Category: News

  • Hatchery-Raised Salmon Threatening Wild Salmon in the Pacific Northwest

    This year has had one of the biggest salmon runs of all time for the Pacific Northwest (PNW). There were over 34 million salmon in the British Columbia river system alone, compared to last year’s count of only two million. The problem with this resurgence is that much of the new numbers come from hatchery-raised…

  • Tropical agriculture “double-whammy”: high emissions, low yields

    Food produced in the tropics comes with high carbon emissions and low crop yields, according to a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). In the most comprehensive and detailed study to date looking at carbon emissions versus crop yields, researchers found that food produced in the tropics releases almost…

  • Scott Naturals: Tube-Free Toilet Paper: When It’s Gone It’s Gone

    In the “what will they think of next” category, Scott Paper Company just announced the introduction of a new tube-free toilet paper. The innovation, which is the result of a proprietary winding process, eliminates the cardboard roll that has formed the core of the roll since 1880. According to information from Kimberly Clark, who also…

  • Organic farms better at potato beetle control

    A study suggesting that organic agriculture gives better pest control and larger plants than conventional farming is sure to reignite longstanding debates about the merits of organic versus conventional agriculture. It also highlights an often-neglected aspect of biodiversity. “Organic agriculture promotes more balanced communities of predators,” says David Crowder, author of the new study published…

  • Solar Farms

    How large can a Photo Voltaic (PV) solar farm be? It, of course, depends, on the available land space and the efficiency of the solar cells involved. Sarnia Solar Facility, deemed the world’s largest Photo Voltaic solar power station, has just opened in Canada. Located in Ontario, it has a capacity of 80MW, 20MW above…

  • Crime-Fighting Trees

    Many people already know that city trees are highly desirable to make a neighborhood more attractive. It is common knowledge that shade from trees keeps temperatures on the ground cooler, can help buildings lower their overall energy usage, and their roots absorb storm water runoff efficiently. What people may not be familiar with is that…

  • Grasses Have Potential as Alternate Ethanol Crop, Illinois Study Finds

    Money may not grow on trees, but energy could grow in grass. Researchers at the University of Illinois have completed the first extensive geographic yield and economic analysis of potential bioenergy grass crops in the Midwestern United States.

  • Master Chocolatiers Give Green Chocolate a Boost

    From its chocolate factory in the French Alps, Stephane Bonnat’s family has been nurturing ties with cocoa farmers around the world for over a century, and together they are now driving a green revolution.

  • Climate computer game lets you see how our choices can impact climate

    Ever wondered how one person could save the planet from the effects of climate change? A British-made computer game on trial release on Monday creates different ways of doing just that. ‘Fate of the World’ puts the Earth’s future in players’ hands, placing them in charge of an international environmental body which could save the…

  • Electric Vehicles

    Strangely enough Edison had one of the first electric vehicles and Detroit made them until World War II. Then they died until in the 1990s some electric battery driven cars were recreated as something brand new to the marketplace. Then they withered and were reborn again in the present age of locomotion. Why was this?…