Thread by @DrNoelHealy

"Embodied energy injustices: Unveiling and politicizing the transboundary harms of fossil fuel extraction and fossil fuel supply chains".

New paper with @jenniecstephens & @stephmalin_soc

Thread (1)

sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

Energy decisions have transboundary impacts. Yet assessments of large-scale energy infrastructure (e.g. EIS) rarely consider upstream/downstream emissions. Justice implications are completely omitted. Net effect = incomplete & flawed energy decisions (2)

The old Salem plant burned coal from La Guajira, Colombia. Fracked gas from PA, USA, now supplies the new gas-fired station*. Decision-makers ignored the ‘upstream’ injustices experienced by both communities. (3)
sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

Indigenous communities in La Guajira bare the brunt of multinational capital. One coal miner told me "First-world consumer rights take precedence over 3rd-world injustices” (4)

Indigenous communities are displaced by physical force, coercion, & by the contamination of farmland & water. @CerrejonCol coal mine & its owners @Glencore, @bhp and @AngloAmerican call this responsible mining (5)

sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

Communities impacted by fracking in PA suffered severe injustices, akin to coal. Natural gas will warm the earth as much as coal in the short-term (leakage during lifecycle). Fracking thwarts global decarbonization efforts. Moral of story: Gas is NOT a bridge fuel. (6)

The horrors of fossil fuel extraction are hidden from energy consumers. CSR used as tactic to evade responsibility (7)

Connecting local energy struggles with distant transboundary impacts can generate powerful resistance movements (8)

Mandatory transboundary impact assessments of large-scale energy related projects are needed (9)

Disruptive, non-violent, civil disobedience is necessary to hold agencies & governments accountable for upstream emissions & injustices (10)

Individual actions can help. Collective action is more urgent. (11)

Pushing for greater transparency of fossil fuel supply chain can aid corporate accountability efforts (12)

Large-scale energy infrastructure decision-making should involve a legal requirement that compares the lifecycle emission & injustice impacts of proposed fuels. (13)

Regulatory assessments of large-scale energy infrastructure must be consistent with state and national GHG targets (14).

IPCC report: Decarbonize entire economy immediately.

Government reaction: this is fine

This is why disruptive actions are needed.

#Divest #EndFossilFuelSubsidies #BanFracking #KeepItInTheGround #ExxonKnew #Litigation #Degrowth #GreenNewDeal #JustTransition

End Thread

Article I wrote drawing on data from my Colombian fieldwork:

theguardian.com/environment/cl…