Politics Rears Its Ugly Head

 

THE CURRENT administration is 'close' to finalizing a regulatory overhaul of the Endangered Species Act to allow federal agencies to decide whether protected species would be harmed by agency projects, according to the Interior Department. In an interview yesterday, Interior spokeswoman Tina Kreisher said the Office of Management and Budget was reviewing the rule, which could be finalized in a matter of weeks.

For more than 30 years, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or the National Marine Fisheries Service have reviewed any federal plans that could potentially protect endangered animals or plants. Under the administration's proposed rule, these independent scientific reviews would no longer be required if the agency in question determined that its activities would not hurt the imperiled species.

The administration is also working at a breakneck pace to dismantle at least 10 major environmental safeguards protecting America's wildlife, national parks and rivers before Bush leaves office in January. With barely 60 days to go until Bush hands over to Barack Obama, his White House is working methodically to weaken or reverse an array of regulations that protect America's wilderness from logging or mining operations, and compel factory farms to clean up dangerous waste.

In the latest such move this week, Bush opened up some two million acres of land in Rocky Mountain states for the development of oil shale, one of the dirtiest fuels on the planet. The law goes into effect on January 17, three days before Obama takes office. The timing is crucial. Most regulations take effect 60 days after publication, and Bush wants the new rules in place before he leaves the White House on January 20. That will make it more difficult for Obama to undo them.

What do you think?

Notable Quote from National Audubon Society

AUDUBON believes last week's election ushered in a new era of hope for our environment; and the people, birds and other wildlife that depend on it.

"Eight dismal years of environmental abuse and neglect are now coming to an end. President-elect Barack Obama and a more environmentally aware Congress offer the promise of leadership and fundamental change. This will translate into improved protections for America's treasured places, and a new lease on life for species in decline.

"The days of secret task forces and backroom deals with polluters are over. In his own words, President-elect Obama said: 'The future of our planet is at stake.' Conservationists have waited years for this opportunity and are strongly committed to helping the new administration and Congress to live up to this great promise."

Betsy Loyless
Senior Vice President for Policy
National Audubon Society

President-Elect Obama’s Big Climate Challenge

AS HE assumes the presidency, Barack Obama must make climate-change legislation and investment in green energy top priorities. And, he must be ready to take bold—and politically unpopular—action to address global warming. Read what one of the best "minds" on the environment has to say.  Bill McKibben is a scholar in residence at Middlebury College. His The End of Nature, published in 1989, is regarded as the first book for a general audience on global warming. He is a founder of 350.org, a campaign to spread the goal of reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide to 350 parts per million worldwide. His most recent book is American Earth, an anthology of American environmental writing.

Tom Patrick
WindStar Wildlife Institute

The Battle of Resources Vs. Wildlife

ALL PEOPLE need to look in the mirror to see who the culprit's are in the decline of many species of animals, insects and plant species around the world. Our shear numbers speak volumes to the stresses planet Earth endures.

As second and third world countries build up, prosper and gain ever increasing wealth so too does the demand for more resources to accommodate them and so out paces the ability for Earth to recover even with ever increasing stringent management rules and guidelines in place that people's impose and tax themselves for. Its it too little too late? Yes.

Take for instance the so called federal bailout. How much of this package do you suppose has been set aside for the environment? None. The funding will have to come from private enterprise and non-profits geared to specific environmental causes regardless of who win the nomination.

Pollinator Partnership is certainly a resource partner for your (National) Master Naturalist program and of keen interest to those who may not be aware of the dire circumstance our pollinators are facing. In order for people to master and preserve regional pollinators is to educate and arm themselves with information. Habitat loss and alteration of it is the major cause of decline in species.

Our desire to find other alternatives to oil dependency; such as wind, nuclear and hydro power is taking its toll on migrating insects and mammals to such an extent the loss hasn't begun to sink in enough yet. The decline in the imported honey bee is subjective because of our genetic alterations of plants and affects to the surrounding environment and natural cycles aren't well known because these sciences haven't been around enough in human time to know their unintended consequences.

