NCC Eco-Justice Working Group -- Capsules:

October 2005

Hopi to Mexico Water Run
In March 2006, fifteen Hopis will carry sacred messages, teachings, and waters, gifted to us from many parts of the world and from our homeland on Black Mesa (Northern Arizona) to the 4th World Water Forum in Mexico City, some 2,000 miles away. They will carry the message in behalf of all indigenous peoples.

Virtual March to Stop Global Warming - a virtual march is stretching across the nation, gathering members daily in an effort to urge our nation's leaders to address the issue of global warming. Over 100,00 people have joined in the march. View the website to join, see who else has joined, see where the march moves next, and get updated news on global warming.

“Rooted in God's Word and Lands” is an ecumenical resource for churches and people of faith interested in protecting and redeeming God's land. Click here to download the resource.

NCC Environmental Justice Resource is resource for congregations wishing to address environmental justice issues. For more information, contact cassandra@toad.net.

Eco-Justice Working Group

Church of the Brethren

Environmental Justice Office of Presbyterian Church (USA)

Presbyterian Washington Office

Episcopal Ecological Network

Greek Orthodox Church in America

Luthern Earthkeeping Network of the Synods

Reformed Church in America

United Church of Christ

United Methodist Board of Church and Society

The Real Cost of Gas

In the tragic wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, our national dependence on fossil fuels has hit many of us close to home. With gasoline prices spiking and the Department of Energy predicting a jump in natural gas prices by up to 71 percent, we are feeling our energy dependence - and our vulnerability - in a concrete way. That pinching of our pocketbooks is causing a lot of stir and serious financial hardship for many. But how many of us have paused to consider how much we are really shelling out for our dependence on fossil fuels?

As a nation, we are paying more than high dollar prices for our unsustainable use of oil and natural gas. As we continue to develop and burn fossil fuels without making a coordinated national effort to transition to clean, renewable energy, we are increasingly paying with damage to God's creation and disruption of the glorious web of life. The real cost of gas is reflected in air and water pollution, in global climate change, and in the scarring of the wild places entrusted to our care by drill pads, roads, and pipelines.

All across the West - in states like Colorado, New Mexico, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming - debates rage over opening lands held in the public trust to drilling. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the federal agency that oversees millions of acres of public lands in the West, issued a record number of drilling permits in 2004 that outstripped the industry's capacity to drill. And in July, the Government Accountability Office (Congress' investigative branch) released a report showing that the BLM cannot adequately enforce its environmental safeguards for current drilling operations, let alone a rush of new ones.

Some leaders and industry representatives are using high prices in the wake of the hurricanes as an excuse to call for even more drilling on public lands, including a renewed enthusiasm for opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. But in the long term, this is not the solution to our energy problems. As people of faith, we can and should lead the way in discerning the real cost of gas, deepening the discussion about our fossil fuel dependency, and working toward a sustainable energy system for our nation. With every challenge comes an opportunity, with every failure a chance to improve.

This month, NCC's Eco-Justice Program offers two ways to speak out for a just and sustainable energy future:

Clergy and Lay Leaders: Concerned about how irresponsible energy development is damaging God's lands? Read and endorse the interfaith statement Renewing the Ground: A Call for Faithful Stewardship of Energy Resources on God's Lands.

All People of Faith: Visit the website of our sister organization, Faithful America, to send a message telling your elected officials not to use the tragedy of the hurricanes as an excuse to rush into more drilling on public lands.