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“Are glaciers melting at alarming rates?” “Is climate change really happening?” I have been asked these questions by people and students outside the environmental field. Changes in glaciers seem to be the gold standard for measuring climate change. However, living in the Caribbean, to me glaciers seem like a distant world.

A recent vacation to Alaska on a cruise ship provided me some insight on climate change and its consequences. While in Juneau I visited Mendenhall Glacier and could notice the retreating of this glacier upon my hike in the adjoining rain forest. An old building deep inside the forest revealed the former visitor’s center more than 10 miles from the glacier’s current location as well as a stone marking from 1916 of the ice limit.

Managed by the U.S. Forest Service and part of the Tongass National Forest (the nation’s largest forest), Mendenhall, which is 12 miles long, has been rapidly retreating since 1750. From 1951–1958, the glacier, which flows into suburban Juneau, has retreated 1,900 feet (580 m). The glacier has also receded 1.75 miles (2.82 km) since 1958, when Mendenhall Lake was created. In 2004 the glacier retreated 600 feet and in 2007 another 500 ft..

Glaciers form in areas with large amounts of rain and extremely low temperatures. When snow accumulates, it compacts underlying snow layers from previous years into solid ice. Glaciers cover 10% of our world’s total area. This is the same amount of land used worldwide for agriculture. Glacier and polar ice store more water than all the world’s lakes, rivers and the atmosphere combined. When they melt, sea level rises thus consequences for coastal communities and islands are serious. Rising sea levels inundate wetlands and other low-lying lands In Juneau, I could not help noticing that the Gastineau Channel turns into a wetland at some point during the day. There was a low tide early in the morning. Our forest interpreter told us it is becoming increasingly unavigable as there has been a marked increase in silt build up. Some research into this showed that it has been argued that this a consequence of melting and retreating of Mendenhall Glacier. If current trends continue, it is possible the channel may be entirely blocked and filled with dry land.

Yes indeed, climate change is happening and it is tangible. EPA is working on many programs geared to reduce the harmful effects on human health and the environment of green house gases. While most are voluntary, states and industries are actively engaged. I invite you to take a closer look at your daily activities and try to cut down on your carbon footprint.

About the author: Brenda Reyes Tomassini joined EPA in 2002. She is a public affairs specialist in the San Juan, Puerto Rico office and also handles community relations for the Caribbean Environmental Protection Division.

“Se están derritiendo los glaciares de forma alarmante?” “Es el cambio climático real?” estas son dos de las preguntas más frecuentes que me hacen estudiantes y personas externas al campo ambiental. Y es que los cambios en los glaciares son el indicador por excelencia para medir el cambio climático. Sin embargo, viviendo en un lugar tan caluroso como el Caribe, los glaciares parecen ser un fenómeno lejano para muchas personas como yo.

Recientemente tuve la oportunidad de visitar Alaska en un crucero y conocer de cerca las implicaciones del cambio climático en los glaciares. En Juneau, capital de Alaska, visité el Glaciar Mendenhall cuya disminución es notable. Mientras escalaba en el bosque pluvial aledaño al glaciar nuestra intérprete de bosque nos mostró el Centro de Información original del Servicio Forestal. . Este está ubicado a más de 10 millas de donde se encuentra hoy el glaciar. Una piedra sepultada entre los árboles marca el límite del hielo en el año 1916. Este bosque y el glaciar pertenecen a la Reserva Nacional Tongass, el bosque más grande de los Estados Unidos.

El Glaciar Mendenhall mide 12 millas de largo y se encuentra cediendo desde 1750. De 1951 a 1958 el glaciar, que es parte de Juneau, ha retrocedido 1,900 pies (580m). Desde 1958 al presente ha recedido 1.75 millas (2.82 km) lo que resultó en la creación del Lago Mendenhall en donde flotan enormes pedazos de hielo. En el año 2004 el Glaciar retrocedió 600 pies y en 2007 otros 500 pies.

Los glaciares se forman en áreas que reciben cantidades exorbitantes de lluvia y la temperatura es baja. Cuando la nieve se acumula, se compacta en capas y esas capas a su vez forman hielo sólido. Los glaciares cubren el 10% de la superficie terrestre, la misma cantidad de tierra destinada a la agricultura a nivel mundial. Los glaciares y el hielo polar almacenan más agua que todos los ríos y lagos del mundo combinados con la atmósfera. Cuando se derriten, el nivel del mar aumenta impactando las comunidades costeras y las islas. Sus efectos pueden ser serios ya que inundan humedales y otras tierras bajas

En Juneau, el Canal Gastineu se convierte en un humedal en tempranas horas de la mañana para luego ser inundado con agua en las tardes. Sin embargo el canal es cada día menos navegable por el aumento en sedimentos, no por la ausencia de agua. Al buscar información sobre este curioso fenómeno encontré que esto es consecuencia directa del derretimiento y retracción del Glaciar Mendenhall. De continuar esta tendencia, es posible que en un futuro el canal pueda ser un relleno de tierra seca.

