Each Friday we’ll bring you a round-up of the week’s green news from around the web. Please drop us a line if you know of a story we should include in the next round-up.
US wilderness conservation law ‘new dawn for American heritage’
From The Guardian on 26 March 2009
The US Congress has voted to set aside more than 2 million acres in nine states as protected wilderness – from California’s Sierra Nevada mountains to the Jefferson National Forest in Virginia. Environmentalists hailed the legislation, which will block oil and gas development on vast swaths of federal land, as the most significant in US history. President Barack Obama is expected to quickly sign it into law. The bill unites almost 170 separate measures and represents one of the largest expansions of wilderness protection in decades. [full article]
Crunch year for world’s forests
From BBC News on 25 March 2009
Efforts to mitigate climate change could be hampered if nations do not agree to protect the world’s forests by the end of the year, warn researchers. Earthwatch says it is vital for leaders attending a key UN summit in December to find a way to halt deforestation. Deforestation accounts for about 20% of the greenhouse gas emissions resulting from human activities, UN data shows. The environmental charity will outline its concerns during a public lecture in central London on Thursday evening. [full article]
Arctic meltdown is a threat to humanity
From New Scientist on 25 March 2009
“I am shocked, truly shocked,” says Katey Walter, an ecologist at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. “I was in Siberia a few weeks ago, and I am now just back in from the field in Alaska. The permafrost is melting fast all over the Arctic, lakes are forming everywhere and methane is bubbling up out of them.” Back in 2006, in a paper in Nature, Walter warned that as the permafrost in Siberia melted, growing methane emissions could accelerate climate change. [full article]
Daily Express attacked over ‘inaccurate’ lightbulb story
From The Guardian on 25 March 2009
A row has broken out between the Daily Express and a lobby group representing scientists over the paper’s coverage of the potential dangers of low-energy lightbulbs. The Science Media Centre (SMC), which describes itself as an independent organisation set up to promote accurate reporting of scientific issues in the media, has complained to the Express following a front-page story earlier this month based on one of its press briefings. [full article]
Britons recycle £1bn worth of rubbish
From Edie UK on 25 March 2009
According to national campaign Recycle Now materials recovered from recycling over the past five years had a value of £1.1bn and each year the public is recycling almost a third more than the previous year. The amount of rubbish being sent for recycling has almost doubled over the last five years, which has contributed to this marked increase in value. Latest statistics for England show that we sent around 33.8 million tonnes of our waste for recycling since 2003. [full article]
UN plans guide to fighting climate-change disasters
From Reuters on 25 March 2009
A proposed UN study of climate extremes will be a practical guide for tackling natural disasters and fill a gap in past reports focused on the gradual effects of global warming, experts said. Floods, mudslides, droughts, heatwaves or storms are often the main causes of destruction and human suffering tied to climate change, rather than the creeping rise in average temperatures blamed on a build-up of greenhouse gases. [full article]
New report finds GM agriculture incurs more costs than benefits
From Organic Consumer on 24 March 2009
Last week the German Federation of Organic Food Producers published a report, looking at the costs and benefits of GM crops. It’s only available in German but one of GM Watch’s translators has translated the press release, which summarises some of the findings. The GM loss report – presented by the German Federation of the Organic Food Producers (Bund Ökologische Lebensmittelwirtschaft, BÖLW) in Berlin – shows that the use of genetic engineering in agriculture does not bring any macro-economic benefits. [full article]
EPA may make far-reaching proposal on global warming
From LA Times on 24 March 2009
The Environmental Protection Agency has sent a proposal to the White House finding that global warming is endangering the public’s health and welfare, according to several sources, a move that could have far-reaching implications for the economy and environment. The proposal – which comes in response to a 2007 Supreme Court decision ordering the EPA to consider whether carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases should be regulated under the Clean Air Act- could lay the groundwork for nationwide measures to limit such emissions. [full article]
RSPB calls for increase in windfarms
From Telegraph on 24 March 2009
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds are calling for a massive increase in the number of wind farms in the UK after a study found far more could be built without damaging wildlife. The conservation charity said climate change threatened many species with extinction, and there was an urgent need for renewable energy to tackle greenhouse gas emissions. [full article]
Calling ‘em out: the world’s 10 worst greenwashers
From WebEcoist on 22 March 2009
As the green movement sweeps the globe, companies, trade groups and government organizations are eager to get a piece of the pie. ‘Green’ can definitely translate into big profits if you do it right – but all too often, these money-hungry entities choose to fudge the facts in an attempt to make themselves seem more environmentally friendly and responsible than they really are. That’s called greenwashing, folks, and here are 10 of the world’s worst offenders. [full article]
Don’t forget to drop us a line if you know of a story we should include in the next round-up of green news.
1 comment… read it below or add yours now
What a nice news linkage.
God bless your hands.