Climate change?

Just a moment while I fill in a little background for my reader: 

When we did SERC with Paul I asked him, "As a researcher, do you believe the climate is changing?" He seemed to consider for a moment and then he said "I do believe so," and then he talked about mounting evidence that the climate change is real and that we humans are involved in some form. I am sad that climate change has to be defined as a "belief," contrary totally to science where "belief" is trumped by facts. Evidence rules science.

I received the below letter in my inbox. After I read it I felt some what ashamed for not being more involved. So I take the letter below as a well-aimed kick start, and am passing it along to my dear reader. This is a wake-up call to action. Her letter details below exactly what needs to be done. Now, let us get to it.

In later posts I will detail the steps I am taking to get more involved. The Friends of Accotink Creek, the ACA's Trash Track and Stewardship Department, and Bull Run Mountain Conservancy all come to mind.

But first, Barbara's letter:

Greetings Hikers,

I am connecting with as many as possible in my network of family, friends and neighbors, current and former students, fellow photographers and artists, clients and reps – and fellow hikers. This intrusion into your inbox is pre-meditated; only after weeks of working up to it have I overcome my hesitation and fears.

I’m contacting you because I hope that beyond moving through the woods on our own power breathing fresh air and enjoying sun and wind, plants, animals, and rocky views in good company, we share something else – concern about climate change, and the desire to make a difference.

I’m finding that joining forces with people working locally and regionally to turn climate change around goes a long way toward alleviating climate despair. We Are Cove Point is residents of Lusby, MD and their allies working to stop Dominion’s fracked gas liquefaction and export facility in Calvert County. Dominion Cove Point is a dirty and potentially explosively dangerous operation that would be located next to a residential neighborhood. Lusby residents and allies are fighting for local health and safety and to prevent carbon and toxic pollution generated by extracting, processing, and transporting fracked gas.

If you’ve hiked at Scott’s Run you might recall it exemplifies projects people said no to for the common good. Just because development plans are afoot doesn’t mean they will be completed. Remember the trailside image of the bulldozer and the protesters? Dominion Cove Point is not a done deal.

To learn more about We Are Cove Point issues and initiatives, visit http://www.wearecovepoint.org/, or the crowdfunding Indiegogo site https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/we-are-cove-point-stop-gas-export-plant/x/713500 where a $5,000 match is currently underway. Please consider making a donation in any amount at either site. Or write a check to Alliance for Social Justice, also tax-deductible, and send it to Len Zuza, PO box 1000, Lusby, MD 20657. We are raising funds for a year-long campaign of canvassing, education, local community events and a paid organizer to coordinate activities.

I hope I can be forgiven for counting you among fellow tree-huggers. Because time is short and we’re not protecting ourselves from nature’s response to carbon emissions, I am finding myself doing things I would never have contemplated not long ago, including intruding on your good graces, and being arrested December 1 for blocking a Dominion gate in Lusby.

The attorney representing 26 arrestees detained over multiple days of action in Lusby asked that we each write a personal statement about our decision to risk arrest. If you’re curious about why someone would choose to impose on you, or risk arrest, you can read my statement (attached), and a great letter to the editor of the SoMD News from fellow arrestee Steve Norris.

I think 2015 bodes well for climate action given hopeful signs like the People’s Climate March, Rockefeller Brothers Fund and 49 other groups’ divestment from 200 major oil and gas companies, Governor Cuomo’s fracking ban in New York, and falling oil prices, which have recently claimed the first U.S. LNG project casualty.

I welcome questions or comments, and your interest in learning more or getting involved (including if you think I have done something wrong.) Thank you for taking the time to read – please consider a donation.

I now return you to normal programming. I love hiking with you and wish you all the best, including many hikes, in the New Year.

Barbara