Category Archives: Victory!

by | May 9, 2013 · 3:29 pm

Victory! Another Northwest coal export project falls by the wayside

By Scott Learn, May 8, 2013. Source: The Oregonian

A coal mine in Wyoming's section of the Powder River Basin. Photo: Scott Learn, The Oregonian

A coal mine in Wyoming’s section of the Powder River Basin. Photo: Scott Learn, The Oregonian

Terminal developer Kinder Morgan on Wednesday dropped its proposal to export coal to Asia from a Columbia River port near Clatskanie.

The company’s decision means three of the six coal export terminals originally proposed in Oregon and Washington have gone by the wayside. It also significantly reduces the potential for coal train traffic through Portland.

Together, the three abandoned projects represent up to $550 million in investment, 305 permanent jobs — and nearly 50 million tons of Montana and Wyoming coal destined for Asian ports.

Kinder Morgan spokesman Allen Fore blamed site logistics for stopping the project, not the intense controversy over exporting coal from the green Northwest. Continue reading →

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by | April 22, 2013 · 1:00 pm

India: Victory for tribal people in mining struggle

April 22, 2013. Source: WW4 Report

Photo: Intercontinental Cry

Photo: Intercontinental Cry

In a landmark ruling April 18, India’s Supreme Court today rejected an appeal to allow Vedanta Resources to mine the Niyamgiri hills of Orissa state. The court decreed that those most affected by the proposed mine should have a decisive say in whether it goes ahead, recognizing the rights of the Dongria Kondh indigenous people. The decision found that the traditional land rights of the local residents must be “protected and preserved.” The project is now suspended until a traditional community assembly, or gram sabha, of the impacted villages can be held to assess the project.

The decision deals a blow both to billionaire Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta and to the state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation, which brought the appeal and supported Vedanta’s mine from the beginning. Final clearance for the mine was blocked by India’s Environment Minister in 2010. Until recently, however, Vedanta had kept its refinery at the bottom of the hill in operation. The refinery was closed in December 2012 due to a lack of bauxite to supply the facility. Continue reading →

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by | April 9, 2013 · 4:00 pm

Victory! Japan blames whaling foes for record-low catch

By Michael Winter, April 8 2013. Source: USA Today

On Feb. 25, the Sea Shepherd ship Bob Barker collided with a refueling tanker for the Japanese whaling vessel Nisshin Maru in the Antarctic Sea. Photo: Institute of Cetacean Research/AP

On Feb. 25, the Sea Shepherd ship Bob Barker collided with a refueling tanker for the Japanese whaling vessel Nisshin Maru in the Antarctic Sea. Photo: Institute of Cetacean Research/AP

Japanese whalers have returned from Antarctic waters with a record-low catch, and the government blamed what it called “unforgivable sabotage” by the activist group Sea Shepherd.

The annual 48-day hunt killed 103 minke whales, just 11% of the 935 the Japanese had hoped to take. The hunters also wanted 50 humpback and 50 fin whales but killed none, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said. That’s the smallest catch since 1987, a year after “research whaling” was exempted under the international treaty that bans hunting the marine mammals.

Japanese ships spent 21 days trying to avoid four vessels from Sea Shepherd Australia, which disrupted the hunt four times, said Fisheries Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, who called the group’s tactics sabotage. Sea Shepherd vessels collided with a factory ship and a fuel tanker to prevent refueling.

“We will seek more support from other countries to conduct research whaling in a stable manner,” he said. Continue reading →

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by | · 12:00 pm

Victory! Fracking foes in California win in court

By David R. Baker, April 8 2013. Source: The San Francisco Chonicle

Oil drillers hoping to access the Monterey Shale beneath the Hames Valley in Monterey County face a delay with a ruling that the land was leased without studying the risks of fracking. Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

Oil drillers hoping to access the Monterey Shale beneath the Hames Valley in Monterey County face a delay with a ruling that the land was leased without studying the risks of fracking. Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle

Fracking opponents in California have won what may be their first victory in court, with a federal magistrate’s ruling that federal authorities broke the law when they leased land in Monterey and Fresno counties to oil drillers without studying the possible risks of hydraulic fracturing.

