Going, going,............?

The photo depicts the Colorado River in Grand Junction taken from the 24 Road bridge on July 24, 2021. Notice the contrast in colors? Less than one mile upstream, the Gunnison River converges on the right south bank side flowing into the Colorado River. Water from the Gunnison appears to be more muddy possibly due to significant irrigation by farms causing increased erosion that causes sediments to runoff into streams.

The Colorado River basin ecosystem with about 40 million people who depend on stable water supplies, hydroelectric power that lights Las Vegas, and food crops distributed around the world, as well as numerous wildlife, are in a significant crisis - an existential threat. Even without the devastating impacts of climate change, there are too many people taking water out of the River than is being created by nature. Water managers call this “over allocation.” People are blaming the current extreme drought conditions but for longer term reasons and solutions we need to revisit our ancestor’s decisions to understand the truth that:

The River is Dying from Dehydration!

How did we get into this situation and what can we do about it? That has been a primary subject of this blog for the past six years and major motivation for advocating people Conserve in order to Prosper. Some of the factors occurred at the start of America’s expansion westward. Politicians did not listen to the first director of the U.S. Geological Survey, John Wesley Powell, who famously rafted through the Grand Canyon. He advocated that western states could not support building huge cities moving in from the eastern U.S. Few people really listened to Nature’s distress call when numerous dams were built by Herbert Hoover’s Bureau of Reclamation and subsequent generations - as if nature needed humans to reclaim the barren land. These bathtub evaporation ponds were built 50 years before the government required environmental impact statements which fortunately stopped major dam construction projects more recently.

The information used to determine how much available water the Colorado contained was overly optimistic - only about 10 years of data during a wet decade was used to determine how much water could be taken out. The 1922 compact among seven western states and a treaty with Mexico was based on flawed decisions using insufficient information to literally drain the life blood out of the River basin. A very slow painful death during the past century.

The Colorado River hit a new low this week. For the first time in almost 100 years of the seven state agreement to share water, the Federal Government issued mandatory water restrictions! That means that we all will need to use less and pay more for water, including farmers in Arizona who are growing water intensive crops like alfalfa or in California growing almonds. Homeowners can convert grass to beautiful desert landscaping using drip irrigation for a fraction of the cost and water demand.

For more reports, there is much information in the news including these resources:

National Geographic - The Water Crisis

Vice News - 40 Million People Rely on the Colorado River, Now it’s Drying Up

Washington Post Opinions - What to do about the Colorado River’s megadrought ‘code red’

BBC News - Colorado River: First-ever shortage declared amid record US drought

The Colorado Mesa University newsletter (email subscription to Hutchins Water Center) stated on August 20, 2021 that:

“SHORTAGE DECLARATION
The Bureau of Reclamation has declared the first-ever official shortage for the lower Colorado River basin, which requires delivery cuts to Arizona, Nevada and Mexico under the 2007 Interim Guidelines for operating Lakes Mead and Powell. The determination was made in response to the Mead elevation projected in the August 24-month Study. This Fact Sheet by the Bureau explains how the declaration was made, how much deliveries will be reduced and details about drought response operations. Under the shortage, Arizona will lose about 18% of its Colorado River supplies, the largest cut. This Central Arizona Project page has details on how the cuts will be allocated and how the state is responding.

CO DEMAND MANAGEMENT DISCUSSIONS
The Colorado Water Conservation Board's August 18 Demand Management Workshop included a hydrology presentation by Brad Udall, a summary of the Colorado River District's stakeholder report on Demand Management by General Manager Andy Mueller, and an update from Upper Colorado River Commission Interim Executive Director Sara Larsen on their Demand Management work, as well as discussion of the CWCB's Demand Management Framework and related information. You can watch a recording of the meeting here. “

So let’s all do more to learn how we can try to regain our balance with nature by taking positive individual and collective measures. That seems like something we could all agree on!

Memorial Day 2021

I took this photo about three years ago on Independence Day at the US Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. Growing up in the D.C. area we called this statue the Iwo Jima memorial to commemorate the World War II battle on a Japanese island. Today we celebrate all the people in the military who sacrificed their lives fighting for our freedom!

This weekend completes the sixth year of this website blog for Conserve & Pro$per that began on Memorial Day 2015. In that initial blog, I posed the question, “is our freedom truly sustainable if we lack the basic necessities of water, food, and shelter?” I provided the website purpose, "to share my 30+ years of experience working in the environmental science field. I aspire to inform and share ideas on how we can all live on planet Earth by conserving precious resources, eating healthier food, breathing cleaner air, and creating a smaller footprint.”

It’s estimated that about 2 million Americans do not have access to running water and basic plumbing. Over 34 million Americans live in poverty and one in four people experienced food insecurity during the Covid-19 pandemic. The fight against the virus during the first year claimed an estimated 3600 health care workers in America. We need to have a memorial for their sacrifices too.

On Memorial Day 2016, I shared some of my parents experiences living through World War II including how the government wanted everyone to ration goods to help the soldiers and created messages like, "Do with less so they'll have enough."

After the Second World War, America helped rebuild Europe with the Marshall Plan and we've enjoyed sustainable freedom for over 70 years through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as I discussed in 2018.

My parents experience living through past wars and the Great Depression taught my family to be frugal, save and find ways to reuse items as described in 2019. My Dad reused plastic gallon jugs by opening the tops to turn them into tool holders or for storing hardware and magazines.

Last year in 2020, I discussed the pandemic and how we need to have courage to speak the truth as we know it, share compassion and courage with others, pray for everyone to come together to seek Nature’s balance and make our world habitable for all life.

The rapid spread of coronavirus continues to show us how interconnected and interdependent the world is on each other and on Nature. I am grateful to all the people who have made sacrifices in wars and health care battles so we may continue to survive and thrive.

Earth Day 2021

A Thai boy riding a motorcycle waits patiently to cross the street. After a minute he sees an opening and very slowly makes his way across even with having a powerful motorcycle. Waiting for him on the other side is a police officer who says, “What are you doing crossing the road with an elephant?” The boy replies, “What elephant?”

