Smokey the Bear on the job...but not for long, if one member of Congress gets his way (Wikimedia Commons)

This week, that’s being targeted for elimination as part of the House Republicans’ YouCut program, led by Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN).

YouCut, a year-old attempt by Majority Leader Eric Cantor and colleagues to cut government programs as selected by public internet voting, designates the Forest Service ‘green school’ curricula as an example of “issue-oriented advocacy” that is “inappropriate” for public funding.  This is at a time when Republican and Democrat governors nationwide have opted in to the U.S. Green Ribbon Schools Award Program. Odd, no?

Aside from the idea that teaching kids about the world and their impact on it (and helping their schools save money through energy efficiency measures to boot) is “inappropriate,” here’s the funny part: the drive to defund Smokey’s family is being led by a Congressman from a state that has suffered 1,126 wildfires claiming about 12,875 acres of land so far in 2011 alone (PDF). Maybe he’d like the Great Smoky Mountains to more aptly live up to their name (they and Cherokee National Forest both happen to be highly forested and subject to significant fires).

The U.S. Forest Service’s conservation education programs include efforts to get kids outdoors, healthy and connecting with the natural world.  Do we really want to say farewell to Smokey Bear at a time in our nation’s history where kids spend less time outdoors than any generation in human history?

Take Action to Save Smokey

If the conservation education program ‘wins’ the vote and the cuts are eventually enacted by Congress, the “Starve Smokey” effort would likely completely eliminate the (already cash-strapped) Conservation Education office at USFS.

If you think Congress should leave Smokey alone and recognize the importance of conservation education, sign the Twitter petition in defense of Smokey or post the following on your Facebook wall:

Dear U.S. Representative @Scott DesJarlais: Please keep Smokey the Bear and his family off the federal budget chopping block. He’s not to blame for the budget problems our country faces today.

Flooding in downtown Memphis, May 2011 (via Flickr's Chris Wieland)

The Mississippi River is experiencing its second “500-year flood” since 1993. That’s no freak occurrence – it’s a result of man-made carbon pollution changing our climate.

“All extreme weather events are now subject to human influence,” said Dr. Peter Gleick, a climate & water scientist and president of the Pacific Institute, at a Capitol Hill briefing on Monday organized by the American Meteorological Society. “We are loading the dice and painting higher numbers on them.”

Forecasters expect the Mississippi River to top out in Memphis today just inches below the record level:

The Mississippi River, the largest U.S. river system, is forecast to crest today in Memphis, Tennessee, just below its 74-year-old record, as a bulge of water moves south toward the riverside refineries in Louisiana.

The river is forecast to reach 48 feet in Memphis at 7 p.m., compared with the old mark of 48.7 feet, according to a revised National Weather Service forecast. [...]

The Mississippi threatens 3,075 buildings, including 949 homes and 12 apartment complexes, in Tennessee’s Shelby County, which includes Memphis, the Memphis/Shelby County Emergency Management Agency said yesterday. Exxon Mobil Corp. shut its Memphis fuel terminal on April 29, Kevin Allexon, a company spokesman, said in an e-mail.

Flooding like the Mississippi River is seeing in 2011 used to be considered extremely unusual. But thanks to the climate crisis, floods are becoming more frequent and more severe over much of the Mississippi River basin – so much so that the old way of measuring things is tragically outdated:

Problems with the [U.S. Army Corps of Engineers] probabilities are exemplified by recent flooding at Hannibal, Missouri. The record stage set in 1993 exceeded the calculated 500-year level, whereas 2008 was a 200-year event. In addition, 2001 suffered a 50- to 100-year flood, 1986 and 1996 experienced 25- to 50-year floods, and five more years had 10-to 25-year floods. Are these calculated recurrence intervals reasonable, or is it more likely that the dice, in effect, are loaded?

