In the News
CALENDAR OF EVENTS Advocacy News (Includes how to reach your legislators) DEP Enforcement Actions In The Berkshire |
Local vs. Organic: Which Is Better? Understanding the meaning behind this answer will help you make good decisions when you shop. Let’s start with organic. Food labeled organic is required to be grown, raised, or produced using federally mandated rules. These standards outline allowable and forbidden materials and practices, which makes good sense. But they don’t stress the integrated nature of farming, including the biological cycles necessary to healthy farming over the long haul. The organic label is also supported by strong agribusiness lobbies, which push for regulations to make their life easy (and our food not quite as safe). Simultaneously, many of our local farmers are using safe, sustainable methods, which are the equivalent of or even better than established organic methods. They may or may not decide to become certified organic. If they opt out, it may be because their clients know and trust them, making certification unnecessary. Or perhaps they don’t approve of its bias toward big agribusiness; they can’t afford to follow the rules, which don’t encourage small farms; they use another accredited system, such as Certified Naturally Grown; or they prefer to use their own, ecofriendly methods. Buying certified organic food without thinking leaves out these farmers who grow delicious, safe food and also enrich their communities in numerous ways. Farmers are left behind, too, as stores and restaurants respond to our demand by stressing organic above local. It may support farming systems that are substantially better than conventional methods, but it also boosts the ballooning organic agribusiness and food often shipped from afar, using lots of fossil food as it ages. Yes, ages — organic does not mean fresh. Knowing a farmer and his or her values, or at least finding a trustworthy farm source, is the best way to procure foods raised in a manner that is healthier for you and for the earth, too. For more information check out Amy's blog. |
New England Wild Flower Society – 2011 Conservation Fellowships [3] The Herbert J. Esther M. Atkinson Conservation Fellowship, New England Wild Flower Society, the oldest native plant conservation organization in the United States, is a leader in regional plant conservation activities. The New England Plant Conservation Program (NEPCoP) and the Plant Conservation Volunteer (PCV) Corps program engage professional and citizen volunteers in rare species monitoring, habitat management, invasive species monitoring and control initiatives, and long-term conservation planning. The innovative and award-winning NEPCoP and PCV programs work closely with the natural heritage program of each New England state as well as other conservation organizations. The 2011 Fellows will be integral to these programs in a variety of ways, from coordinating volunteers and entering data to conducting botanical surveys, management projects, and other office and field actions. The Atkinson and Lovejoy Fellowships are detailed below. Full description for the Everett Fellowship opportunity will be available by January 2011 on our website http://www.newenglandWILD.org . Description Preferred Skills Bottom Line Everett Fellowship is a full-time, three month position (13 weeks) To Apply
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Selectmen to negotiate wind farm's PILOT program Wednesday November 10, 2010 SAVOY -- Voters took under five minutes Tuesday night to decide to give the Selectmen permission to begin negotiations with Minuteman Wind LLC on a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) program for the proposed wind farm on West Hill. The special town meeting held at Town Hall attracted 10 residents -- just enough for a quorum -- and the vote to allow the negotiations to begin was unanimous. Minuteman plans to install five 400-foot wind turbines on 290 acres of West Hill at an estimated cost of $35 million. A PILOT program could be more beneficial for the town as opposed to taxing the project as a business because it would ensure the amount of money coming into the town year after year and would avoid the expensive process of re-assessing the project’s value every three years. The Selectmen answered questions before the meeting, from former planning board member Karen Dobe-Costa, who wanted to know if the Selectmen would be the only ones working on the deal on the town’s behalf. "It’s not just us, we will have legal counsel with us the whole time," Selectmen Chairman Scott Koczela said. "The state regulations state we are allowed to hire outside counsel for this project and the bill will go to Minuteman." Koczela said the town has still not decided on a lawyer for the negotiations but will decide before negotiations begin. Koczela also said that just because PILOT |
