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Last Updated: Feb 28, 2017 11:25AM • Subscribe via RSS • ATOM

Toxic Crops: Oil Wastewater Irrigating California Fields

Feb 28, 2017 11:25AM

At least two water districts in California’s Central Valley are selling oilfield wastewater to farmers, threatening the safety of Americans’ food supply.

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Fish Story: African Aquaculture a Success

Feb 28, 2017 11:25AM

Fish farms in backyards and pools throughout Africa are boosting incomes for 10 million people and improving the diets of 200 million more.

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Heave Ho: Abandoned and Lost Fishing Gear Pollutes the Seas

Jan 31, 2017 11:46AM

More than 640,000 tons of traps, crab pots, nets and other fishing gear litter the ocean floor worldwide, trapping and killing marine life.

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Veggie Tales: Plants Communicate with Sound

Jan 31, 2017 11:46AM

Listen well. Australian scientists have found that plants communicate underground through series of clicks, sometimes in frequencies audible to the human ear.

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Smog Begone: California Aims Even Higher on Emission Controls

Dec 28, 2016 12:43PM

As the world’s eighth-largest economy, California is throwing its weight behind greenhouse-gas reduction by setting ambitious 2030 goals and putting 1.5 million zero-emission state cars on the road.

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Reforesting India: Massive Tree-Planting Against Climate Change

Dec 28, 2016 12:43PM

About 800,000 volunteers planted a staggering 49 million trees on a single day last year in India as part of an international effort to reforest the planet.

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Ocean Watch: Sea Mammals Update

Nov 30, 2016 11:33AM

This year scientists discovered a new whale species in the Bering Sea and long-living orcas in the Pacific, even as dolphins in China, Hong Kong and Gulf of California waters are rapidly disappearing.

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Bye-Bye Birdies: North American Species at High Risk

Nov 30, 2016 11:33AM

Factors as diverse as island rats and cats, overfishing and plastic products are putting a third of all North American bird species at risk of extinction.

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Extinction Scenario: Humans an Endangered Species

Nov 30, 2016 11:33AM

The risk of humans disappearing from the Earth is estimated at one-tenth of a percent every year, say environmental biologists, but rising temperatures and populations may push that probability up to 3 percent.

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Greening Planet: Satellites Reveal Unexpected Plant Growth

Nov 30, 2016 11:33AM

In the last 33 years, one quarter to a half of Earth’s vegetated lands have become more dense with living plants, which can help counter rising carbon emission levels.

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Wise Woodsmen: Norway Bans Deforestation Products

Nov 30, 2016 11:33AM

Products linked to deforestation will no longer be purchased by Norway’s public agencies.

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Stark Mark: Carbon Dioxide Passes Climate-Warming Threshold

Oct 31, 2016 10:13AM

Carbon dioxide levels reached 400 parts per million this year, a dangerous level unlikely to change in our lifetime, warn climate scientists.

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Safer Citizens: Germany to Ban Fracking Permanently

Oct 31, 2016 10:13AM

The country follows France and Bulgaria in forbidding fracking because of possible risks to drinking water.

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Zoo Zapped: Buenos Aires Moves Animals to Nature Reserves

Oct 31, 2016 10:13AM

The 140-year-old Argentine zoo is moving its 2,500 animals to nature reserves and turning the tract into an eco-park.

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Change Makers: Inspired to Act

Sep 30, 2016 10:20AM ● By Linda Sechrist

Dedicated to improving their slice of the world, activists are energetically tackling problems that range from food waste in California to poor sanitation in Haiti to Alzheimer’s treatment in New York.

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Green Crisis: One in Five Plant Species May Face Extinction

Sep 30, 2016 09:59AM

Out of 391,000 known species of plants, only 30,000 have had their uses documented, and as many as a fifth are in grave danger due to invasive species, disease and changing landscapes.

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Cause and Effect: Activists Will ‘Sue’ Monsanto in Mock Trial

Sep 30, 2016 09:59AM

Consumers, brands and retailers opposed to GMOs in our food supply are joining in a national educational campaign this month.

