Sarah Palin On The Environment

Grist reports that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin strongly opposes the Alaskan gas tax, threw money at Alaskans to quiet their concerns over rising energy costs, and "recently sued the Interior Department over its decision to list the polar bear as a threatened species."

Not a fan of the bears, the New York Times agrees.

The Times writes that the selection of Palin could help pacify Republicans who wish Sen. McCain would support drilling in ANWR:

But she differs with Mr. McCain on a controversial environment issue that centers on her home state: she supports drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. Mr. McCain's opposition to drilling -- even after he changed positions and began advocating for off-shore oil drilling -- has upset many Republicans.

CLIMATE CHANGE

At the same time, Palin raised the profile of climate change in Alaska about a year ago when she installed a climate change sub-cabinet:

On September 14, 2007, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin signed Administrative Order 238, establishing the Climate Change Sub-Cabinet. The sub-cabinet will consolidate the state's knowledge of climate change in order to recommend policies and measures to guide the state's mitigation and adaptation efforts. It includes the commissioners of the Departments of Commerce, Community and Economic Development; Natural Resources; Fish and Game; Transportation and Public Facilities; and Environmental Conservation (Chair). The Administrative Order also directs the group to consult with the president of the University of Alaska and explore ways to promote development of renewable energy sources such as geothermal, wind, hydroelectric, and tidal resources. Governor also signed a letter adding Alaska as an observer to the Western Climate Initiative.

NATURAL GAS IN ALASKA'S NORTH SLOPE

Palin passed into law a signature bill, called the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act, which dictates the way that the state accepted bids for its North Slope natural gas reserves. The bill would have passed unanimously but for one opposing vote:

Eventually it passed in May with a single "no" vote, that of House Majority Leader Ralph Samuels, R-Anchorage.

Samuels, considered to be one of the Legislature's most knowledgeable members on oil and gas issues, said he feared the bill would exclude the big oil companies and fail to produce enough qualified applicants to yield a capable licensee.

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The pipeline may cost $20 billion or more.

"The fear is we do not (find qualified applicants) and we pick that sole applicant, and we pick the wrong applicant," Samuels said.

There was also some bristling at the bill's half-billion dollar subsidy for the winning bid:

One of the first parts of AGIA to get critical scrutiny was a plan for the state to contribute half a billion dollars to help the eventual winner of the state's license pay for early development efforts.

That contribution would later benefit the state by lowering shipping costs, the Palin administration said.

Oil companies testifying before the legislature suggested the money might simply help a financially unqualified company win the pipeline license and do the state more harm than good.

Comments

[alaskankid]

At the web site below, play the video on the left side of the page that reads
“Governor opposes Ballot Measure 4”
http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=8885438

Read more about the proposed Pebble mine here (it's long, but please read the whole article)
http://www.fishalaskamagazine.com/archives/2008/708_pebble.html

Gov. Palin recently came out against Alaska ballot measure 4, a clean water initiative. It is illegal for the governor to take sides on a ballot initiative, but she did anyway, probably breaking the law. Her Department of Natural Resources web site had an information page that was clearly against measure 4, and they were forced to take it down.

Sarah Palin has been on television lately using the term "environmental extremists". That tells you a lot.

[08Barack08]

John McCain will feel sorry for impalin' himself with this foolish Sarah Palin pick. He lost my vote...
He does NOT deserve my trust anymore.

Do you feel the same way? Join the Movement.
www.IMPALIN.com

[stnosh]

Actually, this is the first time I’m starting to get interested in this election. I was prepared to hold my nose and vote for McCain only because he’s better than the alternative. Now, I think I might do more than just vote.

Obama is more than a “pinko”. He has the most liberal voting record in the US senate. More liberal than the sole registered Socialist in the senate. Socialism has been tried in almost half the countries in the world in the last 100 years. Not a single one had found it to bring prosperity to their nation. The world’s biggest socialist state, People’s Republic of China, is actually more brutally capitalistic than we are. They are CINO – communist in name only. They aren’t even pretending that socialism works any more. So what makes Obama and company believe that what did not work in so many other nations in the world will work here? Of course, I forgot. It’s because we are better than anyone else in the world. We are special, especially with Obama as our leader! Only a self absorbed egotist could think like this. What next? Design his very own Presidential Seal? Oh, wait, he already did that!

Yep, Gov. Palin, if nothing else, puts a little spirit into this fight. I hope she’s as good as she sounds. I might actually get excited about voting for this ticket.

