Latest Articles
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No More Mousse on the Loose
In its never-ending battle against smog, the California Air Resource Board voted yesterday to require manufacturers of everything from hair mousse to air freshener to reduce the fumes emitted by their products. In its sixth sweeping set of pollution standards applied to household products over the past decade, the board cracked down on furniture cleaners, […]
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Cattle Hacks
A federal judge yesterday tossed out a lawsuit from ranchers who were aiming to stop the feds from reintroducing wolves in the Southwest. The New Mexico Cattle Growers Association and other ranchers had filed suit claiming that the wolves would kill more cattle than wildlife officials had predicted. The reintroduction effort in the Southwest is […]
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Battle of Bull's Run
After seven years of legal badgering from environmental groups, the feds have finally declared bull trout populations in Washington and Montana “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. Even more than salmon, the bull trout needs very clean, very cold water to thrive, and the fish populations have been badgered by decades of logging, which robs […]
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Chattanooga: Chew-chew on this
The Tennessee Valley Authority is moving ahead with one of the first wind power projects in the Southeast as part of a larger plan to market “green” power to customers willing to pay a little extra on their monthly electricity bills. TVA has contracted with a California company, EnXco, to construct three 290-foot-high turbines on […]
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Are efforts to protect the dolphin putting other fish in a sea of trouble?
There were predictable cries of protest from some conservationists who focus on charismatic megafauna when revised standards for use of the “dolphin safe” tuna label were announced by the Commerce Department in April. Though the new rules stipulate that no dolphins should be killed or seriously injured, they do let canners label their product “dolphin […]
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An excerpt from Seven Wonders: Everyday Things for a Healthier Planet by John C. Ryan
When the Dalai Lama of Tibet met with economist John Kenneth Galbraith, he asked the Harvard professor a simple but penetrating question: "What would the world be like if everyone drove a motor car?" The Tibetan leader probably did not intend it, but his question constitutes a koan, a paradoxical riddle of Zen Buddhist tradition. A koan has no logical answer -- "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" -- but the search for a solution may lead to a flash of enlightenment.
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Just Say "Nein" to Pollution
Air and water pollution are the top environmental concerns for Europeans, according to a European Commission survey, the largest of its kind to date. Ground pollution and the destruction of the ozone layer also ranked high up, while genetically modified foods were further down the list. Seven out of 10 people viewed the environment as […]
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You Can't Teach an Old Power Plant New Tricks
Emissions from New England’s 14 oldest power plants have increased for the third consecutive year, according to a report by environmental groups. The old plants aren’t held to the same standards as new ones because of a loophole in the Clean Air Act. In other dirty power plant news, the six New England states and […]
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Bosom Buddies
A coalition of members of Congress, health professionals, and women’s advocates yesterday sent a letter to Pres. Clinton demanding more money for research into potential environmental causes of breast cancer. The group wants further research into factors that might increase risk for the disease, including exposure to some fuels, plastics, detergents, pesticides, and pharmaceutical drugs. […]
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Set Aside This Insecticide
One of the most popular insecticides used around the home poses a health risk, the EPA is expected to announce today. A panel of pesticide experts at the agency is calling for tighter controls on the chemical, Dursban. Dow AgroSciences makes hundreds of millions of dollars each year from sales of Dursban, which is used […]
