posted November 04, 2010 11:56 PM         

Fracking in Pennsylvania, Vanity Fair article

Karl Rove: ‘Climate Is Gone’
Republican strategist Karl Rove, who helped organize the outside groups that spent millions to install Republicans in the midterm elections, spent election day celebrating with Pennsylvania’s growing drilling industry. Like other corporate sectors, the fossil industry is hoping that Republicans will be able to roll back regulations that limit their profit-seeking at the expense of people’s health and safety. Rove told the attendees of a shale-gas conference in Philadelphia that the incoming Republican House of Representatives “sure as heck” won’t pass legislation to limit greenhouse pollution from fossil fuels:

“Climate is gone,” said Rove, the keynote speaker on the opening day of a two-day shale-gas conference sponsored by Hart Energy Publishing L.L.P. And Rove told the trade show, “I don’t think you need to worry” the new Congress will consider proposed legislation to put the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing under federal rather than state regulation. The procedure, known as “fracking,” is responsible for the dramatic growth of shale-gas drilling in formations such as Pennsylvania’s vast Marcellus Shale.
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a little history...

How Cheney's loophole is fracking up America

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Huge Bush Deregulation Push Before Jan. 20
White House will relax rules on environment, consumer protection By Jason Farago,

Posted Oct 31, 2008 8:26 AM CDT

– George W. Bush is president for 11 more weeks, and the White House is plotting to use that time to modify federal regulations to weaken protections for consumers and the environment. The deregulatory initiatives would be some of the most controversial of the Bush era, reports the Washington Post, lifting constraints on such things as drinking water, gas pipelines, power plant emissions, and commercial fishing.

Lobbyists representing everything from the scallop industry to kidney dialysis companies have been swarming the White House to plead for quick action, fearing a less industry-friendly administration after Jan. 20. Up to 90 new regulations are being planned, although it's unclear if the administration will finish them all in time; the Post notes that many of the Clinton administration's last-minute rules changes missed the deadline, and were overturned by incoming Bushies the day after the inauguration.

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• NOAA: Arctic changes are affecting climate elsewhere
  
• Warmer Arctic probably permanent, scientists say
  
• The Earth will take 100,000 years to recover from global warming if mankind continues to pump greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, geologists have warned.
• (Reuters) - A widely agreed international target to avoid dangerous global warming must take account of local impacts and may need to change, said the chief scientist at the MetOffice Hadley Center, Britain's biggest climate research center.

posted November 05, 2010 06:10 PM         

The changes to the party seem to be pretty deep. Talking to long time Republicans about the changes I hear "I don't recognize my own party" allot, or read the equivalent on-line frequently.

The word moderate seems to be in semi expungment, as if the middle of the road is an embarrassing place to be.

There are many new books on the shelves discussing the changes, but my personal take is that many Republicans wanted/ needed re branding after Bush2. One telling moment came during the last presidential election, at the convention there were no Bush paraphernalia items for sale, or it appeared so. One report commented on it (the lack of merch) as it is very unusual. The microphone was held to the dealers, and after some rooting around one or two came up with some goods.

A great deal of it I put squarely in the FOX news lap. I also blame the media for the fracture with the Tea Party. Most Baggers are disenfranchised Republicans as far as I know. And a whole different breed of angry WASP/C

When I listen to call in radio shows particularly the C-Span radio-- Republican line...what I hear is word for word parroting of the taking points that Politicians repeat ad nauseum on FOXY. They hear it so frequently that they can quote it chapter and verse..... It is a little startling. Whenever the host asks one simple question along the lines of "why do
you think that?" the callers get derailed, take a breath and then repeat the playbook.

As far as fiscal responsibility and regulations, I always ask two pretty standard questions.

1) If you don't want to return taxes to Clinton levels for those who make more than a quarter mil a year to pay off the deficit then how are you going to pay it off?

The reply is usually government "out of control spending" if we stop the "out of control spending" we will no longer have a deficit!?
that is the answer. "_"

Or, if they tell me that they cannot keep their current med insurance, and I say "why do you think that?" "Because that's what Obamacare did, took away my insurance"!

It is sad.

posted November 05, 2010 07:59 PM         

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Regulations are good, I lub me some regulations, particularly the ones that keep nasties out of my drinking water.

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posted November 05, 2010 10:52 PM         

DURHAM – University of New Hampshire and outside researchers are creating a computer model to help organic dairy farmers cut greenhouse gas emissions such as methane, because Beano probably isn't an option.

Nitrogen- and carbon-based greenhouse gases are produced via a complicated system at dairy farms that is affected by everything from the weather to the soil to the feed to cow burps, among other things.

