RENewsletter February 28, 2010

RENewsletter | February 28, 2010

The Free environmental newsletter from RochesterEnvironment.com

“Our Environment is changing: Keep up with the Change.”

[2/21/2010 – 2/27/2010]

* Need to vent? | Go to my blog: Environmental Thoughts - Rochester, NY

* Found an important Rochester environmental story from a credible source that you think needs attention? Or, an Environmental Event, Please, SEND ME THE LINK. If you think this newsletter, continually informing our community on our local environmental news, events, actions, is worthwhile, please encourage others to sign up.

*** The February 2010 Environmental Site of the Month Award goes to Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail Association http://www.cay-sentrail.org/ Go to Award.

[Hyperlinks work by CTRL + click to follow a link]

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Opening Salvo: “The Asian Carp is coming!”

That’s the big environmental story around the Great Lakes region this week. Even the local press has caught the news appeal of a bizarre foreign species that might radically change the Great Lakes’ ecology. Because of its size and reproductive capacity, it may scarf up all those little plants and animals that live at the bottom of the five Great Lakes, which, the present ecology depends on. More intriguing to the media are those riveting photos of speeding boaters smacking into these large creatures, which freak every time they hear motorboat noise and leap into the air.

I say ‘might’ because no one can prove that if the Asian Carp makes it way up the Mississippi and into the Great Lakes, they will proliferate and eat everything in site. Though, given their past rap sheet, it’s a good bet they will.

This invasive species is in the news because in their attempt to solve this looming crisis the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is attempting to please all who have solutions to this problem—and in their travails pleasing no one. Stopping the carps’ attempt to enter the Great Lakes via electric fences and closing off all water conduits will be very disruptive to boaters and the shipping industry. Not stopping them might wreak havoc on a scale unimaginable to everything we hold dear about the Great Lakes.

Years ago, the Zebra Mussel problem caught the media’s attention and there was a half-hearted effort to stop what is now our reality—a very annoying invasive and pervasive species that has changed our region’s water ecology and clogged our water intakes. I say, ‘half-hearted’ only in that regulation and enforcement was minimal. However, it may have only slowed the invasion down anyway.

Usually, these wars with foreign species that make it to our continent occur so slowly (over decades) that even if we do notice them, and try all sorts of things to stop them, we soon become bored or run out of money. It seems hopeless. The public accepts the inevitable and we deal with it—with fond memories of what our cottages on the lakes used to be like without these pests that cut up our feet and ruin all the fishing.

When you think about it, the whole issue of invasive species presents so many issues that it can make your head swim. How can we possibly halt the creep of foreign biological invaders here unless we stop all shipping, boating, air travel, hiking, and the sale of exotic pets? Indeed, how could the biology on this continent half a millennium ago have stopped us from coming over from Europe? It boggles the mind.

But, here’s an interesting thought about how we might think about that notorious fish as it steadily inches towards our lakes. Would the Asian Carp threat be so threatening if the Great Lakes ecology was healthy? If the entire ecological structure of the Great Lakes that existed before mankind began overfishing large predatory fish were in place, would the Asian Carp be little more than a side dish? Maybe, if we took better care of our environment it could handle these upstarts.

FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com (Click on my email for feedback)

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NewsLinks – Environmental NewsLinks – [Highlights of major environmental stories concerning our area from the past week]

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Updates – Daily Updates – [Connecting the dots on Rochester’s environment. Find out what’s going on environmentally in our area—and why you should care? Clicking on -DISCUSSION – will take you to my blog “Environmental Thoughts, NY, where you can add your comments.]

