Tag: plant trees

Climate Action, Climate Change, Nature, trees October 4, 2020July 29, 2021

Planting Trees for Love | Remembering Covid Victims

Washington (GGM) Analysis | October 4, 2020 by Noreen Wise

There’s never been a more important time to plant trees than right now. After massive wildfires scorched millions of acres of forests across the western United States, to the ongoing need to cut atmospheric carbon levels in order to reduce global warming, trees are now more important than ever for sustaining human life on our planet. The only way our children will have mature trees tomorrow, is if we plant seedlings today.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos Switzerland in January 2020, hundreds of nations across the globe committed to planting a trillion trees by 2050. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s 2016 ranking, the United States is 33.93 percent forested area. Sadly, prior to Davos, the United States was hovering well below its potential for tree planting despite how much room we have to plant trees. Canada on the other hand, has been a top performer, planting 500 million trees in 2019. During this same year, the US National Forest Foundation planted 5 million trees, nearly double their 2018 total, which is aggressive, but a long way off Canada’s 500 million. There doesn’t appear to be a national data base keeping track of US totals that incorporates tree planting in local communities on private property, so the total number of trees planted in US for any given year is difficult to calculate. But what we do know, is that the US chopped down 36 million trees in 2019, and in 2020, in addition to the millions of leveled trees we ax on an annual basis, we lost 30 billion mature trees in the West Coast wildfires, which is staggering.

Ethiopia is a 2020 tree planting champion, succeeding at putting 350 million trees in the ground in 12 hours this past July 2020. The US needs to rush to catch up. In most states, trees can only be planted a few months out of the year. There’s a window in both the spring and the fall. Thus, it’s vitally important that we take advantage of each and every opportunity. Homeowners have to be the drivers of our national tree planting efforts if we’re going to succeed.

Planting a tree to remember someone whose life was cut short — whether that be from covid, gun violence, wildfires and other natural disasters, a car accident, cancer, and multiple other tragedies — or is still alive but but going through a very difficult time, is a great way of showing empathy and letting others know a loved one is being thought of regularly. It also motivates us into action. This wonderful way of keeping spirits alive and communities full of hope, helps families and communities heal, while at the same time saving the planet.

Gallant Gold Media is distributing 300 FREE redbud and button bush seedlings on Saturday, October 24, 2020, from 12 noon – 3 PM at GMU, courtesy of Fairfax ReLeaf. Residents in Fairfax County and Northern Virginia can register to pick up a free seedling at GMU so that homeowners and businesses throughout the area can plant trees and bushes this fall to remember all those in our community who’ve been lost to covid. Click here to register. This is first come first serve, so please register ASAP.

If your business has any clients or employees who have loved ones to covid, a redbud seedling is a wonderful gift to let them know you care and empathize with what they’re going through. Redbud’s are a top choice to feature in the front yard landscape, with beautiful pink spring blossoms and very easy to care for while they grow.

Again, limited quantity, with some HOAs ordering large bundles, and first come first serve, so please register ASAP.

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Children, Climate Action, Climate Change, National Security July 30, 2019February 2, 2020

Focusing On Small Things | Climate Action Success

Washington (Gallant Gold Media Hill Report | Analysis | July 30, 2019)
by Noreen Wise

Succeeding at substantial climate action in the shortest period of time is an absolute imperative. However, we’re never going to reach our carbon targets if we promote the required changes using intimidating long-range objectives as the key selling points for executing the Climate Action strategy.

Clearly, many of our political leaders care deeply about the intense climate crisis and want us to know about the dire consequences if we don’t act quickly. They feel passionately about this looming catastrophe. Their tireless commitment to the Climate Crisis is heroic and noble.

But, in order for the general public to make the necessary changes we must break everything down into small simple weekly steps that can be executed immediately:

Call local Solar Energy companies and ask about promotions for switching. Search online for all those with solar sharing about how low their energy bill is. (Solar is MUCH less expensive than electric or gas and oil). Deadline, Friday August 2, 2019.
Call town hall and ask about the city’s plan for switching to solar panels for street lighting, solar panels on town buildings, and electric buses. While on the phone, suggest apiary bus stops (planting flowers and greenery on the roofs of bus shelters for bees and other pollinators to visit ). Cities in general need far more green downtown. Mrs can simply invest in rooftop gardens. Others can add to sidewalks along the streets. Deadline, Friday August 2, 2019.
Stop by car dealership and ask about deals for Hybrids and EVs. It’s absolutely incredible how far the price has come down. Take a test drive. Deadline, Sunday August 4, 2019.
When grocery shopping, grab the almond milk instead of regular milk. Choose chicken or turkey rather than red meat. Deadline, Sunday August 4, 2019.
Do all errands on the same day. ONLY use re-usable bags.
At dinner each night, talk with family about trees and gardening and where to plant more trees. How to care for the trees you’ll plant. Where to buy the trees. What kind of trees. Trees are a great way to build strong family ties. Trees nurture our children when they take good care of them. Trees become part of the family. As children grow, they return home and marvel at the tree height, and the sprawling branches and subliminally identify that they have grown taller and ar branching out just like the tree.

None of these small tasks are difficult. Or time-consuming. They are not expensive. There are very few excuses for why we can’t do each this week, versus next week. The Climate Crisis DEMANDS we each, every last one of us, immediately execute all of these.

Good luck… Have fun!

