Thursday, November 30, 2006
Pennsylvania: Governor Rendell Invests $27 Million to Protect Natural Resources
Continuing his work to improve Pennsylvania's economic and environmental health, Governor Edward G. Rendell today announced a $27 million investment to clean up streams and rivers, address serious environmental problems at abandoned mine sites and revitalize communities across the state. The money will finance 153 projects through Pennsylvania's traditional Growing Greener Program and the voter-approved Growing Greener II bond initiative.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Carbon Offset Business Takes Root
The promise of the growing "carbon-offset" business is a carbon-neutral imprint for individuals through investment in green technologies, or even trees. But does buying a carbon offset for your gas-guzzler really make it carbon neutral?
Monday, November 27, 2006
New Zealand: Students Breathe New Life into Wetland
Alan Sisterson is keen to restore the wetland and restoration work is under way, with the help of Murray Palmer from Tairawhiti Polytechnic, schools and tangata whenua. This is a team effort, with participation from the National Waterways Project, the Whitebait Connection, the Department of Conservation and the Fish and Game Council, as well as Tui Foster from the Gisborne Environment Centre.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
American Midwest: How Nature Used To Be
"It's the type of ecosystem that once dominated the American Midwest," says Dr. James Trager, the restoration biologist who oversees the 200 acres of restored prairie at the Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit. "We happen to think it's very beautiful, filled with flowers, birds and butterflies. For many species it (the prairie) is the only or the preferred habitat. Restoring prairies and preserving species is "part of living gently on this Earth." But perhaps more important than that is studying the role the prairie played and can still play in creating fertile soil in the American Midwest.
Monday, November 20, 2006
India: The Story of Timbaktu and Basicindia
Over the years not only Timbaktu but also the hills surrounding the area have become green, while insects, birds and animals which were no longer to be seen have once again made an appearance. A small community of volunteers, committed to developmental and ecological regeneration, has now settled in Timbaktu to work on many different aspects of life in the region.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Five Big Ideas for the Environment for 2007
Environmental Defense Fund: With new leadership in Congress, 2007 is shaping up as a critical year for progress on important environmental priorities. We've asked some of our program experts to weigh in. They've helped us put together this list of five big ideas for 2007. This is not a comprehensive list of our work, but reflects some of our national priorities, particularly focused on policies we think the new Congress will (or should) consider next year.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
California: Ecosystem Slowly Recovering from Huge 2003 Wildfire
Researchers from San Diego State University who surveyed the park after the fire reported mixed progress. While chaparral shrubs and native wildflowers sprouted a year after the fire, a rainy season last year also led to an explosion of invasive plants, which could increase future fire hazards. What's worse, scientists said, pine trees have failed to regrow. Some fear that without restoration projects, forests will be dominated by oak trees and shrubs for decades to come.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Making Growth Greener a Tall Task for Economists
Economists and ecologists have always made awkward bedfellows, but alarming new evidence of accelerating environmental decay has some experts scrambling to put a greener touch on growth. A flurry of disturbing accounts highlighting the potential cost of global warming and overconsumption has dragged economic experts into the debate over how to save the environment.
Monday, November 13, 2006
BLM to Conduct Mesquite Removal Grassland Restoration Project
The Bureau of Land Management’s Tucson Field Office will begin a grassland restoration project on 300 acres within Las Cienegas National Conservation Area. Removal of mesquite in the area known as the “airstrip” will begin in early November, and is intended to promote growth of native grassland, and large expanses of warm-season perennial grass. The growth of more native grassland will, in turn, encourage the return of native wildlife to the area such as pronghorn antelope, scaled quail, grassland sparrows such as Baird’s Sparrow, and the grasshopper sparrow.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Scientists Get Free Access to Environment Journals
A new initiative has provided scientists in developing countries with free access to online environment journals, with the aim of reducing the information gap between developed and developing countries. Over 1,000 scientific journals are available to scientists from countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America through the Online Access to Research in the Environment (OARE) scheme, launched last month (30 October) by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and US-based Yale University.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Estuary Program Establishes Habitat Database
Gulf Coast habitat managers have a new tool to coordinate habitat restoration efforts. The Mobile Bay National Estuary Program has established a new database -- the Mississippi-Alabama Habitat Conservation, Restoration and Enhancement Database. Habitat managers can input their projects into the database and find information about previous habitat projects.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Replanting Forests after Wildfires Unnecessary
A recent article about reforestation suggests that areas burned in recent wildland fires have failed to naturally re-grow conifer saplings, and implies that intensive post-fire logging and artificial replanting are necessary. However, even a cursory site visit to the Storrie fire, which was highlighted in the article, reveals that abundant natural conifer seedling and sapling growth is occurring on the burned national forest lands -- even in patches where most or all of the trees were killed by the fire -- as I have found in numerous field surveys.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Norway to Support "Mangroves for the Future Initiative"
Norway will contribute NOK 30 million for the first three-year phase of a programme to protect and replant mangrove forests. The initiative, which is being launched by former US President Bill Clinton, is intended to reduce the vulnerability of coastal communities to disasters like the 2004 Asian tsunami, and to increase their development opportunities. Mr Clinton, the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Tsunami Recovery, has proposed a six-year, NOK 400 million initiative to promote sustainable development in coastal areas in countries including India, Indonesia, the Maldives, the Seychelles, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Washington: Wetland Preservation with a Profit
Since 2001, Victor Woodward and David Remlinger, as well as a small number of other landowners, have been creating new wetlands as part of a pilot program that Ecology hopes will open up to other prospective landowners next year. The idea is to create a series of wetland "banks," where developers who destroy wetlands for new construction can purchase credits to offset their environmental damage.
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Program will give Longleaf Pines a Fighting Chance
The federal government recently announced a new and unprecedented initiative to restore up to a quarter-million acres of native longleaf pine forest in nine Southern states, including almost 45,000 acres here in Georgia. Longleaf pine forests once played a vital role in the economy and environment of the South. The forests covered as much as 90 million acres across nine states, from Virginia to Texas. Today only about 3 million acres remain. As the forests disappear, so do the species that live in them, such as bobwhite quail, wild turkey and many endangered plants and animals.
