Friday, 15 Oct 2004

Frog and Toad Are Dead

One-third of amphibians threatened with extinction

If it is true that amphibians are, as Conservation International's Russell Mittermeier puts it, "one of nature's best indicators of overall environmental health," then we are all in big trouble, because amphibians are having a seriously rough time of it. According to a massive new worldwide study involving more than 500 scientists from over 60 countries, published today in the journal Science, up to 122 species of amphibian have gone extinct since 1980, and up to a third of known remaining species may be rapidly nearing that same fate. "This has taken the scientific world completely by surprise," said survey leader Simon Stuart. While air and water pollution, habitat loss, overharvesting for food and medicine, and a fungal disease called chytridiomycosis, which may be worsened by climate change, all play a role in the decline of various species, biologists are still baffled by the extent of amphibian disappearances. They speak of some species experiencing "enigmatic decline," and they're at a loss for how to help them.

Oh Brother, Where Art ... Oh, There You Are

Jeb Bush borrows money to accelerate Everglades plan

President Bush has made much of his devotion to wetlands, even vowing during the second debate to "increase the wetlands by 3 million." Three whole million! But the nation's biggest environmental initiative -- signed into law in 2000 and aimed at restoring Florida's most beloved wetlands, the Everglades -- is moving at a snail's pace, say critics. In an election year, that won't do, so brother Jeb Bush, governor of Florida, is stepping in for an assist: Yesterday, flanked by high-ranking (George) Bush administration officials, he announced a plan to borrow money -- something he had previously opposed -- to pour $1.5 billion of state funds into a plan called "Acceler8," which will jumpstart the lagging program to restore the Florida Everglades. The program is hugely popular in Florida, a swing state that (George) Bush won by a razor-thin margin in 2000. Enviro groups begrudgingly welcomed the plan, though they expressed reservations that it was developed behind closed doors and left open the possibility that the state could weaken important regulations. Still, said April Gromnicki of Audubon of Florida, "These are a lot of the things that the environmental community has been asking for."

Ross 'n' Roll

Marc Ross chats about greening the music scene and more

Marc Ross, founder of Rock the Earth, struck a chord with our music-loving readers. Despite his oft-mentioned fondness for "jam bands," not a single reader question for Ross included the phrase "dirty hippie"! And we salute you for that. Instead, you inquired about future concerts, fundraising techniques, bands he's working with, the strange reluctance of enviro groups to work with one another, and much more. Ross lays down a few riffs in response -- in InterActivist, only on the Grist Magazine website.

Potomac Daddies

Male bass in Potomac River laying eggs

Male bass in the South Branch of the Potomac River in West Virginia are laying eggs. This is not behavior that people in the know typically expect from male bass. While researchers assume that pollutants of some sort are responsible, this particular stretch of the Potomac does well on the usual water-quality tests. "It's counterintuitive to think we would have this type of problem out there," said Patrick Campbell of the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection. The culprit may be "emerging contaminants" -- caffeine, hormones, prescription drugs, endocrine disruptors -- that are not typically tested for, either in river water or drinking water. The U.S. EPA has set no standards for these pollutants, saying more research is necessary. Scientists have only recently developed equipment sensitive enough to detect them. Says researcher Vicki S. Blazer, "We really don't know what's going on."

Dustup in the Wind

Proposed wind farms spark controversy in Kansas

It seems that controversy over wind turbines -- a common feature of the European political landscape -- has crossed the Atlantic and headed for the American heartland. In the Flint Hills of eastern Kansas, farmers and ranchers are organizing to ward off plans by wind developers to build dozens of turbines on the untilled prairie. The issue has divided environmentalists. Some groups, like the local branch of The Nature Conservancy, argue that the turbines would despoil the landscape and harm wildlife. Others, including the Kansas chapter of the Sierra Club, point out that large wind turbines -- each of which can produce a megawatt or more of energy a year, enough to power 300 to 400 houses -- reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil, and that turbines are benign relative to almost any other energy source. Many Kansas state officials welcome the onrush of development in a state where almost half of the counties lost population during the 1990s and the farm economy is not sustaining the working class. Time will tell if they can overcome resistance from ranchers who like their views free of revolving blades.