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16 Of The Most Magnificent Trees In The World | Bored Panda
by Duane 01 Aug '14

01 Aug '14

http://www.boredpanda.com/most-beautiful-trees/ 16 Of The Most Magnificent Trees In The World How do I love thee, tree? Let me count the ways; you change carbon dioxide into the oxygen we breathe, you sequester carbon, and you provide shelter for countless critters. There are many reasons for which we should all be tree-hugging hippies, but within the scope of this article, all we’ll focus on is how amazing some of them look. Granted, not all of these amazing beautiful trees are trees (the Wisteria is a vine, Rhododendrons are shrubs, and bamboo technically belongs to the grass family), but we’ll give them a pass because they are amazing, huge and beautiful. So once you step outside and take a breath of fresh air, hug the nearest tree and say thank you! If you know of an amazing tree not on this list, you can submit it at the bottom of this post. 125+ Year Old Rhododendron “Tree” In Canada This huge 125-year-oldold rhododendron is technically not a tree – most are considered to be shrubs. You can find out more about it here. (Image credits: reddit) 144-Year-Old Wisteria In Japan Image credits: tungnam.com.hk At 1,990 square meters (about half an acre), this huge wisteria is the largest of its kind in Japan. Read more about it here. (Image credits: y-fu) Wind-Swept Trees In New Zealand These trees on Slope Point, the southern tip of New Zealand, grow at an angle because they’re constantly buffeted by extreme antarctic winds. Find out more here. (Image credits: Seabird Nz) Beautiful Japanese Maple In Portland, Oregon Image credits: falcor88 Image credits: Tom Schwabel Antarctic Beech Draped In Hanging Moss In Oregon The antarctic beech is native to Chile and Argentina, though this specimen is from the U.S.’ North Pacific region. (Image credits: Drew Hopper) Blooming Cherry Trees in Bonn, Germany This beautiful tunnel of cherry blossoms blooms in Bonn, Germany in April. To see more tunnels like this one, click here. (Image credits: Adas Meliauskas) Angel Oak In John’s Island In South Carolina The Angel Oak in South Carolina stands 66.5 ft (20 m) tall and is estimated to be more than 400 or 500 years old. (Image credits: Daniela Duncan) Flamboyant Tree, Brazil The flamboyant tree is endemic to Madagascar, but it grows in tropical areas around the world. (Image credits: Salete T Silva) Dragonblood Trees, Yemen The dragonblood tree earned its fearsome name due to its crimson red sap, which is used as a dye and was used as a violin varnish, an alchemical ignredient, and a folk remedy for various ailments. (Image credits: Csilla Zelko) The President, Third-Largest Giant Sequoia Tree In The World, California President, located in Sequoia National Park in California, stands 241 ft (73m) tall and has a ground circumference of 93 ft (28m). It is the third largest giant sequoia in the world (second if you count its branches in addition to its trunk). (Image credits: Michael Nichols) Maple Tree Tunnel in Oregon Image credits: Ian Sane Rainbow Eucalyptus In Kauai, Hawaii Image credits: jwilsonnorton The rainbow eucalyptus, which grows throughout the South Pacific, is both useful and beautiful. It is prized for both the colorful patches left by its shedding bark and for its pulpwood, which is used to make paper. (Image credits: Christopher Martin) Jacarandas in Cullinan, South Africa These beautiful Jacarandas, with their violet flowers, grow in South Africa. (Image credits: Elizabeth Kendall) Avenue Of Oaks At Dixie Plantation In South Carolina This avenue of oak trees was planted some time in the 1790s on Dixie Plantation in South Carolina. (Image credits: Lee Sosby) Baobab Trees In Madagascar These baobabs in Madagascar are excellent at storing water in their thick trunks to use during droughts. (Image credits: confitalsurf) The Dark Hedges In Northern Ireland Image credits: Stephen Emerson Ireland’s Dark Hedges were planted in the 18th century. This stunning beech tree tunnel was featured on Game of Thrones as well. Read more about it here. (Image credits: Christopher Tait) Duane Nichols, Cell- 304-216-5535. www.FrackCheckWV.net

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Hop On The Bus to Pittsburgh This Thursday, July 31 EPA Hearing, Rally, Comments
by Duane 29 Jul '14

