See madmsf's post.
Many environmentally related posts appearing at Daily Kos each week don't attract the attention they deserve. To help get more eyeballs, Spotlight on Green News & Views (previously known as the Green Diary Rescue) normally appears twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The most recent Wednesday Spotlight can be seen here. More than 22,285 environmentally oriented diaries have been rescued for inclusion in this weekly collection since 2006. Inclusion of a diary in the Spotlight does not necessarily indicate my agreement with or endorsement of it.
We Just Had the Hottest March In Recorded History—by
Dartagnan: "On Friday the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released its global temperature records for the month of March 2015, ranking it as the warmest March in their 136-year archive, or since 1880. March now joins eight of the past twelve months which have set record temperatures for their respective months, globally. [...] Think (or maybe try to feel ) what "March" is. It's just a unit of measurement, tallying a thirty-one day time frame that represents the transition between what we know as 'seasons.' In this country, March traditionally marks the beginning of Spring, as temperatures gradually moderate, people begin to shed our winter coats or jackets, and start breathing in the fragrant, mild, warmer air. In the Northeast and Northwest, cookouts and grilling begin, people at work start to eat their lunches outside. Runners and hikers dress down for warm weather exercise. Birds wake us up in the morning, and the sun feels warm to our skin. It's the same every March, or it used to be. But while Americans may not realize it or even think about it, this March is hotter than every March they've ever lived through, every March their parents and grandparents have lived through, and every March their parents and grandparents before them lived through. It's a good deductive bet that March 2015 was likely hotter than any March of the rest of the 4500 years or so of civilized human history, but since humans didn't have a way of keeping track of global temperatures back then, well, I guess we'll never be able to 'prove' that, which probably delights that species of people who call themselves 'climate skeptics.'"
Safari Game Hunter & Guide Ian Gibson Killed By His Elephant Prey—by
Leslie Salzillo: "The death of Ian Gibson, a well-established game hunter in Africa, made news across the globe this past week. Gibson was crushed on Wednesday by the mammoth animal he set out to track and kill. A letter was released to Gibson's clients, via AfricaHunting.com. [...] The details are just starting to emerge as we write this. However it appears that Ian and his client had been on the tracks of an elephant bull for approximately 5 hours when they decided to take a break and allow the client to rest. Feeling he was quite close to the elephant, Ian and his tracker Robert continued to follow the tracks in hopes of getting a look at the ivory as the client, stayed with the game scout to rest. Robert indicated the bull was in musk. They eventually caught up to the bull, spotting him at about 50-100 meters. The bull instantly turned and began a full charge. Ian and Robert began shouting in order to stop the charge. At very close range, Ian was able to get off one shot before the bull killed him."
You can find more rescued green diaries below the orange garden layout.
Eco-Essays, Eco-Philosophy & Eco-Interviews
What do you know about science?*—by AKBear: "I wrote a diary on the rise of cancers among First Nations peoples for this last Monday Night Cancer Club. It sparked quite the conversation. I learned that there is also a misconception that the First Nations peoples had no sense of 'science,' as defined by a couple of commenters generally as the mode of study wherein a person formulates a hypothesis, builds a study and then publishes that study and it's finding for peer review. This style of science comports with how most Westerners are taught to view 'science,' and is one version of science. But, it is not the only version of science. For centuries, many First Nations peoples have practiced their own version of science, based on observation and testing of hypotheses based on observations. Many First Nations peoples have had very able scientists on a wide range of disciplines. Some First Nations peoples employed these scientific findings to increase agricultural harvests, increase the efficiency of hunting practices and even woven them into traditions as to how to live more in concert with their environments."
On the 45th anniversary of Earth Day 1970, five questions for its coordinator, Denis Hayes—by Meteor Blades: "In 2008, I conducted a five-question interview with Denis Hayes, my onetime boss and now president of the Bullitt Foundation in Seattle. Hayes coordinated Earth Day 1970, as well as Earth Day 1990 and Earth Day 2000. You can read that interview here. This year, for the 45th anniversary of that first Earth Day, I interviewed him again."
