|
| Headline |
Author |
Published |
Section |
Saving the planet: sometimes as important as saving jobs
Maryland House committee kills climate bill |
Joseph Romm |
10 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| This post is by ClimateProgress guest blogger Kari Manlove, fellows assistant at the Center for American Progress. ----- After reporting last week on the climate policy progression carving its way through the Maryland Senate, the same measures were defeated in a Maryland House committee this week. Supposedly, the bill was killed by pressure from industry and labor lobbyists, ironically accompanied by steelworkers draped with 'Save Our Jobs' t-shirts. First of ... |
|
| Topics: business, legislation, Maryland, politics, state politics (all these topics) |
|
|
Can industrial agriculture feed the world? Part 2
Global food riots edition |
Tom Philpott |
10 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| A couple of months ago, I raised the question, can industrial agriculture feed the world?I was being intentionally provocative. For decades, policymakers have treated low-input, diversified agriculture -- 'organic' in the sense described by the great British agriculture scholar Sir Albert Howard -- as a kind of hippy indulgence. Sure, it's nice to grow food without poison, but you can't feed the world that way. To feed the globe's teeming masses, you need loads of mined ... |
|
| Topics: agriculture, Big Ag, business, food, industrial ag (all these topics) |
|
|
The faces of green
The Dream Reborn: diverse speakers and audience with a common vision |
Erik Hoffner |
10 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Jennifer Oladipo is a writer from Louisville, Ky., whose recent Orion article 'Global Warming is Colorblind' was just reprinted in Utne Reader. She was in Memphis last weekend to see firsthand what the green jobs movement is about. (To read more Grist coverage of the Dream Reborn conference, see Pat Walters' dispatches from day one and day two.) ----- The hopeful skeptic in me was the part most drawn to The Dream Reborn conference hosted by Green For All last week ... |
|
| Topics: business, environmental justice, environmental movement, grassroots activism, green jobs (all these topics) |
|
|
Having naan of it
India's 4,000 MW coal plant is a bad answer to electricity woes |
Nathan Wyeth |
10 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| A few more thoughts on the 4,000 MW coal plant in India recently approved for international aid financing, which David and Joe have noted. I think this deserves attention because it's at the center of the biggest climate question out there: how to meet tens of thousands of megawatt hours of unmet and projected power demand in India and China without huge coal plants like this Tata Mundra 'Ultra-Mega' plant. It's not simple. But following the logic for this project invol ... |
|
| Topics: business, coal, economy, energy, India (all these topics) |
|
|
The technologies needed to beat 450 ppm, Part 1
Examining the IPCC's 'portfolio of technologies' |
Joseph Romm |
10 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| In 2007, the IPCC wrote [PDF] in its Working Group III summary (page 16): The range of stabilization levels assessed can be achieved by deployment of a portfolio of technologies that are currently available and those that are expected to be commercialised in coming decades. This assumes that appropriate and effective incentives are in place for development, acquisition, deployment and diffusion of technologies, and for addressing related barriers (high agreement, ... |
|
| Topics: agriculture, business, carbon sequestration, climate, energy, green building, IPCC (all these topics) |
|
|
How Enterprising
Enterprise Rent-a-Car opens six 'green' branches in Atlanta |
|
10 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 8:26 AM on 10 Apr 2008 The largest car rental company in the United States, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, announced it's opening six "green" branches in Atlanta, Ga., where 60 percent of the available rental vehicles will be hybrids or other fuel-efficient cars. The agency said the increase in efficient vehicles is due to consumer demand. Enterprise currently has a fleet of about 4,000 hybrids out of a tot ... |
|
| Topics: business, cars, hybrids, news, United States (all these topics) |
|
|
The Van fan club
GOOD magazine's profile on the black green activist |
Maywa Montenegro |
09 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| What Grist readers might have predicted over a year ago, when David interviewed Van Jones, is quickly becoming reality. In October, Thomas Friedman, in a gushing editorial, called Jones a 'rare bird' who 'exudes enough energy to light a few buildings on his own.' Now he's appeared on the Colbert Report where, despite the always-awkward position of Stephen's interviewees, he managed to land 'green jobs' in the mental dictionary of millions of young viewers. I had th ... |
|
| Topics: business, economy, environmental justice, environmental movement, green jobs, hotties, Van Jones (all these topics) |
|
|
Smithfield's European strategy
The hog giant CAFOizes Poland and Romania to gain access to Western Europe |
Tom Philpott |
09 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Farmers in Iowa and North Carolina -- the two states that together house nearly half of U.S. hog production [PDF] -- won't be surprised by this report, from the International Herald Tribune: The American bacon producer, Smithfield Farms, now operates a dozen vast industrial pig farms in Poland. Importing cheap soy feed from South America, which the company feeds intensively to its tens of thousands of pigs, it has caused the price of pork to drop dramatically ... |
|
| Topics: agriculture, Big Ag, business, European Union, food, industrial ag, Poland, Romania (all these topics) |
|
|
BP-powered no more
|
David Roberts |
09 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Remember that new environmental blog at The New Republic that was "powered by BP"? Apparently it is no longer thus powered. As gratifying as it is, in a schadenfreudey sort of way, to see that other small media operations can be as dysfunctional as, er, some small media operations I'm familiar with. I'm glad this got settled quickly -- I really do think it will be a blog worth reading. (This post brought to you by Wal-Mart.) |
|
| Topics: Big Oil, business, energy, gossip, oil (all these topics) |
|
|
Herald Ford
Ford lays out how it will reduce fleet emissions |
|
09 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 10:11 AM on 09 Apr 2008 Ford Motor Co. has laid out specific plans for reducing the greenhouse-gas emissions of its vehicle fleet at least 30 percent by 2020. The announcement comes in response to shareholder resolutions filed by members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (representing about 300 religious investors) and the Investor Network on Climate Risk, organized by green-minded investment group Ceres. S ... |
|
| Topics: Big Auto, business, cars, climate, greenhouse-gas emissions, news, religion and spirituality (all these topics) |
|
|
Out of the frying pan ...