29 Jul '14

> From: "Chuck Wyrostok" <wyro(a)appalight.com> > Date: July 29, 2014 > Subject: Hop On The Bus to Pittsburgh This Thursday, July 31 EPA Hearing, Rally, Comments > > The U.S. EPA needs to hear from you > > They recently proposed a "Clean Power Plan," that goes a long way to cleaning up the nasty emissions from coal-fired power plants. The fossil fools in the coal industry are freaked out and fighting back. Let’s show our elected officials that people in the Appalachian region are serious about moving to cleaner energy sources that will revitalize communities and protect our waters from the devastating impacts of mountaintop removal coal mining and dangerous fossil fuels. > > Every single one of us deserves to have our voices heard on this issue. We are impacted whether we live near a mountaintop removal site or a coal-fired power plant or a Marcellus fracking site. > > While the rules will greatly reduce CO2 emissions, they encourage other dirty energy sources such as fracked gas and nuclear. They don’t address coal exports or the health impacts of mountaintop removal. And, get this… the plan leaves the specifics of compliance up to the individual states, such as West Virginia, where most leaders are stuck in a 20th century mindset. > > EPA is having hearings around the country, including this Thursday in Pittsburgh > Show the EPA you want Climate Action Now! The Sierra Club has Climate Action Buses leaving from towns in Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania early on the morning of July 31, this Thursday. The buses will arrive in Pittsburgh while one of the hearings is going on there, delivering you to a noon Climate Action Now rally right near the hearing location. The hearing is at the William S. Moorhead Federal Building, Room #1310, 1000 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh (map) > > Unless you have already registered to testify, all the spots are taken. However, you do not have to speak at the hearing to take the bus. Sierra Club will be taking video testimony outside the hearing in order to submit that to the EPA. > > Buses depart from Cleveland OH (stopping in Akron), Columbus OH (the Wheeling, WV stop has been cancelled), WV Bus (Leaving Charleston 6AM stopping in Weston, Clarksburg, and Morgantown WV), Harrisburg PA, State College PA > > If you plan to ride the West Virginia bus originating in Charleston, please call Sierra Club’s Bill Price at 304 389 8822 to reserve your seat. Spots are filling up quickly. > > Here’s the Charleston-Pittsburgh schedule: > > Charleston: 5:15 AM Departure from Kanawha Mall, McCorkle Ave., Kanawha City; please arrive by 5 AM > > Weston: 7 AM Departure from the Market Place Mall/Shopping Center; get there by 6:45 AM > > Clarksburg: 8 AM Departure from the Meadowbrook Mall; get there by 7:45 AM > > Morgantown: 9 AM Departure from the Morgantown Mall; get there by 8:45 AM > > Bus will depart Pittsburgh at approximately 6 PM for return trip. > > Whether you’re going to Pittsburgh or not, please tell the EPA to retain the good parts of the proposal, such as promoting efficiency and renewable energy, drop the dirty fuels support, and put some real teeth in the rules. EPA has already heard from nearly 300,000 people. Please comment online. Written comments are due by October 16. > > Come to Pittsburgh. > > It doesn’t matter where you live, global warming impacts you. And it certainly matters what we do about it as a nation. > > Thanks. > > > Chuck Wyrostok > Outreach Organizer > Sierra Club, WV Chapter > T: 877 252 0257 > E. outreach(a)marcellus-wv.com > www.marcellus-wv.com > > Water is Life...Keep It Clean > > Whenever there is a huge spill of solar energy, it's just called a nice day..... >

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Study may explain how pollution causes heart disease, KPCC News
by Duane 23 Jun '14

