A “Dirty Dozen” Plant – Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

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English Ivy: A “Dirty Dozen” Plant – Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

English ivy’s most dangerous attribute is that it vines up and chokes trees. Not only does this prevent photosynthesis from happening by blocking foliage from sunlight, but it also damages tree bark by holding moisture against the trunk. Fungal rot ensues, leading to a slow and painful death for infested trees. Under the weight of the vines, they are also more vulnerable to fall over during extreme weather events. As if that isn’t enough, H. helix is a reservoir for bacterial leaf scorch (Xylella fastidiosa), a pathogen that usually afflicts maples, oaks and elms.

NPR

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21 states sue the Biden administration to end the federal travel mask mandate : NPR

Governors from 21 states are suing to end the federal public transportation mask mandate, claiming the continued enforcement "harms the states" and interferes with some local laws.

The filing comes just days after airline CEOs called on President Biden to drop the mandate. CDC recommends 2nd COVID boosters for some older and immunocompromised people Shots - Health News FDA authorizes 2nd COVID boosters for some older and immunocompromised people

"President Biden's shortsighted, heavy-handed and unlawful travel policies are frustrating travelers and causing chaos on public transportation," Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, who is leading the states' effort, said in a statement. "It's long past time to alleviate some of the pressure on travelers and those working in the travel industry by immediately ending Biden's unlawful public transportation mandates."

Joining the mostly Republican-led effort are three states with Democratic governors — Kansas, Kentucky and Louisiana.

Are carbon credits really helping with climate change?

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Are carbon credits really helping with climate change?

COEYMANS — When a clutch of local officials and dignitaries gathered in late 2019 to celebrate the first check they received for protecting the woodlands around the Alcove Reservoir, they hailed the deal as a win for the environment locally and globally. The Albany Water Board had agreed to protect the approximately 6,400 acres of forest around the reservoir in exchange for annual payments from the sale of carbon credits.

It was one of the first local examples of an emerging market in carbon credits, or offsets, designed to protect forests, which absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and combat global warming.

The carbon capture represented by preserving the forest was sold on the American Carbon Registry, a leading market for such credits.

Figuring that most of the doings in climate change amount to hucksterism, I don't see the harm in local governments profiting off it. Indeed, maybe this kind of climate change hucksterism can be transformed into a force of good, protecting forest and farmland from development. For example, a town or developer could sell development rights in exchange for carbon credits cash. And maybe long-term preservation of an ecosystem is more important then some inconsequential reduction of carbon. And certainly better then paving over acres and acres of land for a solar farm that doesn't even produce that much electricity compared to a conventional fossil plant.