#Flood Restoration Service Provider

[wanderfulcleaningservices]

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[reasonsforhope]

Holy crap, I didn't think Biden would be able to get the Climate Corps established without Congress. This is SUCH fantastic news.

--

"After being thwarted by Congress, President Joe Biden will use his executive authority to create a New Deal-style American Climate Corps that will serve as a major green jobs training program.

In an announcement Wednesday, the White House said the program will employ more than 20,000 young adults who will build trails, plant trees, help install solar panels and do other work to boost conservation and help prevent catastrophic wildfires.

The climate corps had been proposed in early versions of the sweeping climate law approved last year but was jettisoned amid strong opposition from Republicans and concerns about cost.

Democrats and environmental advocacy groups never gave up on the plan and pushed Biden in recent weeks to issue an executive order authorizing what the White House now calls the American Climate Corps.

“After years of demonstrating and fighting for a Climate Corps, we turned a generational rallying cry into a real jobs program that will put a new generation to work stopping the climate crisis,” said Varshini Prakash, executive director of the Sunrise Movement, an environmental group that has led the push for a climate corps.

With the new corps “and the historic climate investments won by our broader movement, the path towards a Green New Deal is beginning to become visible,” Prakash said...

...Environmental activists hailed the new jobs program, which is modeled after the Civilian Conservation Corps, created in the 1930s by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat, as part of the New Deal...

Lawmakers Weigh In

More than 50 Democratic lawmakers, including Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, had also encouraged Biden to create a climate corps, saying in a letter on Monday that “the climate crisis demands a whole-of-government response at an unprecedented scale.”

The lawmakers cited deadly heat waves in the Southwest and across the nation, as well as dangerous floods in New England and devastating wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui, among recent examples of climate-related disasters.

Democrats called creation of the climate corps “historic” and the first step toward fulfilling the vision of the Green New Deal.

“Today President Biden listened to the (environmental) movement, and he delivered with an American Climate Corps,” a beaming Markey said at a celebratory news conference outside the Capitol.

“We are starting to turn the green dream into a green reality,” added Ocasio-Cortez, who co-sponsored the Green New Deal legislation with Markey four years ago.

“You all are changing the world,” she told young activists.

Program Details and Grant Deadlines

The initiative will provide job training and service opportunities to work on a wide range of projects, including restoring coastal wetlands to protect communities from storm surges and flooding; clean energy projects such as wind and solar power; managing forests to prevent catastrophic wildfires; and energy efficient solutions to cut energy bills for consumers, the White House said.

Creation of the climate corps comes as the Environmental Protection Agency launches a $4.6 billion grant competition for states, municipalities and tribes to cut climate pollution and advance environmental justice. The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants are funded by the 2022 climate law and are intended to drive community-driven solutions to slow climate change.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the grants will help “communities so they can chart their own paths toward the clean energy future.”

The deadline for states and municipalities to apply is April 1, with grants expected in late 2024. Tribes and territories must apply by May 1, with grants expected by early 2025."

-via Boston.com, September 21, 2023

[cognitivejustice]

Indigenous rainforestation

Indigenous communities in the Philippines’ Mt. Kalatungan protected area have since 2021 carried out a tree-planting campaign to restore native vegetation lost to decades of commercial logging and agriculture.

Known as rainforestation, it aims to rejuvenate vital ecosystem services like flood mitigation, which benefits urban areas downstream, while also providing incentives for the communities driving the restoration.

The rainforestation program is led by community groups, making use of their knowledge of native plants, and marks a shift from the government’s decades-long, centrally managed reforestation efforts that relied on planting nonnative species.

Communities are already benefiting from exports of the coffee that they grow in the shade of larger trees, but proponents of the scheme say there needs to be more interest and funding from outside to ensure long-term success.

[donnersun]

source

The western part of North Carolina has been completely destroyed by flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. Entire towns are just gone. Completely wiped off the map. People are trapped and missing and most of the area is still totally inaccessible. Duke Energy posted yesterday that it will be at least 2-3 weeks before power is restored but there are some places where it will take months. There is no drinking water. It's catastrophic.

The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina is one of the best places to donate funds for disaster relief. They are positioned to support the entire nonprofit community in the region and can distribute resources directly to those who need it the most right now. Donate here.

And because it's close to my heart I also want to mention Fleet of Angels, an organization that provides relief to horse owners and small rescues in the wake of disasters like this. They can quickly get money and other resources to people who need it and they are very, very good at what they do. Donate here.

My hometown was destroyed by a flood caused by a hurricane in 1999 and while it was nowhere near as bad as this, the trauma of living through it still gets to me sometimes even though it's been 25 years. I do not know how these people are ever going to recover from this, but I do know that getting their immediate needs met - water, food, emergency medical care, cell service - will help a great deal.

[bananonbinary]

Tumblr's debt is a problem of their own creation. The app is buggy, the userbase is flooded with porn bots, nazis roam free, hate speech roams free, trans women have sfw content marked mature, art and posts are stolen for promotion, features are forced down our throats, ads are malicious and often gross or triggering and giving them money will not stop this.