Climate Action, Climate Change, National Security July 28, 2019February 2, 2020

Civilization-Destroying Droughts | Farmers & Climate Action

Washington (Gallant Gold Media Hill Report | Analysis | July 27, 2019)
by Noreen Wise

Farmers have a vested interest in cutting carbon emissions at breakneck speed, and are currently striving to make that happen.

The United States has experienced several intense droughts, spanning entire decades, that have uprooted entire communities, leaving ghost towns in their wake. The most recent drought plagued devastation was across the great plains in the 1930’s, termed the “Great Dust Bowl.” This heart wrenching era altered America’s DNA forever:

There were only 127 million American at the time
100 million acres were impacted, with no farming for ten years
2.5 million Americans had to relocate hundreds of miles away… 300,000 relocated to California
2 million became homeless
6,500 people died in one year, and it’s expected that each of the ten years was similar
Generally, food prices go up sharply during droughts unless the government can step in with aid

If carbon emissions continue to rise unchecked, the United States will face the existential threat of extreme droughts in the not so distant future. Farmers can look to the past, to guide them into quick action today and prevent the horrors of the past. It’s an epic opportunity.

Further, farms are major carbon emitters. If the agriculture industry can swiftly shift into new technology and updated methods, by moving away from fossil fuels, the world will be rewarded with strategic benefits at a critical, planet-saving turning point in our fight against carbon emissions.

5 Simple Changes farmers can make today, to prevent future annihilation tomorrow.

(1) Wind turbines & solar panels are ideal on farmland. Wind turbines can be installed in the same fields as the crops. The elevation enables the same quantity of crops to be grown below. The farmer is benefited by a duo harvest, energy and crops, substantially increasing the revenue generated from the same acres. Many farmers have begun placing solar panels on acres laying fallow for a year to regain nutrients, resulting in all land generating income all the time.

(2) Rethinking irrigation. Current irrigation methods use extensive amounts of fuel, and water. The new green methods will conserve water as well requires less energy, and preferably no fossil fuels at all.

(3) Soil health to increase carbon sequestration. Carbon is pulled from the air and stored in soil and water. In fact, soil stores 40% of the carbon. Soil can store more carbon if the carbon has more to feed on. Farmers are being advised to treat the soil with special compost, and planting cover crops that foster more bacteria and fungi and bacteria, as well as protozoa, etc.

(4) Increasing the amount of green on a farm by planting trees, and shrubs, forest vegetation and hedgerows. The increased green will store more carbon, further reducing the amount in the air.

(5) Managing cattle to a new higher green standard, with an awareness that cows are responsible for 15% of the global carbon level. Manure lagoons are a major culprit as well as anaerobic decomposition.

Let’s make it happen!

Climate Action, Climate Change, Environment, National Security July 8, 2019February 2, 2020

EMERGENCY | Curbing Personal Carbon Footprint, 4 Key Areas to Nail

Washington (GGM) Analysis | July 8, 2019
by Noreen Wise

Climate expert Dr. Joseph Romm has made carbon reduction super easy for all of us by organizing our decision making into four manageable categories.

The only way for the United States to SAVE our East Coast landscape – our beautiful, fabulous cities and all the homes, businesses and assets contained within – is to RUSH on minimizing our individual carbon footprints by taking advantage of numerous green solutions under each category.

HOME: one of the easiest and fastest ways to cut carbon.
- Solar Panels: take advantage of one of the many offers being floated in 2019 where the Solar Energy provider will install solar panels with no $ down.
- Replace all lightbulbs: all traditional lightbulbs in the home should be replaced with either LEDs, halogen incandescents, or compact fluorescent lamps. These cost more, but they last 3-25% longer, so we’ll save money in the long run.
- Turn Off Lights: so basic, turn off lights whenever we leave a room.
- Buy Smaller House (if moving): it’s no longer cool to have a huge house. The new life-saving logic is to have a smaller home with more land, beautiful gardens, and plant as many trees as possible.
- Use cold water for laundry: washing clothes uses a lot of water, warming water wastes energy. Get used to cold for washing whites. New normal.
TRANSPORTATION: Hybrids and EV options have been transformed in just a few short years. Much longer range. Super fast charge. Many more charging stations. More affordable. One of these must be on our list when we replace existing cars.
- Hybrid: prices have come down and range is up to 280 MPG.
- EV: Significant price reduction, with one model as low as $30,000, range is now at 200 MPG.
- Walk, Bike, Scooter, Public Transportation, Carpool: Attend monthly Town Legislation meetings and work to get walking/bike trails set-up maintained.
- Run all errands at same time: awareness of who our actions impact the survival of other people will make us more organized about how we time manage simple things like grocery shopping and going to bank.
DIET: surprisingly, cows add as much carbon to environment as fossil fuels.
- Switch to white meat & fish: turkey & chicken, etc.
- Minimize dairy: this may also cure several health conditions that stem from high levels of antibiotics and pesticides found in dairy.
- Vegan: finding the right protein is a climate solution. Beans, lentils, eggs.
STUFF: Stuff we buy, Stuff we cart around, Stuff we store. Who knew that our “stuff,” particularly the vast accumulation and management of, is a significant factor in global warming.
- Carting around stuff, results in buying larger cars than necessary.
- Buying more stuff than we need or can possibly use, results in buying a larger house that uses more energy
- There’s substantial carbon emissions involved in the manufacturing and transporting of stuff.
- American consumerism has been a global frustration since the 1980’s.

In 2019, America’s population is only 4.6% of global total, however we are now ranked #1 in carbon emissions. We are responsible for the deaths of thousands. Let’s jump on this so we can save lives and save our country as well as the world.