Halfway there? The long and bumpy road to Copenhagen via It's Getting Hot In Here
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ALERT! Paraguay’s Devastation by Genetically Modified Soya Monocultures via Forest Protection Blog
Deforestation, eviction, drought and murder are too high of price to pay for toxic soybeans
TAKE ACTION! In Paraguay, genetically modified (GM) soya plantations [search], planted in vast toxic monocultures, are the main cause of deforestation, destruction and pollution of other ecosystems, and violence and eviction of small farmers and indigenous peoples. Paraguay has nearly 2.6 million hectares of soy plantations for animal feed exports and, more recently, for agrofuel. The remnants of Paraguay's Atlantic Forest [search] and of the Alto Parana forest [search], as well as wetlands, grasslands and rivers are being destroyed and polluted by the expansion of immense soya fields. Deforestation is worsening global warming and also causing severe regional warming and droughts.
Local... ALERT! Paraguay’s Devastation by Genetically Modified Soya Monocultures via Earth Blog
Deforestation, eviction, drought and murder are too high of price to pay for toxic soybeans
TAKE ACTION! In Paraguay, genetically modified (GM) soya plantations [search], planted in vast toxic monocultures, are the main cause of deforestation, destruction and pollution of other ecosystems, and violence and eviction of small farmers and indigenous peoples. Paraguay has nearly 2.6 million hectares of soy plantations for animal feed exports and, more recently, for agrofuel. The remnants of Paraguay's Atlantic Forest [search] and of the Alto Parana forest [search], as well as wetlands, grasslands and rivers are being destroyed and polluted by the expansion of immense soya fields. Deforestation is worsening global warming and also causing severe regional warming and droughts.
Local peoples... Climate, Trees, and People in the Peruvian Amazon: Toward a Sustained Rainforest Movement via It's Getting Hot In Here
While many adults in the US are still in a state of denial over global warming, young schoolchildren in villages deep in the Peruvian Amazon are learning about the effects climate destabilization is likely to have on their way of life.
That’s just one thing I learned during a recent three-week trip to the Loreto region (northeast corner) of Peru, with a Peace and Conflict Studies class from Pacific University in Oregon. We spent much of our time in Peru staying in small villages, where we learned about the culture and way of life of the people there – as well as the threats they are likely to face in coming years. Based on my, admittedly very brief, exposure to life in Peru’s Amazon, it seems climate destabilization is not a “debated” issue there; people in the rainforest... Sustainable Justice via It's Getting Hot In Here
You may have heard this piece of wisdom in Econ 101. “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” Someone is footing the bill.
The mass material affluence that characterizes much of American society is a testament to the power of our economic and political system. The cities we inhabit, the cars we drive, the gadgets we use, the ways we communicate, the food we eat, and the energy we consume are all products of its success.
But remember, “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” Someone is footing the bill.
Allow me to modify that statement. There is no such thing as a dollar menu. Transactions inflict costs on the real world that are not reflected in a market pricing system.
A friend of mine is particularly fond of McDonald’s Dollar menu, and makes a habit of... “Toxic West Virginia” Series Takes Close Look at Mountain Top Removal via It's Getting Hot In Here
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Save Appalachia: Stop Mountaintop Removal via It's Getting Hot In Here
Combating global warming calls for a complete moratorium on coal. Coal is the dirtiest of all fossil fuels — it creates more pollution than oil, natural gas and gasoline when burned. As Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said recently, “There’s not a coal-fired plant in America that’s clean. They’re all dirty.” If we’re going to get serious about fighting global warming, we need a complete halt to the coal industry.
Mountaintop removal (MTR) mining flattens mountains, devastating communities and ecosystems in Appalachia. A biologically diverse habitat is being destroyed, and the rich Appalachian culture it inspired is threatened. It is a deadly lose-lose for climate change – accelerating coal burning and deforestation.
Tell the Interior... Before We Get Drunk on Ethanol, Let’s Make Sure We Get It Right via It's Getting Hot In Here
Not all biofuels are created equal: in fact, depending on how they are produced, biofuels like ethanol and biodiesel can be environmentally destructive, raise the price of food, and even hurt efforts to tackle global warming.
Biofuels - ethanol and biodiesel - present a potentially important (partial) solution to concerns about global warming and our over-reliance on oil. However, to paraphrase a great LA Times op ed on the ethanol craze, alcohol is best enjoyed in moderation, and the same goes for these alcohol-based biofuels.
