EnviroPolitics Blog

Climate change is chasing Maine lobsters north to colder waters. Some lobstermen turn to seaweed harvesting

Justin Papkee, a partner farmer with Atlantic Sea Farms, hauls up kelp lines with the help of his crew, Jim Ranaghan, and Chris Papkee, off Long Island, Maine, in 2021. (Nicole Wolf)

By Kathy Gunst, Washington Post

FALMOUTH, Maine — It’s harvest time on Casco Bay.

Briana Warner is dressed for this late spring morning in padded rubber overalls, raincoat, rubber boots, and neon yellow gloves that come up above her elbows. Just off the coast of Falmouth, she hangs off the side of a Zodiac boat and uses a gaff (hook) to hoist from the water a neon green buoy attached to a thick white rope. Warner struggles and finally gets her hands around the rope. The line drips with long, shimmering, translucent ribbons of green sugar kelp.

Seaweed: An unusual snack for cows, a powerful fix for the climate

Warner’s face lights up as she inspects the seaweed. “They’re ready for harvest,” she declares.

As the CEO and president of Atlantic Sea Farms, the 38-year-old Warner is using seaweed to quietly revolutionize Maine’s struggling fishing industry.

Up and down the Maine coast, thousands of lines like this have been planted by fishermen growing seaweed in partnership with her company. In the fall, the fishermen plant tiny kelp seeds on the 1,000-foot-long ropes, and by late spring, attached to each one is close to 6,000 pounds of fresh sugar kelp. The seaweed is harvested, flash frozen, and used to make kelp cubes for smoothies, as well as seaweed salad, seaweed kraut, and more.

Seaweed is Maine’s new cash crop.

*Briana Warner, president, and chief executive of Atlantic Sea Farms, in Cumberland, Maine. (Nicole Wolf)*

For generations, coastal Maine has been supported by a different underwater resource: the lobster. Lobstering is woven into virtually every aspect of life in coastal communities; tax revenue, jobs, and the state’s identity all depend on it. But as climate change causes Maine’s coastal waters to warm, underwater life, and the economy built around it, have shifted dramatically.

The Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 96 percent of the world’s oceans — increasing at a rate of 0.09 degrees per year. These warming temperatures have forced the lobster population to migrate north seeking colder waters, and the impact on Maine fishermen has been profound.

Seaweed is easy to grow, sustainable, and nutritious. But it’ll never be kale.

Jim Ranaghan, left, and Chris Papkee harvest kelp. (Nicole Wolf)

Keith Miller, 67, a second-generation lobsterman, has been lobstering for more than 50 years, fishing in Wheeler’s Bay between Spruce Head and Tenants Harbor. When he saw the dramatic impact of climate change on his industry he knew he had to plan for the six months of the year — between fall and spring — when he couldn’t fish for lobster. He heard about a program in Rockland, Maine, at the Island Institute (which helps coastal communities thrive) educating lobstermen about aquaculture.

Read the full story here

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L..A. could soon put recycled water directly in residents’ tap. Please don’t call it ‘toilet to tap’

Two workers in a water filtration plant. — Trenton Guinta, left, and Bert Mantilla Jr., work at the filtration plant at the Water Replenishment District’s facility at Albert Robles Center in Pico Rivera.
(Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

BY JAIMIE DINGS, STAFF WRITER, Los Angeles Times

Water has always been recycled. The water molecules in your shower or cup of coffee might just be the same molecules that rained on dinosaurs more than 65 million years ago.

With the technological advancements in water recycling, however, the water that went down your sink this morning might be back in your tap sooner than you think.

The city of Los Angeles and agencies across Southern California are looking into what’s known as “direct potable reuse,” which means putting purified recycled water directly back into our drinking water systems. This differs from indirect potable reuse, where water spends time in a substantial environmental barrier such as an underground aquifer or in a reservoir.

Water recycling experts shudder at the infamous phrase “toilet to tap,” an alliteration that became popular with politicians and headline writers alike in the late 1990s when projects for using recycled water for groundwater replenishment were beginning to take shape in the San Gabriel Valley and city of Los Angeles.

