Month: July 2009
Army Corps finds environmental humor unfunny: Conan O’Brien and Los Angeles River navigability
As Holly has mentioned, last month, Conan O’Brien made humor out of the navigability of the Los Angeles River by attempting to canoe down it. Holly’s post describes the legal controversy over the “traditional navigable waters” determination for the L.A. River, an appeal of which is still pending. (I note that there’s a small …
CONTINUE READINGRecommended Books
Check out our new page of book recommendations! We have everything from classics like Silent Spring to biographies to legal tomes. You can order a book just by clicking on its image. Don’t be shy about letting us know if there are other books we should include.
CONTINUE READINGThe Light Bulb Goes On!
From the New York Times: When Congress passed a new energy law two years ago, obituaries were written for the incandescent light bulb. The law set tough efficiency standards, due to take effect in 2012, that no traditional incandescent bulb on the market could meet, and a century-old technology that helped create the modern world …
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CONTINUE READINGDebating the Economics of Climate Change
A blog with the great title of Greed, Green and Grains (by environmental economist Michael J. Roberts) reported an interesting national bureau of economic research debate on the economics of climate change. The debaters were Pindyck (MIT) and Weitzman (Harvard). It seems increasingly clear that the key factors driving economic conclusions are the treatment of …
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CONTINUE READINGPlastic Trees Revisited
Thirty-five years ago, Larry Tribe wrote an article called “Ways Not to Think About Plastic Trees,” probing the foundations of environmental law. The article prompted an equally interesting response from environmental philosoper Mark Sagoff. The issue was whether we should preserve nature simply for its utility to humans or whether it had other types of …
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CONTINUE READINGIt Depends on What the Meanings of “Are” Are
Bill Clinton once famously said that the truthfulness of a statement depended on “what the meaning of ‘is’ is.” There’s a similar usage issue in a recent spat over climate data. A dispute between Roger Pielke and RealClimate seems to turn in part on whether a statement about current climate trends has to be proven …
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CONTINUE READINGBush administration forest planning rules struck down — again
For much of the past decade, the Department of Agriculture regulations governing land and resource management planning in the national forests have been a kind of political ping-pong ball, bounced back and forth between administrations, and between the executive branch and the courts. Now the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California has …
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CONTINUE READINGHabitat loss still the key conservation concern
Some time ago, I noted this essay in Slate by environmental journalist Brendan Borrell, arguing that our current obsession with climate change is inhibiting more important conservation work. A new report from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature provides some support for Borrell’s position. The IUCN periodically updates its Red List of Threatened …
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CONTINUE READINGKilling rats kills eagles in Alaska
There really is no free lunch in the world of environmental restoration, and often the consequences are difficult to predict. Last month, Scientific American reported that 41 bald eagles were found dead on Rat Island in the western Aleutians after an aggressive rat extermination effort. Rat Island was so named because it had been overrun …
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CONTINUE READINGWaxman hospitalized in LA, “feeling much better”
Just a quick post to note this story and wish Rep. Waxman, who is back in his LA district this week, a speedy recovery.
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