Posts Tagged ‘clean coal’
Watch: Al Gore gives a climate science update at TED Conference
Nobel peace prize winner, former vice-president and climate crusader Al Gore gives a short (7 minutes) updated presentation on the state of our climate. Besides highlighting some of the latest climate science Gore also talks about the “clean coal” lie.
The video comes from a TED conference in February 2009. Watch it:
Watch: Coen Brothers New “Clean Coal” Ad
The Reality Coalition recently released a new TV ad, called “Air Freshener“. It’s directed by Academy Award winners Joel and Ethan Coen. In the ad a pitchman tries to sell a “Clean Coal Clean”-scented air freshener that works just as well as “clean coal.”
“We were excited to be part of this important project and tell another side of the ‘clean’ coal story,” said the Coen brothers.
The “Air Freshener” ad is the first in a series of ads that are directed by the Coen brothers for the Reality campaign. The new ads are designed and produced by Boulder, Colorado-based Crispin Porter + Bogusky, the agency responsible for the ground-breaking “Truth” anti-tobacco campaign.
Creative ad placement from the Reality Coalition
While surfing the Washington Post this blogger found a creative ad placement from the Reality Coalition (see image above), which purpose is to tell the American public that there is no “clean coal”:
“I noticed this the other morning when surfing the washington post’s website. When you enter a URL that can’t be found on their site, you get the message at the bottom of the image above, which is akin to a 404 messsage. A hearty well done to the folks at this is reality!”
The advertisement says: “This page does not exist. Kind of like clean coal.”
Coal Ash Dump Disaster Strikes East Tennessee
Just days after Al Gore and a bunch of environmental organisations launched a “Reality Coalition” campaign to tell the American public that there is no “clean coal” they might have gotten their best advertisement, ever.
Last month a coal ash dam in Harriman, East Tennessee, USA, ruptured and sent out billions of gallons of toxic sludge across a 300 acres big area, even knocking one home off its foundation. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) these coal ash damns can reach up to 1,500 acres and contains heavy metals like arsenic, lead, mercury and selenium which the federal agency considers to be “a threat to water supplies and human health.”
“This spill shows that coal can never be ‘clean,’” said Kate Smolski, Senior Legislative Coordinator for Greenpeace. “If the Exxon Valdez was a symbol of pollution 20 years ago, the Tennessee Coal Spill of 2008 is the symbol of it today.”
“Reality” Coalition Launches Campaign Debunking “Clean Coal” Myth
Al Gore and the Alliance for Climate Protection, Sierra Club, National Wildlife Federation, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the League of Conservation Voters have launched a “Reality Coalition” to tell the American public that there is no “clean coal”.
“The reality is that there’s not a single home or business in America today powered by clean coal,” said Brian Hardwick of the Alliance for Climate Protection. “If coal really wants to be part of America’s energy future, the industry can start by making a real commitment to eliminating their pollution that is a leading cause of global warming.”
Hardwick continued: “It is high time for the coal industry to come clean and admit to the American people that today clean coal is not a reality. No matter how much they say it in their advertising, coal can’t truly be clean until the plants can capture global warming pollution. With so much at stake, we can’t afford to hang our hats on an illusion.”
Gore: The whole auto industry needs to be transformed
Al Gore talked about the failing auto industry in USA, “clean coal” and the environmental work being done in China in a recent interview with Newsweek’s Fareed Zakaria.
In the interview Gore said that he thinks that the whole auto industry needs to be “transformed”, and that the auto makers in USA “should make a transition as quickly as possible toward plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.”
ZAKARIA: Would you bail out the carmakers?
GORE: Whatever assistance might be forthcoming should be focused on speeding the changes that are absolutely essential to ensure that our companies are competitive in the global marketplace. When I was vice president, I initiated a program called the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles. The federal government invested over a billion dollars in partnership with the Big Three to focus on the accelerated development of advanced high-efficiency vehicles. But as soon as they felt they were off the hook at the end of 2000, they pulled the plug and walked away.
Al Gore lays out his energy and climate plan
In an article in the New York Times, titled “The Climate for Change,” Al Gore lays out his climate and energy plan, which he says is needed “to begin an emergency rescue of human civilization from the imminent and rapidly growing threat posed by the climate crisis.”
In the article Gore points out that IPCC has after years of detailed study and four unanimous reports now said that the evidence for man-made climate change is “unequivocal.” Climate change deniers need to “wake up” and that “our children and grandchildren need you to hear and recognize the truth of our situation, before it is too late.”
Gore says his five-part energy and climate plan, where USA commits to produce 100% of the electricity from carbon-free sources within 10 years, will help solve the climate and the economic crisis while creating “millions of new jobs that cannot be outsourced”.
Video: Al Gore Interviewed by Digg Founder Kevin Rose
Hosted by Digg’s Kevin Rose, viewers have a rare opportunity to hear from former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore. All interview questions have been selected by the Digg and Current.com communities
In the interview Al Gore shares his thoughts and ideas on energy independence, clean coal, GMO, a place in an Obama’s administration, alternative fuels etc. Well worth a look:
Obama’s Energy Plan for America: 10% Renewables by 2012, One Million Plug-ins by 2015 and Efficiency Now
The Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama has released his “New Energy for America” plan. If elected some of the things in his plan are 10% renewables by 2012, one million plug-ins by 2015 and energy efficiency now.
John McCain’s energy plan in comparison is, let’s say, a bit weaker. He is all about nuclear energy, a $300 million battery prize, nothing on energy efficiency and an opposition to clean renewable energy.
Here are some of the energy plans Barack Obama has for America:
