Hawk at exit 10

In the past few weeks, I've seen on several (8 or more) occasions this pretty big hawk between Jonesville and the Northway, along Carlton and Van Patten Road and the surrounding area. I got a closeup in the binoculars and it appears to be a red-tailed hawk. Though my hawk identification needs improvement, it seems to be a fairly large hawk, so my guess is that it's a female, or a really healthy male. (Female birds of prey are usually larger than males of the same species). I hadn't noticed it before I came home from school in January. Has anyone else seen it?

Contests!

SCCG will have a booth at the Focus the Nation event at Shen this weekend (see last post for details).

There's an award of about $500 for young people (ages 8-16) who are working on an environmental project. http://www.grantsalert.com/grants.cfm?id=4&gid=9825 I'd strongly encourage someone to apply for that award if they have a project.

The National Wildlife Federation is now accepting entries for their annual photography contest.

There's also an essay contest for ages 8-18 about energy for the future.

Hope to see you at the Focus the Nation event this weekend!

Focus the Nation Event at Shen

Shenendehowa SCARCE Club will be hosting a national event Focus the Nation” http://www.focusthenation.org/nationalteachin.php on Sunday January 27^th from 12-4 in High School East little theatre. Dr. Steven Leibo from Russell Sage College will be speaking at 1:00 PM on Global Climate Change, what it means to you and how to solve the problem. Several groups (NYSERDA, Pride of New York, Energy Bike etc) will have displays set up on environmental topics. Please announce to your students. Hope you can bring your family and friends.

"What are they waiting for?"

"The climate crisis will be the biggest challenge facing the next president. But the top Sunday hosts don’t seem to think so. In 2007, they asked 2,275 questions, but only three mentioned global warming." - National Wildlife Federation
You can check out this video about it.

Kids + chemicals

Babies and young kids are often more susceptible to the effects of their environment because they're developing.
An Environmental Working Group recently did a study of chemicals that kids are exposed to. According to their study, "the EWG found that the average child is exposed to 27 chemicals per day that have not been found to be safe for young people." (from http://www.seventhgeneration.com/making_difference/newsletter_article.php?article=601&issue=107)
The Environmental Working Group does have a parent's buying guide for products that are less toxic for kids. Check it out.

Are Your Efforts Really 'Green'?

The New York Times recently published an article questioning whether or not companies use the illusion of being 'green' and environmentally friendly to appear hip and attract customers eager to do good, and in fact coined a new term to describe the phenomenon: Greenwashing. In an attempt to alleviate the deception that likely occurs, the Federal Trade Commission is beginning to update its environmental advertising guidelines. One can only wonder if the measure is too late; are consumers beginning to lose their illusion with 'green' businesses that, in reality, do little for the environment, and will this cause a backlash for other businesses that really achieve something?
See 'F.T.C. Asks if Carbon-Offset Money is Winding Up True Green' for the full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/09/business/09offsets.html?_r=1&scp=3&sq=federal+trade+commission&oref=slogin

NFL

I heard on NPR yesterday that there's someone who is in charge of reducing the carbon footprint of the superbowl this year. They calculated that the event alone (not including flights and hotels for spectators), 500 tonnes of CO2 is released. They're trying to reduce this amount by reusing a lot of the administrative materials and the decorations by giving them to charities, which I think is pretty cool.

This article is also interesting: "Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), chemicals used as fire retardants, can be found in numerous items in the home, such as the television, computer, toaster and the sofa. Now, they are being found in alarming concentrations, in human blood and breast milk - a potentially major concern for human health. In addition, these industrial chemicals have been associated with cases of feline hyperthyroidism, a potentially fatal condition in cats... In the United States, 80-90 percent of industrial chemicals destined for use in commercial products are sold without any legally required premarket testing." (from http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/28141)

And although people tend to dislike carnivores, a recent paper published states that "large carnivores frequently shape the number, distribution and behaviour of their prey. Large herbivores function as ecological engineers by changing the structure and species composition of surrounding vegetation. " So both herbivores and carnivores are important in maintaining an ecosystem's balance, and a decrease in carnivores can mess up the system. The paper found the numbers of large mammals have been decreased on almost 80% of the Earth.

