Swedish Oil Spill a Preview of the Alaskan Arctic?

Shell secures permits to drill for oil in America’s Arctic waters in 2012.

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Posted20 September 2011, by David Lawlor, unEARTHED (Earthjustice), earthjustice.org/blog/

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A massive oil spill announced this week off the coast of western Sweden feels like an ominous harbinger for America’s Arctic Ocean.

Just days following the spill near the Swedish island of Tjörn, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued air permits for Shell Oil’s plans to drill in the Alaskan Arctic in 2012. EPA issued the permits despite the fact that Shell’s oil spill response plan for the region’s icy, remote waters is totally inadequate.

Sweden’s disaster serves as a cautionary tale for America’s Arctic Ocean.

The spill near Tjörn—a small island renowned for its natural beauty—is killing birds, polluting the shoreline and may not be cleaned up until next summer, threatening the area’s tourist industry. Bad weather is complicating spill response efforts (hmm, I wonder if they ever get bad weather in the Alaskan Arctic?), and locals who want to help have been turned away as the spill’s toxic nature is a serious threat to human health.

Shell’s Arctic drilling would involve many large ships, and the EPA’s permits are for air pollution coming from the stacks of the drill ship Discoverer and associated drilling fleet in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas. This is Shell’s second go-round on obtaining the air permits after the EPA’s reviewing court, the Environmental Appeals Board, determined the original permits did not meet Clean Air Act requirements.

We are disappointed the EPA decided to issue permits that are less protective than they could and should be. Green lighting Shell’s plans for 2012 is another step toward Arctic Ocean oil drilling by the Obama administration without first ensuring that an oil spill could be cleaned up in the region. Earthjustice attorneys are reviewing the air permits and will make decisions about the next steps based on that review.

 

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http://earthjustice.org/blog/2011-september/swedish-oil-spill-a-preview-of-the-alaskan-arctic

Residents turn vacant lot into a lovely, welcoming glen

 

Flower garden transforms eye-sore to eye-popping.

 

At left, Chris Quinn of West Des Moines sits with Terri Mitchell of the Mondamin Presidential neighborhood in the new garden they and a couple dozen other volunteers have created at 19th Street and College Avenue. Residents this summre set to work next to busy 19th Street transforming the vacant, overgrown lot to a lush, colorful garden that attracts appreciative remarks from many who drive by or live in the area. / JANET KLOCKENGA/THE REGISTER

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Posted 22 September 2011, by Janet Klockenga, Des Moines Register (Gannett), desmoinesregister.com

 

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A once-vacant lot at 19th Street and College Avenue has blossomed this summer, now offering eye-popping color in three flower beds, thanks to the loving care of neighbors in the Mondamin Presidential neighborhood.

The garden, which residents are terming the Mondamin Glen, sits just to the east of busy 19th Street. In spring, residents started clearing brush and overgrown trees from the 155-by-75-foot lot during a Habitat For Humanity Rock the Block cleanup event.

From there, the garden grew.

Residents living in the Mondamin Presidential neighborhood have set to work next to busy 19th Street transforming a vacant, overgrown lot to a lush, colorful garden that attracts appreciative remarks from many who drive by or live in the area. Here, Master Gardeners Terri Mitchell and Chris Quinn talk about future plans for the garden. / JANET KLOCKENGA/THE REGISTER

Mondamin Presidential Neighborhood Association president Valerie Allen is proud of the way neighbors combined forces to work on the project.

“Hundreds of hands touched the Mondamin Glen over these past several months,” Allen said, adding that the idea came from longtime resident Rhonda Cason. Another resident, Terri Mitchell, a Master Gardener, led the way to map out the garden and plant it.

“There were so many folks involved with that project, I couldn’t begin to thank them for all their donation of time, energy and materials,” Allen said.

Mitchell got some help in plotting and planning the garden from fellow Master Gardener Chris Quinn of West Des Moines. Mitchell’s husband, Stan, also showed up nearly every evening, hauling water for the garden from a nearby fire hydrant on 19th Street.

As the garden grew, so did the attention paid to it.

“It was great for attracting hummingbirds,” Quinn said.

And honks from passing drivers.

“People love it,” said Terri Mitchell. “They drive by and honk all the time while we’re out here working. Sometimes we worry a little bit; some people have to stop and look at it, backing traffic up.”

“It’s in a perfect location because a lot of people see it when they’re getting off work,” said Stan Mitchell. “I can’t believe how many people have stopped and said they like it. Young kids have actually stopped to pick up trash here.”

Terri said one woman told her “it’s the most beautiful garden in Des Moines.”

“Another one called it ‘eye candy,’ ” she said. “It makes me happy to hear that.”

The garden features three round flower beds, one that’s planted to attract butterflies. The main bed holds a large new neighborhood sign the association paid for, along with three cement deer sculptures that Stan repainted. The sculptures had long resided in the yard of James Strode, who died a couple years ago.

Dramatic castor bean plants, each well over 6 feet tall, are planted in the middle of two flower beds, which boast tidy rings of salvia, bee balm, coneflowers and Asiatic lilies. A separate seating area in the corner provides a shady place for reflection.

The resident gardeners got most of their annuals at no charge from the city’s greenhouse on the east side, and the Mondamin Presidential Neighborhood Association kicked in some money to pay for other plants and landscaping materials. Terri Mitchell estimated it cost less than $2,000 to get the garden planted.