2/27/2010 - Is Cap and Trade a possible solution for manmade Climate Change, or does it simply just put money it the pockets of the people who cause Climate Change? The Story of Cap & Trade is a fast-paced, fact-filled look at the leading climate solution being discussed at Copenhagen and on Capitol Hill. Host Annie Leonard introduces the energy traders and Wall Street financiers at the heart of this scheme and reveals the "devils in the details" in current cap and trade proposals: free permits to big polluters, fake offsets and distraction from what’s really required to tackle the climate crisis. If you’ve heard about cap and trade, but aren’t sure how it works (or who benefits), this is the film is for you.
2/27/2010 - Environmental Baseline: Instead of trying to come up with might seem a reasonable assumption about how many animals or plant species there should be in any given area based on modern data or what seems a comfortable number to us, wouldn’t it make a lot more sense to find out what the historic populations used to be—before massive human intervention? In other words how do we decide today how many deer, wolves, salmon, or birds there should be in our environment before we either take them off or put them on an endangered species list? How many animals or plants and it what proportions make up an healthy environment? We’re just guessing unless we really go out an examine all the data we can to find out what the baseline used to be for particular species in particular places. One such project is going just that in our oceans: History of Marine Animal Populations "Is a global research initiative. We study the past ocean life and human interaction with the sea. About 100 researchers have joined forces to develop an interdisciplinary research program using historical and environmental archives. We analyze marine population data before and after human impacts on the ocean became significant. Our goal is to enhance knowledge and understanding of how the diversity, distribution and abundance of marine life in the worlds oceans changes over the long term. "
2/26/2010 - Food Waste: Learn how to “reduce the generation and disposal of commercial and institutional food waste” in a free online webinar: Training Exchange "Offered by U.S. EPA - Region 2 in partnership with the New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation Registration for all webinar offerings closes at 11:59 PM Eastern Time the day BEFORE the webinar. Food Waste Reduction and Management Webinar Series In an effort to reduce the generation and disposal of commercial and institutional food waste, New York and New Jersey independently coordinated a series of regional forums in 2008 and 2009 to bring generators and managers of food waste together to learn how to better reduce and manage their food wastes and to share their experiences. Building upon these efforts, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 2, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation have partnered with the Solid Waste Resource Renewal Group at the Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station to offer this webinar series designed to provide tips and tools for institutional and commercial food waste generators. This five part series will include topics such as an introduction to food waste and the climate change connection, how to conduct a waste audit, separation and collection of food waste, food donation, composting and anaerobic digestion, and EPA’s tools for waste reduction and food waste management. We look forward to your participation in this webinar series. "
2/26/2010 - Focusing on Climate Change: Tired of reading about Climate Change because it just hurts your eyes? Well, listen to a podcast entirely dedicated to speaking about Climate Change news. Earthbeat Radio Earthbeat Radio is the only hour-long broadcast of any kind in America dedicated entirely to the global warming crisis. Syndicated to over 50 stations nationwide from our Washington, D.C., studios, Earthbeat takes on every aspect of the climate / clean energy issue with interviews, features, humor, and commentary. Launched in 2003, we are an independent radio show produced out of Pacifica Radio’s flagship station WPFW 89.3 FM in Washington.
