If you've ever lived near a busy roadway you probably suspected that it wasn't great for your health, but until this week, no one has ever estimated the actual risks at street level. Our new report, All Choked Up: Heavy Traffic, Dirty Air and the Risk to New Yorkers, takes a hard look at what congested roadways mean for our health and what New York City specifically can do about the problem.

Pollution emitted from cars, trucks and buses is linked to asthma, lung and heart disease, and cancer. Andy Darrell, regional director of the Living Cities program at Environmental Defense, recently told the Daily News:

"The impact is significantly higher the closer you are to the road. There is a 500-foot risk zone around busy, congested roadways. That is a conservative estimate."

In New York City, over two million people live within 500 feet of a major roadway (and I'm one of them!). Check out our report to get some details on what NYC can do to address this public health problem.

Worldwide, it is estimated that some 90 percent of species of large predatory fish are gone. But, our groundbreaking new report, Sustaining America's Fisheries and Fishing Communities, offers new hope.

A team of over 30 scientists, economists, fishery specialists and other experts collected data on nearly 100 fisheries and analyzed over 150 peer-reviewed studies. Their results provide a clear roadmap for rebuilding fishing stocks and restoring fishing communities.

Find out more about what we're doing to revive our oceans!

Right now there's only one file up, but if you sign up for the feed you'll get an update whenever we add a new one. The first recording is from a call earlier this month. In it, Environmental Defense President Fred Krupp and Regional Director Jim Marston give the inside story on the TXU negotiations.

Keep in mind, this is just an experiment right now and there will likely be a lot of changes to it at this point. Any feedback you can give us is much appreciated!

When someone says "environmental hero" to you, what kind of person comes to mind? What type of job does your hero have? Where does your hero live? What does your hero drive?

We think there are a lot of unsung environmental heroes out there, not the least of which are America's farmers, ranchers and forest landowners. Meet Ogden Driskill, for instance. Ogden's family has been ranching in Wyoming for seven generations. He and his family are not only pioneers of Wyoming ranching, but also of ranching methods that provide wildlife habitat, reduce the use of chemical pesticides, and protect open space.

And Ogden is not alone. America's farmers, ranchers and forest landowners are working to solve our most pressing environmental challenges. Unfortunately, three out of four farmers are rejected by USDA when they offer to share the cost of a healthy environment.

Environmental Defense has launched a national ad campaign to thank all of the good stewards who are working to preserve clean air, water and habitat for wildlife. Check it out and see what you think. It may just expand your image of an "environmental hero"!

It's all cars, all the time, this week. Why are we hammering on cars so much? Automobile emissions account for more than 20 percent of U.S. global warming emissions each year. If that's not reason enough for you, check out our cars by the numbers feature.

Do you know, for instance, how many gallons of gas a U.S. car guzzles each year? Hint: It's not small.

As I mentioned yesterday, we recently put out a whole bunch of new features on cars and global warming. Some of the most useful information includes a bunch of tips on how you can get the best gas mileage possible out of your current vehicle. Every gallon of gas you don't use prevents roughly 25 pounds of CO₂ from being released.

Here are some simple steps you can take:

• Lighten up! Carrying around an extra 100 pounds in your car reduces your fuel economy by up to two percent.
• Take it easy. Aggressive driving wastes fuel, not to mention increases stress and accidents! Rapid acceleration and braking reduces gas mileage and can burn an extra 125 gallons of gas per year.
• Keep it slow. In highway travel, exceeding the speed limit by a mere five mph results in an average fuel economy loss of six percent.
• Don't idle. Idling for more than 10 seconds uses more gas and emits more global warming pollution than restarting your car! Also, the best way to warm up a car in winter months is to drive it. When the temperature is below freezing, give it 30 seconds—that's all you need.
• Use the AC wisely. Air conditioning can decrease your fuel efficiency by as much as 12 percent in stop-and-go traffic, so consider cracking the windows. But at high speeds, driving with the windows open can decrease the overall efficiency of the vehicle. At higher speeds, you can use the vents to get a good air flow. On the hottest days keep your AC on low.

Get more tips on maintaining your car to get better mileage and cutting back on the miles you drive.

Last week we put out a whole slew of content on cars and global warming in our monthly newsletter. (What? You don't get our newsletter? Sign up!)

You'll find tips on how to get the best gas mileage out of your car, a letter to send to automakers asking that they support a national cap on global warming pollution, and much more, including this graphic on which states are stepping up to the plate.

Does your state have clean car legislation? What is clean car legislation, anyway? Find out!

Over at Climate411, Dr. Bill Chameides calls out the best offerings in climate literature. Among the books he recommends:

• Field Notes from a Catastrophe by Elizabeth Kolbert
• The Winds of Change by Eugene Linden
• The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery

Check out his other recommendations!

We all know that most of the food we eat comes from farmers. But did you know that farmers, ranchers and forest landowners also help produce clean air and water and maintain safe habitat for wildlife? And, did you know that current farm and food policies could do so much more to help our farmers who are trying to help the environment?

That's why our team of farm experts came up with a dozen fresh ideas to improve farm and food policies this year.

Check out the list and then take action to reward farmers for conservation.

Today, our chief scientist, Bill Chameides, is explaining why carbon offsets do count on Climate411. It's a great read and takes some of the recent arguments against offsets head on. There's been a lot of discussion around offsets in the wake of debates over Al Gore's energy use.

I always knew that Dr. Bill was smart, but this quote made me laugh out loud:

The going rate for offsets in the U.S. is about $4 per ton. Since the average family emits 24 tons of CO2 per year, most of us can become climate neutral for about $100 per year. I have listened to enough Public Radio to know that that is less than $1 a day.

As a frequent Public Radio listener myself, I must say, "here, here" to that statement!