Here’s why clean coal is so dirty:

1. Clean Coal Requires More Coal

30% more energy is required to pump carbon underground for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). The captured carbon dioxide has to be compressed to 100 times the atmospheric pressure, transferred to an underground storage reservoir and then pumped in the ground. All of this requires large amounts of energy, thus the coal plant must burn an additional 30% more coal to generate the same amount of usable electricity.

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After the break, we’ll review the debates, their performances, and take a look to see how the candidates are faring.

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John McCain and Barack Obama squared off in the second of three Presidential Debates this election season. Tell us who won and why?

Click Here to Answer the RG&B Poll Question: Who Won Tuesday Night’s Presidential Debate?

Guest contributor Pamela Price is the founder of

If you’re a regular Eat.Drink.Better. reader, then you’re probably familiar with the clever, non-partisan Eat The View initiative to put vegetable gardens in high profile places like the White House lawn.

With the economy and the forthcoming presidential election top-of-mind, a status report seemed in order. After all, we will very soon have an answer to just who may receive the petition to restore the White House victory garden at the very moment in which tens of millions of people may be thinking about gardening as a means of survival.

In short, we Americans need Eat The View to succeed!

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After being chided by both Democrats and Republicans over remarks he made this summer about renegotiating the Colorado River Compact, Sen. John McCain said at a recent Colorado campaign stop that he would “never, ever” try to take more of Colorado’s water.

“As a citizen of the great state of Arizona, I want to say on behalf of all my fellow citizens: Thank you for the water,” said McCain to a group of about 2,000 supporters in Pueblo, Colorado.

In August, McCain said the Colorado River water compact should be renegotiated because of the added pressures of growth and development. The comment brought immediate attacks from the state’s top Democrats and even a surprisingly strong response from Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Bob Schaffer who said the compact would only be renegotiated, “Over my cold, dead, political carcass.”

As The Straight Talk Express rolled through the swing-state of Colorado this past week, Sen. McCain went out of his way to reiterate that his August comment was taken out of context. In an interview with the Denver Post and in recent stump speeches, McCain made a concerted effort to mend fences wrought by the gaffe - but will that effort stick? Some are not so sure if it will.

John Orr writes at the Denver Examiner:

“Voters will have to decide if McCain’s current position really reflects his views. He has done an about face on many issues over the summer in an attempt to shore up his faltering campaign. Which statement contains the “straight talk,” renegotiate the compact to provide more water to Arizona or never, never, renegotiate?”

States in the upper Colorado River Basin are extremely sensitive about the water compact they have negotiated with lower basin users (California, Nevada, Arizona).  In Colorado, “renegotiation” is considered synonymous with reallocation, and that is something most Coloradoans—regardless of their political affiliation—consider fighting words.

Image credit: jdnx via flickr under a Creative Commons License

You turn to semantics.

Do you call it a bailout or a rescue plan? Invasion of privacy or the Patriot Act? A War on Terror or an invasion of a country that doesn’t possess WMD? Do you say we’re looking for oil independence or to drill in ANWR? Do you call it global warming, admitting that the earth is indeed warming, or do you call it climate change?

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Probably the basics: Obama supports spending $150 billion over ten years to kick-start the “green economy.” Both support cap-and-trade systems to address climate change. McCain’s become a strong proponent of opening up more offshore areas to oil and gas drilling.

Now, what do you know about their records on these issues? Their past statements, writings, and votes?

Probably not nearly as much. The candidates have had ample opportunities to present their proposals, but few media outlets are providing details on how each of these men has approached energy and environmental issues in the past. As these issues are tied directly to the US’ economic health, they’re now front and center in this last month of campaign season.

So, are you willing to wait for the mainstream media to provide such details? If so, good luck.  If you’re not, why not join us in digging for the specifics.

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My colleagues at Red, Green and Blue have done a thorough job of covering the policy proposals of the presidential candidates. But the devil’s in the details, and NPR’s Talk of the Nation: Science Friday held a fascinating discussion last week on the issues that aren’t being covered in the political rhetoric: namely, the economic and technological challenges that both government and the private sector will have to address to get us to a clean energy future. Host Ira Flatow, New York University professor emeritus of physics Martin Hoffert, and Wallace S. Wilson Fellow in energy studies and associate director of the energy program at Rice University Amy Myers Jaffe took a look at the bigger picture of our energy challenges, and the kinds of leadership a new presidential administration will have to exert in order to facilitate rapid, even revolutionary, changes in how we power ourselves.

Among the questions raised during the discussion:

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That focus crowded out most discussion about two major campaign issues that both have a huge impact on foreign policy - energy and the environment. Whenever the candidates tried to talk about energy policies, the moderator immediately tried to change the subject.

I am not a single issue voter, but I really want to understand the nuances of the energy policy positions for the two candidates in this particular election. The last time energy policy was such a major part of the campaign was in 1976; the result of that election made a huge difference in our current energy source mix.

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McCain mentioned last night that Obama “didn’t know the difference between a ‘tactic’ and a ‘strategy.’” I felt a little stupid because I didn’t know myself—McCain seemed to be in a wordplay league of his own. So I looked them up and tried to find the common—yet mysterious—denominator between the definitions.

