Latest Articles

Clean energy advocate gives a 'how to' clinic on rebutting fossil energy disinformation

Cross-posted from The Great Energy Challenge blog Over the past few months, I’ve made the case that dirty energy lobby plays a full contact game against clean energy, using lobbying and disinformation as business weapons to drive the idea that clean energy is “expensive, unreliable and not ready.” Cleantech, I’ve said, needs to step up […]

Military could use climate-killing ‘liquid coal’

By law, the U.S. military can't use fuels that have a worse climate impact than conventional oil. An amendment to a major military spending bill would rescind that law, allowing the U.S. military to buy oil made from, for example, West Virginia Sen. Joe "I literally put a bullet in the climate bill" Manchin's forthcoming […]

Pro-fracking ad accidentally reveals dangers of fracking

ExxonMobil has been running full-page ads that make underground hydraulic fracturing operations — the same ones responsible for massive environmental problems all over the U.S. — look about as threatening as a World Book encyclopedia illustration of a water pipe. The ads highlight the multiple layers of steel and concrete used to protect shallow aquifers. Too […]

NOAA’s terrifying tornado time-lapse [VIDEO]

By now, most of us know last month was the busiest April ever for tornadic activity; with May hosting the deadliest single tornado on record, the whole country’s talking about the Fujita Scale, core bursting, and Helen Hunt like it’s 1996. For those who refuse to even talk about the links between twisters and climate […]

The $200 backyard barbecue

This is what's going to convince Americans to invest in local food and alternative energy: the demise of the backyard barbecue. High gas prices are finally trickling down into U.S. food markets, and the red-meat-loving New York Post has calculated that an outlay of burgers, hot dogs, trimmings, potato salad, and ice cream will cost […]

How green is this car? New fuel economy stickers give a few hints

The federal government is making it easier for consumers to buy an eco-friendly vehicle. New fuel economy window stickers released today detail annual fuel costs and fuel-costs savings and give greenhouse-gas ratings. The stickers will start appearing on 2013 models. It's a little busy with information, and the environmental community was pushing for a different […]

Washington’s bikeshare is a capital idea

Capital Bikeshare gives you access to 1,100 bicycles around the city.Photo: DDOT DCDo you know what it means to be “dockblocked”? (Don’t worry, that’s a “D,” not a “C,” fellas.) If the answer is yes, you are probably a regular user of the Capital Bikeshare system in Washington, D.C. Dockblocked is what you call it […]

Now that the FDA itself has found BPA in canned foods, will it regulate the poison?

Oh, yes we can: It’s time for the FDA to act on its own information regarding canned foods and BPA.The next time an FDA panel convenes to discuss whether to ban BPA, the endocrine-disrupting industrial chemical used in can liners, it will have new data to consider — a study by the agency’s own scientists. […]

State by state, appliance standards save money, create jobs, and protect the environment

This post was written by Rachel Gold, policy analyst for research at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy and a contributing author at the ACEEE blog. Since the 1980s, energy-efficiency appliance standards have been saving consumers money and creating jobs throughout the U.S. These standards translate into savings when new, energy-efficient equipment is purchased, […]

Critical List: U.S. imported less than 50 percent of its oil in 2010

We're off foreign oil! More or less. One price we'll pay for that: ads with blue skies and green fields and a man with a reassuring voice saying that natural gas is totally, totally safe. The price of renewable energy will go down. So naturally, you should bet against its success. Unless you're a venture […]