Wildfires are burning through the states of Oregon and Washington this week as human caused fires and dry conditions create fires around the world that continue to destroy homes and other buildings, and raise concerns, following evacuations. In eastern Washington state, as of Tuesday, August 4th, estimates of 60,000 people had evacuated their homes due to wildfires, and over 600 structures had been destroyed.
The Spokane fires burned an estimated 8.2 square miles over the weekend, as reported in the Associated Press, and about 390 square miles have been burned in Washington state so far this year, some fires, such as the Spokane fires, still uncontained.
Federal agencies and local fire fighters are at their limits as to what they can do to contain these fires, asking for assistance from the White House.
In Idaho, crews were fighting fires with bulldozers and helicopters in the cattle ranching farmlands as a fire burned more than 525 square miles through grassland, in eastern Oregon, and western Idaho. The Associated Press reported the fire has posed a threat to over 600 homes and 800 other structures, and that lightning was the official cause, as dry conditions and temperatures over 90 degrees Fahrenheit continue to cause wildfires.
The wildfire map of the United States on www.EGP.wildfire.gov shows there are still wildfires burning in Washington state, Oregon, Montana, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California, as well as several in Texas, Florida, and Minnesota, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. There are also several fires along the coast of North and South Carolina.
While wildfires are natural and occur every year, the hot conditions this year have caused wildfires and human caused fires to burn areas of the world more than before, and in many instances, authorities are continually at their limits on how to respond to contain them.
Could a dangerous chemical be lurking in your coffee? Last year, the Environmental Defense Fund found that the US Food and Drug Administration has been allowing 25 chemicals linked to cancer into America’s food system. Many are used in packaging and processing. Eight are known human carcinogens and 17 are probable human carcinogens.
Maria Doa, EDF’s senior chemicals expert said that she believes the FDA is putting people at risk. By law, the agency is required to ban food additives that cause cancer in humans or animals. While many of the chemicals are looked at are not added into food as ingredients, two-thirds of them can migrate into food from processing and packaging, including plastics, paperboard, metals and coatings.
Here’s one concerning example: Methylene chloride, commonly used as a paint stripper, is so dangerous that the EPA has banned its use in most instances. But the FDA still allows it to be used to decaffeinate coffee and tea. The FDA, not the EPA, regulates chemicals in food, and their failure to act shifts the burden of toxic chemicals onto consumers, with estimated health costs reaching up to $2.2 trillion every year.
The agency’s inaction is even harder to accept when you consider that many people are exposed to these same carcinogenic chemicals from multiple sources every day – in their food, air and water – and that cumulative exposure isn’t a risk they even consider. That is a huge regulatory gap. Plus, in may cases safer substitutes are readily available.
You can sign a petition urging the FDA to take action. Go to EDF.org/SaferFoods.
Below are some cancer-causing chemicals permitted by the FDA. These known carcinogens are among 25 cancer-linked chemicals the FDA allows in our food system.
—Formaldehyde – It is allowed for use in contact surfaces and melamine kitchenware, as well as defoaming agents.
—Methylene chloride – Allowed in use in decaffeinating coffee, in hops and spice extracts, adhesives and industrial products.
—Tricholoroethylene (TCE) – It is allowed for use in hops and spice extracts and in decaffeinating coffee.
—Asbestos – It is allowed for use in adhesives, rubber articles and polyester resins in food-related manufacturing.
Earlier this week I was mowing my lawn and an orange butterfly went by in front of me. It was a Monarch Butterfly. I did a double take, and sure enough it was definitely a Monarch. We have had many Frittilaries, Viceroys and Checkers, but not any Monarchs. I had to share the wonderful news about seeing the Monarch Butterfly with my husband.
So, what’s going on with Monarch Butterflies? Why are they so special?
The Monarch Butterfly or simply monarch is a milkweed butterfly in the Nymphalidae family. Starting in central Mexico they travel 3,000 miles to the United States and Canada. It is a multi-generational journey with each generation living up to nine months. They go through a four-stage, one-month long life cycle, starting with the egg, then caterpillar, pupa and adult butterfly.
As the weather gets colder, the North American monarchs migrate south to Mexico, where they live in protected forests. Monarch caterpillars eat only milkweed leaves, which provide necessary toxins for protection. Adult monarch butterflies feed on the nector from a wide variety ot flowers such as goldenrod, asters, and other wild flowers.
While adult monarchs are toxic to many animals due to milkweed toxins, insects like wasps and spiders eat the eggs and caterpillars, and a few birds target the butterflies. Monarch butterfly populations are dropping fast – falling over 80% in the east and 95% in the west since the 1990’s. The decline is driven by the loss of milkweed plants, heavy use of farm chemicals, deforestation in winter homes, and shifting weather patterns caused by climate change.
I have a huge milkweed patch in my flower garden and do not use any chemicals in my yard because it is important to protect Monarch butterflies and all insects, especially the pollinators, because they allow us to have food and to live.
They symbolize change, resilience, and hope, and many people believe they are the souls of their loved ones.
In this week’s feature, Carrie Albright, in Part 2, interviews Jolie Perry, the sustainability coordinator with the city of Bloomington where they talk about the SEEL program in town that provides grant funding and assistance to nonprofits and businesses to install solar panels to improve building efficiency.
Credits:On Air
Julianna Dailey
Cynthia Roberts
Headlines
Stephanie Stewart
Vanessa Glavinskas with EDF
Julianna Dailey
Feature Report
Carrie Albright
Ashton Harper
Script & Events Calendar
Julianna Dailey
Engineer
Branden Blewett
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