Actions For Climate Change

To the editor:

Regarding “Global Climate Change” (A-4, Feb. 14):

In class at Ramapo College last week, we saw a PowerPoint presentation about the extreme weather projections for the next 90 years. We saw weather predictions that showed more droughts and floods, hotter summers and colder winters. The droughts will create dry air that will kill the trees, causing more forest fires. Malaria and other diseases will spread and infect people. 

The climate changes our future generations will experience will be horrifying -- rising sea levels destroying beaches, droughts that make irrigation systems run out of water, loss of tree species, changes in forest composition, loss of entire forests, spread of diseases.

We need to make changes in the way we live for a cleaner future.

350.org is a global grassroots campaign to solve the global climate crisis founded by Bill McKibben, author of the first books about global warming. Volunteers from over 188 different countries make up the organization. Scientists say that the amount of carbon dioxide on our planet needs to be reduced from 392 parts per million (ppm) to 350 ppm.

In 2007, the campaign “Step It Up” organized more than 2,000 rallies in the US and persuaded leaders to cut carbon by 80% by 2050.  In 2008, the organization went global. In 2011, 350.org organized “Moving Planet,” a day to take action against fossil fuels. The organization has also fought to stop the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

350.org, the organization’s website, explains their campaigns and has signups to get more involved.

The Sierra Club is America’s largest grassroots organization. They strive to protect the wild places of Earth, promote the responsible use of Earth’s resources and ecosystem, and to educate people to protect and restore the quality of the environment. The organization makes efforts to use less coal and oil and cut oil and natural fracking. To become a member of the Sierra Club, visit www.sierraclub.org and for $5, you can be part of the change.  On the site, you can sign up to be on their email list for news and events. The site lists current and future projects that you can choose to take part. There’s a link to donate money as well. In the middle of the site page, a slideshow of images appears and a sidebar reads, “For the price of a coffee, you get: exclusive offers on green products and services, clean air - 150+ coal plants retired and counting, clean water - protected, improved and restored waterways, open space - millions of acres of public land protected, and heard - join our 1.4 supporters and activists.”

Locally, the Pascack Sustainability group is a non-profit organization that raises environmental awareness and promotes sustainable living. Once a month, the group meets at the River Vale Community Center to host lectures on environmental issues, a film series, and environmental book discussions. The group actively supports organizations like 350.org and the Sierra Club. Find out more about the group at www.meetup.com/Pascack-Sustainability-Group/. 

Jaimie Moscarello 
Glen Rock, Feb. 21 

Environmental Action: Getting the Ball Rolling

By Bill Pivetz 

In A Citizen’s Guide to Grassroots Campaigns, there is a chapter “Saving a Swamp and Landmark Campaigns.” The chapter focuses on campaigns that saved the Great Swamp, Farny Highlands and Sterling Forest, all areas in New Jersey and partly in New York, important to animals and the surrounding towns.

These projects weren’t completed with ease. These campaigns were accomplished by committed people with a goal in mind and the dedication to raise the money necessary to save these specific landmarks. Helen Fenske, a housewife who lived on the edge of the swamp, ran the campaign out of her kitchen. She had a group of people with her who put the word out and made sure the citizens who live in the area saw their flyers, posters and whatnot. “An estimated 20,000 to 30,000 people saw the exhibit and wanted to learn more about the swamp,” Cam Cavanaugh said.

The Farny Highlands project had the same dedication by citizens, who gained backing by the government. Governor Christie Todd Whitman approved the legislation appropriating nearly $34 million for preservation to save more than 20,000 acres of land in the Farny Highlands and other parts of the state. When any official, especially a governor, backs up a grassroots campaign, it’ll be sure to get done.

However, there are plenty of projects and campaigns that have an idea, but don’t get any lift. It’s usually because the group has too many ideas and can’t focus on one or they don’t know where to begin with the campaign. As explained in this chapter on land preservation campaigns, it will benefit the group greatly if they can narrow down their campaign to focus on one idea. They will be able to send out a message with a clear idea without turning off many people. Getting starting is hard for anyone. You have a cause to work for, but don’t know how to raise money or awareness. Start out by going to a town council meeting. Let the officials know what the citizens are concerned about. They will then make a mission to talk about it in their next meeting.

There are a lot of issues that need to be dealt with as climate change becomes more prevalent in today’s world. These issues won’t change unless people take charge and do something about it. The government has too much going on to pay attention to what many see as local concerns. However, citizens know what’s going on in their town and what needs to be done.

