Keeping it in the Ground
The fight to keep Fossil Fuel Empires off public lands
By Marissa Knodel, climate change campaigner
Original illustration by Sam Wallman, www.penerasespaper.com
Humanity is at a climate tipping point and faces an urgent challenge: the phase-out of fossil fuels. In March 2015, the world surpassed 400 parts per million of carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, well above the “safe” level of 350 parts per million. In order to have a fighting chance of stabilizing the climate, we need to keep at least 80 percent of global fossil fuel reserves in the ground.
The solution is relatively straight forward: to keep fossil fuels in the ground, we need to stop opening up new areas for fossil fuel development. And the one person with the power to start making this happen is President Obama.
The climate movement is at a critical juncture. In 2014, more than 400,000 people mobilized in the streets of New York to call for global action on climate, and our highest-profile domestic climate campaign over the Keystone XL pipeline has delayed the project for over seven years. With this great momentum, our focus must turn to keeping fossil fuels in the ground, and the best places to start are on our public lands and waters. By ending fossil fuel development on lands and waters that belong to the American public, President Obama will not only safeguard our families, planet, and future, he will solidify his climate legacy and make America a true international climate leader in the global fight to combat climate disruption.
Calling on President Obama to end federal leasing for fossil fuels on public lands and waters will send him a powerful message: the public interest is not served by continuing to lease the dirty fossil fuels that are polluting our communities, impairing our local economies, and contributing to climate disruption. If President Obama is serious about leaving a safe and healthy environment for present and future generations, he needs to order the federal government to stop selling our public lands and waters to Fossil Fuel Empires and keep fossil fuels in the ground.
That is why Friends of the Earth is launching its “Keep It in the Ground” campaign, to put pressure on President Obama to use his remaining months in office to be a true climate leader and protect our land, air, water, wildlife and frontline communities from the destructive impacts of fossil fuel development that scar our landscapes, foul our waters, impair our health, and undermine our natural and cultural heritage.
This illustration first appeared in Friends of the Earth’s summer 2015 newsmagazine. For more information, visit www.foe.org/publications/newsmagazines.