DC, State & Local Eco-Politics
A letter to my representatives in Wall Str-- er, DC:—by Cassiodorus : "Dear Political Elites Elected Representatives, [...] I know that you receive campaign donations from billionaires and 'funding organizations' who consider you a much better investment than, say, actual productive capital, and that your fictions of a robust economic recovery are mighty. I know that you'll respond to all of my concerns with small-time government programs which benefit people who make great photo-ops, and with glorious platitudes bearing little relation to actual policy. And I know that I'm going to vote for you anyway, rather than be accused of disloyalty by those whose rallying cry for the past four decades was and is 'omigod the other party!' [...] I am writing you today to remind you of the urgent necessity, impending with great immediacy now for over four decades, of a less evil politics than the one promised by that Party Whose Name Dare Not Be Enunciated Here. We need to be sure that if anyone really asks penetrating questions about what 'lesser evil' politics means, we can throw up a facade or two. This is especially important as regards the issue of abrupt climate change, where we must redouble our efforts to pretend continue to imagine that alternative energy will save capitalism and that restraining wealthier consumers a bit while letting the fossil fuel interests do what they want will solve the problem in its entirety. We can't allow the climate deniers to have the upper hand on this issue (and we can't let them hog all the oil money, either)!"
WA State enviro nonprofits seek to kill citizen climate initiative—by Pacificshift: "Climate politics is heating up in Washington state. Gov. Jay Inslee has proposed a carbon cap-and-trade bill to the state legislature. But it is on life support. Meanwhile, Carbon Washington, a group of citizens frustrated with the long-term inability to pass meaningful climate policy in the state, has just hit the street with its own ballot initiative for a revenue-neutral carbon tax. Just as that happened the two nonprofits leading the charge for the Inslee plan, Climate Solutions and Washington Environmental Council, sent email blasts to their lists clearly seeking to depress citizen signature gathering in the vital early months of the effort. They say they are ready to run an initiative of their own if they fail in the legislature, as seems increasingly likely. It could be a cap-and-trade. What's up here is less about climate policy design, though, than insider political calculus and a classic NGO-grassroots clash. Patrick Mazza, a Climate Solutions founder and former Research Director, and a Carbon Washington supporter, deconstructs the politics in this cross-post from his Cascadia Planet blog."
"Carbon Copy": How Big Oil and King Coal Ghost Write Letters for Public Officials, Business Groups—by Steve Horn: "The Billings Gazette has revealed that coal mining company Cloudpeak Energy ghost wrote protest letters to the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) on behalf of allied policymakers and business groups. Reporter Tom Lutey examined numerous letters written to DOI from Montana-based stakeholders and noticed something unusual: the language in every single letter was exactly the same. That is, the same except for a parenthetical note in one of them instructing the supposed writer of it to 'insert name/group/entity.' The 'carbon copied' (pun credit goes to Lutey) letters requested for the DOI to give states a time extension to begin implementing new rules dictating the coal industry give states a 'fair return' on mining leases granted to industry by the states. DOI ended up giving King Coal the 60-day extension."
Agriculture, Food & Gardening
Ways in which your garden is like a city—by citisven: "If you’ve ever tried to grow anything in your garden you’ve probably had your share of unrealized visions. In your rookie year perhaps the tomatoes never turned red or the strawberries got munched by bugs. If those mishaps didn't deflate you enough to replace the whole yard with a bocce court, you probably rebooted your spade and tried some different approaches before the next growing season. You may have moved the tomatoes to a sunnier spot and planted some dandelion to see if it would attract ladybugs with an appetite for your unwelcome strawberry-eating visitors. As the tomatoes got a wee bit tastier and you celebrated your first strawberry (stolen by a finch, of course!), you got inspired and started thinking a bit broader. Perhaps you planted an apple tree and added a bee hive to your garden. You got more curious about soil and water, and started experimenting with compost and catchment bins. The more attention you paid to all the individual residents—both macro and micro—the more visible the interrelatedness between them became. After watching and listening to your new garden community for a few seasons, you realized that the best way for any individual member to thrive with as little upkeep, energy, water, or pest control as possible, the overall design had to befit and benefit everyone else proportional to their needs and capabilities."
