carbon bubble

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, June 7, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

• Big Oil Is Terminal - By Joe Romm, Think Progress, June 2, 2016; [related]: Big Oil’s “Long Twilight” - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, May 31, 2016; [and]: ‘Stockbroker’s Bible’ Just Told Oil Industry To Accept Its Demise - By Alexander C. Kaufman, Huffington Post, May 28, 2016
• You’re witnessing the death of neoliberalism; from within - By Aditya Chakrabortty, The Guardian, May 31, 2016; [related]: Pro-austerity organization finds austerity increases inequality -  By Duncan Cameron, Rabble.Ca, May 31, 2016; [and]: After Empowering the 1% and Impoverishing Millions, the IMF Admits Neoliberalism Is a Failure - By Benjamin Dangl, Toward Freedom, May 31, 2016

Other Carbon Bubble News:

• $50/Barrel Oil Won't Last: Why Chances of a Breakdown Are High - By Clive Maund, Streetwise Reports, June 3, 2016
• Hard truth from the Parkland Institute: New pipelines won't much improve the price fetched by Canadian oil - By David J. Climenhaga, Rabble.Ca, June 3, 2016
• Kinder Morgan cuts more than 100 jobs - By Jordan Blum, FuelFix, June 3, 2016
• Moody’s downgrades Halliburton and Baker Hughes - By Jordan Blum, FuelFix, June 3, 2016
• Trump’s contradictory promise: Bring back coal and boost natural gas - By Elizabeth Shogren, High Country News, June 3, 2016
• Warren Resources files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy - By Bloomberg, FuelFix, June 3, 2016
• Company leading Wyoming coal gasification project files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection - By Robert Walton, Utility Dive, June 2, 2016
• Low coal prices force Glencore to shut Australia’s Tahmoor mine - By Cecilia Jamasmie, Mining.Com, June 2, 2016
• OPEC keeps status quo after failing to agree on output cap - By Bloomberg, FuelFix, June 2, 2016
• Texas oil job losses expected to continue for months despite price rally - By Collin Eaton, FuelFix, June 1, 2016
• Three mining companies in Mozambique in distress - By Tshepo, End Coal, June 1, 2016
• Battered by crude rout, Norway now faces risk of oil strikes - By Bloomberg, FuelFix, May 31, 2016
• China is hitting its climate targets years ahead of schedule - By Lauri Myllyvirta, Greenpeace Energy Desk, May 31, 2016
• It’s Time to Break Saudi’s Oil Monopoly and Embrace Clean Transportation - By Carl Pope, EcoWatch, May 31, 2016
• Renewables = 99% Of New Electricity Capacity In Q1 2016 In USA - By Zachary Shahan, CleanTechnica, May 31, 2016
• Venezuela: near the end? - By Michael Roberts, Facts For Working People, May 31, 2016
• Japan, China face mounting risks of stranded coal investments - By Gerard Wynn, REnew Economy, May 30, 2016

Utility Death Spiral News:

• Job Losses Expected As Maryland Governor Stuns Solar Industry With Clean Energy Veto - By Samantha Page, Think Progress, May 31, 2016

For more green news, please visit our news feeds section on ecology.iww.org; Twitter #IWWEUC; Hashtags: #greenunionism #greensyndicalism #IWW. Please send suggested news items to include in this series to euc [at] iww.org.

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, May 31, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

• Arch Coal backs out of Longview export terminal  - By Clark Williams-Derry, Sightline Institute, May 27, 2016; [related]: Arch Coal sells stake in Washington terminal in another blow to coal exports - By Benjamin Storrow, Casper Star Tribune, May 27, 2016
• Greenwashing or Progress? Exxon Shareholders Issue Calls for Climate Accountability - By Candice Bernd, Truthout, May 27, 2016 
• Big Oil is all over the place on climate change - By Katie Herzog, Grist, May 26, 2016; [related]: Big Oil struggles with speed of renewable energy transition - By Giles Parkinson, REnew Economy, May 26, 2016; [and]: Oil majors and climate change – a bluffer’s guide - By Megan Darby, Climate Change News, May 25, 2016
• Climate change takes center stage at Exxon, Chevron annual meetings - By Ernest Scheyder and Terry Wade, Reuters, May 25, 2016; [related]: Exxon, Chevron won’t budge on climate – so what happens next? - By Megan Darby, Climate Change News, May 26, 2016; [and]: Exxon shareholders pass measure that may put climate expert on board - By Luc Cohen and Rory Carroll, Reuters, May 25, 2016; [and]: Factbox: Climate change proposals for Exxon, Chevron shareholders - By staff, Reuters, May 25, 2016; [also]: Exxon Mobil Corporation, Chevron Corporation Shareholders Reject Climate Change Proposals - By Muhammad Ali Khawar, BidnessEtc, May 26, 2016
• G7 economies in trouble - By Michael Roberts, Facts For Working People, May 26, 2016
• Coal Power Plant Use Of Coal In US Fell 29% In 2015 (Compared To Peak Use In 2007) - By James Ayre, Clean Technica, May 25, 2016  
• King Coal’s Final Fight in Washington - By Sara Bernard, Seattle Weekly, May 23, 2016

