Latest Articles

Ed Norton on greening affordable housing

Umbra on storing produce

Hi Umbra, Quick question: What is the best way to store vegetables in the refrigerator? I have a small crisper drawer and lots of vegetables from the CSA box. I don’t want to use plastic bags but unfortunately they work well. Any suggestions? Thanks! Kati N. Washington, D.C. Dearest Kati, Did you say CSA box? […]

Judge says Calif. salmon in trouble but offers no short-term solution

The dams and aqueducts that shuttle water from California’s Sacramento River Delta to the rest of the state will “appreciably increase jeopardy” to salmon and steelhead in the coming months, U.S. District Judge Oliver Wanger said Friday. But while Wanger agreed with environmentalists that “the three salmonid species are not viable and are all in […]

Netroots Nation needs a reboot

Netroots Nation was a blast. It’s great to meet and hang out with people you spend all year interacting with as names on emails and blog posts. (As a side note, it’s been my experience that most people are more pleasant, interesting, and funny in "meatspace" than you would think from their online personas. I […]

Chatting with Al Gore and Jim Hightower at Netroots Nation

Our partners at ReGeneration.org were able to snag a few quick interviews with notable Netroots Nation attendees Al Gore and former Texas Agriculture Commissioner, author, radio host, and activist Jim Hightower. Here’s what Gore had to say about why climate and environment action should be a bipartisan effort: And here’s Hightower on what should be […]

A big addition to the Western Climate Initiative

Ontario officially joins the Western Climate Initiative as a full partner. Sweet.

Some Americans may not fully realize the significance of this. So for my fellow Yankees (and with apologies to readers north of the border) ... Ontario is the California of Canada in the sense that it has more people and economic activity than any other province. On the other hand, Ontario is the Michigan of Canada in the sense that it has a huge auto manufacturing base. And yet Ontario is also the New York of Canada in the sense that it is the seat of the country's biggest city, major banks, and cultural headquarters. And finally, Ontario is the Washington, D.C. of Canada in the sense that it is home to the nation's capitol.

So it's a big deal.

Ontario adds nearly 12.9 million people to the Western Climate Initiative. In combination with British Columbia, Manitoba, and Quebec -- already members of WCI -- nearly 80 percent of Canada is now under a hard carbon cap. In political terms, this means that prime minister Stephen Harper and the province of Alberta (the Texas of Canada) will now have to go off and play by themselves. It's a giant poke in the eye to Canada's lax federal leadership on climate change.

And it's terrific news for the WCI states too. Ontario has a GDP comparable to the combined economies of Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Utah. And it means that the WCI is now home to nearly 85 million North Americans.

New McCain ad blames Obama for rising gas prices

GOP presidential candidate John McCain released a new television ad today, “Pump,” which puts the blame for rising gas prices on Democrat Barack Obama. “Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?” the ad asks, as a photo of Obama appears on screen, and a crowd shouts, “Obama, Obama!” “One man knows we […]

LCV endorses Democratic candidate Barack Obama

The League of Conservation Voters announced today that they’re endorsing Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, citing the freshman senator’s policies on climate change and clean energy. “When you look specifically at the twin challenges of cutting global warming pollution and moving toward a clean energy future, on those issues Barack Obama has the most comprehensive […]

League of Conservation Voters endorses Obama for president

The League of Conservation Voters announced today that they’re endorsing Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, citing the freshman senator’s policies on climate change and clean energy. “When you look specifically at the twin challenges of cutting global warming pollution and moving toward a clean energy future, on those issues Barack Obama has the most comprehensive […]

French downplay years-old uranium leak at nuclear plant

A uranium leak was discovered on Friday in an underground pipe at a nuclear fuel plant in France. Authorities said the leak was probably a few years old, but insisted it really isn’t all that bad since groundwater apparently wasn’t contaminated and the uranium leak was relatively small. However, the reassurances were not quite as […]