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Ice Vice, Baby

Iceland to resume commercial whaling despite international ban Iceland plans to resume commercial whaling for the first time in nearly 20 years, despite an international moratorium. Through August 2007, the government will permit whalers to harpoon 30 minke whales and nine endangered fin whales. Iceland’s Fisheries Ministry says there are 43,600 minkes and 25,800 fin […]

Weigh in on the question

Wiscidea raises an interesting question: Could GM be used to reduce the need for fertilizers and pesticides and boost the organic-food market? Would the sustainable-food movement accept genetically modified organic food?

Put aside for a moment the execrable global corporate-welfare copyright clusterfuck that is the current GMO industry.

Imagine instead collaborative, transparent open-source biotechnology, fueled by volunteers or money from progressive foundations, wealthy donors, and NGOs. Unlikely? Yes. But imagine.

Would environmentalists accept it, or is there something intrinsic to genetic manipulation that greens are supposed to object to?

What do y'all think?

U.K. opens eco-friendly chalk building

A new conference and events center in the U.K. is said to be one of Europe's "most sustainable and healthy" structures. And it was built with almost $1.5 million worth of chalk. No kidding.

Extracted from the White Cliffs of Dover, the chalk was literally pounded into place to create the walls of the structure. Other sustainable materials -- like locally sourced clay tiles and an insulated soil roof -- were used as well, and the building as a whole needs just 15 percent of a conventional building's energy requirements.

Revenue from events held at the Pines Calyx will go toward maintaining the grounds. Which, I can only imagine, will involve a lot of dusting. Perhaps they could put those furry hats to use?

Seeking veggie-friendly flu remedies

So I'm feeling a bit under the weather ... and no, I'm not talking about Seattle's forecast. I've been fighting something flu-ish this week -- something involving fever, aches, and an unhappy tummy. It's the third day now, and all I'm munching on is some crackers and tea. Mom says the remedy is some old-fashioned chicken soup. But where does a vegetarian turn in times like these? Many of the vegetable soups out there have an acidic tomato base that isn't appealing. Any of y'all have time-tested soup (or other) recipes to soothe a sickly (but anti-chicken) stomach?

Here comes the stretch …

It would be easier to write a sports column on an environmental blog if the athletic world was actually doing anything helpful to the earth. (I'm a busy girl with limited time for Google searching, people.) That being the case, some folks think we should rethink our way of sporting altogether. I say, when we've tackled the large-scale social and political adjustment that will allow us to effectively combat climate change, then we can move on to athletic-supporter adjustment. Hee hee hee.

So, right. Not much in the sporting world to write about today. So in the spirit of trying to make a connection where there isn't really one, here comes the stretch, and the pitch, from Tim Haab over at Environmental Economics.

Something’s fishy here.

From The New York Times:

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration commissions report by Institute of Medicine on risks and benefits of eating fish. Institute of Medicine obliges, states that marine-life consumption "may" reduce risk of heart disease, but further study is needed per risk of exposure to PCBs, dioxin, and other nasty stuff. Meanwhile, Harvard School of Public Health conducts different study and declares fish to reduce risk of coronary death by 36 percent. Coauthor of Harvard study declares fish-eating risks to be "greatly exaggerated." NOAA sponsors press conference for release of Harvard study, much to surprise of Institute of Medicine. Why? Why would NOAA support the study they didn't commission?

"We're just trying to make consumers feel good," said William T. Hogarth, assistant administrator for fisheries of the National Marine Fisheries Service, part of NOAA.

Feeling good trumps awareness of risks to my health any day!

A Refine Mess

Bush admin plans to relax air-pollution regulations on ethanol refineries President Bush has been hyping the environmental benefits of ethanol in recent months, even as his administration has been preparing to relax air-pollution regulations for new ethanol refineries. The U.S. EPA plans to increase the amount of toxic pollution refineries can emit — from 100 […]

Doesn’t exist.

It is practically a cliche among mainstream financial journalists that slowing (or zero) population growth is a threat to a country's economic health. Economist Dean Baker -- whose site is must-reading -- debunks the notion.

In other news, I'm going to be out all day, painting my new house while the kids are in daycare. See you tomorrow.

Do you care?

I presume all of you who reject my notion that animal welfare should be considered part of environmentalism see no problem with this development.

When’s Obama gonna do something?

I must confess that my initial infatuation with Sen. Barack Obama (D-Mount Olympus) is wearing off.

Yes, he's got the charisma, the personal history, the zeitgeist on his side ... but he hasn't done anything, and shows no signs of planning to do anything, of any daring or significance. Someone in his position, with that much media attention, that much popular support, has a responsibility to use that power to make something happen -- something other than political advancement. The jury's still out, but the clock is ticking, to mix metaphors.

Obama's on the cover of two national magazines this week: Time (along with an excerpt from his new book and a photo spread) and Harpers (not online). Though the pieces are written from decidedly different perspectives, they both tell the same basic story: look how amazing this guy is ... just imagine when he does something!

Want to see something that captures my mixed feelings? Watch this video: