Environmental news - Rochester, NY

Should Rochester Worry About Clean Water?

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:53:00 +0000

Because we live in an area so rich in Clean Water, we forget that water scarcity is a world-wide crisis that need addressing. And because we have so much clean water, we are part of this equation:

Could water scarcity cause international conflict? | csmonitor.com "In reporting a recent story on a fight over water between residents of a small Colorado town and Nestlé Waters North America, a bottled water company, I learned much about water scarcity around the world, and the sense — also growing — that shortages of water could spark much future conflict. In recent years, there’s been a proliferation of books on the world’s present and future water woes, from Maude Barlow’s Blue Covenant to Robert Glennon’s Unquenchable." --from The Christian Science Monitor | csmonitor.com

Global Health

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:38:00 +0000

Don't forget you personally have a stake in the Climate Change Bill coming up: Climate Fight: EPA Sends Global Warming Finding to White House | Congress might be a long way from passing legislation to fight climate change, but the Obama administration appears one step closer to creating its own regime for controlling greenhouse gases. On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it sent the White House Office of Management and Budget its proposed finding that greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare. (November 9, 09) Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - WSJ.com

Ubiquitous Pollution

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:01:00 +0000

Within the last couple of weeks, I have posted numerous environmental articles on Brownfields—way more than normal. Speculating as to why there is a sudden interest in Brownfields in the local media, I thought of several possible factors: There’s a rash of Brownfields actually springing up; or, the media is clearing their desks of Brownfields related articles; or, because localized pollution events oftentimes show up randomly anyways; or, the media are becoming more attentive to what our policies towards recklessly releasing man-made chemicals into our environment has wrought. Possibly, because the United States does not have strict regulations on the chemicals used in our products or released into our environment (as the Europeans do) this irresponsible policy is catching up with us.

Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe there’s more federal stimulus money suddenly ending up in local coffers, so it’s OK for the media to launch a story or two on why we need to clean up these old polluted sites. Because unless there is a pollution event (toxins bubbling up to the surface from where they were dumped) the media usually finds little incentive to continually remind us that most man-made pollutants don’t merely breakdown and reenter our environment as warm and fuzzies. Get real: Dangerous toxins don’t merely go benign because we they’ve left our field of vision—like down a drain, or into a stream or lake.

The list of toxic chemicals [http://www.scorecard.org/chemical-groups/one-list.tcl?short_list_name=tri00ry] grows all the time. Moreover, despite all the attempts to ignore the ugly specter of the symptoms caused by our own pollutants, they resurface. Cancer, endocrine disruptions (hermaphrodite frogs), you-name-it (and some have [http://www.chemicalinjury.net/chemicalupdates.htm]), they come back with a vengeance.

Pick your most convenient reason as to why we collectively approach the issue of Brownfields with such monstrous neglect. But the truth is that those dangerous chemicals we’ve allowed to go out and mix in our environment accumulate somewhere, perhaps in our bodies, as the body burden [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_burden]), in fish, or in our dinking water.

My guess is that besides the specter of global warming for those who come after us, an increase in pollution outbreaks will be commonplace. Our environment never has been able to ‘take care’ of dangerous man-made chemicals. It’s just that in the past we were better able to fool ourselves that the stuff we cooked up in the labs and released without testing, would just disappear. Simply go away with nary a thought. Out of sight, out of mind.

When you think of how many centuries it took to evolve all of those cool chemicals in Nature (say bee venom, or that stuff spiders inject to make the guts of insects ready for a tasty meal) you have to wonder what our species were thinking when we concocted a zillion man-made chemicals and instantaneously spewed them into this 4 billion-year process on Earth called ‘life.’ Think of a single element or compound Nature didn’t test.

Thoughtful Feedback

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:26:00 +0000

Seemingly, online media has opened itself to a plethora of mindless rantings by those without even a crazy ideology to spur them on. I speak of feedback on online news sites that are unmonitored and unfiltered so any nutcase with a computer, an Internet connection, and only a modicum of sense is allowed to write responses to local news stories online.

You know what I’m talking about: follow any online article that offers reader’s responses and you’ve probably long since avoided those parts of the articles because it’s a vast wasteland of craven lunacy. This is a tragedy because the medium where we get our news is moving to the Internet where interaction between the media and its readers is critical and will add greatly to our Democracy.

