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News Archives
Week of May 23, 2004
Picture of the Day
I'm not sure what my time will be like this weekend; I'll post something if I can. In the meantime, here is lovely Glen Canyon. I hope you can spend your weekend somewhere equally as wonderful.
Posted by Jennifer on Friday, May 28 2004, 6:14 PM
Endangered Species in the News
Golden eagle hatched from frozen sperm
For the first time ever, a golden eagle chick has been hatched from frozen sperm. Scientists in Scotland hope that this technique may help to save some endangered species in the future. Raptors are hard to breed in captivity, for various reasons, but the ability to use frozen sperm allows scientists to fertilize females at the optimum times for successful hatching.
Leopard thought extinct is seen in the former Soviet republic of Georgia
Zoologists were startled recently by a view of an Asian leopard that had been thought extinct. Footprints had been found which were much too large for the lynx who live in the area, and then a glimpse of the bigger cat was seen on a remote-sensing camera. The last leopard known to live here was shot 50 years ago, and researchers fear that this cat, called Noah, may also be in danger from poachers.
Half of the world's bamboo species are in danger of extinction
 Because of forest destruction in China and other parts of Asia, half of all woody bamboo species may go extinct. A report from the UN Environmental Programme says that 250 species of bamboo each have less than 2000 sq km left of their original range. Because an entire range will flower at once, and only after 20-100 years, their reproductive cycle is easily disrupted. Many of these bamboos have not yet even been studied. The loss of these bamboo species would be disastrous for such endangered species as pandas and mountain gorillas, which are dependent on bamboo for survival. A program to save samples of the endangered bamboo is being established.
Posted by Jennifer on Thursday, May 27 2004, 2:35 PM
Other weather...
It's not all drought out there, as news reports show. In other parts of the U.S., we have flooding along the Illinois River, and a series of tornadoes in Nebraska which levelled an entire small town. But the worst weather disaster at the moment is in the Caribbean, where floods in Haiti and the Dominican Republic have killed more than 600 people.
Thursday morning edit: The death toll has climbed to nearly 1000, and an entire town in Haiti may have been wiped out.
Posted by Jennifer on Wednesday, May 26 2004, 4:49 PM
More on Bush, Science, and the Environment
Once again I have a bunch of reports piled up on my desk about the administration's environmental decisions and policy changes over the past month or so. So, let's look at what they've done recently.
Further changes to "roadless rule" proposed
In addition to lifting the roadless rule from the Tongass and Chugach Forests, the administration proposes to allow further exemptions on a state-by-state basis. Most environmentalists believe this is primarily an opening for further old-growth logging.
Federal scientist quits over Klamath River fish kill
Michael Kelly sought federal whistleblower protection after claiming the Bush administration altered scientific findings by his team, and has now resigned his position, saying "My efforts were ultimately unproductive... Threatened coho salmon in the Klamath basin still do not have adequate flow conditions to assure their survival." Federal scientists blamed low water flows for a massive die-off of Coho Salmon in the Klamath River in 2002, but the administration declined to investigate reports of wrong-doing.
Administration strengthens diesel fuel regulations
In a landmark policy change, the Bush administration has okayed controls on "non-road" diesel usage, such as bulldozers, tractors, and generators, which are responsible for 60% of diesel particulates in the air. The regulations are expected to save thousands of lives each year. Although the date for the implementation of some parts was moved back to 2012 to accommodate industry desires, this remains one of the administration's primary environmental achievements to date.
Guidelines limit "critical habitat" cases under the Endangered Species Act
The administration issued new guidelines on where and how land can be designated critical habitat for the purpose of saving an endangered species. A letter sent to the Fish & Wildlife Service claims the new restrictions will only come into play when supported by "sound science".
EPA allows increased pollution from plywood plants
Setting aside scientific studies that showed links to leukemia and other cancers, the EPA increased the allowable release of formaldehyde into the air by about 10,000 times the former allowed level. Critics claim that the plywood industry had unprecedented access during the decision-making process.
Park Service employees are not allowed to speak
Facing criticism over earlier attempts to hide service cuts by using fuzzy language, the Park Service has now instructed employees to obtain prior approval before departing from a set of "talking points" they have been provided on issues such as budget cuts. The talking points all paint the Bush administration as deeply committed to the Park Service, even as it slashes their budget.
USFWS Biologist charges fraud on panther habitat designation
According to Andrew Eller, Jr., a FWWS biologist, the Fish & Wildlife Service knowingly used flawed scientific data in assessing the habitat and population of the endangered Florida panther. The new assessment will allow more development in known panther habitat. Eller has filed a legal complaint.
“I could no longer tolerate the scientific charade where agency officials pretended that the Florida panther was not in jeopardy,” stated Eller in filing the complaint. “The conservation implications of these problems are that future generations will see the Florida panther only on personalized license plates.”
Sierra Club Bush Watch
If you'd like to know more about how the Bush Administration has handled their environmental responsibilities, the Sierra Club maintains an archive of articles related to all the administration's environmental rulings.
Comments? Click here for our thread already in progress...
Posted by Jennifer on Wednesday, May 26 2004, 12:02 PM
McKibben on "Crossing the Red Line"
Over at the New York Review of Books, Bill McKibben has an in-depth article reviewing several books on subjects we've mentioned here before (such as climate change, the Bush Adminstration's tricky relationship with environmental science, and the energy crisis and alternative fuels. This article is more than a review, though, it's an in-depth discussion of the environmental issues facing us all. Go read it!
McKibben, a former staff writer for The New Yorker, is the author of several environmental books including The End of Nature, one of the earliest published works to sound the alarm about global warming.
Comments? Click here.
Posted by Jennifer on Tuesday, May 25 2004, 7:20 PM
More Drought Information
NASA offers us a page of in-depth drought information: Why so dry? . Here you will find a discussion of the roots of the drought in the western USA, connections to ocean temperatures and El Niño patterns, and an examination of whether these droughts are predictable. In addition, the page contains links to many other drought resources. If you're interested in these droughts for either scientific or practical reasons, this is a page you must visit.
Comments or questions? Click here.
Posted by Jennifer on Tuesday, May 25 2004, 12:01 PM
The Day After Tomorrow
Friday is the big opening of The Day After Tomorrow, Roland Emmerich's apocalyptic film about the possibilities of global warming. The New York Times has a good review that covers the science behind the film, both real and exaggerated. This one might be worth seeing, what do you think?
Comments? Click here.
Posted by Jennifer on Monday, May 24 2004, 7:44 PM
Ecological Downsizing?
The Cascadia Scorecard Weblog has an interesting post which points out that average species size has dropped in the Pacific Northwest. Individual trees, fish, and mammals don't grow as large as they used to. The post links to several articles on the subject, which cite poorer environmental conditions for the change.
Posted by Jennifer on Monday, May 24 2004, 12:47 AM
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