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, May 25, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

• Seven signs a clean energy revolution is under way - By Megan Darby, Climate Change News, May 18, 2016
• Sightline on the Bankruptcy of Coal - By Keiko Budech, Sightline Institute, May 18, 2016
• Coal workers get screwed, their bosses get bonuses - By Melissa Cronin, Grist, May 17, 2016; [related] Executives Running Collapsing Coal Companies Award Themselves Millions While Laying Off Workers - By Alejandro Davila Fragoso, Think Progress, May 18, 2016
• What the U.S. can learn from European coal miners’ second act - By Joshua Zaffos, High Country News, May 16, 2016
• The Other Fire: Fort McMurray's Slow Burn - By Andrew Nikiforuk, The Tyee, May 13, 2016 

Other Carbon Bubble News:

• Banks increasing credit squeeze on drillers - By Bloomberg, FuelFix, May 20, 2016
• How Did Things Get So Bad, So Fast for the Coal Industry? - By Jordan Wirfs-Brock, Inside Energy, May 20, 2016
• The coal tide recedes just a little bit further - By Bob Burton, End Coal, May 19, 2016
• Oil slips in face of stronger dollar - By Bloomberg, FuelFix, May 19, 2016
• Caterpillar retail sales drop 12% in first three months of the year - By Cecilia Jamasmie, Mining.Com, May 18, 2016
• Halcón Resources planning to file prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy - By Collin Eaton, FuelFix, May 18, 2016
• Shale debt defaults set to reach scale of telecoms crash, Fitch says - By Collin Eaton, FuelFix, May 18, 2016
• Solar Energy Tops Coal In UK - By Jake Richardson, Clean Technica, May 18, 2016
• Unions threaten riots, strikes as Nigeria ditches oil subsidy - By Ed King, Climate Change News, May 18, 2016
• Here’s a sign that Kentucky’s politics might finally be shifting away from coal - By Rebecca Leber, Grist, May 17, 2016
• Clinton is making coal country a generous offer, but it’s not buying - By Ben Adler, Grist, May 16, 2016
• Statement of the Steering Committee of the 53 Independent Unions - By Zwelinzima Vavi, NUMSA, May 16, 2016
• Wind on the rise in the US, coal on the wane - By Seth Feaster, REnew Economy, May 16, 2016
• Will taxpayers foot the cleanup bill for bankrupt coal companies? - By Patrick McGinley, The Conversation, May 9, 2016

Utility Death Spiral News:

• Caps raised, New Hampshire turns attention to imminent struggle over solar value - By Herman K. Trabish, Utility Dive, May 19, 2016
• Nevada governor's task force committee recommends grandfathering rooftop solar customers - By Gavin Bade, Utility Dive, May 19, 2016
• Storing The Sun’s Energy Just Got A Whole Lot Cheaper - By Joe Romm, Think Progress, May 18, 2016
• Washington utilities reach solar incentive cap, foreshadowing net metering limits - By Herman K. Trabish, Utility Dive, May 17, 2016
• Distributed Generation (Still) Under Fire - By John Farell, Institute for Local Self-Reliance, May 16, 2016

For more green news, please visit our news feeds section on ecology.iww.org; Twitter #IWWEUC; Hashtags: #greenunionism #greensyndicalism #IWW. Please send suggested news items to include in this series to euc [at] iww.org.