Standing outside of this vast morass of nonsense is Rochester City Newspaper that does monitor and filter out the crazies so the informed and concerned citizen can have their voice and be heard. Sure, freedoms are great and the freedom to speak one’s mind without the state hauling you off to the crowbar hotel stripping you of your writ of Habeas corpus is among them. But, somewhere along the continuum of our freedoms we must find a happy medium between mindless ravings and government pronouncements. All this is to say, that an article in Rochester City Newspaper caught my eye because the feedback to this article was as important as the article itself: ENVIRONMENT: County considers plan to offset wetlands impacts - News Articles - Rochester City Newspaper.

This kind of discourse on a critical environmental matter, where a good investigative reporter presents a story and a thoughtful readership responds respectfully, makes for a better Democracy. However, the responsible and informed public, able to present their views and engage the rest of us in something that will help us decide our future, are usually disinclined to enter into what has become the online world of bug-eyed zealotry and hopeless anarchy.

This could change if more of the informed and thoughtful posted their responses to online articles, so much so that the ‘others’ would shy away from publicly shaming and humiliating themselves—as would be the case if all were seated in a real room surrounded by real people.

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 02:03:00 +0000

"BEIJING (Reuters) - China's busy climate change diplomacy has become increasingly feverish weeks before crucial talks that could forge a new pact to fight global warming, or end in rancor that could rebound onto the world's biggest emitter."

Flower City Habitat for Humanity - Rochester, NY

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 01:53:00 +0000

Flower City Habitat for Humanity - Rochester, NY

A salute to those helping Smart Growth and working against Urban Sprawl by making sure there is good housing for all in our community

Voluntary Carbon Standard

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 01:25:00 +0000

Voluntary Carbon Standard: "The VCS Registry System is a state of the art custodial system for Voluntary Carbon Units (VCUs), the carbon offsets generated under the VCS Program. The VCS Registry System enables the tracking of all VCUs, from issuance to retirement, and is a key part of the VCS Program which ensures that all VCUs are real, measurable, additional, permanent, independently verified, unique and traceable."

Rochester’s 350.org Coverage

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 13:57:00 +0000

Judging from the media response around the world, the 350.org event has been a hit: October 24 Press Release | 350.org “350.org To Stage Largest Day of Environmental Action in History | 5,242 Simultaneous Events on Climate in 181 Countries.”

“Citizens, scientists and world leaders in 181 countries will take to nearby streets, mountains, parks, and reefs today to demand strong action on climate change, in what will be the most widespread day of political action in the planet’s history. 5,242 rallies and creative demonstrations will take place, all of them centered on the number 350, to draw attention to 350 parts per million (ppm), which an overwhelming number of scientists now insist is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.”

However, judging from our local media response to the several 350.org events, not much happened: a Rousing Dud. (Disclaimer: Because I did not rush out and buy up all the paper versions of our local media, or frantically tune into all the TV and radio stations either, ((because they are insufferably myopic and merely pander to their corporate sponsors)), I am basing this observation on what our local media has posted on the Internet today—October 25, 2009.)

Maybe I posted this article too soon and the media just hasn’t gotten up to snuff yet on how this world-wide event played out in Rochester. Maybe, they’re all scurrying around in their backrooms, honing 350.org coverage so it will be a real sizzler when it comes out. Maybe.

But, I’m not on any of the local media’s editorial staff. So, what do I know? Maybe, getting world-wide attention focused on the planet warming up just is too far out of the comfort and profit zones of our local media. That must be the case because there are lots of sports, criminal activity, political carping, and lots of sports coverage on our local media. Really, a lot of sports. Sports are in, imminent environmental collapse is out.

Only as an observer (another disclaimer: I was a participant) did I see over sixty bicyclists ride from downtown Rochester to the RIT campus. Then, I witnessed for myself a great rally with the RIT president and his college in full support of the sea change needed on the matter of Climate Change and a full day’s programming to show that our community gets it on 350ppm. I witnessed lots of people taking photos and videos and uploading them to 350.org. To be fair, our local media wasn’t completely hopeless. I see one media with one article on one 350.org event for our area: RIT Marks International Day of Climate Action “It may not always be the right weather for a bike ride around here, but as they say wait 5 minutes and it'll change. The rain Saturday morning didn't stop a group of environmentally conscious riders from hitting the trail. The purpose: to mark the International Day of Climate Action.” (October 25, 09) http://rochester.ynn.com/

Yet, all in all it’s very troubling. One of 350.org’s purposes (the other was to get our politicians’ attention focused on the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference Copenhagen 2009) was to make enough noise to make everyone take notice of the danger point we have passed for a sustainable environment. That is, to both circumvent the dysfunctional media and get in the face of a corporate-manipulated press that is disinclined to speak about the fact that the planet’s atmosphere is warming up due to humanity’s activities.

Our planet is warming up due to our way of life. This is as clear as those annoying pop-ups on every mainstream media’s web page, as clear as the ubiquitous sports scores that flash across those flat screen TV’s, and as eye-catching as the endless violence that inundates local media stories: Those charged with informing us with the information we need to live sustainable are not doing their job.

If you did attend one of the area’s 350.org events, and you still welcome a challenge, why not contact your local media and ask them why they didn’t cover Rochester’s participation in this world-wide event?

New Bottle Bill Regulation:

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:57:00 +0000

Like the new regulations or not, there will be less plastic bottles littering our state and less going into our landfills because this sort of legislation works. It works simply because people may throw away what they perceive as trash, but they won’t throw away money. Many people scour our city streets for deposit-able bottle to supplement or have an income at all.

However, the recent rash of stories on the new bottle bill regulation is not on the benefits to our environment that removing a zillion plastic bottles from our land will bring about-- it is the new regulation’s effect on local businesses. Think about it: What is more important the health of our environment, or the keeping the way we run our economy? (The Recession how is that working for you?) We can alter how our regulations will affect business; once our environment gets compromised by pollution, it’s the dickens getting it back on track.

Here’s the real issue: If we spread the repercussions of changing our economy to include the health of our environment—say, increasing deposits on all potential recyclable products and adequately compensating those businesses that must reclaim these bottles by spreading out the economic effects of the changes in new regulations--there wouldn’t be so many wrongly-focused articles on environmental regulations and environmentalists verses businesses.

If we all got engaged in our environmental situation and all took responsibility, we would affect change for a sustainable economy and environment without many the few take the hit.

Is Your Drinking Water Being Protected?

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:24:00 +0000

If you haven’t been reading the series of article on the state of our clean drinking waters from the New York Times Toxic Waters - Series - The New York Times, here’s a chance to hear all about it.

Toxic Waters: Regulatory Absence Allows Chemical, Coal and Farm Industries to Pollute US Water Supplies "Toxic Waters: Regulatory Absence Allows Chemical, Coal and Farm Industries to Pollute US Water Supplies We speak to New York Times reporter Charles Duhigg about the latest in his investigative series “Toxic Waters,” which examines the worsening pollution in the nation’s water systems." --from democracynow.com

350 Why It Matters

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:01:00 +0000

“350 is the number that leading scientists say is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide—measured in ‘Parts Per Million’ in our atmosphere. 350 PPM—it's the number humanity needs to get back to as soon as possible to avoid runaway climate change.” –from Understanding 350 | 350.org

Several events are going on in Rochester this coming Saturday for the 350.org and we hope you will attend one. If enough people demonstrate in a positive way that they acknowledge the problem of Climate Change and are willing to make their voice heard, it might make a difference. It’s all on 350.org.

I personally think it matters that we act in some concerted effort now to raise our voice because of the cloud of indifference that wafts over environmental matters. So much irrational and ideological dust has been kicked up over global warming that we have lost the moral point. It goes like this: Only in the last couple of decades has there been overwhelming evidence that we –Homo sapiens—are affecting the planet’s environment.

Up to this point, only a few believed we were doing great damage. But the majority of humanity didn’t really think our puny little species and our busy machinations could actually steer the course of the planet’s biology enough to affect how it all works. Now, no well-informed person can deny that we’ve not only trashed the place, we are on Earth’s board of directors. Way beyond our Peter Principle.

This changes everything. Morality itself takes on a new meaning because our choices aren’t simply about us or our personal salvation. Our choices have a tangible affect on the workings of our planet, even threatening our future and the lives of other beings on this planet. So, if you follow my logic, our sense of Morality must include our responsibility to our environment because we now realize we can actually change it.