Miller Brewing Co. and community groups vigorously opposed the San Gabriel Valley project, even suing agencies involved over the environmental impact reports.

Today, recurring cycles of devastating drought as well as advancements in science have softened that view.

“There’s been a public health legacy where sanitary engineering practices and regulators considered sewage a waste, it was something to be avoided, something to be feared,” said Brad Coffey of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. “Now that we have the technology … the public, the regulators, and the scientific community– have much greater confidence in our ability to safely reuse that water supply.”

Their efforts hinge on the State Water Resources Control Board, which has been tasked by legislators to develop a set of uniform regulations on direct potable reuse by Dec. 31, 2023.

The city of Los Angeles is wasting no time in readying projects that can launch once the regulations are passed.

A water treatment facility's pumping station. — *An influent pumping station at the Water Replenishment District’s advanced water treatment facility in Pico Rivera. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)*

A direct potable reuse demonstration facility near the Headworks reservoir just north of Griffith Park probably will be the state’s first approved direct potable reuse project, said Jesus Gonzalez, manager of water recycling policy at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. It will take advantage of recycled water produced by a facility in Glendale, but the water will not be added to the drinking water system just yet. However, it will serve as proof of concept, he said.

“This is going to be the future of L.A.’s water, the future of the state’s water supply,” Gonzalez said.

The Headworks project is scheduled to come online soon after the regulations are in place — tentatively within the next five years, Gonzalez said.

Two workers at a water filtration plant. — *Trenton Guinta, left, and Bert Mantilla Jr., work at the Water Replenishment District facility in Pico Rivera. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)*

But the Headworks project is just one part of the city’s ambitious plan to recycle 100% of its wastewater by 2035 — a pledge Mayor Eric Garcetti made several years ago.

Read the full story here

L..A. could soon put recycled water directly in residents’ tap. Please don’t call it ‘toilet to tap’ Read More »

NJ prepares to expand zero-emission incentive program to include heavy-duty trucks

By Ryan Witkowski, Land Line

A New Jersey program designed to offer small businesses incentives for purchasing new zero-emission vehicles will soon be shifting into phase two.

On July 19, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority announced the approval of $45 million in funding for the expansion of the New Jersey Zero Emission Incentive Program. The additional funds – which double the amount already dedicated to the program – come from the state’s Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative allocation.

On top of the increased funding, the NJEDA Board approved two major changes to the program. Eligibility for the incentive program in phase two will be available statewide – expanding beyond the four pilot communities in the first phase. Additionally, eligibility in phase two will be expanded to include heavy-duty vehicle classes.

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According to the NJEDA, as of last month, 144 NJ ZIP applications had been approved totaling $32.2 million in vouchers for zero-emission medium-duty vehicles. Of the entities approved so far, over 90% are small businesses. Additionally, approximately 57% are businesses that are minority-owned and/or woman-owned.

The authority anticipates an additional 200 to 400 vouchers to be awarded because of the program’s expansion. Currently, NJ ZIP applications are being moved to a waitlist. The NJEDA anticipates opening applications, including those for businesses in newly eligible parts of the state, in the coming months.

Read the full story here

NJ prepares to expand zero-emission incentive program to include heavy-duty trucks Read More »

Moose Fire near Idaho-Montana border grows to more than 28,000 acres

Most of the 5,000 acres of growth was on the west and east sides

Moose Fire map 10:33 p.m. July 22, 2022 — *Map of the Moose Fire. The red line was the perimeter at 10:33 p.m. July 22, 2022. The white line was the perimeter 24 hours before.*

By Bill Gabbert |Wildfire Today

Most of the 5,000 acres of growth of the Moose Fire in eastern Idaho Friday was on the west and east sides, spreading for about a mile to the east and west. Friday night the fire burned actively, spreading west as far as Kayak Camp. In the North Fork area it reached the west bank of the Salmon River. Two miles of the east flank are on the steep slopes west of and above US Highway 93.

