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Steeling Home

Anglers in north-central Washington state could be allowed to fish for endangered steelhead for the first time in four years if the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has its way. More than 32,000 steelhead are expected to swim up the Columbia River this year, the largest run since 1986. State wildlife officials would like […]

Land Sakes!

The Bush administration yesterday endorsed an $82 billion overhaul of farming legislation that would phase out subsidies and double conservation spending. The plan, proposed by Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), would shift federal benefits away from big grain and cotton growers and toward fruit, vegetable, and livestock farms, as well as land-preservation efforts. Earlier this month, […]

L.A. Confidential

Environmental injustice appears to be alive and well in Los Angeles County, according to a study released today by the University of California at Los Angeles, which found that neighborhoods near major pollution sources are disproportionately low-income and Latino. Latinos make up 44 percent of the county population but 60 percent of residents living near […]

Bus-ted

The city of New Delhi has less than four months to convert all diesel buses to natural gas, following an order today by India’s Supreme Court. New Delhi has missed several previous court deadlines, and at least 9,000 of the city’s 12,000 public buses still rely on diesel fuel. The Supreme Court orders have sparked […]

Whoop-de-do

Folks who happened to be scanning the skies in central Wisconsin yesterday were witness to a strange sight, as people in bird costumes flying ultra-light aircraft led a flock of nine whooping cranes on the first leg of a 1,250-mile migration. The flight was part of an experiment to teach the extremely rare birds to […]

The Bt Goes On

The U.S. EPA yesterday approved for another seven years the use of a controversial bio-engineered corn that produces its own pesticide. Researchers concluded that Bt corn poses no environmental or human health risks, but environmentalists and consumer-advocacy groups have expressed fears that the long-term health effects are unknown and that the crop will lead to […]

Parknost

Dormant plans for an international park spanning the Bering Strait have been revived, thanks to a gung-ho new governor in the Russian Far East. Under the last governor of Chukotka, western tourists and researchers got the cold shoulder, but Gov. Roman Abramovich is welcoming joint programs with Alaska, including research, conservation, tourism, and economic ventures. […]

Ninth Circuit of Hell

Environmentalists asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday to lift an injunction against a rule that seeks to ban logging and road-building on one-third of national forest lands. The rule, which was enacted by former President Clinton and would apply to 58.5 million acres of federal forests, was appealed by the state of […]

Put a Radioactive Fork in It

A proposal by the U.S. Department of Energy to recycle radioactive steel did not go over well with environmentalists and other concerned citizens in Minneapolis yesterday. The DOE is considering a plan to recycle slightly contaminated scrap metal from its research and weapons facilities. The recycled steel would then be used in consumer goods from […]

The Big Chill

Snowmobiles are getting a chilly reception in Yellowstone National Park, with more than 80 percent of public comments supporting the Clinton administration’s plan for phasing out the noisy, polluting vehicles. Last year, the National Park Service decided to eliminate snowmobiles in the park, beginning with a 50 percent reduction by the winter of 2002-03 and […]