Amazon deforestation on the rise
AP reports here at Yahoo News: RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Amazon deforestation jumped 69 percent in the past 12 months — the first such increase in three years — as rising demand for soy and cattle pushes farmers and ranchers to raze trees, officials said Saturday.
Palin questioned whether global warming is melting Arctic sea ice
McClatchy Newspapers reports here at Yahoo News: "WASHINGTON — Sen. John McCain's choice of a running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, favors drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, questioned the science behind predictions of sea ice loss linked to global warming and opposed a state initiative that would have banned metal mines from discharging pollution into salmon streams." This sounds even worse then Bush!!
Canada wants more study on polar bear protection
Reuters reports here at Yahoo News: INUVIK, Northwest Territories - Canada, criticized by environmentalists for not adequately protecting polar bears from the effects of climate change, said on Thursday it will take more time study its next step.
Can Carbon Dioxide Be Turned to Concrete?
Spiegel Online reports here: Engineers are constantly coming up with new ways to dispose of greenhouse gases. The latest idea is to hide carbon dioxide exhaust in cement. The method could revolutionize one of the most carbon-intensive industries in the world.
Northeast and Northwest Passages Both Free of Ice
Spiegel Online reports here: For the first time ever, both the Northwest and the Northeast Passages are free of ice. Shipping companies have been waiting for this moment for years, but they will have to wait a little while longer before they can make use of the Arctic shortcut.
Nanosolar raises $300 million for thin-film solar
CNET reports here at News.com: Nanosolar, a maker of thin-film solar panels, said that it has raised $300 million to accelerate production of solar-power facilities in Berlin and San Jose, California.
Japanese firms plan solar-powered cargo ship
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: TOKYO - The world's first cargo ship partly propelled by solar power is set to take to the seas later this year in a joint project between two Japanese companies, an official said Wednesday.
Arctic ice at second-lowest level ever
CNN News reports here: New satellite measurements show that crucial sea ice in the Arctic Ocean has plummeted to its second-lowest level on record.
The Cow Is a Climate Bomb
Spiegel Online reports here: Whether cattle are reared organically or with conventional farming methods, the end effect is bad for the environment, according to a new German consumer report. The agricultural lobby, however, is preventing politicians from tackling this massive source of greenhouse gas emissions.
Japan's Mitsubishi plans big expansion in solar power
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: TOKYO - Japan's Mitsubishi Electric Corp. said Wednesday it will spend 50 billion yen (458 million dollars) to boost solar power cell production four-fold by early 2012 amid growing interest in renewable energies.
Wind farms put pressure on bats
BBC News reports here: Bats are at risk from wind turbines, researchers have found, because the rotating blades produce a change in air pressure that can kill the mammals.
Green tech in 'Formula Zero' race
BBC News reports here: "The world's first international hydrogen-powered motorsport race was held in Rotterdam this weekend." And in todays world it would make more sense if the Formula One Races would rewrite their rules and the winner is who needs the least amount of gasoline to reach the finishline!
Whale protection rule open for public comment
CNN reports here: U.S. government scientists are one step closer to publishing a rule aimed at protecting the endangered right whale from ship strikes.
German Business Attacks Ministry's Plan for Green Tax System
Spiegel Online reports here: German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel wants to cut taxes for green consumer products and environmentally-friendly corporate investments in a tax overhaul aimed at cutting CO2 emissions. But Germany's business lobby is against the plan.
Bush may seek protection for island chains
AP reports here at CNN: President Bush will seek formal comment from his Cabinet agencies next week on a plan that could make three of the world's most remote and pristine island chains off-limits to commercial fishing and mineral exploration.
Toyota raising Japan prices on hybrids
AP reports here at Yahoo News: TOKYO - Toyota is raising its prices for the Prius and Harrier hybrids in Japan in response to the soaring cost of steel and other raw materials — the first hike here without a model makeover in three decades.
Solar plane makes record flight
BBC News reports here: A UK-built solar-powered plane has set an unofficial world endurance record for a flight by an unmanned aircraft. The Zephyr-6, as it is known, stayed aloft for more than three days, running through the night on batteries it had recharged in sunlight.
Biofuels, food crops straining world water reserves: experts
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: STOCKHOLM - Burgeoning demand for food to feed the world's swelling population, coupled with increased use of biomass as fuel is putting a serious strain on global water reserves, experts said.
NY nuclear plant likely a quake risk: study
Reuters reports here at Yahoo News: NEW YORK - A nuclear power plant that lies within commuting distance of New York City is more likely to be shaken by an earthquake than previously thought because it sits atop a newly identified intersection of two active seismic zones, scientists said.
