Latest Articles

Commission: Possible?

Kerry Proposes Commission to Protect Integrity of Environmental Regulation John Kerry, the Massachusetts senator who has slipped substantially in the ranks of Democratic presidential contenders, sought to reinvigorate his campaign yesterday by returning to one of his keystone issues: environmental protection. Speaking in New Hampshire, Kerry proposed creating a new federal commission to prevent political […]

Robert Redford gets heated up about the Bush environmental agenda, clean energy, and more

He played the Sundance Kid, the sharpshooter sidekick to Paul Newman’s Butch Cassidy in the 1969 classic; he built the Sundance Village in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah; he founded the Sundance Institute for independent film and theater production and established the Sundance Film Festival. But all the while, Robert Redford has been doing an […]

Lawn Order

Senate Says No to California Plan to Cut Small-Engine Pollution California’s cutting-edge environmental policies were dealt a blow yesterday when the U.S. Senate voted to prevent the state from regulating air pollution from small engines such as those found in gas-powered lawn mowers, leaf blowers, and weed whackers. Although lawn equipment is small, its environmental […]

Drug Busting

Enviros Sue USDA Over Biopharmaceuticals A coalition of green groups and consumer advocates took the U.S. Department of Agriculture to court yesterday in an effort to halt experimental planting of “biopharmaceutical crops,” plants genetically engineered to produce medicine. The coalition, which includes Friends of the Earth and the Center for Food Safety, wants the USDA […]

Chromium and Punishment

New Jersey Wins $17 Million Settlement in Chromium Case A 20-year battle over chromium pollution in northern New Jersey came to an end yesterday when three companies agreed to pony up $17 million to clean hundreds of sites contaminated by the deadly chemical. From the 1890s to the 1950s, Honeywell International, Tierra Solutions, and PPG […]

The Non-Peace Non-Dividend

U.K. Cuts Funds for Amazon Protection to Pay for Operations in Iraq In the latest evidence that war is bad for the environment, biodiversity in the Amazon rainforest stands to suffer because of the conflict in Iraq. Sounds a bit roundabout, but the reason is simple: money. Straining to come up with almost $900 million […]

Activists and small-scale farmers are going “beyond organic” to push local foods

A-tisket, a-tasket, an organic produce basket. Photo: USDA. Organic food has hit the big time. The Whole Foods Market chain, the largest natural-foods retailer in the world, boasts 145 stores throughout North America; its leading competitor, Wild Oats, has 101 stores in 25 states and Canada. Last year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture put in […]

Feel the Burn

Wildfires Likely to Worsen as Planet Warms From Southern California to the French Riviera and beyond, big wildfires have dominated headlines this year — but you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Out-of-control blazes are likely to become an even more vexing problem as climate change intensifies, say a number of scientists. Warmer weather, stronger winds, and […]

Zoo Doo Voodoo

Zoo Doo in Tokyo Will Be Used to Produce Energy A Tokyo-area zoo, weary of spending more than $275,000 a year to dispose of 1,060 tons of animal waste, has a new plan: It will ferment the droppings to create biogas that can be used as fuel. An experimental processing plant at the zoo should […]

The Bush administration is jettisoning real scientists in favor of yes-men

Craig Manson. Photo: USFWS. In the final days of October, Craig Manson, assistant Interior secretary for fish and wildlife and parks, dealt a “Godfather”-style blow to a team of government biologists that was about to release a final report with flow recommendations for the Missouri River — a blow that could have a sizable ripple […]