With Record Sales, Tesla Turns A Profit As Consumer Reports Says It ‘Comes Close’ To Being ‘The Best Car Ever’!

With Record Sales, Tesla Turns A Profit As Consumer Reports Says It ‘Comes Close’ To Being ‘The Best Car Ever’!: Tesla Motors Company is coming off a very good week. On Wednesday, the company reported that it had sold more electric vehicles than any other automaker during the first quarter of the year, and turned a profit for the first time in its 10 year history. On Thursday, Consumer Reports — the famously austere purveyors [...]/p

Koalas: The Canary in Australia's Coal Mine? | Common Dreams

Koalas: The Canary in Australia's Coal Mine? | Common Dreams
"The news of late out of Australia has not been the most encouraging."

Climate Sensitivity Stunner: Last Time CO2 Levels Hit 400 Parts Per Million The Arctic Was 14°F Warmer!

Climate Sensitivity Stunner: Last Time CO2 Levels Hit 400 Parts Per Million The Arctic Was 14°F Warmer!: We have pushed atmospheric CO2 levels to 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time in human existence. At the same time, a truly remarkably set of paleoclimate data shows the climate is much more sensitive to CO2 than we thought. And that means returning as quickly as possible back to 350 ppm is a [...]/p

Climate Landmark Is a Grave Warning Sign - Truthdig

Climate Landmark Is a Grave Warning Sign - Truthdig
"Humanity on Friday passed a milestone on the way to planetary destruction when monitoring stations registered 400 parts per million of carbon dioxide spread throughout the atmosphere."

Carbon Dioxide Hits Record Mark: 400 PPM

Carbon Dioxide Hits Record Mark: 400 PPM
"Our civilization developed and flourished in an era that never saw CO2 concentrations above 300 ppm. We are in new territory once again, and we have yet to show signs of slowing down, let alone stopping practices that are harmful to our world -- our Earth."

Best Hope For Climate Change Action Rests With Obama

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Earth in time lapse shows human wear and tear

Earth in time lapse shows human wear and tear
"Coincidental to the news today that the Earth has hit a record level of carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere, Google and collaborations from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), NASA and TIME, have released a project called Timelapse in which satellite images from the USGS/NASA Landsat program, spanning in some cases up to 41 years, were culled and crunched into time lapse animations to show the effects of human development on the planet as seen from space."

400 Parts Per Million: Climate Milestone is a Moment of Symbolic Significance on Road of Idiocy | Common Dreams

400 Parts Per Million: Climate Milestone is a Moment of Symbolic Significance on Road of Idiocy | Common Dreams
"The data go back 800,000 years: that's the age of the oldest fossil air bubbles extracted from Dome C, an ice-bound summit in the high Antarctic. And throughout that time there has been nothing like this. At no point in the preindustrial record have concentrations of carbon dioxide in the air risen above 300 parts per million (ppm). 400ppm is a figure that belongs to a different era.
The difference between 399ppm and 400ppm is small, in terms of its impacts on the world's living systems. But this is a moment of symbolic significance, a station on the Via Dolorosa of environmental destruction. It is symbolic of our failure to put the long-term prospects of the natural world and the people it supports above immediate self-interest."

GOP Boycotted EPA Head Vote For Lunch With Energy Lobbyists!

GOP Boycotted EPA Head Vote For Lunch With Energy Lobbyists!
"Pathetic dereliction of constitutional duty. That sums it up nicely. Unfortunately, it isn't just limited to the EPA. Republicans are now refusing to approve nominees to the Independent Payment Advisory Board required by the Affordable Care Act. Because doing their duty would be tantamount to - gasp! - approving of Obamacare. Or something."

Deeper Than Deepwater: Shell Plans World's Riskiest Offshore Well | Common Dreams

Deeper Than Deepwater: Shell Plans World's Riskiest Offshore Well | Common Dreams
"Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell announced Wednesday that it will soon begin development of the world's deepest off-shore oil well, in the body of water that is home to the world's largest oil spill—BP's Deepwater Horizon oil disaster of 2010—the Gulf of Mexico."