If we give tumblr money they're not going to get rid of Tumblr live or restore the nsfw or remove ads or whatever you think they're going to do, they're going to KEEP DOING THE SAME THING except with more money to blow. Tumblr is a CORPORATION, they can get a government bailout like any other corporate entity can, and while people are throwing money at a dumbass corporation there are people begging to get bills paid and for food and other necessities.

Please open your eyes to the reality of the situation, its not just some guy anymore, David Karp is long gone its a soulless conglomerate now and they do not need our pity

a lot of yall seem to think that i want to like, bake sale save the baseball team. that's not what this is about. i don't think we need to "fix tumblr's debt," i think we need to make the website profitable (and the debt shows it isnt, altho from what i can gather a better word is "deficit" rather than "debt," ie, they are losing that much more money than they take in annually), because as it stands tumblr has no reason whatsoever to want to keep the current user base around. it's trying to attract a different userbase, because yall are PROUD of the fact that tumblr is a failing website and you dont want to pay them. you're loitering inside a store and acting surprised when the store wants you gone. of COURSE they're constantly introducing new features and not listening to what the users want, they don't want you here.

it's not a protest, it's not an attempt to buy good will, it's a simple business transaction: i spend a lot of time here, and i would like to keep spending a lot of time here. so i will buy my shitty internet crab, and tell my fellow loiterers that they can as well if they want. if you dont want to do that, you literally don't have to, but you can't tell me not to.

you people are all like "ohh tumblr isnt your friend dont give it money" but like. yeah. its not my friend. i would like to pay it for a service it provides, instead of expecting it to continue to provide that service out of the goodness of its non-existant heart. i dont think im the one with the parasocial relationship here.

also:

dont tell me to help a poor people. i am a poor people. i am allowed to spend THREE DOLLARS on something i like for myself, and not give literally every single dollar i have to charity and mutual aid. you have NO IDEA how much or if i do for other people, and you won't, because you aren't owed every detail of my life like that. people are allowed to have things they want for no other reason than they want them sometimes.

[dandelionsresilience]

Dandelion News - January 8-14

Like these weekly compilations? Tip me at $kaybarr1735 or check out my Dandelion Doodles!

1. In Chicago, all city buildings now use 100 percent clean power

“As of January 1, every single one of [Chicago’s municipal buildings] — including 98 fire stations, two international airports, and two of the largest water treatment plants on the planet — is running on renewable energy, thanks largely to Illinois’ newest and largest solar farm.”

2. California Rice Fields Offer Threatened Migratory Waterbirds a Lifeline

“Cranes need nighttime roosting sites flooded to a depth of about 3 to 9 inches, so they can easily hear or feel predators moving through the water. [... Bird Returns pays] farmers to flood their fields during critical migration periods [... and] provide foraging sites by leaving harvested rice or corn fields untilled, so cranes can access the leftover grain.”

3. New York Climate Superfund Becomes Law

“[Funds recovered “from major oil and gas companies” will be used to pay for] the restoration of stormwater drainage and sewage treatment systems, upgrades to transit systems, roads and bridges, the installation of green spaces to mitigate city heat islands and even medical coverage and preventative health programs for illnesses and injuries induced by climate change.”

4. Austin says retooled process for opening overnight cold-weather shelters is paying off

“[... T]he city's moves to lower the temperature threshold to open shelters and announce their activation at least a day in advance were the result of community feedback. [Shelter operators also passed out hot food.]”

5. Helping Communities Find Funding for Nature-Based Solutions

““From coastal oyster reefs to urban stormwater greenways, nature-based solutions are becoming the new normal.” That’s because these types of projects are often less expensive to build and have additional community benefits, such as improving water quality or creating parkland.”

6. Saving the Iberian lynx: How humans rescued this rare feline from extinction

“Back in the early 2000s, fewer than 100 individuals roamed the wild, including only 25 reproductive females. [...] Conservation staff [...] shape these cats into resourceful hunters and get them ready for life outside the center. [...] They’re fine-tuning captive-breeding routines, improving veterinary procedures, and pushing for more wildlife corridors.”

7. Biden cancels student loans for 150,000 more borrowers

“The 150,000 new beneficiaries announced Monday include more than 80,000 borrowers who were cheated or defrauded by their schools, over 60,000 borrowers with total and permanent disabilities and more than 6,000 public service workers[...] bringing the number whose student debt has been canceled during [Biden’s] administration to over 5 million[....]”

8. PosiGen wins another $200M for lower-income rooftop solar

“PosiGen offers a ​“no credit check” [solar panel installation to] those with a higher percentage of their income going to power and fuel bills[....] “somewhere between 25 and 75 percent” of the consumer’s monthly energy savings could come from efficiency measures such as sealing heating and cooling leaks, replacing thermostats, and installing LED lights[....]”

9. Indigenous communities come together to protect the Colombian Amazon

“At this year’s COP, Indigenous peoples celebrated the [protection of] traditional knowledge, innovations and practices[... and] the Cali Fund, which ensures that communities, including Indigenous peoples, receive benefits from the commercial use of [...] genetic data derived from the biological resources that they have long stewarded.”

