Message From the Editor

In 2014, a company named Northwest Innovation Works (NWIW) proposed building a multi-billion-dollar petrochemical project in Kalama, Washington, a port town roughly 40 miles north of Portland, Oregon. Now, after years of delays and multiple rounds of evaluation, a critical state permit decision is expected imminently for the fossil fuel project. The facility is highly controversial and would have an enormous greenhouse gas impact, but NWIW has lined up powerful figures in the State of Washington to help make the company’s case. Nick Cunningham has the story.

Meanwhile, a few dozen people gathered outside the Louisiana State Capitol building in Baton Rouge at a “Stop the Steal” rally on January 9. They listened to a handful of speakers consoling themselves about the imminent end of the Trump administration. Views expressed by the speakers in Baton Rouge echoed a chorus of right-wing conspiracy theories and misinformation shared by Republican politicians and supporters on social media — a mindset echoed in Louisiana’s science denial regarding the climate crisis and pandemic. Julie Dermansky reports.

And in case you missed it, four environmental groups sued Environmental Protection Agency chief Andrew Wheeler last week, alleging that the agency stood by while Texas failed to enforce the nation’s federal environmental laws and to adequately control air pollution in the state. The lawsuit shines a spotlight on Texas’ enforcement of federal air pollution standards. Read more from Sharon Kelly. 

Have a story tip or feedback? Get in touch: [email protected]. 

Thanks,
Brendan DeMelle
Executive Director

P.S. DeSmog’s public interest journalism is powered by readers like you. Can you pitch in $10 or $20 right now?

Washington State Considers Climate Impact of Major Petrochemical Plant With 'Pattern of Influence Peddling'

— By Nick Cunningham (7 min. read) —

In 2014, a company named Northwest Innovation Works (NWIW) proposed building a multi-billion-dollar petrochemical project in Kalama, Washington, a port town roughly 40 miles north of Portland, Oregon. Now, after years of delays and multiple rounds of evaluation, a critical state permit decision is expected imminently for the fossil fuel project.

The facility would process fracked natural gas into methanol, a liquid chemical that can be used as fuel or for manufacturing plastics, and ship the flammable product down the Columbia River for export to Asia.

In Louisiana Where Science Denial is Commonplace, Support Remains Strong For Trump

— By Julie Dermansky (10 min. read) —

“The president has not conceded — the president said he has got us,” I heard a voice blare out over a loudspeaker as I walked toward the Louisiana State Capitol building in Baton Rouge at a “Stop the Steal” rally on January 9. Once there, I found a few dozen people gathered listening to a handful of speakers consoling themselves about the imminent end of the Trump administration.

Some spoke about their experience on January 6 in Washington, D.C., when thousands of Trump supporters gathered at the president’s behest to try and stop the certification of the 2020 election for Joe Biden. They marched to the U.S. Capitol after Trump encouraged them to do so.

Lawsuit Challenges Permits for Some of Texas' Largest Polluters, Alleges State Fails to Enforce Federal Laws

— By Sharon Kelly (6 min. read) —

Four environmental groups sued Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Andrew Wheeler last week, alleging that the agency stood by while Texas failed to enforce the nation’s federal environmental laws and adequately control air pollution in the state.

“For too long, EPA has turned a blind eye as Texas has routinely violated the federal Clean Air Act by rubber-stamping weak permits for the state’s biggest polluters,” Gabriel Clark-Leach, senior attorney for one of the groups, the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), said in a statement as the lawsuit was filed on January 4.

As Enbridge Races to Build Line 3 Pipeline, Resistance Ramps Up in the Courts and On the Ground

— By Dana Drugmand (10 min. read) —

On January 2, 2021, during the first weekend of the New Year, dozens of water protectors gathered to demonstrate and pray along Great River Road near Palisade, Minnesota. They joined in song, protesting a controversial tar sands oil pipeline called Line 3, which is currently being constructed through northern Minnesota and traditional Anishinaabe lands. Ojibwe tribes have helped spearhead the opposition to this pipeline, alongside Indigenous and environmental groups.

A clash with police hours later resulted in the arrest of 14 demonstrators. As one water protector, Shanai Matteson, described the confrontation: “There were more police, and fewer Water Protectors, in an unreasonable show of force by officers … who escalated the situation.”  

From the Climate Disinformation Database: William Briggs

William Briggs was among the climate science deniers to voice support for the rioters who attacked the Capitol. William M. “Matt” Briggs is a policy advisor to The Heartland Institute and former visiting professor of statistics in the Department of Mathematics at Central Michigan University. The Heartland Institute has received over $560,000 from ExxonMobil, was named in 2019 bankruptcy filings for the Murray Energy company (listing $130,000 going to Heartland), and has become notorious for its opposition to the mainstream consensus on climate change. Briggs has written several books including one on how to test psychic phenomena titled So, You Think You're Psychic, a book that “contains simple, practical procedures that anyone can use to test for the existence of several different paranormal abilities.”

Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database and Koch Network Database.