Jan

25

A quick query regarding plug-in Cars

Filed Under conservation | 2 Comments

While I realize that hybrids and electric cars are the wave of the future, and are what is intended to save us from climate change/greenhouse effects, ocean acidification, etc. caused by emissions etc. one thing that I don’t get, and it may be a very simple point which I am just missing is:

Won’t all the additional electricity come from burning more coal, which is really nasty for the very same reasons combustion engines are?

I would love it if somone could clear this point up for me. If we all drive electric cars, where does all that electricity come from?

Any intelligent elucidation on the subject would be greatly appreciated!

Nov

13

New Jersey Audubon Society spins demise of journal “NJBirds”; emphasizes organization’s declining interest in non-lucrative ornithological endeavours

Filed Under birding norms, conservation | 3 Comments

[I thought this worth passing along in a more expeditious manner- “Just another sign of how far the communication landscape has changed.”-CJV ]

–BEGIN TRANSCRIPT–

11/11/08

From: Pete Dunne, VP Nat. Hist. NJAS
To: (RECORDS OF) NEW JERSEY BIRDS Stake Holders
RE: The change from a printed to electron version of NEW JERSEY BIRDS and announcement of a new, annual printed summary.

Dear All,

More than two weeks have passed since news of the decision to curtail the printed version of RECORDS was released. Your interest, observations and, for some, dismay, has been noted and is very much appreciated. If no concern had been expressed it would have been a sad commentary on what I deem to be a valuable and venerable publication.

I should say, first, that the decision was not spurious. The decision to shift wholly to an electronic format (and whether to continue a quarterly compilation or simply compile an annual summary of bird sightings) involve meetings that go back at least two years. I will also tell you that as valid and well considered the objections to the change are, none were new to the discussion.

I won’t enumerate the many good reasons that were presented to keep records “in print.” I will only say that I agree with almost all of them.

Why then the change? Two reason’s basically. Cost and purpose.

When RECORDS OF NEW JERSEY BIRDS was instituted in 1975 (having been split off from NEW JERSEY NATURE NEWS where it was instituted as REGIONAL FIELD NOTES in April, 1953) it served two important functions–one social; one informational. The quarterly bird sightings constituted a forum for active birders. Sightings, dutifully submitted, were given the notoriety they deserved and their compilation constituted a data base, painting a picture of New Jersey’s bird life.

If you were an active birder, you demonstrated your standing and mettle by getting your sightings posted in Records. I’ll bet many of you, like me, used to flip through the pages when they arrived in the mail and check to see whether your sightings made the grade.

Since the internet, and the inauguration of assorted list serves like JERSEY BIRDS and NEW JERSEY BIRDS the “forum” function of our quarterly has been both diminished and out-flanked. Sightings among active birders today are posted daily. Sightings posted in the quarterly have gone from a post note to a post script. On-line services now act as the informational and social epicenter for New Jersey birders. Case in point, there are (I am told) about 500 to 600 birders subscribe to the New Jersey list serves. I did a count of contributors to a recent NEW JERSEY BIRDS. There were less than 200 individuals whose sightings were noted and many of the sightings listed were gleaned by Regional Bird Editors from the electronic media. They were not “submitted” at all.

Is this something to decry? From the standpoint of birders being able to communicate and interact absolutely not. It just means that running to the mail box and seeing what birds were noted, by whom, six months after the fact has lost most of its significance and luster.

However, as the wealth of bird related information grows, the archival function of NEW JERSEY BIRDS quarterly only increases. That the quarterly summaries be continued is important from standpoint of maintaining consistency and facilitating data gathering. The change to electronic from printed format changes only the means of presentation, not the material.

Since electronic media has yet to stand the test of time, it is both important and prudent that an annual printed summary be compiled to serve the archival purposes New Jersey Audubon initiated back in 1953. Such an annual, region based, summary is, in fact, part of the change package. The working title for the publication that will house the report of the Bird Record Committee, a statewide summary of noteworthy bird sightings and events, plus occasional papers, is “State of New Jersey Birds,” but this may change.

To provide a forum for New Jersey birders, an annual symposium is being planned. It may be part of the Society’s Cape May Autumn Weekend. It may stand alone. That decision has yet to be made.

In sum, the change from printed to electronic quarterly summaries and introduction of an annual “State of the Birds” publication is intended to enhance, not diminish, New Jersey Audubon’s focus on birds and it’s organizational responsibility to our constituents–both human and avian. Budget constraints have prevented NJAS from doing all that it wanted to do with their printed bird publication. The electronic format will shed much of this constraint and constitute a more environmentally friendly alternative to print media (a policy that New Jersey has rededicated itself to as part of our new Strategic Plan).

