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The old monkey puzzle tree is easily recognized with characteristic spiny leaves and complicated scaly branches. Scientists think its peculiar characteristics developed as a protection against tall, long-necked dinosaurs. The endangered evergreen tree that survived the extinction of the dinosaurs

(Photo : Image from DavydhT )

The evergreen tree, which can grow to a height of 160 feet (48.8 meters) and has a millennia-long lifespan, is a fossil from the Jurassic period, more than 145 million years ago.

Although Araucaria araucanaoutlived the dinosaurs, scientists now classify the tree as endangered. Monkey puzzle trees are cultivated and may be found in gardens and parks worldwide, but in the wild, they are only found in Chile and Argentina on the slopes of Patagonia's volcanoes.

The temperate forest where the monkey puzzle tree thrives has been reduced due to fires, land clearing, overgrazing, and logging. The austral parakeet, a coveted food source for an endangered bird species, is its big seeds. The green-hued parrots move between trees in flocks of approximately 15 birds in search of an ideal location to put on weight before the winter. The birds' numbers may increase to more than 100 when they strike it rich, and they gorge on monkey puzzle pine nuts.

A recent study has discovered that the ravaging parakeets may be helping the monkey puzzle trees in Patagonia thrive despite their insatiable desire for the nuts. According to scientists, the birds serve as a buffer against the danger posed by humans' overharvesting of the nuts.

Also Read: Orchid Believed to be Extinct for a Century, Found by Community Scientists

(Photo : Image from Mokkie under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.)

Researchers at Argentina's Biodiversity and Environment Research Institute at the National University of Comahue, Gabriela Gleiser and Karina Speziale, two of the study's authors, said that parakeets "play an important role in the regeneration of the araucaria forests" because the partially eaten seeds they drop to the ground are not picked up by seed collectors and still have the potential to germinate. Additionally, the parakeets distribute the seeds, they said through email, which causes the trees to regrow farther from the original plant.

Gleiser and Speziale also examine if the parakeets fertilize the female cones as they fly from branch to spiny.

Mapuche people in Chile and Argentina scale enormous trees to collect nuts. They grind the seeds into flour that may be used to make bread. The local authorities limit the number of nuts taken for private and commercial use.

Despite this, the researchers noted that several illicit collectors violate collecting restrictions. In populations that are reachable by humans, human seed harvesting poses a danger to the monkey puzzle tree's ability to reproduce since it nearly completely depletes the tree's seed banks.

The half chewed nuts can still germinate since collectors discard the parakeet-damaged nuts.

The monkey puzzle tree is entwined with the Mapuche way of life. Although, throughout colonial times and up until the 1990s, when industrial loggers ravaged the land, including the Araucaria trees, it was a relationship that was almost shattered. In Patagonia, the monkey puzzle trees are now legally protected. The Mapuche engaged in conflict with loggers and the Chilean government. The Araucaria trees have a 1,000-year lifespan and may reach 160 feet.

In the CNN documentary "Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World," Mapuche Indigenous person Petrona Pellao remarked, "The Araucaria is just like the Mapuche people... even if they have been abused, beaten up, we all keep strong."

Replanting Araucaria trees and learning about their ancestors' traditional ways are current activities among the Mapuche. The objectives include helping the Mapuche grow pine nuts responsibly and enabling the Araucaria trees to flourish once more.

Related Article: Weird Nature: 5 of the Most Bizarre Bug Eating Plants on the Planet

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The House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts has commenced an investigation into N18.6 billion allegedly spent on land preparation by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Chairman of the Committee, Oluwole Oke (PDP, Osun), said during a public hearing on Tuesday, that the money was spent between 2013 and 2021 on bush clearing, land preparation, and rehabilitation of soil and plant laboratories.

He stated that the money was withdrawn from service wide vote of the ministry.

Mr Oke said the representative of the Ministry had appeared before the committee but that members of the committee were not satisfied with the explanation provided by the ministry.

We invited the Ministry of Agriculture and they have made submission. But some of our members whose constituencies these projects were supposed to be domiciled doubted the existence of these projects.

For fair hearing, we have invited the companies that got the contract for them to come and tell this committee where and when the jobs were executed, Mr Oke said.

He noted that if the companies fail to appear before the committee, the lawmakers will use all available means to compel them to do so.

Mr Oke did not disclose the affected firms and the date they are to appear before the panel.

The Public Account Committee, which is a constitutional committee, is saddled with the responsibility of oversighting the Auditor Generals report.

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Reps panel probes Ministry of Agriculture over N18.6bn allegedly spent on bush clearing, land preparation, others - Premium Times

Published 3:37 pm Friday, August 19, 2022

The city of Vicksburg has filed liens totaling $10,619 to recover the cost of cleaning and clearing 17 properties in the city.

The Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved the liens at its meeting Monday. Nine of those properties are owned by the state of Mississippi.

Under city ordinances, property owners are required to take care of and maintain their property. If they fail to do so the city, under its ordinances and state law can go on the property and cut and clean it or hire a contractor to do so and then charge the property owner to recover its expenses.

