climate justice

According to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2015 was the globe’s warmest year since at least 1880, when such figures were first recorded. 2014 was the next warmest, and the hottest five years also include 2013, 2010, and 2005. Can it be any more obvious that we absolutely must stop playing Russian roulette with the global climate?

The two most important things we need to do to stabilize the climate are straightforward. First, the world must dramatically cut its reliance on oil, coal, and natural gas in energy production. This is because carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions generated through burning fossil fuels, along with methane emissions released during fossil fuel extraction processes, are responsible for about 75 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions causing climate change. Second, as the alternative to fossil fuel consumption, again on a global scale, we must massively expand investments in energy efficiency and clean renewable energy sources—solar, wind, geothermal, low-emissions bioenergy, and small-scale hydropower.

Both parts of this climate stabilization program will produce large-scale impacts on the employment opportunities for working people as well as on the communities in which they live. The investments in efficiency and clean renewables will generate millions of new jobs. But workers and communities whose livelihoods depend on the fossil fuel industry will unavoidably lose out in the clean energy transition. Unless strong policies are advanced to support these workers, they will face layoffs, falling incomes, and declining public-sector budgets to support schools, health clinics, and public safety. This in turn will increase political resistance to any effective climate stabilization program.

It follows that the global climate stabilization project must unequivocally commit to providing generous transitional support for workers and communities tied to the fossil fuel industry. The late U.S. labor leader and environmental visionary Tony Mazzocchi pioneered thinking on what is now termed a “Just Transition” for these workers and communities. As Mazzocchi wrote as early as 1993, “Paying people to make the transition from one kind of economy to another is not welfare. Those who work with toxic materials on a daily basis … in order to provide the world with the energy and the materials it needs deserve a helping hand to make a new start in life.”

In this article, we propose a Just Transition framework for U.S. workers. Our rough high-end estimate for such a program is a relatively modest $600 million per year. This is about 1 percent of the annual level of public investment that will be needed to advance a successful overall U.S. climate stabilization program. As we show, this level of funding would pay for income and pension-fund support for workers facing retrenchments as well as effective transition programs for what are now fossil fuel–dependent communities.

Tags:

labor and environment

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EcoUnionist News #111

Submitted by x344543 on Tue, 07/05/2016 - 21:49

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, July 6, 2016

The following news items feature issues, discussions, campaigns, or information potentially relevant to green unionists:

Lead Stories:

How Oakland Defeated Coal - By Brentin Mock, CityLab, July 1, 2016
The Remaking of the Global Working Class - By Beverly Silver, ROARMag, July 1, 2016
From Livelihoods to Deadlihoods - By Ashish Kothari, Local Futures, June 30, 2016
Gulf Coast Activists Tell 'Big Green' to Quit Exploiting Their Disasters for Financial Gain - By Yessenia Funes, Colorlines, June 30, 2016; [related]: An open letter demanding respect and solidarity - By Alicia Cooke, et. al., Radical Arts & Healing (RAHC) Collective, June 27, 2016
Stopping a Climate Change and Pollution Nightmare in the East Bay - By Will Parrish, East Bay Express, June 28, 2016

Ongoing Mobilizations:

In Defense of Mother Earth and Land - Oaxaca, MX: July 21-22, 2016
Flush the TPP - Ongoing through 2016 | #FlushtheTPP
March for a Clean Energy Revolution - July 24, 2016, Philadelphia | #CleanEnergyMarch
Power Shift Southeast - Orlando, FL: September 9-11, 2016
International Resistance Gathering Against Extractivism - July 28-30, Mexico
TWAC Cascadia 2016 - August 8th-15th 2016

The Thin Green Line:

Record-Breaking Opposition to Coal - By Jasmine Zimmer-Stucky, Columbia Riverkeeper, July 1, 2016
Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline bites the dust - By Gregory Smith, EcoJustice, June 30, 2016; [related]: Northern Gateway Ruling Puts Tar Sands "At Risk" - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, July 4, 2016 | Victory for First Nations in Northern Gateway Fight - By Andy Rowell, Oil Change International, July 1, 2016 | Federal court overturns Northern Gateway pipeline approval - By Sophia Reuss, Rabble.Ca, June 30, 2016 | Northern Gateway pipeline approval overturned - By Jason Proctor, CBC News, June 30, 2016
Oakland City Council Votes to Ban Coal Exports in Big Win for Local Advocates - By Zoe Loftus-Farren, Earth Island Journal, June 28, 2016; [related]: In our opinion: 2 initiatives mark Utah's energy upheaval - Editorial, Deseret News, June 30, 2016 | Oakland City Council unanimously supports ban on coal exports - By staff, Sierra Club Yodeler, June 29, 2016 | Oakland says no thanks to coal exports - By Katie Herzog, Grist, June 29, 2016 | Oakland council bans coal - By Erin Baldassari, San Jose Mercury News, June 28, 2016 | Oakland council bans coal shipments, citing health risks - By staff, Associated Press, June 28, 2016

