environment

Stories 261 - 280 | << Prev   Next >>

Arctic Melting May Bring New Beast: Polar-Grizzly

Mama grizzly, papa polar means threatened baby

(Newser) - Melting arctic sea ice isn’t just threatening polar bears’ lives—it’s threatening their gene pool. The loss of ice means more contact between polar bears and genetically-similar grizzlies, which means cross-breeding, scientists say. Hunters have shot at least two polar-grizzly crosses since 2006, the Independent reports. Other species...

Nations Near Deal to Save Tropical Forests

Developing nations would be paid to preserve land

(Newser) - Looks like the UN climate talks under way in Cancun could yield at least one tangible deal—an agreement to start saving the world's tropical forests. The concept is simple enough: Developing nations such as Brazil, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea would be paid to stop bulldozing their forests, reports...

Senate Dems Push to Pass 100 Bills in One Go

Reid seeks filibuster-proof measures for public lands, water

(Newser) - With time running out in the lame-duck session, Democrats are working hard to push through some 100 environmental bills, Politico reports. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is calling on party leaders to compile a list of public lands and water measures Republicans won’t kill with a filibuster. On the...

Top Polluters Got Waivers, Cash for Stimulus Projects
Top Polluters Got Waivers, Cash for Stimulus Projects
investigation
Nov 29, 2010 10:11 AM CST

Top Polluters Got Waivers, Cash for Stimulus Projects

BP, DuPont escape environmental rules

(Newser) - The White House has handed wads of stimulus cash to the biggest US polluters and given them "sweeping exemptions from the most basic form of environmental oversight," finds a Center for Public Integrity investigation. Coal burners like Westar Energy and chemical maker DuPont have been among the beneficiaries...

LA County Bans Plastic Bags
 LA County Bans Plastic Bags 
Nov 17, 2010 9:55 AM CST

LA County Bans Plastic Bags

And puts a surcharge on paper ones to boot

(Newser) - The LA County Board of Supervisors passed a ban on plastic grocery bags yesterday, and instituted a 10 cent surcharge for each paper bag used instead, in an effort to push customers toward more environmentally-friendly cloth and reusable plastic bags, the LA Times reports. The measure, which is even stricter...

Reusable Bags May Hurt Planet, Too

Studies find sacks have risky levels of lead

(Newser) - Now that you’ve made the transition from plastic bags to reusable ones, it turns out they, too, may be an environmental threat, reports the New York Times . Studies show some such bags contain may contain unsafe amounts of lead, which could eventually seep into groundwater if they're disposed of....

Toxin Plagues Brockovich Town, Again

Cancer-causing material spreads through wells

(Newser) - A toxic plume of chromium continues to trouble the California desert town that Erin Brockovich put on the map—and the pollution is getting worse, reports the AP . High levels of the material, which can cause cancer, have spread through wells near Hinkley. “Because of the widespread nature of...

Meet the First Car Made by a 3-D Printer

Urbee combines eco-friendliness with innovative look

(Newser) - Saving the planet just got a lot better-looking: The hybrid Urbee is the first-ever car made using 3-D printers. The firms Stratasys and Kor Ecologic created the vehicle, whose whole exterior is printed by additive manufacturing—printing layer on top of layer until, essentially, a car appears—a method that...

NYC Dims Lights for Migrating Birds

Feathered friends confused by the light, scientists believe

(Newser) - The city that never sleeps will be a little less bright through Nov. 1, as buildings hit the lights to protect migrating birds. An estimated 90,000 birds die each year by slamming into buildings in NYC alone; turning lights off can reduce that number by 83%, according to one...

Green Diva: Sheryl Crow Makes Promoters Work

Demands local produce, biodegradable cups, recycled TP

(Newser) - Everyone should do their part to help the environment, and Sheryl Crow is making sure that her tour is as green as possible—even if it kills her promoters. Crow's tour rider demands "biodegradable non-petroleum cups" and "disposable napkins made of 100% recycled fiber," the Smoking Gun...

Brazilian Business Accused of Mutilating Sharks for Fins
 Brazilian Business Accused 
 of Mutilating Sharks for Fins
Shark Week Bummer
Aug 3, 2010 11:11 AM CDT

Brazilian Business Accused of Mutilating Sharks for Fins

Shark fin soup is the hot ticket in Asia

(Newser) - Here’s a story sure to rain on your Shark Week parade: A Brazilian environmental advocacy group is suing a Brazilian seafood exporter, alleging that it has been capturing sharks, cutting off their fins, and throwing the severely wounded creatures back into the water. Removing a shark’s fin is...

