Latest Articles

Alien Nation

Some ecologists are saying that not all alien species are bad and that some fit into ecosystems just fine. They believe that efforts to rid ecosystems of all exotics are impractical. Michael Rosenzweig, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona, says, “You can’t roll back the clock and remove all exotics or […]

Betty Patton, environmental consultant

Betty Patton is an environmental consultant with Environmental Practices, LLC, in Portland, Ore., specializing in solid waste, recycling, and waste prevention. She is also the special projects chair on the board of the Association of Oregon Recyclers. Tuesday, 4 Sep 2001 PORTLAND, Ore. A three-day weekend makes for a four-day workweek. It sounds nice, but […]

Salmon Take a Tern for the Worse

Northwest salmon in hatcheries and estuaries are testing positive for PCBs and DDT, and researchers at the National Marine Fisheries Service aren’t sure of the source of the pollutants. The chemicals are at levels high enough to harm fish immune systems, but the scientists don’t yet know if they could hurt humans who eat the […]

Oily to Rise

It seems likely that the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will approve a plan to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil and gas drilling. Reuters predicts the vote will be 12-11 in favor of drilling, with Democrat Sens. Mary Landrieu (La.) and Daniel Akaka (Hawaii) crossing party lines in […]

Saving Private Lion

Private reserves, rather than public ones, may be the key to survival for many endangered species, according to researchers who presented at the Society for Conservation Biology in Hawaii earlier this month. Jeffrey Langholz of the Monterey Institute of International Studies said private reserves already account for about an eighth of the world’s land dedicated […]

Jakarta Four: The Hearse

In a big victory for the Indonesian environmental group Walhi, an Indonesian court this week found that mining giant Freeport Indonesia had given false information to the country’s parliament about a fatal mining accident last year and ordered the company to improve its toxic waste management. Four workers died in a landslide at the mine […]

Rest Assured

We Gristers will be taking a break on Labor Day, but have no fear — we’ll be back on Tuesday. Have a swell weekend.

Victor Victorious

Mexico’s environmental minister, Victor Lichtinger, is trying to slow down sprawl by actually enforcing environmental laws on the books. For example, he has closed or suspended 19 hotel and condo developments, including a 1,400-room complex that would have been built alongside a federally protected sea turtle sanctuary in Cancun. Lichtinger said his moves were meant […]

Sitting By a Docket of the Bay

In response to a lawsuit brought by enviros, the U.S. EPA yesterday rejected the San Francisco Bay area’s plan to clean up its smog-laden air. Local air-quality officials must now come up with a plan that satisfies the feds by next January, or risk losing more than $1 billion in federal highway dollars. Under the […]

Do You Seed What I Seed

Sixty-three percent of Canadians would be less likely to buy a genetically engineered food item than a conventional one, according to a poll released today. The biotech industry is listening. Faced with increasingly skeptical consumers and tighter regulations worldwide, the industry is scaling back its plans, bypassing most genetically engineered crops in favor of big […]