from TreeHugger.com
by the Sierra Club
This guest post is written by Bruce Nilles, director of the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Campaign.
Every day it seems as if we see another energy company trying to convince us of new ways to keep us tied to oil and coal. Yet these fuels always turn out to be dirtier and more expensive, especially when their environmental costs are considered.
Liquid coal is one of these same old fossil fuels the industry touts as the next best thing for American energy, but the latest culprit in this pattern of dirty fuels purported to be the U.S. energy savior is "oil sands," a thick, black dirt derived from the soil under the great forests of Canada.
Use of these polluting oil sands is particularly ironic right now, as we approach what may be a near snowless Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Many have found it strange to read the reports of snow being shipped into Vancouver from hundreds of miles away; sadly, due to the effects of global warming, future winter Olympic Games may never be the same. We're unveiling a new website today that helps bring this message home: www.LoveWinter.org
Yes, the East Coast was just blasted with record snowfall in the past week, but long-term trends show less snow pack at higher altitudes, and what is there is melting earlier - making it not only a harder time for the winter sports industry, but also having catastrophic consequences for the western wildfire seasons as droughts increase.
Right now, unfortunately, Canada is pursuing an energy policy that could have a huge impact on winter sports by accelerating global warming - and the U.S. is following suit.... read more story at TreeHugger.com