She said she hopes next year to plant more roses, and to install a couple trellises. The neighbors plan to lay a path of pavers among the three flower beds.

The constant watering, especially during the August heatwave, was worthwhile, Terri Mitchell said.

“I’m surprised how pretty it turned out,” she said.

Neighborhood association prssident Valerie Allen likes the way the garden has drawn admiring glances from passing motorists.

“When you drive north on 19th Street, it makes you slow down and take notice,” she said. “It’s just one of the many things the residents have helped accomplish this year. We take pride in our neighborhood, and we truly care how it’s perceived.”

The caretakers of Mondamin Glen are hoping to plant tulips and other bulbs in the garden this fall. Mitchell said she hopes eventually the garden will be filled with perennials. The group will welcome donations of bulbs and mulch this fall.

For more information about their needs, call Terri Mitchell at 282-9709.

 

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http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20110922/COMM/309220066/-1/SPORTSstories/Residents-turn-vacant-lot-into-lovely-welcoming-glen

This month in ecological science

Evolutionary traps, invasive yellow starthistle’s favorable response to carbon dioxide and plant breeding for harmony between agriculture and the environment

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Posted 22 September 2011, by Nadine Lymn (Ecological Society of America) , EurekAlert! eurekalert.org

 

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Evolutionary traps in human-dominated landscapes

A study published in the September issue of Ecology looks at how human activities can diminish the usefulness of an ornamental trait, such as colorful feathers, as a signal of fitness. Cardinals, for example, need carotenoids in their diet to produce their red plumage; brilliant red plumage can signal an individual’s health and fitness. Researcher Amanda Rodewald (Ohio State University) and colleagues looked at the socially monogamous Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) in 14 forests in Ohio between 2006-2008, measuring plumage color, reproduction, and quantifying habitat. They found that the non-native Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) altered the selective environments for coloration by creating an evolutionary trap for the cardinals in rural landscapes and possibly relaxing selection in cities. Evolutionary traps occur when behavior that was once beneficial is a drawback in an altered environment.

The non-native honeysuckle is appealing to cardinals because it provides dense vegetation for nesting. Honeysuckle fruits are also a source of carotenoid pigments the birds need for their red plumage. Previous studies suggest that plumage brightness or hue signal a bird that is in good condition, has a good territory, and will put energy into raising its offspring. But the non-native honeysuckle’s appeal to cardinals comes with a price: a nest in this shrub is more vulnerable to predators. Rodewald and colleagues found that in rural areas the mostly brightly colored male cardinals were in best condition, bred earliest in the season, and secured the more preferred territories that included the non-native shrub. But their annual reproductive success was lower than that of duller males. The authors did not see these results in urban forests, where color was not related to any reproductive indicators, likely because the abundant honeysuckle and birdseed reduce the usefulness of color as a signal of quality. This scenario might lead to relaxed selection for bright color in urban forests and selection against bright color in rural forests.

“Our study provides evidence that human –induced changes to ecosystems can both create evolutionary traps that alter relationships between sexual and natural selection (i.e., via exotic shrubs in rural landscapes) and facilitate escape from evolutionary traps (i.e., via anthropogenic resources in urban landscapes),” write the authors. Read more at:
http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/11-0022.1

Noxious and invasive yellow starthistle responds favorably to increased carbon dioxide

Yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitaialis) is a highly invasive plant species in the grasslands of western North America. Native to the lands northeast of the Mediterranean Sea and highly poisonous to horses, yellow starthistle is considered one of California’s most problematic non-native plants. Jeffrey Dukes (Purdue University) and colleagues conducted field experiments in California and found that Centaurea grew more than six times larger in response to increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration and also responded favorably to nitrogen (N) deposition. In contrast, the surrounding grasses and wildflowers responded less strongly or not at all to increased CO2 and nitrogen levels. The researchers report their findings in the September issue of Ecological Applications.

“Given these results, we add Centaurea to a short but growing list of noxious and invasive plants demonstrated to dramatically benefit from CO2 in community settings, and to the longer list of invasives that benefit from increased N availability,” write the authors. “Atmospheric CO2 concentrations are increasing by 2 ppm/yr around the globe. Nitrogen deposition rates vary spatially, but are already higher than our treatment levels at one sampling station in California, and are expected to increase globally. Unless biocontrol agents become more effective at controlling Centaurea, the weed’s response to environmental changes is likely to heighten the challenge facing many North American land managers over the course of this century.” Read more at:
http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/11-0111.1

Plant breeding for harmony between agriculture and the environment

Meeting basic human needs while also preserving the natural resources to do so is a major challenge of the coming century. Earth’s human inhabitants need more food, animal feed, fiber, fuel and forest products, all while facing shrinking vital resources such as land, water and nutrients. A new eView review paper in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment asserts that plant breeding is a critical tool to bring about a more positive relationship between agriculture and the environment on which it depends.