23 Jun '14

http://www.scpr.org/news/2014/06/20/44852/study-may-explain-how-pollution-c… Study may explain how pollution causes heart disease By Jed Kim, KPCC News, June 20, 2014 LOS ANGELES, CA - Morning traffic fills the SR2 freeway in Los Angeles, California. The nation's second largest city, Los Angeles, has again been ranked the worst in the nation for ozone pollution and fourth for particulates by the American Lung Association in it's annual air quality report card. Ozone is a component of smog that forms when sunlight reacts with hydrocarbon and nitrous oxide emissions. Particulates pollution includes substances like dust and soot. Scientists and clean air advocates are well aware that fine particles in the air, known as PM2.5, are correlated with deaths from cardiovascular disease. “You can see days where we have higher pollution, and they’ve already tracked that to more hospital admissions for heart disease, heart attacks," said Angela Johnson Meszaros, general counsel for Physicians for Social Responsibility - Los Angeles. "That kind of thing, we already knew.” A study out this month in the journal "Environmental Research" may shed light on something that wasn't as well known — the mechanism by which particulate matter causes the disease. Fine particles are released by vehicles, wood burning, power plants and other industrial sources and are capable of embedding deep within lungs. Scientists with the California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment studied data from 3,000 women over a five-year period and found that long-term exposure to PM2.5 was strongly linked with increased levels of C-reactive proteins (CRP). The proteins are indicators of inflammation, which is tied to heart disease and stroke. The study also identified that smokers and people with diabetes, lower incomes, high blood pressure and those undergoing hormone therapy are more vulnerable to PM2.5. At the same time, the impacts seem to be lessened by certain medications and moderate alcohol consumption. “These are significant findings that might help us develop better approaches to reducing risks associated with PM2.5 exposure,” said Dr. John Balmes, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and member of the California Air Resources Board. Where is the PM2.5? Meszaros said that in general the Southern California's Inland Empire is most inundated with PM2.5, a result of winds pushing the pollution inland from the ocean. “If you look generally at the particulate maps, what you’ll see is the San Bernardino/Riverside areas are going to be red, red, red; and the coastal areas are going to be green, green, green,” Meszaros said. Tina Cox, a spokeswoman with the South Coast Air Quality Management District, said that within Los Angeles County last year, the City of Compton had the highest levels of PM2.5, followed by Burbank. Note: Diesel engine exhaust gases are high in PM 2.5 particles. Also, sulfur oxides from coal and oil combustion react with other constituents to generate more PM 2.5 particulate matter. Duane Nichols, www.FrackCheckWV.net

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Fwd: Tell FERC: No fracked gas exports at Cove Point!
by Duane Nichols 14 Jun '14

14 Jun '14

Sent from my iPhone Begin forwarded message: > From: Clean Air Council <action(a)cleanair.org> > Date: June 12, 2014 at 9:01:03 AM EDT > To: duane330(a)aol.com > Subject: Tell FERC: No fracked gas exports at Cove Point! > > > > Hello MonValley Clean Air Coalition, > > This is the last week to respond to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Environmental Assessment of Dominion Resources’ proposed Liquefied Natural Gas Export Facility in Cove Point, Maryland. FERC’s Environmental Assessment (EA) fell short in analyzing the health and environmental impacts to the surrounding community and region. > > Ask FERC to reject Dominion Resources’ application, or at the very least to conduct an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). > > Despite the requirements of the National Environmental Protection Act, the EA neglected to assess the impacts of the Atlantic Sunrise project, which would carry fracked gas from the Marcellus Shale region in Pennsylvania to the Cove Point facility. > > This absence silences the voices of communities that are facing eminent domain and pollution at the points of extraction and transportation of gas that is destined for the Cove Point export facility. > > Take action now to urge FERC to reject Dominion Resources’ application for a Liquefied Natural Gas Export Facility at Cove Point! > > Sincerely, > > Sam Koplinka-Loehr, skl(a)cleanair.org, 215.567.4004 x115 > > Advocacy Coordinator > > > Unsubscribe | Universal unsubscribe

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Tell WV legislators to support climate action! - Sierra Club
by Duane 13 Jun '14

13 Jun '14

Tell WV legislators to support climate action! - Sierra Club http://action.sierraclub.org/site/MessageViewer?dlv_id=330400&em_id=366427.0 Dear Friend, The EPA recently took a historic step by issuing new protections to reduce carbon pollution from power plants by 30 percent by 2030! This is the beginning of what could be the biggest climate fight in history and fossil fuel billionaires are mobilizing like never before. It's more important than ever that West Virginia's Congressional representatives hear from you. You can be sure they are hearing from the coal industry! Tell West Virginia's congressional leaders that it's time to address climate change head-on by supporting the EPA's new guidelines for limiting carbon pollution from existing power plants. There is currently no limit to the amount of carbon pollution that power plants are allowed to emit into the air we breathe. Carbon dioxide emissions are the chief cause of climate change; coal-fired power plants account for 40 percent of America's total emissions. Citizens are not permitted to throw garbage into the streets or treat our roadways like open sewers. Power plants shouldn't get a free pass on carbon pollution. The health and environmental hazards from coal—from when it's mined to when it's burned—are estimated to cost the U.S. public about one-third of a trillion dollars annually1. You can help clean the air, transition our coal workforce to sustainable jobs, and make sure we leave our children and grandchildren with a safe, healthy, and livable planet. Tell West Virginia's congressional delegation to support the EPA and that you want limits on carbon pollution. The resulting climate impacts make wildfires and extreme weather events like abnormally high temperatures, flooding, and drought more severe. What's worse is that carbon pollution is linked to life-threatening air pollution that contributes to health problems like heart and lung disease and asthma. Climate change threatens the reliability of our food supply, puts water supplies at risk, contributes to sea level rise, and may impact the spread of infectious diseases. It's time for climate action today! Thanks for all you do to protect the environment, Jim Kotcon WV Sierra Club Climate Action Team P.S. After you take action, be sure to forward this alert to your friends and colleagues!' 1.) Epstein, Paul R. Full Cost Assounting for the Life Cycle of Coal, Harvard School of Public Health, February 2011 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Duane Nichols, Cell- 304-216-5535, www.FrackCheckWV.net

