EarthFix Snippets
Yay us! Check out our Society for Professional Journalists’ Northwest Excellence in Journalism award-winning stories.
Ghost nets keep fishing even after they’re lost. And these nets cost the dungeness crab industry hundreds of thousands in estimated lost revenue every year.
After decades of dreaming and scheming, companies say they’re finally ready to start mining the bottom of the world’s oceans for valuable minerals. Christopher Werth reports from London on one company’s plans, how environmental scientists view the prospect of digging up the sea floor, and how Howard Hughes and the CIA helped pave the way.
Interesting look at the ‘water footprint’ (vs ‘carbon footprint’) of energy projects.
The water footprint could become as important as the carbon footprint in years to come.
There needs to be robust and open debate on the merits of expanding the export terminals. These terminals, which serve as a gateway to Asia, have been an important part of the regional economy for more than a century. Debate over the terminals should be grounded in scientific facts and analysis. Well-established scientific approaches should be used to evaluate any potential environmental and human-health impacts.
Scientific assessments such as the one being conducted by the Army Corps of Engineers should provide clarity and context for decisions by public officials. Science-based assessments should also identify any constraints needed to assure protection of the environment and public health. The public at large should encourage and, indeed, demand such assessments.
Until such assessments are completed, it is plainly irresponsible to release exaggerated claims and mislead the public and regulators about the impact of transporting coal through the Northwest.
Roger O. McClellan, an expert on toxicology and human health-risk analysis, is former chairman of the National Research Council Committee on Toxicology, past Chairman of EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, and a member of the Institute of Medicine. This is an excerpt from an op-ed piece he wrote for the Seattle Times.
Learn more about the Northwest coal export proposals at EarthFix.
The EPA wants to hear from the public about their plan to clean up Seattle’s Duwamish superfund site.
Geek out on our videos documenting the Elwha River restoration and dam removal process.
Which fish will get to recolonize the Elwha River in the biggest U.S. dam removal projects? The complex debate over wild and hatchery fish.
- What A Golf Course Could Mean For Washington’s Groundwater
- Ore. Bill Requires Wave Energy Companies To Remove Equipment
- Report: Feds Planning To Drop Wolves’ Legal Protections
- Ending Year-End Checks For Green Energy Surpluses
- Washington State Pressed To Save Honey Bees By Restricting Pesticides
- Talking Columbia River Treaty
- Court Tosses Agreement Over Rare Forest Species
- Why It’s Getting Harder To Deal With Droughts And Floods
- Northwest Growers Worry About Antibiotic Ban
- Carbon Controversy: Should The Northwest Grow Markets For Forest Biofuels?
An interesting piece from a project called “Facing Climate Change.”
