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Column – The True Cost of Earth Day

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By Bart King The first Earth Day, held on April 22, 1970, rallied 20 million Americans, who believed the environment wasn’t receiving the attention it deserved in national politics. It gave a single voice to numerous grass roots movements protesting oil spills, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides and loss of wilderness. The success of that event led to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species acts. Better industrial practices have lessened the direct environmental threats to communities across the United States and abroad. But the overall condition of the planet has worsened since 1970, as its human population has nearly doubled to 6.8 billion people. Natural resources like fresh water and tropical forests are dwindling, and it’s becoming more difficult to hide our waste, much of which is plastic and will be around long after our children—and theirs—have lived through a fair share of Earth Days. But after nearly forty years, saving the Earth is finally at or near the forefront of American politics, pushed there by growing awareness of global climate change and a national energy policy that leans too heavily on imported oil and other limited fossil […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup: April 15, 2009

U.S. Government Accelerates its Purchase of Fuel-Efficient Vehicles DOE Launches Commercial Real Estate Energy Alliance AIA Names Top 10 Green Buildings for 2009 FERC, Interior Dept Sign Offshore Renewable Energy Agreement U.S. Wind Industry Increases Employment 70% in One Year Mercedes-Benz Offers Hybrid with Lithium-Ion Battery at $12K Premium EIA Expects Gasoline Prices to Rise Moderately by Summer U.S. Government Accelerates its Purchase of Fuel-Efficient Vehicles President Obama announced last week that the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) will buy about 17,600 new, fuel-efficient vehicles from U.S. auto companies by June 1. The purchase will draw on funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and will be on an accelerated schedule to help support U.S. automakers. The GSA will spend $285 million to purchase vehicles from General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford. The purchase includes 2,500 hybrid sedans – the largest one-time purchase of hybrids for the federal government to date – and each new vehicle will yield at least a 10% fuel economy improvement over the vehicle it replaces. The GSA will also spend $15 million by the end of September to purchase a pilot fleet of advanced-technology vehicles, including all-electric vehicles, hybrid buses, and buses that run on […]

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