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Key Findings for 2010-2012 - State of the Air 2014 | American Lung Association
by Duane 07 May '14

07 May '14

http://www.stateoftheair.org/2014/key-findings/ Key Findings for 2010-2012, From "State of the Air 2014," American Lung Association, May 6, 2014 Thanks to the Clean Air Act, the United States continues to make progress providing healthier air. The State of the Air 2014 shows that the nation’s air quality worsened in 2010-2012, but remains overall much cleaner than just a decade ago. More than 147.6 million people—47 percent of the nation—live where pollution levels are too often dangerous to breathe, an increase from last year's report. Despite that risk, some seek to weaken the Clean Air Act, the public health law that has driven the cuts in pollution since 1970. The State of the Air 2014 report looks at levels of ozone and particle pollution found in official monitoring sites across the United States in 2010, 2011, and 2012. The report uses the most current quality-assured nationwide data available for these analyses. - Click to Enlarge - The report examines particle pollution (PM2.5) in two different ways: averaged year-round (annual average) and over short-term levels (24-hour). For both ozone and short-term particle pollution, the analysis uses a weighted average number of days that allows recognition of places with higher levels of pollution. For the year-round particle pollution rankings, the report uses averages calculated and reported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). For comparison, the State of the Air 2013 report covered data from 2009, 2010, and 2011.1 More details about this process is in Methodology. Overall Trends Thanks to stronger standards for pollutants and for the sources of pollution, the United States has continued the long-term trends to lower ozone and particle pollution as well as other pollutants for decades. This figure from the EPA shows that, since 1970, the air has gotten cleaner while the population, the economy, energy use and miles driven increased greatly. Even as the economy continues to recover after the recession, overall air emissions that create the six most widespread pollutants continue to drop. In 2010-2012, many places made strong progress over 2009-2011 particularly in lower year-round levels of particle pollution. Thanks to reductions in emissions from coal-fired power plants and the transition to cleaner diesel fuels and engines, cleaner air shows up repeatedly in the monitoring data. Still, even with the cleaner air, the most-polluted cities failed to meet the official national limits, or standard, for year-round particle pollution. Ozone was much worse in 2010-2012 compared to 2009-2011, likely due to warmer temperatures, especially in 2012. Fortunately, even these higher levels represent much better air quality compared to ten or 15 years ago. However, rising temperatures create conditions favorable to forming ozone. Communities will need more help to reduce ozone pollution in the warmer temperatures expected from the changing climate. Sources of Pollution - Click to Enlarge - Ozone Pollution — More than 4 in 10 people lived in areas with unhealthful levels of ozone in 2010-2012. See which cities with the worst ozone had even more unhealthy air days. Year-round Particle Pollution — More than 46.2 million people live in an area burdened year-round by unhealthful levels of deadly particle pollution. See which cities saw continued progress in cleaning up sources and which suffered even more pollution. Short-term Particle Pollution — Many cities endured more days where particle pollution spiked during this period. Fourteen percent (14%) of people in the United States live where they suffered too many days with unhealthful levels of particle pollution. Cleanest Cities — Only four cities made the cleanest list in all three categories, but several were among the cleanest in two. People at Risk — Nearly half of the people in the U.S. live in counties that have unhealthful levels of either ozone or particle pollution. Learn more about people who face the greatest risk—probably someone you know is one of them. What Needs to be Done to Get Healthy Air— What do we need to do as a nation? How can you help clean up the air? 1A complete discussion of the sources of data and the methodology is included in Methodology. Duane Nichols, Cell- 304-216-5535. www.FrackCheckWV.net

