click on image for link to Festival schedule, descriptions, etc.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Brave man seeks to strike at the root of a problem
Former Salem City Councilor Bill Smaldone has an interesting op-ed in the SJ today. Reminds me of the old Thoreau saying: "There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root."
I appreciate his willingness to tackle the issue, but differ greatly here:
Moreover, the problem with income taxes is that they discourage exactly what we spend a lot of money and energy trying to encourage. Relying on income taxes is like driving a car with your foot jammed on the accelerator and brakes at the same time. You wind up working against yourself and damaging the vehicle at the same time.
Much better is the afterthought idea he tosses in: "Or one could consider other choices such as taxing underutilized land." Now, that is a good idea. Undeveloped land in the urban growth area should be taxed as if it were developed at the highest economic use value. Instead of rewarding speculators who hold land off the market with low taxes, we should tax the land as if they made the maximum investment that the zoning allows, so that they will either develop the land or sell it to someone who will. This has the effect of bringing a lot of idle land onto the market (reducing prices), promoting investment while reducing sprawl. Best of all, it puts the taxes in alignment with the economic development policies we're trying to promote, instead of making them work in opposition to each other.
I appreciate his willingness to tackle the issue, but differ greatly here:
For restoring services and preparing for the future, property taxes are inadequate and unfair. Flat and regressive, they hit all residential property owners at the same rate, regardless of income. New fees or targeted sales taxes also won't suffice. One must get to the root and change the system. Options include replacing the residential property tax with a graduated income tax for those who live and work in the city.The idea of increasing our dependence on the income tax is really, really bad, no matter how well-intentioned. Salem is already the epicenter of destruction from Oregon's foolish over-reliance on income taxes now -- at the state level, just when the economic cycle turns down and we could use a stable source of funds to make counter-cyclical investments, our tax revenues plummet.
Moreover, the problem with income taxes is that they discourage exactly what we spend a lot of money and energy trying to encourage. Relying on income taxes is like driving a car with your foot jammed on the accelerator and brakes at the same time. You wind up working against yourself and damaging the vehicle at the same time.
Much better is the afterthought idea he tosses in: "Or one could consider other choices such as taxing underutilized land." Now, that is a good idea. Undeveloped land in the urban growth area should be taxed as if it were developed at the highest economic use value. Instead of rewarding speculators who hold land off the market with low taxes, we should tax the land as if they made the maximum investment that the zoning allows, so that they will either develop the land or sell it to someone who will. This has the effect of bringing a lot of idle land onto the market (reducing prices), promoting investment while reducing sprawl. Best of all, it puts the taxes in alignment with the economic development policies we're trying to promote, instead of making them work in opposition to each other.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
It doesn't make sense, it's just how we are
Last year, Americans took more than 10 billion rides on public transportation, the highest level in more than 50 years. But despite the increases, public transit systems are being forced to cut back service, risking losing many of the riders they gained due to high gas prices and a bad economy. In New York, for example, the Metropolitan Transit Authority is moving forward with plans to drastically raise fares and totally eliminate some subway and bus lines. Our latest Transparency is a look at the 15 most popular public transit systems in America that have made or are planning to make cuts. You can see the full list of all cuts and potential cuts at Transportation for America.(h/t Good magazine)
If you have ever gone to Portland or Eugene for a movie or show
Then make sure you turn out to support the amazing Salem Film Festival. Here. In Salem.
(image from "Blue Gold: World Water Wars," which is having its Oregon premiere at the Salem Film Festival 2009)
Land-sharing: A very LOVEing idea
Story about land-sharing -- people with front and back yards that they want gardened and the people who want to garden but don't have the yards. A great idea for living our values, environmentally speaking, and for responding to the shortage of community garden plots:
With too many gardeners filling up the waiting list for community gardens, it's taking as long as 5 years to finally get a plot of dirt to grow veggies. So gardeners and city officials started a registry to connect homeowners willing to have their yards turned into gardens with the people who are willing to do the gardening. An excellent land-sharing solution, and in sync with the urban homesteading movement.
A most important graphic
Click to enlarge. Note that, of the roughly 98 quads of energy we start with, we only use about 43, with 55 going to entropic and distribution losses. Also note the tiny, almost microscopic scale of renewables next to polluting/depleting sources like coal (which also form nearly all the energy loss, since entropic losses are caused by high-temp energy transformations).
Monday, April 13, 2009
Spring FSELC Calendar
2008-09 Amateur Naturalist Series: Geology of the Columbia River Gorge
Green Landscape: Tuesday, April 21st, 7:00 p.m.
Green Cuisine: Tuesday, April 28th, 7:00 p.m.
JUNKride 2009: Spotlighting Environmental and Human Health Impact of Plastic Marine Debris
Working Together to “Leave No Child Inside”
Environmental Education Coordinator
Friends of Straub Environmental Learning Center
Mailing Address: 765 14th Street NE, Salem, OR 97301
Physical Address: 1320 A Street NE, Salem, OR 97301
Phone: (503) 391-4145
www.fselc.org
2009 Sustainability Workshops: Green InvestmentThursday, April 16th, 7:00 p.m. (Optional field trip Sunday, April 19th)
Straub Environmental Learning Center, 1320 A Street, Salem
$5 per person; RSVP required (Call 503-391-4145 or email lisa@fselc.org)
Tuesday, April 14th, 7:00 p.m.10th Annual Earth Day Celebration at Oregon Garden
Straub Environmental Learning Center, 1320 A Street, Salem
Coordinated and co-hosted by Willamette University. Free and open to the public.
