Thursday, 14 Apr 2005

With Earth Day 2005 fast approaching and the environmental news at the national level uniformly depressing, Hollywood is turning its sunglassed sights on the green movement, determined to infuse it with some glitz and zing. Cameron Diaz is starring in a planet-positive show on MTV, Ed Norton and Matt Damon are hosting documentaries on PBS, and producer Laurie David is launching a high-profile online campaign and lining up Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and other big-name comedians for a TV special. As Muckraker reports, maybe some star power is just what the doctor ordered.

When Bisphenol Is Said and Done

Key ingredient in clear plastics called unsafe, except by industry

A chemical widely used in the making of clear plastic products, including baby bottles, food storage containers, and even dental fillings, is the subject of debate between those who say it is safe, namely plastic-industry flacks, and those who say it's not, namely most everyone else. Many scientists have found evidence that bisphenol A, or BPA, is harmful, even in the small doses leached from plastic during heating or exposure to acidic foods or strong detergents, because it can mimic sex hormones. A new paper in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives surveys 115 studies on BPA and reports that 94 of them show harmful effects. In a wacky coincidence, researchers Frederick vom Saal and Claude Hughes found that all 11 industry-funded studies conclude BPA is nothing to worry about, while 90 percent of the 104 government- or university-funded studies conclude otherwise. California's legislature is considering a ban on BPA in children's products; if successful, it would be the first ban on the chemical in the world.

It's an Honor Just to Be ... Oh, Screw That

Grist flogs Webby nod, shamelessly asks for reader votes

Grist is in contention for a Webby Award, like unto an "Internet Oscar." You know it's true, 'cause their site says so! We're nominated in the "magazine" category. Members of "The Academy," including folks from major news and media outlets, will decide the Webby winners May 3. But you, our adoring public -- the smartest, most committed, best-looking group of people on the planet -- can vote for your favorite magazine (us!) for the People's Voice Awards. So get thee hence and vote -- we'll thank you in our speech.

Hey Joe, Where You Goin' With That Bill in Your Hand?

Joe Barton leading GOP charge to push energy bill through House

Undaunted by repeated defeats, House Republicans are having yet another go at crafting energy legislation that can make it through the Senate while still preserving massive energy-industry subsidies and tax breaks. This time around, they'll have a powerful ally in the new chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), one of the few politicians who can rival President Bush himself as a recipient of energy-industry largesse. Barton's carefully executed bid to take the reins of this powerful committee -- which oversees more than half of the legislation that moves through the House -- was backed by the oil, gas, electricity, nuclear, coal, and chemical industries, which have collectively given him $1.84 million since 1997, more than any other House member. Since then he's hired a battery of industry lobbyists to his staff, gearing up to, among other things, push his long-held priorities of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and indemnifying producers of the gas additive MTBE.

Know When to Hold Him

More drama around Stephen Johnson's EPA confirmation

The political jousting around the confirmation of Stephen Johnson to head the U.S. EPA continues, as yet another senator has threatened to gum up the process. Just last week, Democratic Sens. Barbara Boxer (Calif.) and Bill Nelson (Fla.) held the confirmation hostage, forcing Johnson to cancel a controversial research program on household pesticides and children. Now, Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) is, according to a spokesperson, "keeping his options open as far as blocking the nomination." The beef? Carper is steamed that the Bush administration has ignored his requests for studies on ways to cut power-plant pollution. "I think Stephen Johnson is qualified to head the EPA and would serve the agency well -- if the White House would let him," Carper said. "Unfortunately, I don't believe the White House has let past administrators do their jobs effectively, and I don't believe they're ready to do that now." A hold on the nomination can be imposed by any senator; it takes 60 votes to override it.

Poultry in Motion

Poultry-to-oil plant in Missouri struggling to survive

Like many renewable-energy ventures, a high-profile processing plant in Carthage, Mo., built to turn turkey waste into usable crude oil has been struggling to survive. Touted as a solution to foreign-oil addiction (but not to global warming), the plant cooks down 270 tons of bird leftovers into 300 barrels of oil a day. Turns out the technology works just fine, but due to financial troubles and, despite promises of odor-free operations, a smell so bad that area residents liken it to "something out of a horror movie," the plant's future is uncertain. Plant operators made the false assumptions that the facility would qualify for a $1-a-gallon tax credit (nope) and that poultry producers would pay to have their waste taken away (nope -- it's the other way around). The harsh outcome is that the resulting oil sells for half of what it costs to make. Now the company, Changing World Technologies, is considering starting a plant in Ireland, where they say the economic conditions are more favorable and, presumably, residents won't care about the smell.