Eco Report – September 29, 2023

And now for your environmental reports:

The Indiana Daily student newspaper reports Indiana University unveiled its newest Climate Action Plan, pledging that all campuses will reach carbon neutrality by 2040. Carbon neutrality is a “balance between the amount of carbon emissions produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere”, according to the plan. IU will reduce direct emissions from university-owned or -controlled sources as well as indirect emissions from heating, cooling and electricity.

President Pamela Whitten approved the plan, and IU announced it Sept. 11.  Our university’s new comprehensive and thoughtful plan will create a legacy that benefits the people of Indiana for many generations, Whitten said in a press release. The plan includes six categories: utility grid, infrastructure, renewables, behavior, financing and implementation. The recommendations include investing in renewable energy and finding funding for energy-efficient projects. Another recommendation includes improving energy efficiency for buildings, heating and cooling systems, fleets and equipment.

The plan also addresses climate change and resilience. The university has reported a greater demand for cooling as temperatures in Indiana increase, the recommendation states. Temperatures and weather are likely going to become more extreme.

—Norm Holy

Expanding the use of renewable energy and curbing climate change is a passion of Whalen’s — it is one with a foundation in her Franciscan values and she feels is a responsibility.  It seemed to me to be an opportunity to really bring awareness to our rural areas the importance of climate change and the importance of everybody taking their responsibility to do something as a solution to that, Whalen said. (quote) One of the biggest solutions is to move away from fossil fuel and onto clean energy. (end quote)

They organized a campaign called Energy Awareness: Rural Towns & Homes, or EARTH, where they and local organizations will foster and support multiple renewable energy projects over 10 months in three southeastern counties.  The EARTH campaign is looking into retrofitting a building at the Convent of the Sisters of St. Francis in Oldenburg to be a clean energy demonstration center. Whalen said it works well since the sisters are both looking at downsizing their square feet as well as interested in investing in something they believe in. They’ve previously looked at switching their convent campus away from traditional electric, she said, but it was not economically feasible at the time.

Rural communities like her own have been on the fringes of seeing innovation implemented in their communities. She said this type of investment is a big step for the whole country because rural areas will be required to be a part of the conversation.

—Norm Holy

There is simply a huge mismatch between the depth of actions governments and businesses are taking and the transformative shifts that are needed to address the climate crisis, David Waskow, director of the World Resources Institute’s International Climate Initiative, wrote in a statement shortly after the summit adjourned. And some of the biggest emitters were noticeably absent from the stage.

—Norm Holy

Land-based turbines placed at a typical distance from homes has a noise level the same as a refrigerator.  Therefore,  land-based turbines pose no threat to whales.  There is only one ocean-based wind farm in the US.  That’s four turbines off Block Island,  near Long Island.   They are in shallow water where whales rarely or never visit.  Thus, we can conclude that the likelihood of whale deaths by wind turbines is about the same as deaths by alien space ships. 

The  deaths of these whales was by either ship strikes or fishing gear entanglements. 

—Norm Holy

 The Act’s authors knew its goal shouldn’t just be preventing extinction. It must be about recovery. And every imperiled species is part of an intricate ecosystem. It’s time for all facets of the U.S government to tackle the extinction crisis by incorporating species protection into the mission of every federal agency. 

Without the Endangered Species Act, the United States would’ve probably lost its national symbol, the bald eagle, forever. Now it’s time to focus on the recovery of other icons, like lynx, manatees and right whales — as well as lesser-known species, like hellbenders.

—Norm Holy

And now, we turn to Zyro Roze and his conversation with eco architect and village builder Mark Lakeman of Communitecture about how to address poverty, homelessness and social isolation with methods of making cities safer and more sustainable by implementing conscious design, activating compassion and freeing the imagination to transform problems into opportunities to uplift and heal people and the planet. 

The full interview will be available online after the program as an Eco Report EXTRA on our website at WFHB.org.

All levels of experience and all ages are welcome, and we provide the training you’ll need.  WFHB also offers internships.  To volunteer for Eco Report, give us a call at (812) 323-1200, or e-mail us at: [email protected].

And now for some upcoming events:

Learn to search for animals like a real tracker during the “Where the Furry Things Are” hike at Leonard Springs Nature Park on Saturday, September 30th, from 3:30 to 5:30 pm.  You will scour the trails to learn how to identify animal tracks and other useful tracking skills.  Register at bloomington.in.gov/parks.