[TheClimate.Vote] December 29, 2018 - Daily Global Warming News Digest -

[Richard Pauli]

/December 29, 2018/

[Congress steps up]
*Karen Castor named to lead restored House panel on climate change*
Nancy Pelosi revives special committee axed by Republicans
Progressive Democrats have pushed for a 'Green New Deal'
Associated Press in Washington - 28 Dec 2018
The House Democratic leader, Nancy Pelosi, has appointed the Florida 
representative Kathy Castor to lead a special committee on climate 
change that will be reinstated in the new Congress.

The climate panel is similar to one that Pelosi created when Democrats 
last controlled the House, from 2007 to 2011. It was eliminated when 
Republicans took the majority.

Pelosi, the likely House speaker, said Castor brings experience, energy 
and "urgency to the existential threat of the climate crisis" facing the 
US and the world. Castor is set to begin her seventh term representing 
the Tampa Bay area and serves on the energy and commerce committee.

"Congresswoman Castor is a proven champion for public health and green 
infrastructure, who deeply understands the scope and seriousness of this 
threat. Her decades of experience in this fight, both in Florida and in 
the Congress, will be vital," Pelosi said.

Castor said in a statement that she was honored to lead the panel and 
pledged to "act with urgency to reduce carbon pollution" and "unleash" 
American ingenuity to create clean-energy jobs.

"The costs of the changing climate and extreme weather events pose 
greater risks every day to American families, businesses and our way of 
life," Castor said. She added that the new panel "will tackle the crisis 
head on. Failure is not an option."

The membership and exact scope of the panel remain to be determined, but 
Pelosi said it would play a key role in shaping how Congress responds to 
the threat of global warming while creating good-paying, "green" jobs.

The Maryland representative Steny Hoyer, the incoming House majority 
leader, said last week the climate committee would probably not have 
legal authority to demand documents under subpoena. But he added that he 
did not think the panel would need subpoena authority, since experts 
will be "dying to come before them".

Climate scientists and other experts "are going to want to testify", 
Hoyer said. "I think they'll want to give the best information as it 
relates to the crisis."

The Democratic representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New 
York, and other progressives, have pushed for a "Green New Deal" that 
includes thousands of jobs in renewable energy such as wind and solar 
power. She and other leaders say the climate panel is a key platform to 
advance the green agenda.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/dec/28/karen-castor-house-committee-climate-change
- - -
[Yale says]
*The Green New Deal has Strong Bipartisan Support*
http://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/the-green-new-deal-has-strong-bipartisan-support/


[Rant, pretty good video rant]
*Are we Setting up the Destruction of the Planet?*
Thom Hartmann Program
Published on Dec 27, 2018
If a CEO of any public company behaved how Donald Trump is, the board of 
directors would have let him go a long time ago.
But Donald Trump is not acting like a selfish and incompetent shill for 
the billionaires on his own time. We are at a point where leadership is 
needed to avoid the massive destruction resulting from global warming, 
world war, and economic depressions.
It's past time that even Republicans need to wake up and fight against 
their own party. but will they, or will they set up the destruction of 
the planet by war and climate change?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sD6AK46kLKs


[expanding urban, shrinking the rural]
Ashland, Oregon preparing for the future
*Wildfire Smoke Continues To Disrupt Southern Oregon Economic Rhythms*
Jes Burns - DEC 21, 2018
You know the end is near when a business starts selling off its shelves, 
clothes racks and displays -- and that's what's been happening for the 
past couple weeks at the Ashland Outdoor Store.
The store has been around for about 25 years and word of its impending 
closure has spread quickly through this town of about 20,000 people at 
the base of the Cascade-Siskiyou Mountains.
On a busy Tuesday afternoon, most people are coming in to buy discounted 
headlamps, sleeping pads and climbing gear. And when they get to the 
check out, many ask store clerk Megan O'Melia: "What happened?"
"When there's so much smoke, no one wants to be outside, so no one buys 
outdoor gear. And when no tourists come to town, and they don't buy 
stuff, so it's like a snowball," she said.