In their review, E. Charles Brummer (Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation) and colleagues note that plant breeders are working to improve crop hardiness to withstand various environmental conditions, such as those associated with climate change. Many breeders are also interested in reducing agriculture’s negative impacts on the environment, such as contributing to oxygen-deprived dead zones in water bodies or soil erosion. Since the 1950s, crop improvements—together with inputs including fertilizers, pesticides and water—have enabled agricultural production to keep up with human demands. Now, say the authors, “partnerships between ecologists, urban planners, and policy makers with public and private plant breeders will be essential for addressing future challenges.” Co-author Seth Murray (Texas A&M University) adds that: “We tend to think that solutions are technological and can be put in place quickly. But new crop cultivars and species take decades or more to develop and there is no shortcut so we really need to start thinking now about what we will need in 10-20 years.” Read more at:
http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/100225

 

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http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/esoa-tmi092211.php

Permaculture institute celebrates 25 years in Basalt

Basalt permaculturist Jerome Osentowski collects the fruits (and vegetables) of his labor at his greenhouses. Scott Condon/The Aspen Times

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Posted 18 September 2011, by Scott Condon, The Aspen Times (Swift Communications, Inc.), aspentimes.com

 

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BASALT — There’s a Garden of Eden carved into the piñon and juniper forest on the sunny south side of Basalt Mountain, a one-acre paradise where fruit trees and grape vines flourish outside and greenhouses cradle everything from fig trees to particularly prolific passionfruit.

The Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute (CRMPI) is celebrating its 25th year, an amazing feat considering permaculture’s overshadowed status in the gardening world and a catastrophic fire in October 2007.

The paradise is the creation of Jerome Osentowski, who has been involved in growing food in one way or another for more than 30 years and is recognized as an expert in building greenhouses and successfully filling them.

Perhaps the crowning achievement of his career is what he has accomplished — with staff, friends and volunteers — at the 1,800-square-foot Phoenix greenhouse, so-called because it replaced a greenhouse that burned down four years ago. It’s an amazing place, 2.5 miles from downtown Basalt, that makes visitors feel like they’re in a tropical jungle, sans the dangers.

A passionfruit vine dominates a section of the overstory, racing along 40 feet on a trellis in one direction and 20 feet in another. It was allowed to climb all over to shade the greenhouse interior from the sun and keep it cooler during the summer. The vine will be cut back this fall so the sun heats a flagstone patio and stone gabion walls on the north wall of the greenhouse. The rocks will release their heat after dark and help stabilize the greenhouse during the long nights of fall and winter.

Along with the passionfruit vine, the lush overstory in the greenhouse is completed with papaya, guava, avocado and dragonfruit plants along with four types of citrus trees. The banana plants, with huge leaves drooping down like elephant ears, command the entire west end.

The understory looks like a Rocky Mountain garden gone wild. There are common plants — peppers, cucumbers and sweet potatoes — but they reap the constant benefits of a warm, humid environment.

“We take what’s outside, put it inside and bump it up a few climate zones,” Osentowski said.

The subtropical environment of the Phoenix greenhouse won’t drop below 40 degrees at night, and it stays between 70 and 80 degrees during the day. A sauna heated by a wood stove is attached to the greenhouse. Warm air will be released from the sauna into the greenhouse during the coldest periods of winter. Numerous vents keep it cool during warm weather.

Solar panels provide the power necessary for the greenhouses; CRMPI is off the grid.

Mixed in with the veggies in the understory are exotic varieties of plants: fragrant night-blooming jasmine, Chinese date trees and aromatic medicinal plants like ginger.

Osentowski said he and his staff follow the forest-garden model where there are layers of cohabiting plants outdoors. “We try to mimic that,” he said.

All spaces are filled with plants. Sometimes they don’t work out in a particular place, but usually they find their niche.

“We’re not trying to play God,” Osentowski said. “We’re doing some logical mimicking of nature.”

The soil beds in the south section of the Phoenix greenhouse, clear of the lush overstory, is laid thick with annuals and winter salad greens. The diversity of plants means there is always something to harvest — “phases of abundance,” as Osentowski calls them. The idea, he said, is to avoid being one-dimensional like agri-business and most other greenhouses.

A smaller Mediterranean greenhouse adjacent to Phoenix is dominated by a massive fig tree that Osentowski calls “the grand dame” of CRMPI. The fig started from an 18-inch-high cutting 15 years ago and is now a twisting tree with numerous branches that take up roughly 100 square feet and produces mouth-watering fruit.

CRMPI is constantly building the soil of its greenhouses with leaves from the orchard outdoors and from rotting vegetation from the indoor plants themselves. When a huge leaf falls off the banana plant, it’s best left at the base of the plant to provide nutrients rather than tossed out. Tidiness isn’t necessarily a virtue in the greenhouse. Mulch covers the soil beds and certain areas are devoted to particularly thick mulch, where worms are added in heavy concentration. They break down the mulch and create rich humus.

A small pond on the property is home for ducks and tilapia. The soil from the pond is occasionally scraped up and used as fertilizer, as is the manure from chickens and Nigerian goats on the property. The “waste” goes back into the system. That sustainability is central to the permaculture concept of whole systems management.

Osentowski teamed with other instructors to teach CRMPI’s 25th Annual Permaculture Design Certification Course in August. The two-week course teaches students the essential elements of permaculture so they can better design and maintain sustainable systems such as forest gardens and greenhouses.

Osentowski said public interest in permaculture is picking up. The New York Times ran a lengthy article this summer about its growing popularity, and Osentowski and his staff have received a book contract to write about the system and CRMPI’s history.

Still, permaculture hasn’t been embraced to the degree Osentowski thinks it deserves.