10. How the heartland of Poland’s coal industry is ditching fossil fuels - without sacrificing jobs

“[Katowice, a former coal city] committed to reducing CO2 emissions by 40 per cent compared to 1990, prioritising investments in green infrastructure, and promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency. [...”]The gradual departure from heavy industry did not bring high social costs in our city,” says Marcin Krupa, Mayor of Katowice City.”

January 1-7 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[obsidianpen]

Hello, Pen. I am the author of the document that has been circulating. It’s important to me that no one attacks Greyana or sends any negative comments or posts to her. The point of this information is to restore truth and clarity.

This document was originally intended for moderators of Tomione fandom spaces, to make them aware of the dishonest tactics Greyana has been using to harness fandom spaces to build her own brand. I’m all for writers who want to build an audience to enjoy their good writing, but early into Greyana’s participation in the Tomione fandom, it became clear that she was using fraudulent means: alt accounts posing as readers to build false hype around her story. Her thousands of followers on social media are littered with blank accounts, or “follow bots” which you can purchase from sites like UseViral, MediaMister or AccsMarket. Go take a look at some of the bot-driven services these websites offer, its very revealing.

In general AI claims are very difficult, almost impossible to prove, but Greyana made it easy. She boasted on her Vesperana account that she had written 200,000 words in two months, noting specifically that she had been updating Invictus as she went. Then, anyone can go and check the word counts of some of the tighter clusters of chapters she updated every day, or multiple times a day. There’s a spot where she uploaded 9,559 words in one day, and even 41,606 over two days. The math doesn’t math.

Once other fandom members started catching on, they had conversations about it in the Mud and Blood server. Not all the comments in this conversation were very respectful of Greyana, but the majority of the conversation was rational, and addressing very real concerns that this document proves were valid. These writers were frustrated, and understandably so, because AI use is a very controversial subject, plus the spam was absolutely flooding the fandom, exhasperating everyone. 

What’s most concerning, however, and what made me decide to write this information up, is that Greyana has responded to these instances where she was caught by manipulating the loyalty of those who enjoy her stories: twisting these people into attackers. Several authors have experienced these attacks. They are extremely vile. The attacks are why I have chosen to be anonymous.

Greyana has and continues to label accountability as bullying. I noticed that in her posts today, she had absolutly zero substance to offer as a rebuttal to this information, just a strange recommendation to require ID for Facebook group participants suspected to be purchased accounts (which I suspect she knows is an absurd non-starter for fandom), and a bit of trite gossip that could have come from anywhere. Nearly everyone in the fandom is aware of Greyana’s dishonest behavior, she shouldn’t be surprised that others have questions.

This information I have provided was not weaponized to hurt her, in fact, I did not go distributing links to anyone who wasn’t in a moderator/official rec account.

This is the simple fact: Greyana has not been bullied, she was caught.

If she has more information, or context explaining her actions, I welcome it. Her blatant dishonesty and harmful behavior should immediately change, and personally, I think she owes an apology to everyone she’s lied about and villified.

(okay well ofc i have to post this one).

Thank you for taking the time to put that together. I will now leave it at that. 🌸

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this press release from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:

Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced more than $17 million in funding through the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund, in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, for 45 conservation projects in the Delaware River watershed. The grants will generate nearly $20.7 million in matching contributions from the grantees, providing a total conservation impact of $38 million.

Funding includes more than $4.7 million from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for six projects aimed at improving public access, recreational opportunities, and water quality, as well as enhancing shoreline resiliency and critical habitat. 

The Delaware River watershed spans parts of Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York — a landscape that encompasses one of the most densely populated urban areas in the nation yet remains 50 percent forested. Four hundred miles of the Delaware River are classified as National Wild and Scenic River, indicating their shorelines remain largely undeveloped but accessible in places by roads. These projects supported by the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund will benefit the millions of people who rely on the Delaware River and its tributaries by improving habitats, reducing flood risks, improving water quality, and increasing access to natural places. 

Multistate: $94,069 for building capacity for dam removals in the Delaware River watershed through trainings and workshops.

Delaware: $500,000 for re-envisioning Rodney Reservoir Park with restored natural spaces to enhance water quality, wildlife habitat and recreation.

New York: $779,306 for reconnecting rivers in the upper Delaware River watershed to enhance brook trout habitat and mitigating flooding.

Pennsylvania: $1.5 million for restoring habitat and increasing equitable access to nature at Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park. 

Pennsylvania: $830,400 for improving public safety, access and water quality at Stroud Preserve.

Pennsylvania: $1 million for implementing green stormwater infrastructure projects at four under-served elementary schools in Philadelphia.

The total funding also includes $347,450 from the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service for projects such as collaborative forest management in New York and Pennsylvania. This project, co-funded between the Service and USDA-NRCS, is part of a new federal partnership to support conservation efforts on working lands. 

[mightyflamethrower]

California has become a test case of the suicide of the West. Never before has such a state, so rich in natural resources and endowed with such a bountiful human inheritance, self-destructed so rapidly.

How and why did California so utterly consume its unmatched natural and ancestral inheritance and end up as a warning to Western civilization of what might be in store for anyone who followed its nihilism?

