Climate Energy

Half of all geothermal energy is left over from birth of solar system, say scientists

Well, hello there, enormous quantities of heat that's just beneath our feet and could potentially be tapped to provide enormous amounts of base-load electricity! Where'd YOU come from? The birth of the planet, you say? No sh*t!

Using this gigantic underground, water-filled neutrino detector, scientists have finally gotten a better idea of exactly where the Earth's heat comes from:

Keystone XL pipeline would screw over farmers, threaten aquifer

The Keystone XL tar-sands pipeline, which would cut through family farms and aquifers, is leak-prone and won't come with a solid cleanup strategy.

Ain’t no mountain high enough: Taking down Massey Coal

An effective combination of civil disobedience and legal reform is actually taking shape in the fight against mountaintop-removal mining and Massey.

House votes against energy-saving lightbulbs

The House passed an amendment that prohibits spending to enforce lighting efficiency standards established by 2007's energy law.

Most of the U.S. could be energy self-sufficient

With a little development elbow grease, we could be in pretty good shape for the day the energy apocalypse comes and states have to split into small self-reliant compounds. The majority of U.S. states -- 31 of the 50 -- could be completely self-sufficient with locally-produced renewable energy, according to a report from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. In fact, most states could produce many times more energy than they need. They've got South Dakota down as having the potential to produce 32,431 percent of its energy usage! (There's also a bigger map and an interactive map that is actually not all that interactive as far as I can tell.) 

Mark Ruffalo on fracking: ‘Gas is a bridge to nowhere’ [VIDEO]

The actor, activist, and frack-fighter spoke with Keith Olbermann Wednesday about how the gas industry is "the dirtiest, slimiest, most arrogant, and negligent that you can imagine."

Will North America be the new Middle East?

All Obama has to do is say yes or no to the climate-killing Keystone XL pipeline.

When is it time to break up with your utility?

Boulder ends its franchise agreement with Xcel Energy and looks into independent, renewable options instead.

So much for GOP's lightbulb bill

Whether they decided they had more important things to worry about than saving the inefficient lightbulb, or whether they were scared of enraging the ghost of Thomas Edison, House members put the kibosh on a bill that would have repealed lightbulb efficiency standards.

Coal company: 'Birth defects aren't from mining, they're because you're inbred hicks'

Babies born in areas with mountaintop-removal mining have higher rates of birth defects -- we know that from a study that came out last month. But, say coal companies, that doesn't mean the mining CAUSES the birth defects! They could easily be caused by something else -- like, say, rampant inbreeding.