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Duane Nichols
by Paula Hunt 03 May '14

03 May '14

Congratulations Duane!!! > >---------- >From: MOUNTAINEER ENEWS <enews=mail.wvu.edu(a)mail51.atl71.mcdlv.net> >on behalf of MOUNTAINEER ENEWS <enews(a)mail.wvu.edu> >Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2014 9:02 AM >To: Timothy Warner >Subject: ENEWS: April 29, 2014 > >Having trouble viewing this email? ><http://us8.campaign-archive1.com/?u=897497f2978168696d30d6890&id=c953cc5aca…>View >it online. > > >Top Story > > > > > >Nichols inducted into Academy of Chemical Engineers > > > >Duane Nichols, a 1959 graduate of West Virginia University, was >recently inducted into the Academy of Chemical Engineers. The >ceremony was held on April 25 in Morgantown. ><http://wvu.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=897497f2978168696d30d6890&id=a…>Read >more ><http://wvu.us8.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=897497f2978168696d30d6890&id=…>Submit >to Mountaineer E-News > >West Virginia University >PO Box 6201 >Morgantown, WV 26506 > ><http://wvu.us8.list-manage1.com/vcard?u=897497f2978168696d30d6890&id=02ac3f…>Add >us to your address book

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Local News
by Duane 28 Apr '14

28 Apr '14

UPDATE: Dominion Post Longview settlement appealed Kvaerner shares $335M lien on Maidsville plant BY ALEX LANG The Dominion Post A company with a mechanic’s lien on Longview Power Plant appealed a settlement agreement between the power company and another firm to make repairs to the plant. Kvaerner North American Construction Inc. officially filed its appeal after a federal bankruptcy judge approved a settlement between Longview LLC and Foster Wheeler North American. In August, Longview filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Longview’s biggest asset is a 700-megawatt plant in Maidsville. Kvaerner, along with Siemens Energy Inc., has a $335 million mechanic’s lien on the plant. Kvaerner objected to the settlement, but Judge Brendan Shannon allowed it to proceed. As part of the proceedings, Longview entered into a settlement to make repairs to the plant’s boilers. The repairs would allow for increased revenues for the plant. The repairs would be at no cost to Longview, however Foster Wheeler could seek reimbursement from Kvaerner and Siemens. As a result of the settlement, Foster Wheeler would release its $16 million m e ch a n i c ’s lien on the plant. Now a federal magistrate will determine the appropriateness of mediation on the appeal. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Editorials: Observer-Reporter Gas well findings spark relief and concern Sunday, April 27,2014 Considering the intensity of the explosion at the Chevron Appalachia well site in Dunkard Township Feb. 11, and the resulting fire that burned for several days, it is remarkable the state Department of Environmental Protection’s air sampling found no pollutants at concentration levels harmful to local residents or emergency responders. The results of the DEP tests released last week indicated the agency took samples at several sites upwind and downwind of the well pad from Feb. 12 for eight days, the day the wells were capped. The samples were analyzed for 57 toxic air pollutants. Previously, the department released a report on radiation studies completed at the site that showed no radiation levels had exceeded normal “background” levels. No testing of groundwater was conducted because DEP didn’t believe that was necessary because the explosion and fire were confined to the well site. While the DEP said none of the levels of pollutants detected during the nine-day period in which the sampling was conducted presented a threat to health, we were, nonetheless, taken aback by the kinds of chemicals DEP tested, none of which sound particularly good for anyone’s health, no matter what the level. How often in our daily lives do we concern ourselves with propene, heptane and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, or 1,2 dichlorotetrafluoroethane? Probably never, unless we happen to live near a well site that explodes or conducts gas flaring. DEP should be commended for its vigilance in conducting air quality testing and we are relieved the levels were not at a harmful level. We now hope the DEP is just as vigilant in finding the cause of the explosion. The life lost there is certainly one life too many, and if another gas well catastrophe would occur, there is that chance the emissions spewed into the air could be significantly more noxious and toxic. Copyright 2014 Observer Publishing Company.All rights reserved. Duane Nichols, Cell- 304-216-5535, www.FrackCheckWV.net

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Observer-Reporter | Shale gas and the environment
by Duane 18 Mar '14