Ciertamente el cambio climático está sucediendo y es un fenómeno tangible. Nuestra agencia continúa su labor de educar a la ciudadanía sobre los efectos dañinos a la salud y al medioambiente causados por los gases de invernaderos. Aunque muchos de estos programas son voluntarios, los estados y las industrias se encuentran arduamente buscando formas de reducir su huella de carbón. Le invito a que tome nota sobre sus actividades diarias y encuentre como puede reducir su contribución a los gases de invernadero.

Sobre la autor: Brenda Reyes Tomassini se unió a la EPA en el 2002. Labora como especialista de relaciones públicas en la oficina de EPA en San Juan, Puerto Rico donde también maneja asuntos comunitarios para la División de Protección Ambiental del Caribe.

In less than two weeks I will send my daughter, Hannah, to her first year of school – kindergarten, where the children will be assigned, I am told, actual homework – and I will experience a milestone day of parental reckoning. But after touring the school, meeting the teachers, and commiserating with the other parents, I am almost as excited as Hannah to experience her first day and let her begin to explore and fulfill her potential.

As someone who has worked on school environmental health since 1996, I know that indoor air quality (IAQ) issues will play a role in my daughter’s ability to do just that—live out her full potential. More and more research shows just how much IAQ in school buildings affects both student and teacher health and performance.

One might think that my knowledge of how poor IAQ can affect children’s health would add to my anxiety about Hannah going to school. But while my position has made me very familiar with the problems associated with poor IAQ, it’s also made me keenly aware of the solutions. I’ve walked a mile in school stakeholders’ shoes, and seen IAQ management from each individual’s perspective. I can personally attest to how passionate people in schools are about protecting children’s health, and how a community effort around these issues can create change.

And a big part of that community effort involves parents. I’d like all the moms and dads interested in advocating for healthy school IAQ to know that they, too, can make a difference at their children’s schools.

Become knowledgeable about the issues and the solutions. Open a dialogue with the school principal about how you could be a partner in their efforts. Offer to be the “parent liaison” for IAQ and share your knowledge with other parents; give a short presentation at a PTA meeting; give the principal an IAQ “fact of the week” to publish in the school newsletter. Better yet, encourage them to get involved in the IAQ Tools for Schools National Awards Program so they are rewarded for their efforts and progress in creating healthy environments. If you become partners with your children’s schools, you will accomplish more than you ever thought possible.

If you remember only one thing from this blog, I hope it is this: IAQ management, much like parenting, is a lifestyle—not a diet. You have to live it.

About the author: Jennifer Lemon has been working on indoor air quality issues in schools since 1996. She works in the U.S. EPA’s Indoor Environments Division.

We spend a lot of our time indoors, and the quality of the air indoors can even be worse than what’s outdoors. But building or upgrading a home with improved, cleaner air features can help reduce health risks. Share what you do!

How do you protect the air inside your home?

Each week we ask a question related to the environment. Please let us know your thoughts as comments. Feel free to respond to earlier comments or post new ideas. Previous questions.

Pasamos mucho tiempo en interiores, y la calidad del aire en interiores puede ser peor que en el exterior.  Si construimos o remodelamos nuestros hogares con mejores equipos de aire, podemos ayudar a reducir los riesgos a la salud. ¡Comparta lo que hacemos!

¿Cómo protege el aire interior en su hogar?

Cada semana hacemos una pregunta relacionada al medio ambiente. Por favor comparta con nosotros sus pensamientos y comentarios. Siéntase en libertad de responder a comentarios anteriores o plantear nuevas ideas. Preguntas previas.

I was enjoying my early morning quiet office when the phone rang. The man at the other end, Jason, uttered a polite good morning, asked if I worked on air quality issues, and then started firing questions on emissions and idling rules for his 15 year old truck. Did I know about how the federal regulations differed from California’s or Nevada’s? Would he incur fines if he did not comply this year, or was it just starting next year? Was it true that some states had grant programs for upgrading? How about tax incentives? How could he tell which new technologies would work? I was speechless and trust me when I say, I am rarely speechless. I mumbled a response and promised to call him back. Did we really expect every trucker to figure all that out?

