Sierra Club Currents

Sierra Club Currents - Wall Street Buys in to Clean Energy Future Volume VI, #53 Tuesday, February 27, 2007 Quote of Note: "If you really want to reduce the amount of oil that you consume, you have to reduce the amount of gasoline you use." - President Bush on a road trip to push energy initiatives he announced last month in his State of the Union address (1) Texas: Wall Street Buys in to Clean Energy Future (2) Children's Health: Global Warming Fever (3) Take Action: And the Oscar Goes to… Solving Global Warming! (4) Take Action:Protect Workers' Rights! (1) Texas: Wall Street Buys in to Clean Energy Future Just days after a court struck down Texas Governor Perry's order to fast track new coal plants through the permitting process, a buyout of Texas Utility TXU has lead the company to abandon plans for 8 new coal-fired power plants in Texas. As part of the takeover TXU has signed on to a long list of environmental measures, including doubling the amount of money spent on efficiency programs and pursuing wind power. Thanks to the efforts of the Sierra Club and other activists energy investors are paying increasing attention to the benefits of going green. Learn more about other alternatives to coal. (2) Children's Health: Global Warming Fever Global warming is responsible for an increase in the number of children's hospital emergency room visits, according to a new University of Sydney report which shows that hospital admissions for fever soar as days get hotter. Children are especially at risk because they are less able to regulate their body temperature than adults. The study is the first to make a solid link between increasing temperatures and childhood illness. Find out what you can do to curb global warming. (3) Take Action: And the Oscar Goes to...Solving Global Warming! Last night, global warming took home Hollywood's biggest award. An Inconvenient Truth won the Oscar for Best Documentary. The film follows former Vice President Al Gore around the world on his crusade to educate audiences about global warming. In his Oscar acceptance speech, Gore called on Americans to come together and find the political will to stop the climate crisis. We have the solutions; we just need to put them to work. Sign the petition calling on President Bush to stop blocking action on global warming. (4) Take Action: Protect Workers' Rights! You may be surprised but protecting workers' rights is an environmental issue. Workers are often the first line of defense against hazardous pollution, chemical spills and other toxic accidents not only in the workplace, but in their communities as well. Union workers are taught about the safety risks of dangerous chemicals and are empowered to prevent accidents and help hold corporations accountable. Now legislation has been introduced that would protect workers rights to unionize and advocate for stronger protections for workers and communities. Tell your Representative to support worker's rights and vote for the Employee Free Choice Act!

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