2/26/2010 - Garbage dumps: For far too long we’ve held this fantasy that when we through garbage away it somehow disappears. It doesn’t really. It’s just that Earth is a really big place, but eventually that stuff we throw away accumulates somewhere: In our land and air and in this case our oceans: BBC News - Plastic rubbish blights Atlantic Ocean Scientists have discovered an area of the North Atlantic Ocean where plastic debris accumulates. The region is said to compare with the well-documented "great Pacific garbage patch". (February 24, 2010) BBC NEWS | News Front Page
2/25/2010 - Environmental Groups Divided on Fracking for Natural Gas: Natural Gas As A Climate Fix Sparks Friction : NPR "Some local chapters of environmental groups find themselves battling their national leadership over issues like natural gas. The national groups see natural gas as a less-harmful alternative to coal. But local groups fear the damage that gas production could bring to their fresh water and landscapes. "
2/25/2010 - Interesting essay on Natural Gas Drilling by Fracking: Cracking Down on Fracking | CommonDreams.org "Mike Markham of Colorado has an explosive problem: His tap water catches fire. Markham demonstrates this in a new documentary, “Gasland,” which just won the Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize. Director Josh Fox films Markham as he runs his kitchen faucet, holding a cigarette lighter up to the running water. After a few seconds, a ball of fire erupts out of the sink, almost enveloping Markham’s head. "
2/25/2010 - ACTION - We're passing on this request from Monroe County Parks : Pick Up the Parks A new initiative from the Monroe County Department of Parks April 10th, 2010 10AM - 2:00PM Join us and several local recreation and environmental groups in kicking off this new local stewardship event. In this first year, we will be targeting 4 parks: Ellison, Genesee Valley, Greece Canal, and Ontario Beach Parks for clean up and other park improvements. Why just four? As you know there are 21 parks within the Monroe County Parks system. As it’s a first year event, we wanted to identify popular parks that could also accommodate our widespread community. We welcome your ideas for future projects and will certainly add more parks to the event as community support grows. Email or call today to register your family, group of friends, club, organization, scout troop, or class! Contact Ryan Loysen at rloysen@monroecounty.gov or 585-753-7281. Be sure to tell us your group size, preferred park, e-mail address, and phone number, or just come on out to one of the project sites on April 10th and register on-site. Orientation begins at 10 a.m. at each project site with refreshments and additional information. Group projects and field work will begin at 10:30 a.m. The Monroe County Parks belong to all of us, so let’s join together to keep them clean and green. Check back for additional event details, meet-up locations and park information at www.monroecounty.gov/parks
2/24/2010 - How do rivers work in modern days? Check out this interesting online program about how rivers and dams interact: Multimedia - Healthy River Graphic - from The Nature Conservancy - Protecting Nature, Preserving Life
2/24/2010 - Why public is not 'getting it' on Climate change: I suspect as the planet warms up there is going to be endless speculation as to why, despite all evidence, the public does not believe in Climate Change. It seems NPR would like to believe it’s because people’s world view is the answer Belief In Climate Change Hinges On Worldview : NPR, meaning "People tend to conform their factual beliefs to ones that are consistent with their cultural outlook, their world view," Braman says.” Perhaps, but I think there’s more going on and certainly the media itself plays a role in why we as a species cannot adequately address a looming environmental problem. Others too are beginning to think the role of the media plays a critical part of the missing components in the world-wide acknowledgement of Climate Change. Check out: Signals and noise. Mass-media coverage of climate change in the USA and the UK "Various studies have shown that the public gathers much of its knowledge about science from the mass media (Wilson, 1995), with television and daily newspapers being the primary sources of information (Project for Excellence in Journalism, 2006; NSF, 2004). "
