Rhode Island Feeds

I know it has been a hot summer, but when I saw several people taking a dip in the Charles River one sultry evening this August I couldn’t believe my eyes. What were they thinking?

I know the river has been significantly cleaned up in the last few years, but it stinks to high heavens on certain days, which leads me to believe that some foul stuff is afloat in there. Rumor has it that before the clean-up efforts, boaters were advised to head straight to the hospital for tetanus shots after a fall in the river. This incident got me thinking about the state of the Charles River today-how clean it is, what contaminants remain, and how close we are to the Charles becoming a river that city dwellers can safely (and pleasantly) swim in.

Pollution of the Charles originated with the first English settler to Boston in 1625, and continued via the introduction of untreated raw sewage, waste water from city streets and factories that emptied contaminants directly into the river. The creation of dams and filling in of marshlands in Boston compounded the pollution and limited drainage. The river eventually became noxious, slicked with oil and flowing with toxins. Efforts to clean the river began in 1965 with the creation of the Charles River Watershed Association and in 1995 the EPA declared the goal of a “fishable, swimmable” river by 2005.

There has been considerable progress, but the EPA has not accomplished its goal of a completely fishable and swimmable river. The EPA measures bacterial counts at ten points along the 80-mile long river. The report card shows that in 1995, the Charles received a “D” rating, meaning that the river was safe for some boating but no swimming. In 2005, the river received a B+ rating, meaning that it is safe for all boating and some swimming. A major hurdle in the way of the EPA’s goal of a swimmable and fishable river is combined sewage overflow (“CSO”), which occurs when the pipe carrying untreated sewage from its source to the treatment facility cannot hold all of the water during periods of heavy rain. The overflow dumps untreated sewage directly into the river. Hopefully this will change, as we begin to see the results of a 2006 settlement between the EPA and the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority (MWRA) where the MWRA agreed to control CSO output into the Charles.

This blog was written by Maura Nugent, grant coordinator for Lights Out, Green In.

Engineers this week will try to remove the failed blowout preventer from the BP well, with the goal of determining what caused the explosion (MSNBC). Meanwhile, behind the scenes, things were more acrimonious than previously disclosed (NY Times).

The panel investigating the explosion isn’t getting many good answers thus far (LA Times), and finding a smoking gun has proven difficult (NY Times).

In the wake of the salmonella outbreak, the FDA plans to inspect large egg farms, some of which haven’t been inspected in decades (LA Times).

The Obama administration sides with utilities in a Supreme Court case, angering environmentalists (Washington Post).

A map to zone the waters off of Rhode Island has so far been a letdown (Providence Journal).

Construction of a highway through a Russian forest is halted for now (LA Times).

A firm that makes blades for wind turbines plans to open a plant in Fall River (Boston Globe).

New federal regulations will prevent ships from discharging sewage within three miles of the California coast (LA Times).

Lightning as an energy source?  One researcher says yes (BBC).

Is whaling meat contaminated?  Activists want the World Health Organization to look into it (BBC).

The New Zealand Christmas tree wreaks havoc on San Francisco (NY Times).

Arlington, Texas, has the best tap water in the U.S.; the worst water is in Jacksonville, Fla.

What’s one of the biggest obstacles to wind energy? This New York Times article says it’s the military.

The Washington Post has a lengthy article about the ties between industry and the Minerals Management Service. It also reports that Obama’s plan for expanded drilling included little if any input from two top environmental advisers.

Here’s a look at some New York restaurants going green (NY Times).

In all my years of reading the black-and-white Dilbert comic strip, who knew the man behind all the workplace blues was really green?

An article in the Wall Street Journal this week details how Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert strip, tried to build a totally green house.  His harrowing process of trying to “save the earth” with his house was witty and informative and caught my eye.

He shares some stark truths on his journey:

The greenest home is the one you don’t build. If you really want to save the Earth, move in with another family and share a house that’s already built. Better yet, live in the forest and eat whatever the squirrels don’t want. Don’t brag to me about riding your bicycle to work; a lot of energy went into building that bicycle. Stop being a hypocrite like me.

Between trying for a white roof, no windows and no lawn, a totally white pebble lawn, the house would be quite ugly as well. But Adams sums up the real kicker in environmentally friendly houses.

Heating and cooling are the biggest energy thieves. And roofs and windows matter the most for heat transfer. Focus your research and budget there. … If you’re thinking of buying a home that has lots of windows on the wrong side for your climate, you should pass. Few things make a home less liveable, and more of an energy hog, than improper orientation to the sun.

