cap and trade explained

The Washington Post created this graphic explaining the “Cap and Trade” we keep hearing about…. so take a look so you know what is going on.

Pasadena: apparently good for roses. trees.. not so much

I grew up in Pasadena.  In fact, I consider myself a second generation Pasadena girl. And, although, my mother technically grew up in La Canada, Colorado Blvd. was the place to be then, as it is now.

Anyone who has lived or visited this town can sense the history in every nook and cranny. Even though Pottery Barn attracts tourists, Le Sex Shoppe down the way announces our history.

That is why it is so devastating that a few blocks down, the Pasadena City Council cut down the ficus trees that have been in existence for as long as I can remember.  In all honesty, it is not so much that they were cut down, but how they were cut down.

 

This was the culmination of a plan that started ten years ago, that consists of removing 43 ficus trees from streets in the area.  The reasoning behind the removal is an alleged push by business owners in the area who are concerned with root destruction, as well as, what seems to be simple cleanliness issues (abundance of seed pods and residue from tree sap).  Last month, there was hope that a new vote would not pass, thereby saving the trees, but the wavering City councilman wavered the other way.

I am sure we will never know an exact time line of events, but the next decision on the part of the City Council is the one that seems the most devious.  Originally slated for an April removal, there was a decision to remove the oldest of the trees at 2 in the morning, last Friday, just hours before a scheduled protest by residents opposed to the tree destruction. I think that anyone who opposed the tree removal would feel less betrayed had there had been a reasonable discussion, and the opposition felt it had been heard.  

This does seem to have become a battle between residents and business owners, where the businesses have been winning.  Vroman’s Bookstore, established in 1894, is a central player in this particular district and the owner was very vocal in his support of the tree removal. However, many residents are asking people to use the power of money to influence change by not taking their business to the establishments in the area that supported the tree removal.  As a result, many owners, including Vroman’s, are now stating that they are disheartened by the decision of the City Council.

This however may backfire on them in another way, which is that the City Council feels betrayed and left to fend for themselves against the residents, and voters, of the town.  The businesses may suffer in the future, because of their side-stepping on their support of the tree removal by the council.

Since my focus is always about the environment, I feel it is important to say something about why the tree removal will do more harm than good.  I do believe that if the city had paid attention and cared for the ficus trees properly, they would probably never have been in this mess and the far reaching benefits of these trees would still be in place.  Old growth trees like this are fantastic for three things; shade, flood prevention and carbon capture.  

The shade and insulation provided by these trees is immeasurable.  Not only do they do a fantastic job of cooling the direct area underneath the trees, but the subsequent insulation provided to the neighboring buildings is immense.  So, now Vroman’s, or any other business, is going to be emitting even more CO2 with increased heating or cooling requirements by the simple fact that they do not have a tree either helping to cool in the summer, or by insulation in the winter.  

Obviously, I cannot say for certain, and only time will tell, but trees with large root structures are incredibly helpful in preventing floods.  The simple fact is that those roots and those trees need water.  In an area that is covered in cement, trees are indispensable in flood prevention, because all of the soil is covered.  As I said, this will remain to be seen.  I have no idea what the sewer and flood prevention system is like in this part of town.  Also, given that we are in a drought it may be a non-issue. However, time will tell if the tree removal has a disastrous effect on water absorption in the area.

Lastly, and most importantly, old growth trees are THREE TIMES more effective in trapping carbon dioxide than a new tree.  And to add insult to injury, an old growth tree, NEVER releases the carbon dioxide it has trapped.  We are in a race to trap greenhouse gases before they increase our planets temperature to unsustainable levels. To remove these trees without thought to see if there were other actions that could save these carbon sinks is irresponsible, to say the least.  When the world is doing its best to reduce emissions and meet new climate change goals, this decision seems irrational and petty.

In the meantime, we will have to wait and see what happens.  The last City Council meeting was rife with residents voicing their dissatisfaction with the elected officials and asked for a moratorium on future tree cutting.  One hopes that with information and a willingness to hear both sides of the argument, the Mayor and the City Council can make the best decision for the future.

note to the world: it’s over

 

I just read an article about the climate change summit that happened in Poland a few weeks back. I have heard disheartening things, like the United States was useless there. But, THIS, takes the cake.