2/23/2010 - Climate skepticism seems to be the rage nowadays. Yes, there have been gaffs and missteps in scientific reporting and the Copenhagen Climate Talks didn’t do so well, but does that really mean that the accumulated evidence from decades of research on Climate Change are wrong? Is science now like politics where cyber-bullying (ABC The Drum Unleashed - Bullying, lies and the rise of right-wing climate denial) is a more convincing way of addressing a possible planetary climate change issue that could affect all our lives, and our children’s lives? Instead of cherry-picking the news to deny even a potential threat of warming, wouldn’t a keen attention to science and evidence be the way an intelligent species addresses such an issue? Maybe if the editors in our media could properly address the issue of climate change, in light of the fact that humans have affected the environment hugely in the last century, we wouldn’t have to combat this rage against science. We are becoming a dysfunctional species and very inept stewards of our planet. Role of mass media in climate change skepticism "ScienceDaily (Feb. 23, 2010) — Mass media have been a key vehicle by which climate change contrarianism has traveled, according to Maxwell Boykoff, a University of Colorado at Boulder professor and fellow of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, or CIRES. " (February 23, 2010) Science Daily: News & Articles in Science, Health, Environment & Technology
2/23/2010 - How is Congress doing on protecting our Environment? 2009 National Environmental Scorecard NEW YORK - Today, the New York League of Conservation Voters joined the national League of Conservations Voters in releasing the 2009 National Environmental Scorecard, revealing scores for the New York delegation in the first session of the 111th Congress. For 30 years, the National Environmental Scorecard issued by LCV has been the nationally accepted yardstick used to rate members of Congress on environmental, public health and energy issues." - from League of Conservation Voters - Turning Environmental Values Into National Priorities
2/23/2010 - President Obama gets a B+ from the League of Conservation Voters for Climate and Clean Energy: League of Conservation Voters Presidential Report Card "The election of Barack Obama as president in November 2008 represented a clean break from the previous eight years of the Bush administration, in which politics trumped science and, as a result, the United States continued a failed energy policy that favored corporate polluters over clean energy alternatives. From the snowy fields of Iowa and New Hampshire to the crowded tarmacs of key battleground states to the steps of the Capitol on Inauguration Day, President Obama made clear that transitioning to a clean energy economy and tackling the challenge of global warming would be among his top priorities. In his first year in office, the president has turned words into action and achieved real results that are beginning to pave the way toward a clean energy economy that creates jobs, makes America more energy independent and protects the planet. " --League of Conservation Voters - Turning Environmental Values Into National Priorities
2/22/2010 - Improving roads and interchanges as if pedestrians and bicyclists mattered: OK, we're not Copenhagen yet, but while making improvement to our vehicle infrastructure and including pedestrians and bicyclists is a good step towards a sustainable future by encouraging people to walk and bike instead of climbing into a gas-guzzler. NYSDOT | I590 Winton Road Interchange "NYSDOT will build a Diverging Diamond Interchange to improve traffic conditions and highway safety at the interchange of Interstate 590 and Winton Road in the town of Brighton, Monroe County, NY. Brighton is an urban suburb of Rochester, NY. " -more at Unique design planned for busy Monroe County interchange in Brighton - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow "When completed in the summer of 2012, the new configuration of Winton Road will reduce traffic congestion at the I-590 southbound ramps in the morning rush hour and at the I-590 northbound ramps in the evening rush hour; improve safety by eliminating opposing left turn conflicts; and improve bicycle and pedestrian safety with a multi-use sidewalk with crosswalks and dedicated bicycle space. " -from Home - Canandaigua, NY - MPNnow

