U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt. Gage Skidmore/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleaned house on its scientific review board last week, dismissing at least five scientists on its 18-member Board of Scientific Counselors.
The scientists, including professors of natural resource sociology, told multiple outlets they were surprised to receive notices that they would not be asked to renew their tenure on the board, especially after being assured in January that they would retain their positions through the new administration.
A spokesperson for EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt told the New York Times that the agency was considering filling the vacancies with representatives from industry the EPA regulates, in order to include members who "understand the impact of regulations on the regulated community."
Concerned current board members told the Times that the dismissals could be seen as a "test balloon" for further political moves against science.
Robert Richardson, an ecological economist at Michigan State University and one of those dismissed, said, the cuts "just came out of nowhere."
"The role that science has played in the agency in the past, this step is a significant step in a different direction," he said. "Anecdotally, based on what we know about the administrator, I think it will be science that will appear to be friendlier to industry, the fossil fuel industry, the chemical industry, and I think it will be science that marginalizes climate change science."
Ken Kimmell, president of the Union of Concerned Scientists, said that the dismal of the scientists "is completely part of a multifaceted effort to get science out of the way of a deregulation agenda."
What seems to be premature removals of members of this Board of Science Counselors when the board has come out in favor of the EPA strengthening its climate science, plus the severe cuts to research and development—you have to see all these things as interconnected."
For a deeper dive:
New York Times, Washington Post, Science, Greenwire, Politico Pro
For more climate change and clean energy news, you can follow Climate Nexus on Twitter and Facebook, and sign up for daily Hot News.
A monarch butterfly is perched next to an adult caterpillar on a milkweed plant, the only plant the monarch will lay eggs on and the caterpillar will eat. Cathy Keifer / Getty Images
By Tara Lohan
Fall used to be the time when millions of monarch butterflies in North America would journey upwards of 2,000 miles to warmer winter habitat.
<p>But these days the iconic butterfly's numbers are dwindling. The western migratory population is down 97% since the 1980s — a survey this month found <a href="https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/the-monarch-butterfly-population-is-in-danger-of-disappearing/5748017.html" target="_blank">fewer than 2,000</a> — and the eastern population has slipped 80% in just the past 15 years.</p><p>Because of these grim numbers the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-climate-change-wildlife-gardening-traverse-city-acf918688a623a77931a160e268dbc18" target="_blank">U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ruled</a> in December that monarchs deserved protection under the Endangered Species Act, but it would still be several years before the butterflies were listed as threatened or endangered.</p><p>It's time the species may not have.</p><p>Halting the precipitous decline of North American monarch populations hinges, in large part, on milkweed. It's the sole plant the caterpillars eat and where monarchs lay their eggs. It's also quickly disappearing with increasing urbanization and pesticide use.</p><p>Since monarchs can't survive without milkweed, conservation efforts have focused on planting more milkweed. But it's not as simple as it sounds.</p>
<p>"We've learned a good bit in the past two or three years about how to create these types of habitats, but there's not a whole lot of <em>evidence</em> guiding the way we create the plantings," says Adam Dale, an assistant professor in entomology at the University of Florida. "For example, the diversity of plants in a garden, the specific plants that are used and their arrangement — all of those things matter for how the butterflies are able to locate the hosts and move from one to the next."</p><p>In a <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/11/9/648" target="_blank">new study</a> published in the journal <em>Insects,</em> Dale and his colleagues tried to identify whether more diversity of wildflowers in milkweed gardens would be a boon for the beleaguered butterflies or whether plots should contain only milkweed plants.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTU0MTU4NC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMDYxMzg1Mn0.zEZfV2vaa9u8XW3icHcnbjs6cCW40P1vINhjXM_X5_I/img.jpg?width=980" id="5e49b" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2ed856e3471e09fd659b9f3d20b2be85" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="799" data-height="533" />
A monarch butterfly caterpillar feeds on common milkweed on Poplar Island in Maryland. Photo: Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program, (CC BY-NC 2.0)