“The floodgate hasn’t opened. It’s still a small movement,” he said.

He senses it will grow, particularly if the economic challenges continue to plague the world for years to come. Osentowski is proud that CRMPI has its own woodworking shop so the staff can create what it needs. It produces its own food. Passive solar and solar electric systems supply the power.

“We’re the ultimate survivalists, really,” Osentowski said. “The beauty of CRMPI is it’s built on a shoestring budget, it works and it’s replicable.”

scondon@aspentimes.com

 

 

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http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20110918/NEWS/110919857/1077&ParentProfile=1058

McHenry County Installs Raingarden; Xeriscaping Garden is Next

Gardens to provide residents an example of how to conserve water, with threat of water shortages in the future.

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Posted17 September 2011, by Cassandra McKinney (McHenry County), BarringtonPatch (Patch Network),  barrington-il.patch.com

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Water conservation in McHenry County is serious business now and for the future.  In an effort to demonstrate ways that it can be done, the County is building demonstration gardens on the McHenry County campus in front of the Administration Building.

Funding for the gardens was provided by the McHenry County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Illinois American Water Environmental Grant Program.

The first to be installed was a raingarden, which can be best described as a garden planted with native plants that use and reduce storm water runoff.  These gardens filter pollutants and improve the soil’s ability to absorb water.  Insects, birds and butterflies benefit from the raingardens because they provide food, shelter and habitat for them.

In late-September, a xeriscaping garden will be built.  This garden will create a landscape to reduce water use with proper plant placement and the use of native, drought-tolerant plants.  This garden has the dual goal of first reducing water use, then the need for extensive lawn maintenance.  In both the raingarden and the xeriscaping garden, signs will be posted to describe the different plants and their unique traits, as well as information about how the gardens were constructed.

Mary McCann, Chairman of the McHenry County Environmental and Natural Resources Committee, said, “The raingarden and xeriscaping projects will be excellent examples for residents to see how they can easily and successfully conserve water on their own.  It is important to show the benefits and affordability, since it has been recognized that McHenry County may experience water shortages as soon as 2030, if nothing is done to conserve water quantity and quality.”

McHenry County has developed a Water Resources Action Plan (WRAP) to ensure that a sustainable water supply will meet the demands of projected population growth for the County in 2030 and thereafter.  A major section of WRAP is water conservation where the importance of reducing the demand for water, improving the efficiency in the use, reducing losses of water and improving land management practices are highlighted.  The development of the raingarden and xeriscaping are examples of how residents can help meet those goals.

For more information, contact McHenry County Water Resources Manager Cassandra McKinney at clmckinney@co.mchenry.il.us.

This news release was provided by McHenry County.

Related Topics: McHenry County, raingardens, and xeriscaping

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http://barrington-il.patch.com/articles/mchenry-county-installs-raingarden-xeriscaping-garden-is-next

Court Approves Historic Agreement to Speed Endangered Species Act Protection for 757 Imperiled Species

Court Approves Historic Agreement to Speed Endangered Species Act Protection for 757 Imperiled Species

Walrus, Wolverine, Albatross, Fisher, Mexican Gray Wolf, Sage Grouse,
Golden Trout Among Those Fast-tracked for Protection

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Posted 09 September 2011, by Noah Greenwald, Center for Biological Diversity, biologicaldiversity.org

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For Immediate Release, September 9, 2011

Contact: Noah Greenwald, (503) 484-7495

 

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TUCSON, Ariz.— A federal judge today approved a landmark legal agreement between the Center for Biological Diversity and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service requiring the agency to make initial or final decisions on whether to add hundreds of imperiled plants and animals to the federal endangered species list by 2018. The court also approved an agreement with another conservation group that it had previously blocked based on legal opposition from the Center.

“The court’s approval today will allow this historic agreement to move forward, speeding protection for as many as 757 of America’s most imperiled species,” said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center. “The historic agreement gives species like the Pacific walrus, American wolverine and California golden trout a shot at survival.”

The Center wrote scientific listing petitions and/or filed lawsuits to protect the 757 species as part of its decade-long campaign to safeguard 1,000 of America’s most imperiled, least protected species. Spanning every taxonomic group, the species protected by the agreement include 26 birds, 31 mammals, 67 fish, 22 reptiles, 33 amphibians, 197 plants and 381 invertebrates.

“With approval of the agreement, species from across the nation will be protected,” said Greenwald. “Habitat destruction, climate change, invasive species and other factors are pushing species toward extinction in all 50 states, and this agreement will help turn the tide.”

Individual species included in the agreement include the walrus, wolverine, Mexican gray wolf, New England cottontail rabbit, three species of sage grouse, scarlet Hawaiian honeycreeper (‘i‘iwi), California golden trout and Rio Grande cutthroat trout — as well as 403 southeastern river-dependent species, 42 Great Basin springsnails and 32 Pacific Northwest mollusks.

The agreement, formalized today with the judge’s approval, was signed by the Center and the Fish and Wildlife Service on July 12. Already dozens of species have been proposed for listing, including the Miami blue butterfly, one of the rarest butterflies in the United States.

While the agreement encompasses nearly all the species on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s official list of “candidates” for Endangered Species Act protection, two-thirds of the species in the agreement (499) are not on the list. This corresponds with the conclusion of numerous scientists and scientific societies that the extinction crisis is vastly greater than existing federal priority systems and budgets.

