“There are no environmental reasons to prevent extending the James A. FitzPatrick nuclear plant’s operating license for another 20 years, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Tuesday. The NRC previously determined there were no safety issues barring relicensing the 881-megawatt boiling water reactor in upstate New York, which began commercial operation in 1975. The current […]
“Dams are often touted as engines of economic development, able to markedly reduce poverty. Irrigation made possible by dams, for example, is said to increase agricultural productivity and thus per capita income. But it is increasingly recognized that dams can have significant adverse environmental impacts. It thus seems prudent to examine whether the beneficial effects […]
“Nations claiming parts of Antarctica are quietly staking out rights to the seabed, in stark contrast to the North Pole where Russia ostentatiously planted a flag to back its claim. ‘We have a vessel making seismic surveys of the continental shelf,’ Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told Reuters at the Troll research station, 155 miles […]
“Although shipping emissions are one of the largest contributors to total CO2 emissions in the U.S. and beyond, they have only been recently studied in depth. Part of the recent interest in shipping emissions and methods to mitigate them has been sparked by the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay Transport program. Launched in […]
“The U.S. military is developing contingency plans to deal with the possibility that a large spy satellite expected to fall to Earth in late February or early March could hit North America. Air Force Gen. Gene Renuart, who heads of U.S. Northern Command, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the size of the satellite […]
“Let’s stipulate that, indeed, 20 percent of our current gasoline consumption is somehow replaced [with ethanol]. Transportation accounts for roughly one-third of our national emissions of carbon dioxide, so this would reduce our total emissions by 6.7 percent. That’s today’s emissions. Based upon recent data, the number of cars on the road will rise by […]
“In September 2006, the Gates and Rockefeller Foundations announced a joint $150 million effort to create an Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). Last week, the Gates Foundation upped its ante on boosting production by another $306 million. About half of these new grants will fund efforts to improve seeds and soils in […]
Cato podcast featuring Indur M. Goklany. [MP3] (01/30/08)
“The American Heart Association is cautioning patients if they stop taking Vytorin abruptly, Schering-Plough and Merck’s stock price will fall. That’s how a cartoon showing a news anchor would read after revelations that the American Heart Association (which receives nearly $2 million a year from Vytorin makers Merck and Schering-Plough) and the American College of […]
“Obesity is often accompanied by diseases that can kill a person. But if an obese patient’s weight declines, the threat recedes as well. A study published this month shows that one type of surgery can not only result in weight loss but also send type 2 diabetes, one of the potential killers, into remission. The […]