Dynegy targeted by Sierra Club in new anti-coal campaign |
Ted Nace |
08 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Check out Clean Up Dynegy, the brand new website for the Sierra Club's campaign against the company Sierra calls 'America's Coal-Fired Polluter Number 1.' The campaign is significant in that it represents the first attempt by anti-coal forces to single out a single company on a nationwide basis. It kicked off in late February with mass call-ins to Dynegy headquarters originating from twenty states -- 'thousands of calls,' according to the Sierra Club. Already, the cam ... |
|
| Topics: business, coal, energy, grassroots activism, Sierra Club (all these topics) |
|
|
Haul From Grace
W.R. Grace will finally pay Montana asbestos victims |
|
08 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 3:01 PM on 08 Apr 2008 W.R. Grace & Co. has agreed to pay some $3 billion in cash and equity to settle lawsuits filed on behalf of people injured or killed by asbestos in the company's products. Grace operated a vermiculite mine near Libby, Mont., from 1963 to 1990, infamously coating the town with asbestos fibers. The company went bankrupt in 2001 after more than 100,000 asbestos-related claims were filed agains ... |
|
| Topics: business, litigation, mining, Montana, news, toxics (all these topics) |
|
|
The spy who greened me
Bond film to feature greenwashing eco-villain |
Sarah van Schagen |
08 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Everyone's favorite secret agent is at it again -- and this time he hopes to live and let Greene die. That's right, Craig (Daniel Craig) is filming the next Bond flick as we speak type. Quantum of Solace continues the storyline that began with Casino Royale and finds Bond shaken (not stirred) by the death and betrayal of a loved one. He wants revenge, and he points a (Gold)finger at "eco-entrepreneur" Dominic Greene (the man with the green gun?). Play ... |
|
| Topics: business, celebrity, green living, greenwashing, movies (all these topics) |
|
|
Steel Yourself
Labor and enviros join up for green-jobs campaign |
|
08 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 12:40 PM on 08 Apr 2008 A new green-jobs campaign has been launched by the Sierra Club, NRDC, the United Steelworkers, and the Blue Green Alliance (itself a project of the Sierra Club and the steelworkers union). The Green Jobs for America campaign, moving forward on the momentum of last month's Good Jobs, Green Jobs conference, will be focused in 12 states and will aim to raise public awareness, encourage private investm ... |
|
| Topics: business, energy, grassroots activism, green jobs, news, NRDC, renewable energy, Sierra Club (all these topics) |
|
|
Apples to Apples
Apple Inc. files complaint over NYC's green branding |
|
07 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 4:43 PM on 07 Apr 2008 Macintosh manufacturer Apple Inc. and a New York City environmental initiative both have apple logos, but is that an original sin? Apple Inc. thinks problems will stem from the too-similar logos, and has filed a trademark infringement complaint against GreeNYC, the Big Apple's campaign to boost environmental awareness. But a spokesperson for New York City's marketing arm disputes the core prob ... |
|
| Topics: advertising, business, New York City, news, tech (all these topics) |
|
|
Green TNR, brought to you by BP
|
David Roberts |
07 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| The New Republic has a new blog devoted to environment and energy issues. On the bright side, it includes the work of Brad Plumer, one of the most honest, thoughtful, and insightful writers in D.C. For that alone it's worth bookmarking. On the not so bright side, it's ... "powered by BP." Really. Here's a bit from Brad's post on that subject: Personally, I have a lot of qualms about being "powered" by BP, even though none of the bloggers on ... |
|
| Topics: advertising, Big Oil, business, energy, oil (all these topics) |
|
|
Vanity is Green
Digging into the relationships between business and environmentalism |
Maywa Montenegro |
07 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Admittedly, this is more of a link dump than a true blog post, but sometimes the green goodness is too good to pass up ... As Sarah and David have mentioned, the May edition of Vanity Fair is their third annual green issue. Featuring, ironically, the material girl on the cover, it's crammed with features that will enlighten, illuminate, and ... disturb.Pulitzer prize-winning journalists Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele investigate Monsanto. ('We've never writt ... |
|
| Topics: agriculture, Big Ag, business, celebrity, green living, music, shopping (all these topics) |
|
|
The 2030 Blueprint
Solving climate change can save billions, boost the economy, and create jobs |
Edward Mazria |
