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Photographer Byron Roe directs participants in Saturday's 350.org climate change rally into position for a group photo from atop a ladder. The number 350 refers to the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in parts per million that some climate scientists say is the upper limit if global warming is to be reversed.
Scott Hammers / The Bulletin
From Australia to Asia to Bend, focus on 350
Goal was to draw attention to ‘what the science is saying'
By Scott Hammers / The Bulletin
Published: October 25. 2009 4:00AM PSTBy bike, on foot and by dog-pulled scooter, several dozen Central Oregon residents converged Saturday morning on downtown Bend as part of an international effort to prompt world leaders to act on climate change.
The event, held on the top floor of the Centennial Parking Plaza on Lava Road between Oregon and Minnesota avenues, was one of thousands of such gatherings Saturday in 181 countries, organized by 350.org, an organization created by writer and environmentalist Bill McKibben.
The group's name comes from the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere — 350 parts per million — that many climate scientists have determined is the maximum acceptable level if global warming is to be reversed. Current carbon dioxide levels are around 390 parts per million.
Mike Riley, executive director of The Environmental Center in Bend and one of the organizers of the event locally, said the organizers of each event planned to shoot a group photo to show government leaders that support for legislation to combat climate change is widespread.
By using the number 350 as a central concept of the effort, Riley said the goal is to move governments past the more abstract aspects of the climate change discussion and toward a concrete goal.
“The point of this is to really focus the policy to what the science is saying,” Riley said. “Because too often, it's just driven by politics.”
Photos uploaded to the 350.org Web site by Saturday afternoon depicted the number in many ways: a group holding a banner at the bottom of the sea at the Great Barrier Reef off the Australian coast, rock climbers dangling in formation on the face of a Vermont cliff and a group posed before rocks arranged in the desert sands of Inner Mongolia.
The photo shoot in Bend was a less elaborate affair, with photographer Byron Roe of Byron Roe Photography climbing a slightly-wobbly ladder to capture his shot.
Josh Gatling, of Bend, came to the rally to represent Blue Sky, a Pacific Power program that offers renewable sources of energy to consumers.
He said that while it's true that switching to renewable energy costs more today, he's found people are willing to pay a little more if it's for a worthy cause. And renewable energy technology is becoming more and more efficient over time.
“People always say, if we switch to 100 percent wind, 100 percent renewable, the grid won't provide enough energy,” Gatling said. “I say, that's a perfect challenge for American ingenuity.”
One guest at Saturday's rally shared a personal story of climate change and environmental disruption. Helen Nkuraiya, a Kenyan schoolteacher in Bend to visit Dr. Mary Ellen Coulter, said much of the Mau Forest where she grew up has been destroyed by clearing for timber and agriculture.
The loss of trees accelerated drought conditions, she said, drying up rivers and rendering once fertile land unproductive. Now, the Kenyan government is struggling to find somewhere to relocate the forest's residents, people with few skills beyond subsistence farming.
Bend City Councilor Jim Clinton said he was attending the event as a private citizen and a representative of the city. He said attitudes about climate change and energy efficiency are often different in Central and Eastern Oregon than in the western half of the state, noting that Bend is the only Oregon city east of the Cascades to sign the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. Clinton said he thinks the city has done a good job of leading by example, pointing to the city's work to improve the efficiency of its buildings, the move toward more hybrid vehicles in the city's fleet and plans to include a small hydroelectric generator in upgrades to its water intake system at Bridge Creek.
“For many of us at the city, we want Bend to be a showcase for energy efficiency and sustainability,” Clinton said. “Not just at the city government, but the whole city.”
Organizers of Saturday's event followed the morning rally with a workshop at The Environmental Center on the potential consequences of diminishing oil supplies.
Scott Hammers can be reached at 541-383-0387 or at shammers@bendbulletin.com.
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