Speaking of money. Yes, certainly the current budget crisis was the catalyst that prompted New Jersey Audubon to make publication changes now. But it is inaccurate to say that it is the reason or even the driving reason. The change was driven by the revolution in communication, not budget, and it is one that hundreds of other newsletters and professional journals have already embraced.

Should individuals who are active partners in the quarterly have been involved in the decision process? Yes, and going back two years some were including editors, and past and present regional editors.

Should input have been solicited by readers and contributors prior to the decision? Only if their input would have changed the course or correctness of the decision (which it would not). Going electronic is and remains the right, effective, environmentally-friendly, timely, and cost-effective alternative to finding outside funding (an impossible task in this economic climate and an age when magazine advertising is evaporating) or charging readers a subscription rate which would, based upon a readership of 500 individuals, cost over $40 a year (providing 500 people wanted the service) or $100 if a dedicated readership of 200 is more representative of the actual number of birders who would care to subscribe.

The electronic format will be available to everyone on the New Jersey Audubon web site. It will cost readers nothing. So somewhere between $40-$100 per subscriber (above NJAS membership) vs. a free on-line service in an economy when subscriptions to magazines rank among the first thing people cut. Seems like a hard sell.

For readers who have no access to the internet, copies will be printed and mailed upon request. This formula was used with regards to World Series of Birding registration material which went from a printed and mailed to on-line service in 2006. Only one request for printed material was received.

I hope this explanation, a summary of which will be printed in the next and final printed edition of NEW JERSEY BIRDS assuages some of the doubts and concerns relating to the publication and to New Jersey Audubon’s commitment to bird study in New Jersey. I recognize any change to an institution as cherished as NEW JERSEY BIRDS is bound to be met with concern (and once again we thank loyal readers for that).

And while the switch from the printed publication which most of us grew up with, in fact cut our birding teeth on, will evolve, as all things do, there is one binding accuracy lying at the heart of the debate that assures me that going electronic is the right idea for the time.

Since the change was announced, there has been considerable debate within the New Jersey birding community. I have received, personally, fourteen e-mails ranging from agreement to resignation to dismay. The thing to note, the thing that is perhaps most significant here, is that the entire debate has been conducted on-line.

Not a single person committed their concerns to paper. Not a single person called or asked to have a meeting. The entire debate over the future of NEW JERSEY BIRDS was electronic.

Just another sign of how far the communication landscape has changed.

Sincerely,

Pete

P.S. As an historic footnote, it is interesting to note that dismay and concern was similarly expressed when in 1975 regional “Field Notes” was removed from the body of New Jersey Audubon’s magazine (it’s flagship publication) and housed in a new, “flimsy” publication called RECORDS OF NEW JERSEY BIRDS. One Regional Editor resigned in protest.

–END TRANSCRIPT–

Jun

22

What’s up with opening Champagne Island to boat-landing?

Filed Under Beach Nesters, Champagne Island, conservation | Leave a Comment

I can’t help but think that the so-called closure of this bird-colony was little more than lip-service.

The “closure” lasted all of what, just a matter of weeks, really? None of those weeks coinciding with the peak of Skimmer and Tern nesting activity, and the opening to boaters, “partial” as it may be, coinciding with the peaks of boating and beach activity.

The opening of parts of this bird colony to human activity are perfectly timed to allow for the least inconvenience of tourists, and peak human activity by the sorts which threaten it. The opening, not coincidentally coinciding with the majority of school closures-which brings the majority or beach tourists to the Jersey Shore, and the Fourth of July weekend, just so happens to mirror dates which are dear to the hearts of Cape May beach-town Chambers of Commerce, municipal governments, and others who crave tourist dollars far more than the well being of nesting birds.

I think at worst, a fast one and a minor publicity stunt were pulled off on the part of the DEP, and at best, this is a barometer for just how weak New Jersey’s environemntal lobby truly is.

While I wish I could think of a more articulate way of expressing the sentiment, at the moment, the blunt seems perfectly apt. I think even a so called partial opening of this little gem and the inevitable disturbance to the nesting birds it will cause, just plain sucks.

CJV

Jun

3

Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act in need of reauthorization-show congress your support!

Filed Under conservation | Leave a Comment

A bipartisan bill (H.R. 5756) has been introduced to reauthorize and increase funding for the only federal grant program specifically devoted to the conservation of migratory birds.

Coauthored by a Democrat from Wisconsin and a Republican from Maryland, the American Bird Conservancy has set up an easy form letter to representatives with which to show support for the bill, which will increase funding from just 6 to an
impressive $20 Million, and with the help of matching funds, could see a realization of as much as $60 million for research on migratory birds.

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5400/t/2205/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=284

It may not be a bad idea to drop your represenatives a line showing support for this important bird-conservation legislation, via the ABC’s website or a good old fashioned letter or phone call.