air pollution
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Chicago considers getting serious about coal pollution
The Fisk coal-fired power plant, ChicagoCourtesy swanksalot via FlickrChicago Alderman Joe Moore is taking aim at urban air pollution, introducing a Clean Power Ordinance today that would force overhauls of the city’s two coal-fired power plants, both located in Hispanic neighborhoods. The plan would introduce new limits for particulates (soot) and carbon dioxide, restricting how […]
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Conservativeclimate.org lauds Reagan as climate hero
Courtesy Reagan Library via Wikimedia Commons“While liberals will never admit it, Ronald Reagan was one of our nation’s greatest climate champions,” argues the new site Conservativeclimate.org, a joint project of ConservAmerica and Republicans for Environmental Protection (REP). It’s clear that no freedom-hating liberal graphic designers were involved in the creation of the site. David Jenkins, […]
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If it does matter where CO2 is released, cities are in trouble
There’s some fascinating new research about “CO2 domes,” invisible clouds of carbon pollution that hover above urban areas. Bradford Plumer at The New Republic does a great job setting the context: Does it matter where carbon dioxide is emitted? From a climate perspective, at least, the standard answer has always been, “Not really.” Carbon dioxide […]
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Dear Vinod Khosla & Tom Friedman: No amount of sequestration makes coal ‘clean’ [UPDATED]
EVEN MORE UP-TO-DATE UPDATE (3/22): The New York Times profiles Calera, the Vinod Khosla-backed company that hopes to embed carbon dioxide in cement. Dave tells the full story below. UPDATE: Vinod Khosla sent in a response — see the bottom of the post. —— Tom Friedman had a column over the weekend lauding a couple […]
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AXE bodyspray pays for stinking up the atmosphere
The AXE effect? Air pollution! Photo: Unlisted Sightings via Flickr Calling all smelly guys who AXE too much: We’re scenting you an order to cease and desist your deodorizing. California says your BO paranoia is stinking up the aerosols. Wouldn’t want to get a whiff of the $1.3 million in fines just to smell like […]
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Could transparency make up for a lack of a carbon cap?
If we can’t yet require companies to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping pollutants, can we shame them into doing it? The Obama administration and Democratic leaders in Congress have not so far succeeded in forcing big polluters to cut greenhouse-gas emissions. But the U.S. EPA is about to force them to […]
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U.S. slips in Environmental Performance Index
Researchers at Columbia and Yale released a new Environmental Performance Index ranking 163 countries on a broad variety of indicators—basically, how well they protect their people’s air, water, natural resources, and ecosystems. Surprise, surprise, Scandinavian and Northern European countries do well. So does Costa Rica, the country that shut down its military in 1949 and […]
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When it comes to energy, Mark Jacobson thinks big
Mark Z. Jacobson, director of the Atmosphere/Energy Program at Stanford University, is an unusual figure in the field of climate change. He literally wrote the book on computer modeling for atmospheric changes, and he is a respected expert in the impacts of energy production and use. But what truly sets Jacobson apart is his vision. […]
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Happier living that happens to be more sustainable
U.K. Independent columnist Johann Hari has a post worth reading over the long weekend. If you’re too busy working to read it, well, that’s the point. Hari laments the American-style culture of overwork that he sees creeping into Britain, comparing it to an arms race. Everyone works harder and longer, or makes sure to look […]
