Coal Power Online

In 2003, Marisol volunteered with Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) to map and inventory the toxins found within 150 blocks of her predominantly Mexican-American community, Little Village in Chicago. Marisol was enraged to discover that in Little Village more than 60,000 youth in a two-mile radius of the Fisk and Crawford Coal Power Plants are forced to breathe air that violates EPA standards. She was inspired to act, she said, “in order to shut down these coal power plants, build more parks, and clean up the toxics. We must organize more people to stand up and fight.” Her first step was launching the youth branch of LVEJO — Youth Activists Organizing as Today’s Leaders, YAOTL. Based on the data Marisol collected, YAOTL collaborated with Chicago-based Open Youth Networks to devise OurMap of Environmental Justice, an interactive online map that includes 12 youth-created videos, descriptions of toxic sites, and gang territory delineations. With this map, Marisol educated her community about local environmental injustice and motivated them to become involved in campaigns. The map uses poignant facts and videos to educate about the different pollutants and contaminants in Little Village that cause 41 premature deaths and 550 emergency room visits annually.

Find out more or apply for the Brower Youth Award for your activism, at http://www.broweryouthaward.org. Film by Rikshaw Films

I’ve finished my runs for People & Planet in 2008, dressed as a coal power station at the inaugural Royal Parks Half Marathon 2008!

Since the mid 1980’s the coal industry has been colluding with other fossil fuel polluters to obfuscate, confuse, deny the science of climate change and even attempt to create the illusion that there isn’t almost universal consensus on anthropogenic climate change. Now, at the 11th hour, this same industry would have us believe that it can clean its game up with “clean coal”. The industry has wheedled billions of governments all over the world to fund its pie in the sky “clean coal” technology but, by its own admission is 10 years or more away from having anything even vaguely practical in place.

Meanwhile, proven green energy solutions are sitting on the shelf. Energy solutions which could be averting global catastrophe right now.

Are jobs the issue? Let’s see:

An investment in wind power produces almost three times as many jobs as the same investment in coal power.

An investment in solar power produces almost four times as many jobs.

Energy efficiency, almost thirty times as many jobs as coal power.

(Based on analysis of the new energy economy released by Earth Policy Institute, Nov. 2008)

The rumbling of Hazelwood coal fired power station near Melbourne was quietened on the 6th of November when a group of six activists breached security before dawn and shut down part of the plant…

The Four Corners is an industrial energy zone at the expense of people’s health. How can another major pollution source like this be allowed when the Four Corners is already burdened with two of the most polluting power plants in the country?

Credit: San Juan Citizens Alliance, at http://www.sanjuancitizens.org/air/desertrock.shtml (flash presentation)

Nancy Cave and John Ramsburg discuss the harmful impacts of Santee Cooper’s proposed Coal-Fired Electric Generation plant they want to build on the banks of the Pee Dee river.

Protest at E.On London office against proposed Kingsnorth coal-fired power station in Medway, Kent, UK. Held on World Social Forum Global Day of Action organised by Revolution, Campaign Against Climate Change, World Development Movement, Young Greens, Workers Power