11th Annual Conference on Tar Creek--It's NOT Just Tar Creek Anymore

It has been a l-o-n-g time since anyone posted on this blog but I needed to write about the upcoming 11th Annual Conference on Tar Creek. Yes, this is number 11 and as noted in the title of this blog entry, it's not just about Tar Creek anymore. The variety of environmental issues to be addressed at this conference is not just exciting but inspiring.

Attendees will not only hear the latest about environmental issues in our area but will also have the opportunity to tour University of Oklahoma's Passive Treatment System with Dr. Robert Nairn. They will also be introduced to Kite Aerial Photography (KAP) by Drs. James and Susie Aber. KAP is an important method of conducting research and is certainly one of the most fun methods of obtaining data!

For those of you that need food or entertainment to catch your attention, well, the conference offers that as well. Even a movie!

Please do check out the details of the conference at LEAD Agency's conference page. There is a registration form and agenda available for download.

I hope to see you at the conference. I'll be the person asking if I can help with the KAP--one time I can be asked to go fly a kite and be happy to oblige!

Energy and the Environment, Now Up Close and Personal

Welcome 2009. Such a historic year with the new Obama-Biden Administration and their plans for addressing our environmental crisis.

I decided it was time to take a look at the White House website and I'm pleased to say energy is featured on the main welcome page. The page invites you to read President Obama's agenda for energy and the environment. Energy and the Environment, up close and personal as it should be.

One thing I noticed are the words "clean coal". I cannot grasp how coal can be viewed as a clean energy source but what a great start with many of the other items addressed.

Another area caught my eye on the website, a link to the Office of Public Liaison. At the top of the button is the word, Participate, and below the office title are the words, Changing the Way Americans Engage with Their Government.

If you follow their link, they invite you to submit your thoughts and comments (up to 500 words). The site stresses their office will be taking the Administration out of Washington and into communities across America, stimulating honest dialogue and ensuring that America's citizens and their elected officials have a government that works effectively for them and with them.

It is noted OPL-IGA will bring new voices to the table, build relationships with constituents and seeks to embody the essence of the President's movement for change through the meaningful engagement of citizens and their elected officials by the federal government. The website also stressed more ways will be added for you to interact with OPA-IGA at this page in the weeks and months ahead.

This is a wonderful concept and I think we all need to get involved. I'm also thinking the OPA-IGA are going to need more people, maybe even volunteer help, just to read all of the suggestions and feedback they will be receiving. . .