I’ve written before on this blog about the recent honey bee crisis that has been evolving over the past year or more. Bees are disappearing and biologists don’t yet know why. One thing for sure is that honey bees are very hard workers, and in our society, they don’t seem to be appreciated enough by Joe Public, or by the government. The government needs to throw some funds in the direction of all of those hard-working scientists that are trying to help out the bees, which play a cornerstone role in our agriculture. We also need to do a better job of supporting those who raise and care for bee hives, because so much really depends on it, really! If taxes are good for something, honey bees would definitely hit the A list. Read on, for a very well-written article concerning the bee crisis.

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Read about it. Whatever the cause, it is spreading and has become a nuisance in other areas of the country and the world.

• Rock Snot

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Puffins are getting a second chance to repopulate their old territories in Maine, with the help of biologists and volunteers. Each summer a fearless group of workers returns to the islands that are their breeding grounds in order to protect these birds from predators. The once common birds were hunted by humans for their meat and feathers and were nearly extinct in their US habitat by 1901. So, early in the 1970s, and intrepid biologist, Stephen Kress started a program to bring them back to their former American territories. Read on for a little inspiration, and hope that even if humans did throw things out of balance, perhaps nature will be able to return it between the puffins and their predators, the black gull.

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We all have to take into consideration how our lifestyles affect the environment, because it is suffering at an unprecedented rate. If you listen to economists, the only way we can sustain our current “quality” of life, is to ensure the consistent growth of the economy. That means that you and I must buy, buy, buy…and then buy some more. Well, we have been doing a stellar job of it so far. Think about it, how often do you leave your house without returning with something from the store? We Americans have become so divorced from nature that going out often means going to a store to buy something somewhere, not to go to a state or national park or preserve to hike, walk, canoe, camp or take our children to play. When we live this way, we are not just consuming goods, we are consuming the environmental resources that it took to make those goods. So, everything we buy is an important consideration, because our society has grown into one where national industries manufacture virtually everything we consume. Our food is a huge issue these days. The energy and resources in maintaining a meat-consuming culture are much, much larger than a mostly plant-consuming one. But, even if you are eating plants, they are often not locally grown, and so must be shipped across the country with the use of lots of fossil fuel. Our houses are full of things that cannot be easily recycled. And, finally, our houses use huge amounts of energy for heating and cooling, for electricity and for heating our water. Most houses are not built to sip energy, but to gulp it as if it were limitless, just as our cars are designed to be far less energy efficient than they could be. Running your air conditioner? Well, you are helping to create the demand that leads to mountaintop removal for coal to run your AC.

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Google, google, google…how beautiful, how powerful. Please, go and explore and learn about the Universe using Google Earth and its new night sky application. It’s more than just looking at constellation outlines, oh yes. You can see bright stars, nebulae, black holes and much more. Zoom in! Go ahead. Whee! And, folks, this is all scientific data, with links to real scientific databases, so what’s not to love? It has some educational tools, and I’m sure that will grow in the future, if Google sticks with it. I love the ability to track the phases of the moon over time, and the arcs of the planets across the plane of the sky. This will be a great tool for teachers, students and those who would like to dip their toes into the ocean of astronomical knowledge. So, go, now, and Googlesky!

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Well, they are at it again. Of course, now is the the time, nearing the end of a president’s term, when favors and special dispensations are distributed around for those friendly to the administration. Not that Bush & Co. didn’t pretty much do as they pleased earlier, but I guess they have the wafer-thin advantage that comes with being at the lame-duck stage, enabling them to do just a wee bit more environmental damage before they leave the White House. I’m talking about mountaintop removal, the destruction of mountain tops, valleys and streams in order to mine coal deposits, and a move by the administration that tries to make it just a bit easier by relaxing environmental protections.

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Marine conservation is an important world-wide activity. Follow the link to read a little about how the coastal environments in Europe are fairing, and to learn a bit about conservation attitudes across the EU.

• European Marine Conservation

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Well, it is very early, but this is one subject I can be interested in any time. Below is a link to a project to clarify the
stances of the 2008 presidential candidates, a website that sums up their voting records and will include interviews by those who are
very, very interested in their detailed plans, or lack thereof, if elected.

• 2008 Presidential Candidates and the Environment

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Ok, I can’t pass up an opportunity to revisit a topic I mentioned a while ago, if only to help counteract the bad reporting that Fox news once again has foisted on the American public. It just goes to show, as usual, that you really need to think when you read any news, so keep on honing your analytical skills, as they will always help you to determine the value of any information you read or hear. This article discusses the mercury in fluorescent bulbs, why their usage adds up to less mercury in the environment compared to incandescent bulb usage, and the importance of recycling them.

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…and then you swim in some nice sewage runoff. I remember having lots of fun as a youngster swimming my summer days away in fresh and saltwater sources. I could stay out all day and never tire of it. These days, though, it kinda sucks to be an informed adult. I know about the severe infrastructure problems plaguing this nation, and the lack of interest our federal politicians have shown for maintenance and repair of these resources. Fixing and maintaining sewage and water systems, roads and bridges aren’t as sexy as providing funding for the construction of something brand new. Well, people are noticing lately that this is the case, but it took a very tragic event to get their attention. But, will they also notice that the same problem is affecting the water quality in our rivers, lakes and oceans? It is a sad day when you need to be very careful about where you allow your kids to spend their summer swim time.

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