The Back-to-the-Future Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. Sooooo, wasn't THAT a fun year! What will 2011 bring us? More of the same? We do some reflecting and projecting with our favorite roving troubadour, Tom Neilson as well as announce our brand new Enviro Show public service effort: the "Don't Move Politicians More than 50 Miles" campaign! We delve into some of our usual segments like The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, Fool on the Hill, Meet the New Boss and such, but first it’s time for.....Revenge of the Critters! It’s a polar bear-he-go-round!

In our Fool on the Hill segment we have another two-fer: First we learn that "Republicans in the House as a whole want to get rid of the EPA." That's what newly elected Republican Representative Bill Flores said last week on Tea Party Internet Radio. Gosh, those teabaggers must be using an old script. Haven't we been here before? Then we learn the new Repugnican chair of the House Science and Technology Committee, Rep. Ralph Hall of (where else!) Texas sees the BP explosion that killed 11 men, injured dozens, and led to the despoilment of the Gulf of Mexico as a tremendous blossoming flower of energy. Whoa! Flowers! Who knew!!

Our Meet the New Boss segment finds Obama in bed with Bush on the long suffering polar bear. More same old/same old! Barry…err…Barrack’s Dept. of Interior claimed the polar bear did not qualify as “endangered” because it was not “on the brink” of extinction — a standard that is not contained in the Endangered Species Act. Then Sarah Palin’s Alaska got into the act by filing a legal notice to strike down the federal government's designation of a 120-million-acre polar bear reserve along Alaska's northern coast. Does any of this have anything to do with oil? Noooo, where would we get such an idea!

In our E-Valley-uation segment it’s the "Don't Move Politicians More than 50 Miles" campaign! Another Enviro Show first! You may have heard the PSAs about not moving firewood more than 50 miles due to infestation by invasive pests that kill trees, like the Asian Longhorned beetles, yes? But hey! It’s still OK to clearcut forests and ship them off to some far-off biomass incinerator, right? Is there some sort of double standard here? Has our political atmosphere become infested by an alien species? Yes it has, and we’ve got the answer: Don't Move Politicians More than 50 Miles from their Home! Think how much less damage they’ll do if they stay close to home! Think how much more…umm…accessible they will be! And this most excellent continuum: Shut it Down Affinity Group gets busted for the New Year!. Yes, they'll never give up 'til the Vermont Yankee nuke is laid to rest. Excellent way to start the New Year, go Shut it Downers!

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber here's one of the worst ideas for 2011: wandering biomess robots(and you thought robots run amok was so 20th century). Good news: we find the House and the Senate passed the Shark Conservation Act. This means that shark finning is illegal in the US. AND that Congress actually CAN do its job…now and then. Also this: On Christmas Eve, Whole Foods Market recalled gingerbread houses it sold in 23 states for possible contamination with Staphylococcus aureus. Whoa! Talk about a housing crisis! Just one more reason to shop at your local co-op. Our Enviro Show Blog Bonus? Why it's the Massachusetts Clean Energy and Climate Plan for 2020! Here's a bad omen to start the New Year: Birds fall from sky in Arkansas. Finally this sad note: Judy Bonds died. Here's an excerpt from Jeff Biggers piece on Huff Po: "She was a tireless, funny, and inspiring orator, and a savvy and brilliant community organizer. She was fearless in the face of threats. As the godmother of the anti-mountaintop removal movement, she gave birth to a new generation of clean energy and human rights activists across the nation. In a year of mining disasters and climate change set backs, she challenged activists to redouble their efforts." Of course,actions down in coal country continue.

"Coal" by The Shovel takes us to our Bus Stop Billboard:

January 3 - 24. Climate Ground Zero's second Winter Action Camp! CGZ is now accepting applications for the camp, scheduled to be held in the coal fields of southern West Virginia. The camp will involve multiple intensive training tracks, such as action team, action media, legal support, and other skills relevant for this campaign and its future actions, as well as for your campaigns back home. Contact: january@climategroundzero.org or 304-854-1937

Saturday, January 8, 10:30am to 2pm. Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A., Turners Falls. Join us the second Saturday of every month for a day of children's activities. Daily activities may include crafts, games, investigations, or outdoor adventures. Call ahead for current program details at (413) 863-3221.

Now until January 6, 9am to 5pm, Exhibit: Glimpses of the Pre-Quabbin Swift River Valley and the Quabbin Reservoir of Today. UMass Science Library, Floor 2, Lederle Lowrise.. For full hours and parking information, call 413-545-1370

Wednesdays January 12 and January 26, 7:30 pm. THE GREEN ZONE: THE ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS OF MILITARISM. Book discussion group in preparation for author Barry Sanders' February 9th Smith College Lecture. Let's discuss this extensively-documented expose on the price our earth is paying for the US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. APJ War & Environment Committee. Bodman Lounge, Helen Hills Hills Chapel, Smith College. Contact: martygjf@comcast.net

Saturday, January 15, 7:30 pm. Spook Handy, creator of songs of peace, hope and survival, will perform at the Echo Lake in the town hall, 9 Montague Rd., Leverett, Admittance is $10-$12. For more info: 413-548-9394 or go to www.echolakecoffeehouse.org

Thursday, January 20, 7 – 8:30pm. Celebrate the Arctic National Wildlife refuge’s 50th anniversary. Linda Hickman, will present a program on her guided trip through Alaska, highlighting memorable and noteworthy natural and cultural resources and interesting information. Great Falls Discovery Center. 2 Avenue A., Turners Falls, Ph 413-863-3221

January 28-30. People's Music Winter Gathering 2011. Hartford, Connecticut. The People's Music Network for Songs of Freedom And Struggle, See registration page for additional information at: http://www.peoplesmusic.org

Good ways to start a new year, yes? Next time it's Michael Kellett from the group Restore the North Woods. Until then remember.......listen to your Mother!

The Real Winter Solstice Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. Happy Winter Solstice on this, the first Enviro Show to actually fall on the date of the Solstice (AND the first time in 372 years that a full lunar eclipse falls at the same time! if you missed it go here). With that in mind we fore-go much of the usual bad news and carrying on and honor the season with Earth-inspired sound.....and maybe a few inspired rants. Surprise! Too bad even progressive talk radio has overlooked the Solstice and pagans who honor it every year. Our in-house pagans are out dancing around the bonfires and making merry. Sorry, progressives, you lose, maybe next year. Here's some Solstice tunes to get us started, one of D.O.'s favorites, Paul Winter Consort with "Wolf Eyes".

OK, so that felt a lot like some snowbound vista in the wild where the wolves rule and the winds howl. Speaking of wolves, it looks like Interior Secretary, Ken Salazar is trying to remove protections so his western rancher friends can kill them at will. Please go HERE and take action to protect these majestic critters. Did we say wolves? What about wolverines?? They need YOUR HELP too! Also in need of protection are our National Forests. How about sending Obama a Holiday card with that in mind?

Moving on: years ago, Windham Hill recording studio in neighboring Vermont came out with a Winter Solstice collection that became so popular that they cut a whole collection. However, for D.O., that original album seemed to say it best. His favorite cut is "A Tale of Two Cities", by Mark Isham. Think about the Winter Solstice Sun rising or setting when you listen to that!

OK, you can't have a Winter Solstice party without fun & games, right? Help Santa! He's being attacked by Repugnicans disguised as elves!!

Enough with D.O., it's time to checkout Jean's favorite tune from a previous show. It's Pete Seeger's "Spill, Baby Spill".

This Solstice party isn't over just because neither Jean nor Glen sent in their links. Maybe they are too busy partying elsewhere? Stay tuned.......

Finally let's take shelter from the snow and checkout the Bus Stop Billboard:

Saturday, December 25, 11am - Noon. Peace on Earth! Greenfield's weekly peace vigil on the Town Common. Call (413)522-5932. While you're there, checkout the Winter Solstice display...it's next to the creche!). Also in Northampton in front of the County Courthouse (on Main Street between Gothic and King), rain or shine (or snow, or deep-freeze).

Sunday, December 26. Noon - 1pm. The Amherst peace vigil takes place on the Amherst Commons at noon on Sundays. It has been going since the early 1970's. Call: ((413)549-4515

Saturday, January 1, 11am - Noon. Resolve to work for peace! Greenfield's weekly peace vigil on the Town Common. Also, peace vigil in Northampton in front of the County Courthouse. Same time.

