AltWeeklies Wire
El Mensaje de Mérida: Restoring Wilderness is Vital to Saving the Planetnew

Slash-and-burn agriculture and deforestation had unintended consequences on the early Maya. But these weren’t the only people doomed by unsustainable environmental practices or rapid shifts in the climate.
San Antonio Current |
Greg Harman |
12-09-2009 |
Environment
Copenhagen: Nice Show, But We're Doomed No Matter What
It is almost certainly too late to save ourselves. Like recycling and not littering, reducing CO2 output amounts to mere politeness. It's a nice gesture. But it won't make any difference.
Maui Time |
Ted Rall |
12-07-2009 |
Environment
Only a 'Human Movement' Can Save Civilization from the Climate Crisisnew
Copenhagen will fail because the great publics of the world have not been involved in the great human questions underlying the technical issues the scientists discuss. It is not only that the conference will fail to protect our young, but that the rest of us will barely notice.
Sacramento News & Review |
Fred Branfman |
12-04-2009 |
Environment
As Honeywell Closes a Kansas City Plant, Workers are Dealing with the Fatal Aftereffectsnew
The U.S. Department of Labor maintains a list of 785 toxic substances verified as having been used at the site, which will soon be abandoned. But people have been abandoned, too: former workers who live with chronic pain, who struggle to breathe or who have died.
The Pitch |
Nadia Pflaum |
11-24-2009 |
Business & Labor
Gassed Up: Study Shows Montana's Emissions Have Jumped 36 Percentnew
Environment America, a national conservation group, announced last week that Montana has had a 36 percent jump in carbon dioxide emissions between 1990 and 2007. The state's increase dwarfs the average 19-percent rise across the nation and, since 2004, only Oklahoma's emissions grew faster than Montana's.
Missoula Independent |
Jessica Mayrer |
11-24-2009 |
Environment
Boulder Scientists' Work Will Take Center Stage at the Copenhagen Climate Conferencenew
From key data in a presentation by former Vice President Al Gore to time-lapse photography of deteriorating glaciers to a giant high-tech globe that will be used throughout the event, Boulder's fingerprints will be all over the United Nations Climate Change Conference, to be held Dec. 7–18.
Boulder Weekly |
Jefferson Dodge |
11-23-2009 |
Environment
Global Warming: Out of Sight, Out of Mind?new
A recent national survey suggests that over the past few years a growing number of Americans have changed their minds about the importance of climate change, and fewer now believe it even exists -- but many still think government should do something about it.
Pasadena Weekly |
Joe Piasecki |
11-23-2009 |
Environment
Is Your Best Furry Friend a Major Culprit in Global Warming?new

Pet lovers shouldn't look down on SUV owners. Feeding your four-legged companion requires as much land and energy as running a car.
NOW Magazine |
Wayne Roberts |
11-23-2009 |
Environment
Is it Too Late to Save the World's Oceans?new

Like seafood? Us too. Too bad there might not be any of it left by 2048, considering how poorly we treat the planet's marine ecosystems. In fact, between climate change, pollution, and rapacious global fishing practices, we are essentially murdering the globe's oceans.
Boston Phoenix |
Mike Miliard |
11-18-2009 |
Environment
One Prominent Enviro Thinks the Copenhagen Conference is 'Probably Obsolete'new

Next month's global climate conference in Copenhagen does not lack for dire warnings from environmentalists about what failure would mean for the world. But Lester Brown, the founder and president of the Earth Policy Institute, doesn't put much faith in Copenhagen.
Willamette Week |
Henry Stern |
11-18-2009 |
Environment
Texas Could Soon Have 12 New Coal-Fired Power Plants. What Gives?new

The Texas coal rush threatens to throw a monkey wrench into the nation's long-delayed efforts to stem global warming. If all 12 plants are built, they would add upwards of 80 million tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere every year.
The Texas Observer |
Forrest Wilder |
11-18-2009 |
Environment
Is the Iconic Saguaro Cactus in Jeopardy?new

Scientists say buffelgrass may be on an unstoppable march -- and the saguaro is in its way.
Tucson Weekly |
Leo W. Banks |
11-04-2009 |
Environment
Oregon's Filthy Secret: It is Fueled by 40 Percent Dirty Coalnew
While Portland's high-profile green innovations are helping the city's image become synonymous with sustainability (see: condo developers topping their downtown towers with wind turbines) the city runs on a dirty secret. Forty percent of Portland's energy comes from a very un-green source.
The Portland Mercury |
Sarah Mirk |
10-29-2009 |
Environment
Climate Change Activist Bill McKibben is on a Moral Quest to Literally Save the Worldnew
McKibben meme is easy. It's simply a number: 350. Three hundred and fifty, the amount of carbon parts per million in the atmosphere that NASA's top climate scientist Jim Hansen has counseled will most closely support the earth upon which human civilization arose.
North Bay Bohemian |
Gretchen Giles |
10-23-2009 |
Environment
Silicon Valley's Nascent Auto Industry is on a Rollnew

In the past 12 months, green technology, in general, and automotive tech, in particular, have become the fastest-growing sectors of the American economy. The prospect of a new, sustainable automotive industry has already sparked a gold rush in the private sector.
Metro Silicon Valley |
Eric Johnson |
10-22-2009 |
Business & Labor