Wildfires - Climate Change Hits Home - Ron Prosek
Womens, Health and the Environment - Dr. Randi Pokladnik
Take Action to Save Ohio State Parks - Randy Cunningham
Universal Health Care for Ohioans - HB174
Distinguished Speaker Series Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30PM ET Scott Weidensaul's A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds.
Note from FACT President - Margaret Mills
Note from FACT Treasurer - Ron Prosek
June 2023 Newsletter
Fact Ohio Faith communities together for a sustainable future
Hoodwinked in the Hothouse
Don't Frack Our Parks - Dr. Randi Pokladnik
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Join us for our next speaker, Scott Weidensaul, on Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30 ET. Scott is an ornithologist, author, and public speaker celebrating the the world of birds and bird migration. He has written more than 30 books on natural history. Scott was recently interviewed on NPR's Fresh Air, is featured in BirdNote's Threatened podcast, and has a TedX talk on migration. An active field researcher, Weidensaul specializes in owls, hummingbirds, and passerines. He is a native of Eastern Pennsylvania's Appalachian region and currently lives in New Hampshire. http://www.scottweidensaul.com/ A World on the Wing is described as: An epic reflection on what we're learning about the greatest natural phenomenon on the planet—and what we must do to preserve it. A New York Times Bestseller and Editor's Pick Los Angeles Times Book Award Finalist A Library Journal Best Science and Technology Book of the Year Amazon Editor's Pick: Best Nonfiction Longlisted for the Wainwright Prize for writing on global conservation "In the past two decades, our understanding of the navigational and physiological feats that enable migratory birds to cross immense oceans, fly above the highest mountains, forgo sleep for days or weeks, or remain in unbroken flight for months at a stretch, has exploded. Migrant birds continually exceed what we think are the limits of physical endurance, like a six-inch sandpiper weighing less than an ounce flying 3,300 miles nonstop for six days from the Canadian subarctic to northern South America -- the equivalent of 126 consecutive marathons with no food, water or a moment's rest, using the earth’s magnetic field to navigate through a form of quantum entanglement that made Einstein queasy. Yet for all the strength and tenacity of migrant birds, the phenomenon of migration is increasingly fragile on this ever-more altered planet. A World on the Wing, the newest book from acclaimed nature writer Scott Weidensaul, is at once a celebration of global bird migration, an exploration of our rapidly evolving understanding of the science that underpins it, and a cautionary tale of the challenges humans have placed in the way of migrating birds. It conveys both the wonder of bird migration and its global sweep, from the mudflats of the Yellow Sea in China to the wilderness of central Alaska, the remote mountains of northeastern India to the dusty hills of southern Cyprus. A World on the Wing is also the story of Weidensaul's own journey over the past two decades from a deeply interested amateur to someone immersed in migration research, using cutting-edge technology to answer questions that have fascinated him all his life--and, with fellow scientists, researchers, and bird lovers, trying to preserve global migratory patterns in the face of climate change and other looming challenges." Order here from bookshop.org and support independent bookstores.
Distinguished Speaker Series Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30PM ET Register for this online event here. Scott Weidensaul's A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds.
DON'T FRACK OUR PARKS Dr. Randi Pokladnik, PhD
Salt Fork State Park, Zepernick Wildlife Area, and Valley Run Wildlife Area are on list to be fracked. “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” This quote is from Dr. Seuss’s 1971 book “The Lorax”. These words may serve as a warning to Ohioans and out-of-state tourists who fail to take action to save Ohio’s parks and forests from being fracked. House Bill 507 opened up our public lands to the endless greed of our politicians and the oil and gas industry. The bill passed along party lines, during a lame-duck session, with no public comment period. It was quickly signed by Governor DeWine. As of May 30th, oil and gas companies can “nominate” land parcels within citizen-owned state parks and forests to obtain fracking leases. Parcel leases need approval from the 4-member Oil and Gas Land Management Commission, a group which lacks any scientific expertise. Currently, 8 parcels have been nominated. They include almost the entirety (302 acres) of Valley Run Wildlife Area in Carroll County, with one well pad being less than 700 feet from the boundary. A 66-acre parcel in Zepernick Wildlife Area in Columbiana County, with a well pad 3.6 miles away from the boundary. Finally, 281 parcels which total over 9000 acres in Salt Fork State Park have been nominated to be fracked. Well pads will surround the park, located from 406 to 6,000 feet from the park boundary. The Ohio Ornithological Society opposed the fracking leases saying, “Our state parks make up less than 3 percent of Ohio’s land mass and have been set aside as repositories for biodiversity where Ohioans can seek nature, enjoy the scenic rivers and the best wildlife watching Ohio has to offer.” Thousands of peer reviewed studies show that fracking activities cause water and air pollution, release climate-changing methane gasses, increase dangerous traffic accidents, require millions of gallons of freshwater, create millions of gallons of toxic produced water, and contribute to a plethora of human illnesses including endocrine disruption and cancer. Unlike New York State, which banned fracking based on experts’ studies of health effects, Ohio’s politicians have ignored the scientific studies and have welcomed the industry. Now, in an effort to generate money for the state, our precious forests and streams will become the next target of an industry that is the main contributor to climate change. Scientific studies show that fracking harms other organisms besides humans. This includes plants, birds, bats, soil microbes, aquatic organisms, and insects. Fracking requires land for well pads, access roads, storage areas for water, chemicals, sand, wastewater, compressor stations and collector pipelines. Forest fragmentation results in an increase in predation and invasive species as well as a loss of species which prefer a continuous forest canopy. Noise from fracking interferes with communication of species like bats and birds, as well as impairing hunting by owls. Light pollution from flaring affects migratory birds and nocturnal animals. Artificial light from well pads also disrupts predator-prey relationships. Open wastewater ponds become death traps for water birds, turtles, frogs, muskrats, and other animals. A 2017 study found that up to 16 percent of fracked wells reported a spill each year between 2005 and 2014, totaling 6,600 spills. Brine spills from frack pads enter the environment and can kill birds, plants and soil microbes. Fracking has the potential to alter aquatic biodiversity and increase methyl mercury concentrations at the base of food webs. Studies show that riparian bird species accumulate barium and strontium from frack waste water in their feathers. Where will the millions of gallons of water needed for fracking come from? Studies show that stream water quality, sediment, and dissolved oxygen is affected when water is withdrawn in significant quantities. This affects the types and numbers of aquatic species that can thrive in these streams. “The closer well pads, roads, and pipelines are built to streams, the higher the risk of water quality degradation, both in the stream itself and downstream.” The birds, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and snakes, as well as the forested ecosystems that make up Ohio’s public lands, have played a major role in the lives of many of Ohio’s citizens and out-of-state visitors. The state parks and forests are our playgrounds, our places of solace, our outdoor learning labs, and they belong to us. So, like the Lorax in Dr. Seuss’ book, we must speak up for the wildlife and the forests; they cannot defend themselves against the heinous industrial development that will soon be invading our public lands and their homes. Comments to the commission on the nominated parcels can be submitted until July 20th. Information is on the webpage (https://saveohioparks.org). The page also contains information on the environmental, social, climate, and health impacts of fracking. There are talking points that can help you craft your comments. To submit comments using an email message, put the nomination number in the subject line (see https://saveohioparks.org webpage for numbers). Then write your comments about why you think this parcel should NOT be fracked. Send your email to: Commission.Clerk@oglmc.ohio.gov. Be sure to get comments in by the due date (45 days after nomination.) The wildlife at Salt Fork State Park, Zepernick Wildlife Area, and Valley Run Wildlife Area are counting on you to comment by July 20th. You can also show support for Salt Fork by attending a rally there at Pavilion 1 on July 1st. Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/saveohioparks Twitter - https://twitter.com/SaveOhioParks Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/save_ohio_parks/
Save Ohio Parks Don’t let the fossil fuel bandits win! Randy Cunningham In December 2022, the Ohio State House passed HB 507. The bill was meant to change the regulations of the poultry industry. But the oil and gas industry slipped in a provision to allow fracking in all state lands such as state parks, state forests, and public universities. This was the achievement of a long-held goal of making the State of Ohio into a fossil fuel free-fire zone. Environmental organizations in Ohio have come together in the Save Ohio Parks campaign to fight this onslaught. Take action and learn more about this grassroots effort at Save Ohio Parks. We are sponsoring a rally at Salt Fork State Park on: Saturday, July 1 at noon, at Shelter #1 next to camp beach. 14755 Cadiz Road, Lore City, Ohio 43755 RSVP at bit/ly/Saltforkjuly1 Randy Cunningham, local contact 216-245-1073.