If the property owner does not reimburse the city within a certain period of time, the board goes to the county tax rolls and places liens on the properties to recover the costs, which means the city has to wait until the property owner pays their taxes or sells the property to recover the costs.

The state of Mississippi, which picks up the properties that are not claimed at tax sales, is exempt under state law from paying taxes and the liens on the land. The state can make limited reimbursements to a city for property cleaning and maintenance costs, but the costs cannot exceed the amount of the propertys selling price.

Ward 1 Alderman Michael Mayfield, who is over the citys public works and community development departments, said property owners refusing to clean their property is an ongoing problem.

Ive never seen a week in 17 years of being with the city where we didnt have somebody in violation of the property code, Mayfield said. Its non-stop and the problem were having now is that on most of the lists (of derelict properties) brought to the board a minimum of half (property owners) have not complied.

The compliance rate is actually going down instead of up, he added. Being a citizen of this city and especially being elected its something thats hard to swallow.

With some properties, Mayfield said, the total amount of multiple liens placed by the city for cleaning is more than the propertys value.

And always remember, you cant forgive a fine, he said.

The vacant and neglected buildings, he added, Are destroying this city. Some people wont even bring it up to code. I wish some of these people would hear what their neighbors are saying; they would do better. Were in a sad situation the way these people are keeping their property up in the city of Vicksburg.

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City of Vicksburg places liens on 17 properties - The Vicksburg Post - Vicksburg Post

Sweat trickled down Dan Bythewoods forehead under the hot July sun. He promised the West Baltimore crowd he would keep his comments short so the 100 or so people who watchedactivists, press, residents, and political leaderscould quickly retreat from the heatwave gripping the city.

The developer, who is Black, stood behind a podium placed in front of the technicolor homes on Sarah Ann Street, a narrow stretch of concrete not wide enough for two cars to travel in opposite directions. Bythewood, president of the New York development firm La Cit (the city in French), trained his sight on the historic Sarah Ann Street homes almost two decades ago, with plans to redevelop the houses and the surrounding Poppleton neighborhood. The Sarah Ann Street homes have been empty since 2020, those who owned or rented them removed over the years through the use of eminent domain.

Behind Bythewood was Sonia Eaddy. Her 319 North Carrollton Avenue house was just feet away from the podium, and, like the Sarah Ann Street houses, the Eaddys home was also on the maps for removal which laid out La Cits grand plan for Poppleton. The Eaddy home was slated to be razed and replaced, and the close-knit family whove lived there for three decades forced to leave.

This victory is for us, all of us, Eaddy said when she addressed the crowd. Its not just Poppleton.

But those plans were halted on July 18, 2022, as Bythewood stood before the crowd, sweaty, promising to work closely with the neighbors as he goes forward with his plans for Poppleton.

[Today] is really about community, Bythewood said.

He stuck to his promise not to talk for too long. The residents and the activists stood in the shade of a tree to shelter from the intense heat and humidity. Water was passed around to keep them cool and hydrated. Poppleton residents knew about Bythewoods vision for their neighborhood, how he said he wanted to recreate the magic of Tulsa, Oklahomas famed Greenwood District, or Black Wall Street. And they knew he had a partner in the city who would help him take control of peoples homes and land in Poppleton, and sell more than $58 million in bonds to help pay for the infrastructure upgrades La Cit demanded for its Poppleton project.

Now, they could celebrate. For a moment they had won. Poppleton residents and activists had fought the city for more than a decade, and La Cit was being forced to hand over the rights to develop the Sarah Ann Street houses to a local nonprofitBlack Women Build Baltimorewho will restore and sell the homes. After years of worrying that Bythewood would change his mind and just knock down the candy-colored homes on Sarah Ann Street and build anew, the activists were finally confident the houses would not be demolished.

Sonia Eaddys home on North Carrollton Avenue was removed from La Cits plans entirely, and saved from the brute force of an out-of-town construction crews wrecking ball.

This victory is for us, all of us, Eaddy said when she addressed the crowd. Its not just Poppleton.

The decision to have someone actually from Baltimore assist with the Sarah Ann Street Homes and to allow the Eaddys to stay was, in the words of Baltimore City Councilmember John Bullock, a win-win. Yes, the Eaddys would keep their home, but La Cit wasnt leaving empty handed. The city agreed to pay $210,000 to Bythewood to forfeit his rights to demolish the Eaddy home and build on the land, plus another $50,000 for the empty home next door to the family. And Black Women Build Baltimore has to pay La Cit $2,000 for each of the 11 homes on Sarah Ann Street they refurbish and sell.

Bythewood gets to walk away from the most controversial parts of his plan for Poppleton, and, in the process, gets paid to no longer develop land he never owned.

The decision chills the heat City Hall was receiving from residents and activists alike for ostensibly kicking Black families out of their homes in the name of redevelopment.

It was the intent of everyone to bring about positive change and growth to this area, Mayor Brandon Scott said during the press conference. But sometimes we just need to pause and think again about whats best for our city.

