Contributor Bill Mason returns after an extended absence with his column about issues that impact the health of the Big Blue Marble we live on. Below Earth Matters asks: What’s the beef with the Trans-Pacific Partnership and U.S. food safety? Standing on his political soapbox in front...
In a rare moment of enlightenment, Republican John Boehner recently stated “I’m not qualified to debate the science over climate change.” In the past, Boehner was a staunch "climate denier” who professed, “The idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is...
Proclaiming that the Industrial Age must end is a surefire way to invoke a relentless pounding of rhetoric from pro-growth conservatives like the unforgiving waves of a tsunami. However, before some of you sound the alarm and declare an impending disaster, allow me to elaborate....
“Malama i ke kai, a malama ke kai ia 'oe.” [caption id="attachment_40377" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Plastic in the ocean absorbs other toxins, which the fish we eat ingest.[/caption] The centuries old 'ōlelo no'eau (Hawaiian proverb) translates to mean, “Care for the ocean and the ocean will care for...
In 1896, approximately 150 years after the dawn of the industrial revolution began to disrupt Earth’s natural energy balance, Nobel Laureate chemist Svante Arrhenius theorized that carbon dioxide (CO2) derived from fossil fuel combustion induced atmospheric global warming. Nonetheless, it took another 62 years before...
As self-serving politicians funded by the fossil fuel industry inhibit progress in America, Asian countries are quickly moving towards reducing risk, building resilience, and creating new economic opportunities by abandoning the business-as-usual approach in favor of going green. By 2020, China, India, and Japan will be...
Editor's Note: On January 4, the New York Times published a major story about a bill to ban genetically engineered crops on the island of Hawaii. I asked scientist Billy Mason to comment. His response is below. In the past, the top-down distribution of news in...
'A'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia. Translation? "No task is too big when done together by all." This Hawaiian 'olelo no'eau or proverb, was recently illuminated when the power of the Kaua'i and Big Island communities overcame political gridlock and "outside money" in order to ensure...
The fat lady has sung and the time has come for climate deniers to face the music. Based on 117 years of research, the 5th Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2013 Report concluded: "It is extremely likely [95 percent confidence] more than half of the observed...
Climate change is happening now. One year after Superstorm Sandy caused $80 billion in damage, there have been raging forest fires induced by extreme drought conditions burning thousands of acres of pristine forest, killing dozens of people, and destroying hundreds of homes. More recently, an extreme...
