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On the advantages and disadvantages of E85

So say some Americans turning from gasoline to E85, "a fuel cocktail that consists mostly of grain alcohol, or corn-based ethanol, with a splash of gasoline." The New York Times provides a quick walk through the advantages and disadvantages of E85 which first and foremost these days is the cost. But today's Mideast headlines also have some consumers talking about how they would rather their dollars go to American farmers than OPEC coffers. Infrastructure remains something of an issue -- according to the Times, only 500 or so of the country's approximately 180,000 gas stations carry E85.

And just a factlette that never ceases to surprise -- we import more oil from Canada than any other country.

Biodiversivist

I am jumping on the Katrina bandwagon just long enough to point out that a protective barrier of wetlands would have greatly ameliorated the effects of said hurricane. At least now we can directly assign a dollar value to those wetlands we have destroyed, giving Bush's economic advisors something to chew on. Maybe the next time someone suggests that saving and restoring coastal wetlands is cost-effective they will listen. Something good may come out of all of this, like carbon trading or an impeachment.

Gore chartered planes to airlift evacuees

Oh, Gore. First you get all lively and inspiring on climate change. Now you go and semi-quietly help airlift 270 evacuees out of New Orleans.

Sigh.

Framing expert says Katrina shows need for strong, compassionate government

"The Katrina tragedy should become a watershed in American politics," writes lefty framing guru George Lakoff on AlterNet. "This was when the usually invisible people suddenly appeared in all the anguish of their lives -- the impoverished, the old, the infirm, the kids, and the low-wage workers with no cars, TVs, or credit cards. They showed up on America's doorsteps, entered the living rooms, and stayed. Katrina will not go away soon, and she has the power to change America."

Lakoff argues that Katrina gives us the perfect opportunity to highlight the "heart of progressive-liberal values," namely "empathy (caring about and for people) and responsibility (acting responsibly on that empathy)."

"A lack of empathy and responsibility accounts for Bush's indifference and the government's delay in response, as well as the failure to plan for the security of the most vulnerable: the poor, the infirm, the aged, the children," he claims.

Put more succinctly: The Katrina disaster is the best possible argument for strong, vibrant, well-funded government that takes care of its people.  

I wholeheartedly agree. You won't find many Americans this month who would sympathize with anti-tax crusader and government-hater Grover Norquist and his aim "to get [government] down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub." In the immediate aftermath of Katrina, that quote sends shivers down the spine.

Recipe for Disaster

FEMA director Michael Brown relieved of command

Looks like Brown's going down.

Readers talk back about eating local, the cost of organics, and more

  Re: Local Girl Makes Good Dear Editor: Your interview with Louella Hill is timely and enlightening. Kudos to you! As a culture, Americans have drifted far from their relationships […]

Agony and Ivory

Activists sue to stop water project near ivory-billed woodpecker habitat Bird lovers rejoiced when the ivory-billed woodpecker was rediscovered, but now the fun really begins. Eco-advocates are aiming to block […]

Ceres on Katrina, insurance, and weather-related risk

Ceres, the "national network of investment funds, environmental organizations and other public interest groups working to advance environmental stewardship on the part of businesses," has just released a report on the enormous challenge to the insurance industry represented by escalating weather-related losses. You can read the executive summary here and the full report here (PDF).

An excerpt:

Yet, despite these rising insurance risks, climate change has received little attention to date from U.S. insurers, regulators and governments. Among the problem areas highlighted in the report:

• Only a small fraction of U.S. insurance companies have seriously examined the business implications of climate change and fewer still work closely with climate scientists or present their analyses publicly.
• Insurers and regulators currently do not have a comprehensive capacity to assess the cumulative weather-related risks from both catastrophic events and the growing number of small-scale events.
• The U.S. government's full financial exposure from insurance programs (flood, multi-crop insurance etc), disaster relief and other forms of weather-related assistance has never been assessed.

The report recommends the following actions, among others:

Insurers need to: collect more complete data on weather-related losses; incorporate climate modeling into their risk analyses; analyze the implications of climate change on their business and investments and share the results with shareholders; and encourage policy action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Regulators need to: include climate risks in company solvency and consumer-impact analysis; review the "standards of insurability" to identify new challenges, including climate-related hazards in the US and abroad; encourage insurers to collect more comprehensive data on losses; elevate standards for catastrophe modeling; and assess exposure of insurer investments and adequacy of capital and surplus to extreme weather events.

Government needs to: foster and participate in public-private partnership for insurance risk spreading; comprehensively assess the government's overall financial exposure to weather disasters; reduce vulnerability to disaster losses through improved early warning systems, land use planning and other measures; and take policy action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Society of Environmental Journalists publishes its first official op-ed

As far as I know (readers, correct me if I'm wrong), the Society of Environmental Journalists has never before released an official op-ed. Now they've done so, in response to official stonewalling on the environmental damage done by Katrina. It is reprinted in full below the fold.