Test Site for What Grows On in Rhode Island!

Yesterday, January 20, 2009, more than two million people spent the day in 20-degree weather and lived to tell the tale ~ and what a tale! What a day! What a sight, to see about twice the population...

Go to The Providential Gardener for links to the people and organizations that make up the "growing community" in Rhode Island.

Counting the heads gathered at the center
It’s expectation made manifest
More than a million drawing future breath, watching
A man, an oath, a speech full of fight and promise,
Gathering clouds, raging storms, the urgency of now
History pulled us here, desire compresses years into a moment
New leadership, collective exhale, breathe in, hold again
For the earth, for Gaza, Iraq, Afghanistan, Darfur, the Gulf Coast,
For the next paycheck, the next meal….

Official ceremony closed by the only man who should, the man
Who once said in front of four presidents,
“….in the morning, will words become deeds that meet needs?”
Who showed the power of pointed verse,
Decried “billions more for war, but no more for the poor.”
Lowery’s closing words: “turn to each other, not on each other,”
“Tanks beaten into tractors.”

More than a million drawing future breath, watching
Time for applause, but then quiet, breathing, eyes closing, opening
Oratory fades, thoughts turn to walking, boarding, travelling
Back to daily life
Something has changed, but what?
We make the answer

David Floyd

In northern areas, skunks pass through a winter sleep (not a real hibernation) similar to that of the bears, and which can last 75-100 days. -- All You Need to Know About Skunks I'm smelling fresh skunk as I type,...

I happened to find a Euphorbia in early October, 2008 and thought I would just try one as a house plant. I did not pay any attention to the plastic label that said "Diamond Frost" and "Annual Euphorbia" or "AWARD...

Here's the latest from today's Fall River Herald:

Senate declares Taunton River is a 'wild and scenic' waterway

By Michael Holtzman

Herald News Staff Reporter

Posted Jan 15, 2009 @ 06:26 PM

Last update Jan 16, 2009 @ 12:36 AM

WASHINGTON — A decade-long effort to protect the Taunton River as part of the national Wild and Scenic Rivers System passed the U.S. Senate Thursday and is likely to become law soon — delivering a potentially fatal blow to developers angling to build a liquified natural gas terminal in Mount Hope Bay.
“Thursday’s vote is another blow to the proposed LNG facility in Fall River,” U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Massachusetts,  a longtime opponent of the terminal, said in a press release. “I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again. This ill-conceived proposal should never have gone forward and my colleagues and I will do everything under the sun to make sure it is defeated once and for all.”

The bill was part of the massive Omnibus Public Land Management Act, which passed the Senate, 73-21.
The legislation provides federal funding and designates the Taunton River as “wild and scenic” from the Town River and Matfield River in Bridgewater to Mount Hope Bay in Fall River, where Hess LNG has proposed an offshore terminal. The bill moves on to a second vote in the House, which in July voted 242-175 to designate the river’s first 27 miles as recreational and the next 26 miles as scenic. Officials expect a House vote as soon as next week.

The Senate approval brushes aside opposition to the addition of the lower TauntonRiver from the BragaBridge in Fall River to Muddy Cove in Somerset. Some have argued that stretch is too industrially important to bear the “wild and scenic” tag. Four other rivers in Massachusetts share that designation.
“The river’s unique history and biodiversity eminently justifies this national recognition,” Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Massachusetts, said in a statement.

Republicans complained the bill was a back-door effort to block LNG projects at a time of high energy demands.

 Kennedy, Kerry, D-Massachusetts, and former Massachusetts Congressman Joseph Moakley introduced legislation in 1999 that resulted in a study to consider the TauntonRiver as wild and scenic.
The protection also calls for a Taunton River Stewardship Council, a community-based management system with representation from 10 cities and towns. The council, which will partner with the National Park Service to implement the designation, includes representatives from Fall River, Taunton, Somerset, Freetown and Dighton.

Kennedy and Kerry joined Massachusetts congressmen Barney Frank and James P. McGovern and a trio of Rhode Island colleagues — senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy — as Democrats hailing the protective bill.

“Since we were able to pass the TauntonRiver bill in the House last year over partisan opposition, I am confident we will be able to do so again this year,” Frank said.

E-mail Michael Holtzman at mholtzman@heraldnews.com.