Saturday Morning Garden Blogging ~ Vol 11.8: Hope Springs Yellow—by
kishik: "Along the Belt Parkway moving through Queens, NY, I saw a large stand and row of forsythias beginning to bloom. Finally. Along this area at some point in time, it seems that someone who maintains NYC roads planted quite a number of blooming things along my route from Long Island to the city along the southern roads. Some may be leftover from a previous era, like some old apple trees that bloom later in the season and also definitely develop into big round green-skinned fruit. And others more recent, like three or four crape myrtles that I see blooming in late summer. But in the morning this past week, it's the forsythia that has finally burst forth yellow. Showing that there is growing life after this seemingly endless cold winter months. In my yard, I have it growing on the north side of the house where it blooms perfectly well. In the front, the daffodils have also finally decided it's warm enough to bloom. Last weekend those buds looked dismal and small... and cold."
Mining
Oregon Miner Doesn't Want to be Next Clive Bundy - Asks "Militias" to Stand Down in BLM Dispute—by Steven D: "A few days ago, the situation described in this story seemed headed for another Bundy-style train wreck. An Oregon miner on Federal land had asked the local chapter of the Oath Keepers to defend his mining operation. Those good folks promptly put out a call for any and all 'true Militia, true III%, Oathkeeper etc.' to come armed and ready to blow the heads off anyone with the Federal Government who dared to enforce a notice which the BLM had sent demand the mining operation shut down because it lacked the 'necessary paperwork.' This resulted in a massive brouhaha in the rightwingnutosphere. Folks even posted YouTube videos of themselves as they drove to Oregon support this noble cause. In light of all this commotion and excitement, the mine operator had a change of heart and decided that having a bunch of wild-eyed gun crazy fools defending his 'constitutional rights' might not be the best way to proceed in his dispute with the BLM. Indeed, he's called of them off. Now all he wants his his day in court."
Climate Chaos
Lomborg's $4m Australian Jackpot—by ClimateDenierRoundup: "As described by Lenore Taylor at the Guardian, Australia is giving Bjorn Lomborg $4 million to set up an Australian version of his Consensus Center, even as the country struggles to make ends meet for higher education funding. Lomborg's new center is being set up at Western Australia University, where Lomborg last sought funding after the Dutch stopped supporting him and his US endeavor failed to gain traction. As unfortunate as this news is (since $4m could have paid for some actual research) we must admit, we're excited to see if this bounty will allow Lomborg to set up shop in a building slightly fancier than his US Consensus Center, which is run out of a P.O. Box in Massachusetts. But given his penchant for getting paid $775,000 a year for 'work,' we're not holding our breath. Regardless of how he spends this money, Australia is getting the short end of the stick. After all, since Lomborg first arrived on the scene, he's been a broken record. So, in what's undoubtedly a futile attempt to save Australia $4 million, we'll sum up here what they're going to get out of Lomborg down under: 'Sure climate change is real and man-made, but that doesn't mean we should do anything about it.'"
Meteorologists Coming Around on Climate—by ClimateDenierRoundup: "For some time, TV meteorologists seemed to be the last bastion of climate 'skeptics.' This was a major problem, because watching TV weather personalities is about as close as most regular Americans get to seeing a climate scientist. The meteorologist problem culminated in December 2013, when Heartland sent out a press release that misrepresented an American Meteorological Society survey and distorted valid results to portray meteorologists as confused on climate change. Heartland went to great lengths to trick those who received the email, even using an AMS-looking email ("2013AMSsurvey@gmail.com") and an AMS logo for disguise, instead of a Heartland address or logo. The press release only ever mentions Heartland in the fine print. In response, the AMS issued a statement condemning the deceptive release. Well, now there's a new survey of meteorologists that even Heartland won't be able to misrepresent. It finds that over 90% of broadcast meteorologists agree climate change is happening, and of those, 74% believe humans are responsible for at least half of observed warming. While there is still a gap between what most meteorologists think and what the science says regarding attribution, this means that ongoing educational efforts are working. That said, we doubt the two biggest meteorologist deniers, Anthony Watts and John Coleman, are going to be coming around any time soon."
Republicans running House Space Committee are upset about NASA studying Earth from Orbit—by Lefty Coaster: "Ever since George Bush's prohibition against NASA from undertaking any scientific research that might potentially bolster the case for Anthropogenic Global Warming ended when Republicans left office in 2009, NASA has launched a number of satellites to study the effects of Global Warming. Those satellites have provided a wealth of powerful evidence for Anthropogenic Global Warming much to the consternation of the denialist charlatans, and the GOP's Big Oil donors who pay to propagate the fraudulent narratives featured in the Right's partisan media. Now the Republican chair of the House Space Subcommitte Steven Palazzo (Mississippi), and full committee chair Lamar Smith (Texas) have told NASA to scale back their study of the Earth and to concentrate more on "'pace exploration'."
