Paint It Black

If the US achieves the goal set by the Biden administration of carbon-free electrical generation by 2035, wind turbines will play a large role. Although wind farms do not emit greenhouse gases, they have a serious drawback.  They kill an estimated 140,000 to 675,000 birds per year.  Turbine blades spinning at 150 mph are difficult for birds to detect. They appear as a blur, not a solid object, that birds interpret as something they can fly through, like a cloud.  

There may be a simple solution to what seems a difficult problem.  In 2003 the Renewable Energy Laboratory published results of a lab study of American Kestrels that suggested painting a single blade black would be enough to protect birds from what is known as "motion smear".  The report recommended testing the. possible solution in the field.  A science team in Norway adopted the suggestion.  They studied avian fatalities at a small wind farm on Smøla island.  Their study showed a 72% reduction in fatalities.  The study was small scale, but it was enough to ignite interest in the United States,

Pacific Corp. owns large wind farms.  It has paid millions in fines under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for killing protected species including 38 Golden Eagles at Glenrock/Rolling Hills and another site in Wyoming.  So it is interested in painting some of its turbine blades black.  This summer it will paint one turbine blade on each of 36 turbines, while the other 100 or so remain unaltered in a large scale test of the idea,  Two other utility companies are partners in the project along with the Oregon State University and the non-profit Renewable Energy Wildlife Institute.  Similar studies are occurring in the Netherlands and South Africa,

Energy companies may seek protection from penalties by voluntarily adopting safer technologies and practices by applying for permits and credits under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.  The process has recently been streamlined and application fees reduced to encourage more companies to participate in the program.  Clean energy and conserving wildlife is the way forward from here. 

Another Blow Against the Administrative State

Conservative justices struck down a decades old precedent known as the Chevron Doctrine that deferred to agencies when they used their expertise in administrating regulatory laws in situations where statutory law is not clear or absent. The decision is a major blow to agencies like the EPA, FDA and DOE.  Liberal justices were in dissent, saying that the ruling was yet another example of conservatives rolling back agency authority. The case before the court involved a fee paid by fisherman for government observers on their boats who track the catch sizes.  

Forty years ago the Court ruled 6-0 that agencies could use their subject matter expertise in administration to which judges should defer. Justice John Paul Stevens wrote for the majority that,“Judges are not experts in the field, and are not part of either political branch of government,” Lower courts continued to cite the doctrine (18,000+ times), but the Supreme Court had not cited it since 2016. All of the conservative justices have questioned the doctrine and were joined in their decision by Amy Coney Barrett. Opponents argued that the doctrine has become a rubber stamp for judges reviewing agency actions.  

Fishermen hailed the decision as protecting their livelihoods. The fee imposed beginning in 2020 could have topped $700 a day, but it was never enforced, Environmental, health advocacy groups, civil rights organizations, organized labor and Democrats on the national and state level had urged the Court to leave the Chevron decision in place.  This current conservative majority will continue its assault on the normal functioning of our national government.

ADVANCE Into Dystopia

Despite adverse economics or perhaps because of them the Senate passed the ADVANCE Act, another massive subsidy of the decrepit nuclear power industry. Biden is expected to sign the bill into law. The truth is that alternative energy sources are cheaper than the power generated by nuclear fission. Every day California goes 100% renewable power for hours at a time, and in Texas so much wind power is being generated that electricity is given away at night.  

The four US nuclear power plants being built this century are in trouble because of skyrocketing costs.  Two in South Carolina were abandoned after construction costs spiraled out-of-control to $9 billion; the two Vogtle plants in Georgia are a $35 billion fiasco.  For the first time since 1954 no new large, nuclear plants are being built in the United States.  The hyped miracle tech that would save the industry, small modular reactors (SMRs), are already too costly to compete with alternative energy, and the first development [illustration: NuScale mock up] is over budget and behind schedule. NuScale's SMR lacks utility buyers due to cost concerns. There are no large reactors being built in the US since 1954, the beginning of commercial nuclear power in this country.  If Diablo Canyon in California is allowed to continue operating past its expiration date, its electricity would be $8-12 billion over market price through 2030.

