Natural Gas Project Cancelled in Australia

Woodside Petroleum’s plans for a liquid natural gas plant in Western Australia have been abandoned. Though still facing the threat of offshore development, the decision is an exciting victory for NOLS Australia’s classrooms and especially for the town of Broome where operations are based. The school has been keeping close track of the project since 2011. At that time, the proposal faced stiff opposition from a number of local indigenous and environmental groups. James Price Point, the development’s proposed location, is a large peninsula just north of Broome. The area is said to hold sacred Aboriginal songlines and dinosaur footprints that are among the largest on the planet.

NOLS Australia students in a backcountry class.

Photo: Elizabeh Leschied

In addition to being home to sites significant to both human and natural history, this region of Australia’s northwest coast is an important operating area for NOLS Australia. Semester students experience cultural immersion during a section in the Bardi Aboriginal homeland. Australia Backpacking and Sea Kayaking students paddle through the Dampier Archipelago, a few hundred miles south of Broome on the Indian Ocean.

The purpose of Woodside’s proposed facility was to refine natural gas extracted from the nearby Browse Basin- an offshore gas field roughly the size of North Carolina. The plant would have cost an estimated US$45 billion, and would have served as a stepping-stone to transform the small town of Broome into “the next Dubai.” The plant would also prepare the refined gas for export to Asia. Woodside cites competition from shale development in North America and the option of a cheaper floating facility as the reason for the project’s cancellation.

The construction and operation of the facility would have been completed against significant public outcry. There are places in Western Australia that are still unexplored, and NOLS courses are sometimes the first humans to see to them from the ground. It is our hope that Western Australia can balance development with conservation, and that this area will remain intact as one of the most unique and genuinely wild places on Earth.

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Apr 26, 2013 in the following categories: Australia, Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability

Sally Jewell: the Right Choice for Outdoor Recreation in Wyoming

This opinion piece by NOLS Executive Director John Gans was first published in the Casper Star Tribune in Wyoming April 15.

One week ago, The United States Senate voted overwhelmingly to confirm Sally Jewell as the next secretary of interior. At the helm of the federal department that encompasses the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, and other agencies responsible for stewardship of our public lands and waters, she will have a positive impact on Wyoming’s outdoor recreation economy, while being mindful of our energy portfolio.

Jewell’s resume demonstrates the balance sought when managing diverse interests on federal lands. She spent her early career as a petroleum engineer, and evolved to become the chief executive of outdoor retailer giant REI. Through her experience, Jewell understands that our nation’s public lands directly support the economy, both through responsible energy development and through access to recreational opportunities.

In Wyoming, we know that having a robust energy portfolio does not require sacrificing our inspiring landscapes. Careful planning and local input ensure that we can have both. The success of the Wyoming Range Legacy Act is an excellent example of our state’s ability to achieve that balance. With the focus on activities in the outdoors that Jewell would bring to the Department of Interior, Wyoming’s record of success can be a model for the nation.

Outdoor recreation is already a significant economic driver in our state. It generates $4.5 billion in consumer spending and $300 million in state and local tax revenue (based on a report by the Outdoor Industry Association based on surveys taken in 2011 and 2012). It directly sustains 50,000 jobs in the state, and supports $1.4 billion in wages and salaries. Towns like Cody, Lander, and Jackson are heavily dependent on the outdoor recreation economy.

Indeed, most of us live here for the outdoor opportunities available. Whether hiking, climbing, horsepacking, four-wheeling, biking, fishing, hunting, birding or myriad other activities, we hold dear our access to public lands and the opportunities they provide. Jewell, too, thrives outside, and is an avid skier, kayaker and mountaineer.

Jewell’s values are reflected in her advocacy. In her time at REI, she was closely involved in efforts to promote opportunities on public lands. She engaged in the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative, which fostered a national conversation on connecting people with the outdoors, providing access opportunities, and seeking out partnerships. Through her close association with the initiative, she gained a solid understanding of the ongoing priorities for the Department of Interior.

At the National Outdoor Leadership School, we are keenly aware of the value gained from having someone with an understanding of the significance and the benefits of recreation on public lands as the secretary of interior. From national parks to the Bureau of Land Management, NOLS operates extensively on Department of Interior lands across Wyoming and the American West. Teaching in these unique landscapes provides immeasurable opportunities for our students to develop as skilled outdoors people and mature into positive ethical leaders who understand complex land use issues.

With this new face of leadership at the Department of Interior, we have high hopes that our priorities in this state will be reflected in the management of the BLM and the national parks. Getting young people into the outdoors, making public lands accessible to outdoor enthusiasts, and supporting the economy that continues to thrive on these values need to be priorities as we progress in the 21st century.

Permalink | Posted by Casey Dean on Apr 17, 2013 in the following categories: Alumni, Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, In The News, Leadership, On The Net

You Grab the Shovel, I'll Grab the Buffel!

