Infrastructure

Blackstone, BlackRock Or A Public Bank?

May 27, 2018 Ellen Brown, Web of Debt. Create! California, Infrastructure, Public Banks

California needs over $700 billion in infrastructure during the next decade. Where will this money come from? The $1.5 trillion infrastructure initiative unveiled by President Trump in February 2018 includes only $200 billion in federal funding, and less than that after factoring in the billions in tax cuts in infrastructure-related projects. The rest is to come from cities, states, private investors and public-private partnerships (PPPs) one. And since city and state coffers are depleted, that chiefly means private investors and PPPs, which have a shady history at best.

China’s State Bank Explains Why Their Infrastructure Grows And US Crumbles

March 1, 2018 Ellen Brown, Truthdig.com Create! China, Infrastructure, Inter-Imperialist Rivalry, New Economy

“One Belt, One Road,” China’s $1 trillion infrastructure initiative, is a massive undertaking involving highways, pipelines, transmission lines, ports, power stations, fiber optics and railroads connecting China to Central Asia, Europe and Africa. According to Dan Slane, a former adviser in President Trump’s transition team, “It is the largest infrastructure project initiated by one nation in the history of the world and is designed to enable China to become the dominant economic power in the world.” In a Jan. 29 article titled “Trump’s Plan a Recipe for Failure, Former Infrastructure Advisor Says,” he added, “If we don’t get our act together very soon, we should all be brushing up on our Mandarin.”

Corporations Profiting From Water Infrastructure Crisis

February 22, 2018 By Elizabeth Nussbaumer, Foodandwaterwatch.org Educate! Corporations, Crisis, Infrastructure, Profit, Water

Here are some numbers to start. In 2014, 64 percent of bottled water was, essentially, filtered tap water -- up from 51.8 percent in 2009. From 2010 to 2014, total federal funding for public water infrastructure fell from $6.9 billion to around $4.4 billion. In other words: as funding for safe public water fell 37 percent, bottled water companies were able to increase sales of what was basically just tap water under the guise that it was “safer.” Even though the U.S. government requires stricter safety monitoring of tap water than for bottled water. When Congress doesn't fund water infrastructure, Nestlé wins. And this is something they spend millions doing. The International Bottled Water Association, Nestlé Waters NA, Nestlé USA and Coca-Cola lobbied Congress on issues including bottled water, water infrastructure...

Warning: Trump’s Infrastructure Plan Will Make It Harder To Fight Pipelines

February 22, 2018 By Jessica Corbett, Commondreams.org Educate! Infrastructure, Pipelines, Trump Administration

As green groups continue to denounce the Trump administration's recently unveiled infrastructure plan as a "scam" that's designed to keep the nation trapped in its "dirty and destructive past," analysts are also warning the proposal will "make it harder for the next big anti-pipeline movement" to launch successful legal challenges to new fossil fuel projects. The plan aims to not only fast-track the construction of more pipelines across the U.S., but also to limit "the legal options available to lawyers at environmental groups opposed to new fossil fuel infrastructure" in part by changing "the standard under which a pipeline project could be temporarily halted by a judge," as Dino Gradoni explains in a Washington Post piece published Friday.

Climate Change Strikes U.S. Military Bases

February 6, 2018 By Alex Kirby, Truthdig.com Educate! Climate Change, Infrastructure, Military bases, US Imperialism

Once more, the administration of President Trump seems puzzled about how seriously – if at all – it should regard how climate effects strike US military abilities. In December the president listed the global threats he reckoned the US was facing – and climate change didn’t get a mention. Now, though, the US Department of Defense says many of its bases are feeling the worrying impacts of – climate change. Around half of US military bases worldwide are already experiencing those impacts, a Pentagon report says. A survey shows risks to military infrastructure related to climate and extreme weather are widespread, affecting nearly 50% of the 1,684 sites involved. The survey, described as a vulnerability assessment, identifies several key categories of risk: flooding, both from storm surges and causes such as rain, snow, ice and river overflows; extreme heat and cold; wind; drought; and wildfire.