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, May 17, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

• Why Is Coal Suddenly Becoming A Major Talking Point In The Presidential Election? - By Farron Cousins, DeSmog Blog, May 14, 2016
• Higher prices provide little relief for drillers - Bloomberg, FuelFix, May 13, 2016
• Global oil and gas job losses: 350,000 and counting - By James Burgess, UPI, May 12, 2016
• Pension holders petition funds on Exxon, Chevron climate resolutions - By Megan Darby, Climate Change News, May 11, 2016
• Big Oil Abandons $2.5 Billion in U.S. Arctic Drilling Rights - By Jennifer A Dlouhy, Bloomberg, May 9, 2016; [related]: Pressure Mounts on Obama As Big Oil Abandons the Arctic - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, May 10, 2016; [and]: The Oil Industry Just Backed Out Of A Multi-Billion Dollar Investment - By Samantha Page, Think Progress, May 10, 2016
• Oil majors told to adapt or die - By Kieran Cooke, Climate News Network, May 9, 2016

Other Carbon Bubble News:

• Exxon Faces Questions Over Climate As Gates Dumps BP - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, May 13, 2016
• Natural gas prices fall on lackluster demant - Bloomberg, FuelFix, May 13, 2016
• Oil drillers find 10 more rigs to idle - By Robert Grattan, FuelFix, May 13, 2016
• South African mining production plummets 18% - By Andrew Topf, Mining.Com, May 13, 2016
• Colstrip power-plant owner: Losing money, and the future is not bright - By Mike Dennison, KXLH 9 TV, May 12, 2016
• Risky bet: Does divestment slow or speed green growth? - By Ed King, Climate Change News, May 12, 2016
• Has oil industry hit its mid-life crisis? - By Lydia Depillis, FuelFix, May 11, 2016
• Japan risks wasting US$56bn in new coal-fired power stations - By Cecilia Jamasmie, Mining.Com, May 11, 2016; [related] Expansion Of Japan’s Coal Fleet Could Strand $56 Billion - By Joshua S Hill, Clean Technica, May 13, 2016
• Linn Energy to restructure, file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy - By Robert Grattan, FuelFix, May 11, 2016
• The Plan To Revive Big Coal’s Fortunes Isn’t Panning Out - By Natasha Geiling, Think Progress, May 11, 2016
• West Virginia Democrats Just Nominated A Climate Denying Coal Baron Billionaire For Governor - By Ryan Koronowski, Think Progress, May 11, 2016
• Election Day in coal country: A race to nowhere? - By Ken Ward Jr., Charleston Gazette-Mail, May 10, 2016
• Trump Cannot Bring Back Coal - By Evan Lehmann, Scientific American, May 10, 2016
• India Wants To Kick Its Dirty Coal Habit - By Ryan Koronowski, Think Progress, May 9, 2016
• Oil bankruptcies rack up as banks cut credit lines - By Collin Eaton, FuelFix, May 9, 2016

Utility Death Spiral News:

• Debunking 4 Myths About The Clean Energy Transition: Part 1: The “Duck Curve” | Part 2: Excess Generation | Part 3: Renewable Costs | Part 4: Carbon Emissions - By Robbie Orvis, Michael O’Boyle, and Hallie Kennan, Clean Technica, May 13-16, 2016
• Hawaii solar jobs fall 35% after regulators end retail net metering - By Herman K. Trabish, Utility Dive, May 13, 2016

For more green news, please visit our news feeds section on ecology.iww.org; Twitter #IWWEUC; Hashtags: #greenunionism #greensyndicalism #IWW. Please send suggested news items to include in this series to euc [at] iww.org.

By Keith Griffith - Equal Voice News, May 3, 2016

Harlan County, Kentucky -- On his first shift in the coal mine, Brandon Farley closed his eyes to steady his nerves as the powered cart he was riding disappeared into the mountainside. A third-generation coal miner in this Appalachian corner of Eastern Kentucky, Farley began working in the mines right out of high school and kept at it for 15 years, until he was laid off in late February.

Farley, now 32 and a married father of two, worked his way up in the Appalachian coal mines to a job as an underground electrician, running the high voltage cables that power heavy, specialized equipment at the mining face. Mining is the only work he knows.

In 2010, Farley was working at the Abner Branch mine when the roof collapsed, killing his friend Travis Brock, who was 29. Farley escaped serious injury in his own years as a miner, but his hands bear a miscellany of scars from minor accidents. 

"The juice is worth the squeeze," he says, glancing at his palms with a chuckle. "I never did look at the dangers as much as I did the money."