“The Endangered Species Act specifically allows scientists, conservationists and others to submit petitions to protect species,” said Greenwald. “These petitions play a critical role in identifying species in need and help the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with the ever-expanding task of protecting species threatened with extinction.”

The species in the agreement occur in all 50 states and several Pacific island territories. The top three states in the agreement are Alabama, Georgia and Florida, with 149, 121 and 115 species respectively. Hawaii has 70, Nevada 54, California 51, Washington 36, Arizona 31, Oregon 24, Texas 22 and New Mexico 18.

An interactive map and a full list of the 757 species broken down by state, taxonomy, name and schedule of protection are available here.

Highlighted species are below.

Species Highlights

American wolverine: A bear-like carnivore, the American wolverine is the largest member of the weasel family. It lives in mountainous areas of the West, where it depends on late-spring snowpacks for denning. The primary threats to its existence are shrinking snowpacks related to global warming, excessive trapping and harassment by snowmobiles.

The Center for Biological Diversity and allies petitioned to list the wolverine as an endangered species in 1994. It was placed on the candidate list in 2010. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2013 and finalize the decision in 2014 if warranted.

Pacific walrus: A large, ice-loving, tusk-bearing pinniped, the Pacific walrus plays a major role in the culture and religion of many northern peoples. Like the polar bear, it is threatened by the rapid and accelerating loss of Arctic sea ice and oil drilling.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list it as an endangered species in 2007. It was placed on the candidate list in 2011. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2017 and finalize the decision in 2018 if warranted.

Mexican gray wolf: Exterminated from, then reintroduced to the Southwest, the Mexican gray wolf lives in remote forests and mountains along the Arizona-New Mexico border. It is threatened by legal and illegal killing, which has hampered the federal recovery program, keeping the species down to 50 wild animals.

The Center for Biological Diversity and allies petitioned to list it as an endangered species separate from other wolves in 2009. It is not on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2012 and finalize the decision in 2013 if warranted.

Black-footed albatross: A large, dark-plumed seabird that lives in northwestern Hawaii, the black-footed albatross is threatened by longline swordfish fisheries, which kill it as bycatch.

The Center for Biological Diversity and allies petitioned to list this albatross as an endangered species in 2004. It is not on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection, determine it does not qualify, or find that it is warranted but precluded for protection in 2011.

Rio Grande cutthroat trout: Characterized by deep crimson slashes on its throat — hence the name “cutthroat” — the Rio Grande cutthroat is New Mexico’s state fish. It formerly occurred throughout high-elevation streams in the Rio Grande Basin of New Mexico and southern Colorado. Logging, road building, grazing, pollution and exotic species have pushed it to the brink of extinction.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list it as an endangered species in 1998. It was placed on the candidate list in 2008. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2014 and finalize the decision in 2015 if warranted.

403 Southeast aquatic species: The southeastern United States contains the richest aquatic biodiversity in the nation, harboring 62 percent of the country’s fish species (493 species), 91 percent of its mussels (269 species) and 48 percent of its dragonflies and damselflies (241 species). Unfortunately the wholesale destruction, diversion, pollution and development of the Southeast’s rivers have made the region America’s aquatic extinction capital.

In 2010, the Center for Biological Diversity completed a 1,145-page, peer-reviewed petition to list 403 Southeast aquatic species as endangered, including the Florida sandhill crane, MacGillivray’s seaside sparrow, Alabama map turtle, Oklahoma salamander, West Virginia spring salamander, Tennessee cave salamander, Black Warrior waterdog, Cape Sable orchid, clam-shell orchid, Florida bog frog, Lower Florida Keys striped mud turtle, eastern black rail and streamside salamander.

Only 18 of Southeast aquatic species are on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will issue initial listing decisions on all 403 plants and animals in 2011.

Pacific fisher: A cat-like relative of minks and otters, the fisher is the only animal that regularly preys on porcupines. It lives in old-growth forests in California, Oregon and Washington, where it is threatened by logging.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list the fisher as an endangered species in 2000. It was placed on the candidate list in 2004. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2014 and finalize the decision in 2015 if warranted.

Cactus ferruginous pygmy owl: A tiny desert raptor, active in the daytime, the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl lives in southern Arizona and northern Mexico. It is threatened by urban sprawl and nearly extirpated from Arizona.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list it as an endangered species in 1992. It was protected in 1997, then delisted on technical grounds in 2006. The Center repetitioned to protect it in 2007. It is not on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2011 and finalize the decision in 2012 if warranted.

42 Great Basin springsnails: Living in isolated springs of the Great Basin and Mojave deserts, springsnails play important ecological roles cycling nutrients, filtering water and providing food to other animals. Many are threatened by a Southern Nevada Water Authority plan to pump remote, desert groundwater to Las Vegas.

In 2009, the Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list 42 springsnails as endangered species, including the duckwater pyrg, Big Warm Spring pyrg and Moapa pebblesnail. None are on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will issue initial listing decisions on all 42 species in 2011.