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Events – Rochester Environmental Events Calendar – [The most complete listing of all environmental events around the Rochester, New York area.] If you don’t see your event, or know of a local environmental event, please send me the info: FrankRegan@RochesterEnvironment.com with (EV event) in the subject line.

March

5 P.M., TUESDAY, MARCH 2, 2010 | Where: Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center 341 Delaware Avenue Buffalo, New York 14202 Phone: (716) 854-1694; Fax: (716) 854-1696 www.hallwalls.org
- WESTERN NEW YORK SUSTAINABLE ENERGY ASSOCIATION 5 P.M., TUESDAY, MARCH 2, 2010 HALLWALLS, Delaware at Tupper THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT – A PARTNER IN RENEWABLE TECHNOLOGY? SPEAKERS ROBERT E. KNOER, ESQ. JESSICA MILLER BILL NOWAK Please join us for a forum exploring the role of government in promoting the use of renewable technologies as we make the transition from fossil fuels to a renewable energy based economy. Robert E Knoer, Esq. comes to us with broad range of expertise in the field of environmental law. Mr. Knoer taught “Law and the Environment” at the State University of Buffalo from 1992 to 2007. He will speak on “Opportunities for Local Governments to Use Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency: Addressing the Cost of Government”. Jessica Miller is an urban planning graduate student at the State University of Buffalo. She will talk about her experience developing ordinance guidelines for solar and wind installations for the city of Erie, PA. Bill Nowak, Deputy Chief of Staff and Director of Policy Research for New York State Senator Antoine M. Thompson, will brief us on Senator Thompson’s “Ten-Point Green Jobs Strategy. In the process he will bring us up to date on energy legislation passed in 2009, as well as current energy legislation before the Senate.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010: 7 - 10 p.m | Imaging Sciences Auditorium, in Chester F. Carlson Building (76) on the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) campus, Rochester, 14623 (Monroe County).
- DEC Slates Three "State of Lake Ontario" Meetings in March - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation Biologists to Update Status of Lake's Fisheries The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today announced three public meetings to discuss Lake Ontario fisheries. The annual "State of Lake Ontario" public meetings will be held in Niagara, Monroe and Oswego counties during March. Wednesday, March 10, 2010: 7 - 10 p.m. at the Imaging Sciences Auditorium, in Chester F. Carlson Building (76) on the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) campus, Rochester, 14623 (Monroe County). The meeting is co-hosted by RIT and the Monroe County Fishery Advisory Board. For information, contact Web Pearsall in the DEC Avon office at 585-226-5339. (February 23, 2010) New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Wednesday, March 3:6:30-9:00 pm \ Where: Womens Community Building Seneca and Cayuga Streets, Ithaca, NY
- Wednesday, March 3: Marcellus Challenge: Connecting the Dots Reduce your use of natural gas: accept the Challenge! 6:30-9:00 pm, Womens Community Building Seneca and Cayuga Streets, Ithaca, NY For more information about the Marcellus Challenge, look here: Marcellus Challenge « Sustainable Tompkins Or call Sustainable Tompkins at 607 216-1552.
Saturday, March 6, CHARLOTTE, WEST LAKESHORE, TURNING POINT PARK
- Looking for waterfowl, gulls and early migrants. Meet at the northeast corner of the Charlotte Beach parking lot beside the Genesee River outlet at 8:30 a.m. Extra spotting scopes would be very helpful. For more information, 671-9639 or visit www.rochesterbirding.com .
Saturday, March 13, BEGINNER BIRDER TRIP -- CHARLOTTE, BRADDOCK BAY, LAKESHORE FIELDS S
- Sharpen your skills on migratory waterfowl. Meet at the northeast corner of the Charlotte Beach parking lot beside the Genesee River outlet at 8:30 a.m. Extra spotting scopes would be very helpful. For more information, 227-5837 and 482-7778 or visit www.rochesterbirding.com .
Saturday, March 20,
- LAKE SHORE MARSHES EAST WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA A tour of the marshes to look for migrating waterfowl and other migratory birds. Meet in Webster Plaza -- at junction of Route 404 and Hard Road -- near Starbucks at 7:30 a.m. Extra spotting scopes and FRS radios would be very helpful. For more information, 872-7334 and (315) 331-0316 or visit www.rochesterbirding.com.
Sunday, March 21, HAMLIN BEACH STATE PARK
- Looking for diving ducks, Red-necked Grebes (note: grebes are best seen early in the day) and other spring migrants. Meet in parking lot No. 1 at 7:30 a.m. Extra spotting scopes would be very helpful. For more information, 288-2611 or visit www.rochesterbirding.com .
Tuesday, March 23rd, at 4:30 PM – 6 PM | at the AAUW house, 494 East Ave, Rochester, NY
- Zero Waste Committee: We had a great meeting at a great place last time and now we’ve got some projects to help our area recycle better. Join up and get our notices at http://newyork.sierraclub.org/rochester/Zero_Waste/Zero_Waste.html At our next meeting our guest will be Kimie Romeo, Environmental Coordinator/Owner, of www.imaginerecycling.com. Kimie will talk about her innovative ideas behind ImagineIt.com. We are also planning some landfill and recycling tours along with advancing recycling in our area via advocacy and education. Finally, we’ll be coordinating with Monroe County on Parks Pick up program.
Sunday, March 28, DURAND EASTMAN PARK and LAKESHORE
- We’ll search for migrants. Meet at the Lake Shore Boulevard parking area between Log Cabin Road and Zoo Road (Parking Lot D) at 8:00 a.m. For more information, 227-5837 and 482-7778 or visit www.rochesterbirding.com .

