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Weekly Web Roundup: bat love songs, honeybee rap, nitrous oxide

2009-08-28T16:12:10Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

New data confirms widespread atrazine contamination in drinking water and streams.
Scientists to examine the link between Alzheimer's and man-made nano particles found in sunscreen and other products.
Global warming could shift the Earth's axis by 1.5 meters in this century.
Pennsylvania mayor brings green jobs to his town; bridges gap between working class and environmentalists.
Secretary of Commerce approves plan to prohibit commercial fishing in the Arctic because of anticipated warming waters due to changing climate.
Global warming could cause 82% decline in U.S. corn, cotton and soybean yields.
Scientists decode intricate bat love songs.
Joe Romm honors Senator Kennedy's environmental legacy.
U.N.'s top climate scientist calls for a new target of 350 ppm of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Busted: the Coal industry front group FACES uses stock photos rather than real people to represent their "supporters."
Five brothers rap to raise awareness about the plight of the honeybee.
A new poll says must Americans support the way President Obama is dealing with energy issues.
The EPA's Inspector General says the agency should set nutrient limits to block dead zones.
Nitrous oxide is a top threat to stratospheric ozone.
Happy 150th birthday, oil.
The cost of solar panels has dropped about 40 percent since the middle of last year.
Two alternative energy companies plan to buy a shuttered Ford factory and convert it into a renewable energy park that could employ 2,800 people within five years.
New study links diabetes to toxins found in Lake Michigan's fish.
The Atlantic argues that anti-cruelty laws that protect pets should also apply to farm animals.
Contaminated water in Wyoming might be caused by hydraulic fracturing. NRDC's Amy Mall writes about this on her blog.
Is industrial farming stealing the soul of America's food?
Sigg announces that their water bottles are now BPA free. What were they before?

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: carpools, clunkers, carbon traders

2009-08-21T16:29:27Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Cash for Clunkers ends on Monday.
ZoomPool, a new social network, connects carbon-conscious people who want to carpool.
Baoding, China, becomes world's first carbon positive city.
An international climate conference for teenagers results in 14 specific projects to help save the planet.
The Obama administration approves a tar sands pipeline from Canada into the United States.
Seven carbon traders arrested in England for tax fraud.
Seattle rejects the plastic bag tax.
Mercury contaminated fish found in nearly 300 streams nationwide.
Homebuyers are paying more to live in neighborhoods with greater walkability.
The revival of small retail might help fight global warming.
Plastics in the ocean decompose and release hazardous chemicals.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: 230 mpg, green ratings registry, plastic bag tax

2009-08-14T19:12:53Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Seattle residents will vote on a plastic bag tax next week.
Mother Jones charts the miles traveled per bottle of nine popular water brands.
GM says the new Chevy Volt will get 230 mpg in city driving (more than four times the mileage of the Toyota Prius). Skeptics question the claim (EcoGeek, Green Car Reports).
French winemakers urge their government to push for strong agreement on cutting greenhouse gas emissions at Copenhagen summit.
New study compares light rail and regional train systems in Boston and California to travel by aircraft, buses and cars.
Ban Ki-Moon says a failure to act on global warming would bring mass social unrest.
Bill Clinton calls out Cash for Clunkers program for setting mpg limits for "efficient" cars too low and suggests government create a similar program that offers rebates for electric vehicles.
The Green Electronics Council's green ratings registry for computer desktops, laptops and monitors has been localized with information for 40 countries.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: pesticides, perchlorate, biodegradable cell phones

2009-08-07T18:31:39Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Senate passes $2 billion extension to fuel Cash for Clunkers.
California's pesticides department resumes review of fumigant used on strawberry fields.
Global warming may be the cause of Yosemite's trees getting smaller.
New study links home pesticides to childhood cancer.
Phoenix cuts water usage by 20 percent.
India sets ambitious solar plan to generate 20GW of electricity from sunlight by 2020.
Hollywood has a new theme park: Environmentland.
Whole Foods CEO wants to shift the company's focus by launching a health eating initiative.
Sprint launches biodegradable cell phone. Is it really green?
Utah cuts energy use by 13% by closing state offices on Fridays.
David Paterson sets goal to reduce New York's greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050.
The EPA considers whether to regulate levels of perchlorate in water.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: farm truck, beach report, overfishing

