Will Changes At Postal Service Affect 2020 Election? Worries Mount On Cost-Cutting Moves


By Marcy Kreiter @marcykreiter
08/01/20

VIDEO
Early Voting, Vote By Mail And Absentee Voting: Terms Explained As Election Day Draws Near

KEY POINTS
Unlike other government agencies, the postal service does not receive any tax dollars for its operations

The agency is carrying some $161 billion in debt and is restricted by law against skimping on pension and healthcare payments

The new postmaster general is a former logistics executive who wants to transform the postal service into a business

Cost-cutting moves at the U.S. Postal Service are slowing deliveries, which could keep millions of Americans from getting their mail-in ballots in time for the November election.

President Trump has attacked the postal service for losing money on package deliveries, especially those sent by Amazon and other e-commerce giants.

In April, when online shopping surged because of the coronavirus pandemic, Trump called the agency “a joke" and bashed Amazon for pushing it even deeper into the red. He blocked a $10 billion congressionally approved emergency loan for the postal service, which ordinarily receives no taxpayer dollars, and promised to put the kibosh on other loans unless package delivery rates quadruple.

A month later, Trump tapped Louis DeJoy, a former logistics executive and a major donor to Trump's 2016 campaign, to be the nation's 75th postmaster general. DeJoy's mission was to fill the agency's coffers.

The postal service's money problems aren't anything new. The agency hasn't seen a profit since 2006 yet nine out of 10 Americans consistently give it a favorable rating, according to the Pew Research Center.
THE CAUSE OF THIS WAS A REPUBLICAN BILL UNDER BUSH
The agency is carrying some $161 billion in debt, a chunk that by law must go for employee pensions and healthcare payments. The Government Accounting Office has even gone so far as to recommend that Congress reassess what delivery services the nation really needs and how those services should be paid for.
To start whittling down that debt, Dejoy cut overtime. He ordered carriers to hold off sorting mail — a task that used to be done in morning — until after they finished their routes. That switch has backed up all deliveries, even express mail, by one and two days.

The postal service spent $2.9 billion in delivery overtime and penalty overtime in fiscal 2019, plus $1.1 billion in mail processing overtime and penalty overtime, and $280 million in late and extra transportation.

In a memo to workers, DeJoy was forthright about his mission to make the postal service financially solvent and was clear the mail just won't get delivered if the agency had to pay overtime to make that happen.
“One aspect of these changes that may be difficult for employees is that – temporarily – we may see mail left behind or mail on the workroom floor or docks,” he wrote.

Route changes and an assortment of issues also have exacerbated delays, reports showed.

The Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service, an industry advocacy group, theorizes that the delays could dissipate, “but we’re worried if there’s no real time to sort, and no overtime, then there could be a cumulative, growing impact,” said Arthur Sackler, the coalition's manager.

“If they're talking about delaying mail, if they're talking about sending letter carriers out to the street, even if the truck is late, that means there's a lot of first-class mail that's going to be left on the workroom floor. And there's an almost cavalier attitude about this,” Philip Rubio, a history professor at North Carolina A&T State University and a former letter carrier, told NPR.

The National Association of Letter Carriers objected to the changes, which went into effect July 25 for 60 days at a number of test sites. The union maintains the changes do not comply with union handbook provisions.

Mark Dimondstein, national president of the American Postal Workers Union, told the Intercept the changes are aimed at remaking the culture of the postal service.

“The culture I grew up with, and of generations before me, is that you never leave mail behind. You serve the customer, you get mail to the customer. Prompt, reliable and efficient,” he said.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said the changes would be “drastic” in a normal year and worried about the impact on mail-in voting.

“In a presidential election year when many states are relying heavily on absentee mail-in ballots, increases in mail delivery timing would impair the ability of ballots to be received and counted in a timely manner – an unacceptable outcome for a free and fair election,” Maloney wrote in a letter to DeJoy.

Trump, who is trailing in polls to presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, has been made statements that undermine the integrity of the election, even suggesting the postal service cannot be trusted to deliver ballots. He floated the idea Thursday of postponing the election until danger from the coronavirus pandemic has passed.

“I’m actually terrified to see election season under the new procedure,” Lori Cash, president of the American Postal Workers Union Local 183 in Western New York, told the Washington Post.

Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., told the Post that attacks on the postal service “not only threaten our economy and the jobs of 600,000 workers. With our states now reliant on mail voting to continue elections during the pandemic, the destabilizing of the post office is a direct attack on American democracy itself.”

Could Virus Crisis Kill Debt-laden US Postal Service?


By Susan STUMME
04/17/20 

For many Americans, checking the mailbox is a daily ritual, a constant in a quickly changing world that can yield anything from wedding invitations to tax audits to new clothes.

But as with many ordinary things as the coronavirus crisis unfolds, the US Postal Service -- already compromised by a mountain of debt -- has a most uncertain future.

"Unless Congress and the White House provide meaningful relief in the next stimulus bill, the Postal Service could cease to exist."

So how did an agency that traces its origins back to the Continental Congress in 1775, and counts Benjamin Franklin as the first postmaster general, find itself being derided by President Donald Trump as a "delivery boy" for Amazon?

The answer is cloaked in a swirl of past budget decisions, consumer shifts toward a digital world, a crisis-induced drop in volume and good old-fashioned political infighting.

The US Postal Service is a mainstay of American life but has struggled to remain profitable in the age of digital communications -- and because of accumulated debt Photo: AFP / SAUL LOEB

From its beginnings in Philadelphia, through the 19th century Pony Express era, to its modern iconic white vans and blue uniforms, the postal service has been an American mainstay.

Among its famous alumni are aviator Charles Lindbergh, actor Rock Hudson, novelist William Faulkner and hotel magnate Conrad Hilton.

Zip codes for each city, town and village were only introduced in the 1960s, but some have become pop culture touchstones -- most people know that Beverly Hills, California is 90210.

