See the post by News Corpse below.
Many environmentally related posts appearing at Daily Kos each week don't attract the attention they deserve. To help get more eyeballs, Spotlight on Green News & Views (previously known as the Green Diary Rescue) normally appears twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The most recent Wednesday Spotlight can be seen here. More than 22,940 environmentally oriented diaries have been rescued for inclusion in this weekly collection since 2006. Inclusion of a diary in the Spotlight does not necessarily indicate my agreement with or endorsement of it.
The Daily Bucket - eagle feather—by
OceanDiver: "
June 12, 2015. Rialto Beach, PNW. Even on a lovely sunny summer's day there aren't many folks who walk very far from the parking lot of this popular Olympic National Park beach. It starts steep and cobbly but soon transitions into clean hard-packed sand, perfect for beach-walking even at a moderately high tide. We had to dodge waves occasionally sprinting around big driftwood, but walking this great wide wilderness Pacific beach in shirtsleeve weather, slightly misty with salt spray, was heaven. A mile up the beach Ellen Creek empties local runoff and downed trees into the ocean. Usually we have to clamber across it by way of the logjam since it's too deep to wade. It turns out this summer Ellen Creek is almost a trickle, what with the extremely dry weather recently, but before I discovered that, I spent some time poking around the logjam looking for a crossing. And stumbled across a remarkable feather, resting partly in the creek. [...] Who could have left this extraordinary feather? A feather this huge could only come from a very large bird who dropped it either along the beach, in the waves, or upstream where it washed down to rest on the sand. It hadn't been here long since the high tide waves wash up this far. I took a number of photos and measurements, and using the US Fish and Wildlife Service Feather Atlas narrowed it down to the most likely bird that grew and moulted this feather. It is a primary feather, one of the longest outer wing feathers."
The Pope Francis Encyclical On Climate Change Makes Apostates Of Fox News Catholics—by News Corpse: "This week the Catholic church dived head first into one of the thorniest issues facing modern society. It came in the form of an Encyclical authored by Pope Francis that detailed the Church's position on Climate Change. The official document, titled 'On Care For Our Common Home,' is a surprisingly in-depth analysis of the environmental crisis that includes science-based observations on ecosystems, biodiversity, marine health, waste management, renewable energy, recycling, deforestation, GMO's, and the social and political obstacles to reform.
The response by most of the conservatives who would generally be seen as allies of religious institutions like the Catholic church was an immediate knee-jerk opposition that went to extreme lengths to dispute the Pope's spiritual guidance. It was more than a difference of opinion, it was vitriolic denouncement and defamation. They characterized the once-infallible Holy See as an anti-capitalist subversive and a Marxist. Additionally, they discounted his credentials to address the subject of Climate Change because he was not a scientist.
Republicans Cry, Climate Change Hoax, While Another Mass Extinction Begins—by thinkingblue: "Humans have already triggered the start of Earth’s sixth mass extinction, thereby threatening their own future as a species, a hard-hitting new study has claimed. ~~~ The window of opportunity to prevent the worst diversity disaster since dinosaurs were swept from the planet 65 million years ago is 'rapidly closing,' warn the authors. In the last century vertebrates have been disappearing at a rate 114 times higher than would normally be expected without the destructive influence of humans, according to the scientists, who insist their analysis is 'extremely conservative.' If the current pace of extinction is allowed to continue, species loss will have a significant effect on human populations in as little as three generations, it is claimed. Once the damage is done, it could take millions of years for nature to recover, said the researchers."
You can find more excerpts from green diaries below the orange spill.
Climate Chaos
Here's what climate deniers are saying about the Pope's Encyclical—by VL Baker: "If you want to know what the 'leading' climate deniers are thinking you head to their watering hole The Heartland Institute. Make sure you've digested your breakfast before watching because it's vile."
