Mar 14, 2026
Linda Eve Seth
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
A banana is an elongated, edible frui — botanically a berry — produced by several kinds of large treelike, herbaceous flowering plants.
Bananas are the world’s most consumed fruit – and the fourth most important food crop globally, after wheat, rice and maize. About 80% of bananas grown globally are for local consumption, and more than 400 million people rely on the fruit for 15% to 27% of their daily calories. They are a staple food as well as a major export commodity for many tropical nations. Affordable and nutritious, bananas have long been a supermarket staple for consumers around the globe. But that could soon change, as climate change is contributing to a global shortage of the world’s most consumed fruit.
Bananas, as we know them, are in danger of going extinct.
More than 1,000,000,000 bananas are consumed worldwide each year making this the world’s most popular fruit, but that number could be shrinking. By 2080 it’s expected that almost two-thirds of the banana growing areas in Latin America and the Caribbean will no longer be suitable to grow bananas because of rising annual temperatures in the region.
Bananas need warm, humid conditions. Rising temperatures and erratic rainfall/droughts stress plants, reducing photosynthesis and yield, making them vulnerable.
Climate change severely threatens bananas through rising temperatures, extreme weather (droughts, floods, storms), and the accelerated spread of fungal diseases — reducing suitable growing land, increasing costs, and risking the dominant Cavendish variety, suggesting the need for urgent adaptation via new resilient varieties and sustainable farming practices.
These tropical yellow fruits need a temperature range of between 60-95 degrees Fahrenheit to thrive but are also very sensitive to water shortages. Storms are a big problem with shredding leaves, making it much harder for the crop to photosynthesize. Floods erode soil, while strong winds and storms damage plants, spreading diseases and disrupting supply chains, leading to shortages and higher prices
In each of the banana-producing countries, climate change poses a significant threat to banana production by raising temperatures, altering rainfall patterns, and increasing the spread of fungal diseases, which thrive in these conditions and can devastate plantations.
Shifting climate patterns–including warming temperatures and humidity–are exposing crops around the world to a variety of fungal diseases. Experts expect that over time further spread of those diseases will have a large impact on supply. This is a trend that will continue to accelerate.
Temperatures in the 90s and above, even for brief amounts of time during the entire growing season, can cause large losses in the yield you get from a given plot of land at the end of the growing season.
Bananas are at a critical junction right now, with their future firmly in the hands of science. And while there may be a solution, it could forever change how the iconic fruit tastes.
Scientists are working on a solution. They are using a genetic bank from 150 different species of banana to breed an edible, disease-resistant fruit. While it would save the fruit, it would taste, and potentially feel, different to the ones we’re used to.
Most bananas sold in the U.S. come from Latin American countries like Costa Rica and Colombia. India produces the most bananas in the world, growing over 30 million tons annually, primarily for domestic consumption. As the climate warms, these countries may no longer be optimal locations for growing the fruit. The tropics, which are already very, very hot, are becoming hotter.
The possibility of adapting by moving the industry to other parts of Latin America may be difficult. Growing bananas requires people to work on the banana plantations, needs water to irrigate banana plants, and depends upon ports to ship bananas all over the world. The regions that will be most suitable in terms of climate will be further away from ports, they may not be as well supplied with irrigation, and they may not have the people there to work in those regions. These other factors are going to constrain the industry’s ability to adapt.
Bananas are not just the world’s favorite fruit; they are also an essential food for millions of people. The climate change-induced shortage doesn’t necessarily mean empty shelves at the grocery store — but it does mean higher prices.
Bananas, like other favorite American comestibles — coffee, apples, chocolate, tequila — are demonstrating their susceptibility to the impact of Climate Change.
Until next time, be kind to your Mother Earth.
***
Linda Eve Seth, SLP, M.Ed., is a mother, grandmother, concerned citizen and member of Mid Ohio Valley Climate Action.
Posted: April 18, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: Electrifying case studies, concepts for energy resilience
Apr 18, 2026
Jonathan Brier
Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Corner
I was talking with a farmer in March and a few things about that conversation stuck out, which I wanted to share more broadly.
Forest Lodge Orchard in New Zealand serves as a compelling case study by being the world’s first 100% electric, zero fossil fuel cherry farm, powered by its own 160kW solar array and 300kWh battery system. The 6-hectare farm achieved this by replacing 20 fossil fuel machines with electric versions, including the country’s first electric tractor, which drastically reduced operational costs to about $2 per hour. Ultimately, the orchard demonstrates that electrification is both environmentally sustainable and profitable, securing NZ0 Certification and seeing consumers pay a 15% premium for its produce. YouTtube has a 5 minute interview about the farm: tinyurl.com/jdah546
If you would like to talk more about these or other climate corner topics, stop by the MOVCA tent at the Marietta Armory in Marietta between 10 a.m. and 1p.m. on Saturday, April 25.
Last Updated: April 18, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: Public lands need protection
Apr 11, 2026
Randi Pokladnik
For the first eight years of my life, our family lived in a small rented house in Steubenville, Ohio. We had a tiny yard lacking any trees, so my mom would take my siblings and me to a local park. She would pack us a picnic lunch complete with a thermos of lemonade and we would ride the bus to Steubenville’s Beatty Park.
