Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Zinke’s first year as secretary of the Interior Department has been a disaster for the environment and Americans who value it. The numbers don’t lie. Ron Sachs/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images Number of national monuments Zinke has proposed to shrink or change: 10 Percentage of land within Utah’s Bears Ears National […]
Published by the World Wildlife Fund Living with polar bears Dine steps outside the incineration plant early in the morning to smoke a cigarette. Flicking on his lighter, he finds himself looking into the eyes of a polar bear standing by his ATV four meters away. The bear moves straight towards him. Dine races for the corner […]
Published by the Department of the Interior Sitting at the foothills of the Alaska Range, Denali National Park is as wild and wonderful as it was when hunter and naturalist Charles Sheldon first visited the area more than a century ago. It was Sheldon’s drive and determination to protect this American treasure that led to the […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Welcome to our weekly Trump v. Earth column, in which onEarth reviews the environment-related shenanigans of President Trump and his allies. Mariel Carr/Chemical Heritage Foundation Safety Delayed Is Safety Denied A federal judge this week slapped down Scott Pruitt’s U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for illegally delaying implementation of a rule […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Courtesy Town of Normal, IL The U.S. Department of Transportation’s TIGER program was implemented back in 2009 with the goal, in its architects’ words, of funding “complex, innovative projects that did not fit into existing narrow federal funding silos.” Since then, the program, whose acronym stands for Transportation […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Something disturbing is happening off our Atlantic coast. Unprecedented numbers of great whales are washing up dead on our shores. At the end of January, NOAA Fisheries declared an “Unusual Mortality Event.” Twenty-nine minke whales stranded between Maine and South Carolina from January 2017 to January 2018. Of […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Our federal courts have blocked the Trump administration’s second attempt to hit the ‘stop’ button on critical protections against harmful air pollution and waste of natural resources from oil and gas operations on public lands nationwide. The decision once again sends a message to this administration that it […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund A new investor, First Quantum Minerals, recently announced a $150 million stake in Pebble Mine, a proposed open-pit gold and copper mine in Alaska’s Bristol Bay. First Quantum Minerals is the fourth potential investor to join the Pebble Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of Canada’s Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Achievable and commonsense energy efficiency measures could help save six American lives every day and avoid up to $20 billion in health harms each year. That’s the takeaway from a new report by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) and Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), which […]
Governments. Businesses. NGOs. Everyday citizens. Today, many of us are taking important steps to help reduce waste and protect our environment. I think we can all agree that’s a very good thing. But earlier this week, the Editorial Board at the LA Times called for California to phase out all “single-use” plastics. This was a […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy In its latest installment, Blue Planet II brings viewers to new underwater ecosystems. “Green Seas” highlights the kelp forests, mangroves and underwater grasslands that provide homes to some unique creatures. Dragon fish dads float through the currents, looking for a safe place to spawn. Giant cuttlefish search for mates. Thousands of spider […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Testing at National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory. Source: EPA This post was coauthored with Dan West, NRDC Legislative Advocate President Trump says he’s saving the U.S. auto industry, but his budget request for fiscal year 2019 tells a different story. It would cut programs at both the […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Last month’s inauguration of a new governor presents a great opportunity to start cleaning up New Jersey’s waterways. After eight years of the Christie administration slashing environmental protections, pollution and urban flooding are on the rise. The Murphy administration has its work cut out for it when it […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund I was very pleased to have the opportunity to testify in Congress to defend the reputation and integrity of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the cancer research arm of the World Health Organization. It has been the target of an orchestrated attack campaign from Monsanto […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the agency overseeing the competitiveness of the wholesale electricity markets and high-voltage interstate transmission grid operators, has finalized a rule that reduces barriers to electric storage resources to compete in those markets. Electric storage resources, like batteries, can absorb and store cheap […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund In the absence of federal leadership on climate change, America’s cities have become the vanguard of the country’s efforts to create a sustainable future. Recently, 233 mayors from 46 states and territories, representing 51 million residents across the country, have signed an open letter opposing the repeal of the Clean Power Plan […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy We touchdown on a narrow, deserted airstrip in Namibia after a two-hour flight from Johannesburg, South Africa. It has been nearly two days and Nick Mallos and I are still in route to St. Helena, one of the world’s most remote islands. We wait on the tarmac, refueling for our final journey […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Guest blog by Jennifer Skene NRDC is working alongside the Waswanipi Cree First Nation to protect the last of their intact boreal forest homeland from Quebec’s aggressive logging proposal. Last week, NRDC called on Quebec to abandon their proposed five-year logging plan in the Broadback River watershed, a vital […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy For most of us, Canada’s Northwest Passage still conjures a romantic mystique: the lure of explorers, hardship, dreams, riches and failure. Where the Arctic explorers Franklin searched and died and where Amundsen at last succeeded, tour ships cruise today and the entire route can be sailed at times without encountering ice. And […]
Published by the Natural Resources Defense Fund Zinke’s Budget Is Another Practice in Cognitive Dissonance The Trump administration released its budget request for Fiscal Year 2019 earlier this week, a disaster of a proposal mitigated. Though this blueprint for destruction is likely dead on arrival in Congress, it nevertheless has effectively quantified Interior Secretary Ryan […]