Earth Equity News

Why the Oil Spill Should Change Everything. Commentary by Al Gore, New Republic, May 8, 2010. "Just as the oil companies told us that deep-water drilling was safe, they tell us that it's perfectly all right to dump 90 million tons of CO2 into the air of the world every 24 hours. Even as the oil spill continues to grow-even as BP warns that the flow could increase multi-fold, to 60,000 barrels per day, and that it may continue for months-the head of the American Petroleum Institute, Jack Gerard, says, 'Nothing has changed. When we get back to the politics of energy, oil and natural gas are essential to the economy and our way of life'... However, both the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the CO2 spill into the global atmosphere are causing profound and harmful changes-directly and indirectly. The oil is having a direct impact on fish, shellfish, turtles, seabirds, coral reefs, marshes, and the entire web of life in the Gulf Coast. The indirect effects include the loss of jobs in the fishing and tourism industries; the destruction of the health, vitality, and rich culture of communities in the region; imminent bankruptcies; vast environmental damage expected to persist for decades; and the disruption of seafood markets nationwide... This is a consciousness-shifting event. It is one of those clarifying moments that brings a rare opportunity to take the longer view. Unless we change our present course soon, the future of human civilization will be in dire jeopardy. Just as we feel a sense of urgency in demanding that this ongoing oil spill be stopped, we should feel an even greater sense of urgency in demanding that the much larger and more dangerous ongoing emissions of global warming pollution must also be stopped to make the world safe from the climate crisis that is building all around us."