Al Gore Calls Myanmar Cyclone a 'Consequence' of Global Warming Using tragedy to advance an agenda has been a strategy for many global warming activists, and it was just a matter of time before someone found a way to tie the recent Myanmar cyclone to global warming. Former Vice President Al Gore in an interview on NPR’s May 6 “Fresh Air” broadcast did just that. He was interviewed by “Fresh Air” host Terry Gross about the release of his book, “The Assault on Reason,” in paperback. “And as we’re talking today, Terry, the death count in Myanmar from the cyclone that hit there yesterday has been rising from 15,000 to way on up there to much higher numbers now being speculated,” Gore said. “And last year a catastrophic storm from last fall hit Bangladesh. The year before, the strongest cyclone in more than 50 years hit China – and we’re seeing consequences that scientists have long predicted might be associated with continued global warming.” Gore claimed global warming is forcing ocean temperatures to rise, which is causing storms, including cyclones and hurricanes, to intensify....
Subsea storage may fix our CO2 problem Researchers are looking beneath the world's deep, cold waters for places to put the greenhouse gases that may be warming its atmosphere. A growing body of research predicts deep subsea rock formations may be ideal for carbon sequestration — the process of storing carbon dioxide emissions underground to keep them from entering the Earth's atmosphere and contributing to climate change. A number of researchers already are conducting projects to inject CO2 in onshore formations to see if large amounts of the greenhouse gas can be stored underground indefinitely. Daniel Schrag, a professor at Harvard University's Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, says the high pressures and low temperatures found below the sea floor — 10,000 feet or more underwater — provide a nearly foolproof way to keep CO2 stored. In those conditions CO2 becomes a liquid more dense than water that will not rise up to the ocean floor....
Reservoir larger than Manhattan planned to help Everglades Around South Florida's vast sugar cane fields, where turtles grow to the size of basketballs and alligators own the marsh, the silence of the swamp is broken by the sound of rumbling trucks and explosions. The earth-moving equipment and high explosives are laying the foundation for a mammoth construction project: a reservoir bigger than Manhattan designed to revive the ecosystem of the once-famed River of Grass. More than a century after the first homes and farms took shape in the Everglades, decades of flood-control projects have left the region parched and near ecological collapse. Now crews are building what will be the world's largest aboveground manmade reservoir to restore some natural water flow to the wetlands. The reservoir, estimated to cost up to $800 million, is the largest and most expensive part of a sweeping state and federal restoration effort. Most man-made reservoirs are built in canyons or valleys and use a natural water source such as a river to fill in behind a dam. This one will stand on its own, contained within earth-and-concrete walls much like an aboveground swimming pool larger than many cities. Planners hope to eventually double its size....
BLM: Ranch likely to be drilled A local rancher’s bid to protect most of his largely undeveloped land south of Collbran from natural gas drilling likely has failed, according to the Bureau of Land Management. Protests filed with the federal agency have failed to persuade the BLM to remove a 2,060-acre subsurface parcel from an upcoming lease sale, according to agency spokesman Jim Sample. “Yes, it’s still in the sale,” Sample said Monday. “It wasn’t deferred.” The parcel, underneath the Parker Basin Ranch, south of Collbran along 58 Road, is one of 49 federal tracts, totaling 31,430 acres, up for auction Thursday at the BLM’s Lakewood office. Sample said there is a slight chance the parcel could be removed from the sale at the last minute. Robert Lapsley, owner of the Parker Basin Ranch, said he was disappointed to hear the BLM plans to open up part of his more than 3,300-acre ranch to natural gas development. “The areas that they are talking about drilling is a calving area for the local elk herd,” Lapsley said. “Personally I just think they could find something better (to develop).” Lapsley, a California-based developer who has been visiting the area his entire life, said he purchased the ranch in June and placed nearly all of the land in a conservation easement....
3 states head to court to keep control over wolves Three states are defending their ability to sustain a gray wolf population in the Northern Rockies, asking to be heard in a federal lawsuit that seeks to return the wolves to the endangered species list. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decided to remove the gray wolf from the list in March, saying the species had recovered from near-extermination in the region. That transferred wolf management to Idaho, Wyoming and Montana, which are planning what would be the first public hunts in decades. The lawsuit filed last week by 12 environmental and animal rights groups seeks to block the hunts, but the three states that filed paperwork with the court Monday and Tuesday hope to fend off the litigation so the hunts can proceed. Officials from the states said Tuesday that they can be trusted to sustain wolves without federal oversight. The hunts, they said, are needed in part to control wolf packs that have been killing an increasing number of livestock....
Predator control looks a lot different on the ground The extremists who are on a mission to eliminate the Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services would do well to spend time with ranchers who live and work on our Western landscape. There, they might gain an on-the-ground perspective other than their narrowly defined agenda. As the old Greek shepherds -- echoing the ancient Greek philosophers -- say, “Everything in moderation.” Yet the campaign to end Wildlife Services is anything but moderate; it’s fraught with melodrama and spin-doctoring. Since biblical times, domestic livestock and crops have needed protection from predators and scavengers. Domestic livestock and agriculture have enabled mankind to explore and establish settlements, and have played a major role in providing the comforts we expect today. These days, though, most Americans are several generations removed from production agriculture, and most don’t realize what’s required to put a meal on their table. Wildlife Services fulfills a critical role in protecting American agriculture, yet it is portrayed by extremists as “slaughtering and persecuting” wildlife. It’s true that Wildlife Services kills over a million animals a year, but the vast majority are birds that cause crop and feedlot damage. Is this an unpleasant thought? Of course, but is it necessary? Yes. Does Wildlife Services kill native carnivores? Yes, but is it necessary? Yes. Does it harm the viability of the overall wildlife population? Biologists will tell you it absolutely does not. Do you want your home occupied by mice, or it is all right to kill them?....
