Environment

"As the government in Japan continues to lead the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster response, many people in Japan say the government’s efforts are misguided. Critics of the government and nuclear experts say the government’s billion dollars in cleanup contracts and hundreds of untrained workers are just wasting money. The Japanese leaders have awarded billions to the very same companies who built the flawed reactors that failed at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant — companies who nuclear experts say know nothing about reducing radioactive pollution." - Bluesun 2600 from Bookmarklet

"Last week, Federal Wildlife officials articulated the threats faced by Everglades wildlife from invasive pythons, but there's another non-native species nearby which may pose an even greater problem for humans. For the last 80 years, a hardy population of rhesus monkeys has been living in the wild of central Florida, where they've long been considered an attraction among tourists. But according to park agents, the unwelcome monkeys present "a true public hazard" -- namely because many of them are carrying a form of simian herpes which can be deadly to humans." - Shevonne from Bookmarklet

If that's true, Kelli...THEY GONNA GET DA HERPES!!!?!! - Bubba Botts

Sir Ebenezer Howard (29 January 1850[1]– May 1, 1928[2]) is known for his publication Garden Cities of To-morrow (1898), the description of a utopian city in which people live harmoniously together with nature. The publication resulted in the founding of the garden city movement, that realized several Garden Cities in Great Britain at the beginning of the twentieth century. Billerica Garden Suburb,Inc.(1914), was the first housing in the United States on the Howard plan. Found via this photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos... - Halil from Bookmarklet

Ilike this guy ... :-)) - ☆彡Jazzy-B

"No one knows how they got there. But an invasion of African giant snails has southern Florida in a panic over potential crop damage, disease and general yuckiness surrounding the slimy gastropods. The US and Florida departments of agriculture have mobilized 34 agents to battle the infestation and the US Fish & Wildlife Service is heading up an investigation into how the mollusks -- which can be up to 20 centimeters (eight inches) long -- arrived." - imabonehead from Bookmarklet

"For those of you unfamiliar the the buckeye tree, it is the emblem of Ohio State University. The Buckeyes of Ohio State have one of the most fierce rivalries in sports with that "school up north", the University of Michigan. As someone who spent twelve years of my life as a student at the University of Michigan, the thought of Buckeye trees in Ann Arbor is not one I care to contemplate. But the USDA Forest Service has published a Climate Change Tree Atlas which predicts that the Ohio Buckeye Tree can be expected to march northwards into Ann Arbor with a warming climate. I can only sadly predict that to stem the invasion, non-ecologically-minded University of Michigan students will unleash genetically engineered wolverines that eat buckeye seeds." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

The Forest Service's Climate Change Tree Atlas is here: http://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/atlas... - John (bird whisperer)

Aphalara itadori, the Japanese knotweed psyllid, is a species of psyllid from Japan which feeds on Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica). It has being licensed by the UK Government for the biological control of Japanese knotweed in England; this is the first time that biological control of a weed has been sanctioned in the European Union.[2] The specific name comes from itadori (虎杖, イタドリ?), the Japanese name for Japanese knotweed.[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki... ~ Psyllids or jumping plant lice are small plant-feeding insects that tend to be very "host specific", i.e. they only feed on one plant species (monophagous) or feed on a few related plants (oligophagous) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki... ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki... - Halil from Bookmarklet

Hope they've checked it out thoroughly. Here in the US, we're trying to avoid the Asian citrus psyllid because it can carry citrus greening disease. - Spidra Webster

"Digging and playing in beach sand puts people at higher risk of getting sick than swimming or sunbathing, according to a new study led by the Environmental Protection Agency. Researchers surveyed some 5,000 beach visitors and found that those who dug in the most contaminated sand were twice as likely to fall ill with diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and stomach aches. Those who had been buried in the sand showed an even greater tendency to get sick. That's because polluted beach sand can harbor even more pathogens than the surf, according to researchers with the EPA, the University of North Carolina and Johns Hopkins University. Scientists made the sand-sickness correlation by taking 144 samples of wet sand from beaches in Fairhope, Ala., and Warwick, R.I., that are near waste-water outfalls, testing them for bacteria that indicate the presence of harmful viruses and pathogens. Researchers also asked beach visitors if they dug in the sand and swam in the water. Two weeks later, they called... more... - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

I cleaned my kids' hands with wipes but I guess I should take extra water bottles for washing their hands better. - Zulema ⋅ spicy cocoa tart

