Are We At Risk For Another Dust Bowl?

Are We At Risk For Another Dust Bowl?

(http://news.discovery.com/earth/drought-dust-bowl-120719.html)

Drought had occurred in many states and has been one of the major problems for farm industry. Severe drought threatens many different crops, is it possible that we might have another Dust Bowl? The Dust Bowl is more than just dry but also related to economic during that period. Back then, we didn't have technology like new plowing and planting techniques.
As climate change keep getting more severe, new technology and experiences from the past may guide us away from Dust Bowl.

Problems with a proposed Alaskan copper and gold mine

The Anglo-American mining corporation and its Canadian partner Northern Dynasty want to create a gigantic open pit mine in Bristol Bay home of the worlds largest sockeye salmon hatchery. (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/environment/alaska-gold/treasure-hunt-the-battle-over-alaskas-mega-mine/) There has never been such a large mining project in such an environmentally risky region. The toxic waste from the mine could pollute the bay and completely destroy the ecosystem, but the raw materials would be worth up to $500 billion. 

The push for the mine comes against much opposition with many companies like Tiffany & Co. saying they wouldn't use gold from that mine in their products. On the other hand, many companies that make consumer electronic devices heavily use copper and gold in their circuitry. The battle for this mine could become another ANWR.

Many Wonders (but Few Amenities) on a Legendary Highway (Alaska)

This news article from the New York Times, talks about Alaska’s landscape. It explains the difference of its environment from the rest of the U.S and gives advice on how to travel safely.

Article Link 

Fuel Cell Treats Wastewater and Harvests Energy

Fuel Cell Treats Wastewater and Harvests Energy

This is an interesting article pertaining to a new fuel cell engineered by the Israeli based company Emefcy. The fuel cell allows air to enter special containers that react with wastewater bacteria so that that the bacteria breaks down organic compounds. This releases electrons from the container which produces energy. It is being celebrated not as a substantial energy source, but it can offset the amount of energy used to clean wastewater.

Swarming invasive insect found in US for 1st time

A bug has been found in Boise Idaho, could cause problems for homeowners. Normally found in South-Central Europe, the elm seed bug can be a nuisance. During the summer these bugs have been known to invade peoples homes to escape the heat and then stay in homes even during the winter. The bugs are a quarter-inch long and look like mini cockroaches. They are not a health risk but do smell unpleasant. It is not yet known how the bugs got into the U.S, or how they will spread but authorities are looking into the issue. State officials in Idaho are asking people who come across the bugs to collect them and send them into the Idaho Department of Agriculture so they can track them.
I am concerned about the possible impact of the bug on our environment in the U.S. Sherri discussed in her lecture how Kentucky Blue Grass was brought to the U.S. from Europe and has done well here. Hopefully these pests won't have the same success.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48232915/ns/us_news/#.UA6CurRtqmg

Biofuel Expansion in Central America and the Myth of Vacant Land

Globally, biofuels are being promoted as a kind of nicotine patch to wean the world off its dirty and expensive fossil fuel addiction. Known by some as aboveground oil fields, biodiesel (made from vegetable oils and fats) and ethanol (made by fermenting the sugars in corn and sugarcane) present the opportunity to grow fuel feedstock on agricultural land—plots that can renew every few years rather than every few million. Biofuels lie at the intersection of a myriad of government goals, including energy independence, climate change mitigation, and rural development. Buttressed by 46 national regulatory policies worldwide that support the industry, liquid biofuels provided about three percent of global road transport fuels in 2011, up from two percent in 2009. What is taking place is essentially an agro-fuel revolution—one that will reverberate across millions of hectares, livelihoods, and lives. 

The most straightforward biofuel-promoting policy is a blend mandate: E10 fuel, for instance, delineates a 10 percent ethanol blend. Though Central America has not been at the forefront of biofuel policy until very recently, three countries in the region—Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Panama—now have legally binding biofuel mandates in place, and two more have either targets for the future (Honduras) or blend mandates under review (El Salvador).Though Central American biofuel production is modest compared to other countries in Latin America, these policies will still have significant consequences for land-use change on the isthmus as millions of hectares are set aside for growing sugarcane, African palm, jatropha, castor, and other biofuel feedstocks.

In response to global criticisms that biofuels drive deforestation and threaten food security, Central American governments and interest groups specify that biofuel expansion will occur on “tierras ociosas”�—or vacant, unproductive land. This may include land that was never fit for growing food crops, land heavily grazed by livestock, or land previously deforested. Nicaragua’s Ministry of Energy, for example, claims that 3.2 million hectares have the necessary climate and labor force to cultivate ethanol and biodiesel feedstock. Guatemala’s Renewable Fuels Association identifies an estimated 600,000 hectares of tierras ociosas ideal for growing jatropha without impacting food production. Honduras’s Ministry of Agriculture is promoting African palm plantations on more than 494,000 hectares of abandoned farmland.

For further information see Myth. 

Similar to what we've read in Kuletz' The Tainted Dessert, major companies in Central America are displacing indigenous people and crops such as, corn, yuccca, and beans, to make way for sugarcane, African palm, and other biofuel feedstock on what they're calling "abandoned farmland". There are many people complaining about the deforestation part of it, but at least it's better than fossil fuels which damage human health right? Do you all think biofuel is a better source of energy, although they're would have to sacrifice some land space?

RESTORE Act

President Obama signed the RESTORE Act into law as part of the Transportation and Student Loan Interest Rate bill HR 4348. This article http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cherri-foytlin/restore-act-gulf-restoration-funds_b_1679753.html is an op-ed discussing the merits and advantages of what the bill did and did not do. In essence, it allocates 80% of whatever money the US gets from BP from the Oil Spill disaster to the affected gulf states, and allows the states to determine how to spend the money.

The author is wary of the no strings attached approach because of past problems with money allocation after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. I personally am glad to see this passed. In February I was at an oversight hearing for the Department of the Interior where the Senate subcommittee on the environment basically grilled Sec. Salazar on how his agency was allocating money and what they were doing for each state. Sen. Landreiu (D-LA) attacked the secretary and the rest of the committee for robbing money from her oil wealthy state to fund pet projects of the other senators in their states which don't face the devastating effects of oil pollution. She was the sponsor of this bill and I'm sure will work to make sure it is enforced correctly. She celebrated its passage with a coastal tour of Louisiana.