Friday, 13 Jan 2006

"This is a very badly sited project that will end up hurting the battle against global warming, not advancing it," Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told Grist in an interview about a plan to build a wind farm near Cape Cod. Many environmental activists disagree, and some 150 of them recently sent a letter to Kennedy urging him to reconsider his position. Muckraker takes a look inside this increasingly heated debate. And in a separate piece, Bill McKibben argues that the Cape Cod wind installation and other clean-energy projects should trump all local environmental concerns.

The Joy PUC Club

California regulators approve landmark solar-power plan

With one eco-tastic vote, California is set to become a global clean-energy leader: Yesterday, the state's energy regulators approved about $3 billion in subsidies to promote solar power. Rebates will be paid to residential and business utility customers to encourage installation of enough rooftop solar-power systems by 2017 to generate 3,000 megawatts of electricity -- enough to power about 2.2 million homes, and the equivalent of six new power plants. The 3-1 vote by the California Public Utilities Commission is a major victory for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), who took the issue to the PUC after his "Million Solar Roofs" plan died in the state legislature last year amid partisan squabbling. Said one delighted clean-energy activist, "We have a big, bold, meaningful solar program that's going to reduce costs and make this more than just a boutique technology for millionaires and backward hippies."


The most efficient kind of transportation is already being where you want to go, says Xtracycle prez Kipchoge Spencer, who moved within biking distance of work, his favorite food store, and several friends so that he could give up his car. As this week's InterActivist, Spencer chats with readers about choosing a car-free lifestyle, finding a sport-utility bike that fits your needs, and dealing with idiot drivers on the road. Oh, and he explains how he got that name of his.

You Can Grow Your Own Way

GM crops advance on the world's arable acreage

Genetically modified crops are taking over the world. [Evil laugh here.] The acreage devoted to biotech crops jumped 11 percent last year. Biotech varieties of rice -- the world's most important food crop -- are poised to take off in China, a development that would put GM crops into the hands of tens of millions of small farmers who grow nearly half the calories eaten by the human race. Acres devoted to GM crops still cover a small percentage of the world's total arable land, but they've been growing fast -- from 4.3 million acres in six countries in 1996 to 222 million acres in 21 countries last year. Industry supporters hail these and other findings in a new report as proof that despite controversy about their viability and safety, biotech crops are becoming the preferred way to grow food and fiber. Critics, including Friends of the Earth, believe the jury is still out.

Clean Energy: The New Merger

Renewable power gets ever more hip with corporate America

The Man just can't get enough clean energy. This week, Walgreens and FedEx Kinko's joined Whole Foods as corporate boosters of renewable power. The drugstore chain will install solar-power systems at 96 stores and two distribution centers in California, along with 16 stores in New Jersey. Relatively, it's a drop in the bucket -- Walgreens runs over 5,000 stores. But the systems are expected to replace dirty-energy use equivalent to over 22 million gallons of gas. Meanwhile, FedEx Kinko's announced that it is increasing the company's green-power purchases to about 40 million kilowatt-hours -- enough to prevent more than 26,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

It's Just Another MLK Monday

Grist won't be publishing on Martin Luther King Jr. Day

So no news from us on Monday, but we'll be back in fine form on Tuesday. See you then.