Tentative Optimism
We can adapt to fire on the landscape by changing our attitudes and practices. By combining the forces of federal, tribal, state, and local powers, we can fire harden our communities and prepare for future blazes.
Seafloor Mining Will Make Rich Countries Richer
Moon mining still falls under the “sci-fi” category. It is far more likely we will mine the ocean floor for manganese nodules. Billions of tonnes of ore (copper, cobalt, titanium, nickel, etc.) exist in four separate deposits spanning an area roughly 1 1/2 times the size of Europe. Although the International Seabed Authority has a mission to equitably divide these international natural resources to provide economic benefits to disenfranchised and marginalized countries, it is likely that rich countries will reap the benefits of manganese nodule mining.
Mine the Moon to Save the Seafloor!
Our cars have been powered with oil for roughly a century. Electric vehicles are powered with metals. The Democratic Republic of Congo has already been subjected to heinous human rights abuses during this mining frenzy, and many developers have turned their eye to the Pacific Ocean seafloor, between Hawaii and Mexico. Here, on the bottom of the ocean, lie huge deposits of manganese, nickel, cobalt, copper, and other metals we will need to decarbonize our economies and transportation sectors. But seafloor mining is moving swiftly, without proper environmental review and without a full understanding of feedback loops and unforeseen circumstances. It may be more prudent to mine the lifeless moon and spare the mysterious, life-filled ocean. The seafloor is, after all, the last bastion of untouched habitat.
Re-Examining “Wilderness” in the Era of Megafires
Planting trees for timber, failing to prescribe burn the forests, and suppressing all fires for more than a century are all examples of failed land management policies. By keeping humans out of “wilderness” we are causing more harm than good. We should be tending the garden, thinning our fuels, preserving what’s left of our forests. But how do we achieve such massive forest clearing if machines and semi-permanent human habitation are federally illegal in “wilderness”? Either our wilderness laws change to adapt with the times, or our culture has to change such that all plainclothes citizens are personally thinning the forests they call home in partnership with local organizations. So which will it be?
Toxic Cultural Biases Must Challenged. Toxic Norms Must Be Dismantled.
Outcomes of toxic cultural biases include: genocide, gun violence, abuse, trauma, overconsumption, depletion, destruction… History is not for the faint of heart. It’s crystal clear who, today, are the most violent perpetrators clinging to a broken, diseased status quo. (Spoiler: It’s the MAGA extremists threatening Civil War).
The Likelihood of Extreme Events is Increasing. Time for a Carbon Tax!
The die are loaded and extreme wildfires, rainfall events, and droughts will worsen with increasing frequency and magnitude. Let’s enact a carbon tax and call it an insurance policy in planet earth and a habitable future.
Accelerating Damages
Warming is accelerating, glaciers are collapsing, droughts, famines, and floods are worsening. Just another mass extinction unfolding in the long, storied, geologic history of Planet Earth.
SCOTUS Deals Multiple Death Blows to Birth-Givers and Life on Earth
The recent SCOTUS rulings have me worried for the future of all life on Earth. We should be working together to maximize life and well-being, rather than legislating the deaths of women, birth-givers, and all people susceptible to heat, drought, famine, floods, and fires.
Addressing Our Mutual Dangers
Our mutual dangers require us mutually labor toward widespread solutions. United we stand, divided we fall.
Econometrics Allow Us to Value What is Truly Priceless
We can estimate the value of clean air and water directly and indirectly, but all estimations and measurements fall far short of the true value of all of life on Earth.
Environmental Economics Part 1: The Tragedy of the Commons?
Environmental Economics seeks to put a dollar amount on environmental goods (clean air and water) and bads (pollution and contamination) so that we can quantify the costs and benefits that result from preserving or destroying nature. The current climate crisis is partly explained by the economic principle known as the Tragedy of the Commons, with one unique twist.
Defining Sustainability
Sustainability means meeting our needs today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. We are consuming resources and ecosystem services faster than they can be regenerated, and we are polluting our environment faster than nature can clean, filter, and dilute our waste. We have to change the way we consume, as well as the products we consume. Otherwise, we leave nothing for our offspring.
Community Gardens and Farmers Markets to the Rescue!
Industrialized agriculture comes at great ecological cost. We will foster more resilient communities if we grow as much of our own local food as possible. Let’s enjoy this desperately-needed, multi-day April rain and snow storm. Then, let’s tend our plants and vines.
Saying a Sad Farewell to the Grizzly and Salmon Glaciers of the Trinity Alps
The last two remaining glaciers in the Trinity Alps have melted. We still have photographs to remind us of the vast ecological diversity that once thrived in our hometown mountains.
There is No Shortage of Solutions to the Problems We All Face
There are a multitude of solutions, adaptation, and mitigations available to us as we tumble forward into an increasingly hot reality. Sustainability means meeting our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. We can act locally, regionally, and nationally to decrease vehicle miles traveled, conserve soil and nutrients, electrify the grid with renewable sources, and disuse poisonous chemicals in agriculture. Let’s get to work while we still have the time and resources to prepare.
It is NOT China’s NOR India’s Responsibility to Cut Emissions!
The U.S. is responsible for 24.56% of total, cumulative, global CO2 emissions. China, only 13.89%, India only 3.21%. It is petty, immature, and historically ignorant to demand, “China and India cut emissions first!” Change starts here, at home. The U.S. must be a leader, not a selfish brat.
The Sun’s the Limit!
The sun provides enough energy PER DAY to meet the world’s energy demand for a YEAR! Half of that energy is scattered by the atmosphere, and we’re limited by geography and the large quantities of materials we’ll need to mine, but it’s still feasible to maximize our solar potential. We just need to recycle our electronic waste and shift subsidies away from fossil fuel companies. Easy!
Energy: A Crash Course. Generation and Consumption.
Energy is the ability to do work. Fossil fuels are the “densest” energy form available, but they come at the high cost of all life on Earth. We have the opportunity to decarbonize our electrical grid. We have the obligation to future generations that we accomplish this quickly.
Welcome to Callie’s Climate Corner! The Civilian Climate Corps May Offer Us Hope for the Future.
The Civilian Conservation Corps transformed America during the Great Depression. It’s time to build a Civilian Climate Corps to once again overhaul our national infrastructure. It’s time to build back better.
Fact: CO2 is Rising Exponentially. And, New Beginnings for the Climate Corner.
Atmospheric CO2 concentrations are rising exponentially. To argue against this is to rage against reality. One cannot solve a problem one refuses to address. Also, this will be the final installation of Megan’s Climate Corner as I rebrand to “Callie’s Climate Corner”. It has a better ring to it and will offer me some distance as I attempt to syndicate the column.