Scarlet Hawaiian honeycreeper (‘I‘iwi): This bright-red bird hovers like a hummingbird and has long been featured in the folklore and songs of native Hawaiians. It is threatened by climate change, which is causing mosquitoes that carry introduced diseases — including avian pox and malaria — to move into the honeycreeper’s higher-elevations refuges. It has been eliminated from low elevations on all islands by these diseases.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list it as an endangered species in 2010. It is not on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2016 and finalize the decision in 2017 if warranted.

Ashy storm petrel: A small, soot-colored seabird that lives off coastal waters from California to Baja, Mexico, the ashy storm petrel looks like it’s walking on the ocean surface when it feeds. It is threatened by warming oceans, sea-level rise and ocean acidification.

The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list it as an endangered species in 2007. It is not on the candidate list. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2013 and finalize the decision in 2014 if warranted.

Greater and Mono Basin sage grouse: Sage grouse are showy, ground-dwelling birds that perform elaborate mating dances, with males puffing up giant air sacks on their chests. The Mono Basin sage grouse lives in Nevada and California. The greater sage grouse lives throughout much of the Interior West. Both are threatened by oil and gas drilling, livestock grazing, development and off-road vehicles.

The Center for Biological Diversity and allies petitioned to list the Mono Basin sage grouse as an endangered species in 2005. It was placed on the candidate list in 2010. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2013 and finalize the decision in 2014 if warranted.

The greater sage grouse was petitioned for listing in 2002 and placed on the candidate list in 2010. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2015 and finalize the decision in 2016 if warranted.

Miami blue butterfly: An ethereal beauty native to South Florida and possibly the most endangered insect in the United States, the Miami blue was thought extinct after Hurricane Andrew in 1992 but rediscovered in 1999. It is threatened by habitat loss and pesticide spraying.

It was petitioned for listing as an endangered species in 2000 and placed on the candidate list in 2005. The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned to list it on an emergency basis in 2011. Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was required to propose it for protection (or determine it does not qualify) in 2012 and finalize the decision in 2013 if warranted. In August, the agency protected the butterfly on an emergency basis. 

Oregon spotted frog: The Oregon spotted frog lives in wetlands from southernmost British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to northernmost California. It is threatened by habitat destruction and exotic species.

Read more about the Center’s historic 757-species agreement.

 

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http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2011/757-species-agreement-09-09-2011.html

Citizens, groups united behind Newport prairie

Posted 26 August 2011, by Steven Higgs, The Bloomington Alternative, bloomingtonalternative.com
 

Photograph by Steven Higgs. More than 400 plant species have been documented on the 336-acre black-soil prairie at the soon-to-be former Newport Chemical Depot. In addition to refusing to protect the prairie, the local reuse authority that will soon own the 7,100-acre installation is planning a coal liquefaction plant on the site about 30 miles north of Terre Haute.

Tim Maloney wasn’t alone when he objected to the U.S. Army’s October 2010 finding that a reuse plan for the Newport Chemical Depot would have no significant environmental impact on the Vermillion County environs. That the plan offered no protection for a rare and endangered black-soil prairie on the base wasn’t even the most confounding aspect. Proposed by a local reuse authority empowered to determine the 7,100-acre base’s future, the plan called for a coal-liquefaction plant on land that had been maintained largely in agricultural and natural states.

The Army’s determination that a coal plant would produce no adverse environmental impacts was one of several issues the Hoosier Environmental Council’s (HEC) senior policy director said rendered it “inadequate” under federal law. “This would be a major industrial facility, with potential impacts to air quality, water quality, disturbance or destruction of forest, wetlands, and prairie, and dramatic change in the nature of the property,” Maloney wrote in Dec. 18, 2010, comments. He called on the Army to complete a full environmental impact statement for Newport.

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Read the series The Indiana prairie’s last best chance

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Maloney’s comments were in response to the Army’s Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Reuse of the Newport Chemical Depot, released on Nov. 10, 2010. The Army is in the process of transferring the base to a Local Reuse Authority, appointed by the Vermillion County Commissioners.

“This has been given to us, and I think it is a gift that we need to preserve for the future.” – Sister Maureen Freeman, White Violet Center for Eco-Justice

The coal plant was not, in fact, an abstraction. Two months before the Army released its EA, Indiana Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman announced an agreement that she said laid the foundation for the depot’s reuse.

“Clean Coal Refining Corporation (CCRC) and the Newport Chemical Depot Reuse Authority (NCDRA) of Clinton, Ind., have agreed on a road map that allows CCRC to perform a feasibility study for the construction of a Direct Coal Liquefaction plant on a 1,500-acre section of the site’s 7,000 plus acres,” according to a Sept. 15, 2010, news release from her office.

The state’s No. 2 politician called the plant a “clean-coal project” and said about 2.5 million tons of Indiana coal would be refined annually to produce about 8 million barrels of jet fuel, heating oil, diesel and utility fuel.

“This project deserves our support, ” Skillman said in the release. “If built, the project would mean a $3 billion investment and jobs for 500 highly skilled Hoosiers.”

***Maloney’s comments weren’t the first from HEC on the Newport Reuse Plan. For more than two years the state’s largest environmental group had allied with hundreds of other citizens, citizen groups and government agencies in asking the Army and reuse authority to protect the Newport property’s unique natural features .

Since the 1960s, the World War II–era Newport base had been used to produce and store deadly VX nerve agent. In 2005 the Army decided to close Newport. In 2009 the local reuse authority gave preliminary approval to a reuse plan.