Permalink | Posted by Sarah Murphy on Mar 20, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, Southwest

Final Draft of Lander BLM Resource Management Plan Released

On February 22, 2013, the Lander BLM field office released its latest revision of the 2013 Resource Management Plan (RMP). The RMP is a lengthy public document that “provides a framework for the future management direction and appropriate use of BLM administered lands” in the office’s area of jurisdiction.

The Lander BLM oversees a large area east of the Wind River Range. Popular recreation spots on BLM land near Lander include Sweetwater Canyon, parts of Sinks Canyon (both NOLS operating areas), and biking/running trails at Johnny Behind the Rocks and The Bus at Baldwin Creek.

Lander BLM Field Area. Photo: Rick Bieterman

The revisions address wildlife areas, including greater protection for Mule Deer winter range and controlling surface disturbance and fragmentation of Sage Grouse habitat. The plan also outlines Route 287’s status as a scenic byway. Right of Way corridors, National Trail zoning and mineral withdrawal areas are mentioned as well.

At this point in the plan’s process, people who have already participated by filing a formal comment are invited to file a protest up until March 25, 2013. Protests must be submitted in writing. Specific directions and a helpful checklist can be found here.

The release of the RMP marked the beginning of a 60-day Governor’s Consistency Review period. During this time, the Governor’s office will look over the document and ensure that its contents are consistent with state policy.

Following the resolution of any protests and clearance by the Governor, the plan will be approved by the BLM’s State Director and used to guide land management decisions in the district for the next 10 to 15 years. 

If you submitted input to the Lander BLM earlier in the process, we encourage you to submit further comments or support. If you haven’t yet participated, please encourage friends or family who have to continue to be part of the conversation.

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Mar 5, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, Rocky Mountain

NOLS Parent Sally Jewell Nominated for Secretary of Interior

The outdoor recreation industry is buzzing about President and CEO of REI Sally Jewell’s recent nomination for Secretary of the Department of the Interior. After studying engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle, Jewell was employed by Mobil Oil Company in Oklahoma and Colorado. She then worked as a commercial banker for close to two decades before her most recent position as President and CEO of Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), the Seattle-based outdoor retail giant.

She’s also a NOLS parent. Her son is a WFR and Semester in Patagonia graduate. 

As Interior Secretary, Jewell would oversee the management of over 500 million acres of land—20 percent of the United States’ land mass. Her responsibilities would include administration of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, and the Bureau of Land Management, among other sub-agencies.

An outspoken advocate for environmental responsibility within corporations, REI put its values into action under Jewell’s leadership. The company is active in retrofitting existing and constructing new facilities to the highest possible environmental standards. REI also partners with nonprofits and operates programs with land trusts, trail associations, and conservation groups.

While her company is on the cutting edge of corporate environmental accountability, Jewell is also familiar with the intersection of mainstream land management, economics, and politics. Jewell worked in the oil industry and witnessed the economic and social implications of energy production first hand.

She is very familiar with the economic force of outdoor recreation, an industry that generates $646 billion in consumer spending annually.

In addition to her employment history, Jewell’s resume boasts a lifetime of being active outdoors: her travel log entries range from countless hikes in the Pacific Northwest’s Cascade and Olympic mountains to a recent month-long climbing trip in Antarctica. Despite her extensive experience with energy and industry, Jewell has no political experience—an unusual characteristic of any cabinet-level appointee.

Beyond her de facto industry connection to NOLS, as a NOLS parent Jewell knows the school on a more personal level. It is with great excitement that NOLS receives the news of Sally Jewell’s nomination. Congratulations, Sally Jewell!

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Feb 22, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability

NOLS Rocky Mountain Gets Examined for Energy Efficiency

For the past several months, the Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability department has coordinated a series of efficiency audits across a number of NOLS facilities. The rigorous inspection process is designed to locate and evaluate existing energy and water efficiency problems with appliances, plumbing fixtures and the structures themselves. After the inspection is complete, the data is compiled and organized to help identify waste-reduction solutions.

Lander’s NOLS Rocky Mountain (RM) completed the audit process in January of 2013. Facts about the efficiency, age, and frequency of use of every single device that plugs into an AC outlet was recorded and entered into a spreadsheet. Every sink and shower was run and tested for flow rate, in gallons per minute. Toilets were tested for leaks by introducing dye to the tanks and observing seals and gaskets for seepage. Doors and windows were inspected for insulation. Window frames were checked for cold drafts, cracks, and visible gaps. Doors were checked for appropriate and functional weather stripping and latching mechanisms. The insulation on certain exterior walls was examined with an eye toward fill density, volume, material and age.

 Fortunately, the solutions for these issues are often times simple and inexpensive housekeeping repairs. If a door is drafty along the bottom seam, a piece of weather stripping will seal it. If a toilet or faucet is leaking or dripping, just tightening the fittings or sealing the threads with silicon tape often stops the water waste. If a large, old and inefficient appliance is only used, say, once a week, the wires can be configured so that the plug can be removed from the wall when it is not in use, preventing “ghost draw” (a term used to describe how appliances use power even when not turned on).

 This examination is far from the first energy and efficiency project the school has implemented. Since 2006, NOLS has been moving towards a goal of a 30 percent reduction in the school’s carbon emissions by 2020. Up until now, NOLS Rocky Mountain has installed a waste oil heater in the branch’s transportation department, a geothermal heating system, an extensive solar panel array, and widespread use of LED lights and fluorescent bulbs- all of which have proven to be effective. 

 The systems already in place have put NOLS well on its way to reaching the 2020 objective, and efforts like this school-wide facility audit are yet another push in the right direction.  

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Feb 18, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, Rocky Mountain

Tourism Groups Fight Mineral Development in Yukon’s Peel Watershed

The Peel Watershed in northeastern Yukon Territory has been the source of substantial controversy in recent years, the outcome of which holds great importance to oil and gas companies, First Nations, outfitters, and outdoor enthusiasts.

A 26,000 square mile expanse of undeveloped land, the Peel Watershed represents one of the last examples of an untouched North American boreal ecosystem. Feeding the Peel, Blackstone, Wind, and Ogilvie rivers, this area is home to grizzly bear, Dall sheep, and caribou. It serves as the wintering grounds for the Porcupine Caribou Herd, one of the largest herds of caribou on the continent. The Peel Watershed is also home to a number of different species of migratory birds, and provides nesting habitat that is crucial to their survival.

As is characteristic of any land use debate, Yukoners are in disagreement over the best way to manage the balance between environmental conservation and economic opportunity. The Yukon Party of the Territorial Government sees the region as a crucible for business beyond the realm of adventure tourism and sightseeing. The government seeks to protect less of the mineral-laced land, and plans to eventually open up surface access rights to the watershed for natural resource extraction companies.

Those in favor of protecting the Watershed include groups like the Wilderness Tourism Association of the Yukon (WTAY) and Protect the Peel. These conservation minded organizations cite the region’s remoteness, lack of development and “unspoiled splendor” as reasons for conservation.  WTAY, which acts to “ensure that the integrity of the wilderness resource is maintained,” aims to protect the area within the context of “the sustainable future of the Yukon’s wilderness tourism industry.”

Ecosystems like this one would be impacted by development on the Peel Watershed.

Photo: Moe Witschard

Preservation of the Peel Watershed as a wilderness space would benefit NOLS.  NOLS Yukon, located in Whitehorse, YT, operates backpacking, mountaineering, and canoeing courses. A big part of the Yukon’s appeal as an effective outdoor classroom is its isolation. Opening the Peel Watershed to resource extraction would mean increased development in the Yukon’s wild regions, and encroachment on backcountry areas across the territory.

Support for maintaining the Peel as a wilderness space is not limited to environmental advocacy groups. A 2009 Datapath survey indicates that “85 percent of people in the Yukon say protecting areas like the Peel Watershed helps protect their way of life and the values they hold dear.”

Your input matters—if you have spent time in this region, please consider expressing your thoughts to the Yukon Territory government. 

Those interested in commenting to officials are invited to do so up until February 25, 2013.

Submit remarks to peel.consultation@gov.yk.ca, or click here for a direct contact form.

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Feb 8, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, Yukon

Utah BLM Sued Over Natural Gas Project

Four conservation advocacy groups are suing the Bureau of Land Management, BLM Utah State Director Juan Palma, and the Department of the Interior.  The plaintiffs are troubled by the lack of investigation surrounding the potential environmental repercussions of a proposed gas-drilling project along the Green River, where NOLS operates courses.

Gasco Energy Inc. of Denver, Colorado currently has authorization to drill nearly 1,300 natural gas wells over an area covering 206,000 acres near eastern Utah’s Green River.  The company is not a party in the lawsuit. 

The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, The Natural Resources Defense Council, The Wilderness Society and the Sierra Club have cited air and water quality decline, erosion, and the destruction of wildlife and recreation areas as consequences that would occur as a direct result of the project.  Referring to the BLM’s initial analysis as “shortsighted,” the suit calls for the federal agencies to rescind the clearance for drilling and to reassess the impact the project would have on the Unita Basin’s ecosystem.

