I had not heard of this before, very interesting, and, I suspect, one of only many such bits of science that will continue to emerge as the results of the intensified discussion around global warming.
CO2 being pushed deep into the oceans
22:00 12 February 2007
NewScientist.com news service
Catherine Brahic
Atmospheric carbon dioxide is being pushed deeper into the oceans than previously thought, according to researchers.
The findings mean the oceans may continue to absorb human emissions of the greenhouse gas more rapidly and for longer, they say, reducing their impact on global warming. But the research is bad news for the marine organisms that are already suffering from ocean acidification.
Higher levels of CO2 in the atmosphere, caused largely by industrial activities, push the greenhouse gas into ocean waters. Although this process is fairly well understood, scientists have only estimates of the depth at which CO2 from human activities is stored in the oceans.
"Previous estimates, based on educated assumptions about what the pre-industrial oceans looked like, suggested that in the high latitudes of the North Atlantic, anthropogenic CO2 was not found below 2500 metres," says Douglas Wallace of the Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences in Germany.
Wallace and colleagues have now published the first measurements showing the location of CO2 from human activities in the North Atlantic. They used data collected during a research cruise in 1981 as a baseline, and then returned to exactly the same sampling locations in 2004.
"This revealed quite large changes in the CO2 in very deep water, between 3000 m and 5000 m," Wallace told New Scientist.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Global Warming Reflection
Sometimes it might make sense to follow the old Sacramento Union writer’s advice about majority opinion, which this senator appears to have done, before he became part of the majority.
"Whenever you find you are on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect." -Mark Twain
Senator lashes firms' global warming stand
BP America, PG&E Corp. chiefs are called climate change 'profiteers.'
By David Whitney - Bee Washington Bureau
Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, February 14, 2007
The chiefs of two major West Coast energy companies -- BP America, which provides much of the Alaska oil that is refined on the West Coast, and PG&E Corp., parent of California's largest utility -- were accused of being global warming "profiteers" Tuesday because they are backing legislation to lower greenhouse gas emissions.
The accusation was delivered at a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing by the panel's senior Republican, Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe, who disputes widespread scientific consensus that emissions from the burning of oil and coal are causing the planet to warm.
"Some companies are coming together in an attempt to profit from government intervention where they have failed in the marketplace," Inhofe said. "They are climate profiteers. These companies will gain market share against their competitors while the economy flattens and jobs are sent to China."
Inhofe's comments came at the second in a series of hearings that California Sen. Barbara Boxer, the panel's Democratic chairwoman, is holding on global warming in advance of writing legislation to, as she has put it, "save the planet."
The intensifying political rhetoric is a clear indication that the coalition of business and environmental groups that BP and PG&E are part of is rapidly building pressure on Congress to enact legislation.
"Whenever you find you are on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect." -Mark Twain
Senator lashes firms' global warming stand
BP America, PG&E Corp. chiefs are called climate change 'profiteers.'
By David Whitney - Bee Washington Bureau
Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, February 14, 2007
The chiefs of two major West Coast energy companies -- BP America, which provides much of the Alaska oil that is refined on the West Coast, and PG&E Corp., parent of California's largest utility -- were accused of being global warming "profiteers" Tuesday because they are backing legislation to lower greenhouse gas emissions.
The accusation was delivered at a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing by the panel's senior Republican, Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe, who disputes widespread scientific consensus that emissions from the burning of oil and coal are causing the planet to warm.
"Some companies are coming together in an attempt to profit from government intervention where they have failed in the marketplace," Inhofe said. "They are climate profiteers. These companies will gain market share against their competitors while the economy flattens and jobs are sent to China."
Inhofe's comments came at the second in a series of hearings that California Sen. Barbara Boxer, the panel's Democratic chairwoman, is holding on global warming in advance of writing legislation to, as she has put it, "save the planet."
The intensifying political rhetoric is a clear indication that the coalition of business and environmental groups that BP and PG&E are part of is rapidly building pressure on Congress to enact legislation.
K Street Drama
Boy, this is a really long running story line…the city’s attempt to redo K Street.
City suing in land swap
Officials try to save K Street development plans threatened by a tardy deal.
By Terri Hardy - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Even as city officials Tuesday welcomed news that a last-minute land agreement had saved downtown's high-profile Aura Condominiums project from collapsing, they went to court in a scramble to salvage a crucial K Street redevelopment plan.
With the future of blighted K Street and more than $24 million in taxpayers' money on the line, the city Tuesday sued a local development team headed by Moe Mohanna and John Lambath to force them to go through with an agreed-upon land swap.
The land exchange will allow a development team fronted by Joe Zeiden, owner of the Z Gallerie furniture retail chain, to revamp the historic buildings in the 700 block of K Street and install them with well-known retailers. And, it should pave the way for the Mohanna and Lambath group to transform the street's 800 block with condos and retail.
City officials said they fear more delay could mean losing Zeiden, who had hoped to start construction last fall and complete the project by next winter.
"This delay pretty much derails those plans," said John Dangberg, an assistant city manager. "We're asking them to perform under the contract, like they've agreed to."
Mayor Heather Fargo said it was necessary for the city to file the breach-of-contract action and deal aggressively with the Mohanna/Lambath team. "It was the only way to keep (Zeiden) in the project," she said.
Mohanna and Lambath did not return calls for comment.
City suing in land swap
Officials try to save K Street development plans threatened by a tardy deal.
By Terri Hardy - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Even as city officials Tuesday welcomed news that a last-minute land agreement had saved downtown's high-profile Aura Condominiums project from collapsing, they went to court in a scramble to salvage a crucial K Street redevelopment plan.
With the future of blighted K Street and more than $24 million in taxpayers' money on the line, the city Tuesday sued a local development team headed by Moe Mohanna and John Lambath to force them to go through with an agreed-upon land swap.
The land exchange will allow a development team fronted by Joe Zeiden, owner of the Z Gallerie furniture retail chain, to revamp the historic buildings in the 700 block of K Street and install them with well-known retailers. And, it should pave the way for the Mohanna and Lambath group to transform the street's 800 block with condos and retail.
City officials said they fear more delay could mean losing Zeiden, who had hoped to start construction last fall and complete the project by next winter.
"This delay pretty much derails those plans," said John Dangberg, an assistant city manager. "We're asking them to perform under the contract, like they've agreed to."
Mayor Heather Fargo said it was necessary for the city to file the breach-of-contract action and deal aggressively with the Mohanna/Lambath team. "It was the only way to keep (Zeiden) in the project," she said.
Mohanna and Lambath did not return calls for comment.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Clean Up After Ourselves
Great story, UCD to the rescue, once again. Feather tranplants, wow.
Injured heron taken under the wing
Wildlife center urges anglers to mind their lines
By M.S. Enkoji - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, February 13, 2007
The black-crowned night heron had to be having the worst winter ever, snared in fishing line and dangling from a high wire.
But the sleek marsh-dwelling bird had a bit of luck left: It was rescued from its deadly predicament in Yolo County, the same county with one of the nation's top veterinary schools.
That's when things turned grand for the heron, now known as B37.
University of California, Davis, veterinarians performed a feather transplant Monday on B37, grounded since December after losing nine crucial feathers from the right wing.
With a new set of feathers, B37 is expected to fly back into the wild after a short recovery.
The school's center is launching a new effort to raise awareness among sport anglers about the perils on wildlife of discarded fishing gear -- even the smallest amounts.
Injured heron taken under the wing
Wildlife center urges anglers to mind their lines
By M.S. Enkoji - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, February 13, 2007
The black-crowned night heron had to be having the worst winter ever, snared in fishing line and dangling from a high wire.
But the sleek marsh-dwelling bird had a bit of luck left: It was rescued from its deadly predicament in Yolo County, the same county with one of the nation's top veterinary schools.
That's when things turned grand for the heron, now known as B37.