Tisha Guthrie stood alongside the activist and residents under the shade tree, feet from the podium. She has lived in Poppleton since 2021, in the Center/West apartments, the only two buildings La Cit has actually constructed out of the 30 planned for the neighborhood. Like so many people hearing the news, Guthrie was happy Sonia Eaddy had won.

Im glad shes getting to keep her home, Guthrie told me.

But when Bythewood and the city announced plans to move forward with more construction and development in the neighborhoodthe next phase of his projectGuthrie shook her head.

Baltimore is desperately seeking a savior, Carol Ott, Tenant Advocacy director at Fair Housing Action Center of Maryland, told me. That can come in the form of one person, one company, or multiple companies. But the idea is the city doesnt have the resources or the capital or the people to make it happen, so the city goes outside to find this magic bullet.

This isnt going to change much for the rest of Poppeton, she said.

Bythewoods vision of Poppleton as Baltimores own Black Wall Street has been far from that, Guthrie explained. Center/West isnt finished. The grocery store Bythewood promised hasnt materialized. In fact, the first level of Center/West, designed with retail stores in mind, doesnt even have a finished floor. La Cit has turned to transient occupancy to fill the building. It is hardly the image of community and Black excellence associated with Tulsas Greenwood District.

If he knows anything about Greenwood he knows it was self-contained and organic, Guthrie said. It wasnt the result of a developer coming from the outside to do anything. He isnt willing to speak to the community, much less engage with the community to reach the success of Greenwood.

The city announced La Cit would soon break ground on a senior apartment building on an empty lot just north of Center/West, and Baltimore will again turn to the bond market to help finance the project. The city, Guthrie said, was bailing [Blythewood] out for what he did to Sarah Ann Street and the Eaddys.

I dont see any lesson learned because this is a perpetual cycle that Baltimore keeps revisiting, Guthrie said.

Days before the announcement on Sarah Ann Street, people who work for the city were out talking to residents and building support for its win-win plan. Baltimore City Housing Commissioner Alice Kennedy hoped to sell the community on the idea that developers and the residents can work in concert.

I was talking with some people over the weekend and we cannot go back and we cannot change the past, Kennedy said. But we can only look to the future.

Kennedys sentiment is comforting, but the land deal that allowed Bythewood to cash in on property he never built nor owned for hundreds of thousands of dollars illustrates the relationship the city has with many developers who come to Baltimore.

Baltimore is desperately seeking a savior, Carol Ott, Tenant Advocacy director at Fair Housing Action Center of Maryland, told me. That can come in the form of one person, one company, or multiple companies. But the idea is the city doesnt have the resources or the capital or the people to make it happen, so the city goes outside to find this magic bullet.

Bythewood promised big, and the city fell for it. Not once, not twice, but three times.

Way back in 2004, Dan Bythewood first laid eyes on a parcel of land just west of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and south of Baltimores infamous Highway To Nowhere. Poppleton had long suffered from disinvestment and population loss. The neighborhood, on the edge of West Baltimore, didnt receive the investment aimed at downtowns waterfront communities that have long been the focus of Baltimores attempts to attract business and new residents. MLK Boulevard seemed like an informal barrier between Poppleton and downtown, between investment and neglect. Bythewood had an idea of what he could do to change that, and, like so many out-of-towners, it was prestige TV that informed his ideas of the city.

MLK Boulevard seemed like an informal barrier between Poppleton and downtown, between investment and neglect.

A native of Long Island, Bythewoods view of Baltimore seems largely shaped by The Wire and the idea that the shows depiction of the drug trade is closer to fact than fiction. If you remember the episode of The Wire, the drug dealers would buy every other [rowhouse], so they could know who would knock on your door, Bythewood told me. We had to create density so that scenario wouldnt happen any longer.

While the scenario he recalls never quite happened on the show, Bythewood made it clear he wanted to control the dirt the way he imagines a drug lord would. His plan for Poppleton called for 30 buildings with 1,800 apartment units densely packed into the neighborhood. There would be businesses for residents to shop. This increase in commercial activity and new neighbors, he told me, would reduce crime. When you have more people walking on the street or people looking at the street you have fewer people doing bad things, Bythewood said.

A native of Long Island, Bythewoods view of Baltimore seems largely shaped by The Wire and the idea that the shows depiction of the drug trade is closer to fact than fiction.

The neighborhood would be mixed-income and mixed-race, but Bythewood imagined it would attract its fair share of Black professionals.

[Poppleton] used to function as a neighborhood of Black businesses and doctors and lawyers, he said.

Poppleton, Bythewood told me, could be Black Wall Street.

In 2006, La Cit reached an agreement with then-Mayor Martin OMalley, whose pro-development agenda and tough-on-crime zero tolerance approach to policing (nearly 100,000 people were arrested in 2006) fit nicely with Bythewoods vision. He wanted 13.8 acres in the neighborhood. Many of the row homes were vacant, but there were still plenty of homeowners like the Eaddys living in Poppleton.

The city had to acquire the property first, Bythewood said. There were a lot of holes in the doughnut.

In 2006, La Cit reached an agreement with then-Mayor Martin OMalley, whose pro-development agenda and tough-on-crime zero tolerance approach to policing (nearly 100,000 people were arrested in 2006) fit nicely with Bythewoods vision.

