Climate Technology
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What we can learn from Japan’s nuclear disaster
Nuclear plants: unsafe, uneconomic, and unnecessary.Photo: Thomas AndersonCross-posted from the Rocky Mountain Institute. As heroic workers and soldiers strive to save stricken Japan from a new horror — radioactive fallout — some truths known for 40 years bear repeating. An earthquake-and-tsunami zone crowded with 127 million people is an unwise place for 54 reactors. The […]
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Cities with the most energy efficient buildings: L.A., Houston, Detroit, Dallas
It’s that time of year, when the United States Environmental Protection Agency releases its list of the top 10 American cities [PDF] with the most energy efficient buildings. In this case, that means commercial buildings that have earned an Energy Star rating that signifies they consume 35 percent less energy and release 35 percent less […]
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Renewables or nuclear: maybe we do have to choose
Can we have it all?Debates over nuclear power in the U.S. tend to follow a certain course. The left says, No Nukes, Just Renewables! The right says, Screw Renewables, A Gajillion Nukes! Then the sensible centrist nods sagely and says, We’ll Need Both. Everyone who doesn’t want to be branded a (gasp) partisan ends up […]
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Can peer-to-peer sharing green the planet?
It’s all about the connections.Photo: Côte d’AzurBy the third day of any conference, one’s eyes begin to glaze over. But Lisa Gansky provided an intellectual jolt on the final morning of the Cleantech Forum in San Francisco this week when she appeared on stage to talk about “the Mesh.” That’s what Gansky, a veteran Internet […]
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Wanna green your ride? Ditch the Prius, hop on a train
Chart: EPA Here’s one to piss off the yuppies: Driving your hybrid car from your Energy Star home to the food co-op is not as green as hopping on the subway from your apartment. A new EPA study says that moving from a car-oriented to a transit-oriented community has the biggest impact on your energy […]
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Your iPod is polluting China and L.A. — and Wyoming might be next
Your 4.9-ounce iPod is responsible for at least 200 times its weight in greenhouse-gas emissions.When you bought your last Apple iPod, you may have been aware that it had been manufactured at a factory in China, perhaps the Foxconn plant in Shenzhen in the province of Guangzhou. (Let’s put aside for the moment the working […]
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As in U.S., European food giants use shenanigans to continue marketing junk to children
Big burger, little bugger: Fast food marketing to small children knows no borders.Photo: (C) sean dreilingerI just returned from a two-day meeting in Brussels. I was asked to participate with other experts from around the world (mostly from Europe) to address the problem of cross-border marketing of unhealthy food to children. In the age of […]
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Fred Upton’s EPA-blocking bill will put more of your money in oil industry pockets
Rep. Upton wants to raise your gas bill.Photo: Mike SchmidCross-posted from the Natural Resources Defense Council. Some politicians will say anything to gain from the pain Americans are feeling at the pump. Anyone watching the news knows that pump prices are rising because world-wide demand is recovering after the recession, oil traders are speculating over […]
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Sen. Rand Paul, I can find you a good toilet!
Sen. Paul has been having toilet nightmares ever since he watched The Conversation back in 1974. Last Thursday, I learned that Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) hasn’t had a functioning toilet in his home for 20 years. He seems to believe the federal government is not allowing him to own a functioning toilet. I found this […]
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Nicholas Stern: We need a new industrial revolution
Cross-posted from the Wonk Room. This is the second in a three-part interview with economist Lord Nicholas Stern on climate policy. You can watch part one here. Lord Nicholas Stern, one of the world’s most prominent climate economists, believes that the fight against global warming will lead to the next industrial revolution. In the second […]
