Go Green 4 Earth

The Badge of Honor

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:22 +0000

By Cameron Davis

I know phrases like “we need to save the Great Lakes for the next generation” are so often uttered that it can risk becoming a biological bromide (as opposed to a chemical one)…it can become as worn as an old pair of shoes.

In the waning days of Earth Month, I had the chance to help the great staff of the National Park Service coach kids from kindergarten through 8th grade as part of the Great Lakes Junior Park Ranger Program at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Supported by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, with leadership from pros like NPS’s Carmen Chapin, Marcus Key, Phyllis Ellin and Wendy Smith, the program teaches future leaders the importance of native ecosystems using Adopt-a-Beach® and other initiatives. After completing the program, participants get a shiny new Great Lakes Junior Badge. Said one up-and-comer: he loved the Junior Park Ranger Program and helping to save Lake Michigan “because we need to drink water.” Kind of hard to argue with that.

If the Great Lakes Junior Ranger program was any indication, yes, we need to save the Great Lakes for them. But, from what I saw, they’re starting to save the Lakes for themselves. Maybe we need to just get out of their way.

About the author: Cameron Davis is Senior Advisor to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. He provides counsel on Great Lakes matters, including the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.

Recognizing Asthma Awareness Month and Community Asthma Leaders

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:18 +0000

By Gina McCarthy

May first is World Asthma Day and the start of Asthma Awareness Month. Each year EPA takes this opportunity to amplify its public awareness campaign, strengthen its partnerships with community level asthma organizations, and further the discussion on the asthma epidemic.

Asthma is a serious issue. It’s a chronic respiratory disease that affects the quality of life for almost 26 million Americans, including over seven million children. It can also sometimes be deadly. Environmental irritants such as smog, smoke, and chemicals in the air–affect our health and trigger asthma attacks. So, the cleaner our air, both indoors and out, the easier it will be to manage this disease.

While the Clean Air Act has provided numerous health benefits, including the prevention of millions of asthma attacks per year, community level organizations that deliver asthma management and care also deserve special recognition. Each year EPA honors exceptional health plans, health care providers and communities in action as they integrate evidence-based best practices into effective public health programs. The National Environmental Leadership Award in Asthma Management is the highest recognition a program and its leaders can receive from the federal government for delivering excellent environmental asthma management as part of their comprehensive asthma care services.

This year, EPA honors four winners for their outstanding efforts to improve the lives of people with asthma in under-served communities. We recognize:

Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Hartford, Conn., for its Easy Breathing Program, which includes patient education and environmental interventions. The program is implemented across the state of Connecticut helping ensure that comprehensive asthma care is available to the 105,000 children with asthma now enrolled in the program.
L.A. Care Health Plan, Los Angeles, Calif., which serves Medicaid members in low-income communities in Los Angeles County. The program has developed strong community ties, and collaborates with the local housing authority. This health plan reimburses for home visits, environmental management supplies, and asthma education.
Michigan Department of Community Health’s Asthma Prevention and Control Program, Lansing, Mich., for its state-wide program that supports local interventions and builds community capacity across Michigan. The program improves outcomes for underserved children and adults dealing with asthma. This program has been able to secure health plan reimbursement for several of its initiatives, while others are supported through state and local state asthma partnerships.
Mission Health, Asheville, N.C., which addresses health disparities in minority children, including Native Americans, with asthma in rural western North Carolina. Mission Health works with communities, health care providers, clinics, families and schools and provides interventions that address both indoor and outdoor environmental exposures.

EPA thanks these and the thousands of other organizations that are working to combat asthma in communities across the United States. Please read more about Asthma Awareness.

About the author: Gina McCarthy is the Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. A brief bio

Many Hands Make Light (and Energy-Efficient) Work

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:16 +0000

By: Brittney Gordon

If there is one thing that I have learned in my time with the ENERGY STAR program, it is that it takes the collective effort of many people to achieve real gains in the fight against climate change. ENERGY STAR is a great program, but without the power of partnership and the help of millions of American families and businesses, our program couldn’t succeed. Saving our environment from harmful greenhouse gas pollution is a big job and on days like today I am proud to spread the word about ENERGY STAR’s biggest advocates.

Today EPA is celebrating the hard work of the top ENERGY STAR pledge drivers from our 2011 Change the World, Start with ENERGY STAR campaign. The overall top pledge drivers are:

Georgia Power Company
Girl Scouts of the USA
Samsung Electronics
Ameren Illinois
Nissan North America

So, what does it mean to become an ENERGY STAR top pledge driver? It means that these supporters incorporated the ENERGY STAR Pledge into their public outreach during the 2011 campaign year, and signed up thousands of people to make a public commitment to protecting our climate by saving energy. Together with those pledge takers, these partners helped to prevent to 600 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions!