The time we spent at the park was magical. I think it makes me appreciate how valuable public lands like state parks and wildlife areas are today. In SE Ohio, parks also help our local economy. The outdoor recreation economy netted Ohio $20 billion in 2024 and employed more than 150,000 people. So why do Ohio’s politicians continue to support fracking our parks and wildlife areas, risking economic losses and degradation of the land?
For over three years, Ohio citizens have tried in vain to stop the leasing of Ohio’s State parks and wildlife areas to out-of-state oil and gas companies. If Ohioans had been able to submit public comments for HB 507, the bill that opened up the public lands to fracking, they would have said NO to fracking our public lands. But HB 507 was passed during a lame duck session in December 2022, with no public input. Ohioans continue to be excluded from fracking decisions, as the Oil and Gas Land Management Commission meets in Columbus, a 2-hour drive from the communities where most of the parks targeted for fracking are located.
The Oil and Gas Land Management Commission (OGLMC) is a five-member group responsible for deciding whether or not nominated portions of public lands or parks will be leased. The commission’s five members deciding the fate of Ohio’s parks and wildlife areas were all appointed by Governor DeWine. There has been considerable turnover of commission members during the past year, but the commission make-up remains primarily that of lawyers. The newest member, Chair Theresa White, is also the chief operating officer of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
No one on the OGLMC has any significant background in health or science. Additionally, there are no doctoral degree scientists working at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Science is not guiding the decisions to frack our parks; money is. On March 31, 2026, the OGLMC decided to lease more than 8,000 acres at Egypt Valley Wildlife Area and more than 500 acres at Salt Fork State Park, during a meeting that lasted less than 20 minutes.
What was discussed during that 20-minute period? The OGLMC are supposedly guided by the statute ORC 155.33, which says the commission can “approve or disapprove” lease nominations on the basis of nine considerations, including economic benefit, environmental impact, geological impact, impact on visitors, and public comments and objections. Considering the number of leases “rubber stamped” since this process began, it begs the question of what is really considered behind closed doors. During a January meeting this year, Theresa White said, “nothing legally requires the commission to explain its decisions.”
I live in Harrison County where there are approximately 3,700 active oil and gas wells, making us the #1 oil and gas producing county in the state. Jockey Hollow Wildlife Area, a biodiverse ecosystem located in our county, has been leased for fracking. As a scientist with a background in forest ecology as well as chemistry, I take exception to a recent comment from Theresa White: “None of the fracking is going to have well pads or production units on state property. So, this is for the oil and gas that is underneath state parks, underneath the wildlife areas. There’s oversight by the DNR division of oil and gas or resources management.”
Just because a well pad is not directly on a piece of land does not mean it doesn’t affect the surrounding area. Studies show that “living within about 3 miles of well pad flaring is associated with increased risk of preterm birth.” There isn’t a glass enclosure around well pads, so any air emissions float freely from the well pad. These emissions include methane and other volatile organic species like ethane, propane, n-hexane, n-octane, benzene and ethyne. A FLIR GF320 optical gas imaging camera can detect 19 different hydrocarbons that are released during a fracking operation.
Frack pads also contaminate local water sources. Chemical leaks and leaks of produced water from well pads contain contaminants like oil, grease, hydrocarbons, as well as heavy metals like arsenic, antimony, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, and zinc. Leaks from chemical additives stored on-site in tanks and radioactive radium isotopes in produced waste also threaten local water quality. These contaminants will make their way to streams and surface water in our parks regardless of where the well pad is located.
Fracking requires millions of gallons of surface water. Ohio law allows stream withdrawals of up to 2 million gallons a day for a 30-day period. ODNR records show that fracking by far uses a large percentage of surface water in fracked counties, the same counties that experienced record droughts in 2024 and 2025. A drive past well pads often reveal water lines pumping water from local streams.
Lastly, park visitors and wildlife will find it difficult to communicate once fracking has started. The noise from a well pad less than a mile from our home sounds like the Cleveland Airport runway; constant 24-hour noise. Ms. White and the OGLMC need to visit a well pad so they can experience first hand the damage that a frack pad has on a forested ecosystem.
“Over the past eight years, approximately 2,000 recorded incidents associated with oil and gas wells occurred in Ohio.” Given the number of accidents and spills at well pads, it is obvious that the Ohio Department of Natural Resources cannot be counted on to protect our parks.
Ohio’s public lands should not be sacrificed at the altar of the oil and gas industry, but sadly they are. As Earth Day approaches, isn’t it time for all Ohioans to push back against the politicians that are willing to sacrifice our precious public lands for a buck?
Randi Pokladnik, Ph.D., of Uhrichsville, is a retired research chemist who volunteers with Mid Ohio Valley Climate Action. She has a doctorate degree in environmental studies and is certified in hazardous materials regulations.
Posted: April 4, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: No kings, no exceptions
Apr 4, 2026
Jean Ambrose
Easter is the most important day in the year for Christians. It commemorates the state torture and execution of a political protester and agitator, Jesus of Nazareth, more than 2,000 years ago — and the disappearance of his body two days later.
