Global Warming Issues

Also known as Carrizo and giant cane, the grass is growing along extensive stretches of the Rio Grande in Texas and can be found along Austin waterways such as Shoal Creek. It grows up to 20 feet tall, uses large amounts of water and may crowd out other plant species and affect wildlife.

Dr. Larry Gilbert and his colleagues at the Brackenridge Field Laboratory (BFL) will study wasps that attack the cane under the direction of USDA research entomologists Drs. John Goolsby and Patrick Moran.

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Two years ago, state Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen put her hand in a hornet nest.

In response to requests for transportation improvements in and around the ports of Tacoma and Seattle, the Senate Transportation Committee chairwoman suggested imposing a $100 fee on each 40-foot shipping container loaded and unloaded.

The alternatives were to increase gas taxes or to allow congestion to slow the movement of goods.

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Salinas Valley residents can now breathe a bit easier, literally.

Northerly winds have blown smoke from the Basin Complex Fire away from the area, improving air quality significantly.

“Right now, the air is back to pre-fire levels,” said Ed Kendig, spokesman for the Monterey Bay Unified Air Pollution Control District. “But we are still just a wind shift away from resumed smoke impacts.”

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Advocates claim that ethanol mandates and subsidies protect our planet, enhance U.S. security, and ease our pain at the pump. In fact, ethanol policy hurts all Americans except for the tiny slice of the population that grows corn or distills it into ethanol.

What is ethanol? Basically, in the United States, it is moonshine derived from the starch in corn. You can drink it. Rowdy collegians have been known to mix 1 part ethanol with 40 parts fruit juice to make huge vats of punch for parties.

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The Arctic may hold 90 billion barrels of oil, more than all the known reserves of Nigeria, Kazakhstan and Mexico combined, and enough to supply U.S. demand for 12 years, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

One-third of the undiscovered oil is in Alaskan territory, the agency found in a study released today. By contrast, a geologic formation beneath the North Pole claimed by Russian scientists last year probably holds just 1.2 percent of the Arctic’s crude, the U.S. report showed.

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Minnesota Pollution Control Agency officials say their monitoring equipment has recorded 42 exceedances of safe hydrogen sulfide levels over a one week period that ended Monday.

That comes as no surprise to Jeff Brouse, who lives about 800 yards from the farm. Brouse says the fumes continue to make neighbors sick.

“The smell was coming right towards my house last night,” he said. “I woke up at 4:48 this morning from smell in my home with all the windows closed. I had a headache, nauseous. Now today, I still feel like somebody just beat me.”

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The investments in thin film solar keep coming. U.K. based solar thin film manufacturer G24 Innovations said today it has raised $30 million from renewable energy fund 4RAE.The company 4RAE will take a seat on the G24i board and will be represented by former ABN Amro chief executive and chairman Rijkman Groenink.

G24i will use the investment to facilitate its expansion of production and sales capability.

“This is an important step in the development of our business. It is a huge endorsement for G24 Innovations that 4RAE is investing in the company,” Robert Hertzberg, chairman of G24 Innovations said in a statement.

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Glycerol is normally turfed out as the by product of biodiesel production. But researchers from the University of Cardiff are leading a £1.86M project to turn it into liquid gold.

Biodiesel is an alternative fuel which is helping to reduce dependence on petroleum, but as more nations substitute fossil fuels with sustainable alternatives there is a global glut in glycerol. Currently, disposal of surplus glycerol is by incineration but the new project explores alternative approaches.

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TVA has created about a third more electricity while releasing almost the same amount of air pollution as privately-owned coal burning plants in North Carolina, the giant utility’s first witness testified in U.S. District Court here Wednesday.

The TVA began its defense with a flurry of charts and testimony depicting the agency as a star in the world of pollution control. The opening followed seven days of presentations by the state of North Carolina, which is suing to make TVA cut air emissions so that it falls in line with North Carolina regulations.

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The Ecology Center, a Michigan-based advocacy group, published its second annual guide to toxic chemicals in cars and car seats for children on Tuesday.

“We encourage people to buy a car that has a healthier interior,” said Jeff Gearhart, research director for the Ecology Center. “We think consumers can have a big impact on the market.”

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