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Imperiled Parks

Laws Permit Oil and Gas Drilling in Iconic Public Lands

News that the U.S. Department of the Interior will allow drilling for oil and gas in a proposed wilderness area in southern Utah’s Desolation Canyon puts a spotlight on the practice. A report by the Center for American Progress reveals that 42 national parks are at risk, including 12 where oil and gas drilling is currently underway and 30 where it could be in the near future. Among the threatened wild places are iconic American national parklands, including Grand Teton, in Wyoming, Mesa Verde, Great Sand Dunes and Dinosaur National Monument, in Colorado, Santa Monica Mountains, in California, Glen Canyon, in Arizona, Carlsbad Caverns and Chaco Canyon, in New Mexico, Everglades and Gulf Islands, in Florida, Arches and Canyonlands, in Utah, and Glacier, in Montana. The reality is that all public lands, including national parks and wildlife refuges, are potentially open to oil and gas leasing unless they are designated as “wilderness”, the highest form of land protection designated by the government.

Source: The Wilderness Society (Tinyurl.com/NationalParkDrilling)

Global Briefs
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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