Latest Articles

Starsky and Hatchery

Feds to Consider Hatchery Salmon Along with Wild in Protection Plans When considering what measures to take to protect threatened Pacific salmon under the Endangered Species Act, the federal government will, in a sharp break from years of policy, take into account the number of hatchery salmon in the West’s rivers. The decision, contained in […]

I Did It Norway

Norway Plays Host to Creative Eco-Friendly Projects A windy island off the western coast of Norway is the site for an ambitious demonstration project that aims to power a tiny town solely with renewable energy, without need for a backup power system run on fossil fuels or other eco-icky technologies. One problem with wind and […]

Christian leaders challenge Bush’s environmental policy

Almighty God, your word of creation caused the water to be filled with many kinds of living beings and the air to be filled with birds … Thank you for seeds and soil, green stem and air. For fruit on the vine, then falling fruit rotting on the moist ground, then new seed again … […]

What a Drag

Pollution Gives Girlish Traits to Boy Turtles Some male snapping turtles in the Great Lakes are suffering from reduced penis size and are producing egg yolk protein, a capability once available only to female turtles, according to researchers from the Canadian Wildlife Service of Environment Canada. The research adds to a growing body of knowledge […]

Endangered, Will Robinson!

Endangered Species Act Under Attack Again Rep. Richard Pombo (R-Calif.) is once again on the attack against the Endangered Species Act. Nearly a decade ago, during the “Gingrich Revolution,” Pombo was one of two reps chosen by the GOP leadership to assault the law, but the “reforms” he proposed then were so radical that they […]

Tuna Fishy

Feds Knew “Dolphin-Safe” Rules Were Being Broken In 2002, the Bush administration relaxed restrictions on foreign-caught tuna, allowing boats that netted dolphins to sell their tuna as “dolphin-safe” in the U.S. as long as the dolphins were released. The relaxed rule relied on the fact that observers were placed on boats to report on whether […]

Disorder in the Court

Cheney Task Force Supreme Court Case Gets Underway Court watchers hoping to witness fireworks or heated accusations about duck hunting or energy-executive cuddling were sorely disappointed by the kickoff yesterday of the Supreme Court case regarding Vice President Dick Cheney’s infamous energy task force. Opening arguments — by Cheney’s lawyer Ted Olson and lawyers from […]

Umbra on environmentally oblivious teens

Dear Umbra, My girlfriend’s 14-year-old daughter lives with us, and she’s the most environmentally oblivious person I’ve ever met. She makes George Bush and Dick Cheney look like card-carrying members of the Green Party. She throws trash out the car window or tosses it on the street. She never shuts off a light or turns […]

Umbra on environmental stress

Dear Umbra, I’m the poster child for a late-twentysomething environmentally responsible adult. I use less than 100 gallons of gas a year, less than 100 kilowatt-hours of electricity a month, less than 20 gallons of water per day, less than 100 therms of natural gas during the winter in Minnesota. I take my garbage out […]

Marianne Horinko, high-ranking EPA official, steps down

The language is increasingly familiar: “I’m leaving at this time in order to spend more quality time with my family. … I realize that I need to devote more time and energy to being [a] wife and mom.” Marianne Horinko. Photo: U.S. EPA. Yep, another beleaguered Bush appointee at the U.S. EPA bites the dust. […]