2019 fall

Recently the University of Arizona announced it will be purchasing “100% clean energy”, offsetting all of its “scope 2” greenhouse gas emissions through renewable energy.  The deal between UA and Tucson Electric Power (TEP) was just approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC). 

So, what does this deal really mean for UA’s carbon footprint?  Further, as many other organizations, especially big corporations, rush to commit to similar deals, is this the right model for shifting society’s carbon emissions as a whole?

In October, Imperial County in California declared a local State of Emergency for the Salton Sea.  The declaration will be passed on to California Governor Newsom, who will then consider declaring a state level emergency pursuant to California’s Emergency Services Act.  If he does, President Trump may recognize the emergency, making funds available through the Federal Emergency Management Act.  

The looming water crisis along the Colorado River is creating a scenario where—if new sources of water are not utilized—the whole region may suffer drastic cutbacks. There is a possible future where cutbacks harm the overall economy and viability of a sustainable future for the population of the Southwest. Unfortunately, without prohibitively expensive water projects and agreements with external regions—or relying on expensive desalination, Arizona’s future may rely on reclaimed water (wastewater that has been treated and put to another purpose). However, in the long run this may prove beneficial.

“As mineral deposits are increasingly being found in areas that present technical, political, or environmental challenges, miners are looking to extraterrestrial and deep-sea resources. Presently, mineral development is being considered at the bottom of the oceans and outside of our planet, either on the moon, other planets, or asteroids.”

So began the Mining Law Summit 2019 on November 8, 2019 at the University of Arizona’s James E. Rogers College of Law. The mining summit is an annual event at the College of Law.  Organized by Professor John Lacy, it brings together industry and academia to discuss trends and issues within the industry.  Last year, the topic revolved around health and safety. This year it focused on outer space and the deep sea.  

In June of 2019, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) proposed new regulations that would limit environmental review for certain new permit applications. The Forest Service is attempting to streamline its environmental review process in an attempt to reduce a backlog of over 5,000 permit applicants awaiting NEPA review. The agency asserts that an increasing cost for wildfire suppression has pulled money and personnel from other management projects such as environmental review. Indeed, the USFS receives around 3,000 permit applications each year that require environmental analysis and the backlog of applications is only growing.

A new documentary, The Sea of Shadows, is airing commercial free on National Geographic Saturday, November 9 at 9/8c. The documentary shows first-hand the efforts being made to stop the illegal, highly profitable trade market for the totoaba fish, which includes the involvement of the Mexican cartels and Chinese mafia. The illegal poaching of the totoaba, has in turn, placed the vaquita on the brink of extinction and has led to many other negative ecological impacts on the Sea of Cortez ecosystem.  The vaquita is the smallest species of cetacean (whale, dolphin, porpoise) in the world, usually only growing to 4.5 feet. Endemic to the Sea of Cortez, vaquita populations began dwindling after being caught and killed in illegal fishing nets used to capture the totoaba, an endangered fish highly prized for their swim bladders.

On July 31, 2019, Judge Soto of the Tucson Division of the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona issued an extensive order addressing the arguments against and in favor of the proposed Rosemont Mine in the Santa Rita Mountains south of Tucson, Arizona. The Santa Rita Mountains lie within the Coronado National Forest, an area whose land and resources are under the protection of the federal government. The approval process for the project began in 2007 and the U.S. Forest Service spent the next decade completing the required Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).