Sierra Club

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Sierra Club Denounces Founder's Racist Views

Conservation group acknowledges John Muir's prejudices

(Newser) - America's oldest conservation group is owning up to its racist past and that of its founder, John Muir, the so-called "father of the national parks." Sierra Club leader Michael Brune on Wednesday acknowledged the 128-year-old organization's "substantial role in perpetuating white supremacy" through leaders such...

Pruitt Placed Single Call From His $43K Phone Booth

How many incoming calls the former EPA head received is unknown

(Newser) - Scott Pruitt is no longer head of the Environmental Protection Agency, but the saga of his $43,000 phone booth isn't quite over. The Washington Post is out with one last financial tidbit courtesy of the Sierra Club, which sued the EPA to access records related to Pruitt. It...

1st Act of Civil Disobedience in Sierra Club's 120 Years

Daryl Hannah, Robert Kennedy Jr. among those arrested in Keystone XL protest

(Newser) - More than 40 protesters, including the likes of Robert Kennedy Jr. and Daryl Hannah, were arrested yesterday after protesting the Keystone XL oil pipeline, reports NPR . The event, which saw demonstrators tying themselves to the gates of the White House, was the first act of civil disobedience for the 120-year-old...

Greens May Be OK With Climate Bill's Failure
Greens May Be OK With Climate Bill's Failure
ANALYSIS

Greens May Be OK With Climate Bill's Failure

Democratic November could yield better opportunities later

(Newser) - Before friends of the environment get too worked up about the death of the 2008 Climate Security Act last week, they should note tepid green support all along. So-called Lieberman-Warner was “easily the most aggressive and comprehensive environmental reform ever” in Congress, Dayo Olopade writes in the New Republic,...

Blue Collars, Green Ties
 Blue Collars, Green Ties 
OPINION

Blue Collars, Green Ties

Necessity unites job-seeking unions, tree-hugging environmentalists

(Newser) - In Pennsylvania, the New Republic's Dayo Olopade finds an effort to unite working-class union types with the liberal elite that could long outlive Barack Obama's heyday: the search for green-collar jobs. Stelworkers have long viewed environmentalists skeptically, but both groups have a stake in finding a "new industrial policy...

Activists Fight Coal, Plant by Plant

Environmental coalition claims to have killed 65 new facilities

(Newser) - Environmentalists are taking aim at new, high-pollution coal-fired power plants, the Los Angeles Times reports. Whenever a new plant is proposed, lawyers from a coalition of organizations work on killing it any way that they can. "We hope to clog up the system," one said. "It's putting...

US Drilling Deals Spark New Fears for Polar Bears

Oils companies to explore frozen seas

(Newser) - The US government has announced $2.7 billion in winning bids for oil drilling rights in 2.8 million acres of Alaska's frozen Chukchi Sea, despite angry objections of lawmakers and environmentalists. The bids include a record $105 million offer from Shell for a single 9-square-mile tract. Environmental groups say...

Green Groups Push TV Tax to Get Kids Off the Couch

NM plan would fund outdoor programs

(Newser) - A New Mexico environmental coalition is calling for a 1% sales tax on TVs and video games to fund outdoor programs for kids, and the idea is gaining steam, writes Carl Pope for the Huffington Post. Proponents of the "Leave No Child Inside” plan say the tax would raise...

Wal-Mart Shops for Green Cred
Wal-Mart Shops for Green Cred

Wal-Mart Shops for Green Cred

Critics skeptical as mammoth chain donates to eco groups, reduces energy use

(Newser) - Hoping to soften its image, Wal-Mart is going green, the Washington Post reports. The retail giant is now donating to environmental groups, improving its energy efficiency, and creating the first hybrid shipping truck. Yet some critics say it's a mere cover. "Wal-Mart is willing to spread its money wherever...

Court Orders Stricter Fuel Economy Rules

It throws out US standards for SUVs and minivans

(Newser) - Environmentalist groups rejoiced today after a federal appeals court struck down upcoming fuel-economy standards for some SUVs, minivans, and small trucks, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The court ruled that regulators refused to treat carbon dioxide emissions as a serious threat to global warming and ordered the government to review...

Toyota: Not Easy Seeming Green
Toyota: Not Easy Seeming Green

Toyota: Not Easy Seeming Green

Green activists turn against Toyota over opposition to fuel economy laws

(Newser) - Toyota set a new green standard ten years ago with its ahead-of-its-time Prius hybrid and projects an image of environmental responsibility. But now the green community is using Toyota for target practice, Newsweek reports. The Japanese carzilla is generating fury with its new low 14 mpg Tundra and Sequoia models,...

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