Archive for August, 2008

Holiday taxis in carbon neutral drive

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“Transfer specialist Holiday Taxis aims to become carbon neutral by the end of the year. The independent company has introduced an environmental policy which means that clients will be able to offset the carbon emissions associated with their transfer. The company will also voluntarily offset its own core emissions. ” (08/29/08)

Seven years to climate midnight

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“The world may have only seven years to start reducing the annual buildup in greenhouse gas emissions that otherwise threatens global catastrophe within several decades. That means that between Inauguration Day in January 2009 and 2015, either John McCain or Barack Obama will face the most momentous political challenge of all time. Reflecting a consensus […]

CA: Bill would mandate “smart growth”

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“For 30 years, as California’s growing population led to sprawling suburbs, traffic jams and fewer farms, attempts to craft statewide laws to stop it have failed again and again. City councils worried about losing local control. Property rights advocates bristled. And the ranch house with a back yard — the centerpiece of Sunset magazine and […]

Pickens in a pickle

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“Talking to [T. Boone Pickens] it is clear he is very genuinely concerned about the impoverishment we face on our current laissez-faire energy path — a $10 trillion transfer of wealth from Americans to the rest of the world over the next decade, ending with $300 a barrel oil. But I simply couldn’t get […]

Report: Iran has 4,000 nuclear centrifuges

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“Iran has 4,000 working nuclear centrifuges, an official said in remarks published on Friday. Deputy Foreign Minister Alireza Shaikh Attar also told the official Islamic Republic News Agency that 3,000 more centrifuges are being installed.” (08/29/08)

WV: One killed in chemical plant blast

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“One worker was killed and a second injured in an explosion at a Bayer CropScience plant that shook an area west of Charleston. The explosion, which sent a fireball hundreds of feet into the air and could be felt miles away, occurred about 10:25 p.m. Thursday. The blast occurred in a section of the plant […]

Carpooling: Green, cheap and illegal

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“There’s an online free global ride-sharing service called PickupPal that has been gaining traction with Internet users lately, most notably by partnering with concert promoters and other event planners to spread the word about their service. PickupPal matches up drivers and passengers who are headed to the same destination, tracks and publishes their reputations eBay-style […]

Manufactured famine

Friday, August 29th, 2008

“In his book Late Victorian Holocausts, Mike Davis tells the story of the famines that sucked the guts out of India in the 1870s. The hunger began when a drought, caused by El Nino, killed the crops on the Deccan plateau. As starvation bit, the viceroy, Lord Lytton, oversaw the export to England of a […]

Canadian PM presses Arctic claim

Thursday, August 28th, 2008

“All large ships entering the Northwest Passage and other Arctic waterways must register with the Canadian Coast Guard first, Canada’s PM says. Prime Minister Stephen Harper made the announcement during a three-day visit to the Arctic to bolster Canadian sovereignty claims. Canada’s claim over the area, which has rich reserves of oil and gas, is […]

Plan lets car insurance be charged by the mile

Thursday, August 28th, 2008

“Californians soon may be able to buy pay-as-you-drive auto insurance that links premiums more closely with miles driven and provides an incentive to drive less. … State Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner yesterday unveiled proposed changes that open the door for pay-as-you-drive insurance. Several states have similar programs. The program is voluntary for motorists. Poizner expects […]