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Secretary of State Kerry Offers No Timeline for Keystone Decision
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on February 3rd, 2015
Hill: http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/231447-kerry-offers-no-timeline-for-keystone-decision
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Poll: Majority Support Keystone XL Pipeline
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on January 16th, 2015
Hill: A majority of Americans support construction of the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline, according to a new CNN/ORC poll.
It found that 57 percent of the 1,011 surveyed are in favor of building the $8 billion oil sands pipeline.
Respondents were surveyed on Dec. 18-21. Only 28 percent opposite the project, and 15 percent are unsure, CNN said.
The poll comes as the Senate is preparing for a weeks-long battle over legislation to approve the Keystone XL pipeline, which has been met with a veto threat...
Grueling fight on Keystone pipeline to hit new Senate
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on January 14th, 2015
Hill: Senators are bracing for a debate over legislation on the Keystone XL pipeline that could take weeks to conclude, setting up an early test of GOP leader Mitch McConnell’s pledge to allow “regular order” in the upper chamber.
McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday threatened a midnight vote before senators agreed to move forward on the pipeline bill, and could soon turn to late nights and weekend work to muscle through a stack of amendments.
With Republicans eager to pass the Keystone bill and move on...
Keystone ‘not even nominal benefit’ US consumers, Obama says
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on December 20th, 2014
Hill: President Obama on Friday said building the Keystone oil pipeline would “not even have a nominal benefit” to consumers, pushing back at claims it would lower gas prices further. Obama stressed that the issue at hand for Keystone is “not American oil, it is Canadian oil.” “That oil currently is being shipped out through rail or trucks and it would save Canadian oil companies, and the Canadian oil industry enormous amounts of money if they could simply pipe it all the way down to the Gulf,” Obama...
Christie’s ode to Keystone may have just helped greens
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on December 6th, 2014
Hill: In a not-so-subtle visit to Canada, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) pushed for construction of the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline, but he might have lent a helping hand to environmentalists who oppose the project in the process.
Christie, who is considered a possible Republican presidential candidate in 2016, slammed President Obama for dithering on the long-delayed oil sands project, saying “that’s no way to treat a friend.”
While urging for construction of the project, however,...
Planet headed toward ‘irreversible’ climate damage, UN warns
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on November 2nd, 2014
Hill: The globe is heading toward “severe, pervasive, and irreversible” climate change impacts if left “unchecked,” according to a new United Nations report.
In its most comprehensive analysis ever undertaken, the U.N.’s synthesis report released Sunday, finds that the evidence behind human influence on climate change is overwhelming and undeniable, as greenhouse gas emissions are the “highest in history.”
The report, which over 800 scientists from 80 countries wrote, additionally drawing from 3,000...
EPA Increases Public Access to Chemical Data
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on October 8th, 2014
Hill: The Environmental Protection Agency moved on Tuesday to increase the amount of data made available to the public on regulated chemicals.
The changes are being made to its "one-stop online tool" called ChemView, the agency said, which provides information on chemicals regulated under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
"In the absence of Treform, EPA is moving ahead to improve access to chemical health and safety information, and increase the dialogue to help the public choose safer ingredients...
Report: Globe could pass UN warming target
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on September 9th, 2014
Hill: If carbon emissions continue at current rates, the globe is set to surpass the United Nations's (U.N.) temperature target, hitting roughly 4 degrees Celsius, according to a new report.
The sixth Low Carbon Economy report by international consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) released late Sunday estimates the current rate of carbon emissions will "burn" through the 2 degrees Celsius marker set by the U.N. within 20 years.
If countries are unable to reach an ambitious agreement during...
Staying mum on Keystone may hurt Clinton with greens
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on March 12th, 2014
Hill: Hillary Clinton may find herself in time out with affluent Democratic environmentalists after staying mum on the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
Clinton wouldn't say whether she supported or opposed the controversial $5.4 billion project when asked a direct question about it earlier this month at an event in Vancouver.
"She’s kind of a closed book on the environment,” said Guy Saperstein, an Oakland-based venture capitalist and former president of the San Francisco-based Sierra Club Foundation told...
Climate change could jeopardize future Winter Olympic games
Posted by Hill: Laura Barron-Lopez on January 24th, 2014
Hill: Climate change could get in the way of future Olympic Winter Games, a new study finds.
If the globe continues to warm at its current rate -- and measures aren't taken to mitigate climate change -- the report concludes that only six out of the last 19 locations that hosted the winter games will be cold enough to hold them by the end of the century.
The report was conducted by the University of Waterloo and Austria's Management Center at Innsbruck.
"It is clear that the cultural legacy of...