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Grist talks to Terry Tamminen about the Governors’ Climate Summit

We caught up with Terry Tamminen for a few minutes this afternoon to talk about the Governors’ Global Climate Summit, an event he played a pivotal role in organizing. Tamminen, an influential wonk who has the ear of Republicans and Democrats alike, predicted that President-elect Obama would create a high-level position in his administration to […]

Dem leaders call for $100 billion stimulus with green components

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert C. Byrd yesterday unveiled a $100.3 billion economic recovery package that they say will create 635,000 new jobs. The plan includes a number of green initiatives, including investments in mass transit, home weatherization, and electricity transmission improvements. “In response to higher unemployment, rising food […]

More Dingell-Waxman drama

In today’s news on the Dingell-Waxman battle for the Energy and Commerce Committee, John Dingell (D-Mich.) has rounded up the backing of several conservative-leaning conservation groups, including the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance, Ducks Unlimited, American Rivers, and Trout Unlimited. He also has the support of many “Blue Dog” Democrats and a portion of the Congressional Black […]

A review of eco-minded feminine products, part two

  Editor’s note: This is the second of a two-part series on feminine products. The first column focused on sanitary pads. In a rant about her angry vagina, author Eve Ensler famously described tampons as “a dry wad of fucking cotton” — and she ain’t far from the truth. Unfortunately, she left out a key […]

Toy manufacturers push back against lead-safety rule

Toys marketed to the 12-under-set must either meet new lead standards or be off shelves by Feb. 10 — but many toy manufacturers and retailers don’t wanna comply. Citing the economic downturn, they’re pressuring the government to relax the requirement.

Shellenberger and Nordhaus smear Gore by making stuff up

Yes, I understand that Shellenberger and Nordhaus are desperate for any media attention they can get, which is why they go after Democrats and not Republicans. And everybody understands S&N don’t get global warming at all ever since Nordhaus made his amazing admission on this blog, “We have argued for five years now that efforts […]

The data show the planet still keeps warming

RealClimate has a great post, “Mind the Gap!” that explains some of the confusion about recent temperature trends. Two key datasets, from the U.K.’s Hadley Centre and NASA show warming, as I’ve noted before. But “there are no permanent weather stations in the Arctic Ocean, the place on Earth that has been warming fastest. The […]

Job shifts at Interior Dept. mean Bush appointees will stick around

Two former Interior Department appointees unpopular with environmentalists have been “burrowed” into senior civil service posts, giving them job security when Barack Obama takes the White House. “It is an attempt by the outgoing administration to limit as much as possible [the incoming administration’s] ability to put its policy imprint on the Department of Interior,” […]

Dems boot Lieberman from his EPW post

Senate Democrats decided this morning to let Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) keep his chairmanships of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and Airland Subcommittee of the Armed Services Committee. But as punishment for his rigorous campaigning for Republican presidential candidate John McCain, Lieberman will lose his seat on the Environment and Public Works Committee. By […]

Was there another breathless announcement of another phony record, and another quiet retraction?

(Part of the How to Talk to a Climate Skeptic guide) Objection: In October 2008, Al Gore’s science adviser, James Hansen announced yet another “hottest” month on record. After all the alarmist banner headlines sank in, yet another “correction” quietly contradicted this, and October was not particularly warm after all. This is yet another example […]