This variation of the ‘Elephant in the Room’ joke comes from a 1935 Broadway musical with Jimmy Durante according to Wikipedia. The metaphor pertains to something, usually a problem or situation, so big and controversial that no one wants to discuss it.

An American Senator running for President (Vox) proposes spending $16 trillion on green energy while eliminating nuclear power and natural gas electric generation. Do you see the elephant?

Yesterday, a dozen governors wrote President Biden to demand only ‘zero-emission vehicles’ by 2035. NPR reports the letter states, "Moving quickly towards a zero-emission transportation future will protect the health of all communities.” Do you see an elephant (that produces no waste byproducts)?

On this Earth Day 2021, we can appreciate all the elephants, wildlife and other endangered species on our planet. We can also insist on getting the truth as to where we get our electricity and how globally interdependent we are on energy. I have provided many blogs on energy topics including the nuclear fuel cycle, electrical grid and the Green New Deal which can be found on the home page search bar.

A discussion of energy and transportation infrastructure must begin with where the power comes from to keep the lights on, run the AC, power the TVs, computers, cell phones, hospital ventilators, etc. While solar and wind power are awesome technologies we cannot ignore the elephant in the room and pretend anything is ‘zero emissions.’ How much electric power do we need now and how much more will be needed in the future as we decarbonize fuel sources? How many coal fired power plants will be converted to natural gas? What do we do with the spent nuclear fuel radioactive waste sitting at dozens of reactor sites around the country? Apparently there is more than one elephant in the room as there’s now an entire herd!

The Sustainable Investing Paradox

How can we find investments that are going to last, make money and do good things for the planet? When I started learning about investing in mutual funds holding a diversified collection of stocks it became apparent that many funds held companies I did not like including makers of tobacco or guns. These mutual funds made good returns. However, when I looked for mutual funds that advertised being socially conscious many performed below market expectations.

I make no claims of providing advice beyond sharing my personal experience. One of the first sustainability mutual funds that I heard about was Pax World. Their website states:

“Established in 1971, Pax World is a recognized leader in sustainable investing. The Pax World sustainable investing approach fully integrates analysis of macroeconomic and market trends, fundamental security-specific financial data, environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, and disciplined portfolio strategies.”

There is a trend for many corporations to consider sustainability but there is a paradox. Cambridge Dictionary defines a paradox as, “a situation or statement that seems impossible or is difficult to understand because it contains two opposite facts or characteristics.” Will investing in ESG funds make good returns and be an incentive for the non-ESG companies to go out of business? In 2018, I wrote a blog on ESG investing when BlackRock endorsed the trend to be more competitive.

As consumers and investors we can vote with our money to choose companies that do more good than harm. Most importantly, we need transparency and experience to be informed in what we are buying. I like to checkout each stock’s fundamentals held in the mutual fund or ETF with information available on the internet such as in Yahoo Finance.

Checking out the top 10 holdings for several mutual funds listed as being “sustainable” they include many of the same S&P 500 tech companies, home builders, and banks. So sustainability is focused on the company’s behavior more than saying it is immune to bubbles and crashes.

Embedded in my DNA is a fear of another stock market crash like my parents lived through in 1929. I wonder how many people have this phobia as well? Fear, consumer confidence, and Fed intervention have a big influence on stock and bond markets.

What caused the crash? According to Economics.help:

“The 1929 stock market crash was a result of an unsustainable boom in share prices in the preceding years. The boom in share prices was caused by the irrational exuberance of investors, buying shares on the margin, and over-confidence in the sustainability of economic growth. Some economists argue the boom was also facilitated by ‘loose money’ with US interest rates kept low in the mid-1920s.”

The current U.S. stock market boom over the past decade is being compared to the 1920’s and 1960’s by many experts. Will ESG green investments survive a market meltdown? Probably not. According to a former Blackrock executive in charge of sustainable investments as interviewed in The Guardian, corporations are focused on maximizing shareholder value. Unless there are economic incentives such as a carbon tax imposed by the government, it is unlikely ESG funds will be successful. So consider carefully the “green-washing” of ESG and sustainable investing to realize there is a lot of slick marketing, maybe even smoke and mirrors, with the mutual fund industry. Please comment below to share your opinion.

GOVEROSITY! Say What?

Government Generosity. GOVEROSITY! Doesn’t this violate Say’s Law? Before I get into classical economic theory that has split government parties for decades, let me discuss my “coining” this new word and the import for the world: GOVEROSITY!

With the passage of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, the Democrats (except 1 and 0 Republicans) are helping the hardest hit, most impoverished Americans, recover from the health and economic impacts after one year of the Covid-19 pandemic. Recall the Trump Administration gave about $1.9 trillion mostly to the wealthy people and companies in tax cuts. As we prepare our IRS taxes, check out the changes in tax rates contained in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 according to the Tax Policy Center.

After Covid hit the United States, Congress and the Trump Administration provided about $2 trillion to help families, airlines, hotels, and other businesses through the Paycheck Protection Plan as reported by CNBC. In December 2020, the government gave out $900 Billion for Covid relief.

When I was a Guilford College stud (uh, student), one of my favorite classes was MacroEconomics, Econ 221. I loved this class mostly because of the brilliance and enthusiasm of Professor Robert William, fresh out of Stanford University. Here is his bio from Fernwood Publishing:

“Robert graduated Valedictorian from Shades Valley High School in Birmingham, Alabama in 1968. He received a B.A. in Economics from Princeton University in 1971 and a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University in 1978. His work experience includes research economist for the Brookings Institution (1973-75), Guilford College Economics Department (1978-present), and Voehringer Professor of Economics (1993-present).”

