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A breakdown of the Senate vote on the Climate Stewardship Act

On Thursday, Oct. 30, the Senate voted on Senate Bill 139, better known as the McCain-Lieberman Climate Stewardship Act, which aimed to cap industrial greenhouse gas emissions and establish a system for swapping emissions credits. The legislation represented the first serious congressional attempt to rein in global warming. It lost by a vote of 55 […]

Sprawl in a Day’s Work

Slow Growth Sees Rapid Setback in Virginia County The vote took place yesterday in Loudoun County, Va., but the outcome was a blow to smart-growth advocates around the nation. Four years ago, voters propelled slow-growth advocates into eight out of nine county board positions, turning Loudoun into a national model of environmentally friendly urban planning. […]

Board of Miseducation

Environmental Textbook Author Sues Texas Over Alleged Censorship When it comes to textbook publishing, Texas calls the shots across the nation, by virtue of being big enough to need a whole heck of a lot of books. In the past, the Lone Star State has grabbed headlines for refusing to use science texts that teach […]

Terry Good News

Schwarzenegger Names Conservationist to Head Cal/EPA To the delight of environmentalists, California Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger has chosen Terry Tamminen to head the state’s Environmental Protection Agency. Tamminen helped start the Santa Monica environmental organization BayKeeper, then went to work for another green group, Environment Now. He was one of the drafters of Schwarzenegger’s environmental platform, […]

The climate bill lost out, but the environment may yet prove the winner

“We were nervous as hell,” said Kevin Curtis, vice president of National Environmental Trust, describing the sentiment leading up to last Thursday’s Senate vote that defeated the McCain-Lieberman Climate Stewardship Act, 43 to 55. “But it’s a great start. This may seem to be a defeat now, but in the end, it’s a victory.” Lieberman […]

Step into the Meatrix, and help take down factory farms

Click on the graphic to watch the Flash movie.

It’s What’s on the Outside That Counts

Cadbury to Use Biodegradable Packaging for Chocolates Earth-loving chocoholics, take heart: British chocolate giant Cadbury Schweppes announced yesterday that it will begin using biodegradable candy trays that look like plastic but dissolve in water. At first, the new packaging will only be available in Australia, but the company is talking about using the technology more […]

I’m on the Hunt, I’m After You

Bush Angers Hunters and Anglers by Promoting Resource Extraction The Bush administration is ticking off many traditionally Republican hunters and anglers with its plans to encourage logging and oil and gas drilling in natural areas throughout the Western U.S. Last week, 450 U.S. gun clubs sent a petition to the U.S. Forest Service objecting to […]

What Sumatra With Logging?

Illegal Logging in Indonesia Played Role in Fatal Flooding Heavy illegal logging on the Indonesian island of Sumatra likely contributed to a devastating flash flood on Sunday that killed at least 85 people and possibly dozens more in the town of Bahorok. In a nearby national park, logging scofflaws had cleared nearly 100,000 acres over […]

It’s Chemical (Let’s Do It)

Europe Pushes for Chemical Testing, But U.S. Backs Voluntary Approach While the European Commission voted last week to require new safety testing of chemicals (though not nearly as strict of testing as environmentalists would have liked), the U.S. is making no such strides. Rather, an average of two new chemicals are approved for use in […]