Take this fun, short quiz at Grist. (I got 6 right, sigh. You?)
“Dearth Day”: Earth Day goings-on don’t measure up to “dark drama on Capitol Hill” where the House passed an energy bill “that would dole out billions in subsidies to fossil-fuel industries, shortchange alternative-energy and efficiency initiatives, and indemnify makers of the gasoline additive MTBE against liability for groundwater contamination.”
Below: Share your most beautiful, haunting, memorable experience with nature … photos are cool!
Update [2005-4-22 10:0:40 by susanhbu]: Navajo Nation Outlaws Uranium Mining
The Navajo Nation has outlawed uranium mining and processing on its reservation, which sprawls across parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah and contains one of the world’s largest deposits of uranium ore.
Tribal President Joe Shirley Jr. must give the bill final approval. His spokesman said Thursday that Shirley “strongly” supports it.
Mining companies began blasting holes on the reservation, which covers 27,000 square miles, in the 1940s and continued for nearly 40 years until decreased demand closed the operations.
By then, the Navajos were left with radiation sickness, contaminated tailings and abandoned mines. To avoid repeating the past, Navajo leaders and grassroots organizations have been working for years to keep mining from starting again.
The Navajo Nation Council voted 63-19 Tuesday … Several council delegates predicted the legislation will be challenged in court — possibly as far as the Supreme Court.
Members of Navajo grassroots organizations celebrated outside the council’s chambers after the measure was approved.
“This legislation just chopped the legs off the uranium monster,” said Norman Brown, a member of one of the groups, Dine Bidzii. Dine is the Navajos’ name for themselves.
The legislation prohibits pit mining as well as “in-situ” processing, which involves using a solution to leach out uranium and pump it to the surface.
Hydro Resources Inc. has been working with the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission for years to get approval for in-situ mining … The company estimated nearly 100 million pounds of uranium exist at the sites.
Hydro Resources has argued that in-situ mining is safer than older methods, but opponents note that 15,000 people rely on the area’s underground aquifer and they fear contamination from the proposed operation.
As I walk outside my door, this is what I see (from the opposite direction), and my daughter can see it from her 2nd story livingroom window:
The beaches are wonderful, and easily accessible. More photos of the Olympic Peninsula — its rainforest is glorious and precious. I hope it can stay alive… it’s terribly sensitive to pollution.
Fun quiz, thanks, Susan! I got seven, but that’s because I knew about the cow burps 😉
Beautiful photos, too! The beauty of nature is hard to put in words.
OT – I see html on the “Post Comment” Page that begins with <IMG and looks like it’s related to pictures. Is that it? Can you tell me where to learn how add a picture? Didn’t see it in the FAQ. Thanks.
Since this is new to you, you can e-mail me your photo, and I’ll post it right under your comment. I have Photoshop and can resize it a bit if need be. And, I can give you directions for how to do it from now on by yourself. So, mail me the photo, then we’ll have image school!
Would you and Janet like to paste your info in these 2 comments into Computer talk diary, or put your instructions there at least, so it will be easy to find in future for members who don’t know how and for easy reference.
BTW I have a question on that diary, so hoping someone can answer it.
Thanks for the kind offer. By the time I got back here, there were enough instructions to let me go ahead.
[I was typing this while you were typing yours, Susan, but I’ll go ahead and post it in case someone else finds it helpful.]
Go to http://photobucket.com and set yourself up an album. (Susan seems to prefer ImageShack, but I like Photobucket.)
It’s pretty easy to figure out how to upload a photo – the main thing is to make sure the photo is reasonably-sized, both in terms of width (so as not to mess up people’s screens by posting too-wide photos) and size of file (so as not to slow down loading too much).
I use Photoshop to resize width to 3 or 4 inches, and then “Save for web” to make the file size smaller.
Once you have your photo ready, upload it to Photobucket. Below it there will be several url’s in little boxes. I copy the one labeled “tag” and paste it into the comment box.
MOST IMPORTANT! Hit “Preview” before you hit “Post”! That will save you from faux pas’s like too-wide pics or images that don’t load.
I’ll have to try Photobucket. I just started using ImageShack because so many at Kos use it.
The problems I see when “newbies” upload images are that the images are often too wide for a diary page — and they’re too large in file size (and make the entire page load too slowly). That is why, as you do Janet, it’s so important to resize the image, or use the “thumbnail” version that ImageShack offers as a substitute small version. (Probably Photobucket offers the thumbnail view as well?)
Susan and Janet! I tried Photobucket because it looked easier, so I’ll see if this works.
Woohoo! It worked in preview.
What a great Earth Day lesson! Thank you, thank you.
Gorgeous image! And I will try Photobucket too! Thanks, Janet!
your thumbnails question over at Diane’s diary.
Energy Bill Offers Loophole for MTBE Polluters, Government: “As legislation that will line the pockets of energy corporations moves through Congress, environmentalists fear that if one provision remains intact, a dangerous fuel additive will remain in the drinking water of millions of people.”
