17th Episode of GreenNews4U

Welcome to the 17th Episode of GreenNews4U! In this episode I interview Theresa who is the Sustainability Coordinator for Golden Colorado. The City of Golden is situated near the foothills of the Rockey Mountains and the mouth of Clear Creek Canyon just fifteen miles west of Denver. Where the West Lives or should I say Where the West Bikes. Golden is the home of the Historic cycling museum and was featured in the movie American Flyers staring Kevin Costner. So it's no wonder that Golden was picked as the Final Starting Stage of the USA Pro Challenge on Sunday August 28, 2011. Golden will be the most coveted spot of the entire week-long race, because racers will pass through downtown Golden three times before heading to Denver for the finale.   To download this episode go here You can follow Pro Cycling Golden on Twitter View the web page of Pro Cycling Golden View the web page of USA Pro Cycling Challenge View the web page of Golden here or here

Melvin Wylie

Guy Harvey Research Institute Working for a Sustainable Marine Ecosystem

[caption id="attachment_2680" align="alignright" width="300" caption="GHRI research assistants (left-to-right) Andrea Bernard, Kate Hamilton, Rebekah Horn, Teagen Gray and Shara Teter."][/caption] DANIA BEACH, FL Released on AUGUST 10, 2011 - One of only a handful of private organizations dedicated exclusively to the science-based conservation of marine fish populations and biodiversity, the Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI) is making important, new scientific discoveries on everything from migratory and reproductive patterns of various pelagic species, to breakthroughs in DNA analysis, to uncovering seafood fraud, exposing what some restaurants are actually serving on your dinner plate. A collaboration between renowned marine artist, scientist and conservationist, Dr. Guy Harvey and Nova Southeastern University's (NSU) Oceanographic Center, the GHRI was established in 1999 with a mission to provide the scientific information necessary to understand, conserve and effectively manage the world's marine fishes and their ecosystems. GHRI's major research discoveries include:

• Development of DNA testing to identify sharks in the global fin trade and determining impact of this trade on shark populations,

• Proving that sharks can reproduce by virgin birth

• Discovering the existence of a new billfish species, the roundscale spearfish.

The GHRI has received widespread attention, including Time and Newsweek magazines and is on display in the Smithsonian's Ocean Hall. _________________________________ On a blistering South Florida July afternoon, Dr. Mahmood Shivji, a NSU professor and director of the GHRI, strides along the NSU Oceanographic Marina located at the terminus of John U. Lloyd Beach State Park and opposite bustling Port Everglades. He stops and nods in the direction of a busy construction site where cranes and men in hardhats are building America's largest coral reef research center. "Our new home," said Shivji, proudly pointing to NSU's Center of Excellence in Coral Reef Ecosystems Science (CoE CRES), a state-of-the-art $40 million facility dedicated to the research and conservation of coral reef ecosystems and their surrounding environment. "This puts us on the global map allowing us to address national and international priorities in coral reef research and enhancing our focus at GHRI to conserve and manage marine fishes and their ecosystems." The new center, according to NSU Oceanographic Center officials, will focus on five thematic areas: 1) Impacts of global and local stressors; 2) Geospatial analysis and mapping; 3) Deep sea coral reefs and biodiversity; 4) Genetic and genomic connectivity; and 5) Hydrodynamics.  It is currently scheduled for completion in May 2012. With new laboratories that will allow for research collaboration, training and staging for fieldwork, Shivji and his staff of graduate and post-doctoral researchers are looking forward to moving into their new home and expanding their conservation research work. GHRI's research, education and outreach activities for the last decade have been supported by the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation (GHOF), AFTCO Inc., the Save Our Seas Foundation, extramural research grants from the federal government and private foundations, philanthropic donations by private businesses and individuals and Nova Southeastern University. Shivji and staff are currently working on numerous studies that include sharks, billfish and coral reef fishes.  Project examples include:

• Development of DNA forensic methods to assist the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Office for Law Enforcement to identify if protected sharks are being landed in US fishery

• Using DNA forensics to determine the species composition and geographic origin of shark products (e.g., fins) in global markets

• Investigating migration patterns of sharks using a combination of satellite tag tracking and DNA analysis.  Sharks being studied, include tiger, blue, oceanic whitetip, shortfin mako and sand tiger sharks

• Investigating stock structure of sharks globally. Species currently under study include, great hammerhead, smooth hammerhead, porbeagle, blue, tiger, dusky, oceanic whitetip, silky, night, bull, grey reef, Caribbean reef and basking sharks

• Investigating impacts of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill on deep sea sharks

• Impacts of overfishing on genetic integrity of Nassau grouper spawning aggregations in the USVI and Cayman Islands

• Development of DNA forensic methods to identify billfish body parts in the Atlantic

• Investigating migration patterns of blue marlin using satellite tag tracking

• Assessing impacts of roundscale spearfish misidentification on previous white marlin stock assessments

  [caption id="attachment_2681" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Check presentation from the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation to Nova Southeastern University's Guy Harvey Research Institute"][/caption] Building on the long history of top-tier research conducted by the GHRI, Dr. Harvey furthered his conservation efforts by founding the GHOF in 2008. The GHRI continues to function as the research branch of the GHOF while the Foundation endeavors to keep the public informed through outreach and education programs. As for Dr. Harvey, through the GHRI, GHOF and other numerous research organizations around the region, he continues his mission to fund inspired scientific research and innovative educational programs to encourage conservation and best management practices for sustainable marine environments. Last year, for example, following news that a Bahamian seafood company was considering exporting sharks to the Far East, the Bahamas National Trust along with the U.S. based Pew Environmental Group and individual conservationists such as Dr. Harvey (who created a "Protect Bahamian Sharks" campaign logo and poster) initiated a petition drive to force the issue of banning commercial shark-fishing.  The government this July, upon receiving a petition signed by 5,000 Bahamian residents, enacted into law the protection of some 40 sharks species found in Bahamian waters from commercial fisherman. A year earlier, Dr. Harvey raised more than a half million dollars through the sale of T-shirts to initiate a Save Our Gulf research study following the wake of the nation's largest oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. With shark, blue fin tuna, grouper and other endangered populations around the world continuing to spiral downward, marine scientists such as Dr. Mahmood Shivji and Dr. Guy Harvey, are working around the clock. Their inspirational work along with hundreds of colleagues around the world will give these animals a fighting chance for survival and a sustainable environment in which to thrive.