There is a ton of actual useful information in the article as well. So set your eyes on it if you’re buying or building a house.

This MSNBC article looks at the government-BP relationship (also see this from the Washington Post). Meanwhile, the mediator of the $20 billion compensation fund prepares to start work (LA Times, also see this from the NY Times).

China becomes the latest place to be hit by severe flooding (NY Times).

A new study measures the amount of plastic debris in the Atlantic Ocean (BBC).

Massachusetts orders NStar to rebid 3 wind farm contracts (Boston Globe). The AG’s office also released a report detailing the cost of Cape Wind power (Boston Globe). Meanwhile, pollution plagues Cape Cod waters (NY Times).

Technology has made people underestimate the risks in national parks (NY Times).

Minnesota’s BPA ban is now in effect; it’s the 1st state to ban the chemical in baby items.

A few links as we head into the weekend.

A paper to be published in Science says a large plume of oil still exists in the Gulf of Mexico (NY Times, also see this from BBC). BP now plans to wait til after Labor Day to seal the well (NY Times).

The floods and Pakistan and fires in Russia are deserving of the world’s environmental attention, but the globe would be wise not to turn away from the BP oil spill. There’s been a slew of news rushing in on BP despite the fact that the oil well has been capped.

Last weekend Barack Obama’s trip showed the beaches in Florida are safe and open for tourism, but it also highlighted the huge drop in tourism to the region.

The resort towns of the Florida panhandle are on the eastern edge of the oil spill but the beaches were still hit by tar balls and an oily sheen. A study by Oxford Economics for the US Travel Association estimated the spill could cost coastal towns in the four Gulf states nearly $23 billion dollars in lost tourism arrivals over the next three years.

Shrimping season began in the region recently and while shrimping boats are at least all back to work, it’s not all plentiful and safe hauls. An interview with one of the heads of the shrimpers associations showed that.

ACY COOPER: It was poor. We don’t know what happened, the shrimp wasn’t as plentiful as we thought there was. We had more fish than we had shrimp, so it wasn’t what we anticipated. … Well, let me go to last Friday and the day they let me go, found oil on the bottom in the same areas that I was working at - which I worked at too much and never even seen this oil. So we have a lot of areas like that. When they sunk this oil, the Coast Guard kept saying it’s a tradeoff. And, like, we screamed and hollered from the beginning that the only tradeoff it is is to lose our industry. So we got to be very careful when you’re talking about all gone. It’s not gone, they just sunk it.

And speaking of declaring success before it should’ve been, scientists are wary of reports that the BP oil spill is under control - and the govt’s top commander still says the cap is a work in progress.

Their report claims that most of the oil that leaked into the Gulf is still present. They concede that much of it is dissolved or in the form of dispersed micro-droplets, but caution that oil in that state isn’t harmless. According to the Georgia report, between 70 percent and 79 percent of the oil remains in the ecosystem.

The smog persists in Moscow, but it appears that the fears of radioactivity were overblown (MSNBC). The smog, along with other extreme weather, fits with climate change-related predictions say some scientists (MSNBC, also see this from the BBC and this from the NY Times).

And on that subject, 2010 has thus far been the warmest year on record (Washington Post).

The deepwater drilling ban may be lifted early (MSNBC).

The devastating floods continue in Pakistan. This article looks at the causes (BBC).

In West Virgina, some hope that a wind farm can save a mountain from mountaintop mining (NY Times).

The world’s largest tidal turbine is unveiled (BBC). Back in the U.S., much of the energy-related stimulus money has yet to be spent (Washington Post).

Still living in an apartment? Here are some ways to be an eco-friendly renter (LA Times). And here’s how peak energy demand periods have been controlled (NY Times).

Weak batteries are hurting the Honda Civic’s fuel efficiency (LA Times).

Many manufacturers will recycle old electronics for you, so don’t trash your old gadgets.

Watch out for those ladders and mirrors and black cats today. Here are a few links for the weekend.

The fires in Russia are raising fears that radioactive material could be released (NY Times).

This in-depth article offers a look at Portugal’s embrace of renewable energy (NY Times). And here’s a look at how butter can be turned into biodiesel (NY Times).

And finally, looking to save some energy? LED bulbs are now available for less than $20 (CNET).

The truth these days is harsh - we don’t know quite how bad the effects of global warming will be. The latest example is the floating ice island that broke off a glacier off Greenland.

Four times the size of Manhattan, this floating weapon could sink ships with ease, simply by crashing into them. Right now scientists think the ice island could reach Newfoundland in 1 to 2 years. If it does this, well, look out.

