Category: The environment

Atmosphere, biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, etc – everything about life and the state of this planet

Keystone protestors to surround White House, Nov. 6th

This Sunday, protestors opposed to the Keystone XL pipeline are planning to surround the White House, in Washington D.C.

If built, the Keystone pipeline would run from the oil sands in Alberta down to the Gulf Coast in the United States. People are rightly worried about the danger of spills over the long pipeline route. Far more worrisome, however, are the climatic consequences of digging up and burning all that oil. Given what we know about climate change, exploiting the oil sands is unethical. As such, efforts to block the oil in by preventing the construction of pipelines are to be welcomed.

This protest is a follow-up to the two-week protest I attended this summer. I wish I could attend again, but I am too busy with GRE prep to make the bus journey to Washington. Lots of others will be there, however, including Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Elaine from Seinfeld).

I really encourage those who are near Washington and concerned about climate change to attend. It may be needlessly divisive to say this, but I would argue that attending this protest would be far more productive and meaningful than attending one of the various ‘Occupy’ protests happening around North America. The demands of this action are focused and important. Blocking this pipeline would make a real difference for the future of the world, and it is plausible that a sufficient level of public pressure will drive President Obama to make that choice.

Please consider contributing to that pressure.

Climate Reality Project

All day tomorrow, September 14th 2011, Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project will be broadcasting a multinational, multilingual attempt to inform people about climate change and what ought to be done about it.

Hopefully, this will help to recapture the attention of the public and policy-makers. It has drifted a lot in the last few years, partly because those opposed to acting on climate change have been so effective at confusing people and shifting the terms of the public debate in their favour.

Pedaler’s Wager photos

Thanks to the generosity of a fellow photographer, I had access to a MacBook Pro for a few hours tonight and I was able to process and upload my photos from the Clay and Paper Theatre Company’s 2011 summer show: The Pedaler’s Wager.

The show was very colourfully and professionally put on, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. At the same time, I think it may have glossed over some of the hardships of pre-industrial life and some of the benefits of the current global economy. While there are certainly many critical problems with it, and much that needs to be done to make it sustainable, I do think it serves important human needs and that those who are most critical of it are often those who benefit from constant access to its nicest features. That includes things like modern medicine, communication technology, and transport. It seems a misrepresentation to say that the Industrial Revolution and its aftermath have transported the average person from a blissful pastoral state into a situation of agonizing bondage.

Of course, the purpose of art is not to carefully express both sides of every argument. By provoking us to think in new ways, art can give us a better overall sense of context and an appreciation for important facts that were previously concealed.

Professional organizers

The ongoing Washington protest has given me my first real exposure to an interesting group of people – professional organizers of protests. These are people who provide direct action training, run websites, work with the press, etc. The organizers are progressive people – to be sure – and I am sure they are selective about the causes they support.

The organizers are distinct from activists in that activists are usually firm believers in a specific cause. The activists in this particular protest are the people who are willing to get arrested to express their strong opposition to the Keystone XL pipeline.

Those people are obviously necessary, but it has been interesting to learn a bit about the general logistical side of things – watching people work in dark cubicles on a Sunday, updating websites and watching the news coverage roll in.

Dewar letter regarding asbestos

Around Canada Day, I wrote a letter to Paul Dewar, my Member of Parliament, about Canada’s export of crysotile asbestos. It seemed classier than holding up a giant “Shame on Canada, Asbestos = Cancer” sign during the Royal Visit.

Today, I got a response setting out his position on the issue:

Any pro-asbestos residents of Ottawa Centre should start bombarding him with strongly worded letters immediately. I am curious what sort of response they would get; hopefully, the same statement of policy with an explanation of why Dewar disagrees with those who favour Canada’s current policy of asbestos support.

It’s good that he has staked his colours to the mast on the issue. Constituents who are concerned about the issue of asbestos should make sure he has voted along these lines the next time the issue arises in the House of Commons. By then, I expect, I will have a new MP (due to me moving).

Asbestos export is an issue I first raised here some time ago.

Key Climate Questions

I have started a new series of blog posts on BuryCoal.com. Entitled “Key Climate Questions”, it will provide information on some of the most important outstanding questions about climate change. The first one is on how long the effects will last. Later posts will address things like whether geoengineering will work, what the regional impacts of climate change may be, the significance of methane from melting permafrost, etc.

Obviously, the aim of the series is not to answer these questions. Rather, it is to flag some of the areas where important scientific work is being done and provide links to information about that research.

Feel free to suggest topics.