Environmental News Network

Is Recycling Worth It? Popular Mechanics Investigation

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:21:00 EST

The modern era of recycling began in the meandering wake of the Mobro 4000. The infamous garbage barge spent much of 1987 traveling up and down the eastern seaboard looking for a place to dump its 3000-ton load of New York trash. It was refused at every port. By the time the spurned vessel returned to Long Island, still ferrying its fetid cargo, it had become the poster child for what was trumpeted as a national crisis: dwindling landfill space. Faced with the scale of their own refuse, Americans took action.

Ice beetles impacted by climate change

California+Academy+of+Sciences+ — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:16:00 EST

In the summer of 1968, Dave Kavanaugh set off on a hike that would change the course of his life. As a second-year medical student at the University of Colorado, he had joined a climbing club with a few members of the biophysics department, and the group had set their sights on Gray's Peak—the ninth highest mountain in Colorado. Kavanaugh, who has never been able to do anything slowly, scampered up to the top of the peak in record time and sat down to wait for the rest of the group.

Conservationists may be overestimating wildlife habitat

New+Scientist — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:12:00 EST

The devil is certainly in the detail when it comes to planning sanctuaries for plants and animals in the wild. The amount of land available may well be less than we imagine because the scale of existing models is too large. At present, most models divide the world into 50-kilometre grid squares, which gives a very coarse resolution.

China Advised To Follow Hybrid Route

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:07:00 EST

Asia Pacific Automotive Insights, December 1, 2008 - China's Ministry of Science and Technology is veering away from its previous preference for clean diesel as an alternative fuel of choice and is moving towards hybrids, according to Automotive News. An advisor to the ministry claims that Minister Wan Gang is 'very much in favour of hybrid technology', as it provides a stepping stone to the use of all-electric cars. This is considered a more long-term alternative to petrol in China.

Brazil plans to cut deforestation by 70 pct over 10 years

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 08:57:00 EST

The Brazilian government on Monday unveiled a plan to cut the deforestation of the Amazon by 70 percent over the next decade. It is the first time Brazil, home to the largest area of tropical woodland on the planet, has set a target for reducing the damage wrought by illegal loggers and ranchers.

Obama Embraces 'Green Path' in Stimulus Plan to Aid Environment

http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 08:48:00 EST

Dec. 2 (Bloomberg) -- President-electBarack Obama is considering a stimulus package that will include a heavy dose of spending on environmentally friendly projects aimed at creating “green-collar jobs” and saving energy. While the package will focus on short-term outlays for traditional infrastructure projects to jumpstart an economy now officially declared to be in recession, it will also include longer-term measures to safeguard the environment.

EU agrees to cut car emissions in climate fight

Reuters — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 08:40:00 EST

European carmakers must cut global-warming gases from new vehicles by 18 percent within the next six years, the EU agreed on Monday, after a long battle between environmentalists and an industry facing tough times. "This deal represents a balance between the needs of the environment and the car industry across Europe, which is suffering massively at the moment," British Conservative lawmaker Martin Callanan told Reuters late on Monday.