazing activists out there who proved that even in a tough year for environmental legislation, the power of grassroots action can achieve wins for the climate. We’re looking forward to continuing to work alongside you next session, and in the coming months in our ongoing efforts to win victories for the climate.
CCAN has a new, improved website! Check it out at our usual address: www.chesapeakeclimate.org.
(It just went live this afternoon so thanks for your patience as I iron out the kinks. If you see something that needs fixing, please feel free to email me).
Many, many thanks to the talented (and previous CCANer) Susanna Murley for designing the new site!
Crossposted from CBF’s Blog.
I recently drove down to the blackwater swamps of southern Virginia to witness a tale of two cities. Many residents of tiny, rural Dendron (population, 300) see their community’s economic salvation in the construction of a coal-fired power plant. But others are deeply worried about the health impacts of toxic mercury pollution and microscopic soot particles. Down the road from Dendron, the town of Clover, Virginia, tried a similar path to renaissance 17 years ago — and learned a sobering lesson.
I started my journey in Dendron, located about 50 miles west Norfolk, Virginia. Once the home of a booming lumber mill, today the only remaining business in town is Bailey’s Convenient Mart. The signs out front proclaim “Mountain Dew” and “God Loves You.”
“There is nothing here right now — no stores, no playgrounds, no entertainment for our kids,” said Fred Moore, a longtime area resident, as he leaned against an out-of-service pump out front of Bailey’s. “If you even want to get gas for your lawn mower, you got to go 10 miles either way. But change is coming with the power plant. This could bring in a lot of people.”
The Dendron Town Council in February approved a rezoning that will allow the construction of a 1,500 megawatt coal-fired power plant Continue reading