Baltimore City entered into a land disposition agreement, which meant it would use eminent domain to take properties such as the Eaddys home, and sell them to La Cit. Baltimore City would do the nasty work of clearing the neighborhood for the developer, similar to the ways that cities cleared the Black slums in the middle of the 20th century to make room for highways and high-rise housing projects. The work was scheduled to begin in 2007.

Little happened after the deal was signed. La Cit promised it could develop the land, but the 2008 housing bubble burst, credit dried up, and Bythewood couldnt get financing.

There was the Great Recession, he said. And everything stopped.

Like so many cities which flourished during the post-World War II industrial boom, Baltimore has struggled with a hemorrhaging population, job loss, and thousands of vacant homes. And, for the last 20 years, the city has turned to tax increment financing to spur investment and kickstart redevelopment. Tax increment financing (TIF) is where a city sells bonds to pay for infrastructure such as water connections, street lights, sidewalks, and other street improvements like curb cuts to spur the development, usually in a business district or a retail corridor. The assumption is the bonds pay for themselves, as the tax skimmed off the incremental increase in property gains covers the cost of the bonds. The increased value, when there is one, doesnt go to police, fire, or schools. Where the appreciation of home values and commercial properties in regular neighborhoods provides more money for public services, in TIF districts, the increased value pays off the debt owed on the bonds.

Maryland approved the use of TIFs in 1980, but Baltimore didnt use the financing tool for decades. Mayor William Donald Schaefer was a critic of TIFs, and claimed the deals were just a handout to developers. The beloved former mayor who went on to become governor believed TIFs didnt spread redevelopment evenly across the city, and that certain neighborhoods would be chosen for development and improvement while others languished. TIFs would become cities within the city, directing money to neighborhoods that city leaders, developers, and the business community saw fit for investment. In Baltimore City, the birthplace of redlining, this had the potential to only deepen the divide between Black and white, rich and poor. And it did just that, with bonds backed by the full faith and credit of a majority Black city.

TIFs would become cities within the city, directing money to neighborhoods that city leaders, developers, and the business community saw fit for investment. In Baltimore City, the birthplace of redlining, this had the potential to only deepen the divide between Black and white, rich and poor. And it did just that.

They are asking Black people in a segregated city to pay for more segregation and redlining, Ott said.

TIFs were first deployed in Baltimore in the early 2000s. M. Jay Brodie, then the head of the Baltimore Development Corporation, successfully lobbied for Baltimore to sell TIF bonds. Since then, the city has relied on the bonds to build projects like Harbor East and Port Covington, which received a whopping $660 million in bond funding (Port Covington received the largest TIF bond in city history, and has been mired in controversy from its inception, including allegations this past spring of wage theft).

Baltimore City established what Brodie called a but-for test.

The but-for test establishes the project wont be built without the supplement from the government, Brodie said. That is, the numbers on the project will be in the red and not the black without the TIF.

Unlike Chicago or Los Angeles, Baltimore doesnt assign a TIF district based on location. City TIFs are project-based, meaning the developer comes requesting the financing. Former Baltimore City Councilperson Carl Stokes remembers when Brodie and the developers of Harbor East came looking for a TIF. During the presentation we were told the property is among the most valuable on the East Coast, Stokes said.

Stokes remembers sitting back in his chair listening to the Baltimore Development Corporation tout the value of Baltimores waterfront, and thinking something didnt add up.

I said to the [Baltimore Development Corporation], do you hear yourself? But we have to do this, they told me, to make sure the land is developed, Stokes said. Political leadership would say we couldnt capture these developers without giving away money. And I was countering that because it was absolute bullshit.

In 2012, after a half decade of not developing Poppleton, the city sued La Cit to get out of the land disposition agreement. The city lost, and, only three years later, La Cit approached Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, looking to sweeten the land deal. The company applied for TIF funding, requesting $58.6 million for lighting, street improvements, and water connections to redevelop Poppleton.

In La Cits application, the company pointed to the disinvestment in the neighborhood, rampant crime, and open-air drug dealing. This was the same place where the HBO show The Corner was filmed, Bythewood told me.

At the very moment when many were reckoning with how to radically change Baltimore, La Cit, Stokes explained, was trying to figure out how to get enough land and enough housing to build a city within a city.

That show was not filmed in Poppleton. And the allegations of open-air drug dealing in the TIF application conflicted with the grassroots work happening before Bythewood fixed his sights on the neighborhood. In the early 2000s, residents converted an empty lot where homes had been demolished along Sarah Ann Street into a park, and kept a consistent presence there until the drug dealers left.

La Cits TIF presentation came in May 2015, days after parts of Baltimore City had burned in response to the police killing of Freddie Gray and decades-old issues in Baltimore, such as segregation. At the very moment when many were reckoning with how to radically change Baltimore, La Cit, Stokes explained, was trying to figure out how to get enough land and enough housing to build a city within a city.