April 2010

April 10th, 2010 10AM - 2:00PM | Email or call today to register your family, group of friends, club, organization, scout troop, or class! Contact Ryan Loysen at rloysen@monroecounty.gov or 585-753-7281.
- We're passing on this request from Monroe County Parks : Pick Up the Parks A new initiative from the Monroe County Department of Parks April 10th, 2010 Join us and several local recreation and environmental groups in kicking off this new local stewardship event. In this first year, we will be targeting 4 parks: Ellison, Genesee Valley, Greece Canal, and Ontario Beach Parks for clean up and other park improvements. Why just four? As you know there are 21 parks within the Monroe County Parks system. As it’s a first year event, we wanted to identify popular parks that could also accommodate our widespread community. We welcome your ideas for future projects and will certainly add more parks to the event as community support grows. Email or call today to register your family, group of friends, club, organization, scout troop, or class! Contact Ryan Loysen at rloysen@monroecounty.gov or 585-753-7281. Be sure to tell us your group size, preferred park, e-mail address, and phone number, or just come on out to one of the project sites on April 10th and register on-site. Orientation begins at 10 a.m. at each project site with refreshments and additional information. Group projects and field work will begin at 10:30 a.m. The Monroe County Parks belong to all of us, so let’s join together to keep them clean and green. Check back for additional event details, meet-up locations and park information at www.monroecounty.gov/parks
Wednesday, April 14, 2010 (the week before Earth Day) from 6:00-8:00 PM | Where: Victor Primary School, front and cafeteria entrances 953 High Street, Victor 14564
- The Victor PTSA Environment Committee is pleased to announce its Third Annual Earth Day Celebration, to be held on Wednesday, April 14, 2010 (the week before Earth Day) from 6:00-8:00 PM at Victor Primary School. This is a new location for us this year. This community event is open to the public free of charge and is a great way to promote area businesses and organizations to Victor/Farmington families and those visiting from surrounding areas. In the past, the event has been advertised in the media and has been a great success, drawing hundreds of people. We will be inviting over 100 vendors to participate, including Seneca Park Zoo, who will bring live animals. We also plan to expand our celebration with the participation of more students and classes, who are invited to bring environment-related projects for display. Again, we will hold a raffle and have craft activities for the kids and snacks for purchase. We promise it will be an exciting night of learning about the earth and the things we can all do to live in more sustainable ways. Date: Wednesday, April 14, 2010 Time: 6:00-8:00 PM. Location: Victor Primary School, front and cafeteria entrances 953 High Street, Victor 14564 We hope you can attend!
APRIL 16, 2010 | The Links at Erie Village, E. Syracuse, N.Y
- "THE ENERGY HIGHWAY " Efficient, Secure, Reliable & Environmentally Sensitive Transmission & Distribution of Electricity This may be the most important Energy Symposium of the Year! Don't miss it! Join leaders in government, business, environment and academia for the Sixth Annual Symposium on Energy in the 21st Century.Speakers will include: *Thomas King, President & CEO National Grid, *Richard Kessel, President & CEO, NYPA *Frank Murray, President & CEO, NYSERDA *Garry Brown, Chairman, PSC *Samir Succar, Senior Energy Analyst, NRDC *Carol Murphy, Executive Director, Alliance for Clean Energy New York * Congressman Paul Tonko * Kit Kennedy, Deputy Attorney General for Environment This is the Sixth Year we are bringing you a Symposium on Energy and each one is even more spectacular than the previous. Town Supervisors, Mayors, City and Town Planners, College Presidents, faculty and students from two dozen colleges, representatives from 50 municipalities, business owners, architects, engineers, governmental staff and just interested citizens have made up the 350 attendees. We have kept the registration fee at $40, including breakfast and lunch. The new venue provides adequate parking but we still may have to cap attendance so reserve your space now. Check out the entire program and Register online today at "THE ENERGY HIGHWAY " There are also excellent optional tours: *ESF - Wood Chips to Ethanol Process *Fenner Wind Farm *Morrisville Biodigester *Fitzpatrick Nuclear Plant ***NEW TOUR*** *National Grid Distribution & Training Center Don't miss this event and register now. Looking forward to hearing from you. Rhea Dr. Rhea Jezer Chair, Symposium on Energy in the 21st Century Senior Lecturer, Cazenovia College Adjunct Associate Professor, SUNY ESF 315-727-0123 rjezer@gmail.com
Thursday, April 22, 2010 - 5PM - 8:30 PM| at the First Unitarian Church, 220 Winton Rd South, Rochester NY.
- The Rochester Regional Group of the Sierra Club is pleased to announce its 12th Annual Forum, which will be an interactive event, Transitioning to Sustainable Communities. This is Rochester’s premier environmental event promoting individual and organizational networking. Our speaker, Tina Clarke, has been a consultant with the Sustainability Institute (www.sustainer.org) and Bill McKibben’s 350.org (www.350.org) and is a certified Transition Towns Trainer (www.transitiontowns.org). She will describe the latest thinking on the “Triple Challenge” of Peak Oil, Climate Change and Economic Instability. She will share inspiring stories, models and methods that communities are using to “transition” to a more resilient future. Following Tina’s presentation, we will form Facilitated Discussion Groups to encourage discussion by all participants, stimulate new ideas, raise questions and explore answers. We hope to spark interest and creative thinking and offer people an opportunity to identify and join an organization working on these issues. The Forum will be on Thursday, April 22, 2010 at the First Unitarian Church, 220 Winton Rd South, Rochester NY. As always the Forum is free and open to the public.
Thu 4/22/2010 5:30p-8p -Imagine It - 565 Blossom Road, Suite D
- Green Drinks (3rd Thursday) at Imagine It - 565 Blossom Road, Suite D. Everything is free, your only admission is material to be recycled to benefit CEI (Center for Environmental Information). For info, contact Kimie Romeo kimie@imaginerecycling.com or 585-545-9022.
Saturday, April 24 9am - 12 pm | Penfield, NY
- Penfield Environmental Day Saturday, April 24 9am - 12 pm Penfield Community Center Community volunteers will be assigned areas throughout town to pick up litter & winter refuse. Groups or individuals can sign up by calling (585) 340-8651