It’s a profound idea. This wouldn’t have occurred to Aristotle, Plato, Marx, or even Darwin because they didn’t have computers and satellites to access the data from a far enough vantage point to reach this conclusion. Our ancestors would not have deduced from watching a campfire in a cave that several millennia later, with billions of people and zillions of fires, we can raise the temperature of the planet, so they had better cool it. But, our generation does know.

In the same way that other great ideas have transformed the way we view the world—evolution, monotheism, fire, agriculture—manmade Climate Change will forever change how we see ourselves. Once you realize that we are altering the planet, you must, like a Kantian imperative, acknowledge your responsibility.

One way to act on that responsibility is to attend a 350.org event and get heard by the rest of the world.

Top Ten Things You Can Do for Rochester’s Environment

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 13:29:00 +0000

Sure there are lots of top ten lists around. So why not one on the things you can do for your local environment—that system that keeps us alive and thriving? But, this list is different from the usual stuff. It’s not one of those really easy, warm and fuzzy lists of fun activities you can do in your spare time. It’ll be transformative.

This list assumes you are ready to take responsibility (as a member of the only species capable of doing so) for your presence at this critical time in our planet’s history. And, it isn’t about just your personal fulfillment thing—our environment isn’t politics, religion, a fad, or a cause; it’s science all the way down. Pollute the planet, stuff happens. Finally, in order for the effects of this list to be effective a lot (I mean billions) of humans need to do them too. In the deepest practical sense, everything you do (where you live, what you eat, what you buy, what you throw away) matters to our environment. Ready folks, here we go:

1. Be engaged with the issues surrounding our local environment by monitoring the media, books, reports, and the Internet using the laws of Nature as your guide to monitor how our lifestyle is affecting our environment.

2. When you consume anything--food, water, cars, gadgets, whatever—do so as though you were demonstrating how to consume for the rest of the world—considering the lifecycle of the products you buy, how they are made, how they are used, and how you get rid of them.

3. When you have someplace to go, consider all your options in order of their affect on our environment: walking, biking, car-pooling, mass transit, and lastly a personal vehicle.

4. Conserve energy until we find a non-polluting, renewable energy source.

5. Vote. If you’re doing good for our environment and your representative in government doesn’t get it, you’re just making yourself feel good without much effect.

6. Recycle, reuse and encourage your local government to create a place where recycling just about everything is the norm.

7. Think twice before using toxic chemicals that make your yard look like a golf course and your house like a hospital.

8. Consider other species (plants and animals) and their role in sustaining our environment. Some are annoying and critical. Some are cute and a burden.

9. Adopt green business practices: your business will save our environment and be able to compete with the rest of the world.

10. Communicate your concerns about the state of our environment to everyone. Sustainability isn’t going to work unless everyone gets on board quickly.

Could we be the new Green Leaders?

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 13:35:00 +0000

Could our region be leading the way to clean up Brownfields and creating sites for renewable Energy?

Green Shoots from Brown Fields: Scientific American Uncle Sam looks to eliminate the biggest hurdle to expanding renewable energy--the need for suitable sites to place commercial-scale wind and solar farms--by reusing hundreds of old mines, landfills and industrial sites When the Bethlehem Steel mill in Lackawanna, N.Y., finally shut its doors for good eight years ago, it took away thousands of jobs and left behind a polluted and unsightly mess. Science News, Articles and Information | Scientific American

Coyote Dread:

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:32:00 +0000

Because the issue of the Eastern Coyotes among us has come up in the news, I wanted to make a reference to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation who reminds us the coyotes are an ‘integral part of our ecosystem.’ As we have exterminated most of the top predators in our area in the last couple of centuries (bears, wolves, cougars used to rule), we have a proliferation of deer and our environment has altered a lot.

My point is that when it comes to coyotes there are much misinformation and prejudice about this creature whirling about—sometimes resulting in coyote killing contests. This is not how we should be reacting to ‘integral part of our ecosystem’ in this time. We should be reacting as stewards of our environment, which we are now.

Get the factsL Coyote Conflicts - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation The Eastern coyote is firmly established in New York. They live in New York as an integral part of our ecosystem. People and coyotes can usually coexist if the natural fear of people that coyotes have is maintained.