We may be seeing glimpses of what is yet to come and what it will entail, but for all intensive purposes majority of the people are too engrossed in their own worlds to see the trees for the forest. And the 1% of us who do know and witness changes can only cry wolf for so long before everyone stops listening and unfortunately by that time it will be too late.

Extinction to some degree is forever, but what must be remembered it is evolution. When one species ceases to exist, that vacant space affords the next in line to evolve...    

Kari A. Olson
Restoration Naturalist
"The Friends of Interlaken Park"
Seattle Urban Forest Stewards

       

Nature Inspires New Products

 

 

      

 

THE ALPINE edelweiss flower may hold clues to making better sun creams, while oyster shells could give hints about storing greenhouse gases in an emerging industrial revolution that mimics nature.

"A more fascinating horizon is opening up for the green economy," Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environment Program, said this week in giving findings of a UNEP "biomimicry" project identifying 100 new ideas from nature.

The survey shows companies are already borrowing from the natural world for products ranging from wind turbine blades that keep turning in low winds, based on the flippers of a humpback whale, to dirt-resistant surfaces inspired by the lotus plant.

"Life in 3.8 billion years has created an enormous number of blueprints, designs, chemical recipes and technologies," said Janine Benyus of the Biomimicry Guild, which wrote the report.

"Conserving habitats is a wellspring for the next industrial revolution," she said.

The white edelweiss flower, for instance, has woolly hairs that protect the plant's cells from harmful ultraviolet wavelengths, which are powerful in the high Alps. The hairs also shield against wind and cold. Copying the chemicals in the hairs could help design better sun creams. And the plant could also help design ways to protect packaging or plastics from ultraviolet degradation.

The way pearl oysters convert carbon dioxide into a calcium carbonate shell could be imitated to help slow global warming. Carbon dioxide occurs naturally but levels are rising sharply because of human emissions of the greenhouse gas.

Canadian group CO2 Solution has won patents, based on the mollusks' ability to build shells, to help produce cement. Cement is traditionally based on limestone, formed from the bodies of fossil marine creatures.

"Industry is now going to be looking to the oceans and jungles of the world for ideas," Benyus says.  She said firms including General Electric, Procter & Gamble, Boeing, General Mills and Nike were among those that "have been asking for biologists."

In the survey, she said that researchers had identified dozens of ways in which organisms gathered water, energy or created glues more efficiently than humans.

Steiner said that the global financial crisis might have a silver lining for such green projects. "In terms of financial crisis, that's when you see innovation emerge," he said.

People have been imitating nature for thousands of years for products--birds, for instance, inspired planes. But the experts said there were many under-exploited examples.

Benyus said the lotus plant's ability to repel water with a finely pitted surface on its leaves was now imitated in roof tiles in 300,000 buildings in Europe. Erlus AG was a main maker.

Among examples from recent decades, Steiner noted that Velcro, widely used as a fastener for clothing, was created by a scientist in Switzerland annoyed by the way plant burrs stuck to his dog's fur.

Alister Doyle
Reuters

   

 

   

 

Wildlife Refuges offer Opportunities For Reflection, Recreation

MORE than 16 million people live and work in the Chesapeake Bay watershed's 64,000 square miles. That translates into a lot of roads, parking lots, malls, schools, houses and office buildings. In this increasingly concrete world, we need wild places to explore and discover nature. These places also help to calm our unusually busy agendas and reflect on our lives.

Our wildlife needs these natural areas, too. These forests, fields, wetlands, creeks and rivers are habitats-places where animals find food and water as well as nesting and resting places. Natural habitats are critical to the survival of native plants, insects, reptiles, amphibians, birds, mammals and more.

The National Wildlife Refuge System is a network of public lands set aside specifically for the conservation of wildlife and plants, including endangered and threatened species. The National Wildlife Refuge System has protected and restored prairies, wetlands and woodlands, providing much needed habitat for wildlife in the United States.

Established in 1903, this system spans almost 100 million acres and includes 548 national wildlife refuges. It provides habitat for more than 700 species of birds, 220 species of mammals, 250 reptile and amphibian species, more than 1,000 fish and countless species of invertebrates and plants. Nearly 260 threatened or endangered species are found on National Wildlife Refuges, where they often begin their recovery or hold their own against extinction.