<p>Biological diversity in ecosystems is usually a good thing, but a large body of research has shown that more diverse habitat may not be good for species like monarchs that are so specialized in what they eat.</p><p>"There's a potential for actually reducing monarch success by increasing the diversity of plants," in these conservation gardens, says Dale.</p><p>One reason is that a more varied garden can make it harder for the insects to find their host plants if they're obscured visually or chemically. A <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2019.00474/full" target="_blank">recent study</a> from researchers at the University of Kentucky found that monarchs did better when milkweed was planted on the perimeter of gardens.</p><p>Another reason has to do with the "enemies hypothesis," where greater plant diversity means more natural enemies for specialist herbivores like monarchs. Increase the plant diversity and increase the chance of larvae being eaten.</p><p>That's why, Dale says, they were surprised by some of their findings.</p>
<p>In the study, areas where they planted a mix of native swamp milkweed and other wildflowers saw an increase in monarch eggs compared to areas planted with just milkweed. And even though there was an increase in the number of predatory insects, as suspected, it didn't have an effect on the number of monarch larvae that survived.</p><p>"So what we were concerned about didn't come through," he says.</p><p>While the study was done in Florida, Dale says in general the findings should be applicable to monarch populations in other places.</p><p>"Our main goal is to try to create conservation habitat in urban areas where we're replacing natural habitat with human habitat," he says. "So ultimately we're trying to figure out ways to integrate these types of gardens into our yards and green spaces, and just try to make them as good as they can be."</p><p>With monarchs teetering on the edge of extinction, Dale hopes applying what they've learned from research like this can help make conservation efforts more successful.</p><p>"I hope that people who are interested in conserving monarchs and other insects will see this because I think it provides a little more evidence that helps inform how people create these types of gardens," Dale says. "Whether that's a homeowner, a green-space land manager in an urban area, a golf course superintendent looking to create conservation habitat or anyone who's creating these spaces, I think they could use this to improve the condition of the habitat they're creating."</p>
<a href="https://therevelator.org/author/taralohan/" target="_blank"><em>Tara Lohan </em></a><em>is deputy editor of The Revelator and has worked for more than a decade as a digital editor and environmental journalist focused on the intersections of energy, water and climate. Her work has been published by The Nation, American Prospect, High Country News, Grist, Pacific Standard and others. She is the editor of two books on the global water crisis.<br/><br/></em><em>Reposted with permission from T<a href="https://therevelator.org/monarch-milkweed-study/" target="_blank">he Revelator.</a></em>
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A protester demonstrates against the Dakota Access Pipeline on March 10, 2017 in Washington, DC. Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
A federal appeals court has struck another blow against the contested Dakota Access Pipeline.
<p>A three-judge panel on the U.S. District Court of Appeals from the D.C. Circuit <a href="https://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/dc_cir_dapl_opinion.pdf" target="_blank">agreed</a> Tuesday with a lower court ruling that the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/pipelines" target="_self">pipeline</a>'s crossing at the Missouri River near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation is illegal and requires an in-depth environmental review, the <a href="https://www.grandforksherald.com/business/energy-and-mining/6858516-Federal-court-delivers-blow-to-Dakota-Access-as-Biden-presidency-leaves-pipelines-fate-in-question" target="_blank">Grand Forks Herald reported</a>.</p><p>"We are pleased that the D.C. Circuit affirmed the necessity of a full environmental review, and we look forward to showing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers why this pipeline is too dangerous to operate," Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairman Mike Faith said in an <a href="https://earthjustice.org/news/press/2021/appeals-court-rules-for-standing-rock-sioux-tribe-in-pipeline-fight" target="_blank">Earthjustice press release</a>.</p><p>The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has long opposed the pipeline's crossing under Lake Oahe, a <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/drinking-water" target="_self">drinking water</a> source for the tribe that is located just off of their reservation, the Grand Forks Herald explained. It became the subject of massive <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/indigenous" target="_self">Indigenous</a>-led <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/dakota-access-pipeline-protest-photos-2068408834.html" target="_self">protests</a> in 2016 and 2017, leading the Obama administration to <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/army-corps-permit-dakota-access-pipeline-2128363393.html" target="_self">withhold</a> a key permit for the project.