The US Postal Service has boosted package deliveries in recent years to make money, but it is still in deep financial trouble Photo: AFP / SAUL LOEB

Before the pandemic sent volume tumbling, more than 180 million pieces of first-class mail were processed and delivered each day on average, according to USPS data.


"The mail is so important to American families," says Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

So what happened?

US Postmaster General Megan Brennan says the Postal Service expects to lose $13 billion in revenue this fiscal year alone as a direct result of the COVID-19 crisis Photo: AFP / SAUL LOEB
Over the years, the service accumulated a veritable mountain of debt -- $160.9 billion, as of the end of 2019.

That is primarily due to a legally mandated need to pre-pay retirement benefits for its more than 600,000 workers, but other factors are in play.
The advent of the digital age has blunted the USPS's mission -- why send a thank you note when an e-card or text message will do?

For younger generations, buying stamps is as foreign as using a telephone to actually talk to someone.

US President Donald Trump and many of his fellow Republicans want to see the Postal Service privatized to a large extent Photo: AFP / SAUL LOEB

So in recent years, it boosted its package deliveries, taking on mega-clients such as Amazon. But it kept bleeding money.

And then, the coronavirus crisis brought mass mailings -- catalogs, coupons and the like -- to a grinding halt. Sales of postal products and services plummeted.

Postmaster General Megan Brennan told lawmakers last week that the USPS expects to lose $13 billion in revenue this fiscal year alone as a direct result of the COVID-19 crisis.

"The sudden drop in mail volumes, our most profitable revenue stream, is steep and may never fully recover," she said in a video briefing.

However, as the US government unveils massive stimulus packages to help a host of industries, the postal service is not exactly on Trump's A-list.

Trump has repeatedly said the cost of shoring up the agency should fall to its deep-pocketed clients such as Amazon, not the government.

Under aid packages passed by Congress so far, the postal service has been given a $10 billion loan, pending Treasury approval.

But officials and many Democrats say it's not nearly enough.

Brennan asked lawmakers for up to $89 billion to weather the storm.

Lawmakers cite the service's delivery of medications to rural areas -- and its possible key role in November's presidential election thanks to mail-in ballots -- as reason enough to help.

"USPS workers have risked their own health to ensure America keeps running" during the crisis, Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeted, using the #SaveThePostOffice hashtag.

New Jersey lawmaker Bill Pascrell chimed in, calling the USPS an "engine for our elections" and the need to save it "nonnegotiable."

But Trump and many Republicans want to see the USPS privatized to a large extent -- and are not keen to offer a more costly lifeline.

"They lose money every time they deliver a package for Amazon or these other internet companies," Trump told reporters this month.

"And if they'd raise the prices by actually a lot, then you'd find out that the post office could make money or break even. But they don't do that. And I'm trying to figure out why."

For Mark Dimondstein, the head of the American Postal Workers Union, which represents some 200,000 members, the government needs to do more.

"We do our job. Congress and the administration need to do theirs," Dimondstein said.
Copyright AFP. All rights reserved.

Exxon Mobil Considers Layoffs, Spending Cuts To Save Its Dividend
INVE$TOR$ AND MANAGEMENT DIVIDEND$ ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN JOB$

By Palash Ghosh @Gooch700
07/30/20

Massive Fire Breaks Out At Exxon Refinery In Baton Rouge, Louisiana

KEY POINTS
Exxon is reportedly eager to maintain its annual $15 billion annual dividend

Earlier this year, the company borrowed some $18 billion to improve its cash position
Exxon shares have plunged 35% year to date.

Oil giant ExxonMobil Corp. (XOM) is on the verge of enacting significant cuts in jobs and spending in an effort to save its 8% shareholder dividend, ahead of what is expected to be a disappointing second-quarter earnings report.

Reuters reported that the scale of the cuts are unknown but noted that in April the company already reduced its 2020 budget by 30% to $23 billion.

Exxon, America’s largest oil company, is reportedly eager to maintain its annual $15 billion annual dividend and must make cuts to preserve the payout. Analysts have warned that the company will not generate sufficient cash from its production operations to afford paying the dividend.

Earlier this year, the Texas-based company borrowed some $18 billion to improve its cash position.

But the company is facing a torrent of problems.

Analysts are expecting Exxon to post a quarterly loss of $2.63 billion on Friday – the company’s first back-to-back quarterly losses in more than three decades.

As with all other energy firms, Exxon has been hammered by falling oil prices and a plunge in demand. Exxon shares have plunged 35% year to date.

However, spokesman Casey Norton told Reuters that Exxon has no plans to conduct layoffs due to the pandemic.

“We are continually monitoring market conditions and our deep portfolio has flexibility to adjust our plans,” Norton said.

But in late 2019, Exxon revised its U.S. employee review system such that the number of workers designated for the lowest category could increase to up to 10% this year – up from 3% last year. Employees in that lowest ranking often leave the company unless they can show improvement in performance.

Exxon has almost 75,000 employees around the world, with about 40% in the U.S.

Exxon’s Chief Executive Darren Woods has asserted that demand for oil and gas will recover later this year.

But Woods’ plan to raise about $15 billion via asset sales through 2021 has had mixed results. In 2019, the company raised almost $3.7 billion through asset dispositions, but this year that figure has plunged to $86 million.

“[The asset sale program] has fallen a bit behind schedule but there have been reports there are several packages out,” said Cowen analyst Jason Gabelman.

Jennifer Rowland, an analyst at Edward Jones, warned that even if Exxon raises enough cash to pay this year’s full dividend, a dividend cut remains “a real possibility in 2021.”

“There is only so much Exxon can continue to lean on its balance sheet before they start to jeopardize” the dividend, Rowland said.

Exxon has raised its dividend every year for the past 37 years.

Paul Ausick, writing in 24/7 Wall Street, said that in the event Exxon were to write down any of its assets, it could badly hurt the company’s share prices.

“The stock already trades 44% below its 52-week high,” he wrote.

Ausick added that if Exxon cut its dividend, “investors could race for the exits.”

US Workers' Comp An Issue For Some That Caught Coronavirus On The Job


By Anthony Riccobono @tony_riccobono
08/01/20

VIDEO
What Is A Recession? Coronavirus Pandemic Pushes U.S. Economy To Record Low


Workers in the United States that haven’t been able to do their jobs from home during the coronavirus pandemic don’t only have to worry about getting sick. If a person is diagnosed with COVID-19, they could have trouble being compensated for catching the virus at work.

Whether or not COVID-19 is covered as a work-related injury varies by state. More than a dozen states have implemented laws during the pandemic in order for a healthcare worker to be presumed to have contracted the virus at work, but that doesn’t ensure coverage for other professions.

States like New York, which was hit hard early on by the coronavirus, place the burden on the employee to prove that they got the virus at work.

“Trying to prove where somebody contracted an infection is really difficult,” Bill Smith, president of the nonprofit Workers’ Injury Law & Advocacy Group, told FairWarning. “You’ve got health care workers working around individuals who are positive and you would think clearly they would be covered. They may or may not, depending on what state you’re in.”

FairWarning, a nonprofit news organization that focuses on public health, consumer, labor and environmental issues, spoke with Santina Curry, a 45-year-old correctional officer in Ohio. Curry was diagnosed with COVID-19 in March after she served breakfast to an inmate who later tested positive for the coronavirus. She still hasn’t been able to return to work because of the effects of her illness and is unable to get either disability or unemployment benefits.
Curry’s employer, Cuyahoga County, fought her workers’ comp claim. She was forced to start a GoFundMe page to pay for the costs of her illness.

As Congress and the White House discuss plans for another coronavirus relief bill, Senate Republicans have looked to include immunity for businesses against lawsuits from workers or customers accusing them of helping to spread the virus. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told CNBC Tuesday that the GOP would not negotiate over liability protection.

Workers’ comp systems typically don’t cover infectious diseases.

“Nobody was getting compensated for getting the flu, for example,” Emily Spieler, a professor at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, told FairWarning. “The question becomes, in a pandemic, where you’re telling people they have to go to work, and they may or are likely to be exposed, how should the workers’ compensation system respond?”

Coronavirus Economy: Consumer Spending Increases In June But Personal Income Is Falling


By Marcy Kreiter @marcykreiter
07/31/20


KEY POINTS
Consumer spending increased $737.7 billion in June or 5.6% but analysts said further spending could be tempered by the resurgence of coronavirus

Personal income fell $222.8 billion or 1.1% as some government pandemic programs expired

Analysts said further recovery likely will be dependent on whether the trajectory of coronavirus infections can be reversed
The Commerce Department on Friday reported consumer spending jumped 5.6% in June, but the resurgence of the coronavirus may prompt a pullback that could slow the recovery from spring business shutdowns. Household income fell 1.1%.

It was the second straight month Commerce reported an increase following the sharp decline prompted by the economy’s virtual shutdown.

The report follows Thursday’s statistics showing the economy contracted a record 9.5% in the second quarter. Consumer spending makes up two-thirds of economic demand in the U.S.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported June spending increased $737.7 billion, with increases in both goods and services. The biggest increases were recorded in clothing and footwear, healthcare, food services and accommodations. Within healthcare, both hospital and outpatient services were up.

Personal income fell by $222.8 billion last month, with disposable income off $255.3 billion.

BEA said the drop in personal income was attributable to a decrease in social benefits doled out as part of the CARES Act but were offset partially by pandemic unemployment compensation. The extra $600 a week in jobless payments expired Friday, and Senate Republicans went home for the weekend without agreeing on replacement legislation.

Analysts said further recovery likely will be dependent on whether the trajectory of coronavirus infections can be reversed. The virus has claimed more than 152,000 American lives, and currently is killing people at a rate of about 1,400 a day.

“It appears that some elements of the economic rebound didn’t incorporate sufficient measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 into new areas, and that’s creating a second, more localized, episode of customers avoiding shopping and dining,” the Mercatus Center at George Mason University said in an email to International Business Times.

“The outlook for the economy will be very much dependent on whether the infection rates in the U.S. come down reasonably quickly, and whether the confidence can be restored,” Madhavi Bokil, a vice president at Moody’s Investors Service, told the Wall Street Journal.

Walmart Layoffs 2020: Hundreds Of Corporate Workers To Be Cut


By Dawn Geske
07/30/2020

Walmart (WMT) announced it will lay off hundreds of workers as it looks to trim its store planning, logistics and real estate units, sources told Bloomberg.

The layoffs were announced to some employees in person while others were told over a Zoom call, Bloomberg said. Those who lost their jobs were to be paid until the end of January.

“We are continuing on our journey to create an omnichannel organization within our Walmart U.S. business, and we’re making some additional changes this week,” a company spokesperson told Bloomberg.

John Furner, head of Walmart’s U.S. operations, is expected to discuss the layoffs in a statement to employees Thursday afternoon.

While Walmart didn’t disclose the exact number of workers to be cut, the decision follows a recent trend among retailers to scale back staff. Macy’s announced earlier in July it would be cutting 3,900 jobs while L Brands said it would lay off 850 corporate workers or 8% of its workforce earlier this week.

Retailers are struggling as a result of the pandemic, which closed stores temporarily because of the coronavirus. Now that the majority of stores have reopened, retailers are grappling with new safety measures and a drop in customer demand. But for Walmart, it has been the opposite. It has stayed open with reduced hours during the pandemic and has seen its sales surge in the last few months.

However, Walmart is not opening new stores in the U.S., especially at the pace it once was, Bloomberg said. It is also looking to become a nimbler organization, consolidating its store and online divisions into one – a move that was initiated with the closure of its Jet.com e-commerce business.

Shares of Walmart were trading at $129.97 as of 12:47 p.m. ET, down 72 cents or 0.55%.