The Story of Stuff

This is a cool 20 minute video about the production of the stuff we buy. It shows the links between exploitation, production, distribution, consumption, and disposal of goods in our consumerism society. It's pretty relevant to Christmas, when we get pretty into buying.
www.storyofstuff.com

Happy holidays!

Happy holidays from all of us at SCCG!

And good news- the Senate and House passed the Energy Bill. This includes:
- increased fuel economy standards to 35 miles per gallon by 2020 for new cars and trucks.
-a new commitment to homegrown biofuels and updates the program to achieve strong greenhouse gas performance standards and includes significant protections for wildlife and biodiversity.
-a plug-in/electric vehicle tax credit for individuals and encourages the domestic development and production of advanced technology vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
-requirements for more energy efficient appliances
-creates an Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Worker Training Program to train a quality workforce for "green" collar jobs--such as solar panel manufacturer and green building construction worker--created by federal renewable energy and energy efficiency initiatives. Major investments in renewable energy could create 3 million green jobs over 10 years.
-an initiative that takes aggressive steps on carbon capture and sequestration to take the carbon out of coal--authorizing a nationwide assessment of geological formations capable of sequestering carbon dioxide underground and expansive research and development, including large-volume sequestration tests in a variety of different geological formations. First time ever the incentives for more efficient coal use include a requirement for carbon sequestration.
(Text taken from the National Federation for Wildlife Blog)

Hopefully SCCG will have an event or two in January!

My job as a student environmentalist is pretty depressing sometimes. Okay, lots of times. It amazes me that since I started college three years ago, global warming went from a "hoax" to the explanation that this is the seventh warmest year on record in Canada, polar bears are drowning, droughts and severe weather are getting worse, and people in Greenland can now grow broccoli- a crop that didn't used to be able to grow there because it was so cold. Read
"Global warming wreaks havoc with nature" for some examples of what's already happening.

Reality IS disheartening, but we need to act now more than ever. Well, actually, we could have used more action two or five or ten years ago, but now is the only time we have.

Everyone is busy, but there are so many things we can each do to support positive actions. I thought I was as green as I could be, but a friend recently inspired me to started buying biodegradable dish and laundry detergent, and air-drying my clothes instead of sticking them in the dryer. And now I save a buck fifty a week, which isn't much but hey, I'm a college student. Certain actions are easier than others depending on what kind of lifestyle you lead, and some people need bigger cars or can't afford to spend the money on more expensive products.
These days there are so many more opportunities to choose the greener option, whether it's a low-flow showerhead, compact florescent lights, eco-friendly cleaning supplies, organic cotton clothing, canvas bags, or carbon offsets. There are lots of choices people already know about, but even I'm constantly surprised at a small change I never realized before, like detergent. We have to go beyond recycling.

Al Gore is going to the big conference in Bali to talk about (what else?) climate change. He's created a petition to show his audience that people do want a change. Not in climate, of course, but in the politics surrounding this whole mess. You can sign it.

You can also find one of about eight million campaigns by environmental organizations like the Sierra Club. Usually all you have to do is call or email your representative.

Also, the House of Representatives just passed the Energy Bill! It's a good one: "A national renewable electricity standard means consumers across the country would save more than $13 billion on their energy bills by 2020. Raising fuel economy standards will save American consumers $25 billion at the pump, create 170,800 new jobs in America, and cut U.S. global warming pollution from passenger vehicles 21 percent by 2030." (from Sierraclub.org).

Now we have to make sure it goes through the Senate. You can call our senators to tell them that you'd like to see this go through. The website offers talking points, which makes calling significantly less scary.

This weekend, December 8th, is the International Day for Climate Action. There are no activities in our area that I've found so far, but that shouldn't stop you from finding one, or making your own.

-Shona