These scientists believe the new ice island will enter Nares Strait and either block it or break up and lodge between real islands in the Strait. Such was the fate of a 230-square-mile ice chunk which calved from the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf in Canada in 1962. Another possibility is that the pieces could travel south toward the Atlantic over the course of the next two years and melt in warmer waters. Right now, the island is floating about 620 miles south of the North Pole.

While this “ice island” was always somewhat of a possibility, the bigger fear from the melting glaciers and ice caps was always the rise in sea level. Now we have this as well. I hope cameras can get footage of the island breaking off from the glacier as those types of clips often resonate most with the public (aside from polar bears). Who knows - maybe this can be another in a yearlong of wake-up calls.

Best case scenario is it only clogs up shipping lanes and worst-case scenario is this island floats into boats causing massive destruction. There’s no way of knowing. But there’s one thing we do know for sure - this is only the tip of the iceberg on global warming.

The New York Times has a lengthy feature on the mandate for the Minerals Management Service to produce results.

The capping has prompted fears of abandonment along the Gulf (MSNBC). The FDA says the dispersants have not affected Gulf seafood (Washington Post), but some fishermen still prefer working for BP at this point (LA Times).

Climate talks in Bonn yielded no results (MSNBC); if anything, things regressed (BBC).

The U.S. changes plans for capturing coal emissions (NY Times).

The U.N. says Pakistan will need billions in flood aid (MSNBC). Smog from wildfires covers Moscow (BBC).

A consultant criticizes the Deepwater Wind project (Providence Journal).

In 1980, each U.S. household had only 3 consumer electronic products. Today, each house has 25.

The static kill operation seems to have succeeded (NY Times), and with no oil having leaked in 3 weeks, the spill part of the disaster may be finished. On Wednesday, the government reported that most of the remaining oil poses little additional risk (NY Times), although that report has been subject to a lot of criticism (NY Times).

And in other news, San Francisco considers expanding its plastic bag ban (LA Times).

It’s as though Mother Nature is knocking us over the head with a wake-up call this year. Ignore the Copenhagen Curse at your own risk.

Since global leaders emitted more than a ton of hot air at December’s climate change summit in Copenhagen, it seems that more and more signs of the urgency behind global warming are popping up.

First, the historic BP oil spill showed how harmful our reliance on that type of energy is - it’s dangerous to get it and it’s dangerous to use it. Then, Climategate was debunked as any type of coercion, thereby giving credence to science once again. Next we hear Asian long-horned beetles are killing trees (which take in a lot of the dangerous carbon dioxide) all across the northeast, leveling the great equalizer to global warming. Oh - and it’s been really, really, really hot just about everywhere across the globe this summer.

Some global leaders have listened - it seems Russian president Dmitry Medvedev might be convinced after more than 1,000 people died from Russia’s June heat wave (or from drinking too much vodka). IF this is in fact true, it’s a big deal since not only has Russia been behind on halting climate change, its actually denied it many times.

Others haven’t heeded the lessons - such as the U.S. Senate and the White House, which shelved comprehensive energy reform last month. This has the world once again questioning the U.S. commitment to cutting greenhouse gas emissions. After we never agreed to the Kyoto Protocol, who can blame the doubters.

Global leaders of the U.N. are reconvening at Bonn this week for a conference on climate change. Monday, one leader urged countries to take baby steps, so we can at least get started on stopping global warming. Will it work? After the letdown at Copenhagen, I’m not sure. But it doesn’t, we might be in for even more curses.

BP received 74 waivers from the Coast Guard to use dispersants in the Gulf of Mexico (Washington Post), but the EPA says BP’s use of dispersants was appropriate (MSNBC). Meanwhile, optimism persists that the “static kill” will be successful (NY Times).

BP is scaling back its cleanup efforts, but many wetlands remain at risk (LA Times).

Here’s another article about conflicts at MMS (Washington Post).

Under pressure from the attorney general, Cape Wind cuts prices (Boston Globe).  In Oregon, one company offers residents money in exchange for silence (NY Times).

San Francisco approves development on a Superfund site (MSNBC).

A study finds mammal populations declining in Chernobyl’s exclusion zone (BBC). The Florida Everglades are back on Unesco’s danger list (BBC).

New recycling programs turn old athletic shoes into paving materials for playgrounds.

A few links on this last July weekend.

The oil spill has drawn lots of attention, but the Gulf of Mexico has been suffering for years says this New York Times article. As for the spill, while the cap has provided some temporary relief, a permanent fix may soon be at hand (LA Times). Meanwhile, politicians and others try to figure out what’s next (LA Times).