</p><p> However, the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/trump-administration" target="_self">Trump administration</a> approved the pipeline without a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) of the Missouri River crossing, a coalition of Sioux tribes <a href="https://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/tribes_letter_to_presidential.elect_biden_re_dapl.011921.final_.pdf" target="_blank">explained in a letter</a> to President <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/joe-biden" target="_self">Joe Biden</a>. The Army Corps of Engineers began an EIS of the crossing in September based on the lower court ruling, the Grand Forks Herald reported. This is expected to take up to 13 months, but the tribes and their allies are calling on the Biden administration to shut the pipeline down entirely.</p>
<p>Biden has promised to focus on the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/climate-change/" target="_self">climate crisis</a> in office, and <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/joe-biden-day-one-climate-actions-2650056267.html" target="_self">canceled</a> the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/keystone-xl" target="_self">Keystone XL</a> pipeline on day one of his administration, leading Indigenous and environmental activists to call for a shutdown of all contested fossil fuel pipelines.</p><p><span></span>"Especially after the Keystone XL decision, the pressure is increasing for the Biden administration to take action here," Jan Hasselman, an Earthjustice attorney who represents the Standing Rock Sioux, told <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-pipeline-dakota-access-idUSL1N2K11VP" target="_blank">Reuters</a>.</p><p>Meanwhile, pipeline proponents considered Tuesday's court decision a win because the court did not order the pipeline to shut down while the EIS is completed. A lower court had originally <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/dakota-access-pipeline-shut-down-2646355663.html" target="_self">ordered</a> the pipeline to shut down in July, but that has been <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/dakota-access-pipeline-shutdown-2646906562.html" target="_self">reversed</a>.</p><p>"I think the big point is that the court did not rule that DAPL is not safe," Ron Ness, president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, told the Grand Forks Herald.</p><p>The Dakota Access pipeline is the main pipeline delivering oil from North Dakota's Bakken field, which is the second-largest shale development in the U.S., according to Reuters. It currently has the capacity to carry 570,000 barrels of oil a day, but both state regulators and pipeline operators want to double that in coming years, the Grand Forks Herald reported. It is owned by Energy Transfer Partners.</p>
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24 Hours of Reality: "Earthrise" by Amanda Gorman / YouTube
By Bud Ward
Poet Amanda Gorman got well-deserved rave reviews for her dramatic reading of her six-minute "The Hill We Climb" poem January 20 before a global TV and online inauguration day audience.
<p>It's fair to say that for many, she in effect "stole the show" during the Biden/Harris inauguration day ceremonies. And she continued to do so through countless major- and social-media follow-ups since then.</p><p>But what if Gorman, 22, the nation's youth poet laureate, could bring her poetic, presentation skills, and grace to the issue of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/climate-change">climate change</a>?</p>
<p>In fact, she's done just that. In December 2018, Gorman presented her original "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwOvBv8RLmo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Earthrise</a>" four-minute poem as part of a <a href="https://www.climaterealityproject.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Climate Reality Project</a> "24 hours of reality" campaign. Her reading of that poem has attracted more than 215,000 YouTube views as of January 26.</p><p>No effort here to paraphrase or quote from it: That would be like the proverbial narrative describing a photo of a painting of a unique landscape. Watch and listen to it yourself.</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c642bcb2c150639bd9c0b0b2e5ef1b6c"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xwOvBv8RLmo?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2021/01/poet-amanda-gormans-earthrise-climate-change-video/" target="_blank">Yale Climate Connections</a>.</em></p>Related Articles Around the Web
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The SpaceX Falcon Heavy launches on its maiden test flight from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on February 6, 2018. Jim Watson / AFP / Getty Images
Three men are paying $55 million each to travel to space, the AP reported.