These partners make our job here at EPA a lot easier and we thank them for all of their support. Are you interested in becoming a pledge driver and helping others to learn simple ways to save energy and protect the climate? Sign up here. If you have yet to take the pledge, make today the day to get started! Just click here and we will take you step by step into a more energy efficient future for you and your family.

For a list of all top pledge drivers, please go to ENERGY STAR’s website.

About the author: Brittney Gordon is a communications team member for EPA’s ENERGY STAR program.

Discovering Local Hidden Treasures

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:11 +0000

By Lina Younes

Recently I took several days off to stay home with my youngest daughter who was off for spring break. Let’s call it a staycation. Although I definitely had quite a long “to do list” of chores at home, I still wanted to make it fun for her so that she would feel that she had done something special during her time off from school.

So, what were we going to do? The movies? Check. The mall? Check. A trip to a museum? Check. Staying home and watching TV? That definitely was not on my list of special memorable experiences for our staycation. As I was looking for activities in our local area, I remembered the sign on the road that I had seen and ignored many times before. The National Wildlife Visitor Center. Interesting. So, one afternoon I took my youngest to the visitors center at the Patuxent Research Refuge just five miles away from our house and found a hidden treasure in our neck of the woods.

It turns out the facility is the largest science and environmental education center in the Department of the Interior located on the Patuxent Research Refuge. During our visit, we explored interactive exhibits focusing on global environmental issues, migratory bird routes, wildlife habitat and endangered species. We also ventured on some of the hiking trails along the way. Since we were not equipped with a good set of binoculars, we didn’t see much wildlife, but we saw some geese leisurely walking by.

We definitely look forward to visiting the center again. The fact that it is so close to our home makes it even an ideal place to spend some time on a nice afternoon. Do you have any hidden treasures in your local community? Would you like to share them with us?

About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and currently serves as acting associate director for environmental education. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.

Over 30 Yangtze porpoises found dead in China as population nears extinction

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:10 +0000

Six years after the Yangtze river dolphin (Lipotes vexillifer), or baiji, was declared “functionally extinct” by scientists, another marine mammal appears on the edge of extinction in China’s hugely degraded Yangtze River. In less than two months, 32 Yangtze finless porpoises (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis asiaeorientalis), a subspecies of the finless porpoise, have been dead found in Dongting and Poyang Lakes in the Yangtze, reports the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The porpoises are suffering from many of the same impacts that pushed the baiji to extinction: illegal electrofishing, strikes by boat propellors, poisons, and possibly pollution and food shortages from lower water levels linked by officials to climate change. Autopsies show that at least two of the animals were killed by electrofishing and boat propellers.

Australia lists koalas as ‘vulnerable’

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:10 +0000

The koala has been listed as a threatened species in parts of Australia due to its shrinking population, according to officials.

One of Australia’s most iconic marsupials, the koala is facing a range of threats, including habitat loss, urban expansion, dog attacks, vehicle collisions and disease. Its specialised diet of eucalyptus leaves confines it to quite specific habitats, while increasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere may be reducing the nutrient content of the leaves it eats.

Climate change is also increasing the risk of drought and fires, with koalas being particularly vulnerable to bushfires as their slow movements and tree-dwelling lifestyle make it difficult for them to escape.

The Fastest Animal

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:09 +0000

How fast can an animal run. Speed is important for running away as well as catching up. The fastest land animal is neither the biggest nor the smallest, but something in between according to new research by Harvard University. Clemente (Harvard) and his team studied monitor lizards to show that that the same principle applies within species as well as across species, and to identify why this is the case. Because adult monitor lizards vary substantially in size, they are an ideal species for testing how size affects speed. The researchers timed and photographed monitors ranging from two to 12 pounds, as sprinted across a 45-foot track.

Ford to EV Dealers: Meet Environmental Requirements

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:09 +0000

An environmentally friendly car dealership? Like “responsible drinking,” or “Walmart organic food,” that term at first may sound like an oxymoron. Ford Motor, however, is not only rolling out new electric vehicles (EVs), but has committed to greening its entire supply chain. This is just one example of the changes Detroit is undergoing as the Big Three rack up impressive quarterly numbers. For now, EVs are only a small part of the auto industry’s resurgence as they slowly win acceptance from skeptical commuters. To that end, Ford is requiring its dealerships selling EVs to resemble businesses that would sell…EVs.

Campaign groups clash over onshore wind turbine report

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:09 +0000

A new report by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) highlights the dramatic roll-out of onshore wind turbines and calls on the Government to do more to protect the countryside. The campaign group says that in many cases these are damaging valued landscapes and intruding into some of the most tranquil areas of England.

Arabic Records Allow Past Climate to Be Reconstructed

John McRae — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:57:08 +0000

Corals, trees and marine sediments, among others, are direct evidence of the climate of the past, but they are not the only indicators. A team led by Spanish scientists has interpreted records written in Iraq by Arabic historians for the first time and has made a chronology of climatic events from the year 816 to 1009, when cold waves and snow were normal.