This situation did not stop Congress, which seems enthralled by passing legislation with acronymic titles  regardless of merit.  Only two senators voted against this bill, Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Ed Markey (D-MA).  The Accelerated Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy will relax the regulation process for licensing new reactors, allow foreign ownership in the US, and reduce licensing fees.  Nuclear opponents see the legislation as the biggest push in thirty-five years on behalf of an industry that has failed to materialize its promise to generate electricity "too cheap to meter".  Industry propaganda  attempts to portray nuclear power as the answer to the climate crisis.  The industry is neither clean nor without negative environmental impacts. The US has yet to solve the problem of highly radioactive waste disposal.  The 90 page bill was inserted into a must-pass wildfire grants bill of three pages--typical behavior for nuclear power hucksters in Congress, like Shelly Capito (R-WV), ranking member of the Senate Environment and Public Works committee.

A spokesperson for the Union of Concerned Scientists said, “Passage of this legislation will only increase the danger to people already living downwind of nuclear facilities from a severe accident or terrorist attack, and it will make it even more difficult for communities to prevent risky, experimental reactors from being sited in their midst...This is not about making the reactor licensing process more efficient, but about weakening safety and security oversight across the board, a longstanding industry goal. The change to the NRC’s mission effectively directs the agency to enforce only the bare minimum level of regulation at every facility it oversees across the United States.”

In US Person's opinion, the only miracle associated with commercial nuclear power in the US is that only one reactor, Three Mile Island, has melted down in a half century of operation.  

The Largest Migration on Earth

The migration of 2 million animals across Tanzania and Kenya was often cited as the largest migration of mammals on Earth.  But that title has been eclipsed by the six million antelope that have crossed Southern Sudan from Boma to Badingilo National Parks.  African Parks, an NGO that manages wildlife parks for governments not able or willing to do so on their own used specially outfitted aircraft to make a more accurate count of antelopes making the journey.  The migration dwarfs the "Great Migration" of the Serengeti and the North Slope migration of caribou in Alaska, which is the world's longest migration at 2,000 miles. 

These animals have endured an epic survival through decades of drought and civil war.  In 2007 the count was 1.3 million antelope. But using aerial photography that took pictures every 2 seconds, 330,000 photographs were produced. The aircraft covered 122,774 square kilometers including some areas that had never been previously surveyed. The work was a challenge requiring dedication and aviation skills of a high calibre. Using software at the University of Juba, graduate student were able to calculate the astounding six million figure that amazed astounded wildlife experts. The country's president said that Sudan is committed to developing its wildlife assets into a sustainable tourism industry.

The survey counted 5 million white eared mob, 300,000 ting, 350 Mongalla gazelles, and 160,000 bohor reedbuck making it the largest quadruped migration on Earth by far.  Zambia's ten million-strong fruit bat migration is the largest of any mammal migration. This Great Nile Migration is a year-round movement of animals from the southwest to the northeast passing into Ethiopia and back again.  The movement is probably driven by the availability of good grazing.  The region is also home to numerous people, some of whom live off the land and depend on the migration for sustenance.  Sudan is not safe for tourism at the present time, but efforts can begin to protect this amazing remnant of Earth's superabundant wildlife from destruction by man.

COTW: Where Democracy Dies

Yeah, it's rigged, but not how Lil' Duche claims.  The Founders, a white men's group of wealthy land-owners, deliberately skewed representation in Congress towards small, rural states in a series of compromises.  The Articles of Confederation were criticized as too egalitarian, but to appease small states, each one was to be represented by two senators regardless of population.  This arrangement over time becomes increasingly inequitable [chart above].  The chamber's procedural rules (e.g. the filibuster) also favor minority rule.  A Wyoming voter now has the 3.7 times the influence of a voter in California!  

Because of the Electoral College system of voting--also installed by the Founders to increase the influence of rural voters--seven swing states with large numbers of white conservatives decide a presidential election. In twenty years, white people will no longer be in the majority.  This unequal representation is also the reason Don the Con was nearly able to thwart the popular vote winner, Joe Biden.  There is definitely something wrong with a politcal system in which legacy billionaires* can pay to install a minority president into office.  We need a popular vote for president to counterbalance congressional inequity and Supreme Court corruption.

*Timothy Mellon, heir to the Mellon banking fortune, donated $50 million to a Trump superpac, MAGA Inc.  Billionaires see the Democratic Party as more of a threat to capitalism than Trump is to democracy.

Thy name is Greed!

TWIT: The Revengers

What was once known as the Republican Party now exists only as a rump party eclipsed by the extremist, neo-fascist MAGA cult.  They have promised vengeance on their political opponents for convicting their leader of multiple felonies.  This is not just vitriol--they mean it, just as did their Nazi forerunners in Germany. Jews were not the only ones persecuted by the Nazis, so were Communists, Socialists, and other leftists, Catholics, and liberal politicians who stood in their way of seizing power. They fought in the streets and in the Reichstag. The Weimar Republic crumbled under the Nazi onslaught.