Bythewood also offered the city something rare in TIF-financed deals: he would build affordable housing. Perhaps La Cits city within a city would be inclusive, Stokes thought. Despite questions about Bythewoods finances and La Cits failure to develop the land from 2007 to 2015, Baltimore approved his application and began selling the bonds.

Cities develop land, and often do so by neglecting or ignoring working people and the poor, Stokes said. Here was a young Black developer, and he came to us and said I am going to do affordable housing.

La Cit became one of a handful of tax increment-funded projects which included any housing at all, let alone affordable housing. East Baltimore Development Incorporated (EBDI) had tried to do the same in the neighborhoods around Johns Hopkins Hospital. Like Poppleton, the project meant clearing a neighborhood and moving the residents out of their homes. And, like Poppleton, the project was scheduled to start not long before the housing market collapsed. However, EBDI has never produced enough property tax to cover the bonds sold by the city to help build the development, according to the Baltimore Development Corporation. Still, the city was ready in 2015 to partner with another developer using tax increment financing to develop affordable housing.

If the bonds are not covered by the TIF, the developer is on the hook to pay the difference. Bythewood said he doesnt know if he has ever paid the special tax.

I just pay my property taxes when they are due, he told me.

Bythewoods Center/West apartments have not covered the cost of the bonds, and his company has paid the special tax to cover those bond payments, according to Baltimore Citys Finance Department.

Bythewood claims he wanted to make a neighborhood, not a self-contained city, although so far all that he has to show for it is Center/West, a hulking two building complex painted gentrification gray. The twin buildings have door attendants, gyms, and one has a pool and a rooftop lounge. At five stories, Center/West stands out in a low-slung neighborhood with row homes. The complex casts a shadow over Edgar Allan Poes historic home, directly across Amity Street. Tisha Guthrie thinks the disconnect between Center/West and Poppleton is wide.

Bythewood claims he wanted to make a neighborhood, not a self-contained city, although so far all that he has to show for it is Center/West, a hulking two building complex painted gentrification gray. The twin buildings have door attendants, gyms, and one has a pool and a rooftop lounge.

The vibrations and the energy that you feel just looking across the street, Guthrie said, standing with her neighbors in the lobby of one of the two buildings, you have the Center/West complex and across the street you have a dilapidated park and homes owned by people who are being pushed out.

The divisions can be felt within Center/Wests buildings themselves. The two buildings are largely mirror images on the exterior, but on the inside they couldnt be any different. Avra, the larger building, has a pool and a rooftop bar, which Bythewood said was a matter of having more square footage on one of the lots. But residents in the smaller Cirro building point to interior hallway carpets that are not cleaned, parking spaces that are priced out of the reach of most tenants, and management that often doesnt respond to the help line.

No one picks up the emergency line, said Ira McKoy, who moved to the Cirro building to be closer to work and his son. Living here makes me feel like this is nothing but the projects.

Walking into Avra, the carpets are cleaner, and the management staff has a rental office and greets residents and visitors. Theyre two completely different buildings and you can feel it almost immediately, Guthrie said.

Cirro residents also complain about the revolving door of Airbnb guests and traveling nurses who come and go. See? She has a badge from the hospital, she doesnt live here full time, McKoy said, pointing to a young white woman walking through the lobby.

Bythewood defended the use of Airbnb rentals, and called the traveling nurses frontline heroes in the fight against COVID. But when he set out to plan Poppleton, he imagined a community with deep social ties, not just fancy buildings for nurses to temporarily live in. He blamed Baltimore, a place he claims makes it too easy to break a lease, for the turn to transient occupancy to cover the cost of his building.

Just north of Cirro sits an empty lot. Its where La Cit will begin Phase II of the Poppleton project. Senior housing will be built, along with a high-end neighborhood market. The city has already sunk $11 million of TIF money into the project, and expects to spend most, if not all, of the $58 million approved. The next phase means more bonds will be sold to help finance the project.

Back in 2006, Bythewood convinced Baltimore to help him clear land for development. When the development didnt pan out and the city failed to get the development rights back, he convinced City Hall to give his firm $58.6 million to help finance his Poppleton project.

Back in 2006, Bythewood convinced Baltimore to help him clear land for development. When the development didnt pan out and the city failed to get the development rights back, he convinced City Hall to give his firm $58.6 million to help finance his Poppleton project. And even as that project has been delayed and scrutinized for targeting homes and families for removal, the city paid him more than a quarter million dollars for land he never ownedso that the people who have been living here the longest can return, or not have their homes taken away from them.

City leaders have been convinced that developer subsidies and displacement is the cost of progress. City leadership just feltand sometimes Baltimore has this inferiority complexthat it had to give away money to get developers to develop real estate, Stokes said.

The dance the city does leaves residents feeling expendable and so subservient to developers that the Eaddys getting to simply stay in their home is considered a victory.You are being sent a message by your government that you are not worth investing in, Ott said. We can move you around like pieces on a Monopoly board.

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Land Grab: Why Baltimore kept desperately cutting deals with a developer who didn't deliver - The Real News Network

A small group of people protestingagainst developing the Eisner Cove wetland for housing had a close encounter with heavy machinery at the Dartmouth, N.S., work site on Monday.

