Latest Articles
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Origins of cereal linked to religion, vegetarianism
The mental_floss blog has an interesting piece on the origins of cereal. Only a short bit of it is eco-related, so I’ll post that here (emphasis mine): Meat Is Murder (on the Colon) During the early 19th century, most Americans subsisted on a diet of pork, whiskey, and coffee. It was hell on the bowels, […]
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Notes from Stone Barns’ ‘Young Farmer Conference’
There’s a social movement cropping up in fields and markets across the country — America’s next generation of farmers are stepping up to the pitchfork. Young, excited and energized, they’re facing many challenges, but also reaping many rewards. To celebrate this burgeoning interest in farming, Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Tarrytown, New […]
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For some families, the holidays are all about the grub
This is the holiday season in just about every culture. I was born and raised a Unitarian Universalist, thus of the Judeo-Christian background, so in my house it’s Christmastime. For some folks, Christmas is about peace and good tidings. For others it is a joyous celebration of the birth of their savior. In my […]
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The transportation story at the heart of a history-making crisis
There’s a remarkable graph that has starred in blog posts and news stories with some regularity over the past year. It shows vehicle miles traveled in America over the last quarter century or so. For most of the period, the line rockets upward, straight and true, preparing to blast off the page. But then the […]
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EPA unveils ‘most wanted’ list of environmental criminals
The U.S. EPA this week unveiled a new website listing its “most wanted” environmental criminals, people accused of everything from illegally disposing of hazardous waste to smuggling Freon and other ozone-depleting substances into the United States. Remarkably, no one employed by the Bush administration appears on it.
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Car dealers offering two for the price of one
It used to be a chicken in every pot. Now it’s two cars in every sale — at least at some Dodge dealers. At a Quebec dealer, buy a Dodge truck and get a Caliber for “free.” In the U.K., a similar deal (bonus: video with fun British accents!). In Miami, buy a four-door pick-up […]
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Mexico pledges to cut greenhouse-gas emissions in half by 2050
Mexico on Thursday pledged to cut its greenhouse-gas emissions 50 percent from 2002 levels by 2050, making it one of only a handful of developing nations to set a concrete emissions-reduction goal. Mexico aims to hit its climate target through big investments in solar, wind, and other clean technologies. A cap-and-trade system is also in […]
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Auto bailout passed by House requires compliance with state emission standards
The U.S. House on Wednesday approved a $14 billion rescue plan for the domestic auto industry that, among many other things, would force the companies to comply with California’s strict emissions requirements for vehicles. However, House Democrats reportedly dropped a requirement from the bill that would have barred the Big Three from using any of […]
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EPA drops significant planned changes to two air-pollution rules
The U.S. EPA on Wednesday announced it’s giving up its effort to push through two unpopular changes to air-pollution rules before President-elect Barack Obama takes office. The changes, in the works for years, would have eased restrictions on power plants’ emissions near national parks and allowed some of the country’s dirtiest power plants to emit […]
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