Climate Politics
All Stories
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Grateful Lakes
In a move that pleased environmentalists but irked industry, the U.S. Congress voted yesterday to ban new oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes for two years. The measure, which was part of a $24.6 billion federal energy and water bill, was passed overwhelmingly in both chambers despite President Bush’s recent calls to tap […]
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Green Gobblin'
The environment has been a defining issue in New Jersey’s gubernatorial race, where Democrat James McGreevey and Republican Bret Schundler are vying to lead the nation’s most densely populated state. McGreevey, who says eight years of Republican control by former governor and current U.S. EPA head Christie Whitman were bad for the state’s environment, is […]
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A Friend of the Devil Is a Friend of Mines
An announcement by the Bush administration yesterday that it would repeal a Clinton-era mining regulation pleased industry leaders but angered environmentalists. The regulation, which applies to hard-rock minerals such as gold, silver, and copper, allows the Interior secretary to veto new mines on federal lands if they threaten the well-being of communities or the environment. […]
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Ranger Rearranger
Federal wildlife agents and rangers — the folks who protect U.S. public lands from poaching, endangered species smuggling, illegal off-road activity, and other no-nos — were in short supply long before Sept. 11. But now their ranks are even thinner, after scores of agents were re-assigned to serve as sky marshals or guard federal buildings […]
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Sog Story
Mexico City’s new airport will be built on a soggy former lake bed east of the city, federal officials announced this week. Environmentalists are angry about the decision, saying it will endanger the geese, ducks, and other birds that nest on the lake bed. The airport is also furthering tension between conservative President Vicente Fox, […]
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Murky Outcome
In a decision that could have serious implications for the environment, U.S. Sen. Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) announced this week that he will run for governor of his home state next year. Murkowski, a former banker, has been a senator for 21 years and is the ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. […]
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Story of the Morrill
A consumer activist and political organizer hopes to be Pennsylvania’s next governor — and its first Green one. Michael Morrill of West Reading announced yesterday that he will run for the state’s top office in 2002 as the Green Party candidate, on a platform that includes tougher protections for the environment, an $11 per hour […]
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Illegal Eagles
Federal species protection laws and the religious rights of Native Americans are clashing in a U.S. District Court in Seattle this week, where a 47-year-old man is on trial for violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Terry Antoine, a member of the Cowichan band of the Salish Tribe in British Columbia, is charged […]
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L.A. Confidential
Environmental injustice appears to be alive and well in Los Angeles County, according to a study released today by the University of California at Los Angeles, which found that neighborhoods near major pollution sources are disproportionately low-income and Latino. Latinos make up 44 percent of the county population but 60 percent of residents living near […]
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Ninth Circuit of Hell
Environmentalists asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday to lift an injunction against a rule that seeks to ban logging and road-building on one-third of national forest lands. The rule, which was enacted by former President Clinton and would apply to 58.5 million acres of federal forests, was appealed by the state of […]