18 Mar '14

http://www.observer-reporter.com/article/20140317/NEWS01/140319372 Shale gas and the environment From an Article by Jeffery Fraser, Pittsburgh TODAY, Observer-Reporter, March 17, 2013 For years, the well pads, truck traffic and logos of energy companies large and small multiplied across counties like Washington and Greene as Southwestern Pennsylvania became a poster child for the rush to extract natural gas trapped in the Marcellus Shale. It was in such a climate the region recently assumed a new identity as a place where efforts to stake a middle ground in the polarized debate over drilling and environmental protection are seen as so advanced that they're drawing interest from regulators and elected officials from countries as far away as Kazakhstan. A group of energy companies, environmental nonprofits and foundations known as the Center for Sustainable Shale Development emerged from two years of closed-door negotiations last March to announce they'd agreed on voluntary standards that raise the bar on protecting the air and water in communities where drillers operate. And unlike industry best practices, they coupled the standards with a certification process that audits a driller's compliance. The idea is to promote state-of-the-art environmental practices throughout the Appalachian Basin shale play with the hope that drillers who earn certification will gain a competitive edge that will provide an incentive for others to follow suit. It's been applauded and criticized. Much of the attention has focused on the fact that a group of unlikely partners bridged the partisan divide to reach a consensus on environmental standards for shale gas drilling, rather than on what those standards specifically require certified drillers to do. CSSD partners have implied that the first set of environmental standards require certified drillers to raise their practices above the floor set by state and federal regulations. A Pittsburgh Today review of those standards and Pennsylvania law finds that to be generally true. Team of rivals The idea of finding a group of companies and environmental nonprofits willing to look for ways to reduce the environmental risks posed by shale drilling had been explored three years ago in Pittsburgh by the Heinz Endowments with little success. John Hanger had better luck. The former state Department of Environmental Protection secretary and one-time director of Pennsylvania's largest environmental nonprofit drew on his sense of who might be willing to take on such a task and recruited four major energy companies with shale gas operations and five local, state and national environmental nonprofits as partners in what is now CSSD. The partners include energy producers CONSOL Energy, EQT, Chevron and Shell. Two national environmental nonprofits, the Environmental Defense Fund and Clean Air Task Force, signed on with the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, and the Group Against Smog and Pollution, a Pittsburgh-based grassroots organization. The Heinz Endowments and William Penn Foundation are involved as philanthropic partners. And the advisory board includes former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and Alcoa Chairman and CEO Paul O'Neill and former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Todd Whitman. Assembling a team hand-picked for their willingness to tolerate divergent points of view and rely on science and facts as guidance rather than dogma and rhetoric proved critical at a time when public debate over fracking was dominated by intransigent voices. “You had two strong polarities and neither were helpful. In fact, they were detrimental to finding the best outcomes for the Commonwealth and region,” says Andrew Place, director of energy and policy at EQT, who is serving as CSSD interim director. “Some on the industry side were the proverbial, 'drill baby drill; stay out of our way, we know what we are doing.' On the other side there was, 'these molecules should stay in the ground, fossil fuel is not the way to go;' 'it can't be done, the risks are too great.' None of us felt that was the way this debate should go.” Negotiations were fragile at times, particularly in the beginning. But with engineers and scientists at the table, the group was able to deal with drilling-related environmental issues as technical problems that needed to be solved. “The right people were in the room,” says Place. “Over time, what occurred was relationships were built and people put ideas forward that they would not have been interested in doing or have been willing to do if it had been a very public debate.” The result was a set of 15 standards for the industry that prescribed practices intended to better protect air and water quality. The partners agreed the standards would be open to improvement and that standards addressing other environmental concerns such as terrestrial issues and community impact would be added in coming years. They also agreed to a certification process requiring drillers who embrace the standards to submit to third-party audits to verify their compliance, not unlike that which the Green Building Council requires developers to pass in order to earn Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification for their buildings. For the companies involved, the standards were seen as a way to lower the risk of environmental mishaps, help secure a “social license” to develop the abundant shale gas play and assure an uncertain public, whose mixed views on drilling were documented last year in the Pittsburgh Regional Environment Survey conducted by Pittsburgh Today. The survey found that about 79 percent of residents across the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area believe drilling offers significant or moderate economic opportunities to the region. At the same time, 59 percent see it as a significant or moderate threat to public health and the environment. Few, if any, environmental nonprofits consider current drilling regulations sufficient to protect the environment. And several that agreed to join CSSD reported that the decision was not without internal debate over the pros and cons. For some, reasons for choosing to sit at the table included the hope of avoiding the hard lessons of the past, such as those from coal mining, which left a legacy of tainted streams and other problems. “We want to make sure that this time we have some control of what happens and ride herd on the industry to make sure this is done to the best of everybody's ability,” says Davitt Woodwell, executive vice president of the Pennsylvania Environment Council' s Western Region. “Anyone who can't do it to the best of their ability, shouldn't be doing it.” And the reality of what's taking place in the hills and valleys of southwestern Pennsylvania added urgency to the idea of addressing the risks while waiting for slow-moving regulations to catch up. “Whether you support drilling, are absolutely opposed to drilling, or are somewhere in the middle, you have to acknowledge the industry is here, right now,” says Joe Osborne, the Group Against Smog and Pollution's legal director. “You can't ignore the impact it's having, regardless of how you think things ought to be in an ideal world.” Interest, praise and scorn CSSD drew worldwide attention almost immediately. In Paris, announcement of its standards created a buzz at the International Energy Agency meeting on unconventional natural gas last March. And throughout the year, CSSD officials hosted delegations of regulators, elected officials, journalists and others from Austria, Britain, China, Canada, France, Germany, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and the European Union who traveled to Pittsburgh to learn about the standards