Glaciers, tomorrows encyclical and the Republican plan to attack and smear the Catholic Church—by Pakalolo: "As the World awaits the release of Pope Francis's encyclical on climate change tomorrow, the letter to all the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church has the potential to inspire a mass movement to powerfully attack the sources of climate change and their supporters making 2015 the year that we finally begin to slow, and hopefully end, some of the worst impacts of future climate change. There appears to be evidence that the pope may very well focus on glaciers as a symbol that highlights the fragility of the biosphere that humanity calls home. The question, as raised by Glacier Hub, is will the Pontiff use the encyclical to raise the issue of the terrifying rate of glacier melt in the world's air conditioners? For illustrative purposes, nothing can illustrate this haunting more than visual evidence of the doom of the world's ice. (See the below Chasing Ice video of Greenland's Ilulissat Glacier). The Pontifical Academy of Sciences conducted a major workshop on glacier retreat in 2011. This well-respected institution, which dates back to 1603, is composed of leading scientists from around the world. It has no religious or ethnic criteria for membership. A number of major glaciologists and climatologists participated in this workshop, including Paul Crutzen, who first proposed the term Anthropocene, Lonnie Thompson, a leading researcher who studies past climates through the analysis of ice cores and Veerabhadran Ramanathan, an atmospheric scientist who has studied the contributions of greenhouse gasses and aerosols to global warming."
Pope: 'Doomsday predictions can no longer be met with irony and disdain.' Eco-advocates respond—by Meteor Blades: "Well before Pope Francis's Laudato si' encyclical was released Thursday, right-wing American politicians such as presidential wannabes Rick Santorum, Marco Rubio and Jeb‽ Bush had made it clear they planned to ignore what he was going to say just as they have ignored climate scientists. Over the past 25 years, the lucrative spouting of scientific illiteracy by a multitude of their ilk has been part of the fossil-fool cabal's whole effort to shape environmental and energy policy in ways that exacerbate rather than ameliorate the impacts of global warming. And there is no reason to expect them to change now even though many of them surely know somewhere in their brains that what they keep telling audiences about climate change is recklessly bogus. No need to hear anything more from them. Especially not some version of the-Pope-should-mind-his-own-business."
Deniers Go A-pope-plectic over Encyclical—by ClimateDenierRoundup : "Conservative pundits and climate deniers have not reacted well to Pope Francis's encyclical. One wouldn't expect them to greet it with open arms, but even we expected a touch more decorum when dealing with His Holiness. Yesterday's 'insipid' and 'bed-wetting' tweets from Steve Milloy were just the start, as he is now consistently referring to Francis as 'Red Pope,' fitting in with the rampant accusations of Marxism coming from other commentators. If you're a glutton for punishment, you can take a look at Media Matter's wrap up of the responses throughout the conservative media. Spoiler alert: 'Marxist' seems to be the preferred term for Pope Francis. 'Gremlins' contrarian Richard Tol planted himself firmly in the denier camp with his opinions, concluding that, 'No one is waiting for the hare-brained social theories of the Catholic Church.' Perhaps Tol is unaware that over a billion Catholics follow the teachings of Pope Francis, eagerly awaiting his social theories. Case in point, followers of @Pontifex: 6.33 million. Followers of @RichardTol: 4,726. So if anyone's offering theories that no one cares about, it's probably not the religious leader with one the largest flocks the world's ever known."
The GOP and Climate Change—by SninkyPoo: "Over a year ago, the Washington Post ran a piece detailing where the GOP presidential field stood on climate change. It's interesting to revisit. But I wondered if, in light of recent events, anyone had changed their stance. Jeb Bush - who actually responded to one of my #climatechange tweets once (or, well, a staffer did) is still digging in his heels. Agree with the Pope on this one? Not so fast, pardner! Jeb! is not going to be swayed by a Pontiff, no sirree! I've combed through the recent headlines and can't find a quote from Ted Cruz. According to this CNN piece from last month, he's stuck on 'the pause,' saying that the satellite data demonstrates there's been no warming for 17 years. Given how far that is from reality, I doubt that Junior Astronaut Cruz will pay a speck of attention to Pope Francis. At this point, per an AP report, he and Rand Paul have kept schtum when asked about the encycical. And that's probably wise, given that the Pope's historic action (if a lengthy paper and a tweet-storm can be considered action) was pretty thoroughly stomped on in the news by the horrific reports of the massacre in Charleston. Give it a few more days, guys, and the encyclical will never come up again!"
