Articles by Grist staff

Mass Appeal

Massachusetts may get its first national forest if a plan being drawn up by the administration of Gov. Mitt Romney (R) comes to fruition. The plan’s still in the preliminary stages — so preliminary, in fact, that no maps have yet been sketched — but a considerable chunk of northwestern Massachusetts could be affected, including […]

Out to Luntz

Worried that their party is vulnerable on environmental issues, some Republicans in recent months have been trying to foster a gentler, greener image. An influential memorandum penned last fall by GOP strategist Frank Luntz advises Republicans to sprinkle terms like “balance” and “common sense” into their environmental speeches, and to stick to the word “conservationist,” […]

N.C. Pee Dee Blues

Water wars have long simmered in the arid Western U.S., but now they’re bubbling up in Eastern states as well. Dry spells in 1999 and 2002 brought many of the East’s rivers to worrisome lows; increased water demand spurred by new development is only adding to the problem. A contentious quarrel between Maryland and Virginia […]

The Motherboard of Invention

As Grist reported Monday, discarded electronic equipment poses a serious environmental and health hazard in the developing world, where obsolete computers and other products are stripped and recycled. Now, we have some good news to add; 16 electronics recyclers in the U.S. and Canada have committed to keeping monitors, cables, and motherboards out of the […]