Articles by Grist staff

Hot to Rot?

The U.S. EPA announced this week a two-year phase out of an arsenic-based preservative used to pressure-treat lumber against rot and insect damage. The treated wood is popular for use in fences, decks, and playground equipment, and its manufacturers and vendors — including Home Depot and other building-supply stores — currently face a class-action suit […]

As the World Turns Differently

You think your days are already long? Just you wait: Scientists in Belgium have determined that days may become even longer as global warming occurs. In a study published in this month’s Geophysical Research Letters, the scientists, who hail from Belgium’s Royal Observatory and the Catholic University of Louvain, said that increasing levels of carbon […]

Bang Dugong

The animal that inspired seafarers to tell tales of mermaids is disappearing from the planet, according to a report released this week. The dugong, a large sea mammal that is a cousin to the famous manatee of Florida and the Caribbean, was thought by ancient sailors to be half-woman, half-fish, perhaps because of its habit […]

Grants’ Tomb?

The U.S. EPA has awarded more than $2 billion in grants to nonprofit organizations since 1993 through a process that the agency’s internal watchdog says is seriously flawed. Many grants were awarded without competitive bids, and some groups may have received preferential treatment. Some of the awards went to organizations that subsequently sued the EPA […]