(Shutterstock)

We’re all familiar with those ubiquitous television commercials that implore us to “ask our doctor” about a new pill to cure depression or anxiety or to treat those unfortunate souls who find themselves depressively anxious. Slipped into nearly every such commercial is the reassuring voice of a narrator who inconspicuously mentions that this same magical pill has a few side effects. Oh, you know, nothing too serious—maybe you’ll go blind in one eye or lose control of your bowels, maybe your liver will cease functioning. Nothing worth fretting over.

In the same vein, pesticides are often promoted as the silver bullet panaceas of the agriculture industry. Sure, the industry seems to say, this or that pesticide might contain toxic chemicals that damage human health or negatively impact ecosystems, but these same pesticides make growing shiny apples and juicy blueberries so much easier! And besides, finding pesticide alternatives might cost the agriculture industry a few extra bucks.

Fortunately, Earthjustice is well-versed in using the law and the courts to hold accountable those who jeopardize the health and safety of the public and our environment. Case in point: azinphos-methyl, a dangerous pesticide commonly referred to as AZM.

Theodore (Ted) McRoberts Smith.

It was with great sadness that we learned of the loss of a member of the Earthjustice family. Ted Smith, a longtime conservationist and member of our Board of Trustees, died Labor Day weekend after falling during a hike near Mission Falls in Montana. Ted became an Earthjustice board member in November 2008 and recently was selected to serve as vice chair.

Earthjustice Board Chair Peter Carson remembers Ted in this way:

Ted was a true treasure. In the time that he was on the Board, I came to see him and rely on him as a source of unmatched wisdom and guidance. His self-deprecating humility belied a towering intelligence. Quiet, warm, open and tenderhearted, he was one of the greats, and we all benefitted by being in his circle.

(Editor's Note: This is the fifth blog post in an ongoing series about proposed coal export terminals in the Pacific Northwest.)

Dr. Frank James is a member of Whatcom Docs, a group of medical doctors in Whatcom County, Wash., who are concerned about the health impacts of a proposed coal shipping terminal in Bellingham, Wash. The coal export terminal would ship up to 48 million tons of American coal overseas each year. The terminal operation would add approximately 30 miles of coal trains daily to the rail line that runs along the Puget Sound coast.

Dr. James is health officer for San Juan County, Wash. and for the Nooksack Indian Tribe, and a professor of public health at the University of Washington. We recently chatted with Dr. James about the forming of Whatcom Docs and what role the group is playing in the battle over coal export in the Pacific Northwest.

Author Wendell Berry has examined the relationship of rural America with the nation’s urban centers.

(Editor's Note: This is the fourth blog post in an ongoing series about proposed coal export terminals in the Pacific Northwest. Upcoming blog posts will examine the potential impact coal export terminals could have on the region's health and environment.)

The television comedy program Portlandia likes to poke fun at the culture of the Pacific Northwest. According to the show, the region is home to bicycle-riding, dumpster-diving, organic-free range-grass fed-biodynamic tree-huggers. And while Portlandia promotes a well-hewn stereotype of the region, there’s something to be said for its portrayal.

Coal dust drifts through downtown Seward, Alaska, which is home to a coal export terminal. (Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance)

(Editor's Note: This is the third blog in an ongoing series about proposed coal export terminals in the Pacific Northwest. Upcoming blogs will examine the potential impact coal export terminals could have on the region's health and environment.)

Portland General Electric—a utility that operates power plants and supplies about half of Oregon’s electricity—thinks a coal export terminal proposed for construction at Port of St. Helens would generate too much pollution.

Um, can someone get the devil on the horn and check to see if hell officially froze over?

Coos Bay, Oregon, where a coal export facility has been proposed. (Photo: Brian Burger)

Listening to your doctor’s orders is usually a good idea. If your doctor prescribes you a medication and tells you to attend physical therapy, then you take the medication and you go to physical therapy. Now, imagine if 130 doctors all told you to do the same thing. You’d probably follow their orders, right?

Well, this week in Oregon, 130 doctors from Physicians for Social Responsibility called on the state to conduct a comprehensive Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of proposed coal export projects.

Currently, three coal export projects have been proposed in Oregon including a facility at Coos Bay, the Kinder Morgan terminal at Port of St. Helens, and the Ambre Energy project with facilities at the Port of Morrow and the Port of St. Helens. Physicians for Social Responsibility joins Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber and a group of physicians in Washington, Whatcom Docs, in calling for a HIA to assess the health risks associated with coal export.

Longview, Washington.

(Editor's Note: This is the second blog in an ongoing series about proposed coal export terminals in the Pacific Northwest. Upcoming blogs will examine the potential impact coal export terminals could have on the region's health and environment.)

There are a whole lot of coal companies mining a whole lot of coal in Wyoming and Montana’s Powder River Basin. Although U.S. demand for coal is shrinking—thanks in part to Earthjustice’s successful campaign to shutter polluting coal-fired power plants—there are a whole lot of coal-fired power plants in Asia and a whole lot more planned for future construction.

You can probably see where this is going.

Considering the circumstances, it doesn’t take a trained economist to deduce that Powder River Basin mining companies are keen on selling Asia as much coal as possible. The only problem, from industry’s perspective, is how to transport the coal to the continent. Obviously, American coal will sit on a big boat during the last leg of the trip, but it’s the process leading up to the voyage across the Pacific that’s proving to be the sticky wicket.

On Monday, a coal train derailed in Washington on its way to Spokane, spilling tons of coal and coal dust alongside the tracks. Then, on Wednesday afternoon, a coal train near Chicago derailed bringing a bridge down with it and killing a passenger in a car below. Finally, on Wednesday night, a train near the small town of Pendleton, Texas derailed, spewing coal from 43 rail cars.

In other words, it’s been a bad week for coal trains.

If you were a false killer whale off the Hawaiian coast you’d probably be calling ocean 911 right about now on your underwater cell phone.

You’d frantically shout: “Hurry, send help now! Us false killer whales are being killed by longline fishing hooks!” And the ocean 911 operator would respond: “We have been receiving a lot of calls from you false killer whales and I’m going to tell you what I tell everyone else: you’re just going to have to sit tight and wait because the National Marine Fisheries Service is still figuring it out! Have a nice day and may the odds be ever in your favor.”

Seriously, NMFS, what’s the deal? The agency said it would finalize its plan by last December to reduce the number of false killer whales dying at the hands of Hawai’i’s longline tuna fishery. Well, here we are at the start of July and still no final plan; the agency says it needs more time. But if you’re a false killer whale dodging longline hooks just to stay alive, excessive delay and bureaucratic hand-wringing is the last thing you need.

The Rulison Gas Field on the Roan Plateau. (Photo by Save Roan Plateau)

How much are oil and natural gas worth? I’m not asking how much a barrel of sweet crude is going for these days or what your gas bill from the utility company was last month. The real question isn’t how much fossil fuels cost in terms of dollars, but rather, what is worth sacrificing in their pursuit? Since the physical process of extracting oil and gas tends to severely despoil the surrounding environment, asking how much oil and gas are worth is akin to asking what nature is worth.

But in nature, there is value that dollar signs cannot quantify—take Colorado’s Roan Plateau for instance.