Articles by Grist staff

Waxman and Markey introduce bill to ban new dirty coal plants

House Representatives Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) have introduced the “Moratorium on Uncontrolled Power Plants Act of 2008,” which would do pretty much what it sounds like: prevent new coal plants in the U.S. unless they’re built with advanced pollution controls. Says Waxman, “The altemative is senseless — locking in decades of additional […]

Feds decide not to list wolverine as threatened or endangered

Photo: iStockphoto The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has decided not to list wolverines in the Lower 48 states as threatened or endangered. The agency concluded that wolverines didn’t need Endangered Species Act protections in the Lower 48 since viable populations exist in Canada and Alaska. The FWS said the Lower 48 wolverine population “is […]

China will maintain one-child policy

Recent speculation that China was rethinking its one-child-per-family policy has been refuted by the country’s top population official, who says the family planning policy will not be altered for at least another decade.

Solar-panel manufacturers dumping toxic waste in China

Solar panels may look bright and shiny, but they have a dark underbelly: production of polysilicon for panels gives off a highly toxic byproduct called silicon tetrachloride. In China, where factories are rushing to alleviate a polysilicon shortage that’s cramping the global solar-panel industry, the bubbly white liquid is often just dumped in nearby villages. […]