As Trump Unfurls Infrastructure Plan, Iowa Bill Seeks To Criminalize Pipeline Protests

February 2, 2018 By Steve Horn, Desmogblog.com Resist! Infrastructure, Iowa, Legislation, Pipelines, Protests, Trump Administration

The Iowa Senate has advanced a bill which critics say could lead to the criminalization of pipeline protests, which are being cast as “terrorist activities.” Dakota Access pipeline owner Energy Transfer Partners and other companies have lobbied for the bill, Senate Study Bill 3062, which opens up the possibility of prison time and a hefty fine for those who commit “sabotage” of critical infrastructure, such as oil and gas pipelines. This bill, carrying a criminal punishment of up to 25 years in prison and $100,000 in fines, resembles the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act, a “model” bill recently passed by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). That ALECbill, intended as a template for state and federal legislation, was based on Oklahoma's HB 1123...

Trump Infrastructure Plan: Pay Tolls And Privatized Highways

January 31, 2018 By Steven Rosenfeld, Mintpressnews.com Educate! Infrastructure, Privatization, Transportation, Trump Administration

As President Donald Trump delivers his first State of the Union address Tuesday, pay close attention to his next big priority—an infrastructure plan—which, over time, could eclipse the trillion-dollar giveaway to the rich in the GOP’s just-passed tax plan. And track the response from Democrats, who will have to decide if they will back a plan drafted by privatization proponents, or if Democrats will represent the public and say no to years of paying off infrastructure bonds sold by Wall Street—tax free to investors—but eating up future tax revenues while imposing new user fees like highway tolls. “[The GOP-passed] tax cuts have slowly opened the door to Wall Street, construction giants, and global water companies, who see enormous potential for profits,” wrote Donald Cohen, president of In the Public Interest, an anti-privatization advocacy group.

Baltimore’s Water Cleanup Infrastructure Becomes Public Sensation

January 12, 2018 Alastar Boone, Citylab.com Organize! Baltimore, Infrastructure, Water Pollution

When John Kellett invented the Inner Harbor Wheel to collect trash from Baltimore’s popular waterway, he never imagined it would have eyeballs. Or a Twitter account. But these features have made the trash collection contraption—commonly known as Mr. Trash Wheel—beloved by many Baltimore residents, and helped the Healthy Harbor Initiative come alive. “Ever since we installed the googly eyes on Mr. Trash Wheel, the awareness and excitement around this whole idea of cleaning up the harbor has exploded,” Casey Merbler, a project manager of the Healthy Harbor Initiative, said in a new video produced by the Van Alen Institute in collaboration with CityLab. Indeed, Mr. Trash Wheel has almost 15 thousand followers on Twitter. And his fame is well deserved.

US Has Deadly Accidents And Crumbling Infrastructure

January 8, 2018 By Mike Ludwig, Truthout.org Educate! Infrastructure, Japan, Transportation, United States

Japan's high-speed bullet train system carries 1 million riders every day and has a remarkable safety record, at least compared to passenger trains in the United States. Passengers have taken billions of rides on Japanese bullet trains since the system was established 50 years ago, but not one passenger has died due to a derailment or collision. In the US commuters and travelers use trains less than the Japanese, but US passenger train lines have suffered five major wrecks that killed or injured passengers over the past decade, including the recent derailment of an Amtrak passenger train that killed three people and injured more than 50 others in DuPont, Washington on December 18. Among the dead were two active members of the Rail Passengers Association, a group that pushes for greater access to passenger rail services.

Activists Call On Colombia To Provide Infrastructure Improvements

October 4, 2017 Staff, www.blackallianceforpeace.com Resist! Activists, Afro-Colombians, Colombia, Health Care, Infrastructure

By Staff of Black Alliance for Peace - The undersigned gender, racial, social and environmental justice organizations and advocates from around the world applaud the inclusion of the Ethnic Chapter and other racial and gender rights measures in Colombia’s Final Agreement to End the Armed Conflict and Build a Stable and Lasting Peace. If implemented, these provisions will allow Colombia to set a global example of holistic peacebuilding—one that meaningfully addresses the social inequalities that help fuel conflict. We are, however, deeply concerned about the inadequate consultation with and recognition of Afro-Colombian and Indigenous authorities in peace implementation activities to date, and the ways in which this endangers the lives, security, and territorial and human rights of Afro-Descendant and Indigenous Peoples, including women and girls. We encourage the Government to act in good faith to ensure that Indigenous and Afro-Descendant Peoples’ rights are maintained and furthered in peace implementation. It is crucial that the framework plan for implementing the Peace Accord contain indicators to measure the progress and outcomes of policies, programs and reforms in a manner that corresponds to the needs, values, and rights of Indigenous and Afro-Descendant Peoples, including their gender-based rights. These can only be developed with meaningful participation of their respective authorities and organizations.