Friday’s Red Flag weather conditions increased fire activity along the top of Napoleon Ridge. North of the Salmon River, firefighters succeeded in holding the fireline built during the last several days.

Related wildfire news:
Thousands ordered to evacuate as wildfire near Yosemite National Park explodes

At 10:33 p.m. Friday it was mapped at 28,839 acres. At that time it was 12 miles northwest of Salmon, Idaho, and 10 miles west of the Idaho/Montana border.

Two pilots were killed Thursday, July 21 when their Chinook helicopter crashed into the Salmon River while working on the fire. They were identified as Thomas Hayes, 41, of Post Falls, Idaho, and Jared Bird, 36, of Anchorage, Alaska. The National Transportation Safety Board will conduct an investigation.

Moose Fire near Idaho-Montana border grows to more than 28,000 acres Read More »

Thousands ordered to evacuate as wildfire near Yosemite National Park explodes in size

*A fast-moving fire near Yosemite National Park exploded today into one of California’s largest wildfires of the year.*

By The Associated Press

WAWONA, Calif. (AP) — A fast-moving brush fire near Yosemite National Park exploded in size Saturday into one of California’s largest wildfires of the year, prompting evacuation orders for thousands of people and shutting off power to more than 2,000 homes and businesses.

The Oak Fire, which began Friday afternoon southwest of the park near Midpines in Mariposa County, grew to 10.2 square miles (26.5 square kilometers) by Saturday morning, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire. It erupted as firefighters made progress against an earlier blaze that burned to the edge of a grove of giant sequoias in the southernmost part of Yosemite park.

*A home burns as the Oak fire rips through the area near Mariposa on Saturday.*

Evacuation orders were put in effect Saturday for over 6,000 people living in the sparsely populated, rural area, said Daniel Patterson, a spokesman for the Sierra National Forest.

“Explosive fire behavior is challenging firefighters,” Cal Fire said in a statement Saturday morning that described the Oak Fire’s activity as “extreme with frequent runs, spot fires and group torching.”

By Saturday morning, the fire had destroyed 10 residential and commercial structures, damaged five more and was threatening 2,000 more structures, Cal Fire said. The fast-growing blaze prompted numerous road closures, including a shutdown of Highway 140 between Carstens Road and Allred Road — blocking one of the main routes into Yosemite.

More than 400 firefighters, along with helicopters, other aircraft and bulldozers, battled the blaze, which was in a sparsely populated, mostly rural area of the Sierra Nevada foothills, said Daniel Patterson, a spokesman for the Sierra National Forest.

Read the full story here

Thousands ordered to evacuate as wildfire near Yosemite National Park explodes in size Read More »

Like tourists, humpback whales are spending their summer time at the Jersey Shore

By MELISSA ROSE COOPER, NJ SPOTLIGHT CORRESPONDENT

Humpback whale sightings are becoming more frequent along the Jersey Shore. In a new study from Rutgers University, there were 101 individual whale sightings off the northern New Jersey and New York City waters.

As of this week, that number rose to 257. Researchers found many of the whales are young, under the age of 5, and they usually stick around for about 38 days. Experts say their continued return is proof efforts to clean up the waters surrounding New Jersey are working.

Don’t miss environmental news like this Click for free updates

Like tourists, humpback whales are spending their summer time at the Jersey Shore Read More »

Climate change is chasing Maine lobsters north to colder waters. Some lobstermen turn to seaweed harvesting

L..A. could soon put recycled water directly in residents’ tap. Please don’t call it ‘toilet to tap’

NJ prepares to expand zero-emission incentive program to include heavy-duty trucks

Moose Fire near Idaho-Montana border grows to more than 28,000 acres

Most of the 5,000 acres of growth was on the west and east sides

Thousands ordered to evacuate as wildfire near Yosemite National Park explodes in size￼

Like tourists, humpback whales are spending their summer time at the Jersey Shore

Thousands ordered to evacuate as wildfire near Yosemite National Park explodes in size