Latest Articles

Vati-can Do

Pope John Paul II and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leaders of Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity, signed a declaration yesterday stating that protecting the environment was the “moral and spiritual” duty of all believers. The document does not include any binding action plan, but is the first signed by the two religious leaders concerning […]

A Mixed Bag

In a study of the cumulative health risks of pesticides, the U.S. has found that only two of the 30 pesticides it studied pose an unacceptable threat to human health when combined. The study was conducted in response to a lawsuit by the Natural Resources Defense Council, and its findings were announced yesterday evening, just […]

Dozing Off

More than 8,500 premature deaths are caused every year by pollution from off-road diesel-fueled equipment not regulated by the federal government, according to a new study by state air pollution control officials. Earthmovers, bulldozers, agricultural equipment, and other such vehicles emit extraordinarily high levels of pollution that have been linked to heart illnesses, asthma attacks, […]

Christopher Swain, Columbia River swimmer

Christopher Swain, the founder of Advocacy Swimming International, is swimming the Columbia River from source to mouth. When he is not swimming, he lives in Portland, Ore., with his wife and daughter. Monday, 10 Jun 2002 RADIUM HOT SPRINGS, British Columbia Last Tuesday, I zipped up my dry suit, kissed my wife and daughter, and […]

Short Changed

Bolstering environmentalists’ accusations of favoritism in Florida, the Bush administration rejected on Friday a request by California Gov. Gray Davis (D) that it buy back offshore drilling rights. On May 29, President Bush announced a $235 million dollar buy-back of Florida drilling rights, a move that was widely viewed as a favor (and campaign contribution) […]

Shouldering the burden of our environmental impact

Consider this: Friends of mine tell me that their daughter will only eat meat if she knows the name of the animal that died to produce it. She’ll eat the pork roast from pigs grown on our farm — but not the anonymous bacon offered up in the college dining hall. Adherence to this one […]

All We Have Is Dust in the Wind

Dropping the Bali

Negotiations at a two-week meeting in Bali, Indonesia, to establish the agenda for the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development ended in stalemate on Friday. Delegates could not agree on several key issues and were ultimately forced to admit defeat; former Indonesian Environment Minister Emil Salim, who chaired the meeting, blamed the failure on a […]

Climate change is, like, inevitable, dude

Note: You’ll need Flash Player to watch the movie. If you don’t have it, download it now.

A Shot in the Dark

For the obsessive ornithologists among our readers, some tragicomic news: Once-buoyant hopes for the survival of the ivory-billed woodpecker have faded after sounds thought to be the bird’s distinctive double-rap on a dead tree proved to be distant gunshots. Earlier this year, the ivory-billed woodpecker, which has not been confirmed to exist since shortly after […]