Environment

A BP state is pictured in London on May 19, 2022. (Photo: Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images). "This is how much greenwashing fossil fuel corporations care about the climate emergency," said climate scientist Bill McGuire. "They really don't give a sh*t." JAKE JOHNSON BP has worked hard—and spent big—to craft a public image as a forward-looking, environment-conscious oil and gas company that's committed to a sustainable future. But its actions tell an entirely different story. The Guardianreported Tuesday that the London-based fossil fuel giant has earmarked up to $7.5 billion for oil and gas projects for the coming year compared to $3-$5 billion set aside for so-called "low carbon" initiatives. BP has previously touted its "clean energy" inve...

Capitalism will always put the need for maximum profit above the people’s health – or even saving the planet. Proletarian writers If anyone still held the misguided view that capitalism can be made to work in a way that safeguards the environment and the people’s health, the recent scandal surrounding German car producer Volkswagen (VW) should provide a timely wake up call. It was recently revealed by the California Air Resources Board that VW has been deliberately producing diesel cars that cheat the emissions test. The cars have been fitted with special software that detects whether the vehicle is undergoing a test – in which case, it turns on an emissions-reducing device. If no test is detected – ie, if the car is simply being used on the road – the vehicles actually pump ...

And all for the sake of the profits of the automobile industry. Proletarian writers Dangerous levels of air pollution in British towns and cities are threatening the health of hundreds of thousands of people. The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) describes air pollution as “the tobacco of the 21st century” and says that while there has been a growing concern about the problem in London, many residents in regional towns and cities are unaware of the threat to their health. https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/869360191&color=%23ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true In December 2017, the Times published an article revealing the results of a study of air pollution levels, which, perhaps unsurprisingly, in...

Fight against unelected planning authorities exposes once again the true nature of Britain’s sham democracy. Proletarian writers On Wednesday 15 May a special council meeting was held in Bristol city hall concerning the construction of a gas-fired electrical generator just 80 metres away from a nursery school in the already highly polluted inner-city area of Barton Hill. The company pushing to acquire planning permission to build this generator is Conrad Energy, and it’s no surprise that the majority of local people, and especially the parents whose children attend the nursery, are dead against its construction. Bristol’s planning authority had initially approved the plan, on the basis that there were no legal grounds for refusing it, but after a petition opposin...

Privatisation has stolen over £60bn from essential services, leaving the country to wallow in its own filth. Proletarian writers Private water companies’ lack of maintenance and investment, combined with their cost-cutting at the expense of health and environment, are pushing Britains’s water system to the brink, even as company directors and shareholders are earning huge dividends from their shameless pillaging of the nation’s wealth. It is not often that a Marxist-Leninist would concede that the Bible makes a good point. Deuteronomy 23:11-14 is one of the few verses that still hold water. Myriad translations abound, but the general gist is this: Of an evening, bathe in water, return to camp. Designate an area outside of the camp to relieve yourselves. Dig a hole wi...