Siena Heights professor proposes Lenawee County form environmental affairs commission

ADRIAN — A resident of Lenawee County and associate professor of biology at Siena Heights University is proposing that the county commission form an environmental affairs commission to deal with the effects of climate change. 

Thomas Wassmer sent his request to the county commission several weeks ago. It read: “As several other Michigan counties, Lenawee County should instate an Environmental Affairs Commission to coordinate the mitigation and adaptation of environmental affairs including air, water and soil pollution, effects of the climate crisis: heat waves, drought, flooding, erratic and unseasonal weather, increase of tropical diseases and disease vectors, climate-driven migration etc.” 

Read the whole story here: https://www.lenconnect.com/story/news/local/2021/06/25/professor-proposes-environmental-affairs-commission/5319209001/ 

It’s literally raining PFAS around the Great Lakes, say researchers - mlive.com

Forever chemicals are now even in the rain.

A late evening storm rolled through Cleveland on Wednesday night, May 26, 2021, and left a spectacular sunset behind.David Petkiewicz, cleveland.com

Full story: It’s literally raining PFAS around the Great Lakes, say researchers - mlive.com

Switzerland could ban all pesticides

In 14 days, Switzerland could become the first country in the world to ban ALL pesticides.

Swiss voters to cast ballots on pesticide-free farming | DW | 11.05.2021

Lifesaving tips on reopening the US (Opinion) - CNN

(CNN) Widespread vaccine coverage in the US is rapidly reducing new infections, illnesses and deaths from Covid-19. States and cities are quickly removing restrictions on business and leisure activities. Yet, while the public enjoys the return to normalcy, governments behind the scenes should be ramping up public health systems to guard against another possible wave and to build more competency for the inevitable next epidemic, whenever it may arise.

First, a note of warning. Newly confirmed cases in the US are now below 40,000 per day. This is down from the peak in January, when new cases reached over 300,000 per day. And daily cases continue to decline, even more rapidly. Yet, just before India's recent surge to over 400,000 cases per day, that country had reported just over 10,000 cases per day as recently as early March. It's a reminder that the Covid-19 epidemic can spread from very few cases to a devastating surge at a terrifying rate, in just a few weeks.

Full article: Lifesaving tips on reopening the US (Opinion) - CNN

Air pollution from animal-based food production is linked to 12,700 deaths each year, study says

(CNN)Air pollution from food production in the United States is linked to an estimated 15,900 premature deaths each year, according to a new study published Monday in the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

Full CNN article: https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/10/us/air-pollution-deaths-farming-agriculture/index.html

Tomorrow's Film at the Environmental Documentary Series: Kiss the Ground

Tomorrow, 5-May, The 11^th Environmental Documentary Series will show the documentary Kiss the Ground: https://kissthegroundmovie.com/ with a running time of about 80 minutes.

About the film: Narrated and featuring Woody Harrelson, Kiss the Ground is an inspiring and groundbreaking film that reveals the first viable solution to our climate crisis. Kiss the Ground reveals that, by regenerating the world’s soils, we can completely and rapidly stabilize Earth’s climate, restore lost ecosystems and create abundant food supplies. Using compelling graphics and visuals, along with striking NASA and NOAA footage, the film artfully illustrates how, by drawing down atmospheric carbon, soil is the missing piece of the climate puzzle. This movie is positioned to catalyze a movement to accomplish the impossible – to solve humanity’s greatest challenge, to balance the climate and secure our species future.

We will connect at 6:30 PM via Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83391076365?pwd=djZQa3hvQklncDlTdTdjbnBPdDcxdz09) and everybody will start the films soon after. After the films we will hold a discussion on Zoom.

Entire Schedule: Environmental Documentaries - SHU Sustainability

Speed at which world’s glaciers are melting has doubled in 20 years | Glaciers | The Guardian

Hope we get our acts together soon!

Glacier melt contributing more to sea-level rise than loss of Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, say experts

Portage glacier in Chugach National Forest in Alaska. The US state accounted for 25% of global glacier loss Photograph: Yereth Rosen/Reuters

Jonathan Watts and Niko Kommenda

Wed 28 Apr 2021 11.00 EDT

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The melting of the world’s glaciers has nearly doubled in speed over the past 20 years and contributes more to sea-level rise than either the Greenland or Antarctic ice sheets, according to the most comprehensive global study of ice rivers ever undertaken.

Scientists say human-driven global heating is behind the accelerating loss of high-altitude and high-latitude glaciers, which will affect coastal regions across the planet and create boom-and-bust flows of meltwater for the hundreds of millions of people who live downstream of these “natural water towers”.

Between 2000 and 2019, glaciers lost 267 gigatonnes (Gt) of ice per year, equivalent to 21% of sea-level rise, reveals a paper published in Nature. The authors said the mass loss was equivalent to submerging the surface of England under 2 metres of water every year.

This was 47% higher than the contribution of the melting ice sheet in Greenland and more than twice that from the ice sheet in Antarctica. As a cause of sea-level rise, glacier loss was second only to thermal expansion, which is prompted by higher ocean temperatures.

Continue reading at: Speed at which world’s glaciers are melting has doubled in 20 years | Glaciers | The Guardian