Latest Articles

Take Me to the River, Don’t Drop Me in the Water

The City of Brotherly Love is also the City of Terrible Water, according to a U.S. EPA analysis of the nation’s watersheds. Four of Philadelphia’s watersheds earned a six, the worst score doled out by the EPA, a distinction shared with just 28 other watersheds nationwide out of more than 2,200. The ratings reflect the […]

Airing Their Grievances

Nine attorneys general from Northeastern states are holding a press conference today in Washington, D.C., to warn the Bush administration not to weaken the Clean Air Act. Last week, the administration suggested that it would not adhere to strict Clinton-era standards for New Source Review rules, which require energy companies to install pollution controls when […]

The Season of Giving

  Re: What Now? Dear Editor: The U.S. response to the Red Cross was wonderful, and that’s great. But many, many other do-good organizations are on such a starvation diet they’re in imminent danger of expiring. Please tell everyone asking for more donations to the Red Cross to think twice about the homeless and needy […]

Go Fish!

Maine’s wild Atlantic salmon remain genetically distinct despite more than a century of fish-stocking, aquaculture escapes, and other threats to the species, according to an independent report prepared by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. The report undermines the claim by Maine Gov. Angus King (I) and others that Maine salmon were genetically diluted and […]

P-ouch!

Australia Environment Minister David Kemp has angered environmentalists by agreeing to allow 6.9 million kangaroos and wallabies to be killed for commercial purposes this year. The figure represents a 1.5 million increase over past culls of Australia’s national symbol. State governments had requested an even larger increase, saying the kangaroo population was on the rise. […]

Montreal Expose

For the first time, a government-sponsored snapshot of the environmental health of North America is available, thanks to a study released today by the Montreal-based Commission for Environmental Cooperation. The study, which was mandated by an environmental accord affiliated with the North American Free Trade Agreement and was submitted to the top environmental authorities of […]

Better Save Than Sorry

Energy conservation may finally be getting its moment in the sun: The Northwest Power Planning Council, a multi-state agency with a mandate to balance power production and environmental concerns in the Pacific Northwest, is asking Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Washington to invest in conservation measures rather than the construction of new power plants. According to […]

Delta Blues

Once upon a time, the Colorado River Delta — a plain the size of Rhode Island — supported a dazzling number of plant and animal species, and its annual flood cycles brought fresh nutrients to the delta. Today the Colorado is one of the most intensively managed rivers in the world, supplying water or electricity […]

Taking Liberties?

The U.S. Supreme Court will begin today to consider a lawsuit over private property development in Lake Tahoe that has had lot owners and land-use planners squared off for more than two decades. At issue is a 1981 moratorium on the development of certain lots where runoff from rain and snowmelt would pollute the lake. […]

Ashley Parkinson, Northwest Shade Coffee Campaign

Ashley Parkinson is coordinator of Seattle Audubon Society’s Northwest Shade Coffee Campaign, which works to educate retailers and consumers about the benefits of shade-grown coffee. Monday, 7 Jan 2002 SEATTLE, Wash. Trust me, if you stand on any street corner in downtown Seattle and turn in a circle, you’ll see no less than four coffee […]