Dan Coates: Crude Coats

Let's Listen to Sarah Palin

Where Has the Drill Baby Drill Crowd Gone?

The Potential for Green Jobs

With over 11 million jobs needed to get back to pre-recession levels, we need to look at all options to both secure our current jobs and create new, family and community-supportive jobs. One option to move us in this direction is through “green jobs.” If done right, Steelworker members stand to benefit if our country makes the commitment to supporting and creating these jobs.

What is a Green Job?

A green job can be thought of as a blue collar job done for a green purpose. Consider this: If you’ve ever driven past a wind turbine, you’re looking at over 8,000 parts. Someone had to manufacture or mine every one of them, as well as assemble and maintain them.

The typical wind turbine, like those made by Steelworkers in Pennsylvania, includes:

• 250 tons of steel,
• Three tons of copper for the generator and power cables,
• 250 yards of concrete for anchoring,
• Titanium components for the rotator hubs,
• Gears and gear boxes,
• Bearings, and many more components.

Steelworkers make or mine all of these components, which makes the jobs we have part of the emerging clean energy economy.

But, it’s not just wind turbines. Steelworkers make glass for solar panels and energy-efficient light bulbs, we process the natural gas powering some city buses, we make goods with recycled paper content, we produce biofules, we make activated carbon to filter our drinking water and remove harmful pollution from industrial processes, we make “greener” alternatives to typical products such as energy-efficient air conditioners made without ozone-depleting refrigerant.

When the manufacturing, mining and other work for the emerging clean energy economy is done domestically, and our industries are given the support they need to become more efficient, we secure our jobs. We also strengthen the tax base, ensuring funding for the public sector jobs that build strong communities.
Source: USW Rapid Response

Clean Energy Jobs NOW

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Go Obama Go!!

Dear Barack--

Eight years of RepubliCRAP.

The RepubliCANTS have dug us a pretty deep hole and now want to tell you to use a small shovel to dig us out of it.

Don’t listen to these crooks.

You got the steam roller. Keep it rolling. Get everything we voted for you to get. Don’t let up. Forget about trying to placate these ReCANTlicans.

Go for it. Put it all in one big package. Up or down vote.

Employee Free Choice Act.
Healthcare.
Energy.
Education.
Immigration

We’re behind you Barack. Don’t let them stop you.

Thanks.
Charlie Averill

Shocking Choice by John McCain

Washington -- Senator John McCain just announced his choice for running mate: Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska. To follow is a statement by Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund.


"Senator McCain's choice for a running mate is beyond belief. By choosing Sarah Palin, McCain has clearly made a decision to continue the Bush legacy of destructive environmental policies."

"Sarah Palin, whose husband works for BP, has repeatedly put special interests first when it comes to the environment. In her scant two years as governor, she has lobbied aggressively to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, pushed for more drilling off of Alaska's coasts, and put special interests above science. Ms. Palin has made it clear through her actions that she is unwilling to do even as much as the Bush administration to address the impacts of global warming. Her most recent effort has been to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove the polar bear from the endangered species list, putting Big Oil before sound science. As unbelievable as this may sound, this actually puts her to the right of the Bush administration."

"This is Senator McCain's first significant choice in building his executive team and it's a bad one. It has to raise serious doubts in the minds of voters about John McCain's commitment to conservation, to addressing the impacts of global warming and to ensuring our country ends its dependency on oil."

The Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund provides a powerful voice to Americans who value our conservation heritage. Through grassroots lobbying, issue advocacy and political campaigns, the
Action Fund champions those laws and lawmakers that protect wildlife and wild places while working against those that do them harm.

Turn Around America

New Green Jobs for Indiana

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New Report: Clean Energy Manufacturing Could Bring
39,000 New Green Jobs, Stronger Economy to Indiana
Sierra Club, United Steelworkers, Environment America Call for
National Renewable Electricity Standard to be Included in Energy Legislation

Mishawaka, IN - The Blue-Green Action Alliance, the public policy partnership of the Sierra Club and the United Steelworkers, and Environment America released a new report, “Indiana’a Road to Energy Independence,” detailing the thousands of new green jobs that could be created by manufacturing the components for wind turbines, solar panels, and other renewable energy equipment. The study, prepared by the Renewable Energy Policy Project, found that 1,321 firms in Indiana could benefit from 39,221 new jobs—including 25,180 from wind turbine manufacturing and 7,485 in solar manufacturing.