Melvin Wylie

Human Rights Case Against ExxonMobil Moves Forward

IN Washington DC, on July 8, 2011 - The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that a lawsuit against ExxonMobil for human rights abuses can go forward. Eleven Indonesian citizens sued Exxon Mobil Corporation for abuses allegedly committed by ExxonMobil's security personnel, including murder, torture and sexual assault. Plaintiffs allege that these security personnel physically abused and killed their family members who lived or worked in villages within Exxon's sprawling operations in rural Aceh, Indonesia. The Plaintiffs had largely completed discovery and were preparing for trial, when the case was transferred to a new district court, which dismissed the case on standing grounds. This appeal, and a cross-appeal by Exxon, followed. Agnieszka Fryszman, a partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC and co-counsel for the Plaintiffs who argued the case, said: "The Court of Appeals' opinion is a big victory for the Plaintiffs." The Court: ·Held that corporations can be liable under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS). In a scholarly 112-page opinion, the Court rejected the Second Circuit Court's 2010 decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, which had held that corporations were not liable under international law, holding: "It would create a bizarre anomaly to immunize corporations from liability for the conduct of their agents in lawsuits brought for 'shockingly egregious violations of universally recognized principles of international law.'"

• Held that a defendant can be liable for aiding and abetting under the ATS if it had knowledge of the violations and provided substantial assistance to those who carried out the harm.

• Affirmed that non-resident aliens have standing to sue in the United States courts, reversing the 2009 decision dismissing Plaintiffs' common law claims on standing grounds.

Fryszman adds: "This decision means that our clients and their families who endured murder, torture, and sexual assault will finally be able to present their evidence to a jury." Co-counsel Paul Hoffman of Schonbrun DeSimone Seplow Harris Hoffman & Harrison, LLP, who also argued for Plaintiffs, said, "The well-reasoned and thoughtful opinion is an important one for the enforcement of human rights law." Co-counsel Terry Collingsworth of Conrad & Scherer added, "Since I first met our clients in 2001, they have endured not only the agony of human rights crimes, but ten years of justice delayed. We are looking forward to getting this case to trial so that our long-suffering clients can obtain justice."

Melvin Wylie

Cleaning the Anacostia River

Yesterday, while cycling home after the rains I looked down into the Anacostia River and saw a trashy mess. It looked like oil floating on the river and, of course, trash. It always looks like this after it rains. All the storm drain run-off flows right into the river. Buckets, CD's, paper, bags, cans, foam, bottles and Lord knows what else. It's heart breaking to look at. This morning, while cycling into work I saw a wonderful site. Boats were out and they had a net that stretched from side to side catching the debris floating on the river. A step in the right direction that I am very happy to see. Take a look at the flat bed in the picture. That's a lot of debris they are collecting. Where they are collecting debris is only a very small part of the river near the Anacostia Boathouse.

• The Anacostia River is one of the 3 bodies of water of concern by the Chesapeake Bay Program for toxics-related contamination problems.
• The Anacostia River is a local, state and federal priority for urban watershed restoration activities.
• It's been estimated that approximately 20,000 tons of trash and debris enter the Anacostia River annually.
• Cleanup and restoration efforts for the Anacostia watershed began nearly two decades ago. Unfortunately it seems like priority to clean up the river is falling short of expectation.

Melvin Wylie

16th Episode of GreenNews4U

Welcome to the 16th Episode of GreenNews4U In this episode I interview Trebbe Johnson. She is the founder of Vision Arrow and Radical Joy for Hard Times. She has written a book entitled The World Is a Waiting Lover: Desire and the Quest for the Beloved. Her articles about people's emotional and spiritual relationship with nature have appeared in Sierra, The Nation, Harper's, Spirituality and Health and other magazines, and she is a Consulting Editor and frequent contributor to Parabola. Among the awards she has received for her work are the John Masefield Award of the Poetry Society of America; the Telly Award for "Only One Earth," produced for the United Nations twentieth anniversary celebration of Earth Day; a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to produce "A Mountain Split in Two," about the Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute; gold, silver and bronze awards from the International Film and TV Festival for her work in multimedia; and a grant from the Pennsylvania Urban and Community Forest Program to plant 75 trees in her home village of Thompson, PA. She is a member of the Wilderness Guides Council and has served on the stewardship committee of the Florence Shelly Wetlands Preserve in Thompson for more than twenty years. For more information, click the links to Radical Joy for Hard Times and Vision Arrow. To download or embed this episode to your web page please go here or follow the Podcast Media links on the sidebar.   I hope you enjoy this episode of GreenNews4U.

http://www.archive.org/download/16thEpisodeofGreenNews4U/16thepisodeofgreennews4u.mp3  

Melvin Wylie

Green Police

Entertaining, makes you think

Melvin Wylie

BPA Problems

Fred Vom Saal researches the adverse effects of plastic additives

Melvin Wylie