Highlight of the Week
Obama’s Interior, Agriculture Appointees Will Put Land Use Policies On Right Path

President-elect Barack Obama has introduced more cabinet selections—Sen. Ken Salazar (D-CO) as Secretary of the Interior and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack as Secretary of Agriculture.

In response, Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of National Wildlife Federation, said:

"Sen. Ken Salazar has been a champion for America's public lands. He's fought to protect Western lands from costly, destructive oil shale production. He also took on the Department of the Interior and Bureau of Land Management over oil and gas leasing on the Roan Plateau in northwest Colorado. And as a former water rights and mining lawyer and former director of Colorado's Department of Natural Resources, Sen. Salazar brings an experienced perspective to needed mining reform.

"Gov. Tom Vilsack has supported working to improve the environmental performance of U.S. agriculture. We look forward to working with him to move our country forward to the next generation of clean, sustainable, biomass energy and improved farming practices that can store carbon and restore the fertility of our soils.

"President-elect Obama has once again shown he understands clean energy and climate must be addressed at every level of government from a wide range of policy perspectives. With this team in place, President-elect Obama has strong allies in his fight to enact a cap-and-invest plan that reduces global warming pollution and grows clean energy technologies that will recharge our economy and protect our natural resources for future generations."

President-elect Obama has also introduced his energy and environment team, naming Carol Browner to lead a new council on climate, environment and energy issues; Steven Chu as energy secretary; Lisa Jackson as EPA administrator; and Nancy Sutley as head of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. In addition to this strong team, the selection of Dr. John Holdren as White House science adviser is a strong indication that the president-elect will fulfill a pledge to ensure science informs policymaking.

NASA: 2 Trillion Ice Tons Melted Since ’03, Study Links Extreme Weather With Global Warming

Two trillion tons of Arctic land ice has melted since 2003, according to new NASA satellite data that show the latest signs of a warming world.

More than half of the ice loss occurred in Greenland, and the amount of melt water from the island would fill up “about 11 Chesapeake Bays”, according to NASA geophysicist Scott Luthcke, the Associated Press (AP) reports. Greenland is now adding about half a millimeter of sea level rise a year, NASA ice scientist Jay Zwally told the AP.

NASA scientists presented their findings at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) conference in San Francisco. Since 2003, when NASA started taking these measurements, Alaska has lost 400 billion tons of land ice.

Also announced at the AGU conference were the results of five years of data from NASA’s Aqua spacecraft. The frequency of extremely high clouds in Earth's tropics—the type of cloud associated with extreme weather—is increasing as a result of global warming.

According to the study, for every 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit increase in average ocean surface temperature, NASA’s team observed a 45 percent increase in the frequency of very high clouds, linked with severe storms, torrential rain and hail.

To learn more about the connection between extreme weather and our warming world, visit nwf.org/extremeweather. Reports detail floods, droughts, hurricanes, and wildfires in various regions across the United States.

Quote:

“Green technology’s where it’s at.”

—Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger calls for economic strength by protecting the environment. The governor recently helped California adopt the country’s first comprehensive global warming blueprint.

Economic Message of the Week
Europe’s 20-20-20 Framework Puts Ball In U.S. Court

In the final days of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poland, European leaders met in Brussels and agreed to a pact for climate action to combat global warming.

Though the European Union climate package received mixed reviews, it may turn out to be an aspiring bid that puts the spotlight on the United States to curb climate change.

Europe's “20-20-20” vision includes rules to cut emissions by 20 percent by 2020, reduce energy consumption by 20 percent, and increase energy gained from renewable sources by 20 percent. In general, the agreement moves beyond what has yet been achieved in the U.S.

The final European Union package does not include an automatic increase to 30 percent reductions if a global climate agreement is reached. Other exceptions contained in the package also drew criticism.

Conservation Groups File Suit to Restore Endangered Species Act Protections

The National Wildlife Federation, 13 of its affiliates, and Golden Gate Audubon have filed a lawsuit challenging the Bush administration’s regulations weakening the consultation requirements of the Endangered Species Act.

According to the suit, the Bush administration’s regulations drastically reduce protections for America’s imperiled plants, fish and wildlife and are in direct violation of the administration’s duties under the Endangered Species Act.

“The Bush administration rushed these regulations through in record time,” said John Kostyack, Executive Director of Wildlife Conservation and Global Warming at National Wildlife Federation. “Top political appointees were intent on cutting a gaping hole in the Endangered Species Act, and opening up sensitive habitats for development activities, before leaving office.”

The new regulations virtually eliminate independent scientific review under the Endangered Species Act. Until now, federal agencies have been required to consult with expert biologists at the Fish and Wildlife Service or National Marine Fisheries Service to determine whether projects pose any harm to imperiled wildlife.

Under the new rule, federal agencies will be able to unilaterally determine if actions, such as building a highway or filling in a wetland, will adversely affect endangered species. Most federal agencies have neither the expertise nor the incentive to thoroughly scrutinize their own projects’ impact on wildlife.

The new regulations also prohibit scientists from addressing the impacts of global warming on imperiled wildlife. “Global warming is a leading threat to the survival of many wildlife species and to the ecosystems on which both people and wildlife depend,” said Kostyack. “Federal agencies should be protecting wildlife from global warming – telling them to ignore the impacts of global warming on wildlife is exactly the wrong message.”

Media Contact:
Aileo Weinmann, communications manager, 202-797-6801, weinmanna@nwf.org

Happening This Week