Beyond Extreme Energy is looking for an experienced and committed videographer to put together several short, popular education videos about FERC and the struggle to replace it. We have put together an overview, found below, of the areas we want the videos to cover.
The final product as currently envisioned, although none of this is set in stone, would be a series of 1-5 min videos on the topics indicated in the outline below. The videos would target the unengaged public and would be able to be viewed both separately or strung together into a single, longer video.
Money: We are committed to raising the funds necessary for this popular education project. How much we pay the videographer will be negotiable and based on the needs of the person doing the work, their experience doing videos, and discussions with BXE .
One immediate need is a short, one minute or so trailer to help with fundraising. A videographer who could put that together soon would be a big plus.
Timeframe: We would like this work to move forward as soon as possible. We would like the trailer to be done ASAP and the videos to start coming out in the early part of 2018.
Work needed: BXE has access to a significant amount of footage already available, going back to our formation over three years ago. The primary need is NOT for a person to travel to conduct interviews or film actions; the need is for creative editing of already existing material.
Interested?: If you are a videographer, or if you know someone who is, please make contact with BXE by emailing Lee Stewart at Actions@BeyondExtremeEnergy.org .
Overview of Video Content
What is FERC?
FERC, The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, is the most dangerous federal agency that you’ve never heard of. They can seize your property, send armed marshals to your door without a warrant, poison your water and air, and destroy our climate, and no Mayor, Governor, Senator, or Member of Congress can make them stop.
But you can.
FERC was created almost half a century ago by a law known as the Natural Gas Act. Back then, in the 1970s, we didn’t know how dangerous climate change was (though #ExxonKnew). Most American’s didn’t use natural gas for heat or power. So sweeping authority over where and how to build big gas projects like pipelines, power plants and compressor stations was all given to this one agency.
Since we didn’t need a lot of new pipelines or projects, FERC alone was given authority to review and permit them. Over the last 30 years, they have turned down only one!
Frontline Struggles
This should be a series of profiles, like on this site: http://fireriverfilms.com/bayoubridge/ BXE needs to talk about who are the right people to profile, but 2-4 short ones from people who’ve come to speak at FERC rallies before is a possible plan. We might even have most of the footage we need from videos of past FERC actions, like pancakes not pipelines and sweet potatoes not pipelines.
Real emphasis should be given to the fracking and now gas export boom. That this is a gold-rush mentality where a lot of companies (ETP, Spectra, Duke, Dominion, etc) try to get rich quick, and don’t care who they hurt to do it.
Climate Change, Methane, FERC, and You
To stop climate change, scientists tell us that more than 80% of proven coal, gas and oil reserves need to stay in the ground. That means an almost immediate halt to new gas & oil wells, coal mines, and especially to extreme energy sources like fracked gas and tar sands oil.
Fracked gas is a double-whammy to the climate. First, it leaks – from wells, from pipelines, compressor stations and every part of the supply chain. And when it leaks, that methane (gas is 90% or more methane) is 86 times more powerful at over-heating our climate than regular old CO2. Second, once gas gets where it’s going in the pipeline, it still has to be burned – where it releases more CO2. When you combine the two effects together – leaking methane and the climate impact of burning gas – it’s as bad or worse for the climate than burning coal.
Amazingly, FERC gives short shrift to those impacts when it considers new projects. But in recent months, court cases have started to pressure FERC to consider the climate impacts of fracking wells, pipelines, and power plants. But it’s not enough, and it’s too slow. Until FERC starts saying NO to all new pipelines and gas projects proposed (instead of YES to 100%) it won’t be enough. And their refusal to act creates danger for ALL of us, as climate disruption drives rising seas, makes storms, droughts, floods and wildfires more extreme, and threatens our homes and communities – no matter where we live.
Vision
The 100% Renewable energy future we need ASAP will require a big, connected energy grid powered primarily by a LOT more solar and wind energy. Ironically, if we want to build clean energy infrastructure fast, and also compel big investments in efficiency and energy conservation, FERC could be the perfect ally.
FERC reviews plans for how the electric grid is connected. FERC can say no to new fossil fuel infrastructure instead of yes. Like a powerful Jedi from the Star Wars Movies: FERC can be a force for good, or evil.
But given that FERC as we know it is owned and paid for by the fossil fuel industry, they’re unlikely to turn away from the dark side. That’s where we come in; by taking action together, collectively and in coordination; by pushing the boundaries of what’s acceptable for FERC to consider and what we’re willing to risk to stop climate change and pollution, we can force FERC to change, or force it to be replaced by an agency that values people over profit, and the planet over polluters.
What can we do?
Three things:
1) get involved and support the dozens of frontline communities battling gas projects reviewed or already approved by FERC right now. The battle is joined, come and join us!
2) Speak up – call your Representative and Senators and tell them what you’ve learned about FERC. Ask them to meet with local impacted groups in your community and hear our concerns. Join us at actions in DC at FERC’s headquarters or related targets and support BXE’s efforts to make the resistance visible at all levels.
3) Because FERC will not say no, and courts and state regulators are often too slow to stop the harms created by these projects, we need to be prepared to risk more. We can’t wait for politicians and experts to save us – we need to get out of our houses and take direct action. That can look like a lot of different things: a mass demonstration, an encampment, a sit-in, a lockdown and more are all different kinds of direct action. What’s important is our willingness to act in solidarity with our neighbors and other communities on the frontlines of pollution.
Join us today to take action.
Beyond Extreme Energy 