Unfortunately, focus on the development of other projects, soon to be launched, has necessitated a break from writing for this blog.

That will change by the end of this week, and Blue-Green Marble’s blog will return to full speed!

The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on a $76 billion Farm Bill at the end of July. In the bill’s current form less than 1% of the $76 billion in farm subsidies would go to organic farmers.

(To see the previous post on this bill visit this permalink. – Interested in who is getting all that money? We recommend you visit the Farm Subsidy Database.)

The Environmental Working Group’s Action Fund has created a petition asking Congress to include fair funding for organics in the Farm Bill. They aim to “level the playing field for organic farmers and expand access to safe, healthy organic food”. They’re seeking 30,000 signatures by July 15th, and, on July 17th, will deliver the petition to Congress to let them know that we want them to vote for organics.

This is important legislation and will have a large impact on organic farming. (Farm bills generally last 5 years.) It is especially significant to those farmers who are currently in the process of or considering transitioning to organic methods.

Please sign the petition! You can also help by spreading the word and inviting friends and family to sign as well. If so inclined, writing, e-mailing, or otherwise contacting your Congressman couldn’t hurt either!

buzz about the Farm Bill
Environmental Defense’s blog updates on the Farm Bill debates

Arnold Schwarzenegger traveled to London to visit Prime Minister Tony Blair this Tuesday on his last full day in office. The California governor praised Blair for having “proven to the world that you can do both… protect the Earth and protect the economy” during his time in office.

Blair had visited Schwarzenegger in late July of last year at a roundtable hosted by The Climate Group where they signed a groundbreaking agreement to form a partnership between California and the U.K. to aggressively address climate change and promote energy diversity.

That partnership specifically committed California and the United Kingdom to:

• evaluate and implement market-based mechanisms that spur innovation

• share results on ongoing and emerging studies to deepen understanding of the economics of climate change

• collaborate on technology research for clean energy, energy efficiency, and renewable energy technologies, as well as efforts to reduce emissions from the transportation sector including California’s emission standards and hydrogen highway and Britain’s renewable fuel standards and clean coal technologies.

• enhance coordination between their scientific communities.

Schwarzenegger claimed “international partnerships are needed in the fight against global warming and California has a responsibility and a profound role to play to protect not only our environment, but to be a world leader on this issue as well”. He had further stated that “California will not wait for our federal government to take strong action on global warming”.

Schwarzenegger also signed legislation last year creating the the nation’s first statewide cap on greenhouse gas emissions. California is the 12th biggest emitter of carbons in the world, despite leading the nation in energy efficiency standards and taking a lead role in protecting its environment.

Schwarzenegger says “It’s not us vs. Washington… We can show leadership.” and hopes his state’s moves will be an example for the federal government demonstrating that it can address environmental issues without damaging the economy.

A few weeks ago, at the G-8 (Group of Eight [industrialized nations]) a declaration on climate change was agreed upon outlining the basic principles for a new global deal on climate change. This represents a major step for the U.S. The G-8 is calling for global emissions reductions and has set a goal of 2050 for a 50% reduction, although no mandatory cuts have been agreed upon to date.

Blair credits Schwarzenegger with influencing President Bush’s decision to join in the declaration:
“The fact that the state of California was making such a determined effort and setting out a new direction on climate change – I think this played enormous part.”

Both Blair and Schwarzenegger point to an urgent need to replace the Kyoto Treaty, which expires in 2012 and which the U.S. had refused to sign, with a new international agreement which they say must significantly reduce emissions and be signed by the nations with the biggest emissions including China, the U.S., and India.

This Tuesday (June 19, 2007) Google announced that it awarded $1 million in grants and will be inviting applicants to apply for $10 million in funds to help develop plug-in type hybrid vehicles that get at least 70-100mpg. The grants are part of the RechargeIT Initiative being run by Google’s philanthropic arm, Google.org.

The project aims to impact climate change (one of Google.org’s three primary goals) by aiding the development of hybrid vehicles which would reduce our dependency on oil, reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions, and probably ultimately reduce consumers’ costs.

Google is seeking to accelerate not only the adoption of hybrid cars, but also the development and deployment of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technologies, which would help to stabilize the power grid. Basically, as such cars begin to use renewable sources of energy for power generation (such as solar energy), they will be able to sell back to power companies any excess electricity they produce, thus making the grid cleaner. Google is already implementing a solar program for its fleet of hybrids and planning to use it as a demonstration of the efficiency of such technology. Read more…

Two-thirds of global emissions come from energy consumption, therefore addressing the climate crisis requires radical changes in energy production. In the future, through V2G technology, fossil fuel consumption by vehicles and power plants may be significantly reduced or eliminated altogether. Such technology may solve the “problem” of, or significantly reduce the costs involved in, converting power plants to greener technologies. Read more…

Google will make a formal request for proposals (RFP) on their website later this summer for the $10 million worth of awards “for investment opportunities in companies and projects accelerating the commercialization of alternative transportation that reduces vehicle fossil fuel use and climate emissions”.

