Tuesday, 23 Nov 2004

Nell on Earth

Organic snack-food entrepreneur Nell Newman chats with Grist

Nell Newman's dad (Paul -- maybe you've heard of him?) was skeptical about organic foods until she tricked him into eating an all-organic Thanksgiving feast. After that, he gave her the go-ahead to launch an organic division of his Newman's Own food company, and in the years since, the ranks of Fig Newman addicts have swelled. Newman tells Amanda Griscom Little about her business philosophy, her love of good food, and her favorite Thanksgiving story -- today on the Grist Magazine website.

Whereof One Cannot Speak, Thereof One Must Cope Nonetheless

Inuit don't have words for the species global warming sends their way

Among the many cruel and unexpected ironies of the melting Arctic -- and fasten your seat belts, kids, there are plenty more coming! -- is the fact that the Inuit people who populate the region are quite literally unable to describe their changing world. As global warming melts the polar ice, plant and animal species advance northward into areas where they have never before been seen. Elk, salmon, barn owl, robin: Many indigenous languages simply lack words for these species. "We can't even describe what we're seeing," said Sheila Watt-Cloutier of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference. Some species with which Inuit people do have intimate familiarity born over millennia of coexistence, like the polar bear and caribou, have fallen on hard times and may not be around to talk about much longer. The Inuit will also, presumably, need to develop words for "thunderstorm," "swimwear," and "bummer."

Mister Sandman, Bring Me a Stream

Glen Canyon Dam releases flood waters in massive experiment

An extraordinary experiment got underway this past weekend, as four large valves at the base of Glen Canyon Dam in northern Arizona were cranked open to release up to 41,000 cubic feet of water a second. Scientists hope that the water will push sand, silt, and sediment downstream to rebuild beaches and sandbars along the Colorado River as it runs through the Grand Canyon. Said beaches and sandbars play a crucial role in the ecosystem, sheltering a number of species that have declined or disappeared since the dam was built in 1963 and Lake Powell filled up behind it, halting the flow of more than 90 percent of the sediment downriver. The $3.5 million experiment, involving more than a dozen groups and government agencies and more than 50 scientists, is being conducted because the feds are, by law, required to do all they can to preserve the Grand Canyon ecosystem. Except, you know, not build a monstrous dam that cuts off water flow to it.

Take It E.V.

Electric vehicles catching on in China; Smart cars coming to U.S.

All the talk these days is about hybrid and hydrogen cars, but in China, where air pollution is an ongoing crisis, they haven't given up on electric vehicles. Improvements in battery technology are making electric cars, scooters, and buses a viable option, with shorter charging times and traveling ranges that rival those of gasoline-powered vehicles. Electric scooters are already popular in crowded cities, and Beijing and Shanghai plan to deploy hundreds of electric buses in coming years. As Lee Schipper of the World Resources Institute points out, "Such cars still do not represent 'zero emission vehicles,' only 'elsewhere emission vehicles,'" as the power to charge them has to come from somewhere, but he still sees small electric vehicles as a positive development. In other greenish vehicle news, the unbearably cute Smart micro-car -- a two-seater that gets 60 miles to the gallon, sold in Europe since 1998 -- just received final U.S. EPA clearance and should debut on American roads in early 2005.

Dear Father, Who Art in Heaven, Polluted Be Thy Air

Church air may be bad for believers' lungs

Whatever its effects on your soul, spending lots of time in church may be bad for your lungs, according to a new study out of Maastricht University in the Netherlands. Researchers measured air quality in a small chapel and a large basilica and found levels of particulate matter up to 20 times higher than minimal European safety standards. They also found high levels of free radicals -- not apostates or latter-day Luthers, but highly reactive molecules that inflame lung tissue. The Dutch scientists trace the problem to poorly ventilated chapels where candles and incense are burned frequently. They warned priests, choir members, and other saintly types who spend lots of time in church to pay heed to good ventilation. The study is part of a growing body of research on the long-neglected subject of indoor air pollution, which can be more harmful than outdoor air and which is regulated poorly, if at all.

Milling About

Goodies on Gristmill

There are lots of juicy bits on Gristmill these days, upon which we hope you will share your opinions. For instance, what did you think about the idea, recently propounded in Soapbox, that radicalism is the last thing enviros need in this day and age? Grist blogger Todd Hymas didn't think much of it at all, and posted a long, passionate defense of radicalism today. Meanwhile, the enviro community remains abuzz over a recent World Watch magazine piece on how big green organizations are too beholden to funders and insensitive toward indigenous folk -- and now there's been some surprising fallout for the magazine's staff. Gossip! Come share your thoughts, people. As much as we like to hear ourselves talk -- and really, that's quite a bit -- we love to hear you even more.