Climate Event in Rochester, NY

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:12:00 +0000

Oct 24th It’s the Environment folks! If you are looking for a local event for the 350.org string of environmental events (October 24th) check out RIT’s program [4214] 350 Climate Action Festival | 350.org

What is 350.org? Mission | 350.org “350.org is an international campaign dedicated to building a movement to unite the world around solutions to the climate crisis--the solutions that science and justice demand.”

No more Open Burning:

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:39:00 +0000

Long needed, I was surprised to see this new state regulation from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) just appear on the DEC press releases. I haven’t seen a mainstream media item on this, but it’s big news. Preventing the open burning of household trash in outlying communities, in light of what we know about Dixons and other air pollutants and global warming should have been enacted a long time ago.

So, without much fanfare and unlike the brouhaha over the new bottle bill, this regulation, this new regulation should fill a gaping hole in our state’s air quality laws.

Check out: New Regulation on Open Burning Takes Effect Oct. 14 - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation Taking a step to reduce harmful air pollutants and help prevent wildfires, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has extended restrictions on the open burning of residential waste effective Oct. 14. The open burning of residential waste will be prohibited in all communities statewide, regardless of population, with exceptions for burning tree limbs and branches at limited times and other certain circumstances (detailed below). Previously, the ban applied only in towns with populations of 20,000 or more. The New York State Environmental Board approved this state regulation on Sept. 1. (October 5, 09) Press Releases - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation [more on Air Quality in our area]

The Great Conceit

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 13:44:00 +0000

In this wonderful and expert article on bird migration [City Newspaper “A bird in the hand” 9/30/09], something hauntingly familiar struck me from the section: “Why protect birds?” Birds have a right to live; birding helps our economy because birders buy binoculars; birds are an early-warning system, etc. I’ve come across this apparent need for reporters and scientists to justify the need for other species in many articles on our environment: why we need biodiversity (lots of different species), why we need wolves, why bears, whales, or those darn mosquitoes, whatever. Basically, I guess, the assumption is why the rest of us who are driving around in our hot new clunkers, making a living, or watching the latest ‘reality’ on TV, and doing just fine should care about birds, which may not be our ‘thing.’

Here’s what strikes me: To pose such a question in the media at all reveals a great human conceit that humankind should relieve itself of. Feeling compelled to prove the existence of birds is like having to explain the existence of the third floor in a high-rise. Answer: You don’t get to live on any of the above floors if there is no third floor. Birds and other species don’t simply exist at our pleasure; they and our environment are One. Birds are so woven into the fabric of our present environment as to cause serious structural damage if they were somehow removed.

This great conceit that we humans can casually sit back and calculate and consider the worth of the other biological components on this planet is sheer irresponsible lunacy. We forget ourselves, what we learned in biology, and who we are. The media and the public should take responsibility for informing themselves on how this planet operates (because we are at the helm as never before) so we don’t have to keep explaining why other creatures are valuable. That birds are important is an absolute no-brainer. Our culture should have advanced to the point where implicit in every article on other species is that they are not at the mercy of our false belief in the preeminence of our economy.

I’ll unpack that last point. Our economy doesn’t rule, Nature does. Denying the critical role of birds would be like the crew on a space ship suddenly seized with the fancy that it didn’t need air and began jack hammering the oxygen tanks. Birds are not only really neat, our environment will be different when they are gone—and you probably won’t like the results.

Where's that pollution?

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:39:00 +0000

A report (37 pages) that should be on your reading list this week is the new report by the International Joint Commission because it's about "programs to abate, control and prevent pollution from municipal sources entering the Great Lakes System.” The report’s object: The objective was to survey existing programs aimed at controlling surface-water pollution and to provide an overview of the current situation."

And, he current situation is not pretty. Not only is one of the largest fresh water systems in the world, which is in and is our backyard, being compromised, the municipal sewage overflow, which is integral to our environmental health (a point that doesn’t usually get high prominence in mainstream media because they don’t know how to quantify it) is also affecting the fishing and tourist industries—which do get a high profile in our mainstream media. Anyway, if you don’t have time to read this report, you should see that your congress person does.