No one could have anticipated that minor event would become the foundation of a religious and political movement spanning millennia, one that today claims about 62% of Americans as followers.
In historical terms Christianity’s spread was remarkable. Early Christianity created a radical community rooted in the belief that all people were made in the image of God and therefore deserving of dignity and respect. Their compassion was widely noticed. They cared for the sick, shared resources with the poor, and offered women, widows, and single people a place of honor and leadership that was rare in the ancient world. They challenged practices such as infanticide and caste systems.
Their faith spread not through force or political power, but through networks of relationships. They demonstrated their beliefs through the way they lived — through humility, generosity, and courage in the face of persecution. They offered hope: a vision of a loving God and a future shaped by redemption rather than endless cycles of suffering.
By the time the Roman emperor Constantine legalized Christianity in the year 313, the groundwork had already been laid by generations of ordinary people living out a countercultural ethic of compassion and justice.
Political scientists have identified a striking threshold known as the 3.5% rule. Research popularized by political scientist Erica Chenoweth suggests that nonviolent, sustained protests involving this percentage of a population almost always succeed in achieving political change. It is considered a tipping point — one that governments find nearly impossible to ignore.
Fast forward to the state of Christianity today. A years-long Pew Research Center study shows a clear trend. In 2007, 78% of adults in West Virginia identified as Christian. By 2023, that figure had fallen to 64%. Nationwide, only 62% of Americans identified as Christian. Belief in God also declined. In 2023, 86% of West Virginians said they believed in God, down from 93% in 2007. The number who were absolutely certain of God’s existence dropped sharply, from 76% to 56%.
In 2023, 70% of West Virginians said religion was important in their lives, compared with 89% in 2007. In the same period, the share who seldom or never attended services rose from 41% to 51%. There has also been a major increase in the number of people who describe themselves as religiously unaffiliated. In West Virginia, that figure grew from 19% in 2007 to 31% in 2023. Nationally, it reached 29%.
Another telling shift concerns morality. When asked whether belief in God is necessary to be moral and have good values, a majority said no. Increasingly, people believe they can make up their own minds about what is right and wrong without requiring an intermediary to tell them what to do.
According to the Gospel accounts, Jesus reduced the law to two commandments: love God and love your neighbor. That is the whole of it — no exceptions. The necessity for last weekend’s protests around the country would have been clearly understood by the early Christians.
And the question of who our neighbor is is about to become far more urgent.
Climate change is already displacing people from their homes through drought, wildfire, flooding, and rising seas. In the coming decades, millions — perhaps tens of millions — will become climate refugees, forced to leave the places they love not because of war or crime, but because their land can no longer sustain life.
Some will come to our borders. Some will move within our own country. All will be vulnerable.
How we respond to them will be one of the defining moral tests of this century.
So why are so many people who call themselves Christians making exceptions to Jesus’ command to love our neighbor? Why are they supporting mass arrests, incarceration in detention camps, and deportations, or policies that separate families and turn away the vulnerable — now, when the number of displaced people is only beginning to grow?
If we claim the name Christian, honesty requires that we measure ourselves against the teachings we profess to follow.
The qualities that allowed Christianity to grow so quickly are the very qualities that now seem diminished. It is not a coincidence that religion is declining in importance in the United States and in West Virginia. What once attracted people was not doctrine or political power, but the radical life that Jesus lived — and the example he inspired others to follow. His way of being a king was to enter Jerusalem on a donkey. He sided with the poor and sick. He told his disciples, before he was executed, that the true leader is the “servant of all.”
Who can doubt that he would have been a protester last Saturday?
***
Jean Ambrose is a member of the MOV Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Stewardship of the earth is one of six Quaker testimonies for living.
Posted: March 28, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Corner: World Water Day
Mar 28, 2026
Vic Elam
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
Last Sunday, March 22, was proclaimed by the United Nations as World Water Day. The theme this year was “Where Water Flows Equality Grows.” This year, attention was given to the plight of women around the world. Globally, more than 1 billion women lack access to safely managed drinking water services. In 53 countries that collect the data, women and girls spend 250 million hours per day on water collection – more than 3 times that of men and boys. Unsafe water, sanitation, and hygiene are responsible for the deaths of about 1,000 children under 5 years of age every day.
Groundwater provides almost half of the drinking water supply in the U.S. and around half of the drinking water supply worldwide. Groundwater and aquifers are closely linked. Seventy percent of groundwater extracted worldwide including in the U.S. is for agriculture. I will refer to groundwater and aquifers as the same in this article going forward. Many aquifers are in severe decline. The Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer is one of the most heavily pumped aquifers in the U.S. with an average annual extraction of roughly 10 million acre-feet, or more than 3 trillion gallons. Much of that is mismanaged and excess water flows off to the Mississippi River. In fact approximately 75 trillion gallons of water is removed from aquifers each year, displaced into oceans and causing sea level rise. The weight shift of the extraction of all this water unevenly around the globe has caused the planet to wobble and the earth’s axis has tilted 31.5″ as a result.