The decision, made public Sunday, will probably delay fracking on four sites leased by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in 2011.

U.S. Magistrate Paul Grewal with the U.S. District Court in San Jose ruled that the bureau did not properly assess the threat that fracking could pose to water and wildlife before selling the leases, some of which lie within the Salinas River watershed. He made clear that he was not ruling on the merits of fracking itself.

“Ultimately, BLM argues that the effects of fracking on the parcels at issue are largely unknown,” Grewal wrote, in a decision dated March 31. “The court agrees. But this is precisely why proper investigation was so crucial in this case.” Continue reading →

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by | March 28, 2013 · 10:30 am

Victory! Industrial manufacturers agree to pay $21 million to St. Regis Mohawk

By Tim Fenster, March 28, 2013. Source: Watertown Daily Times

Photo: NOAA

Photo: NOAA

Roughly 30 years after contaminants from local industrial operations caused the state Department of Health to issue a warning against eating fish from the Grasse River, two settlements have been reached to help correct the damage that was caused to both local fisheries and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe’s heritage.

Tribal officials announced they have reached a $19.4 million settlement with Alcoa, Inc. and the Reynolds Metals Co. for the damage caused by contaminants released by the aluminum manufacturers’ Massena operations since the 1950s. Combined with $1.8 million from a 2011 bankruptcy settlement from General Motors, the two settlements will provide more than $21 million toward restoring local fisheries, protecting the environment and working to restore aspects of Mohawk Indian heritage that were affected by the decades-long fishing ban.

Approximately $8.4 million of the settlement funds will support traditional Mohawk cultural practices, such as apprenticeships on Mohawk language and traditional teachings, youth outdoor education programs and horticulture programs for medicine, healing and nutrition.

“The majority of the funds going to the tribe will be used to restore our relations with nature. Due to the contamination, a lot of our relations to nature have been lost,” said Barbara Tarbell, natural resource damage assessment program manager for the Mohawks.
Continue reading →

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by | March 14, 2013 · 3:00 pm

Victory! EDF drops lawsuit against environmental activists after backlash

By James Ball, March 13, 2013. Source: The Guardian

The energy company EDF has dropped a £5m civil lawsuit against a group of 21 activists who occupied one of its gas-fired power plants for a week in October 2012, in a move described by supporters of the demonstrators as a “humiliating climbdown”.

EDF faced a strong public backlash against its civil suit, which was described by opponents as an attempt to undermine peaceful protest in the UK, after details of the action were published in the Guardian.

The parents of one of the activists launched an online petition, which attracted 64,000 signatures in less than a month, including those of Richard Dawkins, Mark Ruffalo, Naomi Klein and Noam Chomsky, while several hundred apparent EDF customers posted on social media that they were switching to an alternative energy provider in protest at the action.

EDF had said the action against the campaigners was necessary to ensure that others considering similar campaigns “understand that they may face consequences” for the cost and disruption they cause.
Continue reading →

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by | March 12, 2013 · 4:30 pm

In U.S., nuclear energy loses momentum amid economic head winds, safety issues

By Steven Mufson, March 11, 2013. Source: The Washington Post

Fishermen beside the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant in north San Diego County in 2011. Photo: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

Fishermen beside the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant in north San Diego County in 2011. Photo: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

Two years after the tsunami that crippled Japan’s Fukushima power complex, the U.S. nuclear industry is facing fundamental and far-reaching challenges to its own future.

Only five years ago, industry executives and leading politicians were talking about an American nuclear renaissance, hoping to add 20 or more reactors to the 104-unit U.S. nuclear fleet.