International Joint Commission - News room IJC Releases 14th Biennial Report WINDSOR, Ontario - The International Joint Commission today released its Fourteenth Biennial Report on Great Lakes Water Quality. Under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (Article VII), the International Joint Commission reports to the federal, state and provincial governments biennially concerning its findings on their progress toward achieving the Agreement’s general and specific objectives. The Commission’s report, which is released to the public, is also to assess the effectiveness of programs and other measures undertaken pursuant to the Agreement

Gassing the News

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 14:19:00 +0000

A good example of how dysfunctional our present media is on our environment, specifically on natural gas drilling, can be made by a point-by-point comparison of National Public Radio’s (NPR) three-part series on natural gas and recent coverage by ProPublica on the same subject:

Rediscovering Natural Gas By Hitting Rock Bottom: (September 22, 09) Morning Edition : NPR

Who's Looking At Natural Gas Now? Big Oil: (September 23, 2009) Morning Edition : NPR

With Little Clout, Natural Gas Lobby Strikes Out: (September 24, 09) Morning Edition : NPR

“Buried Secrets: Gas Drilling’s Environmental Threat from Pro Publica”

In short, while NPR wildly endorses the convenient view that natural gas is our environmental and energy salvation, ProPublica’s coverage suggests that this issue is far more complicated and sorted. NPR states that water is used for fracturing, or breaking up underground rocks for gas, and ProPublica states that unnamed manmade chemicals are being used. NPR suggests environmentalists can live with natural in the short run, and ProPublica reports wide-spread concern by environmental groups and the public. ProPublica’s coverage on gas drilling by fracturing and NPR’s don’t match in the places they should be matching—science and the facts.

But, a point-by-point analysis is missing the big point. The big point is that environmental issues are too often presented by the media with an agenda. This agenda can be, “we want to save our environment, but we don’t want to create change because change makes the public nervous. Or, “everything industry does is bad.” Or, “don’t worry your pretty little heads, the experts are on it.” Or, “everything environmental groups say is right because ‘they get it’.” Or, “somewhere between the experts, industry, and non-profit environmental groups, the truth will get hammered out and will be the better for it in the great belief that environmental matters are like a democracy.” Of course, Nature isn’t a democracy at all. Nature (for all its beauty and cruelty) is a mindless algorithm of cause and effect: garbage in, garbage out.

Granted, there are political, economic, governmental, and individual aspects in every environmental issue, but editors in the media should be ‘pushing’ only one agenda on our environment: sustainability. In other words, are we and our children’s children likely to survive? Sometimes, as one reads environmental stories on mainstream media, you get that haunting feeling that they’re all discussing different planets with different laws that will have different outcomes—all subject to their editor’s opinions.

Same Green Sheet

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:31:00 +0000

Evidence of a great change in attitudes and behaviors towards our environment in our country and around the world is evident. Slowly, but more rapidly than ever before, individuals, communities, and governments are adopting greener ways of doing things. This is probably not due to a sudden change of heart towards our planet, but more probably due to the mounting evidence that mankind’s activities are affecting our very ability to survive on it. Also, we cannot deny the growing realization that an economy disdainful of our environment cannot complete with other economies that set strict standards for toxic chemicals and adopt tight environmental business practices.

Most are now aware that our species "Homo sapiens" are not simply passengers on a small pale blue orb spinning through the universe; we have been promoted to third-class environmental engineers. Those vagaries of our existence—disease, climate change, even our health--that our species hitherto perceived as beyond our control (fate) are increasingly understood as well within our area of influence.

This is heartening as businesses are springing up all over helping other businesses and communities green up. Efficiency, conservation, innovation, preservation, and reclamation are in the air. And, as in any great change, there will be people and businesses trying to game the new game—heralding their green credentials when in fact they have changed but little, merely checked off a list of better operating practices without a clue about the lifecycle of their products and services or their accumulative affect on our environment.

On the whole, though, most will try to do the right thing. But doing the right thing may take a while to understand and make systemic—i.e., make the right changes, not merely creating the illusion that we are making wholesale, world-wide changes. What I mean by this is that in order to actually adopt a sustainable way of life we all need to be singing from the same sheet of music, talking the same scientific language, the unambiguous laws of Nature. Hype, rants, ideological diatribes, and green quackery won’t do the trick.

Already, in our communities there are attempts to coordinate and orchestrate green efforts. Because we have avoided the hard choices for so long, ad hoc, and piecemeal changes by dedicated individuals are not going to be enough. Planetary changes are required. Programs like Climate Smart Communities by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is an example of a volunteer effort by a governmental agency hoping to get communities all on the same page, working toward the same goals, sharing information and guided by an agency that knows what its doing, as forty-one New York communities have already signed on.” Also, around the world governments are subscribing to the Climate Registry “that sets consistent and transparent standards to calculate, verify and publicly report greenhouse gas emissions into a single registry.”

