Articles by Grist staff

Butterfly in the Ointment

A coalition of environmental groups, including Greenpeace, notified the U.S. EPA yesterday of intent to sue, contending that the agency could harm a number of endangered species such as the Karner blue butterfly if it renews licenses for genetically modified crops that are toxic to insects. A Cornell University study last year found that pollen […]

We're Not Gonna Take This Lion Down

The North Pacific fishing industry is proposing a rider to a major budget bill in the U.S. Congress that would lift a federal court injunction banning fishing in Alaskan waters where endangered Steller sea lions feed. In July, a federal judge ruled that the U.S. government had not developed an adequate protection plan for the […]

The Toyota Prius sounds great, but why is it so hard to get one?

My 14-year-old car is on its last legs. I desperately need a replacement, and as an environmentalist, I want the cleanest and (especially with escalating gasoline prices) the most fuel-efficient vehicle available. Have you seen this car? Toyota has a new product that I regard as fitting the bill, a four-door, five-passenger, part electric, part […]

Slurry With the Dinge on Top

A huge spill of coal slurry into streams in eastern Kentucky has caused water shortages and school closings and prompted Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton (D) to declare a state of emergency in 10 counties. About 250 million gallons of coal waste with the consistency of wet cement have spilled out of a retention pond at […]