Biofuels like ethanol could be worse than gasoline for the environment

The EPA hasn't released a study on ethanol or any other biofuel in years. By Erin Marquis  Aug 25th 2016 A new study released by the University of Michigan on Thursday found the assumption that biofuels are better for the environment than gasoline is just that – an assumption. The new research shows that plant-based fuels might actually be worse polluters than…

0 Comments

An Updated Version of the “Peak Oil” Story

Scott Montgomery August 12, 2016 Originally posted on ourfiniteworld.com Written by Gail Tverberg The Peak Oil story got some things right. Back in 1998, Colin Campbell and Jean Laherrère wrote an article published in Scientific American called, “The End of Cheap Oil.” In it they said: Our analysis of the discovery and production of oil fields around the world suggests that within the next…

0 Comments

How much food can cities produce?

August 25, 2016 | (Photo Credit: SPUR via Flickr) By David Suzuki with contributions from David Suzuki Foundation Senior Editor Ian Hanington. Humans are fast becoming city dwellers. According to the United Nations, “The urban population of the world has grown rapidly from 746 million in 1950 to 3.9 billion in 2014.” Sixty-six per cent of us will likely live in urban…

0 Comments

Understanding the Link Between Climate Change and Extreme Weather

Published by the US EPA Photo Courtesy of www.thenation.com  Extreme weather and climate events are: Events that typically don't happen very frequently, such as droughts or floods that have historically occurred on average only once in 100 years. Events that vary from "the norm" in severity or duration, like heat waves. Events whose impacts are severe, like hurricanes. Key Points Extreme weather…

0 Comments

How will a Clinton or Trump White House affect renewable energy?

Debbie Carlson Aug 25th 2016 11:00AM Photo Courtesy of BBC.Com Renewable energy has made significant inroads into the U.S. energy system and even in the era of low fossil fuel prices, costs for solar and wind installations are down dramatically. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, the solar industry trade group, costs to install solar panels fell by more than 70…

0 Comments

Seas aren’t just rising, scientists say — it’s worse than that. They’re speeding up.

By Chris Mooney August 10 North Miami buildings are seen near the ocean. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) This story has been updated. On a warming Earth, seas inevitably rise, as ice on land melts and makes its way to the ocean. And not only that — the ocean itself swells, because warm water expands. We already know this is happening — according…

0 Comments

The Amazon — Amazing Green Mystery

by Robina Tower Rain pelted down in large opaque drops. Great trees flung across the river so that the canoes and their contents had to be pulled over them. At first getting used to the verdant green hurt the eyes, eventually they focused on the many hues of green and then the browns of tree trunks and branches, flowers of every imaginable…

0 Comments