The arc of history is long and bends towards justice, may be true. (Though, the millions who have suffered under Injustice throughout history while the rest of us padded comfortably up to the future probably would not agree.) But the arc of tending towards a greener future may extend longer than we have if we don’t make the necessary changes in time. With the laws of Nature, there’s no waiting around until we get it right.

Water Issue:

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:16:00 +0000

Don’t miss this series by the New York Times on the long series of violations of the Clean Water Act of 1972. Environmental issues don’t tend to go away because people are too busy or uninterested. Many people, rather than think about the decades of inadequate enforcement of the Clean Air Act (if they think such things at all), grab bottled water and be done with it. Case closed, hand me my TV remote. What most interesting to me is not merely the pervasiveness of the violations of this law (‘cause that’s what corporations do), but how we react to this overwhelming environmental issue—clean water. We are not reacting to the world-wide pollution of our fresh water well.

In fact, we’re mostly dysfunctional on how we react to gloomy environmental reports altogether: We ignore them, make excuses, look for solution that don’t address the matter, blame others, attack the whistler blowers, deny that anything wrong is going on, or dismiss environmental problem as low on our priority list. Somehow, despite all evidence to the contrary, we think that the more we ignore it, the more it will go away. Of course, that’s nonsense.

Toxic Waters - Clean Water Laws Are Neglected, at a Cost in Suffering - Series - NYTimes.com This pattern is not limited to West Virginia. Almost four decades ago, Congress passed the Clean Water Act to force polluters to disclose the toxins they dump into waterways and to give regulators the power to fine or jail offenders. States have passed pollution statutes of their own. But in recent years, violations of the Clean Water Act have risen steadily across the nation, an extensive review of water pollution records by The New York Times found. (September 12, 09) Toxic Waters - Series - The New York Times

An Environmental Education

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:11:00 +0000

Most educational programs in our colleges and universities probably include some science courses, but probably not an environmental course as a general educational requirement. This, and an ethics requirement for business majors, is woefully lacking in an educational system trying to survive into today’s economic world. Note: I didn’t say that our institutions were not aligning ourselves with other world-class educational curriculums to produce students who will be able to complete in today’s market. We may or may not be cranking out über breadwinners. That may not be clear until the financial dust settles around the world.

But, whether or not you believe institutions of higher education exist for people to get high-paying jobs, fit into our society, know their cultures and others, or think well on their feet with a smart gadget in their hand, you must include graduates who can (and will) rationally assess the health of their environment. In the September 2009 edition of Harpers Magazine “Dehumanized, When Math and Science Rule the School,” Mark Slouka makes the case that the humanities have suffered in our colleges as our country only focuses of what they think we need to compete. In our strivings to compete, Slouka says, we are losing what is to best to be human. I submit that we are also losing something more basic: the core of our existence. For, whatever one’s beliefs or interests, we are among the billions of biological creatures on this planet that must have clean air, water, and land.

In today’s world of 6.5 billion people a well educated person should have a firm grasp of our biological underpinnings. It may not get you a job, a mate, popularity, or allow you to be a stunning dinner speaker, but it will allow you to intelligently sift through news, environmental studies, and reports of early signs that our environmental systems are shutting down—as many argue they are. The climate is warming (despite crazy radio talk rhetoric) along with acidification of the oceans, the loss of biodiversity, and much more. A people who cannot tell (or don’t even pay attention) that things are not going well with the system that keeps them alive is a people on their way out.

So, if you missed that day in college when your professor mentioned during a math or computer class that she wasn’t opening the windows that day because of an ozone alert, you might want to attend one of the many programs on the environment in our area this fall. Check rochesterenvironment.com/calendar.htm. There are a lot of good programs going on by non-profit groups, universities, and our local governments, including a lecture series to draw attention to important environmental topics by the town of Irondequoit.

Of course, we cannot make up for decades of not putting environmental studies high on the agenda in our universities, nor demand that a sizeable (for that is what it will take) portion of humanity to take note of the vast unhealthy changes we’ve made in the last couple of centuries. We are a ‘free’ people, in pursuit of Happiness, Liberty, and just trying to get by. But Mother Nature is a demanding parent: Ignorance of her laws will have no effect on her rules. One of these programs might help your reconnect with Her.