The symptoms of the state’s suicide are indisputable.

Governor Gavin Newsom enjoyed a recent $98 billion budget surplus—gifted from multibillion-dollar federal COVID-19 subsidies, the highest income and gas taxes in the nation, and among the country’s steepest sales and property taxes.

Yet in a year, he turned it into a growing $45 billion budget deficit.

At a time of an over-regulated, overtaxed, and sputtering economy, Newsom spent lavishly on new entitlements, illegal immigrants, and untried and inefficient green projects.

Newsom was endowed with two of the wettest years in recent California history. Yet he and radical environmentalists squandered the water bounty—as snowmelts and runoff long designated for agricultural irrigation were drained from aqueducts and reservoirs to flow out to sea.

Newsom transferred millions of dollars designated by a voter referendum to build dams and aqueducts for water storage and instead blew up four historic dams on the Klamath River. For decades, these now-destroyed scenic lakes provided clean, green hydroelectric power, irrigation storage, flood control, and recreation.

California hosts one-third of the nation’s welfare recipients. Over a fifth of the population lives below the property line. Nearly half the nation’s homeless sleep on the streets of its major cities.

The state’s downtowns are dirty, dangerous, and increasingly abandoned by businesses—most recently Google—that cannot rely on a defunded and shackled police.

Newsom’s California has spent billions on homeless relief and subsidizing millions of new illegal migrant arrivals across the state’s porous southern border.

The result was predictably even more homeless and more illegal immigrants, all front-loaded onto the state’s already overtaxed and broken healthcare, housing, and welfare entitlements.

Newsome raised the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $22 an hour. The result was wage inflation rippling out to all service areas, unaffordable food for the poor, and massive shut-downs and bankruptcies of fast food outlets.

Twenty-seven percent of Californians were born outside of the United States. It is a minority-majority state. Yet California has long dropped unifying civic education, while the bankrupt state funds exploratory commissions to consider divisive racial reparations.

California’s universities are hotbeds of ethnic, religious, and racial chauvinism and infighting. State officials, however, did little as its campuses were plagued for months by rampant and violent anti-Semitism.

Almost nightly, the nation watches mass smash-and-grab attacks on California retail stores. Carjackers and thieves own the night. They are rarely caught, even more rarely arrested—and almost never convicted.

Currently, Newsom is fighting in the courts to stop the people’s constitutional right to place on the ballot initiatives to restore penalties for violent crime and theft.

Gas prices are the highest in the continental United States, given green mandate formulas and the nation’s highest, and still raising, gasoline taxes—and are scheduled to go well over $6 a gallon.

Yet its ossified roads and highways are among the nation’s most dangerous, as vast sums of transportation funding were siphoned off to the multibillion-dollar high-speed rail boondoggle.

The state imports almost all the costly vitals of modern life, mostly because it prohibits using California’s own vast petroleum, natural gas, timber, and mineral resources.

As California implodes, its embarrassed government turns to the irrelevant, if not ludicrous.

It now outlaws natural gas stoves in new homes. It is adding new income-based surcharges for those who dutifully pay their power bills—to help subsidize the 2.5 million Californians who simply default on their energy bill with impunity.

What happened to the once-beautiful California paradise?

Millions of productive but frustrated, overtaxed, and underserved middle-class residents have fled to low-crime, low-tax, and well-served red states in disgust

In turn, millions of illegal migrants have swarmed the state, given its sanctuary-city policies, refusal to enforce the law, and generous entitlements.

Meanwhile, a tiny coastal elite, empowered by $9 trillion in Silicon Valley market capitalization, fiddled while their state burned.

California became a medieval society of plutocratic barons, subsidized peasants, and a shrinking and fleeing middle class. It is now home to a few rich estates, subsidized apartments, and unaffordable middle-class houses.

California suffers from poorly ranked public schools—but brags about its prestigious private academies. Its highways are lethal—but it hosts the most private jets in the nation.

The fantasies of a protected enclave of Gavin Newsom, Nancy Pelosi, and the masters of the Silicon Valley universe have become the abject nightmares of everyone else.

In sum, a privileged Bay Area elite inherited a California paradise and turned it into purgatory.

[dailyanarchistposts]

