Talking climate and the state of the Bay at Hampton Bay Days

Bay

At Hampton Bay Days this past weekend, the high-jumping Dock Dogs weren’t the only ones who made a splash! Thanks to all our local volunteers, CCAN had two great days of outreach promoting clean energy and enlisting the help of festival-goers to bring clean energy to Virginia! As the only organization educating the public on the impacts of climate change to the Chesapeake Bay region, it was a perfect opportunity to talk about how to move clean energy away from fossil fuels and toward renewable solar and wind power for the sake of our waterways and our coast.

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Preparing for Climate Change: A Tale of Two States, Maryland and Virginia [Cross-posted from NRDC]

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Ben Chou posted this great piece earlier today on the NRDC’s Switchboard blog – follow the link below to head on over and check out the full article.

Preparing for Climate Change: A Tale of Two States, Maryland and Virginia

Although separated by only the Potomac River, the District of Columbia, and parts of West Virginia, the states of Maryland and Virginia could not be farther apart when it comes to preparing for climate change. According to a new NRDC report released today, Ready or Not, Maryland is among the states doing the most to prepare for climate change while Virginia is among 29 states that are far behind in their planning efforts. [Click here to read the rest.]

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LTE: One step forward, two steps back for Bay project

The following letter to the editor, written by CCAN fellow Justin Klecha, was printed in the Culpeper Star-Exponent on June 30th. Read more about CCAN’s summer fellows in our June-July newsletter (written right before Justin began). Congrats, Justin!

One step forward, two steps back for Bay project
Justin Klecha, Fredericksburg
June 30, 2010

Culpeper, along with other municipalities across our state, has or is implementing cleaner wastewater technologies in an effort to reduce pollution. The June 25 article, “Cleaner Wastewater,” laid out the details of the improved treatment facilities in Culpeper, stating that the town has “modernized and sanitized its wastewater treatment process for the sake of the health of the Chesapeake Bay.”

One step forward!

While at the same time REC’s parent electric cooperative is proposing a $6 billion dollar coal plant just 35 miles from the Chesapeake Bay.

If built it would be the largest coal plant in Virginia producing massive amounts of pollutants, such as mercury, lead and carbon-dioxide, which would undermine projects like the one in Culpeper.

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Chesapeake Bay: Speak of the Devil

Cross-Posted from: here

**These views are my own and not CCAN**

I have a column out today about how despite the fact that every elected official in Maryland talks about the need for saving the Chesapeake Bay, the policies we have been passing(and not passing) are contradictory. A lot of these issues such as highway construction over mass transit and unchecked growth are interconnected with our dependency on fossil fuels and our contribution to global warming. This is one of my harsher columns, but called for in my opinion. Sources are at the bottom.

Chesapeake Bay: Speake of the devil

MATT DERNOGA

Issue date: 7/9/09

Save the Bay! No really, I mean it. Back in 1987, federal and state officials set a target to finish restoring the Chesapeake Bay by 2000, whose value 20 years ago was pegged at $678 billion by University of Maryland economists. Inflation alone would push that value over a trillion dollars. Maybe we were counting on 2000 being the end of the world, but when computers failed to take over and clean the bay themselves, we were forced to set a target of 2010. Whoops. Continue reading

Jellyfish Burger: the delicious new global warming snack of champions

One of the bonus side effects of global warming is that warming water is super hospitable to jellyfish. This will have impacts in the Chesapeake Bay as well – more open seas as marsh lands floods, along with warmer temperatures and dead zones caused by algae blooms all mean more jellyfish.

The fate of the crab cake sandwich that you love so much? Well, since blue crabs are in trouble due to loss of habitat, we’re going to have to replace them with the squishier and potentially less delicious jellyfish burger, like this one,

Chesapeake Bay Program says Bay will rise 2.3 ft

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Letter from from Skip Stiles, Wetlands Watch

The federal Chesapeake Bay Program yesterday released a study on climate change impacts on the Chesapeake Bay that summarizes our best estimates of climate change impacts up to 2100. The paper is solid and has undergone complete peer review – and is being issued by the federal government.

The conclusions are sobering. Fully slamming on the brakes in our green house gas emissions gives us a minimum 2.3 foot relative sea level rise by 2100. When Wetlands Watch first warned Governor Kaine about the impacts of sea level rise in a letter to Kaine in May of last year best estimates of sea level rise started at around 1.5 – 2 feet. Every time we take a closer look we unfortunately get higher estimates.

More troubling are the temperature increases predicted – nearly another 2 degrees C. This warming will force major habitat shifts and produce impacts such as the inability of eel grass to survive in much of a warmer Chesapeake Bay.

This is a clear warning call that we need to 1) dramatically reduce emissions and 2) begin adaptation planning today for the sea level rise and other impacts. With the Governor’s Climate Change Commission starting its final work on its report, there is an opportunity to have an impact there. As well, many local governments are undertaking revisions of their comprehensive land use plans – which include consideration of the natural resource base of the locality. Every one of those plans should include consideration of these coming changes.

Skip

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Skip Stiles
Executive Director
Wetlands Watch

Virginia beaches vs. political will

Washington Post reporter, David Fahrenthold, writes about a new report by the National Wildlife Federation in the news today. It paints a shockingly stark picture of the fate of our beloved beaches thanks to global warming–that the region could lose more than half of the beaches along its ocean coasts. Fifty-eight percent of the region’s beaches could completely disappear due to sea level rise caused by global warming. Read the report summary here>>

This report comes out as we enter into a new phase of our campaign to stop the coal-burning plant in Wise County. Kaine is about to appoint two new members of the Air Board, a body which reviews permits for polluting facilities. There are no requirements for appointment; merely that a “significant portion of their income within the previous two years” not come from the businesses they regulate. ”The term Continue reading

We're jumping in the Bay tomorrow!

blogad_find.pngAnd it’s gonna be cold. And wet probably. But definitely worth it. This’ll be my third year in a row taking the plunge. I get nervous the night before each plunge. So far, though, I’ve managed to come out okay. Having other people plunging in with you really makes a difference. And this year, with over 200 people jumping and twice that much expected, I’ll have lots of company.

PJ Park from Mt. Rainer is going to be there. He and two others will be arriving by bike – 32 miles there and 32 miles back.

If you’re not up for riding your bike to Annapolis, but would like to cut down on your carbon footprint, why not consider carpooling. Check out our carpool message board here.

And finally, here are the details one more time:

WHO: Chesapeake Climate Action Network

WHAT: Third Annual Polar Bear Plunge

WHEN:December 8, 2007, 11 am

WHERE: Chesapeake Bay Foundation Merrill Center, 6 Herndon Rd., Annapolis, MD. Map.

LEARN MORE: www.keepwintercold.org

SPEAKERS:

Will Baker – President, Chesapeake Bay Foundation

Delegate Bill Bronrott – House of Delegates, Montgomery County

Mike Tidwell- Director, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, and more