07 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| A new report from Architecture2030 shows that solving the climate change crisis can save billions of dollars, stimulate a deteriorating U.S. economy, and create high quality jobs (full report here). Complex problems sometimes require the simplest of solutions. One of the most important questions facing those attempting to solve the climate crisis is, 'How do we reduce CO2 emissions dramatically and immediately?' The simplest answer is, 'Turn off the coal plants.' ... |
|
| Topics: business, coal, economy, energy, green jobs (all these topics) |
|
|
Three green jobs questions, three green jobs answers
Day two at The Dream Reborn conference |
Pat Walters |
06 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| When I left the Dream Reborn conference on Friday, I had a few questions: Exactly what are green jobs? How do we create them? And why has it suddenly become so important to talk about them? Yesterday, I got some answers. And it's a good thing, too, since the conference wraps up today. Here's a quick rundown of some of the answers I found. (We'll have more in-depth coverage of the conference in a few days.) Pay close attention, because I'm gonna go through this stuff qui ... |
|
| Topics: business, grassroots activism, green jobs, green living (all these topics) |
|
|
Blankenship to reporter: 'You're liable to get shot'
Massey wins W. Va. Supreme Court case; not doing so well in public relations |
David Roberts |
05 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| A while back, a case against mountaintop-removal giant Massey Energy reached the West Virginia Supreme Court, which overturned a previous judgment fining the company. But then pictures turned up of Massey CEO Don Blankenship canoodling around the French Riviera with one of the court judges and two female 'companions.' Oops. The court decided to re-hear the case, minus the offending judge. Then another judge, who had said that 'the pernicious effects of Mr. Blankens ... |
|
| Topics: business, coal, energy, mining, politics, shenanigans, West Virginia (all these topics) |
|
|
Asking the right question
The implicit assumption in Pielke Jr.'s Nature commentary |
David Roberts |
04 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Can we beat global warming with existing technology? I said here that "nobody believes" we have the technology available today to tackle global warming. Gar responded: yes, someone believes it, namely me. Lindsay Meisel from the Breakthrough Institute responded: yes, lots of enviros seem to believe it, and no, it's not true. Thinking more about this, it strikes me that that the question itself is deceptive. It's no wonder people seem to be talking past eac ... |
|
| Topics: business, climate, climate change mitigation, politics, tech (all these topics) |
|
|
Matt Drudge's misleading mashup bolsters right-wing fantasy World
Drudge hijacks headlines to sell global warming denial |
Brad Johnson |
04 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| From the Think Progress Wonk Room. Atop the Drudge Report right now: Do the stories behind these headlines tell the tale that global warming alarmists have 'hijacked' the political debate despite a 'lack of natural disasters' and no global warming 'since 1998'? No. Let's review: DRUDGE HEADLINE #1: REPORT: GLOBAL TEMPS 'HAVE NOT RISEN SINCE 1998' This claim has been thoroughly debunked every time it's popped up. The oil-backed global ... |
|
| Topics: business, climate, climate change skepticism, climate science, economy, severe weather (all these topics) |
|
|
Who owns your tomato?
Another big horticultural seed company bought by Monsanto |
Matthew Dillon |
04 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| When Monsanto buys into a market, they buy in big. In 2005, Monsanto's seed/genetic trait holdings were primarily in corn, cotton, soybeans, and canola. That year, they purchased Seminis, the world's largest vegetable seed company (see And We Have the Seed) specializing in seed for vegetable field crops. Now their takeover of the vegetable seed sector continues, as they have announced the intent to purchase the Dutch breeding and seed company, De Ruiter Seeds.This pur ... |
|
| Topics: agriculture, Big Ag, business, Department of Justice, food, industrial ag, regulation (all these topics) |
|
|
As IMF!
IMF report says economic costs of climate-change action negligible |
|
04 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 8:35 AM on 04 Apr 2008 The International Monetary Fund said in a report released today that sharply reducing the world's carbon emissions will cost relatively little economically if a carbon-pricing scheme is adopted soon that includes all the major-emitting countries. The report didn't endorse one specific pricing mechanism, but said that either a carbon tax or a cap-and-trade system could work if it gradually ... |
|
| Topics: business, climate, climate change mitigation, news (all these topics) |
|
|
Solar's new mega-plants
|
David Roberts |
03 Apr 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Good stuff.(Thanks, Brian) |
|
| Topics: business, energy, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics) |
|
|
|
©2008. Grist Magazine, Inc. All rights reserved. Gloom and doom with a sense of humor®.