Just Transition:

Oil Sands Worker Inspires Calgarians to Embrace Renewables - By staff, Iron and Earth, July 5, 2016
ISEA: Solar Energy Can Generate 7,300 Jobs & Slash EU Fines €300 Million A Year - By James Ayre, CleanTechnica, July 4, 2016
The Stupid Thing About Politics & Jobs - By Zachary Shahan, CleanTechnica, July 1, 2016
Swollen solar pipeline could make Texas 2nd largest utility-scale market in US - By Robert Walton, Utility Dive, June 30, 2016
Teleseminar: Just Transition with Mateo Nube of Movement Generation [seminar] - By Mateo Nube, Resilience, June 30, 2016
A new danger descends on Canada - By the Leap Manifesto, Rabble.Ca, June 28, 2016
Alberta Coal Communities Worry For Their Future - By Ian Bickis, Huffington Post, June 22, 2016

Bread and Roses:

North Carolina: "We will keep fighting until Publix comes on board!" - By staff, Coalition of Immokalee Workers, July 5, 2016
Mother-of-Three Sues Monsanto Claiming Roundup Caused Her Cancer - By Lorraine Chow, EcoWatch, July 1, 2016
New Film about the Boycott of Driscoll’s & Familias Unidas por la Justicia - By staff, Boycott Sakuma Berries, July 1, 2016
Opinion: Traditional crops keep our culture alive - By Elizabeth Mpofu, La Via Campesina, July 1, 2016
"We aren’t asking you to create the solution; The solution already exists…" - By staff, Coalition of Immokalee Workers, June 29, 2016
More rain, less freshwater: Why the government of Ghana needs to stop coal expansion - By lerato, 350.org, June 28, 2016
Herbicide, chemical fertilizer use doubled on Vermont dairy farms in a decade - By Anne Galloway, VTDigger, June 27, 2016
The Fight Isn’t Over for Farm Worker Overtime - By David Bacon, Capital and Main, June 16, 2016

Tags:

agricultural workers and peasants

renewable energy workers

health and safety

green jobs

labor and environment

Read more about EcoUnionist News #111

Capital Blight News #111

Submitted by x344543 on Tue, 07/05/2016 - 18:53

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, July 5, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

ANOTHER Corporation Suing Our Government Thanks To Trade Agreements - By Dave Johnson, Campaign for America's Future, June 28, 2016
Obama Admin Approved Over 1,500 Offshore Fracking Permits in Gulf of Mexico and Mainstream Media Has Ignored It - By Steve Horn, DeSmog Blog, June 28, 2016; [related]: This Map Shows Where Offshore Fracking Has Occurred in the Gulf of Mexico - By Mike Ludwig, Truthout, June 30, 2016 | Obama Administration Permitted 1,200 Offshore Fracks in Gulf of Mexico - By Kristen Monsell, Center for Biological Diversity, June 28, 2016

The Man Behind the Curtain:

Does Exxon Have a Constitutional Right to Deny Climate Change? - By Natalie Schreyer, Climate Desk, July 5, 2016; [related]: Exxon was on the cutting edge of climate science 40 years ago. Watch what happened next: - By Zoë Wong-Weissman, 350.org, June 29, 2016 | Why won’t Exxon publish its 2015 denial funding? - By Cindy Baxter, Climate Investigations Center, June 27, 2016
SEC Charges "Frack Master" Chris Faulkner, Shale CEO and Industry Advocate, with $80 Million Fraud - By Sharon Kelly, DeSmog Blog, July 3, 2016
Pro-GMO Spin Masquerading as Science Courtesy of "Shameful White Men of Privilege" - By Colin Todhunter, Counterpunch, July 1, 2016; [related]: Genetically Engineered Crops: the Grand and Failed Promise - By Jim Goodman, Counterpunch, July 5, 2016
107 Nobel Laureate Attack on Greenpeace Traced Back to Biotech PR Operators - By Jonathan Latham, Counterpunch, July 1, 2016
Wall St. Journal Shows Why It Is Under Attack For Climate Science Denial By Publishing Another Dodgy Column - By Graham Readfearn, DeSmog Blog, July 1, 2016
Public Lands Development Rigged in Favor of Oil and Gas - By Nada Culver, EcoWatch, June 30, 2016
Fracked Gas LNG Exports Were Centerpiece In Promotion of Panama Canal Expansion, Documents Reveal - By Steve Horn, DeSmog Blog, June 29, 2016
Why does the Colombian coal industry need help from a London lobby group? - By Bob Burton, End Coal, June 29, 2016
High-Level EPA Adviser Accused of Scientific Fraud in Methane Leak Research - By Sharon Kelly, DeSmog Blog, June 28, 2016
Kochs Dump Trump to Fund Climate-Denying Senators in Ohio and Nevada - By Lorraine Chow, EcoWatch, June 28, 2016
Benzene technical standards: Why Ontario’s bait and switch approach puts people’s health at risk - By Ian Miran, EcoJustice, June 27, 2016
No denying it - By Charles Hatt, EcoJustice, June 27, 2016

