Spotlight on Green News & Views (previously known as the Green Diary Rescue) usually appears twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Here is the November 30 Green Spotlight. More than 25,(990) environmentally oriented stories have been rescued to appear in this series since 2006. Inclusion of a story in the Spotlight does not necessarily indicate my agreement with or endorsement of it.
OUTSTANDING GREEN STORIES
SusanCStrong writes—Say: “Clean Energy Jobs Now!” “The number of stakeholders in the climate protection ‘game’ are many and powerful. The pushing and shoving likely to take place behind the scenes in D.C. will be mighty too, though we may be unable to see it clearly. But none of these players need our framing help. Who does? Climate protection activists at the national, state, and local level, dealing with an audience of Trump voters who felt abandoned by both the GOP and the Democratic party. For these voters, the word “climate” is a red flag. They have been trained to believe that there is nothing wrong with our climate, or if there is, there’s nothing we can do about it. They have been told that the changes taking place are natural. Even if they have their doubts, they are likely to keep quiet, for fear of ostracism by their communities and churches. But what they want, what they voted for in choosing Mr. Trump, is economic recovery with good local jobs that stay home in the U.S.A. As my readers probably know very well, that is the definition of a clean energy economy. Talking about clean energy matters too, because Americans as a whole like things to be clean. Nor is this mere persuasive strategy. Demanding clean energy jobs now is an honest, effective way to respond to their legitimate gripes—no jobs in the rust belt, few jobs in rural areas.”
ClimateDenierRoundup writes—Senator Whitehouse Gives 150th Wake Up Call on Climate: “Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse has been giving weekly speeches on the Senate floor to try and wake up Americans to the threat of climate change and the web of denial that keeps the public from demanding climate action. On Tuesday, he gave his 150th speech, providing a climate science history lesson and doing his part in sounding the alarm about the threat posed by President-elect Trump’s decision to put Myron Ebell in charge of the EPA transition. As always, he highlighted the fossil fuel industry-funded Web of Denial—the interlocking professional network that casts doubt on the science and sows distrust among the public. Interestingly, he points out that prior to the 2010 Citizens United case, there was GOP support for climate action. After ‘Citizens United uncorked all that dark money,’ Republicans became unified in climate denial. Senator Whitehouse’s outing of the corrupting influence of Citizens United and his focus on the deniers’ funding irritated Steve Milloy, publisher of the ironically named junkscience.com. On Twitter, Milloy said ‘Skeptics not industry-funded. We wish it did.’ Which is funny because Milloy clearly misses the days when he was gorging himself on the industry trough.”
CRITTERS AND THE GREAT OUTDOORS
“Friendly Seal” checks out the beach
OceanDiver writes—The Daily Bucket - Friendly Seal & big yellow dog: “Pacific Northwest, late November 2016. The other day several of us folks were walking the beach near sunset. I was looking for birds as usual, and enjoying the last of the diffuse light on that miraculously dry winter afternoon. A Double-crested cormorant was catching some rays too, perched on a buoy, wings spread wide. The light breeze felt peaceful after days of blustery weather. A big yellow dog trotted by with his person, who tossed a stick out into the shallow water for him now and then. The big yellow dog was a great swimmer, bounding in after the stick, snatching it up, swinging around and dog-paddling back to the beach for a good shake. How can you not smile seeing a big yellow dog having such a good time? Turns out I wasn’t only one watching the big yellow dog rambling down the beach and chasing the stick. I couldn’t be sure at the time it was the Friendly Seal, although she’s the only seal I know who hangs out in this bay cruising so close to shore and so interested in activity there. Later when I looked at my pictures, fuzzy as they were from the dim late afternoon light, I could easily see her unique markings: the constellation of half-moons behind her left ear and the omega behind her right.”
owktree writes—Daily Bucket: Mellow Yellow: “There was a Bucket a short ways back that centered on things in nature that were blue. I figured I would take a shot at that theme — but went for an easier color. Flowers is going to be easy. And insects as well. We could probably due a series of Buckets on these alone without exhausting the picture archives.”
enhydra lutris writes—The Daily Bucket - November Yard Report: “This is part of my ongoing project to document the changes in our yard from month to month. [...] So here we go: We've had unseasonal amounts of rain and the weeds, mostly oxalis have taken over. Few things other than salvias are blooming, either. Out the back door, to the right we have a succulent, geraniums with either a few early blooms or a few really late ones, roses and bulbs up against the wall. This is looking generally south.”
