Articles by Grist staff

Jesse Putnam, Eco Encore

Jesse Putnam is the founder and director of Eco Encore, a Seattle-based nonprofit that generates financial support for environmental organizations through the sale of used books, CDs, DVDs, and videos. Monday, 24 Feb 2003 SEATTLE, Wash. After making the very eco-efficient commute to work (right out of my kitchen, left at the lamp, straight ahead […]

Big Mac Attack

It’s likely that the computer you’re using right now will one day end up in China contributing to a mounting toxic nightmare. Towns along China’s southeastern coast have become dumping grounds for obsolete computers and other electronic equipment sent from the U.S., Europe, and Japan for “recycling.” Entire communities, children included, make meager livings by […]

Oinks Per Gallon

The waste from hundreds of thousands of hogs will soon be powering vehicle diesel engines if Smithfield Farms follows through on a plan announced Friday. Smithfield, the world’s largest hog producer, intends to build a $20 million waste-to-energy facility in southwestern Utah that will convert swine manure into biodiesel fuel, which burns more cleanly than […]

Greenocide?

A new phrase is raising hackles and fueling environmental debate in the Western U.S.: “rural cleansing.” Thought to have been coined by a Washington-state property-rights activist, rural cleansing is taking root as a catchphrase for those who argue that eco-activists are trying to drive rural citizens away from traditional resource-dependent livelihoods and into cities. The […]