Checkout his book: The Money Changers: A Guided Tour Through Currency Markets

Professor Williams contrasted supply side economics known as Say’s Law where supply creates demand (like Field of Dreams: Built It and They Will Come) versus from Keynes’ law, that demand creates its own supply (e.g. Necessity is the Mother of Invention). To compare these ideas, see this article in Lumen. As a result of the 1970’s stagnant American economy with high unemployment and double-digit inflation, the rise of the Reaganomics “trickle down” experiment began in 1980.

My first job in the oil fields and then in the federal government as an environmental scientist were during the Reagan administration. Many loved the tax and regulatory cuts and anti-union fights. Recall the 11,000+ air traffic controllers (fired, i.e. History) who lost government jobs next time you fly anywhere and especially to Reagan National Airport). There should be a memorial!

Here is a great article about these changing political economic forces by E.J. Dionne, Jr. in the Washington Post where Reagan (and his predecessors) made “big” government the problem and Biden is showing that government can be the solution.

Increasingly, I’ve been impressed by the generosity by current billionaires including Buffett, Gates, Bezos and others who can afford millions and even billions towards important health and environmental causes. Maybe we need GOVEROSITY to become contagious, even in the corporate sector to have some CORPORSITY. This would be a radical departure from the selfish approach some ultra-rich people have taken, especially recently. Advertising could be done with reality TV (not just on YouTube) actually helping others!

So for all the people who are receiving free government handouts who do not really need to increase their wealth, please consider following Say’s Law and share with others in need. We needn’t look very far to help needy causes around the world! On this website I have pointed to a few environmental charities and here would like to encourage us all do more to give back or pay it forward.

To quote Mother Teresa from Goodreads:

“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.”

Update March 19, 2021

Thanks for several comments that I received by email. Professor Williams wrote:

“Bill Dam,
It's terrific to see a former student who is actively engaging the world using tools of analysis developed back in the day. I like how you've included not-for-profit & non-profit organizations in the solutions to our big problems. Government structures can't do it all. Nor can the for-profit sector. Good leadership that brings the three together-- for-profit, non-profit, & government (international organizations, federal, state & local)-- in positive synergies to find solutions may be our only hope.
Thanks for remembering my class.
Robert G. Williams, Economics, Guilford College”

It felt wonderful to reconnect with Professor Williams after 43 years and to receive his great feedback!

I also received a comment from my brother Bob:

“So Bill I have read your latest blog. All good until I get to the government "handout. " Yes people like us don't really need it and I get what you are saying about generosity. Promise ours will go into the economy. Do you feel its really a handout or maybe a hand up to the majority of Americans making less than $75 k? So many people work in the service industry for example. Hotels and restaurants shut down by the pandemic haven't worked in a year. Handout or needed help. My masseuse a true entrepreneur had just bought her little building up the street. I was going once a month, haven't gone in over a year she has seen her work fade. She is self employed not eligible for unemployment. What is a couple thousand dollars from the government. Looks cheap to me Trump gave a big handout to the rich. So many people need more stimulus they didn't choose this pandemic shut down. Sorry to go on but I think you know what I'm saying.”

I agree with him that the majority of people receiving benefits from the American Rescue Plan really need the help! This week President Biden said most of the $1.9 trillion law will help 60% of Americans while the benefits of the Trump tax cuts only helped a small percentage of already wealthy Americans.

So the goal of this Conserve-Prosper blog is to promote sustainability principles with an attitude of gratitude and exemplify how we can improve our world through awareness, education, and generosity. Thanks again to everyone making a positive difference in the world including the participants of this blog and other social media that are enriching our collective consciousness!

Diverse Unity

The United States of America began marching in the opposite direction yesterday from the past four years. From South to North, from Florida to Delaware! Trump’s efforts to fan the Confederate embers of the Civil War are being extinguished as he returns to hopefully private life perhaps behind bars (Lock Him Up!)

The Biden-Harris administration took power yesterday by emphasizing diversity to represent all Americans as well as coming together in unity. Leaving not minute to waste, President Biden signed 15 Executive Orders (see AP) including fighting the pandemic, ending construction on the Border Wall and Keystone oil pipeline, and rejoining the Paris Climate Accord and the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO). When he gave the oath of office to over 1000 political appointees, President Biden insisted they must treat everyone with decency and respect or be fired on the spot, no if’s, and’s, or buts! As a federal scientist working in the Trump Administration for over one year, that would have been great to feel the President had our back instead of bullying us for corrupt loyalty and suppressing scientific inquiry.

What an amazing turnaround! Vice President Harris, the first woman to become VP fulfilled her duties as President of the Senate to swear in three new Democratic Senators, all three with diverse backgrounds. Now the Senate is divided 50-50 for Democrats and Republicans with Harris providing the tie breaking vote. Can these diverse ideas move forward to make progress that will save America?

What a feeling of relief after the past two months of watching Trump and his supporters spread the Big Lie that he did not lose the election (“Stop the Steal”) which escalated to the explosive, white supremist mob breaking into the Capitol trying to disrupt election certification. The fear of more uprisings resulted in 25,000 National Guards in D.C for the inauguration! I’ve been in a state of shock and vulnerability not felt since 9-11 when I worked in the D.C. metro area witnessing first hand the tragic events by supporting the federal responses to terrorism. I will never understand how 74 million Americans (47%) voted in 2020 for continuing Trump’s delusionary dismantling government institutions, human rights, and environmental protections. If they are so disappointed with the loss of a dictator, maybe they should move to Russia.

Before we can have unity there needs to be accountability for anyone who instigated insurrection to overthrow our democratic government. It’s Time to Heal which requires purging the poison of lies and corruption in all areas of public and private life. We need diversity of cultures, ethnicities and ideas based on scientific evidence and respect for spiritual beliefs. We can all make a difference in the world by making positive changes and demanding honesty and transparency. The past three presidents discussed the peaceful transition of power that defines our democracy!

