Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund A group of nine natural gas purchasers recently launched the Natural Gas Supply Collaborative (NGSC), a voluntary effort aimed at increasing transparency about how the gas they purchase is produced. The stated goals of the NGSC include promoting safe and responsible practices for the supply of natural gas […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is so spectacular that it’s alternately referred to as America’s Serengeti, the Crown Jewel of the National Wildlife Refuge System, and the Sacred Place Where Life Begins. But Congress is talking about opening up this national treasure to oil and gas drilling. Here’s what […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy A few weeks ago, I was privileged to participate in a “Climate Change Roundtable Discussion” convened by Alaska Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott. The roundtable brought together representatives of industry, government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and communities to think creatively about steps that could be taken by the State to address the challenges being […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund A researcher collects water samples on the Nisqually River in Washington. In Wyoming, the same act carries threat of stiff criminal and civil penalties, due to the state’s data censorship laws. Emily Brouwer/Flickr In the vast expanse of the West, public roads often cross private lands with little […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Pipeline Construction Near Stream Tom Berlin A new bill, S.1844, was recently introduced in the U.S. Senate. The bill intends to make it easier for natural gas pipelines to get approved. It’s a bad bill, and a bad idea. S. 1844 would weaken provisions of the National Environmental Policy […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund ¡No queremos crudo en nuestras playas! Ilustración cortesía de Falco Nuestros amigos y familiares en la Florida, Houston, Puerto Rico, Cuba y el Caribe aún están tratando de rehacer sus vidas después de lo que fueron unos huracanes históricamente desastrosos. En el caribe y en Puerto Rico, aun […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Twenty-five years ago this week, President George H.W. Bush ushered the federal government into our bathrooms. This turned out to be a good thing. Congress enacted water efficiency standards in 1992 with bipartisan support. Photo: cj13822 The Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct 92), approved with bipartisan support […]
Published by the World Wildlife Fund It can be difficult growing up in your big sister’s shadow, which may be how Brazil’s Cerrado savanna feels. Covering a quarter of Brazil, the Cerrado is one of the world’s most important ecosystems, yet it’s far less well-known than its neighbor to the north, the Amazon rainforest. For more […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Guest written by New York Program Assistant, Jhena Vigrass. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has just signed into law legislation that gives the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) the power to prevent the siting of anchorages in the Hudson River. This bipartisan legislation is a major […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Not enough attention is being paid to two wholly unnecessary, risky and costly proposed natural gas pipelines that could impact the environment and quality of life in Virginia, North Carolina, and West Virginia for decades to come. But there’s plenty of time to stop them from being constructed, […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Late Sunday night, just before the midnight deadline, Governor Jerry Brown continued his and California’s leadership on the ocean and climate by signing Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de Leon’s parks and water bond, SB 5. This is a key step toward protecting our ocean, as the governor’s signature means that the […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Today is the 45th anniversary of the adoption of the Clean Water Act. This post takes a quick look at where we were, where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re going on clean water policy. The Bad Old Days Before 1972 Congress enacted the law in […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund The Amur tiger is the extinct Caspian tiger’s closest living relative. Mathias Appel/Flickr Wild tigers may be on their way back to Kazakhstan. This news is surprising for a few reasons. First, most people associate tigers with the jungles of India or Sumatra, even the snowy slopes of […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Today, the House Natural Resources Committee is considering proposed legislation to transfer permitting of oil and gas activities on your public lands to the states. We all want a secure and prosperous energy future. The question is how to get there. The proposed “Opportunities for the Nation and […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Tropical Storm Harvey in the Gulf of Mexico on August 24 NOAA/NASA GOES Project Once its deadly winds have calmed, a hurricane’s wrath isn’t over. The disaster simply morphs into a different type of catastrophe. As we’re currently seeing in post-Maria Puerto Rico, the systems on which society […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is proposing to roll back rules for fracking on federal land, in yet another example of the Trump administration’s efforts to wipe out safeguards protecting the environment and human health from fossil fuel development. The BLM fracking rules were finalized in 2015 […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund How can limited public funds be used most efficiently to stimulate large amounts of private investment in clean energy and resilient, twenty-first century infrastructure? This was the key question addressed at the Fifth Annual Green Bank Congress in New York City as part Climate Week NYC and alongside […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has recommended that his boss, President Trump, do what no President has done before: fundamentally change and substantially diminish America’s national monuments. “Energy dominance” is a theme that has permeated Zinke’s statements and actions as Interior Secretary. And though Zinke has not […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Another day, another incident about contaminated water jeopardizing public health. I recently received a notice from my water district in Hampton Bays, New York, stating that another of its drinking water wells was contaminated with two known carcinogens – PFOA and PFOS – which are industrial chemicals used to make […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund The Pruitt-Trump Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is sweeping out the old and inviting in the new, with a fresh slew of Science Advisory Board (SAB) members. As per normal, EPA initially invited public suggestions for nominees and then issued a long list of nominees (132 individuals) for public […]