CLIMATE CHAOS
FishOutofWater writes—Siberian air Will Blow to U.S. as Polar Vortex Breaks Down & Jet Stream Crosses North Pole: “Something is wrong in the Arctic. Winter just can’t establish itself over the Arctic ocean. In late November cold air finally started to build up over the American side of the Arctic ocean but now crazy jet stream winds are blowing all the way from subtropical waters east of Japan across Siberia, cross the Arctic ocean and into western north America. The Arctic just can’t hold in its cold air in this fall. The polar vortex that had strengthened over the Arctic ocean north of Alaska is going to be replaced by a dome of warm air that will be almost summer-like for the Arctic. As the polar air dives down the Rockies, the polar vortex will begin to reform near the U.S. Canadian border. The ridiculously warm temperatures that much of the U.S. has enjoyed will end shockingly with the southward and eastward advance of the Siberian air. Arctic air outbreaks are common in early December but they usually involve air from western Canada and Alaska. Alaska normally warms up as the cold air comes down the Rockies to the lower 48. Midweek, in this outbreak, the cold air will extend all the way from Texas to Alaska. And if the polar vortex begins to reform along the Canadian border, brutal winds will drive down the wind chill making temperatures in the northern plains feel like the Arctic.”
hatrack writes—Yay! Ivanka Cares About Climate Change, And She's Going To . . . Talk About It: “And the ambitious daughter, who once plotted her career around international brand domination, is planning to take on an even heavier lift. Ivanka wants to make climate change — which her father has called a hoax perpetuated by the Chinese — one of her signature issues, a source close to her told Politico. The source said Ivanka is in the early stages of exploring how to use her spotlight to speak out on the issue.”
CANDIDATES, STATE AND DC ECO-RELATED POLITICS
Meteor Blades writes—Facing four years of Trumpian eco-damage, green advocates press Obama to take a few final actions: “Environmental policy is, of course, rich with targets for attack. While eco-advocates—including me—have been sharply critical of a few of the environmental policies and programs the president has initiated or continued, especially in his first term and especially on energy, we’re about to get a rough lesson on just how much he did right as the Trumpkochians scheme to put these programs and policies to the sword. Yes, we are going to miss Obama when he’s gone.”
Yahzi writes—How Climate Change elected Donald Trump: “Climate change is mostly caused by rich nations; its pain will be borne most heavily by poor nations. We have already demonstrated that we will not give up our luxuries for their dying; how much less likely are we to suffer the real and measurable privation that would come with both reducing climate change and caring for the people it displaces. Hillary Clinton (and for that matter, Bernie Sanders) represented inclusiveness. Their leadership would have steered the lifeboat closer, to rescue as many people as possible, even at the risk of capsizing. Trump represents the opposite: the boats that left the Titanic early, only half-full.”
Pierre9045 writes—(ThePierreReport) Trump Administration Makes Deal to Save Coal Mining Jobs That Were Going Overseas: Satire.
WILDERNESS, NATIONAL FORESTS AND PARKS & OTHER PUBLIC LANDS
Besame writes—National Park System Adapts to the Age of Man: “When conservation meets climate chaos certainties dissolve. What will we call Glacier National Park when the glaciers have vanished? How will Sequoia National Park ensure their namesake giant sequoia trees survive amidst drought in a landscape of dead and dying Sierra Nevada forest? If conservation is defined as retaining historic habitats and populations, can we even practice this science in the Anthropocene Era? The National Park System’s Climate Change Response Program (CCRP) is examining policy and programs to cope with the collapse of conservation objectives due to climate change and using the Park System’s national platform to inform the public.”
ENERGY
Hydraulic Fracturing
Getting1 writes—Good News? Bad News? Should we be happy about the new Fracking Regulations in Oklahoma? ”I read today's article in the Topeka Capital Journal on how Oklahoma has changed their rules on fracking and have back on wastewater injections. See: cjonline.com… . The good news is that there are fewer earthquakes since the new regulations have went into effect. The bad news, the earthquakes that happened, are larger in mangatitude. Living in Kansas, this could affect me greatly. A few months ago, one of the earthquakes was felt here. How many more are coming? No one can say. Will the next one be worse than that one? If there is a large earthquake close to Cushing, OK, it could affect every American. Why? Cushing is home to the largest crude oil tank farm. It stretches for miles. This would be an economic, as well as an environmental disaster. They expanded the tank farm, a few years ago, when prices of crude dropped due to fracking.”