Joe Biden has warned us, but it remains unclear if his warning will be headed by a disaffected electorate.   He pointed out at his Los Angeles rally that Trumpilini could appoint two more Supreme Court Justices, to replace Alito and Thomas which would cement MAGA control for the next forty years.  American democracy would be rendered unrecognizable.   It seems that a large segment of the 'Merican electorate is OK with that.

The MAGA cult has managed to block three out of four criminal prosecutions prior to the election, which is no mean feat. Conservative appellate courts in Colorado, Illinois, and Maine reinstated him to the ballot after being removed for violating the 14th Amendment insurrection clause. Democracy's one successful prosecution is not enough to stop the delusional MAGA horde since 'Merica has long surrounded prominent criminals with romantic halos--think of Jesse James, John Dillinger, Clyde Barrow, OJ Simpson, and John Gotti [above]. There are numerous other examples. 

Don the Con will portray his conviction and possible incarceration as a badge of honor. Hitler used the same tactic when he was imprisoned for the Beer Hall Putsch of 1923. While charged with high treason and sentenced to five years he spent only nine months in Landsberg prison where he wrote Volume One of his manifesto, Mein Kampf, which the Ochre Menace has never read*. Hitler declared he would ignore his conviction because the "Eternal Court of History" would acquit him. Sound familiar?  You decide.

credit: M. Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
BC Idonwanna sez: Stormy was accurate!

* Trump has no coherent politico manifesto other than self-enrichment under the guise of right-wing populism. His few policy proposals range from authoritarian to ridiculous.  His economic policy suggestion of replacing the federal income tax with tariffs is positively out-of-bounds.  To replace tax revenue, tariffs on imported goods would have to skyrocket to over 100% causing hyperinflation, unemployment, and retaliation against imported US goods. Such a proposal would exceed the economic harm that was caused by the Smoot-Hawley tariffs of 1930.

Buenos Aires Zoo Becomes Ecological Reserve

Buenos Aires closed its cramped, aging zoo in 2016. Public opinion had turned against exhibiting animals for amusement and profit. The mayor of the city said zoo conditions were "degrading for the animals." Now the former zoo has become a biological reserve in the heart of the city. The transformation began with the relocation of more than a 1,000 animals to wildlife reserves around the world.  Only a few older animals that cannot be relocated remain: two older elephants, two hippos, a pair of geriatric giraffes, and an arthritic camel.  They all receive specialized care from their captors such as acupuncture for the camel and podiatry sessions for the elephants.

The park's goal has changed from profit-making to education and conservation of species.  The zoo's baboon house has been renovated into a state-of-the-art wildlife hospital that cares for injured animals from all over Argentina. It also houses the largest gene bank in South America where genetic material from 120 species is stored in cryogenic suspension. Some of the older, listed building are also being restored.  But the transformation from zoo to ark was not without setbacks.  119 animals died after the zoo closed its doors to the public, primarily from lack of care and old age. Visitors are allowed to visit the eco- park, but are limited to 2,000 per day to reduce stress on the remaining captives. [photo credit: Getty Images]

conservation of vulnerable tapirs

Ecoparque runs a dozen conservation programs including one seeking to bring back red and green macaws,Ara chloropterus,from near extinction in Argentina.  Andean condors are also benefiting from the park's operation; in cooperation with Fundación Bioandina 240 condors were released to the wild.  An endangered frog, decimated by introduced trout, has been aided by the breeding and releasing 2,330 vacheta frogs that are endemic to thermal springs of Vacheta creek. The park's activities extend down the tree of life to snails that are imperiled by a parasite that causes infertility.  Several tanks now replicate the conditions needed for the snails to reproduce. Programs such as these have earned the trust of the public and conservation organizations that see the Ecoparque as a partner in the campaign to save Earth's biodiversity. [photo credit: T. Cuesta]

Sacred White Buffalo Born in Yellowstone

Native Americans hold the birth of a white buffalo to be auspicious. Lakota legend says that in a time of deprivation and despair, White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared to a tribe member and presented a bundle and pipe. She taught the Indians how to pray and said the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area for food. She then departed, turning into a white buffalo calf. Lakotas say the appearance is an omen of change for the better. [photo credit: AP]

The Yellowstone bison heard is culled annually due to objections to the growth of the herd from Montana stock owners who fear the spread of disease from the wild animals. Last year about 1500 were removed. Tribes have turned to raising their own herds and their number is increasing. Currently about 20,000 are located on reservations. The Park has set a population target of 5,200 bison.