The Demands and What Lies Ahead

On June 9th, CHAZ representatives released a list of demands that were authored by many of the collective voices in the zone. Most of them are extremely realistic and can be accomplished if Seattle actually had a representative government instead of one that works for Amazon. The list of demands falls under four categories: economics, education, the justice system and health and human services. The authors stated further that the zone was on land taken from the local Native American Duwamish people over a century ago. The Pacific Northwest has a long history with native tribes and the collective voices of the zone realize that. Additionally, they have requested no violence be used in attempts to remove the zoners and that they be allowed to operate in a communal structure in order to “show the country what is possible through collective voices.” CHAZ has been praised by the IWW’s Industrial Worker publication as an effective way to distribute badly needed social services. The irony behind the creation of CHAZ is that austerity measures have been put in many American cities since the CARES bailout back in March. This is expected during crises and it’s not acceptable to those not just in CHAZ but protesting within the BLM movement. Austerity has been a prime focus during these protests because while police departments across the country see their budgets increase every year, every other line item of public services continue to be cut. Anarchists in the zone realize they need to do more planning going forward. They have already began deputizing scouts and are working on expanding their perimeter even more. Smoking areas have been designated and local marijuana growers have flooded the zone to provide free marijuana. The anti-capitalist views of the inhabitants will create an atmosphere of brainstorming that will only serve the commune for the better going forward. As an example of this, many have began talking about black-owned banks, divesting from local corporations and prison reform. Local activists even gave a soapbox speech criticizing the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), and how their representatives in conservative state legislatures write laws without “any clue” as to who they represent. The opportunity is there to create a flourishing commune in a short term project that will ultimately likely be destroyed at some point. The main goal is to provide a glimpse for Americans what can be possible though communal action when you operate outside of the system of government that many Americans take for granted. This is not a country that is used to communal action and most citizens probably don’t even know the definition of a co-op. Kshama Sawant is a Seattle City Council member and member of the Trotskyist Socialist Alternative Party (SA). She visited the zone on June 9th and asked the residents to turn it into a community center for restorative justice. She agreed that there needs to be long term goals and that the method of going beyond policing (police abolition) needs to be analyzed and discoursed in the mainstream. Sawant did suggest caution though on pushing the city too far. She, along with the residents want to avoid future violence if the police do eventually move in to tear down the commune. The development of CHAZ is a real time education in community organizing and anarchist alternatives. Amazon and Boeing weren’t going to provide the people of Seattle with basic life necessities. Those in CHAZ hope they can demonstrate that social services can be provided in a vacuum. They have stated they will continue to build the commune and will continue until they are forced out. Long live the commune!

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

I asked chatgbt to make an image of Florida running out of homeowners insurance and flooded by a hurricane.

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

September 27, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Sep 28, 2024

Last night, at about 11:10 local time, Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Big Bend area of Florida, where the state’s panhandle curves down toward the peninsula. It was classified as a Category 4 storm when it hit, bringing winds of 140 miles per hour (225 km per hour). The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane wind scale, developed in 1971 by civil engineer Herbert Saffir and meteorologist Robert Simpson, divides storms according to sustained wind intensity in an attempt to explain storms on a scale similar to the Richter scale for earthquakes. 

The Saffir-Simpson scale defines a Category 4 hurricane as one that brings catastrophic damage. According to the National Weather Service, which was established in 1870 to give notice of “the approach and force of storms,” and is now part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a Category 4 hurricane has winds of 134–156 miles (209–251 km) per hour. “Well-built framed homes can sustain severe damage with loss of most of the roof structure and/or some exterior walls. Most trees will be snapped or uprooted and power poles downed. Fallen trees and power poles will isolate residential areas. Power outages will last weeks to possibly months. Most of the area will be uninhabitable for weeks or months.” 

Hurricane Helene hit with a 15-foot (4.6 meter) storm surge and left a path of destruction across Florida before moving up into Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky with torrential rain, flash floods, high winds, and tornadoes. A record level of more than eleven inches of rain fell in Atlanta, Georgia. At least 45 people have died in the path of the storm, and more than 4.5 million homes and businesses across ten states are without power. The roads in western North Carolina are closed. Moody’s Analytics said it expects the storm to leave $15 to $26 billion in property damage.

Officials from NOAA, the scientific and regulatory agency that forecasts weather and monitors conditions in the oceans and skies, predict that record-warm ocean temperatures this year will produce more storms than usual. NOAA hurricane scientist Jeff Masters noted that Helene’s landfall “gives the U.S. a record eight Cat 4 or Cat 5 Atlantic hurricane landfalls in the past eight years (2017–2024), seven of them being continental U.S. landfalls. That’s as many Cat 4 and 5 landfalls as occurred in the prior 57 years.”

President Joe Biden approved emergency declarations for Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina before Helene made landfall. Tennessee governor Bill Lee, a Republican, did not ask for such a declaration until this evening, instead proclaiming September 27 a “voluntary Day of Prayer and Fasting.” Observers pointed out that with people stuck on a hospital roof in the midst of catastrophic flooding in his state, maybe an emergency declaration would be more on point. 

After a state or a tribal government asks for federal help, an emergency declaration enables the federal government to provide funds to supplement local and state emergency efforts, as well as to deploy the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help save lives, protect property, and protect health and safety. Before Helene made landfall, the federal government placed personnel and resources across the region, ready to help with search and rescue, restore power, and provide food and water and emergency generators. 

The federal government sent 1,500 federal personnel to the region, as well as about 8,000 members of the U.S. Coast Guard and teams from the Army Corps of Engineers to provide emergency power. It provided two health and medical task forces to help local hospitals and critical care facilities, and sent in more than 2.7 million meals, 1.6 million liters of water, 50,000 tarps, 10,000 cots, 20,000 blankets, 70,000 gallons of diesel fuel, and 40,000 gallons of gasoline to provide supplies for those hit by the catastrophe. 

