This publication describes the problem of extreme heat and outlines specific, actionable guidance for short-term emergency response and long-term risk reduction. From creating culturally-specific cooling centers, to increasing tree canopy and shade in certain urban areas, to improving protections for workers, the report highlights roles state and local governments, elected …
The US Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday it is seeking public comment on whether to allow a higher level of ethanol to be blended into gasoline. Growth Energy and more than 50 ethanol manufacturers petitioned the EPA last month to raise the maximum blend level for ethanol in gasoline from …
The Obama administration wants to ensure that legislation being crafted by Congress to fight global climate change does not violate international trade rules and backfire on US exports, the top US trade official said in a letter to a Republican lawmaker. The letter from US Trade Representative Ron Kirk, released …
US greenhouse gas emissions rose 1.4 percent in 2007, compared to the previous year, the US Environmental Protection Agency reported on Wednesday. The report also indicates that US emissions of climate-warming gases such as carbon dioxide and methane rose 17.2 percent from 1990 to 2007. The increase in 2007 was …
A US Border Patrol agent who tried to import rare tortoises in a box labelled "scorpions" pleaded guilty on Tuesday to animal-trafficking charges, the Justice Department said. It turns out that scorpions also draw an extra look from federal agents. Rene Soliz faces a maximum one-year sentence and will resign …
A portion of the revenue from any U.S. system capping carbon emissions must go toward softening the impact of higher energy prices on consumers, a White House official said on Wednesday. Joseph Aldy, special assistant to the president for energy and the environment, said building a clean energy economy will …
President Barack Obama will be flexible about climate change legislation moving through Congress, the White House said on Wednesday, indicating some wiggle room on his demand for full auctioning of carbon emissions permits to industry. "The president has asked Congress to send him comprehensive energy legislation that would spur a …
Washington: Scientists claim to have made a major breakthrough which could stop patients rejecting organ transplants, without using immunosuppressants. An international team, led by the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, has in fact discovered a method of adjusting the immune system for just long enough to receive a tissue transplant …
Steps President Barack Obama has taken on climate and clean energy have shown that the United States is getting ready to lead the world in fighting global warming, a White House official said on Tuesday. "The administration is signaling to the rest of the world that the United States is …
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday urged tighter controls on cruise ships and tourists in Antarctica to prevent further environmental damage to the fragile region. Addressing an international meeting on both the Antarctic and the Arctic, Clinton said as tourism increases to Antarctica there must be more regulations …
The Empire State Building is going "green" in a model project that will save about US$4.4 million a year on energy. Completed in 1931, the Art Deco building immortalised in the film "King Kong" has been named by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Seven Wonders …
The United States is ready to take a leading role in tackling climate change, President Barack Obama said on Sunday, receiving a cautious welcome from European Union hosts at talks in the Czech capital Prague. Obama made the commitment at an EU-US summit intended to mend transatlantic ties stretched by …
A consortium of private investors that sought to build high-voltage electricity transmission lines to carry power from renewable sources upstate to New York City said on Friday that it was suspending its efforts. The consortium, New York Regional Interconnect, cited a ruling made on Tuesday by the Federal Energy Regulatory …
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid reached out to industrial-state lawmakers on Tuesday to ease concerns about proposed measures to cut climate-warming carbon emissions. Reid told reporters on Wednesday that the 10 Democratic senators he met with from states heavily dependent on coal were not opposed to a global-warming bill. But …
Trade is collapsing and protectionism is on the rise. Time for the G20 to get going The first task for the leaders of the Group of 20, who will meet in London on April 2nd, will be to do no harm. Don
The Democratic-led U.S. Congress gave final approval on Wednesday to sweeping land and water conservation legislation that environmental groups praised as one of the most significant in U.S. history. The measure, a package of more than 160 bills, would set aside about 2 million acres -- parks, rivers, streams, desert, …
Traffic-related air pollution has been associated with adverse health outcomes, and the immune system may be a biologic mediator of health effects. We analyzed associations between living near major roads and immune status as measured by five immune assays. The researchers hypothesized that living near a freeway, arterial, or truck …