Women, the Environment, and Health Dr. Randi Pokladnik
Source: American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy and Physicians for Social Responsibility
In 1974, a new term, ecofeminism, was used when speaking of women’s roles in the environmental movement. The definition of ecofeminism combines ecological concerns with feminist concerns in a philosophical and political movement. Throughout history, many strong, intelligent women have endeavored to speak truth to power. This is especially true when it comes to issues of health and environmental destruction. In the 1960s, Rachel Carson took on the agri-chemical industry to expose the negative effects of pesticides. Marina Silva, who grew up in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil, spoke out to protect this forest from illegal logging during the 2000s. Today we have Greta Thunberg leading the fight to address the climate crisis. Sadly, while women continue to fight for the planet, they are also fighting for their lives as many of the illnesses visited on females are directly linked to toxins released into our environment. The continuing rise in breast cancer rates reflects this link. In the 1970s, breast cancer was not common, but in the past fifty years the incidence of cancer has significantly increased to the point that the National Institute of Health says one out of eight women will get breast cancer in their lives. The “Clan of the one-breasted women” is a narrative written by Terry Tempest Williams, a breast cancer survivor who grew up downwind of the Nevada nuclear test sites in the 1950s. The basic theme of her story was an examination of the source of the multiple cases of breast cancer in the Williams family. For decades, the women of the Mormon family blamed their cancers on “bad genes.” However, years after her mother succumbed to cancer, Terry realized that being exposed to radioactive fallout from the government’s testing of nuclear devices near Utah played a pivotal role in the cancers. In the narrative she describes a story of a family living in Hurricane, Utah. They saw the night sky turn red as they sat on top of the roof of a local high school watching a nuclear detonation. The Tempest family also experienced an above-ground explosion while driving north from Las Vegas in 1957. Her dad pulled their car over to the side of the road as a pink mushroom cloud spread above the surrounding countryside. This scene was played out many times around the Nevada site where between 1951 and 1992, nuclear weapons tests were performed both above and underground. The British-made documentary “Assault on the Male” brought attention to the correlation of declining sperm counts in males to the increase in petrochemical products. It also highlighted another interesting finding that affects females. Dr. Ana Soto, a breast cancer researcher, discovered that plasticware, in which human blood serum was stored, shed an estrogen-mimicking chemical. Dr. Soto showed that breast cancer cells grew when placed in plastic petri dishes, but did not grow in glass dishes. Studies reveal that toiletries, plastics, and spermicides may release estrogenic compounds. These estrogens may act cumulatively as reproductive disruptors and may also increase the incidence of breast cancer. Sandra Steingraber, a cancer survivor, endocrinologist and author of “The Falling Age of Puberty in US Girls”, said that over the past decades, the onset of puberty in girls has occurred earlier, especially in the USA and other affluent countries. Numerous studies have linked exposures to hormone mimicking compounds, like those found in plastics, to early puberty in females. Also of concern is the fact that early puberty is a known risk factor for breast cancer. Women’s health and exposure to unregulated chemicals are linked. We know that women use more personal care products and are exposed to more endocrine disrupting compounds such as perfluoroalkyl or PFAS. These chemicals cause “cancer and hormone disruptions, weaken immune systems, and are linked to low birth weights”. In a 2021 Science News report, University of Notre Dame researchers “tested 231 frequently-used makeup products, including liquid foundation, concealer, blush, lipsticks, and mascara, and found 82 percent of waterproof mascaras, 63 percent of foundations, and 62 percent of liquid lipsticks contained at least 0.384 micrograms of fluorine per square centimeter of product spread out.” Women are exposed to chemicals via sanitary products. The cotton fibers that are bleached and used to make cotton swabs, cotton balls and tampons can contain dioxins, a known human carcinogen. These dioxins can be directly absorbed into the blood stream and accumulate over time in the body. Many of these products are considered to be medical devices and therefore have no regulations for their ingredients. Women use the majority of cleaning products which in many cases do not disclose the entire list of ingredients. The website “Women’s Voices” points out that “some products contain reproductive toxins such as toluene and phthalates, carcinogens like 1,4-dioxane and chloroform, and a hormone disrupting synthetic musk.” My own mom only used vinegar, baking soda and alcohol to clean with because her sensitive skin couldn’t handle cleaners like Lysol and ammonia. However, the petrochemical industry has done a great job convincing many housewives that they need these toxic products to make homes safe and sanitized. It is not surprising that “petrochemical feedstock accounts for 12% of global oil demand”. It is time to embrace ecofeminism, and to increase the number of women in Congress from the current 28 percent to 50 percent. Women deserve a larger role in writing policies and laws for chemicals and products that disproportionately affect them as well as the planet.
