Plan approved for drilling 18,000 gas wells in Montana

Every well pad disrupts from 5 to 20 acres-

Leaking gas is a potent climate changer. Disrupted soil does not sequester carbon. Native vegetation at the well site is almost impossible to restore. Coalbed methane wells produce huge amounts of saline (generally unreusuable water).

Story by Matthew Brown. Plan approved for gas wells. AP

We need Interior decorating (Not Salazar, nor Kemmis)

28-year drift toward “disastrous . . . consensus decision-making” on public lands-

“We need Interior decorating.” By Brian Horejsi. Colorado Springs Independent.

My view is that consensus decision-making, bargaining over what the rules and law are, destroys respect for the law and makes the country lawless, as we have seen with the Bush Administration where law and the Constitution are no barrier to what friends want to do. For example, let’s let the developers, bankers, no account mortgage seekers, and Wall Street investment firms decide what rules they like, if any. Ralph Maughan

Off-road vehicle use fuels tension, violence across U.S.

Most violence over private property and those who try to enforce the law-

This is according to USA Today. By Emily Bazar.

PEER: Interior Department needs new brooms to sweep it clean

Whistleblowers and Reformers Required to Rejuvenate Ravaged Agencies

In response to President-elect Obama’s decision to name rancher Ken Salazar Secretary of the Interior, a selection widely celebrated by extractive industry groups and current Bush Interior head Dirk Kempthorne, grass-roots wildlife, public land, and animal rights activists continue to scratch their heads with dismay.  It’s a bitter pill.

Despite Salazar’s abysmal record, Ralph (and many perhaps wiser than myself) have expressed the need for patience and continued effort pointing to the fact that the transition team’s choices regarding Salazar’s under-secretaries/agency-heads will likely be more important indications of Obama’s actual intent for Change of an Interior Department despoiled by corruption, greed, and extractive industries’ uninhibited will.

Public Employees For Environmental Responsibility has released a list of suggestions to fill these important positions for the transition-team to mull over – a list of “whistleblowers and reformers”, many whose integrity and real ability previously cost them their jobs.

PEER’s Press Release :

Idaho is a manure gold mine. Methane can be captured from the state’s pile of muck

Potent greenhouse gas (methane) from mega-feedlots could become fuel rather than fueling global warming-

Idaho’s energy czar wants to harness power of manure. By The Associated Press

Southern Idaho is full of vast stinky livestock feedlots (dairy and beef). Here is one way to amelioate the situation

Yellowstone earthquake swarm . . . biggest swarm in Park for years

Earthquake swarm is near the middle of the caldera.

Yellowstone Earthquake Swarm Puzzles Scientists. By LiveScience Staff

The earthquake swarm begin Dec. 27. The strongest quake has been a 3.9 quake. That could do some minor damage, but the big question is “does it mean anything?” Most questions are about an eruption. This isn’t likely, but changes in the Park’s thermal features are often observed after quake swarms and some big distant quakes.  These changes are often not noticed until the snow melts. Geyser watchers will be very curious to see the outcome.

- – - -

The earthquake swarm continued into Jan. 2. There have been a lot of quakes, including three, 3+ quakes Jan. 2. The strongest today was a 3.5 quake. The quakes are shallow. To me that means related to the magma pool just under the Park.

Jan. 3.  Fewer quakes! Has the earthquake swarm ended or just paused?
Jan. 4.  Few  quakes –6 very small quakes.
Jan. 5.  Just 2 small quakes.
Jan. 6. Two more small quakes”
Jan. 7. No quakes
Jan. 8. No quakes
Jan. 9. Eleven quakes, including a 3.3 (restart?)
Jan. 10 No quakes by noon

Link for data http://www.seis.utah.edu/

Good news for NW Wyoming elk? Agency finds no further chronic wasting disease in Star Valley

Infected moose may have been an anomaly-

Wyoming’s ungulates herds in NW Wyoming, including Yellowstone Park may have dodged the CWD bullet for now.

Wyoming Game and Fish may still have a short time to do away with wintertime elk feeding. Of course, they won’t.

Story: Good news for elk? Agency finds no further chronic wasting disease in Star Valley. By Chris Merrill. Casper Star Tribune.

Omnibus public lands bill carries Craig’s water

In October, Ralph commented on Larry Craig dropping his opposition to protecting the Snake River in Wyoming.  A change of heart from an Idaho politician renowned for his anti-environmentalist zeal ?  Not quite.  The bill is lumped with a bunch of bills in the massive Omnibus public lands bill.  The motivation for Craig’s “turnabout” is perhaps made more clear with a blog post Rocky Barker wrote that I missed but is worth posting even a week later.  Craig has slapped onto the bill $3 million for the environmental & economic studies necessary to initiate new dams on the Snake, Boise, and Payette rivers, including the potential to rebuild the historic Teton Dam :

Craig leaves water studies hidden in omnibus bill – Letter from the West, Rocky Barker

Craig himself put out an editorial in November outlining all the good things he included in the omnibus bill including compensation for ranchers who lose livestock to wolves, more thinning of national forests to reduce wildfire danger and even the Wyoming bill he first opposed. But he left out the authorization of the water feasibility studies.

Livestock as four legged picnic baskets

George Wuerthner wrote a letter to the editor making a great point about the double-standard regarding livestock/wolf conflicts – especially on public lands :

In our national parks it’s illegal to leave out picnic baskets because it will lead to human-bear conflicts. To save bears, humans are fined if they fail to put away food.

But when it comes to ranchers, we have the exact opposite approach. Instead of fining them for leaving four legged picnic baskets scattered all over the landscape — including most of our public lands — we hold the wolves accountable [for] any losses that are largely due to the livestock industry’s poor management.

The whole letter :

Livestock as four legged picnic baskets – Wuerthner on the Environment

The right way to do solar power

Don’t take up huge swaths of land-

I found this video that shows solar power underway with a deemphasis on remote solar collection in land-destroying mega-farm and vast transmission lines to electricity load centers.

Orchards of the sun on space.com.  Let’s hope Obama will go this route. Not only is it better for our environment, it will distribute the jobs more widely.