Latest Articles
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Cough Like an Egyptian
Dense, acrid smog choked Cairo for the second day in a row yesterday, causing respiratory problems, sore throats, acute headaches, and flu-like symptoms for many of the city’s 16 million residents. Severe smog problems have plagued the city for several weeks in October and November. The problems are blamed on vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions, and […]
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The Answer Is Blowin' in the Wind
The U.S. wind power industry got a boost last week from news that congressional negotiators agreed to extend a tax credit for electricity produced from wind and some other renewable sources. The credit, which had expired on June 30, is estimated to reduce the cost of wind power by 1.3 to 2.0 cents per kilowatt […]
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The Dude's a Hazard
Officials at the Republican governors association have been talking a lot lately about Montana Gov. Marc Racicot (pronounced Roscoe, as in Rosco P. Coltrane of Dukes of Hazzard fame), touting him as a hot candidate for media interviews. Racicot is not exactly a household name and generally doesn’t stir much excitement in the bellies of […]
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Old McDonald Had an Image Makeover
Sales of organic food in Britain rose 40 percent in the last year, driven by consumer concern about genetically modified food and mad cow disease, according to a report by market research firm Mintel. More than 70 percent of Britons have purchased organic products, reflecting the fact that the organic industry has shed its “beard […]
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God Love 'Em
Ministers, rabbis, and other religious leaders in Oregon are kicking off a campaign to combat global warming, the first of 17 statewide efforts across the nation that aim to wed religion and environmental protection. The campaign urges churches to install more energy-efficient lighting and heating systems and encourages congregations to lobby politicians to support efforts […]
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Still One Wild and Crazy President
As one of his last major public land initiatives, Pres. Clinton is preparing to designate up to a dozen areas in the West as national monuments, with the aim of protecting the wild lands from commercial development and recreational overuse. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt said the administration has decided to act because Congress has failed […]
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Green Houses Are a Gas
Developers have built 3,500 “green” homes in Colorado during the past two years, more than $1 billion worth, making Colorado the top green building state. Colorado kicked off the nation’s only statewide green building program in March 1997 and has assembled a task force that is raising money for public education and hopes to launch […]
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J. Crud
The U.S. catalog industry last year produced 17 billion catalogs, or 64 for each American, and used 3.35 million tons of paper, more than 12 percent of all the printing and writing paper produced in the country, according to a study by the Alliance for Environmental Innovation, an initiative of the Environmental Defense Fund and […]
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Waiting for WTO
The high priests of free trade are getting nervous. Corporate and government officials from the 134 nations that belong to the World Trade Organization (WTO) have long planned to meet in Seattle at the end of this month to negotiate the next round of global trade rules. Now they discover that thousands of angry citizens […]