Unprecedented Toxic Algal Bloom Forces Shut Down of West Coast Shellfish Industry—by FishOutofWater: "The west coast's shellfish industry has been shut down by an unprecedented toxic algal bloom. The toxic algae extends from California to the Canadian border. Shellfish in California, Oregon and Washington state is unsafe to eat. The proximal cause is the extraordinarily warm east Pacific ocean where abnormally high sea surface temperatures have inhibited mixing, trapping nutrient rich water and toxic algae in a narrow coastal zone. NOAA will do an extensive investigation to understand the relationship between the toxic bloom and the extraordinarily warm temperatures in the northeast Pacific, but their scientists have already published many reports that link warmer waters to reduced mixing. Reduced ocean water mixing is one of the major known destructive impacts of global warming. This extreme toxic bloom was predictable based on the extremely high water temperatures."
2008 climate change special not too far off the mark—by Saldana33: "Climate deniers have worked themselves into a self-congratulatory lather over a ;Good Morning America' segment from 2008 that included some erroneous predictions about the consequences of climate change. The segment promoted a special ABC News program called 'Earth 2100,' which projected a future world living with the possible consequences of unchecked global warming. Obviously, some of the prophesies were off. Among the predictions gone wrong, by June 2015 (today! get it!?!) $12.99 per gallon of milk and gasoline at more than $9 per gallon. Both of which are almost hilariously wrong. The ultra-conservative Media Research Center’s 'Newsbusters' website is doing a giddy victory dance over those purported mistakes. Because if a TV show doesn’t hit 1.000 in making bold predictions about future consequences of climate change, obviously it means global warming is a fraud and the liberal media are in on it, right? That’s what MRC would like you to believe."
Critters & the Great Outdoors
The Daily Bucket : Take a deep breath—by Wood Gas: "The Daily Bucket: Take a deep breath. This is a Dall Porpoise rising, note the position of the blowhole on the back of the head. These porpoise are fast movers, the one on the right has made a 90 degree turn, surfaced and taken a breath. All in about two porpoise lengths. How do they manage?"
Freeing a diamondback terrapin named Hot Tub—by
luckydog : "So, on a warm south Louisiana day, around Mardi Gras 2009, my mother found a baby turtle in a ditch by her driveway when she was picking up her morning paper. 'Course, I ended up with it. A Mississippi diamondback terrapin, a species-of-concern, the terrapin of turtle soup fame. Baby terrapin was about the size of a quarter, and a bit of poking around the internets turned up that she was a 'spring emerger'—she was hatched in later summer 2008 and immediately went into hibernation until spring. We installed her in an appropriately sized plastic tub, and ran some warm water for her 'cause the weather had turned cooler—the doing of which led us to name her "Hot Tub". Actually, that's the short form of her full name, which is 'James Brown Celebrity Hot Tub, doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo DOO, YOW!' Hot Tub for short ... Turtle chow and bits o' shrimp, time passes and there's bigger tubs and whole shrimp and even live bait shrimp and other bait fish, and eventually Hot Tub moved outdoors to a vintage clawfooted tub with an aquarium heater for the winters and oyster shells from one of our front porch sack-of-raw-oysters feasts."
Energy
Emissions Control
EU 2014 Greenhouse Gas Emissions—by gmoke: "While looking for the current price per ton of carbon in the EU ETS, I came across this release on the 2014 figures: 'The EU emissions trading scheme (EU ETS) installations emitted 1,584 million tCO2 in 2014, down by 4.4% from previous year. This figure is derived from the verified emissions data submitted so far by 87% (in volume) of the 12,000 installations currently included in the trading scheme.' pdf alert. It includes a list of the 15 largest CO2 emitters which contribute 251 MtCO2, about a sixth of the total covered greenhouse gases in the EU ETS."
