Headwater Summit, Sept. 15-17

Local Conference Begins with Author David James Duncan

Local author David James Duncan will speak about what you can do about climate change in his keynote address for the free two-day Headwaters Summit in Missoula, hosted by the Clark Fork Coalition, Western Progress and the National Wildlife Federation.

Duncan's talk will be (did I mention that it will be free?) Monday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. at the University Theater at the University of Montana campus. Afterward, the Clark Fork Coalition will hold a cocktail reception at its office, 140 S. 4th St. W. (The nonprofit, in my experience, does a great job hosting parties.)

“Low Flows, Hot Trout"

Report Details Climate Change in Clark Fork Watershed

A new report by the Missoula-based nonprofit Clark Fork Coalition provides a comprehensive view of how global climate change has affected - and will likely affect - western Montana and north Idaho.

"We view this as a starting point for discussion and a motivator for action," said Clark Fork Coalition director Karen Knudsen. Temperatures in the report's coverage area increased, on average by 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit over the past 50 years and may well continue to warm, over the next 100 years, by another 5.4 degrees.

Idaho Politics: Senate

Craig, Crapo Critical of Climate Security Act

Idaho Republican Senators Larry Craig and Mike Crapo both had something to say today about the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act, on which the Senate voted to continue debate.

Who Cares About Global Warming Anyway?
by: Senator Larry Craig

If you remember Al Gore’s Oscar-winning movie and his visit to Boise, you might be shocked to learn how the Democrat-led Congress actually handled an issue some say is the most important crisis of our time. You may not even have known this debate was going on, considering how disorganized, brief and superficial the debate was.

Water, Wind and Climate Change

Energy Future of the West: Half Empty or Half Full?

Colorado House Majority Leader Alice Madden put up a slide of Lake Mead with the rhetorical question: Half empty or half full?

Madden’s immediate subject at the University of Colorado’s Natural Resource Law Center’s Annual Summer Conference was water, but the question echoed around a wide variety of subjects: energy, climate, renewable resources.

Guest review: Idaho Green Expo

Green Expo Should Be Permanent Boise Event

With the Saturday Market and the First Annual Green Expo all being held on Saturday May 17, it was hard to find a parking spot downtown, let alone maneuver through the crowds. The warm and sunny weather beckoned Boiseans to come out and play, and they did – by the thousands.

Boise is beginning to look like a real Metropolis, with people from all over the world at the Expo and many languages being spoken.

Despite the heat, the crowds and the general commotion, people were happy. The atmosphere was festive and chatty, all with one shared interest to learn more about choosing a more environmentally responsible way to live.

"Where Green is Another Shade of Red, White and Blue"

Idaho Green Expo is This Weekend

Organizers of the first annual Idaho Green Expo are putting on quite a show this weekend, with a downtown Boise festival promoting green thinking, living, technology and materials.

But it’s no stodgy enviro-lecture. The Boise Center on the Grove is the setting for this weekend’s event, with over 150 exhibitors showcasing their green products and services. There will be seminars, demonstrations, speakers, art displays, things for kids to do, live music, and sales of local and organic food.

And with the nice weather predicted, it’s a great place to take the family on the first warm outing of spring.

Saturday, May 17th : 9:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Sunday, May 18th : 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Boise Centre on the Grove –
FREE admission
Valet bicycle parking

Boulder Becomes 'Smart Grid City'

The Grid Gets a Brain

If all goes as planned Boulder will become the world’s first “fully integrated Smart Grid City,” says regional utility Xcel Energy. Envisioned as the first true innovation in electricity distribution in close to a century, the Smart Grid movement is essentially developing ways to bring digital Internet-based technology to power lines, giving utilities and business and residential customers greater control and efficiency in the flow of electricity.

Ultimately, once the Smart Grid takes over a significant chunk of the existing power distribution infrastructure, utilities and governments will be able to use the power of the Web to better manipulate how electricity is generated and delivered.

In other energy news: Democrats ready populist energy legislation; Colorado eyes fine print on electricity bills; and O&G executives foresee oil-price downturn by the end of the year.

MSU Wheeler Center Annual Spring Conference

A Discussion on Montana’s Energy and Agriculture Future

What does the future of agriculture and energy in Montana appear to be, particularly in the variable climate challenges we face?

This is the spotlight of the discussion at the Burton K. Wheeler Center’s statewide conference next week, “Climate Change in Montana: Impacts and Opportunities for Energy and Agriculture.”

On May 12-13, an immense conversation between the agriculture and energy sectors, environmental, educational and state agencies, legislators, officials and climate scientists will focus on Montana’s energy and agriculture sectors’ innovations and opportunities, climate challenges and its impacts, and future prices and outlook.

By spending time with the land, you know

Sense of Place: Understanding Microclimates in the Gallatin Valley

Most people are aware of regional differences in climate. The Southeast is hot and humid. The Southwest is hot and dry. But in the Intermountain West, mountains affect air currents and moisture distribution to create many microclimates within just one valley. Visitors don’t recognize those microclimates. Most residents find out about them by trial and error.

At the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, I met a couple in their mid 30’s that were visiting from Las Vegas. They said they were tired of the rat race and were looking for a place with a little acreage, to garden and maybe raise some livestock. The first question they asked me was “How much snow do you get here?”

“It depends on what part of the Gallatin Valley you are in,” I replied. They looked at me blankly.

“The climate isn’t the same across the whole valley,” I explained.