2009-07-31T20:07:58Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

NRDC releases annual beach report rating 200 U.S. vacation beaches.
The wildly popular Cash for Clunkers program may run out of funds. NRDC's own Phil Gutis shares his experience trading in a clunker for cash.
The Princeton Review rates the top 15 greenest colleges.
Chicago passes green food resolution.
New McKinsey report cites $1.2 trillion in potential savings from energy efficiency.
Teen decomposes plastic bag in three months.
The guys who made "King Corn" are now growing vegetables in a truck in Brooklyn.
Tom Philpott explains the food safety bill passed by the House this week.
New study declares that 63 percent of world's seafood stocks are below healthy levels.
Americans waste $130 billion a year on energy.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: dumpster pools, crop swaps, jackrabbits

2009-07-24T18:30:39Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Blogger Nate Silver offers financial challenge to climate skeptics.
The Green 500 list ranks supercomputers, placing electrical efficiency as the most important feature; IBM grabs 18 of the 19 top spots.
Study shows that PBDE's enter humans through diets, not just household products.
Beekeeping in New York City is on the rise, despite being illegal.
Smart tag experiment tracks where trash ends up.
Federal appeals board to allow oil and gas drilling near prehistoric ruins in southern Utah.
Researchers link air pollution exposure before birth with lower IQ scores in childhood.
Grist is tracking how Senators will vote on the energy and climate bill.
Brooklyn dumpster swimming pools may head to dried-up suburban strip mall parking lots.
Sacramento neighbors participate in a crop swap, sharing fruits and vegetables from their backyard gardens.
Nielson reports that bottled water sales fell 3.3% in the U.S. last year.
North Carolina lawmakers considering bill to ban wind turbines from scenic ridgelines.
Offshore drilling is part of California budget deal.
Toyota promotes the 2010 Prius with giant solar-powered flowers that serve as WiFi spots and power outlets.
Federal wildlife officials will study the elusive white-sided jackrabbit to see if it needs Endangered Species Act protection.
Giant blobs of oil wash up on the beaches of South Padre Island in Texas.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: cap-and-trade, bike power, wind energy

2009-07-17T16:39:22Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Sarah Palin's Washington Post editorial slamming cap-and-trade gets bashed on Switchboard (here and here), Grist, Climate Progress, The Atlantic and Vanity Fair.
"Carbon footprint" and "locavore" added to Merriam-Webster's dictionary.
Fast Company calls for a universal standard for measuring and comparing "greenness" of products.
Yahoo says it will stop buying carbon credits and instead focus on reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.
The United States and China announce plans for a joint clean energy research center.
Wal-Mart creates comprehensive sustainability index of every product it sells.
Obama administration approves first roadless logging contract in Tongass National Forest.
Two Middlebury College students write citizen's guide to climate policy.
Coal ash spill site doesn't make EPA hazard list (more on Switchboard).
Pickens to sell off 667 wind turbines.
Study suggests that global wind energy potential is considerably higher than previously thought.
Spy satellite sea ice images made public.
Hybrid2 public bike concept promises to help power city buses.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: iPhone apps, incandescent light bulbs, autonomobile

2009-07-10T16:17:29Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Countries in Central America and the Caribbean rank highest on the Happy Planet Index list of places to live a long, sustainable life.
Senate testimony begins on climate and energy legislation.
The Bell Labs office park in New Jersey could become an indoor main street with residential units.
Looking for green iPhone apps? Grist has a handy guide.
Pickens walks away from plan to build world's largest wind farm.
Here are ten low-tech ways to keep your house cool.
A new McDonald's opening in North Carolina will be the first to have an electric car charging station in its parking lot.
The New York Times profiles Will Allen, a Growing Green Award winner.
San Francisco's mayor orders all city departments to audit unused land--including rooftops, median strips and more--to see what can be turned into community gardens or farms.
Find out how the government's energy policy is sparking innovation with incandescent light bulbs.
Google phone designers present the autonomobile, a seven-person moving living room that drives for you.
Government unveils new rules that it will pay up to 30 percent of the cost of renewable energy projects.
Members of Congress and consumer groups question purity of USDA regulated organic label.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: Energy Star, FutureGen, jellyfish

