whitepinenews

NNS-Fake or Real?

Nevada News Service

November 25, 2011

Fake vs. Real Christmas Trees? You Might Be Surprised at This Answer

Mike Clifford

LAS VEGAS – Many Nevadans will be making the big decision this weekend: whether to buy an artificial or real Christmas tree. It’s a choice with both environmental and economic impacts.

Jane Feldman, conservation chair for the Sierra Club Southern Nevada Group, says natural Christmas trees offer some major environmental advantages, including capturing global-warming pollution and preventing erosion. On the other hand, she says most ‘fake’ trees are manufactured abroad using polyvinyl chlorides (PVCs).

So, there’s a large transportation bill in fossil fuels to transport those trees from overseas here to Nevada; and of course, since they are made of petrochemicals, when they hit our landfills, they don’t biodegrade."

However, twice as many Americans still buy artificial trees. Feldman points out that making the switch to a real tree not only helps the environment, but the U.S. economy as well. Natural Christmas tree production is a $1 billion industry that provides 100,000 jobs nationwide.

Bill Ulfelder with The Nature Conservancy is also a fan of the environmental benefits of real trees.

"They capture climate-changing gases from the atmosphere, so they help abate climate change; they’re putting oxygen into the air for us to breathe. They’re good for wildlife – mammals, birds, insects."

And for Nevadans who really want to get back to nature, Feldman says you can also chop down your own tree – as long as you have the proper permit.

"Both the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service allow harvesting in some areas in Nevada on public lands."

Learn more about getting a Christmas Tree tag at www.blm.gov.

Special Ely City council meeting Friday Morning

The Ely City Council will meet Friday morning at 10am in the Volunteer Fire Hall.  The agenda follows the break.

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blotter – 11/22

WHITE PINE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

BLOTTER REPORT

NOVEMBER 22, 2011

REPORT OF A ARREST

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Another earthquake near Ruth? – UPDATED

According to this report in an LA Times blog, we had a 3.2 earthquake yesterday.

But a search of the US Geological Survey site as of 3am Tuesday morning shows no such report.  (Updated:  The main page doesn’t show this, but there’s a preliminary report of a 3.5 quake 18 miles  at the same time, 2:57pm Monday afternoon!  Still not showing up on their summary page.)

HOWEVER, the UNR Nevada Seismological Lab does, in fact, show a quake of 3.5 magnitude taking place at about that same time, 2:57pm Monday afternoon.  The location reported, 18.6 miles West Northwest of Ely is close to another recent quake back on October 11th.   The More Information page on this tremor comes up blank. 

We’ll check later today with UNR to see what they say.  Did you feel anything, especially in Ruth?

Fire department consolidations on Interlocal Agreement Team agenda

The City and County Inter-Local agreement team will meet again Wednesday November 30th at 5pm.  Merging fire departments tops the one item agenda meeting:

1.)  Discussion/For Possible Action on ways White Pine County Fire District and EMS / City of Ely Fire Department and EMS to coordinate scheduling, training, and potential unification of services.  The District Attorney will report on the legalities of possible merger. 

The meeting will be at the Commission meeting chambers.