Washington, DC -- Late yesterday, Senate Republicans finally unveiled what they have dubbed the HEALS Act. Their proposal would slash unemployment benefits, does not provide additional funding for state and local governments, fails to include relief for those facing water and electricity shutoffs, and does not allocate a penny for either election voting reforms or the clean energy industry, which has been devastated by the pandemic.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- At an oversight hearing today the House Natural Resources Committee pushed for answers on last month’s violent attack on peaceful protestors at Lafayette Square by U.S. Park Police with tear gas, batons, and riot shields. The hearing comes as demonstrations against police brutality are being met with police violence, including “preemptive arrests” and the abduction of demonstrators by unmarked police vehicles, fueled by the deployment of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) forces. Trump announced plans for a surge of federal security forces last week, threatening to unleash the type of excessive force that has led to the current violence in Portland to a host of other cities, including Chicago, New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Detroit. DHS forces have long used similar militarized and politicized tactics against communities along the southern border, targeting immigrants and activists.
Charleston, WV -- Yesterday, the federal district court for the Southern District of West Virginia ruled that the Justice Group’s Red Fox coal mine was liable for more than 3,000 Clean Water Act violations. The lawsuit brought by the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition (OVEC), Appalachian Voices, and the Sierra Club contends that the mine was liable for exceeding its required discharge limits. The groups were represented by attorneys with Appalachian Mountain Advocates and Public Justice.
his morning, the Sierra Club hosted a webinar with Congressman Jason Crow, Mayor Laura Weinberg of Golden, and CEOs of three local clean energy companies. The telepresser was an opportunity for the panelists to express their support for the federal Coronavirus Relief Package. Panelists discussed the benefits of passing a coronavirus relief bill that bolsters Colorado’s clean energy industry and supports clean energy workers.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) announced its plans to evaluate the EPA’s rollback - finalized in March - of the clean car standards, which are the corporate average fuel economy and greenhouse gas standards for light duty vehicles (or CAFE).
WASHINGTON DC.--Today the Sierra Club and Conservation Law Foundation filed an appeal of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) water pollution permit for the Merrimack Station coal-fired power plant. The updated permit, which was finalized in May, failed to include critical water pollution protections that the agency had previously proposed. Unlike EPA’s prior proposal, the updated permit did not require the plant to install a modern cooling-water system.
An audit of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s public participation process, released today by the Office of the Legislative Auditor, found that the PUC mishandled public hearings on Enbridge’s controversial Line 3 tar sands pipeline.
Detroit, Mich., -- Today, community members and environmental justice advocates in Detroit celebrate as Michigan Department for Environment Great Lakes and Energy announced that they have reached an agreement with Marathon Petroleum over a number of violations including a toxic release incident in February 2019.
Local landowners are reporting that Kinder Morgan has had yet another spill of drilling fluid this weekend during construction of its Permian Highway fracked gas pipeline under the Pedernales River.
Multinational investment bank and financial services company Deutsche Bank released an updated energy policy today that rules out funding for new oil and gas drilling or exploration in the Arctic.