2009-07-03T13:30:00Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

The House passes the energy and climate bill.
The EPA grants a landmark California emissions waiver.
Researchers and activists say water should be a basic human right.
More than 800 animal and plant species have gone extinct in the past five centuries.
Japan fears massive jellyfish invasion.
ExxonMobil continues to fund climate skeptic groups.
Two major power companies are pulling out of FutureGen.
Sears Tower gets a $350 million green makeover.
The U.N. is using social media for climate treaty inspiration; it launched the Twitter-like site, Hopenhagen.
Great Lakes wolves are back on the endangered species list.
Study warns that Louisiana's coastline could be underwater by 2100.
The EPA's Energy Star 5.0 specification went into effect this week.
Judge overturns Bush administration change to a rule designed to protect the northern spotted owl from logging in northern forests.
A rough term in the Supreme Court for environmentalists draws to a close.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: ACES, mountaintop removal, electric cars

2009-06-26T13:00:00Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Retired professor wants to build car-free village in a San Francisco suburb.
Rock snot is invading New York.
Vermont farmers change cows' diets to lower their emissions.
Coal mining costs five times more in deaths than it provides in economic benefits.
Major polluters meet in Mexico to speed up work on United Nations climate accord.
Congressional study estimates the costs of the climate bill.
The House vote on the Waxman-Markey bill is scheduled for today. Al Gore has called ACES "the most important environmental vote of this generation" on Twitter. NRDC's experts keep you up to date on climate and energy legislation here.
Tesla, Nissan and Ford will get stimulus money for electric car development.
Daryl Hannah, James Hansen and other mountaintop removal opponents arrested during rally.
A new study examines whether wind power will ever produce enough power to meet America's energy demands.
The "Gigaton Throwdown Initiative," a study backed by venture capitalists, identifies eight clean energy technologies that could help dramatically reduce carbon emissions (more here).
San Francisco signs mandatory recycling and composting law.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: carbon counter, water footprint, hydroponic rooftop farm

2009-06-19T16:17:25Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

A new NRDC report shows that clean energy will boost economy and create jobs.
Deutsche Bank launches a carbon counter. NRDC's Nathanael Greene writes about it here.
NREL and Google launch map of America's alternative fuel stations.
San Francisco releases EcoFinder, a free iPhone app that helps residents figure out how to recycle and get rid of unwanted stuff.
Cheaper natural gas prices impact coal and possibly renewable energy.
Senate passes Cash for Clunkers program.
If you're thinking about the environmental impact of your diet, consider the water footprint of your food.
Toyota gets 180,000 new Prius orders in Japan.
California identifies 30 chemicals to avoid.
MIT is developing concrete that will last 16,000 years.
Michelle Obama helps students harvest vegetables from the White House garden.
Labor teams and environmentalists work together to help pass climate legislation and promote green jobs.
Gotham Greens is building its first hydroponic rooftop farm on top of a church in Queens.
New government report outlines current signs of global warming in United States.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: High Line, sustainable seafood, Cash for Clunkers

2009-06-12T18:29:29Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

It's digital conversion day. Find out how to get rid of your old TV.
June 8 was the first-ever World Oceans Day. NRDC's experts discuss problems and solutions on Switchboard.
National Parks will offer free admission on three weekends this summer.
Continental powers flight with jatropha and algae-derived oil, the airline is pursuing a switch to biofuels in the next few years.
The Tony Awards go green.
NYC's High Line park opens.
San Francisco is about to approve a mandatory recycling and composting law.
A small rooftop wind turbine will be sold in ACE hardware stores beginning this fall.
Gas prices have risen 41 days in a row.
Google says it's close to getting renewable energy for less than the price of energy from coal.
New Pew study shows green jobs in the U.S. grew 9.1% from 1998 through 2007, about two and a half times faster than job growth in the economy as a whole.
House okays "cash for clunkers" legislation. Senators Feinstein and Collins guest blog about the program on Climate Progress.
LA's Department of Water and Power is offering a $2,000 rebate to single family homes that meet the criteria of a Residential Drought Resistance Incentive Program.
How important is it to factor in sustainability when eating seafood? Find out what several experts think and check out NRDC's new Sustainable Seafood guide.
Obama administration orders $210 million worth of fuel-efficient vehicles.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: Bonn, nature walks, coal