<p>Announced on Tuesday, the first space crew consisting of private citizens plans to take off next January on a <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/spacex" target="_blank">SpaceX</a> rocket and spend eight days aboard the<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/astronauts-return-international-space-station-2645750749.html" target="_blank"> International Space Station</a>.</p><p>"This is the first private flight to the International Space Station. It's never been done before," Mike Suffredini, chief executive and president of Axiom Space, a privately funded space company, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/1st-private-space-crew-pay-55m-each-2e8a78c31ae6309e69632f0f41feccbf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">told the AP</a>. </p><p>Although the crew recognizes the crises currently happening on Earth, they feel their efforts as the first private space crew are "an enhancement of their other philanthropic efforts," <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/01/26/private-space-flight-axiom/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the Washington Post reported</a>. </p><p>"There are a lot of issues — adversity, and in some regards, crises, here, not only in the U.S., but worldwide," Larry Connor, one of the crew's private citizens, told the Washington Post. "And those absolutely need to be a priority. But we cannot forget about the future. We cannot forget about having long-term visions... And hopefully this mission and the research we're going to do is going to be one small step on that journey."</p>
<p>While their efforts may open doors for the future of commercial space travel, some criticize their timing, as the Covid-19 pandemic, economic recession and increasing costs of the climate crisis continue to ravage communities on Earth.</p>
<p>This debate raises questions on whether space agencies should further their space exploration or use their technology and finances to research climate solutions. </p>
<p>Based on a <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/07/17/how-americans-see-the-future-of-space-exploration-50-years-after-the-first-moon-landing/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">2019 Pew Research Center study</a>, 63 percent of Americans think <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/nasa" target="_blank">NASA'</a>s top priorities should be monitoring the Earth's climate. This public support is backed by Lori Garver, chief executive at Earthrise Alliance and former deputy NASA administrator. </p>
<p>In a 2019 <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/forget-new-manned-missions-in-space-nasa-should-focus-on-saving-earth/2019/07/18/79e55eb8-a995-11e9-9214-246e594de5d5_story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">opinion piece</a> published in The Washington Post, she wrote about the relationship between space exploration and climate change. </p>
<p>She explained how NASA's original purpose involved expanding human understanding and solving the nation's impossible problems. But "the impossible problem today is not the moon. And it's not Mars. It's our home planet," she wrote.</p>
<p>Today's aim of space travel should no longer focus on racing space rivals to the latest discovery, Garver added. "<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/climate-change/" target="_blank">Climate change</a> — not Russia, much less China — is today's existential threat."</p>
<p>Space travel and research also come with a heavy environmental cost. For example, when Elon Musk's SpaceX Falcon Heavy reaches orbit, it will have emitted more carbon dioxide than an average car would emit in two centuries, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2020-01-30/space-launch-carbon-emissions" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The LA Times reported.</a> </p>
<p>But some claim space innovation can also fuel sustainable technology in the commercial sector. For example, ecology projects such as learning to grow plants in space have developed into an energy-saving practice for indoor agriculture, <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-spaceflight-save-the-planet/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Scientific American reported</a>. Another space-funded project seeking to remove potent chemicals from dirty rocket launchpads has developed a frequently used compound to clean Superfund sites in the U.S.</p>
<p>Whether the environmental benefit of space exploration and research outweighs the environmental cost remains to be seen. Members of the private space station crew, however, think their experiences will benefit education outreach back home.</p><p>While in space, Connor said he does "not want to be a spectator," the Washington Post reported. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I want to do something of value."</p><p>Back home, Connor intends to teach lessons to students at Dayton Early College Academy, a K-12 charter school, according to the Washington Post. </p><p>"These guys are all very involved and doing it for... the betterment of their communities and countries, and so we couldn't be happier with this makeup of the first crew because of their drive and their interest," Suffredini told the AP.</p><p>While the crew's time in space may benefit others, some question if spending $35,000 a day for the privilege makes sense.</p><p>"The public doesn't understand the purpose of spending massive amounts of money to send a few astronauts to the moon or Mars," Garver wrote in her op-ed. "Is this the most valuable display of our scientific and technological leadership?" </p>
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#SaveSalla is a campaign launched by a Finnish community in partnership with the youth climate movement Fridays for Future. www.savesalla.org
By Jessica Corbett
With temperatures across the globe — and particularly in the Arctic — rising due to lackluster efforts to address the human-caused climate crisis, one of the coldest towns on Earth is throwing its hat in the ring to host the 2032 Summer Olympics.
