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Natural Gas Killers

Attorney General John Ashcroft confirmed yesterday that U.S. natural gas pipelines and facilities could be the target of a future terrorist attack. According to information received earlier this month by the FBI from “a source of undetermined reliability,” Osama bin Laden has okayed an attack on U.S. energy sources in the event that he or […]

Gary Hughes, conservation researcher

Gary Hughes is a graduate student in the University of Montana Environmental Studies Program, who is traveling and researching conservation issues in Chilean and Argentine Patagonia. The things he misses most about Montana are skiing in the trees and working with the Missoula grassroots solidarity organization Community Action for Justice in the Americas. Monday, 26 […]

Pressure Whitewash

In 1997, Randy Walli, a pipe fitter at the Hanford nuclear power plant in Washington state, was told to help build a pipeline using valves that would be subjected to more pressure than specified by the manufacturer. Concerned about the possible impact on himself, his fellow workers, and the environment, Walli blew the whistle. The […]

Feet of Clay

The Ford Motor Company might have to eat its words if its fleet of sport utility vehicles continues to gobble gas. Last summer, company reps promised to improve SUV fuel efficiency 25 percent by 2005. Not willing to be outdone, the two other Big Three automakers — General Motors and DaimlerChrysler — said they’d keep […]

Brussels Sprouting

Environmental negotiations with 10 Eastern European countries hoping to join the European Union by 2004 will near completion by the end of the year, E.U. officials announced Thursday. Environmental protection is considered one of the biggest obstacles facing Eastern European nations interested in joining the E.U.; for the 10 countries — Cyprus, the Czech Republic, […]

Drills and Chills

Vitamin Sea

Could the answer to controlling global climate change lie in the ocean? Carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas, is naturally absorbed into the ocean, where it does not affect atmospheric temperatures. Now some scientists and entrepreneurs want to artificially augment that process to increase carbon dioxide absorption and control global warming. In one plan, CO2 […]

That's All, Folks!

Worse for the Tern

Here’s another possible casualty of the war on terrorism: migrating birds. An Indian ornithologist announced today that more than 200 species of birds that migrate from central Asia to India every year could be adversely affected by chemicals in the bombs exploding in Afghanistan. Such birds, including the Siberian crane, the shoveller duck, the crested […]

Clean Your Boom

The global economy may be sagging, but residents of the Pacific Northwest should take heart: A study released late last week suggests that the region will benefit from a boom in the next 20 years in the clean energy industry. In Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia, clean energy is currently a $1.4 billion business; the […]