Articles by Grist staff

The Pen Is Mightier Than the Swordfish

In a move applauded by enviros, a U.S. federal judge yesterday banned swordfish boats from a 1 million square-mile area of the Pacific Ocean while the government determines whether the vessels are pushing sea turtles to extinction. The ruling stemmed from a lawsuit filed in February by the Center for Marine Conservation and the Turtle […]

Desert — Rats!

Nearly 58,000 square miles of land, an area larger than Greece, are turned to desert each year, affecting more than 1 billion people and forcing many of them to flee their homes in search of food and work. Officials from more than 150 nations will try to address the problem this week at the U.N. […]

VOCs Unpopuli

Industrial solvents and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have infiltrated groundwater that quenches the thirst of some 35 to 50 million Americans, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, which will soon release its first national report card on the presence of these chemicals. The USGS studied groundwater from wells, evaluating data collected from 1985 to […]

Rad Plan, Governor Dude!

South Carolina Gov. Jim Hodges (D) is running up against residents and leaders of Barnwell County as he tries to ditch the state’s image as the nation’s nuclear dumping ground. Chem-Nuclear Systems operates a repository in the county that takes low-level radioactive waste from 38 states, and locals see the company as a good neighbor […]