[wxman]

That's the BS right there. Bernie Sanders I is the most liberal - typicall lie carried around the world oops I mean alaska before the truth can get their pants on.

If you want to enegage stop lying!

[alaskaguy1]

Palin is also pushing a plan in the U.S. Supreme Court to allow a new gold mine to dump 4.5 million tons of toxic mine tailings into a lake near Juneau, filling up the lake and killing all the fish and most other aquatic life. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a permit allowing the dumping, contrary to EPA rules in place for over 25 years. The permit was struck down by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where a three-judge panel unanimously held that it violated the Clean Water Act. Nevertheless, Palin joined the mining industry in asking the Supreme Court to review the case. Even the Bush Administration opposed having it go to the Supreme Court. The Court has agreed to hear the case, which will be argued in January. If Palin wins, it will establish a new precedent that would allow mines anywhere in the country to revert to the long discredited practice of dumping chemically processed mine tailings into lakes, rivers and streams.
See http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/448640.html
http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/blogs/shapley/clean-water-superme-court-47070204
http://gov.state.ak.us/archive-62604.html

[GregbeingFrank]

Junk from the right and the left.....OK...let's look at this from another perspective - which Presidential Candidate do you think the enemies of the U.S. want as http://us.imdb.com/name/nm2734923/om/name/nm2734923/

[mamacat]

In all honesty, it seems to me that besides terrorists like OBLaden, the biggest enemies to our way of life are the neo-cons in the GOP, and we know who they would vote for.

It's also obvious that the GOP let the terrorist, OBLaden, escape when he was surrounded at Tora Bora, and they haven't made an effort to go after him since then.

[SeanGardner]

Palin's extreme environmental agenda has clearly ensured the presidency of Barack Obama. Thanks McCain!!!

[horndoggler]

Whoever says that she is "good looking" needs to check there eye glass prescription!

[mudbones]

...and her voice, sorta reminds me of roaseanne barr on rosanne

[silvertongue]

Doesn't her husband work for an oil company? I seem to recall hearing that when she first appeared on the scene.

[getoffmedz]

Palin utilizes crude oil to lubricate.

[mia41003]

I disagree with Palin's politics, believe me, but I think sexual comments and for that matter comments about her looks should be out of bounds. It sounds like something some of the more aggressive neo-con supporters would say about Hillary Clinton or something like that, and I hate to think that people who are more politically akin to my ideas would say things like that. I think we should stick to the issues. The environment. If you care about it, maybe you should consider voting for someone other than the McCain/Palin ticket.

[bullfinch]

I'm unclear...is she under investigation for misconduct that could result in felony charges?

[grata2ude]

First she used her power as Govenor to get her brother in law a job as a state trooper. Then when he divorced her sister she tried to persuade his boss to fire him. When his boss refused she then used her power as Governor to fire him.

She may be indicted as of October. Talk about October surprises.

[Troubledwawa]

Here's a short film on the Aerial Hunting of the Wolf, in Alaska, that is disturbing on many levels, to say the least - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Mu_rqmFpL8 (It's graphic).

According to the film, twice the people of the State of Alaska have rejected Aerial Hunting, as did the Federal Government back in 1972. Yet the Alaska Department of Fish and Game has offered cash payments to permittees of Aerial Hunting in order to motivate them to redouble their efforts by helping cover the cost of fuel (3/21/07 release) - http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/news/2007/3-21-07_nr.php

Governor Palin Introduces Bill to Streamline Predator Management Laws:
"Governor Sarah Palin has introduced a bill in the State House and Senate that will simplify and clarify Alaska’s intensive management law for big game and the state's "same day airborne hunting" law". - http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/news/2007/5-11-07_nr.php (5/11/2007 release)

8/21/2008, Ballot Measure 2: "Right now, the State Board of Game has the power to call for predator control. This initiative would take that power and restrict it by forcing the state to declare a biological emergency before shooting animals from the air." http://www.ktva.com/ci_10265397

That would be the 3rd time the People of Alaska reject Aerial Hunting, should this measure pass.

[asportsdad]

Gov. Palin sez she is prolife, and yet she supports aerial hunting of wolves and bears. Oh, and another thing, she believes that the war in Iraq is "God's task" for America... does anyone know the total death toll as of now? I wonder what war she believes should be next in God's plan for America.

[toocoldout]

Is she even qualified to be VP? What foreign policy experience does she have?