Green is the New Red:

Struggling on Dangerous Ground - By staff, 350.org, July 3, 2016
Guatemala: Diodora’s Resistance to Goldcorp Mine - By Movimiento Mesoamericana Contra el Modelo Extractivo Minero, Translated by Earth First! Journal, July 1, 2016
Anti-fracking campaigner tells court: “I won’t pay Cuadrilla’s £55k legal bill” - By Ruth Hayhurst, Drill or Drop?, June 24, 2016

Greenwashers:

A jurisdictional approach will not solve the most serious REDD+ problems - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, July 1, 2016
Ventura Oil Spill Highlights Big Oil Regulatory Capture - By Dan Bacher, Counterpunch, July 1, 2016
“Trash and run”: The Melka Group plans to sell its destructive oil palm plantations in Peru - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, June 30, 2016
After 6 years of working on climate at Harvard, I implore it to show the courage to divest - By Benjamin Franta, The Guardian, June 29, 2016
Should North Americans subsidize oil, gas, and coal for another 10 years? - By Alex Doukas, Oil Change International, June 29, 2016
The Park Service doesn’t need corporate sponsorship. It needs proper funding - By Tom Ribe, High Country News, June 28, 2016; [related]: Rudderless national parks adrift without a compass - By Stephen Duke, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, June 30, 2016
The World Bank “provisionally” approves the Democratic Republic of Congo’s REDD programme - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, June 28, 2016

Disaster Capitalism:

Climate Change’s Growing Impact On People Experiencing Homelessness - By Ryan Koronowski, Think Progress, June 29, 2016
California: Fires Burn at "Exponential Rates" Amid Blistering Heat Wave and 5-Year Drought - Ken Pimlott interviewed by Amy Goodman, Democracy Now, June 28, 2016
Millions exposed to dangerous lead levels in US drinking water, report finds - By Oliver Milman, The Guardian, June 28, 2016; [related]: Dangerous Levels Of Lead Have Been Found In Water Systems Nationwide - By Bryce Covert, Think Progress, June 28, 2016
Once-in-a-Thousand-Year Flooding Devastates West Virginia, Killing At Least 23 - Bob Henry Baber interviewed by Amy Goodman, Democracy Now, June 28, 2016

Other News:

Alaskan Coalition Calls on U.S. to Investigate B.C. Mines - By Judith Lavoie, DeSmog Blog, June 29, 2016
Environmental Racism is Alive and Well in Grassy Narrows - By Stephen Bede Scharper, Free Grassy Narrows, June 29, 2016
Java on brink of ecological collapse - By Hans Nicholas Jong and Bambang Muryanto, Jakarta Post, June 24, 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.

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Just Transition: Just What Is It?

Submitted by x332349 on Fri, 07/01/2016 - 17:08

A Joint Report by Labor Network for Sustainability and Strategic Practice - July 2016

We are now one-sixth of the way through the twenty-first century and well into the greatest economic transition ever experienced — one that will dwarf all that came before this one. This transition includes energy, creating a carbon-neutral economy, communications, manufacturing, transportation, health care, waste management, and more.

This transition has already produced road-kill with many thousands of workers thrown on the scrap heap and disintegrating communities — with no help in the offing for them. So many individuals and groups are now asking how we organize society, our economy, and our politics in such a way that our institutions serve the people, rather than capital.

The “just transition” frame is being used by an increasing number of organizing networks, grassroots organizations, groups affiliated with organized labor, and environmental organizations. This report aims to assess the notion of just transition, how it is being used, what kinds of ideas and approaches are surfacing for short and long-term strategies, and what kinds of relationships groups are developing in pursuit of a just transition. Its purpose is to open a broad and respectful discussion about the varied ways the “just transition” frame is being used, and whether they can contribute to a shared vision of how to make the transition we face a just transition.

