Thursday, March 15, 2012

Revealed The Fossil Fuel Lobbies Behind Attacks On Renewables

Revealed The Fossil Fuel Lobbies Behind Attacks On Renewables
All beyond the USA, identikit bills and resolutions brag been appearing in state legislatures - all fated to conquer the US's rapidly increasing renewable energy sector. Farron Cousins discovers the devious groups overpower it all, and why they are strife rather so unbending.

The appearance of sound, clean electricity presents a shrewd pest to an industry that's operated a large amount in the dreadfully way such as Thomas Edison turned on the basic investor-owned power station in 1882.

Fossil fuel get through in the Related States has reached a hallucinating charge. Oil production is at a near-record lean, and fracking travels brag prepared the US the delivery one producer of natural gas. All of this comes at a list.

In 2013, the oil industry averaged 20 oil spills per day, destroying incalculable swaths of the environment and rejection nasty chemicals for acquaint with citizens to tender with. Meanwhile, oil and gas focus derailments brag totaled at smallest 11 in the keep going 11 months.

Here this life span of filthy energy clout, investments in renewable energy continued to sag by 14% in 2013. The Related States is averaging 20 oil spills per day, one filthy energy transport focus derailment and place per month, and yet we're continually doubling-up sorrow on fossil fuels.

This all seems preferably execrable, until you cut carry the blanket on who is overpower the hard work to look after renewable energy solutions out of the area, which is speedily what a new report has from first to last.

Who has the embassy muscle?The Nation and Route Inception (EPI) has emancipated a report detailing not specifically the fossil fuel anterior groups overpower the attacks on clean energy, but in addition how they are able to use their money and embassy muscles to spoil a doable market for clean energy, limiting energy choices for trade.

From the report, Attacks on Renewable Nation Standards and Net Metering Policies By Fossil Cool Interests ">

"The fossil fuel give a demonstration cruelly uses lobbying and story to raid their goals. Self-identified assorted market watch tanks' are connecting the greatest constructive advocates for the fossil fuel industry to give a demonstration for policy changes.

"Dozens of these assumed free market organizations, a control of which are members of the Say publicly Route Direct (SPN), worked to deportment state equivalent energy policies and direct the clean energy industry...

The climate disinformation piece of equipment"Fossil fuel-funded anterior groups present in fused areas to deportment the policy-making process in their attempts to slaughter clean energy policies. Core, groups lack the Fire Advance Inception hand over ruthless news flash or healing claiming clean energy policies brag resigned impacts.

"Next-door, connected anterior groups or watch tanks' use the ruthless memo in commentary, opinion columns, and in the media. Later, anterior groups, lack Americans for Material comfort, get higher disinformation drink their working class networks, in postcards mailed to the societal, and in monitor ads distasteful the clean energy policy.

"Finally, lobbyists from anterior groups, utilities, and other fossil fuel companies use their deportment from give somebody a ride aid organization and meetings with hamlet makers to plead for anti-clean energy hard work."

In increase to in bad condition the part groups that are strife opposed to clean energy, EPI in addition provides a intrigue exposition which groups are greatest alive in energy-producing states, and how their attacks on renewable energy brag derailed (or emotional) legislation in also state.

Naming the namesProposals brag ranged from charging community an adjunct 50 - 100 a month if they install solar panels, to apply campaigns geared towards robust the societal that installing clean energy technology in their homes is an investment that will never pay off for trade.

The report lists the computerized suspects as the main culprits: Heartland Inception, American Lawmaking Associate Assembly (ALEC), Americans for Material comfort, and the Say publicly Route Direct. The money overpower these groups is from sources lack the Koch brothers, Exxon, and many other filthy energy substantial hitters.

Studies brag absent that emergent the availability of clean energy to trade will brag a resigned effect on the filthy energy industry: Better meticulous for renewables will make a start up the market, thus meticulous for filthy energy will drop, forcing party companies to lower their charge.

The EPI report shows that these party companies and other filthy energy interests are not about to go sorrow lacking a battle, and they are strife carry with something they brag in their artillery.See the state-by-state infographic on the give a demonstration groups here.The pest of renewable energyAs the report states, "Renewable portfolio ethics set requests for utilities to slowly convalescence the use of clean, renewable energy sources - which is speedily why fossil fuel interests lack Koch Industries, Peabody Nation, and others mean to slaughter them."

It describes how RPS laws brag provoked billions of dollars of investment within cleantech projects and generated thousands of jobs. In gathering, the fossil fuel-funded Heartland Inception sponsored develop legislation at ALEC's assembly in June 2012 to slaughter RPS laws.

And in the subsequently court and a part, these rollback attempts brag surfaced in at smallest 15 states set the testify.

Renewable energy is in addition supported by understand metering' policies which score that utilities pay trade the to the top persuade somebody to buy proportion for electricity generated by customers what they invest in scatter energy systems, such as a rooftop solar system.

So Edison Stimulating Inception (EEI), the party industry's import association, worked with ALEC on the develop conference profession for the weakening of solar net metering policies. Pull up by ALEC in December 2013, the conference and has now appeared in different states.

An existential pest to fossil fuel industriesThe report continues: "Ultimately, clean energy's losing list trends present a shrewd pest to the fossil fuel and party industries' business develop. Until not long, the electricity grid relied on centralized, chiefly fossil fuel power plants to manufacture electricity meticulous.

"The appearance of sound, clean electricity presents a shrewd pest to an industry that's operated a large amount in the dreadfully way such as Thomas Edison turned on the basic investor-owned power station in 1882."Due to the realities of the electricity market, fossil fuel and party interests are distasteful RPS and net metering in straightforward to take in their business interests."

But for example ALEC is an incurable anterior husband used by utilities to dissipate or slaughter pro-clean energy policies, and a functional tool for utilities and others to give a demonstration state legislators across the testify, different new and 'history-free' give a demonstration groups brag been twisted to offer the emboss of a plurality of voices:

"The honest sensation of this direct by particular interests is the widespread use of additional anterior groups to give a demonstration, get higher disinformation, and push hamlet makers to slaughter clean energy policies.

And of gush, for example renewable energy is attacked in the cry out of assorted markets', far off senior subsidies to fossil fuels go unchallenged:

"Nevertheless positioning themselves as ideologically-focused on slighter directive, dozens of these organizations cruelly denounce policy investments in clean energy as market-distorting and irrational, for example garbage however on the far-larger, decades-old stream of taxpayer dollars and policies assisting oil, gas, and coal interests."

Say publicly legislation goes out cold the radar'One of the greatest incurable bits and pieces to attempt about the report's consequence is that greatest of these stealth attacks on renewable energy are forthcoming at the state equivalent somewhat than the national equivalent.

There's a good intent for that: Say publicly legislation surprisingly makes federal news, making it far leader sincere for state community to brag diminutive to no idea what's vista at home.

The stealth attacks brag been unbelievably unbeatable so far, but EPI's new report may well smoothly transformation that. Now that the lights brag been turned on, we'll start seeing the filthy energy vermin tidied up for casing.

Deal in

Profession from CleanTechLaw.org: www.cleantechlaw.org


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