Refuges are great for people, too. They provide opportunities to see wildlife in a natural environment. Many refuges have interpretive foot and vehicular trails. Birding, hiking, biking, wildlife observation and photography are some activities that visitors can enjoy. Visitor centers offer exhibits, videos and slide shows.

About 98 percent of the land in the refuge system is open to the public for wildlife-dependent education and recreation. More than 50 percent of the refuges offer recreational hunting and fishing.

Recently, new legislation-the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act-directed the expansion of opportunities for several public uses including wildlife photography, fishing, hunting, wildlife observation, environmental education and interpretation.

Depending on the refuge, one may find visitor centers, wildlife observation facilities, auto tours, nature trails, interpretive tours, outdoor classrooms or workshops. These activities help to build an understanding and appreciation for wildlife, habitat and the role that management plays in the stewardship of U.S. resources.

Mark your calendars. National Wildlife Refuge Week is October 12-18. Refuges will be offering special events, including tours, guided walks, exhibits, live animals, crafts, children's activities and lots more.
Chances are there's a refuge close to you. So spice up your autumn and check out something wild at a refuge!

Kathy Reshetiloff
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Annapolis, MD

Get Inspired. Get Organized. Get Kids Outdoors!

TUNE IN to The Today Show Wednesday between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m.

This Wednesday, July 16, the “Today” show is scheduled to air a special segment on family nature clubs with an in-studio appearance by Richard Louv, live from New York. The segment also features a filmed interview with Chip Donahue and his family-oriented nature club, “Kids in the Valley, Adventuring!” (KIVA). Started in Roanoke, Va., in January 2008, KIVA has already grown to include more than 170 families.

This summer, the Children & Nature Network (C&NN) is launching a new initiative to help families engage in the growing children and nature movement. We encourage parents, grandparents, and caregivers to get directly involved.

How?
Create a family nature club. These Do-It-Yourself clubs offer free, low-cost, family-oriented activities –-the ones that help kids (and adults) become happier, healthier and even smarter while having fun.

Tips, Inspiration, and Resources for Starting Your Own Family Nature Club: Visit the C&NN website, www.childrenandnature.org. This is just the beginning. Sign up now to receive the latest information and resources— and let us hear from you with your stories of successes and adventures.

Get Inspired. Get Organized. Get Out.

Tom Patrick
WindStar Wildlife Institute

Will Windmill Farms Safeguard Wildlife?

LAST WEEK British Prime Minister Gordon Brown set out goals to increase renewable-energy use in Britain tenfold by 2020. Brown's vision for a "green revolution" is heavily reliant on wind power, with plans for 7,000 new turbines--4,000 onshore and 3,000 offshore.

Brown says the North Sea could turn "into the equivalent for wind power of what the Gulf of Arabia is for the oil industry.  Britain aims to reach an E.U.-mandated target of sourcing 15 percent of energy from renewables by 2020, which will require an investment of nearly $200 billion says Brown. And, he envisions the U.K. cutting greenhouse-gas emissions by nearly 20 percent and oil dependency by 7 percent, and creating some 260,000 green-collar jobs.

This sounds wonderful but I wonder what safeguards will be in place for migrating birds. Does anyone know of a current study on windmill bird fatalities? What do you think the chances of a similar effort happening in the U.S.?

Tom Patrick
WindStar Wildlife Institute

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'How Children Lost the Right To Roam In A Short Time' 
An article that appeared in the latest WindStar Wildlife Garden Weekly.

'To See A Flower Fly...'

YOGI BERRA supposedly said, “You can observe a lot by looking.” Yogi gets credit for a lot of odd things said by others, but I love this saying. I look out my office window. I find myself unable to resist praising the new blossoms on the multi-hued lawn. I rejoice in discovering that the blue violet with the largest blossom is actually an Indigo Bunting. To see a flower fly is something you can observe only by looking.

Al Batt
Hartland, MN