Articles by Grist staff

Mountain gorillas threatened by violence in Congo

Due to escalating violence, Congolese rangers have been run out of the country’s Virunga National Park, threatening the safety of some 200 mountain gorillas that live there. “There are documented cases of the gorillas getting caught in the crossfire and getting killed,” says a park spokesperson. “It’s the chaos of war and they are right […]

Toy manufacturers push back against lead-safety rule

Toys marketed to the 12-under-set must either meet new lead standards or be off shelves by Feb. 10 — but many toy manufacturers and retailers don’t wanna comply. Citing the economic downturn, they’re pressuring the government to relax the requirement.

Job shifts at Interior Dept. mean Bush appointees will stick around

Two former Interior Department appointees unpopular with environmentalists have been “burrowed” into senior civil service posts, giving them job security when Barack Obama takes the White House. “It is an attempt by the outgoing administration to limit as much as possible [the incoming administration’s] ability to put its policy imprint on the Department of Interior,” […]

Colombian vice prez chides cocaine users for rainforest destruction

Cocaine users get no love from Colombian Vice President Francisco Santos Calderon, who speechified to police officers in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on Tuesday: “Colombia has lost more than [5 million acres] of rainforest in the last 15 years to plant coca. If you snort a gram of cocaine you are destroying [43 square feet] of […]