Walmart's move to mandate masks come a day after Best Buy announced a similar measure

PERMANENT ARMS ECONOMY
Raytheon Sells Military GPS Business, After Cutting 8,000 Aerospace Jobs


By Palash Ghosh @Gooch700
07/31/2020

KEY POINTS
The military GPS business comprises a workforce of 700 employees
Raytheon posted adjusted earnings of $0.40 per share on sales of $14.1 billion in the second quarter
United Technologies Corp. and Raytheon merged to form Raytheon Technologies in June.

Raytheon Technologies (RTX) completed the $1.9 billion sale of its military global positioning system business to Britain’s BAE Systems on Friday.

The military GPS business, which designs and builds advanced, hardened, secure GPS products, comprises a workforce of 700 employees.

“This partnership will enable us to build on our market leadership and bring new discriminating capabilities to our customers, including the U.S. Department of Defense and its allies,” said Greg Wild, director of Military GPS. “We’re excited to be joining the BAE Systems family. They appreciate our legacy of innovation and will provide opportunities for continued business growth and success.”

The transaction comes in the wake of the merger of defense contractors United Technologies Corp. and Raytheon to form Raytheon Technologies in June. The U.S. Department of Justice approved that merger in March, but conditioned it upon the divestiture of UTC’s military GPS business, among other things.


Earlier this week, Raytheon said it cut 8,000 jobs in its commercial aviation division due to the decimation of air travel.
The coronavirus’s impact on plane travel “has proven to be a lot worse” than what Raytheon originally expected, Raytheon Chief Executive Officer Greg Hayes said.

“Looking ahead, we expect the pressures in commercial aerospace to persist as [original equipment manufacturer] production levels and aftermarket activity remain low,” he added. “As a result, we are taking difficult but necessary actions to strengthen the business, including achieving the previously announced cost and cash savings this year.”




General Electric’s (GE) aviation unit, which competes with Raytheon, said it would cut 13,000 jobs – about a quarter of its workforce.

On Wednesday, Raytheon said it posted adjusted earnings of $0.40 per share on sales of $14.1 billion in the second quarter.

"During the quarter, we continued to deliver good performance in our defense business, while we saw challenges in commercial aerospace as expected," Hayes said. "Our balance sheet remains strong and the resiliency of our defense business will help us weather this storm as we continue to capitalize on growth opportunities supported by our record backlog.”

Routine gas flaring is wasteful, polluting and undermeasured

GAS PLANTS OUTSIDE EDMONTON FLARE OFF METHANE AND H2SO4

by Gunnar W. Schade, The Conversation

The nonprofit Skytruth posts time series views of gas flares seen from space, from 2012 to the present. Above, how flares looked in mid-July 2020. Credit: Skytruth.org

If you've driven through an area where companies extract oil and gas from shale formations, you've probably seen flames dancing at the tops of vertical pipes. That's flaring—the mostly uncontrolled practice of burning off a byproduct of oil and gas production. Over the past 10 years, the U.S. shale oil and gas boom has made this country one of the world's top five flaring nations, just behind Russia, Iran and Iraq.


It's a dubious distinction. Routine flaring gives the industry a black eye.

I am an atmospheric scientist studying trace gases—chemicals that make up a small fraction of Earth's atmosphere, but can have significant effects on the environment and human health. In several recent studies with graduate and undergraduate students, I have shown how routine flaring is inaccurately assessed and creates a sizable source of air pollution.

Due to a rapid oil price drop in the spring of 2020, new oil exploration has plummeted and production is running at reduced levels. But the industry can rapidly resume activities as demand and prices recover. And so will flaring.

Regulatory agencies, under pressure from environmental groups and parts of the industry, are finally considering rules to curb flaring. But can this wasteful and polluting practice be stopped?

Economic expediency

Each operating shale oil well produces variable amounts of "associated" or "casinghead" gas, a raw gas mixture of highly volatile hydrocarbons, mostly methane. Producers often don't want this gas unless it can be collected through an existing network of pipelines.

Even when that's possible, they may decide to dispose of the gas anyway because the cost of collecting and moving it can initially be higher than the value of the gas. This is where flaring comes in.

Routine flaring is common in the Bakken shale formation in North Dakota, the Eagle Ford shale in south-central Texas and the Permian Basin in northwest Texas and New Mexico. Texas has flared about as much gas annually as all of its residential users consume. In the Permian Basin alone, about US$750 million worth of gas was wasted in 2018, without any public benefit.


At the same time, gas flaring contributes approximately 1% of man-made atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions globally. That is when flares combust hydrocarbons efficiently, converting them to carbon dioxide. In contrast, when flares burn poorly or go out, they pollute the air with more harmful gases.



Our studies in two regions of the Eagle Ford shale in Texas showed that flares may be the dominant source of nitrogen oxides, or NOx in these rural areas. NOx emissions contribute to acid rain, ozone and smog formation, and can irritate the eyes, nose, throat and lungs.

We found that at the sites we studied, industrial combustion sources such as flares produced about 10 times more NOx than cars in the area. Although a single flare may be a relatively small source, the large number of flares and high variability of NOx production per flare can cause large-scale atmospheric impacts visible from space.
In the Permian Basin region of west Texas, residents say gas flaring is polluting the air and making them sick.

Unauthorized venting may explain high flaring volumes

Almost all flares are open combustion sources. They can be detected from space as bright, fixed-location heat radiation sources. Scientists have developed algorithms to catalog this radiant heat and relate it to the reported volume of gas flared globally.

With the help of undergraduate students, sociologist Kate Willyard and I evaluated data from the satellite-based Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer, or VIIRS. We calculated flaring volumes in the two Texas shale oil production regions, both on a per-wellpad and per-county basis. We then compared it to a database from the Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates oil and gas production, for the years 2012-2015, and found large discrepancies between the two datasets.

