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Adding Bite to Their Bark
Enviros in Brazil have created a certification organization to help consumers learn whether wood they are purchasing from the Amazon was cut on the up and up — or whether it was cut illegally. The World Wildlife Fund said yesterday that the organization would function as an arm of the international Forest Stewardship Council. So […]
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Green Acre$
In a pleasant surprise, the Bush administration called yesterday for less money to be spent on traditional farm subsidies and more to be spent on boosting conservation efforts and gaining access to international markets. The administration said traditional subsidies have allowed wealthy cotton and grain farmers to expand their acreage without losing benefits because subsidies […]
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A Snow Job
In its first major move on air pollution since President Bush took office, the U.S. EPA yesterday proposed the first emissions rules for snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, forklifts, and diesel-powered boats. The proposal, which is particularly aimed at reducing pollution in national parks, would cut total carbon-monoxide emissions from the vehicles by 56 percent and hydrocarbon […]
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Clap for the Wolf, Man
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service this week confirmed the discovery of a new northern gray wolf pack in Idaho, moving the recovery timetable for the species ahead by one year. For the gray wolf to be removed from the list of endangered species in the region, 30 pairs must breed for three consecutive years […]
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Not in Shipshape
For years, the wealthy nations of the world have been dumping their massive old ships on poor countries, leaving the extremely hazardous work of breaking them down to workers elsewhere. About 4,000 civilian and military ships are slated to go out of service each year. “Only a fraction of the world fleet is being recycled […]
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Green Mountin' State
Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D) said yesterday that his state can meet electricity demands for the next decade by “using renewable energy and efficiency and relying less on large fossil-fuel plants.” For starters, Dean said he would probably devote $750,000 from an oil-industry settlement to solar and wind system rebates. Christine Salembier, commissioner of the […]
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Better, Safe Safari
“The future of Kenyan tourism is green,” says Judy Gona, executive director of the Ecotourism Society of Kenya, which is working to create a low-impact, more environmentally friendly tourism industry in the second-most visited country in Africa. ESOK’s 80 members are mostly small, secluded camps and lodges that are built with local materials. They use […]
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Reef Riff
Despite objections from environmental groups and local governments, the California state legislature passed a bill on Friday that would allow abandoned offshore oilrigs to be converted to underwater reefs. If Gov. Gray Davis (D) signs the bill, oil companies will save millions of dollars; currently, they must dismantle and take away the rigs when drilling […]
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Derailed
As a consequence of last week’s terrorist attacks, the U.S. Energy Department has cancelled a shipment of high-level nuclear waste that was scheduled to be transported from New York state to Idaho by train this summer. Anti-nuke activists had dubbed the shipment a “mobile Chernobyl” and were planning to raise a ruckus when the freight […]
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Hanoi-ance
There are nine times more endangered species of sea life in Vietnam than there were in 1989, according to statistics from the country’s Ministry of Fisheries reported in the New Hanoi newspaper. The number of species at risk has grown from 15 to 135. In 1989, 35 percent of Vietnam’s coral reefs were healthy; that […]
