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  • Earth Day Round Up from Across the Administration

    It’s been a busy Earth Day here at the White House and around the Administration.  Yesterday Vice President Biden kicked off the Administration’s Earth Day Celebration by announcing $452 million in Recovery Act funding to support a “Retrofit Ramp-Up.” This program will create thousands of jobs and allow these communities to retrofit hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses while testing out innovative strategies that can be adopted all over the country.  President Obama also issued a Presidential Proclamation on Earth Day calling on Americans to join in the spirit of the first Earth Day forty years ago to take action in their communities to make our planet cleaner and healthier.

    This afternoon, Carol Browner, Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change, hosted a live chat on WhiteHouse.gov to answer your questions about how the Administration is working to improve the environment and build a clean energy economy that supports the jobs of the future.  This evening, the President hosted an Earth Day reception in the Rose Garden at the White House where he discussed some of the challenges that lie ahead in achieving a clean energy economy:

    I think we all understand that the task ahead is daunting; that the work ahead will not be easy and it’s not going to happen overnight.  It’s going to take your leadership.  It’s going to take all of your ideas.  And it will take all of us coming together in the spirit of Earth Day -- not only on Earth Day but every day -- to make the dream of a clean energy economy and a clean world a reality.

    Over on the Social Innovation and Civic Participation blog, guest blogger and former Peace Corps volunteer Kelly McCormack shares here story about a community solution to an environmental problem in Gautemala.

    Finally, President Obama’s cabinet and other senior government officials fanned out across the country as part of the Administration’s 5-day celebration of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day.  From live chats, to announcing major investments in renewable energy, to appearing on the David Letterman show - all-in-all a busy day!

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    • Idaho
    Idaho

    800-VISIT-ID
    www.visitid.org

    www.state.id.us

     

    Flag of Idaho

    Seal

     

     

    #     Entered Union   Year Settled

    42nd      July 3, 1890          1842

     

    Nickname

    Gem State

     

    Rank      Population

    39th       1,523,816

     

    Rank      Square Miles

    14th       83,570

     

    State Bird

    Mountain Bluebird

     

    State Flower

    Syringa/Mock Orange

     

    State Tree

    Western White Pine

     

    State Motto

    Esto perpetua                      Let it be perpetual

     

    Idaho, the 43rd state, joined the U.S. in 1890. The state is appropriately shaped like a logger's boot, and logging as well as mining are big industries in the state. But the state is probably best known for its potatoes.

     

    The state's name is thought to be an Indian name, Ee-dah-hoe, which means "gem of the mountains." Idaho has a rugged landscape with some of the largest unspoiled natural areas in the country. Boise is the capital.

     

    Idaho's Natural Wonders

    A gorge is a narrow, steep-walled canyon. And the deepest gorge in the 48 lower states is in Idaho. Do you know about it?

     

    Idaho is well known for its natural beauty and rugged landscape. The state's Sawtooth Mountains are a part of the Rocky Mountains, and several peaks in these mountains exceed an elevation of 10,000 feet. Another of Idaho's natural wonders is the Snake River. This river flows in a great arc and has created extensive valleys throughout its run.

     

    The Snake River has also made gorges, such as Hell's Canyon, which, at 7,900 feet, is Contiguous America's deepest gorge. Various wildlife inhabit the rugged landscape of Idaho, including elk, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, moose, black bear, cougar, and antelope. Smaller animals include beaver, river otter, red-tailed hawks, and golden and bald eagles. Do you know how the canyon got its name?

     

    If you guessed that the name refers to the canyon's depth, you were wrong. The name comes from the fact that a wild journey is in store for any boat that travels the river!

     

    Idaho -- Land of Contrasts

    Have you ever heard of a mountain growing right before your eyes? That's what happened on October, 28, 1983, when Borah Peak, the highest mountain in Idaho, grew about eight inches higher in two minutes. Around the same time, the valley floor along 26 miles of the Lost River Range suddenly lowered 10 feet. Can you guess how this happened?

     

    It was an earthquake that caused these drastic changes. Idaho is a state of dramatic geographic contrasts. It is a geologically active region that includes glaciers, volcanoes and earthquakes, all of which have produced a spectacular but harsh landscape.

     

    Glaciers move very slowly and grind away at mountains. The Otto Glacier is the only remaining glacier in Idaho. Only a small remnant of what it used to be exists on the north slope of Borah Peak. It and other glaciers have created more than 500 cirques (French for "circle") in the high mountains of Idaho.

     
     
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