FEMA was created in 1979 after the National Governors Association asked President Jimmy Carter to centralize federal emergency management functions. That centralization recognized the need for coordination as people across the country responded to a disaster in any one part of it. When a devastating fire ripped through Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the day after Christmas in 1802, Congress agreed to send aid to the town, but volunteers organized by local and state governments and funded by wealthy community members provided most of the response and recovery efforts for the many disasters of the 1800s. 

When a deadly hurricane wiped out Galveston, Texas, in 1900, killing at least 6,000 residents and destroying most of the city’s buildings, the inept machine government proved unable to manage the donations pouring in from across the country to help survivors. Six years later, when an earthquake badly damaged San Francisco and ensuing fires from broken gas lines engulfed the city in flames, the interim fire chief—who took over when the fire chief was gravely injured—called in federal troops to patrol the streets and guard buildings. More than 4,000 Army troops also fed, sheltered, and clothed displaced city residents. 

When the Mississippi River flooded in 1927, sending up to 30 feet (9 meters) of  water across ten states, including Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana, killing about 500 people and displacing hundreds of thousands more, President Calvin Coolidge appointed Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover to coordinate the federal disaster response and pull together the many private-sector interests eager to help out under federal organization. This marked the first time the federal government took charge after a disaster. 

In 1950, Congress authorized federal response to disasters when it passed the Federal Disaster Assistance Program. In response to the many disasters of the 1960s—the 1964 Alaska Earthquake, Hurricane Betsy in 1965, and Hurricane Camille in 1969—the Department of Housing and Urban Development established a way to provide housing for disaster survivors. Congress provided guaranteed flood insurance to homeowners, and in 1970 it also authorized federal loans and federal funding for those affected by disasters. 

When he signed the Disaster Relief Act of 1970, Republican president Richard Nixon said: “I am pleased with this bill which responds to a vital need of the American people. The bill demonstrates that the Federal Government in cooperation with State and local authorities is capable of providing compassionate assistance to the innocent victims of natural disasters.”

Four years later, Congress established the process for a presidential disaster declaration. By then, more than 100 different federal departments and agencies had a role in responding to disasters, and the attempts of state, tribal, and local governments to interface with them created confusion. So the National Governors Association asked President Carter to streamline the process. In Executive Order 12127 he brought order to the system with the creation of FEMA.

In 2003, after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S., the George W. Bush administration brought FEMA into its newly-created Department of Homeland Security, along with 21 other agencies, wrapping natural disasters together with terrorist attacks as matters of national security. After 2005’s Hurricane Katrina required the largest disaster response in U.S. history, FEMA’s inadequate response prompted a 2006 reform act that distinguished responding to natural disasters from responding to terrorist attacks. In 2018, another reform focused on funding for disaster mitigation before the crisis hits.  

The federal government’s efficient organization of responses to natural disasters illustrates that as citizens of a republic, we are part of a larger community that responds to our needs in times of crisis.

But that system is currently under attack. Project 2025, a playbook for the next Republican administration, authored by allies of the right-wing Heritage Foundation and closely associated with Republican presidential candidate Trump and vice presidential candidate Ohio senator J.D. Vance, calls for slashing FEMA’s budget and returning disaster responses to states and localities. 

Project 2025 also calls for dismantling the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and either eliminating its functions, sending them to other agencies, privatizing them, or putting them under the control of states and territories. It complains that NOAA, whose duties include issuing hurricane warnings, is “one of the main drivers of the climate change alarm industry and, as such, is harmful to future U.S. prosperity.” 

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[nyarlathotep-thecrawlingchaos]

Internet's still out. Our provider at least finally identified the issue as a damaged fiber optic cable, but over twenty hours have passed and there is no estimated timeline for restoration. The entire town and most of the neighboring counties are without internet service, and there are still several thousand people without power. We're lucky we even have electricity here.

This was at a church about a quarter of a mile down the road from our house this evening, after the winds had died down and the flash flood warning had ended:

There are still a lot of roads blocked by trees and other debris. Helene managed to remain at tropical storm strength two entire states away from where she originally made landfall in Florida. We had sustained winds of over 50mph for a few hours last night, and stronger gusts that continued into the afternoon. I've never seen a storm quite like this here and I'm glad it's over.

I'm very exhausted after spending half the day cleaning branches and a tree out of our own yard and looking forward to finally getting some rest.

[tidalpunkfuture]

Seagrass appreciation post.

Located in the order Alismatales, related to Aroid lilies, seagrass are the only angiosperms (flowering plants) to grow and reproduce entirely in marine environments. They are notable for the manifold ecosystem services that they provide. The human centric benefits are: That seagrass meadows sequester a hell of a lot of carbon, by creating dense root systems under the sediment - they help to reduce coastal erosion, they're a useful resource for traditional textiles or thatching roofs and the like.

For their ecosystems, however, they; Reduce the turbidity of water, to the benefit of all photosynthesising organisms in the marine environment. Provide habitat for fish, invertebrates and microorganisms. They're also known to be frequented by sea turtles, sirenians and mute swans.

Are excellent nurseries for predominantly pelagic species by providing an area inaccessible for pelagic predators.

Interesting and quirky biology

To adapt to marine environments, seagrasses have had to adapt in some weird ways.