and the process that led to them. Editorial writers from Pittsburgh to Dallas applauded the launch of CSSD. The Washington Post, for instance, described it as a “heartening breakthrough in the war over fracking.” On the other hand, several environmental nonprofits not invited to negotiate the standards criticized those who were, suggesting their involvement amounted to capitulation to an untrustworthy industry. The Sierra Club, the nation's largest grassroots environmental organization, took issue with the fact the standards don't carry the weight of law. “Voluntary certification is akin to slapping a Band-Aid on a gaping wound,” wrote Deb Nardone, director of its Beyond Natural Gas campaign. The nonprofit Public Accountability Initiative was more personal, documenting how several CSSD partners and board members have industry ties ranging from seats on corporate boards to investments in energy companies. In a report, the nonprofit described CSSD as a “greenwashing” campaign, implying that its standards are more of a marketing ploy than an attempt to advance environmental practices in shale gas drilling. The report, however, offered no evidence that the nonprofit had actually evaluated the merit of the CSSD standards. Tougher, for the most part Pittsburgh Today compared the 15 CSSD air and water standards to Pennsylvania and federal regulations that address environmental issues related to unconventional natural gas drilling. Both are rife with complexities. It is not uncommon, for example, for a single CSSD standard to have several parts that prescribe multiple practices, timetables and specifications. Each of the 15 standards was found to require CSSD-certified drillers to take some degree of protective action not prescribed by state or federal law. How significantly those practices rise above an operator's legal obligations varies across standards. Some CSSD standards are similar to existing regulations, save for a measure or two that can have environmental importance. One example is the standard for earthen impoundments that store water discharged during drilling that's fouled by chemical additives, brine and other contaminants. Like CSSD, Pennsylvania has design requirements that include double lining the impoundments. But unlike the state, CSSD also requires operators to remove hydrocarbons from the water before it is stored and to take steps to prevent wildlife from entering the impoundment. CSSD standards also prohibit discharging drilling wastewater into streams and rivers, allowing no exceptions. Zero discharge is generally promoted by Pennsylvania regulations. But under state law, public water treatment plants can, under certain circumstances, accept wastewater, which some have done, raising controversy and concern over public water supplies. Some similarities are also seen in CSSD standards and state regulations related to how drillers deal with the contaminated water discharged when a well is being drilled and afterward. Both call for drillers to identify strategies for reducing wastewater. But CSSD requires a recycling plan, and CSSD requires drillers to recycle at least 90 percent of their wastewater. Such practice reduces the amount of fresh water consumed in the hydrofracturing process, which is measured in the millions of gallons. State regulations don't require drillers to recycle their wastewater. Regulations tend to be moving targets, and recent changes have blunted the impact of one CSSD standard that was written earlier. That standard places limits on emissions from compressor engines used to push gas through pipelines after a well has gone into production. While those limits are more stringent than federal rules, Pennsylvania's revised regulations are, in some instances, more demanding. But several CSSD standards advance environmentally protective practices well beyond what is called for in state and federal regulations. One is the approach taken toward protecting groundwater. Before drilling, the CSSD standards require companies to establish an “area of review” that includes the vertical and horizontal legs of a well and to perform an analysis to characterize the geology below. That includes looking at whether the subsurface confining layers can prevent fracking fluids from migrating in unintended ways. It also includes identifying orphaned wells, faults or other vulnerabilities that might pose a problem. State regulations don't require drillers to perform such geological risk analyses. Operators who are CSSD-certified also must monitor streams, aquifers and other water sources within a 2,500-foot radius of the wellhead for at least one year after the well is drilled and show that the quality and chemistry of the water measured before drilling hasn't been adversely affected. State law doesn't require operators to take such steps to see if their wells impact local water sources. CSSD emissions standards for the diesel engines used in drilling and in the heavy trucks hauling fresh water and contaminated water are more restrictive than those which operators are legally required follow. Diesel engines are prolific sources of fine particles that contribute to smog, which is of growing concern in areas where drilling is concentrated. At least 95 percent of a CSSD-certified driller's truck fleet, for example, must meet the most stringent federal emissions regulations within three years. The standard applies to both new and existing trucks, including those bought before 2007, which could account for a large share of an operator's fleet. Federal law exempts those older trucks. And federal law prohibits Pennsylvania and other states from regulating them on their own. Moving forward Before leaving CSSD to begin his Pennsylvania gubernatorial campaign, Hanger expressed hope the standards would encourage more effective environmental practices within the industry, derail the argument that such higher standards cannot be met by the industry, and, through market pressures, require companies to earn certification in order to drill in the Appalachian Basin states. (Hanger has just recently dropped out of the primary race for governor. DGN) Whether that will come to pass remains to be seen. It took the better part of last year for CSSD to piece together its certification process, including protocols for selecting and training the auditors who'll monitor compliance. Their audits are expected to include both documentation review and field inspections. Sometime in 2014, the first companies to seek certification are expected to undergo compliance audits. Those presumably will be the four CSSD corporate partners: CONSOL, EQT, Shell and Chevron Appalachia. How many more will follow is unclear, as is the extent to which CSSD is supported within the shale gas industry. The region's largest shale gas trade group, the Marcellus Shale Coalition, hasn't endorsed CSSD, which is not mentioned on the group's website or on its list of the positive industry developments of 2013. And the group did not respond to interview requests to clarify its position on CSSD. But the notion that CSSD standards could create market demand for drillers to adopt its standards got an early and unexpected boost in September when Allegheny County added several of the standards to its request for proposals to extract gas under Deer Lakes Park. “I think it's doing the right thing,” says Allegheny County Chief Executive Rich Fitzgerald. “Everything is on a case-by-case basis. But we'd like to set a baseline where, if we can get some of these enhancements, it could be a template for doing it in other areas – not just public land, but private land as well.” Pittsburgh TODAY is an initiative of the Regional Indicator program hosted by the University Center for Social and Urban Research.