Climate change has had a large impact on the water cycle worldwide, with water levels declining in 36% of studied aquifers. Climate change slows the rate of aquifer recharge by decreasing the amount of water available to seep into the ground, driven by increased evaporation, reduced precipitation in many areas, and altered snowmelt patterns. Intense, fast-moving rainfall often runs off into rivers rather than soaking into the soil. Run off is exacerbated by the proliferation of impervious surfaces across the landscape (rooftops, streets, parking areas, etc.), and agricultural practices that leave bare ground after harvests – bare ground sheds water quickly, whereas fields with cover crops allow rainfall to stay on the land longer, soak in and recharge aquifers.
Data centers are emerging as a serious threat to our water supply. A 200 mega-watt data center proposed for the Waterford, OH, area provides a good example of what to expect. All the information shared here is corroborated by multiple information sources. An average 200MW data center uses 1-2 million gallons of water a day for cooling. To provide the energy for that data center a gas-powered power plant would use an average of about 860,000 gallons each day. To provide the gas for that power plant would require many hydraulically fractured wells and a constant supply of new wells that require an average of 5 million gallons of water to produce. There is also the problem of where to dispose of resurfaced frack and production water, but that is for another article.
Another threat to the future of abundant clean water in the U.S. is the outcome of the legal battle of Sackett v. EPA. In 2023 the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Sackett regarding the definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS). Under the new interpretation a waterway is under the jurisdiction of the federal government only if it is adjacent to navigable waters. Under this much narrower interpretation of WOTUS, protection for tens of millions of acres of wetlands, nearly half of the wetlands in the U.S. are vulnerable to drainage. Wetlands serve as the kidneys of the environment, removing contaminants, recharging aquifers, and providing storage capacity, thereby reducing flooding.
Beef and ethanol production are concerns because of the amount of corn production required to support those industries and the related irrigation needs. Industrial cattle operations which produce 70-75% of the beef in the U.S. rely on corn and soybeans. 5-15 million acres of corn are grown each year for the concentrated animal feeding operations. 30 million acres of corn are grown each year for bio-fuel (ethanol) production.
This is by no means an attempt to present all of the threats to our water, but a sample of a few.
Here is the good news.
Many people are becoming aware of the threats to water quantity and quality and are becoming advocates for the protection of water.
Renewable energy sources such as wind and solar use a little water during production but once in service use little to no water.
Farmers are selecting more appropriate crops to avoid or lessen irrigation and employing other water conservation measures – some are even taking marginal land out of production in areas where the aquifer is in danger of drying up.
Our earth is amazingly resilient.
Some things you can do:
Reduce beef consumption and choose grass fed, which uses water in a more natural way, making it easier on the environment and less damaging to water quality.
Adopt energy saving practices such as solar installation.
Not mow grass too short to keep the ground surface shaded and help retain water – also, gasoline powered mowers are large air polluters because they have no emissions controls.
Avoid lawn watering by converting lawn to native plants, especially pollinators.
Get involved, organizations such as Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action welcome you to join in their efforts.
I leave you with a quote from Rachel Carson, author of “Silent Spring,” “Mankind has gone very far into an artificial world of his own creation. He has sought to insulate himself, in his cities of steel and concrete, from the realities of earth and water and the growing seed. Intoxicated with a sense of his own power, he seems to be going farther and farther into more experiments for the destruction of himself and his world.”
***
Vic Elam is an avid outdoorsman and contributor to organizations that share his concern for our environment, including Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action.
Posted: March 21, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: An icy desert
Mar 21, 2026
Giulia Mannarino
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
Antarctica, known as the South Pole, is the coldest, windiest and most remote of the seven continents. Its name comes from the Greek meaning “opposite to the bear.” It has no native peoples and no polar bears but is home to about five million penguins. Whales, seals and sea birds are important parts of the ecosystem. In the 1770s, Captain James Cook was the first person to circumnavigate the continent. Later expeditions were searching for commercial opportunities, hunting for seals or whales. In the early 20th Century, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and British explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackelton each led major scientific expeditions racing to be the first to arrive. Amundsen’s was the first on Dec. 14, 1911. Scott arrived over a month later, Jan. 17, 1912. He and his companions perished on the return journey. Shackelton, who held the “furthest south” record set in January 1909, turned around for the second time.
Scientific expeditions to Antarctica are a continuing tradition. Twenty nine countries operate over 70 year-round and/or seasonal summer-only scientific research stations, which are scattered across the continent and the surrounding islands. Most humans are deployed to the stations during the Antarctic summer which includes 24 hour day light and mild temperatures of 32°F. From November through March about 5,000 scientists and research support staff work there. During the harsher winter months of April through October, with total darkness and extreme cold temperatures of -76°F and lower, only about 1,000 are in residence. The United States operates three permanent year-round bases and two research vessels as well as constructing additional temporary field stations during the summer.
