Ethanol, Shmethanol

If you like ethanol, you'll be pleased. The appointments have some high-profile ethanol opponents worried, while ethanol supporters appear optimistic:

“The worry is if the Cabinet gets too crowded with people who are drunk on ethanol, we won’t have the policy discussions we need,” said Ken Cook, the president of the Environmental Working Group. Cook’s group argues that the massive production of corn-based ethanol has damaged the environment, wasted tax dollars and contributed to high food prices earlier this year.

However, Matt Hartwig, a spokesman for the Renewable Fuels Association, said Obama “has put together the right group of people” to move the country toward the stage where it will be producing ethanol from more than just corn.

“Renewable fuels also play a central role in stimulating the economy and creating green jobs,” said Hartwig, whose organization has floated ethanol-friendly ideas to Obama’s transition team for an upcoming stimulus package. “The team he’s put in place understands that.”

As I've stated previously, I am cautiously optimistic, though less so than I was on November 4th. I just really want Obama to be super-aggressive when it comes to healing our planet and cleaning our environment. His picks don't really signal any kind of massive change, though he himself did on the campaign trail. Like with any Cabinet, the change will have to come from the top. I just hope he's serious about this grave, grave threat to our nation and world.

Rejuvenate Recycling With ReJAVAnate

So, as you know, I want to help fix our environment. In my travels and travails to somehow contribute to this cause, I came across an awesome new product a few days ago: ReJAVAnate reusable bags.

ReJAVAnate takes the burlap from coffee and makes bags out of it. This is great for several reasons. First off, burlap is liable to sit in a landfill for years and years, and this is a great way to recycle it for something useful. Second, the company primarily employs people from a program called The Arc, which is an organization that supports people with disabilities. (Translation: these people wouldn't normally have jobs, and ReJAVAnate is giving them jobs). And finally, of course, this is a WAY better alternative to plastic bags (ew) or even paper bags.

Re-use, re-use, re-use, people. Like I said a few days ago, stop using plastic bags.

Anyway, just wanted to pass the word along. Thought it might make a nice gift for the holidays (if, like me, you don't have a lot of money to spend but want to spent it on something GOOD).

Somewhere, Al Gore is smiling.

Stop Using Plastic Bags!

This falls into the "duh" category of easy things one can do to help the environment, but seriously: stop using plastic bags. Or if you're going to keep using them, then please recycle them:

1. Switch to reusable shopping bags. Reusable shopping bags made from renewable materials conserve resources by replacing paper and plastic bags. Reusable bags are convenient and come in a variety of sizes, styles and materials. When not in use, some reusable bags can be rolled or folded small enough to fit easily into a pocket.

2. Recycle your plastic bags. If you do end up using plastic bags now and then, be sure to recycle them. Many grocery stores now collect plastic bags for recycling. If yours doesn't, check with your community recycling program to learn how to recycle plastic bags in your area.

It's really easy to do this, obviously. And I'm guilty of it as well. But according to the guy who wrote that post, Americans throw away 100 billion plastic bags a year. 100 billion! Imagine how much good we could do if we just cut that in half - and how easy it would be to do it.

The Green House

Obama plans to make the White House more energy-efficient:

Obama will be sworn in on Jan. 20, and he said he wants to work quickly to make the White House "green."

The president-elect said he plans to sit down with the chief usher for the presidential mansion and do an evaluation of its energy efficiency.

"Part of what I want to do is to show the American people that it's not that hard," Obama said.

Asked whether he'll be tiptoeing around at night, turning off the lights, Obama said he isn't going to be obsessive about it.

"But I do that in my current house," he added, "and there's no reason why I wouldn't do it in my next one."

Is Now The Time To Go Green?

Well, yeah, if you ask me. But I would have said that years ago. Bradford Plumer argues that, because of the recession looming on the horizon, now might actually be the perfect time to implement a "new energy economy." A highlight:

If there's any upside to a recession (and it's hardly much consolation), it's that the accompanying decline in energy use gives us some breathing room to meet long-term emissions targets. (The rough consensus among climate scientists is that the world should aim to cut greenhouse-gas emissions 50 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, a goal that sounded increasingly preposterous in recent years as countries were belching up carbon dioxide at a pace exceeding even the direst forecasts of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.) The downside, however, is that the fall of oil and gas prices is forcing investors to shelve alternative-energy projects: The WilderHill index of clean-tech stocks has tumbled more than 50 percent since September, and even T. Boone Pickens is putting aside his beloved wind farms for now. The main reason the solar and wind industries aren't facing total collapse is government policy: Some 30 states have laws requiring utilities to get a fixed percentage of their electricity from renewable sources by a certain date.

