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An Uphill Climate

Sixteen environmental groups are banding together today in Switzerland to unveil a new Climate Voice website that lets visitors send messages to the world’s political leaders calling for action to address climate change. The groups — which include the World Wildlife Fund, Greenpeace International, and Friends of the Earth — aim to generate 10 million […]

We Thought They'd Never Notice

New York Gov. George Pataki (R) yesterday signed into law the nation’s most stringent bill on notification of pesticide spraying. The law requires schools and day care facilities to give 48 hours notice to parents and staff before pesticides are applied on school grounds. It also gives county governments the option of requiring commercial pesticide […]

Dairy, Dairy, Quite Contrary

Grassroots opposition is springing up against massive dairy operations in California, with environmentalists and community activists worried about the millions of pounds of manure produced by facilities with thousands and even tens of thousands of cows. The animal waste is collected in pits that can be larger than several football fields, and opponents say they […]

That Really Hits the Spot

We could preserve a sizable chunk of the world’s plant and animal species by protecting a mere 1.4 percent of the earth’s land surface, or 25 biologically rich “hot spots,” says Oxford ecologist Norman Myers. The estimated price tag is $5 billion over 10 years, and efforts are underway to raise the necessary funds. Harvard […]

Deborah Schultz, Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program

Deborah Schultz is the education coordinator for the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program, a watershed restoration program in southeast Louisiana. Monday, 21 Aug 2000 THIBODAUX, La. Today I will travel 20 minutes to Houma to meet with a film crew from CNN that is coming to film local teachers and school children. Just what is CNN […]

Run for It, Santa!

For the first time in perhaps 50 million years, the thick ice covering the North Pole has melted, opening up an ice-free stretch of ocean about a mile wide, according to scientists who recently visited the scene. The melting is being seen by many as further evidence that climate change is upon us. James McCarthy, […]

Cherry Bomb

Some Ontario lawn-care companies have begun covering up the smell of toxic pesticides with fragrances like bubble gum, mint, and cherry. Enviros and others worry that this new trend could endanger children, who might be attracted to the scents. Julie Langer of the World Wildlife Fund: “Pesticides give off a pretty recognizable smell and people […]

There's Methane to His Madness

James Hansen, a respected global warming expert and director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, has spent nearly two decades urging countries to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) to help curb climate change, but now he’s started singing a different tune. In research to be published this week in the Proceedings of […]

Conventional Wisdom

Al Gore may not have spent much time on the environment in his speech last night, but organizers of the Democratic National Convention said they did their darndest to make the convention the most green and waste-free one yet. Last night’s festivities ended, for example, with 700 pounds of 100-percent recyclable confetti being showered on […]

Claws for Alarm

Blaming pesticide manufacturers for the deaths of thousands of lobsters last year in Long Island Sound, Connecticut and New York lobstermen on Monday are planning to file suit against the companies for $75 million in damages. The lobstermen say the pesticides applied by the companies to fight the West Nile virus last fall killed the […]