Latest Articles

Try skipping the Pringles

Looking for political information on CNN.com, a headline caught my eye: “How to be sodium savvy.” Since I recently developed some concerns in that area I clicked the link. The story was written by a chef named David Hagedorn for Cooking Light Magazine, a part of the CNN/Time/Warner empire. What I found at the outset […]

Wind, solar thermal, and geothermal development outpaces expectations

As fossil fuel prices rise, as oil insecurity deepens, and as concerns about climate change cast a shadow over the future of coal, a new energy economy is emerging in the United States. The old energy economy, fueled by oil, coal, and natural gas, is being replaced by one powered by wind, solar, and geothermal […]

Roni Neff explains how the media miss the story on food’s connection to climate change

In 2006, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization published a 390-page report called “Livestock’s Long Shadow.” The dense document came to a startling conclusion: Livestock production — including land-use changes for pasture and crop production — contributes more to global warming than every single car, train, and plane on the planet. Rajendra Pachauri, chair of […]

California updates plan for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions

How will California meet its goal to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020? It’s so glad you asked. On Wednesday, the state Air Resources Board released an update to its draft proposal for cutting emissions. The updated plan adds in analysis related to newly signed laws that discourage sprawl and encourage green jobs, […]

BLM publishes proposed rule which ignores House committee’s resolution

Originally posted at the Wonk Room. —– The Bush administration is rushing forward with plans to mine the Grand Canyon for uranium, ignoring a command from Congress to cease such operations. Since 2003, mining interests have staked out over 800 uranium claims within five miles of Grand Canyon National Park. As Mineweb reports, “The Bureau […]

Florida to release tough climate action plan

The state government of Florida is set today to release its action plan on climate change, which includes significant reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions and indicates that the state stands to reap $28 billion in net economic savings by 2025 if it moves forward with cutting carbon. A draft summary [PDF] of the plan from the […]

EDF’s and MIT’s magical thinking on carbon caps and oil

Last week I critiqued EDF’s pointless video/graphics competition (see here). The contest is pointless because a carbon cap can’t cure our oil addiction. Indeed, under any plausible cap, U.S. oil consumption rises. Gernot Wagner, an economist at Environmental Defense Fund, responded with a post here: “‘Bizarre’? No. Tough? Yes: Joseph Romm’s critique of EDF’s contest […]

Starbucks addresses water wastage following tabloid indictment

As John Edwards always said, never underestimate the power of a tabloid. Following the revelation in British rag-mag The Sun that constantly running dipper wells waste a humongous amount of water, a Starbucks spokesperson confirms, “Stores will be instructed to switch off the dipper well tap and will wash spoons after use.” And the plot […]

Bottled water is a sham answer to low-quality tap water

Speaking of bottled water, get this, from Environmental Working Group:  The bottled water industry promotes an image of purity, but comprehensive testing by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) reveals a surprising array of chemical contaminants in every bottled water brand analyzed, including toxic byproducts of chlorination in Walmart’s Sam’s Choice and Giant Supermarket’s Acadia brands, […]

Umbra on eco-themed Halloween costumes

Dear Umbra, Every year my friends and I throw a big Halloween party, and I had the amazing idea of dressing up as Sarah Palin. Unfortunately, I just found out that’s currently the most popular costume in my city (and most likely the U.S.), so I’m thinking about tipping my hat to my love of […]