Thousands of activists were converging on Washington this weekend in the biggest-ever protest against the use of coal, which they argue is the dirtiest fossil fuel and yet provides half of the US’ electricity.
The focus of the demonstration is what might, in other circumstances, seem a quaint relic from another era: a coal plant built 99 years ago to assure Congress an independent source of power.
But the Capitol Hill Power Plant, which environmentalists say should have been retired years ago, is seen by many as a potent symbol of how powerful the coal lobby is.
“In terms of carbon emissions, this plant is small potatoes, but it really is a very iconic symbol,” said Matt Leonard of Greenpeace. “It can burn gas or oil or coal and people have fought very hard over the years to make sure it burns coal.”
That may be about to change. On Thursday, Democratic leaders in Congress called for an overhaul of the plant so it could run entirely on natural gas by the end of this year.
The order came down as more than 10,000 young people began arriving in Washington to lobby members of Congress to reduce the US’ reliance on coal.
Organizers say this could be the tipping point in the fight against coal, after years of steady activism.
Since the middle of 2006, plans for more than 83 coal plants have been halted. This week, Michigan’s governor announced a moratorium on all new coal plants and a Georgia court put a stop on a coal plan because of pollution concerns.
The campaign got an extra push late last year when Al Gore championed a drive to make Americans aware of the connection between coal burning and electricity. The latest TV ad, produced by the Oscar-winning Coen brothers, shows a salesman spraying black smog from an aerosol can to debunk the notion of clean coal.
Organizers of the Power Shift lobbying effort aim to give the campaign the final push. They say they have set up meetings with 80 Senators and 287 members of the house of representatives, Republican and Democrat, to convince them to vote for action on climate change.
Demonstrators led by NASA climate scientist, Jim Hansen and actor Darryl Hannah, will gather for a protest at the plant.
The survival of the plant mainly comes down to cash and influence: the coal industry has waged a ferocious struggle for survival.
At the front of the pack is the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCE), which spent nearly US$40 million last year on TV ads and a lobbying effort for coal.
Joe Lucas, vice-president of the ACCE, said: “America not using coal would be like Saudi Arabia not using oil.”
Nauru has started selling passports to fund climate action, but is so far struggling to attract new citizens to the low-lying, largely barren island in the Pacific Ocean. Nauru, one of the world’s smallest nations, has a novel plan to fund its fight against climate change by selling so-called “Golden Passports.” Selling for US$105,000 each, Nauru plans to drum up more than US$5 million in the first year of the “climate resilience citizenship” program. Almost six months after the scheme opened in February, Nauru has so far approved just six applications — covering two families and four individuals. Despite the slow start —
MOGAMI-CLASS FRIGATES: The deal is a ‘big step toward elevating national security cooperation with Australia, which is our special strategic partner,’ a Japanese official said Australia is to upgrade its navy with 11 Mogami-class frigates built by Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Australian Minister for Defence Richard Marles said yesterday. Billed as Japan’s biggest defense export deal since World War II, Australia is to pay US$6 billion over the next 10 years to acquire the fleet of stealth frigates. Australia is in the midst of a major military restructure, bolstering its navy with long-range firepower in an effort to deter China. It is striving to expand its fleet of major warships from 11 to 26 over the next decade. “This is clearly the biggest defense-industry agreement that has ever
DEADLY TASTE TEST: Erin Patterson tried to kill her estranged husband three times, police said in one of the major claims not heard during her initial trial Australia’s recently convicted mushroom murderer also tried to poison her husband with bolognese pasta and chicken korma curry, according to testimony aired yesterday after a suppression order lapsed. Home cook Erin Patterson was found guilty last month of murdering her husband’s parents and elderly aunt in 2023, lacing their beef Wellington lunch with lethal death cap mushrooms. A series of potentially damning allegations about Patterson’s behavior in the lead-up to the meal were withheld from the jury to give the mother-of-two a fair trial. Supreme Court Justice Christopher Beale yesterday rejected an application to keep these allegations secret. Patterson tried to kill her
MILITARY’S MAN: Myint Swe was diagnosed with neurological disorders and peripheral neuropathy disease, and had authorized another to perform his duties Myint Swe, who became Myanmar’s acting president under controversial circumstances after the military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi more than four years ago, died yesterday, the military said. He was 74. He died at a military hospital in the capital, Naypyidaw, in the morning, Myanmar’s military information office said in a statement. Myint Swe’s death came more than a year after he stopped carrying out his presidential duties after he was publicly reported to be ailing. His funeral is to be held at the state level, but the date had not been disclosed, a separate statement from the
RSS