Dishonesty Of GOP Stall Tactic Exposed In Numbers

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Alarming Ineptitude Revealed In Care Of US Nuclear Arsenal

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7 Dangerous Food Practices Banned in Europe But Just Fine in America | Alternet

7 Dangerous Food Practices Banned in Europe But Just Fine in America | Alternet
"All of which got me thinking about other food-related substances and practices that are banned in Europe but green-lighted here. Turns out there are lots. Aren't you glad you don't live under the Old World regulatory jackboot, where the authorities deny people's freedom to quaff  atrazine-laced drinking water, etc., etc.?"

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse's Climate Change Senate Smack Down

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Doubling Wind Power Could Save Mid-Atlantic Consumers $6.9 Billion A Year

Doubling Wind Power Could Save Mid-Atlantic Consumers $6.9 Billion A Year: Wind power had a banner year in 2012, accounting for more new generating capacity than any other resource. Despite the boom in cheap natural gas, 42 percent of all new capacity last year was actually from wind, which clocked in at 13,131 MW in new installations for the year. The economics for wind power have [...]/p

Ignoring Bee Crisis, EPA Greenlights New 'Highly Toxic' Pesticide | Common Dreams

Ignoring Bee Crisis, EPA Greenlights New 'Highly Toxic' Pesticide | Common Dreams
"Despite new findings that prove a heightened crisis in US bee populations and a recent ban in Europe on similar chemical applications, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hasdecided to further endanger the population Monday by approving a "highly toxic" new pesticide."

Patent Filing Claims Solar Energy ‘Breakthrough’ | Common Dreams

Patent Filing Claims Solar Energy ‘Breakthrough’ | Common Dreams
"In a U.S. patent application, a little-known Maryland inventor claims a stunning solar energy breakthrough that promises to end the planet’s reliance on fossil fuels at a fraction of the current cost – a transformation that also could blunt global warming."

Arctic Ocean Acidification (2013)

Arctic Ocean Acidification (2013) - Full (12 minute) version from AMAP on Vimeo.

Starved of Democracy and the Fight Against Corporate 'Foodopoly' | Common Dreams

Starved of Democracy and the Fight Against Corporate 'Foodopoly' | Common Dreams
"We, the people, must reclaim our democracy. We must reestablish strong antitrust laws to begin the work of fixing our broken, corporate-controlled food system. Our food system should work for consumers and farmers, not big agricultural, processing, retail, and chemical conglomerates."

Hollow Bee Hives May Threaten Our Lives Too | Common Dreams

Hollow Bee Hives May Threaten Our Lives Too | Common Dreams
"You may think that your most significant interaction with bees is trying not to get stung. But, in fact, you have bees to thank for nearly one-third of all food crops: almonds, apples, peaches, honey, and watermelons, to name a few. If our bees are in trouble, then we’re in trouble too."

Hollow Bee Hives May Threaten Our Lives Too | Common Dreams

Hollow Bee Hives May Threaten Our Lives Too | Common Dreams
"You may think that your most significant interaction with bees is trying not to get stung. But, in fact, you have bees to thank for nearly one-third of all food crops: almonds, apples, peaches, honey, and watermelons, to name a few. If our bees are in trouble, then we’re in trouble too."

On Top Of Sea Ice Death Spiral, Ocean Acidification Poised To Radically Alter Arctic

On Top Of Sea Ice Death Spiral, Ocean Acidification Poised To Radically Alter Arctic: The Arctic is the fastest changing place on earth. The most obvious and important change is the staggering loss of sea ice (see “CryoSat-2 Confirms Sea Ice Volume Has Collapsed“). In addition, “the Arctic marine waters are experiencing widespread and rapid ocean acidification,” a new study finds. This first-ever Arctic Ocean Acidification Assessment, commissioned by the Arctic Council’s Arctic Monitoring and Assessment [...]/p

If The Oceans Die - We Die

It’s Official: $1 Invested In EPA Yields $10 In Benefits

It’s Official: $1 Invested In EPA Yields $10 In Benefits: By Gernot Wagner via EDF The Office of Management and Budget is nerd heaven: a bunch of people getting their professional kicks from analyzing federal regulation. This bean counting may sound painfully lacking in glamour, but it’s incredibly important. OMB’s annual report to Congress on the benefits and costs of all major rules adopted by [...]/p

Parity Time: Large-Scale Solar Power Plants Now Cost Effective in Oregon

Parity Time: Large-Scale Solar Power Plants Now Cost Effective in Oregon: By Chris Robertson The Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association has just published a major new peer-reviewed study, Vision to Integrate Solar in Oregon (VISOR). Bonneville Environmental Foundation was the principal sponsor of this work by Chris Robertson & Associates. The VISOR report can be found here. The key findings are that: Large scale PV power plants [...]/p

Buzz! Buzz! Silence | Common Dreams

Buzz! Buzz! Silence | Common Dreams
"Results of a new survey released Tuesday paint another dire picture of the population of bees in the United States.
Nearly a third of managed honey bee colonies were lost this past winter, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Bee Informed Partnership and the Apiary Inspectors of America (AIA) found, a 42% increase in loss over the previous winter."

