Environment and Health
Fracking Perils
Folks, I’ve got some good news and some bad news about the nation’s ever-elusive quest for a sound energy policy. The good news: Finally there’s some under-the-radar bipartisan consensus in Washington. The bad news: The Democrats and the Republicans are dead wrong.
Planned Parenthood
Cheering Obama’s Wise Tar Sands Choice
We cheered when the Obama administration formally denied a federal permit for the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline put forth by Canadian oil giant TransCanada. The 1,700-mile pipeline would have run through six states, carrying toxic, highly corrosive tar sands crude from Alberta, Canada, to refineries and ports in Texas.
Fukushima Is So Yesterday
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) isn’t about to blow the whistle on the industry’s shortcomings and neither is the media. The agency is stacked with members who know better than to rock the corporate boat, and the media values those big-spending advertisers in the energy business.
A Recipe for Climate Action
I relocated to California for several weeks last year to avoid the dog days of summer in the nation’s capital. During my sojourn, state officials announced that ‘they were closing Los Angeles’ infamous 405 Freeway — America’s busiest highway — for a July weekend. The authorities warned inhabitants of the car-crazed city to stay off the road to avoid the impending “Carmaggedon.”
Ohio Earthquakes Underscore Fracking Dangers
Add yet another new concern to the growing list of reasons to oppose hyraudlic fracturing, the natural-gas extraction process known as “fracking”: Earthquakes.
What I’m Giving Up in 2012
I generally make New Year’s resolutions in hopes of becoming a better person — more disciplined, healthier, or, at the very least, less pathetic. Some of these resolutions last until nightfall. Some don’t. None ever sees February.
A Fracking Miracle
Climate Change Disaster Has Struck
Rats. I’d been counting on climate change. By some genetic quirk, my Scandinavian-bred body has always suffered badly from the cold. It’s a good thing that my grandfather settled near New York City rather than boarding the “Swede train” for Minnesota. Connecticut’s winters are bad enough.
Three Cheers for the Nine-Spotted Ladybug
Great news, people! A colony of nine-spotted ladybugs has been discovered in Amagansett, New York.