In total, the volumes reported in the state database were only around half of what the satellite observed. Another, less detailed bulk analysis by the research firm S&P Global found similar discrepancies for shale regions in New Mexico and North Dakota.

These large differences may be explained by reporting errors and by several flare operations that are simply exempted from volume reporting. But we suspect that there is an even more systemic, mundane explanation: venting—the direct release of raw gas to the atmosphere.

Venting gas is allowed only for a small set of operations in the industry if it can be done safely. It is usually prohibited because it emits hydrocarbons, including air toxics such as benzene that can cause cancer, birth defects or other serious health problems.

But venting mainly emits methane, which contributes to global warming and atmospheric ozone formation. Venting from flare stacks is illegal, since the flare is considered a waste treatment facility, but the practice apparently has increased over time.

Recent, higher-resolution satellite measurements of atmospheric methane over the Permian basin reveal that its emissions must be significantly higher than what is routinely reported to the Environmental Protection Agency, exceeding 3% of production instead of the more typically assumed 1-2%. Extra methane illegally vented through flare stacks would end up in the Texas Railroad Commission's database, but satellites looking for heat radiation from combustion would not detect it.

That heat radiation is converted into flaring volumes, using total reported volumes to agencies nationwide. But if a much smaller volume is actually flared, with some of the gas not combusted but vented, the satellite data would overestimate flaring. This is a problem because scientists and the World Bank's zero flaring initiative employ these satellite-based flaring estimates.

Investors say flaring can be avoided

For a decade conservation groups such as the Environmental Defense Fund have called on regulators to address the shale industry's methane emissions and the rapid increase in flaring. The Obama administration adopted a new rule in 2016 to curb methane leaks and reduce flaring on public and Indian lands. Now the Trump administration is trying to undo this action, albeit with limited success.

Meanwhile, a new study commissioned by the Environmental Defense Fund and involving investors concludes that there are feasible and cost-effective ways for oil and gas companies to minimize flaring even without much regulation. Nevertheless, given that much of the industry has already spent a decade without widely employing such best-practice measures, I expect that oil and gas companies are likely to keep wasting and polluting for the foreseeable future unless government agencies impose tighter regulations.


Explore furtherStudy of natural gas flaring finds high risks to babies
Provided by The Conversation

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
7 shares

Amazonian Indigenous territories are crucial for conservation
by University of Helsinki

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

"In this paper we show that supporting Indigenous peoples' rights is in the interest of the conservation agenda," explains Dr. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares, the first author of the study, from the University of Helsinki. "The future of a substantial proportion of the Amazon's biodiversity depends largely on coordinated action to support and strengthen indigenous peoples' rights across the entire region."


The authors argue that the convergence of the agendas and priorities of both wilderness-centered conservationists and Indigenous peoples is more important than ever, as some of the government in the region have started to trample over commitments towards globally agreed goals on both the environment and indigenous peoples' rights.

"There is no doubt that the Amazon is at a crossroads in its social-ecological history," adds Dr. Fernández-Llamazares. "Rollbacks on environmental protections and indigenous peoples' rights across the entire region are opening up vast natural areas to new external pressures."

All these macroeconomic and political forces are being felt in both wilderness areas and Indigenous Peoples' territories. However, disputes on whether conserving wilderness should come at the expense of indigenous peoples' rights undermine potential for collaborative conservation.

Minimal forest loss on Indigenous territories across the Amazon

The study underscored the substantial role of Indigenous territories in buffering against deforestation through advanced geospatial analyses based on available satellite data. These lands account for less than 15% of all the forest loss occurring within the Amazon's last wilderness frontiers. This is largely evidenced throughout the southern rim of the Amazon, where Indigenous territories represent the only islands of biological and cultural diversity in the larger landscape.

"The concept of wilderness has a contentious history across much of the Global South, as it is based on the assumption that humans have inherently negative impacts on nature," highlights Prof. Eduardo S. Brondizio, a researcher from Indiana University Bloomington and senior author of the study.

"Yet, the Amazon is a classic example of how long-term interactions between Indigenous peoples and forests can be linked to positive environmental outcomes. We have known for decades that a significant portion of the region's supposedly pristine forests are in fact cultural forests,"he notes. "Indigenous peoples, and also other traditional communities, show that it is possible to successfully combine forest conservation, management and agroforestry systems."

In view of this, the authors call for a more socially inclusive notion of wilderness in order to align the agendas and priorities of both wilderness-focused conservationists and Indigenous peoples against a new wave of frontier expansion.


Explore further

Pollution impacts food and water consumption for Indigenous peoples worldwide

More information: Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares et al, Reframing the Wilderness Concept can Bolster Collaborative Conservation, Trends in Ecology & Evolution (2020). 

DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.06.005

Journal information: Trends in Ecology & Evolution

Provided by University of Helsinki

New method developed to extract antibiotic residue in food from animal sources
by University of Córdoba

The researcher responsible for the study, Soledad González, in the laboratory Credit: University of Córdoba

Coccidiosis is a kind of intestinal illness that affects different groups of animals. It inhibits the absorption of nutrients and growth so that, at times, the animal dies, thus producing financial losses in the livestock industry. In order to fight this disease, antibiotics like coccidiostats are prescribed, which are effective drugs in treating the illness but that also can cause cardiovascular diseases in human beings when concentrations are high in food products from animal sources.


The Supramolecular Analytical Chemistry reseach group at the University of Cordoba developed a new method that allows for extracting and determining these substances in food from animal sources. According to the lead researcher on the study, Soledad González, the procedure is able to simultaneously extract the whole group of ionophore antibiotics (as in, those from a natural source) from all the animal source foods that are legislated in the European Union, something "done for the first time in this research project."

Specifically, the method uses supramolecular, nontoxic solvents known as SUPRAS, which have a high capacity to improve selectivity and performance of the extractions, thus lowering production costs. As pointed out by researcher Soledad González, these kinds of solvents make it possible to simultaneously extract antibiotic residue and clean the sample in a single step. What is more, "this is a low-cost, environmentally friendly method, since it uses a lower volume of organic solvent compared to other widely and routinely used techniques in laboratories," she adds.