The US. Antarctic Program (USAP) is led by the National Science Foundation, Office of Polar Programs (OPP). OPP staff manage the operation of U.S. research programs that deploy roughly 3,000 people to Antarctica annually. These participants include scientists, support staff, military personnel and other federal agencies. Also included are artists, writers, and educators who partner with researchers to broaden public awareness of Antarctica as well as members of the media who report on Antarctic science. USAP deploys only the participants who contribute directly to duties related to. research. Other staff who help support scientific operations but are not involved in research tasks are hired, trained and transported under the Antarctic Support Contract, managed by a private contractor.
The scale of Antarctic science is immense and includes studying the crisis of global warming. The archive locked in the thick ice sheet tells what the planets climate has been like over almost a million years. Ice core records have unprecedented detail about the causes of changes. Marine and lake sediments reveal patterns that are key to unraveling the effects of these changes on species. Sadly, Antarctica’s ice is melting at an accelerating rate. This is driven by warming oceans eroding the ice shelves. This ice sheet loss is a major contributor to sea levels rising twice as fast as previous decades. Also, Antarctic ice’s purity was unmatched anywhere else in the world but it is no longer considered “pristine.” It now contains measurable amounts of microplastics and pollutants from global industrial activity.
Although it is very costly, thousands of tourists visit Antarctica during the summer months to enjoy the spectacular scenery and wildlife. These visitors book travel through private companies for sightseeing, adventuring and similar activities. Visitors must not disrupt the long-term residents in any way, whether wildlife or human. Special boots are required and while outdoors, touching anything, kneeling or sitting are strictly forbidden. The Antarctic Treaty, in force since 1959, regulates all activities and designates the continent as a “natural reserve, devoted to peace and science.” All military and industrial activities are banned. While the present treaty is in force, no acts or activities taking place shall constitute a basis for asserting, supporting or denying a claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica or create any rights of sovereignty in Antarctica. The environmental standards are set forth by the Protocol on Environmental Protection, which was developed by consensus by representatives of the Antarctic Treaty nations. The protocol designates the basic guidelines for all human activity on the continent and all have laws in force in their respective home legislation to govern their citizens accordingly. Antarctica is a model of international cooperation for the common good.
***
Giulia Mannarino of Belleville, is a grandmother concerned about her two granddaughters’ futures and a member of Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action.
Last Updated: March 26, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: Yes, we have no bananas
Mar 14, 2026
Linda Eve Seth
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
A banana is an elongated, edible frui — botanically a berry — produced by several kinds of large treelike, herbaceous flowering plants.
Bananas are the world’s most consumed fruit – and the fourth most important food crop globally, after wheat, rice and maize. About 80% of bananas grown globally are for local consumption, and more than 400 million people rely on the fruit for 15% to 27% of their daily calories. They are a staple food as well as a major export commodity for many tropical nations. Affordable and nutritious, bananas have long been a supermarket staple for consumers around the globe. But that could soon change, as climate change is contributing to a global shortage of the world’s most consumed fruit.
Bananas, as we know them, are in danger of going extinct.
More than 1,000,000,000 bananas are consumed worldwide each year making this the world’s most popular fruit, but that number could be shrinking. By 2080 it’s expected that almost two-thirds of the banana growing areas in Latin America and the Caribbean will no longer be suitable to grow bananas because of rising annual temperatures in the region.
Bananas need warm, humid conditions. Rising temperatures and erratic rainfall/droughts stress plants, reducing photosynthesis and yield, making them vulnerable.
Climate change severely threatens bananas through rising temperatures, extreme weather (droughts, floods, storms), and the accelerated spread of fungal diseases — reducing suitable growing land, increasing costs, and risking the dominant Cavendish variety, suggesting the need for urgent adaptation via new resilient varieties and sustainable farming practices.
These tropical yellow fruits need a temperature range of between 60-95 degrees Fahrenheit to thrive but are also very sensitive to water shortages. Storms are a big problem with shredding leaves, making it much harder for the crop to photosynthesize. Floods erode soil, while strong winds and storms damage plants, spreading diseases and disrupting supply chains, leading to shortages and higher prices
In each of the banana-producing countries, climate change poses a significant threat to banana production by raising temperatures, altering rainfall patterns, and increasing the spread of fungal diseases, which thrive in these conditions and can devastate plantations.
Shifting climate patterns–including warming temperatures and humidity–are exposing crops around the world to a variety of fungal diseases. Experts expect that over time further spread of those diseases will have a large impact on supply. This is a trend that will continue to accelerate.
Temperatures in the 90s and above, even for brief amounts of time during the entire growing season, can cause large losses in the yield you get from a given plot of land at the end of the growing season.
Bananas are at a critical junction right now, with their future firmly in the hands of science. And while there may be a solution, it could forever change how the iconic fruit tastes.
Scientists are working on a solution. They are using a genetic bank from 150 different species of banana to breed an edible, disease-resistant fruit. While it would save the fruit, it would taste, and potentially feel, different to the ones we’re used to.
Most bananas sold in the U.S. come from Latin American countries like Costa Rica and Colombia. India produces the most bananas in the world, growing over 30 million tons annually, primarily for domestic consumption. As the climate warms, these countries may no longer be optimal locations for growing the fruit. The tropics, which are already very, very hot, are becoming hotter.