It takes the right kind of mentality to get behind a campaign and keep it going. Many people say they want to “go green” or help the environment, but only a select few actually do it. If a small group of people can get organized to make a change, you’ll be surprised as to how much can get done. Just get started and stay motivated.

How Can Life be Patented?

To the editor:

Having followed several trials with Monsanto’s involvement, I was not surprised to find yet another case headlining on Huffpost Green’s website on February 19. Mark Sherman’s article “Monsanto Seed Case Reaches U.S. Supreme Court,” evoked momentary shock from me, though at this point, being so familiar with Monsanto’s history, I can’t quite understand why I still have that reaction. I suppose it’s simply because I cannot wrap my head around how unjustified the company’s actions are. According to the article, Vernon Hugh Bowman, an Indiana soybean farmer, is the latest victim of Monsanto’s overpowering monopoly of the farming industry. Accused of violating the company’s patents on soybean seeds, small-town Bowman will put up a fight against a multi-billion dollar corporation.

Think of how preposterous this notion seems: to patent a living organism. Essentially, under the guise that that is acceptable, that would be (though highly exaggerated) as though, as though I could patent a human life. That notion is ludicrous and would be vehemently protested by multiple (if not all) organizations and humans alike. Why, then, does no one bat an eyelash at Monsanto’s ownership of most of the soybean industry? Soybean seeds are, technically, a living organism. Monsanto limits the possibility for independent farmers to survive without any regard for their well-being, but also their health. How can a crop sprayed with pesticides kill bugs and parasites, but not harm the people who consume them? Genetically modified organisms infused into our foods are potentially dangerous and an unexplored field of food processing. Monsanto, with over 90% of soybean seed ownership, makes it nearly impossible for consumers to avoid purchasing their GMO products.

Farmers are left no choice in the matter- they must bow to Monsanto’s demand. Lawsuits are inevitable solely because of pollination. If a farmer refuses to invest in Monsanto’s products, their seeds will pollinate with nearby Monsanto seeds, and lo-and-behold, that farmer has a lawsuit against him for stealing Monsanto’s products. To avoid such tribulation, they must invest in Monsanto’s products. Monsanto, then, soaks them dry of any monetary gain that the farmer may be hopeful for because the seeds cannot be reused, but must be repurchased every harvest season. Imagine a product you could only use once; a shirt that could only be worn one time, a pair of shoes or glasses that must be purchased new each day. We cannot wrap our minds around such lunacy, and yet, it seems completely logical when Monsanto poses such a proposal.

I understand that every company must make money in order to survive. I understand that economic survival is a challenge, especially in the current economic bind we find ourselves trapped in. Monsanto is not in such a bind. Monsanto creates the bind that holds so firmly on farmers. I ask the writers of Huffpost Green to continue to enlighten readers of Monsanto’s oppressive nature so that maybe, somehow, the victims of its tyranny may be heard, even if it is outside the courthouse.

Ashley Intveld
Mahwah, NJ

Government Needs to Address Climate Change

Dear Editor:

With the last presidential campaign, it troubled me so much that the topic of climate change was virtually ignored. In fact, government makes a habit of ignoring the subject. Aside from the few conferences the United States has gone to to discuss global climate change, this country barely makes an effort to create legislation that could help alleviate the threat to the world. Not only do we ignore the issue, but some states even push the idea that there is no such thing as climate change.

This is starting to change due to the very apparent change of weather this country is going through. Unseasonable hurricanes, giant snow storms, blistering heat and drought—the weather has become completely unstable and in many cases fatal. 

It is true, of course, that no single storm can be attributed to climate change. There have always been strong hurricanes and snow storms. But many scientists believe that rising carbon emissions could make extreme weather, just like Super Storm Sandy. 

I believe that Sandy will finally make people stop and discuss climate change. The government cannot stand by and not discuss it when there are so many facts and statistics. The rising sea levels create a higher baseline for future storm surges and the New York City Panel on Climate Change has projected that coastal waters may rise by two feet by 2050 and four feet by the end of the century. This could mean a lot more destructive storms in our future. 

 Climate change also means more record breaking hot summers, droughts like the one we had this past summer that was the worst in more than half a century.  Our government needs to invest in cleaner energy, impose a carbon tax on greenhouse gases and overall educate Americans on climate change and what they can do to reduce its toll. I think that there is a huge problem in the country with people either not understanding what climate change is or completely disregarding it. 

There is no easy answer and I understand that it will take many decades to put in place everything we need to do, but we need to start today and at least start talking about the real issues. It is not okay for the government to sweep climate change under the proverbial rug. 

 Jamie Bachar 
Mahwah, NJ

Where Do Campus Recyclables Go?

