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The Dead Phone

If you’re thinking about chucking your cell phone, think twice: Most of the 128 million mobile phones currently in use in the U.S. will end up incinerated or at the bottom of a landfill, according to a report released by the environmental organization Inform and partly funded by the U.S. EPA. By 2005, 130 million […]

Monkey in the Middle

The number of primate species or sub-species classified as endangered or critically endangered has risen 63 percent since 2000, according to “Primates in Peril: The World’s Top 25 Most Endangered Primates,” a report issued recently by Conservation International and the World Conservation Union. The report found that one-third of all primate species are at risk […]

Ready, Willing, and Sable

There’s sad news and a silver lining in the world of endangered species today. On the sad side, the first California condor chick brooded and hatched in the wild in nearly two decades was found dead of unknown causes last Friday in Los Padres National Forest. The death of the chick was a blow to […]

The Saints Haven’t Come Marching in

Almost 75 percent of Utah residents object to plans to store tons of nuclear waste at the Skull Valley Goshute Reservation, 50 miles outside of Salt Lake City — so why isn’t the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Utah’s main opinion-setter, taking a stand on the issue? So far, the silence of the […]

Greece Spot

Air and water quality in Athens, Greece — home of the upcoming 2004 Summer Olympics — is considerably worse today than it was in 1896, the last time the city hosted the games. In an effort headlined by Jean-Michael Cousteau (son of the famed oceanographer Jacques), environmentalists are trying to clean up the city by […]

Max Weintraub, Environmental Justice and Health Union

Max Weintraub is the executive director of the Environmental Justice and Health Union and a fellow of the Environmental Leadership Program. Monday, 7 Oct 2002 SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. What the heck was I thinking? Starting a nonprofit when funding is down, focusing on poor and minority communities when I am from neither, trying to bring […]

Gopher It!

Twelve ethanol plants in Minnesota signed on to an unprecedented agreement with state and federal EPA officials earlier this week, agreeing to pay pollution fines and update their emissions-reduction technology. An official at the U.S. EPA said ethanol plants across the country would be expected to follow the lead of the Minnesota plants. A spokesperson […]

Orange You Glad?

The District Attorney’s office in conservative Orange County, Calif., is beefing up its environmental crime division to become one of the most rigorous eco-SWAT teams in the nation. While resources for pursuing environmental criminals have been dwindling in many other areas in the state, Orange County has tripled its budget in the last three years […]

Gulf War Syndrome

Environmental damage in Kuwait stemming from Gulf War activities was far more severe than originally thought, according to a U.N.-financed study whose preliminary results were released yesterday. The study found that pollution from torched oil wells not only filled into the sky, but also seeped into the ground; further, the salt from seawater used to […]

Talk Amongst Yourselves

You have passionate feelings about sea turtles and are dying to discuss the above-mentioned article with someone — but your coworkers (or spouse or parents or children) think you’re utterly insane and would rather talk about the Diamondbacks. What’s a loquacious environmentalist to do? Announcing The Gristmill, Grist Magazine’s brand-spankin’-new discussion forum, where you can […]