New state law rewards water right holders who conserve New legislation now offers Colorado water- right holders added protection if they lease or donate water rights to the Colorado Water Conservation Board for nonconsumptive purposes. House Bill 1280, sponsored by Fort Collins Democrat Rep. Randy Fischer, made its way downstream and onto Gov. Bill Ritter's desk last month where it was signed into law. Conservationists are trumpeting the bill as a good fix to existing state law that allowed water rights to be donated or leased for conservation purposes but didn't protect the rights during the lease time. In Colorado, a water right is partially defined by historic uses, which change and can be considered "abandoned" if the water holder doesn't use it for long periods of time. "For too long, ranchers and farmers could lose their water rights if they didn't use all the water they were given annually," Fischer said. "We live in a large, dry Western state that's susceptible to drought, and it's time we reward - not punish - those who conserve. This legislation gives landowners an important incentive to turn off the tap."....
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a … tree? With the ski season over, it's now time for someone else to get air on Bald Mountain. If all goes to plan, Sun Valley Co. will begin flying cut trees off Baldy's slopes on Monday, May 12, according to Joe Miczulski, winter sports specialist for the U.S. Forest Service's Ketchum Ranger District. The trees will be flown whole, with limbs still attached, and dropped off at the River Run parking lot. The project, which will clear the trees already cut to create the line for the new Roundhouse Gondola, is expected to take between two and three days to complete. To ensure public safety, Sun Valley Co. is working with local law enforcement to detour traffic and trail users around portions of roads and the Wood River Trail that will be under the helicopter's flight path....
Chasing sheds Snow falls on a string of 115 pickup trucks parked at the north end of the National Elk Refuge early Thursday morning. The men who slept in the trucks the night before cook eggs on camp stoves and sip coffee from tin cups like cowboys. They reminisce about the raucous night with newfound friends who have lived in the trucks in front of and behind them for the last night or two or three. In less than an hour, the caravan will lurch forward and snake through the refuge to the Bridger-Teton National Forest, where the men will hunt for antlers discarded by elk who wintered on the refuge or nearby. Lucky hunters will find dead elk near the creek and carry whole heads, complete with ivory canine teeth and full racks, back to their trucks. Three guys from Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, swear they were the first in town Monday night. They’ve been sleeping in their trucks since then. You have to come early to get a good spot in line, said Keith Jackson, 24. And a position at the front can make all the difference. If you’re in the rear, the other guys will scoop up all the antlers before you get there. Elk refuge officials allow antler hunters to start lining up on the refuge at 8 a.m. the day before the hunt....
Feds OK land use for 500-mile endurance race Federal land managers have given the go-ahead for Primal Quest Montana, a 500-mile adventure-endurance race beginning in late June. Competitors will traverse southwestern Montana mountain peaks, rivers and backcountry by foot, mountain bike and boat. The event runs day and night and could include as many as 90 four-person teams. The race will start June 23rd at Big Sky Resort, and conclude back in Big Sky on July 2nd. In between, the teams will cross the Tobacco Root, Madison, Gallatin, Bridger, Bangtail and Crazy mountains and will race on the Yellowstone and Gallatin rivers. The race ran into a few complications early in the planning stages when the federal land agencies outlined the race route, which would have spoiled the need for on-the-spot navigation skills during the race. But the route has since been amended and the integrity of that aspect of the race preserved, Primal Quest director Don Mann told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle in a story Monday....
It's All Trew: Early settlers threw mega-wedding There was a time in Texas history when our grand state still belonged to Mexico, where the law required all Colonists to adopt the Catholic faith to become Mexican citizens. Plus, you had to be a bonafide Mexican citizen to own land and, of course, all Colonists wanted to own land. Complicating the problem, only marriages performed by a Catholic priest were recognized. The remoteness of the frontier left few if any priests available. Not to be constrained by technicalities, a process was adopted whereby couples could be bonded. They merely signed an agreement to be married by a priest at the first opportunity and meanwhile could live as legally wedded couples. Passion triumphed again. As time passed there were a lot of children born, many bonded "pregnant" wives, a few couples who decided to "unbond" by splitting the sheet and tearing up the agreement and going on about their way in the singular. Finally a priest arrived in the area to rescue the bonded colonists from "heresy and infidelity" and to baptize the children. Now, if you haven't attended a Catholic wedding recently, it takes awhile. Also, entertainment and fun was hard to come by on the frontier. This opportunity was too good to pass up. The priest was overwhelmed by the number of couples needing his services and decided to marry them in groups of six. Not only were the number of waiting couples astonishing, there were swarms of unbaptized children running wild up and down the creeks....