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Umbra on Method cleansers

Dear Umbra, I’ve noticed lately that Method cleaning products are now being sold in a number of different retail outlets, whereas before they were only sold in Target. This shouldn’t seem too weird in our every-store-sells-the-same-thing world, but seeing these products on the shelves in Whole Foods got me wondering more about them. You see, […]

That which cannot be named

There must have been a dozen separate speakers at the summit who mentioned the need for long-term extension of the renewable tax credits (PTC and ITC). Every one of them identified it as a necessary and beneficial policy, and just about every one lamented that Congress hadn’t done it. Only one speaker the whole day […]

Pharma giant Lilly snaps up Posilac for ‘at least’ $300 million

A week or so ago, commenting on news that Monsanto was looking to unload its much-despised bovine-growth-hormone business, I offered this nugget of wisdom: Whatever company buys it probably won’t have Monsanto’s deep pockets. Hmmm. What’s that word again? Oh, yeah — W-R-O-N-G. (Hat tip to Jill of La Vida Locavore.) Today, Monsanto announced that […]

Mayor has big clean-energy goals for NYC

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg touted clean energy Tuesday at, aptly, the National Clean Energy Summit. He said his city has issued a formal request to companies for ideas on how to source electricity from the wind, sun, and waves. “Perhaps companies will want to put wind farms atop our bridges and skyscrapers, or […]

No schadenfreude over the death of SUVs

You know your product is in trouble when the housing analogies come out: The market for sport utility vehicles is starting to look a lot like the housing market, spreading pain to consumers, automakers and dealers … I am not sure this post qualifies as schadenfreude — since that has been defined as “largely unanticipated […]

Putting cow hormones into fish food makes them balloon

Update [2008-8-22 13:20:9 by Tom Philpott]:I was alerted to the rBGH-tilapia news item by this blurb in the Organic Consumers Association news feed on Aug. 19. But when you click on the link provided by OCA, you’re taken to a source dated 2003. Unlike reader Mr. Mean, who (very cordially) comments below, I sloppily didn’t […]

Anti-bike crusader halts San Francisco’s cycle-friendly plans

With a claim that bike lanes increase pollution, a San Francisco resident has managed to put the brakes on the city’s pro-biking plans. In 2004, San Francisco unveiled a proposal to create more bike lanes and bike parking, aiming to have 10 percent of city trips taken on two wheels by 2010. Enter Rob Anderson, […]

‘Gang of 10,’ part 2.5

Part 1 argued argued that the Democrats would be smart to compromise on offshore drilling. Part 2 began an analysis of the bipartisan compromise proposed by the “Gang of 10” senators, suggesting that deal isn’t so bad. I am interrupting this series to point out that the House GOP is so nervous that the Dems […]

EPA knuckleheads hide info on pesticide implicated in colony collapse disorder

So there’s this insecticide called clothianidin that seems likely to be implicated in colony collapse disorder. By the EPA’s own reckoning [PDF], clothianidin “has the potential for toxic chronic exposure to honeybees, as well as other nontarget pollinators, through the translocation of clothianidin residues in nectar and pollen.” Over in Germany, the introduction of clothianidin […]

Visiting oil rig, McCain calls again for more offshore drilling

Sen. John McCain visited an oil rig off the coast of Louisiana Tuesday, reiterating his call for more offshore drilling and bashing Barack Obama for not sharing his enthusiasm. “Sen. Obama opposes new drilling,” said McCain, who himself opposed new offshore drilling until this summer. Actually, to the chagrin of enviros, Obama said recently that […]