Just do it, already. It's my generation - our generation if you're reading this and you're my age - that's gonna have to pay the price for our irresponsibility when it comes to energy.

Obama on Climate Change

Here's part of a message he delivered to the Bi-Partisan Governors Global Climate Summit, being held this week in Los Angeles:

Climate change and our dependence on foreign oil, if left unaddressed, will continue to weaken our economy and threaten our national security.

I know many of you are working to confront this challenge. In particular, I want to commend Governor Sebelius, Governor Doyle, Governor Crist, Governor Blagojevich and your host, Governor Schwarzenegger -all of you have shown true leadership in the fight to combat global warming. And we've also seen a number of businesses doing their part by investing in clean energy technologies.

But too often, Washington has failed to show the same kind of leadership. That will change when I take office. My presidency will mark a new chapter in America's leadership on climate change that will strengthen our security and create millions of new jobs in the process.

There are more specifics if you follow the link. There is much work to be done, and this is only the beginning of what will surely be a difficult process in combating climate change, but the President-elect has given us every reason to believe that he recognizes the threat and is extremely serious about overcoming this challenge. I commend him for what seems to be decisive action he is going to take.

Don't Fly the Friendly Skies

Is the world finally going to start getting serious about cutting greenhouse gas emissions?  This is certainly good news:

The European Union will press countries outside the bloc to include aviation in their current or future schemes for curbing emissions of greenhouse gases, its transport ministers decided on Thursday.

And this, too:

The EU is seeking to persuade the United States, the world's biggest greenhouse-gas emitter, as well as countries such as China and India, to negotiate a new global treaty against climate change after 2012.

It's certainly a step in the right direction, but I'm afraid we need a giant leap.  "After 2012" is too far away to negotiate a treaty to fight climate change.  How about Tuesday?

It's Not Just the Climate

Half of all mammals are "in decline," according to this report:

A comprehensive survey of mammals included in the annual report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which covers more than 44,000 animal and plant species, shows that a quarter of the planet's 5,487 known mammals are clearly at risk of disappearing forever.

The next president must lead the way in combatting the environmental disasters that lurk just around the corner.  There is no time to waste.  The future of the world as we know it depends on acting now.  And the United States must lead the way.

(Hat tip: Drudge)

Waterworld?

As worried as I am about the environment, these floating cities actually look pretty cool.

Just spare me the Kevin Costner, please...

(Hat tip: Andrew Sullivan)

Going Green

The city of San Antonio has come up with an innovative program that will help turn smelly sewage into renewable energy.

Enough natural gas will be produced to fill 1,250 tanker trucks a day.

Sweet!  Can't wait till Mayor Bloomberg puts those windmills on the Brooklyn Bridge.

In Bed with Big Oil

Literally.  It turns out that Interior Department officials were caught having sex with and receiving gifts from energy companies with whom they were doing business.

And by "energy companies," we of course mean primarily oil and gas corporations: Shell, Hess Corp., Chevron and Gary-Williams Energy Corp.

Nice.

Green Fashion

Oh by the way, it's Fashion Week.

And, in great news, it seems like green is in - and possibly here to stay - among many designers at Bryant Park.

As Tim Gunn would say, "This is gorrrgeous!"

No Child Left Inside

The House of Representatives is voting this week on a bill that would help strengthen environmental education and increase overall environmental awareness among children.

Among other things, it would provide for $100 million over the next four years in grants "to ensure the academic achievement of students in environmental literacy through the professional development of teachers and educators and outdoor learning experiences for students."  Yay!  If I had my way, way more than $100 million would be allocated to this exciting program.  But I'm just a latte-loving leftist.

The website linked to above says the House will vote on the bill either today or tomorrow.  According to the House Majority Leader's office, it doesn't look like it's on tap for today.  Let's hope they get to it tomorrow.

No to Offshore Drilling!

Barack Obama, by virtue of being a Democrat, is widely seen as having an edge over John McCain on the overall issue of the economy.  The economy, as we all know, is not in great shape right now (but we should stop whining, I suppose), and McCain himself has even stated that it's not his area of expertise.

McCain's (lack of) expertise + McCain is a Republican = Obama wins on the economy

Right?

Well, not so fast.  The Republicans, believe it or not, may indeed have a winner on the issue of offshore drilling.  See, with gas prices rising and the Mideast oil supply diminishing, it seems logical to think that tapping plentiful oil reserves off the American coastlines would solve a bunch of our problems.  The real problem, however, is that drilling offshore won't lower costs, at least not initially.

This is to say nothing, of course, on the effect that offshore drilling would have on our environment.  This is a golden opportunity to wean ourselves off of oil, not look for more of it.

Think about it: Do you really want to see an oil rig while you lounge on a previously pristine strip of Florida coastline?