 

IMAGINE that some huge rocky projectile, big enough to destroy most forms of life, was hurtling towards the earth, and it seemed that deep international co-operation offered the only hope of deflecting the lethal object. Presumably, the nations of the world would set aside all jealousies and ideological hangups, knowing that failure to act together meant doom for all.

At least in theory, most of the world’s governments now accept that climate change, if left unchecked, could become the equivalent of a deadly asteroid. But to judge by the latest, tortuous moves in climate-change diplomacy—at a two-week gathering in western Poland, which ended on December 13th—there is little sign of any mind-concentrating effect.

 

To be fair to the 10,000-odd people (diplomats, UN bureaucrats, NGO types) who assembled in Poznan, a semicolon was removed. At a similar meeting in Bali a year earlier, governments had vowed to consider ways of cutting emissions from “deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries; and the role of conservation [and forest management]”. After much haggling, delegates in Poland decided to upgrade conservation by replacing the offending punctuation mark with a comma.

The article is from the Economist and is quite good.

first 100 days

Yale e360 is a fantastic site, for those who have never visited it. This week they have gathered some of the best minds to address what Obama should do in his first 100 days.

Although the respondents — including entrepreneur Paul Hawken, Rajendra Pachauri of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, activist Van Jones, and green investing leader Mindy Lubber — represent a broad range of interests, they were largely in agreement on how best to solve the current economic and environmental challenges. Basically, they agree that weaning the country off fossil fuels and onto renewable sources of energy is the single best way to rebuild the U.S. economy; that Obama must use all the tools at his disposal — from invoking the Clean Air Act for regulating greenhouse gas emissions to persuading the new Congress to put a price on carbon — to tackle climate change and spur the move to alternative energy; that under an Obama administration the United States must lead in forging a new global climate change treaty; and that, given the rapidity of global warming, Obama must be made fully aware of the “scary” scientific facts — as environmentalist Bill McKibben puts it — and move with a sense of urgency.

You can go HERE for the full article. It will be interesting to see if he follows any of the advice.

recession… good?

Over the last few weeks, there has been report after report on how the recession is going to be bad for the “green” movement. Slate magazine begs to disagree.

The Green House: The recession is the best thing that could have happened to Barack Obama.

The feeling amongst many is that Obama believes that the “green” movement and setting the economy back on track go hand in hand. By tackling things like the infrastructure and energy, there is a double benefit of saving money due to efficiency, while also creating “green jobs” and getting people employed, again.

Newly Nobel-ed economist Paul Krugman has taken the lead in arguing that “the usual rules of economic policy no longer apply.” Normally, if you wanted to retrofit a building or weatherize a home, you’d have to get the money from somewhere. The usual way is to increase revenues or reduce spending. No longer. With the economy in freefall and interest rates as low as they can go, the only hope for recovery is to spend—and to err on the side of spending too much.

The best part: Even though we have to borrow money, eventually the government can pay itself back by printing more. Yes, that would devalue the currency and therefore would not be, to use a technical economic term, free. But the way Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research sees it, we have to spend the money now, anyway, to stimulate the economy: “It’s like what Keynes said: Even if we pay people to dig holes and fill them up again, it’s still good.” And if we’re going to spend, we might as well spend on something that’s going to save us—both economically and environmentally—in the long term.

The argument against all of this… spending more and deflating the value of the dollar may lead the way to the Amero and there is always the backlash of a growing economy hurting the green movement.

You can read the article from Slate Magazine, HERE

save this date

Huh. President-elect Obama made a pick for Agriculture Secretary, marking his first bad decision.

 

Former Gov. Tom Vilsack has been picked to head the USDA as the Agriculture Secretary. Many, including myself, had hoped that Obama would pick a more agriculture friendly representative. I guess he had to please some corporate sponsor.

What is being reported is that Vilsack is a proponent of alternative energies. And, while that may be true, he is a big supporter of corn based ethanol and is very biotech, genetic engineering, big agribiz friendly.

As a state senator, he voted for the infamous House File 519 in 1995, which stripped counties of the right to impose restrictions on CAFOs. In 2005, as governor, he signed into law House File 642, which barred local governments from regulating the planting of genetically modified seed.

I mean if high positioned people at Monsanto like him, then I smell something fishy. Sorry, but I do.