At top of Greenland, new worrisome cracks in ice
AP reports here at Yahoo News: WASHINGTON - In northern Greenland, a part of the Arctic that had seemed immune from global warming, new satellite images show a growing giant crack and an 11-square-mile chunk of ice hemorrhaging off a major glacier, scientists said Thursday.
Warming threatens crucial Himalayan water resources
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: STOCKHOLM - Climate change poses a serious threat to essential water resources in the Himalayan region putting the livelihoods of 1.3 billion people at risk, experts said Thursday.
Mexico starts campaign to save endangered porpoise
AP reports here at Yahoo News: ENSENADA, Mexico - Mexico said Wednesday it will invest 163 million pesos ($16 million) to save a highly endangered species of porpoise in the upper Gulf of California, asking reluctant fishermen to adopt safer methods or give up their trade entirely.
Climate chief warns against 'tragic' inaction
CNN reports here: London - The head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has described as "tragic" the lack of action on climate change by developed countries.
Call to tackle UK business waste
BBC News reports here: "The government needs to step up efforts to reduce waste from business, according to a parliamentary committee." How is business waste handled where you live?
California: Green cars too quiet
AP reports here at CNN: SACRAMENTO, California - Electric and hybrid vehicles may be better for the environment, but the California Legislature says they're bad for the blind.
Coal's toxic legacy to the Arctic
BBC News reports here: Data from a Greenland ice core indicates that coal burning is the prime source of heavy metal pollution in the Arctic.
Japan to label goods' carbon footprints: official
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: TOKYO - Japan is planning to label consumer goods to show their carbon footprints in a bid to raise public awareness about global warming, an official said Tuesday.
Seabird Endangers Emissions Reduction Target
Spiegel Online reports here: Germany hopes that massive offshore wind parks can make a huge dent in the country's CO2 emissions. But a population of loons in the North Sea may spell the end of the plan.
Newly Discovered Air Pollutants May Cause Lung Problems
HealthDay reports here at Yahoo News: MONDAY, Aug. 18 - Recently discovered so-called free radicals that are attached to small particles of air pollution could cause lung damage and perhaps even lung cancer, researchers report.
Dutch Club to Recycle Dancers' Energy
Spiegel Online reports here: Wind power is great. But what about all that energy you expend on the dance floor on Saturday night? A next-generation nightclub wants to use that energy to keep the strobes lit and the bass bumping.
Electric bikes provide greener commute
AP reports here at CNN: "Cost of gas and desire for greener commute turns more people to electric bikes. Electric bike dealer says sales are up about 50 percent this year over last."
Ancient tree helps birds survive
BBC News reports here: An ancient species of tree is helping Britain's birds survive the effects of climate change, scientists have found.
Windmills make area prosper but fuel residents' anger
CNN reports here: Maple Ridge wind project, New York state's largest, has brought area money, jobs. But project has pitted "neighbor against neighbor, father against son," resident says.
Sanitation and hygiene in focus at World Water Week
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: STOCKHOLM - As the world races to find solutions to the planet's climate woes, some 2,500 experts meet in Stockholm this week to put the spotlight on one of the most pressing issues, that of water resources, at World Water Week.
Norway agrees $60 million carbon capture research
Reuters reports here at Yahoo News: OSLO - Norwegian research groups and industrial company Aker ASA agreed on Thursday to invest 317 million Norwegian crowns ($58.97 million) in a research project to capture greenhouse gases.
Indonesia to push renewable energy: president
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: JAKARTA - Stung by high oil prices, Indonesia plans to tap more into renewable energies and change course from a "nation that splurges" to one that saves, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Friday.
Swiss companies to build world's highest solar power station
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: GENEVA - Swiss companies are planning to build the world's highest solar power station in the country's southern Alpine region, one of the project developers, electricity group BKW FMB, said on Friday.
74% - Chinese Very Worried About the Environment
Pew reports here at Yahoo News: In a recent Pew Research survey of the Chinese people, environmental issues emerge as a top problem and a top priority; about three-in-four (74%) cite air pollution as a big problem and 66% so named water pollution. In response, as many as 80% of Chinese think protecting the environment should be made a priority, even if this results in slower growth and a potential loss of jobs.
Converting gas-powered cars to electric
CNN reports here: A growing number of Americans are refusing to wait for manufacturers to deliver mainstream electric vehicles. So they're ripping out their gas-guzzling engines and replacing them with electric motors -- and they say just about anyone can do it.