They've lost their stomata entirely (pores that help in gas exchange), a porous layer of cells allows C02 to diffuse into the leaves instead. Membranes in the cell walls can open when osmotic pressure is high, letting water flood in to restore the cell to regular pressure. Pollen is released by the stamens in sticky, gelatinous clumps

Conclusion

Seagrasses= V cool. Thanks.

[jollyperfectionfan]

RestoPros of Knoxville: Your Trusted Partner in Water Damage Recovery

Introduction

Water damage can wreak havoc on homes and businesses alike, creating an urgent need for effective recovery solutions. In Knoxville, RestoPros stands as a beacon of hope for those grappling with the aftermath of water-related disasters. Specializing in water damage cleanup and flood damage restoration in Knoxville, RestoPros combines expertise, experience, and state-of-the-art technology to provide unparalleled service.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the myriad aspects of water damage recovery, the essential services provided by RestoPros, and why they should be your go-to partner in times of crisis. Whether you're facing a minor leak or a catastrophic flood, understanding the recovery process can empower you to take decisive action.

Understanding Water Damage What is Water Damage?

Water damage refers to any destruction caused by water intruding into areas where it shouldn’t be. This can occur through various means, https://www.restopros.co/tn-knoxville/services/water-damage/ including:

Floods Leaks from pipes Roof leaks Overflows from bathtubs or sinks

Understanding how water damage happens is crucial for prevention and recovery.

Types of Water Damage

Water damage is often categorized into three classes based on contamination levels:

Clean Water Damage: This comes from a clean source like rainwater or a broken pipe. Gray Water Damage: Slightly contaminated water from sources like washing machines or dishwashers. Black Water Damage: Highly contaminated water resulting from sewage backups or floodwaters.

Knowing these distinctions helps homeowners and businesses determine the appropriate response.

The Importance of Prompt Water Damage Cleanup Why Timeliness Matters in Recovery

When it comes to water damage cleanup, time is of the essence. Acting quickly can make all the difference in minimizing long-term effects such as mold growth or structural issues.

Immediate Steps to Take After Water Damage Occurs

Here’s what you should do immediately after experiencing water damage:

Ensure Safety: Turn off electricity if safe to do so. Identify Source: Determine where the water is coming from. Call Professionals: Contact RestoPros for immediate assistance. RestoPros of Knoxville: Your Trusted Partner in Water Damage Recovery

RestoPros is synonymous with reliability when it comes to recovering from water-related disasters. With years of experience under their belt, their expert team employs advanced techniques to restore properties efficiently and effectively.

Expert Team at RestoPros

The backbone of RestoPros lies in its skilled professionals who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to every project:

Certified technicians trained in the latest restoration technologies Comprehensive training programs ensuring up-to-date skills A commitment to customer satisfaction through superior service Comprehensive Services Offered by RestoPros

[bryantselectricalltd]

Emergency Electrician: Why Red Deer Calls Bryant’s for 24/7 Emergency Services

When the lights go out or electrical systems fail, you need a trusted expert to respond — fast. That’s why home and business owners rely on Bryant’s Electrical Ltd. as their go-to emergency electrician in Red Deer. With round-the-clock service, decades of experience, and a commitment to safety, Bryant’s delivers peace of mind during your most urgent electrical issues.

Whether it’s a power outage, tripped circuit, sparking panel, or a total system failure, electrical emergencies demand immediate attention. Delayed responses can lead to further damage, safety risks, or costly downtime. Bryant’s Electrical Ltd. understands this urgency and is always on call, ready to restore power, protect your property, and keep your family or business safe.

⚡ What Qualifies as an Electrical Emergency?

Not every flickering light is an emergency — but knowing when to call a professional can save lives and prevent fire hazards. Here are common electrical situations that demand immediate response:

Burning smells from outlets or panels

Power outages in key systems or entire buildings

Exposed wiring or electrical sparks

Circuit breakers that keep tripping

Electric shocks from appliances or switches

Flooded electrical systems

Malfunctioning security systems or lighting at night

If you’re unsure, it’s always safer to call Bryant’s Electrical. Their emergency team will assess the situation and provide the proper solution — any time of the day or night.

⏱️ 24/7 Rapid Response — No Waiting, No Worries

Time is critical in emergencies. Bryant’s Electrical Ltd. is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including holidays. Their expert electricians are dispatched immediately and arrive equipped to assess, isolate, and fix the issue safely and efficiently.

From the moment you call, you’ll speak to a real person — not an answering machine. Bryant’s prides itself on fast response times and clear communication, ensuring you’re never left in the dark.

🔧 On-the-Spot Fixes When You Need Them Most

Unlike general contractors who may need to “come back later,” Bryant’s emergency electricians travel fully equipped to handle:

Faulty wiring repair

Electrical panel troubleshooting

Temporary power setup

Generator hookup and servicing

Emergency lighting solutions

Fire hazard mitigation

Switch, outlet, and appliance malfunctions

Their goal? Get your systems safe and operational in one visit whenever possible.

🏠 Residential Emergency Electrical Services

Your home is your sanctuary — but electrical problems can make it feel anything but safe. That’s why Bryant’s offers reliable 24/7 residential emergency services in Red Deer and surrounding areas.

