Latest Articles

New “quiet” snowmobiles in Yellowstone are anything but

A vroom with a view. Photo: Greater Yellowstone Coalition. You might think a winter job in the snowy recesses of Yellowstone National Park would guarantee perks along the lines of, say, peace and quiet. Au contraire. In light of a recent study conducted for the National Park Service, many Yellowstone employees are being advised to […]

No Campaign, No Gain

Kerry to Make Environment Central Campaign Issue As Earth Day approaches, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry is publicizing his plan to make environmental protection a central campaign issue. This is a notable departure from Al Gore’s strategy in the 2000 election, wherein the Democratic candidate was muted on the issue, hoping to dodge the “environmental […]

General Discontent

State Attorneys General Object to Environmental Exemptions for Pentagon The Department of Defense’s attempt to exempt itself from several landmark environmental laws has kicked up a storm of resistance at the state level. Yesterday, 39 state attorneys general sent a letter to the chairs of four congressional committees, protesting draft legislation submitted by the Bush […]

Oh Say, Can You Sea?

U.S. Ocean Commission Calls for Action to Save Seas Our oceans are in trouble and we need to do something about it. This was the conclusion of the first comprehensive review of U.S. ocean policy in 35 years, released today by the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy. The presidential commission spent 2.5 years studying coastal […]

A clean-energy advocate and former V.P. candidate answers questions

What environmental organizations are you affiliated with? Honor the Earth and White Earth Land Recovery Project. What do your organizations do? Honor the Earth’s mission is to create awareness and support for indigenous environmental issues and to leverage needed financial and political resources for the survival of sustainable indigenous communities. Honor the Earth develops these […]

Rashida Bee of Bhopal, India, fights against the company that devastated her community

Shukla (left) and Bee. Photo: Goldman Environmental Prize On the night of December 2, 1984, in the central Indian city of Bhopal, a massive poisonous gas leak from a Union Carbide pesticide factory killed 8,000 people. Over the course of 20 years, the infamous disaster has caused an estimated 20,000 deaths, countless birth defects, and […]

Interviews with the 2004 winners of environmentalism’s top prize

The winners: (clockwise from left) Eugene-Richard, Kochladze, Goldman (cofounder of the prize), De Carvalho, Grueso, Bee, and Shukla. Photo: Goldman Environmental Prize. The environmental movement often runs on the adrenaline of outrage, and the past year has provided more outrages than most. The White House has taken aim — and fired — at some of […]

Return to Sender

California Bill Aims to Curb Waste from AOL Disks If a California legislator has her way, companies that send unsolicited CDs and DVDs through the mail to state residents — we’re looking at you, AOL — will be required to include a postage-paid, pre-addressed envelope that recipients can use to send them back to the […]

Dis and Makeup

Most U.S. Cosmetic Companies Resist Calls to Phase Out Suspect Chemicals A growing controversy over phthalates — chemicals frequently used in cosmetics, including nail polish and fragrances — highlights dramatic differences in the way potential toxins are handled by U.S. and European Union regulators. Phthalates have been shown to cause adverse reproductive effects in laboratory […]

Where the Deer and the Sarin Gas Play

Rocky Mountain Arsenal Gives Birth to Wildlife Refuge Nearly 5,000 acres of the former Rocky Mountain Arsenal reopened this weekend as a national wildlife refuge. Located some 10 miles northeast of Denver, Colo., the arsenal, a 27-square-mile chemical-weapons complex that for four decades produced sarin, mustard gas, and napalm, left behind one of the nation’s […]