Renewables & Conservation
California Electricity CPUC "Anti-Conservation" Public Meeting 9:00AM June 25 in San Francisco—by mettle fatigue: "President Pickers’ proposal would flatten rates and allow the utilities to impose fixed charges, regardless of how much you use or how much you generate yourself with solar panels. This would mean higher bills for about 75% of customers in the coming years, and the vast majority of rate reductions would benefit the top 5% of users in each climate zone. Energy hogs should not get a break at the expense of the rest of us! Commissioner Mike Florio’s alternate proposal retains strong incentives to conserve and, unlike the Picker proposal, rejects fixed charges that reduce the value of conservation, solar panels and energy efficiency."
Fracking
New study: water injection induces earthquakes—by occams hatchet: "A study just published in the journal Science (subscription required) by researchers from the California Institute of Technology and other institutions finds that injection of water into a subterranean fault induces earthquakes; further, the study illuminates the process by which seismic activity is induced. The study, 'Seismicity triggered by fluid injection–induced aseismic slip,' was spearheaded by researchers Yves Guglielmi of France's Aix-Marseille University and Jean-Philippe Avouac of England's Cambridge University and Cal Tech. From the Cal Tech press release on the study: The research team drilled a hole into the fault at a depth of about 925 feet. They then lowered a five-foot-long canister outfitted with sensors called the Step-Rate Injection Method for Fracture In-Situ Properties, or SIMFIP, into the hole. The SIMFIP was designed to measure pressure, water flow rate, rock movement, and other key data while suspended in the fault zone ... After inserting the SIMFIT probe, the researchers injected 250 gallons of water into the fault zone. The SIMFIP recorded an initially slow, creeping slip of the rocks as fluid was pumped in; this type of movement on a fault is referred to as aseismic slip since no measurable microearthquakes occur. As rock on the two sides of the fault separated during this minor movement, however, the rate of water flow into the fault increased dramatically. About 18 minutes into the experiment, the slip rate increased, generating the seismic waves and dozens of measurable microearthquakes."
Candidates, DC, State & Local Eco-Politics
Tea Partiers Overestimate Their Climate Knowledge—by ClimateDenierRoundup: "A new study in Environmental Politics looks at environmental concern in terms of political party affiliation, and it finds that while Tea Party Republicans claim they know climate science best, they actually scored the worst. Essentially, they do not know as much as they think they do, which probably will not come as a surprise to anyone who has attempted to engage with them on the science. By asking specific questions about climate science instead of general science literary questions, this research overturns older studies that deniers have used to claim they are the smartest. Also, we see that as Democrats, Independents and Republicans become more educated, they are more likely to acknowledge that warming is real and human-caused. Tea Partiers, though, buck that trend and only get further entrenched as they get reach a higher level of education—a hallmark of denial as opposed to skepticism. This is almost a textbook case of the Dunning-Kruger effect—so it is only a matter of time before the Tea Party's armchair scientists deny that, too."
Time and Global Warming March On, People Stir, 'Grand Oil Party' Must Go—by hungeski: "(2015) It's been just days since: leaders at the G7 meeting in Bavaria agreed to "a decarbonisation of the global economy over the course of this century." National Climate Mobilization Day, where people joined planned events across the nation to call for a World War II type mobilization to protect the climate, and cut net GHG emissions to zero by 2025. After all these years of warnings and planning, with ever-increasing GHG concentrations and ever-worsening weather, rising seas, and melting ice formations, we still don't have a working world-wide action plan to cut GHG emissions and keep global warming to a fairly livable level. What can everyday people do? Those with the will and the way can join the uprising at 350.org or The Climate Mobilization. And every adult citizen of the U.S.A. should, at the very least, be sure to vote, and vote out the Grand Oil Party."