Outdoor Store co-owner Steve Rice said the snowball actually started 
rolling earlier -- last winter when the snow didn't fall and gear sales 
were low. But spring was actually looking good.
"July is when the smoke hit. We actually did OK in July. And then, boom, 
August. Nine days into August, I ran a sales report and we were way 
off," Rice said.
That was right as the Rogue Valley experienced about four solid weeks of 
unhealthy air quality. The streets were nearly empty, except for 
ash-dusted cars and the thick beige fog that smelled like campfires.
"There was enough time for tourists to be able to make decisions not to 
come. And it was also enough time for us locals to be looking outside of 
valley saying, 'Where am I going to go to get away from this?'" Rice said.

*Getting Worse*
In 2017, statewide tourism losses due to wildfire and smoke were $51.5 
million, according to a Travel Oregon report. About $3 million of that 
loss was in Jackson County. That year in Jackson County, there were 25 
days where the air quality reached unhealthy levels.
In summer 2018, the Rogue Valley air quality was unhealthy 37 days. 
That's an almost 50 percent increase from the previous year. In 
addition, for a while last summer, the conditions were unrelenting. 
Residents experienced nearly four weeks straight of bad air; half of 
those days were at hazardous levels.

Hotel and restaurant spending was down about 5 percent. And much larger 
business losses have been reported to the Ashland Chamber of Commerce by 
its members.
The chamber launched a Smoke Preparedness Task Force a couple years back 
to help businesses and the community get through. They've focused on 
education, creating "SmokeWise Ashland," an online resource featuring 
videos and information on things like the proper use of masks and what 
kinds of HVAC filtration is needed to ensure employees and customers 
have healthy air to breathe inside.

"There's a lot of business really starting to think about what practices 
do I make, what changes can I make in my business to better weather 
these situations should they reoccur," said Dana Preston, membership and 
business development director for the Ashland chamber...

*Making Plans*
Answering these kinds of questions is exactly what the Oregon 
Shakespeare Festival is doing. The Ashland festival is one of the 
biggest economic drivers in the region.
"We can't predict what things are going to be like, but we can't put our 
heads in the sands and pretend," said Julie Cortez, OSF's communications 
manager.

After canceling or moving 26 outdoor performances last summer, the 
festival is making adjustments. Previous years, the OSF was able to 
settle with insurers to recover some of the losses from smoked-out 
plays. But that possibility is looking less likely now.
"Smoke damages, from my understanding, are just not typically covered by 
insurance companies very often anymore," she said. "We're not moving 
forward with anything written in expecting insurance claims to happen as 
a result of smoke."
The festival has also laid off staff. They're not scheduling any outdoor 
shows from July 30 to Sept. 8 for the 2019 season. And they're looking 
into longer-term solutions, like adding a retractable roof to the 
outdoor theater...

*Rhythms Disrupted*
Even businesses that don't rely on summer tourism are starting to adjust 
to the smoke.
Ashland realtor Colin Mullane said it's challenging to tease out the 
impact of smoke on the housing market, but that the smoke is "really 
front of mind now."

Mullane said he expects there will start to be some changes in the 
annual real estate cycle in the region -- things like when people list 
houses and who chooses to move to the area, which has traditionally been 
known for its high quality of life.
"Those looking at Ashland for that are now starting to factor in the 
impact, potentially, of having smoke in their life for two, three, four 
months out of the year," he said...

*Sobering Outlook*
With climate change and relatively limited pushes for forest restoration 
in the West, wildfire season is only expected to become more intense.
In the face of this, many in Ashland are trying to remain positive about 
the ability of the region's economy to be resilient in the face of 
future summers of wildfire smoke.
Rice, the Outdoor Store co-owner, said his outlook is a little more 
sobering as he closes the doors on an Ashland institution. He said he 
doesn't think his store will be the only business saying goodbye given 
the changes to business plans underway and concern Ashland is getting a 
reputation for poor air quality in the summer.

"Even if we don't have smoke, we're going to be hurt by this year's 
smoke next year," he said. "And sadly, the only thing that might save 
that is if for some reason California is smoky and Washington is smoky 
and we're not." [Copyright 2018 EarthFix]
https://www.opb.org/news/article/wildfire-smoke-business-ashland-oregon/


[save some bookmarks]
*Emotional support in face of climate tragedy*
Posted by jembendell on July 26, 2018
If you have come to recognise that climate change will lead to a near 
term collapse in our way of life, or even worse, then this can be a very 
difficult realisation to process, integrate into our lives, or 
communicate to other people.
Here are some links to resources that I have found helpful.