Interactive Map from Yale tells us What 'the Locals' really think about Global Warming—by jamess: 'You might be surprised how many adults there are across the Nation "who think global warming is happening?' (63%). Even the State with the lowest score to that Question (WV), had a Majority of 54%—who think so. So why doesn't Congress do something about it? Perhaps they need to read the Yale Poll ... and get their Local dirt ... Yale Climate Opinion Maps. We are pleased to announce a new interactive mapping tool called “Yale Climate Opinion Maps” (YCOM) and an accompanying peer-reviewed paper in the journal Nature Climate Change. This tool allows users to visualize and explore differences in public opinion about global warming in the United States in unprecedented geographic detail, as the map of public worry about global warming below illustrates. As you can see, 52% of Americans are worried about global warming. But this national number glosses over the enormous geographic diversity in public opinion across the country—diversity that is revealed for the first time in these maps."
Steps 1 through 3
Sea Level Rise - Map Viewer at Climate.gov—by
xxdr zombiexx: "You'll probably want to see this, if you aren't a republican or other form of intellectually-stunted, anti-science moran. And if you UNDERSTAND THE REALITY of climate change, you'' probably get a lot of use out of this resource. Sea Level Rise and Coastal Flooding Impacts. This
map viewer illustrates the scale of potential coastal flooding for various amounts of sea level rise. Water levels are shown as they would appear during the highest high tides."
Does someone you love suffer from Climate Change Denial Disorder? (VIDEO)—by Jen Hayden: "The hilarious folks at Funny or Die have a new video for those who may be suffering from Climate Change Denial Disorder. They nailed it! Do you have problems comprehending basic words like 'world,' 'melting,' 'not,' 'good,' 'science' and 'factual?' If you or a loved one is suffering from Climate Change Denial Disorder, watch this and then seek help immediately."
Critters & the Great Outdoors
Commission approves fishing closure on Sacramento River section—by Dan Bacher: "The California Fish and Game Commission today unanimously approved a controversial emergency regulation proposed by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to close 5.5 miles of spawning habitat in the Sacramento River above the city of Redding to protect winter-run Chinook salmon from around April 27 to July 31. The Commission in today's teleconference also approved 'enhanced protective measures' included in the ocean sport and commercial fisheries regulations for the 2015 season that were adopted by the federal Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) this week. 'We are taking proactive measures on two fronts to protect these endangered fish both in the ocean and on their natal spawning habitat,' said CDFW Chief of Fisheries Stafford Lehr. 'The fishing communities have stepped forward to support these measures and work towards long-term sustainability of the resource. None of us wanted to be in this situation, but heading into a fourth year of extreme drought calls for extreme measures.' Lehr pointed out that 95 percent of winter run Chinook eggs and juvenile fish perished last year, due to high water temperatures on the Sacramento River."
Very cool: Rare underwater video footage of a sperm whale—by madmsf: "Don't really need to say much here. Taken ~ 2000 feet down via an ROV. This was purely by chance. The response of the camera operators is pretty good as well. Everyone was just geeking out over their good fortune. Just sit back and enjoy!"
The Daily Bucket: A Herper's Red-Letter Day—by
Lenny Flank: "A couple days ago, during an afternoon walk at Sawgrass Lake, I was fortunate enough to encounter a number of reptiles. None of them are particularly rare, but it is unusual to see them all in one afternoon. (Snakes especially are rare to see this time of year, as they are mostly nocturnal.) [...] At first glance I thought this was a Garter Snake, but looking again I saw that it was thinner and the stripes looked lower on the body, so I think it is a Ribbon Snake. Ribbon snakes can be ID'd by the light spot on top of their head, but this fellow was fishing and is covered with duckweed, so I can't see. I think he had just swallowed a fish when I came upon him, and is here yawning to put his jawbones back into place."