Saturday, January 8, 10:30am to 2pm. Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A., Turners Falls. Join us the second Saturday of every month for a day of children's activities. Daily activities may include crafts, games, investigations, or outdoor adventures. Call ahead for current program details at (413) 863-3221.

Now until January 6, 9am to 5pm, Exhibit: Glimpses of the Pre-Quabbin Swift River Valley and the Quabbin Reservoir of Today. UMass Science Library, Floor 2, Lederle Lowrise. The exhibit features 39 nature photographs by Les Campbell, who has received many honors including four of the highest awards given by the Photographic Society of America. His photographs have appeared in National Geographic, National Audubon, and the Photographic Society of America Journal, among others. Campbell had a 45-year career working at the Quabbin reservoir and founded the Quabbin Visitor's Center and Friends of the Quabbin. For full hours and parking information, call 413-545-1370

Jeez, not much happening in this valley. Where'd everyone go? I hope they get back for the next show 'cuz it's about THE END OF THE WORLD!

Return of the Shopocalypse Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. Here we go again: people shopping 'til they're dropping. Sooooo many toys, so little time? Are you suffering from Returnaholism? How about putting that wasted money to good use? Rev. Billy calls-in once again to preach about the coming Shopocalypse. Then we get calls from Kristin DeBoer of Kestrel Trust and Lily Lombard of Grow Food Northampton; places where your gift donations will be money well spent. As usual, we'll also checkout our E-Valley-uation segment, The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, our Enviro Show Quote of the Week,and the shortest Meet the New Boss segment ever, but first it's time for...Revenge of the Critters! Reindeer attack....again and again!

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber it's time to revisit Frosty The Snowman Melted By Global Warming; it's sad but true. Also, some good things come in threes at the New York Times to counteract that Frosty meltdown: 1) Obama administration rescindeds its decision to expand offshore oil exploration into the eastern Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic Coast; 2) Solar installation spreein progress, and 3) Midwest emerges as center for clean power. Who says we're all gloom & doom! Our Enviro Show Blog Bonus asks YOU to take action to protect Bluefin Tuna.

Our Meet the New Boss segment is short but not so sweet. This on Obama from the New York Times: "Privately, Mr. Obama has described himself, at times, as essentially a Blue Dog Democrat". Surprise!

In our E-Valley-uation segment the good news is that State energy and environment secretary Ian Bowles will leave the Patrick administration at the end of the month and "pursue private sector opportunities". Hey, maybe we scared him on our last show! The not-so-good news is that former Westfield mayor, Rick Sullivan is taking Bowles place. The last time we saw Sullivan he was solidly on the fence on the Biomess. Also this: Peter Vickery kicks off a new Mt. Tom campaign. He's talking conversion to natural gas instead of all that coal from blown-off mountain tops down south.

The Enviro Show Quote of the Week is a variation on a theme: "Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed". ~Mohandas K. Gandhi

The choir sings of the "Shopocalypse", segwaying nicely to our call with Rev. Billy and our other guests.

Then it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard:

December, all month; A two person exhibit of the photographs of Lynn Grabowski and the oil paintings of Gillian Haven at the Burnett Gallery in Amherst. Titled As We See It, the exhibit presents the vision of each artist observing her surroundings.Lynn Grabowski’s Amherst Beaver Project, studies a colony of beavers residing along the Norwottuck Rail Trail. Call (413)538-5695

Wednesday, December 8, 7:00-8:30pm. Second Decommissioning Forum on VT Yankee. Greenfield Community College, Downtown Building, Main Street, Greenfield, MA Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Deb Katz 413-339-5781

Friday Dec. 10, 7pm. "Bhopali" showing corporate malice and denial of human rights of people --at the Media Education Foundation community room, 60 Masonic Street, Northampton (entrance behind Woodstar Cafe). Event cosponsored by the Northampton Human Rights Commission & Northampton Committee to Stop War in Afghanistan and Iraq as part of a regular Friday Night film series.

Friday Dec. 10th and Saturday the 11th at 7:30 p.m. & Sunday, Dec. 12th at 2 p.m. "Welcome Yule: A Midwinter Celebration"; Shea Theater, Avenue A, Turners Falls, Music, dance, songs and stories celebrating the return of the light. Reserve tickets at (413) 863-2281 or purchase in advance at Jones Library in Amherst, Broadside Books in Northampton, the World Eye Bookstore in Greenfield, For information, call 413-665-3206 or check www.WelcomeYule.org

Saturday, December 11, 1 - 2pm. "Finding you way in the woods". Have you ever found yourself lost in the woods? Join us for an hour long exploration of compasses as well as the basics of the sport of orienteering. Great Falls Discovery Center. 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls. Call 413-863-3221

Monday, December 13, 6:30 – 8:30p.m. (Snow Date: Thursday, December 16). DCR Forest Futures Implementation [or who gets clearcut!]- Public Workshops. Greenfield Community College, Downtown Center, 270- Main St, Greenfield. There will also be an opportunity to provide written comments. For more information on these workshops or the landscape
designation process, please feel free to contact Jessica Rowcroft at either jessica.rowcroft@state.ma.us or at 617-626-1380.

Attention shoppers! Time to stay home and enjoy the holidays or take a walk in the woods. Next time it's our Winter Solstice Music Show. Stay tuned and remember: listen to your Mother!

The Green Vote Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. With the 2010 Elections behind us and a House full of cretins in front of us we welcome Green-Rainbow Party Candidate for Massachusetts State Auditor, Nat Fortune to the show. We'll check-in with Nat about the Party's annual convention at Clark University in Worcester last week and his excellent run for office that put the Green-Rainbow Party on the map for the future. As always we visit The Enviro Show Echo Chamber and our E-Valley-uation and Fool on the Hill segments. We'll also give you our Enviro Show Quote of the Week and if time allows we'll Meet the New Boss once again, but first it's time for....
Revenge of the Critters! Elephants bust out! It's not just the GOP taking out poor farmers.

In our Fool on the Hill segment we find Senator Debbie Stabenow, Michigan Democrat, has concerns that greenhouse gas permitting requirements would dissuade the use of biomass to generate power. Not too worry, Deb, your concerns were addressed by the EPA's, Lisa Jackson who has stated the U.S. EPA will "exercise whatever discretion the Clean Air Act affords" to shield biomass users from the agency's climate rules. Sorry Lisa & Debbie, it's the climate that rules! Of course, there's more than one Fool on THAT Hill: Repugnican Eric Cantor (R-VA), the likely House Majority Leader, calls for House committees to review proposed and existing regulations and issue reports, presumably recommending alteration or repeal of regulations the committees dislike. The document derides regulation, commenting on its cost to businesses without mentioning its benefits to society as a whole. Surprise!

On the same issue some Obamaistas take a hit from the folks at EnergyJustice.Net who "voiced sharp disagreement with Secretary Vilsack’s support for burning America’s forests for electricity, expressed in a USDA Press Release November 10." We're thinkin' those forests might come in handy sequestering carbon, no? Speaking of trees, THIS JUST IN: Wi-Fi Radiation Is Killing Trees. Quick, text your friends!

Speaking of the Biomess, here in our E-Valley-uation segment we introduce you to a new website for the Bennington-Berkshire Citizens Coalition organizing around yet another proposed biomass incinerator (OK, so it's not exactly our valley, but we ARE downwind, right?). This proposed project will also produce those cute little biomess pellets, the ones that used to be trees, right? Trees that sequestered carbon, right? Like the site says: "The wood needed for the Pownal plant will be close to about 600,000 green tons per year, more than the entire annual timber harvest on private and public lands in Massachusetts." What? You think this stuff grows on trees?? And this Enviro Show Blog Bonus: Greenpeace has all the toys! The GP blimp hovers over Vermont Yankee. Also this: the Biomess takes hits in both Greenfield and Springfield!

Our Enviro Show Quote of the Week puts us back into the Wayback Machine in keeping with tonight's theme, where Massachusetts' own John Quincy Adams reminds us: "“Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.”

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber we replay Public Citizen's alert: "Time is running out for the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. The Commission has less than two months to complete its report examining the causes of the Deepwater Horizon disaster and recommending steps to guard against future oil spills. The Commissioners are still waiting for the Senate, to give it subpoena power – a necessary tool to get at the core of the oil spill tragedy. Tell the Senate to stop being lame: Give the oil spill commission the authority to do its job! Also, the New York Times tells us even as we scale back on coal burning mining and exports increase. Finally this: Climate scientists prepare to fight back against climate crisis deniers. Watch out teabaggers, they have all the secret weapons!

