Sundance Channel

Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline: the facts deserve repeating

Robert Redford — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:01:56 +0000

Joe Nocera's op-ed in the New York Times yesterday deserves a response and a reiteration of the facts surrounding the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. President Obama rejected the pipeline's permit last month when the GOP, in a political stunt, forced his hand to approve it without even the final route evident.

President Obama stands up to big oil

Robert Redford — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 20:42:00 +0000

Photo by Emma Cassidy, licensed under a Creative Commons license

Let's face it: Big Oil is used to getting its way. But not today... and we have President Obama to thank for standing up to them in spite of the political risk. President Obama has just rejected a permit for the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline -- a project that promised riches for the oil giants and an environmental disaster for the rest of us. His decision represents a victory of historic proportions for people from throughout the pipeline path and all across America who have waged an uphill, years-long fight against one of the most nightmarish fossil fuel projects of our time. But make no mistake: Big Oil is going to fight back hard and fast.

Congress and Keystone XL: A national disgrace

Robert Redford — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:19:54 +0000

Photo credit: tarsandaction The Congress is ending the year much as it began -- playing politics with our nation's future and putting American families at risk to score partisan points. In the closing act to a shameful year of paralysis and indecision on the issues that matter most, House Republicans held common-sense tax relief for American families hostage to a holiday gift to Big Oil. After the GOP-led House welded the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline rider onto the tax-relief bill, the Democratic-led Senate went along for the ride, passing a bad piece of legislation rather than being accused of blocking a needed tax cut. When the United State Congress intentionally ties these two things together, though, it's not a joke: it's a national disgrace.

Keystone XL and jobs: just more pipe dreams

Robert Redford — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 21:04:37 +0000

Photo credit: EcoWatch This week the GOP leadership, once again, has sided with Big Oil against the will of the American people. They are trying to circumvent President Obama's decision to further investigate the impacts of the controversial Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. GOP leadership is instead advocating for granting the permit now, or else they will hold up important legislation meant to benefit real people's real lives. They want you to believe it's about jobs, but that's not what the facts bear out. Just take a look.

Redford & the NRDC to demonstrate against Big Oil in D.C.

Robert Redford — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:49:38 +0000

Before President Obama entered office he promised to stand up to big oil. Now it's up to him and his administration - not Congress - to stick to his promise and stop the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline once and for all. The pipeline will increase our dependence on foreign oil, create more pollution and threaten our land, water and climate. We're going to rally in Washington D.C. on November 6th to let Obama know that he has the people's support on this decision. If you'd like to do something about this, click to join the rally on November 6th, 2011.

Redford urges resistance to the dirtiest oil on the planet

Robert Redford — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 15:56:28 +0000

When you challenge Big Oil in Houston, you can bet the industry is going to punch back. So when I wrote in the Houston Chronicle earlier this month that we should say no to the Keystone XL pipeline, I wasn't surprised when the project's chief executive weighed in with a different view. The corporate rejoinder, written by Alex Pourbaix, president for energy and oil pipelines for the TransCanada Corp., purported to cite "errors" in my oped. Let's set the record straight, point by point. First, the Keystone XL, as proposed, would run from Canada across the width of our country to Texas oil refineries and ports. It would carry diluted bitumen, a kind of crude oil, produced from the Alberta tar sands. On those points, we all agree. I say this is a bad idea. It would put farmers, ranchers and croplands at risk across much of the Great Plains. It would feed our costly addiction to oil. And it would wed our future to the destructive production of tar sands crude...

Is the Obama administration putting corporate profits above public health?

Robert Redford — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 20:51:03 +0000

One reason I supported President Obama is because he said we must protect clean air, water and lands. But what good is it to say the right thing unless you act on it? Since early August, three administration decisions - on Arctic drilling, the Keystone XL pipeline and the ozone that causes smog - have all favored dirty industry over public health and a clean environment. Like so many others, I’m beginning to wonder just where the man stands.

As Companies Gather for Shareholder Meetings, Opposition to Bristol Bay Mine Mounts

Robert Redford — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 18:00:43 +0000

As Companies Gather for Shareholder Meetings, Opposition to Bristol Bay Mine Mounts

Bidder 70

Robert Redford — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 15:44:51 +0000

In 2008 a young environmental activist named Tim DeChristopher bid on 13 parcels of land quietly put up for auction by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the waning days of the Bush Administration. This land was part of a larger offering by the BLM of federal public land in an attempt to open it up to oil and gas exploration. The majority of the land was near national parks in southern Utah.

