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A plan to spruce up D.C.’s Anacostia River has some residents anxious

In the southeast corner of Washington, D.C., the capital of the most powerful nation in history, lies a polluted, neglected neighborhood known as Anacostia. Slated for a grand renewal project centered on the local river that gives it its name, the area stands at the juncture of poverty and opportunity. If plans move forward, it […]

Casinos and high-rises battle trolleys and bike lanes for the Gulf Coast future

The bossman draws my attention to a story in the NYT that rather tragically illustrates the struggle over new urbanism I mentioned in the post below. Really, really interesting stuff.

There's probably no place in the U.S. where new urbanism has a better shot at taking hold than the Gulf Coast. By getting wiped out, many of the towns and cities along the coast have a chance to start over -- to reimagine what their communities can be. Lots of people seem to have the right idea:

Gov. Haley Barbour's rebuilding commission and many small-town officials advocate a planning approach known as New Urbanism, which supports pedestrian friendly, historically themed developments where people of mixed incomes share the same neighborhoods and are closely linked by public transportation. Given a rare chance to redesign their landscapes, many residents and officials want to see towns designed around trolley cars, pedestrian walkways and open spaces.

And of course, lots of people seem to have the wrong idea:

But critics here mock New Urbanism as being impractical and ignorant of the preference of most Americans for privacy over community, and as creating towns that often look like film sets rather than real communities.

What do "real communities" look like?

"Biloxi is going to be high-rises and condos," said Duncan McKenzie, president of the Chamber of Commerce and a vice president of the Isle of Capri casino. "People refer to what happened here as a tragic opportunity." Even before the storm, casinos were Biloxi's second-largest industry after the military, employing 15,000 people and generating $19.2 million in taxes.

To boldly go where no man has gone before

This is a couple of weeks old. See those specks at the bottom of this picture? Those are helicopters. From LiveScience:

A cave so huge helicopters can fly into it has just been discovered deep in the hills of a South American jungle paradise.

Researchers found a new species of poison dart frog inside. I don't have a good feeling about this. Some scientists are starting to suspect that just maybe they are the ones responsible for spreading the fungus that is killing off the frogs of the world.

A little time in the lab could teach big business how to help the poor

Recent weeks have seen surprisingly effective demonstrations in support of animal testing in SustainAbility’s home city of London, under the catchy title of “Pro-Test.” Will support for the oft-reviled practice catch on? We aren’t sure, but it made us think. If we humans are animals, is there ever an argument for treating people as laboratory […]

Why isn’t there more new urbanism?

It is conventional wisdom in enviro circles that a big part of a green future is green cities, and a big part of green cities is dense, mixed-use development, wherein people interact with their neighbors, walk or bike to amenities, and generally have a much smaller environmental footprint than suburbanites. In other words: new urbanism.

Supporters of new urbanism face a daunting challenge, though: namely, the apparently overwhelming preference of Americans for sprawling, single-use suburbs. If dense, mixed-use urban communities are so great, how come there just aren't that many? How come nobody seems to want to live in them?

There are two basic schools of thought on this question.

Heart and solar

My advice to all you Dig This-diggers out there: Hop on the solar bandwagon. Big things lie ahead.

Indicators include the news that Solar Night Industries intends to start churning out "portable power supplies, home and energy power grid solutions, consumer outdoor/indoor products, portable 110V plugs, solar sporting solutions and many more." Currently Solar Night Industries specializes in the very lovely but not particularly, um, useful fiber optic daylily (pictured above).

Indicator two: Solar power makes homeowners happy. Am I the only one who thinks that's just about the cutest headline ever? The article begins, "Today's solar home buyer is not a stereotypical green enthusiast." That's good news, people. It goes on to report on a small survey of residents of new solar home developments in California (of course):

Meet Robert Bullard, father of the environmental-justice movement

Rich, white environmentalists love to moan about why the movement is so ... rich and white. But activists who don't fit that description are busy on the ground, wondering what the hell the white folks are talking about. Robert Bullard is one of them. Considered the first to articulate the concept of environmental justice, Bullard has been battling eco-inequities for nearly 30 years. He talks with Gregory Dicum about why he entered the fray, how things have changed since, and why "creating little black Greenpeaces" isn't the answer.

Meet Robert Bullard, the father of environmental justice

Robert Bullard says he was “drafted” into environmental justice while working as an environmental sociologist in Houston in the late 1970s. His work there on the siting of garbage dumps in black neighborhoods identified systematic patterns of injustice. The book that Bullard eventually wrote about that work, 1990’s Dumping in Dixie, is widely regarded as […]

Love Means Never Having to Remove Your Oil Platforms

Controversial research shows fish thriving around California oil platforms Controversy over 27 oil platforms off the California coast is making waves (ouch!). Delightfully monikered marine biologist Milton Love says the submerged portions of the platforms are serving as artificial reefs and valuable habitat for overfished species like rockfish and bocaccio (which we had previously thought […]

Chem and Get It

State report urges California to adopt greener chemical policy California continues to leave the rest of the nation in the (toxic) dust: A new report commissioned by the state legislature recommends a tough “green chemistry” policy to identify, restrict, and replace the most dangerous chemicals used by American industry — because, says the report’s lead […]