Concord, MA – An extra-chilly swim is in the weekend plans for about 100 Bay Staters, who will be taking a "polar bear plunge" in Walden Pond. It's one of hundreds of such events around the world to draw attention to climate change.

While the water temperature will be in the mid-30s, Roger Shamel, president of the Global Warming Education Network, says that's quite a bit warmer than the Walden Pond Henry David Thoreau knew.

"When Thoreau was there, it would have been frozen by now. And there are studies that talk about how the flora and fauna have changed quite a bit since he was there because of the temperature change."

Shamel calls the plunge a "call to action" on reducing the types of pollution scientifically linked to climate change.

"Climate change is not just a feel good topic to talk about; it's a serious and urgent matter that we need to act on quickly."

Some scientists dispute the human-produced pollution connection to climate change, and say it's the result of natural, cyclical processes and solar activity.

Shamel notes 2008 has been a year of extreme weather, from massive wildfires in California and the West, to record heat waves and historic flooding. Those are types of weather events forecast for a changing climate, according to Shamel.



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CARSON CITY, Nev. - As Democrats work feverishly for a deal on the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the reconciliation bill, groups working to curb the effects of climate change say both are crucial to Nevada's economy.

The Build Back Better reconciliation bill includes billions to promote clean energy and clean transportation.

Kevin Moran, senior director for the Environmental Defense Fund Action, said the Silver State already is suffering the effects of a warming climate, with devastating heat waves, wildfire and drought - and he insisted the way out is paved with clean-energy jobs.

"Climate change is barging down the door in the American West," he said, "and it's time for us to take on the underlying causes of it in a way that grows our economy."

The Build Back Better agenda includes incentives to increase the number of electric-vehicle charging stations, and the so-called "hard" infrastructure bill includes $4.6 billion for rebuilding aging infrastructure and rural water projects, including $400 million for water-saving programs to protect against drought.

Moran said Nevada, considered by some to be the sunniest state in the nation, is poised to benefit greatly from the solar incentives in the reconciliation bill.

"There's over 30,000 people employed in clean-energy jobs already in Nevada," he said. "Provisions in the Build Back Better agenda would double the number of clean energy jobs in Nevada, adding over 31,000."

President Joe Biden's plan also would invest $2.2 billion in Nevada's energy-efficiency projects and $311 million in projects to modernize the power grid.

VANCOUVER, Wash. - As cities work toward decreasing their climate impact, they're running up against some opponents in the gas industry.

In Washington state, Vancouver is developing its climate action plan, but activists in the community say Northwest Natural, the regional gas supplier, has ramped up its pace defending the fuel source.

Northwest Natural has sent out fliers noting that customers prefer gas stoves in their homes, but Alona Steinke, a Vancouver resident and retired nurse, said a growing number of health studies find these stoves are a major source of indoor pollution.

"They were telling their customers that there's 'a small group of people who are trying to get the city to take away their gas.' Well, it's not true," she said, "but I'm sure there are some who thought that they were going to lose their beloved gas stoves."

Northwest Natural said it has plans for reducing its carbon footprint, including the use of methane produced by cow manure and sewage-treatment plans. The company is part of roundtable discussions taking place in Vancouver on its climate action plan.

David Anderson, Northwest Natural's chief executive and president, also chairs the American Gas Association. Dylan Plummer, senior campaign representative for the Sierra Club in the region, said cities and other local governments have faced roadblocks - from the company and American Gas Association - as they attempt to electrify buildings and appliances to meet their climate goals.

"Northwest Natural is leading both a regional and a national effort to undermine these commonsense climate policies and keep our communities hooked on methane gas," he said.

Cities are feeling increasing pressure from, and urgency to act on, climate change. Alona's husband, Don Steinke, also is fighting for climate action in Vancouver. He said city council members initially asked how Vancouver could afford to cut its emissions so dramatically in the next few decades.

"That was what they said before we had that 115-degree heat in that heat dome that we had," he said. "That was what they said then. And then at the next meeting they said, 'We're all in. Go for it, do everything we possibly can to reduce emissions.'"

SAN DIEGO -- Ninety percent of California's wetlands are gone, and the movement to restore them has taken on added urgency in light of the climate crisis.

A recent report by the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center encouraged California to restore and expand the natural carbon sinks up and down the coast.

James Holmquist, ecologist at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and co-author of the report, said it maps out the best places for so-called "blue carbon" mitigation projects.

"They're one of the few ecosystems that can take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and store it long term and lock it away in their soils," Holmquist pointed out.

Holmquist added plants in tidal marshes scrub carbon from the atmosphere and send it to their roots, which later die and add to the soil bed.

ReWild Mission Bay is a blue-carbon restoration project in San Diego that would like to see local marshes restored. The City of San Diego is about to release a new land-use plan, which could require a campground built on marshland decades ago to relocate.

Andrew Meyer, conservation director at the San Diego Audubon Society, said the project would rebuild tidal wetlands that lock away carbon.

"The priority for this space should be the blue carbon benefits we can get from wetland restoration," Meyer asserted. "Our park uses can fit in the banks of a restored, vibrant wetland. This is the best place for wetland restoration in Mission Bay; in all of San Diego."

The Coastal Carbon Network is working on releasing more data on blue carbon from other areas of the state, including Bodega Bay, Bolinas Lagoon, Humboldt Bay, Morro Bay, Newport Bay, Point Mugu, Seal Beach and Tijuana Estuary.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts.