Prep for peak oil

Pittsburgh should follow Portland's example and get ready for the end of the fossil-fuel era

Carter had a powerful energy idea

Thirty years ago this month, a solemn Jimmy Carter sat behind the historic Resolute desk in the Oval Office to announce to a prime-time national television audience his new comprehensive energy plan. In the most memorable line of the evening, the president declared the challenge of energy "the moral equivalent of war."

The Philippines: Agriculture and climate change

Rice fields emit methane. Large-scale rice farming will increase the volume of methane in the atmosphere. Departments of Agriculture in rice producing countries will have to address and solve this problem singly and collectively.

Filipino Poor to Suffer Most from Brownouts, Climate Change

"It's the 'little people' in the Philippines who suffer most from heat spells and extreme weather conditions caused by climate change: those who do not have access to electricity, let alone the luxury of air conditioning and other amenities or travel to cooler climates."

Certifying Coffee Aids Farmers and Forests in Chiapas

Miguel Moshán Méndez’s troubles have piled up over the past two years.

Like other coffee growers here in the impoverished state of Chiapas, he suffered devastating losses when Hurricane Stan passed through 18 months ago, tearing coffee trees from hillsides. He lost half his trees, then borrowed money to get by. Now, he must find extra work as a laborer to pay his debt, which will make it harder to maintain his tiny farm.

“I have always fallen to the moneylender, God yes,” he said, sitting in the office of his coffee-growing cooperative.

One source of hope: the increasing number of programs that help growers get higher prices for their beans if they show that they are protecting the environment, investing in community projects and treating workers well.

A Good Provider Is One Who Leaves

God answered in a mysterious way. Not long after, Emmet’s boss offered him a pool-cleaning job in Saudi Arabia. Emmet would make 10 times as much as he made in Manila. He would also live 4,500 miles from his family in an Islamic autocracy where stories of abused laborers were rife. He accepted on the spot.

Bush Administration Gains Support for New Approach on Food Aid

A Government Accountability Office report released on the eve of this conference described in stark detail a system rife with inefficiencies: the amount of food shipped over the past five years has fallen by half as shipping and other logistical costs have soared. Only a little more than a third of federal food aid spending actually buys food. The United States feeds about 70 million people a year now instead of the more than 100 million it fed five years ago.

And experts worry that the food aid budget will feed even fewer of the world’s 850 million hungry people as soaring demand for corn to make ethanol drives up the cost of that staple, a mainstay of food aid programs.

Oil, gas boom could hurt mineral values

The Gregg County Appraisal District will release its 2007 property values May 4. Mineral values are expected to drop after three years of increases amid the area's recent oil and gas boom.

About two decades ago, even a hint of declining energy revenues would leave entities to scrape their reserves and slash expenditures. In the years that followed, however, East Texas has seen a diversification of its economy, and while oil and gas remain a symbol of the region, they are no longer the cash cows on which taxing entities rely, officials say.

India Debates Its Right to Nuclear Testing

The other important sticking point is the right to reprocess spent fuel, an enterprise that the Americans fear would allow India to generate plutonium for its weapons programs. India says it needs the reprocessed fuel for civilian use alone.

Germans having second look at use of nuclear energy

Germans are not ready yet to mothball their country's 17 nuclear power plants despite government plans to gradually abandon atomic energy by the year 2021.

8 ways to save the planet if you live in Texas

Green living isn't a trend; it's a lifestyle choice that more people are feeling compelled to make. And as Texans, there are certain things we can do to help protect our little — OK, large — piece of the planet.

Bag the plastic, NY assemblyman says

State lawmaker [William Colton] said his bill could help ease the national energy crisis.

San Francisco officials estimated that the ban will save some 450,000 gallons of oil a year, Colton noted. “In San Francisco, there are 740,000 people. In New York State, there are 15 million people. Imagine how many millions of gallons will be saved if New York implements the ban,” the state lawmaker said.

Companies jumping on Earth Day wagon: Experts warn some businesses are not very environmental

How one man showed them the light

How many people does it take to change the light bulb? One: Shuji Nakamura, inventor of so-called solid-state white lights made from light-emitting diodes, commonly known as LEDs.

Schwarzenegger lets MTV 'pimp' his ride

The governor's appearance on a special Earth Day episode of the popular show "Pimp My Ride" set for Sunday is the latest environmentally themed event for Schwarzenegger, who drew international attention for signing a global warming law last year.

So you want to save the planet? What should you consider first?

April 22nd is Earth Day and you might be wondering what should we do? After all, the problem of global warming is huge and we have an administration that is worse than an ostrich in facing the problem. Yet, there are so many things we can do, that the question becomes where do we start?

More than 3.6 billion barrels of crude oil discovered in S. Iran

More than 3.6 billion barrels of crude oil has been discovered in southern Iran over the past 3-4 months, Iranian Assistant Oil Minister and Managing Director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Gholam Hossein Nowzdi said here Saturday.

Oilsands: The next generation

Canada's oilsands invoke images of giant mines, giant trucks and giant companies. Yet the unconventional oil deposits in Alberta are also the playground of numerous Canadian startups that are poised to become the next generation of oilsands developers. While often unappreciated because of the perceived size of the task, this group of players -- all Canadian-owned and controlled -- are also the innovators in the business and most likely to find ways to navigate its many challenges, from high costs to high greenhouse gas emissions.

Japan, US eye emission-free coal plant

Japan and the United States will lead a five-nation project to develop a coal-fired power plant which discharges no carbon dioxide into the air, a press report said Sunday.

...The new plant will cut carbon dioxide emissions by some 20 percent from the level of conventional models by gasifying coal with oxygen before burning it.

Then the carbon dioxide generated at the plant will be liquefied and locked in an underground storage facility, the report said.

China's New Energy Paradigm

China is on the cusp of a dramatic new energy paradigm that could push it ahead of other nations when it comes to environmentally friendly renewable energy.

Could America lead the world on global warming?

Leaders from three steadfastly right-wing arenas - church, military and industry - are now calling for limits on US emissions.

Rosneft to spend 10 billion dollars on eastern oil and gas projects

The implementation of oil and gas projects in Siberia and in the Far East is a priority task for Rosneft. “This is borne out by the proposed growth rates of the regional oil and gas sector,” he noted. “Russia will benefit above all by the eastern assets,” Kuznetsov believes. However, he added, the needed capital investments to tap the East Siberia deposits will be 1.5-4.5 times bigger than in West Siberia.

Happy Earth Day!

Looking for something to do?

Check your carbon footprint

The Nature Conservancy's Earth Day page lets you find a nature preserve in your area to visit, send an Earth Day e-card to a friend, and of course, donate to the cause.