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School Haze: EPA Helps Schools Cut Bus Emissions

Sep 30, 2016 09:59AM

To improve air quality, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is offering school districts up to $25,000 to retrofit or replace an older diesel-fueled bus to cut emissions.

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Constructive Campaigning: Meditate the Vote Supports Political Sanity

Sep 30, 2016 09:59AM

An Internet radio program is offering nonpartisan questions and apps that stimulate intelligent and inclusive discussions about politics on social media.

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Fracking Water: Action Needed to Protect U.S. Drinking Water Supplies

Aug 31, 2016 12:43PM

Organized opposition is building in key states to the environmentally risky practice of fracking, which continues to contaminate large volumes of precious drinking water supplies.

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Scrambling Species: Climate Change Favors Some Birds over Others

Jul 29, 2016 10:50AM

A warming planet strongly influences bird migration patterns, which in turn allows some species to thrive while others struggle to survive.

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Green Serenity: Sikkim Now a Wholly Organic State

Jul 29, 2016 10:50AM

Farmers in Sikkim, in the Indian Himalayas, use only manure and compost on crops 12 years after pesticides and fertilizers were banned in the state.

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Moth Misery: Bright Lights Drive Them to Extinction

Jun 30, 2016 10:13AM

Entire ecosystems rest on the delicate wings of moths, yet they’re dying off in distressing numbers from causes ranging from pesticides to urban lights.

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Fish Fried: New Numbers Confirm Global Overfishing

Jun 30, 2016 10:13AM

By adding in fish taken illegally, caught recreationally or discarded from commercial catches, a new study shows that the total world catch is 50 percent higher than previously reported.

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Recycling Nutrients: Animal Droppings Help Forests Absorb CO2

Jun 30, 2016 10:13AM

Fruit-eating animal species such as toucans and spider monkeys—many of them declining in number—are key in spreading seeds of the CO2-absorbing trees that mitigate rising global temperatures.

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Buzz Benefactors: More Retailers Ban Bee-Toxic Products

May 31, 2016 10:09AM

A major supermarket chain will no longer buy fruit or vegetables from farmers that spray with any of eight pesticides that are toxic to bees.

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Nature’s Metric: Rethinking All Aspects of Society

May 31, 2016 10:09AM

The Living Future Challenge has developed a bold framework to evoke fresh thinking about the design of systems, products and buildings.

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Natural Awakenings Family of Franchises Keeps Growing

Apr 29, 2016 10:02AM

Natural Awakenings Publishing Corp. welcomed five new publishers to its April 2016 training session.

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Fouled Play: Toxic GMO Pesticides Drift Near Athletic Fields

Apr 29, 2016 10:01AM

More than 90 percent of playing fields and parks in a six-state area were found to be located within 1,000 feet of corn or soybean fields in which toxic weed killers were sprayed.

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Noisy Humans: Man-Made Clatter Muffles Nature’s Chorus

Apr 29, 2016 10:01AM

Rising levels of human-made noise are drowning out natural sounds, the National Park Service reports.

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Ground Control: Down-to-Earth Climate Change Strategy

Mar 31, 2016 09:48AM

Organic agriculture practiced worldwide can boost the CO2 content of soil and help lower global temperatures, reports the Center for Food Safety.

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Bee Kind: The Good Fight for Honeybees

Mar 31, 2016 09:48AM

Honeybee backers scored a court victory that blocks sales of a bee-toxic pesticide, while findings of high aluminum levels in bee bodies evoke fresh concerns about other pesticides.

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Working Worms: They Can Safely Biodegrade Plastic Waste

Mar 31, 2016 09:48AM

Microorganisms in the gut of the common mealworm appear to turn discarded Styrofoam and plastic into biodegraded fragments that look like rabbit droppings.

