Robert S. Eshelman's articles

When the Obama administration last week asked the Supreme Court to vacate a lower bench ruling that could have forced utility companies to cut their greenhouse gas emissions, environmentalists’ outrage was swift and ubiquitous.

Matt Pawa, the plaintiff’s attorney behind the lawsuit, was widely quoted accusing the White House of a dastardly back stab, with numerous bloggers and environmental correspondents speculating on the rationale for the betrayal.

As the sting of perceived betrayal faded, Pawa spoke with SolveClimate News to explain why the lower court got it right and why the White House is on the wrong side of the law.

“We’re the greenest bank in the business,” claims Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based PNC bank (PNC:US) on its web site. “We’re a company committed to lighting the path to a greener way of doing business and a greener way of life.”

Yet, while PNC has racked up an impressive amount of recognition for its green building designs, energy efficiency efforts, and minimizing of customer waste, it has bucked a banking sector trend by continuing to finance environmentally destructive mountaintop removal mining.

And, even as the nation’s largest banks have severed ties with Massey Energy, owner of the Big Branch Mine in West Virginia, where an explosion in April killed 29 workers, PNC has maintained its financial support of the embattled company led by its outspoken and frequently vilified CEO Don Blankenship.