Earth Day 2023

Earth Day was established in response to pollution by a liquid fossil fuel — a “well blowout” forty -five years ago at a new Union Oil drilling platform in the Pacific Ocean near Santa Barbara, California.  Television coverage of the rapidly spreading oil slick and especially of oil coated sea birds provided vivid images that caught public attention.  As more fully described in Earth Day 1970,  pollution and population were considered the major environmental threats on early Earth Days.  Climate change has since become the over-riding environmental threat, and our greatest threat, but it also must be remembered that the largest marine oil spill occurred 40 years after the Santa Barbara spill when the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling platform exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Continue reading

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Earth Day 2022

Alaska – Tundra Fire, April 21, 2022

Is the health of our planet any better this Earth Day than it was on Earth Day 2021,  are we doing more to protect it?  By any standard the answer to both questions is a resounding no. 

Where do we stand?  This past year witnessed increasingly violent storms, unprecedented flooding, heat waves,  wildfires and drought on every continent, with the exception of Antarctica. But even East Antarctica experienced an unprecedented heat wave last month (Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere) with temperatures measured up to 70oF above normal for several days, accompanied by exceptional snowfall and rain; conditions previously thought impossible.  We are in the midst of a major extinction of the plant and animal species upon which we depend.  Climate driven migration is introducing species to new physical locations (we call them invasive) where they displace native species and may introduce exotic disease throughout our ecosystems. Continue reading

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Earth Day – 2021

On April 22nd and 23rd President Biden will observe the first Earth Day of his new administration by hosting a virtual conference on climate change with over 80 global leaders.  He is expected to commit the U.S. to halving it greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, based on the 2005 level.  During the conference Biden may also agree to resume U.S  financial contribution of the U.S.; committed under the Paris Accord, to address climate change in underdeveloped nations.  The original commitment was for $3 billion, but President Trump issued an Executive Order halting the payments with $2 billion still owed.

During his first three months in office President Biden has made climate change and the environment hallmarks of his administration and a focus of each of his department leaders, a vast change from the previous administration.  Indeed, initial efforts to overturn environmental actions of the Trump administration began on the day President Biden was inaugurated when he signed the order to rejoin the Paris Accord.  Thus the official theme for this Earth Day of “Restore Our Earth” seems most appropriate.
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Earth Day 2020 – 50 Years Later

As we mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day it is appropriate to revisit the founding objectives of the original Earth Day movement. It was certainly not about “climate change” per se, as the concept at the time was only a matter of internal scientific debate, not public concern; and, it was not just about picking up litter, while that was indeed one of the many Earth Day activities.

The Earth Day philosophy was much deeper and broader. It was to be a day of education and the start of a movement toward a more sustainable life style and new, earth-friendly economy. Continue reading

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Earth Day: 2019

Earth Day 2019 has passed  with little more inconvenience,  at least to the citizens of my area, than a few newspaper advertisements acknowledging  the day or extolling the greenness of sponsoring oil companies .  No doubt some schoolchildren were liberated from their classes long enough to plant a few flowers in front of their school, an event not considered newsworthy.

Have we become so complacent that, like the fabled frog sitting in a pot of heating water, we are sitting in our own, man-made cauldron of a steadily warming planet and increasing environmental derogation? Continue reading

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Earth Day 2018 – Do People Care?

This April 22nd the concept of Earth Day seemed little more than an afterthought lost in the overwhelming noise of political “news”.  As political populism, nationalism, authoritarian and other right wing political movements seem to be spreading around the world, concern for our planet seems to be of vastly reduced concern.  In the U.S. the election of President Trump, a climate change denier, has resulted in the withdrawal from the Paris Accord and a decimation of emission regulations and other environmental protections.   A recent report1 found that 79% of the the broadcast television network coverage of climate change was was included in reports about President Trump, not coverage of climatic events, or climate science, but about the President belittling climate change and those who believe in its reality.  Perhaps the paucity of interest in Earth Day 2018 is a reflection of of the current political environment. Continue reading

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Trump: Making America Insignificant

Acting against the desires of a majority of Americans,  President Trump today announced that the United States will walk away from the Paris Climate Accord.  He justified his decision, made to fulfill a campaign promise to his base supporters as good for the economy and the creation of jobs.  In reality this action will have far reaching, and serious impacts, but economic and job growth are not among them. 

President Trump’s decision should not have been a surprise since he started dismantling emission regulations in March.  However, rather than just announcing his decision, he essentially turned the occasion into a celebratory campaign style rally portraying his action as saving America from a bunch of devious, scheming foreigners who had taken advantage of the U.S.  As a Marine Corps band played light jazz in the background Trump made a number of dubious claims about the cost of the Paris Accord to the U.S. (“trillions of dollars”) and lost jobs, he seem totally unaware of the the fact the the Accord is strictly voluntary, with absolutely no binding obligations on the U.S.,  The total cost to the U.S. could have been reduced to zero, without resorting to withdrawal.

President Trumps belligerent outburst was an insult to our friends an allies around the world, and should have been an embarrassment to all Americans. During his speech the President asked “”At what point does America get demeaned?”.  The answer to that question is on a sunny June 1st, 2017, in the White House Rose Garden.  It was also the time that the U.S. voluntarily withdrew from a leadership role in the most significant global accord of our time.  

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Earth Day – 2017

One  year ago, representatives of 168 nations met at the U.N. headquarters in New York for the ceremony opening the Paris Climate Change Agreement for ratification.  It was a day of optimism and celebration.  Earth Day 2017 finds little justification for either celebration or optimism. 

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Scientist’s March on Washington

Updates:

The date for the March was announced earlier today – April 22, Earth Day. The People’s Climate March is planned for April 29th in Washington.

For those who cannot make it to Washington, a Twitter list of Marches in sister cities is now available. Check this list to find a March near you. 

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On the day of President Trump’s inauguration (January 20) the White House website was drastically altered, including the deletion of all information regarding climate change.  A discussion thread was started on Reddit regarding this deletion.  Buried deep in that discussion thread was the comment that: “There needs to be a Scientists’ March on Washington” followed by several comments of support.  Consequently, a Facebook page was started yesterday, as an unlocked group, with 9 followers.  As of this writing the site now has almost 400,000 followers, and the Facebook privacy setting has been changed to “secret” to ensure that it would be safe for Federal, and other, scientists to freely discuss the issue.  Concurrently a public Facebook page was opened and a website is under development.

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Paris Agreement Ratified – October 5, 2016

logo-COP_C The dual requirements for ratification by at least 55 nations representing more than 55% of the global emissions was reached October 5th, 2016 shortly after the European Union voted for ratification. Ratification came less than 10 months after the signing of the Paris Agreement by 191 nations.  The Agreement will go into effect on November 4th.

toles_ratification

The Washington Post editorial cartoon by Toles. October 5, 2016. pg. A18.

 

 

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