This report is based on 17 interviews conducted between October, 2015 and March, 2016 by Christina Roessler, accompanied at times by Joe Uehlein and Richard Healey. Interviewees were offered the opportunity to revise their quotations and their revisions are included in this draft. This report represents a preliminary effort based on a limited number of interviews and a small amount of additional research. Leaders were interviewed from the following groups:

Organizing Networks

Climate Justice Alliance
GreenWave
National People’s Action
New Economy Coalition

Grassroots organizing

ALIGN: The Alliance for Greater New York
Asian Pacific Environmental Network
Buffalo PUSH
Kentuckians For The Commonwealth
Movement Generation

Labor

AFL-CIO

BlueGreen Alliance
Labor Network for Sustainability
Oregon AFL-CIO

Environmental

North Carolina League of Conservation Voters
Sierra Club

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Alameda County Central Labor Council Climate and Environmental Justice Caucus Mission Statement

Submitted by x344543 on Wed, 06/29/2016 - 18:37

Resolution Adopted June 13, 2016

Note: the IWW is not affiliated with the Alameda County AFL-CIO Central Labor Council.

Due to the alarming advance of scientifically-confirmed, human-caused climate change, the Alameda Labor Council's historical support of strong economic, environmental and health protections for working families and their communities, and the urgency to take action to transition to a more sustainable, just and clean economy now, this Council affirms that:

The labor movement plays a major role as a force for progressive change and for social and economic justice,
Labor has a vested interest in addressing the challenge of climate change, and
We are stronger when we act together as Labor, and with frontline communities, environmental organizations and community allies.

This Council recognizes the impact that historical discriminatory industrial and housing development policies and resulting environmental degradation have had on the lives and health of workers and their families, noting that these negative effects disproportionally impact those communities with the least power.

We believe that the reliance on market-based solutions to the current climate crisis will only deepen social, racial, environmental and economic inequities, and is a central obstacle to achieving a sustainable and just economy. We know from experience that the labor movement must help shape the conversation if we are to affect positive change for working people.

The Alameda Labor Council rejects the myth that we must choose between good jobs and a clean environment, and is committed to vigorously promoting a just transition to a sustainable energy economy, steadily diminishing our reliance on fossil fuels as we support smart, inclusive and just development that provides opportunities for family-sustaining jobs to all workers. We will also promote equitable mitigation of the impacts of climate change, for example, flooding caused by sea level rise that will flood low-lying working-class residential areas, e.g., "the flats".

Therefore, the Alameda Labor Council hereby establishes a Climate and Environmental Justice Caucus to:

Educate and engage our members and communities about the urgency of this crisis and our role in tangible solutions to avoid dire consequences for our children, grandchildren and future generations
Provide political advocacy to support the creation and protection of good local jobs related to reducing greenhouse gases and mitigating the impacts of climate change in the building maintenance and operations of renewable energy, water, public transit, transportation, healthcare, and other sectors
Demand that workers who might be displaced be retrained for the new economy jobs, offered early retirement without loss of benefits, and otherwise protected from having to bear the social cost of making this essential transition
Advocate that a just transition not only protect those whose present employment is affected but must also open opportunities for those who have historically been denied those opportunities as a consequence of racial, ethnic, gender and other barriers to entry and ensure that the clean economy is creating local union career opportunities for all working people
Encourage Labor to examine our own practices, such as how pension funds could be better invested to promote the transition to clean energy while ensuring retirement security
Actively build working partnerships with local environmental and social justice groups

With these commitments, it is incumbent on the caucus to serve as a policy advisory body to the Council to assure that Labor's agenda consistently includes a mindful climate and environmental justice focus. Labor's concerns must also be present in larger community and regional discussions of environmental and climate issues.

Tags:

Alameda County Central Labor Council

green unionism

climate justice

just transition

Read more about Alameda County Central Labor Council Climate and Environmental Justice Caucus Mission Statement

EcoUnionist News #110: No Coal in Oakland Prevails and other Green Union news

Submitted by x344543 on Tue, 06/28/2016 - 22:39

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, June 29, 2016

Image, right: Alameda County AFL-CIO Central Labor Council president, Josie Camacho, flanked by dozens of Bay Area union leaders and members, representing 21 Bay Area unions (including the Bay Area IWW), join in with Oakland residents to oppose coal handling, storage, shipment, and exports in the Port of Oakland at a special City Council hearing, held June 27, 2016. At the conclusion of the meeting, the City Council voted unanimously, 7-0 with one member absent, in support of the coal ban. Image by Brooke Anderson.