2009-06-05T17:18:26Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Today is World Environment Day.
Grist offers a news roundup from the Bonn talks. Join a live chat with NRDC experts on Tuesday, June 9 at 1 pm EDT. Tune in to Switchboard to ask your questions and follow the conversation.
West Virginia declares coal the official state rock.
General Motors files for bankruptcy.
Google launches Open Green Map, a series of interactive maps that chart natural, cultural and green living sites around the world.
Taking nature walks can make you smarter.
The Global Humanitarian Forum estimates that global warming-related disasters kill 300,000 people each year. Andrew Revkin writes about critics of the report.
Scientists trying to track penguins in Antarctica follow their poop in satellite images.
No Impact Man shares his top-ten suggestions for living a greener life.
San Francisco unveils its first solar-powered bus shelter.
More cities encourage car sharing by allowing condo developers to reduce underground parking requirements if they provide on-site spaces for car share firms.
Customer gets Jet Blue to stop charging $50 to check folding bikes.
NASA posts imagery of what the Earth would like if CFC's hadn't been banned.
European groups demand investigation into connection between hog farming and swine flu.
Toyota will lease plug-in hybrids in the U.S., Japan and Europe later this year.
Ecologists enlist citizens to plant sunflowers and help monitor the activity of native bees to measure the impact of Colony Collapse Disorder on pollination.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: bikes, mockingbirds, nuclear power

2009-05-29T13:30:00Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

Scientists are considering managed relocation of species threatened by global warming.
Mandatory rationing of water usage helps the town of Bolinas in Northern California cope with water shortage caused by years of drought.
The Climate Positive Development Program aims to develop entire urban communities with emissions less than zero.
U.S. bike sales were higher than car sales in the first quarter of 2009.
The Center for Biological Diversity is suing the EPA over failure to acknowledge the impacts of ocean acidification on Washington's coastal waters.
Historic Preservationists are debating the merits of adding solar panels and other green features to historic buildings.
Meet the "Carbon Nine," the House Democrats who could decide the fate of the ACES Act.
Ecuador's carbon credit plan leaves oil reserves untapped.
Unpredictable weather seems to stimulate more complex songs in mockingbirds.
Industries are pushing to expand the definition of renewable energy to include nuclear power plants, the burning of trash and waste from coal plants.
Senator Alexander pushes for $700 billion to double the number of nuclear reactors nationwide.
Biden talks green jobs in Denver.
In the Midwest builders' associations are trying to prevent or delay building codes from getting stronger.
One in three U.S. bees died this winter.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.

Weekly Web Roundup: clean cars, clean energy, red swings

2009-05-22T16:30:33Z

Kim Ranney, Sr. Online Marketing and Production Associate, New York City

House committee passes the American Clean Energy and Security Act, a bill that will make significant investments in clean energy and reducing global warming pollution.
President Obama announces ground-breaking global warming pollution standards for cars and trucks.
Secretary Chu says he will use $2.4 billion of the stimulus money to speed up technology to reduce greenhouse gases from coal-fired power plants and factories.
Pesticides indicted as cause of Colony Collapse Disorder.
At least ten species of dragonfly and damselfly face threat of extinction.
Dredging of pollutants begins in Hudson River twenty-five years after a long stretch of the river became a Superfund site.
Starbucks hosts a cup summit to examine how to recycle its paper cups; 3,000,000,000 Starbucks cups end up in landfills each year.
Study shows that pollution can change DNA in just three days, causing increased rates of cancer and other diseases.
EPA finds hazardous materials in imported drywall; 100,000 U.S. homes could be affected.
Three red swings appear on San Francisco's BART.
The City of Toronto plans to bring walkable urbanism to dreary high-rise towers.
Study finds that the Waxman-Markey bill could be a $750 billion boon for consumers who could receive direct and indirect handouts and subsidies through 2030 to offset higher energy costs.
The federal government is giving $50 million in grants to car-manufacturing communities to train laid-off workers for green jobs.
New study is first to show that drinking from polycarbonate bottles increases levels of urinary BPA.

Think I missed anything really great? Feel free to share it in the comments section. Want news updates every day? Check out my colleague Ben Jervey's blog on Greenlight.