Latest Articles
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Japan will shorten pro baseball games to cut emissions
Japan’s professional baseball league is aiming to reduce carbon emissions by using only renewable energy recycling everything aiming to shorten games by 12 minutes. Under new rules, no more than 2 minutes and 15 seconds may lapse between innings, and pitchers must throw the ball within 15 seconds of receiving it if no runners are […]
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Delayers and doomsayers receive a chilly reception from pragmatic business leaders
There was a lot going on at the conference, but one underlying dynamic is particularly notable. I mentioned it in my post on Jeff Immelt’s panel, but it’s worth discussing at more length. The conservative ideologues — the WSJ editorial board, invited guests Fred Smith and Myron Ebell of CEI, Steve Milloy of JunkScience — […]
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Umbra on burning paper
Dear Umbra, We heat our house primarily by wood, in an efficient, EPA-rated woodstove. My question is this: We recycle all of our paper, paperboard, cardboard, etc., but would it be better to burn it? As it is, we drive it to the recycle center, they ship it off somewhere, it is then processed, then […]
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Arctic losing older, thicker sea ice despite cooler temps this winter
The Arctic is losing more of its older, thicker sea ice than in years past despite persistent cold weather throughout the Northern Hemisphere this winter, researchers said. Older sea ice tends to be thicker and have a lower salt content, making it more melt-resistant than new ice. In March, Arctic sea ice is usually at […]
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An interview with Ralph Nader about his presidential platform on energy and the environment
He brought you the seat belt. He launched a consumer advocacy empire. He got over 2 million votes in the 2000. We interview with Ralph Nader about his presidential platform.
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Notable quotable
“A major component of Global Warming is to reduce population because people are seen as part of the problem. And, of course, population control includes abortion. It also includes same-sex relations because they do not cause offspring.” — Tony Perkins, of the Family Research Council
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Record global glacial melt
"Record Glacier Thinning Means No Time to Waste on Agreeing New International Climate Regime," said the U.N. Environment Programme on Sunday.
That statement is based on the data of the World Glacier Monitoring Service, which "has been tracking the fate of glaciers for over a century. Continuous data series of annual mass balance, expressed as thickness change, are available for 30 reference glaciers since 1980." Here's the mean annual specific net balance:
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On the oddity of privatizing nature
Given the uncertainty accruing to traditional investments in today's economy, here's a trend to consider: the monetizing of ecosystem services. One of the first public discussions of this, the Biodiversity & Ecosystem Finance Summit taking place in New York this weekend, aims to answer this question: how can financiers and corporations take a lead in biodiversity and ecosystem conservation? (I can think of a few ways, yes.)
Welcome to the developing area of "biodiversity finance," which seeks to monetize biodiversity and ecosystem assets like wetlands, rainforests, reefs, and so forth so they can then be protected -- at a profit. Sounds spooky, right? But there are examples out there already, and not just the conservation-minded hobby ranches à la Ted Turner that we're seeing all over the Rocky Mountain West. Take this example [PDF] from Virginia, where private equity has bought the last large piece of the Great Dismal Swamp:
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EDF + CEOs: C&T A-OK
Here’s the new Environmental Defense Fund ad — on which they spent $2 million — featuring CEOs stumping for a cap-and-trade bill. Apparently the director told them: “I don’t care what you do, as long as you make some kind of hand gesture.”
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