University of California, Davis, veterinarians performed a feather transplant Monday on B37, grounded since December after losing nine crucial feathers from the right wing.
With a new set of feathers, B37 is expected to fly back into the wild after a short recovery.
The school's center is launching a new effort to raise awareness among sport anglers about the perils on wildlife of discarded fishing gear -- even the smallest amounts.
Levees Fixed, Good Job
A result of not doing annual maintenance as required by the nature of levees, is the hurry-up-and-fix-it-now process that has resulted in rocks along the shore instead of vegetation.
Goes with the turf, Er, rocks.
Levees quickly fixed -- at environmental cost?
By Matt Weiser - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Bill Shelton has lived in Walnut Grove since 1926. In that time, he's seen a lot of things in the Sacramento River.
But the retired pear farmer said he has never seen anything like this: the town's waterfront transformed into a bleak and forbidding corridor of rock.
"This is ridiculously offensive," said Shelton, 85, who supervised several local levee districts over the decades. "Some amount of rock might have been reasonable, but to put in a pile like that and destroy everything in sight, it's almost unbelievable."
When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a levee emergency last year, state and federal agencies agreed to accelerate environmental reviews that had routinely delayed necessary levee upgrades. It was one of the trade-offs California made in its rush to hold together an ailing levee system for a few more winters.
From a flood-control perspective, the repairs appear successful. In less than a year, the state Department of Water Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and a swarm of contractors fixed 64 badly eroded levees from Chico to Rio Vista. Another 40 are under construction.
The results can be scenes like that in Walnut Grove, where residents say they had little warning about how the repairs would change their town.
State and federal flood officials say the damage from last winter made the aggressive, expedited work vital to public safety. Many of the eroded levees had been known as problematic for years, but last winter's storms caused an alarming amount of new damage.
Levee crews also say it is too early for negative reviews: Environmental improvements are planned in a second phase of work.
Goes with the turf, Er, rocks.
Levees quickly fixed -- at environmental cost?
By Matt Weiser - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Bill Shelton has lived in Walnut Grove since 1926. In that time, he's seen a lot of things in the Sacramento River.
But the retired pear farmer said he has never seen anything like this: the town's waterfront transformed into a bleak and forbidding corridor of rock.
"This is ridiculously offensive," said Shelton, 85, who supervised several local levee districts over the decades. "Some amount of rock might have been reasonable, but to put in a pile like that and destroy everything in sight, it's almost unbelievable."
When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a levee emergency last year, state and federal agencies agreed to accelerate environmental reviews that had routinely delayed necessary levee upgrades. It was one of the trade-offs California made in its rush to hold together an ailing levee system for a few more winters.
From a flood-control perspective, the repairs appear successful. In less than a year, the state Department of Water Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and a swarm of contractors fixed 64 badly eroded levees from Chico to Rio Vista. Another 40 are under construction.
The results can be scenes like that in Walnut Grove, where residents say they had little warning about how the repairs would change their town.
State and federal flood officials say the damage from last winter made the aggressive, expedited work vital to public safety. Many of the eroded levees had been known as problematic for years, but last winter's storms caused an alarming amount of new damage.
Levee crews also say it is too early for negative reviews: Environmental improvements are planned in a second phase of work.
Free Freeways No Longer to be Free?
Gosh, the great hallmark of California—freeways and cars—may be entering a somber period, mourning requested.
California's future may be paved with fees
Voter-approved bonds won't bankroll all of the state's new roads. Up ahead: public and private tollways.
By Evan Halper
Times Staff Writer
February 13, 2007
SACRAMENTO — In California, birthplace of the freeway, where motorists can traverse all but a small fraction of the state without encountering a tollbooth, the free ride may be coming to an end.
There is emerging consensus in the Capitol that the state should follow the path already blazed elsewhere and look to tolls to help bankroll new roads, public and private.
Local and state transportation agencies are already planning several such projects on busy urban corridors, and some of the world's largest investment firms are lining up with proposals that could leave them in control of some major new roads.
Voters last November approved billions in borrowing for roads, but that was only a start; the money won't meet all the state's transportation needs and never was intended to. Nor would anything short of a major increase in the gas tax — one for which voters appear to have no appetite. That leaves tolls.
"The existing way of paying for these projects is not going to work," said Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach). "We're used to free roads and everything being free. That is a 1950s model. If we want to move forward, we are going to have to head in a different direction."
Under pressure from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has been pushing for the state to start shifting the cost — and some control — of road building to the private sector, lawmakers last May authorized government agencies to build four demonstration projects in partnership with investment banks, shipping companies and other businesses.
The companies would put up money for the projects, and in return could end up owning a share of them. Or at least be guaranteed some of the revenues they generate.
California's future may be paved with fees
Voter-approved bonds won't bankroll all of the state's new roads. Up ahead: public and private tollways.
By Evan Halper
Times Staff Writer
February 13, 2007
SACRAMENTO — In California, birthplace of the freeway, where motorists can traverse all but a small fraction of the state without encountering a tollbooth, the free ride may be coming to an end.
There is emerging consensus in the Capitol that the state should follow the path already blazed elsewhere and look to tolls to help bankroll new roads, public and private.
Local and state transportation agencies are already planning several such projects on busy urban corridors, and some of the world's largest investment firms are lining up with proposals that could leave them in control of some major new roads.
Voters last November approved billions in borrowing for roads, but that was only a start; the money won't meet all the state's transportation needs and never was intended to. Nor would anything short of a major increase in the gas tax — one for which voters appear to have no appetite. That leaves tolls.
"The existing way of paying for these projects is not going to work," said Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach). "We're used to free roads and everything being free. That is a 1950s model. If we want to move forward, we are going to have to head in a different direction."
Under pressure from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has been pushing for the state to start shifting the cost — and some control — of road building to the private sector, lawmakers last May authorized government agencies to build four demonstration projects in partnership with investment banks, shipping companies and other businesses.
The companies would put up money for the projects, and in return could end up owning a share of them. Or at least be guaranteed some of the revenues they generate.
Arden Arcade to Vote
In what will have a huge impact on the future financial situation for the county and the Parkway, the cityhood proposal of Arden Arcade has qualified for the ballot.
Honor is due for the hard work of the committee.
Arden Arcade cityhood qualifies for ballot
Sacramento Business Journal - 12:42 PM PST Monday, February 12, 2007
by Mark Anderson
Staff writer
The effort to incorporate Arden Arcade has more than enough signatures to qualify for the November 2008 ballot.
The Arden Arcade Incorporation Committee says it has collected more than 12,000 signatures, more than enough to meet the 9,500 signatures needed to get the issue of cityhood before voters. The committee is continuing to collect signatures through the Feb. 28 filing deadline.
The proposed boundaries for the proposed city are roughly Fair Oaks Boulevard to the south, Auburn Boulevard to the north, Ethan Way to the west and Mission Avenue on the East.
The proposed city would have potential sales-tax revenue from retail areas along Ethan Way, Fulton Avenue, Howe Avenue and sections of El Camino Avenue, Fair Oaks Boulevard and Arden Way and Marconi Avenue. Such a city would include the numerous auto dealers on Fulton Avenue and Auburn Boulevard.
The city would include about 78,000 people, with an estimated $33 million in annual tax revenue, said Joel Archer, chairman of the incorporation committee. The residents would also vote on a name for the new city.
The cityhood committee will host a campaign kickoff 6:45 p.m. Thursday at the Arcade Church, 3927 Marconi Ave., featuring the incorporation committee and guest speakers David Sander, mayor of Rancho Cordova, and Jeannie Bruins, former mayor of Citrus Heights.
Rancho Cordova residents made the move to cityhood six years ago. Citrus Heights became a city 10 years ago.
Honor is due for the hard work of the committee.
Arden Arcade cityhood qualifies for ballot
Sacramento Business Journal - 12:42 PM PST Monday, February 12, 2007
by Mark Anderson
Staff writer
The effort to incorporate Arden Arcade has more than enough signatures to qualify for the November 2008 ballot.
The Arden Arcade Incorporation Committee says it has collected more than 12,000 signatures, more than enough to meet the 9,500 signatures needed to get the issue of cityhood before voters. The committee is continuing to collect signatures through the Feb. 28 filing deadline.
The proposed boundaries for the proposed city are roughly Fair Oaks Boulevard to the south, Auburn Boulevard to the north, Ethan Way to the west and Mission Avenue on the East.
The proposed city would have potential sales-tax revenue from retail areas along Ethan Way, Fulton Avenue, Howe Avenue and sections of El Camino Avenue, Fair Oaks Boulevard and Arden Way and Marconi Avenue. Such a city would include the numerous auto dealers on Fulton Avenue and Auburn Boulevard.
The city would include about 78,000 people, with an estimated $33 million in annual tax revenue, said Joel Archer, chairman of the incorporation committee. The residents would also vote on a name for the new city.
The cityhood committee will host a campaign kickoff 6:45 p.m. Thursday at the Arcade Church, 3927 Marconi Ave., featuring the incorporation committee and guest speakers David Sander, mayor of Rancho Cordova, and Jeannie Bruins, former mayor of Citrus Heights.
Rancho Cordova residents made the move to cityhood six years ago. Citrus Heights became a city 10 years ago.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Thoughtful Letter on Warming
In a balanced look at the current debate, a letter writer reminds us all to calm down, don’t get hysterical, think it through.
There's time to plan for warming
Re "Scientists emphatic on global warming," Feb. 2: One day this century, San Francisco will be destroyed by a magnitude 8 earthquake. Buildings will topple, and the Golden Gate Bridge may be torn to pieces. A quake will happen -- no scientific debate, no questions, no uncertainty -- and with zero warning. Tens of thousands will die, and millions of refugees will flood into the Central Valley.
Are humans directly to blame for this situation? Absolutely, by building large cities on the most dangerous real estate in the country. Do we hear emotional calls to change this situation by depopulating the Bay Area? Absolutely not. Most residents know what will happen, and have decided they will accept and adapt.
Yet many in willful denial about this are literally in an apocalyptic hysteria over the possible effects of climate change. This despite the fact that the worst fears --stronger storms, warmer temperatures, higher sea levels and changing weather patterns -- will occur slowly, with plenty of time to plan, prepare and mitigate their effects.
This emotional disconnect perfectly illustrates how political and sociological factors unrelated to facts have driven the global warming issue into full-blown hysteria mode, even among scientists.
- Paul Carpenter, Sacramento
There's time to plan for warming
Re "Scientists emphatic on global warming," Feb. 2: One day this century, San Francisco will be destroyed by a magnitude 8 earthquake. Buildings will topple, and the Golden Gate Bridge may be torn to pieces. A quake will happen -- no scientific debate, no questions, no uncertainty -- and with zero warning. Tens of thousands will die, and millions of refugees will flood into the Central Valley.
Are humans directly to blame for this situation? Absolutely, by building large cities on the most dangerous real estate in the country. Do we hear emotional calls to change this situation by depopulating the Bay Area? Absolutely not. Most residents know what will happen, and have decided they will accept and adapt.
Yet many in willful denial about this are literally in an apocalyptic hysteria over the possible effects of climate change. This despite the fact that the worst fears --stronger storms, warmer temperatures, higher sea levels and changing weather patterns -- will occur slowly, with plenty of time to plan, prepare and mitigate their effects.
This emotional disconnect perfectly illustrates how political and sociological factors unrelated to facts have driven the global warming issue into full-blown hysteria mode, even among scientists.
- Paul Carpenter, Sacramento
The Silent Revolution, Part One
One of the most important trends occurring in the public sector is the increasing use of public private partnerships to accomplish public goals. We see these where government contracts with business to produce commodities or services for less price and more efficiency than government can on its own, and where government contracts with public (though more private than government) nonprofits to provide services.
We have called for the management of the Parkway to become such a partnership where the local agencies, the county and the cities adjacent to or interested in maintaining the Parkway, form a Joint Powers Authority which would then contract with a nonprofit organization to provide daily management.
The Silent Revolution
By Paul L. Posner
Most of us would acknowledge that the scope and role that government plays in our lives has grown exponentially over the past 60 years.
Coinciding with the end of World War II, governments at all levels have been called upon to deal with a growing range of daunting problems and aspirations in areas ranging from health care and transportation to energy production and conservation and environmental protection.
It goes without saying that the federal government of President Truman, for instance, cast a far smaller shadow on the nation than the government of President George W. Bush, as reflected in the growth of federal spending from 11.6 percent of the economy in 1948 to 20.1 percent in 2005. Surprisingly, however, the number of federal civilian employees has remained roughly the same over this period. President Truman’s government employed from 1.6 to 2 million civilian employees, about the same level as President Bush’s government of 1.8 million employees.
This puzzling factoid reflects an important paradigmatic shift in the nature of governance that has been going on for five decades, literally under the radar screen of many public dialogue about government.
The growth of government programs and spending in the past half century was not accomplished by using federal employees, but rather by leveraging the resources of other sectors of the economy, whether it be contractors, state and local governments, or nonprofits. Paul Light’s analysis shows that federal employees now constitute only a small share of the nearly 15 million-member government workforce of contractors, state and local grantees’ staffs working under the yoke of federal grants and mandates, and others who have been cajoled, mandated, enticed, jawboned or mobilized to work on federal goals and programs.
Indeed, it is difficult to find many major federal mission areas that do not rely heavily on third parties for program delivery and even goal definition. Even the function of defending the nation’s borders has become a matter dependent on other actors beyond the Pentagon, whether it be defense contractors or local fire departments and other first responders who have become the line of first defense in the event of a terrorist attack. Contractors used by such agencies as NASA and Energy outnumber federal employees by ratios exceeding 10 to 1.
We have called for the management of the Parkway to become such a partnership where the local agencies, the county and the cities adjacent to or interested in maintaining the Parkway, form a Joint Powers Authority which would then contract with a nonprofit organization to provide daily management.
The Silent Revolution
By Paul L. Posner
Most of us would acknowledge that the scope and role that government plays in our lives has grown exponentially over the past 60 years.
Coinciding with the end of World War II, governments at all levels have been called upon to deal with a growing range of daunting problems and aspirations in areas ranging from health care and transportation to energy production and conservation and environmental protection.
It goes without saying that the federal government of President Truman, for instance, cast a far smaller shadow on the nation than the government of President George W. Bush, as reflected in the growth of federal spending from 11.6 percent of the economy in 1948 to 20.1 percent in 2005. Surprisingly, however, the number of federal civilian employees has remained roughly the same over this period. President Truman’s government employed from 1.6 to 2 million civilian employees, about the same level as President Bush’s government of 1.8 million employees.
This puzzling factoid reflects an important paradigmatic shift in the nature of governance that has been going on for five decades, literally under the radar screen of many public dialogue about government.
The growth of government programs and spending in the past half century was not accomplished by using federal employees, but rather by leveraging the resources of other sectors of the economy, whether it be contractors, state and local governments, or nonprofits. Paul Light’s analysis shows that federal employees now constitute only a small share of the nearly 15 million-member government workforce of contractors, state and local grantees’ staffs working under the yoke of federal grants and mandates, and others who have been cajoled, mandated, enticed, jawboned or mobilized to work on federal goals and programs.
Indeed, it is difficult to find many major federal mission areas that do not rely heavily on third parties for program delivery and even goal definition. Even the function of defending the nation’s borders has become a matter dependent on other actors beyond the Pentagon, whether it be defense contractors or local fire departments and other first responders who have become the line of first defense in the event of a terrorist attack. Contractors used by such agencies as NASA and Energy outnumber federal employees by ratios exceeding 10 to 1.
The Silent Revolution, Part Two
The challenge with public private partnerships is great, but the rewards are greater, and one overlooked and unmentioned in this article, is the greater rapport occurring with government as private actors perform public work, thus infusing the concept of the public good more deeply into their organizations.
You Say You Want a Revolution
By Paul L. Posner
In a previous column, I discussed the “silent revolution” that is transforming the public sector: increasingly, all levels of government are relying on a wide and diverse range of third parties to develop, design and implement public programs. The federal government is using more indirect tools, such as contracts, grants, loans and tax expenditures, to achieve national goals through states, localities, nonprofits and private companies. State and local leaders are also realizing how reliant they are on other sectors to meet public goals and expectations, whether it is private and nonprofit contractors for child care or private shipping companies for port security.
In this column, I’ll discuss the implications of these trends for public managers.
As a greater range of actors is invited and empowered to share in the process of determining program goals and delivery, results are far less certain than might be obtained through traditional hierarchies. The disconnects between smart policy proposals hatched inside government and the results achieved years later are greater, particularly if we fail to understand this more demanding and complex public management environment.
The greater complexity faced by public administrators is depicted in the following chart developed by the Government Accountability Office.
The traditional world of direct government provision was able to focus on the right dimension of the chart since the management environment of the government agency was principally responsible for the results of government programs. Whether it was the Forest Service or the Veterans Administration, the government agency itself controlled the funding, the rules and the employees responsible for achieving the agency’s goals.
However, in the third-party governance world, the management of agencies is just one of several important factors influencing results. As the chart indicates, achieving goals in third-party environments requires focusing on the selection and design of the tool used to implement the program as well as on the nature of the third-party actors participating in the program. For programs such as Medicaid and homeland security, the kinds of tools deployed, e.g., grants and regulations, and the incentives and capacities of third-party actors, e.g., state and local governments, have a greater bearing on results than the internal workings of federal agencies themselves. Even agencies commonly thought of as relying on traditional hierarchies (i.e., the Internal Revenue Service) have become increasingly dependent on third parties to achieve their goals. The IRS, for instance, recently contracted out the collection of a portion of delinquent tax debt and fundamentally depends on other sectors, such as employers and banks, to accurately report on wages, interest and other items of taxpayer income or deductions.
You Say You Want a Revolution
By Paul L. Posner
In a previous column, I discussed the “silent revolution” that is transforming the public sector: increasingly, all levels of government are relying on a wide and diverse range of third parties to develop, design and implement public programs. The federal government is using more indirect tools, such as contracts, grants, loans and tax expenditures, to achieve national goals through states, localities, nonprofits and private companies. State and local leaders are also realizing how reliant they are on other sectors to meet public goals and expectations, whether it is private and nonprofit contractors for child care or private shipping companies for port security.
In this column, I’ll discuss the implications of these trends for public managers.
As a greater range of actors is invited and empowered to share in the process of determining program goals and delivery, results are far less certain than might be obtained through traditional hierarchies. The disconnects between smart policy proposals hatched inside government and the results achieved years later are greater, particularly if we fail to understand this more demanding and complex public management environment.
The greater complexity faced by public administrators is depicted in the following chart developed by the Government Accountability Office.
The traditional world of direct government provision was able to focus on the right dimension of the chart since the management environment of the government agency was principally responsible for the results of government programs. Whether it was the Forest Service or the Veterans Administration, the government agency itself controlled the funding, the rules and the employees responsible for achieving the agency’s goals.
However, in the third-party governance world, the management of agencies is just one of several important factors influencing results. As the chart indicates, achieving goals in third-party environments requires focusing on the selection and design of the tool used to implement the program as well as on the nature of the third-party actors participating in the program. For programs such as Medicaid and homeland security, the kinds of tools deployed, e.g., grants and regulations, and the incentives and capacities of third-party actors, e.g., state and local governments, have a greater bearing on results than the internal workings of federal agencies themselves. Even agencies commonly thought of as relying on traditional hierarchies (i.e., the Internal Revenue Service) have become increasingly dependent on third parties to achieve their goals. The IRS, for instance, recently contracted out the collection of a portion of delinquent tax debt and fundamentally depends on other sectors, such as employers and banks, to accurately report on wages, interest and other items of taxpayer income or deductions.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Real Founder
Perhaps the real founder of Sacramento is the explorer Gabriel Moraga, as noted in our 2005 research report on the Lower Reach, which is on our website:
“[O]ne October morning in 1808 when Spanish sea captain Gabriel Moraga, 39, trekking up the big river [then called the Buenaventura] in a horseback expedition, was struck by the lovely scene. Canopies of oaks and cottonwoods, many festooned with grapevines, overhung both sides of the blue current… the Spaniards …drank in the beauty around them. ‘Es como el sagrado Sacramento!’ …This is like the Holy Sacrament! So the river [Sacramento] got its [new] name …”
(p. 9) Holden, W. (1988). Sacramento: Excursions into its history and natural world. Fair Oaks, California: Two Rivers Publishing Company.
John Sutter: The man behind the spin
New biography puts bright light on what author says was myth
By Chris Bowman - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Sunday, February 11, 2007
A Sacramento native who in childhood idolized city founder John Augustus Sutter as a Western hero has knocked him off the pedestal and humanized him in the most rigorously documented biography of the frontiersman yet told.
Reflecting recently on his new book, "John Sutter: A Life on the North American Frontier," Albert Hurtado said the common version of the pioneer's story -- a magnanimous baron of cattle and wheat who got bilked to the bone by unscrupulous Gold Rushers -- is largely a myth of Sutter's own making.
"I don't regard myself as a debunker of Sutter," said Hurtado, a University of Oklahoma history professor. "Sutter's own words and actions debunk" his legacy.
In navigating Sutter's dizzying trail of property records and promissory notes, Hurtado said he found him to be a "serial bankrupt" long before the 49ers flooded the banks of the Sacramento River.
"The Gold Rush did not ruin Sutter," Hurtado said. "Sutter ruined Sutter by his own foolish business operations."
“[O]ne October morning in 1808 when Spanish sea captain Gabriel Moraga, 39, trekking up the big river [then called the Buenaventura] in a horseback expedition, was struck by the lovely scene. Canopies of oaks and cottonwoods, many festooned with grapevines, overhung both sides of the blue current… the Spaniards …drank in the beauty around them. ‘Es como el sagrado Sacramento!’ …This is like the Holy Sacrament! So the river [Sacramento] got its [new] name …”
(p. 9) Holden, W. (1988). Sacramento: Excursions into its history and natural world. Fair Oaks, California: Two Rivers Publishing Company.
John Sutter: The man behind the spin
New biography puts bright light on what author says was myth
By Chris Bowman - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Sunday, February 11, 2007
A Sacramento native who in childhood idolized city founder John Augustus Sutter as a Western hero has knocked him off the pedestal and humanized him in the most rigorously documented biography of the frontiersman yet told.
Reflecting recently on his new book, "John Sutter: A Life on the North American Frontier," Albert Hurtado said the common version of the pioneer's story -- a magnanimous baron of cattle and wheat who got bilked to the bone by unscrupulous Gold Rushers -- is largely a myth of Sutter's own making.
"I don't regard myself as a debunker of Sutter," said Hurtado, a University of Oklahoma history professor. "Sutter's own words and actions debunk" his legacy.
In navigating Sutter's dizzying trail of property records and promissory notes, Hurtado said he found him to be a "serial bankrupt" long before the 49ers flooded the banks of the Sacramento River.
"The Gold Rush did not ruin Sutter," Hurtado said. "Sutter ruined Sutter by his own foolish business operations."
Jane Jacobs Award
Good continuing recognition for one of our great urban thinkers.
