Climate blogs exposed--Power Shift '09, green stimulus, & so-called "clean coal"--3/6

Power Shift 2009 was a huge success thanks to you! Last week 12,000 youth climate activists from all over the country flooded the Convention Center in Washington, D.C. to meet other activists and lobby for bold climate solutions. Check out some more photos from Grist! Due to snow that blanketed the entire eastern seaboard from Alabama to Maine, Speak of the House Nancy Pelosi's flight was delayed, preventing her from speaking to the Power Shift attendees.

It's Getting Hot in Here recently published Pelosi's 'Thank-you' that said:

Thank you for making history at Power Shift 2009, the largest ever youth conference and lobby day on climate change. Thank you for raising your voice and demanding action, stopping at nothing—not even snow or bitter cold—until you were heard. You are the leaders of the next American energy revolution, one that will protect our planet while creating green jobs to build a strong and sustainable economy.

Because I was not able to speak to you on Monday due to weather flight delays, I recorded this video message to say thank you:

2009 is undoubtedly the year for bold climate action and while the recent economic stimulus package is a step toward the green economy that the United States so desperately needs, we still have a long way to go. Climate change is a global problem and it'll take collective action from everyone if we're going to end our climate crisis. That being said, this week the Financial Times published a graphic showing some of the greenest stimulus packages. Check out the graphic here.

The proposed round of government spending in economies across the world represents a unique opportunity for green businesses. The increased investment could pull energy consumers towards using more renewables, create millions of new jobs in green industries and help to create a more efficient, low-carbon future.

The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), the top public relations firm for the coal industry, has begun searching for a Vice President of Paid and Digital Media to aid in a $20 million ad campaign. So what does this all mean? Remember the clean coal carolers around the holidays and those annoying advertisements that plug the extension cord into a big chunk of coal? Well you guessed it...more propaganda! Think Progress' Wonk Room writes:

ACCCE’s planned digital onslaught is just one component of a comprehensive, national public relations campaign to misinform the public about coal. In 2008, ACCCE spent over $45 million on its deceptive messaging, including $10.5 million to lobby Congress. The PR firm Hawthorn Group has bragged about its “grassroots campaign” for ACCCE involving “sending ‘clean coal’ branded teams to hundreds of presidential candidate events” and “giving away free t-shirts and hats emblazoned with our branding: Clean Coal.”

In an interview with CNN, Joe Lucas, ACCCE spokesperson is asked where he believes coal burning coal causes global warming. Check out his response below!

But don't let the idea of clean coal propaganda scare you. Not only are there 12,000+ youth climate activists strongly opposing clean coal (aka Carbon Capture and Sequestration, CCS), but this week the Economist just published two must-read articles calling clean coal and "illusion." Click here the second Economist article.

With the private sector sitting on its hands, Western governments are lavishing subsidies on CCS. Some $3.4 billion earmarked for CCS found its way into America’s stimulus bill. The European Union, which already restricts greenhouse-gas emissions through a cap-and-trade scheme, unveiled further incentives for CCS last year. Britain, Australia and others have also vowed to help fund demonstration plants partly because they reckon the private sector is put off by the huge price-tag on a single CCS power plant, and also in the belief that the cost of CCS will fall with experience.

The private sector, however, is reluctant to fork out not just because of the up-front cost of power plants, but also because, tonne for tonne, CCS looks like an expensive way of cutting carbon.

Let us know what we missed in the comments section below and have a great weekend!