December 13, 2021
On November 19th, 2021, the House passed the Build Back Better Act (BBBA) with a close 220 to 213 vote.1 Now that the BBBA is onto the Senate, let’s look […]
October 13, 2021
The Enbridge Line 3 pipeline – here’s what’s happening. This Canadian company’s pipeline runs from Alberta, Canada to Superior, Wisconsin.1 On October first, tar sands oil started moving through Line 3 and “will carry 760,000 barrels per day…through more than 200 bodies of water,”1 over 1, 097 miles,2 including 75 miles of wetlands.3 The Line 3 Pipeline Replacement Project was an 8.2 billion dollar project and actually doubled its original barrel capacity.2
September 21, 2021
The IPCC, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, “is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change”1 that was created to give policymakers routine climate change assessments -including implications and potential dangers concerning climate change, and new proposals for adaptation and mitigation.1 You may have heard this report referred to as the UN’s Climate Change Report or AR6. This article will focus on Summary for Policymakers, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, and Chapter 11 of the AR6.
July 28, 2021
Golf courses account for 2 million acres of US land.1 There are about 16,000 courses in the US2 and “most golf courses are spread across 110 to 190 acres.”3 Golf is on the decline, with a 22% loss of golfers (6.8 million) from 2003 to 20184, and more than 800 golf courses have shut down in the US as people between 18 and 30 “have a lack of interest in playing the game.”5
July 14, 2021
Microplastics are small plastic pieces less than five millimeters long.1
June 28, 2021
President Biden suspended drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) earlier this month.1 Here’s why drilling should be avoided.
June 23, 2021
Wind energy is on the rise. Between 2000 and 2020, the total electricity generated from wind in the US increased from 6 billion kWh to 338 billion kWh.1 Wind energy is predicted to save “consumers $280 billion by 2050”2 and it’s also affordable with wind generation agreements usually offering 20-year fixed pricing. Wind energy also reduces emissions. In 2013, 250,000 metric tons of air pollutants, including sulfur dioxide, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter was avoided.2 In 2019, “Wind energy avoided 198 million metric tons of CO2”3 and by 2050, wind energy will avoid 2.3 gigatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.2
June 2, 2021
Since 1968, Line 5 has had 33 spills equaling at least 1.1 million gallons of oil.1 Governor Whitmer revoked the original 1953 easement agreement which authorized Enbridge, the Canadian-owned company, to operate Line 5 in November of the last year2 as she describes it as a “ticking time bomb.” The May 12th deadline to stop moving oil through the pipeline has seemingly been ignored by Enbridge.3