The Jane Jacobs Medal Created by Rockefeller
Architecture
BY KATE TAYLOR - Staff Reporter of the Sun
February 9, 2007
The Rockefeller Foundation will announce today the creation of a $200,000 award, called the Jane Jacobs Medal, to recognize individuals who have made a significant contribution to thinking about urban design, specifically in New York City. The medal will be given annually to two people: one who has made a lifetime contribution and another who is at the start of a promising career.
Jacobs was herself a young unknown in 1958 when she received a $10,000 grant from the foundation to write what would become "The Death and Life of Great American Cities." Published in 1961, the book, which described the intricate network of relationships in neighborhoods like Greenwich Village and deplored the "urban renewal" projects of the 1950s, has continued to influence thinking about how cities work through the present.
The Jane Jacobs Medal Created by Rockefeller
Architecture
BY KATE TAYLOR - Staff Reporter of the Sun
February 9, 2007
The Rockefeller Foundation will announce today the creation of a $200,000 award, called the Jane Jacobs Medal, to recognize individuals who have made a significant contribution to thinking about urban design, specifically in New York City. The medal will be given annually to two people: one who has made a lifetime contribution and another who is at the start of a promising career.
Jacobs was herself a young unknown in 1958 when she received a $10,000 grant from the foundation to write what would become "The Death and Life of Great American Cities." Published in 1961, the book, which described the intricate network of relationships in neighborhoods like Greenwich Village and deplored the "urban renewal" projects of the 1950s, has continued to influence thinking about how cities work through the present.
Los Angeles' Parkway to Be
Los Angeles is a singularly vivid expression of urbanity that has been captured in potent prose and verse for decades, and this attempt to turn the river centering it into a parkway will be worth watching, and writing about.
Nature amid the concrete
L.A.'s idea of nature shows itself in the plan to restore its urban river.
By D.J. Waldie, D.J. WALDIE is the author of "Where We Are Now: Notes from Los Angeles." He is the public information officer of the city of Lakewood.
February 11, 2007
A few days ago in Lakewood, a crowd of 300 gathered on the west bank of the San Gabriel River flood-control channel to take a walk. First, there were a few speeches. Afterward, a park supervisor showed slides of native California shrubs and trees. Then the audience — awfully patient 6- and 7-year-olds in tow — started out on the mile-long trail that city officials had just formally dedicated to the enjoyment of nature.
But what nature is that? The answer will determine if a vastly more ambitious plan for nearly 32 miles of the flood-control system in Los Angeles will restore it to something resembling a river. The parks, residential units, offices and bike paths in the restoration plan outlined by city officials and the Army Corps of Engineers earlier this month could take as long as 50 years to complete and cost $2 billion.
It might be said that with enough money and passion, much of the riverside in L.A. could one day look like Lakewood's mile of green and pleasant land. In the process, we would redefine what nature means in Los Angeles.
In Lakewood, both banks of the river's channel have become 80 acres of parkland. The new trail — on a strip of power-line right of way — meanders on the west bank. The city's equestrian center and a park with picnic shelters, baseball diamonds and bridle paths fill the east bank. Most of that is under power lines too.
Nature amid the concrete
L.A.'s idea of nature shows itself in the plan to restore its urban river.
By D.J. Waldie, D.J. WALDIE is the author of "Where We Are Now: Notes from Los Angeles." He is the public information officer of the city of Lakewood.
February 11, 2007
A few days ago in Lakewood, a crowd of 300 gathered on the west bank of the San Gabriel River flood-control channel to take a walk. First, there were a few speeches. Afterward, a park supervisor showed slides of native California shrubs and trees. Then the audience — awfully patient 6- and 7-year-olds in tow — started out on the mile-long trail that city officials had just formally dedicated to the enjoyment of nature.
But what nature is that? The answer will determine if a vastly more ambitious plan for nearly 32 miles of the flood-control system in Los Angeles will restore it to something resembling a river. The parks, residential units, offices and bike paths in the restoration plan outlined by city officials and the Army Corps of Engineers earlier this month could take as long as 50 years to complete and cost $2 billion.
It might be said that with enough money and passion, much of the riverside in L.A. could one day look like Lakewood's mile of green and pleasant land. In the process, we would redefine what nature means in Los Angeles.
In Lakewood, both banks of the river's channel have become 80 acres of parkland. The new trail — on a strip of power-line right of way — meanders on the west bank. The city's equestrian center and a park with picnic shelters, baseball diamonds and bridle paths fill the east bank. Most of that is under power lines too.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
National Parks Centennial Initiative
This is really a major ten year effort culminating in the 100th anniversary of our national parks system in 2016.
Fact Sheet: The National Parks Centennial Initiative
Today, President And Mrs. Bush Visited Shenandoah National Park To Highlight The National Parks Centennial Initiative. Shenandoah National Park is a strong model for illustrating how the President's FY 2008 budget and the Centennial Initiative will benefit the National Park System. Overall, the President's FY 2008 Parks budget, totaling nearly $2.4 billion, is the largest ever for park operations, and includes the highest increase ever in parks operations funding. For the Shenandoah National Park, this means an increase of nearly $2 million (17 percent) over 2006 levels for park operations, including the hiring of additional seasonal employees, plus more than $2 million in construction to rehabilitate scenic overlooks in the Shenandoah National Park.
• The National Parks Centennial Initiative Will Enhance Our National Parks During The Decade Leading Up To Their 100th Anniversary In 2016. Last August, in celebration of the 90th anniversary of the National Park Service, President Bush directed Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to set specific performance goals and select signature projects and programs to enhance our National Parks during the decade leading up to the 2016 centennial celebration of the creation of America's National Park System. Over the next 10 years, the Interior Department aims to leverage increased government investment with private philanthropy to fund significant improvements to our National Parks.
• This Spring, Secretary Kempthorne Will Deliver A Report To The President Identifying Major Goals And Signature Projects And Programs To Be Accomplished By 2016. Goals include: enhancing family experiences in parks through interactive interpretive programs, improving visitor services, restoring historic and cultural sites for public enjoyment, and engaging Americans in preserving their heritage through volunteerism and philanthropy. Secretary Kempthorne will seek public input on these goals and projects.
The National Parks Centennial Initiative
President Bush Proposed The National Parks Centennial Initiative To Put America's National Parks On Track For Another Century Of Conservation, Preservation, And Enjoyment. It provides for the potential of up to $3 billion in new funds over the next 10 years:
• The President's Centennial Commitment: $100 million per year – $1 billion over 10 years – for improvements to our parks, including hiring 3,000 more seasonal National Park Rangers, interpreters, and maintenance workers; repairing buildings; improving natural landscapes; and encouraging more children to join the Junior Ranger program.
• The President's Centennial Challenge: The President challenges individuals, foundations, and the private sector to help support the parks by contributing $100 million annually for ten years for signature projects and programs.
• The President's Centennial Match: The President is calling on Congress to pass legislation allowing the Federal government to match these private contributions dollar for dollar, up to $100 million each year in mandatory funds for ten years. This match, coupled with the private contributions, will dramatically expand the National Park Service's legacy of leveraging philanthropic investment for the benefit of our National Parks and future generations of visitors.
The President's FY 2008 Parks Budget
The President's FY 2008 Parks Budget, Totaling Nearly $2.4 Billion, Is The Largest Ever For Park Operations And Includes The Highest Increase Ever In Parks Operations Funding. This will allow for improvement and expansion of operations throughout the National Park System.
• The President's budget increases park operations funding by more than $250 million over 2006. Since taking office, the President has increased park operational spending by more than 40 percent ($584 million).
• This includes $100 million for the President's Centennial Commitment and more than $150 million to support daily park operations with all 390 National Parks receiving increased funding.
This Record Funding Increase, Together With The President's Centennial Challenge And Centennial Match, Would Lead To An Additional $450 Million Over 2006 Levels In Operating Funds And Signature Projects And Programs For 2008.