To see a list of recipients of the $1 million dollars in grants, go to http://www.google.org/recharge/partners.html.

The president of Ecuador, Rafeal Correa, declared yesterday (June 22, 2007) that the Galapagos are at high risk and should be considered a national conservation priority. He claims that the islands are suffering an environmental crisis and is seeking restrictions on tourism. He has also asked that the habitat be added to UNESCO’s Endangered List – a request which will be considered at a week-long meeting of the UN agency’s World Heritage Committee being held in New Zealand beginning this Saturday.

The Galapagos lie in the Pacific Ocean some 600 miles west of Ecuador at the confluence of several ocean currents and are comprised of some 19 islands. The isolation of these striking volcanic isles has produced one of the highest concentrations of endemic species in the world, and the archipelago is considered “a natural museum of geological, ecological and evolutionary processes”. The seismic and volcanic activities that formed the islands are still going on today.

The habitat’s unusual animals, including the land iguana and giant tortoises, helped to inspire Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. (He visited the islands in 1835.) 30% of the marine life in the surrounding seas are endemic, as are roughly 1/3 of the island’s vascular land plants, all of the reptiles with the exception of two species of marine turtle, and almost half of its bird species. Among its unique species is the marine iguana, Amblyrhynchus cristatus – the only sea-going iguana in the world.

As a place of “outstanding universal value”, the Galapagos Islands were added to UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) list of Protected Areas and World Heritage Sites in 1978 and designated as a Biosphere Reserve in 1984.

This extraordinary archipelago of unrivaled beauty is an “almost pristine” treasure trove of biodiversity, but is being threatened today by large-scale tourism and unsustainable fishing practices by mainland fishermen whose activities are financed by foreign companies. Visitation by tourists has increased three-fold in the past 15 years with an annual growth rate of about 14% for the tourism economy. The consequences of this growth include threats to endemic species by introduction of non-native invasive species, pollution, over-harvesting, and greater pressure on valuable marine resources. Partially as a result of these changes, 24% of the endemic plant species and 50% of the vertebrate species are considered endangered.

Click here for an image of the Galapagos Penguins on Bartolome Island.

The islands are subject to the 1998 Special Law for Galapagos but have been neglected by previous management, and the rapid economic growth of the islands, coupled with increased immigration, has taxed the capacity of the Galapagos’ management authorities. The president’s solutions will focus on the proper implementation of this special law and will include strengthening Galapagos management authorities, ensuring the development of sustainable businesses, strengthening the work of the Galapagos National Park Service and CDF (Charles Darwin Foundation) to manage endangered species and control invasives, and educational reform.

The declaration of the Ecuadorian president addresses concerns that have been held for many years regarding the future of this fragile ecosystem.

For more detailed information on the Galapagos, visit UNEP’s (United Nations Environment Programme) World Conservation Monitoring Centre page at http://www.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/galapago.html
or the Charles Darwin Foundation at http://www.darwinfoundation.org

Organic farmers are working hard to grow more organic food and want to keep prices reasonable… However, Congress is failing them. Despite the growing scientific consensus that even small amounts of pesticides are harmful – especially to children, big agribusinesses and their allies in Congress are trying to strip funding for organic farming. In this year’s $76 billion Farm Bill, less than 1% is going to organic farmers! This would mean fewer organic farmers and fewer healthy options for us all.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) Action Fund is working to help level the playing field by securing the funding organic farmers need and supporting those thousands of farmers transitioning to organic agriculture.

Your help is crucial and right now you can double your impact! From now until June 30, 2007, thanks to matching grants from several of their very generous donors, any donation you make to their fund will automatically be doubled, up to $20,000.

Donations will help fund the EWG Action Fund’s campaign in Congress to shift subsidies away from pesticide-ridden, chemical agriculture and towards organics and environmentally sustainable agriculture. Help secure a rightful place for organics in this year’s Farm Bill! Donate if you can, but definitely sign the petition to “Help Grow Organics.”

Visit their website at http://www.ewg.org, which serves as the home for both the Environmental Working Group and the EWG’s Action Fund. There you can learn much more about this and other issues, or make a donation. Their website has a wealth of information and access to informative and useful databases. I’d strongly recommend visiting even if you are not interested in donating.
To link directly to the donation page for this issue you can link to their page at https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1144/t/661/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=2516.

Blue-Green Marble is not affiliated with EWG, but appreciates their invaluable efforts to promote the organics movement and their championing of safety for and disclosure to consumers as regards food, product ingredients, and environmental toxins & hazards through their legislative advocacy, research, and publications. We have chosen to relate this information as we believe it to be a timely and important issue our readers can help to impact.