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Action – Take Action - Often, I receive request to pass on alerts, petitions, Public Comments on local developments, and environmental items needing action by the Rochester Community and around the world. I’ll keep Actions posted until their due date.

o Action Due Date: Today

o Donate to a worthy cause: Christine Sevilla Project (Christine Sevilla Project) "Welcome to A Living Project to Preserve a Place in Christine's Honor For All to Enjoy in Perpetuity Christine's family and friends envision a natural area, including wetlands, preserved in her memory. This vision includes an educational component, like an interpretive trail to help others recognize what Christine saw - an interconnected natural community of flora and fauna, soil and water. Perhaps even an Arts and Music Festival to celebrate what Christine so treasured. "

o Action Due Date: March 22

o EPA Strengthens Smog Standard/Proposed standards, strictest to date, will protect the health of all Americans, especially children The United States Environmental Protection Agency today proposed the strictest health standards to date for smog. Smog, also known as ground-level ozone, is linked to a number of serious health problems, ranging from aggravation of asthma to increased risk of premature death in people with heart or lung disease. Ozone can even harm healthy people who work and play outdoors. The agency is proposing to replace the standards set by the previous administration, which many believe were not protective enough of human health. EPA will take public comment until March 22. The agency will hold three public hearings on the proposal: Feb. 2, 2010 in Arlington, Va. and in Houston; and Feb. 4, 2010 in Sacramento. More information: Ground-level Ozone | US EPA (January 7, 2010) [more on Air Quality in our area]

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Award – Environmental Site of the Month Award – [On the last Sunday of each month, we present an environmental award for the Rochester-area environmental web site or blog that best promotes the need to protect and offers solutions for our area's environmental issues.]

The February 2010 Environmental Site of the Month award goes to the “Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail Association.” It is with community groups like the Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail Association who work with various levels of government and other interested parities and take responsibility for a specific area of our environment that makes these areas sustainable. Government alone or individuals working in an ad hoc way to get what they want don’t usually make for a stable and healthy environment. Cooperation and a local knowledge of the area’s environment work best.

Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail Association http://www.cay-sentrail.org/ “The Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail Association is an affiliate of the Canalway Trails Association of New York, a voluntary organization working with citizens, state agencies and local municipalities to help manage the Canalway Trail across New York State. The Canalway Trails Association promotes the completion and proper maintenance of the Canalway Trail and coordinates the Adopt-a-Trail program. The Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail Association is comprised of citizen volunteers and representatives of various non-profit and government organizations who are working to promote the development of the trail in Seneca County.”