The money, for a while, was very good. Farley was making $25 an hour in the mines. With plenty of overtime -- Farley often worked 60-hour weeks -- experienced miners like him routinely made $80,000 to $100,000 a year. In Harlan County, which has about 28,000 residents, the median household income is $25,000.

Over 50 years ago, in 1964, President Lyndon Johnson toured Appalachia to kick off his "War on Poverty." Harlan County's poverty rate, which tracks roughly with the region's, was then 55 percent. It remains more than double the national average, at 32 percent, although those numbers typically don't account for government transfer payments, such as Social Security, safety net and veterans' benefits. (In 2014, Eastern Kentucky received $13.4 billion in government entitlements, making up more than a third of the region's income.)

Though it's long been a region of economic hardship, Appalachian Kentucky now faces a crisis of alarming proportions. Since the end of 2008, the region has lost more than 10,000 coal mining jobs, a decline of more than two-thirds. Kentucky's coal production is now at its lowest level since 1954, according to the state government. Other coal mining regions have been hit by the national decline in coal production, but none as hard as this one.

Locally, the collapse of coal is often blamed on President Barack Obama and environmental safeguards, which some residents say are needed to protect water, air and families. "This all began when Obama started his 'war on coal' -- and he did," says Farley, the laid-off miner. "If they are gonna do away with coal, why not put

Experts believe that the coal industry's decline in Kentucky has more to do with the abundance of cheap natural gas and drastically cheaper coal from surface mines in Wyoming. Regardless, there is a growing sense in Harlan County that coal isn't coming back.

After his latest layoff, Farley is now reluctantly looking for other kinds of work. "That's all we ever done is mine coal, though," he says. "It's the best job I ever had."

Farley finds the prospect of taking a significantly lower-paying job unpalatable, though even finding one is a challenge. After getting career counseling from the Harlan County Community Action Agency, Farley applied for work with railroad shipper CSX. But coal makes up the bulk of CSX's shipping business, and the company announced new rounds of layoffs the week that Farley applied.

"It's strange to hear the lonesome horn of a train anymore," says HCCAA Executive Director Donna Pace. "Used to be, that's all you heard."

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, May 9, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

• No Matter What Trump Says, Coal Mining Jobs Are Not Returning To West Virginia - By Tim Worstall, Forbes, May 5, 2016; [related]: Donald Trump Says He’ll Bring Back Jobs For Coal Miners But He’s Just Blowing Smoke - By Joe Romm, Think Progress, May 4, 2016 
• Major Milestone: More than 100,000 MW Worth of Coal-Fired Power Plants Retired - By Sierra Club , EcoWatch, May 4, 2016; [related]: Dynegy's retirement of coal units marks 100 GW of US coal shuttered since 2010 - By Robert Walton, Utility Dive, May 5, 2016
• Oil collapse most brutal in history for drillers, energy researcher says - By Collin Eaton, FuelFix, May 4, 2016
• U.S. oil industry bankruptcy wave nears size of telecom bust - By Ernest Scheyder and Terry Wade, Reuters, May 4, 2016
• Listen To U.S. Coal Production Fall Off A Cliff - By Jordan Wirfs-Brock, Inside Energy, May 3, 2016
• Mapped: The global coal trade - By various, Carbon Brief, May 3, 2016

By Paul Stevens - Energy, Environment and Resources, May 5, 2016

The future of the major international oil companies (IOCs) – BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell and Total – is in doubt. The business model that sustained them during the 20th century is no longer fit for purpose. As a result, they are faced with the choice of managing a gentle decline by downsizing or risking a rapid collapse by trying to carry on business as usual.

Most commentary on the IOCs’ problems has focused on the recent fall in oil prices and the growing global commitment to tackle climate change. Important though these are, the source of their predicament is not confined to such recent developments over which they have no control. Their problems are more numerous, run deeper and go back further. The prognosis for the IOCs was already grim before governments became serious about climate change and the oil price collapsed.

Read the report (Link).

By Ben Caldecott, Gerard Dericks, Daniel J. Tulloch, Lucas Kruitwagen, and Irem Kok - Oxford, May 2016

Deploying a ‘bottom up’ asset-level methodology, we analysed the exposure of all of Japan’s current and planned coal-fired power stations to environment-related risk. Planned coal capacity greatly exceeds that required for replacement - by 191%. This may result in overcapacity and combined with competition from other forms of generation capacity with lower marginal costs (e.g. nuclear and renewables), lead to significant asset stranding of coal generation assets. Stranded coal assets in Japan would affect utility returns for investors; impair the ability of utilities to service outstanding debt obligations; and create stranded assets that have to be absorbed by taxpayers and ratepayers.

