Climate & Weather

Saving Endangered Ecosystems in a Warming World

cszoradi — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 12:22:29 -0500

If your house were on fire, what would you save?

Major Clothing Retailers Join NRDC in Cleaning up Chinese Textile Mills

nakita johnson — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 19:46:38 -0400

Working with the Natural Resources Defense Council, Walmart and H&M, two of the world's largest clothing retailers, have committed to working with their Chinese textile suppliers to reduce water, energy, and chemical use in their supply chains. Walmart announced its work with NRDC's Clean by Design project at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) today, helping strategically selected mills adopt Clean by Design practices. H&M initiated a similar agreement with NRDC in mid-September.

Tanganyika Lake is Heating Up Fast Due to Global Warming

nakita johnson — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 15:00:58 -0400

A new analysis finds that Lake Tanganyika, the second oldest and the second-deepest lake in the world, is warmer than it has been in more than 1,500 years.

Mississippi River Brimming with Dead Fish Near Gulf of Mexico

nakita johnson — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:44:31 -0400

At first glance, you might not even notice the dead fish in the picture above -- there are too many of them. But no, that's not a gravely parking lot. It's a section of the Mississippi River that has been clogged with thousands of dead fish in the wake of the BP Gulf spill. And while investigation as to the cause of the mass fish kill is still underway, there are fears that new toxins in the water from spilled oil or chemical dispersants have played a role.

Putting The Escaped Ice Island In Perspective

jdegrazia — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:24:17 -0400

On August 5, an ice island four times the size of Manhattan broke off of a Greenland glacier and started floating toward the Nares Strait, the body of water that separates western Greenland from far northeastern Canada's Ellsemere Island.

Burning Coal + Hot Days = Unhealthy Air Warnings

jdegrazia — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 00:31:22 -0400

Yesterday and today are code orange unhealthy air alert days in the Washington, DC, region where I live. The 95+ degree temperatures and excessive ground-level ozone create extremely unhealthy air – especially for kids, senior citizens, and people with pre-existing health conditions.

These aren't the first days this summer where we've had these warnings, and I know that the Washington, DC, region is not alone in its unhealthy air warnings.

Presidential Power and Climate Policy Action

jdegrazia — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 17:42:48 -0400

Congress is having a hard time passing new laws to limit greenhouse gas pollution and spur clean energy innovation. Congressional legislation, however, is not the US government's only option.

The Real Story: Rising Climate Emissions From Tar Sands

jdegrazia — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 18:32:44 -0400

The latest line from the Canadian government is that tar sands greenhouse gas emissions are going down. This is misleading to say the least. The real story, as told by the Pembina Institute in a recent briefing note, is that tar sands is a dirty business that no amount of greenwashing can make appear clean.

Senate Obstructionism Leads to Abject Failure on Energy and Climate

jdegrazia — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 13:01:17 -0400

A minority of Senators has blocked the United States Senate from protecting our children’s and our country’s future. Because of their denial and obstructionism, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said yesterday that the Senate cannot take up comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation at this time.

This is an abject failure, one that rests in the hands of the Senate Republican Leadership and a small cluster of Democratic Senators.

Meltdown

jdegrazia — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 12:51:24 -0400

Today I am speaking at an event on Capitol Hill to unveil a giant ice sculpture. The globe symbolizes our melting planet – due to man-made climate change. The words “climate deniers” are also melting away-- just like their baseless attacks on climate scientists.

The message is simple: The time for denial and delay is over. We are facing our last best chance to prevent a meltdown of the environmental systems that sustain us all.