China
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Flock of 5,000 ducks stops traffic in city of 6 million people
Taizhou lies 190 miles south of Shanghai and has 6 million people, putting its size at “somewhere in between Los Angeles and New York City” on a U.S. scale and “just some town” on a Chinese one. One day recently, though, the streets were filled not with cars, scooters, or pedestrians, but with ducks. Thousands […]
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Twin baby polar bears celebrate their 100-day birthday
These polar bear cubs, born and raised at Tianjin Haichang Polar Ocean Park in China, were so tiny and frail at birth that they weren’t expected to survive. Keepers whisked them into an incubator, and have been caring for them around the clock since then. But at 100 days old, the babies are now healthy and […]
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China’s smog city: What Wuhan looks like with 20 times the U.S. dust limit
Residents of the Chinese province of Wuhan are coping with a smog like you've never seen.
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Critical List: Northeast cap-and-trade program dropped emissions; World Environment Day
It’s World Environment Day — bring out your green-minded celebrities! In the Northeast, power plants’ carbon emissions fell an average 23 percent during the three years of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative’s cap-and-trade program (compared to the previous three years). By 2050, Latin American and Caribbean countries could be racking up $100 billion in damages […]
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Stray dog follows bikes for 1,000 miles (and beats most of the cyclists)
This adorable terrier-looking pup was hanging around a group of cyclists when they took a break, so one of them gave her chicken. Well, you know what happens when you give a dog chicken: She never leaves your side again, even if you’re riding your bike from China to Tibet, covering nearly 40 miles a […]
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Critical List: Record carbon dioxide emissions in 2011; eating dirt is normal
2011 saw a record high in carbon dioxide emissions, with China’s contribution growing the most. Climate change is a boon for one species, at least: The brown argus butterfly, previously rare, has been staking out more turf for itself as the areas north of its range become warmer and more hospitable. With the chair of […]
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Critical List: China says U.S. violated trade rules; ‘artificial leaf’ won’t be commercialized
Now China’s accusing the U.S. of violating free-trade rules in clean energy development. Radiation from Fukushima won’t increase the risk of cancer for any Japanese people — except a bunch of babies from a nearby town. Whatever! Just babies! Making hydrogen with an “artificial leaf” isn’t any cheaper than making hydrogen from fossil fuels.
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Critical List: Massive tariffs for Chinese solar panels; Bike to Work Day
The Commerce Department announced that the U.S. could put tariffs of up to 250 percent on Chinese solar panels imported into the country. It’s Bike to Work Day! First the Arizona Congress wanted crazy legislation to ban all government work on sustainability, now it’s the New Hampshire Congress. So trendy!
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Critical List: Last 60 years were Australia’s hottest in a millennium; anti-whaling captain detained
Australia just experienced the 60 hottest years in the past millennium, according to a new report. And natural causes don’t explain the shift. China’s grid is not set up to deal with renewables. Anti-whaling captain Paul Watson, president of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, was detained in Germany for a decades-old violation of navigational regulations.