After applying the new methodology on different products such as eggs, milk and meat (liver, kidney, muscle and fat), the detection limits that were reached were verified to be much lower than the legal limit, proving that this procedure could be applicable in food quality control laboratories. The new method has been validated following European decision 2002/657/EC, regulating the presence of residues in animal source products, so it could be incorporated into routine controls at laboratories. Researchers Ana María Ballesteros, Soledad Rubio and Diego García-Gómez also participated in this study, with García-Gómez being from the University of Salamanca.


Explore further

Researchers investigate the influence of insect and microalgae feeds on meat quality

More information: S. González-Rubio et al, A new sample treatment strategy based on simultaneous supramolecular solvent and dispersive solid-phase extraction for the determination of ionophore coccidiostats in all legislated foodstuffs, Food Chemistry (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2020.126987

Journal information: Food Chemistry


Provided by University of Córdoba

How to protect yourself from media manipulation on energy issues and other contentious matters
by Holly Clermont, The Conversation

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

When my kids were little, we would play a game during the TV commercials.

What was the main message, I would ask. To whom was it targeted? Did you find it convincing? Why or why not?

I hoped this would encourage critical thinking, build some awareness of unscrupulous messaging and wrest them from the grips of a consumer culture. Without realizing it, I was teaching them about "media frames."

Frames are selective storylines intended to sway decision-makers or public opinion, often with provocative words or images. The power of framing comes from defining the terms of a debate without the audience realizing it has occurred.

Being aware of frames reduces our vulnerability to them. Once we can recognize frames and framing techniques, they lose their power, and we can focus on the arguments, not the frame.

Manipulative or responsible?

"Defund the Police" is a recent example of a frame that targets racially motivated police brutality and advocates for moving a portion of police budgets to other arenas, such as mental health care. The original premise of this frame was that some police tasks should be managed by social workers or through community-building initiatives in a new model of public safety.

The frame was co-opted by self-professed "law-and-order" advocates to suggest the "defunders" were violent anarchists who wanted to abolish the police, threatening public safety and leading to widespread unrest. Another group adopted the defund frame with an eye to removing policing altogether, weakening its original intent and fuelling the "law-and-order" counter-frame.

Frames work by activating or "priming" already held feelings, ideas and values. When they have broad appeal, we see them as common sense. The "law-and-order" counter-frame builds on a deeply rooted common-sense frame that sees police as protectors.

People skilled in the art of shaping frames can define situations, set the terms of debates, strategically mobilize supporters, hobble opponents and ultimately determine outcomes. Framing can be manipulative and unethical, necessary and responsible, brilliant and dangerous.


Anti-petroleum extremists

My research on contentious energy conflicts on Canada's West Coast found no frame was more influential in advancing a conflict narrative than one I labeled "anti-petroleum extremists."

It originated in a 2012 media firestorm over the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline, simmered its way through some seven years of conflict over the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion and is still present in news releases from the Alberta government.

Rather than raise awareness of bombings targeting B.C. gas pipelines and other violent events affecting and threatening people in Canada's oil and gas industry, former prime minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government advanced a frame that portrayed pipeline opponents as foreign-funded radicals who were unfairly trying to stop major projects no matter what the cost to Canadian families.

The frame was amplified by anti-terrorism legislation suggesting pipeline protesters threatened national security, documents such as RCMP intelligence reports that suggested protesters were under surveillance and widespread audits of environmental organizations.

Framing techniques

At least five framing techniques were used to create the "anti-petroleum extremists" frame.
Identity: "Us-versus-them" frames characterize a situation to be more about the players and less about the issues. Blame was squarely placed on a stereotypical them with moral indignation and an intent to legitimize action to end the perceived injustice.
Hot values: Like all contentious frames, "anti-petroleum extremists" was embedded in "hot values" more than "cold" information such as industry statistics or even "warm" stories about resource-dependent families.
For example, fossil fuels may be valued as sources of great wealth and progress, or derided as threats to clean air and water and planetary stability. In a framing contest, frames attached to strong values will trounce ones that are technical or narrative.
Masculinity: Under this frame, leadership is about decisiveness, power and strength. In feminine frames, it's about bridging differences, establishing relationships and questioning one's own position.
Breaking the monopoly on emotion: By describing environmentalists as "foreign-funded," the Harper government hijacked a common anti-oilsands frame, namely that foreign wealth had tremendous influence over Canadian energy and environmental policies.
Villain, victim and hero: The Harper government portrayed itself as heroic, protecting the Canadian public and important investors from villanous extremists. Protesters had a similar frame, where the heroes were reasonable people with legitimate concerns safeguarding a sustainable future.

No choice

As the Harper government weakened environmental laws and legal decisions failed to provide relief, many people began to feel like they were running out of options. This helped spur a "no choice" frame.

Many "no choice" advocates did not see themselves as extremist and felt they—not only the environment—were under assault, transforming the frame into an identity frame.

For Indigenous people opposed to the project, the "anti-petroleum extremists" frame was another intolerable affront to First Nations and territories overly consumed by development.

For some other research participants, there was a sense that Canadianism was under attack.

The "no choice" frame became linked to a hot values frame with villain, victim, hero properties called "restoring democracy" in the lead up to the 2015 federal election. In this frame, moral justice trumped legal justice, since legislators and regulators were seen as aligned with industry and not worthy of trust.

"Restoring democracy" would become the most prominent frame in mainstream news, and it was this frame to which Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first responded, promising extensive opportunities for public input.

Building frame literacy

Powerful players in government and industry have ample resources and experience with media messaging. To help level the playing field, I challenge you to identify frames in media.

Are they being used to some political advantage? What values are evident? Are there counter-frames? What framing techniques are used?

Are the frames in non-profit, industry or government media? Are they in mainstream news? How frequently are you seeing them in each type of media?