Joyful expressions of diverse unity came through amazing performances of poetry and music. Here are three that touched our hearts:

Amanda Gorman The Hill We Climb

Tim McGraw and Tyler Hubbard Undivided

Bruce Springsteen Land of Hope and Dreams

Contagious Consumption

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, one of the leading illnesses was consumption, also known as the lung disease tuberculosis (TB). The mycobacteria infection caused about 1.5 million deaths in 2018. An article in USA Today four months ago examines the history of TB consumption stating, “the disease was eradicated through elimination of poverty, improvement of nutrition and through improvement in living conditions." TB remains prevalent mostly in the developing world. Ironically, another type of consumption is afflicting the entire world by the actions of the most developed nations.

Consumption of natural resources in a consumer economy includes use of energy, food, and water. As the chart shows, people living in the United States led the world in consuming natural resources. If everyone in the world consumed resources at the rate of people in the U.S., it would take 5 Earth’s to support all the people. Obviously this is not sustainable! The World Economic Forum stated in 2019, “the extraction and processing of natural resources alone cause 90% of global biodiversity loss and water stress, and more than half of global climate change impacts.”

The U.S. has only about 4% of the world’s population yet consumes about 20% of the world’s resources. Coal-fired power plants will continue to be phased out in favor of cheaper natural gas, solar photovoltaics, wind, hydroelectric and new designs including small-modular nuclear power generation. A green energy revolution is just beginning but sustainable consumption must be considered for all industries. Powering electric car batteries with lithium oxide places demands on this metal and other rare earth elements, which are also needed for computers and wind generators. Leading producers of these raw materials are in Australia, Chile, and China. However, the U.S. will quickly be a leading importer and consumer of green energy materials and therefore continue to be dependent on imports of natural resources.

As the Covid-19 pandemic becomes even more contagious (as well as TB and other diseases), we need to carefully reassess holistic connections among health care, dependency on natural resources, and consumerism to develop global actions that preserves and protects the planet and essential biodiversity.

Some of the personal and societal solutions are quite obvious: wearing a mask, washing hands, taking vaccines, 3R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle), walking, ride a bicycle, live near your work or telecommute, carry reusable water bottles and shopping bags, and buy products that promote sustainable living.

Peace and Love

I awoke at 3:30 am from a vivid dream and soon got up to document my vision. I was outdoors in a secluded area at some sort of music festival or county fair. The time period was around 1965 but I was from the future of today. In front of me as I walked by were four young men sitting down with a flat roof over their heads like in an animal pen looking out the open window brilliant yet concerned. They had become so popular that they were afraid of being recognized and for some reason they wanted my advice. I told them they were my favorite group of all time, the best ever, and that they had so much more music to make about Peace and Love. I told them that so many people need their music. They looked so grateful to know how much they meant to me and I said we need them to keep playing and not give up. That I know what happens in 2020 and their message will be needed then more than ever.

Paul jumped up and began to sing for all to hear, “It’s been a hard day’s night….” and John, George, and Ringo regained their excitement to play a cappella-style loud enough for others to hear. I awoke crying and thinking about that song which became the iconic movie trailer and feeling how much love I felt for the message of the Beatles. They influenced my life through their music and openness to follow spirituality from India. As Paul said in the 2015 video link, “It’s a lifelong gift.”

As I laid awake in contemplation of Peace and Love, I thought about my son who hugged me the night before and how we have been arguing mostly about home schooling “virtual learning” where the teachers provide the assignments, with little to no instruction, and the parents spend most of the day and evening pushing too hard to “Get It Done.” Simple writing assignments (for adults) take days for children to get a first draft. Can he really only go outside and play after all the school work is done first? No longer is there a separation between class work and homework as it has all blurred together while for six months parents are sheltering-in-place working from home and every trip outside or visit with others reminds us of the pandemic claiming the lives of 180,00 humans who have died in America (with 200,000 more “excess” deaths with cause unknown according to the CDC and New York Times) and over 822,000 or many more souls worldwide have died. On the weekends we try to set up “play dates” for him to visit friends at the park which has been difficult lately to go outside due to the the huge wildfire smoke nearby and seeing exhausted fireman, mostly young Hispanic men from Oregon, resting under shade trees in relatively cooler 95 degree heat. Today is the first day for a return to blue skies as the fire is moving towards the northwest and afternoon thundershowers raised the concern for flash floods.

After a recent disagreement, our son went in to his garage studio to listen to music and painted the Rainbow shown on the cover page. He told me that black is an important color in the rainbow too! He recently made similar paintings for Black Lives Matter, Save the Post Office and the American flag.

In 1984, after starting my first federal government job, moving from spacious University of Wyoming to crowded Washington, D.C., out of searching for relief I learned to meditate from the same Transcendental Meditation group that the Beatles followed as a way to relieve stress.

In 1988, during the primary election I got to see Reverend Jessie Jackson of the Rainbow Coalition in Albuquerque running for Democratic President. I felt amazed by his speech at the high school and how many students were going through hard, “broken” times and then cheered “Keep Hope Alive.” I went back to my government job feeling inspired and shared my enthusiasm for Jackson’s speech but my white boss, an agonizing PTSD Vietnam vet and proud National Rifle Association member, strongly did not agree. Luckily, I felt my spirit evolve through the inspiration of people from many faiths. I met Mata Amritandamayi, the Mother of Compassion, in Santa Fe in 1992 who opened my heart but I remained cautious with a skeptical “science” mind. She became and continues to be one of the greatest influences in my life. Hear her talk to the United Nations from 2012:

“When we engage others with respect, understanding and acceptance, then we will be able to communicate at the level of the heart” said Amma in her address at the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations’ (UNAOC) Regional Consultations for Asia-South Pacific, being held in Shanghai. Amma, the only spiritual leader invited to the conference, gave her speech on the subject of “Coexistence and Engagement Between Cultures.”

Watch Amma as she greeted members of the U.S. Congress in July 2013 including the late John Lewis.

Our American-Asian son is a symbol of hope for world peace conceived in love after the 2008 election of President Barack Obama who inspired us with his victory speech in 2008 and his 2004 keynote speech at the DNC describing himself as the product of “a common dream born of two nations…don’t let them divide us, there is only the United States of America…the Audacity of Hope…a brighter day for America will come.”