<p>Salla is located in Finland's Lapland region and <a href="https://www.visitsalla.fi/en/" target="_blank">touts</a> the tagline, "in the middle of nowhere." The average temperature is <a href="https://en.climate-data.org/europe/finland/salla/salla-9790/" target="_blank">below freezing</a> and the area boasts a ski resort, reindeer park, Arctic Circle safaris, and even a snow and ice hotel.</p><p>With support from Fridays for Future — the youth-led movement launched by Swedish teenager <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/01/25/enough-blah-blah-blah-global-elites-greta-thunberg-declares-digital-davos" target="_blank">Greta Thunberg</a> — Salla announced its Olympic bid to build awareness about "the consequences of global warming and the need for urgent action."</p><p>"Our intention here is clear: we want to keep Salla as it is, and our winters cold and full of snow," said Salla Mayor Erkki Parkkinen. "So, there was this crazy idea: to host the Summer Games in one of the coldest towns on the planet."</p><p>"If we stand back and do nothing, letting global warming prevail," Parkkinen warned, "we will lose our identity, and the town we love — as well as many others around the world — will cease to exist as we know it."</p><p>The campaign, detailed at <a href="https://www.savesalla.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">www.savesalla.com</a>, includes a short video.</p><p>Watch:</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="bcd9564786e4ebb966622be75b5d9fe8"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sSZSrjmmSIo?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<p>"Despite the obviousness of the global warming, the ideology of climate change denial is gaining traction all over the world and increasing every year," the campaign website says. "So, we've created this bid to raise attention about the climate emergency. Salla is changing. The whole planet is changing. Not in a good way."</p><p>As Common Dreams has reported, while <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/01/13/dire-assessment-scientists-warn-humanity-denial-looming-collapse-civilization-we" target="_blank">projections</a> for the entire planet are dire if policymakers don't urgently <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/09/25/un-climate-report-oceans-frozen-regions-warns-unprecedented-transitions-all-aspects" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">work to</a> "effect unprecedented transitions in all aspects of society, including energy, land and ecosystems, urban and infrastructure as well as industry," the Arctic is <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/12/11/deep-trouble-arctic-and-beyond-noaa-climate-report-warns-feedback-loop-may-already" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">particularly at risk</a>.</p><p>"We have only one planet to live in and an immense responsibility to future generations. We can all make a difference. What we cannot do under any circumstances is deny the problem and omit ourselves. The risks will be severe and unavoidable," said Joe Hobbs, a Fridays For Future activist and operations director for Climate Cardinals. "Global warming does not have to be a self-fulfilling prophecy and everyone can make a significant and decisive contribution to stop this process."</p>
<p>Hobbs joined Parkkinen and multiple experts for a <a href="https://videos.netshow.me/v/2R3fyFdLMN8" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">press conference</a> about the campaign on Tuesday.</p><p>The event came a day after a new study that showed ice loss worldwide is increasing at a record rate. Lead author Thomas Slater of Leeds' Centre for Polar Observation and Modeling <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-global-ice-loss.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said</a> that "although every region we studied lost ice, losses from the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets have accelerated the most."</p><p>"The ice sheets are now following the worst-case climate warming scenarios set out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change," Slater added. "Sea-level rise on this scale will have very serious impacts on coastal communities this century."</p><p>Also on Monday, Thunberg <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/01/25/enough-blah-blah-blah-global-elites-greta-thunberg-declares-digital-davos" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">delivered</a> an address to the World Economic Forum's annual meeting — held digitally rather than in Davos, Switzerland this year because of the raging coronavirus pandemic. She told political and business leaders that "when it comes to facing the climate emergency, the world is still in a state of complete denial."</p><p>"Safeguarding the future living conditions and preserving life on Earth as we know it is voluntary. The choice is yours to make," the 18-year-old Swede said. "But I can assure you this: You can't negotiate with physics. And your children and grandchildren will hold you accountable for the choices that you make."</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/01/26/planet-cooks-one-worlds-coldest-towns-bids-host-2032-summer-olympics?cd-origin=rss" target="_blank">Common Dreams</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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