"The U.S. is losing its edge in energy innovation to China, and it's time to reclaim it for the sake of future economic prosperity, Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in a speech on Monday."
Over the past decade, coal-burning electric power plants have been increasingly replaced by gas-burning plants. While this has helped the environment, the utility companies are motivated largely by the chance to save money. Meanwhile, 10,000 congregations in 38 states, joined through Interfaith Power & Light, are acting to shift the nation toward cleaner power because they think it is the moral thing to do.
"In the name of job creation and clean energy, the Obama administration has doled out billions of dollars in stimulus money to some of the nation’s biggest polluters and granted them sweeping exemptions from the most basic form of environmental oversight, a Center for Public Integrity investigation has found."
Some transnational technology corporations see billions of dollars of business opportunity in China's rollout of a "smart grid" energy infrastructure in the next five years. No plans of comparable scale exist in the U.S.
"A boat resembling a flying saucer and run by the sun is making a stop in Miami."
"The United Nations' cultural arm UNESCO has appealed to Congolese President Joseph Kabila to guarantee there will be no oil exploration in the forest home of rare gorillas where two UK-listed firms hold drilling rights."
Petrochemical companies are spending more money to influence government decisions on energy and climate.
"Several Department of Energy agents tasked with transporting nuclear weapons got drunk while on duty, according to the agency's inspector general office."
"Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced a broad-based initiative on Tuesday aimed at accelerating the development of offshore wind power projects on the Outer Continental Shelf along the nation’s Atlantic coast."
"The author of a report critical of climate scientists defended himself against plagiarism charges Tuesday, and denied he was pressured by Republicans to tilt the report."