After our interview with Nat Fortune it's on to The Bus Stop Billboard:

Thursday, November 25, Tar Sands Conference, University of Alberta, Canada. "Everyone's Downstream" is an annual conference that brings together community members, activists and others fighting the global infrastructure of the tar sands gigaproject. Go to: http://www.everyonesdownstream.org/

Friday, Nov. 26, is International Buy Nothing Day.

Wednesday, December 1, 7pm. the award-winning film, "Scarred Lands/Wounded Lives: The Environmental Footprint of War" The film will be aired in 106 Seelye Hall, Smith College, Northampton.

Wednesday, December 8, 7:00-8:30pm. Second Decommissioning Forum on VT Yankee. Greenfield Community College, Downtown Building, Main Street, Greenfield, MA Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Deb Katz 413-339-5781

Monday, December 13, 6:30 – 8:30p.m. (Snow Date: Thursday, December 16). DCR Forest Futures Implementation [or who gets clearcut!] Public Workshops. Greenfield Community College, Downtown Center, 270- Main St, Greenfield. There will also be an opportunity to provide written comments. For more information on these workshops or the landscape designation process, please feel free to contact Jessica Rowcroft at 617-626-1380.

Thursday, December 16, 12:30-2pm, WMass Green Economy Working Group. Brown Bag Lunch at Noon, Pioneer Valley AFL-CIO Hall, 640 Page Boulevard, Springfield (732-7970).

OK, so don't forget to vote.....umm...sorry, we already did that. Next time Rev. Billy calls in about the coming Shopocalypse. Until then, remember, listen to your Mother!

The Toxic 100 Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. Tired of the toxic atmosphere these days? Michael Ash and Jim Boyce of our own UMass Political Economy Research Institute clue us in on the Toxic 100 Air Polluters in the nation. Speaking of breathing room, Massachusetts has significantly reduced mercury emissions from power plants and incinerators. We'll check that out in the Enviro Show Echo Chamber and see what's happening locally in our E-Valley-uation segment. As always, we give you the Quote of the Week and maybe have another look at The Fool on the Hill, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! "New Zealand has these big green parrots called keas, which like to eat windshield wipers. Why do you suppose they hate cars so much??

The Enviro Show Quote of the week is a special post-election choice from none other than Ronnie Raygun: "Approximately 80% of our air pollution stems from hydrocarbons released by vegetation, so let's not go overboard in setting and enforcing tough emission standards from man-made sources."

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber we find the outfit that tops the PERI list of Toxic 100 Polluters, Bayer, has just hooked up with Pew's Center on Global Climate Change. Phew! What's that smell?? Meanwhile, over the border in Canada, people are organizing over toxic releases in Chemical Valley (well, yeah!). Also, we go over the good news about less mercury pollution here in the Commonwealth and the bad news about Governor Patrick's $91 Million Barge to Nowhere! That's no Love Boat! And, more good news: deciduous plants absorb about a third more of a common class of air-polluting chemicals than previously thought. Quick, go plant a tree! Finally, it seems the corporados are busy hi-jacking the UN's COP-10 Biodiversity conference in Japan.

In our E-Valley-uation segment there's a blue light special: Attention shoppers: Broken down old Nuke For Sale!

On the Fool on the Hill segment we go plural once again: There are no newly elected Republican freshmen, in the House or Senate, who admit the science of climate change is real. What a surprise. Must be all the tea they are smok....err...drinking.

Finally, it's time to checkout the Bus Stop Billboard:


Wednesday, Nov 10, 7 to 9pm. Do you want to find out more about the Transition Town movement and explore transition with others in Greenfield? If yes, come to a free evening of film & discussion the Second Congregational Church on the Greenfield Town Common. Refreshments will be served. For more information contact Greening Greenfield Energy Committee at 413-773-7004 or 413-773-0228

Sunday, Nov. 14, at 7:30 p.m. "This Land is Our Land", a timely new documentary about the global movement to reclaim the democratic tradition of “the commons” from commercial interests and free market extremists, will screen locally at Amherst Cinema on , at an event to benefit the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. For further information contact Sut Jhally, Media Education Foundation: (413) 584-8500 ext. 2301 email: sutj@comm.umass.edu

Tuesday, November 16, 6:30 - 8:30. Workshop on which DCR Public Forest will be open to commercial logging and which will be protected. Save the Trees! Noth Middle School, 350 Southampton Road, Westfield. For info call: 413-341-3878. Also see: http://www.mass.gov/dcr/news/2010/pr10-10-28.pdf

Tuesday, November 16, 6:30-8:30pm. Do you want to find out how to cut your heating costs? Go to GCTV, 393 Main Street, Greenfield, MA. Refreshments will be served. To find out more contact the Greening Greenfield Energy Committee at 774-5667.

Thursday, November 18, 3:30pm. Next meeting of Nuclear Free Future at the new AFSC office, 2 Conz Street, Suite 2B, Northampton. Call: 413-584-8975

Thursday, November 18, 7 - 8:30pm. Turkey Anyone? Have you ever wondered about wild turkeys? Just how did they get associated with Thanksgiving? Come learn from expert Joe Judd. Great Falls Discovery Center, Avenue A, Turners Falls. Call: 413-863-3221

November 19 - 21. Pricing Carbon Conference. A national conference co-hosted by and held at Wesleyan University in central Connecticut, to explore educational, organizing and political strategies to directly price carbon emissions and to build the essential cornerstone of effective climate policy: policies that transparently and equitably put a price on carbon pollution. Please inquire about scholarships offered to students
and climate activists with Tom Stokes, (413) 243-5665. Go to: http://pricingcarbon.org/

Thursday, November 25, Tar Sands Conference, University of Alberta, Canada. "Everyone's Downstream" is an annual conference that brings together community members, activists and others fighting the global infrastructure of the tar sands gigaproject. Go to: http://www.everyonesdownstream.org/

Wednesday, December 1, 7pm. the award-winning film, "Scarred Lands/Wounded Lives: The Environmental Footprint of War" The film will be aired in 106 Seelye Hall, Smith College, Northampton.

Wednesday, December 8, 7:00-8:30pm. Second Decommissioning Forum on VT Yankee. Greenfield Community College, Downtown Building, Main Street, Greenfield, MA Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Deb Katz 413-339-5781

Monday, December 13, 6:30 – 8:30p.m. (Snow Date: Thursday, December 16). DCR Forest Futures Implementation [or who gets clearcut!]- Public Workshops. Greenfield Community College, Downtown Center, 270- Main St, Greenfield. There will also be an opportunity to provide written comments. For more information on these workshops or the landscape
designation process, please feel free to contact Jessica Rowcroft at either
jessica.rowcroft@state.ma.us or at 617-626-1380.

That's it. Next time Nat Fortune joins us for a post-election wrap. Until then remember, listen to your Mother!

The Very Scary Nukes Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. We're coming up on Halloween or the pagan festival of Samhain when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is thin, porous in fact! By the way, did you know that For Bats, the Future Is Spooky? Of course, Halloween in the U.S. is all about scary so we return to frightening tales of nuclear madness. Deb Katz of Citizens Awareness Network might call in to chill you to the bone and Paki Wieland of the Shut It Down affinity group joins us in the studio to talk resistance. As always, we disturb you with reports from the crypt of the living corporados in our Enviro Show Echo Chamber and our E-Valley-uation segment. We'll give you our Quote of the Week and we go plural with the Fool on the Hill, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! Fishermen get caught!

"I crush everything" by Jonathan Coulton takes us to our very scary E-Valley-uation segment where we learn that radioactive tritium has been found in a watering hole at Vermont Yankee. Last call....we hope! O, and this: yet another radioactive leak in that old clunker nuke. Also, Springfield activists have been fighting a proposal by Palmer Renewable Energy (PRE) to build a so-called "biomass" plant in Springfield. They've been fighting hard for a year and a half as Stop Toxic Incineration in Springfield and making good progress. The good news is that PRE has decided it's too controversial to burn their original fuel source-- construction and demolition debris. The bad news is that now that they plan to burn only "waste wood," the plant will be harder to stop. They will now be considered a "non-major" source of air pollution, and are therefore subject to a less stringent permit process! November 9 is the last day you can comment on the process. Go here to register your concerns. How about an E-Valley-uation Blog Bonus Special? Checkout these WCVB video segments on the Western Mass Biomess!

