T.G.I.F. For The Environment.

This Is Why I Oppose Both the Keystone XL Pipeline and Mitt Romney/Ryan/Mandel.

Why Scientists Are in Alarm Mode Over the Keystone XL Pipeline By Laray Polk, AlterNet "Environmental science gets politicized because it has economic implications," says a leading scientist. READ MORE» Clean Water Act Faces Its Biggest Threat   While hugely successful, the Clean Water Act now faces another threat, its biggest in 40 years: the EPA's attempts to gut strong regulations that worked and replace them with unproven pollution trading provisions. Many may wonder why I am so concern with water and what does it have to do with me being from the Greater Cleveland area of Ohio--This is why-->As written in Wikipedia--> Environmental concerns The Cuyahoga River at one time was one of the most polluted rivers in the United States. The reach from Akron to Cleveland was devoid of fish. A Kent State University symposium, convened one year before the infamous 1969 fire, described one section of the river: From 1,000 feet below Lower Harvard Bridge to Newburgh and South Shore Railroad Bridge, the channel becomes wider and deeper and the level is controlled by Lake Erie. Downstream of the railroad bridge to the harbor, the depth is held constant by dredging, and the width is maintained by piling along both banks. The surface is covered with the brown oily film observed upstream as far as the Southerly Plant effluent. In addition, large quantities of black heavy oil floating in slicks, sometimes several inches thick, are observed frequently. Debris and trash are commonly caught up in these slicks forming an unsightly floating mess. Anaerobic action is common as the dissolved oxygen is seldom above a fraction of a part per million. The discharge of cooling water increases the temperature by 10 °F (5.56 °C) to 15 °F (8.33 °C). The velocity is negligible, and sludge accumulates on the bottom. Animal life does not exist. Only the algae Oscillatoria grows [sic] along the piers above the water line. The color changes from gray-brown to rusty brown as the river proceeds downstream. Transparency is less than 0.5 feet in this reach. This entire reach is grossly polluted.[11] At least 13 fires have been reported on the Cuyahoga River, the first occurring in 1868.[12] The largest river fire in 1952 caused over $1 million in damage to boats and a riverfront office building.[13] Fires erupted on the river several more times before June 22, 1969, when a river fire captured the attention of Time magazine, which described the Cuyahoga as the river that "oozes rather than flows" and in which a person "does not drown but decays".[14] A view of the river from the Ohio and Erie Canal Tow-Path Trail The 1969 Cuyahoga River fire helped spur an avalanche of water pollution control activities, resulting in the Clean Water Act, Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, and the creation of the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA). As a result, large point sources of pollution on the Cuyahoga have received significant attention from the OEPA in recent decades. These events are referred to in Randy Newman's 1972 song "Burn On", R.E.M.'s 1986 song "Cuyahoga", and Adam Again's 1992 song "River on Fire". Great Lakes Brewing Company of Cleveland, Ohio named their Burning River Pale Ale after the event. During the Gulf oil spill of May 2010, New York Times economist and Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman referred to the Cuyahoga fire as the start of “environmentalism”.[15] Water quality has improved and, partially in recognition of this improvement, the Cuyahoga River was designated as one of 14 American Heritage Rivers in 1998.[16] Despite these efforts, pollution continues to exist in the Cuyahoga River due to other sources of pollution, including urban runoff, nonpoint source problems, combined sewer overflows,[17] and stagnation due to water impounded by dams. For this reason, the Environmental Protection Agency classified portions of the Cuyahoga River watershed as one of 43 Great Lakes Areas of Concern. The most polluted portions of the river now generally meet established aquatic life water quality standards except near dam impoundments. The reasons for not meeting standards near the dam pools are habitat and fish passage issues rather than water quality. River reaches that were once devoid of fish now support 44 species. The most recent survey in 2008 revealed the two most common species in the river were hogsuckers and spotfin shiners, both moderately sensitive to water quality. Habitat issues within the 5.6 miles (9.0 km) navigation channel still preclude a robust fishery in that reach. Recreation water quality standards (using bacteria as indicators) are generally met during dry weather conditions, but are often exceeded during significant rains due to nonpoint sources and combined sewer overflows. And In addition to that My Late Father was a Chemist who worked for one of the Chemical Companies which had the job of Cleaning Up Lake Erie and the Cuyahoga River. I also have concerns about the air, because I still have vage memories of when my Grandfather worked security, part-time, at a Steel Plant to supplement his Social Security. I remember sometimes my dad would bring my sister and me with him to pick up our Grandfather. I still remember no matter what we did, we would smell the stink of 'rotten eggs' when we got so close to the plant, especially at the plant, and would still smell it, until we finally got out of range. THE LAST THING THAT WE AMERICANS CAN DO IS TO GO BACK TO THOSE BAD OLD DAYS OF RIVER FIRES AND THAT MUCH AIR POLLUTION--THIS IS THE 21ST CENTURY, THEREFORE WE NEED 21ST CENTURY SOLUTIONS TO OUR ENERGY NEEDS. That is also Why the Last thing that We Need to Do Is to Send Romney/Ryan/Mandel to Washington.