Articles by Grist staff

Mulholland Drive, Bye

Almost 90 years too late, Los Angeles is finally making partial amends for one of the most infamous acts of water theft in history: the diversion of the Owens River to supply water to the then-infant city. The diversion caused the 110-square-mile Owens Lake to dry up, leading to dramatic and sometimes deadly dust storms […]

Day of Antiquity

A federal judge yesterday upheld former President Clinton’s designation of six national monuments in Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington, dashing the hopes of the Denver-based Mountain States Legal Defense Fund. The conservative group challenged the constitutionality of the 1906 Antiquities Act, which gives the president the power to designate monuments, and argued that Clinton had […]

SUV in the Ditch

Ford has ditched plans to use a form of gas-electric hybrid technology to significantly improve the fuel-efficiency of the Explorer, the world’s best-selling SUV. Ford insiders said the decision was made because of a cash shortage and less success than expected with the “integrated starter-generator” technology, which would have saved gas when the vehicle was […]

A Mess In-a Messina

Italy has declared states of environmental emergency in Venice, Milan, and Messina. Venice is beset with water pollution caused by boat traffic in its canals, while road traffic in the other two cities is producing too much air pollution. The country’s parliament may now appoint local commissioners to impose tough new anti-pollution measures, such as […]