Endorsed by people like Bill McKibben, Lester Brown, Michael Moore, Post Carbon Institute’s clear-eyed look at energy scarcity and the United States’ real priorities is rolled out. If the Obama administration is really serious about confronting energy challenges at this critical time, pray that they are paying attention to this important document.real-new-deal.pdf

Yesterday, the Senate passed an omnibus public lands bill 66-12, which includes the Taunton River Wild and Scenic designation that we've been working for over the past five years. The bill now goes back to the full House, where it could be amended, but it will probably survive more or less intact. Wa-hoo!

While Republican pundits and bloggers scream about the injustice of the Federal government protecting lands and waterways that might have been lucrative to energy interests, I can't help but feel a sense of relief and elation. This is the last week of the present administration, and with the change of leadership, we hope there is also a change in attitude about public use of our natural resources. Big gas, oil, energy, and shipping interests really don't need the government's help, but coastal communities do.

The Taunton River Wild and Scenic is not a "land grab" for the benefit  of a privileged few as it's been called. It's a trust established to gurantee the general public's use and enjoyment of that great river in perpetuity. It does not preclude any specific use of the river or Bay, but provides greater protection for the equitable diversity of uses guranteed by the Constitution and generations of common law. It's not about LNG, but rather the communities speaking up for their own environmental health, economic development, and a say in how the waterfront will be developed and managed into the future.

Those who helped make this happen are heroes: Bill Napolitano of SRPEDD, Jim Ross of Raynham, Jamie Fosburgh of the National Park Service, Rachel Calabro (now here at STB!),  the good folks of the Taunton River Watershed Association, and the Congressional Delegations of MA and RI, just to name a few. Thank you, thank you, thank you! -JT

Clio Chafee, 37, of Providence, died on January 3. She was a staunch environmentalist, an organic gardener, and an occasional...

Mary Anne Hitt of Appalachian Voices talks about the ongoing disaster that is MTR, or Mountaintop Removal mining. Visit the website to see how you can help.

Fantastic piece by Elizabeth Kolbert in The New Yorker on the work of Van Jones and his project, Green for All.

“I don’t want to offend anybody. I might be too radical for you. Are you with me?” he asked.“Just being real,” a young woman called out.“They can now put up wind turbines—almost like a windmill, but this is not your mama’s windmill, it’s like a big jet engine sitting up there—and make power,” Jones said. “Somebody’s going to make a billion dollars deploying that technology. I think it should be you.”

 

Our next South County Green Drinks meetup is Wednesday, January 14, at the Alternative Food Co-op in Wakefield. Things get going at 7pm. Bring a snack or beverage to share if you’d like, or purchase coffee, tea and baked goods at the Co-op. Come early to shop at one of the best natural food stores in Rhode Island. Also check our Events page for the schedule for the other Green Drinks meetups in Providence, Newport, and now Westerly! You can also find South County Green Drinks/PostCarbon Rhode Island on Facebook.

The Blind Spot trailer below has been replaced with a new, longer trailer. Check it out.

Last month's extra-big full Moon was mostly lost in the clouds, but those of you who missed it will get...

While walking and driving could be treacherous, the ice-covered shrubs, tree branches and several objects in my garden look magnificently beautiful. I just had to run out to visually record the beauty of the ice halo and icy wings of...

Have you ever wondered how some of the plants I've blogged have grown and aged over the months and years, especially the indoor plants? It is my pleasure to report that most of them are alive, and thriving. The...

A month ago, we linked to a story about a grain CSA in British Columbia, with attempts to ship grain by sail-power. Once again the Northwest is in the lead with David Reid’s Sail Transport Network’s efforts to utilize sail-power for freight. Dig deep into this article in Culture Change for evidence of real visionary thinking, driven by concerns about peak oil and energy scarcity. Another nice interview by Jan Lundberg (with some great photos).

Our General Assembly reports back in session this week, and one of the environmental topics we expect to be on...

Okay, the holidays are over, everyone's back at work, where is NNN? We're busy here behind the scenes finishing up...

My new narcissus, received as a Christmas gift in a decorative planter, started to show signs of growth soon after the watering about 2 weeks ago. Kept in a relatively cool spot with plenty of indirect light, they grew mush...