I have spent the past 4 days battling the flu (and losing so far) so I could not make it to the Ways & Means hearing in Redmond yesterday. I was able to get off the couch this afternoon to submit the written comments below. You can as well using this email address: waysandmeans.budget@oregonlegislature.gov. As someone who serves on a state board where public comments are submitted I can tell you they make a difference. Don’t assume someone else will do it for you.Read More »
Category: Global Warming
Why Coral Reefs (and Kelp) Matter
Yet another study was released this week cataloging how badly the oceans are suffering from global warming, this time in the journal Nature. As is typical, it has a title that is not very accessible to the layman and does not express the urgency of the situation: “Marine heatwaves threaten global biodiversity and the provision of ecosystem services”. Unfortunately, scientists continue to believe that they need to appear dispassionate and analytical, which is welcome at times, but is also a failing approach when it comes to global warming. As this article expresses, it really is time to panic. (Nature also has an article that attempts to understand why scientists are so poor at communicating with laymen. It seems pretty obvious to me, just read the title of the article.)Read More »
Very Good News, but Weather is not Climate
Here’s the latest Oregon snow pack data. Obviously, this is extremely good news and a big turnaround from only a couple of weeks ago. A large snow pack combined with a cool spring will allow for a long, slow release of melt water into our aquifers, rivers, and lakes. This was highly unexpected but more than welcome news. Now let’s hope for a cool spring.Read More »
Global Warming’s Impact on Ocean Fisheries
I have written about global warming’s impact on the ocean off the coast of Oregon as well as on local steelhead and salmon populations. To put it mildly, warming, acidification, and oxygen deficiency have not been beneficial. At the same time, some far northern locations, close to the arctic, have seen record runs of some species. Bristol Bay is a good example. Here’s a report in the journal Science which helps quantify all this. The bottom line is that ocean fish populations are clearly declining overall due to global warming.
The Osprey and a Critique
The latest issue of The Osprey is now available. If you like to read scientific articles about steelhead and salmon conservation, mostly in the Pacific Northwest, then this is the journal for you. I encourage you to subscribe and help keep them going. This issue has a couple of articles that once again illustrate the peril facing anadromous fish in many PacNW river systems. It also contains an article on the lower Deschutes River which I found problematic. Read More »
Action in the Face of Hopelessness
“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function. One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless and yet be determined to make them otherwise.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald
This wonderful quote pretty much sums up why I am a committed fisheries and water activist. (I certainly don’t have a first-rate intelligence, but do believe that things look hopeless while nevertheless trying to do my part to make them otherwise.) I found this quote in the latest issue of Sierra Magazine which is dedicated to climate change. Of course, it paints a bleak picture if we don’t take serious action now.Read More »
Global Warming Local Impacts
350Deschutes is sponsoring a talk on global warming and local impacts. It will be held at Worthy Brewing next Thursday, January 24th, at 7 pm. You can sign up here. I will cover water and fish, here’s my presentation. Follow the sign up link to see other presenters. Come have a beer and ask questions.
