Articles by Grist staff

Vast majority of feds’ flex-fuel cars still run on straight gasoline

The federal government has poured billions of dollars into building up a fleet of 112,000 flex-fuel vehicles capable of running on an ethanol blend — but the attempt to move away from fossil fuels has so far largely failed, as 92 percent of the vehicles still run on straight gasoline.

Who’s to blame for the crisis in the auto industry?

Detroit is in a free fall. Some say it’s their own doing by deciding to push big gas guzzlers rather fuel efficient cars. With that choice, the Big Three maximized their short-term profits but conceded the auto market of the future to foreign companies. There is plenty of blame to pass around. Executives made exceedingly […]

Western Shoshone tribe files suit against gold mine on sacred mountain

Members of the Western Shoshone Indian tribe have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Bureau of Land Management seeking to stop a just-approved open-pit gold mine from digging up what they say is a sacred mountain in Nevada to get at some 5 million ounces of gold. If the project continues ahead as planned, the […]

Cemetery in Spanish town doubles as solar power plant

A small Spanish town crammed for space has started using its cemetery as the primary site for a solar power plant, affixing solar panels atop many of the mausoleums. “The best tribute we can pay to our ancestors, whatever your religion may be, is to generate clean energy for new generations,” said a solar rep […]