Saturday, April 18th, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.Nature Kids: Youth Naturalist Classes
The Oregon Garden Earth Day has become a focal point for the Mid-Willamette Valley . Families can enjoy kid's activities, plant and garden sales and educational demonstrations. Local Oregon musicians will be featured throughout the day along with 35 indoor exhibitors and food. Earth Day will continue to be a free event to encourage people to learn about stewardship of the Earth. For more information
Tree Time! The Importance of Trees2009 Sustainability Workshops
Grades 4 and 5 – Wednesday, April 22nd, 4 – 5:30 p.m.
Straub Environmental Learning Center, 1320 A Street, Salem
Class is free, RSVP REQUIRED. Call or email Lisa at 503-391-4145 or lisa@fselc.org for more information.
Green Landscape: Tuesday, April 21st, 7:00 p.m.
Green Cuisine: Tuesday, April 28th, 7:00 p.m.
Straub Environmental Learning Center, 1320 A Street, Salem2008-09 Amateur Naturalist Series: Wildflower Identification
Coordinated and co-hosted by Willamette University. Free and open to the public.
Tuesday and Wednesday, April 21st and 22nd (Optional field trip April 25th)
Straub Environmental Learning Center, 1320 A Street, Salem
$5 per person; RSVP required (Call 503-391-4145 or email lisa@fselc.org)
**Please note: this is a two-night class. Payment is $5 for both sessions and payment is due on the first night.
JUNKride 2009: Spotlighting Environmental and Human Health Impact of Plastic Marine Debris
Wednesday, April 22nd, 7:00 p.m.2008-09 FSELC Lecture Series: Martin LeBlanc
Kaneko Auditorium, Willamette University, 1300 Mill St. SE
Dr. Marcus Eriksen and Anna Cummins, who have brought world attention to the “plastic soup” fouling our oceans, are embarking on a 2,000-mile bicycle ride/speaking tour from Vancouver to Tijuana in a quest to end the age of disposable plastics. Join us for their stop in Salem! Sponsored by FSELC and Willamette University Center for Sustainability. Free and open to the public. Note: Parking is located west of Sparks Field on the North side of Bellvue Street – no permit needed at 7:00 p.m. There is a pedestrian sky bridge over 12th Street to reach Tokyo International University of America, where Kaneko Auditorium is located.
Working Together to “Leave No Child Inside”
Thursday, April 23rd, 7:00 p.m.Lisa Olivares
Loucks Auditorium, Salem Public Library, 585 Liberty Street SE, Salem
Free and open to the public
Environmental Education Coordinator
Friends of Straub Environmental Learning Center
Mailing Address: 765 14th Street NE, Salem, OR 97301
Physical Address: 1320 A Street NE, Salem, OR 97301
Phone: (503) 391-4145
www.fselc.org
The stages of grief
A comment on the prior post about the CBC video introduction to peak oil went:
On the other hand, peak oil doesn't mean we're running out of oil -- the exact opposite in fact. Peak Oil is the moment of maximum global oil availability. So if there's ever a moment when we ought to be able to afford to prepare for the transition, it's at the peak.
And we better do it, because we will have to invest lots of energy now in the things we will want to rely on later, when oil (and thus all forms of energy) is much less abundant. Even a 2% per year decline in oil flows means that it only takes 36 years to put the world on half-rations for oil. And 2% decline rate is about the lowest that anyone suggests we'll see -- Cantarell in Mexico, the world's second largest field, is plunging at 15% a year or more. Sometimes all the glorious technology people think will save us is only making things worse, faster.
If you or your husband are ready to think about preparing for the coming transition to a post-oil world, you can check out the Salem Transition Initiative for Relocalization (STIR), a group that is just starting to organize around building the social resiliency we'll need to meet the challenge of a future that is likely to look so different from the immediate past.
"We read a story in Wired a while back about Peak Oil. My husband was so down that he didn't read another newspaper or newsmag for months!"A lot of people go through the stages of grief (Kubler-Ross) when they first realize that the life that abundant cheap oil has given the rich countries cannot survive when oil is no longer cheap: denial, bargaining, anger, depression, acceptance.
On the other hand, peak oil doesn't mean we're running out of oil -- the exact opposite in fact. Peak Oil is the moment of maximum global oil availability. So if there's ever a moment when we ought to be able to afford to prepare for the transition, it's at the peak.
And we better do it, because we will have to invest lots of energy now in the things we will want to rely on later, when oil (and thus all forms of energy) is much less abundant. Even a 2% per year decline in oil flows means that it only takes 36 years to put the world on half-rations for oil. And 2% decline rate is about the lowest that anyone suggests we'll see -- Cantarell in Mexico, the world's second largest field, is plunging at 15% a year or more. Sometimes all the glorious technology people think will save us is only making things worse, faster.
If you or your husband are ready to think about preparing for the coming transition to a post-oil world, you can check out the Salem Transition Initiative for Relocalization (STIR), a group that is just starting to organize around building the social resiliency we'll need to meet the challenge of a future that is likely to look so different from the immediate past.
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