P.S. I subscribe to NewStandard — where the above stroy came from — which I’m finding does a carefully credible, independent take on important news. Its “About Us” page says: “Unlike most news outlets, which hide the backgrounds and affiliations of their editors and journalists in order create the illusion of “impartiality,” we believe honest transparency gives our readers the ability to more fairly and effectively evaluate The NewStandard as a news provider.” They also welcome donations.
I have had two life changing type experiences in nature. One was when I first moved to Kauai and wnet hiking in toward Mt. Wialiali(the wettest spot on earth). I emerged out of a rather dense jungley path and came upon a waterfall that literally brought me to my knees. I felt surrounded by an energy so powerful it brought me to tears. There are shades of greens there I have never seen anywhere else. Such a sense of peace.
The other was in Wisconsin almost four years ago where I participated in an honest to God Firewalk. Oh, not one of those Corporate motivational things. My dearest friends Mom (74 yr old at the time)was the facilitator and it was truely a magical evening. I walked acros the red hot coals twice. There were 15 of us that night, the elder 74 and the youngest 11. It was as if all my struggles, baggage and fears were lifted from me in one big whoosh. There is so much more to this story but way too long for a post. I apologise for going on but it absolutely changed my life’s journey.
New state law paves way for environmentally friendly construction
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
Thirty-two buildings in Seattle have a secret identity: They’ve been placed among us to help save the planet.
They’re the first ripples of a wave of “green” construction that’s about to wash across Washington, driven by a new state law and a growing appetite for ecofriendly design.
For years, Seattle has been a leader in a growing international movement to create environmentally sensitive buildings, but it’s been little more than an experiment — until now.
Washington has become the first state in the nation to require new prisons, offices, schools, colleges and other publicly funded buildings to meet a national environmental standard.
Good for Seattle!
Does that include the new Seattle Library?
(We loved it, BTW.)
Austin Energy Doubles Size of its Clean Energy Portfolio
Additional wind-generated electricity began flowing into the Austin Energy grid this week from a new wind farm in West Texas that will more than double the clean energy now available to Austinites through the utility’s clean power program, GreenChoice®. . . .
All total, Austin Energy is now contracting for the annual output from 215 MW of wind generators in west Texas. . . .
With the addition of the Sweetwater project, renewables will supply up to 6.5 percent of Austin Energy’s energy requirements. This keeps the utility on track to achieve its goal of generating 20 percent of Austin’s electricity needs from renewables by 2020. . . .
One of the key features of Austin Energy’s GreenChoice program is that for every kWh of green power brought into the Austin Energy system, AE ramps down power plants by that amount. Since 2001 when it began, the GreenChoice program has reduced Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) emissions in Austin by more than 700 tons and Carbon Dioxide (CO 2 ) greenhouse gas emissions by 680,000 tons. This is the emissions equivalent of removing 30,000 cars from the road since the program began. . . . .
Meanwhile, since 2002, Austin Energy’s GreenChoice program has been the #1 utility-sponsored green power program in the nation in sales. This year, Austin Energy customers are purchasing 380 million kWh of renewable energy, or enough to power more than 30,000 homes year round. . . . .
Program participants include 7,400 residential customers and 300 Austin businesses. Of the 300 subscribing businesses, more than 279 subscribe for 100 percent of their electricity needs from renewable energy. This gives Austin more 100 percent green-powered businesses than any city in America.
I’m a Green Choice subscriber. When I first signed up, I was paying a little extra on my electric bill to support the program. But my “fuel charge” is locked in – so when the price of natural gas started going up, my fuel charge didn’t – and many months I save money. Classic case of doing well by doing good.
Oh and of course, not just green, but also blue. Good places to live.
and looking at those blue Olympic Mountains. The beaches were crawling with crabs in those days. The tidal pools were full of life, jelly fish, sea anemonae, star fish. Schools of dolphins followed in the wake of ships travelling the Juan de Fuca strait. There were sea lions and seals, salmon for everyone.
View from Beacon Hill Park, an ancient First Nations burial ground.
The Olympics dominate the city of Victoria
A Victoria beach
with my daughter. I’d had a really rough couple of years – lost my mom and my best friend of thirty years within nine months of each other. Time with my daughter and the beauty of Molokai and its wonderful laid back ways were healing.
What was the best part? So hard to decide. Most evenings we came back to the garage apt on the beach where we were staying and just sat on the beach and watched the sunset change the colors of Maui just across the (ocean) way. The crabs would start their procession down the beach as it got dark. Where were they going? Who knows.
But hiking up the Halawa Valley with Lawrence Aki
ending up here
And then there was the trip to the backside
– the north side of the island – tallest seacliffs in the world, so no roads.
The only way to get there is by boat. Almost anyone on Molokai can give you Walter Naki’s
phone number, and he’ll take you. (That’s Walter in front, Uncle Joe behind him. Who may or may not be an actual relative of Walter’s. On the one hand, almost everyone on Molokai seems to be related somehow. On the other, “Uncle” and “Auntie” are simply the usual titles given older people). Walter might even anchor in a cove so you can swim in to a waterfall on the beach, or drive the boat full throttle through a sea cave and laugh hysterically at your shrieks.
someone to teach me how to do columns so I can control things like what happened to Walter’s picture better.