Animal Behavior, Autism, and Sensory-Based Thinking Temple Grandin, a renowned leader in the autism and animal rights movements who came into the public eye last year as the subject of an eponymous Emmy-winning HBO film, will speak at Mount Holyoke Wednesday, November 17 at 7:30 pm in Gamble Auditorium. In a lecture titled "Animal Behavior, Autism, and Sensory-Based Thinking," Grandin will discuss her insights into animal behavior and how her autism and visual thinking led to a revolution in animal husbandry and food production. The event is part of the Weissman Center's 2010-2011 Food series, which focuses on the philosophical questions and practical approaches to world hunger, global climate change, and animals as a food source. Long before she became known to cable television viewers, Grandin established herself through her pioneering work with animals and in designing humane meat-processing facilities. She has done extensive work on the design of handling facilities; half the cattle in the United States and Canada are handled in equipment she has designed for meat plants. She has also developed animal welfare guidelines for the meat industry and consulted with McDonalds, Wendy's International, Burger King, and other companies on animal welfare. Grandin earned a B.A. at Franklin Pierce College in 1970, then became livestock editor for the Arizona Farmer Ranchman and worked for Corral Industries on equipment design. She earned her M.S. in animal science in 1974 at Arizona State University for her work on the behavior of cattle and was awarded her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois in 1989; she is currently a professor of animal science at Colorado State University. <MORE> |
Bipartisan Support for Federal Land and Wildlife Conservation Fund Mass Audubon thanks Senator Scott Brown for joining with Senator John Kerry and our Congressional Delegation in support of the federal Land and Wildlife Conservation Fund (LWCF). Mass Audubon’s President Laura Johnson, along with The Nature Conservancy’s Wayne Klockner, Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition’s Bernie McHugh, and Bob Durand met recently with Senator Brown to discuss LWCF. The Fund has been a critical engine for the development and preservation of outdoor public recreation spaces across Massachusetts such as the Cape Cod National Seashore and Minuteman National Historic Park. Senator Brown is now among the first GOP senators to write to Senate leadership urging immediate action on full funding of LWCF. Senator Kerry has been a long-time supporter and an effective advocate for LWCF, and our delegation to the House of Representatives supported full funding for LWCF over the summer. As the 111th session comes to an end, we hope the example set by Senators Brown and Kerry leads to Senate passage of full funding for this vital program. For more information on LWCF, see the fact sheet. |
Businesses concerned by water use Some 60% of firms have already set performance targets on the way they use water The research shows that more than half of the 147 firms responding expect problems with water in the next 1-5 years. It says 60% of firms have already set performance targets on the way they use water. The UK's chief scientist John Beddington has warned that water scarcity will form part of a perfect storm of environmental problems. And today's report from consultants ERM was requested by institutional investors who want to know how much risk their investments face from water problems. It shows that 39% of the firms are already suffering from water related issues - including disruption from drought or flooding, declining water quality, and increases in water prices. Sectors reporting the greatest exposure to water risks include food, drinks & tobacco and metals & mining. Firms are increasingly recognising the risk to their brand if they are seen to be wasteful with water in countries where it is in short supply. The growing demand for companies to measure their performance mirrors the existing trend for firms to measure their output of greenhouse gases. The ERM report says if firms measure their use of a commodity they tend to draw up policies over the use of that commodity. But it says water differs from carbon in the sense that there are often alternatives to fossil fuels but there are no alternatives to water. <MORE> |
Williamstown's 'Green Community' application to be ready by deadline Saturday November 13, 2010 WILLIAMSTOWN -- Local officials are optimistic the town’s application for Green Community status will be ready by the Nov. 19 deadline for the second round of designations from the state program. In the meantime, they’re racing to come up with a plan to reduce the town’s energy usage by 20 percent over five years in order to fulfill one of the program’s five criteria. "We’re going to have to do more that what we have already done," he said. "The first 20 percent is easy, but the second 20 percent is harder." <MORE> |
