Climate 411

EDF Testifies on Funding for Public Transit

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 12, 2008

Sheryl CanterOn Tuesday, the Senate banking committee held a hearing on how the federal government can improve public transportation options. Federal funding is badly needed. Ridership is skyrocketing due to gas prices, while services are being cut due to lack of funds.

A Wall Street Journal article on the issue summed up with a quote from our own Andy Darrell, vice president for Living Cities:

What we’re seeing around the country is that transit is underfunded and is having a really hard time meeting that demand," Mr. Darrell said. "Our government should be ready to meet that demand, to embrace it."

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Posted in News / Comments are closed

Why Drilling in Alaska’s ANWR Is a Bad Idea

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 11, 2008

Sheryl CanterU.S. oil companies already have permission to drill in millions of unexplored acres, but there is a push now to drill in one area where they don’t have permission: the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). A terrible idea, drilling in ANWR would:

  • Not produce much oil.
  • Not lower gas prices.
  • Harm the environment.

If you (or someone you know) does not believe this, read on!

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Posted in Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions / Read 53 Responses

11 Carbon Offsets You Can Trust

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 10, 2008

Sheryl CanterYou probably know that you should do what you can to reduce your carbon footprint – the greenhouse gas emissions produced by your lifestyle. After you’ve done that, you can negate what remains by supporting projects to reduce emissions elsewhere – that is, by purchasing "carbon offsets". This works because, from a global warming perspective, it doesn’t matter where the carbon comes from.

Carbon offsets are a good idea, but it’s hard to know whether a given project truly reduces carbon emissions. There are no unified standards. To help you make good choices, Environmental Defense Fund has just published CarbonOffsetList.org, a guide to high-quality offset projects for businesses and consumers. These are projects that we would turn to for our own offset needs. Check it out!

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Posted in Economics, Greenhouse Gas Emissions / Read 20 Responses

Polar Bears: Street Art with a Deeper Meaning

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 9, 2008

What lives when public transportation is used, and dies when it’s not? Potentially all of us.

This message is hauntingly conveyed by a street art installation showing polar bears coming to life as a subway passes beneath them:

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/Fdu6AD5Y3D0" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Posted in News / Read 3 Responses

Green Technology: The Answer to Our Job Woes

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 8, 2008

Sheryl CanterA month ago, July unemployment, at 5.7 percent, was the highest in four years. The August numbers just came in, and they’re even worse – 6.1 percent unemployment, the highest in five years.

But as I wrote last month, there is a solution: the green economy. Jobs related to new energy technologies are the one area of the market that is growing, and at a rapid pace.

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Posted in Economics / Comments are closed

Are Hurricanes Connected to Global Warming?

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 5, 2008

Sheryl CanterHurricane Gustav - August 31, 2008Have Hurricanes Gustav and Hanna gotten you thinking about the possible link between hurricanes and climate change?

Check out our hurricane and clilmate change overview for the straight facts from EDF climate scientists. And Peter Black shares eye-opening maps over on ClimateAtlas.

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Posted in Extreme Weather / Read 3 Responses