Gore's film? I had n't heard about it! Its not that I am not concerned about environemental issues, I often miss important news and rarely see movies in the theater because I am the mother of a 14 month old. Read more about  An Inconvenient Truth here. Thank you for bringing this to my attention Susan.

Really excellent posting, Susan. You're really raising good insight here. In Ohio we fight to keep from recognizing any responsibility to or value of indigenous people and disrespect them in sport, yet they are doing some of the most progressive work in America with energy, while we are the worst. Is this one screwed up community or what. The distinction between the Native realities NEO hates, vs. the Next Wave pursuits NEO loves tells all about our leadership, which is all bad for NEO.

Why don't we see if we can share some insight with Native Energy on if they have an interest in anything about NEO... if you have time, reach out... or perhaps your Flat World (good read) knowing son... or Jeff, do you want to step up on this?... I'm also interested in their interests in Canada, or similar efforts up there with the First Nations...

Native Energy...

NativeEnergy helps you help build Native American, farmer-owned, and charitable purpose renewable energy projects that create social, economic, and environmental benefits. Native Americans and farmers traditionally care for and care about the environment because they are also very dependent on the gifts of the Earth for their survival. They are seeking a way to build their economies and their communities.  This is one of the reasons we developed our novel approach to renewable energy; we want our business – our work – and so also our customers’ purchases, to make a real difference.

Next  Wave Energy...

NextWave Energy supports private sector firms seeking to grow or build businesses in the energy sector, by providing advice on strategy and capital formation, thereby enabling entrepreneurs and executives to achieve commercial success and create wealth.

Disrupt IT

I'm really trying to get my mind around what individuals can do about pollution in our region. There are many good data sources so I'm trying to determine some metrics that benchmark our conditions versus other regions and what may be controllable. Ohio is the fourth most polluting state in America, based on CO2 emissions. Texas is the worst (explaining why the US wants to put the new coal technology there), followed by California (which is 62% from transportation), then Pennsylvania, then Ohio. As nationwide CO2 emissions from industry have been in steady decline since 1966, the problem is most centered in power generation/consumption and transportation, which we can control. Ohio is third worst after Indiana and Texas in CO2 emissions per person, and by that standard California is one of the best... their greatest problem is all those people with cars. ultimately, the bulk of the emissions are in the control of individuals - use less fuel and electricity!

CO2 metric tons per person by state below:

Indiana 37

Texas 32

Ohio 22

Pennsylvania 21

Michigan 19

Illinois 18

Florida 15

California 11

New York 11

CO2 results from burning coal, natural gas and oil products, so coal and gas burning powerplants, industry and transportation. Ohio and other major coal mining states have high numbers of coal powerplants and so a high proportion of CO2 emissions from them - about 49% of the CO2 emitted in Ohio in 2001 was from coal powerplants. It is also worth noting that Ohio is surrounded by some of the most CO2 polluting states in the country, as they too are big coal users, so a multi-state approach to conservation is required.

To learn more, I strongly recommend you review the following report:

U.S. PIRG Reports

The Carbon Boom: National and State Trends in Carbon Dioxide Emissions Since 1960

June 2006

Executive Summary | News Release

Executive  Summary
    The early effects of global warming are already evident across the United States and worldwide. The year 2005 was the warmest on record. Left unchecked, temperatures will continue to rise, and the effects of global warming will become more severe. This report examines trends in U.S. global warming pollution nationally and by state and concludes that the failure to limit emissions from burning oil, coal, and natural gas has allowed global warming pollution to grow out of control.
    >Human activities over the last century – primarily burning fossil fuels – have changed the composition of the atmosphere in ways that threaten to dramatically alter the climate in the years to come. In a December 2005 speech, James Hansen, director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, stated, “The Earth’s climate is nearing, but has not passed, a tipping point, beyond which it will be impossible to avoid climate change with far ranging undesirable consequences.” These consequences, he said, would “constitute practically a different planet” and include sea level rise, heat waves, drought, more intense hurricanes, decreased crop yields, water scarcity, and the spread of infectious diseases.

