EPA easing air quality rule for power plants: report

The EPA plans to propose as early as this week allowing certain states and companies to emit more pollutants than it previously permitted, the report said. An agency spokesman was not immediately available for comment. The agency’s Cross-State Air Pollution final rule issued in July calls, in part, for much stricter limits on emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide, or SO2, from coal and natural gas-fired power plants beginning in January. Read More  Read More

Himalaya glaciers shrinking on global warming, some may disappear

Source: Tan Ee Lyn, Reuters Three Himalaya glaciers have been shrinking over the last 40 years due to global warming and two of them, located in humid regions and on lower altitudes in central and east Nepal, may disappear in time to come, researchers in Japan said on Tuesday. Using global positioning system and simulation models, they found that the shrinkage of two of the glaciers — Yala in central and AX010 in eastern Nepal — had accelerated in the past 10 years... Read More

More polar bear cubs die as Arctic ice melts

Source: Deborah Zabarenko, MNN Polar bear cubs forced to swim long distances with their mothers as their icy Arctic habitat melts appear to have a higher mortality rate than cubs that didn’t have to swim as far, a new study reports. Polar bears hunt, feed and give birth on ice or on land, and are not naturally aquatic creatures. Previous reports have noted individual animals swimming hundreds of miles to reach ice platforms or land, but this is one of the first to show... Read More

President Obama Announces Historic 54.5 mpg Fuel Efficiency Standard

Source: EPA President Obama today announced a historic agreement with thirteen major automakers to pursue the next phase in the Administration’s national vehicle program, increasing fuel economy to 54.5 miles per gallon for cars and light-duty trucks by Model Year 2025. The President was joined by Ford, GM, Chrysler, BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar/Land Rover, Kia, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota and Volvo Read More  Read More

‘Green’ image seen as key to future business success

Source: Euractiv As fears over climate change mount and Western consumption patterns continue to put a strain on the world’s resources, environmentally-conscious citizens are attracted to companies that share their concerns about environmental degradation. “Consumers are definitely looking for companies who do the right things. Products are no longer enough,” said Tim Mobsby, vice-president for European marketing at Kellogg’s. Read More  Read More

Ivory burned to make point about elephant killings

Source: MSNBC Record prices for ivory are fueling a sharp increase in poachers killing elephants, even those in protected areas, conservation groups warned Wednesday — the same day that Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki burned five tons of confiscated ivory to highlight the problem. “We wish to firmly demonstrate to the world our determination to eliminate all forms of illegal trade in ivory,” Kibaki told the crowd, before lighting the 335 tusks. “Poachers and illegal... Read More

Fukushima cleanup going well, according to UN atomic watchdog

Source: ENN Cleanup work at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant is proceeding smoothly and the prospects are good for bringing it under control, the head of the U.N. atomic watchdog said Monday after a visit to the crisis-hit plant. Japan said last week that it was on track with efforts to take control of the Fukushima nuclear plant, more than four months after it was hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami that triggered meltdowns and radiation leaks, but cautioned that... Read More

The Lost Emperor: A Colony of Penguins Disappears

Source: Wynne Parry, LiveScience A small colony of emperor penguins on an island off the West Antarctic Peninsula is gone, and the most likely culprit is loss of sea ice caused by warming. Although it has been predicted that penguins could suffer greatly because of global warming, this is the first time the disappearance of a colony has been documented. The researchers, however, caution that their study is hampered by a lack of long-term information on emperor penguins, both at... Read More

Well Rehabilitation Program Brings Clean Water and Escape From Arranged Marriages in Rural India

Source: Sara Novak, Treehugger Ram Rati has been overcoming obstacles since she was a child. Married off at age 11, she escaped and made ends meet grinding wheat. But today Rati is a hero in her community. She was tired of the wells in her village breaking down so she decided to fix them herself. Now she’s a trained well mechanic, bringing her Northern India village fresh water and offering hope to struggling women. Read More  Read More

Japan Suspends Annual Whale Hunt

Source: Frank Zeller, AFP Japanese whalers have suspended their Antarctic hunt, citing harassment by environmentalists, and are considering ending their annual mission early, a fisheries agency official said on Wednesday. Activists from the US-based militant environmental group the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have pursued the Japanese fleet for months to stop its harpoon ships from killing the giant sea mammals. Read More  Read More