The possibility of adapting by moving the industry to other parts of Latin America may be difficult. Growing bananas requires people to work on the banana plantations, needs water to irrigate banana plants, and depends upon ports to ship bananas all over the world. The regions that will be most suitable in terms of climate will be further away from ports, they may not be as well supplied with irrigation, and they may not have the people there to work in those regions. These other factors are going to constrain the industry’s ability to adapt.
Bananas are not just the world’s favorite fruit; they are also an essential food for millions of people. The climate change-induced shortage doesn’t necessarily mean empty shelves at the grocery store — but it does mean higher prices.
Bananas, like other favorite American comestibles — coffee, apples, chocolate, tequila — are demonstrating their susceptibility to the impact of Climate Change.
Until next time, be kind to your Mother Earth.
***
Linda Eve Seth, SLP, M.Ed., is a mother, grandmother, concerned citizen and member of Mid Ohio Valley Climate Action.
Posted: March 7, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: Perspectives of a new dad…one year in
Mar 7, 2026
Griffin Bradley
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
As my son approaches his first birthday later this month, I’ve found myself doing a lot of reflecting on what’s been easier or harder than anticipated. The long nights, balancing a full-time job with the needs of being a full-time dad, and so much more. And especially in a first year of global conflict and rapid change, it feels like an extra weight is applied to an already heavy time of life.
Being a parent is a truly magical and life-altering experience. It completely changes the way you look at everyday things. How you talk, who you engage with, how you engage in public, et cetera. But one thing that I have grappled with more than I anticipated was my sense of safety for my son. Not just in the traditional “lock the cabinets and keep sharp objects out of reach” kind of way, but also thinking about the world in which he will live.
When I was growing up in the area, we didn’t give as much thought to the threats of the industrial economy. The impacts it has on the air, water, and wildlife were secondary — or sometimes outright disregarded — when compared to the economic positives it presented. We all had family members who worked at the local plants or factories, providing pensions and what seemed to be generational opportunity. Now that we see many of these facilities slowing down production or closing, we are left with less prosperity and more clean up and challenge.
How much damage has been done that cannot be changed? What have we left for the next generations of people here that will make life harder, unhealthier, more expensive?
Environmental change is not an abstract science, but rather an immediate concern in our area. Think back to your childhood. Were multi-week heatwaves normal? Were droughts and floods happening annually? Today we see all of this and more, coming with significant environmental and economic impacts. Farmland is becoming more difficult to tend, driving food scarcity and higher costs. Land increasingly desolate or industrialized, water and air dirtier by orders of magnitude than in previous decades.
At its core, I am my son’s provider. My job is to feed him, clothe him, put a roof over his head, and do all of the things that traditionally mean to care for him. But in a challenging world, I hope many of us parents can take the definition of “provider” to a different level. Let’s do everything in our power to provide our children with the healthiest, most prosperous world we can. Leverage your power as a citizen and voting member of society to push for policy changes to that end. Hold your elected officials and community to account and be an example of civic duty in action. These are your most powerful tools for change.
So, like many of you, I will put my son to bed tonight. I will kiss him on the forehead and wish him sweet dreams. I will look at him with all the wonder I can imagine, knowing I would do anything to give him the happiest, healthiest life possible. And that is why I choose to fight the good fight on environmental issues. Because he deserves a world of opportunity, not the continued environmental degradation and harms we have experienced here for far too long.
***
Griffin Bradley is a lifelong Wood County resident, graduate of West Virginia University, and a contributing author for Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action
Posted: February 28, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: Two bad bills in the Ohio Legislature
Feb 28, 2026
Rebecca Phillips
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
The Ohio legislature is up to its usual short-sightedness again, and both legislative houses are in on the act.
Senate Bill 294, now in committee, is poised to prevent nearly all future wind and solar development in the state. At first glance, the bill seems reasonable enough. It would require the Ohio Power Siting Board to mandate “affordable, reliable, and clean” energy sources in all new electricity generation projects. What’s not to like? As it turns out, plenty.
SB 294, sponsored by George Lang of West Chester and Mark Romanchuk of Ontario, would require that all new energy projects use only energy sources that are “readily available at all times with minimal interruptions during high-usage times” and “can be ramped up or down within an hour to stabilize the grid.” It further mandates a minimum capacity factor of 50%; capacity factor is the ratio between an energy source’s actual output and its theoretical maximum. Interestingly, the only two energy sources that meet these requirements are natural gas and nuclear, and nuclear projects are explicitly prohibited in the bill. The likely outcome of the bill’s passage, then, is that only natural gas projects will be approved in Ohio.
Senator Lang stated in his Oct. 28 proponent testimony that he favors natural gas as Ohio’s primary energy source. In his mind, renewable energy as generally defined “doesn’t meet those qualifications of being cheap. It misses the reliability … And it doesn’t really meet clean yet.” This would come as a great surprise to much of the rest of the world, in which 95% of new energy projects last year were for renewables. Even in the U.S., more than 85% of 2025’s new capacity came from wind, solar, and battery storage, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In terms of cost, PV Magazine’s report on the levelized cost of energy notes that solar generation with battery storage in 2025 cost between five and 13 cents per kilowatt-hour, while generating electricity from natural gas cost 13.8 to 26 cents. A recent study by American Clean Power estimates that, without an increase in renewables, the average Ohioan’s electric bill will increase by more than $6,500 over ten years. The senator’s math isn’t mathing.
