By Megan Ceronsky One year ago this June, President Obama directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop Carbon Pollution Standards for existing power plants — a key component of his Climate Action Plan. The President charged EPA with launching the effort “through direct engagement with States, as they will play a central role in…
Soot Pollution Limits Unanimously Upheld in Court, Continuing Clean Air Victory Streak
By Elena Craft, PhD Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit unanimously upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) particulate matter (soot) pollution standard, ruling that EPA’s decision to strengthen the standard in 2012 was firmly grounded in science and the law. The ruling also upheld EPA’s new requirement that states install…
World Cup Tourists Are In For An Unpleasant Surprise On Rio’s Beaches
Brazil’s “Marvelous City” will play host to around 400,000 tourists during the World Cup next month. And there’s one thing visitors may be unable to avoid, be it on their way to the airport or at the beach: human feces. In Rio, only around 40 percent of sewage is treated, and the rest ends up in the…
This Restaurant Hasn’t Produced Trash In Over 2 Years
First a statistic, the average restaurant produces about 100,000 lbs of garbage per year. That is 273 lbs a day on average! This garbage can range from paper, plastics, metals, packaging and so on. Most restaurants are using ridiculous amounts of products and or packaging that could easily be cut down with a little bit…
President Obama Goes to Walmart
By Elizabeth Sturcken I never really expected to be sitting in a Walmart in Mountain View, CA listening to President Obama speak about environmental commitments, but I am excited for the momentum he is generating, particularly in the private sector, to support the EPA announcement on carbon limits on June 2nd. So why Walmart? The…
Hundreds of Thousands Support Standards to Ensure a Healthy Low-Carbon Future
By Mandy Warner This is a fact that always stuns people: There are currently no national limits whatsoever on carbon pollution from U.S. power plants, the single largest source of this pollution in the country. But last year, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposal that could change that fact for future power plants….
The way forward to kicking our carbon addiction
By Keith Gaby Photo credit: Billy Wilson cc How would you respond to an upsetting medical diagnosis? Probably first with shock and fear, then you’d ask the doctor about realistic treatment options. That’s how it works for an individual, but what about when seven billion people get the bad news at the same time? That’s what…