Read the report (PDF).

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, May 3, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

• The Beginning of the End of the Old Oil Order - By Michael Klare, TomDispatch, April 28, 2016
• Has the time arrived to transition away from fossil fuels? - By Fereidoon Sioshansi, REnew Economy, April 26, 2016
• Saudi Arabia Pledges to Break “Dangerous Addiction to Oil” - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, April 26, 2016
• Middle East economies take hit from low oil prices - Associated Press, Fuel Fix, April 25, 2016
• We Could Be Witnessing the Death of the Fossil Fuel Industry—Will It Take the Rest of the Economy Down With It? - By Nafeez Ahmed, Alternet, April 22, 2016

Other Carbon Bubble News:

• Chevron increases planned job cuts to 8,000 - By Collin Eaton, Fuel Fix, April 29, 2016; [related] Chevron posts a wider-than-expected loss - Bloomberg, Fuel Fix, April 29, 2016
• Exxon posts smallest profit since 1999 - Bloomberg, Fuel Fix, April 29, 2016
• Oil rally on “thin ice,” echoes short-lived 2015 price jump - Bloomberg, Fuel Fix, April 29, 2016
• Refining's silver lining loses luster at Exxon and Chevron - By Ernest Scheyder, Reuters, April 29, 2016
• This Chart Will Warm Your Heart If You Want America To Use Less Coal - By Ryan Koronowski, Think Progress, April 29, 2016
• U.S. Coal Use Falls 29 Percent - By Climate Nexus, EcoWatch, April 29, 2016
• U.S. oil rig count falls by more than 3 percent in a week - By Jordan Blum, Fuel Fix, April 29, 2016
• ConocoPhillips cuts spending further, posts loss - Bloomberg, Fuel Fix, April 28, 2016
• National Oilwell Varco cuts 6,000 jobs, closes 200 facilities - By Collin Eaton, Fuel Fix, April 28, 2016
• Can we learn from Europe’s approach to laid-off coal miners? - By Joshua Zaffos, High Country News, April 27, 2016
• Coal downturn hits railroads hard - By Elizabeth Shogren, High Country News, April 27, 2016
• Federal panel kills Tongue River Railroad - By Tom Lutey, Billings Gazette, April 27, 2016
• Jim Justice doubles down on climate change denial - By Ken Ward Jr., Charleston Gazette-Mail, April 27, 2016
• “We have gained money from not investing in fossil fuels” - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, April 27, 2016
• Why China (really) is losing its appetite for coal - By Clayton Aldern, Grist, April 27, 2016
• Daily Dispatch: Saudi Arabia plots life after oil - By Joe Sandler Clarke, Greenpeace Energy Desk, April 26, 2016
• Exxon Mobil Loses Top Credit Rating - Bloomberg, Fuel Fix, April 26, 2016
• Steel fight is not won yet by a long way - Editorial, Socialist Worker (UK), April 26, 2016
• Wave of fury offshore as work stops on rigs - By Raymie Kiernan, Socialist Worker (UK), April 26, 2016
• Aberthaw power station to downgrade operations - By Steffan Messenger, BBC, April 25, 2016
• Coal Communities Consider Life After Layoffs - By Leigh Paterson, Wyoming Public Media, April 25, 2016
• Freeport axes oil and gas workforce as it posts sixth straight loss - By Cecilia Jamasmie, Mining.Com, April 25, 2016
• Jim Justice dodges hard truth about coal’s decline - By Ken Ward Jr., Charleston Gazette-Mail, April 25, 2016
• Oil falls from 5-month high - Bloomberg, Fuel Fix, April 25, 2016
• Address by Zwelinzima Vavi to the NUMSA National Bargaining Conference - By Zwelinzima Vavi, NUMSA, April 23, 2016
• One UK steel town, one crisis that affects the nation - By staff, Associated Press, April 22, 2016

For more green news, please visit our news feeds section on ecology.iww.org; Twitter #IWWEUC; Hashtags: #greenunionism #greensyndicalism #IWW. Please send suggested news items to include in this series to euc [at] iww.org.