You can read more about the appointment HERE, via the New York Times. As well as, HERE, via Grist.org

this doesn’t bode well

I just saw this article, and thought I should post it. There are two past posts that make this relevant. I have posted about The Elders and I have posted about the problems in Zimbabwe.

Three members of The Elders, including President Jimmy Carter, were denied entrance into Zimbabwe to initiate conversation about the ongoing issues.

“We are very disappointed that the government of Zimbabwe would not permit us to come in, would not cooperate,” former U.S. President Carter said at a news conference in Johannesburg.

It was the first time the 2002 Nobel Peace laureate has been denied permission to carry out a mission in any country, he said.

You can find the full article HERE

zimbabwe

A few articles have been released in the last day or two about the terrible situation in Zimbabwe.

MSNBC has a report, “If you rest, you starve”, in which it illustrates how the political climate has left people starving and scavenging for food.

The food crisis began after 2000, when Mugabe launched an often violent campaign to seize white-owned farms and give them to veterans of his guerrilla war against white rule over the former British colony.

Officials from Mugabe’s party toured the Doma district recently and told the new farm owners that the government could not supply their needs. They were advised to make do with what seed they had left, and with animal manure for fertilizer.

On top of that, in another article, Killer Disease hits Zimbabwe, shows how there is a cholera epidemic due to lack of clean water and poorly maintained sewage treatment.

And as the political and economic crisis in Zimbabwe deepens, most hospitals have been forced to close their doors as they can no longer afford drugs, equipment or to pay their staff.

It is expected to get worse due to the start of the rainy season.

I think that the lesson to be learned is that, sadly, we are going to be hearing more and more of these kind of tales. There is enough food, but because of economy and politics it can’t get to the right places. As a result there is a rampant epidemic of a preventable disease.

Sad. So sad.

sneaky, aren’t they?

So there are two types of positions in the White House… appointed and career positions. If you are an appointed employee, you leave with the exiting administration. If you are in a career position, you get to stay.

so…..

Between March 1 and Nov. 3, according to numbers released by the OPM, the Bush administration allowed 20 political appointees to become career civil servants. Six appointees to the Senior Executive Service, the government’s most prestigious and highly paid employees, have received approval to take career jobs at the same level. Fourteen other political, or “Schedule C,” appointees have also been approved to take career jobs.

It is a technique called “burrowing in”, and while many ex-presidents have had this happen during their administration, it seems that the Bush Administration has a special flare with theirs:

In its report, the GAO concluded that administration officials apparently did not follow appropriate procedures in 18 of these conversions and that some workers were not qualified.

The Washington Post has many articles about this phenomena, which are worth the read if you care about politics and our government. This is especially important if you are one of those that has high expectations of our President-Elect and start vilifying him for not getting things accomplished. By embedding a group of employees that honor the Bush Doctrine, it may be difficult to get things done at the speed the citizenry demands.

You can find the articles:
The Burrowing of the Bushies
Administration Moves to Protect Key Appointees
Senators Urge Bush To Halt Job Shifts

ny times readers to obama: earthly ideas

The New York Times has an environmental blogcalled DotEarth. Recently, there was a post where the author pondered what Obama should do to combat climate change, and readers submitted their ideas, as well.

The top ten reader suggestions were posted today: Readers to Obama: 10 Earthly Ideas on a Budget. I think they are all valid and well worth the read. However, to stick with the theme of the morning, this is the one I will share:

4 — Launch a national campaign with the E.P.A. and Department of Health encouraging Americans to consume fewer animal products. The livestock sector worldwide contributes more to climate change than transportation. The US consumes more animal products than any nation on earth. The problem is mostly cultural, and can be overcome by re-branding meat as more of an optional side dish than the essential center of any meal.

By curbing animal product consumption, we can tackle two of the country’s most pressing dilemmas (the climate crisis and obesity) with only minor investment and the smallest of sacrifices from consumers.

There are many things that can be and should be done. We know we cannot fix global warming by, in Obama’s words, changing a f—ing light bulb. It is a very daunting task because all changes need to be implemented. I think the key is to find the most appropriate change that could have a domino effect on all the other requirements. In my opinion, that is food. I will wait to see which one Obama chooses.

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