Exclusive: Fossil fuel oligarchs push propaganda on 'net-zero' pledges and war in Ukraine
Why the war in Ukraine is more about controlling fossil fuel profits than you think + How Shell used the SXSW festival in Austin to advertise fake 'net-zero' pledges
Propaganda works on multiple levels to support the fossil fuel industry, and recent weeks have been a masterclass in how to push profits over everything while virtue signaling to the American people. Our two original articles this week look at fossil fuel propaganda at both a mass media scale, and on a local level at SXSW in Austin, Texas. Nationally, the fossil fuel industry is attempting to convince Americans that paying more for gas is their patriotic duty to stop Vladimir Putin, while hiding the fossil fuel entanglements contributing to war in Ukraine. In Austin, Shell used the SXSW festival to advertise their commitments to be “net-zero” emissions by 2050, even though the fine print on their own website admits that these pledges are not reflected in the company’s annual operating plan and budget.
War in Ukraine: How Russia, NATO and fossil fuel oligarchs brought us to the verge of World War 3
It is common for Western media to frame Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as defending democracy against Russian President Vladimir Putin – a shadowy, even Hitler-like figure – but that narrative is an enormous and dangerous oversimplification that masks important details of the war in Ukraine, which has been going on since 2014. These details reveal the true causes of the war: one, the internal conflict of Ukraine’s people who are culturally caught between identifying more with Russian or European society; two, the external political conflict between NATO member states and Russia, with both sides vying for influence within Ukraine; and last, but certainly not least, the conflict of who will meet Europe’s energy needs and who will control the massive oil and gas reserves that were discovered in Ukraine just a few years before the onset of war.
It has been estimated that Ukraine’s natural gas reserves measure more than 1 trillion cubic meters, making them either the second or third largest reserves in Europe. In the early 2010s, geologic surveys began to reveal the extent of Ukraine’s oil and gas reserves, and investment from the European & American fossil fuel industry soon followed in 2012 with Shell and Chevron partnering with Ukraine to begin extracting the gas.
When Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, it was a direct blow to the American and Ukrainian fossil fuel industry. After seceding from Ukraine, the Crimean parliament also voted to nationalize Chornomorneftegaz, a subsidiary of Naftogaz that was headquartered in Crimea and had been investing in the infrastructure to extract gas. Crimea then sold Chornomorneftegaz to Gazprom, Russia’s biggest fossil fuel company, essentially handing Russia the keys to the Black Sea gas reserves.
One factor contributing to the failure of diplomacy may have been the interests of the U.S. fossil fuel industry. Even before the war escalated in February 2022, the U.S. refusal to accept any of Russia’s diplomatic conditions, such as Ukraine remaining neutral outside of NATO, was proving highly profitable for American fossil fuel oligarchs, according to a report in Bail Out Watch. The top 18 Big Oil CEOs had already seen their net-worth grow by billions since Joe Biden took office, and many of them proceeded to cash out on stock gains once Biden declared the war was inevitable. The U.S. fossil fuel industry also stands to profit from the cancellation of Nord Stream 2, as it promotes increased U.S. fracking for gas as a “powerful weapon against Russia” and profitable means of capturing the newly available European market share.
The rest of this full-length, exclusive article is available on branchoutnow.org:
Climate action performance art takes on Shell greenwashing at SXSW
A group of concerned citizens, artists and climate activists staged a performance art demonstration at the SXSW (South by Southwest) festival in Austin, Texas, on Monday, March 14th, while the U.S. Shell Corporation President Gretchen Watkins held a “Fireside chat” about Shell’s target to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The demonstration was organized by members of Extinction Rebellion, the Sunrise Movement and the advocacy group Public Citizen. The group gathered outside the “Shell House” at Antone’s in downtown Austin to draw attention to the climate crisis, to call out Shell’s attempt to greenwash their image while still expanding fossil fuel production, and to give fellow citizens a chance to connect over the urgency of organizing around climate action.
Shell’s stated goal is to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 to help keep global warming below the 1.5-degree threshold laid out in the Paris Climate Accords. On further reading, Shell claims they will reduce the “carbon intensity” of their products 30% by 2030 and 65% by 2050, compared to 2016 emissions. The company’s net-zero page also includes short-term reduction goals of 2-3% in 2021 and 3-4% in 2022, but without any mention of if the 2021 goal was met. A more detailed PDF contradicts the main site, saying that Shell’s goal is only a 20% reduction in “carbon intensity” by 2030. Additionally, a legal disclaimer at the very bottom of Shell’s net-zero page clarifies, “it is important to note that as of April 16, 2020, Shell’s operating plans and budgets do not reflect Shell’s Net-Zero Emissions ambition.”
The Texas Director of Public Citizen, Adrian Shelley, told Branch Out, “Shell came to Austin, Texas to present its plan for carbon neutrality by 2050. We know that that’s insufficient. The IPCC Report that just came out told us we have eight years at most to act on climate change and that means a total divestment from fossil fuels as quickly as possible.”
The rest of this full-length, exclusive article is available on branchoutnow.org:
Science Desk
An extreme weather event induced by climate change nicknamed a “bomb cyclone,” is making its way to the North Pole.
It is expected to raise the temperature by 50 degrees F (28 C) above the normal temperature for this time of year.
The weather event may also bring rain to some regions which would accelerate the seasonal ice melt.
“Looking back over the last few decades, we can clearly see a trend in warming, particularly in the 'cold season’ in the Arctic,” Ruth Mottram, a climate scientist with the Danish Meteorological Institute, told the Washington Post.
Friday Forecast
Next week, we are following up on our previous coverage of the case of Steven Donziger. Over the Summer, we brought you the story of this attorney, who had been under house arrest since Chevron took legal action against him, following his role in winning a legal battle against Chevron for Indigenous people in Ecuador. A lot has happened since then in the case. Read the full story next week at branchoutnow.org
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