The following news items feature issues, discussions, campaigns, or information potentially relevant to green unionists:

Lead Stories:

Oakland bans coal shipments in a blow to planned export facility - By William Yardley and Natalie Kitroeff, Los Angeles Times, June 28, 2016; [related]: Oakland's Anti-Coal Activists Decry ‘Deceptive’ Mailer - By Arielle Swedback, East Bay Express, June 27, 2016 | Coal: Economic opportunity or environmental risk for poor neighborood? - By Associated Press, FuelFix, June 27, 2016 | Oakland Just Banned Coal! Coal Processing, Loading and Unloading Banned in Oakland - By J P Masser, Daily Kos, June 27, 2016
As Britain exits, the need for a strong climate movement remains - By Kate Aronoff, Waging Nonviolence, June 24, 2016
Mega Corporation Gobbles Up Slightly Less-Mega Corporation; Chops Jobs to Increase Profits; Blames Enviros. Film at 11 - By Matthew Koehler, CounterPunch, June 24, 2016
Zimbabwe: Trade Unions Embrace Climate Change - By staff, All Africa, June 23, 2016
Meet the McDonald’s Cashier Taking on Her CEO for Climate Change - By Brooke Anderson, Yes!, June 17, 2016
The War on Workers’ Comp - By Stephen Franklin, In These Times, June 13, 2016

Ongoing Mobilizations:

Flush the TPP - Ongoing through 2016 | #FlushtheTPP
March for a Clean Energy Revolution - July 24, 2016, Philadelphia | #CleanEnergyMarch
International Resistance Gathering Against Extractivism - July 28-30, Mexico
TWAC Cascadia 2016 - August 8th-15th 2016

The Thin Green Line:

First Day of Hearings on Vancouver, WA Oil Terminal Begins with Broad Opposition - By staff, Stand Up to Oil, June 27, 2016
Environmentalists, politicians call for shutdown of coal leases in Seattle - By Hal Bernton, Seattle Times, June 21, 2016

Just Transition:

Oilsands workers know how to lead the way on climate change - By Lliam Hildebrand, Iron and Earth, June 27, 2016; [related]: Iron And Earth: Oilsands Workers Call For Training In Renewable Energy - By David Dodge and Dylan Thompson, Huffington Post, June 24, 2016
Ontario’s Green Energy Act: A job creation success - By Elizabeth Perry, Work and Climate Change Report, June 27, 2016; [related]: Clean Energy Investment Slows in Canada; Canada ranks 11th in Clean Energy Jobs - By Elizabeth Perry, Work and Climate Change Report, June 26, 2016
March for a Clean Energy Revolution at the DNC With Breast Cancer Action - By Alyssa Figueroa, EcoWatch, June 26, 2016
Coal To Solar: Retraining Our Energy Workforce - By Glenn Meyers, Planetsave, June 25, 2016
After Decades of Protest, Last California Nuclear Plant to Close & Be Replaced by Renewable Energy - Damon Moglen interviewed by Juan González and Amy Goodman, Democracy Now, June 22, 2016 [related]: Nuclear Shutdown in California includes Transition provisions for Workers - By Elizabeth Perry, Work and Climate Change Report, June 27, 2016 | Cost to Replace California Nuclear With Solar: $15 Billion - By Jim Polson and Mark Chediak, Bloomberg, June 23, 2016 | Diablo Shutdown Marks End of Atomic Era - By Harvey Wasserman, EcoWatch, June 23, 2016 | California Goes Nuclear Free As Diablo Canyon Closes In Favor Of Renewables - By Joshua S Hill, Clean Technica, June 22, 2016 | Honey I shrunk the utility: California's final nuclear plant closure attributed to CCA - By staff, Local Power, June 22, 2016 | PG&E to Replace Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant With 100% Carbon-Free Resources - By Jeff St. John, GreenTech Media, June 21, 2016 | PG&E to close Diablo Canyon nuclear plant, replace it with renewables, efficiency, storage - By Gavin Bade, Utility Dive, June 21, 2016
Beyond Extreme Energy Too Extreme? Not At All - By Jlstewct, Beyond Extreme Energy, June 21, 2016
Canada can transition to renewable energy in just a few decades, says Stanford University professor - By Monique Muise, Global News, June 12, 2016

Read more about EcoUnionist News #110: No Coal in Oakland Prevails and other Green Union news

Capital Blight News #110

Submitted by x344543 on Tue, 06/28/2016 - 18:20

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, June 29, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

IEA report says fossil fuels killing three million people a year - By Tim Buckley, REnew Economy, June 27, 2016
It’s Not Just Crimes Against Nature, It’s Crimes Against People - By Terry Odendahl, EcoWatch, June 22, 2016
Why some of America’s richest people are living in the middle of nowhere - By Kim Soffen, Washington Post, June 22, 2016
Scale of climate damages "could dwarf tobacco lawsuits" - By Megan Darby, Climate Change News, June 21, 2016
Why Mining Corporations Love Trade Deals - By Ben Beachy, Huffington Post, June 21, 2016