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Oily Oops: Touted Dispersants Worsened Effects of Gulf Oil Spill

Mar 31, 2016 09:48AM

The Corexit oil dispersant used by British Petroleum to clean up the Deepwater oil spill will have long-lasting lethal effects on marine life.

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100 Percenter: Lower Austria Wholly Powered by Renewable Energy

Mar 31, 2016 09:48AM

Lower Austria, largely relying on hydropower from the Danube River, generates all its electricity from renewable sources.

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Ballot Power: Community Initiatives Secure Local Eco-Rights

Mar 31, 2016 09:48AM

Activists are increasingly using ballot initiatives enabling voters to enact local policies created to protect clean air, clean water and clean energy.

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Corporate Conscience: Unilever Reduces its Carbon Footprint

Feb 29, 2016 03:54PM

Already, 40 percent of the energy for Unilever’s multinational operations comes from green sources, and it aims to solely use renewable sources worldwide by 2030.

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Whistleblowing Allowed: Court Overrules Law Gagging Animal Abuse Probes

Feb 29, 2016 03:54PM

Citing the First Amendment, a judge has overturned an Idaho law that criminalizes surreptitious investigations into animal cruelty.

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Green Goalposts: Super Bowl Eco-Stadium Gains National Spotlight

Jan 29, 2016 10:07AM

The brand-new Levi’s Stadium is built with repurposed materials, has a green roof and solar panels, and is easily reached by bicycle paths and public transportation.

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Lions Untamed: Shrine Circus Ends Wild Animal Acts

Jan 29, 2016 10:07AM

Responding to public sentiment, the Shrine Circus CEO has announced an end to acts by elephants, tigers and lions, which he states “are deserving of our respect and awe.”

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Pioneering Aspen: Ski Town Runs Entirely on Renewables

Jan 29, 2016 10:07AM

Aspen is the third municipality in the country to shift entirely away from fossil fuels, thanks partly to price drops in renewables and government disincentives for coal.

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Global Outlook: Weather Website Tracks Climate Change

Jan 29, 2016 10:07AM

The website WXshift.org uses weather and climate data to forecast what the weather will be like in 2050.

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Fish Folly: Marine Life Drops by Half since 1970

Dec 29, 2015 05:25PM

In the last 45 years, overfishing, pollution and climate change have eliminated 75 percent of the family of fish that includes tuna and mackerel, as well as a quarter of shark and ray species.

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Sci-Fi Solution: Beaming Solar Power to Earth from Space

Dec 29, 2015 04:23PM

Japanese scientists have discovered how to convert the sun’s rays via microwaves into a direct power source strong enough to wirelessly power an electric tea kettle; now they’re working to scale it up.

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No-Choice Vaccines: California Mandates Shots for Childcare Workers

Dec 29, 2015 04:22PM

Daycare workers and others that work with children are now required by California law to be vaccinated against measles, whooping cough and flu.

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Greener Globe: World Powers Vow Cuts in Emissions

Nov 30, 2015 09:47AM

More than 200 nations are submitting action plans to the United Nations to reduce their greenhouse emissions by 40 to 70 percent within 35 years.

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Post-It Progress: 3M Requires Paper Sources to Meet Sustainable Standards

Nov 30, 2015 09:47AM

Collaborating with environmental groups, 3M Corporation is mandating that its suppliers meet strict sustainability and human-rights standards.

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Hear Ye!: Dutch Court Upholds Climate Action as a Human Right

Nov 30, 2015 09:47AM

In a precedent-setting ruling, a Dutch court has ruled that government has a legal duty to reduce carbon emissions.

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Interactive Government: White House Responds to Online Petitions

Nov 30, 2015 09:47AM

President Obama’s office has a team assigned to facilitate responses to online petitions that garner more than 100,000 signatures.

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Recycling Revolution: Global Rise Bolsters Sustainability

Oct 30, 2015 09:59AM

With recycling gaining worldwide momentum, America Recycles Day on November 15 hopes to boost U.S. recycling past the 33 percent waste recycling mark.

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