Energy
Coal ash spill 50 times larger than that of Exxon-Valdez - now covering 400 acres with toxic sludge oozing toward drinking water for some in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama - calls out 'clean coal' myth. Human nature is to take cheap way today and leave mess for future, but that mess is now. And: High levels of arsenic detected in water near spill; EPA, TVA advise avoiding activities that could stir up drying dust - children playing outside, pets outdoors (click 'See also').
The editors
The Anniston Star 2008-12-30 (entry)
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Researchers transform old coffee grounds into biofuel. Spent coffee grounds contain oil similar to other biofuel crops - rapeseed, palm, soybean oil - but high anti-oxidant levels make them more stable. Grounds could add 340 million gallons of biodiesel (which smells like coffee) to global fuel supply, make $8 million-plus a year in U.S.
By Michael Bernstein
American Chemical Society 2008-12-10 (entry)
Sweden town's power production from restaurant waste, slaughterhouse waste and sewage inspires town in Rust Belt to try similar plan for bus fuel. Michigan's governor, whose grandfather was Swedish, learned about alternative fuel technology from diplomat who grew up in Flint.
By Kari Lydersen
The Washington Post 2008-11-02 (entry)
As biofuels plants open, pollution follows. In Alabama, substance resembling salad dressing repeatedly fouled waterways near the state's first biofuels plant, and for 20 miles downstream, fish died with oil around them. In Missouri's bootheel, illegal dumping kills 25,000 fish and wipes out population of endangered mussel.
By Brenda Goodman
The New York Times 2008-03-11 (entry)
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Eating fish laden with mercury can cause brain damage in adults and fetuses - a Stanford student was temporarily disabled by his four-can-a-day tuna diet. Coal-fired power plants, which supply half the nation's energy, in 2005, dumped nearly 50 tons into the air, which washed into waterways, then into fish. Safe seafood choices: salmon, shrimp, flounder, scallops, anchovies and sardines.
By Larry Wheeler
Gannett News Service, USA Today 2007-10-31 (entry)
With global demand, drought-related crop failure and corn for ethanol replacing food crops, prices rise for wheat, dairy, corn, high-fructose corn syrup and crude oil; processed food and manufacturers begin shrinking packages and/or raising prices, and sales fall.
By Anjali Cordiero
The Wall Street Journal 2007-09-26 (entry)
Though armed and hungry guerrillas with a taste for wild meat often spell doom for mountain gorillas, it's Africa's demand for charcoal - cooking fuel -- that truly is endangering them, leveling forests and spoiling water for drinking and habitats, paleontologist says.
By Richard Leakey
BBC News 2007-09-10 (entry)
Bush administration's proposed legalization of high-altitude strip mining, with follow-up poisoning of Appalachian drinking water and fish habitats with dumped leftovers, will add converts to reaffirmation of Clean Water Act protections.
The editors
The New York Times (may require subscription) 2007-08-27 (entry)
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Food prices squeezing family budgets; experts blame high prices for corn, planted over more acreage for animal feed and to feed ethanol craze, as well as fuel costs for transportation.
By Brad Hem
Houston Chronicle (TX) 0000-00-00 (entry)
Judging from plastic bottles clogging the landfills and SUVs clogging the highways, the news that we're killing ourselves and our world hasn't kicked in, so that makes "The 11th Hour," an unnerving, surprisingly affecting documentary, essential viewing.
By Manohla Dargis
The New York Times 2007-08-17 (entry)
Local food advocates trumpet food miles, but the Life Cycle Assessment, with comprehensive accounting of all resources that go into food network, from fertilizer to electricity, offers clearer picture; meanwhile, air shipping is the most fuel-intensive, and the fastest growing sector of food transport.
By Drake Bennett
The Boston Globe (entry)
Coca-Cola, Nestle, and Läckeby Water Group join other food, drink producers in UN agreement to use water more efficiently; lack of access to clean water and sanitation undermines humanitarian, social, environmental, and economic goals.
By Ahmed ElAmin
foodproductiondaily.com (entry)
Current agricultural policies distort food costs, waste billions of taxpayer dollars, and subsidize a handful of large farming operations that raise a few selected crops - and subvert subsistence farmers across the globe by dumping cheap surplus goods at below-market prices.
By Senator Richard Lugar and Representative Ron Kind
The Modesto Bee (CA) 2007-07-15 (entry)