Utah Approves a Mine Next to Bryce Canyon for Coal America Doesn’t Need

Robert Redford — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 17:27:40 +0000

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. (Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images)

Imagine: A massive open-pit coal mine next to a wilderness jewel. A scenario like that might have been routine in the past, but this is the 21st century, when many cleaner, more sustainable ways to power our economy abound. We no longer have to sacrifice an iconic landscape in order to burn some dirty rocks. And yet a mining company got approval last month to open Utah's first-ever strip mine for coal in the small community of Alton. Few new coal mines have opened in the West in the past decade since most developers focus on expanding existing mines, not reaching into untouched wilderness. And that's what makes this mine so troubling: it will be located 10 miles from Bryce Canyon National Park. The truth is we don't need this coal. The developers claim they have a contract with a Utah utility, but they won't disclose which one. It's questionable whether local utilities even have the need for such sizeable quantities of coal. Instead, rumors indicate that a lot of the coal will be hauled to a West Coast port for shipping, possibly overseas. If the company is so confident there is a market for its product, it should name its buyers. The West has a long history of outside companies extracting local resources, selling them elsewhere, and leaving nearby communities to clean up the mess often at taxpayer expense. No matter what they might tell you, there is no reclamation plan that can return an open pit mine to a natural, wild state. Once that untamed spirit is gone, it's gone for good. Some places are simply too special to industrialize. Bryce country is one of them.

‘The Fix:’ Dirty Energy’s Undue Influence on American Political Life

Robert Redford — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 21:42:34 +0000

The glove-covered hands of Dan Howells, deputy campaign director with Greenpeace, are coated with a layer of oil after he dipped them in oil floating on the surface in the Gulf of Mexico following the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill near Grand Isle, Louisiana, June 10, 2010. AFP PHOTO / Saul LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

Like most Americans, I am horrified by the unending catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico. Even with the latest containment cap in place, oil is likely to hemorrhage from BP's ruptured well until August or beyond. As I try to convey in my new video, "The Fix," I am appalled by what this spill is doing to Gulf fishermen, families, communities and wildlife. But I am also disgusted by what it reveals about the oil industry's role in American political life. With their deep pockets, oil companies have purchased loose safety regulations, slack oversight and support from key lawmakers. Last year alone, the industry spent a $168 million on lobbying -- $16 million of which came from BP. The blowout on the Deepwater Horizon is a symptom of this undue influence. It is time for the collusion to stop. As long as it continues, Americans will pay the price in the form of devastated ecosystems and a fossil fuel addiction that benefits oil companies, not ordinary citizens.

Joe Berlinger vs. Chevron: Why We Must All Defend Independent Filmmaking

Robert Redford — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 16:52:29 +0000

I have devoted a significant part of my life’s work in support of the independent artist — independent referring not to the size of a project, its funding or subject matter; rather, to the singular vision and voice of that artist. I founded Sundance Institute 30 years ago out of the belief that it is [...]

Robert Redford: “Mr. President, now is the time for clean energy.”

Robert Redford — Wed, 19 May 2010 20:15:04 +0000

Thursday, May 20, 2010, marks one month since BP’s oil rig exploded in the Gulf Coast, killing 11 people and unleashing one of the worst environmental disasters our nation has ever seen. Since then, millions of gallons of oil have gushed into the ocean, poisoning marine life and threatening hundreds of miles of coastal [...]

72 hours for clean American energy

Robert Redford — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:32:04 +0000

The news out of Washington has grown discouraging lately. Lawmakers are bickering and Congress is in gridlock. Corporations, meanwhile, have been given license by the Supreme Court to purchase more political influence than ever before.

The green economy is dawning

Robert Redford — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 22:05:53 +0000

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham recently said at a news conference that “the green economy is coming.” I couldn’t agree with him more. The signs are all around us, from studies that show green jobs are growing 2.5 times faster than conventional jobs to the fact that California’s clean energy industry attracted $6.5 billion in venture capital in the past three years. These are just the signs from our own shores. From China to Germany, there is no doubt that nations are beginning to see the financial wisdom in preventing the exorbitant costs of global warming by putting clean energy solutions in place now. The only question that remains is: Will America be a leader in the green economy?

A New Book Offers Common Sense for the Climate Debate

Robert Redford — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:09:19 +0000

Frances Beinecke, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council, has penned a modern classic in revolutionary thought. Titled Clean Energy, Common Sense, this book calls on us, as a nation, to rise to the challenge of climate change while there's still time to act.