Dr. Gleick told the AMS briefing that increasing temperatures aren’t necessarily leading to more frequent rainfall events. But the climate crisis IS leading to more intense rainfall events. We’re seeing the same number of storms, but the ones we do see are more likely to be the kind that cause severe flooding.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, that’s pushing our flood control system to the breaking point:

The heavy strains on the system and concerns that floods are getting more frequent and damaging are sparking a re-examination of flood control. In years past, the call likely would have gone out for higher levees and more so-called gray infrastructure—concrete and cement structures to keep the Mississippi inside its banks. Now some flood experts, along with some states, are saying that trying to control the river won’t do the job.

What can we do instead? Take advantage of ecosystems that absorb water instead of deflecting it downstream:

A study by the state of Illinois found that fully exploiting the water-absorption capacity of one such tract near Peoria would reduce flooding in the city by a few inches and affect flood levels as many as 80 miles downstream, [the Nature Conservancy's Michael] Reuter said.

Right now, Congress hasn’t shown a willingness to change our policies to reflect our losing battle with nature. Congress still hasn’t acted to restore coastal Louisiana wetlands, a critical buffer against global warming-fueled hurricanes. And misguided budget cutters have even gone so far as to slash funding for weather forecasting satellites – replacements for the aging satellites that saved lives by predicting this year’s Mississippi River floods.

Lipscomb understands that students across the country want action on energy and climate change.

I’m looking forward to spending time tomorrow with Dodd Galbraith, Executive Director of Lipscomb’s Institute for Sustainable Practice who is helping to show what the path to our clean energy economy looks like.

Given our schedules and the expense, our RV trip did not happen this summer, but I didn’t want that to cancel all possibilities of making a similar memory. In reflecting on what was so special about our RV trip, it was my sense of independence in navigating something new with my kids outside. My favorite day of that trip was coming across a swimming lake while taking a detour to Mousetail State Park in Tennessee for a picnic.

Watch the video of our outdoor adventure >>

Searching online for swimming lakes, I came across several options. My original plan was for two nights camping at a state park nearly four hours away. Given that it was my first camping trip alone and that I would take my newly adopted dog with us, I was happy when I found an option just two and a half hours away. On http://www.swimmingholes.info, I found swimming holes tagged “family friendly” and one in particular whose description also included a recommendation for a swim lake campground that would make a perfect one-night trip.

Packing the car took all morning, but I found that taking my time ensured I packed what I needed. Of course I had the staples: a tent, sleeping bags, water shoes, swimsuits, bug spray, sunscreen, life vests, and lots of towels. In addition, each boy had their own lunch box with snacks and drinks for the car, and I put all supplies for each meal in their own large zip lock–utensils, paper plates, and napkins too. Given I was the only adult, packing each meal separately meant that I could grab the hot dogs in the dark and even the sandwiches the next day in the car calmly and with ease (both of which happened!).

The swimming hole was the experience I always imagined it to be and more. There were other families enjoying the crisp, cool water and teenagers and adults flying from a rope swing into the natural pool. For smaller kids and those like me into trying it out for the first time, we still got to jump from a rock into shallower water, and had fun discovering tadpoles and salamanders.

We left the swimming hole after about an hour and drove into the U.S. Forest Service campground just before sunset. The boys helped me set up the tent, and then we purchased firewood and ice cream from a small store nearby before heading to the swim lake. We were just in time to get in for a dip and watch the sun slowly set over the water. High above, bats started to appear for their meal at dusk as we headed back to camp for ours.

My first camping trip alone with the boys was definitely all new for me. But with a little preparation, we had everything we needed. And with my help, my sons also got to have a new experience and a memory with their mom that will last a lifetime.

Rebecca P. Cohen is Founder and President of Rebecca Plants LLC, is a gardening and outdoor lifestyle company that inspires families to be outside and improve their well being. For her weekly online video series, “Get Out of the House” as well as Starla J. King’s guest blog series “Savoring Summer,” visit http://www.rebeccaplants.com.