"Cows emit most of their methane through belching, only a small fraction from flatulence," said the project's principal investigator, Ruth Varner of UNH's Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space.

UNH has been awarded a $700,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture grant to create a computer model that measures the amount of greenhouse gases an organic dairy farm produces and thus provide ways to cut those emissions.

UNH has won a $700,000 to grant to study greenhouse gas emissions from organic dairies, which are cause by cow burps, among other things. (COURTESY)
Varner said the study will focus on the waste streams at farms. Using UNH's own organic dairy farm as a testing ground, researchers will measure things like how spreading manure on pastures will affect the amount of greenhouse gases produced.

The idea is to use the various factors to create a computer model that farmers can use to plug in data for their own farms.

"The real goal is to get a decision support tool that captures the very complicated biology of these systems and uses rigorous science that can support the model results," said Bill Salas, president of Applied GeoSolutions LLC, which is creating the computer model.

Salas said even small changes in the system -- such as changing what type of feed animals receive -- can ripple through the system and affect how much greenhouse gas is made.

There are many ways to cut how much gas is produced, such as leaving manure out rather than putting it in water, Salas said. The question is how to do it best at an organic dairy. What works for one dairy may not work for another, he said.

The computer model will be tested with Londonderry-based Stonyfield Farms and Organic Valley, of Wisconsin.

The grant will also be used to create programs meant to improve the competitiveness of organic livestock and crops, which tend to be significantly more expensive.

YOUR COMMENTS

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These elitist,idiots, they want to stop natural processes, they want to cut back half the population, abortion, so that this planet will be saved, and they prove their ignorance is that of a child, yet they have their degree. Spending money to prevent phony global warming, save energy, go green, higher energy costs, bla bla, but the fools just have to allow industry to market individual units that run on methane that is hooked up to your septic system, and electric generation using the farm methane, so it would be burned clean and not even get into the ecosystem. They just want to prove that we need to cut back on population so we can all die and leave the world brand new for the elite rich ******** who have no intentions of having less kids, nor stop using jets, and having prime steak from those burping cows.
- Steve, york

I would like to know why liberals don't research Obama's carbon footprint/effect on the environment, since he is flying around daily in that jet he uses for a toy.

If there is global warming, climate change, global climate disruption, why did Al Gore buy a new mansion on the beach.
- Valerie, Glen, NH

Really... who cares how much cows, sheep or ants burp or fart.. I don't... What we really need is a study of how much wealth liberals, "progressives", fascists and communists (all alike) have wasted, stolen, appropriated and thrown away. How many human lives have they taken? How much misery have they produced? When are people going to stop believing their lies? When are populations going to think for themselves? When are they going to stop trusting "progressives" with power, influence and money? That is the study that needs to be funded. Not another cow burp study.
- robert mosby, atlanta

This is why we should not pay taxes. The Federal govt has no right to do this under the 10th amendment to the constitution. Not paying taxes is one way to defund this.
- Thomas Jefferson, philadelphia

Wanted to buy the kids socks for Christmas, sorry, the government needs the money to study cows burbing. What a total waste of taxpayer money.
- Frances, NC

Anyone know where the money from the USDA came from? 700K on gassy cows? The only thing that this will lead to is some stupid government requirement that will place another burden on our hard working farmers.
I see it now USDA reg xxx.xx.xxx “Farmers shall attach catalytic converters to all cows and they shall have emission testing once a year on the cow’s birthday.”
- Paul, Milford

It's the natural progression of things. Modern society does NOT take blame for anything.....

Millions of airlines flying dumping toxic waste into the atmosphere.

Blame the cows... makes sense doesn't it?
- Amused, Rochester

I am sooo glad they are doing this study. I sat down to dinner with a dairy cow just the other day and he was burpng so much he was so rude. he wouldn't even say excuse me he just kept mooing and chewing his cud. He even made me pay the bill because he forgot his wallet.
- Henry, Seattle

Science from Dover, I respect your efforts to introduce facts into the argument. I continue to have concerns about the projections being based upon multiple models/projections, and the repeated inability of climatologists to accurately provide predictions over even a short term, e.g. this season's hurricanes, predicted to be far more severe than they were.

But let's assume that all of your facts are true, and that AGW exists. The fact that readily available remedies are not even discussed -- and I speak of conversion of all motor vehicles to compressed natural gas (CNG) which would immediately reduce particulate emissions by 99%, and CO2 by at least 20%, far better than targets being sought. That tells me that AGW is not about the environment, it's about control of the energy sector and taxation. That, more than anything, drives our cynicism about this whole topic.

Further, the costs to society to have a tiny impact on the problem are staggering. So what if the temp goes up a degree globally? It's happened before....
- Rhetticent, Oklahoma City...............