Fortunately, for the past six months our son has not needed reminding about wearing a mask outdoors but he seems to be the only child and very few adults in the neighborhood willing to wear a mask. Unfortunately, western Colorado is a strongly Republican region and many children listen to the Commander-in-MisChief so our loving son is sadly getting accosted by other kids. Mesa County is 82% White and less than 1% Asian. As he rode his bike near our home a few days ago, three other boys without masks who attend a different middle school blocked his path and talked sassy, “Hey, we don’t want any Chinese here who don’t know how to drive a car. Why are you so stupid to eat bats?” As our son stood there they hit him in the back of his leg with a scooter, another threw a fat and cut-up snake, and as our son went a different way they threw rocks and pebbles at him hitting his back and head. Luckily, along with a mask he wore a helmet. They started to follow him but he was able to escape by being quicker on his bike.

It is very sad to see how far backwards the pendulum has swung in reaction to those filled with anger, fear and hate. As a white man over age 60 what else can I do for a country that is so divided and so desperately needs healing? All I know to do is tell it like it is and try to focus on good intentions and actions. Hear Ringo Starr on December 22, 2019 talk about Peace and Love celebrations world wide in honor of his birthday.

The Environmental Legacy of the 41st President

Today, (December 5th, 2018 and reposted in 2020) the nation celebrated the life of President George Herbert Walker Bush with a state funeral at the National Cathedral.

My friend Dave, who works for the U.S. Geological Survey as a Research Hydrologist in Helena, Montana, sent me an article of a 1989 speech by the 41st President at the Montana capitol. Beyond the Clean Air Act Amendments mentioned in my previous blog, I had forgotten that President George H.W. Bush spoke out strongly for the U.S. to lead the world to defend the environment, promote conservation, plant trees, and combat global warming (climate change). He directed EPA to provide training to Peace Corps volunteers.

Here is an excerpt from the speech:

“The single most significant word today in the language of all environmentalists is interdependence. That’s a fact all Montanans should find it easy to appreciate. Not so many miles from where we stand is a spot called the Triple Divide, where the waters begin their separate journeys to the Pacific, to the Gulf of Mexico, to the Hudson Bay and the Arctic beyond — the Earth’s own geography lesson in global interdependence. The plain fact is this: Pollution can’t be contained by lines drawn on a map.

The actions we take can have consequences felt the world over. The destruction of the rain forests in Brazil. The ravages of acid rain that threaten not just our country, but our neighbors to the north and not just the east but the lakes and forests of the west as well. The millions of tons of airborne pollutants carried across the continents and the threat of global warming. We know now that protecting the environment is a global issue. The nations of the world must make common cause in defense of our environment. And I promise you this: This nation, the United States of America, will take the lead internationally. (Applause.)

Here in this great state, you’re already taking the lead with your commitment to the environment, led by every schoolchild in this state who’s planted a Ponderosa Pine to commemorate 100 years of history. In just a few minutes I’ll be planting a tree of my own, and let me say from the heart, there’s no finer symbol of the love each one of us feels for this land than a tree growing up in Montana’s good earth. We’re working hard to clean up America, but we can’t stop there. We’ve got to work with the rest of the world to preserve the planet.

We’re already taking action. To preserve the ozone layer, we’re going to ban all release of CFCs into the atmosphere by the year 2000. To prevent pollution of the world’s oceans we’re going to end virtually all ocean dumping of sewage and industrial wastes by 1991. (Applause.) And after that, anyone who continues to pollute is going to pay for it with stiff fines. And we’re going to join forces with other nations.

In February, the United States will host the plenary meeting of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In July when I visited Poland and Hungary, I pledged America’s help in tackling the increasingly serious pollution problems those two nations face. At the Paris economic summit, we helped the environment achieve the status that it deserves at the top of the agenda for the seven major industrial democracies. And I mean to keep it right there at the top of the agenda. (Applause.)

America spends more than any other nation in the world on environmental research, and we’re going to continue this pioneering effort to protect the environment and put that environmental expertise to work in the developing world as well. We cannot pollute today and postpone the cleanup until tomorrow. We have got to make pollution prevention our aim. And sharing our expertise with the world is one way to do exactly that. Today, I want to announce a new environmental initiative — one that will bring the Environmental Protection Agency and the Peace Corps together in a joint venture in the service of the global environment.

Beginning in 1990, as part of their standard preparation for duty, Peace Corps volunteers will be trained by the EPA to deal with the full range of environmental challenges water pollution, prevention, waste disposal, reforestation, pesticide management. Armed with greater knowledge about our environment, our Peace Corps volunteers are going to help spread the word in the developing world. They’ll work to stop pollution before it starts and ensure that economic development and environmental stewardship go hand in hand. And Montanans know more than most how much that means, how vital it is for us to accept our responsibilities, our stewardship — the environment in Montana, across America, and around the world. We hold this land in trust for the generations that come after. The air and the Earth are riches we simply cannot squander.”

Mitigating Nuclear Hazards - Part 1 Overview

(Originally posted June 3, 2019)

To discuss my experience with mitigating nuclear hazards, I like to say that I am the only person I know of who has worked on almost every aspect of the nuclear fuel cycle. Please let me know if you know anyone else making such a bold claim so perhaps we can gain their perspective? Groups that gave me this experience include the University of Wyoming, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, U.S. Department of Energy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory as well as several consulting assignments.

Ironically, in the U.S. we do not have a complete nuclear fuel cycle so a person would need to work with the French on reprocessing spent fuel to go full circle. The examination of the nuclear fuel cycle for mitigating hazards is relevant to nations and taxpayers under the construct of Conserve & Pro$per on many levels that will be discussed.

As shown on the figure, the nuclear fuel cycle is the process necessary to generate electric power (as well as medical isotopes) in a reactor. The cycle begins with mining, involves several steps to produce and burn fuel rods, store spent fuel, then ultimately burial in a engineered-geological repository. As discussed on my blog post about the Green New Deal, we all use nuclear energy, which accounts for about 20% or one-fifth of our electricity generated in the U.S. So even for the anti-nuclear activists, we all must be aware of the risks and costs involving the nuclear fuel cycle including the fact that we must properly deal with existing nuclear waste.