A tactic is “a device for accomplishing and end” while a strategy is “a careful plan or method to accomplish an end.” So how do they differ? I would say that strategy is syntax, meaning that it’s a network of tactics that build on each other to reach a goal.

Quite simply: A tactic goes from point A to point B while a strategy runs the alphabetical gamut. A tactic is more direct, while a strategy takes extenuating circumstances into account and maneuvers around them. So, when it comes to environment policy, which candidate uses “tactics” and which uses “strategy?”

McCain wants to use an “A to B” tactic called a “cap and trade” system. The government will issue permits to industries according to their emissions ratings. For instance, a tire-making company is issued a permit with an emissions evaluation of 90. They invest in “greener machinery,” or begin to rely more on recycled materials to make their products. The government will lower their emissions permit to 70, the company can sell the margin (or an emissions evaluation of 20) to entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and other organizations that want to buy them. Economic incentives will drive companies to lower their emissions standards in favor of a greater profit margin.

Obama uses strategy to empower American workers through job opportunities. Much like Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps, Obama’s environmental program will try to create 5 million “green collar” jobs through government intervention. Although this approach may not be as direct as John McCain’s, it takes into account an immediate need for jobs. Basically, Obama’s plan favors the creation of new green industries and distribution of green products and services, while McCain aims to make existing industries environmentally friendly. Of course there will be some overlap, yet these are the basic ideas that each candidate carries.

So now you know the difference between “tactic” and “strategy.” Choose whichever you feel is necessary—just don’t be confused.

From our friends at ZapRoot this week: Arizona tests artificial CO2 filtering trees. Sarah Palin loves oil. We help you find ways to get rid of your junk mail.

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Alaska is a rich state.  If you live in Alaska, you don’t pay income or sales tax, and you get money from the Alaska Permanent Fund.  The state itself gets 85% of its budget from oil companies that lease the Alaska oil fields, and Palin has worked to increase this amount fattening state tax revenue and allowing additional payouts to the Alaska Permanent Fund by taxing Big Oil’s windfall profits.  Wait a minute…didn’t McCain critize Obama for proposing a federal tax on Big Oil’s windfall profits.  McCain said such a tax would “increase our dependence on foreign oil and hinder exactly the same kind of domestic exploration and production we need.” It seems we have a contradiction in the Republican party ticket.

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Talk about a carbon footprint! Maybe all this talk directed at Palin should be taking a closer look at McCain’s personal habits. Did I also mention that he owns at least seven houses? And that these cars don’t include the Lexus registered under a beer distribution company?

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Though I wish the GOP was progressive enough to have a woman on the presidential ticket. That is, based on merit and not merely as a political pawn. Much in the same vein, I would also love for wars to be fought with hugs and Skittles. I really don’t see that one happening either.

Since the announcement of Palin joining the Republican ticket, a lot of buzz has been made about the Alaskan Governor. For example, her limp stance on Global Warming. Then there’s her support of the Bridge to Nowhere. Don’t forget the whole Troopergate fiasco. And sometimes it’s even hard to tell if she is with us or against us; mostly against, by the way.

And the media-machine that gnawed away for eighteen months on the Obama-Clinton flavored primary quickly shifted to the virtual unknown. Heck, I have done so myself! And while I’d like to continue waxing politically about her qualifications for the VP slot, I am stuck - somewhat reluctantly - with only one thing to say: MILF.

Thank you Saturday Night Live!

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Yes, Palin was picked because of Clinton. Duh! It’s calculated, shameless and oh so very very smart. But why does it matter? Mostly because McCain is so very very old.

The GOP is no stranger to having a token VP - ahem…Dan Quayle! But with McCain having one foot in the grave, Palin’s political stance matters more than those prior. It matters that the energy-expert-wanna-be doesn’t think man’s had anything to do with the climate crisis. It matters that she backs an offshore drilling solution to our oil crisis. But don’t take my word for it, take hers.

In this series, I will be highlighting some of Sarah Palin’s comments on everything from the environment to foreign policy.

Up next - The Sarah Palin Chronicles: The Environment, Part Two

Image Credit: bobster1985 via flickr

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This week from our friends at ZapRoot: The most notorious bicycle thief is caught in Canada. Find out how Green is Joe Biden? Check out a new batch of Alternative Autos.

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Oh, my plastic bag Obama sign is not just any old plastic bag banned throughout the world for shoppers, but it is a union-made, recyclable bag. This bag proudly displays the union USWA label local 3210, as well as a gentle reminder to “please recycle”.  I’m not sure what steelworkers are doing making plastic bags (or if I am reading the label correctly, perhaps it is an endorsement?), and I wish the sign was made from post-consumer recycled plastic content.

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The vanishing wetlands provide a valuable ecological service by absorbing the powerful leading edge of hurricanes and limiting the flooding potential of storm surges. Anyone can talk about courage, resolve, values, leadership, etc., but I’d much rather have the minutiae of environmental politics and wetlands restoration any day of the week. Read more about the wonky specifics of Obama’s environmental policy.

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Related:

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• Obama Pushes Back with Renewed Focus on Energy