Crumbling Pipes, Tainted Water Plague Black Communities

August 17, 2017 William Taylor Potter, Brandon Kitchin and Alexis Reese, www.troubledwater.news21.com Educate! Black People, Infrastructure, Water, Water Pollution

By William Taylor Potter, Brandon Kitchin and Alexis Reese for Troubled Water - CAMPTI, La. – Deep in the winding mass of crumbling back streets in Campti, Leroy Hayes sets a glass of water from his faucet in a patch of sunlight on the railing of his porch and watches specks of sediment float to the top. Hayes said the town’s water system has been bad for years, with water often coming out brown and smelling like bleach. The family uses bottled water for drinking and cooking and often has to drive to the city of Natchitoches, 11 miles away, to wash their clothes. The Campti water leaves their clothes with a yellowish tint. “Don’t nobody drink that mess,” Hayes said. Like many poor African-American communities, Campti’s poverty is a significant impediment to making crucial improvements to the town’s infrastructure – including its old water system. Hayes is a lifelong resident of the town, where according to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than half of the predominantly African-American population lives in poverty. Campti’s median household income is only $15,428.

If China Can Fund Infrastructure With Credit, So Can We

May 21, 2017 Ellen Brown, www.ellenbrown.com Create! Banking and Finance, Debt, Infrastructure, Transportation

By Ellen Brown for the Web of Debt Blog. United States - May 15-19 has been designated “National Infrastructure Week” by the US Chambers of Commerce, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and over 150 affiliates. Their message: “It’s time to rebuild.” Ever since ASCE began issuing its “National Infrastructure Report Card” in 1998, the nation has gotten a dismal grade of D or D+. In the meantime, the estimated cost of fixing its infrastructure has gone up from $1.3 trillion to $4.6 trillion. While American politicians debate endlessly over how to finance the needed fixes and which ones to implement, the Chinese have managed to fund massive infrastructure projects all across their country, including 12,000 miles of high-speed rail built just in the last decade. How have they done it, and why can’t we?

‘The Greatest Jobs Producer God Ever Created’

April 7, 2017 Peter Rugh, www.indypendent.org Educate! Infrastructure, Trump Administration

By Peter Rugh for The Indypendent - Last March, as news of the lead-poisoned water supply in Flint, Michigan made national headlines, Christopher Cerf, the newly appointed superintendent of the Newark, New Jersey school district, ordered faucets in Newark schools tested for the presence of lead, a neurotoxin that can cause learning disabilities and behavioral problems in children. When the results came in, Cerf ordered water shut off in 30 of his district’s 67 schools. Statewide testing found that the water in 88 school buildings in 30 districts contained levels of lead that surpassed the 15-parts-per-billion limit set by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The American Society of Pediatrics considers no amount of lead safe for children.

The Fraud & Theft Of Public Private Partnerships

March 28, 2017 Gabrielle Gurley, www.prospect.org Educate! Fraud, Infrastructure, Public-Private Partnerships

By Gabrielle Gurley for The American Prospect - Public-private partnerships may indeed provide the dollars that fearful politicians are unable to pry from the pockets of their tax-averse constituents. But P3s, as they are known in the infrastructure sector, are more complex than they appear to people who just want to get where they’re going. In a new Economic Policy Institute report, “No Free Bridge,” researcher Hunter Blair shows just why these partnerships are far from a “eureka” moment for America’s infrastructure woes. “The idea that P3s allow infrastructure to be built for free is economic snake oil,” Blair said. P3s do not end up saving taxpayers money, especially when policymakers obscure the true costs and the risks.

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