“They are not overgrown meadows. They are very, very special places.” – Bill McKnight, Indiana Academy of Science

In a little over a month, that first-draft plan drew more than 400 comments from the public, said Phil Cox, the Wabash Valley Audubon Society’s vice president, who spent 22 years as the natural resources administrator for the Newport property’s contract manager.

“No comments were received in favor of destroying the prairie,” he wrote in a timeline of Newport events. “Comments supporting saving the prairie were received from: Indiana Wildlife Federation, Pheasants Forever, Indiana Division of Fish & Wildlife, Hoosier Environmental Council, Vermillion County Soil & Water Conservation District, National Audubon Society, White Violet Center for Eco-Justice and hundreds more.”

After making minor modifications with still no protection for the prairie, the reuse authority held a public hearing on Nov. 19, 2009. Nearly half the 54 citizens attending spoke, for the record. Twenty-one spoke in favor of preserving the prairie, and the other two didn’t mention it, wrote Cox, who is also vice president for development of the Ouabache Land Conservancy.

Sister Maureen Freeman, from the White Violet Center for Eco-Justice at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, told the authority that her center had been unsuccessful in its efforts to restore prairie land to Indiana. “It is not easy,” she said. “This has been given to us, and I think it is a gift that we need to preserve for the future.”

Bill McKnight, from the Indiana Academy of Science, likewise called the prairie a gift. “They are not overgrown meadows,” he said of prairies. “They are very, very special places.”

Terre Haute resident and IU School of Medicine faculty member Mike Lannoo agreed. Many combat veterans come back with wounds that aren’t always physical, he said. “So where do they go to get healthy? They don’t go to businesses or gas stations. They don’t go to ag fields, unless they are pheasant hunters. They go to nature. Tallgrass prairie would be a great gift to them. A place where they could go to heal.”

***In June 2010 the Indiana Wildlife Federation (IWF) passed a resolution calling on “the State of Indiana through the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and any other appropriate agencies to conserve and protect the aforementioned natural resources for compatible public outdoor recreation activities such as hunting, fishing, trapping, wildlife watching, mushroom hunting, hiking, biking; and to conserve and protect the agricultural lands for future agricultural production areas or future restoration areas.”

That same month, four other citizen groups – the Indiana Division of Izaak Walton League of America, the Indiana director of the National Audubon Society, the Indiana Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts and the Indiana Sportsmen’s Roundtable – and the IWF sent letters to U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., whose staff forwarded the letters to the Department of Defense (DoD).

“The habitat on NECD represents an outstanding opportunity for restoration management for 2,000 acres of forests, 213 acres of wetlands, 3,000 acres of agricultural lands, 336 acres of the largest contiguous black soil tall grass prairie in the State.” – Hoosier Chapter Sierra Club resolution

“These organizations requested that a portion of the natural areas at the Newport Chemical Depot be titled to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR),” the Lugar letter explained. “They believe that the IDNR will provide proper stewardship of this land and its wildlife for use and access by future generations.”

DNR had, in fact, submitted a Notice of Intent, formally asking the Army for control over a portion of the Newport base.

On July 7, 2010, the defense department responded. “During the screening period there were four Notices of Interest (NOI) received and evaluated for inclusion in the redevelopment plan,” wrote Roland Biser, chief of the department’s congressional affairs contact office. “In response to the expressions of interest, and balancing the economic needs of the community, the Newport Chemical Depot Reuse Authority (NECDRA) established a Natural Areas Management plan.”

Biser called it a “balanced redevelopment plan,” with 49 percent of the base designated for economic redevelopment and the rest as open space and natural areas.”

Cox, however, responded that the reuse authority denied all four NOIs, that no natural area plan had been “established,” and only 32 percent was designated as open space and natural areas. The 51 percent designated as “Natural Environment” included row crop agricultural areas that are not natural.

“Of course, the letter’s statement that the conservation of natural resources is insured is incorrect, as long as there is a possibility that the majority of the prairie could be plowed under or paved over,” he said.

***On Nov. 8, 2010, the reuse authority published a Notice of Intent for the Finding of Suitability to Transfer the Newport property in the Daily Clintonian newspaper, giving the public until Dec. 17 to file comments.

Joining Maloney and others in commenting was the Hoosier Chapter of the Sierra Club, which passed a resolution on Nov. 13 that outlined the Newport property’s natural treasures.

“The habitat on NECD represents an outstanding opportunity for restoration management for 2,000 acres of forests, 213 acres of wetlands, 3,000 acres of agricultural lands, 336 acres of the largest contiguous black soil tall grass prairie in the State; including 176 acres of High Quality Natural Communities that are rare or critically imperiled in the State and 680 acres of Natural Areas.

“… There is documentation of over 150 species of birds, 35 species of mammals, 15 species of reptiles, 15 species of amphibians and 32 species of fish, and more than 400 species of plants (including five State watch-list species).”

Steven Higgs can be reached at editor@BloomingtonAlternative.com.

http://www.bloomingtonalternative.com/articles/2011/08/26/10762

Nature Reserve In Jordan Is Growing Organic

 

Jordan is championing water-efficiency and chemical-free farming at the stunning Mujib nature reserve

Posted 28 August 2011, by Arwa Aburawa, Green Prophet, greenprophet.com

 

Following Qatar’s plans to build 1,400 organic farms, comes the announcement that a Jordanian nature reserve will be growing organic crops and medicinal herbs. The farm at the Mujib Biosphere Reserve is spread over 10 dunums and is designed to demonstrate the advantages of growing food using less water and chemicals to the local farmers. Conservationists suggested the organic farm following a decline in the quality and quantity of water in the nature reserve, which is home to over 90 rare plant species and numerous migratory birds.