President Barack Obama pledged in the State of the Union address last week that the government would develop a road map for responsible natural gas production and roll out new rules to ensure drillers protect the environment. Companies would be required to disclose the "complete chemical makeup of all materials used" in fracking fluids under the Interior Department's draft rules, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters. - Halil from Bookmarklet

"Reporting from Ivanpah Valley, Calif.— Construction cranes rise like storks 40 stories above the Mojave Desert. In their midst, the "power tower" emerges, wrapped in scaffolding and looking like a multistage rocket. Clustered nearby are hangar-sized assembly buildings, looming berms of sand and a chain mail of fencing that will enclose more than 3,500 acres of public land. Moorings for 173,500 mirrors — each the size of a garage door — are spiked into the desert floor. Before the end of the year, they will become six square miles of gleaming reflectors, sweeping from Interstate 15 to the Clark Mountains along California's eastern border. BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power project will soon be a humming city with 24-hour lighting, a wastewater processing facility and a gas-fired power plant. To make room, BrightSource has mowed down a swath of desert plants, displaced dozens of animal species and relocated scores of imperiled desert tortoises, a move that some experts say could... more... - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"Schramm, who retired last December as superintendent at Mojave National Preserve, found himself at odds with the Interior Department, his own parent agency, in defending the 900 species of plants and 300-plus species of animals in the preserve, especially the desert tortoise. "For the life of the projects, that habitat is lost to the desert tortoise. It's 'Pack your bags, you're... more... - John (bird whisperer)

"In telling the story of a small-town political fight over wind power, Laura Israel’s fascinating documentary “Windfall” at first seems like another entry in the long laundry list of post-”Inconvenient Truth” doomsayer environmental films. Indeed, “Windfall” has some of the rural, homespun feeling of Josh Fox’s Oscar-nominated “Gasland,” which helped ignite a national debate over the natural-gas extraction method known as fracking. Israel’s film also offers a direct riposte to Bill Haney’s “The Last Mountain,” in which Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is seen promoting wind power as a clean alternative to the dirty and destructive combination of mountaintop-removal coal mining and coal-generated electricity." - Kelli H. from Bookmarklet

Someone sent me this ... I thought it was interesting although a somewhat lengthy read... :-). http://www.csmonitor.com/Environ... - ☆彡Jazzy-B from iPhone

"In part 1 we saw that NASA scientists James Hansen, Reto Ruedy, Makiko Sato and Kwok-Wai Ken Lo from the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) have released an analysis of global temperature in 2011, and looked at future prospects. Reviewing the evidence, the authors concluded that rapid global warming is likely in the next few years. This is not a new phenomenon, but simply a reflection of natural variability, cool (La Niña) and warm (El Niño) phases which still exert a temporary cooling/warming influence on global surface temperatures even in the presence of a persistent global warming trend. In part 2 we'll see that seasonal extreme warm anomalies in 2009-2011 are well above the 1951-1980 base period typically used in GISTEMP analyses - indicative of global warming's role in heatwaves. That measuring of manmade aerosols (pollution particles that reflect sunlight) is still highly problematic, and significantly, that the current warming phase of the 11-year solar cycle is likely to have a noticable warming effect on the climate over the next 3-5 years." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"Antarctica is so vast that the pictures give you no sense of scale. The pencil-thin line across the satellite image of Pine Island Glacier (above) is actually more than 18 miles long, 800 feet across in places, and 180 feet deep. And it's growing. In the next few months, scientists expect the glacier to create an iceberg about 350 square miles in area. It will probably float northward, melting as it goes." - imabonehead from Bookmarklet

"But these beasts, discovered in the Kermadec Trench, were more than 10 times bigger: the largest found measured in at 34cm. Alan Jamieson, from the University of Aberdeen's Oceanlab, said: "It's a bit like finding a foot-long cockroach."" - Shevonne from Bookmarklet

We're gonna need more cocktail sauce. - Josh Haley

*twitch* - Lix

"Forget the groundhogs, February 2nd is also World Wetland Day, commemorating the historic convention of wetlands in Ramsar, Iran in 1971. The Ramsar Treaty was an international agreement meant to address the loss and degradation of wetlands worldwide. Wetlands provide a multitude of ecosystem services to humanity including safeguarding unique biodiversity, buffering against flooding, acting as fish nurseries, purifying water, replenishing soil with moisture, and storing carbon among others. Despite their importance wetlands face an abundance of threats including conversion for agriculture or livestock, draining for development, pollution and sewage, rising sea levels due to climate change, invasive species, and efforts to control wetlands with dams and dikes." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

