PFAS Chemicals in Bloodstream of 99% of All Americans (Steve Glass blog) PFAS are used in many consumer products, included carpets, couches, and food packaging; this, in addition to their use in foam firefighting retardant… In an earlier report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) PFAS compounds may be in the drinking water of up to 110 million Americans.
Brazilian Amazon Burns at an Accelerating Rate (Steve Glass blog, including his personal observations on a birding trip)
City Releases Climate Action Plan (City of South Bend) The Mayor Pete Buttigieg administration has released Carbon Neutral 2050, a climate action plan for the City of South Bend. The Carbon Neutral 2050 Plan sets ambitious community-wide goals to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, first targeting a 26% reduction by 2025, to demonstrate South Bend’s willingness to honor the U.S. commitment to the Paris Agreement. The implementation of these goals aims to culminate in South Bend becoming carbon neutral by 2050.
Galvanized by disaster: Mayor of Goshen, Indiana, sets town on sustainable path after devastating floods (Indiana Environmental Reporter)
Wild bee community change over a 26‐year chronosequence of restored tallgrass prairie (research article)… this is good news. From the abstract: Bee abundance and raw richness increased with restoration age from the low level of the pre‐restoration (agricultural) sites to the target level of the remnant prairie within the first 2–3 years after restoration, and these high levels were maintained throughout the entire restoration chronosequence. Bee community composition of the youngest restored sites differed from that of prairie remnants, but 5–7 years post‐restoration the community composition of restored prairie converged with that of remnants.
Report: Closing Coal Plants Would Save Indiana Customers Money, Reduce Pollution (WFYI)… The faster Indiana can transition from coal to renewable energy sources, the better for Indiana customers. That’s the takeaway from a new report prepared for the 21st Century Energy Policy Development Task Force charged with creating a statewide energy plan.
Oklahoma approves largest single-day commutation in U.S. history: In a flurry of signatures Friday afternoon, Oklahoma moved one step closer to shucking its distinction as the state with the highest incarceration rate in the United States. On Monday afternoon, 527 people serving low-level drug and nonviolent offenses will go free in what Oklahoma lawmakers are calling the largest single-day commutation in both state and U.S. history. (MSN)
Yellowstone Bison Engineer an Endless Spring to Suit Their Grazing Needs (Smithsonian Mag) The cycle of grazing and fertilizing prolongs spring-like vegetation in grasslands and makes green-up more intense in following years
Indiana NAACP Environmental Climate Justice: Calling for Equitable Clean Energy -Indiana State Conference of the NAACP (Facebook video)
The Forest Service Is About to Set a Giant Forest Fire—On Purpose (The Atlantic)
Diversifying Crops Is Good For The Planet. But Can It Be Good For Farmers’ Wallets? (NPR)
The first fact on PFSA’s has really gotten to me. It’s such a dreadful thing along with the burning of trees. I can hardly bare it.
Indeed Mary, we are in a dire strait, and our institutions are struggling to match the urgency of the crises we face.