But today those companies are holding back in the face of falling natural gas prices and sluggish and uncertain electricity demand. Only five new plants are under construction, while at least that many are slated for permanent closure or shut down indefinitely over safety issues. Continue reading →

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by | February 28, 2013 · 12:00 pm

Victory! With 2 ships damaged, Shell suspends Arctic drilling

By John M. Broder, February 27, 3013. Source: The New York Times

The drill ship Kulluk in January in Kiliuda Bay, Alaska, where it was towed after it ran aground. Photo: James Brooks/Kodiak Daily Mirror, via Associated Press

The drill ship Kulluk in January in Kiliuda Bay, Alaska, where it was towed after it ran aground. Photo: James Brooks/Kodiak Daily Mirror, via Associated Press

WASHINGTON — After a series of costly and embarrassing accidents in its efforts to drill exploratory wells off the north coast of Alaska last year, Royal Dutch Shell announced on Wednesday that it would not return to the Arctic in 2013.

The company’s two drill ships suffered serious accidents as they were leaving drilling sites in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas last fall and winter and are being sent to Asia for repairs. Shell acknowledged in a statement that the ships would not be repaired in time to drill during the short summer window this year.

“Our decision to pause in 2013 will give us time to ensure the readiness of all our equipment and people,” said Marvin E. Odum, president of Shell Oil Company. Continue reading →

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by | January 31, 2013 · 10:34 am

Victory! BASF halts EU approval process for genetically modified potatoes

January 29, 2013.  Source: Industry Week, Agence France-Presse

BASF (IW 1000/33), the world’s biggest chemicals company, said Tuesday it has decided to no longer seek European approval of its genetically modified potato products in the face of stiff resistance.

BASF said in a statement it will “discontinue the pursuit of regulatory approvals for the Fortuna, Amadea, and Modena potato projects in Europe because continued investment cannot be justified due to uncertainty in the regulatory environment and threats of field destructions.”

A year ago, the giant had announced it would halt the development and marketing of new genetically-modified products destined for the European market over concerns in some countries over the technology.

And it also moved its plant science headquarters to the United States.

BASF’s latest decision comes only days after the European Commission in Brussels announced it will freeze the approval process for genetically modified food crops through the end of its mandate next year while it works towards an agreement with EU member states.

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by | January 28, 2013 · 4:02 pm

Victory!: European Bank drops controversial Monsanto project

Note: Ha ha Monsanto!

–GJEP

January 28, 2013.  Source: Bankwatch Network

A potential cooperation between the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the agro-corporation Monsanto has thankfully not come to fruition. The case highlights the difficulties for a large development bank to reach farmers on the ground.

In November 2012 Bankwatch reported on the EBRD’s plans to undertake a USD 40 million ‘risk-sharing facility’ with none other than the notorious Monsanto. The EBRD was exploring a project to provide financing so that medium-large farmers and distributors in Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey could buy Monsanto’s seeds and agro-chemicals in installments, without Monsanto losing money if they got into debt.

Well, after a lively reaction from groups around the world, including a letter signed by 158 organisations, other individual letters, meetings with the bank, a protest in Serbia, and questions in the German and Slovene parliaments, we’re glad to be able to report that the EBRD has confirmed that the project is not going ahead. So has the EBRD admitted that Monsanto is an unsuitable recipient of European public development support? Not exactly.

Here’s an extract from the EBRD’s response to an enquiry on the status of the project:

“Please be advised that, in this particular transaction, the EBRD and Monsanto were unable to find a satisfactory project structure for financing. Each institution will continue to explore other opportunities in order to provide farmers and distributors with adequate and time-appropriate financing, which we recognize to be one of the key challenges to increase agricultural productivity in the Bank’s region of operations.” (Source: Email communication with the EBRD)

This highlights one of the problems for such a large institution as the EBRD, that it is difficult to reach individual farmers without intermediaries, because the bank does not have the on-the-ground infrastructure or local knowledge to provide thousands of loans for a few hundred or thousand euros. This is a problem that needs to be addressed by the region’s governments and farmers’ unions if the EBRD is not to pick such unsavoury business partners again in the future.

So, a great outcome for now, but we’ll be keeping our eyes and ears open in case the EBRD makes such ill-advised moves again.

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