Is there an emerging "no choice" frame, signaling a social tipping point?

As you build frame literacy, you will protect yourself from media manipulation—and likely have a little fun.


Explore further How does a quantum particle see the world?

Provided by The Conversation

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Solar-powered animal tracker transforms how researchers collect data on animals in wild

by David Kearns, University College Dublin

Trials of the solar-powered device showing a range of attachment types across taxa including (a) giraffe—ossicone, (b) scimitar horned oryx—horn, (c) Przewalski's stallion—tail hair, (d) elephant calf—collar and (e) Rüppell's vulture with backpack. Credit: University College Dublin
A new solar-powered animal tracker promises to transform the collection of environmental and behavioural data, greatly improving animal welfare.


An 18-month study by University College Dublin researchers piloted the use of a solar-powered tracking device originally designed for vultures but adapted for use on large herbivores such as giraffes, elephants and wild horses.

The tracker's solar-panels proved an effective power source during the lengthy trials; demonstrating how its use could address some of the serious challenges faced by those engaged in conservation and field research.

"Incorporating solar panels allowed animals to be tagged with smaller and lighter GPS devices without losing any of the functionality of larger devices" said Emma Hart, Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour at the UCD School of Biology and Environmental Science.

Devices worn by animals that record their location, their behaviour and environmental conditions have generated vast amounts of data to aid in conservation efforts.

However, as researchers tag an increasing number of species, animal welfare concerns have grown.

Attaching, and later removing, a tracking device to an animal involves capturing, restraining, and in some instances sedation.

This process can be stressful for animals. Significantly lessening the impact that such tagging has on the behaviour, health, or welfare of an animal is a paramount concern for researchers.

Another issue is that the batteries that power wildlife trackers vary in size and weight, and often this limits their use as the majority of mammal species still fall outside of the minimum body weight bracket for many tracking devices.

Researchers must comply with the animal welfare guidelines that devices weigh no more than 2–5% of an animal's bodyweight.

Furthermore, variation in morphology means that certain species are difficult to tag with cumbersome units, regardless of the size and weight of the animal.

Map of the study region in the northern Namib Desert, Namibia, showing (a) giraffe locations recorded using solar-powered GPS tracking devices fitted to 20 giraffe between July 2016 and February 2019; (b) a group of giraffe with an adult female tagged with a GPS tracking unit, and (c) a distant giraffe moving between patches of vegetation in the arid desert landscape. Credit: University College Dublin

The unusual long neck of giraffes for example do not easily support the collar type attachment used on other large mammals such as lions.


The analysis carried out by Emma and her colleagues demonstrated several answers to these concerns; namely that the small size and longevity of the solar-powered tracking devices tested could allow researchers to remotely gather information on a wider range of animals and across their entire life spans without a need to replace failed trackers.

The study, carried out by UCD, the Giraffe Conservation Foundation in Namibia, and Dartmouth College, found that, once charged, the units maintained high voltage throughout the testing period.

This remained the case even in conditions with little or no solar energy, i.e. when animals were standing in the shade or during periods of reduced daylight, namely night time, winter and the wet season.

"Devices with longer lifespans will potentially lead to a greater quantity and quality of data collected per individual captured and a reduced frequency of recaptures for removal or replacement of failed devices," Emma said.

The importance of collecting behavioural data can not be overstated, as it allows new insights into how animals are reacting to changes in their environments. Such information is key to keeping conservation efforts successful.

A second paper by Emma and the UCD Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour highlights this, using data from the solar-powered trackers to show how vulnerable the giraffes of the Namib Desert are to the effects of climate change.

The results showed giraffe activity was constrained by temperatures above 30 °C during the day, while at night the animals' behaviour was synchronised with the phases of the moon.

"Specifically we found that giraffes were significantly more likely to be active on moonlit nights than on dark nights, with even a small fraction of lunar illumination resulting in significantly higher levels of activity" Emma said.

"The study demonstrates some of the first evidence of the strong effect of moonlight on the nocturnal behaviour of large wild herbivores... [and] it shows that ungulates [primarily large mammals with hooves] have plastic activity patterns that are vulnerable to modification by external factors.

"Our results reiterate the importance of identifying areas that can continue to support healthy populations of giraffe despite rising global temperatures and also highlight the importance of limiting light pollution when making management decisions regarding wild giraffe and other large ungulates."


Explore further Giraffes surprise biologists yet again

More information: Emma E. Hart et al. Precision and performance of an 180g solar-powered GPS device for tracking medium to large-bodied terrestrial mammals, Wildlife Biology (2020). DOI: 10.2981/wlb.00669

Provided by University College Dublin

'Good' virus for common infection
SOVIET SCIENTIFIC TECHNOLOGY

by Flinders University

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Australian researchers have shown how viruses can be used to save lives, developing the potential use of bacteriophages in bandages to treat life-threatening golden staph infections which may not respond to traditional antibiotics.


Targeting multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ('golden staph') in diabetic foot ulcers, Flinders University microbiology researchers have joined infectious diseases and pharmaceutical partners to show the usefulness of a possible 'phage cocktail' therapy on wound infections.

A phage (or bacteriophage) is a virus capable of infecting a bacterial cell and is capable of being used in a range of medical applications including as a therapy against 'superbugs'.

Bacteriophages (phages, viruses that infect bacteria) represent an alternative or adjunct therapy to antibiotics, with S aureus a common and particularly virulent pathogen often found to be resistant and limited for antimicrobial treatment options.

"Diabetic foot ulcers are very dangerous and when infected can lead to amputation and even death," says Flinders University Associate Professor Peter Speck, who is Secretary of the Australasian Virology Society.

"The next step in our research is to bind phages to a dressing to make a truly antibacterial dressing, with specific activity against golden staph. The technology exists to make such a dressing, with a big advantage being that bound phages remain viable for a year even when stored at room temperature, making this approach ideal for use in hospitals and clinics—even in rural and remote settings."

