In an ironic twist, the Obama administration's attempt to win moderate support for a climate/energy bill by allowing drilling for oil in Federal waters off the Gulf and East coasts may end up dooming its chances, now that the Gulf Coast is facing what may be the worst oil spill in American history. That's accordingContinue reading “Gulf oil spill may be last straw for climate bill”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
No good deed goes unpunished — this time, by mudsnails
A well-intentioned water quality team backed by a prominent environmental group may have inadvertently introduced an overwhelmingly pestilent invasive species to Southern California. That's at the heart of an excellent story from Jill Leovy at the Los Angeles Times yesterday. Mudsnails now infest the Malibu Creek, Trancas Creek, Ramirez Creek and Solstice Creek watersheds. They'veContinue reading “No good deed goes unpunished — this time, by mudsnails”
Fog fading in NorCal: redwoods threatened?
According to a just-released study by UC Berkeley researchers, based primarily on airport cloudbank measurements, fog in summer is less prevalent in Northern California over the last hundred years, down by about a third, which could threaten the beautiful, iconic redwoods of the northern California Coast. A couple of qualifications; first, as the new studyContinue reading “Fog fading in NorCal: redwoods threatened?”
Palin’s Little Sister Goes Rogue on the Appalachian Trail
The insta-celebrity Carrie Prejean, right-wing heroine and defrocked beauty queen, has been brought low by that most embarrassing of all self-destructive acts…a sex tape. According to Google Trends, her (unreleased) sex tape was the hottest search item on Google Trends a couple of days ago, and the chart still looks like a rocket going up. Continue reading “Palin’s Little Sister Goes Rogue on the Appalachian Trail”
Imaginative Reporter Shreds “Global Cooling” Fallacy
With newspaper revenues cratering, most reporters are too busy covering their ever-expanding beats to think imaginatively about ways to cover a story. But Seth Borenstein, who has been reporting on science issues for the Associated Press for years, doesn't need to fear for his next paycheck, and has consistently brought imagination to his work. ConfrontedContinue reading “Imaginative Reporter Shreds “Global Cooling” Fallacy”
First Snow in Yosemite (fall of 2009)
A week ago yesterday, it was 96 degrees in Yosemite Valley. Yesterday it snowed — pretty hard — forcing the closure of the road to Glacier Point, and forcing me to walk up from the valley. But the beauty of the snow was a fine compensation, as Emerson would say…here's Sentinel Rock, from the so-calledContinue reading “First Snow in Yosemite (fall of 2009)”
Climate Change: What D.C. Sees — and Doesn’t See
The risk chart the Bush administration didn't publicize, from the ever-imaginative Toles' online-only sketchbook:
Overheard in Bakersfield (new edition)
According to the Internet, there already is an Overheard in Bakersfield site, but the only comment on the site is the subhhead — “It’s not THAT bad.” Well, I am here briefly today to report that in fact there is a lot of good dialogue to be overheard at the In-and-Out in Bakersfield. This isContinue reading “Overheard in Bakersfield (new edition)”
A Hymn to the Parks (behind the scenes with Ken Burns)
Those who like "behind the scenes" type looks will enjoy a profile of Ken Burns' friend and documentary co-writer, Dayton Duncan, available through The Pennsylvania Gazette. The research Duncan and Burns brought to the subject of the national parks impresses. Here's Duncan on John Muir's persuasive powers: “John Muir was an eloquent person, but theContinue reading “A Hymn to the Parks (behind the scenes with Ken Burns)”
A Greatness to the American Spirit: Forever Wild
From Terry Tempest Williams, these are the words that open a new documentary on the Wilderness Act, Forever Wild: If there is a greatness to the American spirit, a spirit aligned with freedom and faith, surely its origins are to be found in the expanse of landscapes that have nurtured us…. Raw, wild beauty isContinue reading “A Greatness to the American Spirit: Forever Wild”
Kit Stolz 