Renewables, Efficiency & Conservation
whipple1078 writes—Trump fight golf course wind farm, just like Teddy: “Well, someone is taking Teddy’s advice. The Donald is at it again. Swedish company Vattenfall has announced a nearly $350 million offshore wind farm in Scotland, and Trump has a golf course nearby. Trump not only opposes wind farms, he considers them a tragedy, just like the Lockerbie terrorist bombing! The big difference here is Teddy only had his millions so he had to ask his neighbors chip in to raise the ante twenty to thirty million dollars fighting the Cape Wind project. [...] Teddy was not wealthy as Trump, because Trump is fighting unilaterally.”
Pipelines & Other Oil and Gas Transport
Marta D writes—My Days at Standing Rock – Part III – The Stories: “I visited Standing Rock from November 12th to the 14th. My mission was to photograph the actions in order to help document this amazing, impactful, peaceful uprising. It’s a well-known fact that the media haven’t been giving this the time it deserves, and I wanted to photograph everything I could in order to organize a traveling photo exhibit so that people around the country could see what is truly going on, unfiltered by whatever does appear in the news. After arriving, I realized that my original intent in going, the actions/protests, was not the story to be told. Survival of the water protectors is the story to be told. Driving along North Dakota Highway 1806 can be a fascinating experience. Many people at the various water protectors’ camps don’t have cars, and one can find them walking to and from the Prairie Knights Lodge and Casino. Different people do it for different reasons. Some want a meal or something they can’t find at the camp. Others travel with friends either to the camp or the casino, but don’t have a ride back. Regardless the reason, many do the 11-mile trek by foot. As I drove that same distance, I gave rides to a couple of these intrepid walkers.”
Walter Einenkel writes—Harry Reid on the floor of the U.S. Senate: I stand with those at Standing Rock. “Senator Harry Reid took to the Senate floor today to show his support for the peaceful resolution to the protests surrounding the Dakota Access Pipeline: Standing Rock Sioux are fighting for their land right to clean water near and their history. They're not alone Standing Rock Sioux have been joined by thousands of others, claiming members of hundreds of tribes throughout the United States. Last month while I was in Nevada, members of the 27 Native American tribes we have in Nevada made it clear me they stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux. But I do too Madam President. And here's why I joined with the Standing Rock Sioux in calling for an alternative route for the pipeline's construction. It's past time this situation resolved peacefully as it’s lingered for months and the debate has descended into violence. What is happening at Standing Rock is a movement that has captured the attention of the entire country; but we should understand the context of what is taking place we should be mindful that the history of this region is fraught with disputes and very few of which if any have been resolved in favor of the Indians.”
poopdogcomedy writes—NM-Sen: Martin Heinrich (D) Pushes President Obama To Stand Up For Standing Rock Sioux Tribe: “Received this e-mail today from U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D. NM): There are many issues facing Indian Country, but the recent violence against the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and those standing with them is fundamentally wrong. That is why I am calling on President Obama to work with the Army Corps of Engineers to help protect the Standing Rock Sioux tribe's water supply and sacred sites. And we must act now before more lives are put in jeopardy with the impending December 5th order to vacate. Please, join me by signing my petition and urge President Obama to intervene before December 5th.”
Walter Einenkel writes—Nurses donate $50,000 to aid the veterans providing a human shield for protectors at Standing Rock: “Since April of this year, tribal members have been protesting the planned construction of the 1,172-mile, four-state Dakota Access Pipeline. Since that time, the movement has grown larger and the resistance from state and federal agencies has also grown more obdurate. Activists have been assaulted with all forms of abusive measures that never seem to be rolled out when criminal and racist white gun owners are “protecting” federal land. A few days ago it was announced that 2,000 veterans were going to Standing Rock to form a human shield for the water protectors. Now, the National Nurses United (NNU) have just announced a meaningful donation and show of supportfor those veterans forming the human shield.”
