Latest Articles

EPA approves rule change making mountaintop-removal mining easier

The U.S. EPA on Tuesday approved a controversial rule change that the Bush administration has been trying to make for years which eases restrictions on burying streams under piles of mining waste, making mountaintop-removal mining easier. “By signing off on a rule to eliminate a critical safeguard for streams, the EPA has abdicated its responsibility […]

A taste test of seven ‘natural’ frozen dinners

  I have fond memories of microwaveable TV dinners from when I was a child: mac ‘n’ cheese, chicken nuggets, unidentifiable green lumps, mushy brown things. The wonder surrounding them was probably due to the fact that we weren’t usually allowed to eat them. Mama Shep is a great cook, and since we grew up […]

Bizarre gap year in residential conservation tax incentives

I was doing some research in preparation for upgrading my attic insulation, and what do I find? That, in its wisdom, Congress has decided that home weatherization is a good idea that needs incentives for 2006, 2007, and 2009 … but not 2008. That’s right. The feds want you to delay energy-conserving, pollution-reducing, job-creating home […]

The not-so-fragrant side of fresh-cut flowers

In conventional development dogma, the fresh-cut flower industry makes plenty of sense. Nations in the global south need foreign exchange and jobs; folks in the industrialized north have plenty of disposable income for buying pretty things. Moreover, land tends to be cheap in the south and dear in the north. Pursuing the promise of what […]

Senate majority leader talks energy policy at wonky event

In an event Tuesday that brought together a motley crew of leaders with an interest in the future of energy policy, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised that the issue would be a top priority for him next year. “As the new Congress convenes, I will make it a priority to work with the Obama […]

Participate in the National Teach-In on Global Warming Solutions, Feb. 5

A guest post by Eban Goodstein, Professor of Economics at Lewis & Clark College and project director of the National Teach-in on Global Warming Solutions. —– One thing you can do to stop global warming right now is tell a teacher — a friend, your kid’s teacher, a cousin, or a colleague — about The […]

Supertrain a-comin’

“There’s a reason when you turned on the Olympics to watch them this past summer, you saw mag-lev trains going over 200 miles an hour in supposedly a third world country [i.e., China] in terms of its economy, blowing into town, dealing with environmental problems they have as well as transporting people in a way […]

Gov. Ed Rendell says Kathleen McGinty has taken herself out of the running for an Obama post

Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell says he “heard” that Kathleen McGinty has taken herself out of the running for EPA administrator, according to the Capitol Ideas blog. Until July, McGinty headed his Department of Environmental Protection. Just last week, Rendell was pushing her as a strong candidate for a prime spot in the Obama administration, either […]

Florida Republican Sen. Mel Martinez says he won’t run again in 2010

Florida Republican Sen. Mel Martinez said today that he’s not planning to seek reelection in 2010. Martinez, who is still in his first term in the Senate, has been one of the few Republicans who has generally opposed offshore drilling (which isn’t totally surprising, given his state’s geography). Even in the rush to open up […]

Not as threatening as missing bees, but another odd symptom

Even when they are not immediate threats, weird symptoms like this are troubling: WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 (UPI) — Botanists say they’re puzzled about why oak trees from Virginia to Kansas and north to Nova Scotia failed to produce acorns this year. “It’s a zero year. There’s zero production. I’ve never seen anything like this before,” […]