Latest Articles
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The Emperor Strikes Out
Emperor penguins have been dying as global temperatures have risen, according to a study by French scientists published yesterday in the journal Nature. From 1952 until 1975, the penguin population near a French Antarctic base held steady around 6,000, but in the late 1970s, the number dropped to 3,000, where it has since stabilized. The […]
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Cement Shoos
A federal judge ruled for the second time in a month yesterday that a cement plant can’t be opened in a poor black and Latino neighborhood in Camden, N.J. In April, U.S. District Judge Stephen Orlofsky said the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection had violated the federal Civil Rights Act in giving the plant […]
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And other words from readers
Re: Zed Dear Editor: Have you thought about putting your cartoon, Zed, in schools? I think that would be a wonderful idea. After all, I am a 7th (soon to be 8th) grader and I know what children of my own age like. Some kids would really enjoy it. I have seen my fair […]
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Soft Wood, Hard Hearts
Environmental groups are joining with the U.S. timber industry (!) today in the fight over softwood timber imports from Canada. In a petition expected to be filed with the U.S. Commerce Department today, the groups argue that British Columbia is illegally subsidizing lumber producers by ignoring violations of the Canada Fisheries Act and letting logging […]
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Parking Violation
In a move that has provoked conflict in Congress, the Bush administration has instituted a two-year moratorium on expanding national parks, arguing that its first order of business should be to clear up a $4.9 billion maintenance backlog at existing parks. Environmentalists and national parks advocates are up in arms over the moratorium. Less predictably, […]
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Shape Up or Ship Out
Alaska Gov. Tony Knowles (D) yesterday ordered a special session of the state legislature to hammer out what would become the world’s first comprehensive law to control waste discharges from the cruise ship industry. The state House has easily passed a proposed package of regulations, but the measure has stalled in the state Senate. The […]
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Congo Drummed
Mining in eastern Congo is bringing eastern lowland gorillas closer to extinction and destroying national parks, the World Wildlife Fund said yesterday. Thousands of miners are digging for the mineral coltan, which is used in cell phones, microchips, and nuclear reactors, damaging forests in the Kahuzi-Biega National Park and the Okapi Wildlife Reserve in rebel-held […]
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Governor Moonbeam, Mayor Sunbeam
An alliance of religious groups began a campaign this week to make California’s 50,000 congregations more energy-efficient and to encourage them to use renewable power. Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown (D) joined Rev. Sally Bingham in screwing in a compact fluorescent in an Oakland church and in criticizing President Bush’s energy policies. Bingham said, “This is […]
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Kawaguchi Lets the Good Times Roll
Japan’s new prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, has chosen the environment as a key policy area to focus on. Out of the gate, his environment minister, Yoriko Kawaguchi, has stressed the importance of acting to curb global warming. And Kawaguchi and Takeo Hiranuma, the country’s trade minister, planned to meet yesterday with top officials from the […]