BOHICA writes—Nurses Donate $50,000 to Aid Veterans Stand with Standing Rock! “Holy crap! Nurses Donate $50,000 to Aid Veterans Stand with Standing Rock. National Nurses United today announced that it is donating $50,000 to support U.S. service veterans who are assembling this weekend as peaceful, unarmed defenders for the water protectors at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota who are enduring military style police assaults for opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) project. … The NNU donation will assist a delegation of Navajo veterans from Arizona and New Mexico who will join the veterans gathering this weekend. Through NNU’s Registered Nurse Response Network, RN volunteers have worked with Navajo First Nation members before, providing first aid in September at the Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, AZ.”
Karen Hedwig Backman writes—U.S. Senators, Please Intervene to Protect Standing Rock Defenders: “petitions.moveon.org/... Please sign this petition, as well as share it widely, especially to Facebook groups and with your colleagues, friends, and family, and thus we WILL make the difference and bring overdue relief and positive change. For more impact, you are most welcome to add comments directed to these Senators, and we hope to publish compilations of your comments. I encourage you to write and call both of your Senators, in addition to the ones on this petition, and particularly if they are in the Republican Majority in the United States Senate; they need to hear from us, too!”
snoopdoug writes—We Stand with Standing Rock: “”Dear family friends shared this story with us today, and we asked their permission to share with you. They speak with more eloquence than I ever could, so I have copied and pasted their story here in its entirety: WE STAND WITH STANDING ROCK LAKOTA SIOUX.”
Kizzie writes—Open Letter to President Obama: Stop the Dakota Access Pipeline: “Mr. President, our country is changing and the results of our recent election prove it. It may not look good for such important values as freedom and honor in our future. Yet, you are in a position to support these values in the Standing Rock conflict. You have been a leader whom I have always believed valued people over corporations. Your days in office may be numbered, but your actions now can help sustain Americans through these changing times and cement your legacy as such. Please support American values, the Standing Rock Sioux, and honor federal treaties with Native Americans. Call off the police and their violent mistreatment of protesters and insist that the corporation look elsewhere for their land grab.”
eugenetech writes—The Dakota Access Pipeline - The real environmental issues behind the protests: “Rep. Raul Ruiz, a California Democrat and member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the House Natural Resources Committee’s Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs Subcommittee, visited the site of the proposed pipeline recently, according to Salon, later calling for a hearing on the matter. ‘If this pipeline was too much of a contamination risk for clean waters in the northern route,’ Ruiz asked, ‘why would they consider it OK now to put it near Native Americans and their waterways?’ Why indeed?”
AGRICULTURE, FOOD & GARDENING
The birds really like this tree.
Missys Brother writes—Saturday Morning Garden Blogging 12.49 - my Kentucky mema's magnolia tree: “My two siblings and I always called our grandmother ‘Mema.’ According to my parents, we went to visit her one Christmas in Kentucky from our home at that time in South Carolina. I was so excited to see her from the car when arriving during one visit that all I could blunt out was ‘Me Ma’ ‘Me Ma.’ And so she was called Mema from that day forward. She always called the three of us her ‘little kittens.’ Mema had been an elementary school teacher and her house still stands on Main Street in the one red-light town. She passed away in 1993. Almost all the other houses have been torn down along Main Street except for hers. There is now a bank on one side and a medical center on the other as there is no zoning in town. Across the street is an auto part store. My father still owns the house. You can see her front porch below that use to have a swinging chair that I would sit in with her during visits. Also visible is a magnolia tree in the backyard that her brother, Lee, had planted. Every time great uncle Lee came down from Indianapolis to visit her, he would bring boxes of plants to put in her yard. Mema was always thrilled to show me around after each of his visits. Now only a few irises and the magnolia tree are still remaining.”
MISCELLANY
lizbirge writes—Fake trees or real ones it all adds up; Christmas trees by any measure equal billions: “Americans bought more than twice as many real Christmas trees last year as they did fake ones, according to the National Christmas Tree Association. That’s 25.9 million real ones versus 12.5 million fake. On average real trees were less expensive, $50.82 each, than fake trees, $69.39, but in retail, volume is everything. The sale of real trees brought in a total of $1.32 billion in 2015, the fake ones, not so much (by comparison: $854 million) for a total revenue of approximately $2.2 billion.”
