Articles by Biodiversivist

Politicians behaving badly

I'm thinking of marketing a politician handshaking kit that would consist of one rubber glove that can be carried in a wallet or purse to protect potential politician handshaking partners from slime.

This started out as a comment on Kate's post, but got so long I decided to put it up front. As Kate points out, the Democratically controlled House just approved continued funding of abstinence-only education to the tune of $50 million. What really makes this unbelievable is that the results of a decade-long study (PDF) funded by Congress, released just two months ago, showed conclusively that abstinence-only education has no effect whatsoever on the sexual antics of teenagers. The bar graphs starting on page 45 sum it up.

Trees should play a bigger role

After reading the recent posts by Romm, Stein, and Roberts, I have concluded that carbon offsets are a pretty good idea if properly implemented. Once government regulations have been established (and enforced), consumers should be able to buy with greater confidence. As it stands today, you are taking a small risk that your purchase may not actually result in CO2 reductions. So, if you are going to buy them, do your homework first.

I also don't see why an individual should do everything reasonably possible to offset carbon emissions that are under their direct control before buying offsets from a third party. Individuals are just as likely to screw up as a third party. For example, putting solar panels on my house might not reduce emissions if my power comes from hydroelectric. I might have had more impact buying green power. Dumping my Prius and riding a Seattle Metro bus might actually increase my CO2 emissions (Seattle Metro buses get about 38 MPG per passenger on average last time I checked).

A young biodiversivist

Well, I've returned from my camping trip. This was an annual gathering of about half a dozen families. I met an interesting guy named Remy. We had much in common, including our wry sense of humor and an enthusiasm for investigating biodiversity. Upon arrival at the campsite he immediately and correctly identified a snake I had caught.

My reputation had proceeded me. Remy was looking forward to the two of us hunting snakes together. He managed to catch two. One was a 3-foot long specimen he spotted crossing the road. He grabbed it by the tail just like his hero the late Steve Irwin used to do and wrangled it into a net. I don't know who was more excited, him or me as I watched him catch it. He missed catching a racer on a night foray because it was just too fast (that's why they call them racers) but on another night he caught a shiny (it had just shed its skin) gopher snake that he pulled from a hole in the ground.

Not bad for a 6-year-old boy who probably weighs every bit of 50 pounds. The one and only thing he wanted from Santa last year was a snake stick, which he had brought along on this trip.

Some good news and some bad news

First up is an interview with Jack Ewing, owner of an eco-lodge in Costa Rica. I must admit that writing checks to conservation organizations is about as pleasurable as a trip to the dentist. Spending a week in a place like Hacienda Barú also supports conservation and is a hell of a lot more fun. I managed to photograph about half of the wildlife I saw while staying less than a week in Costa Rica. Best vacation I've ever had. I might put the video (much more interesting than photos) on YouTube one of these days.

After reading that upbeat article, grit your teeth and click on the one about the eminent extinction of the orangutan and understand that palm biodiesel will play a large role in it.