The lawsuit states that the "BLM failed to take a hard look at impacts of the Gasco project -- including direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts -- on air quality, soil instability and dust generation, climate change, sage grouse, vegetation, wildlife, recreation…” 

Students navigate whitewater on the Green River. Photo: Ashley Wise

The resources provided by the affected area extend far beyond biodiversity and fossil fuels.  An area important to the whitewater boating community as a whole, this vicinity serves as an operating area for NOLS Rocky Mountain.  Courses out of the RM’s river base in Vernal, Utah explore the whitewater of Desolation and Lodore Canyons, camping along the banks of the Green River.  This classroom provides students with an opportunity to learn technical whitewater rafting, canoeing and kayaking skills on some of the best and most rugged stretches of river in the world.

Currently, the lawsuit is pending and will likely not be resolved for some time.

 

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Feb 1, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, Rocky Mountain

NOLS SW SOE: Digging for Bighorns

Howdy from NOLS Southwest! Staff members recently joined a Southwest Outdoor Educator (SOE) course for volunteer work. Since I did not attend due to sushi plate complications, Kathryn Sall represented interns at this event. Luckily between splitting wood and cleaning groovers after her adventure, she was able to give a quick interview. Here's how it went:

Welcome back, Kathryn! Do you mind telling me a little about where you have been the past couple of days?

Hi, Sarah. Thanks for having me on. Great to be here. What would you like to know?

What was the purpose of your volunteer project?

Protecting the Bighorn sheep is one of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's objectives in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. A while ago, a dam was built to create a watering tank for the sheep. The dam created a pool that filled with gravel over years, which prohibited access to drinkable water. Also, the dam was seeping and needed to be patched.

NOLS Southwest staff and SOE students met in the Kofa for the service project, which involved digging gravel so water could collect in the dam again; a fair amount had accumulated. The last time the gravel had been cleared was 1985! We also laid out .7 miles of hose from the road head to the dam to refill the tank.

Tell me a little about Bighorn sheep in the Kofa.

A decade ago there were about 800 Bighorn sheep in the Kofa. Over the course of two or three years, the population shrank to less than half of that for no clear reason. However, during the past few years there has been a steady incline in population. It now hovers over 400. The current SOE has seen one Bighorn sheep on their course and they are hoping to see more!

Sounds like a worthy cause, Kathryn. Thanks for taking the time out of your day to talk to me about this.

You're most welcome. Check out these pictures from the trip!

SOE students enjoy a campfire with representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the night before the volunteer project. This offered good eats, many laughs, and learning about the purpose of this project - protecting a water source for the Bighorn sheep in the Kofa.

SOE students help carry a fire hose up to the base of the dam, which will help provide water for Bighorn sheep during desert droughts.

In-town staff Sydney Hartsock and Kathyrn Sall shovel gravel as instructor Andy Altepeter collects the stones and passes them to students to assist in emptying the tank.

 

Permalink | Posted by Sarah Murphy on Jan 29, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability, Leadership, Southwest

Controversy Continues Around Brazil Dam Project

The Belo Monte Dam on Brazil’s Xingu River has long been a cause of uncertainty and controversy in northern Amazonia. Since the project’s inception in 1975, a debate between the Brazilian government and local tribal leaders and activists has been ongoing. Most recently, the Brazilian Supreme Court lifted the project’s suspension.  Though still facing opposition, frequent disruption, strikes by workers, and the occasional delay of operations, the dam’s construction is currently underway.

If completed, the Belo Monte will be the third largest hydroelectric dam on the planet, diverting over 62 miles of water. Not only will the famously diverse Amazonian ecology be affected, indigenous peoples will also be displaced. 

Over 85% of Brazil’s electrical power comes from hydroelectric turbines. The Federal government feels that the addition of a dam of this size and its connection to the country’s main grid is an important step toward the goal of energy independence, particularly in the northern Amazon.

Environmentalists counter with concerns about the dam’s design. Due to the region’s water cycle and seasonal rainfall, the dam would only be operable for part of the year. The flow of the Xingu does not lend itself to hydro electrical efficiency, and details of the proposal suggest a strong likelihood of going over budget (which is currently over US$12 billion).  It is estimated that up to 40% of the power produced by the dam would consumed by the mining industry. This battle also has a symbolic importance- the dam’s completion will pave the way for more dams of its kind, and a successful protest will serve as a blueprint for future environmental victories.

While NOLS does not operate on the Xingu River, NOLS Amazon does send students on river travel, backpacking, and cultural sections in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, just to the south of the dam’s proposed location. We are following the process closely as this is the first of more than 60 dams being considered over the course of the next 20 years. Some of the proposed dams would indeed affect our course area, including the Juruena River and the Aripuanã River (the latter of which has five dam proposals alone).

The Rio Juruena could be dammed in the future, which would impact NOLS courses like this one. Photo: Dalio Zippin Neto

The outcome of the Belo Monte Dam project and the fate of the Xingu River and its people are uncertain. We hope that reasonable, peaceful, and genuine negotiations will continue and result in an acceptable compromise, sooner rather than later. 

Permalink | Posted by Jack Fisher on Jan 18, 2013 in the following categories: Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability