Latest Articles

Umbra on soap

Dear Umbra, Every time I’m lathering with Dr. Bronner’s hemp castile soap, I wonder, what is castile soap? And how is it different from my bar of olive oil-based soap from the farmers market, or my partner’s Dove? Finally, does the ingredient triclosan in antibacterial soap really convert to dioxin in sunlight? And if so, […]

A useful rule of thumb: Lower emissions are better for the environment

In the unlikely circumstance that reporters ever grow weary of chasing twitches in the oil markets or interpreting the wanderings of the Dow, they have a new toy to play with: the price of carbon. Which is fine, so far as it goes, except that they keep getting the story so badly wrong: The global […]

Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens found guilty on corruption charges

Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) has been found guilty on seven counts of lying about free house renovations and gifts received from an oil-contractor friend between 1999 and 2006. The impact on Stevens’ reelection race against Democrat Mark Begich remains to be seen. Stevens, going strong at age 84, is the longest-serving Republican in the Senate.

Environmental NGOs present sustainable-sushi guides and delicious raw fish at a New York event

A lot of people I know seek out meat, eggs, and dairy from pasture-raised animals and vegetables grown without chemicals, but they do not question where their seafood comes from unless they’re worried about mercury. The concept of sustainable seafood is a revolutionary idea that I hope catches on the way dolphin-safe tuna fish has. […]

Climate change making for salty seas, says study

Climate change is making the Atlantic Ocean more salty, according to research being published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Increased evaporation and reduced rainfall are to blame. Keep an eye out for even saltier sea dogs, me hearties. Yar!

On the glory of Terra Madre’s street-food section

Turin, Italy — The critique of "fast food" needs to be nuanced. Pre-fab burgers from corn-fed cows, cooked to the cardboard stage by deskilled, exploited workers and washed down with corn-syrupy Coke: surely a calamity on many fronts. But other modes of fast food are possible, even necessary. In most of the world’s cities — […]

Sometimes the issue with a particular technology is the technology itself

In arguing for efficiency mandates, Joe Romm notes the failings of carbon pricing as a solution to climate change: That means a price of $400 a metric ton of carbon (whether achieved through a tax or a cap & trade system) would increase the price of gasoline a mere $1 a gallon. How much efficiency […]

Obama pitches green to 100K

“If I am president, I will invest $15 billion a year in renewable sources of energy to create five million new, green jobs over the next decade — jobs that pay well and can’t be outsourced; jobs building solar panels and wind turbines and fuel-efficient cars; jobs that will help us end our dependence on […]

Britain’s eco-town plans are on shaky ground

Thanks to the shaky economy, a struggling construction industry, and strong local opposition, sources close to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s eco-town plans say that only “one or two” of the 15 shortlisted sites are likely to go forward.

Public spending on transit is an easy call

Katharine Mieszkowski tells the sordid story: in the U.S., ridership for public transit is up, demand is up, but funding is going down and transit systems are decaying. The Washington Post says "[D.C.] Metro and 30 other transit agencies across the country may have to pay billions of dollars to large banks as years-old financing […]