I will need many blog postings to explain my experience with the nuclear fuel cycle and provide examples of mitigating nuclear hazards. Here is my proposed outline to be provided in upcoming blog posts:

  1. Overview

  2. Uranium Mining

  3. Uranium Mills and Clean Up

  4. Yellowcake Conversion, Enrichment, and Fuel

  5. Nuclear Reactors - Operations, Relicensing, and Decommissioning

  6. Spent Fuel Storage

  7. High-level Waste Disposal

  8. Accidents

Thanks for your support and interest!

A 30-day Blogging Challenge to Prepare the First Monthly Newsletter

(Originally posted June 1, 2019)

I am challenging myself to provide meaningful content on the Conserve & Prosper blog EVERY DAY this month of June 2019! In return, I would greatly appreciate your thoughts, likes (or dislikes), comments, and topics of interest to make this relevant to all the readers! If you’re interested in looking at my resume, please see my LinkedIn page.

I officially retired from my U.S. Government job as an environmental scientist just one month ago! I’m feeling a tremendous relief from the high-stress office politics that came from the top on down and look forward to sharing insights on my many experiences in future blogs. The federal government is increasingly a very challenging, chaotic and restrictive place to work, especially for dedicated scientists who are focused on truth, justice, and making meaningful actions.

I worked in several administrations starting with Ronald Reagan and civil servants were told to stay non-political and could not engage in political activism per the Hatch Act. With the sharp political, anti-government divisions of nationalism occurring in the U.S. and globally, civil servants and especially the scientific community are needing to become activists as demonstrated by the first March for Science as described in my blog on Earth Day 2017. A great book I highly recommend on the transition between the Obama to Trump administrations affecting the Department of Energy and other federal agencies is The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis!

However, disruptions also occurred when President Obama took office in 2008 and he made a campaign promise to Harry Reid, defying the law, to shut down the proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. This resulted in my DOE Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management closing, reductions-in-force (i.e. layoffs), and total chaos for finding new jobs - especially for scientists as described by the Government Accountability Office. This severely affected the political environment of other agencies including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. I will go into much more detail in an upcoming blog on nuclear waste disposal.

Blogging (my First Amendment right) for the past four years during weekends and holidays gave me a healthy outlet but resulted in my making just a few posts per month. The blogging opened me up more than ever to what is going on in our precious environment and how people around the world are being affected yet becoming more aware of our perilous situation. Obviously, I had to be non-political (as a federal civil servant) to provide unbiased educational news. Now, I can REALLY share my opinion and views on what is happening on many topics!

Over the past two years, I have also been occasionally working as a substitute teacher at local elementary, middle, and high schools. What an awesome, exhilarating, and sometimes intense experience to spend time with youthfully exuberant kids as well as dedicated teachers and administrators. These full-time professionals definitely deserve more appreciation as shown through better pay and newer schools.

So far I have not been commercial advertising on the website and hope you’ve enjoyed the non-commercial content! In the near future, I plan to provide products including a monthly newsletter, educational posters. and much more. This feature is not active yet so please stand by for a few more weeks.

Thanks for all the support and please share with your family and friends!

Vote and Yell If You Can for America to Survive!

Not only are Republicans and Democrats sharply divided, our American republic and democratic systems are in crisis. In theory, we are a republic by democratically electing officials who represent our views and vote for us on legislation. Being able to freely cast ballots is fundamental to our system. Will the great American experiment survive or implode as is being witnessed in several primary elections?

The reality TV star President, previously famous for casinos and “The Apprentice: You're Fired!” who presides over massive unemployment due to the Covid-19 pandemic, protests against police brutality and stoking the flames of race wars, is creating a Fall Blockbuster Special like the world has never seen before! Much more needs to be revealed about the bogus Russian-backed 2016 election but for now we need to proactively have our eyes wide open for November 2020.

Wisconsin forcing people to vote on April 7 during the Covid-19 pandemic caused voters and poll workers to put their lives in jeopardy. The Center for American Progress.org states:

“Only six states—California, Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Utah, and Washington—have infrastructure capabilities and critical election policies, such as no-excuse absentee voting, online and same-day registration, and early voting, that leave them well-positioned to respond to COVID-19. Another three states—Arizona, Montana, and Oregon—are also relatively well-situated for conducting elections during the pandemic, as they have most of the necessary policies and infrastructure to support mass reliance on vote by mail.”

The voting process in America is in turmoil due to lack of preparation of voting options. According to Politico, the Republican National Party is suing the California Democratic Governor for trying to require vote by mail. President Trump is hypocritically condemning vote by mail when many states like Florida which is how Trump voted in the March 17 election. Arizona and Georgia leaders appear to be supportive of vote by mail. What happened in Georgia this Tuesday with some people having to wait in line for five hours?

Luckily, here in Colorado we enjoy vote by mail which is not perfect but has great advantages especially during the pandemic! Mail in ballots just arrived yesterday.

We already know what Mr. Trump and his minions think about our sacred Constitution and one only needs to replay events of last Monday in Lafayette Square to see how he abolishes citizen’s First Amendment Rights of peaceful protests! Now he is remotely trying to do the same thing in Seattle. Listen to Fox New interviewing Trump, which aired this morning, gently pushing back on his statement “when there is looting there will be shooting” as well as the Administration’s walk to historic St. John's Church which Joint Chiefs of Staff General Milley now regrets. Notice how Fox News cut the video of how they cleared out the protesters, ordered by Attorney General Barr - the same person who shut down the 2016 Russian interference report, as can be clearly seen on the USA Today video. There were several shocking statements that Trump told to Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner (a Black mother) that she did not challenge including:

“I think it was a beautiful picture,” Trump told Fox News. “And I’ll tell you, I think Christians think it was a beautiful picture.”

What? Think again as apparently he and many people need to read about the reactions to Trump’s photo op to hold the Bible in Christianity Today!

VOTE and YELL EARLY AND OFTEN for AMERICA TO SURVIVE !!!

Update 6/17/2020

Vote , Pray, Yell for America to Survive!

According to the Christian Post, “a new book consisting of essays by 30 evangelical Christians of different political and professional stripes is calling on white evangelicals to rethink their support for President Donald Trump in 2020 and warns the president is damaging the broader culture’s perception of evangelical Christianity.

The new book, The Spiritual Danger of Donald Trump: 30 Evangelical Christians on Justice, Truth, and Moral Integrity, was released last Monday by Wipf and Stock Publishers.

“Our plea is to white evangelicals to please take another look and ask, ‘Does this person measure up to biblical norms?’” Ron Sider, founder of Evangelicals for Social Action, told The Christian Post. “We are not telling you what to include. But please prayerfully think about that. Even if you think the book will make you mad, given the title, I challenge you to read it and decide for yourself if there are any valid points that we are making there.”

Dividing the Earth

With his divide and conquer, scorched Earth rhetoric, President Donald Trump likely would take credit for plate tectonics if he could. He would boast at how oil and gas companies introduced ideas of continental drift in the 1960’s that made America great. How Big Oil discovered several features of the Earth using evidence like similar fossils found on different sides of the Atlantic Ocean and magnetic changes in basaltic rocks that showed how continents were once together have been moving apart.

However, President Trump would not give much detail to his claims because it’s just a scientific theory that may have begun over three billion years ago as the Earth cools, driven by heat released into the crust, with a similar relative thickness as a peach skin, from the deeper mantle and core (with respective thicknesses of the peach fruit and pit to follow the analogy). But this takes an understanding and trust in the scientific method which obviously is antithetical to Trump and his millions of ignorant supporters who prefer Nazi tactics, as former Trump Defense Secretary General Mattis eloquently stated this week.

To further divide and conquer America, and perhaps as an insult to World Environment Day celebrations by the United Nations since 1974, the lawless Mr. Trump signed an Executive Order three days ago to reverse existing environmental laws and hard fought court battles that have taken place for over 50 years! This is the latest rollback despite Trump claiming to be an Environmental president by using the Covid-19 pandemic and economic disaster, according to the NY Times as reasons to “streamline” environmental laws including Clean Air and Water Acts, NEPA and ESA, Talk about draining the swamp? Do you recall as do I the “Make America Great Again (MAGA)” campaign on caring about clean air and water? Here’s documentation about one year ago from the LA Times that fact-checks Trump’s claim:

“From day one, my administration has made it a top priority to ensure that America has among the very cleanest air and cleanest water on the planet.”

Actions speak louder than words! The list of regulatory changes is being tracked by Harvard Law school’s Environmental and Energy Law Program.

Working in the Trump Administration until 13 months ago, here are a few of the big projects that I heard people talking about inside and outside the government:

Oil and Gas Drilling and Pipelines running through National Parks

Uranium Mining expanded by the Grand Canyon National Park

Uranium Mining on or near Native American lands including former Bears Ears National Monument

Nuclear Power without dealing with Nuclear Waste Spent Fuel

Coal Mining and Power Plants

Burning More Gasoline by reducing fuel economy standards

The list goes on and on. As a student geologist about 40 years ago, we learned a term that when rocks undergo so much change features are not recognizable, such as metamorphic folds in many directions. We called this type of rock: FUBARITE which stands for F***ed Up Beyond Recognition.

Perhaps that can be added to Trump’s Four More Year’s Dictatorial Campaign: The FUBAR President!

Update 6/17/2020

Axios reported yesterday that a Supreme Court ruling is a boon to natural gas pipelines, “At issue was what federal agency controls the land the pipeline would traverse, the U.S. Forest Service or the Interior Department's National Park Service….Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for the majority, said under the lower court ruling that Monday’s decision overturned, any pipeline crossing at similar "footpaths" controlled by the Park Service would need an act of Congress for approval.”

Celebrate World Environment Day!

Today, the United Nations is celebrating World Environment Day! The theme of this year’s annual celebration is protecting Biodiversity and the host country is Columbia. There are great events including podcasts, films, talks by world leaders and celebrities, scientists including Dr. Jane Goodall, videos and more on the features page.

To appreciate our environment means getting outside, setting up the tent for a sleep out, hiking, planting trees, or just sitting in the cool shade!

What To and Not To Spread?

Start the Spread

Love, Light, Peace, Truth, Unity, Health, Kindness, Compassion, Cooperation, Joy, Smiles, Plants, Trees, Walking, Riding Bikes, Clean Air, Clean Water, Conservation and Prosperity!

Stop the Spread

Hate, Darkness, War, Lies, Division, Illnesses, Rudeness, Greed, Selfishness, Pain, Sadness, Death, Decay, Gas Guzzlers, Pollution, Carbon, Plastics, Chemicals, Overconsumption and Debts!

Start the Spread

Love, Light, Peace, Truth, Unity, Health, Kindness, Compassion, Cooperation, Joy, Smiles, Plants, Trees, Walking, Riding Bikes, Clean Air, Clean Water, Conservation and Prosperity!

From Darkness to Light with Courage

Storm Clouds! Such incredible suffering, deceit and Darkness – where is the relief, the Silver Lining, bright Light and emerging Rainbow?

On this Memorial Day 2020, over 5.5 million people worldwide have contracted the coronavirus Covid-19 and about 345,000 people have died. While the animal to human virus began in China and quickly spread around Asia to Europe, those countries have been more proactive in quickly responding and reducing the spread than in the Americas. Wearing masks and contact tracing are leading factors for stopping the spread.

