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Desalination

One of the things that got left out of my recent interview with the water experts was a question about desalination. A reader just emailed to ask about it, so I thought I'd share:

USDA will soon decide how much pasture time organic dairy cows should get

With demand for organic milk soaring, the stakes are high in the debate over what exactly "organic milk" is -- and that debate will soon be settled, at least from a legal standpoint, by the USDA's National Organic Program.

Ignoring the feast, obsessed with the ramen

Via TH: GE has collaborated on a report concluding that America could meet its entire electrical demand through offshore wind power alone. This may not be an altruistic gamble (hi Dave!), but I'll sure take it.

Now that’s a flex-fuel

Classic:

An Iowa judge has denied unemployment benefits to a man who claimed discrimination after being fired from an ethanol plant for drinking "automobile fuel" produced by the company.

(via OD)

Inhofe media critic turns attention to TV

Sweet Jeebus, he's at it again.

Yesterday I mentioned that Tom Brokaw is hosting the Discovery Channel's special, "Global Warming: What You Need to Know." This has enraged the hack factory that is the Senate Committee on Environment under the hacktastic proprietorship of Sen. James Inhofe (R-Clowntown).

Apparently unbowed by the outcry that greeted his previous missive, committee spokeshack Marc Morano has issued another blast:

Newsweek greens

Newsweek -- no doubt still irritated about getting burned by Time on the green front -- devotes its cover this week to the "greening of America." Most of the cover story is a recitation of facts and trends familiar to Grist readers. I was happy to see some skepticism sneak into the cheerleading:

... these are thrilling times, the beginning of a technological and social revolution that could vault our society into a post-post-industrial future. ... On the other hand, we may just be kidding ourselves. Can bicycles and switch grass really offset the effects -- in pollution, resource depletion and habitat destruction -- of a billion Chinese lining up to buy cars for the first time? ... It's nice that Jane Cremisi ... washes and reuses her aluminum foil and patronizes ecofriendly hotels .... But you cannot save the world with anecdotes. Is the relevant statistic that sales of hybrid cars doubled last year to 200,000 -- or that they were outsold by SUVs by a ratio of 23-1?

Unfortunately, that is the sum total of the skepticism in the piece, and it more or less goes unanswered. Still, it's a nice, optimistic read.

Far, far more annoying is the sidebar about Bush's record on environmental issues, which reads like a parody of the widely loathed he-said, she-said style of journalism. Have a look at this:

Jump for joy! Grist loves readers, readers love Grist!

From our new office, we have a view of Seattle's two sports stadiums. And we'll tell you what: put together, they're still not big enough to contain our immense gratitude to those who donated during our recent fundraiser -- and to all of you for putting up with our "please give us money" emails. About 1,400 of you opened your wallets and hearts to Grist, helping us raise nearly $85,000. Thanks a million! (Or at least $85,000.) Besides the new digs, your donations are helping us move forward with plans for bigger, brighter content -- so keep an eye on us. Keep an eye out later this month, too, as we draw the winners of our fabulous fundraiser prizes. And hey, if you meant to give but didn't get around to it, it's never too late. Operators are standing by -- though they do occasionally sit for a spell.

GE’s Green Gamble

Today's must-read comes from our very own Amanda Griscom Little, in Vanity Fair: "G.E.'s Green Gamble" is an in-depth look at the roots, impact, and larger meaning of GE's ecomagination campaign. It's the best, fairest piece I've read on a subject that tends to receive excess hype from the business press and excess scorn from environmentalists.

One thing that comes across clearly: this is purely a business move on the part of CEO Jeffrey Immelt. It's a gamble, but it's a business gamble, not an altruistic gamble. If he succeeds, it will show pretty conclusively that green and green are, as he claims, aligned.

Drop that apocalyptic vision and start imagining a positive future

Back at the turn of the millennium, the local government I was working for asked community members to contribute their vision of the municipality in the year 2025. As an environmental planner, I attended the community’s presentations with some interest. It doesn’t have to be like this. Photo: iStockphoto. One group that responded was a […]

Burning through the wood

Pardon my prolonged absence. I've been sleeping in a tent for the past five days. I wrote a piece about this annual event last year, so rather than rehash the adventure, you can go here and read about it. The only thing different this year were the lightning storms that set off a forest fire. Helicopters were lifting water to fight it from a nearby lake.

I have also been busy finishing up a set of house plans for a two-story addition. My client wanted to use structural integrated panels (SIPS) for the exterior walls and roof because they have twice as much insulation as a conventional 2 x 6 wall and use half as much framing lumber. The idea was that by using these panels, along with engineered lumber (PDF) for the beams, posts, and floor joists, we would save energy and trees at the same time. But, like everyone else, my client also wanted lots of big windows, a cathedral ceiling, views, and cavernous space.