Given the present admin's intention of closing down most science in the US, and very anti-science attitude, this kind of protest is essential to remind the other politicians that scientists are also constituents.
You'll let us know when "most [federally funded] science is closed down" -- wontcha? There ARE issues that have been neglected. Like ANYTHING environmental OTHER THAN GWarming. And focusing on clean air and clean water and those other issues is a VERY good thing.
There are other things. Like the plethora of Govt labs that simply duplicate themselves (like at NIH) or are redundant compared to the vast number of research labs already established. The objectives SHOULD be to get people INTO STEM. Assure minority representation in those recruitments. And to fund TRUE R&D in the universities and businesses. There is no particular need to duplicate the actual staffs and facilities WITHIN the govt.
With the money that can be saved by cutting off corporate welfare for NON - R&D tax breaks, you could easily INCREASE the amount going to STRAIGHT UP science and R&D.. Neither party has had the balls to do that, but PERHAPS -- a more "independent" Administration will insist it be done..
Oh, now you are claiming the admin that baldly states that it prefers polluted air and water is focusing on clean air and water? Killing the regulations involving mountaintop removal mining will poison many watersheds. Relaxing the emission regulations on the coal fired plants will poison our air.
Apparently you believe a clean environment means copying the conditions in China.
Just told you -- the only regulation that was "killing coal" was the phony CO2 "pollution" regulations. There's a long of plant operators WAITING to upgrade the pollution controls on their plants. They COULDN'T get permits to DECREASE POLLUTION -- because the EPA demanded a ridiculous CO2 emissions level result -- or no cleaner air.
And perhaps all the "restoration clauses" on coal mining will FINALLY be enforced. It was PURPOSELY neglected so that all those "horror pictures" could hit the media and HELP the demonization of the industry. The Restoration part is cheap and easy. Even 3rd parties willing to help.
Man, you are so full of shit.
The Myth of Mountaintop Removal Reclamation
New Research by NRDC and Appalachian Voices Shows Extent of Mining;Exposes the False Promise of Post-Mining Restoration
The mining industry has long exploited a federal statutory provision that exempts them from restoring the land to its “approximate original contour” if there is a plan to develop the land for “equal or better economic use” such as “industrial, commercial, residential or public use.” However, NRDC’s analysis -- released today in its report
Reclamation FAIL -- confirms that nearly 90 percent of mountaintop removal sites have not been converted to economic uses.
“Mining companies don’t love mountains but they love bragging about how they restore mine sites for the benefit of local communities,” says NRDC’s Rob Perks. “Our study exposes Big Coal’s broken promises by proving that post-mining economic prosperity is a big, flat lie.”
NRDC examined 500 mountaintop removal sites in Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee. Of these locations, 90 were excluded from the study due to active, ongoing mining activity. Of the 410 remaining sites surveyed:
- 366 (89.3 percent) had no form of verifiable post-mining economic reclamation excluding forestry and pasture
- 26 (6.3 percent of total) yield some form of verifiable post-mining economic development
Only about four percent of mountains in Kentucky and West Virginia, where 80 percent of the mining is occurring, had any post-mining economic activity. Virginia had the highest proportion of economic activity on its reclaimed mountaintop removal sites at 20 percent. Tennessee, which has relatively little mountaintop removal compared to the other three states, had no economic activity on the six sites examined in that state. Overall, economic activity occurs on just 6 to 11 percent of all reclaimed mountaintop removal sites surveyed as part of this analysis.
The Myth of Mountaintop Removal Reclamation