The Man Behind the Curtain:

Brexiters, Climate Deniers and Trump: A Small World - By ClimateDenierRoundup, Daily Kos, June 27, 2016
A Brief History of Fossil-Fuelled Climate Denial - By John Cook, The University of Queensland, June 23, 2016
Australia’s big energy switch: from coal and gas to wind and solar - By Giles Parkinson, Deseret News, June 23, 2016
How IOGCC Spawned the Lawsuit That Just Overturned BLM Fracking Regulations on Public Lands - By Steve Horn, DeSmog Blog, June 23, 2016
U.S. coal giant owed money to Canadian climate change deniers - By Charles Mandel, National Observer, June 16th 2016
Exxon, Koch Ties May Help Explain Rep. Lamar Smith's Probing Request of "Exxon Knew" Environmental Groups - By Steve Horn, DeSmog Blog, June 21, 2016
Oil-Funded Groups Have Spent $2.7 Million To Defeat California Candidates Who Want Climate Action - By Mike Gaworecki, DeSmog Blog, June 21, 2016
Proposal Sparks Monumental Debate At The Grand Canyon - By Doug Puppel, KNPR, June 21, 2016
Buzz Kill: How the Pesticide Industry Blocks Bee Protections Nationwide - By Tiffany Finck-Haynes and Christopher D. Cook, EcoWatch, June 20, 2016
Groups demand federal probe into Utah role in coal port - By Brian Maffley, Salt Lake Tribune, June 20, 2016; [related]: Groups write U.S. Attorney General asking for investigation of coal shipping terminal deal - By Ben Lockhart, Deseret News, June 20, 2016
Koch Front Groups Are Defending ExxonMobil’s Anti-Science Campaigns - By Connor Gibson, Greenpeace, June 20, 2016
Western States Petroleum Association wins the prestigious “Scummy” Award - By Dan Bacher, Red, Green, and Blue, June 18, 2016
Hot Mess: How Radioactive Fracking Waste Wound Up Near Homes And Schools - By Glynis Board, Ohio Valley Resource, June 17, 2016
Peabody Coal’s Unprecedented Support for Climate Denial - By Aliya Haq, NRDC, June 17, 2016
Exxon Has No Free Speech Rights to Commit Fraud, say Climate Groups - By Nadia Prupis, Common Dreams, June 17, 2016

Green is the New Red:

Berta Cáceres's name was on Honduran military hitlist, says former soldier - By Nina Lakhani, The Guardian, June 21, 2016; [related]: Appeal to the world's free people: UAWC condemns the killing of Berta Cáceres - By Union of Agricultural Work Committees, La Via Campesina, June 22, 2016
185 Environmental Activists Across 16 Countries Were Killed in 2015 - By Emily J. Gertz, EcoWatch, June 20, 2016; [related]: 2015 Deadliest Year for Environmentalists on Record, Finds Report - By staff, Yale Environment 360, June 20, 2016

Greenwashers:

Obama Administration Approved Gulf Fracking During Deepwater Horizon Disaster - By Mike Ludwig, Truthout, June 24, 2016
Some questions for WWF about its partnership with logging company Rougier in Cameroon - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, June 22, 2016
FCA charges five people with £2.75 million boiler room scam, including Michael Nascimento and Jeannine Lewis - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, June 21, 2016
Fracking, the Failure of Mainstream Greens and the Corporate Control of U.S. Energy Policy - By Mark Hand, CounterPunch, June 22, 2016

Disaster Capitalism:

Railroad blamed for fiery oil train derailment along Columbia River Gorge - By KATU News and Matthew Brown and Gillian Flaccus, Associated Press, KOMO News, June 23, 2016

Other News:

Sacramento Judge Rules Delta Plan Is "Invalid" - By Dan Bacher, Indybay, June 23, 2016; [related]: C-WIN, Senator Lois Wolk Praise Judge's Decision To Toss Delta Plan - By Dan Bacher, Daily Kos, June 24, 2016
Movie Review: There’s a Vast Cowspiracy about Climate Change - By Doug Boucher, Union Concerned Scientists, June 10, 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.