One of our favorites, "Hot Frogs"by Tom Neilson segways us into the next segment. This time around it's Fools on the Hill (with an "s") as we learn just how much the Dems have gone nuclear. Also, Obama throws a big wet kiss directly into the Biomess!.

In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber we learn from Grist that "a New York Times/CBS News poll found that more than half the Tea Party supporters surveyed don't think global warming will ever have a serious effect on the planet". What a surprise! We thought it was more like 90%. Also, The Guardian finds Teabagger climate change deniers being funded by BP! And here's another Enviro Show Blog Bonus Special: Grist on the Massachusetts' Gov's race. And this one Glen dragged out for Halloween: The end of the world as we blow it. The film "Countdown to Zero" might be one of the most frightening movies ever made! Finally, our friend Anne Peterman had at it at the COP-10 negotiations regarding the corporate biofuels scam.

Our Enviro Show Quote of the Week comes from JFK: " Every man, woman and child lives under a nuclear sword of Damocles hanging by the slenderest of threads, capable of being cut at any moment by accident or miscalculation or by madness. The weapons of war must be abolished before they abolish us… The mere existence of modern weapons … is a source of horror and discord and distrust."

After we've totally freaked you out about nukes and Vermont Yankee, it'll be time to visit the Bus Stop Billboard for some much needed diversion:



Tuesday, October 26, 7:00-8:30pm. First VT Yankee Decommissioning Forum. Marlboro Tech Center, 28 Vernon St, Brattleboro, VT

Wednesday October 27, 12:30-2pm GREENWORK: THE WESTERN MASS GREEN ECONOMY WORKING GROUP, Brown Bag Lunch at Noon, Pioneer Valley AFL-CIO Hall, 640 Page
Boulevard, Springfield. Info: (413)732-7970

Thursday October 28, 7pm. HEATHER ROGERS: GREEN GONE WRONG. Franklin Patterson Hall East Lecture Hall, Hampshire College, 893 West St, Amherst. In Green Gone Wrong, journalist and author Heather Rogers takes a critical look at the products and practices that pledge to remedy today's environmental woes. Info: (413) 351-2263, contact@isonoho.org.

Friday, October 29, 7pm. Friday Night Films. "Gasland" . Natural gas drilling is moving into rural communities irresponsibly, contaminating the groundwater. Screening at MEF, 60 Masonic Street in Northampton. Contact: info@northamptoncommittee.org

Saturday, October 30, 1 - 2pm. Amazing Bats! Are bats really scary? Do they actually get stuck in your hair? Learn answers to these questions and more during an hour long celebration of bats! Children will be able to hear a story, investigate our bat mystery box, learn what it is like to be a bat through games, and make their own bat mask! This program is aimed at ages 4-11, although everyone is welcome! Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls. Call: 413.863.3221

Sunday, November 7, 4pm, Unitarian Meetinghouse in Amherst. A kick off event for a series of movies on climate change issues: Film and discussion: Scarred Lands and Wounded Lives: The Environmental Footprint of War.


Thursday, November 18, 3:30pm. Next meeting of Nuclear Free Future at the new AFSC office, 2 Conz Street, Suite 2B, Northampton. Call: 413-584-8975

We go out with one of our favorite nuke tunes, Dar Williams' "The Great Unknown". Happy Halloween and have a joyous Samhain, but please remember to listen to your Mother, OK?

The Enviro Show On-air Biomass Regulations Hearing

Greetings Earthlings. Time for another Enviro Show first! Rather than drive all the way to some overheated auditorium to sit in uncomfortable folding chairs and go all wall-eyed listening to bureaucrats drone on-and-on with all that jargon and all those acronyms about the Biomess, why not have a hearing right here on the radio! A draft proposed regulation to establish criteria that woody biomass facilities must meet under the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard has been proposed by the state and public hearings have been called for the Berks and Central Mass., but not here in the Valley, sooooo.... WE'LL HOLD OUR OWN HEARING! Ray Weber of Friends of Robinson State Park: Chris Matera of Mass. Forest Watch; Meg Sheehan of the Stop Spewing Carbon campaign and Glen Ayers of The Enviro Show (who?) will testify. Given that it will take up most of the show we'll have to set aside our usual segments, but we'll post them here on the blog so Enviro Show listeners don't have to suffer withdrawal symptoms. Of course, there's one segment we simply cannot do without......Revenge of the Critters! Attacked in the Forest with A Million Eyes!

The Enviro Show Echo Chamber we lead off with some actual GOOD NEWS (can you believe this?). Remember when Ronny Ray-gun took Jimmy Carter's solar panels off the White House? All very symbolic, yes? Well, after months and months of conjouling and pleading by so many citizens, including yours truly, Obama has finally agreed to put the panels back up. Ta-da! On to the bad news, actually the REALLY bad news of the masive toxic spill in Hungry. Now this long and arduous piece from The New Yorker about our broken government: How the Senate and the White House missed their best chance to deal with climate change.

Time to Meet the New Boss again. So, while it's good news Obama finally went for the solar panels, it's not so good on his handling of the BP disaster. Mother Jones rips the boss a new one.

Our new Fool-on-the-Hill segment puts the spotlight on John McCain who does a perfect 180 on the climate crisis.

In the E-Valley-uation department we slip across the border to Pownal, Vermont (OK, OK, so it's the Hoosic River Valley, it's still a valley, right?) where Beaver Wood Energy (gosh, they must be friends of the beavers!) wants to erect yet another Biomess. The folks in Pownal got an ear full from our own Chris Matera and Josh Schlossberg on forestry issues and health effects related to biomass incineration and pellet production. Now for some evaluation of that 10/10/10 horse so many folks in this valley and elsewhere have hitched their wagons to.

Then it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard:


October, 14-16. Beginning Thursday morning Forum (C building) Holyoke Community College at 9:30am. The Forest Summit. HCC in association with the Eastern Native Tree Society is hosting a long term lecture series to focus on the history, current status, and the future of the Forests of the Northeast and beyond. Go to: http://www.hcc.edu/forest/

Saturday,October 16, 9am. 350.org's 10/10/10 events. Grace Episcopal Church in Amherst will organize a parish-wide work party on the Saturday after 10/10/10 that will focus on implementing the recommendations from our top-to-bottom energy audit.

Saturday, Oct. 16 , 7:30 pm - Colleen Kattau at The Echo Lake Coffee House, Leverett Town Hall. Call (413)-548-9394, or email: diacrowe@yahoo.com

Thursday October 21, 7:00pm. The True Cost of Coal. The True Cost of Coal is an elaborate narrative illustration that explores the complex story of mountaintop removal coal mining and the broader impacts of coal in Appalachia and beyond. Beehive Design Collective at Food for Thought Books, 106 N Pleasant St., downtown Amherst. Call: 413-253-5432

Friday, October 22, 7pm. Friday Night Film Series. "Farm for the Future". Alarmed by the world's energy insecurity and her farm's dependence on cheap oil, a farmer seeks a low-energy future. Screening at MEF, 60 Masonic Street in Northampton. Enter via Woodstar Cafe, at the front of the building. The venue is accessible. Contact: info@northamptoncommittee.org

Friday, October 22 at 5:00pm. Mountain Justice Fall Summit 2010. Kayford Mountain, West Virginia A weekend of workshops, trainings and direct action! For more info, contact mjfallsummit@gmail.com or 304-854-1937

Saturday, October 23, 4pm. Roots to Resistance - Art & Activism Project. 186 Federal Street, Florence.

Tuesday, October 26, 7:00-8:30pm. First VT Yankee Decommissioning Forum. Marlboro Tech Center, 28 Vernon St Brattleboro. What will life look like once Vermont Yankee stops operating in March 2012? What options are there for clean up? How can citizens impact these decisions? Call: (413) 339-5781

Friday, October 29, 7pm. Friday Night Films. "Gasland" . Natural gas drilling is moving into rural communities irresponsibly, contaminating the groundwater. Screening at MEF, 60 Masonic Street in Northampton. Contact: info@northamptoncommittee.org

Sunday, November 7, 4pm, Unitarian Meetinghouse in Amherst. A kick off event for a series of movies on climate change issues: Film and discussion: Scarred Lands and Wounded Lives: The Environmental Footprint of War.

This hearing is hereby adjourned.....O, and remember to listen to your Mother, OK?