Progressive Groups Pull Ads From Facebook Over Zuckerberg's Keystone XL Agenda | Common Dreams

Progressive Groups Pull Ads From Facebook Over Zuckerberg's Keystone XL Agenda | Common Dreams
"A group of progressive organizations announced Tuesday that they will be pulling their ads from Facebook following revelations that its CEO Mark Zuckerberg funded a series of political ads promoting the Keystone XL pipeline, which prompted a social media campaigncalling on Zuckerberg to pull his oil-friendly TV spots."

99 One-Liners Rebutting Denier Talking Points — With Links To The Full Climate Science

99 One-Liners Rebutting Denier Talking Points — With Links To The Full Climate Science: Those arguments have been repeated so many times by the fossil-fuel-funded disinformation campaign that almost everyone has heard them — and that means you’ll have to deal with them in almost any setting, from a public talk to a dinner [...]/p

Tribes In Ecuador Will Fight Rainforest Auction

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Big Agribusiness Is Tricking You Into Buying Cruelly Raised Eggs. Here’s How That Might Change.

Big Agribusiness Is Tricking You Into Buying Cruelly Raised Eggs. Here’s How That Might Change.: Everyone has seen labels on the eggs they buy in grocery stores like “organic” or “free-range.” What most people don’t know is that these loosely defined labels are often fig leaves that cover for the brutal abuse of animals. But a new lawsuit by animal advocates may have changed all that, pressuring the Food and [...]/p

GM Aims To Cut Chevy Volt Cost By $10,000 — While Making It Profitable

GM Aims To Cut Chevy Volt Cost By $10,000 — While Making It Profitable: By Nicholas Brown via CleanTechnica I have been following the electrification of vehicles closely since about 2008. I kept wishing that researchers would develop improved battery technology for electric vehicles, and I’ve seen it happen many times. The development of lithium-ion battery technology really is on a roll. There is now a major discovery multiple times [...]/p

Green On-The-Go: A Portable Solar-Powered Electrical Outlet

Green On-The-Go: A Portable Solar-Powered Electrical Outlet: Mother Nature Network just flagged a fun diversion in the solar technology world: the Window Socket. It’s a portable solar charger, roughly the size of a hockey puck, which uses a suction cup to attach to any available window. It also has a standard electrical plug — though right now it’s only the European standard [...]/p

Michael Pollan: How the Processed Food Industry Undermines Healthy Food Culture | Alternet

Michael Pollan: How the Processed Food Industry Undermines Healthy Food Culture | Alternet
"The home cooked family meal presents a threat to big food companies."

House GOP Prepares Fast-Track for Keystone XL | Common Dreams

House GOP Prepares Fast-Track for Keystone XL | Common Dreams
"This month, the Republican-dominated House of Representatives will vote on, and likely approve, a measure that bypasses White House approval of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, fast-tracking construction of the controversial project."

Climate Change's 'Evil Twin' to Harm for '10s of 1000s of Years' | Common Dreams

Climate Change's 'Evil Twin' to Harm for '10s of 1000s of Years' | Common Dreams
"The rapidly acidifying Arctic Ocean caused by absorbing the world's CO2 emissions have pushed us beyond "critical thresholds," with widespread impacts to be felt for "tens of thousands of years" even if we stopped emissions, say scientists."