Two pieces of machinery were set up in a wooded area on the edge of Highway 111 and the operators started up the gear with protesters standing next to it.

"I moved to block one of the machines because I thought if I stand in front of it, he'll stop because that's what normal people do," said Susan Van Iderstine, one of the protesters. "But he didn't stop, he came right for me."

A security guard quickly grabbed Van Iderstine and pulled her away as the treads of the machine came close to touching her.

The second machine had another protester climb aboard itslong arm while it was in operation. The chaotic situation came to an end with no one suffering any injuries.

Protesters are upset the machines were moving in to do the first phase of land clearing for Mount Hope Village, an 875-unit housing project, with half of those described as "attainable" housing units. The site isawetland, an area the protesters say should be protected.

"We are making bad choices here because there are many other places to put housing in HRM like vacant lots, unused buildings, there are sites all over the place," said Van Iderstine. "We do not need to make this choice."

The company behind the project, Clayton Developments, has been given all the approvals necessary to do the work.

Nova Scotia's Department of Environment and Climate Change says there is no evidence of wood turtles or any other endangered species within the wetland area.

The two machines the protesters encountered were pulled from the site on Tuesday.

"It's really a safety issue as much as it is a development challenge when you have people endangering both workers and themselves by taking reckless action," said Jason Brunt, president of Clayton Developments Ltd.

"We decided to pull out of the site mainly due to the behaviour of that group and we are just waiting until it is safe to return."

The protesters returned to the site on Tuesday and say they will continue to go back to wave signs to passing motorists on the busy stretch of highway.

Police were called to the scene Monday afternoon and came back on Tuesday. No one was arrested.

"Our primary focus is everyone's safety and we will continue to monitor the situation," said Const. Nicolas Gagnon, acting public information officer with Halifax Regional Police.

Brunt says he doesn't know when crews will go back in to continue the work to get the project started.

Mount Hope Village will be a mix of townhouses, semis, quadruplexesand apartment buildings.

Brunt says if machinery can get back into the site soon, the first units could be ready in about one year. The remainder of the project could be completed in five years.

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Protesters have close call with heavy machinery at Dartmouth work site - CBC.ca

SI Ready Mix has already started clearing ground on Aiken Road near Lake Forest and the company will complete construction if given a permit to do so.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. An Eastern Jefferson County subdivision is pushing back on a concrete plant planning to build across the street.

SI Ready Mix has already started clearing ground on Aiken Road near Lake Forest and the company will complete construction if given a permit to do so.

It's a sight homeowner Jerry McGraw says neither he, nor his neighbors, want to see.

"There are going to be a lot of unhappy people and I think at this point the effort is to push as hard as we can, he said.

McGraw said the neighborhood is concerned about a few things - one is air pollution because of possible dust coming from the plant, which he says can affect property and kids at a nearby school.

McGraw also pointed to noise pollution if trucks enter and leave the site at early hours.

He's also worried about property values.

"Who's going to want to buy a house 500-feet from a concrete plant, McGraw said.

Metro Councilman Anthony Piagentini, R-District 19, said he's concerned about the close proximity the plant would be to some Lake Forest residents and said he wonders why the company chose the site.

"I'm really confused by why some of these local land owners, folks that own this land, folks that own this building, would pick this piece of property at this close proximity to residential area to create what is a manufacturing process that is known to have harmful health outcomes, he said.

Piagentini said SI Ready Mix received unanimous approval from the design committee in March, but it has to get a permit from the Air Control Pollution Board in order to build and operate. Its a process he says that is now going to hear public comment because of emails from Lake Forest residents.

McGraw said thats a step in the right direction.

At least, at this point, weve been able to accomplish a situation where we can go in and we can express our concerns, he said.

Despite concerns, Piagentini said he wants to know more the company's plans.

"Because just like the public has due process rights, so do the property owners, he said.

SI Reaady Mixs lawyer, John Talbott, sent WHAS the following statement:

SI Ready Mixs concrete mixing plant was unanimously approved through a publicly noticed hearing several months ago.The site is on property that has been zoned Industrial (M-3) for several decades, long pre-dating Lake Forest.All air pollution control regulations will be followed or exceeded, with state of the art air filtration systems being employed.Additionally, landscape buffers will be utilized to further shield the primary operations.This industrial area already includes a rock quarry, making the location appropriate to serve the tremendous construction growth in this area of our community.Even though no road improvements were required, SI Ready Mix further agreed to construct a left turn lane to alleviate potential traffic issues on Aiken Road.In obtaining its permits and approvals, SI Ready Mix has not only complied with all relevant regulations, it has exceeded them, which it will continue to do as good neighbor and to provide needed services for the area.

Piagentini said a meeting will be held on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the topic.

Contact reporter Bobbi McSwine atBMcSwine@whas11.comor onFacebookorTwitter.

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'There are going to be a lot of unhappy people:' Louisville subdivision pushes against concrete plant - WHAS11.com

The Elgin chapter of the Izaak Walton League is celebrating its national charters 100thanniversary with a project that will add to its legacy in the city.