Lifeboat Hour podcast - https://drumbaker.podbean.com/
Any books and articles by Caroline Baker - https://carolynbaker.net/
Joanna Macy lecture - https://youtu.be/jliSPJxTHak
Human Near Term Extinction Support Group on Facebook -
https://www.facebook.com/groups/NTHESupportGroup/
Reframing Collapse Facebook Group -
https://www.facebook.com/groups/656174694487880/
The Dark Mountain network - https://dark-mountain.net/
Deep Adaptation LinkedIn group (more for professionals working on
this) - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12091253/
Climate Psychology Alliance (more for professionals) -
https://www.climatepsychologyalliance.org/

I write up some of my own reflections on how I have been trying and 
wobbling to integrate this awareness into my life and work, in this 
rather long reflective piece called "After Despair" - 
https://jembendell.wordpress.com/2018/01/14/after-climate-despair-one-tale-of-what-can-emerge/

Ultimately, I think we will best supported by activities that support 
our transcendence from our normal fears, whether those activities are 
spiritual or agnostic. There are an increasing number of spiritual 
coaches appearing online such as my friend Zori. These forms of 
grassroots, diverse, non dogmatic, spiritual inspiration and support 
will become more important.  If you have suggestions, please enter them 
in the comments below.

"My academic paper on the latest climate science as well as the many 
forms of denial about our situation is available for download here."
https://jembendell.wordpress.com/2018/07/26/emotional-support-in-face-of-climate-tragedy/


[paying attention to future news]
*From The Arctic's Decline To The Green New Deal's Rise: 3 Environmental 
Stories To Watch*
Climate change will grab headlines in 2019 as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 
pushes legislation, wildlife populations plummet, and ice melts at an 
alarming rate.
By Tess Riley
Environmental stories just kept coming this year as the consequences of 
climate change increasingly pushed their way into people's lives and as 
we faced dire predictions about how much time we have left to avoid 
climate breakdown.
As we move into 2019, we've compiled three big environmental stories to 
watch in the coming year.
*1. The Terrifying Decline Of The Arctic*
Arctic wildlife is under threat. Populations of wild reindeer, also 
known as caribou, have declined more than 50 percent over the last two 
decades, with some herds in the Alaska-Canada region shrinking by more 
than 90 percent. Causes of the declines are complex, but the overarching 
factor is climate change...

[narrated video animation shows it well]
*Disappearing Arctic sea ice*
NASA Climate Change
Published on Mar 15, 2018
This visualization begins by showing the dynamic beauty of the
Arctic sea ice as it responds to winds and ocean currents. Research
into the behavior of the Arctic sea ice for the last 30 years has
led to a deeper understanding of how this ice survives from year to
year. In the animation that follows, age of the sea ice is visible,
showing the younger ice in darker shades of blue and the oldest ice
in brighter white. This visual representation of the ice age clearly
shows how the quantity of older and thicker ice has changed between
1984 and 2016.
https://youtu.be/hlVXOC6a3ME

The Arctic is in trouble, and that's a huge problem for all of us. If it 
starts to see entirely ice-free summers, the dark ocean water will 
absorb solar heating that would otherwise be deflected by the ice cover, 
warming the planet even more ― in turn contributing to even more 
extensive ice melt.

The most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report 
suggests that at least one sea-ice-free Arctic summer would be expected 
every 10 years if global warming reaches 2 degrees Celsius, with that 
number decreasing to once every hundred years at 1.5 degrees Celsius of 
warming. Either scenario is likely to spell disaster for wildlife, with 
warming of 2 degrees or more expected to lead to critical habitat losses 
for polar bears, seals, whales and sea birds, according to the IPCC.

*2. The Rise Of The Green New Deal*
A policy, in reality more of a suite of policies, known as the Green New 
Deal is gaining prominence as a way of helping the U.S. rapidly scale 
back fossil fuel use while also creating jobs. Previously a fringe idea, 
the proposal has gained increasing coverage given a slew of terrifying 
reports about the urgency of climate change.

Championed by Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), the Green 
New Deal, which currently has bipartisan support, calls for 100 percent 
of U.S. electricity to be generated from clean sources within the next 
decade, an investment in energy efficiency and renewables, and the 
provision of training for jobs in the green economy.