Into The Valley Of Death Rode The 600, Into The Valley Of 400 PPM Road The 7 Billion

Into The Valley Of Death Rode The 600, Into The Valley Of 400 PPM Road The 7 Billion: “Forward, the Light Brigade!” Was there a man dismay’d ? Not tho’ the soldier knew Some one had blunder’d: Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do & die, Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. – “The Charge Of The Light Brigade,” Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1854 [...]/p

New Mexico State University’s Next President May Be A Climate Science Denier

New Mexico State University’s Next President May Be A Climate Science Denier: by Brad Johnson, campaign manager for Forecast the Facts On Monday at 4 pm, the New Mexico Board of Regents is prepared to hold a public vote to choose the next president of New Mexico State University (NMSU), the major land-grant institution in Las Cruces, NM. One of the top candidates is Garrey Carruthers, a [...]/p

Environmental Ignorance Is Economic Bliss | Common Dreams

Environmental Ignorance Is Economic Bliss | Common Dreams
"Economics departments must be compelled to integrate ecological considerations into their courses. Professors, department heads, and deans will not voluntarily take action. For decades now, limits-to-growth theorists have been following the Quaker dictum by “speaking truth to power.” Unfortunately, the neoclassical economics discipline and its gatekeepers are either deaf or not listening."

NASA Projects Carbon Pollution Impact: ‘Some Regions Outside The Tropics May Have No Rainfall At All’

NASA Projects Carbon Pollution Impact: ‘Some Regions Outside The Tropics May Have No Rainfall At All’: In September, NOAA put together a video showing how climate change means wet areas get wetter and dry gets drier. Now NASA has a video of their own with similar findings. Here is a screen-shot (NASA didn’t make the video embeddable): Model simulations spanning 140 years [video here] show that warming from carbon dioxide will change [...]/p

Killer Air: Study Links Pollution to Heart Disease, Stroke | Common Dreams

Killer Air: Study Links Pollution to Heart Disease, Stroke | Common Dreams
"A new study which appears in the April issue of PLoS Medicine found that long-term exposure to air pollution similarly suffocates our primary arteries, a condition linked to increased instances of both heart disease and stroke."

A Fracking Pipeline in Manhattan?! | Alternet

A Fracking Pipeline in Manhattan?! | Alternet
"Safety concerns are predictably grave."

New GMO Labeling Bill Will Be the Ultimate Test Between the Will of the People Versus the Greed and Power of the Biotech Industry

New GMO Labeling Bill Will Be the Ultimate Test Between the Will of the People Versus the Greed and Power of the Biotech Industry
"In an exciting move in Washington, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) together have sponsored new federal legislation that requires the labeling of all genetically engineered food in the U.S. The Genetically Engineered Food Right-to-Know Act is the first national labeling bill to be introduced in Congress since 2010. U.S. citizens have demonstrated overwhelming support to label GMO foods in this country."

North Carolina Republicans Push Through Anti-Renewable Energy Bill in 'Banana Republic' Vote

North Carolina Republicans Push Through Anti-Renewable Energy Bill in 'Banana Republic' Vote
"Democrats in North Carolina say they could have defeated a bill to repeal renewable energy subsidies on Wednesday if Republicans had not pushed it through committee without counting the votes."

Big Oil Profits—and Tax Breaks—Remain High Despite Sequestration Cuts

Big Oil Profits—and Tax Breaks—Remain High Despite Sequestration Cuts: Despite the severe budget cuts facing many middle-class programs, the five biggest oil companies continue to rake in tens of billions of dollars in profits, while still receiving unnecessary and wasteful tax breaks. Middle-class families have gotten some relief at the pump this spring due to declining gasoline prices. AAA reported that U.S. drivers paid [...]/p

Fukushima: A Dire SOS Message

Fukushima: A Dire SOS Message
"Since the Fukushima nuclear disaster first began back in March of 2011, there have been near-daily updates on the condition of that stricken plant, updates which have been getting worse and worse, painting a very dire scene at the Dai-ichi nuclear power plant."

FDA Finally Reviewing Controversial Ingredient In Soap After 40 Years Of Procrastination

FDA Finally Reviewing Controversial Ingredient In Soap After 40 Years Of Procrastination: In 1972, Congress passed a law requiring the U.S. Food and Drug Administration set guidelines for anti-bacterial chemicals commonly used in soap. In a tentative draft published in 1978, the FDA identified one such chemical, triclosan, as potentially dangerous. Yet 35 years later, the FDA still has not finalized those guidelines, and triclosan has become [...]/p

‘Banana Republic’ In North Carolina: GOP Committee Chair ‘Approves’ Bill To Gut Clean Energy Without Counting Votes