“Why order wind turbines from Denmark to put up in South Bend when we know that Indiana has the workers and the factories to make them right here in the state?” said LuCinda Hohmann, Field Organizer with Environment America. “Turbines from Plymouth and solar panels from St John make sense for both the environment and Indiana’s economy. Indiana’s been blessed with the natural resources to help America fight global warming, now it’s time for us to take advantage of Indiana’s human resources to help put these smart energy solutions—and our citizens—to work.”

At a time when the U.S. is rapidly losing manufacturing jobs, renewable energy manufacturing can revitalize communities across Indiana that have lost jobs, as well creating a whole new generation of good-paying manufacturing jobs. States across the country, such as Iowa, Arkansas, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania, have already seen thousands of new jobs created in the clean energy manufacturing sector.

“By pushing more renewable energy—something that will fight global warming and protect the environment—Indiana can enjoy the same benefits that other states are already seeing,” said Hohmann.

“We are absolutely committed to making the world a safer place for our children while revitalizing American manufacturing,” said USW District 7 Director Jim Robinson. “The amazing potential for job creation held by clean energy component manufacturing and maintenance should make this an important part of Indiana’s power agenda immediately.”

Strong State and National Renewable Energy Standards Needed

The groups also called on Congress to include a national Renewable Electricity Standard (RES)—a requirement that 15 percent of our energy come from renewable sources like wind, solar, and biomass—in the final energy bill it is due to take up soon. After Republicans, led by Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico, filibustered such a standard in the Senate, it was passed by the House of Representatives in its version of the energy bill. It is essential that this provision be included in the final bill.

In addition to creating thousands of new jobs, analyses have demonstrated that enacting a national RES could save hardworking American families up to $18 billion by 2020 on their energy bills by lowering the cost of natural gas, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.

“Representatives Visclosky and Donnelly both voted in favor of clean renewable energy when Congress was working on its energy bills this summer,” said Hohmann. “We thank them for their vote and hope they will continue to work hard to ensure that the final energy bill includes the national Renewable Energy Standard passed by the House. This is something that will benefit each and every one of us by saving us money on our energy bills, protecting our environment, and strengthening our state’s economy.”

Senator Bayh voted for a federal Renewable Energy Standard in 2005 and also signed a letter this year calling for a strong RES in Congress. Environment America thanked Senator Bayh for his efforts and also encouraged him to work hard to ensure that the final energy bill includes the national RES, creating jobs for thousands of Hoosiers statewide.
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The Blue Green Action Alliance is a public policy partnership of the United Steelworkers, North America’s largest manufacturing union, and the 1.3 million members and supporters of the Sierra Club, the nation’s largest grassroots’ environmental organization. BGA is headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.

The Renewable Energy Policy Project is a Washington, DC-based think tank that concentrates on analysis of the renewable energy industry. For the past three years REPP has focused attention on the need for state and federal policies that support the growth of the renewable energy industry. George Sterzinger is Executive Director of REPP. He can be reached at gsterzinger@repp.org and 202-293-2898, ext. 203.

ADDITIONAL QUOTES
“The states that moved earliest and most aggressively to establish renewable electricity standards have seen thousands of new jobs created already,” said Carl Pope, Sierra Club Executive Director. “By enacting a national standard, Congress could make sure that all states can benefit from the green energy manufacturing boom. All the pieces are there, Congress just needs to pass a final bill to flip the switch on America’s clean energy future.”

David Foster, Executive Director of the Blue Green Action Alliance, said, “We believe environmental challenges like global warming represent the most important economic opportunities of our generation. This study confirms that view.”

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Environment America is the new home for US PIRG’s environmental work and is a nonprofit environmental advocacy organization