Martin O'Malley calls for getting 100% off fossil fuels by 2050—by Meteor Blades: "In an op-ed in USA Today, Democratic presidential candidate Martin O'Malley set the highest clean-energy goal of anyone running for the White House Thursday, a complete switch to renewable sources in 35 years. He challenged President Obama's "all-of-the-above" energy policy. A Catholic, O'Malley also referenced the climate encyclical Pope Francis issued from the Vatican today: I would set a national, cross-sector Renewable Electricity Standard so our nation is powered by 100% clean energy by 2050, and a national goal of doubling energy efficiency within 15 years. Many states like California and Maryland are already leading the way forward for the United States. I would fight for federal legislation for a cap on carbon emissions from all sources, with proceeds from permits returned to lower and middle-class families, transition assistance, and new jobs with the Clean Energy Corps. As president, I would support a Clean Energy Financing Authority to support projects to increase efficiency and resiliency upgrades in cities, towns, and rural communities nationwide."
Martin O'Malley's (D) Plan To Combat Climate Change: Zero Out Fossil Fuels By 2050—by poopdogcomedy: "There's been a lot of heartbreaking news in the past 48 hours regarding the shooting in Charleston, SC and there's also been a lot of anger here over the fast tracking of the TPP. I've tried to steer away from writing about the Democratic and Republican Presidential primaries because as man of you know, Governor, Senate and Congressional races have been my main focus. Now I do like Senator Bernie Sanders (D. VT) a lot and yes, I will back Hillary Clinton if she wins the nominee. But I am also a fan of former Governor Martin O'Malley (D. MD) and I also support his campaign. O'Malley has been fighting hard to distinguish himself in the primary and I think this does so: [...] Martin O'Malley, the former governor of Maryland and a contender to be the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, called on Thursday for a phase-out of fossil fuels by 2050, citing the 'moral obligation' to address climate change. In an op-ed published in USA Today, O'Malley, who is Catholic, called the encyclical Pope Francis issued on Thursday on climate change a 'clarion call for action.' O'Malley's piece also publicly rebuked some of the Obama administration's energy policies and promised to put climate and energy at the center of his presidential campaign."
Transportation & Infrastructure
Senate Democrats give Republicans deadline for full transportation funding bill—by Joan McCarter: "Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and his Democratic colleagues have given Majority Leader Mitch McConnell 45 days to negotiate a long-term transportation funding bill, threatening to block a short-term funding measure if that's what McConnell tries to push. In a floor speech Wednesday, Reid blasted McConnell for the tactic he's clearly employing on this bill. 'This is straight out of the Republicans' playbook, manufactured crisis playbook,' the Democratic leader said. 'Republicans will drag their feet until the very last minute, refusing to work with us on a long-term solution to our nation's infrastructure woes. And then, when the deadline is imminent, the Republican leader will offer yet another short-term extension to stave off another disaster of his own making." […] Reid added on Wednesday that Republicans 'have refused to work' with Democrats on a long-term bill, saying that "Republicans see the federal highway program and trust fund as a sort of hot potato: stay away from it, it should never be dealt with.'"
Sustainability, Extinction & Population
Another paper on the ongoing mass extinction event—by patrickz: "From the journal Science Advances: The evidence is incontrovertible that recent extinction rates are unprecedented in human history and highly unusual in Earth’s history. Our analysis emphasizes that our global society has started to destroy species of other organisms at an accelerating rate, initiating a mass extinction episode unparalleled for 65 million years. If the currently elevated extinction pace is allowed to continue, humans will soon (in as little as three human lifetimes) be deprived of many biodiversity benefits. On human time scales, this loss would be effectively permanent because in the aftermath of past mass extinctions, the living world took hundreds of thousands to millions of years to rediversify. Avoiding a true sixth mass extinction will require rapid, greatly intensified efforts to conserve already threatened species and to alleviate pressures on their populations—notably habitat loss, overexploitation for economic gain, and climate change (31–33). All of these are related to human population size and growth, which increases consumption (especially among the rich), and economic inequity (6). However, the window of opportunity is rapidly closing. (emphasis added) It's refreshing to see such blunt language in a peer-reviewed article."