‘Banana Republic’ In North Carolina: GOP Committee Chair ‘Approves’ Bill To Gut Clean Energy Without Counting Votes: The ALEC-sponsored bill to gut North Carolina’s clean energy standard failed last week in one House committee. But as the Charlotte Observer reports, last night it passed a Senate committee over shouted objections to do something most people take for granted in a democracy — counting votes to see which side has more. Over the [...]/p

Illinois Ranks As Worst Rogue Coal State: Strip Mine Permit To Serial Violator Stuns Residents | Alternet

Illinois Ranks As Worst Rogue Coal State: Strip Mine Permit To Serial Violator Stuns Residents | Alternet
"With state coal production soaring against national trends, Illinois cemented its reputation as the worst rogue state for coal operations last Friday, when the rubber-stamping operations of the state's EPA issued a pollutant discharge permit to a company already cited by the state for over 600 toxic discharge violations at its central Illinois non-union strip mine.

Translation: Imagine the Department of Motor Vehicles renewing the driver's license of a toxic-laden truck driver with 600 DUI's."

Another Government Is Necessary: The People Can Rule Better Than the Elites

Another Government Is Necessary: The People Can Rule Better Than the Elites
"More people are taking action in their communities to meet their basic needs because of government corruption at all levels that protects the status quo when urgent change is needed. People are moving on many fronts to challenge the system and create the world they want to see."

Report: Toxic Chemicals Found in Thousands of Children's Products | Common Dreams

Report: Toxic Chemicals Found in Thousands of Children's Products | Common Dreams
"Walmart alone reported a total of 459 instances of products containing chemicals including arsenic, cadmium, phthalates, bisphenol A (BPA), and mercury."

May 1 News: North Carolina Legislators Still Trying To Gut Clean Energy Laws

May 1 News: North Carolina Legislators Still Trying To Gut Clean Energy Laws: The North Carolina bill trying to repeal the state’s successful clean energy standard that died in the sponsor’s committee is back from the dead. [News & Observer] Meet the bill with nine lives – and twice as many votes cast against it. Lawmakers on Wednesday could once again attempt to end a state renewables policy [...]/p

PERRspectives: Republican Bills Declare Numbers, Science Enemy Combatants

PERRspectives: Republican Bills Declare Numbers, Science Enemy Combatants
"But while climate change denier Lamar Smith wants the GOP to intervene in scientific research, his Republican colleague from South Carolina wants the U.S. Census Business out of the business of measuring the American economy"

'Huge Win': California Committee Votes to Halt Fracking | Common Dreams

'Huge Win': California Committee Votes to Halt Fracking | Common Dreams
"Californians gained a key victory in the fight to protect the state's water and air Monday when three bills that halt the practice of fracking won votes in the Assembly Natural Resources Committee."

Facebook Rejects Ad Highlighting Zuckerberg Group’s Support For Keystone XL

Facebook Rejects Ad Highlighting Zuckerberg Group’s Support For Keystone XL: When a subsidiary of Mark Zuckerberg’s new political group started airing ads for expanded oil drilling and the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, CREDO Action decided to post an ad of their own calling Zuckerberg out — on Facebook. This morning, Facebook rejected CREDO’s Facebook ad (pictured right). According to CREDO Action, Facebook initially [...]/p

BP Posts $4.2 Billion In Q1 Profits As Its Chemical Dispersants Continue To Harm The Gulf

BP Posts $4.2 Billion In Q1 Profits As Its Chemical Dispersants Continue To Harm The Gulf: BP announced its 2013 first-quarter profits this morning, reporting earnings of $4.2 billion — down 10 percent from this time last year but higher than analysts’ forecasts. Here are some key facts about BP’s profits: The company is sitting on nearly $28 billion in cash reserves. In the first three months of 2013, BP spent [...]/p

Climate Change Is An Existential Threat To Humanity, Just Don’t Mention Protecting ‘The Environment’

Climate Change Is An Existential Threat To Humanity, Just Don’t Mention Protecting ‘The Environment’: A recent study found that some conservatives would not choose an efficient lightbulb with an environmental message, even when they would choose the same bulb without the message. The Atlantic Cities details this cognitive dissonance: The study then presented participants with a real-world choice: With a fixed amount of money in their wallet, respondents had [...]/p

Republican Tries to Bend Science to Anti-Science Agenda