Members have adopted Central Park on State Street and have been clearing the site of nonnative plants and trees in cooperation with the citys Parks and Recreation Department, said Bill Jones, a longtime member of the Elgin Ikes chapter.

The steeply sloped 3.5-acre linear park (offers) views of the west edge of the Fox River and was donated to Elgin by the Lord family in 1905, the citys website says.

Its really going to be a neat park for the city, Jones said.

While the Izaak Walton League of America was launched in Chicago in 1922, formed by a group of avid fishermen tired of dirty rivers and peoples failure to pay attention to the environment, most people dont know much about the organization, he said.

The Hanover Township Izaak Walton Center was built by members of the Elgin chapter of Izaak Walton League and features fireplaces made of Fox River stone. (Hanover Township / HANDOUT)

The Elgin chapter was formed in 1931 and has been part of the citys fabric for decades, Jones said.Hanover Township Izaak Walton Center is located at 899 Jay St. in Elgin, and the group sponsors a Cub Pack, Boy Scout Troup and Venturing Crew, its website says.

We volunteer our time to introduce youth and families to conservation, outdoor recreation and land ethics by building nature trails, restoring stream banks, monitoring and cleaning creeks, planting trees and eliminating invasive species, the site said.

Jones said the lack of awareness shows how much the group is still needed.

It just tells you that a lot of people are not that concerned about conservation with their busy lives, but we think its pretty important, Jones said. (Nature) is Gods gift to everyone. It feels good to take care of it.

The Izaak Walton League of America, named for the English philosopher who wrote The Compleat Angler in 1653, played a role in getting the landmark Clean Water Act passed in 1972 and has had a fingerprint on almost every major conservation issue that has come about in our country, he said.

Its taken a while, but (the Clean Water Act) made a huge difference here in Elgin, Jones said.

For many years, we turned our backs on the river. Now, people are enjoying it every day. These are fishermen down there every day. You see American eagles, great blue heron, egrets and all kinds of waterfowl, he said. Its just beautiful to go down there and sit.

One of the groups greatest contributions to the city is Walton Island in the Fox River, which was named after the chapter when it was dedicated in 1937. Members turned what was a mud flat into an island, with much of the work done by hand, Jones said.

Elgin's Central Park on State Street is being cleared of invasive and nonnative plants and trees in a project being undertaken by the Elgin chapter of the Izaak Walton League in commemoration of the national organization's 100th anniversary. (City of Elgin / HANDOUT)

More recently, the chapter gifted its 11-acre Jay Street property to Hanover Township. The lodge on the site was built in 1939 and features multiple fireplaces built with stones from the Fox River.

The township recently completed renovating the site, which is now known as the Hanover Township Izaak Walton Youth Center & Reserve. The league holds its monthly meeting at the lodge every month and has become stewards of the reserve, which includes nature trails and an archery range.

The people who go down there just love it, Jones said.

In honor of the leagues anniversary, Hanover Township and the city of Elgin adopted proclamations lauding the local and national organizations.

Elgins cites the chapters good works, which have been a significant asset to this community by providing conservation and outdoor recreation that have greatly benefitted the area and its citizens.

I urge all citizens to recognize the contributions of the Elgin Chapter of the Izaak Walton League in America has made to our community and commend the chapter for a wonderful heritage and bright future, Mayor David Kaptain said.

Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.

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Elgin chapter of the Izaak Walton League 'adopts' city's Central Park for national group's 100th anniversary - Chicago Tribune

What major climate action is included in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)?

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 [PDF], approved by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden in August, is set to deliver the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history. Congress has directed nearly $370 billion over the next decade to rapidly scale up renewable energy production and drive substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

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The historic legislation invests in a variety of efforts, including low-carbon technologies, environmental justice initiatives for disadvantaged communities, and tax credits to promote electric vehicle sales. The IRA pours $27 billion into creating a green bank to finance clean energy technologies and emission-cutting infrastructure, such as residential rooftop solar panels. Billions more go to climate-smart agricultural practices and clean-vehicle manufacturing facilities. Additional funding for consumer programsincluding those that underwrite the use of heat pumps, which are energy-saving systems that help regulate home temperatureswill improve home energy efficiency. The IRA also directs $1.5 billion to reduce methane leaks from natural gas production to support the U.S. commitment to the Global Methane Pledge.

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On the resilience side, Congress will hand out $5 billion in grants to support fire-resilient forests, forest conservation, and urban tree planting. The bill also allocates several billion dollars in funding for drought resilience in western states.

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The bill focuses heavily on emission-cutting solutions to climate change and mostly neglects resilience.

In its aim to make buildings more energy efficient, it misses an opportunity to make sure buildings will withstand the climate-fueled extremes that the nation is already experiencing and will continue to endure. Last year, climate events inflicted more than $152 billion in damages across the country, and this year, climate change has brought flash flooding in California, Kentucky, and Montana as well as wildfires in Alaska, California, and New Mexico. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts increased hurricane activity in the coming months. When communities rebuild after disasters, they risk restoring structures doomed to fail in the next catastrophe, since the United States lacks climate-resilient building codes.