The National Park System
The National Park System Is Administered By The National Park Service, A Bureau Of The Department Of The Interior. The National Park System was started with the establishment of Yellowstone National Park on March 1, 1872, and includes areas of historical as well as scenic and scientific importance throughout the United States. The System now comprises 390 areas covering more than 84 million acres in 49 States, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan, and the Virgin Islands.
• Located 75 Miles West Of Washington, D.C., Shenandoah National Park Encompasses Part Of The Blue Ridge Mountains In The Piedmont Region Of Virginia. With over 500 miles of hiking trails, Shenandoah National Park is renowned for its diverse recreational opportunities. Almost 40 percent of the land area (79,579 acres) has been designated as Wilderness and is protected as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
Fact Sheet: The National Parks Centennial Initiative
Today, President And Mrs. Bush Visited Shenandoah National Park To Highlight The National Parks Centennial Initiative. Shenandoah National Park is a strong model for illustrating how the President's FY 2008 budget and the Centennial Initiative will benefit the National Park System. Overall, the President's FY 2008 Parks budget, totaling nearly $2.4 billion, is the largest ever for park operations, and includes the highest increase ever in parks operations funding. For the Shenandoah National Park, this means an increase of nearly $2 million (17 percent) over 2006 levels for park operations, including the hiring of additional seasonal employees, plus more than $2 million in construction to rehabilitate scenic overlooks in the Shenandoah National Park.
• The National Parks Centennial Initiative Will Enhance Our National Parks During The Decade Leading Up To Their 100th Anniversary In 2016. Last August, in celebration of the 90th anniversary of the National Park Service, President Bush directed Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to set specific performance goals and select signature projects and programs to enhance our National Parks during the decade leading up to the 2016 centennial celebration of the creation of America's National Park System. Over the next 10 years, the Interior Department aims to leverage increased government investment with private philanthropy to fund significant improvements to our National Parks.
• This Spring, Secretary Kempthorne Will Deliver A Report To The President Identifying Major Goals And Signature Projects And Programs To Be Accomplished By 2016. Goals include: enhancing family experiences in parks through interactive interpretive programs, improving visitor services, restoring historic and cultural sites for public enjoyment, and engaging Americans in preserving their heritage through volunteerism and philanthropy. Secretary Kempthorne will seek public input on these goals and projects.
The National Parks Centennial Initiative
President Bush Proposed The National Parks Centennial Initiative To Put America's National Parks On Track For Another Century Of Conservation, Preservation, And Enjoyment. It provides for the potential of up to $3 billion in new funds over the next 10 years:
• The President's Centennial Commitment: $100 million per year – $1 billion over 10 years – for improvements to our parks, including hiring 3,000 more seasonal National Park Rangers, interpreters, and maintenance workers; repairing buildings; improving natural landscapes; and encouraging more children to join the Junior Ranger program.
• The President's Centennial Challenge: The President challenges individuals, foundations, and the private sector to help support the parks by contributing $100 million annually for ten years for signature projects and programs.
• The President's Centennial Match: The President is calling on Congress to pass legislation allowing the Federal government to match these private contributions dollar for dollar, up to $100 million each year in mandatory funds for ten years. This match, coupled with the private contributions, will dramatically expand the National Park Service's legacy of leveraging philanthropic investment for the benefit of our National Parks and future generations of visitors.
The President's FY 2008 Parks Budget
The President's FY 2008 Parks Budget, Totaling Nearly $2.4 Billion, Is The Largest Ever For Park Operations And Includes The Highest Increase Ever In Parks Operations Funding. This will allow for improvement and expansion of operations throughout the National Park System.
• The President's budget increases park operations funding by more than $250 million over 2006. Since taking office, the President has increased park operational spending by more than 40 percent ($584 million).
• This includes $100 million for the President's Centennial Commitment and more than $150 million to support daily park operations with all 390 National Parks receiving increased funding.
This Record Funding Increase, Together With The President's Centennial Challenge And Centennial Match, Would Lead To An Additional $450 Million Over 2006 Levels In Operating Funds And Signature Projects And Programs For 2008.
The National Park System
The National Park System Is Administered By The National Park Service, A Bureau Of The Department Of The Interior. The National Park System was started with the establishment of Yellowstone National Park on March 1, 1872, and includes areas of historical as well as scenic and scientific importance throughout the United States. The System now comprises 390 areas covering more than 84 million acres in 49 States, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan, and the Virgin Islands.
• Located 75 Miles West Of Washington, D.C., Shenandoah National Park Encompasses Part Of The Blue Ridge Mountains In The Piedmont Region Of Virginia. With over 500 miles of hiking trails, Shenandoah National Park is renowned for its diverse recreational opportunities. Almost 40 percent of the land area (79,579 acres) has been designated as Wilderness and is protected as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
Global Warming Skeptics Like Holocaust Deniers?
Ellen Goodman’s column makes that case.
ELLEN GOODMAN
No change in political climate
By Ellen Goodman | February 9, 2007
On the day that the latest report on global warming was released, I went out and bought a light bulb. OK, an environmentally friendly, compact fluorescent light bulb.
No, I do not think that if everyone lit just one little compact fluorescent light bulb, what a bright world this would be. Even the Prius in our driveway doesn't do a whole lot to reduce my carbon footprint, which is roughly the size of the Yeti lurking in the (melting) Himalayas.
But it was either buying a light bulb or pulling the covers over my head. And it was too early in the day to reach for that kind of comforter.
By every measure, the U N 's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change raises the level of alarm. The fact of global warming is "unequivocal." The certainty of the human role is now somewhere over 90 percent. Which is about as certain as scientists ever get.
I would like to say we're at a point where global warming is impossible to deny. Let's just say that global warming deniers are now on a par with Holocaust deniers, though one denies the past and the other denies the present and future.
ELLEN GOODMAN
No change in political climate
By Ellen Goodman | February 9, 2007
On the day that the latest report on global warming was released, I went out and bought a light bulb. OK, an environmentally friendly, compact fluorescent light bulb.
No, I do not think that if everyone lit just one little compact fluorescent light bulb, what a bright world this would be. Even the Prius in our driveway doesn't do a whole lot to reduce my carbon footprint, which is roughly the size of the Yeti lurking in the (melting) Himalayas.
But it was either buying a light bulb or pulling the covers over my head. And it was too early in the day to reach for that kind of comforter.
By every measure, the U N 's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change raises the level of alarm. The fact of global warming is "unequivocal." The certainty of the human role is now somewhere over 90 percent. Which is about as certain as scientists ever get.
I would like to say we're at a point where global warming is impossible to deny. Let's just say that global warming deniers are now on a par with Holocaust deniers, though one denies the past and the other denies the present and future.
Consensus Inquisition?
General consensus on any issue is often wrong, and when it involves particularly egregious accusations against those not agreeing to it, one columnist (Ellen Goodman, previous post) has called those doubting global warming comparable to holocaust deniers, “I would like to say we're at a point where global warming is impossible to deny. Let's just say that global warming deniers are now on a par with Holocaust deniers, though one denies the past and the other denies the present and future.” February 9, 2007, Boston Globe)
and with this in mind, and prior to committing to action that will clearly and obviously harm an existing situation (the global economy), we need to think it through.
It is becoming, as this article notes, somewhat of an Inquisition.
Scenes from the Climate Inquisition
The chilling effect of the global warming consensus.
by Steven F. Hayward & Kenneth P. Green
02/19/2007, Volume 012, Issue 22
On February 2, an AEI research project on climate change policy that we have been organizing was the target of a journalistic hit piece in Britain's largest left-wing newspaper, the Guardian. The article's allegation--that we tried to bribe scientists to criticize the work of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)--is easy to refute. More troubling is the growing worldwide effort to silence anyone with doubts about the catastrophic warming scenario that Al Gore and other climate extremists are putting forth.
"Scientists and economists have been offered $10,000 each by a lobby group funded by one of the world's largest oil companies to undermine a major climate change report due to be published today," read the Guardian's lead. The byline was Ian Sample, the paper's science correspondent, and his story ran under the headline "Scientists Offered Cash to Dispute Climate Study."
