April 2nd, 2013

While details regarding the cause of the rupture and the magnitude of the spill are still coming in, the Mayflower tar sands spill is yet another demonstration of the risks that tar sands pipelines pose to the communities and sensitive water resources they cross. At about a tenth of the full capacity of the Keystone XL tar sands pipelines, the 90,000 bpd Pegasus pipeline rupture offers us a small sample of the risk that tar sands pipelines pose to American communities.

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August 2nd, 2012

Steve Fleischi, NRDC director of water and climate

There can be no doubt that the current drought in the U.S. is having horrific impacts on communities across the country. Water supplies are shrinking. Crops are dying.

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June 27th, 2012

Safety at the beach requires watchfulness, and checking water quality.

Nothing beats the beach when the heat of summer hits. But in today’s world, there are swimming beaches, and beaches that are best observed, at distance from the water.

These beaches are not so much for swimming, at least, not until you check to see if there’s an alert that day, or maybe, to be save, never.

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April 19th, 2012

Consumers looking for relief from high gasoline prices are finding solutions in the US car market, according to a new report by the Natural Resources Defense Council.
US car buyers can choose from among 57 models of energy-efficient cars and trucks in showrooms today. That’s more than double the 27 efficient models that were available in the spring of 2009.

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March 14th, 2012

ore Americans than ever believe that climate change is responsible for the strange weather they see around them. A recent poll shows that over 60% of the American public believes that climate change is real and that they are basing this belief on their observation that winters and summers are warmer and that there seem to be more extreme weather events, like droughts and tornadoes. The spate of tornadoes across the Midwest and southern U.S. in early March reminds us of the terrible human and economic toll these disasters can have.

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February 23rd, 2012

Just in time for weed-and-feed season, the Natural Resources Defense Council has filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to stop the use of the weed killed known as 2,4-D.
This neurotoxic chemical, infamous as a key ingredient in Agent Orange, is still allowed in products used to treat lawns, golf courses and in commercial operations.

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December 2nd, 2011

optimist…Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.” With around 200 nations set to meet in Durban South, Africa November 28 – December 9 to agree on further efforts to address global warming, those words seemed extremely fitting.

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December 1st, 2011

ess than a month since the Obama Administration delayed the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline for at least a year, a group of GOP senators is trying to force the project to begin anyway.

The partisan showdown is led by Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), minority chair of the Foreign Relations Committee. Supporters include 37 other senators, including those from Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, which would host segments of the 1,700 mile pipeline.

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November 4th, 2011

Keystone XL pipeline protesters plan to encircle the White House at 2 p.m. on Sunday, in a second show of solidarity against the proposed 1,700-mile pipeline.
The line will include representatives from at least a dozen environmental groups. Celebrities supporting the protest include Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Robert Redford, Darryl Hannah and others.

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August 9th, 2011

Instead of cutting programs that help assure a healthy environment for Americans, Congress should end the billions of subsidies it hands out to Big Oil, the leaders of 12 top environmental leaders said in a letter to Congress on Tuesday.
The environmental groups were appealing to the new bipartisan Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to remember the health of Americans when making spending cuts.

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March 11th, 2011

Rep. Joe Barton’s last bright idea – to apologize to BP for having to make reparations for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico – earned him national ridicule.

His pandering may not have misfired (much) in the conservative-leaning Texas district he represents, but it was a rude affront to those who earn a living on the gulf, and anyone who cares about the workers and wildlife there.

U.S. Rep. Joe Barton

Now, less than a year later, Barton again appears to have his finger on the pulse of the mean-spirited minority.

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January 27th, 2011

If you’ve been wondering what it’s like for shrimpers on the Gulf Coast these days, six months after the devastating BP oil spill was stopped, you won’t hear definitive answers.

While recent tests have shown that shrimp from the gulf are safe to eat, Gulf Coast shrimpers live with daily apprehensions. They know the ecosystem they depend upon has been damaged, and soon harvests could be diminished.

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