The photos above are of peatlands in Borneo, Sandhill Cranes at Bosque del Apache NWR, and a caiman in the Ilanos wetlands of Colombia - John (bird whisperer)

"Between out-of-control fires and destructive invasive species, Australia is facing major environmental problems. Now, an Australian scientist says he has a radical solution to these issues: Import large animals, such as elephants, to consume flammable grasses and combat the feral animals that are reconstructing the ecosystem." - imabonehead from Bookmarklet

"A burgeoning population of huge pythons — many of them pets that were turned loose by their owners when they got too big — appears to be wiping out large numbers of raccoons, opossums, bobcats and other mammals in the Everglades, a study says. The study, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that sightings of medium-size mammals are down dramatically — as much as 99 percent, in some cases — in areas where pythons and other large, non-native constrictor snakes are known to be lurking." - imabonehead from Bookmarklet

what's the annual birth-rate of snakes? did a quick search, didn't find any useful links - Halil

Read a simailar article not so long ago about how a Burmese Python had died after eating an Aligator believe it or not! - NewFrontierAdvisory

beautiful - SteVe C

Lovely colours - NewFrontierAdvisory

ماشالله مادرزمین جون جون خوشگله روز به روز خوشگلتر میشه! - (مادرزمین) MotherEarth

ارمغان حرفت درسته. اما شرارت های فرزندان ناخلف چیزی از مهر و سخاوت مادر کم نمی کنه. آخرش هم می ریم تو آغوشش به ابدیت می پیوندیم - (مادرزمین) MotherEarth

"Collaboration and a greater reliance on science are the keys to the Obama administration's new guidelines in managing about 193 million acres of national forest and juggling the competing interests of industry and conservation groups. Known as the forest planning rule, the guidelines unveiled Thursday by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell aim to protect the environment and reduce the time for approval of development projects. It will replace the old framework, which has been the center of legal battles for years. The federal courts threw out theGeorge W. Bushadministration's plan in 2009. Vilsack and Tidwell said they hoped the new rule, released in draft form last year, would lead to less litigation. The proposal is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Feb. 3, and could go into effect this year." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"Vilsack said the Obama administration was trying to balance competing interests over how to use the nation's 155 national forests and areas such as grasslands, which the Forest Service administers in more than 40 states. There must be an emphasis on jobs, as the president outlined in his State of the Union message, but the need for timber industry jobs has to be balanced by the need... more... - John (bird whisperer)

"The first parcel of land has been put aside for a new wildlife refuge to protect one of the last remaining grassland and savanna landscapes in eastern North America. Government officials accepted a donation of land in south-central Florida as part of the Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area effort. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar accepted the 10-acre (4-hectare) donation, which will make up the 556th unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System. The new addition to the system comes as part of the Obama administration's America’s Great Outdoors initiative. The new refuge and conservation area will cover 150,000 acres north of Lake Okeechobee." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

بانوی کوهستان/ هر شب گیسوانت را شانه بزن/ بگذار نرمی اش بگسترد/ تا آن سوی وسعت هیمالیا // راستی یادت باشد؛ / در محضر بودا/ گلایه مکن/- از «سلامی» که ذبح شده با خون ستارگان:/ ندا، سهراب، اشکان، کیانوش، ...، ...، ... هاله و هدی! - (مادرزمین) MotherEarth

ممنون آریوی گرامی. یادش گرامی باد - (مادرزمین) MotherEarth

"This map is the result of years of research by NASA, the National Geological Survey, and the U.S. Forest Service. It shows, in staggering detail, the total of woody biomass (read trees) across these United States. Presenting the entire nation at a 30 meter resolution, with 4 pixels representing an acre land, it’s one amazing map. While impressive in its own right, this tree map aims to help keep a record of the amount of carbon being held in Earth’s plant matter. With concerns over carbon’s role in climate change, surveys like this are invaluable tools." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"Today the Russian tanker Renda, escorted by the United States’ only operating icebreaking vessel, will attempt to make its final push in delivering much-needed fuel to the remote, icebound community of Nome, Alaska. The ships’ progress has been impeded by high winds, strong currents, brutal cold, and thick sea ice. They moved just 50 feet on Tuesday and slowed even further on Wednesday. With a 25-foot ice ridge still blocking access to the harbor, the tanker will be forced to attempt offloading its cargo through a mile-long hose to shore.Ordinarily, the last delivery is made prior to the ice closing in, but this year it was delayed by a “monster storm” that hit Alaska in early November covering an area twice the size of Texas. The tempest produced hurricane-force winds, blizzard conditions, coastal flooding, and spurred evacuations of many coastal communities. The 3,500 residents of Nome, a city located on the western coast of Alaska, rely on tanker barges to deliver home heating... more... - Bluesun 2600 from Bookmarklet

