By Erum Salam, The Guardian Property owners dumped 15,000 tons of sand in a Massachusetts town to fend off dangerous tides, but it was swept away in 72 hours. A sand dune that cost homeowners on a Massachusetts beach more than half a million dollars to construct has washed away …
Legal action could end use of toxic sewage sludge on US crops as fertilizer
By Tom Perkins, The Guardian Intent to sue federal regulators charges they have failed to address dangerous levels of PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ known to be in sludge New legal action could put an end to the practice of spreading toxic sewage sludge on US cropland as a cheap alternative to fertilizer, and …
Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon down 30% in February
By Reuters SAO PAULO, March 8 (Reuters) – Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest fell 30% in February from a year earlier, government data showed on Friday, as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s government worked toward a pledge to end illegal deforestation by 2030. According to preliminary satellite data from …
Earth’s Fountain of Life Is Vanishing Beneath Our Feet
By Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics With each passing year, the world’s groundwater reserves shrink. Groundwater aquifers provide vital freshwater to homes, farms, and industries, but decades of mismanagement and political action are draining this resource around the world. A new study from an international team of scientists concluded that depleted …
In Wyoming, Sheep May Safely Graze Under Solar Panels in One of the State’s First “Agrivoltaic” Projects
By Jake Bolster, Inside Climate News The elevated photovoltaic panels can actually improve grazing conditions, a novelty that could help make solar projects more land-efficient and accepted in the ranching-heavy state. Converse County is one of the most welcoming areas in Wyoming when it comes to clean energy. For roughly …
Radical Sustainability Experimentation in Tourism Highlights Challenges, Opportunities
By Joanna Haugen, Sustainable Brands “We don’t need everyone to do it perfectly to change the world; we just need double-digit percentages from a heck of a lot of buy-in.” — Natural Habitat Adventures’ Court Whelan In responding to the climate crisis, companies have committed to a wide range of …
With Limited Resources, One Small Town Plans for Climate Change
By Claire Carlson, The Daily Yonder Among rural communities, Grants Pass, Oregon, has notched an unlikely win: a sustainability plan. But lack of dedicated staff and resources to secure federal grant funds threaten its success. One of the most iconic landmarks in downtown Grants Pass, Oregon, is a 100-year-old sign …
The First Car-Free Community Built From Scratch in the US is About to Take Off: ‘For Some, Cars Equal Freedom, but for Me, It’s a Restriction’
By Robert English, The Cool Down “Freedom is being able to just simply walk out and access places.” In the small town just a light-rail trip away from downtown Phoenix, residents of a place called Culdesac in Arizona are one of the first non-urban communities in the U.S. to boast a walkable, car-free …
Parisians Vote in Favour of Tripling Parking Costs for SUVs
By Angelique Chrisafis, The Guardian The referendum comes as the city aims to reduce emissions by targeting wealthy drivers in large, polluting cars. Parisians have voted to triple parking costs for sports utility vehicles (SUVs), as the city aims to tackle air pollution and climate breakdown by targeting rich drivers in heavy, …
FEMA Will Pay States to Install Solar Panels and Heat Pumps
By Justine Calma, The Verge Deploying solar panels can make communities more resilient to the consequences of climate change. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced today that it’ll start reimbursing local governments for installing solar panels and more efficient appliances after a disaster strikes. The move can help communities prepare for another calamity …