Universal Health Care for Ohio HB174, The Ohio Health Care Plan
SPAN OHIO: Single-Payer Action Network Ohio Fossil fuel extraction and the petrochemical industry in Ohio have exposed our air, water, and soil to toxins that have led to multiple health concerns including cancer, hormone disruptions, weakened immune systems, repiratory illness, and low birth weight. SPAN OHIO is actively working to bring equitable health care to all Ohioans. Please take action to support HB174, The Ohio Health Care Plan. Visit the SPAN OHIO website for information that you can send to your state elected official, submit to your local paper and news sources, and propose in your local government. "Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane." –Martin Luther King, Jr. "For each new session of the General Assembly, bills introduced in previous sessions which have not been acted upon must be reintroduced if action by the new Assembly is desired. Below is the history of SPAN-backed single-payer bills that have been introduced in the Ohio General Assembly, from the latest to the earliest. In May, 2023, HB No. 174, The Ohio Health Care Plan, was introduced in the 135th Ohio General Assembly sponsored by Representative Michael J. Skindell and Representative Michelle Grim and co-sponsored by Representative Munira Abdullahi, Juanita Brent, Darnell Brewer, Richard Brown, Sedrick Denson, Elliot Forhan, Tavia Galonski, Latyna Humphrey, Dani Isaacsohn, Mary Lightbody, Lauren McNally, Adam Miller, Ismail Mohamed, Phillip Robinson, Jr., Elgin Rogers, Jr., Anita Somani, Cecil Thomas and Casey Weinstein. CURRENT STATUS: As introduced.Single-Payer Bills Introduced in Ohio General Assembly Religious groups, community groups, city councils and public figures who support the campaign sponsored by Single-Payer Action Network Ohio (SPAN Ohio) to achieve an expanded and improved Medicare for All type health care system in Ohio are listed on our web site. To have your or your group's name added to this list: Elected Official Endorsement Form Local Government Endorsement Form Social Justice Advocate / Organization Endorsement Form Eight localities in Ohio have passed resolutions so far. Is YOUR city or county on the list? Cleveland City Council Cleveland Heights City Council Dayton City Commission Kent City Council Lakewood City Council Lucas County Board of Commissioners Newburgh Heights City Council Toledo City Council Get your city or county to join the list! You can get help from Public Citizen: https://www.medicare4allresolutions.org/ https://www.medicare4allresolutions.org/is-a-local-resolution-already-underway-in-your-community/ https://www.medicare4allresolutions.org/tools-for-activists/"
Hoodwinked in the Hot House: Resist False Solutions to Climate Change third edition Hoodwinked int the Hot House is a unique resourse for environmental justice activists and concerned community members everywhere. Please take the time to review the information posted on their website: https://climatefalsesolutions.org/ "Authored by grassroots, veteran organizers, movement strategists and thought leaders from across our climate and environmental justice movements, the third edition of Hoodwinked in the Hothouse is an easy-to-read, concise-yet-comprehensive compendium of the false corporate promises that continue to hoodwink elected officials and the public, leading us down risky pathways poised to waste billions of public dollars on a host of corporate snake-oil schemes and market-based mechanisms. These false solutions distract from the real solutions that serve our most urgent needs in an alarming climate justice moment of no-turning-back. By uncovering the pitfalls and risky investments being advanced by disaster capitalists to serve the needs of the biggest polluters on the planet, Hoodwinked also provides a robust framework for understanding the depth of real solutions and how they should be determined. As a pop-ed toolbox, Hoodwinked promises to be instructive for activists, impacted communities and organizers, while providing elected officials with critical lenses to examine a complex, technocratic field of climate change policy strategies, from local to national and international arenas. The second version of Hoodwinked in the Hothouse was released in 2009 as a pop-ed zine collaboratively produced by Rising Tide North America and Carbon Trade Watch with the Indigenous Environmental Network and a number of allied environmental justice and climate action organizers leading up to the 2009 United Nations climate conference in Copenhagen (COP 15). During that mobilization and in years since, this zine has played a major role in raising awareness across climate movements around the world – both helping frontline organizers in their fights against destructive energy proposals and shifting policy positions of large non-governmental organizations. With the proliferation of false solutions in the Paris Climate Agreement, national and subnational climate plans, the third edition of Hoodwinked in the Hothouse aims to provide a resource that dismantles the barriers to building a just transition and a livable future."