The United States leads the way in cases and deaths by about four times compared to other countries which has nothing to do with numbers of people being tested, as the President claims to hide reality and spread more darkness. We’ve learned from Columbia University that if the Administration took action just one week sooner, then possibly 36,000 Americans would still be living. About 100,000 people have died in the U.S. in just a few short months during an unprecedented lockdown and now the virus is spreading like wildfire in Brazil with over 22,000 dead. There is incredible suffering by individuals, families who cannot visit or mourn for their loved ones, health-care professionals, and close to eight billion of us are all being affected.

This pandemic might be the first time that humanity has ever been on the same level – all because of an invisible, microscopic enemy. The virus is an equal opportunity human invader as no one is immune. Rich and poor, all countries, races, religions, political affiliation, sexes, and ages. There are many disparities within groups as some races are being impacted more than other groups. We don’t yet know why some groups are more impacted than others but it appears the virus does not discriminate. Initially, people thought Covid-19 only affected the elderly but later we found out that children are been affected in multiple, complex ways.

Ammachi says we need to have courage to fight the coronavirus. From a disciple’s book Color of the Rainbow, Compassionate Leadership, Amma is quoted, “Life seems to be unfair only when perceived with our external eyes. Observe it from within and we realize that life is always fair, because life is the totality, the cosmos. People can be unfair, but the cosmos ought to be fair, since it is equally available to everyone, but we should always remain well-rooted in out own deep convictions about the values of life.”

His Holiness the Dalai Lama, “No matter how difficult the situation may be, we should employ science and human ingenuity with determination and courage to overcome the problems that confront us. Faced with threats to our health and well-being, it is natural to feel anxiety and fear. Nevertheless, I take great solace in the following wise advice to examine the problems before us: ‘If there is something to be done—do it, without any need to worry; if there’s nothing to be done, worrying about it further will not help.”

Pope Francis insists that “an emergency like Covid-19 is overcome in the first place by the antibodies of solidarity.” This lesson “breaks all the fatalism in which we have immersed ourselves and allows us to return to be the architects and protagonists of a common history,” he says, and it enables us “to respond together to the many evils that are affecting so many of our brothers and sisters across the globe.”

Have courage to speak the truth as you know it, share compassion and courage with others, pray for everyone to come together to seek Nature’s balance and we can make our world habitable for all life.

Mastering Metrics

The book: Bad Data: Why We Measure the Wrong Things and Often Miss the Metrics That Matter by Peter Schryvers provides many examples and stories where obsession for collecting data has unintended consequences. One of my favorite stories is the Cobra Effect. As background, he describes how public schools so focused on testing to get federal funding led to widespread cheating. In India, the British colonist offered to buy poisonous cobras from locals in an effort to remove them. However, Indian people began growing more cobras to sell and when the British found out and stopped paying money, the Indians then freed their home-grown snakes. That created a bigger cobra problem than in the beginning! That might explain why I saw so many snake charmers during my visit to Mumbai 25 years ago.

Other interesting examples include the New York Police Department’s effort to get precincts competing based on crime statistics leading to under reporting and not listening to citizen complains that led to loss of trust. The author states that TRUST is one of the main reasons metrics are being collected in schools, homes, businesses and more.

More precisely, lack of trust affects everything from health care, environmental solutions, to worker productivity. Doctors rated on performing high-quality procedures leading to positive outcomes may not take on risky patients that could hurt their rating. Environmental trade-offs comparing light bulbs or where to live must consider total costs and not just obvious factors. A real-estate agent may show you less expensive homes far away from your workplace that will cost you more when factoring in transportation costs to work and shopping.

Bad Data was published in early 2020 but I wish it could have covered the Covid-19 pandemic. Schryvers discusses misunderstanding metrics to measure disease effects on a population. He lists three metrics: prevalence, incidence, and mortality. Prevalence is the number of people affected divided by population (usually 100,000 people). Incidence is the number of people contracting the disease over a period of time like in one year. Mortality is the number of people dying from the disease. He states decrease in prevalence of an illness may sound like good news but actually means fewer people are living with the disease as more people are dying quickly. Therefore, we must think critically when people are citing comparisons in these and other metrics. Testing for Covid-19 comes to mind when comparing total numbers of tests given for a country must consider the “per population” to be meaningful.

One of the best examples of a solution for the ills of Metrics is what the author calls Gateways. Khan Academy, is the non-profit that offers free videos online for mastery of education. The book is well worth reading to hear many great examples, including how Salman Khan started making videos to share with his family and became a worldwide sensation. Imagine taking middle school kids for a summer class and start at 1+1 to correct any gaps in knowledge. There is an interesting TED talk by Sal Khan talking about how even an A students scoring anything below 100% will accumulate gaps in understanding subjects that need to be corrected in order to advance to higher learning (like becoming a doctor) and this takes a longer time than offered by traditional academia where tests are timed and classes progress at the same pace. We are enjoying the Khan Academy videos that teach math, history and interviews with famous icons like Bill Gates and Elon Musk.

In summary, it’s all about Lifelong Learning and finding the correct metrics and gateways for learning from our collective experiences which is key to staying alive especially with challenges with Covid-19, Climate Change, Economic Recessions and Depressions, and surviving/overcoming related calamities.

Empowering Moms to Lead!

Celebrating Mother’s Day 2020!

Trust Our Moms to Take Control

Let Them Drive and Tell Us Where to Go.

They Know Love Without Condition

Let’s Vote for Moms Who Are the Real Pros!

Moms Brought Us Into This World

Moms Nursed Us When We Were Young.

They Healed Us Back to Health

Their Love Gave Us the Greatest Wealth!

Moms Showed Us How to Cook and Clean

Taught Us How to Dress to Impress.

Moms Pay the Bills to Make Ends Meet

Taught Us to Read and Write for Us to Progress!

All Moms Deserve More Recognition

Including Last Names Adams, Curie, Gandhi, Gates and King

Remember Abigail, Marie, Indira, Mary Maxwell and Alberta

Treasuring Moms Makes Our Hearts Sing!

Moms Are Teachers and Heads of School

Mom’s A Governors and Also A Wife.

Moms Build Gardens And Write Poetry

We are So Grateful to our Moms for Life!