I set out on what I thought would be a long day of tracking down answers. The answer came quickly and definitively when I asked a colleague who is an expert on partnerships aimed at reducing diesel pollution. She said, “Have him call Cascade Sierra Solutions”. Could it be that simple? Apparently so!

Everyone knows that diesel powered trucks carry most of our freight and that they last 25-30 years while exhaling a lot of harmful pollutants. Truckers want to/ need to clean up the legacy fleets - but how?

Help has come to many in the form of Cascade Sierra Solutions (CSS), one of our Environmental Award Winners. At CSS, they remove barriers to awareness, capital cost and regulatory information. They know how busy truckers can be and how hard it is for them to find answers about the rules of the road. By forming a unique partnership with public agencies and clean diesel equipment suppliers, they’ve managed to educate truckers through outreach centers at popular truck stops. CSS is helping truckers receive grants, tax incentives, and low interest financing to stay in compliance and reduce fuel expenses. In the past three years, this non-profit has placed upgrades on over 1800 trucks and facilitated over 300 truck replacements which have all accounted for over 5.5 million gallons of fuel savings. More importantly, they’ve reduced over 57,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, 475 metric tons of nitrogen oxide and over 11 metric tons of particulate matter – the deadliest outdoor air pollutant in the US.

Thanks to CSS, Jason will keep on truckin’.

About the author: Niloufar Glosson is currently on assignment to the Office of Regional Administrator as a special assistant. Until recently she worked in the Air Program, where she learned how critical it is to reducing diesel pollution.

A recent survey on aggressive driving habits across the United States pointed to a wide variety of activities in which drivers vented their rage at the wheel. Some of these bad driving habits include tail-gating, honking horns, making obscene gestures, and speeding, to name a few. Large metropolitan areas have consistently been featured among the top offenders in the road rage arena. Nonetheless, many of us have encountered these aggressive drivers whether we live in the city, suburbia or rural areas. While I hope no one will challenge that many of these bad habits are dangerous, offensive and even illegal, keeping a level head at the wheel will allow you to save money and ultimately protect the environment.

Here are some tips that will help you use fuel more efficiently while driving. Try to keep a steady pace while driving. Sudden acceleration and heavy braking may reduce the fuel efficiency of your economy by up to 33 percent. By keeping distractions to a minimum, you can gauge your pace even in heavy traffic. Another piece of advice—observe the speed limit. Seems like a no brainer, but did you know that fuel efficiency decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 mph?

Furthermore, keep your car in shape. It’s important to keep your engine properly tuned to improve gas mileage. Plus we often forget to keep our tires properly inflated. Inflating tires at the proper pressure will improve your gas mileage and the life of your tires. Using the proper octane level at the pump also improves your mileage. Check your owner’s manual to see the most effective octane level for your car. Unless it’s recommended by the manufacturer, buying a higher octane gas might be a waste of your hard-earned money.

Since we’re approaching the 4th of July weekend, there are many who will hit the road to visit family and friends or relax in the great outdoors. Consider these tips so you can enjoy your drive and protect the Planet at the same time.

About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and chairs EPA’s Multilingual Communications Task Force. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.

Un reciente sondeo sobre los hábitos agresivos de conducir en Estados Unidos destacó una amplia variedad de actividades adoptadas por los conductores para ventilar su furia al volante. Algunos de estos malos hábitos incluyen el manejar demasiado cerca de otro automóvil, utilizar la bocina, hacer gestos obscenos, guiar a exceso de velocidad, entre otros. Las grandes zonas metropolitanas normalmente figuran entre los principales practicantes de la furia al volante. No obstante, muchos de nosotros nos hemos topado con estos conductores agresivos independientemente si vivimos en centros urbanos, en los suburbios o en áreas rurales. Mientras espero que nadie me vaya a negar que estos malos hábitos sean peligrosos, ofensivos y hasta ilegales, el mantener la calma y cordura al volante le permitirá ahorrar dinero y finalmente proteger el medio ambiente.

He aquí algunos consejos que le ayudarán a utilizar el combustible más eficientemente al manejar. En primer lugar, mantenga un paso estable al guiar. El proceso de acelerar y frenar repentinamente reduce el rendimiento del combustible hasta por un 33 por ciento. Al mantener las distracciones al mínimo usted puede controlar mejor el paso de su automóvil aún cuando el tránsito es pesado. Otro consejo—vaya al límite de velocidad indicado. Eso parece obvio, pero ¿sabía usted que la eficiencia de combustible se reduce drásticamente cuando acelera más de 60 millas por hora?

