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When the Obama family visited Yellowstone National Park yesterday and witnessed the eruption of Old Faithful, they also very likely observed the devastating effect that climate change is having on the park.  While no direct comments seem to have been made by the President about the conditions, I imagine it would be hard to miss the widespread destruction of whitebark pines caused by bark beetles.

The ravenous beetles have rapidly proliferated as the region has experienced increasingly warmer temperatures, and have already destroyed an estimated 70% of whitebark pines throughout Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.  Loss of the trees threatens the delicate mountiantop ecosystem of plants and animals, and also releases more carbon into the atmosphere that they once absorbed.

Hopefully President Obama’s visit will reinvigorate him to continue pushing for Senate approval of the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which will help to curb greenhouse gas emissions and protect our country’s beautiful and vital natural resources.