South Korean Captive Dolphins have a Shot at Freedom

In First-of-its-Kind Ruling, Judge Orders Release of Five Captive Dolphins

South Korea could be well on it’s way to becoming a dolphin-friendly nation. Like many other countries, it has captive facilities where dolphins are made to perform degrading tricks and live in unbearably small tanks. But a recent ruling on the case of five illegally captured bottlenose dolphins is making waves in the country’s animal rights, as well as animal industry, circles.

Photo courtesy of Ryu Woo JongTwo of the captive dolphins currently being held at an underground pool in Pacific Land, a theme
park on the south coast of Jeiu Island in South Korea.

Pacific Land, a theme park on the south coast of Jeju Island, is an abysmal prison for it’s captive dolphins — 11 of which were illegally purchased from local fishermen between 2009 and 2010, according to local activists. Of these, five remain alive and on perpetual display in a tank that is smaller than an Olympic-sized swimming pool. When they are not performing, they are forced to live in an underground holding pool, meaning that these dolphins have been living for …more

by Laura Bridgeman – May 10, 2012

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Ethanol: Growing Food, Feed, Fiber, and Fuel?

Evidence Growing That Using Corn to Help Fill Gas Tanks Might Not Be the Best Use of Crops, Tech, and Scarce Taxpayer Dollars

Excerpted from the book Food Fight. To learn more about the Farm Bill and purchase a copy of Food Fight please visit www.foodfight2012.org

Most analysts agree that we are rapidly approaching “peak oil,” the point when the volume of global oil production begins to decline. In response, Farm Bill programs have promoted a shift to liquid “biofuels” and “biomass” energy derived from farms. The Renewable Fuels Standard of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, for instance, boosted the country’s ethanol production by mandating that up to 36 billion gallons be blended into gasoline by 2022. But taxpayers have been investing in this industry for decades via corn subsidies, import tariffs, tax credits for every gallon of ethanol blended with gasoline, loan guarantees, construction cost-shares, and gas pump upgrades. For politicians and lobbyists, ethanol became a sacred cow, untouchable, because of the belief that these public investments would 1) support farmers, 2) reduce dependence on foreign oil (currently about 60 percent of U.S. oil consumption), 3) cut greenhouse gas emissions, and 4) strengthen national defense.

The high …more

by Dan Imhoff – May 9, 2012

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Photos from the BP Gulf of Mexico Disaster the Government Has Been Keeping from You

Greenpeace FOIA Request Uncovers Shocking Images from the Deepwater Horizon Blowout

When BP’s Deepwater Horizon offshore oil well blew up and sank two years ago and began spewing millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, reporters from around the world rushed to the crime scene to cover one of the worst environmental disasters in history. Just one problem: BP representatives, state and federal law enforcement officials, and private security contractors hired by BP started to restrict the media’s access to the coastal areas hardest hit by the incoming waves of oil. Writers and photographers were told they couldn’t enter public beaches and were hassled when they tried to do so. Boat and small plane owners in Louisiana were discouraged from renting their craft to reporters looking to document the blowout’s environmental impact. The restricted access to affected areas seemed a clear attempt by BP, and the federal government, to filter the images the public could see.

 

Here’s how an AP photographer Gerald Herbert explained the situation at the time:

 

"Often the general guise of 'safety' is used as a blanket …more

by Jason Mark – May 8, 2012

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‘Scrubbing Carbon From the Air Isn’t Good Enough by Itself’

A Conversation with Carbon Capture Gurus Klaus Lackner and Allen Wright

By arrangement with City Atlas – A user's guide to a sustainable NYC

Physicist Klaus Lackner has received quite a lot of attention for his artificial “tree” invention that can suck carbon from the air a thousand times faster than real trees. The idea for the tree was originally inspired by his daughter, Claire’s eighth-grade science project that involved extracting carbon dioxide from the air using a fish tank pump and sodium hydroxide. For his invention, Lackner also drew on the natural structure of one of nature’s most successful carbon absorbers — leaves. At Columbia University’s Lenfest Center for Sustainable Energy, where Lackner is director, he and his colleague, Allen Wright, are still finessing elements of the “tree.”

I spoke with Lackner and Allen Wright about the potential of this innovation in helping tackle climate change. An excerpt from our conversation.

All Photos by Justin StraussKlaus Lackner idea for the carbon-sucking "tree" was originally inspired by his
daughter's eighth-grade science project.

Let’s start at the beginning — how do we arrive at …more

by Maria Ioshpa – May 7, 2012

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Hog Tied

Small Farmers say Michigan’s Efforts to Root Out Feral Pigs is Driven by Big Ag Interests

On Friday, April 20, the courthouse in the small town in Cheboygan, Michigan was unusually busy, brimming with representatives from the Michigan Department of Agriculture, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and the state’s Attorney General office.  All told, more than 15 officials from the state of Michigan were present for a hearing over a surprisingly heated controversy. At issue: What type of pigs should Michigan residents be allowed to raise?

Photo by Sean McCannThe Michigan Department of Natural Resources wants to enforce an invasive species order that would
prohibit the raising of some kinds of hogs. .

 

Ron McKendrick, the owner of the Renegade Ranch, was in the courtroom to press his plea for a temporary restraining order against the Michigan Department of Natural Resources in enforcing an invasive species order that prohibits the raising of some kinds of hogs. The order, which went into effect April 1, sets out felony penalties for the possession of certain boars.

 

Michigan officials say that new rule is necessary to protect people and property from animals that …more

by Corey Hill – May 3, 2012

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Farm Bill Subsidies Often Harm Not Help Family Farmers

The Real Winners Have Been Animal Feedlot Operators, Corporate Mega-Farms, Input Suppliers Like Monsanto, And Big Grain Traders Like Cargill

Excerpted from the book Food Fight. To learn more about the Farm Bill and purchase a copy of Food Fight please visit www.foodfight2012.org

Billions of Farm Bill dollars flow into America’s rural communities each year to boost income for farmers, who continue to face an onslaught of financial, environmental, and agricultural challenges. But which farmers are receiving payments? Following the Farm Bill money trail involves understanding the complex circumstances surrounding what it means to be a “farm.” It also requires focusing in on why the government singles out so few crops for subsidies. Finally, it means drilling down into deep divides: family farms versus corporate mega-farms, producers versus buyers, commodity versus diversified agriculture.

 

The USDA identifies approximately 2.2 million farms in the country. The agency’s definition of a farm is quite broad: “any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced or sold, or normally would have been sold, during the census year.” When the USDA averages farm income, it includes a sizable category called “rural residence farms”—households that may own a cow or …more

by Dan Imhoff – May 2, 2012

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Occupy 2.0

With the Takeover of a University of California Agricultural Testing Station, Occupiers Move from Envisioning a New World to Creating One

It doesn’t take an agricultural expert to know that you can’t grow vegetables without water. So it wasn’t surprising that after hundreds of people marching under the banner “Occupy the Farm” took over a University of California agricultural testing station on April 22, UC officials responded by shutting off water to the site. The next day a late-season storm brought a half-inch of rain to the San Francisco Bay Area, irrigating the thousands of vegetable starts in the ground and lifting the spirits of the urban farming activists who are determined to save the site from development.  Score: Occupiers, 1 — UC administrators, 0.

All photos by Jeff Conant/Climate Connections

 

Social change activists in Berkeley, CA have always been ahead of the curve. Today, May Day, is the spring re-emergence for the Occupy movement as activists around the United States engage in work stoppages, street marches, and various forms of civil disobedience to press their demands for a more equitable economy. The folks with Occupy the Farm got started early. On Earth …more

by Jason Mark – May 1, 2012

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