Project coordinator, Ehab Eid told the Jordan Times that the water resources in the reserve face numerous challenges such as the heavy use of chemical pesticides and water extraction by local farmers. A decline in water is problematic as it negatively impacts species and threatens the nature reserve’s biodiversity.

Eid explained that the organic farm will hopefully raise awareness amongst farmers of the possibility of growing food using environment-friendly methods which don’t risk contaminating the Mujib reserve’s water supplies or depleting it unnecessarily. Conservationists have warned that the diversion of rivers into dams is driving away birds and threatening the future survival of unique fish species in the Mujib.

The Mujib Reserve, which is named after the valley which runs through it, is home to high-altitude summits and waterfalls. It also hosts various seasonal and permanent rivers which enable it to support the diverse flora and fauna (and attract migratory birds) within the 220 square kilometre biosphere nature reserve.

UNESCO declared the Mujib Nature Reserve a biosphere reserve earlier this year in July in recognition of the reserve’s effort to integrate nature conservation and community development. The UN states that biosphere reserves are sites for experimenting with and learning about sustainable development.

The organic farm recently established is no doubt an example of such efforts to promote sustainability by taking the lead and showing that organic farming not only works but that it is also economically sound. The organic farm at Mujib was setup by the Integrated Management of Water Sources in Mujib Nature Reserve Project which is implemented by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature.

:: Jordan Times

: Image via Giam/Flickr.

For more on food sustainability in the Middle East see:

Qatar To Invest In 1,4000 New Local Farms

Organic Farming On The Rise in Emirates

Global Land Grabs And The Middle East

Egypt To Grab Sudanese Land To Meet Its Wheat Needs

 

http://www.greenprophet.com/2011/08/nature-reserve-growing-organic/

Turkmenistan calls for consensus on Caspian Sea ecology

Posted 26 August 2011, by H.Hasanov, TREND News Agency, en.trend.az   Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Aug.26 / Trend, H. Hasanov /

Caspian Sea

Globalization of economic development of the Caspian littoral states and varying the Caspian Sea level requires a joint solution on a number of ecological problems, an article published on the official “Neutral Turkmenistan” newspaper reported.

Solutions include “preventing Caspian Sea pollution which results from dumping untreated sewage by enterprises into the sea, flooding oil and gas fields into the coastal zone, and reducing bio-resources into the Caspian Sea as a result of irregular use”, the candidate of biological sciences Bibi Polatova writes.

The article dedicated was to Ashgabat’s initiatives which are aimed at developing the constructive cooperation of littoral states in conserving the Caspian Sea’s ecosystem. These proposal will be announced during the forthcoming 66th Session of the UN General Assembly, to open on Sept. 13.

“An inter-regional ecological dialogue, designed to become an effective mechanism for establishing mutually beneficial cooperation, will contribute to improving the ecological situation in the Caspian Sea and its preservation as a unique water basin”, the article reported.

The author writes that “today there is not enough information on the pollution level of the Caspian Sea and on the content of chemical substances of anthropogenic origin due to lack of an organized surveillance system in the entire water area”. In this regard, the organization of ecological monitoring and sea pollution prevention systems are required.

He also stressed that “the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea is now considered the cleanest, and it is the result of intentional work to preserve and restore the environment.” She believes that a number of ecological projects implemented at the Turkmenbashi oil refinery can serve as an example for proper ecology. In particular, they include repair work on existing and new sewage treatment facilities, commissioning of wells to extract oil products from groundwater, reconstruction of facilities on treatment of industrial wastes of tank farms, pumping out oil products from coastlines, and other projects.

The article stressed that the Caspian Sea basin has at present become an arena for large-scale development of natural resources.

“The exploitation of natural coastal zone and marine shelf resources without ecological requirements is fraught with severe water and surface ecosystems pollution and reduction in bio-resources, and can lead to degradation of the ecosystem and deterioration of the population’s socio-economic conditions.”

The Caspian Sea is the world’s largest intra-continental basin that is not connected with the oceans; it has a climate-forming significance. In addition, the Caspian Sea has a variety of ecosystems that are rich in natural resources that have not yet been fully studied.

The Caspian Sea is the most important migration route and habitat for waterfowl and shorebirds. Shallow water and coastal wetlands are highly productive areas and important habitat for marine organisms: fish, seals, and birds.

The Turkmen scientist explains that “the Caspian Sea has a very delicate ecosystem.

Over the last decade, anthropogenic and biochemical factors deteriorated the sea’s ecosystem as a whole.”

Polatova believes that there are also a number of underlying factors for the pollution of the Caspian Sea. They include the development of hydrocarbon reserves in the sea and adjacent areas, high population density and industry, intensive agricultural development of lands, valleys, and falling rivers, the lack of a clearly defined geochemical barrier – a “sea-river”, and others.

Do you have any feedback? Contact our journalist at trend@trend.az

http://en.trend.az/regions/casia/turkmenistan/1923327.html