EJToday is SEJ's selection of new and outstanding stories on environmental topics in print and on the air, updated every weekday. SEJ also offers a free e-mailed digest of the day's EJToday postings, called SEJ-beat. SEJ members are subscribed automatically, but may opt out here. Non-members may subscribe here. EJToday is also available via RSS feed. Please see Editorial Guidelines for EJToday content.
"More Fake Letters to Congress on Energy Bill"
NYTimes, 08/19/2009"Congressional investigators have uncovered five more letters sent to members of Congress that falsely claimed to be from charities expressing opposition to climate change legislation."
"Oil Industry Backs Protests of Emissions Bill"
NYTimes, 08/19/2009"Hard on the heels of the health care protests, another citizen movement seems to have sprung up, this one to oppose Washington's attempts to tackle climate change. But behind the scenes, an industry with much at stake -- Big Oil -- is pulling the strings."
"New Coal Ads Emphasize Energy Costs in Bid for 'Hearts and Minds'"
Greenwire, 08/17/2009"Coal's well-funded lobbying group today launched a television ad campaign featuring ordinary people talking about the importance of low-cost electricity, a message analysts described as coal's effort to rebrand itself before the Senate tackles climate legislation."
Plastic Industry Tackles Seattle Bag Fee
AP, 08/17/2009"SEATTLE - Leaders of this famously green city last year passed the nation's first grocery-bag fee, and other cities around the nation quickly followed. But the plastics industry has been fighting back, bringing lawsuits, aggressively lobbying lawmakers, and bankrolling a referendum in Seattle that aims to overturn the 20-cent charge. The measure goes before voters Tuesday."
"Lobby Groups to Use Town Hall Tactics to Oppose Climate Bill"
Wall St. Journal, 08/13/2009"Taking a cue from angry protests against the Obama Administration’s health care restructuring, the oil industry is helping organize anti-climate bill rallies around the nation."
"Attack of the Climate Spam?"
Christian Science Monitor, 08/11/2009News Web sites that allow reader comments are experiencing "climate spam" -- generic, marginally relevant comments on climate news stories denying that human activities are causing climate change or the need to do anything about it. The same comments are posted verbatim on multiple sites. The comments repeat the talking points of PR firms paid by fossil fuel industries -- and they are anonoymous.
"Enviro Groups Tread Lightly With Endangered Species Act in Appalachia"
Greenwire, 08/11/2009In Appalachia, where coal is king, the terribly destructive method of mountaintop removal mining is common. Environmentalists have been reluctant to use one of their most powerful weapons -- the Endangered Species Act -- to fight it. The reasons involve legal loopholes and politics.
"'Citizen Army' Carries Coal's Climate Message to Hinterlands"
Greenwire, 08/07/2009The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), whose PR contractors have been caught forging letters to Congress, is launching a $1 million campaign to send an army of "volunteers" to town hall meetings on climate change legislation -- in an effort similar to the shout-downs and occasional mob violence now being deployed against health care.
"Obama's OSM Pick Dodges Questions on Mountaintop Removal"
Charleston Gazette, 08/07/2009"President Obama's choice to be the nation's top strip-mining regulator said Thursday he needs to learn more about mountaintop removal coal mining before he can comment on whether it needs to be more strictly policed."
"Forged Letters Not the First of ACCCE’s Misrepresentations"
Grist, 08/07/2009"The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity claims to be shocked, shocked that forged anti-climate-bill letters were sent to members of Congress by one of its subcontractors, saying it was 'an isolated incident.' But it seems ACCCE also engaged in some fishy behavior last year during debate over a Senate climate bill."
"Congressman Demands Answers on Forged Letters"
AP, 08/06/2009"A congressional chairman is demanding answers from a coal group about forged letters criticizing major climate legislation that were sent to three congressional offices ahead of the vote."
"Coal Group Reveals 6 More Forged Lobbying Letters"
Wash Post, 08/05/2009"A total of 12 forged letters -- all appearing to come from local groups unhappy with a climate-change bill -- were sent to three congressional offices this summer by a Washington lobbying firm, according to the pro-coal group for which the firm was working."
Realtors Get Labels Cut From Climate Bill for Older Houses
ClimateWire, 08/05/2009Lobbyists for the real estate industry convinced House leaders to remove from the recently passed climate bill a provision that would have indicated how much energy older houses use.
"L.A. Lawyer Accused of Fraud in Pesticide Litigation"
LA Times, 08/05/2009"A judge says Juan Dominguez conspired with Nicaraguan workers, allegedly left sterile by exposure to DBCP on banana plantations, to file claims against Dole Food and Dow Chemical."
Groups Urge Widening Of NJ Corruption Probe To Environment
Newark Star-Ledger, 08/04/2009"Environmental groups today called for new ethical controls in state government, saying recent arrests of two assemblymen involving land deals are only 'the tip of the iceberg' when it comes to the influence developers wield over the Department of Environmental Protection."

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