Letter to the Editor, The Ramapo News:

Ramapo College really does seem to do a great deal for the environment. Despite having a fairly ironic proximity to Ford's infamous dumping grounds, its students show a consistent interest in living for the greener good. But lately, I’ve been curious to see if there’s any truth to a few things I’ve noticed around campus and heard from others about their own observations. Are there parts of Ramapo's everyday operations that contradict their public reputation for being a state college leader in sustainability? 

Each room in the academic complex should have separate trash and recycling bins. Yet I’ve seen classrooms with a blue recycling bin (with garbage bag in it) and no regular trash bin in sight. That blue bin is a mix of empty coffee cups and paper alike. There have also been claims that the waste from campus offices are simply tossed into the same giant collection bin at the end of the night alongside items that should be recycled. Even the new, three-sectioned bins stationed in the recently "renovated" stairwells have been a cause for concern. Are those separations even being taken out to the appropriate bins each night? 

It's a little curious, too, that there's a designated recycling pick-up day for The Village dormitories, but nowhere to take a full bag of the recycling any other time of the week. The regular garbage dumpsters are accessible all the time to any student. But (at least in The Village) the blue bins for recyclables stay locked up until a dedicated team of student volunteers comes around to collect door to door. What if that team of students became too swamped with academic commitments to continue volunteering their time? Would we not have any recycling services at all? Does Residence Life only have an external recycling company haul away cans and bottles and plastics once a week?

And if so, is a week's worth of recycling also piling up behind the Student Center from the dining halls and academic buildings? Or is it really all getting quietly taken away each night in a garbage truck, smashed together with compostable food waste and thousands of those black plastic spoons and forks from Sodexo?

Perhaps these concerns are merely an illusion, a miscommunication, misperception, or simply bad timing. There are many hardworking custodians and facilities staff that work to take care of our campus. Perhaps we just aren't around at the right moment to see everything landing in its rightful place. But if Ramapo isn’t actually being consistent with the external services we use to take away our waste, then how can we continue to uphold the facade of a sustainability superpower in good conscience? 

Katie Attinello

Gravestones of Slaves in Mahwah

To the editor:

A recent article in The Ramapo News about historic findings along Route 202 by Ramapo College Adjunct Professor Jeff Williamson could provide new information about slavery during the 1700s and 1800s in New Jersey.  Professor Williamson found that the names on the gravestones in a local cemetery belong to slaves who worked for wealthy families in the area of Mahwah.

I thought readers might like to know about Williamson’s future plan to preserve the gravestones.  His plan includes seeding the area in the spring.  The naturally growing creeping myrtle has helped to protect the site, but Williamson would like to seed wildflowers and low grass as well because they will help further protect the gravestones.

Williamson’s main objective is to get the gravestones protected by a historical society so he can preserve them from becoming more damaged.  My objective is to inform residents of Bergen County and create awareness to preserve the gravestones.  Also this awareness can lead to reporters further investigating slavery in New Jersey.  More information can be found at http://www.facebook.com/gravematters73.

Adriana Cappelli

Mahwah, NJ

Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction

Dear Editor,

A few years back, the state of New Jersey adapted an act designed to reduce greenhouse gas emission by the year 2020. According to the plan, three core recommendations have to be followed in order to achieve this goal.

New Jersey’s Energy Master Plan calls for the reduction of energy use by 20 percent, and using renewable energy sources to meet 22.5 percent of our electrical needs. A cap and trade program was imposed on electricity producers forcing a cap on their carbon dioxide emissions in the hopes of reducing power plant emissions by 10 percent by 2018. And a Low Emission Vehicle Program was enacted to force automakers to reduce GHG emissions in cars they sell in New Jersey by 30 percent by 2016.

All of these measures sound reasonable, and approximately half way until the 2020 when the goal is supposed to be reached, I am interested to know if the state is on pace to meet that goal. I would also like to know if many of these companies, like the power plants or automakers, are obeying these regulations.

The problem is none of this gets any coverage in the media. Aside from a handful of opinion pieces published, the media outlets in New Jersey have not been giving the necessary coverage this plan and its process deserves. Sure, there was a spike in environmental writing after Hurricane Sandy, but we are now solely focused on fixing the damage and have forgotten to ask why it happened. Whether or not readers know about the plan or even care what happens to the environment, they would still probably like to learn if the state is following through on their plan or not.

New Jersey ambitiously passed the Offshore Wind Economic Development Act in 2010, and because of a few concerned writers, we know that has gone nowhere. I would be interested in learning if New Jersey’s Energy Master Plan is on the same course.


Nick Bower
Mahwah, NJ