[ChristiB]

what does it matter? she's pro abortion and pro gun. I think history has proven, given the choice, the black man will not win against a white woman. McCain has just shifted the entire election to guns, abortion (and covertly - race). The dems will have to make it about oil - and hammer the crud outta both of them for their support of tax breaks to big oil; Iraq for oil; America's dependence on oil; lobbyists supporting oil; off-shore drilling as band-aid on a wound. Palin is the new GW - you can hunt and have a beer with her.

[eladora]

about small issues--thats what mccain has to make it to win. Health care, min wage, Iraq an economy in peril , world standing are insignificant. I cannot wait to hear all of the repubs praising her ---those tapes will be forever marked for their future campaigns on judgment.
i hate abortion, i hate war, i hate discrimination, i hate privatizing social security. 3 out of 4 say i am voting dem this election.

[Collatine1802]

Actually she signed a bill levying a windfall profits tax on big oil.

[luckyoldson]

None to put it simply.

[grata2ude]

Well in an interview for ABC news Cindy McCain seems to think she has alot of foreign policy experience because she is from Alaska and Alaska is close to Russia. I kid you not, Cindy really said that.

[johnbeckler]

Please stop with the environment babble. Talk about something relevant. Global warming is a complete distortion of the facts. Polar bears are thriving. ANWR is a tiny little area.

I find it funny that Al Gore has such credibility with Dems. After all, did you all forget that he "invented the internet"?

[Troubledwawa]

Wouldn't that be "Internets"?

[ChristiB]

Credibility with 80% of the WORLD. Too bad the Republicans are such imbiciles they can't figure out that they are on the wrong side of history 100%!

[ctom]

Only problem is that GOP won the last two white house contests and Dems have only managed to whine about it, calling everyone else names. Sometimes it's better to win and be wrong than to be right and lose. Just ask Al.

[luckyoldson]

You mean Al Gore and about 2,500 scientists throughout the world?

I suggest you read more and talk less.

[grata2ude]

Guess you didn't read the article about how the North Pole is now an island thanks to all the ice melting.

[rowzeer]

He did have a hand in the development of the internet. He should have let the Repubs have it for distorting his comments. As usual the Repubs distort things that are said...they can't help it....they're just so used to spinning everything.

[mlaiuppa]

She came out against a clean water initiative that would have protected wild salmon and the headwaters they breed in from an open air mine that is going to contaminate the rivers six days before the vote. The initiative was defeated.

[mediamarv]

Another example of the liberal media:

"But she differs with Mr. McCain on a controversial environment issue that centers on her home state: she supports drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. Mr. McCain's opposition to drilling -- even after he changed positions and began advocating for off-shore oil drilling -- has upset many Republicans."

Republicans change positions. Democrats flip-flop.

[hockeynut]

lmao u r such an idiot

[alaskankid]

Gov. Palin recently came out against Alaska ballot measure 4, a clean water initiative. It is illegal for the governor to take sides on a ballot initiative, but she did anyway, breaking the law. Her Department of Resources web site had an information page that was clearly against measure 4, and they were forced to take it down.

Measure 4 was aimed at stopping the huge Pebble mine project, which scientists believe has a very high probability of polluting the watershed that drains into the largest salmon producing river system in the world, Bristol Bay. Palin's illegal stand against ballot measure 4, and the millions of dollars of misleading advertising by the two foreign mining companies behind the Pebble, who have a terrible track record of pollution, helped the initiative fail in last Tuesday's election. The Pebble mine, if allowed to proceed, will likely become Alaska's worst environmental disaster. The scope of this project is just unbelievable. Even the Juneau Empire (owned by a conservative Georgia newspaper chain) came out in favor of last Tuesday's ballot measure 4.

http://juneauempire.com/stories/082208/opi_321835314.shtml

Ballot measure 4 was an attempt to bring back the clean water regulations that were in effect before Palin's predecessor, former Republican governor Frank Murkowski, gutted them.

http://www.adn.com/money/industries/mining/story/501779.html

I guess it's not unusual for someone who doesn't believe in evolution to not give a darn about the environment.

[rv bob]

The big question is, if Palin gets into the White House, where will she park the snowmobile?

[mmerose]

Thank you, alaskankid!

I think the theme of gov. Palin's "public service" is: the only "public" that counts is big business.

Environmental restrictions might cost corporations money, therefore the problem doesn't exist.

Truth/facts might cost corporations money, therefore only lies can be true.

This is the fundamental compatability with McBush.