Articles by Grist staff

Strange Bedfellows

An unlikely duo, Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho), has joined forces to craft a bill that would create a loan program encouraging private landowners to plant trees to help reduce global warming. Funding for the program would come from fines collected under the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, which amounted […]

Pop Kills the Weasel?

Greenpeace yesterday called for a global halt to the production of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) — synthetic chemicals that damage the environment, pollute the food chain, and can even be found in breast milk. In a new report, the group said POPs were spreading over thousands of miles and killing striped dolphins, polar bears, and […]

Up on the Farm

Pres. Clinton today will sign an executive order that aims to triple by 2010 the amount of biomass energy generated in the U.S. from farm products, crop wastes, and trees. Administration officials note that the effort will help cut the use of fossil fuels and result in $15 billion to $20 billion in additional farm […]

Slowing Down Quick Sand

Nigerian Pres. Olusegun Obasanjo has started to tackle the nation’s severe environmental problems. Last week, he launched a campaign to plant 4,000 hectares of trees by the end of next year, an effort to fight deforestation and the advancing Sahara Desert. Ninety-six percent of the nation’s pristine forests have been cut down in the last […]