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EcoUnionist News #109

Submitted by x344543 on Mon, 06/20/2016 - 21:27

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, June 21, 2016

The following news items feature issues, discussions, campaigns, or information potentially relevant to green unionists:

Lead Stories:

Oil Companies Facing Spurt of Lawsuits After Robbing Oilfield Workers of Millions in Wages - By Larry Buhl, DeSmog Blog, June 19, 2016
Rolling blockade at Burghfield nuclear weapons factory - By Theo Simon, Red Pepper, June 16, 2016
American Seafood Has Its Own Forced Labor Problem - By Alex Sammon, Mother Jones, June 15, 2016; [related]: Let’s stop the downgrading of workers and jobs in supply chains - By Steve Cotton, Equal Times, June 7, 2016
Nigeria: Niger Delta Avengers Threaten Further Violence in Oil-Producing Region - By Conor Gaffey, Newsweek, June 14, 2016
Don’t Mess with the Corn: Lessons from Mexico’s Struggle against GMOs - By Soledad Barruti, Argentina Independent, June 7, 2016

Ongoing Mobilizations:

Flush the TPP - Ongoing through 2016 | #FlushtheTPP
March for a Clean Energy Revolution - July 24, 2016, Philadelphia | #CleanEnergyMarch
TWAC Cascadia 2016 - August 8th-15th 2016

The Thin Green Line:

Public health experts expose coal hazard ‘protection’ fallacies - By Steve Masover, No Coal in Oakland, June 19, 2016
Over a Quarter of a Million Public Comments Against Largest Coal Export Terminal in North America - By staff, Power Past Coal, June 13, 2016
Bay Area Residents and Environmental Advocates Push Swift Adoption of Rule to Cap Refinery Emissions - By Andrés Soto and Ratha Lai, Communities for a Better Environment and Sierra Club SF Bay Chapter, June 14, 2016; [related]: Cap Bay Area refinery emissions now - By Andrés Soto and Sandy Saeteurn, San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 2016
Tesoro refinery expansion poses risk to community - By Alicia Rivera, Daily Breeze, June 3, 2016

Just Transition:

Oil Sands Workers Fear Becoming Climate Change Casualties - By Mychaylo Prystupa, The Tyee, June 17, 2016
50% Renewables In Australia Could Create 28,000 New Jobs By 2030 - By Joshua S Hill, Clean Technica, June 17, 2016
Australian taxpayers could pay billions to clean up old mines, report says - By Thom Mitchell, New Matilda, June 16, 2016
Here’s How We Get to 100% Renewable Energy - By Richard Heinberg, EcoWatch, June 15, 2016
Public Banks as the Antithesis of Neoliberalism - By Matt Stannard, Public Banking Institute, May 19, 2016
Our Fossil-Fuel Economy Destroys the Earth and Exploits Humanity; Here's the Shift We Need to Be Sustainable - By Iliana Salazar-Dodge, Alternet, May 12, 2016

Bread and Roses:

Pathways of Transition to Agroecological Food Systems - By Adam Parsons, CounterPunch, June 17, 2016
TTIP and CETA: We won't let them trade us away - By Hanny van Geel, et. al., La Via Campesina, June 16, 2016; [related]: NFU Action alert: Trans Pacific Partnership input deadline coming soon - By National Farmers' Union, La Via Campesina, June 16, 2016
Women lead the fight against corporate agriculture around the world - By Mark Karlin, Rabble.Ca, June 16, 2016
“This Program should be everywhere…” - By staff, Coalition of Immokalee Workers, June 15, 2016
Land Reform and food sovereignty - By Nyéléni, La Via Campesina, June 14, 2016
With Measure 1 Failure, DRC Applauds North Dakotans for Mobilizing and Rejecting Corporate Farming - By staff, Dakota Resource Council, June 14, 2016
Sakuma Brothers Farms Raises Wages After Farmworkers Walk Off the Job - By Ansel Herz, The Stranger, June 13, 2016

An Injury to One is an Injury to All:

NUMSA supports the Working on Fire workers - By Patrick Craven, NUMSA, June 17, 2016
City of Alexandria tries to censor ATU 981 transit workers - By staff, ATU, June 16, 2016
Federal regulators must prohibit one-person freight train crews - By staff, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, June 16, 2016
Nearly half of NYC private garbage trucks have maintenance issues; drivers say they’re ‘unsafe for everyone’ - By Dan Rivoli, New York Daily News, June 16, 2016
Toxic Chemicals Found in Residents Living Near Oil and Gas Operations in Pavillion, Wyoming - By Coming Clean, EcoWatch, June 16, 2016
Payout for widow of forestry worker killed near Stratford - By Jeremy Wilkinson, Stuff, June 3, 2016

Whistleblowers:

OSHA launches pilot program for severe violators of whistleblower protection laws - By staff, BLR.com, June 7, 2016