The Autumn Fun Drive Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. It's time to pay the piper again. Remember, Valley Free Radio runs on YOUR donations, not on corporate largess that dictates the content. VFR is independent community radio and The Enviro Show is just one of many locally produced shows that VFR makes possible. Now we are asking you to help keep the show on the air during our annual Autumn Fund Drive (i know we said "fun drive" and it will be lots of fun IF you do YOUR share and support The Enviro Show....otherwise we'll sulk and whine and who wants THAT!). Soooo, even though we'll be constantly reminding you of how much we need your support, we may still have time for a brief visit to The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, the Quote of The Week and our E-Valley-uation segment, but first it's time for...Revenge of the Critters! Sea lion snot into showtime. See the video here.

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber we scope out the Invasion of the Frankenfish! Maybe we should've saved that one for our Halloween show, but hey, there's plenty more horror stories courtesy of the corporados, right? O, and speaking of corporados and the water check this out: Greenpeace USA activists stop Chevron offshore drilling project. Yes!.....finally!! And this: there's the energy crisis and there's the water crisis. What? There's some connection? Who knew! Here's our Enviro Show Blog Bonus: The National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling needs to hear YOUR comments NOW! Finally, this from Grist, it doesn't get much more ironic: Maryland Green Party Senate candidate killed by SUV while cycling.

Johnny Cash's "Don't go near the water" takes us to our E-Valley-uation segment where Biomess industry flaks get their panties all up in a knot over Patrick administration rules restricting tax credits for biomass energy, aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions. Jeez! Sorry to get in the way of your cash cow guys! And this: Shut it Down affinity group is at it again. This time they're nailed for tagging Vermont Yankee! Go grannies, go!!

Our Enviro Show Quote of the Week states: “The idea of wilderness needs no defense, it only needs defenders.” - Ed Abbey

Hey, did we mention it's our annual Autumn Fund Drive? Isn't it time you stepped up to the plate and helped support VFR and The Enviro Show? Did you know you can do it right NOW, right HERE? Thanks, we needed that!

Then it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Thursday, Sept. 30, 6 pm. Meeting of Stop Toxic Incineration in Springfield at the Arise office. Call: (413) 455-3829 or 734-4948

Saturday, October 2, 2010.--Source-to-Sea Cleanup: 9 a.m. to 12 noon--Hauling: volunteers with trucks or ATV's needed from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. or any portion of that time. In Gill, Montague, East Deerfield, and Erving. Call Beth Bazler at Northfield Mountain Recreation and Environmental Center, (800) 859-2960, or email amy@franklincountywastedistrict.org. Elsewhere in the watershed (VT, NH, MA and CT), see a map at http://www.imrivers.org/crwc/, call Connecticut River Watershed Council (413) 772-2020 x201 or email: cleanup@ctriver.org.

Saturday, October 9, 10:00am. Big Tree Walk. Mohawk Trail State Forest is home to the tallest trees in New England. No other public property in our region has so many champions of height which included the 170.1 foot-tall Chief Jake Swamp white pine. Join Bob Leverett as he points out significant trees and groves of trees and discusses the history and ecology of the species represented in Mohawk Trail State Forest. Call (413) 339-5504

Sunday, October 10, 11:15am. 350.org's 10/10/10 events. First Congregational Church in Amherst will have a worship service at 10:30 AM themed around care for the Earth followed by a congregation-wide work party starting around 11:15 AM. We'll have lunch together at 1:00 PM to celebrate the conclusion of our activities.

Sunday October 10, 5:00am - 8:00am. 350.org 10/10/10 event. Winter Moon Farm Photovoltaic turn-on!. We hope to turn on a new 34.3 KW system for 10-10-10. 156 Solar panels are already on the roof! Pot Luck dinner and music. Please bring an instrument if you can! 17 Lawrence Plain Rd. Hadley.

Sunday, October 10, Noon - 2pm. 10/10/10 Global Climate Crisis Work Party. Help us Plant 100 Trees on 10/10! To kick off our restoration of a floodplain forest at Land of Providence in Holyoke, a project funded in part by the Massachusetts Environmental Trust, join us in planting 100 trees along the riverfront. 413.532.1631 x13

Tuesday, October 12, 2010: Change the system, not the climate!Call for a global day of direct action for climate justice The disaster that was the climate summit in Copenhagen highlighted one thing above all: That we cannot expect UN-negotiations to solve the climate crisis for us. Governments and corporations are unable (even if they were willing) to deliver real climate justice. Only powerful, global climate justice movements can achieve the structural changes that are necessary. To get involved please email info@climate-justice-action.org

October, 14-16. Beginning Thursday morning Forum (C building) Holyoke Community College at 9:30am. The Forest Summit. HCC in association with the Eastern Native Tree Society is hosting a long term lecture series to focus on the history, current status, and the future of the Forests of the Northeast and beyond. Go to: http://www.hcc.edu/forest/


Saturday,October 16, 9am. 350.org's 10/10/10 events. Grace Episcopal Church in Amherst will organize a parish-wide work party on the Saturday after 10/10/10 that will focus on implementing the recommendations from our top-to-bottom energy audit.

OK, so you made your pledge (right?) and you're ready to listen to your Mother, OK? In that case we'll shut-up and go out with a "Big Oilmance" by Jamie of SomaCow

The Forest Forensics Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. We know Enviro Show listeners are concerned about the health and well-being of the forests around us, but what about the history of those forests? Tom Wessels, ecologist and founding director of the master’s degree program in Conservation Biology at Antioch calls-in to talk with Glen about his new book "Forest Forensics". And yes, we said "talk with Glen" 'cuz Jean & D.O. are both away, leaving poor Glen to deal with the end of the world as we know it. Maybe he will spare you D.O.'s usual endless recitations from The Enviro Show Echo Chamber or our E-Valley-uation segment, but he certainly won't blow off our....Revenge of the Critters! Man attacked by tree while tweeting!

In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber forest activists in Russia need help in efforts to halt the construction of a highway through the Khimki forest. Moving over to Pakistan: about that horrendous flooding? Would you be surprised to learn that illegal logging was a big part of the problem? And speaking of actions here on the blog: We invite you to sign on to commit to action against a fossil fuel pipeline and pumping project (”Trailbreaker”) that may bring tar sands bitumen through infrastructure across several American states and Canadian provinces. You can sign the pledge here. Finally, Jill Stein, the only Green candidate for Gov. in the so-called Commonwealth is being excluded from the big debate!

In our E-Valley-uation segment we return to the Biomess! As you may recall, folks in Western Mass were instrumental in exposing the bullshit being put out by the biomass industry. Now the movement's gone national (international actually) and it's time for YOU to tell the EPA that emissions from biomass should not be ignored. Send your comments here. OK, so how can we talk about forest issues without talking about clearcutting by the Quabbin? We can't! Also, the proposed incinerator in Springfield reminds us to sign the petition to Governor Deval Patrick asking him to walk the walk for a real Zero Waste plan. For that go here

After Glen's interview with Tom Wessels it's off to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Friday, Sept. 17, 7pm. “Anthrax War”: Documentary examining the 2001 anthrax attacks and the secret and dangerous world of germ weapons. Local activist and attorney John Bonifaz will speak after the film at the Media Education Foundation’s Frances Crowe Community Room, 60 Masonic Street, behind Woodstar Café, in downtown Northampton. Call 413-584-3158

Saturday, September 18, 10:00am. Mohawk Trail State Forest is home to about 450 acres of old growth forest through which passes a 1.25-mile stretch of the original Mohawk Trail. This historic foot path was once used by Native Americans as a trade route between the Connecticut and Hudson River valleys. Join Bob Leverett as he takes us to the top of Todd Mountain along the historic foot trail for a look at its old growth forests and wealth of champion trees. Bob discusses the story of the Mohawk Trail, past and present, including modern Native Americans who continue to find meaning in this place. The hike is strenuous. Be sure to use good footwear and bring a snack/lunch, and water. Call (413) 339-5504

Wednesday September 22, 12:30-2pm, Brown Bag Lunch at Noon. GREENWORK: THE WESTERN MASS GREEN ECONOMY WORKING GROUP. Pioneer Valley AFL-CIO Hall, 640 Page
Boulevard, Springfield (732-7970).

September 25-27. Appalachia Rising in Washington DC. A national response to the poisoning of America’s water supply, the destruction of Appalachia's mountains, head water source streams, and communities through mountaintop removal coal mining. Email: Massachusetts Contact: Rana Xavier at shoot.rana.x@gmail.com or appalachiarising092710@gmail.com. Go to: http://appalachiarising.org/

Saturday, October 9, 10:00am. Big Tree Walk. Mohawk Trail State Forest is home to the tallest trees in New England. No other public property in our region has so many champions of height which included the 170.1 foot-tall Chief Jake Swamp white pine. Join Bob Leverett as he points out significant trees and groves of trees and discusses the history and ecology of the species represented in Mohawk Trail State Forest. Call (413) 339-5504

Sunday, October 10, 11:15am. 350.org's 10/10/10 events. First Congregational Church in Amherst will have a worship service at 10:30 AM themed around care for the Earth followed by a congregation-wide work party starting around 11:15 AM. We'll have lunch together at 1:00 PM to celebrate the conclusion of our activities.

Sunday October 10, 5:00am - 8:00am. 350.org 10/10/10 event. Winter Moon Farm Photovoltaic turn-on!. We hope to turn on a new 34.3 KW system for 10-10-10. 156 Solar panels are already on the roof! Pot Luck dinner and music. Please bring an instrument if you can! 17 Lawrence Plain Rd. Hadley.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010: Change the system, not the climate!Call for a global day of direct action for climate justice The disaster that was the climate summit in Copenhagen highlighted one thing above all: That we cannot expect UN-negotiations to solve the climate crisis for us. Governments and corporations are unable (even if they were willing) to deliver real climate justice. Only powerful, global climate justice movements can achieve the structural changes that are necessary. To get involved please email info@climate-justice-action.org

October, 14--16, 2010 The Eastern Native Tree Society Conference in the Forest Summit Lecture Series October 14-15 at Holyoke Community College. The Conference is still in the planning stage. More details and the agenda will come soon, so please SAVE THE DATE and check here: http://www.nativetreesociety.org/

Saturday,October 16, 9am. 350.org's 10/10/10 events. Grace Episcopal Church in Amherst will organize a parish-wide work party on the Saturday after 10/10/10 that will focus on implementing the recommendations from our top-to-bottom energy audit.

That's all folks! Next time it's the On-air Pledge drive at VFR, but why wait! You can donate right now and support The Enviro Show! Until then, remember: listen to your Mother.

Our 5th B-Day Enviro Show!

Greetings Earthlings. Believe it or not we've reached age 5 here on The Enviro Show. Yes, we have behavioral problems, but no, bed wetting is not one of them. The show turned 5 on August 26. We guess that makes us a Virgo and therefore: "fussy and a worrier; overcritical and harsh; perfectionist and (get this) CONSERVATIVE"! (OK, maybe not, but we do conserve!). Tom Neilson joins us in the studio for our Birthday bash. There will be cake....(well, it's really corn bread)...for eveyone! Sorry, no burning candles allowed in the studio. Of course, there's another more somber 5 year year anniversary taking place in New Orleans, isn't there. Just because we'll be partying doesn't mean we're asleep at the switch. We continue to update you on the ongoing BP Cover-up as well as hip you to other issues in The Enviro Show Echo Chamber and in our E-Valley-uation segment, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! We jump into the Wayback Machine to visit tiny jellyfish who kill you!

In our brand new Fool on the Hill segment we find that HuffPo has noted that Every New Hampshire Republican candidate for the Senate is a global warming denier. Well, like they say: live free or die! We're not sure if our Repugnican Senator, Scott Brown is a climate crisis denier but he sure is pals with folks who are. Looks like folks in Boston have been shadowing Brown with the message that "climate change deniers belong in jail!".


In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber, back in the Gulf it's more science under siege. A BP sponsored study finds happy hungry microbes gobbling up oil plumes (like magic!), BUT that's not what our own Woods Hole oceanographers found, and it's not what U of Georgia oceanographers found, nor is it what U of South Florida researchers found! Speaking of finds: dead fish anyone? And this Enviro Show Blog Bonus: Help protect Sperm Whales in the Gulf! Finally, how about a 60 mile, weeks-long traffic jam? Better bring crayons for the kids. O, and guess what? It's brought to you by King Coal!

In our E-Valley-uation segment we have a two-fer from the noertheast corner of the Valley. First, the news we didn't get to last time: We noticed back on August 15 that the Sawmill River in Leverett had almost everything in it but....water! It's Lake Wyola headwaters in Shutesbury, on the other hand, is topped off! What's THAT about?? Then we head northward up the hill in Leverett to threatened wetlands by the Montague border.

In the Meet the New Boss segment our native son, Rep. Ed Markey takes the Administration's minions to task for giving a pass to toxic seafood from the Gulf. Go Ed!

Of course, we'll get into all sorts of B-Day hi jinks with Tom. Maybe Glen will bring his banjo and torture us with that for a spell. There's also the chance we'll have games like Pin the Tail on the Toady.

Then it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard:

Saturday, Sept. 4th: Lafayette Park: 2 - 5pm. and Sunday, Sept. 5th: Washington Mall near Capitol Hill: 11am-4pm. Spill into Washington DC - Labor Day Weekend. A rally in the nation's capital is crucial to gaining the lasting attention of law makers around the BP oil disaster. Email:lydiaajohnson@gmail.com or Phone: 402/708-2224. Website: http://spillintowashington.org

Tuesday, September 7, 7:00 in the Community Room of the Media Education Foundation in Northampton on Gothic Street, the Solentiname Friendship Group of Western MA welcomes Alan Wright, President of SOSTENICA and Rachel Lindsay, Coordinator of Sustainable Development for SOSTENICA, who will be discussing current efforts to develop a national Sustainable Rural Development program in northern Nicaragua. This gathering is free, open to the public and wheelchair accessible. For more information contact: Sandy Mandel @413-585-8240

Thursday, Sept 9, 4pm. Franklin County Fair Parade. No Nukes contingent or the CCFC Biomess contingent. Marchers need a wrist band for a dollar. CCFC has ordered 200 and it must be 1st come 1st served, but people can reserve by contacting janet, 625-2886 or at jasinclair@verizon.net. New Fair policy is you need a wrist band to be in the street. We line up at 4:00 behind the Middle School and Blessed Sacrament Church on Federal St. The parade begins at 5:30 and we get to the fair grounds at about 7:30. You can march in any or all of the parade. The theme this year is "We Grow, We Sow, We Celebrate". Use your imagination! Please make or bring signs (many lawn signs welcome) related to our effort and our success, bring visual aids, wear your favorite "no biomass" tee-shirt, or just come as you are. If you have muscial instruments--bring them and we can all play and march together.

Saturday, September 11,11:00 am - 1:00 pm. Explore the Montague Sand Plain. Come learn about the story of fire on the Montague Sand plain! Why is the landscape like Cape Cod, but the ocean is miles away? Now’s your chance to explore a unique habitat designed by fire and sand. Join the Great Falls Discovery Center for an introduction to the fauna, flora, and geology of this amazing and threatened habitat. Free but registration required. For more information call 413-863-3221

September 25-27. Appalachia Rising in Washington DC. A national response to the poisoning of America’s water supply, the destruction of Appalachia's mountains, head water source streams, and communities through mountaintop removal coal mining. Email: Massachusetts Contact: Rana Xavier at shoot.rana.x@gmail.com or appalachiarising092710@gmail.com. Go to: http://appalachiarising.org/

That's it. You can send our B-Day presents to 140 Pine Street in beautiful downtown Florence, MA. Thanks! O, and remember: listen to your Mother.

BP Cover-up continues

News from the Gulf (rather than corporate media propaganda and White House spin) continues to surface about BP and government cover-ups of the continued use of toxic dispersants and the alleged safety of Gulf seafood, as well as the secret disposal of dead wildlife. It looks for all the world like some surreal Hollywood disaster film complete with corporado villains and colluding government officials....except....it's REAL!

Repugnicans & Dems alike, are up to their necks in a conspiracy to whitewash the devastation that BP has unleashed in the Gulf of Mexico. If you ever had any doubts that Big Oil owns Washington, this disaster should dispel them. Since government is part of the problem, what can YOU do about this disaster? Get into the streets!! People in San Franciso are doing it. People will be demonstrating in Washington on Labor Day weekend. How about in YOUR town??

####

Update here. More here and here from our last show.

The Rights of Nature Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. So, we supposedly have "The Rights of Man", "Women's Rights", and "Civil Rights" (ok, ok, it's a work in progress), how about The Rights of Nature? Ecuador wrote them into their constitution; in the U.S.? Not so much. Jeff Conant, Media Coordinator for Global Justice Ecology and author of "A Poetics of Resistance: The Revolutionary Public Relations of the Zapatista Insurgency" published by AK Press joins us to talk about it. We return once again to Meet the New Boss and scope out the Enviro Show Echo Chamber, as well as get to that George Carlin quote we dumped last time around, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! Toilet snake terrorizes Brits! (these things wouldn't happen if they used composting toilets).