Not to be outdone by their colleagues in the other chamber, the Ohio House passed and has now passed on to the Senate a bill on carbon capture and storage (SB 136). CCS is a controversial technology, but one that does have the support of environmental organizations like the Clean Air Task Force. Studies published by MIT indicate that while existing CCS technologies can capture more than 90% of CO2 emissions, the costs of moving beyond that threshold (as is necessary with coal-fired power plants) are prohibitively high. I am not trained enough in the sciences to evaluate the technological arguments, but HB 136 has serious problems not associated with the technology.
First, HB 136 strips rights from landowners. While the term appears nowhere in the bill’s text, HB 136 mandates the practice known as “forced pooling.” What this means is that if seventy percent of the landowners of the proposed “pore space” acreage agree to lease their properties for underground injection, the remaining thirty percent have no legal recourse and can be forced to lease their land. (So much for Republicans’ historic defense of private property rights.)
Next, it strips rights from communities. The bill explicitly states that all decisions regarding CCS permits shall be made by the DNR. Counties, cities, villages, and townships have no say in whether these projects will be approved in their communities.
Further, HB 136 passes long-term costs on to Ohio taxpayers. The bill requires CCS project owners to post insurance bonds of 15 million dollars, but we all know how quickly that amount can be surpassed when property damage and medical costs begin to add up. More troubling is the bill’s provision that after 50 years, costs for any damages will become the responsibility of the state unless the company is demonstrated to have been negligent. Yes, the children and grandchildren of the people who had no say in the process will be left holding the financial bag.
Fortunately, these bad bills are not yet law. Call your Ohio senators and urge them to vote “No” on these bills should they pass out of committee.
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Rebecca Phillips is a retired teacher, a grandmother, and a long-time member of Mid-Ohio Valley Climate action.
Posted: February 21, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: A flood of reasons to act based on the science
Feb 21, 2026
Eric Engle
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
Extreme and more frequent flooding and related calamities (e.g. landslides and mudslides) are some of the most dire immediate impacts of the anthropogenic (human-caused) global climate crisis in Central Appalachia. The West Virginia Legislature and gubernatorial administration are not taking these impacts or the threat of worse to come very seriously.
While a House of Delegates committee substitute to Senate Bill 390 — “relating to altering conditions for disbursing funds from the West Virginia Flood Resiliency Trust Fund to better enhance flood prevention, safety, and protection”– does make mention of nature-based solutions and prioritization of benefits being directed to low-income geographic areas or areas with a history of frequent or significant flooding events, it eliminates specific funding percentages for these priority solutions and geographic areas, using language that is too vague.
Investments must also be made in the Flood Recovery Trust Fund in order for West Virginians to be able to recover as quickly, efficiently and comprehensively as possible when disaster inevitably strikes in our warming world. Early warning systems and attempts at prevention and mitigation are not enough in and of themselves for West Virginians to be fully prepared for the kinds of deluges of precipitation we have seen strike our hollers, hills and valleys in recent years.
A recent report released by the organization Rebuild by Design titled “Atlas of Disaster: West Virginia” offers an analysis of the escalating disasters threatening our state and opportunities for investments in resiliency. The analysis found that West Virginia experienced 23 federally declared disasters between 2011 and 2024, costing taxpayers more than $950 million in FEMA and HUD assistance. All 55 counties have been impacted. Of the 23 declared disasters, 19 involved flooding and 17 involved landslides or mudslides.
West Virginia’s steep topography and centuries of scarring by extractive industries, coupled with the effects of global warming, make the state uniquely vulnerable to devastation from extreme precipitation events. As the Trump administration Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has now rescinded the EPA’s own 2009 endangerment finding that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere threaten human health and safety–with probable court challenges to this recension effort potentially leading the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its Massachusetts v. EPA (2007) precedent, which allowed the EPA to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act–states and localities must be as prepared as possible for more and worsening impacts.
The authors of a study from the WV GIS Technical Center at West Virginia University conducted in December 2024, while the study focused primarily on six Southern West Virginia communities, found that “West Virginia has some of the highest flood vulnerability in the United States and 94% of all 286 communities in the state are at significant flood risk.” We cannot afford to be dismissive of this reality in an effort to please and appease certain industries or to be distracted by culture wars nonsense when so much is at stake. Flood disasters are not defined just by dollars lost and economies stricken; they are defined by loss of life and extensive trauma for those who pull through.
Water is life and many of our coal or former coal communities are desperately pleading for clean, potable water (and being ignored by state leadership). But our reliance on fossil fuels and unsustainable agricultural and development practices have disrupted our carbon cycle and therefore our water cycle, causing it to go awry. In West Virginia, this has led to more and increasingly severe precipitation problems that range from too much precipitation in the early part of most years, to too little by the time we get to August and September. We need government–local, state and federal–to understand and accept applicable science and to act in accordance with scientific warnings to protect the people and places we love.
