AlterNet.org: Environment

Independent Test Results Show Fracking Flowback Emissions Are Dangerous Toxic Chemicals

Earthworks — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 07:00:01 PDT

A Texas town is ignoring its own test results to allow fracking to continue in violation of city ordinances and to the endangerment of local residents.

Gulf Coast Waters Closed to Shrimping

Joieau, Daily Kos — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 08:00:01 PDT

State officials in Alabama have taken action, and other states need to take action to keep dangerous seafood from the Gulf off the dinner tables of Americans.

ALEC and ExxonMobil Push Loopholes in Fracking Chemical Disclosure Rules

Cora Currier, ProPublica — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 07:00:01 PDT

In many states, the chemical make-up of fluid pumped into the ground while fracking is shielded from the public, thanks to laws promoted by ALEC and Exxon Mobil.

10 Amazing Discoveries You Missed This Week

Liz Langley, AlterNet — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

From medical devices straight out of Star Wars to birds that give Martha Stewart a run for her money, here are 10 fascinating new discoveries.

The World's Insurers Brace For Climate Change -- Except In America

Ben Schiller, Yale Environment 360 — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 09:00:01 PDT

Climate change is increasing insurance costs all over the world. But a recent Ceres report finds that American firms are still in denial.

Nature Is Not A Commodity: The Path to Rio+20

David Korten — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 08:00:01 PDT

David Korten: Indigenous wisdom reveals a path to the future that does not include a buy-out of the earthâ€™s natural systems.

Labor and Environmentalists Must Work Together to Build a Real Green Jobs Agenda

Jane McAlevey, The Nation — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:00:01 PDT

To move past the divisive politics of the Keystone battle, we must build a movement that puts both economic justice and climate action at the center of its demands.

Why Is Autism So Drastically on the Rise? An Environmental Horror Story

Eleanor J. Bader, AlterNet — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

An investigation into the relationship between environmental poisons and human health is riveting -- and terrifying.

Help for a Plastic Planet: New Report Focuses on Solutions to Global Plastic Pollution

Lisa Kaas Boyle, AlterNet — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 10:00:01 PDT

The report offers real solutions, in addition to an excellent scientific accounting of the threats posed by plastic pollution to the environment, wildlife, humans and economies.

Environmental Protections Help Workers More than Greedy Corporate Bosses

Erik Loomis, AlterNet — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:00:01 PDT

It makes little sense for UMWA President Roberts to side with the coal companies on the EPA or anything else. The coal companies continue to treat workersâ€™ lives as expendable.

Billions in Fines Don't Matter -- Here's How BP Should Be Punished for the Gulf Disaster

Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:00:01 PDT

What is missing is a criminal prosecution that holds responsible the individuals who gambled with the lives of BP's contractors and the ecosystem of the Gulf of Mexico.

One Family's Unconventional Solution to Save Water

Margaret Morganroth Gullette, AlterNet — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

Self-composting toilets make a lot of sense when water is already a cause of national uprisings and covert wars.

Earth Day 2012: Environmental Movement at a Crossroads

Gar Alperovitz, AlterNet — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

Forty-two years after the first Earth Day, the biggest environmental task -- changing our economic system -- still lies just ahead.

The Global Pressures of Population and Access to Clean Water

John Donnelly, Global Post — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:00:01 PDT

As the world climbs toward a population of 9 billion, how can we support all those people?

10 Amazing Discoveries You Missed This Week

Liz Langley, AlterNet — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:00:01 PDT

Here's what researchers revealed this week: blood tests for depression, how to escape a ticket, the science behind Tupac's reappearance, crazy new species and more.

Earth Day: 9 Films That Will Change the Way You Think About the World

Scott Thill, AlterNet — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:00:01 PDT

This Earth Day consider adding a few of these these mainstream and indie documentaries to your must-see list.

Shocking Conflict of Interest: Private Water Companies Partner With Fracking Lobby

Sarah Pavlus, American Independent News Network — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:00:01 PDT

Selling water to drillers, two of the nation's biggest private water utilities may soon profit from treating the wastewater.

EPA's First Fracking Rules Seen as Limited and Delayed

Lena Groeger, ProPublica — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:00:01 PDT

"It sets a floor for what the industry needs to do," said attorney Erik Schlenker-Goodrich of the Western Environmental Law Center. "The reality is we can do far better."

Eyeless Shrimp and Fish With Tumors: The Horrific Consequences of BP's Spill

Lisa Kaas Boyle, AlterNet — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:00:01 PDT

Despite mounting environmental and health consequences, not to mention the death of 11 workers, no executives have received jail time.

Where No City Has Gone Before: San Francisco Will Be World's First Zero-Waste Town by 2020

Sven Eberlein, AlterNet — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 06:00:01 PDT

A future without landfills? SF is already 78% of the way there -- but the hardest part is still ahead.