In our Meet the New Boss segment we find the Obama Administration playing fast & loose with the facts on the BP disaster. Also we checkout White House spokes, Robert Gibbs and the view from behind his rose colored glasses! O, don't forget EPA's Carol Browner (that's not Greener is it?) doing the talk show rounds with news of "Mother Nature doing her part" to clean the Gulf! Thanks, Mom. Sorry about that f'ing mess. Then we have the Obama Dept. of Justice fake left/go right for BP. There's more: guess who abstained on a vote for the Right to Water? That's Ambassador Susan E. Rice voting as the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations and a member of President Obama's Cabinet. Back in the Bush era, you may recall, the UN voted on the Right to Food, 177 in favor to 1 against; guess who! Now, about that "change you can believe in"......

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, Spike Lee weighs-in on BP. But hey, forget the "stars", checkout the common folk at a town hall meeting and on the docks near the Gulf. Sooo, where's the oil that magically disappeared from the Gulf? All one has to do to find it is dig a little deeper! And this eye-opener from Mother Jones: BP Ocean Cover-up. O, btw, how's that climate chaos denial workin' for ya'?

About that Enviro Show Quote of the Week: this time George Carlin REALLY returns from the grave to remind us:

"I look at it this way... For centuries now, man has done everything he can to destroy, defile, and interfere with nature: clear-cutting forests, strip-mining mountains, poisoning the atmosphere, over-fishing the oceans, polluting the rivers and lakes, destroying wetlands and aquifers... so when nature strikes back, and smacks him on the head and kicks him in the nuts, I enjoy that. I have absolutely no sympathy for human beings whatsoever. None. And no matter what kind of problem humans are facing, whether it's natural or man-made, I always hope it gets worse."

In our E-Valley-uation segment we find Eight local women being arrested at Vermont Yankee....again! And this: Biodiesel plant breaks ground in Greenfield (we'll have excerpts from the Montague Reporter version of the story). Also, Massachusetts chapter of Clean Water Action gives the "John O'Connor Grassroots Leadership Award" to the "Stop Spewing Carbon Campaign! We noticed the other day that the Sawmill River in Leverett has almost everything in it but....water! It's Lake Wyola headwaters on the other hand, is topped off! What's THAT about??

Following our interview with Jeff Conant we wander off to the Bus Stop Billboard:


Friday, August 20, 8:00 - 9:30 am. Early Morning Nature Walk. Participants will meet outside the main entrance to the Great Falls Discovery Center in Turners Falls at 8 a.m. Learn about plants, animals, and mill town history along the Bike Path of Turners Falls. Please wear appropriate footwear, bring water, bug repellant, and sun screen. For more information, call 413.863.3221.

Sunday, August 22, 8:00 am - 12:00 pm. Great Falls Birding Trip. 1st Local Birding Trip with Mark Fairbrother! Depending on weather will cover Gill-Montague area. Meet at the GFDC. Call 413.863.3221


Wednesday, August 25, 6:30pm. IN MORTAL HANDS: A CAUTIONARY HISTORY OF THE NUCLEAR AGE. Talk and Book signing with author Stephanie Cooke. Centre Congregational Church, Main Street, Brattleboro, VT Call: Nancy Braus 802-254-8160 (work) or 802-380-3363 (cell).


Saturday, Sept. 4th: Lafayette Park: 2 - 5pm. and Sunday, Sept. 5th: Washington Mall near Capitol Hill: 11am-4pm. Spill into Washington DC - Labor Day Weekend. A rally in the nation's capital is crucial to gaining the lasting attention of law makers around the BP oil disaster. Email:lydiaajohnson@gmail.com or Phone: 402/708-2224. Website: http://spillintowashington.org

Thursday, Sept 9, 4pm. Franklin County Fair Parade. No Nukes contingent or the CCFC Biomess contingent. Marchers need a wrist band for a dollar. CCFC has ordered 200 and it must be 1st come 1st served, but people can reserve by contacting janet, 625-2886 or at jasinclair@verizon.net. New Fair policy is you need a wrist band to be in the street. We line up at 4:00 behind the Middle School and Blessed Sacrament Church on Federal St. The parade begins at 5:30 and we get to the fair grounds at about 7:30. You can march in any or all of the parade. The theme this year is "We Grow, We Sow, We Celebrate". Use your imagination! Please make or bring signs (many lawn signs welcome) related to our effort and our success, bring visual aids, wear your favorite "no biomass" tee-shirt, or just come as you are. If you have muscial instruments--bring them and we can all play and march together.


September 25-27. Appalachia Rising in Washington DC. A national response to the poisoning of America’s water supply, the destruction of Appalachia's mountains, head water source streams, and communities through mountaintop removal coal mining. Email: Massachusetts Contact: Rana Xavier at shoot.rana.x@gmail.com or appalachiarising092710@gmail.com. Go to: http://appalachiarising.org/

That should keep you busy, but remember to take time to listen to your Mother. Next time it's our Birthday Party and YOU are invited. Cake & ice cream for everyone!

The Radically Simple Enviro Show

Greetings Earthlings. After four back-to-back depressing shows on the BP Gulf disaster we thought we'd shift gears a bit and look for some simple solutions to living with Big Oil and the corporados. With that in mind, Jim Merkel calls-in with some info on Radical Simplicity. We visit the Enviro Show Echo Chamber just in case you really CAN'T get enough of that miserable news from the Gulf and we'll make a pit stop in our E-Valley-uation segment to catch-up on the Biomess. Also, more words of wisdom in our Enviro Show Quote of the Week and a flashback surprise, but first it's time for....Revenge of the Critters! Italian bird poacher attacked by his own victim.

In The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, in case you had any doubts, the scientific proof is in: Researchers confirm subsea Gulf oil plumes are from the BP well, surprise! And....more oil where no one wants it! In The Gulf, in Michigan, in China, in Nigeria, another BP one in Alaska, and around the world! Meanwhile, actions in response to BP's sins are taking place in San Francisco, DC, and elsewhere during the 100 Days of Outrage! Where's western Mass?? Asleep at the....umm...pump? BTW, it might not shock you that the National Wildlife Federation and NOAA are not on the same page regarding the damage done; and neither are the scientists regarding the toxic dispersant entering the foodchain in the worst oil release in the history of the world!

"No Body Knows Nothin'", by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band & friends takes us to our E-Valley-uation segment where it's time for more on the Biomess! Checkout the comments on the Manomet study hearing in Springfield last Wednesday here. And, the struggle goes national!

On the Enviro Show Quote of the Week George Carlin returns from the grave to remind us: "I look at it this way... For centuries now, man has done everything he can to destroy, defile, and interfere with nature: clear-cutting forests, strip-mining mountains, poisoning the atmosphere, over-fishing the oceans, polluting the rivers and lakes, destroying wetlands and aquifers... so when nature strikes back, and smacks him on the head and kicks him in the nuts, I enjoy that. I have absolutely no sympathy for human beings whatsoever. None. And no matter what kind of problem humans are facing, whether it's natural or man-made, I always hope it gets worse."

And this: He's baaaaaack! Yes, Darth Cheney lives on with the help of medical science and who knows, Satan maybe??

After our interview it's on to the Bus Stop Billboard again:

Thursday, August 5,4pm. Protest the Biomess! (that rhymes) At the Biomess industry conference. Meet in front of the Westin Copley Place hotel at the corner of Dartmouth and St. James in Boston (near Copley Plaza) at 4pm. Contact: stephaniesanch@gmail.com

Friday, August 6, 8 - 8:30am. Anniversary vigils on Hiroshima bombing. Northampton Courthouse & Amherst Town Common. Call AFSC at 584-8975

Saturday, August 7, 11am. - Noon. Greenfield Peace Vigil Shattuck Park, Federal St., Greenfield, Sponsored by the Traprock Center for Peace and Justice

Saturday, August 7, 12:30 - 2:30pm. Go Solar! Street theater & Rally. City Hall, Northampton. Come help with our street theater solar panel installations and giant “Sunny Green” “Sol Verde” puppet along Main Street at 12:30 — and stay for the rally and citizens’ speak-out at Northampton City Hall at 1pm! Great music by the Raging Grannies, Derrick Jordan, and Jay Manita! Call AFSC at 584-8975

Monday, August 9, 11am. Nagasaki atomic bombing anniversary gathering. Leverett Peace Pagoda. Details about event and earlier Walk for 7 Generations itinerary can be obtained by calling (413) 485-8465

Tuesday, August 10th, 12 Noon. Rally at Rep. Neal's office, 300 State St., Springfield. Get corporate dollars out of Washington! Sign the Pledge! Sponsored by MoveOn.org.