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Eric Engle is board president of Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action.
Posted: February 14, 2026 by main_y0ke11
Climate Corner: Listen to the scientists
Feb 14, 2026
Randi Pokladnik
editorial@newsandsentinel.com
I was born in 1955, at a time when the USA was entering a new age of technology characterized by the dawn of computing, and when we were first attempting to get a satellite into orbit. This was accomplished in 1958, and in 1961 President John F. Kennedy announced the initiative to put a man on the moon before the decade was out. Like a lot of kids in the 1960s, this convinced me that I wanted to be an astronaut. My grandma gave me my first telescope when I was in fourth grade. Back then, Americans were glued to our black and white TVs watching each step the USA took towards landing on the moon, and those scientists were our heroes. I never became an astronaut, but I did become a research chemist.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), created by President Eisenhower and Congress, took the lead to get Americans into this new frontier. The main competitor in this space race was the former United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR). On Aug. 2, 1955, the USA announced their intention to launch an artificial satellite. The USSR responded with its intention as well, and in 1957 they launched Sputnik I into orbit.
On Feb. 20, 1962, John Glenn, a local Ohioan, became the first American to circle the Earth; making three orbits in his Friendship 7 Mercury spacecraft. President Kennedy set the USA’s goal of getting a man on the moon by the end of the decade a priority. We achieved that goal, when on July 20, 1969 we watched Neil Armsorng step out on the surface of the moon and utter his famous declaration, “That’s one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind.”
One unique thing about every astronaut that has landed on the moon, or watched our planet from space, is their realization that in space, Earth is just a fragile blue marble, lacking geopolitical boundaries. This is what is known as the “overview effect.” U.S. astronaut Ron Garan, who spent 178 days on the International Space Station, said this, “I saw the unbelievable thinness of our planet’s atmosphere. In that moment, I was hit with the sobering realization that that paper-thin layer keeps every living thing on our planet alive; we should be a lot more concerned about global warming, deforestation, and biodiversity loss.”
In 2021, 90-year old actor, William Shatner, famous for his role on Star Trek as Captain Kirk of the USS Enterprise, went into space on Bezos’ Blue Origin. He said this, “I discovered that the beauty isn’t out there (space), it’s down here, with all of us. Leaving that behind made my connection to our tiny planet even more profound.”
He said, “It (being in space) was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered. The contrast between the vicious coldness of space and the warm nurturing of Earth below filled me with overwhelming sadness. Every day, we are confronted with the knowledge of further destruction of Earth at our hands; the extinction of animal species, of flora and fauna, things that took five billion years to evolve, and suddenly we will never see them again because of the interference of mankind. It filled me with dread. My trip to space was supposed to be a celebration; instead, it felt like a funeral.”
Contrary to what some billionaires might believe, colonizing Mars is not going to happen in our lifetimes, if ever. This means the urgency to protect that fragile blue marble is even more important. Yet, at a time when the U.S.A. needs real, cutting-edge science to combat the biggest threat to life on Earth, climate change, the current administration has done everything in its power to curtail research, including defunding universities and cutting federal research programs.
The Trump administration has ended the federal funds for plugging orphan wells. This will result in more climate changing methane gas entering the atmosphere and more water pollution from brine wastes. The Environmental Protection Agency stated in an April 2021 report that there could be as many as 3.4 million abandoned oil and gas wells nationally. West Virgina had put aside 212 million federal dollars to plug some of the over 6000 known orphan wells, but close to $90 million of those dollars may be cut, leaving West Virginia citizens to pick up the tab. Ohio has documented over 20,000 orphan wells, but the $4.7 billion orphaned well program created under the Biden Administration was paused in early 2025 by the Trump administration.
Ohio’s politicians have fallen in step with Trump and his failure to address climate-changing emissions. The state has gone as far as “dubbing” methane gas “green energy”. SB294 declares it to be state policy that Ohio will “employ affordable, reliable, and clean energy sources,” which includes hydrocarbons from the state (fracked gas). The bill’s sponsors (Senators Romanchuk and Lang) are not climate scientists. If they were, they would know that methane gas cannot by any means be considered “clean energy.” True green energy such as solar and wind have all but been banned in Ohio via anti-renewables legislation like SB 52.
Trump and Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum recently introduced us to the new pro-coal mascot “Coalie,” in an effort to “unleash beautiful clean coal” while West Virginia communities are still dealing with over 8000 streams contaminated with acid, iron and sulfur from coal mining. Many towns still have no access to potable water sources.
Facts still matter. Coal is not clean or beautiful. Fracked gas is not green energy. Climate change is not a hoax. We need science-literate politicians, not pro-corporation mouth pieces who care nothing about the citizens or our planet as long as there is money to be made in back-room deals. We need to listen to the scientists.
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Randi Pokladnik, Ph.D., of Uhrichsville, is a retired research chemist who volunteers with Mid Ohio Valley Climate Action. She has a doctorate degree in environmental studies and is certified in hazardous materials regulations.
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