Co-author on a new paper in BMC Microbiology, Flinders Ph.D. Legesse Garedew Kifelew says the results of the sound treatment in mice were very promising.

"This study demonstrates that phage therapy could be a potential alternative in combating antibiotic-resisant bacterial infections," says Mr Kifelew, who works in infectious disease management at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and has ties to St Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

"The phages effectively decreased the bacterial load and significantly improved wound healing in in multi-drug resistant S aureus infection—similar or superior to the currently prescribed antibiotic treatment," he says.

With diabetes on the rise, the global burden of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) is also affecting up to 26.1 million people each year, with these ulcers the cause of almost 90% of limb amputations. The five-year mortality rate following foot amputation due to DFUs has been estimated at up to 74%.

Based on 2015 prevalence data from the International Diabetes Federation, it is estimated that foot ulcers develop in 9.1 million to 26.1 million people with diabetes annually worldwide.

In the US, the annual cost of managing DFU infections is estimated at an additional US$9-13 billion over the cost of diabetes itself. In England, it is estimated that the annual cost of managing DFUs exceeds the total cost of breast, prostate and lung cancers combined.


Explore further Virus therapy to attack superbugs

More information: Legesse Garedew Kifelew et al, Efficacy of phage cocktail AB-SA01 therapy in diabetic mouse wound infections caused by multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, BMC Microbiology (2020). DOI: 10.1186/s12866-020-01891-8

Journal information: BMC Microbiology


Provided by Flinders University

Ancient mountain formation and monsoons helped create a modern biodiversity hotspot

by Field Museum

A plant press used by the researchers doing fieldwork in the Hengduan Mountains. Credit: Deren Eaton

One of the big questions in biology is why certain plants and animals are found in some places and not others. Figuring out how species evolve and spread, and why some places are richer in species than others, is key to understanding and protecting the world around us. Mountains make a good laboratory for scientists tackling these questions: mountains are home to tons of biodiversity, in part due to all the different habitats at different elevations. In a new study in Science, researchers examined the plant life in the China's Hengduan Mountains, the Himalaya Mountains, and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Using DNA to build family trees of species, they learned that the diversity of plants in that region today can be traced back to newly-formed mountain ranges 30 million years ago, and monsoons that came later. It's a concrete example of how climatic and environmental changes influence life on Earth.


"This paper addresses the fundamental question of why there are so many species in some parts of the world and not others," says Rick Ree, a curator at Chicago's Field Museum and corresponding author of the Science study. "The formation of this very species-rich community was fueled by ancient mountain-building and then subsequent effects of the monsoon. The biodiversity that we see today has been profoundly shaped by geology and climate."

The paper focuses on plants growing above the treeline (called the alpine zone) in the Hengduan Mountains of southwestern China. "It's an incredibly interesting part of the world, it's a relatively small area that harbors one-third of all the plant species in China," says Ree. "In the Hengduan Mountains, you can see coniferous forests, rushing glacial streams, craggy valleys, and meadows just teeming with wildflowers." Some of the flowers, Ree notes, might be familiar to Western gardeners, including rhododendrons and delphiniums.

Ree and his colleagues wanted to find out how plants are distributed in the alpine regions of the Hengduan Mountains, Himalaya, and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and how they got there in the first place. To figure it out, they turned to phylogenetic reconstructions: essentially, using DNA and key pieces of fossil evidence to piece together the plants' family trees, going back tens of millions of years.

An alpine meadow full of flowers in the Hengduan Mountains. Credit: Rick Ree, Field Museum

The researchers compared the DNA of different plant species that live in the region, determining how closely related they were to each other and how they evolved. If you have DNA sequences for a bunch of different plants, by looking at the differences in their DNA and using fossil plants as benchmarks for how long it takes new species to arise, you can make an educated guess as to how long ago their common ancestor lived and figure out the family tree that makes the most sense.


In this study, Ree and his colleagues were able to trace the origins of alpine plants in the Hengduan, Himalaya, and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Many of the plants first evolved in the Hengduan Mountains. Then, as the Indian tectonic plate collided with Asia, slowly creating new mountains, a bunch of new habitats formed up the mountains' sides and in the valleys below. And as the new mountains formed, the region began to experience more intense monsoons, possibly because the mountains altered the prevailing winds, creating new weather conditions.

"The combined effect of mountain-building and monsoons was like pouring jet fuel onto this flame of species origination," says Ree. "The monsoon wasn't simply giving more water for plants to grow, it had this huge role in creating a more rugged topography. It caused erosion, resulting in deeper valleys and more incised mountain ranges."

"The theory is, if you increase the ruggedness of a landscape, you're more likely to have populations restricted in their movement because it's harder to cross a deeper valley than a shallow valley. So any time you start increasing the patchiness and barriers between populations, you expect evolution to accelerate," says Ree.

The snow-capped peaks of the Hengduan Mountains, with plants in the foreground. Credit: Rick Ree, Field Museum

And that's exactly what the team found in reconstructing the plants' genetic family tree: as the landscape grew more rugged over time, the now-isolated populations of plants veered off into their own separate species, resulting in the biodiversity we see today.

In addition to showing how geological and climate changes over the last 30 million years affect today's spread of plants, Ree notes that the study has implications for better understanding the climate change the Earth is currently experiencing.

"This study sheds light on the conditions under which we get rich versus poor biodiversity," says Ree. "Mountain ecosystems tend to be very sensitive to things like global warming, because the organisms that live there are dependent on a tight range of elevation and temperature. Understanding how historical environmental change affected alpine plants twenty million years ago can help us predict how today's climate change will affect their descendants."

Explore further  New species evolve faster as mountains form

More information: W.-N. Ding el al., "Ancient orogenic and monsoon-driven assembly of the world's richest temperate alpine flora," Science (2020).

science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi … 1126/science.abb4484

Journal information: Science

Provided by Field Museum