Latest Articles
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Where do greenhouse gases come from?
This chart from the United Nations Environment Programme (click to embiggen) looks complicated, sort of like a traffic sign cross-bred with a banyan tree. But it basically just traces the path of greenhouse gases from polluting industries, through uses, out into the atmosphere. So you can tell at a glance, for instance, that energy industries […]
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Tennessee is getting 1,000 tons of nuclear waste from Germany
Oak Ridge, Tenn., a city with a long history of living alongside nuclear industries, will be processing nuclear waste from Germany. They’ll be taking on almost 1,000 tons of material, and the shipments could start coming this year. NPR reports:
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Critical List: Melting Arctic ice pollutes; wind farm could kill bald eagles
Melting Arctic ice is releasing banned chemicals like DDT, which were trapped there back when they were legal.
Post-tornado clean-up in Joplin, Mo. is going slowly.
Can water heaters store energy captured by wind turbines and solar panels? A startup called GridMobility thinks so. -
Til dinner do us part: Ask Umbra on wedding meal choices
What's the most sustainable choice on the dreaded three-choice wedding dinner card? Ask Umbra digs in to the question.
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Germany passes new renewable energy law for 2012, raises targets and payments
Despite widespread rumors in North America that Germany was abandoning its system of Advanced Renewable Tariffs, the country's upper chamber of parliament, the Bundesrat, approved the latest revision of its pioneering Renewable Energy Sources Act on July 8, 2011.
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How smart growth in cities saves wilderness [VIDEO]
The relationship between smart urban development and rural conservation is a mutually beneficial one.
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Packing heat: Why violence boils over on a warming planet
Christian Parenti's new book, The Tropic of Chaos, traces the links between politics, economics, and climate change.
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How to power homes with 100% clean and increasingly local power
Marin Clean Energy in California leads the way in clean, local energy with its community choice aggregation model.
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Friday music blogging: The Avett Brothers' new songs
I wrote a cover story on The Avett Brothers for glossy guitar mag Fretboard Journal. It's finally online. While you're at it, check out a few videos of new songs they've been playing.
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Growing Midwest and Appalachian efficiency markets
Like boiling frogs, it’s the rate of change that matters when it comes to energy efficiency investments. Consumers who have grown accustomed to $4 gasoline are much less likely to buy a hybrid car than ones who just saw their gasoline price double from $1 to $2 between fill-ups. This is the silver lining of […]