A New Neighborhood Farm Sitting at a large table in the front hall of her well-preserved Victorian home in Northampton, Lilly Lombard faces a sea of pamphlets, maps and illustrations. They all depict an empty stretch of floodplain land across town that is fertile with possibility. Lombard is the president of Grow Food Northampton, an aspiring nonprofit organization dedicated to "promoting food security by advancing sustainable agriculture." If she and her colleagues have their way—and their intense fundraising campaign is successful—they will lay claim to two former family farms. They have already raised enough for the smaller of the two, 37 acres, but they hope to buy and preserve contiguous land, which would create a 117-acre farm. The farm would not just be for their group's use, but it would be operated as a community farm. <;MORE> |
Eight of Nine U.S. Companies Agree to Work with EPA Regarding Chemicals Used in Natural Gas Extraction: EPA conducting congressionally mandated study to examine the impact of the hydraulic fracturing process on drinking water quality; Halliburton subpoenaed after failing to meet EPA’s voluntary requests for information |
Grants Fund Ecological Restoration Projects BOSTON – Monday, November 15, 2010 – In keeping with Governor Patrick's commitment to habitat conservation, Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) Secretary Ian Bowles today announced $96,700 in funding for ecological restoration projects in the towns of Chatham, Cheshire, Clarksburg, Hingham, Middleton and Scituate. These grants – funded through the Environmental Bond signed by Governor Patrick in 2008 – supplement and leverage significant federal, municipal, corporate and foundation funding. Types of projects range from dam removal to culvert replacement. "Replacing aging and obsolete infrastructure to lessen flooding, improve water quality and restore habitat relieves strained municipal budgets as it improves the environment," said Secretary Bowles. "I am pleased to announce these ecological restoration projects, which will benefit communities from the Berkshires to Cape Cod." Conservation and wildlife organizations will use the funds to restore salt marshes on Cape Cod and the South Shore and improve ecological conditions within the North Hoosic and Ipswich Rivers and First Herring and Thunder Brooks. These grants are administered through the Department of Fish and Game's (DFG) Division of Ecological Restoration (DER). "When you restore a river or salt marsh, you improve habitat for a range of wildlife species that directly support commercial and recreational fisheries and enhance the ability of ecosystems to respond to climate change and other environmental stressors," said DFG Commissioner Mary Griffin. "This is a smart investment that leverages hundreds of thousands of non-state dollars," said Sen. Benjamin B. Downing. "By removing the Briggsville Dam and the crumbling water supply infrastructure at Thunder Brook, we'll improve the ecology and environmental cold water habitat in Clarksburg and Cheshire for fish and wildlife." "Trout Unlimited and the Division of Ecological Restoration share an interest and passion in restoring coldwater habitat. Both of the barrier removal projects in Clarksburg and Cheshire will benefit wild brook trout populations for the benefit of generations of anglers to come," said Massachusetts/Rhode Island Council Chairman for Trout Unlimited Joe Overlock. The western Mass projects are listed below. Cheshire Clarksburg |
New Hurdle for California Condors May Be DDT From Years Ago AT RISK Condors at the Grand Canyon in 2004. Researchers were alarmed by abnormally thin eggshells in the wild. By JOHN MOIR, November 15, 2010 Joe Burnett, a senior wildlife biologist with the Ventana Wildlife Society and the lead biologist for the Central California condor recovery program, who had been monitoring the condor pair, was delighted with this promising development in the continuing effort to save the nation’s largest bird from extinction. When this first breeding attempt proved unsuccessful, Mr. Burnett attributed it to the young birds’ inexperience. But when he climbed the giant tree to examine the abandoned nest, he was stunned at what he uncovered: the first evidence of a potentially significant new hurdle for the condor program. “The eggshell fragments we found appeared abnormally thin,” Mr. Burnett said. “They were so thin that we had to run tests to confirm that it was a condor egg.” The fragments reminded him of the thin-shelled eggs from birds like brown pelicans and peregrine falcons, which had been devastated by DDT but are now on the rebound. The discovery raised a disturbing question: could DDT — the deadly pesticide that has been banned in the United States since 1972 — produce condor reproductive problems nearly four decades later? [BEAT note: The answer is yes. – READ MORE] |
Holiday Farmers' Markets on Nov 20 & Dec 18 |
Thirtieth Annual E. F. Schumacher Lectures in New York City In June of this year, James Gustave Speth addressed a group of foundation professionals on the topic of "Towards a New Consciousness in America: the Role of Grantmakers." He invited those in attendance to help him change America's mind. By which he meant changing long held beliefs and habits that prevent us from conducting our economic lives in a way that supports both people and the environment. As former Dean of Yale School of Forestry, former Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, co-founder of Natural Resources Defense Council, founder of World Resources Institute, his remarks carried weight. His call was urgent. He concluded: "What if the following occurred? A decline in legitimacy as the [existing economic] system fails to deliver social and environmental well-being, together with a mounting sense of crisis and great loss. If both of these conditions occurred at a time when the country had wise leadership, accompanied by the articulation of a new American narrative or story, by the appearance across the landscape of new and appropriate models, and by the projection of a powerful set of new ideas and policy proposals previously "laying around" and confirming that the path to a better world does indeed exist were all these to come together, real change would be possible. And prospects would be enhanced and advanced by a new social movement, powerful and inclusive. The best hope for such a new dynamic is a fusion of those concerned about environment, social justice, and true democracy into one progressive force. We are all communities of shared fate. We will rise or fall together, so we¹d better get together. Friends, a new consciousness in America is not a utopian dream; rather, it is a practical necessity." Gus Speth is one of three speakers at next Saturday's Thirtieth Annual E. F. Schumacher Lectures in New York City. He will continue his appeal for an alliance between the environmental, social justice, and progressive communities to forge an economics that can meet the multiple challenges ahead. His talk titled: "Letter to Liberals: Liberalism, Environmentalism, and Economic Growth," will challenge long-held liberal assumptions. Neva Goodwin, Co-Director of the Tufts University Global Development And Environment Institute will speak on the topic "What can we hope for the world in 2075?" and Stewart Wallis, Executive Director of London's New Economics Foundation of London will talk about "The Great Transition." Please join us on November 20th at the Community Church, 40 East 35th Street in New York City (between Madison and Park Avenues). The program begins at 10AM and continues to 5PM. Tickets are $65 each and may be purchased at the door or ordered through the New York Open Center: http://www.opencenter.org/voices-of-a-new-economics/ or by calling 212 219-2527 x 2. The following groups are adding their voices to the discussion by co-sponsoring the lectures: American Sustainable Business Council, BALLE, BerkShares, Brooklyn Torch Project, Capital Institute, Confluence Philanthropy, Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy, David Suzuki Foundation, Friends of the Earth, Garrison Institute, Global Development And Environment Institute, Gund Institute for Ecological Susan Witt and Stephan Crown-Weber |
Border Groups Join Forces Against Biomass Plant WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Two local groups opposing a biomass plant in Pownal, Vt., have joined forces, hired an attorney and begun protesting. |
The Nature Conservancy’s Southeast MA Program Director position has been posted. If you are interested or want to share with someone who is, application is via the following link: JOB NUMBER: 12651 LOCATION: Southeast MA or Boston, MA (negotiable) ABOUT US POSITION SUMMARY ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS DUTIES:
REQUIREMENTS:
COMPLEXITY/PROBLEM SOLVING:
DISCRETION/LATITUDE/DECISION-MAKING:
COMMUNICATIONS/INTERPERSONAL CONTACTS:
WORKING CONDITIONS/PHYSICAL EFFORT:
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
BENEFITS HOW TO APPLY EOE STATEMENT Alison A. Bowden The Nature Conservancy |
Berkshire Wildlife Sanctuaries’ recent Annual Bird Seed Sale left us with plenty of extra seed available for sale. We have on hand 25-pound bags of sunflower seed blend, 25 and 50-pound bags of mixed seed, and 10-pound bags of sunflower hearts. This high quality seed is perfect for attracting a variety of interesting and beautiful birds to your home this winter season. All proceeds benefit the conservation, education, and advocacy programs of Berkshire Sanctuaries. For more information and a price list, please contact our Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary office at 413-637-0320, or email us at berkshires@massaudubon.org. Please call: |