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agricultural workers and peasants

renewable energy workers

health and safety

whistleblowers

green jobs

labor and environment

Read more about EcoUnionist News #109

Capital Blight News #109

Submitted by x344543 on Mon, 06/20/2016 - 18:30

Compiled by x344543 - IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus, June 21, 2016

A supplement to Eco Unionist News:

Lead Stories:

TISA 'free trade' deal to force draconian social, environmental, financial deregulation - By Pete Dolack, The Ecologist, June 17, 2016
Oil Train Tank Cars Are Getting Safer But What About The Tracks? - By Tony Schick, Oregon Public Broadcasting, June 15, 2016
UK fracking policy founded on scientific fraud, misrepresentation and prevarication - By Nick Cowern, The Ecologist, June 15, 2016
Goldman Sachs Just Ate Denmark for Breakfast - By Jonas Schmidt Hansen, Occupy.Com, June 13, 2016
My Dishwasher Is What’s Wrong With Capitalism - By Peter Dreier, LA Progressive, June 13, 2016

The Man Behind the Curtain:

Denialist Blogger Anthony Watts Posts Error Strewn “Aerial Survey” of Climate Scientists’ Homes - By Graham Readfearn, DeSmog Blog, June 19, 2016
Exxon Sues MA Attorney General In Retaliatory Attempt To Intimidate ‘Exxon Knew’ Climate Accountability Movement - By Brendan DeMelle, DeSmog Blog, June 16, 2016; [related]: Exxon Sues Second Attorney General In Response To Fraud Investigation - By Sydney Pereira, Think Progress, June 17, 2016
Were Historical Pictures of Great Barrier Reef Degradation Really Misused, as The Australian Newspaper Claimed? - By Graham Readfearn, DeSmog Blog, June 16, 2016
Conservative Funders of Climate Denial Are Quietly Spending Millions To Generate More Partisan Journalism - By Graham Readfearn, DeSmog Blog, June 15, 2016
Court Documents Show Peabody Energy Funded Dozens of Climate Denial Groups - By Climate Denier Roundup, EcoWatch, June 14, 2016; [related]: Dirty money bought one coal company a whole lot of denial - By Katie Herzog, Grist, June 14, 2016
GOP ‘Conservationist’ Running For Senate Has Ties To Companies That Pollute The Environment - By Alejandro Davila Fragoso and Josh Israel, Think Progress, June 14, 2016
Wall Street Journal Runs Ad Trashing WSJ’s Climate Science Denial - By Joe Romm, Think Progress, June 14, 2016; [related]: Wall Street Journal publishes call for climate action...for cash money - By Katie Herzog, Grist, June 14, 2016
World’s Biggest Banks Are Driving Climate Change, Pumping Billions Into Extreme Fossil Fuels - By Rainforest Action Network, EcoWatch, June 14, 2016; [related]: Shorting the Climate: Fossil Fuel Finance Report Card 2016 - By Collin Rees, Oil Change International, June 15, 2016; [and]: Green Climate Fund partners condemned for fossil fuel funding - By Ed King, Climate Change News, June 14, 2016
The Lie That “China Wins” if the TPP Kangaroo Tribunals are Stopped - By William K. Black, New Economic Perspectives, June 5, 2016

Green is the New Red:

Record number of environmental activists murdered in 2015 - By Megan Darby, Climate Change News, June 20, 2016
Peaceful protest under attack in Sweden’s climate test - By Melanie Mattauch, 350.org, June 16, 2016
One Indian killed in Brazil, five wounded as tribal community attacked - By staff, Survival International, June 15, 2016
Will outrage over recent murders help Honduran environmental activists achieve their goal? - By Victoria Molina, Ensia, June 13, 2016

Greenwashers:

From the chaos of REDD-plus towards the Bonn Challenge’s maze - By Yvette Aguilar, REDD Monitor, June 17, 2016
Change The System; Not The Climate - By Asoka Bandarage, The Ecologist, June 16, 2016
World Bank on REDD in the Democratic Republic of Congo: “Rome wasn’t built in a day” - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, June 15, 2016; [related]: World Bank on REDD: “We have made great achievements in 2015 and we’re now focussing on implementation” - By Chris Lang, REDD Monitor, June 14, 2016

Disaster Capitalism:

Deleting the Real Story Behind the Great Canada Fire - By Paul Street, CounterPunch, June 16, 2016; [related]: Gas Stations Close as Fire Rages Near Alberta Oil Sands - By Jan Lee, The Triple Pundit, June 14, 2016

Other News:

The human cost of privatization-MARTA Outsourcing Mobility Leaving Workers and Riders Behind - By staff, ATU, June 16, 2016
Superbugs to kill 10 million a year by 2050 - By James Plested, Red Flag, 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.

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