The Red Rock Wilderness Act: Our Chance to Be Present at the Creation

Robert Redford — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:39:31 +0000

This week marks an historic turning point for people who love the wild canyon country and sweeping mesas of Southern Utah. For the first time, the U.S. House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forest and Public Lands will consider a bill designed to protect millions of acres of spectacular Utah lands as wilderness. All of these lands—some of the last great places on earth---are owned by the public, but most of them remain vulnerable to industrial development. America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act would protect them from oil and gas development, uranium mining, and off-road vehicle use. Meanwhile, hunters, anglers, hikers, and families could continue to enjoy them, including the renowned Cedar Mesa, San Rafael Swell, and the Book Cliffs. This is our chance to be present at the creation. If we pass the Red Rock Wilderness Act, we can tell our grandchildren we helped birth the latest Yellowstone. We can say we preserved treasures equal to Zion, Arches, and Canyonlands National Parks. We can add to the wilderness inheritance of future generations, and they will thank us for it.

Why We Need a Bold New Vision for Preserving Our Nation’s Wilderness

Robert Redford — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 19:08:02 +0000

I have welcomed several promising signs coming out of the Obama Administration, from the president’s push for clean energy to Interior Secretary Salazar’s efforts to block oil and gas leasing near some of Utah’s most stunning landscapes. But there is still something I am waiting to see: a bold new vision for preserving America’s wilderness. [...]

Iran: Open Letter to the Sundance Community

Robert Redford — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 19:28:52 +0000

This weekend, Iranian-born artist Shirin Neshat, a Sundance Institute Artist Trustee, sat at our annual Board Retreat and described in terrifying detail a situation we all know about, but perhaps not in enough detail. Among many others recently arrested in Iran’s post-election demonstrations are Iranian artists, journalists, filmmakers and human rights leaders, including some filmmakers [...]

Time to transform Utah’s energy-producing future

Robert Redford — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:25:57 +0000

image credit: the russians are here used under a creative commons license Anyone who knows Utah knows the power of wind, water and sun. You can see that power in Utah's sculpted arches of stone, in our majestic mountains capped with snow, and in the cracked earth of our deserts. Nature's power is so obvious that you have to wonder why we've mostly ignored it as a source of energy to run our homes and businesses, and to propel our cars and trucks.

Robert Redford: the importance of Earth Day

Robert Redford — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 21:48:10 +0000

Image: NASA On its 39th anniversary, Earth Day still feels vital to me, but I know that some of you out there think that its time has passed. Every day should be Earth Day, you say. Choosing just one, single day to say you care about the planet we call home — what good is [...]

Balancing renewable energy projects & public lands stewardship

Robert Redford — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:29:39 +0000

America is on the verge of a renewable energy gold rush. Hundreds of applications for wind and solar projects have been filed on public lands. I think this is long overdue. We need sustainable energy to help us reduce global warming pollution, and we need it fast. But if we don’t handle this boom carefully, [...]

Robert Redford On Solar Power

Robert Redford — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:02:15 +0000

I was Too Early on Solar Power; Let’s Not Be Too Late In his State of the Union address, President Obama noted that although America invented solar energy technology, we have fallen behind countries like Germany and Japan in producing it. He is right of course. I remember when America was leading the pack on [...]

Robert Redford: Democracy Is Working

Robert Redford — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 16:00:00 +0000

Democracy is working. At least that’s the news for now from my friends at the Natural Resources Defense Council, which has filed a lawsuit against last-minute Bush Administration plans to lease huge swaths of majestic wilderness in Utah for oil and gas extraction. Late last night, NRDC and a coalition of environmental and preservation groups [...]

Robert Redford: You Can’t Put A Price On Silence Or Solitude

Robert Redford — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 18:00:00 +0000

You can’t put a price on silence or solitude. You can’t quantify the beauty of wilderness. And yet that’s not going to stop the Bush administration from trying to sell off what should be the birthright of future generations. In three days, this Friday, 110,000 acres of majestic Utah wild lands go on the auction [...]

Robert Redford: Mr. President, Respect Our Choice

Robert Redford — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 22:00:00 +0000

Americans Rejected ‘Drill, Baby, Drill.’ Bush Should Respect Our Choice. By Robert Redford Part of the change Americans just voted for in overwhelming numbers was to move away from the failed energy philosophy of “drill, baby, drill” to a more farsighted strategy, emphasized by Barack Obama, based on clean, renewable energy and efficiency. Yet on [...]

Robert Redford: The Spin

Robert Redford — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:00:00 +0000

With all the spin… the flip, the bob, the weave… the duplicitous behavior coming from the Republicans… scrapping around in campaign desperation. Blurring the facts seems to be a strategy. But what’s not a blur is that the Republican party has had it all for the last 8 years – Presidency and national administration, both [...]

Robert Redford: The American People

Robert Redford — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 15:00:00 +0000

Are we missing something? The simple and clear story? The real story? To resurrect a popular campaign phrase from a while back: Are you better off than you were 4 years ago? How about 8 years ago? I do admire the messaging skill of the Republican machine — simple, clear, repetitive and strong. But wrong. [...]