Hsing-Hsing and Ling-Ling: When Pandas Came to DC—by
Lenny Flank: "So in 1972, Nixon made the first official visit by a US President to Beijing since the 1940s. During the 8-day visit, China and the US normalized diplomatic relationships, agreed to cultural exchange programs, and established agreements concerning trade and commercialization. It became known as 'The Week that Changed the World,' it gave rise to an aphorism 'Only Nixon could go to China,' and it set China upon a path to become an economic superpower and to dominate the 21st century economy. During one of the photo-op meetings with Chinese officials, a goodwill offer was made by Mao Zedong to donate two rare Chinese Giant Pandas to America. Nixon reciprocated by offering a pair of Musk Oxen to China. The two Pandas arrived in Washington DC that April. Hsing-Hsing ('Twinkling Star') was a male, a year and a half old, and Ling-Ling ('Darling Girl') was a female about two years old. They became immediate sensations."
Energy
This chart shows how Solar is taking over the world and there's no stopping it—by VL Baker: "A picture can speak a thousand words and the chart above shows how solar installations have exploded worldwide and all this activity has happened in just the last few years. Amazing growth that gives one optimism about what we can do when the chips are down. The chart above clearly shows that all of the solar power that we've installed on the planet until about 10 years ago basically didn't amount to anything compared to what has been built in recent years. At some magical threshold, the price of solar per watt (in orange) hit some tipping point and installation exploded (the blue part), dwarfing anything from the past. And the beauty of having exponential growth on your side is that very quickly, even the current blue spike will look tiny. In 2020 or 2030 we'll look back on 2015 and it'll barely register as the beginning of the curve on the chart. There is a grassroots swell of support for clean, green energy that has fought against the naysayers and obstructionists. There is no stopping this. We'll be getting our energy from the same resource that supplies our food and it will lead us to a safer, healthier future."
Dominion’s gamble on gas looks risky for Virginia ratepayers—by
Ivy Main: "Dominion Resources and its regulated subsidiary, Dominion Virginia Power, are gambling big on natural gas. But while the utility giant will be a winner if gas prices stay low over the next 20 years, the risk of losing this bet is very real—and the risk is being borne disproportionately by Virginia consumers. Ever since the shale gas boom sent natural gas prices into a tailspin beginning in 2008, Dominion has increasingly been putting its chips into gas. Its Virginia subsidiary just completed a 1,329 megawatt (MW) natural gas plant in Warren County, began construction last year on a 1,358 MW gas plant in Brunswick County, and last month announced plans for a 1,600 MW plant in Greenville County, to be operational in 2019. Virginia ratepayers will foot the bill for construction costs, plus the cost of operating and fueling these mammoth plants for decades to come. But while Virginians tend to think of Dominion as an electricity provider, its bigger business line is in natural gas transmission and storage. According to the Dominion website, its subsidiary Dominion Transmission, Inc. maintains 7,800 miles of pipeline in six states and operates what it says is one of the largest underground natural gas storage facilities. Another subsidiary operates 1,500 miles of pipeline in South Carolina and Georgia. The company is moving aggressively to add and upgrade compressor stations and build additional pipeline capacity in West Virginia and Pennsylvania."
Renewables & Conservation
Is the Age of Renewable Energy Already Upon Us?—by Michael Klare via TomDispatch: "Don’t hold your breath, but future historians may look back on 2015 as the year that the renewable energy ascendancy began, the moment when the world started to move decisively away from its reliance on fossil fuels. Those fuels—oil, natural gas, and coal—will, of course, continue to dominate the energy landscape for years to come, adding billions of tons of heat-trapping carbon to the atmosphere. For the first time, however, it appears that a shift to renewable energy sources is gaining momentum. If sustained, it will have momentous implications for the world economy—as profound as the shift from wood to coal or coal to oil in previous centuries."
Oceans, Water & Drought
Governor to discuss water 'conservation' today as Big Ag, Big Oil get off the hook—by Dan Bacher: "After convening agribusiness, urban water agency and corporate 'environmental' NGO leaders to discuss the drought last week, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. will hold another closed door meeting in Sacramento today. A media advisory from the Governor's Office claims that Brown will "gather officials" from the landscape, golf, home and garden, spa and pool, cemetery and mortuary, building and manufacturing, retail, restaurant and hospitality industries in Sacramento today to discuss the business community’s efforts to conserve water. 'The key challenge here—aside from getting the water—is to be able to collaborate together,' said Governor Brown at last week’s meeting. 'We’re going to rise to the occasion as Californians first and as members of different groups second.'"