Además, mantenga su automóvil en buenas condiciones. Es importante hacer una revisión con regularidad de las condiciones de su automóvil para mejorar el rendimiento de la gasolina. Además no se olvide de mantener las llantas debidamente infladas. El inflar las llantas con el nivel adecuado de presión mejora el rendimiento de la gasolina y la duración de las mismas. También utilice el nivel de octanos adecuado cuando escoja la gasolina para mejorar el millaje. El manual de uso le brindará la información sobre el índice de octano de la gasolina para su automóvil, a menos que sea recomendado por el fabricante, el comprar una gasolina de un octano alto sería desperdiciar su dinero.

Como nos acercamos al fin de semana feriado del 4 de julio, hay muchos que usarán el automóvil para visitar familia y amistades o simplemente para pasar su momento de ocio al aire libre. Considere estos consejos para disfrutar su pasadía y proteger al Planeta Tierra también.

Sobre la autor: Lina M. F. Younes ha trabajado en la EPA desde el 2002 y está a cargo del Grupo de Trabajo sobre Comunicaciones Multilingües. Como periodista, dirigió la oficina en Washington de dos periódicos puertorriqueños y ha laborado en varias agencias gubernamentales.

My family and I just sold our first house. If you’ve ever been through this, you know how many details are involved in sprucing up a home to put on the market – painting, landscaping, cleaning, and on and on. Just like the roof, the furnace and the plumbing – healthy indoor air requires maintenance, and maybe even some elbow grease.

Working at EPA means I’m pretty up to speed on the importance of healthy air. Being a dad, the message is clear to me. When my younger daughter showed signs of developing asthma, in addition to following the pediatrician’s orders, we took extra effort to keep the house in tiptop shape. Since we bought a fixer-upper there was plenty to do. The basics for maintaining clean indoor air go like this – eliminate or remove pollutants, ventilate with fresh air, control moisture, test for radon, and regularly service appliances like heating and air conditioning, and cooking appliances. For more tips than I have room for, check out http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/careforyourair.html.

Selling and buying a home has made me realize that taking steps to protect indoor air quality actually added value to our sale and helped us spot value when we were looking for a new home. Certainly folks can take a “do-it-yourself” approach like my family did by following EPA’s tips. But wouldn’t it be nice if “indoor air quality” were built in? The good news is EPA has launched a program called Indoor airPLUS. To earn the Indoor airPLUS label, a new home must include a comprehensive set of indoor air quality requirements and a third-party verifies it.

As a dad, having good indoor air means living healthy as well as having peace of mind.

About the author: John Millet started at EPA in 2002 and is the Director of Communications for the Office of Air and Radiation covering climate change, emissions, and acid rain. He is the proud dad of two girls and a new home.

Students participate in the Baldwin County Grasses in Classes program to help grow native plants for wetland and dune restoration projects.

Do you want to educate, inspire, and engage students, scouts, park, zoo or museum visitors, or even your neighbors and family members to do something about climate change and how it may affect wildlife and their precious habitats? We (Karen, a former teacher and Mike, who monitors local water quality as a volunteer for the Audubon Naturalist Society) are impassioned about the climate change issue, especially as it may affect wildlife and wild places, and how important it is to get everyone involved in solving the problems associated with it. So two years ago we gathered together educators from 6 other federal agencies to develop the new Climate Change, Wildlife and Wildlands Toolkit for Formal and Informal Educators to help the educator in each of us spread the word on what is at stake and what we can do about it.

It was not an easy task to find and organize staff members from agencies as diverse as National Park Service, NASA, NOAA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management, but we were determined to create an educational product that demonstrated a strong, unified voice on climate change and that was built on the efforts of scientists and educators from government agencies that work on issues involving climate change, wildlife and wild places. After two years of meetings, phone calls, emails, data dumps, arguments, hugs, long drives to video shoots, and lunches for grousing and/or celebrating, we are extremely proud and excited about the end result of this truly unique collaboration.

Please go to the inter-agency U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) site where the toolkit is being hosted and see for yourself! Let us know what you think!

About the Authors: Karen Scott is an Environmental Education Specialist for the EPA’s Office of Children’s Health Protection and Environmental Education after spending more than 10 years with EPA’s Office of Atmospheric Programs, Climate Change Division. Michael Kolian is a physical scientist with EPA’s Office of Atmospheric Programs, Climate Change Division.