Methane release from the not-so-perma-frost is the most dangerous amplifying feedback in the entire carbon cycle. Research published in Friday’s journal Science finds a key “lid” on “the large sub-sea permafrost carbon reservoir” near Eastern Siberia “is clearly perforated, and sedimentary CH4 [methane] is escaping to the atmosphere.”
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As Senators John Kerry (D-MA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) work to craft comprehensive climate legislation that can overcome a fossil-fueled filibuster, swing vote Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) is trying to dig the carbon hole deeper. Before climate policy had a chance of becoming reality, Murkowski claimed to recognize that global warming from fossil fuels is destroying Alaska. Now, she has continued down that path by demanding that drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is “one of the must-haves“:
I’m still saying ANWR is one of the must-haves. You want to have me sit down at the table and talk about what a strong domestic production piece is, you have to be willing to talk to me about ANWR. Pretty simple.
Murkowski is increasingly sounding like an oil industry lobbyist, leading the effort to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from enforcing the Clean Air Act with respect to greenhouse pollution. Murkowski’s Dirty Air Act resolution is a blatant rejection of science and safety on behalf of her fossil industry contributors. This week, she praised Sen. Jay Rockefeller’s (D-WV) two-year Clean Air Act moratorium, saying she is “hopeful that this bill will draw additional support and advance quickly.”
Only in the United States Senate could you find someone demand that a climate bill involve drilling in one of the last pristine places on earth. Murkowski is working to unleash the only two imminent threats to the remote and unique Arctic Refuge — global warming and oil drilling. Murkowski, it seems, is willing to destroy her state in order to save it.
Sierra Club spokesman Josh Dorner responds by e-mail:
Drilling in the Arctic Refuge is, has been, and always will be a non-starter. Drilling for more oil at one of the places most impacted by global warming is perhaps the furthest thing from a solution that I can imagine.
,Adam Kolton, the National Wildlife Federation’s
senior director for Congressional & federal affairs and the former Arctic Campaign Director for the Alaska Wilderness
League, responds by e-mail:
Just as there are bridges to nowhere, there is legislation to nowhere. Senator Murkowski’s demand that the price for her vote on a climate bill is drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a non-starter and she knows it. It was rejected when the Republicans controlled the House, Senate and White House and it would obviously be rejected with the Democrats in charge. For someone like Senator Murkowski, who says she wants to pass a climate change bill, to make such a demand calls into question her sincerity and must be a huge disappointment to those in Alaska who believe the state is on the front lines of the climate crisis and that we urgently need to reduce emissions. The National Wildlife Federation has always worked to block any legislation that would give Big Oil drilling rights in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and we’ll continue to do so moving forward.
,Sens. Graham and Lieberman say drilling in the Arctic Refuge is a “deal-breaker“:
“That’s a deal-breaker,” said Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.). “That’s just not going to happen. We’re looking at a lot of things, and that one is a no-no.”
“It’s not in our bill,” added Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
Still, Graham added, “I don’t blame her for asking.”
Vote Vets launches its toughest ad to date on behalf of bipartisan action on climate and clean energy:
The anti-science crowd has been freeping this newspaper poll. ClimateDepotted run by the The Swift Boat smearer Marc Morano — who believes climate scientists should be publicly beaten — even provided the email address and phone number of the Chief of Staff for the University President (see “The rise of anti-science cyber bullying“).
If you are really bored, you can vote here. For the record, the Knoxville News-Sentinel editorialized on why Gore is a worthy choice:
When it comes to ex-Gov Sarah Palin, irony died a while ago, but I’m still posting this under humor. After all, Palin was speaking on Leno.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has called Palin a conservative leader on energy issues. She has also emerged as a conservative thought leader on the science (see WashPost goes tabloid, publishes second falsehood-filled op-ed by Sarah Palin in five months “” on climate science and the hacked emails!). Now she explains why she joined FoxNews, as reported in this Think Progress repost.
The World Bank Group is the largest and most important multilateral development bank providing critical funding across the developing world to fight poverty and boost economic growth and prosperity. Yet the World Bank and its affiliates direct more than twice as much financing toward fossil fuel-based energy projects than they do toward clean energy and energy efficiency projects despite the global warming crisis that threatens the developing world most severely [see big figure below]
Glacier melting a key clue to tracking climate change
The world has become far too hot for the aptly named Exit Glacier in Alaska.
Like many low-altitude glaciers, it’s steadily melting, shrinking two miles over the past 200 years as it tries to strike a new balance with rising temperatures.
Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced legislation on February 24 that would prevent the SEC from forcing companies to disclose their climate-related risks. CAP energy policy analyst Richard W. Caperton explains why that is a bad idea in this repost. In the AP photo, Barrasso, left, is accompanied by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), center, and Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK).
Click here to watch the event live.
Today, March 4, the Apollo Alliance and Center for American Progress bring together policymakers, academics, business and labor leaders, and other experts to discuss what policies will support the United States in becoming not only a consumer of clean-energy technologies but also a leading producer of them.
Here’s the agenda — some must-hear talks today:
Yesterday President Obama announced details of his proposed $6 billion energy efficiency rebate program called the HOME STAR program at Savannah Technical College in Georgia. Tina Ramos, a Special Assistant for Energy Policy at CAP, has the details.
Edited by Joe Romm, we cover climate science, solutions and politics. Columnist Tom Friedman calls us "the indispensable blog" and Time magazine named us one of the 25 "Best Blogs of 2010." Newcomers, start here.
Language Intelligence: Lessons on persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga.
Joe Romm has pulled together the secrets of the greatest communicators in history to show how you can apply these tools to your writing, speaking, blogging — even your Tweeting.
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