Algae Devouring Baltic
 Algae Devouring Baltic 
Jul 23, 2010 4:15 AM CDT

Algae Devouring Baltic

Country-sized growth threatens marine life

(Newser) - Record-breaking temperatures combined with farm run-off have caused an evil-smelling algae bloom the size of Germany to sprout in the Baltic Sea. The World Wildlife Fund warns that the algae explosion—the biggest in the region since 2005—endangers human as well as marine life, the Independent reports. The group...

Gulf Oil Spill Fallout Baffles Scientists

Scientists have little experience with oil from below

(Newser) - The Gulf oil spill will affect all living things in the area—but determining what those consequences will be is stumping the best minds in environmental science. There's never been an oil spill of the magnitude of the Deepwater Horizon accident on the ocean floor, and data is scarce on...

Superweeds Start Herbicide Arms Race on Farms

Roundup's strangehold falters in face of new threats

(Newser) - New breeds of “superweeds” are creeping across the Farm Belt, and shaking up the weedkiller and seed industries in the process. The long-dominant Roundup can't deal with immune invaders like pigweed, horseweed, and Johnsgrass, which has given rival chemical companies a chance to bring back old herbicides that Roundup...

Oil Tragically Drenches Birds
 Oil Tragically Drenches Birds 
Jun 4, 2010 9:10 AM CDT

Oil Tragically Drenches Birds

Images emerge from Grand Terre Island in Louisiana

(Newser) - Even if that new containment lid manages to siphon most of the gushing oil, it won't help the birds on East Grand Terre Island in Louisiana. Truly heartbreaking images of them are emerging: "I am a 48 yr old man and i want to cry," wrote one commenter...

Blame Environmentalists! (For Very Different Reasons)
Blame Environmentalists!
(For Very Different Reasons)
opposing views
May 28, 2010 1:21 PM CDT

Blame Environmentalists! (For Very Different Reasons)

They're apparently either too passive or too aggressive

(Newser) - Environmentalists just can't catch a break in today's op-ed pages of the Washington Post. Charles Krauthammer blames their aggressiveness for contributing to the Gulf oil spill, while Eugene Robinson criticizes their passivity. Robinson's point is that while green-leaning people are good with the easy stuff (recycling and fluorescent light bulbs)...

Louisiana's Marshland More Like Quicksand

 Louisiana Marshland 
  Defies Cleanup 
No pressure-wash here
May 21, 2010 1:30 PM CDT

Louisiana Marshland Defies Cleanup

Dredging to create barrier might actually be the most cost effective

(Newser) - Ever since the Deepwater Horizon spill, Bobby Jindal has been advocating building temporary islands to protect Louisiana's marshes from oncoming oil. With heavy oil hitting the wetlands this week, environmentalists are actually starting to take the Louisiana governor seriously, AOL News reports. It's not that the plan is great—there...

BP Boss: Environment Will Be Fine
BP Boss: Environment
Will Be Fine
May 18, 2010 11:14 AM CDT

BP Boss: Environment Will Be Fine

Gulf spill cleanup 'textbook example' of emergency response

(Newser) - Tony Hayward is an optimist. The BP CEO believes his company's done a great job responding to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, he tells Sky News . After bragging about a new piece of technology that's allowed BP to harvest thousands of gallons of oil from the leak,...

Obama: I Still Like Drilling, But ...

The Gulf spill shows why it must be done 'responsibly'

(Newser) - In the wake of the spill off the Louisiana coast, how goes President Obama's plan to expand offshore drilling? After statements from the president and a top aide, it amounts to: We'll see. The president reiterated today that he likes the idea as part of an overall energy plan. "...

Oil Spill Sends Foul Smell to New Orleans

Strong winds complicating cleanup efforts

(Newser) - The oil spill oozing ashore in Louisiana is making life miserable for residents of New Orleans because of the stench. Complaints are jamming city phone lines, and officials say they can only assume the odor is coming from the Gulf, reports the Times-Picayune . Andrew Sullivan, meanwhile, posts this from a...

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