Latest Articles

Nukonomics 101

Efficiency much cheaper than nuke power as way to curb carbon emissions The market economics of nuclear power don’t add up to a climate-change solution, particularly when compared to simple, proven energy-efficiency techniques, argues Mark Hertsgaard in the San Francisco Chronicle. But you wouldn’t know it from listening to the current public debate. Collapse author […]

Ursa Rager

Green groups divided over next moves to protect Yellowstone grizzlies A schism is growing in the environmental movement over Bush administration plans to remove Yellowstone’s grizzly bears from the endangered-species list. Bear numbers have roughly tripled since 1975, to about 600 bears today. Some ursine advocates want to call it a story of successful species […]

Tiny glimmers of goodness in the energy bill

While it's probably not what J.S. had in mind when he asked if he missed anything in his list of good things about the energy bill, I might have one -- scratch that, two.

The first is that the bill contains some tax breaks for those savvy consumers who buy energy-efficient home appliances -- some advice on how to snag the breaks, which can be worth up to $500 a year.

The second is that the bill is drawing attention to the biodiesel debate, thanks to its subsidies requirements for ethanol production -- which leads to cartoons like this one.

On a side note, and making the awkward segue from biodiesel to regular diesel, Michael D. Tusiani notes in the Washington Post this morning that the tax credit for diesel engines matches the one for hybrids at $3,400.

Science and environmentalism: outsourced

Twice now I've tried to make a simple point about evolution, science, and the environment, and, reading them over, twice I've failed.

Luckily (via Wolcott), the delightfully named blogger Kung Fu Monkey has done it for me:

Jackassery

John Tierney doesn't have the stones to come out and say that global warming will be a good thing, so instead he just dances around it with innuendo and anecdotes.

Intermodal transportation and airports

Ralph Nader once said that GAO reports are the most underread critical reading in this country. There's a particularly interesting one [PDF] just released regarding intermodal transportation between the nation's airports and the national rail system (namely that there's very little).

While I will admit I haven't read every word yet, and that the report might serve more than one purpose as bedside reading, one section comparing US air-rail connections to those in Europe caught my attention. The GAO concludes that there are "three basic differences between the United States and Europe that affect the ability to use the European model in the United States":

• population density
• geographic differences
• lower vehicle use costs

The full report goes into more detail and discusses roles for federal and local government as well as the private sector in developing further connections. There's also some interesting schematics of the nation's airports.

Readers talk back about John Roberts, nuclear power, Wal-Mart, and more

  Re: Toadus Operandi Dear Editor: Your piece on Supreme Court nominee John Roberts lacked a bit of perspective. While Roberts may or may not have sympathy for the environmental movement, his rulings in In Re: Cheney (2003) and Sierra Club v. EPA (2004) were right legally, even though they didn’t favor the “environmentalist position.” […]

Bidding a fond farewell to ExxonMobil CEO Lee Raymond

Exxon Valdez: No, your other left! Photo: NOAA. Lee, we barely knew ye. Oh, wait, yes we did. “You either retire or die and I’d just as soon not die,” you said recently, and then yesterday announced your imminent exit as chair and CEO of ExxonMobil after more than 40 years with the oil behemoth. […]

Could TV and film be the key to the renewable energy revolution?

On several occasions I have written about television shows and movies. In doing so, I've tried (albeit unsuccessfully) to start a discussion about the impact they have on audiences when they address environmental issues and/or feature eco-friendly products (hybrids, windmills, etc).

Recently, I issued a call asking (and paraphrasing Bill McKibben): "Where are the movies? The TV shows? The comics? The bleeping video games?"

I believe exposure to such content will help introduce enviro concepts to consumers of pop culture, create awareness (you mean windmills aren't only a Dutch thing?), educate (hey, I didn't realize you could fit two dead bodies in the back of a Toyota Prius!), and start a conversation (do you think Julia Roberts drinks organic soy milk in real life?).

That said, I direct you to a recent piece (based on a true story) by our friend Joel Makower. Our story begins:

(Fade in: two small children running around in a playground. Pan right: A hybrid car slowly drives by while the blades of huge windmills rotate in the background. Narrator's voice begins ... )

If you could pay an extra five or ten bucks a month to help reduce global warming, childhood asthma, rolling brownouts, the national debt, and the threats of Al-Qaeda, would you bother? I'm guessing you'd think that a no-brainer.

So, why aren't you buying clean energy?

The question has been befuddling everyone from environmental activists to utility executives. Nearly every American, it seems, understands that generating electricity from the sun, the wind, the earth's heat, or gases generated by rotting waste is good news for everyone -- the planet, people's health, national security, and the economy.

So, what's the problem? They just don't think clean energy works.

Don’t It Make My Blue Earth Brown

Astronauts see widespread ecological destruction from space Environmental damage on Earth is clearly visible from space, reports the crew of the shuttle Discovery. Chatting from an orbit of 220 miles up with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and other Japanese officials, Commander Eileen Collins said on Thursday that the astronauts could see widespread erosion and deforestation […]