Displaying 4849 - 4872 of 7453
States Confront Biomass Power Delusions
From Maine to Washington state, from Ohio to Florida, electric utilities have been embracing “biomass power” as a way to reduce dependence on coal and other fossil fuels and to meet ambitious goals...
Want to Pony Up for a Pipeline to Corn Country?
The surest way to ensure that second-generation advanced biofuels remain in their test tubes and never see the spark of an engine is to pass a piece of legislation recently introduced (Feb. 14) by Rep...
New 'Simoleonase' Enzyme A Magic Bullet for Ethanol Industry?
Government researchers have announced a promising technological development that may turn the ethanol industry on its head. In a joint press conference this morning (April 1), top scientists from...
School Lunches: Where’s the Broccoli?
First Lady Michelle Obama's noble fight against childhood obesity cannot be won unless members of Congress act boldly this spring and vote to give school lunches the healthy makeover that our kids...
Who Will Say No to Obama's 4 Million Acres in Conservation Cuts?
By Craig Cox, Environmental Working Group Senior Vice-president and manager of EWG's Ames, Iowa, office. The debilitating cuts to US Department of Agriculture conservation programs proposed in...
Sound Science and Obama's Biofuels Working Group
By Craig Cox, Environmental Working Group Senior Vice President and manager of EWG's Ames, Iowa, branch. On Wednesday (Feb. 3), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updated its Renewable Fuel...
Is the Ship Starting to Turn Around On Energy Subsidies?
The third in AgMag's series of looks at the Obama budget is a hopeful one. First we examined attempts by the Administration to limit the taxpayer-funded payments that ensure profits for the wealthiest...
Budget Freeze Focus Turns to Farm Subsidies
Tonight, President Obama will announce a budget freeze as part of his State of the Union address. The New York Times' Jackie Calmes described today (Jan. 27) what specific programs will be hit: "The...
Corn Ethanol Sprawl Evicts Wildlife from the Midwest
“Our research shows that native grassland is being converted into cropland at an alarming rate throughout the Prairie Pothole Region,” said Greg Fogel, study co-author and MS/MPP candidate at the...
Will Big Corn Call Katie Couric a Flake Too?
The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric aired a piece on Thursday (Jan. 8 ) called Where America Stands on Obesity. The report cites many factors for the nation's current obesity epidemic, including...
Rep. Michele Bachmann -- Having it Both Ways?
A flurry of blog postings in the last two days have pointed out that the conservative Minnesota congresswoman, who has regularly attacked President Obama's health care and foreclosure relief proposals...
Toxic Toys
Many baby and young children's products like teething rings, plastic and plush toys, clothing, and personal care products contain phthalates and fire retardants, a new study shows.
San Francisco Considers Mercury Warnings for Seafood
San Francisco officials are looking at a proposal requiring trilingual signs in restaurants, stores and markets warning consumers of mercury in their fish. Mercury can cause neurological and...
Healed by Grace: Asbestos Giant Tells Libby Victims They Aren't Sick
W.R. Grace has taken the power of positive thinking too far, attempting to cure the Libby, Mont., residents the company knowingly poisoned for decades with toxic vermiculite just by saying it isn't so...
Calif. Wal-Marts Suspected of Illegal Pesticide Sales
Wal-Mart's 153 California stores are in danger of an audit from the state Department of Pesticide Regulation for selling home and lawn pesticides not approved for use in the state.
PCBs at Danger Levels in Wash., Wisc. Waters
Toxic PCBs have been found at 140 times the level that requires cleanup at a South Seattle site that EPA declared clean more than five years ago. Fish in the nearby Duwamish River are the most PCB...
GAO: Bankruptcy Protects Environmentally Liable Companies
A report the GAO released last week faults EPA for not enforcing laws that prevent companies from ducking environmental cleanup costs by filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Dust Data Accumulates
A study recently published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Science & Technology finds that up to 80% of a child's exposure to toxic flame retardant chemicals could come from household dust.
Mining, Asbestos Giant Files Chapter 11
Asarco, a subsidiary of mining conglomerate Grupo Mexico, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday, leaving taxpayers holding the bag on an estimated $1 billion in environmental cleanups in a dozen states that...
Farm Subsidies v. Food Stamps
Uruguay is following in Brazil's footsteps, announcing July 26 that it will file a WTO complaint against the U.S. over rice subsidies. Increasing international pressure has finally forced Congress to...
Nature Is Becoming A Thing Of The Past
The New York Times maps out that tiny fraction of U.S. lands still unscathed by mining, farming, logging and other human endeavors. We better enjoy it while we can -- trends suggest these pristine...
CA Cosmetics Bill Passes Cmte
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that California Assembly's Health Committee advanced a bill that would require manufacturers of personal care products to inform the state's Department of Health...
EPA Drags Feet on New Lead Rules
An EPA whistle-blower has exposed the agency for secretly delaying completion of required rules to protect children and construction workers from lead poisoning from paint and dust in favor of...
Farm Subsidies Contradict Food Pyramid Recommendations
USDA's new food pyramid encourages Americans to make fruits and vegetables the lion's share of their diets, but this policy, the Chicago Tribune points out, doesn't stack up with the crops the agency...