They’ve helped countless homeowners with sudden outages, smoking outlets, and weather-related electrical failures. Common residential emergencies include:

Electrical surges from storm damage

Overloaded circuits and flickering lights

Faulty GFCIs in kitchens and bathrooms

Tripped main breakers or blown fuses

Electrical fire risks in older homes

Whether you’re dealing with an urgent late-night issue or a scary situation in a new property, Bryant’s licensed electricians act fast — so you can feel safe again.

🏢 Commercial Electrical Emergencies: Business Continuity Matters

In the business world, time is money — and electrical issues can bring operations to a halt. That’s why local businesses, property managers, and facilities teams in Red Deer rely on Bryant’s Electrical for 24/7 commercial emergency services.

They serve a wide range of industries, including:

Restaurants, bars, and food services

Retail shops and malls

Office buildings

Warehouses and logistics centers

Schools and educational institutions

Medical and dental clinics

⚠️ Emergency Services Include:

Backup power for cold storage or sensitive equipment

Flickering or failed lighting in customer areas

Equipment shutdowns or power surges

Data center power protection

Security and surveillance system malfunctions

Smoke detector and fire panel problems

Bryant’s works efficiently and discreetly to fix the issue while minimizing disruption to your operations. They also offer temporary power solutions so you can keep things running while repairs are underway.

🏭 Supporting Critical Infrastructure & Industrial Clients

Industrial operations require consistent power and precise system performance. When something goes wrong, it can put machinery, workers, and production timelines at risk. Bryant’s Electrical has the expertise and availability to provide emergency support in these high-stakes environments.

They’re available 24/7 for facilities like:

Manufacturing plants

Processing units

Agricultural facilities

Oil & gas depots

Water treatment facilities

Utility sites

With specialized knowledge in heavy-duty electrical systems, machinery controls, PLC wiring, and industrial safety codes, Bryant’s is the trusted emergency partner for some of the most power-intensive operations in Red Deer.

🧰 Prepared for Every Emergency: Tools, Talent & Technology

What makes Bryant’s Electrical Ltd. the top choice during emergencies? It’s their combination of:

✅ Skilled Electricians

All emergency team members are licensed, insured, and extensively trained in troubleshooting under pressure. Whether it’s a complex circuit diagram or an old fuse box, they know exactly how to fix it safely.

✅ Advanced Tools & Equipment

Their vans come stocked with cutting-edge diagnostic tools, replacement parts, temporary power units, and safety gear. They’re prepared to act on the spot — without multiple trips back and forth.

✅ Real-Time Communication

Clients receive status updates and estimates promptly. Transparency is a priority, even during high-pressure situations.

✅ Safety-First Approach

Emergencies often pose real hazards, including electrical fires and injuries. Bryant’s always follows strict CSA standards and safety procedures to protect your family, staff, and property.

👷 Proactive Support: Preventing Future Emergencies

While emergency response is critical, Bryant’s Electrical also focuses on prevention. Their team offers post-emergency inspections and ongoing maintenance plans to reduce future risks.

Services include:

Thermal imaging inspections

Surge protection system installation

Panel and breaker testing

Smoke alarm system checks

Load calculations and balancing

Generator service & testing

Preventive care gives you peace of mind — and helps avoid the stress and cost of repeat emergency calls.

🤝 The Bryant’s Electrical Emergency Guarantee

When you call Bryant’s for emergency service, you get more than just an electrician — you get a promise:

🚨 Rapid Response, 24/7

🛠️ On-the-spot solutions when possible

🔍 Honest assessments and fair pricing

🔒 Absolute safety and code compliance

📞 Clear communication throughout the job

They understand that electrical emergencies can be stressful. That’s why they treat every client with respect, patience, and urgency — regardless of the size of the job.

📞 Call Now — Your Emergency Electrician in Red Deer

Electrical emergencies don’t wait for business hours — and neither does Bryant’s Electrical Ltd. Whether you’re facing sparks, outages, or something just doesn’t seem right, call Red Deer’s most trusted emergency electricians.

Let their certified team handle your emergency with the speed, care, and precision you deserve. Stay safe, stay connected, and get back to normal fast.

In addition to emergency services, Bryant’s also offers specialized support for long-term facility operations and heavy-duty power systems. If you’re looking for a reliable industrial electrician in Red Deer, their experienced crew is ready to serve with precision and professionalism.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Update makes X available again to many in Brazil

Social media platform X became accessible to many users in Brazil on Wednesday as an update to its communications network circumvented a block order by the country's Supreme Court.

Last month, after a months-long dispute between X owner Elon Musk and Brazilian Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the Supreme Court had ordered Brazil's mobile and internet service providers to block the platform and users were cut off within hours.

But Brazilians flooded back onto the platform on Wednesday, with some cheering what they called a maneuver by Musk to flaunt the law.

But X later said that a switch in network providers had resulted in "an inadvertent and temporary service restoration" for Brazilian users.

X's Global Affairs team, in a post to the social media platform, said the switch had been spurred by the shutdown, as it meant certain infrastructure for the rest of Latin America was no longer accessible.

Continue reading.