Conservation Groups Ask Obama for a Suspension of Arctic Ocean Drilling

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Today CEOs from Alaska Wilderness League, Center for Biological Diversity, Clean Water Action, Defenders of Wildlife, Earthjustice, Environment America, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, League of Conservation Voters, National Audubon Society, National Parks Conservation Association, Natural Resources Defense Council, Oceana, Ocean Conservancy, Pacific Environment, Sierra Club and The Wilderness Society called on Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to suspend offshore oil and gas activities in the Arctic Ocean.

Shell’s Failed Arctic Experiment

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Shell ended its 2012 Arctic drilling season with a bang. On New Year’s Eve, one of its drill rigs—the Kulluk— ran aground near Kodiak Island, Alaska, in a severe winter storm while carrying 143,000 gallons of diesel fuel and 12,000 gallons of other petroleum products. Tow vessels were moving the Kulluk, which has no propulsion … Read more

Save Australia’s Great Barrier Reef from the U.S. Government

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Did you know that the U.S. government is slated to finance a massive dirty fossil fuel project that will damage Australia’s world-famous Great Barrier Reef—home to sea turtles, dugongs, and many other protected marine species? I think this is outrageous, and that’s why Pacific Environment and our partners have filed a lawsuit to challenge a … Read more

Lawsuit Targets $3 Billion in U.S. Funding for Fossil Fuel Project in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

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Conservation groups filed a lawsuit today challenging the U.S. Export-Import Bank’s nearly $3 billion in financing for a massive Australian fossil fuel facility in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. Construction and operation of the liquefied natural gas facility will threaten sea turtles, dugongs and many other protected marine species, as well as the Great Barrier Reef itself.

Super-Storm Sandy Hammers Ex-Im Bank

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One of the U.S.’s largest export promotion agencies, the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank), recently announced that its New York office is shuttered until further notice due to flooding and power loss from deadly Superstorm Sandy. To help those recovering from the storm, Ex-Im Bank extended its Mid-Atlantic and Northeast clients various deadline extensions. “As the nation … Read more

Obama Administration Fossil Fuel Subsidies Undermine Climate Talks

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The Obama Administration is supporting skyrocketing export subsidies for dirty fossil fuels through the United States Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank). The subsidies, revealed in the newly released Ex-Im Bank 2012 Annual Report, are significantly larger than ever before and dwarf the U.S. funds provided for developing countries to address climate change.

CAMPAIGN UPDATE: Victory in the Arctic!

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Today is a good day: Shell announced that it is cancelling its 2012 Arctic drilling program!  From asking to exceed air pollution limits to a damaged oil spill containment dome, Shell showed that it is not prepared to drill in the Arctic safely. Let’s savor the moment. This is a huge day for millions of … Read more

Lawsuit Launched Against Multi-Billion-Dollar U.S. Subsidy of Fossil Fuel Projects in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

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Three conservation groups initiated a legal challenge today to the U.S. Export-Import Bank’s nearly $3 billion in financing for two massive fossil-fuel facilities in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Construction and operation of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities will threaten dugongs, sea turtles, saltwater crocodiles and numerous other protected marine species within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.

Update: Shell Oil Should Not Get Special Treatment from EPA

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Despite protests from Pacific Environment and a coalition of conservation organizations, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) went ahead and granted Royal Dutch Shell special treatment. In response to Shell’s request for a waiver from current air pollution regulations, the EPA issued a one-year air pollution permit that will allow Shell to violate the Clean Air Act and exceed air pollution limits in the Arctic. This only increases the likelihood that Shell will receive the final permit it needs to start drilling for oil in America’s Arctic. Take action now.

Fed Finances Coal Exports

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WASHINGTON, DC – The Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank), a federal government trade promotion agency, voted to provide $90 million in financing to the top U.S. coal exporter, Xcoal Energy & Resources, to export coal to China and other Asian countries. The vote to subsidize coal exports follows a decrease in U.S. demand … Read more

Senate Support for U.S. Export-Import Bank is Big Win for the 1%

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Today the U.S. Senate passed H.R. 2072, a bill to reauthorize the federal government’s Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank), which provides billions of dollars in public financing for harmful fossil fuel projects worldwide.[1] Passage of the bill will allow the agency to increase its portfolio cap from $100 billion to $140 billion., and it now moves to President Obama’s desk to sign into law.