Before western expansion the plains were home to an estimated 60 million animals. A form of genocide was committed against them, reducing the species to the edge of extermination. But for the survival of a few captive herds, bison would have perished.  Visitors photographed the white bison calf being born on June 4th in the Lamar Valley. The calf is not an albino since it has black eyes, nose, and hoofs. An albino has pink eyes. The calf is a rare genetic mutation. A naming ceremony has already been held, and a celebration of the arrival is scheduled for June 26th.

TWIT: Felon at Large

credit: B. Day
Idonwanna: sez: Color me magenta!

Even for a privileged former presidential felon, the consequences of his new status are beginning to trickle in.  Don the Con apparently owns three handguns for which he has a NY permit.  Two have been surrendered in New York, and the third transported "lawfully" to Florida according to information supplied by the defendant.  Under federal law a felon cannot own a handgun, so Don the Con is in technical violation of another federal criminal statute.  

He has been interviewed by a New York probation officer, who undoubtably took note of the stray handgun.  US Person assumes that fact has been reported to appropriate Florida officials.  An indication of his special status as the first former president to be convicted of a felony is that he was interviewed by video link from comfortable Mar-a-Lago with the presence of his attorney.  These arrangements are not afforded the ordinary Joe.

Also at risk, and potentially more impactful, are Trump's New Jersey liquor licenses.  A felon is prohibited from holding a liquor license in New Jersey if his conviction involves a crime of "moral turpitude", which includes types of fraud.  Don the Con could minimize disruption of his profitable golf course liquor trade by transferring the licenses to a trusted associate, perhaps one of his sons.

Judge Cannon denied another Trump motion to dismiss his espionage and obstruction case.  She did however strike one paragraph of the indictment on grounds that it alleged irrelevant allegations concerning the revealing of classified information to a campaign aide at his Bedminster, NJ Golf Club.  One informed pundit, Popock, thinks this may finally constitute reversible error that would allow the Special Prosecutor to ask she be reversed for the third time and be reassigned from the case.  Jack Smith would argue that inclusion of the information in a "speaking indictment" is appropriate as "Rule 404 evidence" of defendant's state of mind, since it shows consciousness of the classified nature of the Afghanistan map he shared with a person not cleared to view it.  Trump has been consistently claiming that he mentally declassified national secrets without the necessary procedures being followed.  Prosecutor Smith only has one shot at removing Trump's judicial handmaiden, so he has to be sure the appeal grounds are solid.

Aileen Cannon continues to slow-walk the case by scheduling multiple hearings on motions that could be dispensed with an order, including removing Jack Smith for improper appointment. That question has already been decided by other federal courts. Given her scheduling orders, unreviewable by the 11th Circuit, it is highly unlikely this case will go to trial before the presidential election.

credit: Darków, Columbia Missourian

Iceland Renews Whaling

After suspending whaling in 2023 due to animal suffering concerns, Iceland's government has issued the Hvalur company a license to kill 128 fin whales, Balaenoptera physalus in the 2024 whaling season. The license is not renewable. The company asked for a 5 or 10 year license in its January application to the ministry of agriculture. This is the first time the ministry has only granted a license for one year, and the quota set is lower than it has been in the past. Hvalur is the only company licensed to hunt whales in Icelandic waters. A second application to hunt minke whales, Balaenoptera acutorostratais is under consideration.

Whaling in Iceland is hanging by an economic thread. It is dependent on exports to Asia where whale meat still has a shrinking following. Advocates say that the commercial season on whales violates the international moratorium on whaling established by the International Whaling Commission in 1982. Iceland is a member of that commission. A representative of the International Fund for Animal Welfare told interviewers that the decision to resume whaling by Minister Gunnarsdottir may reflect the fact that there is no current legal provision for ending whaling. A committee set up by the previous prime minister to review the legal basis for whaling in Iceland is schedule to meet in October.

Japan and Norway also continue to hunt whales. Japan announced it will be sending a huge "mother ship" to support its operations in the Southern Ocean, and has set a quota of 59 fin whales for the 2024 season.