So before we all get drunk on ethanol, we’d better take a close look at the benefits and potential drawbacks of biofuels and make sure we get it right....... Clean Coal vs. No Coal, and the “Clean Energy” Debate via It's Getting Hot In Here
I’ve been struck by the differences between the demands of Step it Up 2, and James Hansen’s repeated call for action. Step it Up 2 demands a moratorium on all new coal fired power plants. James Hansen is asking for a moratorium on all new coal plants without carbon capture and sequestration. In essence, these are the same demand, as the technology to implement CCS does not exist on a feasible scale yet. So why are these not the same demand? Why even include CCS?
To me, this is a small piece of a much larger debate, that is certainly raging among youth climate activists, and which I believe will become much bigger. The science is in, and its clear that climate change is anthropogenically driven. We now need to start working towards solutions. And which solutions will we, as...
Is your couch a carbon offset? via It's Getting Hot In Here
So - people are familiar with carbon offsets right? Basically - the general idea is that all carbon dioxide emissions are equal - and it doesn’t matter if emissions come from New York or in Russia. While there are arguments to be made how that is a horrible way to view it - it’s largely the accepted view right now. So if I pollute when driving my car, but make sure someone else doesn’t pollute the same amount that otherwise would have - it all balances out right? Or as is commonly done in with popular carbon offset schemes - if I build a dirty coal-fired power plant, but pay someone else to plant some trees elsewhere that theoretically absorb the same amount of carbon - then it’s all hunky-dory. That’s the basic concept - though it gets a lot more complicated and questionable...
Black Bears Bulldozed in West Virginia via It's Getting Hot In Here
Written by Sam McCreery and Jen Osha.
In southern West Virginia, the people and the land are paying the price so the rest of the nation can have cheap energy from mountaintop removal coal mining. Here in Rock Creek, men and machines are working 24-7 to remove the “overburden” over the coal seams. What many people don’t realize is that the “overburden” that is removed includes every living thing on the mountaintop, including the animals that can’t escape.
The Black Bear is the state animal of West Virginia. Mountaintop Removal is decimating their habitat by the thousands of acres. Long time resident of Rock Creek, WV, avid hunter and woodsman, Ed Wiley knew the site of a black bear den where the overburden was being shoved over. It was...
“Deforestation Biofuels” Awareness Grows via Earth Blog
The fact that all biofuels are not created equal in terms of environmental benefits is starting to get more press coverage and policy-makers are being forced to face the issue of "deforestation biofuels" [search] -- those like palm and soya oils that destroy rainforests releasing much more carbon than they prevent. The European Commission (EC) now admits that "Europe's dash for biofuels could accelerate the destruction of tropical rainforests". This is particularly gratifying because Ecological Internet was the first to raise the issue of deforestation biofuels internationally through several protests over recent years -- including campaigning against EC arbitrary biofuel goals which did not differentiate between environmental desirability of biofuels produced locally and those sourced...
Plantations are not forest: Biodiversity for sale in the carbon market via It's Getting Hot In Here
Earth First! and Rising Tide North America took to the high seas today to protest monoculture industrial timber plantations and demanding a ban on genetically engineered trees.
Image: Boat Protest in Charleston, SC (U.S.) Against Timber
Stakeholder groups demonstrated against timber plantations and forest biotechnology during the kick-off event for a conference on fast growing plantations in South Carolina. Banners read “ArborGen: No GE Trees or Plantations in US South or Brazil” , and, in Portuguese, another read “Eucalyptus Plantations Are Not Forests.” A third Spanish banner read “We demand protection for native forests and respect for the Mapuche people.”
Dont be deceived, tree plantations to offset emissions are not a win-win solution to... Dude, where are the golden toads? via It's Getting Hot In Here
Last week I had the opportunity to visit the Costa Rican cloud forest, Monteverde, where the legendary Golden frog used to exist. I entered the cloud forest with some good friends from the UN University for Peace trying to discover the wonders of this very specific type of wilderness.
Unfortunately, it did not take us long to realize that the cloud forest is no longer the cloud forest. Deforestation and climate change have already changed the microclimate so much over the last few years that many species have disappeared and the forest has turned into an entirely new ecosystem.
Though still a forest, the change in temperatures in the atmosphere and wind patterns has changed the average elevation of clouds by several hundred meters. Now, instead of mist and clouds, you have tropical...