Declarations

Climate Action

“As we have seen, when New York takes action the rest of the world pays attention and it is my hope that we can serve as a model for cities all across the world as we continue to confront climate change.”

—New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito on the council’s recently proposed bills to slash the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. The bills, introduced in September, include measures designed to promote low-carbon transportation and make large and small buildings more energy efficient.

Reckless Negligence

“They weren’t just negligent here, they were reckless.”

—Jim Heckbert, an attorney for the family of a teenager who died in an avalanche while skiing at Vail Resorts in Colorado January 2012, argued successfully for the case to go forward. The family is seeking damages of more than $700,000.

No Definitive Answer

“I don’t know that anybody thought we were going to be able to come out of this with a definitive answer in such a limited amount of time to something so complex.”

—Rex Buchanan, interim director of the Kansas Geological Survey and chairman of a three-member task force studying earthquakes in Kansas. The state has experienced 49 earthquakes this year through late August, an unusually high increase over previous years. The panel concluded that there’s not enough data to determine the reasons for the increase.

Much Rain on the Plain

“It was a very good rain for everybody.”

—Justin Weaver, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Lubbock, Texas, office. The remnants of Hurricane Odile, which battered Baja California in mid-September, brought much needed rain to Texas — too much too fast in some cases, with flooding occurring in many parts of the state. Rainfall amounts across the state ranged from two inches to as much as 14 inches.