Monday, 03 Dec 2001

Sprayer in Schools

Republicans on a congressional conference committee killed legislation on Friday that sought to protect public school students and staff from pesticides. The School Environment Protection Act would have required schools to notify parents when pesticides were being sprayed, and directed states to develop pest-management plans that considered alternatives to toxic sprays. All Democrats on the conference committee supported the legislation, but House Republicans on the committee voted it down, claiming that implementing the act would have been a bureaucratic hassle. Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.), who sponsored the legislation, said there was no explanation for the defeat "except the influence of the chemical industry itself."

Zuni Day, Sweeping the Clods Away

The Zuni Pueblo tribe is joining forces with the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity, and other enviro groups to fight a utility's plans to strip-mine coal from 18,000 acres of state, federal, and private land in western New Mexico. The coalition says the mining would draw water from the Zuni Salt Lake, where the tribe extracts salt for religious purposes, as well as disturb human burial grounds and other religious sites. The utility, the Salt River Project, has yet to receive the go-ahead from the feds for the project.

Pulling Back the Rains

A single rainstorm can whisk 10,000 tons of dirt and grit and millions of pounds of toxics and nutrient pollution into the Chesapeake Bay. Officials from Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the District of Columbia are unveiling plans today to rein in rain-related pollution problems, in the first major restoration effort they've announced since pledging well over a year ago to take action on the issue. Runoff is polluting nearly 1,600 miles of streams and wreaking havoc on thousands of acres of habitat for crabs and fish. The officials hope to encourage new construction strategies in the region, so that future developments leave natural drainage systems in place to absorb rainwater on site. Currently, rainwater is flushed into nearby creeks and sewage overflow systems.

Plan Nein

In a move that frustrated environmentalists, the U.S. Forest Service said on Friday that it would delay revising management plans for most national forests in the Northwest until 2012. Under a timetable set by Congress, the multi-year plans had been slated to be revamped by 2005; enviro groups had hoped to use the scientific and public review process to gain more protection for old-growth forests and roadless areas. But the Forest Service said budget and staffing shortages had made it impossible to revise all forest management plans on schedule. It opted to postpone review of the Northwest plans, giving priority instead to forests elsewhere in the country.

That's It!

Touting it as an environmentally friendly alternative to cars, inventor Dean Kamen finally unveiled his mysterious creation to the world this morning. The gizmo -- which has gone by the codenames "IT" and "Ginger," but will be marketed under the more prosaic "Segway Human Transporter" -- turns out to be a one-person, two-wheeled, battery-powered scooter that looks something like a push lawnmower. Kamen said the Segway "will be to the car what the car was to the horse-and-buggy," adding that it "makes no sense at all for people in cities to use a 4,000-pound piece of metal to haul their 150-pound asses around town." The 65-pound Segway can attain speeds of 12 miles per hour; the battery charge lasts about 15 miles, at about 10 cents a charge. The machine apparently handles snow, ice, and stairs with ease. Cost? $3,000 a pop. The U.S. Postal Service and Amazon.com are among the first customers.