Address climate and water issues
January 22, 2016
What a relief it is to see
and feel rain falling again! To see our dry, damaged hills and valley finally
start to heal, sprout green and reveal the verdant natural landscapes of our
home is truly a blessing! Although drought is a natural fact of the west, this
drought that we still endure is the worst that California has seen in the last
500 to 1200 years.
I agree with the Bee and most valley residents that we need
more water storage capacity. But to focus on the symptom alone is akin to
treating a smoker who develops lung cancer with chemo therapy, and all the while
the cancer victim continues to smoke.
The same can be said of increased water
storage. We simultaneously need to treat the symptom (lack of water), but also
address a key cause, man-made climate change. The answers are contentious and
political in nature, but to deny the problem and fail to address it is as
pitiful as our lung cancer victim who won't stop smoking.
Pete Moe
Fresno
Friday, January 22, 2016
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Ruth Afifi - 1-8-2016 - Prevent huge methane leaks
Prevent huge methane leaks
January 8, 2016
In “A billowing wake-up call from LA on greenhouse gas” (editorial Dec. 31), The Bee editorial warns that California’s leadership in reducing greenhouse gas emissions is at risk because of insufficient regulations, oversight and enforcement.
If the analysis is taken seriously, perhaps California will not suffer another catastrophic failure like the ongoing massive leak from an underground natural gas reservoir near Los Angeles. Described as a smelly plume rising like “an industrial smokestack,” the leak is primarily methane, a greenhouse gas many times more potent than carbon dioxide. (For a video of the plume, see bit.ly/1PsJQIw)
Thousands of tons of methane have been released since late October, and thousands of people in a nearby residential area will remain displaced for several more months. As you say, the battle against climate change requires action, “countless mundane acts,” and preventing huge methane leaks should be a priority.
January 8, 2016
In “A billowing wake-up call from LA on greenhouse gas” (editorial Dec. 31), The Bee editorial warns that California’s leadership in reducing greenhouse gas emissions is at risk because of insufficient regulations, oversight and enforcement.
If the analysis is taken seriously, perhaps California will not suffer another catastrophic failure like the ongoing massive leak from an underground natural gas reservoir near Los Angeles. Described as a smelly plume rising like “an industrial smokestack,” the leak is primarily methane, a greenhouse gas many times more potent than carbon dioxide. (For a video of the plume, see bit.ly/1PsJQIw)
Thousands of tons of methane have been released since late October, and thousands of people in a nearby residential area will remain displaced for several more months. As you say, the battle against climate change requires action, “countless mundane acts,” and preventing huge methane leaks should be a priority.
Matt Armstrong -1-8-2016 - House climate deniers sabotage Paris talks
House climate deniers sabotage Paris talks
January 8, 2016
As much of the United States, in fact much of the world, is engulfed in bizarre weather and we have just experienced the hottest year on record (bringing us worse drought and horrible forest fires) we have an opportunity to reflect on what our elected officials are doing.
Given the opportunity to become leaders at the Paris Climate Talks in December, many senators and members of the House of Representatives chose instead to try to sabotage the talks and to deny reality. On those rare occasions that a reason for such behavior is given, it is said that the regulations and “big government” necessary to tackle the problem are undesirable.
Personally, I find perpetual drought, massive crop failure and sharp increases in heat-stroke deaths even less desirable than regulations, but that’s just me and my wacky priorities. Luckily, there is another route – putting a price on carbon pollution would reduce greenhouse gas emissions without adding to regulatory red tape, and would spur innovation in energy.
Making such a fee revenue neutral may even benefit our economy. Climate reality is hitting us now. Denial is increasingly irresponsible and foolish. We can act for a better future.
January 8, 2016
As much of the United States, in fact much of the world, is engulfed in bizarre weather and we have just experienced the hottest year on record (bringing us worse drought and horrible forest fires) we have an opportunity to reflect on what our elected officials are doing.
Given the opportunity to become leaders at the Paris Climate Talks in December, many senators and members of the House of Representatives chose instead to try to sabotage the talks and to deny reality. On those rare occasions that a reason for such behavior is given, it is said that the regulations and “big government” necessary to tackle the problem are undesirable.
Personally, I find perpetual drought, massive crop failure and sharp increases in heat-stroke deaths even less desirable than regulations, but that’s just me and my wacky priorities. Luckily, there is another route – putting a price on carbon pollution would reduce greenhouse gas emissions without adding to regulatory red tape, and would spur innovation in energy.
Making such a fee revenue neutral may even benefit our economy. Climate reality is hitting us now. Denial is increasingly irresponsible and foolish. We can act for a better future.
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