Ocean 'dead zones' becoming global problem
AP reports here at CNN: WASHINGTON - Like a chronic disease spreading through the body, "dead zones" caused by pollution fed algae with too little oxygen for life are expanding in the world's oceans.
Pollution killing 21,000 Canadians this year: report
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: "OTTAWA - Air pollution this year will kill more than 20,000 Canadians, the Canadian Medical Association said Wednesday in a report."
New Playground for Alternative Cars
Spiegel Online reports here: Since the introduction of stringent congestion fees, London traffic has loosened up and cleaned up. Britons are now increasingly cruising their capital in cars running on alternative energy to avoid the charge.
China raises tax on big cars to cut pollution
AP reports here at Yahoo News: SHANGHAI, China - China is raising its sales tax on big cars to as high as 40 percent, and drastically cutting taxes on small cars, in its latest attempt to combat emissions that contribute to heavy blankets of smog over most of its cities.
Charles in GM 'disaster' warning
BBC News reports here: Companies developing genetically modified crops risk creating the biggest environmental disaster "of all time", Prince Charles has warned.
Lab makes renewable diesel fuel from E. coli poop
CNN reports here: SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, California -- Fossil fuels that keep our planet running -- oil, natural gas and coal -- were created from the decomposition of plants, plankton and other organic material over millions of years.
How using the true costs of food could help climate change
BBC News reports here: Reforming the economics of food production and supply would be beneficial for a number of environmental and social problems, argues Peter Baker. A key issue, he says, is understanding the energy involved in putting food on your plate.
Plants move up mountain as temps rise, study shows
AP reports here at Yahoo News: LOS ANGELES - Striking new research in the Southern California mountains suggests recent warming is behind a massive die-off and rapid migration to higher ground by nine different plants — from desert shrubs to white firs.
Bush could weaken Endangered Species Act
Bush wants federal agencies to decide for themselves if projects harm wildlife, AP reports here at CNN: Changes would "seriously weaken" habitat protections, says conservationist.
21 US cities will measure and disclose their CO2 emissions
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: WASHINGTON - Twenty-one US cities, including New York and New Orleans, have announced they will measure their greenhouse gases emissions, in a joint effort to seek ways to halt and reverse global warming.
Researchers: Car exhaust may be used for power
AP reports here at CNN: Researchers are trying to help fuel economy by converting exhaust heat into energy.
Eat kangaroo to save the planet?
BBC News reports here: Switching from beef to kangaroo burgers could significantly help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, an Australian scientist says.
Globalization Is Destroying the World's Oceans
Spiegel Online reports here: The oceans are a primary source of food for mankind, and fishing provides 200 million people with income, as meager as it may be. But growing demand and the industrial-scale exploitation of the seas are destroying global fish populations. The European Union's quota system is partly to blame.
Britain Plans World's Biggest Tidal Power Station
Spiegel Online reports here: Great Britain is mulling plans to build the world's largest tidal power station. Though the climate-friendly energy source is expected to provide 5 percent of the country's power, environmentalists oppose the project, which they say will destroy vital wildlife habitat.
Dell says its operations are now carbon-neutral
AP reports here at Yahoo News: SEATTLE - Computers are far from being truly clean machines, but Dell Inc. and other PC makers are trying to make their own business operations greener.
Trying to curb global heat, U.N. to turn up its own
From The New York Times article here at CNET News.com: The United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, has approved a one-month pilot project to raise the thermostat throughout much of the Secretariat building to 77 degrees from 72 degrees.
Dutch town tests 'air-purifying' concrete
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: THE HAGUE - A road in the small Dutch town of Hengelo is to be paved with air-purifying concrete in a trial that could lead to a breakthrough in the fight against rising pollution, scientists said Wednesday.
Obama, McCain clash in oil, nuclear power play
AFP reports here at Yahoo News: WASHINGTON - Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama Tuesday charged that oil giants were betting their record profits on John McCain and accused his Republican foes of "lying" about his own energy plan.
Atomic Power Causes Cabinet Meltdown
Spiegel Online reports here: Yet again, the issue of nuclear power has resulted in bickering within Germany's government in Berlin. Officially, the country is set to turn its back on nuclear power within 15 years. But Economics Minister Michael Glos wants the atomic phase-out to be phased out -- a proposal that has infuriated the country's environment minister.
Nearly half world's primates face extinction
CNN reports here: LONDON, England - Almost 50 percent of the world's primates are in danger of extinction, according to a report from an international conservation group that cites habitat destruction and hunting as the two greatest threats.