Saturday, August 14 The Vermont Citizens Action Network will host a potluck dinner at the Organ Barn at Tree Frog Farm in Guilford, Vermont. Call 413-625-6177 for reservations.

Sunday afternoon, August 15. An outdoor concert and CD Release Party—also at Tree Frog Farm. Call 413-625-6177

Had enough? Us too! Next time it's the Rights of Nature. Until then remember: listen to your Mother, OK?

Biomess Demo in Boston August 5th!

Greetings Earthlings. We have some interesting news for you on the Biomess front here in the Northeast. From August 4 through 6 Biomass Magazine is hosting its Northeast Biomass Conference & Expo at the Westin Copley Place at the corner of Dartmouth and St. James in Boston near Copley Plaza in Boston. We here on The Enviro Show, having broken the story in Western Mass. on the Biomess long ago, and taking every opportunity to expose biomass incineration schemes to some needed sunlight, thought it important to demonstrate to the industry and the public at large, our continued opposition to the Biomess. With that in mind, we and our activist friends from Stop Spewing Carbon and elsewhere are proposing a "Protest the Biomess" action in front of the Westin Copley Place hotel on Thursday, August 5 at 4pm.

On the conference website, Biomess boosters state "The Northeast U.S. has vast forestry, agricultural and municipal biomass resources" which in Biomess-speak means they would like to burn-up our forests and incinerate our toxic demolition and construction debris for fun & profit while we are left to suffer the consequences. To this we say: we don't think so! But, we'd LOVE to say it with YOU on the street in front of the industry's dog & pony show on August 5th.

We've already had several victories in the struggle against biomass incineration here in Massachusetts. We think we should continue to shed sunlight on the industry's hype so that our neighbors become fully aware of what a scam biomass incineration really is and how it will impact their lives and those of future generations. So, won't you join us in Boston on August 5 at 4pm? All you have to do is show up!

Spread the word!! Save the trees! Protect the biosphere!

Contact: stephaniesanch@gmail.com/ 203-536-2050 cell ph

The Big Oily Enviro Show, Part II

Greetings Earthlings. Had enough of THE worst environmental disaster in U.S. history? Think it's over? Imagine if you were an oyster with no where to go! Jennifer Seavey was going to return to these microphones with tales from the depths of despair. She's doing post doc at the University of Florida, examining oysters in the Gulf of Mexico. Sadly, her fellow scientist asked her not to come on the show because "there is a lot of nervousness about talking to the press right now". Of course, this is all about BP trying to control the science around their f'ing crimes! We'll look into some more of BP's nefarious deeds and such like in The Enviro Show Echo Chamber, checkout the Quote of The Week, and perhaps venture into our E-Valley-uation segment, but first it's time for.....Revenge of the Critters! Are you ready for this? Amelia Earhart attacked by crabs!. Now we know.

This time The Enviro Show Quote of the Week comes from in-house. It's D.O.'s tirade...er...we mean commentary on the BP disaster: Where's Big Green?

In the Enviro Show Echo Chamber we find our friends at Ocean River Institute calling on Obama to federalize the Gulf clean-up. And this from the Huffington Post: BP trying to buy scientists! Also from Huff: George Lakoff on Conservatism's Death Gusher (actually George, they're not conservatives in the real sense 'cuz they don't CONSERVE!). And this Enviro Show Blog Bonus: Stop Big Oil Bailouts!

"Wash up over me" by Ethan Miller & Kate Boverman takes us to our E-Valley-uaton segment it's excellent news on the Biomess front: Another victory in Massachusetts!. Sorry Madera Energy, looks like your shrinking and your flying monkeys have morphed. What a world! What a world! O, by the way, Biomess warriors took their case to DC. Read all about it here.

After all that we'll stroll over to the old Bus Stop Billboard:


Wednesday, July 21, 10:30 am: New England Climate Summer bicyclists are in town! They'll be visiting Garden the Community folks at 10:30 and we're planning other events with them. More to come (see Thursday)!

Wednesday, July 21, Noon to 1pm. Brown bag lunch vigil at Rep. Neal's office, 300 State Street, Springfield. Part of a week of actions that support people and the planet over corporate polluters like BP. Sponsored by Progressive Democrats of America. Email: tim@pdamerica.org.

Thursday, July 22, 6 pm: New England Climate Change bicyclers will speak at the Forest Park Library, 380 Belmont Ave., Springfield to: Explain some of the scientific, social, and political aspects of climate change, Hear from local environmental groups, Hold an open discussion about the energy future of Springfield and the State.

Friday, July 23, 7pm. Benefit concert for the Greenfield No Biomass vote. Old Tavern Farm, 817 Colrain Road, Greenfield. Green River String Band, Glen Ayers on banjo! & Jarad Weeks on bagpipes.

Wednesday, July 28, 6:00-8:00pm. Massachusetts Biomass Policy Development Public Meeting. Holyoke Community College. Leslie Philips Auditorium (Building C)303 Homestead Avenue,Holyoke. Call 617-626-7327

August 10th, 12 Noon. Rally at Rep. Neal's office, 300 State St., Springfield. Get corporate dollars out of Washington! Sign the Pledge! Sponsored by MoveOn.org.

Saturday, August 14 The Vermont Citizens Action Network will host a potluck dinner at the Organ Barn at Tree Frog Farm in Guilford, Vermont. Call 413-625-6177 for reservations.

Sunday afternoon, August 15. An outdoor concert and CD Release Party—also at Tree Frog Farm. Call 413-625-6177

That's about it. Next time it's our Birthday party and YOU'RE invited. Bring ice cream, ok? And remember to listen to your Mother (unlike BP & friends).

The Worst Environmental Disaster in U.S. History: Where's the outrage??

Imagine if you and your family and friends suddenly found that everything around you was turning dark and suffocating. Imagine being unable to escape this horror no matter which way you turned. Imagine your children dying before your eyes and you, dying also, unable to help. Welcome to the Gulf of Mexico and the worst man-made environmental disaster in U.S. history. This is the reality for countless lifeforms.

Obviously, BP oil is to blame for this horrific crisis of epic proportions, but there is plenty of blame to go around for what is happening. Corporate and government response to the oil well disaster has been at best, erratic. Cover-ups, obfuscation and media suppression have added insult to injury. But there is another aspect to The Summer They Destroyed the Gulf that is, at the very least, troubling: where are the activists?

Soon after the BP Deepwater Horizon was destroyed and eleven workers perished, the enormity of the blow-out became apparent. The massive environmental destruction and its effect on fishing and tourism started to manifest fear and outrage in Louisiana, which soon spread elsewhere. Of course there were local reactions and eventually there were some nationally coordinated regional events marking the catastrophe such as "Hands across the sands" and a few small protests in Washington; all of which seemed to have little or no effect. As we speak, the story begins to slip from the headline news after the flow of oil is finally stopped, at least for the time being. Congress and the White House turn to other issues. Who will keep the pressure on, if not grassroots activists? Who will keep the pressure on, if not grassroots activists?

It pains this observer that well-funded, heavily resourced national environmental groups like Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network or 350.org, to name a few, have not poured all their efforts into confronting the worst environmental disaster in our history. Groups like Greenpeace have personnel, boats, vehicles, even blimps they could throw into the fray. Where are the mass marches and rallies? Where's the direct action? While relatively small efforts on Facebook or among Rising Tide activists are hopeful, no one seems to have the resources and clout that Big Green carries. Beyond that: where's Earth First!? That kick-ass movement doesn't have the toys Big Green enjoys, but they do have the moxie and the spirit. Why haven't they locked down in BP headquarters? Pied Tony Hayward in the face? What became of "No compromise in defense of Mother Earth"?

I'm willing to bet there are tens of thousands of activists like myself out there waiting for the right action to surface or trying to create the momentum for such actions. Our voices are not that loud in the info-glut of 2010. It's time for Big Green to wake up and throw the switch. It's time for direct action activists to make their moves. Did I mention it's the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history? If not now, when?

- d.o.