Articles by Grist staff

Coral Reefs Are Dying Faster Than Thought

The world’s coral reefs are dying faster and cover an area smaller than researchers previously thought, according to a study released yesterday by the U.N. Environment Programme. The UNEP report estimates that almost 60 percent of the reefs are under threat from human activities. For example, some Asian fishers use dynamite or cyanide to catch […]

Acreage Protected By Local Land Trusts Increases Threefold

Local land trusts across the U.S. had protected almost 6.4 million acres by the end of 2000, according to the Land Trust Alliance. That’s more than a threefold increase since 1990. And for the first time, the group said, land trusts had conserved land in all 50 states. California had the most land under protection […]

World Scientists Are Aghast at Canada's Species Bill

More than 1,300 of the world’s top biologists sent a scathing letter to Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien on Monday, criticizing the country’s proposed endangered species legislation. They are upset that the bill would protect no species habitat on provincial land, but only on federal land — and then only at the federal cabinet’s discretion. […]

Arsenic Study Supports Tougher Limits in H2O

The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has found that the standard for arsenic levels in drinking water should be at least as tough as the one set by the Clinton administration and then suspended by the Bush administration. Former President Clinton ordered the level to be no higher than 10 parts per billion (ppb) by […]