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Ad campaign: ‘Big Green’ groups are just big businesses

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Michael Bastasch DCNF Managing Editor
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Environmentalists have gone from being humble conservationists looking to preserve some wilderness areas to a multi-billion dollar industry with incredible lobbying power, according to a new conservative campaign.

The Environmental Policy Alliance launched a new campaign to expose the largess of environmental groups that are often seen as small numbers of activists pitted against monied, corporate fossil fuels interests.

“Middle class families are struggling to pay bills and make ends meet. Meanwhile, powerful and well-funded environmental groups like the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Food & Water Watch are using scare tactics and junk science to push policies that increase the cost of energy,” according to the group’s ad in the Wall Street Journal.

The WSJ ad is headlined with, “The Real Green Agenda: Driving up costs, running over jobs,” and has a picture of a Toyota Prius with a bumper sticker saying, “I care more about MY AGENDA than YOUR JOB.”

The project, called “Big Green Radicals”, sheds light on the funding and activities of three major environmental groups: the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Sierra Club, and Food & Water Watch. All three of these groups have been involved in various activities to curb fossil fuels usage, including promoting global warming alarmism, colluding with federal environmental regulators through “sue and settle” lawsuits and spreading fears about hydraulic fracturing.

“For too long, these ‘big green radicals’ have gone unchecked in using their deep pockets to advocate for radical environmental regulations that impose enormous costs on all Americans,” said Anastasia Swearingen, senior research analyst for Environmental Policy Alliance.

“By pushing to eliminate our use of coal, natural gas, oil, nuclear energy, and even hydropower – collectively 95 percent of America’s energy sources – these activists are threatening the U.S. economy and millions of jobs,” said Swearingen.

Environmental Policy Alliance also notes that NRDC, Sierra Club and Food & Water Watch all have multi-million dollars budgets and are funded by wealthy donors. According to federal tax filings, NRDC has net assets of $182 million, the Sierra Club boasts a war chest of more than $79 million and Food & Water Watch has $5.6 million in net assets.

These groups are also backed by wealthy donors. The Sierra Club, for example, got about $10.8 million from the Sea Change Foundation since 2009 and another $6.2 million from the Energy Foundation. The Sierra Club has also gotten nearly $1.5 million from the George Soros-funded Tides Foundation.

“The only ‘green’ these groups seem to care about is the green in their own pockets, rather than the economic hardships their policies impose upon the rest of us,” Swearingen added.

Environmentalists have not been pleased with being characterized as “Big Green Radicals.” Activists have attempted to discredit the ad’s claims against them.

“This looks like classic Berman & Co. stuff; a DC public affairs firm owned by lobbyist Rick Berman, which has represented the tobacco industry and other big business clients,” wrote NRDC media director Josh Mogerman. “It also operates dozens of front groups, web sites, and supposed think tanks.”

“Well, this shoddy work is sadly representative of what will be coming at the press and public in droves soon. In 2010, climate denial groups received $1.2 billion,” Mogerman added. “That’s nearly doubled since 2003. And with sweeping climate change action coming this summer, you can expect that tab to get even bigger as the fossil fuel industry tries its darndest to push back.”

But Mogerman did not address Environmental Policy Alliance’s factual claims that NRDC is a multi-million dollar operation that engages in political activity which would likely raise the costs of electricity.

The NRDC, along with other environmental groups, have pressed federal regulators to ban new coal-fired power plants unless they use costly carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology. But even government energy officials have admitted that such technology would increase coal power prices by 70 to 80 percent.

“The precise number will vary, but for first generation we project $70-90 per ton (on the wholesale price of electricity),” said Dr. Julio Friedmann, the deputy assistant secretary for clean coal at the Department of Energy. “For second generation, it will be more like a $40-50/ton price. Second generation of demonstrations will begin in a few years, but won’t be until middle of the next decade (2022-2025) that we will have lessons learned and cost savings.”

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