February, 15 2022, 01:02pm EDT
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Federal Court Rejects Massive Montana Coal Mine Expansion
Preliminary ruling finds expansion of Rosebud Mine illegally jeopardized clean water, climate.
WASHINGTON
Citing the impacts of coal mining to clean water and water supplies in the Yellowstone River, a federal judge late last week preliminarily ruled the Trump administration illegally approved an expansion of the Rosebud strip mine in southeast Montana.
In a preliminary recommendation, a U.S. Magistrate Judge found the federal Office of Surface Mining illegally approved an expansion of the Rosebud strip mine, which provides coal to the nearby Colstrip power plant.
"Once again a court has found that the Office of Surface Mining is cutting corners and ignoring the harm that the Rosebud Mine is causing to water quality and quantity. It's a relief that the court recognized this large mine expansion will make those problems worse," said Anne Hedges, Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs with the Montana Environmental Information Center. "The Trump administration's disdain for protecting water resources and climate was bad enough but the Biden Administration continues to ignore science and economics and defend the poor decisions of the previous administration. It's insistence on continuing to turn a blind eye to the problems at this mine will result in long term harm to our water and the climate."
The Colstrip plant is one of the largest greenhouse gas polluters in the nation. The Rosebud mine, owned by Westmoreland Rosebud Mining, LLC--an entity that arose from the bankruptcy of Westmoreland Mining Co.--is one of the largest coal mines in the U.S.
The Office of Surface Mining approved Westmoreland's proposal to add an additional 6,748 acres to the mine and provide another 71 million tons of coal to the Colstrip power plant. This would have extended the life of the mine for 19 years, even though many of the plant's owners are preparing to exit the plant as soon as 2025.
In 2019, the Montana Environmental Information Center, Indian People's Action, 350 Montana, the Sierra Club, and WildEarth Guardians filed suit over the mine expansion, citing violations of the National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act. The groups have been represented by attorneys with the Western Environmental Law Center and Earthjustice.
"The bottom line is the Office of Surface Mining completely and illegally ignored the true costs of mining and burning 70.8 million tons of coal," said Jeff Smith, co-chair of 350 Montana. "What this ruling means is coal companies can't ignore what we Montanans see with our own eyes: dying rivers and streams, megafires and months of choking smoke, and our extended drought, which gives rise to aberrations like last December's 10,000 acre fire nearly destroying the town of Denton. With cleaner and cheaper renewable energy solutions, we can and must do better."
Even though expansion of the Rosebud mine threatened to destroy water resources, harm wildlife and public lands, and exacerbate the climate crisis, the Office of Surface Mining approved the expansion anyway, refusing to consider the full environmental costs.
The Magistrate specifically found the Office of Surface Mining ignored the cumulative consequences of more coal mining and coal burning to both water quality and water quantity in the region. The Magistrate recommended the Office of Surface Mining redo its environmental review and make a new decision within one year, or else its original decision would be completely overturned.
"As the Montana faces more drought, we can't keep polluting fresh water with the types of energy resources we need to move away from," said David Merrill, Sr. Montana Organizing Representative. "Montana should be increasing clean energy capacity and employing workers to restore this coal mine."
The Magistrate's findings and recommendations are preliminary and will now be reviewed by U.S. Judge Susan Watters, who will ultimately decide whether or not to accept the ruling and issue a final order. In general, the findings and recommendations of Magistrates carry significant weight.
"We're looking to the Biden administration to put an end to the federal government bailing out the dying coal industry," said Jeremy Nichols, Climate and Energy Program Director for WildEarth Guardians. "That means we're looking to them to stop defending illegal mining and start holding coal companies accountable. We hope that's what happens here."
Parties to the lawsuit now have 14 days to file objections to the Magistrate's preliminary ruling, after which U.S. Judge Watters will issue a final ruling shortly after.
WildEarth Guardians protects and restores the wildlife, wild places, wild rivers, and health of the American West. Driven by passion, we've tackled some of the West's most difficult and pressing conservation challenges over the past three decades. We've celebrated small victories (banning leghold trapping in the state of Colorado), monumental triumphs (ending logging on more than 21 million acres in the Southwest), and everything in-between.
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Harris Campaign Says 'Oil Barons Are Salivating' Over Second Trump Term
"Trump's promises to Big Oil would sacrifice good-paying jobs that are driving an American energy and manufacturing boom," said the campaign.
Jul 24, 2024
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday seized on Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's close ties to oil executives, taking aim at the promises Trump has directly made to billionaires who have contributed nearly $26 million to his campaign.