Sample spoke to one of us for five minutes to gather a perfunctory quotation to round out his copy, but he clearly was not interested in learning the full story. He found time, however, to canvass critics for colorful denunciations of the American Enterprise Institute as "the Bush administration's intellectual Cosa Nostra," with nothing but "a suitcase full of cash."
Every claim in the story was false or grossly distorted, starting with the description of the American Enterprise Institute as a "lobby group"--AEI engages in no lobbying--funded by the world's largest oil company. The Guardian reports that "AEI has received more than $1.6 million from ExxonMobil." Yes--over the last seven years, a sum that represents less than 1 percent of AEI's total revenue during that period.
and with this in mind, and prior to committing to action that will clearly and obviously harm an existing situation (the global economy), we need to think it through.
It is becoming, as this article notes, somewhat of an Inquisition.
Scenes from the Climate Inquisition
The chilling effect of the global warming consensus.
by Steven F. Hayward & Kenneth P. Green
02/19/2007, Volume 012, Issue 22
On February 2, an AEI research project on climate change policy that we have been organizing was the target of a journalistic hit piece in Britain's largest left-wing newspaper, the Guardian. The article's allegation--that we tried to bribe scientists to criticize the work of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)--is easy to refute. More troubling is the growing worldwide effort to silence anyone with doubts about the catastrophic warming scenario that Al Gore and other climate extremists are putting forth.
"Scientists and economists have been offered $10,000 each by a lobby group funded by one of the world's largest oil companies to undermine a major climate change report due to be published today," read the Guardian's lead. The byline was Ian Sample, the paper's science correspondent, and his story ran under the headline "Scientists Offered Cash to Dispute Climate Study."
Sample spoke to one of us for five minutes to gather a perfunctory quotation to round out his copy, but he clearly was not interested in learning the full story. He found time, however, to canvass critics for colorful denunciations of the American Enterprise Institute as "the Bush administration's intellectual Cosa Nostra," with nothing but "a suitcase full of cash."
Every claim in the story was false or grossly distorted, starting with the description of the American Enterprise Institute as a "lobby group"--AEI engages in no lobbying--funded by the world's largest oil company. The Guardian reports that "AEI has received more than $1.6 million from ExxonMobil." Yes--over the last seven years, a sum that represents less than 1 percent of AEI's total revenue during that period.
Bush Seeks Park Funding
Bush Seeks Public-Private Funding Boost for Parks
By Michael A. Fletcher
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, February 8, 2007; Page A06
President Bush traveled to Shenandoah National Park yesterday to tout his proposal to increase funding for national parks by $258 million next year, the first step in a plan to spend as much as $3 billion in public and private money on the popular attractions over the coming decade.
Bush's proposal, which critics called a sharp turn for a president whose previous budgets did not address maintenance and staffing problems at parks across the country, targets one of the few domestic areas where he has called for funding significant new initiatives in his fiscal 2008 spending plan.
The plan would pump $1 billion into the nation's 390 national parks and monuments by 2016, the park system's centennial. The proposal, which must be approved by Congress, would also call on private donors and philanthropies to donate as much as an additional $1 billion. The donated funds would be matched by the federal government.
"It's a bold program that calls upon the government to do its part, as well as our citizens to become invested in a campaign to really enhance the parks," Bush said. "The funding starts with a billion-dollar request over the next 10 years that I'll send up to Congress. It's really to enhance the operating missions of our parks. I'm looking forward to working with both Republicans and Democrats to get this initiative passed."
Bush's proposal, unveiled with his budget earlier this week, was applauded by parks advocates who say it is a much-needed boost for a park system straining to provide services for 270 million visitors a year.
By Michael A. Fletcher
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, February 8, 2007; Page A06
President Bush traveled to Shenandoah National Park yesterday to tout his proposal to increase funding for national parks by $258 million next year, the first step in a plan to spend as much as $3 billion in public and private money on the popular attractions over the coming decade.
Bush's proposal, which critics called a sharp turn for a president whose previous budgets did not address maintenance and staffing problems at parks across the country, targets one of the few domestic areas where he has called for funding significant new initiatives in his fiscal 2008 spending plan.
The plan would pump $1 billion into the nation's 390 national parks and monuments by 2016, the park system's centennial. The proposal, which must be approved by Congress, would also call on private donors and philanthropies to donate as much as an additional $1 billion. The donated funds would be matched by the federal government.
"It's a bold program that calls upon the government to do its part, as well as our citizens to become invested in a campaign to really enhance the parks," Bush said. "The funding starts with a billion-dollar request over the next 10 years that I'll send up to Congress. It's really to enhance the operating missions of our parks. I'm looking forward to working with both Republicans and Democrats to get this initiative passed."
Bush's proposal, unveiled with his budget earlier this week, was applauded by parks advocates who say it is a much-needed boost for a park system straining to provide services for 270 million visitors a year.
Wildest Bill on the Hill
And big new national park additions projected.
BACKERS PROMISE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Wildest Bill on the Hill Coming Soon
By Bill Schneider, 2-07-07
Informally, the founders call it “the wildest bill on the hill,” but officially, it’s called the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act of 2007, and in the next few weeks, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) will, with the support of 187 co-sponsors (and counting), introduce the bill into the 110th Congress. It would designate many millions of acres of Wilderness, two new national park units, hundreds of miles of wild and scenic rivers, and establish linkage corridors between many of these areas. It covers all of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, and dips slightly into far eastern Oregon and Washington.
And with the new political landscape created by the last election, backers are confident of their chances for success.
Mike Garrity, executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies (AWR), the main ball carrier of this legislation, says NREPA will be among the highest priority wilderness bills in Congress.
...In summary, here is what NREPA does:
• Protects most roadless lands in the northern Rockies (20,572,147 acres) by giving them the “highest level of legal protection--designation under the 1964 Wilderness Act.”
• Adds two units the National Park System--Hells Canyon-Chief Joseph National Park & Preserve Study Area (1,439,444 acres) along the Oregon/Idaho border and the Flathead National Preserve Study Area (285,078 acres) adjacent to Glacier National Park. “Preserve status prohibits developments which impair natural and scenic values,” according to AWR, “while traditional uses such as hunting, fishing, and firewood gathering and some motorized uses, continue.”
• Designates 1,810 miles of Wild, Scenic and Recreational Rivers.
• Safeguards against habitat fragmentation by establishing a system of Biological Linkage Corridors to connect the region’s core wildlands into what AWR calls “a functioning ecological whole.” These areas would be protected as Wilderness and as special management zones (3,476,118 acres) where development is limited, but not prohibited.
• Establishes a pilot system of Wildland Restoration Areas (1,022,769 acres) and creates jobs restoring damage caused by unwise resource extraction practices. Efforts will focus on removal of excess and unneeded roads, reduction of soil erosion, and restoration of native vegetation and water quality. “Native fisheries and wildlife populations will be rejuvenated ,” again according to AWR, “while boosting the economy in rural communities formerly dependent on resource extraction.”
• Designate the Badger-Two Medicine area adjacent to Glacier National Park as the Blackfeet Wilderness where traditional Native American uses and treaty rights are fully protected.
“It’s in bill drafting now,” Garrity said in a phone interview with NewWest.net. “We expect it to go in soon, at least by March.”
BACKERS PROMISE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Wildest Bill on the Hill Coming Soon
By Bill Schneider, 2-07-07
Informally, the founders call it “the wildest bill on the hill,” but officially, it’s called the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act of 2007, and in the next few weeks, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) will, with the support of 187 co-sponsors (and counting), introduce the bill into the 110th Congress. It would designate many millions of acres of Wilderness, two new national park units, hundreds of miles of wild and scenic rivers, and establish linkage corridors between many of these areas. It covers all of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, and dips slightly into far eastern Oregon and Washington.
