Could the U.S. really have cut greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent?

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/31/2011

The environmental online magazine, Grist, reports there is good-and-overlooked climate change news in our midst. Last month the EPA reported a 15 percent drop in U.S. greenhouse gas emissions over the past decade. That’s equal to, “More than the direct annual CO2 emissions from all fossil fuels consumed in homes, businesses, and industries in the entire U.S.” Grist does not appear to have called the EPA or anyone else to better understand the causes of the big drop, but on the surface it looks like good news. [Read more - Grist]

Yellow Pages debate gets interesting

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/31/2011

In a surprising twist to San Francisco’s proposed ban on the unsolicited distribution of phone books, Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, a champion of the bill, has opted to delay voting on the measure. Politicians fear the ban could lead to job loss. Although if the City dropped the ban, it would continue to spend more than a million annually disposing of the unused books, effectively subsidizing the phone book production industry for the sake of jobs. [Read more - San Francisco Chronicle]

America’s Cup wrestling with traffic and super seaweed

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/31/2011

This morning City officials will unveil their transportation plan for handling the throngs of visitors expected to hit San Francisco to watch the 34th America’s Cup. Highlights of the draft plan include shutting down lanes of the Embarcadero and Van Ness to regular traffic. Transportation is only the first hurdle among many in the Cup’s environmental impact review, which is slated for completion this summer. Coming up soon will be discussion of an invasive species of seaweed that environmentalists fear will be transported in record quantities by visiting vessels. [Read more - San Francisco Examiner, The Bay Citizen]

From soggy to sunny, Bay Area temps are breaking records

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/31/2011

From an unusually wet winter, the Bay Area has catapulted into a Spring of record-breaking temperatures. Yesterday, San Francisco reached a new high of 82 degrees, beating the previous March 30 record set almost 25 years ago. Similarly, Oakland, San Rafael, Mountain View, Napa, and Santa Rosa set new records for the day. And that’s just the beginning; there’ll be more of the same today. [Read more - San Francisco Chronicle]

Governor lifts California’s drought emergency

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/31/2011

After months of wet weather, it may not be surprising to hear that Governor Brown announced the end of California’s drought emergency, declared by Governor Schwarzenegger in 2008. But it’s been a La Nina year, which typically brings a warm, dry winter, and not record-setting snow-pack. Official say this is the most snow they have seen in late March for 16 years. [Read more - San Jose Mercury News]

San Francisco feral cat policy criticized for helping cats but harming birds

By Alison Hawkes

03/30/2011

San Francisco’s primary method of dealing with a feral cat population is known as TNR — trap, neuter, and release. The strategy has its strong proponents, especially among the animal welfare crowd who believe it to be the most humane method of dealing with the stray felines that inhabit parking lots and parks. But some advocates take TNR a stop further, feeding cats as well to offer them a better life. Not everyone agrees that feeding is a good thing. Among the complaints is that it food gets into the mouths of other wildlife like raccoons and skunks. And that a [...]

Study: human body can rid itself of bisphenol-A in three days

By Alison Hawkes

03/30/2011

Here’s the bad news about the hormone-disrupting chemical bisphenol-A: it’s in practically all canned foods where epoxy resin lines the metal. But the good news is that avoiding such packaged foods can drop the amount of BPA in body levels by 60 percent in just three days. That’s according to a study of five Bay Area families published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. Those families switched away from packaged foods, and stored food in only glass or stainless steel containers. [Read more -- San Francisco Chronicle]

One third of California’s power to come from renewable sources

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/30/2011

After years of struggle, the California State Legislature approved a statewide 33 percent renewable energy standard by 2020, making it one of the most aggressive alternative energy policies in the nation. Utilities will be required to purchase one third of their energy from providers of wind, solar and other renewable sources. The bill will now go to the governor, who is expected to sign it. [Read more - San Francisco Chronicle]

Marin environmental warrior and politician remembered

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/30/2011

Marin County Supervisor and avid environmentalist Charles McGlashan was honored during an emotional tribute held at the Civic Center by his colleagues on Tuesday. McGlashan, 49, died of a heart attack on Sunday. Plans for a public memorial service are underway. [Read more - Marin Independent Journal]

Mountain lion shot in Redwood City backyard

By Victoria Schlesinger

03/30/2011

Yesterday morning authorities shot and killed a mountain lion found in a suburban Redwood City backyard. The cat did not appear to be sick or injured, although its nearest habitat was more than two miles away. Officials said they opted not to tranquilize the lion for fear they might miss or that it would run away injured. This begs the question, will all mountain lions found in Bay Area towns and cities be killed? [Read more - San Jose Mercury News]

MTA chief away from office a fifth of the year

03/28/2011

By Victoria Schlesinger

A look at the attendance record of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s chief, Nathaniel Ford, found he took 31 days of vacation and was out of the office a total of 11 weeks for one reason or another in 2010. Not the image of a dedicated public employee the agency presumably wants to project while its safety record is under scrutiny. [Read more - The Bay Citizen]

Tags: absence, attendence, mta, municipal transportation agency, nathaniel ford, vacation