Walking as Transportation:

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 11:46:00 +0000

I know this seems radical, characterizing walking as transportation, in the same room as bus, car, planes, etc. But, when you realize that most 'trips' in this county are 31/2 miles or less, walking is a healthy viable transportation mode. And, the better you design your urban areas, the better you make changes in your urban area so that it become convenient to walk (and have time to smell ((and buy the roses in between)) the more environmentally friendly and safer your community becomes. So, this news out of Henrietta, where they can use a lot more sidewalks is very refreshing:

Where it stands: New sidewalks in Henrietta - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow Henrietta, N.Y. — The issue Henrietta is filled with a mix of retail areas and residential neighborhoods — which creates a flurry of traffic. Supervisor Michael Yudelson — with the help of the Town Board — is trying to make the neighborhood more “walkable,” he says. Some streets, like Beaconsfield Road, Colonnade Drive and Commons Way, don’t have sidewalks, creating a potentially unsafe situation for pedestrians. The town is looking to change that. (September 11, 09) Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow [more on Transportation in our area]

Public Meeting on Our Parks

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:18:00 +0000

Take the opportunity to join in the fate of our area's parks:

Is Monroe County’s fiscal crisis putting our parks at risk?

Public Meeting Monday, September 21, 2009 Nurturing natural monroe: the challenge of caring for county parks Master planning for County Parks has led to uses that threaten some parks’ long-term environmental health & beauty.

In 2010, County planners will turn their attention to Powder Mills Park. Citizens need to be ready. Nora Bredes invites you to join NYS Assemblyman Steve Englebright chair of the assembly’s Committee on Tourism, Parks, Arts & Sports and NYS Assemblyman Joe morelle to discuss stewardship of our public parks September 21st 5:30 pm - 7 pm Wadham’s Lodge Powder Mills Park Park Road Pittsford, New York 14534 For more information, call Nora at 585/314-1597

Healthy Debate

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Frank J. Regan) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 19:26:00 +0000

Missing amidst the uproar on health care reform at the town meetings and the bug-eyed hysteria encouraged by our media is the link between our health care system and public health. Death panels, pulling the plug on our loved ones, socialism, deficits (mostly ignored during the war of choice), and even some cogent arguments that don’t embarrass us in the eyes of the world have been rung through the wringer that is called our media. It’s all as clear as mud, but politically the issues over health care reform are clear: defeating the present party on this ‘hot’ button issue offers new life to a party in search of a victory—any victory.

As decision time nears Obama, speaking soon to a joint session of Congress (bottom of the ninth, the last lap, third down and goal to go, whatever) every morbid rock has been overturned except one strangely illuminating environmental health fact: Regardless of how healthy various pockets in your population are (say, those with great health coverage) those weak links, those without the means to prevent diseases early or build up their immune systems when weak can be your conduit to a raging pandemic.

In other words, if some one close to you is--physically close like your neighbor, the one seated to you on a bench, walking by you on the street, next to you at a public meeting, seated next to you at a movie, waiting in line at a store, or a friend of a friend who has come in contact with someone with no health coverage—is vulnerable then you’re connected to the pandemic too. During this health coverage debate, during a possible resurgence in strength of the present flu pandemic, little has been made of the consequences to you who have adequate health coverage of the millions of your unfortunate neighbors who don’t.

Washing your hands, yelling at your senator or congress person, securing and plugging the holes in your own health policy, isn’t going to stop the flu virus from getting to you. When a disease passes from human to human we are all as vulnerable as the weakest link in the chain. Our public health has been compromised by a rapacious and selfish health care system that puts us all at risk.

Never mind health care costs, who’s going to win the next election, whether the president will hit one out of the park next week, or whether the government is going to squeeze its incompetent self between you or your favorite doctor. If a large part of your population is riddled with inadequate health care whose only recourse is the emergence ward when they collapse, someone in the great chain of being is going to pass a fast-spreading disease like the swine flu to you.

Even if you don’t care about those people who lose their health care or didn’t bother to get a job and get a great policy like yours, you aren’t safe. The weakest link in a pandemic provides the quickest route to you. A pandemic, like any other health problem, follows the path of least resistance. That person next to you without adequate health care is your brother.