The vast tar sands of Alberta in Canada hold oil reserves six times the size of Saudi Arabia’s. But this ‘black gold’ is proving a mixed blessing for the frontier town of Fort McMurray, fuelling both prosperity and misery. As the social and environmental toll mounts, Aida Edemariam reports on the dark side of a boom town.
Read the article here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/oct/30/energy.oilandpetrol
“When you drill in Montana, you don’t even pay the taxes for the first 12-18 months. We have a tax holiday,” said Schweitzer.
Read the Article here: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=f1cc9ddc-aa17-4761-ade5-581be4810bbf
But landowners protesting the legislation say it will reduce the requirements for public notice of major power projects and make it harder for the public to participate in public hearings.
“Bill 46, which has passed first reading, will remove the right to a hearing and gives the board the authority to make a decision without giving public notice or holding a hearing,” says the Kill Bill 46 web site set up by angry landowners.
Read the article here: http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2007/10/30/4618622-cp.html
They talked about cats, one-way streets and sewage, but many candidates for Great Falls City Commission and mayor kept coming back to one issue. That’s the proposed Highwood Generating Station, a coal-fired power plant that might come online east of Great Falls in 2012.
Read the article here: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071026/NEWS01/710260315
Climate Ground Zero response.
Why Build New Coal Plant in Great Falls, Montana when:
1. Montana is already 40-50% over its power capacity and is a net exporter of electricity.
2. Alberta, Canada and Montana are proposing two powerlines into Montana (Montana Alberta Tie Line – MATL and Northern Lights Project). The proposed MATL line would run new coal fired electricity (from 6 proposed plants in Alberta) directly into Great Falls.
A private profit scheme to make Montana a major exporter of coal fired electricity to keep the lights on in Las Vegas and other US locales in SW, West and PNW?
The message was clear to those attending a public meeting in Lethbridge Friday regarding the proposed Bill 46 — get informed, get involved and stop it by putting pressure on the politicians.
Bill 46, the Alberta Utilities Commission Act, proposes to revise the decision-making process for major electricity projects in Alberta. If passed, many fear the impact it may have on public rights and the power industry.
Read the article here: http://www.lethbridgeherald.com/article_8649.php
Greenpeace wants the oil sands phased out, said Hudema, citing environmental issues such as air and water pollution, the Athabasca River seeing its lowest recorded levels, and downstream communities having unexplained high cancer rates.
read the article here: http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2007/10/26/4606943-sun.html
New York Times - Saturday October 20th, 2007
GREAT FALLS, Mont. — Richard D. Liebert turned his back against a hard wind the other day, adjusted his black cap and gazed across golden fields of hay. Explaining why he is against construction of a big coal-burning power plant east of town, Mr. Liebert sounded like one more voice from the green movement.
“The more I learn about global warming and watch the drought affect ranchers and farmers, I see that it’s wind energy, not coal plants, that can help with rural economic development. Besides, do we want to roll the dice with the one planet we’ve got?”
Read NY Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/20/business/20coal.html
NY Times: Montana and Kansas Take on Big Coal
To read article : http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/23/opinion/23tue2.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Last spring, University of Montana ecologist and forestry professor Steve Running presented an abbreviated version of his increasingly popular lecture, “The Inconvenient Truth for Montana,” to a room full of environmental journalists.
Near the end of his keynote, Running outlined what he called his “Five Stages of Climate Grief.” Running’s adaptation of Swiss psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’ groundbreaking “Five Stages of Grief” starts with stage one: denial that global warming exists. Denial naturally precedes anger: “I do NOT want to change my lifestyle.” Then stage three bargaining sets in: “Warming won’t be that bad.” Things get bad at stage four, depression: “It’s too late, we’re doomed.” But finally, if all goes well, you might get to the fifth and final stage, acceptance: “Okay, it’s real, now let’s get to work.”
Read the entire story here:
http://www.missoulanews.com/index.cfm?do=article.details&id=D3CD8B13-1372-FCBB-8367AC07C8F6B05C
U. S. Sen. Max Baucus said Wednesday he will back a Senate plan that calls for a cap on global warming gases. Baucus, D-Mont., said he has been working with the bill’s sponsors, Sens. Joe Lieberman and John Warner, to make sure provisions were included to help Montana’s coal industry with new technologies and let Montana farmers sell carbon offsets to industry. The bill ultimately requires power plants and vehicles to reduce their greenhouse gases by 70 percent. It is seen as a compromise that could pass by next year.
Read the entire story here:
http://www.havredailynews.com/articles/2007/10/25/local_headlines/world.txt