Blog Archive
Almost 9 Million Deaths Caused by Fossil Fuel Pollution
New research from Harvard University found that deaths from fossil fuel emissions are significantly higher than previous estimates. In 2018, more than 8 million people died from the pollution caused by coal, oil, gas, and other fossil fuels. That accounts for nearly 1-in-5 of all deaths worldwide. Prior research put the number at a little over 4 million deaths per year.
Air Pollution, Climate Change and COVID-19
We need to support every effort our president and government make to clean up our air, so as to reduce climate change, create jobs, improve our health, and last but not least, to lessen the impact of the next pandemic.
Dust from Demolition Projects is Air Pollution
No, all that dust everywhere isn’t just something you have to deal with when there’s a demolition project near you. Have you ever lived or worked near a large demolition project? Do you see the dust hovering in the air, maybe over your home or business or your car as...
Introducing a New Youth Education Initiative ‘Fresh Voices for Clean Air’
Unique STEAM opportunity for high school students in Allegheny County, Penn., and Jefferson County, Ala. Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP-Birmingham) is excited to announce an exciting new educational initiative, Fresh Voices for Clean Air. We are...
GASP Seeks Four Spring Interns: Apply Today!
GASP is seeking to fill four unpaid internship positions for the 2021 spring semester.
GASP, SELC Reach Settlement Agreement with Drummond and Regulators to Address ABC Coke Pollution
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — GASP and the Southern Environmental Law Center have made significant improvements to a consent decree to address ABC Coke’s illegal emissions of benzene and the impacts on communities around northeast Birmingham and Tarrant, Ala. Making the case...
GASP, Energy Alabama Appeal Alabama PSC’s Approval of $1+ Billion Gas Expansion
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Energy Alabama and GASP, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, are appealing the Public Service Commission’s approval of Alabama Power’s petition for its single largest capacity increase ever, with a price tag for customers of over...
Reflections on 2020: Hope, Empathy, and Courage
“Hope is your superpower. Don’t let anybody or anything make you hopeless. Hope is the enemy of injustice. Hope is what will get you to stand up when people tell you to sit down.” —Bryan Stevenson “Had Harriet Tubman compared the 70 slaves she freed to 4 million...
We’re Hiring: Development (Fundraising) Director
This right candidate is an outgoing self-starter with with a drive to execute our fundraising strategies and tactics. Apply within!
The Importance of Telling the Whole Story
When I call my parents in Virginia or my college friends in Chicago, they always want to hear about my work with GASP. “How’s your internship going?” “Tell me about what you do!” I get really excited about the opportunity to talk to them about environmental social...
Meet Katie Mesa, Fall Intern (Wheaton College)
What is your major at and why did you choose it? I am majoring in environmental science with minors in math and Spanish at Wheaton College. I chose to major in environmental science because of its intersectionality with other fields and because of my passion for...
Meet Ugo Ejidoh, Fall MPH Intern (UAB)
What is your major at and why did you choose it? My major is in public health, and I have chosen it because of the growing concerns regarding global environmental issues and disease epidemics. Let me also add that I am a Nigerian trained pharmacist. I have realized...
Our Brains, Air Pollution and Hurricanes
After a morning of protesting Governor Ivey’s inaction on the contaminated 35th Ave Site in North Birmingham, we sped down I-65 towards home. As we drove, we talked about how well the protest had gone and wondered if our representatives would get it, how could they...
Meet Madison Cumby, Fall Legal Intern (Samford)
Madison got her B.S. degree in Environmental Science with a concentration in Policy from Samford University in 2018. She’s now a third-year student at Cumberland School of Law.
Love Thy Neighbor: Building Grassroots Power the Old-Fashioned Way
In early 2019, I joined with about 15 other climate activists in a series of meetings to study nonviolent direct action and movement theories of change with the goal of building a new approach to climate change at the scale of the crisis. Our work culminated in a...
Meet Erin Rhodes, Fall Intern
Erin has moved to Birmingham for the semester to volunteer with GASP as an Environmental Justice Intern through Wheaton College's Human Needs and Global Resources (HNGR) program. Welcome to Birmingham, Erin! What is your major and why did you choose it?I study...
Groups Ask PSC to Reconsider Alabama Power’s Unprecedented Fossil Fuel Expansion
GASP and Energy Alabama have formally asked the Alabama Public Service Commission to reconsider its June decision to approve the single largest capacity increase ever proposed by Alabama Power, including including almost 1,900 MW of fracked gas generation. We...
PSC Sides with Alabama Power, Increases Solar Charge
Today the Public Service Commission dismissed our challenge of Alabama Power’s discriminatory solar charge and, unbelievably, approved an increase.
Fine Particulate Matter and Cardiovascular Disease
While we are all understandably focused on deaths due to the coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19), it is worth remembering that the number one cause of mortality in this country is cardiovascular disease. Those who suffer from cardiovascular disease are at a particularly...
BREAKING: PSC Grants Request to Refund $100M to Customers
On Wednesday, July 15, 2020, GASP and 12 other organizations, led by Daniel Tait at Energy Alabama, petitioned the Alabama Public Service Commission to provide some relief to Alabamians struggling with ongoing economic impacts of COVID-19. We sent a letter urging the...