Articles by Grist staff

Buy Flow, Sell High

Water biz takes off Only 2 percent of the world’s water is fresh, and with the World Commission on Water for the 21st Century projecting a 50 percent increase in demand in the next 30 years, food and drinking-water shortages, droughts, devastated agriculture, disease, and even armed conflict over water may be on the horizon. […]

Smoking Frac

Hydraulic fracturing raises concerns over water in Western U.S. Despite persistent concerns about its effects on groundwater, the practice of hydraulic fracturing (or “fracing”) appears likely to receive an exemption from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act in legislation under consideration by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Fracing involves pumping highly pressurized fluids […]

Pollutocrats need not apply

Must enjoy long walks on the beach and vegetarian cooking. I kid. But seriously, the good folks over at Clean Air-Cool Planet are looking to encourage high-level decision makers in the public and private sectors to attend their upcoming conference: Global Warming Solutions 2005: Navigating the Risks and Opportunities. The conference aims to bring together the private sector, including businesses and investors, with regulators to focus on climate economics and public policy. The two-day event will be held June 8 and 9 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City. Conference sessions will include surveys of the latest climate science, advice on navigating new climate-related regulations, and workshops on emerging climate and financial issues. Early-bird registration ends April 30, so hop to it!

Poultry in Motion

Poultry-to-oil plant in Missouri struggling to survive Like many renewable-energy ventures, a high-profile processing plant in Carthage, Mo., built to turn turkey waste into usable crude oil has been struggling to survive. Touted as a solution to foreign-oil addiction (but not to global warming), the plant cooks down 270 tons of bird leftovers into 300 […]