Latest Articles
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Storm Troopers
Climate change seems already to be causing weather-related disasters, and the problem is likely to get worse, according to a recent report conducted by scientists at Vrije University in Amsterdam and released by the World Wildlife Fund. Like others before it, the report predicts more droughts and violent storms. It also anticipates that much of […]
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Utah residents fight back against toxic contamination
With its red rock canyons, snow covered peaks, alkali plains, slickrock, and Great Salt Lake, the varied terrain of Utah forms strikingly beautiful landscapes. This arresting scenery drew Chip Ward and family to the state in the 1970s, and persuaded them to settle in the seemingly placid town of Grantsville on the edge of Utah's West Desert.
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Debated Breath
At the first presidential debate of the season, held last night in Boston, Al Gore stressed his commitment to protect Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and other “environmental treasures” from oil drilling. He said he would help ease the energy crunch by supporting conservation and development of clean, efficient technologies through tax breaks and […]
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These Are the Toxics in Your Neighborhood
Almost 46 percent of the nation’s public housing units for the poor are located within one mile of factories that emit toxic pollution, according to a study conducted by the Dallas Morning News and the University of Texas-Dallas. “It is an American tragedy. But we sweep it under the rug and forget about it,” said […]
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Bye, Cycles
The bicycle, long emblematic of transportation in China, is gradually fading in popularity as people opt to take taxis and buses around town and dream of cars of their own. Even as its human population expands beyond 1.3 billion, China is experiencing a decline in its bicycle population, from a high of 545.3 million in […]
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iSpy
Sony Corp., upset over efforts by enviros to hold electronics manufacturers responsible for the final disposal of their products, may soon be hiring an Internet investigation agency to keep track of activists’ plans and actions. In a leaked Sony paper, the company lists five specific groups that it believes pose a public relations threat: Greenpeace, […]
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The Cars Are Stacked Against Us
While a few small cars being sold in U.S. showrooms get 40 or more miles to the gallon, the vast majority of 2001 model year vehicles get about 20 mpg, according to annual fuel economy statistics released yesterday by the U.S. EPA. The popularity of SUVs, pickup trucks, and minivans drove down the mileage figures. […]
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Go With the Flow
President Clinton said yesterday that he will veto a big energy and water appropriations package passed by Congress because it contains a rider that would block the administration from implementing a plan to restore a more natural water flow to the upper Missouri River to benefit endangered wildlife. Clinton said the rider would “jeopardize the […]
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Too Oily to Tell
A coalition of environmental groups released a report yesterday claiming that Texas’s voluntary program for cutting air pollution from old industrial plants — a centerpiece of Gov. George W. Bush’s environmental record — has been a failure. In the first year of the Bush-backed program, emissions from the plants were cut by only about 0.3 […]
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Sulfuring in Silence
A bill to cut the power plant emissions that cause acid rain would save 10,000 lives a year while increasing the average household electricity bill by only $1 per month, according to a report by the U.S. EPA. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-N.Y.) and Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.), would reduce nitrogen […]