Responding to a report from The Wall Street Journal about the record-breaking donations Trump has received from oil magnates for his 2024 campaign as he's pledged to help them "make an absolute fortune" by continuing to drill for planet-heating fossil fuels, Harris' newly launched presidential campaign put it bluntly.
"Oil barons are salivating because climate denier Donald Trump promised to do their bidding while asking them to bankroll his run for the presidency," said Joseph Costello, a spokesperson for the campaign.
The spokesperson noted that Trump has offered oil billionaires the chance to all but control his energy policy should he win a second term, telling them directly at a dinner in May that he would dismantle the oil and gas regulations introduced by Harris and President Joe Biden if the industry raised $1 billion for his campaign.
The Democratic vice president launched her campaign this week after Biden, who had faced pressure to step aside due to his age and health, endorsed her.
"These Big Oil donations solicited by Trump are being investigated as a 'blatant quid pro quo' by Senate investigators," noted Harris in an email to supporters.
In addition, said Costello, "Trump's promises to Big Oil would sacrifice good-paying jobs that are driving an American energy and manufacturing boom, and instead give billion-dollar handouts to corporations at the expense of working families and a healthy future for our children."
"These Big Oil donations solicited by Trump are being investigated as a 'blatant quid pro quo' by Senate investigators."
As the U.S. Energy and Employment Report found in 2022, under the Biden administration, renewable energy jobs have grown faster than the overall U.S. economy, paying higher than average wages, and have made up for rising unemployment in the fossil fuel industry.
"Under the Biden-Harris administration, America is more energy independent than ever," said Costello. "Vice President Harris cast the tie-breaking vote on the Inflation Reduction Act, creating hundreds of thousands of good paying energy jobs and making the biggest climate investment in world history. But Trump promises to dismantle all this progress and sell out America's future for his own personal gain."
The vice president condemned the "ready-made executive order" oil lobbyists have already begun drafting for Trump in order to secure "tax handouts, increase costs on Americans, and pollute our environment," a day after four national climate groups announced their endorsement of Harris.
The League of Conservation Voters Action Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Action Fund, the Sierra Club, and Clean Energy for America Action expressed confidence that if she wins the presidency in November, Harris will "raise climate ambition to make sure we confront the climate crisis in a way that makes the country more inclusive, more economically competitive, and more energy secure."
The Wall Street Journal's reporting confirms that "the oil barons have their candidate" in Trump, said Matt Compton, chief of staff for Climate Power. "Thank God those of us who care about a clean energy future have Kamala Harris."
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'Contamination Crisis': US Pesticides Contain PFAS, Endangering Food and Water
"This is truly frightening news," the author of a new study said. "Lacing pesticides with forever chemicals is likely burdening the next generation with more chronic diseases and impossible cleanup responsibilities."
Jul 24, 2024
Pesticides used on crops in the United States are increasingly laced with "forever chemicals," making it likely that they are being spread in common foods and waterways, according to a study published Wednesday.
The peer-reviewed study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, is the first full review of the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in pesticides. The authors, from three nonprofit groups, found that 14% of the active ingredients in U.S. pesticides were PFAS—including 30% of the active ingredients approved by regulators in the last 10 years—as were an unquantified amount of the inert ingredients.
"This is truly frightening news because pesticides are some of the most widely dispersed pollutants in the world," said Nathan Donley, environmental health science director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "Lacing pesticides with forever chemicals is likely burdening the next generation with more chronic diseases and impossible cleanup responsibilities."
"This is a multigenerational threat," he wrote on social media after the study's release. "The true harm won't be realized in my lifetime, but in my children's and grandchildren's lifetimes. Our shortcomings should not be their burden to bear."
New research from PEER, @CenterForBioDiv, and @ewg published today in @EHPonline found that more and more toxic PFAS, known as “forever chemicals,” are being found in U.S. pesticide products, contaminating our food, our homes, our gardens, and our pets.https://t.co/fggGAYrafM
— PEER (@PEERorg) July 24, 2024
After being developed by chemical companies in the mid-20th century, PFAS were lightly regulated and little scrutinized for many decades, even as they gained widespread use in household products. However, they've drawn increasing scrutiny in recent years, as more and more studies have emerged about their potential dangers, including links to cancer and a host of other diseases and serious health issues.
The forever chemicals are now incredibly widespread and can be found in the blood of the overwhelming majority of Americans. A study published earlier this month found that certain common foods, such as white rice and eggs, were associated with a higher level of PFAS in the body.
Two types of PFAS thought to be among the most toxic, PFOA and PFOS, have been found in pesticide products, likely due to the leaching of fluorinated containers, the new study suggests. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) banned certain uses of fluorinated containers in December, but an industry legal challenge succeeded in federal court in March, weakening the regulatory effect.