And with the new political landscape created by the last election, backers are confident of their chances for success.
Mike Garrity, executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies (AWR), the main ball carrier of this legislation, says NREPA will be among the highest priority wilderness bills in Congress.
...In summary, here is what NREPA does:
• Protects most roadless lands in the northern Rockies (20,572,147 acres) by giving them the “highest level of legal protection--designation under the 1964 Wilderness Act.”
• Adds two units the National Park System--Hells Canyon-Chief Joseph National Park & Preserve Study Area (1,439,444 acres) along the Oregon/Idaho border and the Flathead National Preserve Study Area (285,078 acres) adjacent to Glacier National Park. “Preserve status prohibits developments which impair natural and scenic values,” according to AWR, “while traditional uses such as hunting, fishing, and firewood gathering and some motorized uses, continue.”
• Designates 1,810 miles of Wild, Scenic and Recreational Rivers.
• Safeguards against habitat fragmentation by establishing a system of Biological Linkage Corridors to connect the region’s core wildlands into what AWR calls “a functioning ecological whole.” These areas would be protected as Wilderness and as special management zones (3,476,118 acres) where development is limited, but not prohibited.
• Establishes a pilot system of Wildland Restoration Areas (1,022,769 acres) and creates jobs restoring damage caused by unwise resource extraction practices. Efforts will focus on removal of excess and unneeded roads, reduction of soil erosion, and restoration of native vegetation and water quality. “Native fisheries and wildlife populations will be rejuvenated ,” again according to AWR, “while boosting the economy in rural communities formerly dependent on resource extraction.”
• Designate the Badger-Two Medicine area adjacent to Glacier National Park as the Blackfeet Wilderness where traditional Native American uses and treaty rights are fully protected.
“It’s in bill drafting now,” Garrity said in a phone interview with NewWest.net. “We expect it to go in soon, at least by March.”
Friday, February 09, 2007
Hi Speed Rail Debate
Good debate on rail issue, both positions expressed well.
Out Of Their Minds: High-Speed Rail Lowdown
High-Speed Rail Lowdown
State officials have been working for more than a decade on a plan to build a high-speed rail system in California. A measure to provide almost $10 billion in bond funding was placed on, and then removed from, the ballot in 2004 and then again in 2006. The measure is expected to go before voters in November 2008.
As envisioned, the almost $35 billion system would first link Los Angeles and the Bay Area, with trains traveling up to 220 mph in a 2.5 hour trip. Eventually it would involve 700 miles of track linking other major population centers, including San Diego, Orange County, the Inland Empire, the Central Valley and Sacramento.
Supporters say the high-speed trains will be cheaper for long trips than other major transportation alternatives such as cars or planes, and the system will be profitable, not costing the taxpayers any funds in the long run. Opponents say the trains are far too expensive, will not get the ridership that supporters expect and could cost taxpayers billions of dollars. Harrison Sheppard breaks it down for us.
Quentin Kopp
Chairman, California High Speed Rail Authority
www.cahighspeedrail.ca.gov
Can you outline the parameters of the system and its benefits?
“It’s less expensive than trying to build freeways to accommodate an estimated 50 million people in the next 25 years.
“The initial segment from Los Angeles Union Station to the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco, comprising approximately 430 miles, involves an estimated cost of $20 billion.
“The entire system will comprise over 700 miles, from San Diego to Sacramento, at a cost of approximately $35 billion.”
That sounds expensive. How is it funded?
“It is being funded as any capital improvement should be — by general obligation bonds. (The first bond for $10 billion) will provide approximately one-half of the estimated L.A.-to-San Francisco segment costs, with subsequent bond issues at such time as the money will actually be spent.”
The bond was delayed twice. Doesn’t that indicate a lack of political will for the project?
“No, it indicates a priority conferred upon those (infrastructure) bond issues in the most recent election.
“I am pleased it was postponed until 2008. Had it been on the ballot with some $50 billion in bond issues, its likelihood of passage would have been less.”
Out Of Their Minds: High-Speed Rail Lowdown
High-Speed Rail Lowdown
State officials have been working for more than a decade on a plan to build a high-speed rail system in California. A measure to provide almost $10 billion in bond funding was placed on, and then removed from, the ballot in 2004 and then again in 2006. The measure is expected to go before voters in November 2008.
As envisioned, the almost $35 billion system would first link Los Angeles and the Bay Area, with trains traveling up to 220 mph in a 2.5 hour trip. Eventually it would involve 700 miles of track linking other major population centers, including San Diego, Orange County, the Inland Empire, the Central Valley and Sacramento.
Supporters say the high-speed trains will be cheaper for long trips than other major transportation alternatives such as cars or planes, and the system will be profitable, not costing the taxpayers any funds in the long run. Opponents say the trains are far too expensive, will not get the ridership that supporters expect and could cost taxpayers billions of dollars. Harrison Sheppard breaks it down for us.
Quentin Kopp
Chairman, California High Speed Rail Authority
www.cahighspeedrail.ca.gov
Can you outline the parameters of the system and its benefits?
“It’s less expensive than trying to build freeways to accommodate an estimated 50 million people in the next 25 years.
“The initial segment from Los Angeles Union Station to the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco, comprising approximately 430 miles, involves an estimated cost of $20 billion.
“The entire system will comprise over 700 miles, from San Diego to Sacramento, at a cost of approximately $35 billion.”
That sounds expensive. How is it funded?
“It is being funded as any capital improvement should be — by general obligation bonds. (The first bond for $10 billion) will provide approximately one-half of the estimated L.A.-to-San Francisco segment costs, with subsequent bond issues at such time as the money will actually be spent.”
The bond was delayed twice. Doesn’t that indicate a lack of political will for the project?
“No, it indicates a priority conferred upon those (infrastructure) bond issues in the most recent election.
“I am pleased it was postponed until 2008. Had it been on the ballot with some $50 billion in bond issues, its likelihood of passage would have been less.”
Old Deal Collapsing
A deal President Theodore Roosevelt made to create the national parks is coming undone, and while that is sad, it is also heartening that it remained in place a hundred years; and maybe rural schools (as urban schools have) do need to consolidate more.
Rural schools brace for losses in forest fight
By Jane Braxton Little - Bee Correspondent
Published 12:00 am PST Friday, February 9, 2007
California rural school officials, facing a dramatic drop in funding, predict layoffs and shuttered classrooms as Western lawmakers and the Bush administration fight over a plan to sell federal timberland to prop up education in small communities.
As it did last year, the White House has proposed compensating rural communities dominated by U.S. Forest Service ownership with revenue from the sale of 300,000 acres of national forest.
Debate last year over the president's plan engulfed the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act, which from 2000 to 2006 had enjoyed bipartisan support. That funding was headed for reauthorization when the White House announced its plan to raise $800 million by selling national forests. Action extending the annual funding was delayed and the law expired. Rural schools in California lost $69.6 million.
This week critics again promised a fight over Bush's renewed call for timberland sales. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein called it "a terrible idea."
Rural schools brace for losses in forest fight
By Jane Braxton Little - Bee Correspondent
Published 12:00 am PST Friday, February 9, 2007
California rural school officials, facing a dramatic drop in funding, predict layoffs and shuttered classrooms as Western lawmakers and the Bush administration fight over a plan to sell federal timberland to prop up education in small communities.
As it did last year, the White House has proposed compensating rural communities dominated by U.S. Forest Service ownership with revenue from the sale of 300,000 acres of national forest.
Debate last year over the president's plan engulfed the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act, which from 2000 to 2006 had enjoyed bipartisan support. That funding was headed for reauthorization when the White House announced its plan to raise $800 million by selling national forests. Action extending the annual funding was delayed and the law expired. Rural schools in California lost $69.6 million.
This week critics again promised a fight over Bush's renewed call for timberland sales. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein called it "a terrible idea."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)