And while the Democrats this month blocked Ocasio-Cortez's push for a 
select committee on the Green New Deal, activists and progressive 
politicians say they will continue the fight. The policy is expected to 
be a major issue in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.

*3. The Young People Fighting Climate Change In New Ways*
When 15-year-old Swedish schoolgirl Greta Thunberg stood up at the 
December United Nations climate change talks in Poland, she delivered a 
brutal message to negotiators and diplomats: "We have not come here to 
beg world leaders to care," she said. "You have ignored us in the past 
and you will ignore us again. … We have come here to let you know that 
change is coming, whether you like it or not. The real power belongs to 
the people."

Thunberg is one of the more prominent voices in a global movement of 
young people who are refusing to let politicians drag their feet on 
climate change, and who are prepared to take direct action.

In between the dire environmental news of 2018 about everything from 
fatal forest fires and toxic plastics pollution, to a surge of 
investment in the dirtiest fossil fuels and Donald Trump's determination 
to roll back environmental policy, there has been a surge of 
environmental activism that is set to spread and strengthen in 2019.
n December, thousands of young protesters affiliated with the Sunrise 
Movement staged a demonstration outside the Capitol Hill office of House 
Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to demand bold action on climate 
change, including support for the Green New Deal.

In the U.K., Extinction Rebellion has been blocking traffic to disrupt 
the economy and force greater attention on the climate crisis. The 
protest group, which promotes nonviolent civil disobedience, has now 
spread to 35 countries including the U.S. In an open letter published in 
The Guardian, backers of the Extinction Rebellion wrote, "We must 
collectively do whatever's necessary non-violently, to persuade 
politicians and business leaders to relinquish their complacency and 
denial."

For more content and to be part of the This New World community, follow 
our Facebook page.
HuffPost's This New World series is funded by Partners for a New Economy 
and the Kendeda Fund. All content is editorially independent, with no 
influence or input from the foundations. If you have an idea or tip for 
the editorial series, send an email to thisnewworld at huffpost.com
Tess Riley
Deputy editor, This New World
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/arctic-green-new-deal-environmental-stories_us_5c1b0f5de4b0407e9076f240


[comment about Arctic report NOAA]
*Why Santa Must Move to Antarctica: Part 2*
Paul Beckwith - Published on Dec 27, 2018
Recently released by NOAA, the Arctic Report Card 2018 details profound 
changes underway in the Arctic from rapid temperature increases.
"What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic." Quote: 
Beckwith, 2009
Santa must move to Antarctica. The Arctic is too warm, and Rudolph and 
his pals are going extinct. Penguins can pull the sleigh. They can't 
fly, but neither can reindeer, red noses or not. At least penguins are 
birds with wings. Santa must do this soon, before Arctic sea ice vanishes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5Uk5idXLlI


*This Day in Climate History - December 28, 2009 - from D.R. Tucker*
December 29, 2009: Washington Post writer Ezra Klein excoriates members 
of the US Senate who have developed cold feet about addressing global 
warming:

"Amidst all this, conservative Senate Democrats are waving off the
idea of serious action in 2010. But not because they're opposed. Oh,
heavens no! It's because of abstract concerns over the political
difficulties the problem presents. Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), for
instance, avers that 'climate change in an election year has very
poor prospects.' That's undoubtedly true, though it is odd to say
that the American system of governance can only solve problems every
other year. Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) says that 'we need to deal with
the phenomena of global warming,' but wants to wait until the
economy is fixed.

"Rather than commenting abstractly on the difficulty of doing this,
Conrad and Bayh and others could make it easier by saying things
like 'we simply have to do this, it's our moral obligation as
legislators,' and trying to persuade reporters to write stories
about how even moderates such as Conrad and Byah are determined to
do this. They could schedule meetings with other senators begging
them to take this seriously, leveraging the credibility and goodwill
built over decades in the Senate. They could spend money on TV ads
in their state, talking directly into the camera, explaining to
their constituents that they don't like having to face this problem,
but see no choice. That effort might fail -- probably will, in fact
-- but it's got a better chance of success than not trying. And this
is, well, pretty important."

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/12/climate_change_is_bad_but_the.html 


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