The EPA announced new regulations on PFAS in drinking water in April but utility and chemical companies have filed several legal challenges. The chemicals industry, meanwhile, faces the prospect of its own momentous legal challenges, due to the way it concealed the dangers of its products for so long.
To coincide with the new study's publication, Emory University researchers, who weren't involved with the study, wrote a "perspective" for Environmental Health Perspectives that cited a need for much stronger federal regulation.
"The regulations surrounding pesticides are currently outdated and ineffective, so this discovery of PFAS presence in pesticide formulations represents a new opportunity for the EPA to improve the scientific validity of pesticide risk assessment to better capture real-world exposure scenarios," the Emory researchers wrote.
The study authors themselves have been critical of the EPA. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), one of the three nonprofits that conducted the study, sued the EPA in February for failing to adequately disclose PFAS health and safety data.
Kyla Bennett, PEER's science policy director, attacked the agency, which uses a narrower definition of PFAS than the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and has often waived often immunotoxicity study requirements for pesticides, in a statement on Wednesday.
"I can think of no better way to poison people and the environment than to spray PFAS-laden pesticides on our crops and in our homes," Bennett said. "The blame for this contamination crisis lies squarely on EPA's shoulders."
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'Guilty of Genocide': Tlaib Protests Netanyahu's Speech to Congress
"I will never back down in speaking truth to power. The apartheid government of Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians."
Jul 24, 2024
Following her call for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's arrest during his visit to Washington, D.C., U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib protested the right-wing leader's Wednesday address before a joint meeting of Congress by holding up a sign reading "war criminal" and "guilty of genocide."
"They will not erase us. Palestinians exist and we deserve to live. Our presence today will be a reminder that we aren't going anywhere," Tlaib (D-Mich.) said on social media. "I will never back down in speaking truth to power. The apartheid government of Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians."
Tlaib—the only Palestinian American member of Congress—brought a guest: Hani Almadhoun, "who has lost over 150 members of his extended family in Netanyahu's genocide" in Gaza.
"After witnessing his sister forced to eat animal feed, he and his family were determined to start a soup kitchen to feed their starving neighbors," the congresswoman said. "The Israeli apartheid regime is using starvation as a weapon of war, a war crime."
More than 135 congressional Democrats, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) boycotted Netanyahu's speech.
"Netanyahu is not only a war criminal. He is a liar," Sanders said on social media. "All humanitarian organizations agree: Tens of thousands of children face starvation because his extremist government continues to block aid. Israelis want him out of office. So he came to Congress to campaign."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said, "Just so we're clear, Netanyahu has lost so many people that he is addressing just a fraction of Congress."
"When this happens, they fill the seats with nonmembers, like what they do at award ceremonies, in order to project the appearance of full attendance and support."
Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) said on social media: "I won't attend Prime Minister Netanyahu's speech today. His military has reportedly killed over 39,000 Palestinians. He hasn't brought the hostages home. He hasn't made Israel any safer. We need tangible actions to end this war and all the suffering—not performative gestures."
"It's *because* of my Jewish upbringing and values that I cannot attend Prime Minister Netanyahu's address today," she explained.
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) said in statement: "I am boycotting Netanyahu's address. Today, families of Israeli hostages called the prime minister's speech a 'PR stunt' intended to cover up his own failures."
"Not only has Netanyahu failed to safely return the hostages—he has killed, harmed, or displaced nearly every Palestinian in Gaza, has failed to keep Israelis safe, and is risking the United States' own security by trying to drag us into another endless war in the Middle East," he continued.
"The United States must end unconditional military aid to the Israeli government, and instead secure an immediate cease-fire, a return of the hostages, and long-term peace," Casar added.
Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) wished Tlaib a happy birthday in a social media post saying, "To my sister Rashida: You were born for a time like this."
"The only Palestinan in Congress during a genocide of your people," he added. "Sitting through a speech of that war criminal as colleagues applaud. You stand strong. We love and honor you."
Stephen Miles, president of the peace group Win Without War, said in a statement that "we are grateful to the many, many members of Congress who chose to not attend Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's speech to Congress today."
"This was a political stunt dreamed up by a House speaker trying to score political points and embraced by the prime minister as a desperate ploy to try and blunt the massive global condemnation and domestic political opposition he faces," Miles added. "It's a speech that never should have happened."
Vice President Kamala Harris, who is also the Senate president, did not preside over Wednesday's meeting. Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee in the wake of President Joe Biden's withdrawal from the race earlier this week, is scheduled to meet privately with Netanyahu on Thursday.
