Wednesday, 05 Jul 2006

With This Ping, I Thee Dead

Judge temporarily restricts Navy's sonar use to protect whales

The U.S. Navy is temporarily forbidden to use high-intensity sonar in war-game exercises off the coast of Hawaii, a federal judge declared on Monday. She ruled that environmental groups had provided "considerable convincing scientific evidence that the Navy's use of ... sonar can kill, injure, and disturb many species, including marine mammals." Two summers ago, Navy war games off of Hawaii disoriented more than 150 melon-headed whales (no, we're not making fun of them -- that's what they're called), which left their deep-water habitat and were found swimming chaotically in the shallows of a bay. On Friday, the Department of Defense granted the Navy a six-month national-security exemption from the Marine Mammal Protection Act, apparently in an effort to circumvent the lawsuit, but the judge ruled that the exemption did not cover the National Environmental Policy Act, so the suit could go forward. The Navy and NRDC have until July 12 to discuss a settlement; on July 18, the judge will consider making the ban permanent.


The world's freshwater systems are in crisis, bedeviled by everything from global warming to good old-fashioned corruption. Though energy gets all the attention (energy, you vixen!), water may well be the sleeper environmental issue of the 21st century. Peter Gleick, head of the Pacific Institute, and William K. Reilly, ex-EPA chief and CEO of Aqua International Partners, know a thing or two about water. They sat down with David Roberts to pour a nice cold glass of knowledge about privatization, thirsty agriculture, and the human right to clean H2O.

What's Your Price for Flight?

European Parliament calls for jet-fuel tax to curb enviro impact of flying

The European Parliament has voted in favor of a jet-fuel tax to help offset the environmental impact of air travel. The consumer cost of the fuel tax would be up to about $75 per roundtrip flight within Europe. Also, as the European Union considers making airlines join the Union-wide cap-and-trade scheme for greenhouse-gas emissions, Parliament suggested that the industry enter a separate, aviation-only emissions-trading system so carriers could not simply buy up rights from other sorts of companies while continuing to pollute. The parliamentary vote has no legal weight, but supporters hope it will influence future legislation. The aviation industry is the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gases, and flights within Europe are on track to triple by 2030. "Without strict and binding legislation, airlines could scupper global efforts to reverse climate change," said British Green Party member Caroline Lucas, who authored the report adopted by the Parliament. Scupper!


You love your old "Virginia Is for Lovers" T-shirt, but that hole in the armpit isn't getting any smaller. So what are you supposed to do with old clothes and shoes you can't give to Goodwill with a straight face? Advice maven Umbra Fisk tries on a few ideas for size.

Try This on for Seismic

Climate change may lead to more earthquakes and volcanic eruptions

Geologists are concerned about the seismic repercussions of disappearing glaciers, noting that the sheer weight of the humongous blocks of ice helps to keep the earth in place. Glacial melting and the reduction of that weight may release pent-up pressure in the planet's crust, leading to earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions. Oh my. Canadian geologist Patrick Wu warns that Antarctic melt is already causing earthquakes and underground landslides. Higher sea levels caused by glacial melt also increase pressure on the ocean floor, which could affect tectonic plates. "All over the world evidence is stacking up that changes in global climate can and do affect the frequencies" of seismic events, wrote British geologist Bill McGuire in New Scientist magazine, adding, "Not only has this happened several times throughout earth's history, [but] the evidence suggests it is happening again."