Views of the natural environment & climate change
Come celebrate this form of renewable energy. I’ll be showing fourteen of my photos taken earlier this year. The exhibition runs from Jan 4 -30, with a reception on Jan 16. If you can’t make the reception, check with East Ave. Inn & Suites for their viewing hours.
I hope to see you there!
Wishing you a Happy New Year,
-Steve
The weather around the finger lakes has been pretty mild so far, with temperatures mostly in the thirties and some forties with little precipitation. However, this might change with the anticipated coming of the polar vortex. One struck last year and produced three consecutive nor’easters along the east coast.
I traveled around the finger lakes in December where there were light patches of snow scattered about the countryside. Here are some of my highlight photos.
There are several reasons including group identity, having to give up many amenities and comforts of modern life, and something that will happen in the future. Well, the future is now.
www.nytimes.com/2018/12/30/opinion/climate-change-weather-2018.html
Yet another way Trump threatens our national security is by poisoning the population with toxic emissions.
How’s this for a statement?
Will all world leader’s get it? Probably not.
The New York Times article, below, does not sound all that encouraging. For instance, the scaled back language that COP24 “appreciates” the IPCC report, instead of stating that it recognizes and accepts its scientific findings is absurd. The language is “milktoast” due to the objections of Russia, Saudi Arabia, China, and you guessed it, the United States.
The article did not provide any reference as to what the new rules are (these will undoubtedly be forthcoming) but the big question is whether the major emitting countries will comply. Remember we not only have to stop using fossil fuels, we have to remove CO2 from the atmosphere via carbon capture technologies. If CO2 emissions stopped today the atmosphere would continue to warm, just at a slower rate. That’s how bad it is.
I know my reader statistics improve when I publish my photo articles about the environment. I do this to document what we are quickly losing. If we do not press governments for action on climate change, and accept that we will not be able to have all the amenities produced since WW II, we risk further loss of life across the planet. We really need to listen to the scientists.
2018: The Year in Climate Change https://nyti.ms/2zTDPEu
Fall is a time for the environment to begin recycling itself. Animals fatten in preparation for flight, hibernation, or just winter survival; colors change. Unfortunately, the colors were not so prominent this year, due to weather anomalies.
However, I did manage to find some good pockets of color. The top left image was taken under afternoon sun, showing a kokapelli stalking through my garden. Very cool! The lower left and right-hand images were taken on an overcast and drizzly day at Linear Park in Penfield, NY. This produced soft light without shadows and contributed to a richer color palette.
I shot these with my Yashica TL-electro SLR on Kodak Ektar 100 film. You can see the complete collection at my on-line gallery.
It is not the planet that needs saving, it is us. It is likely our youth, such as Elodie, who will create a more sustainable world. See some of her work at:
In an earlier post, I discussed an article in the New York Times about the coming of the bugs that would invade our food supply. However, the Times is now reporting on the results of the Krefeld Study that found that all insects have been in sharp decline over the past 27 years. What gives? The reality is that bugs that can harm us are on the rise (ticks, mosquitoes, food pests) whereas the bugs that feed the birds and reptiles (the pollinators, etc.) are headed for extinction. We seem to have the worst of both worlds.
Not convinced? Have you noticed fewer bugs on your windshield and front bumper after driving during dusk over the past two decades? Entomologists call this the windshield phenomenon. I too have noticed far fewer bugs on my
car and aircraft windshields when operating during dusk.
Scientists previously thought that this loss of insects was due to loss of habitat. Although this is a cause, climate change is the major reason for their decline. While you might think fewer insects are a good thing, taking them out of the biosphere mix is affecting our food supply (i.e., lack of pollination) and other ways not yet evident. Everything connects, take one out and the impacts ripple.