Netanyahu's speech—which was met with frequent uproarious applause from lawmakers and other attendees—took aim not only at Hamas "monsters," but also against "Iran's axis of terror," which he said "confronts America, Israel, and our Arab friends."
"This is not a clash of civilizations, it's a clash between barbarism and civilization, between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life," said the leader of a nation whose armed forces have killed or wounded more than 130,000 Palestinians in Gaza.
Netanyahu condemned what he called the "slanders that paint Israel as racist and genocidal" that are "meant to demonize the Jewish state and demonize Jews everywhere."
Taking aim at pro-Palestinian protests across the United States— many of them Jewish-led—Netanyahu lamented that "many anti-Israel protesters choose to stand with evil. They stand with Hamas. They stand with rapists and murderers."
"For all we know, Iran is funding the protests that are taking place outside right now," Netanyahu said, citing unsubstantiated Biden administration claims. "When the tyrants of Tehran, who hang gays from cranes and murder women for not covering their hair, are praising, promoting, and funding you, you have officially become Iran's useful idiots."
"Some of these protesters hold up signs proclaiming, 'Gays for Gaza,'" he mocked. "They might as well hold up signs that say, 'Chickens for KFC!'"
"These protesters chant, 'From the river to the sea,' but many don't have a clue what river and what sea they're talking about," the prime minister added.
Hundreds of Jewish-led demonstrators were
arrested inside a congressional building on Tuesday while protesting the U.S. government's continued support for Israel's assault on Gaza and Netanyahu's then-forthcoming address. Thousands more protesters took to the streets of Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, where peace groups planned to surround the Capitol.
"There is a war criminal in town," Council on American Islamic Relations national executive director Nihad Awad said in a speech to protesters. "This war criminal Netanyahu has a long history of crimes against humanity."
During his speech, Netanyahu also thanked Biden "for his heartfelt support for Israel after the savage attack on October 7," which the prime minister said was "like 20 9/11s in one day."
Biden has expressed his "unwavering" support for the key Middle Eastern ally and has approved billions of dollars in new military aid and more than 100 arms sales to the country since October. The Biden administration has also vetoed several United Nations Security Council resolutions calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.
Netanyahu implored the U.S. to give even more, saying, "Give us the tools faster, and we will finish the job faster."
"The war in Gaza could end tomorrow if Hamas surrenders, disarms, and returns all the hostages," added the prime minister, who for years facilitated massive financial support for the militant resistance group—whose political arm rules Gaza—in order to weaken the Palestinian National Authority.
On Monday, Tlaib
said that Netanyahu should be arrested while in the United States.
"Netanyahu is a war criminal committing genocide against the Palestinian people," she argued. "It is utterly disgraceful that leaders from both parties have invited him to address Congress. He should be arrested and sent to the International Criminal Court."
ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan has applied for arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and three Hamas leaders for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity including extermination committed on and after October 7.
During his speech, Netanyahu accused the ICC of "blood libels" against Israel, saying the tribunal "shamefully accused Israel of deliberately starving the people of Gaza"—allegations echoed by the South Africa-led genocide case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), United Nations experts, and human rights groups.
U.N. World Food Program Executive Director Cindy McCain
said in May that there is "full-blown famine" in Gaza, where dozens of Palestinians—mostly children—have died due to malnutrition, dehydration, and lack of medical care, and hundreds of thousands of others are on the brink of starvation.
Netanyahu also accused the ICC of lying about Israeli forces "deliberately targeting civilians," over 39,000 of whom including 16,000 children have been killed since October.
The prime minister claimed that Israel "has implemented more precautions to prevent civilian harm than any military in history, and beyond what international law requires."
"The ICC is trying to shackle Israel's hands and prevent Israel from defending itself," Netanyahu said. "And if Israel's hands are tied, America's are next."
"The hands of the Jewish state will never be shackled," he added. "Israel will always defend itself."
Netanyahu further claimed that civilian casualties during Israel's recent Rafah offensive were "practically none," ignoring hundreds of Palestinians including many women and children who died in Israeli attacks on the city and its environs, including multiple massacres of refugees in tent encampments.
Israeli forces "should not be condemned for how they're conducting the war in Gaza, they should be commended for it," Netanyahu asserted.
Israel Defense Forces troops have been accused of torturing, raping, and summarily executing Palestinian civilians, including children. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres last month added Israel to his so-called "List of Shame" of countries that kill and injure children during wars and other armed conflicts.
In addition to its ICC woes and the ICJ genocide case, the latter tribunal ruled last week in a separate case that the 57-year Israeli occupation of Palestine is an illegal form of apartheid that must end "as rapidly as possible."
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