CA water officials cancel plan to construct emergency drought barrier in North Delta—by Dan Bacher: "Steamboat Slough has been removed as a site for one of three barriers, which came under strong public opposition from members of C.A.R.E.S, Delta farmers and others. Planetary Solutionaries, one of a number of opponents of the emergency drought barrier across Steamboat Slough, was informed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that the California Department of Water Resources has decided not to dam up Steamboat Slough. According to documentation submitted to the Corps, by the Department, the Emergency Drought Barriers project, proposed for Sutter Slough, Steamboat Slough, and False River would result in permanent impacts to waters of the United States."
California desalination experiment to begin as soon as November—by Walter Einenkel: "After approving and getting permits and buying land and making deals over the past six years, the $1 billion Carlsbad, California desalination facility's construction is close to completion. The hope is that Carlsbad will be producing up to 50 million gallons of desalinated water a day. It is a big experiment in a state that is suffering one of the worst droughts on record that may not get better before it gets much much worse. That being said, the planet Earth is pock-marked with idle desalination plants. Still, some scientists and environmental groups contend that if rainy conditions return to California, the plant here and others like it could become white elephants. Santa Barbara, northwest of Los Angeles, built its desalination plant a quarter-century ago and promptly shut it down when rains returned. Australia is a more spectacular case: It built six huge desalination plants during a dry spell and has largely idled four of them though water customers remain saddled with several billion dollars’ worth of construction bills."
Eco-Action & Eco Justice
Spartans Move Beyond Coal—by Mary Anne Hitt: "On the heels of last week's fantastic Bloomberg Philanthropies and Beyond Coal announcement came some news from Michigan demonstrating once again how powerful our activists are. Michigan State University announced that it will retire the largest on-campus coal plant in the U.S. by 2016—making it the 188th coal plant announced for retirement since the Beyond Coal campaign started in 2010. Indeed it is the tireless, years-long work by student activists with the MSU Sierra Student Coalition and Greenpeace who helped make this happen. Current MSU students and alumni alike cheered the news, as did people across the U.S., as it is yet another example of how young people are driving the transition from coal to clean energy. 'To see MSU finally commit to retiring the use of coal on campus is huge,' said Talya Tavor, an MSU alum who led the campus Beyond Coal work during her time on campus from 2009 to 2012. 'It says so many things all wrapped up in one neat little announcement.'"
Trash, Pollution & Hazardous Waste
Taylor Energy Oil Spill in Gulf Still Secretly Spewing Since 2004—by ericlewis0: "A blanket of fog lifts, exposing a band of rainbow sheen that stretches for miles off the coast of Louisiana. From the vantage point of an airplane, it’s easy to see gas bubbles in the slick that mark the spot where an oil platform toppled during a 2004 hurricane, triggering what might be the longest-running commercial oil spill ever to pollute the Gulf of Mexico. Yet more than a decade after crude started leaking at the site formerly operated by Taylor Energy Company, few people even know of its existence. The company has downplayed the leak’s extent and environmental impact, likening it to scores of minor spills and natural seeps the Gulf routinely absorbs. [...] While Taylor Energy claimed in March of last year that the site was leaking a mere 4 gallons a day, SkyWatch and other experts say it could be closer to 900 gallons a day. In 2009, it created a 1,170 mile long slick, which was ridiculously reported as a leak of 1.5 gallons of oil. Is there a scientific term for pffffffft?"
Miscellany
Chinese + GOP Collusion = Methanol Plants Poisoning US Poor—by BlackSheep1: "If you've been paying attention to the Chinese industrial revolution (didn't start with Nixon, but the GOP loves to use its "boom" as a pattern for US development) you know that unregulated corporations have made the air unbreathable and the water undrinkable across Chinese territory. What the GOP won't talk about is the consequences for people who can't afford to move out of the Bhopal-lite environs they're creating right here in the good old USA, especially on/around the ports that serve the oil and gas industries. What you may not know is the Chinese press (and to some degree the government) is trying to stop the worst of the corruption ... so the Chinese are exporting dangerous methanol fuel production. To the US. Flammability, toxins, wasteful use of grains that could feed people, and all. For the benefit of Chinese corporations: not a gallon of the methanol processed in these sprawling plants, owned at least in part by notoriously corrupt Chinese industrialists, will be sold in the US. But the tax breaks and lax enforcement? That's right here, right now."