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A Chickadee Mating Zone Surges North - NYTimes.com
by Duane 18 Mar '14

18 Mar '14

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/18/science/a-chickadee-mating-zone-surges-no… A Chickadee Mating Zone Surges North New York Times, March 18, 2014 In a long, narrow strip of territory from Kansas to New Jersey, two closely related species of chickadees meet, mate and give birth to hybrid birds. Now scientists are reporting that this so-called hybrid zone is moving north at a rate that matches the warming trend in winter temperatures. “It has moved north by about seven miles in the last 10 years,” said Scott Taylor, an evolutionary biologist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University. The northward movement of the strip “corresponds so closely to warming global temperatures,” Dr. Taylor said. “The fact that these little birds are experiencing this makes it really relatable.” (The species are the Carolina chickadee, from the South, and the black-capped chickadee, from the North.) The scientists, who reported their findings in the journal Current Biology, relied on blood samples drawn from chickadees in Pennsylvania from 2000 to 2002 and from 2010 to 2012, and on sightings of hybrid chickadees recorded in the citizen science database eBird. They found that hybrids were sighted in areas where the average low temperature in winter was 15 to 19 degrees Fahrenheit (minus-9 to minus-7 Celsius) — the same readings as a decade earlier, but in a zone seven miles north of the 2000-02 sightings. The adaptability of the chickadees is impressive, Dr. Taylor said, but less mobile organisms that cannot move as fast may be suffering. For these organisms — like small mammals, insects and plants — the warming temperatures could have serious implications that are not immediately apparent, he said. SINDYA N. BHANOO

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