Elephants Call Each Other by Name

Recent research suggests that elephants have special sounds for individual elephants, sounds which we call "names".  The calls are both infrasonic and sonic so humans can only hear part of the name, but special low frequency microphones have recorded the rumblings between elephants.  Here is a clip explaining the discovery. The elephants appear rusty red because they live in Kenya where the soil is reddish in color:

Energy Pig: Bitcoin

 

Nakamoto's Bitcoin consumes roughly the same amount of energy annually as Argentina and is going up.  Ostensibly, a  decentralized replacement for the dollar as a means of international exchange, it is incredibly costly in terms of energy consumed, which means more carbon emissions from combustion.  Its proof of work consensus algorithm requires massive computer banks called "rigs" to solve ever increasing large computations.  

"Miners" are competing for the relatively small rewards for solving a blockchain computation. This process requires huge amounts of energy because you have banks of computers all over the world trying to solve the same problem, and only one wins making it an enormous waste of resources. It takes upwards of ten minutes to complete a block. VISA, which is a virtually worldwide means of payment can process 1700 transactions a second compared to Bitcoin's 4. The catch is that VISA transactions are centralized and can be traced, Bitcoin's are anonymous making it a perfect choice for illicit commerce.  The majority of bitcoin mining occurs in the USA. Where in the US, you may ask? Why in Texas of course, because everything is bigger in Texas! According to the Energy Reliability Council of Texas miners are using as much energy as the city of Houston by 2023. In 2018 the city of Pittsburg imposed an eighteen moratorium on new crypto-mining after residential electric bills increased by up to $300.

TWIT: Wisconsin Indicts Trump Lawyers

credit: J. Cole
BC Idonwanna sez: Big Time!

Update: If the trial and conviction of Don the Con has taught 'Merica one thing it is that our system is corrupt.  The man is clearly guilty of numerous felonies related to election interference, the Jan 6th coup attempt, and pilfering national security secrets for his own benefit. Yet he is running for president again on the verge of defeating three out of four criminal prosecutions brought against him. Only one swing state, Georgia, has brought charges against the master criminal for the fake electors gambit, and that case has been quashed by a state legislature dominated by his mob. The cartoons indicate Trump's guilty verdict has produced millions in donations. The "Chosen One" is becoming a martyr to millions of his deluded supporters. And because we have only a two-party system based on an archaic voting system that can be manipulated, he has an illegitimate chance of winning the next election. In his deranged plan for revenge, the prosecutions will be suppressed, allowing him to escape accountability yet again.  For Evil is on his side.  To save democracy he must be stopped, not indulged. Unfriendly US Person believes that given the grave circumstances of his crimes he must be sentenced to some variety of incarceration, be it home confinement or a short stay at Rickers Island, NY under a longer suspended sentence. He is unlikely to actually serve time until his appeals are exhausted, putting a prison term beyond the November election.

Did the men who died in Europe eighty years ago fighting fascism die in vain? It takes more than congressional stunt jumps over Normandy to defend democracy. You decide.

More: The ludicrous federal judge, Aileen Cannon, is not bothering to hide her MAGA credentials in her latest order setting oral arguments on a frivolous motion to remove Jack Smith as Special Counsel based on his "illegal appointment". Not only that, she is allowing outside parties, including politcal partisans, to participate in the arguments before her.  Other federal district court judges have rejected argument of invalid appointments before.  Pundits have called her actions "outrageous", but they are accomplishing their purpose: to delay the case beyond the November election.  It is far past time for Smith to seek redress from the 11th Circuit and have her removed from the case. 

The Georgia racketeering case against Don the Con was stayed by a Georgia appellate court on Wednesday.  District Attorney Fani Willis' future and her prosecution's fate will be decided by three judges appointed by Repugnant governors.  That decision makes the MAGA mob 3 for 4 in derailing the criminal cases against Don the Con.

Breaking: Wisconsin was one of the swing states that the Trump mob targeted in its fake elector scheme.  Wisconsin's attorney general has indicted two former Trump lawyers and an aide with felony forgery:  Kenneth Cheeseboro, Jim Troupis and Mike Roman.  Both Cheeseboro and Troupis met with the Boss in the White House before the Jan 6th Insurrection where they discussed the plan to present alternative electors to Mike Pence who was to count the Electoral College votes in a joint session of Congress.  Their fake certifications were carried to Washington, DC by Roman, and theyactually made it to Pence's office, but his chief of staff refused to receive them.  These defendants are schedule to appear in court on September 19th to enter pleas.  The single felony charge is punishable by a maximum $10,000 fine and/or six years in prison.