Climate change is coming home—to us! Ron Prosek Just last week people were out on the streets of New York even as the heavy smoke from Canadian wildfires thinned out…at least for now. Protesters carrying large banners and a host of signs against fossil fuels blocked streets on which they marched. Police followed them, threatening them with arrest, but the marchers continued. One woman interviewed by media said that the smoke from the Canadian fires that blanketed the city made her realize there was no place to go to get away from the climate crisis. It is now literally coming to our doors. It wasn’t quite so bad for me in Lake County, Ohio, but we did witness about a week of overcast skies from the smoke. We had endured a three-week drought, yet the thick overcast above us promised no rain—just smoke pollution. One day, I worked outside for about two hours until I started getting a headache and coughing. It was time to get inside. I have lived in Northeast Ohio since 1947, and I have never experienced anything like this! Wildfire in Alberta, Canada. Photo: Gov't of Alberta I too had the same takeaway as the New York woman. The climate crisis is coming home to us, and we can’t really get away from it. Unusually dry months from climate change set us up for these massive smoke-producing wildfires. And think about all the trees that are being lost – trees which are carbon sequesters. Their loss will only speed up climate change. As the marchers in New York understood, Big Oil and Big Gas and those who finance them are a major source of this problem as the burning of their products as fuels is warming and drying the planet to the point where wildfire seasons are starting earlier and earlier and burning ever more fiercely and consuming more and more trees. People of faith must step up, educate their congregations on the causes of these disruptive climate events, and organize them to speak out and to take action. Toward this end, FaCT is producing an education program on climate change that can be used in our various faith communities. More information on this program will be coming in future newsletters. Did you see the smoky skies where you live? What was your reaction? I’d love to hear from you and share your reactions in our next newsletter. Email me at: rprosek.factohio@gmail.com
From the Treasurer Ron Prosek I am happy to report that FaCT, working with the Ohio Council of Churches, helped to raise close to $4,000 for aid to the East Palestine community. Rev. Dr. Bob Miller of Emmanuel United Methodist Church reported to us that our donations are helping to purchase much-need air purifiers for families in that community. Rev. Bob asked me to convey their thanks to FaCT for our help. As we look toward the fourth quarter of FY 2023 (July, August, and September), we can see that FaCT will be running out of unrestricted funds as provided in our annual budget. Yes, we received a major grant this year, but those funds are restricted by the grantor to specific internal improvements in our organizational structure and practice. We are facing a shortfall for programming of about $12,000. With our volunteers, we can keep some things going, but not everything. To economize, the Board has decided that we will not produce any more print editions of the FaCT Newsletter through September. Of course, we will still have our online edition. Also, we will have to pause spending on our brine education program. We can still do some of this work online, but we will not be able to do in-person presentations for the rest of this fiscal year. Curtailment of additional programs and operations may have to be made in the next few months. Can we plug our budget gap? We realize that not everyone has the resources to make large donations to FaCT, but if only a dozen of our supporters could each donate $1,000 in the next month or so, we could overcome this budget gap and continue programming without any cuts. If you’ve been thinking about making a significant gift like this to FaCT, now would be a good time to act. And if you haven’t thought of it before, now would be a good time to consider it. Of course, we are grateful for any and all donations. FaCT is a 501c3 charitable organization under IRS rules. All donations to FaCT are tax-deductible.
From the President Margaret Mills
If you are currently receiving a paper copy of the FaCT Newsletter via U.S. mail but would prefer to receive an e-version only, please let us know by emailing Ron Prosek at rprosek.factohio@gmail.com .