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This week's National Journal Energy Insider's question is "What's the Value of Divestment?" AEA President Thomas Pyle's response is below:

In response to the recent climate change rally in New York, the satirical newspaper the Onion quipped, “7.1 Billion Demonstrate In Favor of Global Warming.” Their point? Nearly everyone benefits from the use of natural gas, petroleum, and coal because they provide the reliable and affordable energy that makes modern life possible.

FossilFree, a...

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Yesterday, Washington Post’s Plum Line blog wrote that climate change is the one “bright spot” for Democrats in the upcoming midterm election. Despite the very real prospect of losing the Senate, the blog asserts, “Liberals may have made a bit of headway in forcing climate change on to the national agenda.” For support, the article cites a Pew poll finding that large swaths of the population overwhelmingly believe in climate change (such as 18-29 year olds, nonwhites, and...
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Since EPA proposed the new carbon dioxide emissions rules for existing power plants on June 2nd, twelve states have filed suit, arguing the new regulations are illegal under the Clean Air Act. The governors of Texas and West Virginia have demonstratively spoken out against the rules, citing their need for coal-fired power plants to provide their citizens with affordable, reliable power. And now, Virginia’s State Corporation Commission has released their own criticism.

“As currently...

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A recent report from the Institute for Energy Research revealed that 72.7 gigawatts (GW) of power have closed or are scheduled to close because of EPA’s Mercury and Air Toxics Rule (colloquially called MATS or Utility MACT), the proposed Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR), and the recently proposed restrictions on carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants. This is enough electricity to reliably power 44.7 million homes , or every home in every state west of the Mississippi...
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Array

National Journal recently published an article with the somewhat exaggerated headline, “Why Natural Gas Won’t Help Save the Planet.” The story cites a study in Nature which equates “saving the planet” to “slashing global greenhouse-gas emissions.” But what do they say about the role energy plays in improving the planet? The report goes on to state, "Lower natural gas prices accelerate economic activity, reduce the incentive to invest in energy-saving technologies, and...
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Australia’s carbon tax was so disastrous that some of its biggest supporters are hastily distancing themselves from it -- and lawmakers in the U.S. should take note. The Sydney Morning Herald reported this week that the democratic socialist Labor Party is officially bailing on support for a carbon tax. Party leader Bill Shorten announced:

“We will not have a carbon tax, the Australian people have spoken and Labor is not going to go back to that.” [Emphasis added]

The carbon...
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America's energy boom has created an abundance of high-paying and secure jobs in the oil and gas industry at a time when other sectors of the economy continue to struggle. As a result students are flocking towards degree paths that will help them break into the industry. For example, the Colorado School of Mines has seen annual enrollment for undergrad petroleum engineering increase from under 300 to 900  in the last ten years. And it’s not alone. The University of Wyoming and the...
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In a recent speech, former U.K. Environment Secretary Owen Paterson compared the U.K.’s Climate Change Act to the policies of the infamous Sheriff of Nottingham in the story of Robin Hood:

“It amazes me that our last three energy secretaries, Ed Miliband, Chris Huhne and Ed Davey, have merrily presided over the single most regressive policy we have seen in this country since the Sheriff of Nottingham: the coerced increase of electricity bills for people on low incomes to pay huge...

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The Governator is back, only this time he’s here to promote California’s failed energy policies on a global scale. Two-term governor of California and Terminator legend, Arnold Schwarzenegger presided over a climate conference which was hosted by his group “R20 Regions of Climate Action”. The conference ended in an unbinding pledge by several regional groups to join the fight against global warming. In his remarks at the conference,  Schwarzenegger touted California’s...
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