Trade & Eco-Related Foreign Policy
Why the TPP is Worse than Mystery Meat —by PaulLoebRemember the World Trade Organization, which slipped into the shadows after massive Seattle protests in 1999? The same day last week that Congress initially blocked the possibility of fast track approval for the TPP trade agreement, the House voted to overturn rules requiring country-of-origin labeling for meat. Those supporting the vote said they were responding to a World Trade Organization ruling, judging US country-of-origin labeling unfair competition with meat coming from foreign countries like Canada and Mexico, and therefore a violation. They said they had no choice for fear of triggering sanctions or lawsuits from countries exporting meat across our borders. I don't know about you, but I like knowing whether my meat comes from Iowa or Uzbekistan, Montana or Mexico, Kentucky or Kenya. So do 93% of Americans, according to a Consumer's Union survey. People like supporting US farmers, cutting down distance travelled, knowing there will be at least minimal inspection standards, even if the delights of e coli occasionally slip through. It seems commonsensical that we'd want at least the chance to become informed consumers, whether with the origins of our meat, GMO-derived crops, or the amount of sugar and calories in our baked goods.
Oceans, Water & Drought Water Contractors not satisfied until they grab every last drop of Delta water—by Dan Bacher: "Restore the Delta (RTD), the leading opponents of Gov. Brown’s rush to build massive underground water tunnels that would drain the Delta and doom sustainable farms, salmon and other Pacific fisheries, today responded to the Metropolitan Water District and the State Water Contractor’s complaint against the State Water Resources Control Board that Delta farmers are stealing water that 'belongs' to State Water Contractors. 'The pumps for the State Water Projects have yet to be turned off one day during the drought. Water quality standards are being violated in the Delta each and every day this year, impacting Delta urban water users and family farms. We are perilously close to losing Delta smelt, and our iconic salmon fisheries, and despite Delta family farms already taking a voluntary 25 percent reduction in water use, the State Water Contractors believe the Delta should be made into a complete sacrifice zone for their water exports,' said Restore the Delta executive director Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla."
Trash, Pollution & Hazardous Waste
Back At The Beach & Back In Black. A Report from Santa Barbara Shores—by Publius2008: "So, I went back to the beach just north of Santa Barbara today. I was actually a little surprised. The beach is not clean at all. And there is still an oily smell. Mind you, this is not either of the beaches that were closed, El Capitan and Refugio. This is much further south (10-20 miles) in North Goleta, what is called Santa Barbara Shores County Park/Ellwood Beach. I was shocked by what I saw. There were like these blacks strands of what looked like glass chips, and numerous blobs of oil amongst them. On closer inspection, the strands are actually little oil chips or blobs. The strands continue along the beach pretty much continuously. I have been going to this beach for many years and while there was always a little beach tar, I have never seen anything like this. And this is supposed to be a beach not even effected by the spill. It looks to me that stuff is still washing ashore and I am not talking about a little bit of stuff. I would advise everyone to stay out of the water there."
Miscellany
So - what would YOU do?—by SninkyPoo: "People seem to enjoy taking polls. I know I do. It's not really DOING anything, but it feels like participating in solutions. So here's a poll about what you, personally, would commit to do RIGHT THIS MINUTE (or maybe tomorrow, after you got your ducks in a row) to reduce your carbon footprint."
TED TALK - Paul Stamets: 6 ways mushrooms can save the world—by DKAtoday: "Paul Stamets: 6 ways mushrooms can save the world. 'Mycologist Paul Stamets lists 6 ways the mycelium fungus can help save the universe: cleaning polluted soil, making insecticides, treating smallpox and even flu viruses.'"