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U.S. EPA blocks California emissions waiver, judge restricts U.S. Navy’s sonar use, and more

Read the news items highlighted in this week’s podcast: Iowa Hearts Huckabee — and Obama Too Win, Lose, and Law EPA: Nay Runaway Sue Doing the Humpty Dance Hey, You Got Your Naval Pierced Read the articles mentioned at the end of the podcast: Rice Versa Do They Suck? In With the New

Streets of Naples fill with garbage, Italian army called in

The ongoing trash problem in Naples, Italy, has become so bad that the Italian army has been called in to bulldoze piles of rubbish that were blocking entry to city schools. Garbage collection stopped more than two weeks ago, for the simple reason that all of the area dumps are full to overflowing. The city […]

Knut to star in Hollywood flick

This 245-lb. fluffball has stolen the spotlight since day one, but Knut may soon make a big-screen debut as the star of an upcoming animated feature. The Berlin Zoo has been approached with a $5 million movie deal for the year-old polar bear. (I assume that’ll be paid out in fish and other bear-friendly treats?) […]

Decision on whether to list polar bears as a threatened species is delayed

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, expected to announce on Wednesday its decision about whether to list the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, has announced instead that it will miss that deadline. The agency said it hopes to make a recommendation to Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne within the next month, after […]

What everyone’s saying about Grist’s new book, Wake Up and Smell the Planet

Unless you’ve been living under a rock lately, I’m sure you’ve been hearing over and over again all the glowing praises for Grist’s slick new book, Wake Up and Smell the Planet: The Non-Pompous, Non-Preachy Grist Guide to Greening Your Day. What? You’ve never even heard of it? That must be an awfully nice rock […]

South Korea to outlaw single-hulled oil tankers in 2011

South Korea has announced that it will outlaw single-hulled oil tankers in its waters by January 2011, four years earlier than its original goal, due to the country’s largest oil spill in December. The December spill dumped about 2.7 million gallons of oil some five miles off the country’s coast when a barge struck a […]

Friday music blogging: Albums of the year 2007

For no particular reason and in no particular order (save maybe the top two), I give you my sentimental favorites of 2007: Band of Horses: Cease to Begin (FMB) Josh Ritter: The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter (FMB) Okkervil River: The Stage Names (FMB) Wilco: Sky Blue Sky (FMB) Cloud Cult: The Meaning of 8 […]

Green lists from 2007

Remember when we published our Top 15 Green Stories of 2007? Literally the day before the holiday break? So no one read it? That was awesome. Now go read it. When you get back, here are a few other random greenish lists I’ve stumbled across: Plenty magazine: Plenty’s picks for top environmental stories of 2007 […]

Judge orders restrictions on U.S. Navy’s use of sonar off California coast

A federal judge yesterday ordered the U.S. Navy to adopt specific restrictions on its use of sonar in order to protect whales and other marine mammals off the California coast. Mid-frequency sonar has been accused of causing a wide range of problems when it’s used within proximity of marine mammals, such as temporary deafness, beachings, […]

Peabody Energy partners on Chinese “clean coal” project

Coal behemoth Peabody Energy — a partner in the infamous FutureGen — will join with Chinese equity partners to build China’s first “clean coal” plant, dubbed GreenGen. (We just threw up in our mouths a little.) Partners say the project will provide near-zero emissions, and the first phase is expected to be on line by […]