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Some measures included in the IRA could inadvertently harm U.S. climate efforts. For example, the bill includes a clean hydrogen tax credit, which is intended to help drive down the cost of hydrogen production. However, recent findings* have cast doubt on hydrogens role in a clean energy future. Scientists have found that hydrogen, which is prone to leaking, contributes to global heating when it escapes into the atmosphere. Using hydrogen to tackle climate change will require effective monitoring of leaks, but current technology only detects amounts high enough to cause explosions.

The legislation also includes a provision that tethers offshore wind leasing to oil and gas extraction. Over a ten-year period, the Interior Department will be prohibited from issuing a lease for offshore wind development unless at least sixty million acresthe size of Michiganhave been leased for oil and gas in the previous year. The bill also requiresthat the Interior Department offer to lease** at least two million acres of public landsmore than double the size of Rhode Islandfor oil and gas drilling as a prerequisite for any renewable energy development on public lands. Experts, such as the Center for Biological Diversitys Brett Hartl, have voiced concern that handcuffing renewable energy development to new oil and gas extraction will fan the flames of climate disasters torching our country.

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Analysts predict that the IRA will result in a 41 percent reduction [PDF] in U.S. emissions by 2030, compared to 2005 levels. While this would be an improvement from the projected 27 percent reduction that would have happened regardless of the bills passage, it falls short of the Biden administrations commitment to reduce emissions by at least 50 percent from 2005 levels by 2030.

However, additional federal regulatory action or increased state and local climate efforts could make up the difference. And the bills provisions that lower clean energy costs and incentivize investment in renewables will alleviate some of the barriers that have deterred state and local action, which could galvanize the efforts needed to bridge the gap.

The IRA will go a long way toward restoring the United States credibility as a global leader on climate. As the largest emitter historically and the second-largest emitter currently, the United States faces skepticism as it urges other nations to act on climate. By effectively demonstrating a plan to fulfill climate commitments, the IRA will strengthen U.S. legitimacy in international climate negotiations when nations convene in November for the twenty-seventh Conference of the Parties (COP27).

While setbacks to the administrations climate agenda have slowed the pace of other countries emissions-reduction efforts, as U.S. climate envoy John Kerry has said, the United States passage of the biggest climate legislation in its history could inspire other countries to take action to avoid falling behind.

Because the IRA has a decade-long timespan, the risk remains that changes in administration could slow climate investment. Still, since this is a congressional actnot an executive orderit will require legislative or judicial action to undo, thus making it harder to reverse. In addition, courts will likely be less sympathetic to any claims that federal rulemaking pursuant to the bill violates the major questions doctrine recently articulated by the Supreme Court in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Ensuring that the IRAs funding goes to initiatives that actually help combat climate change will pose a challenge. For example, though the bill allocates billions of dollars to support climate-smart agriculture, critics have warned that some of the targeted programs could do more harm than good by funding projects that increase emissions by incentivizing land clearing, fertilizer use, and intensive animal breeding.

*Editors note:Author Alice C. Hill is on the board of the Environmental Defense Fund, which produced this report.

**Editors note: The legislation only requires that land be offered for leasing, not that it actually be leased.

See the rest here:
What the Historic U.S. Climate Bill Gets Right and Gets Wrong - Council on Foreign Relations

THE Selangor government is looking at the possibility of a land acquisition exercise of some 240ha of individually-owned lots at the foothills of Bukit Tabur, Ampang Jaya in an effort to safeguard the environmentally sensitive area.

State tourism, environment, green technology and Orang Asli affairs committee chairman Hee Loy Sian said the proposal would involve identifying replacement land elsewhere for the landowners as part of the exercise.

Bukit Tabur makes up a part of the Gombak Selangor Quartz Ridge, the largest pure quartz dyke in the world.

The state is currently seeking to formally recognise Selangors first unified national geopark, of which the quartz ridge is a prominent feature.

There are about 300 lots that have been identified as privately-owned since 1924 and are currently zoned as agricultural land.

These lots are not forest reserves, and there are owners who are now keen to develop their land.

But this would have an impact on its geology as well as the states plans to seek national geopark status for the Gombak-Hulu Langat Geopark (GHL Geopark), he said after attending a geopark-related event at the Grand Barakah Hotel Ampang on Aug 16.

Hee added that the proposal was one of the long-term solutions being explored following recent reports of land clearing activities at the hill.

The matter was discussed at the Selangor Economic Action Council (MTES) meeting and we have instructed the land office to study the proposal. We will also have to have consultations with the landowners.

In the meantime, I want to remind owners to not carry out any land clearing works without approval.

In July, it was reported that a large area of Bukit Tabur had been cleared for a durian orchard and other eco-tourism activities.

Following residents complaints, the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) confirmed that the land clearing was done without approval.

We have asked the owners to cease any clearing works and new proposals will not be allowed until further notice, MPAJ secretary Julaihah Jamaludin said.

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Selangor govt looking to acquire land at Bukit Tabur foothills to protect world's largest pure quartz dyke - The Star Online