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Ready, Aim…
At least three and as many as nine oil wells were burning yesterday in Iraq’s Rumaila oil field, just north of the Kuwait border. News of the fires caused an abrupt spike in global oil prices, but the market settled down after Bush administration officials said the damage appeared to be limited. The Rumaila field […]
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Fish and Cheeps
Never mind doctors and drug dealers — there’s a new clientele for beepers: dolphins. If some lawmakers in the U.K. get their way, British fishing fleets will soon be required to use high-tech equipment resembling beepers to keep dolphins, porpoises, and other cetaceans out of fishing nets. Known as “pingers,” the devices emit random ultrasonic […]
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Trout Fishing in America
Environmental groups sued the Washington State Fish and Wildlife Department this week to prevent the springtime release of more than 5 million hatchery-born salmon in the Puget Sound area. The groups, Washington Trout and the Native Fish Society, pointed to recent studies showing that hatchery fish are harming their wild-born brethren by out-competing them for […]
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And other words from readers
Re: Oakless Creek Canyon Dear Editor: The Flagstaff, Ariz., project to protect expensive homes by removing possible (natural) fire hazards sounds to me like building on a floodplain. The folks who bought the homes can sell them if they don’t want the expense of insuring the risk. The nation should not sacrifice its natural […]
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A Note From Grist
The staff of Grist Magazine would like to express our deep sorrow about the onset of war in Iraq. We are gravely worried about the likely destruction of human lives, human livelihoods, and the natural environment, and our hearts go out to everyone caught in the crossfire of violence — Iraqi citizens and U.S. troops […]
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Arctic Refuge Protected, Senators Threatened
In what may be the most significant triumph for environmentalists since President Bush took office, the U.S. Senate voted yesterday against opening Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. Advocates of drilling fell two votes short of their goal, with seven Republicans voting with Democrats to protect the refuge by removing a drilling measure […]
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The Reformer in the Dell
Beginning on March 25, owners of outdated Dell personal computers will be able to treat them like glass, aluminum, plastic, and paper — by leaving them on the curb for recycling. For $15, Dell will haul away up to 50 pounds worth of discarded computer components (monitors, hard drives, laptops, and the like) for recycling […]
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What we don’t know about the toxic chemicals in our bodies
Scientists call the accumulation of chemical contaminants (such as PCBs, mercury, and pesticides) within a person’s body the “body burden.” Body burden is just a number, a concentration in parts per billion or micrograms per liter. But the term calls forth an image, too, of a body bent over and struggling beneath a heavy load. […]
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Greenie Get Your Gun
“Gun-toting” is not a phrase frequently used to modify “environmentalist,” but that could change if Vermont approves a measure to grant police powers to investigators with the state’s Agency of Natural Resources. The measure, currently being considered by the Vermont senate, would allow investigators to serve subpoenas and legal notices, access criminal records and law […]
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Grilling Me Softly
As spring comes to the Northern Hemisphere, people all over are hauling out the yard furniture and shlepping barbeques out of basements. Everyone loves a cookout — but in Houston, Tex., the massive popularity of barbequing is contributing to the city’s notorious air pollution. Scientists at Rice University have found that tiny particles of polyunsaturated […]