Federal investigators have determined that the scheme to overturn the election results by corrupting the Electoral College process originated in Wisconsin.  However, the ten fake Wisconsin electors have not yet been criminally charged.  They were sued in a civil case that was settled out of court last year.  At least one 'alternative' elector has told the press he was deceived about the purpose of the certification.  Georgia, Michigan, Arizona and Nevada have also charged Trump electors with crimes related to the 2016 election.  All of theses states are again considered to be pivotal in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.

Another development in the  unfurling of the sordid coup attempt by Trump and his mob is a report by Pro Public revealing the extent of pay-offs to witnesses by Trump businesses and campaign organization. Nine witnesses in the criminal cases against Don the Con have received raises, severance packages, new jobs and shares in Trump media.  One witness had his monthly salary increased from $26,000 to $53,000 a month!  Another received a severance package worth $2 million, but also barred him from voluntarily cooperating with law enforcement. A top campaign official's daughter was hired to a position making her the fourth highest paid in the campaign.  These generous provisions can only be proved criminal if they were not in the ordinary course of business and intended to influence testimony.  Of course when asked by journalists about these benefits Trump's people denied any connection to his pending prosecutions. Pro Publica did not find any evidence that Don the Con was personally involved in the largess. But as with most everything in Trumpworld it looks shady to the unfriendly US Person

credit: D. Wright
Wackydoodle sez: Plenty more were that came from!

New Zealand's Walking Tree

This 32 meter northern rata tree, Metrosideros robusta, is named "Stride of New Zealand" for obvious reasons. It won the annual competition for New Zealand's tree of the year. It has earned the moniker of "The Walking Tree" due to its resemblance to the sentient Ents of JRR Tolkien's fantasies [illustration below].  It began life as an epiphyte and eventually grew roots into that ground and enveloped the original host. Rata trees can survive for a thousand years.  This specimen has bee known since 1875 when settlers cleared the land, but left the tree standing in a Karamea field. Stride received more votes than another much-loved and photographed tree, a willow growing out of Lake Wānaka.  The competition celebrates the importance of trees in Kiwis' lives, and the stories surrounding these living legends.

Ratas are becoming rare on the island.  Three old ratas were uprooted by a regional council to make way for improvements to a flood control dike.  Another toppled due to high winds.  Given that their roots are not very strong, Stride could be next to go; it is not on the register of protected trees.  A local said he fears that Stride could be cut for firewood given its location on New Zealand's wilder west coast.  A development official said that 84% of the region's land is in a conservation zone. The competition winner was announced on June 5th, New Zealand's Arbor Day.

Okefenokee Swamp Spared Development

The Army Corps of Engineers reasserted jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act over a mining project on the edge of the wildlife refuge containing the freshwater swamp.  A federal court overturned a Trump regime rule change limiting the types of waterways covered under the Clean Water Act. A Corps memo issued on Friday said the agency was reversing its position on regulating the Twin Pine project and that new applications would have to be made. The project will require the consultation of the Muskogee Creek Nation before moving forward.

along the Red Tail water trail, credit: AP

Conservationists are concerned that the project will disturb the swamp rim that holds freshwater in a a shallow basin covering over 438,000 acres. Located in southeast Georgia it is home to numerous protected species and draws many visitors to experience the primal nature of the place. Senator John Ossoff (D Ga.) advocated for the protection of what he called, "one of Georgia's most precious lands". Du Pont proposed mining in the area two decades ago, but retreated after severe opposition to its project arose. Twin Pines wants to mine a fraction of the same acreage. In a statement to the press, the mining company said it was willing to comply with regulations affecting the land. The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is the largest east of the Mississippi River.

COTW: Hot Enough

source: EPA

In the USA deaths due to heat or heat contributing to death are increasing [chart above]. AP reports that more than 2300 people died of exposure to excessive heat in 2023, the highest number in 45 years.  Health experts think that number is only a fraction of deaths in which heat played a role. The same or higher rate of death can be expected in 2024 since May is already breaking heat records.  Almost three-quarters of heat related deaths have occurred in five southern states: Arizona (875), Texas (455), Nevada (226) Florida (84) and Louisiana (85).

Last year the United States experienced the most heat waves since 1936.  The record heat of 2023 killed more people than the heat waves experienced in 1980 and 1995.  Deaths are up due in part to shifts in population to cities, aging, and better reporting, but most experts think that climate change is playing the leading role.  A taste of the future? People living in 2040 may look back on cooler times in 2024.