    The United States is by far the largest worldwide contributor to global warming, releasing a quarter of the world’s carbon dioxide, the primary global warming pollutant. Power plants, cars, and light trucks are the largest U.S. sources of carbon dioxide.

    Existing technology could substantially reduce global warming pollution by making power plants and factories more efficient, making cars go farther on a gallon of gasoline, and shifting the country to clean, renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass. These solutions also would reduce our dependence on oil, reduce air pollution, protect pristine places from oil drilling and mining, and save consumers money.

    Unfortunately, the United States has rejected mandatory limits on global warming pollution, opting instead to allow global warming pollution to increase unabated. As a result, carbon dioxide emissions have skyrocketed nationally and in most states.

    Using data compiled by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, this report examines trends in carbon dioxide emissions and fossil fuel combustion nationally and by state for the four decades spanning 1960 to 2001. Our major findings include the following:

    Carbon Dioxide Emissions Are Booming

    • Between 1960 and 2001, U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide almost doubled, jumping from 2.9 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in 1960 to almost 5.7 billion metric tons in 2001, an increase of 95 percent.

    • In the 1990s, carbon dioxide emissions grew more quickly than in the 1970s and 1980s, increasing steadily at an average rate of 1.5 percent each year. The Energy Information Administration estimates that emissions grew by 1.7 percent in 2004, increasing to almost 6.0 billion metric tons.

    • Regionally, carbon dioxide emissions rose most rapidly in the Southeast and Gulf South between 1960 and 2001, increasing by 163 percent and 175 percent, respectively.

    • Among the states, Texas ranked first in the nation for the highest emissions of carbon dioxide in 2001, releasing 12 percent of the nation’s total carbon dioxide emissions. In 1960, Texas emitted 240.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide; by 2001, the state’s emissions had grown to 668.5 million metric tons, an increase of 178 percent.

    • Twenty-eight (28) states more than doubled their carbon dioxide emissions between 1960 and 2001. The 10 states that experienced the largest overall increases in emissions in this period include Texas, Florida, California, Georgia, Louisiana, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Missouri, and Arizona.

    Driving the Boom in Carbon Dioxide   Emissions

    A dramatic growth in oil emissions from the transportation sector and coal emissions from electricity generation fueled the rapid increase in U.S. carbon dioxide emissions between 1960 and 2001.

    • Carbon dioxide emissions from oil combustion jumped 1.1 billion metric tons from 1960 to 2001, accounting for 40 percent of the total increase in U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. The transportation sector drove this rapid increase. Carbon dioxide emissions from oil burned in the transportation sector increased by more than 150 percent over the period, largely due to a substantial rise in vehicle travel and the stagnating fuel economy of vehicles. In every other sector, carbon dioxide emissions from oil combustion peaked in the 1970s (Figure ES-1).

    • Carbon dioxide emissions from coal climbed 1.1 billion metric tons between 1960 and 2001, accounting for 40 percent of the total increase in U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. Increased electricity generation from coal-fired power plants fueled this rapid growth. Emissions from coal combustion in the electricity sector skyrocketed from 1960 to 2001, increasing by 370 percent, as demand for electricity boomed. At the same time, carbon dioxide emissions from the industrial sector declined steadily after 1966 (Figure ES-2).

    The longer we wait to reduce global warming pollution, the harder the task will be in the future. Key components of an action plan to protect future generations from global warming include:

    • Establish mandatory limits on global warming pollution that reduce emissions from today’s levels within 10 years, by 20% by 2020 and 80% by 2050.

    • Reduce our dependence on fossil fuels by making our homes and businesses more energy efficient, making our cars and SUVs go farther on a gallon of gasoline, and generating more electricity from renewable energy sources.