"South America's most famous lake is being polluted by increasing levels of waste from fast-growing cities, according to locals, environmentalists and politicians. Lake Titicaca, which sits on the border of Bolivia and Peru, has sustained agricultural societies on the dry, high-altitude Andean plains for thousands of years, but is now threatened by a population boom from nearby cities and towns. El Alto has grown at 4% a year for two decades as rural peasants seek a better life, and is now the country's second largest city and the largest urban centre in the Titicaca watershed. But this migration has had devastating effects on the rivers of El Alto, communities downstream and Lake Titicaca. Raw sewage, garbage and industrial waste are all dumped into the Seco River, which flows through the heart of El Alto. At the edge of the city, where the Seco begins a 40-mile journey toward Lake Titicaca, it also receives treated wastewater from the city's severely overtaxed treatment plant. Those... more... - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"In recent years, scientists have become increasingly intent on understanding how the warming of the earth will affect wildlife populations. A lot of attention has been paid to how climate change has spawned deadly mismatches between animal and plant life cycles. For example, warming temperatures may cause certain plants to bloom earlier than they have historically, whereas some animals may migrate in response to changing light rather than changes in temperature. But a joint study by researchers at the United States Geological Survey and the University of Montana, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, explores another way that the earth’s warming can affect wildlife. The scientists used ongoing research in mountainous areas of Arizona to examine how a decline in snowfall has reduced five species of songbird populations. In theory, warming temperatures and less snow might be nice for birds, but it is not working out that way, the researchers found. For example, elk, with... more... - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"The researchers found that westerly winds in the Southern Ocean have increased, on average, by 15 percent over the past few decades. Both female and male flight speeds got a boost as a result, with females alone traveling about 311 miles per day in 1990, but about 435 miles per day as of 2010. Easier flights for the birds have improved their breeding success, allowing them to grow larger. As it is, this species has the largest wingspan of any living bird. It's possible that the weight gain is an adjustment to the speedier winds, allowing the birds to experience greater wing loading while in flight. In addition to heightened wind speeds, the westerlies in the Southern Ocean are also now gradually moving poleward. All animals in the region, from birds to their prey, have likely been affected by the changes. "Many albatrosses and petrels are using wind for their movements, either when they search for food during central place foraging movements, or for their migratory movements over the... more... - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"At present, birds appear to be benefiting from the wind shifts, which the researchers attribute to climate change. But these positive consequences of global warming may be temporary if patterns of wind in the southern westerlies follow predicted climate change scenarios. Weimerskirch explained that models predict wind strength will continue to increase, and that the poleward shift will... more... - John (bird whisperer)

"Scientists long puzzled by the rapid decline in millions of Canadian boreal ducks since the 1970s think they may finally have the cause: global warming. "Because of climate change, the ducks don't have the food that they need when they need it," Stuart Slattery, a research scientist with Ducks Unlimited Canada, told CBC News on Friday. Slattery and a team of scientists from the University of British Columbia, the University of Saskatchewan and Environment Canada have long been trying to solve a mystery in Canada's boreal forests: why have two duck species, the scaup and scoter, dropped so dramatically in numbers — by 40 per cent and 60 per cent, respectively — in just three decades? The scaup population, for instance, plunged from six million to 3½ million." - John (bird whisperer) from Bookmarklet

"The team suspected the ducks' boreal wetland habitats were changing, so they examined snow cover data. That was when they made a startling discovery. "We found that over a 35-year period, that spring comes on average about 11 days earlier," Slattery said. Slattery said that is a massive change. Low snow cover is directly linked with the drop in the ducks' survival. Slattery said the... more... - John (bird whisperer)

"Canadian scientists - who believe the giant ants may have ancestors dating back millions of years - have shown that ordinary ants of the same species, Pheidole morrisi, already contain the genes they need to become supersoldiers. By dabbing normal ant larvae with a special hormone, worker and soldier ants were able to develop into supersoldiers which can grow up to 4mm long, the journal Science reported." - Shevonne from Bookmarklet

I would watch that movie - Rodfather