Home / treehugger.com rss archive / September-23-2007


Let Bygones Be Bygones Already, for the Environments Sake!
Image credit Face2Face poster project.Due to security issues, the date has not been released yet, but we are happy to announce that Middle East environmentalists are putting political pet peeves aside to focus on one goal: preserving the environment. Israeli scientists will join those from 13 other Middle East countries in Turkey in December for a third series of precedent-setting conferences, Israel21c reports. Called Malta III, the five-day UNESCO-sponsored event will take place in Istanbul and it is expected to bring out over 75 chemical scientists and seven Nobel laureates. Nations that are planning to take part will include Bahrain, Egypt, I...

How Air Pollution May Cause Heart Disease
We've already told you on several occasions (most recently here and here) of the link scientists have discovered between higher emissions and deteriorating cardiovascular health. A new study from researchers at Northwestern University has now shown how air pollution may cause heart attacks and strokes - by triggering the formation of blood clots. "We now know how the inflammation in the lungs caused by air pollutants leads to death from cardiovascular disease," said Gokhan Mutlu, the study...

Quote of the Day: Craig Damrauer on the the New Math Of Global Warming
Craig Damrauer, author of New Math: Equations for Living (2006, Andrews McMeel Publishing), in a slide show first published in the July/August 2007 issue of Mother Jones...

Could Magnetic Fields Provide a Jolt to Ethanol Production?
It's no secret countries like Brazil, which have grown increasingly reliant on ethanol over the past few years, have been exploring a variety of ways to increase their yields. Genetic engineering of microbes and the conversion of biomass waste into ethanol are but a few of the approaches currently being studied in Brazilian research institutions. A team of researchers now claims to have discovered a novel, highly effective way of boosting production figures: magnetic fields. Though scientists have long investigated the use of magnetic fields to control the growth and differentiation of stem cells, the idea of using them to enhance ba...

Not In My Back Yard, Please: New Nuclear for NC?
Nuclear power is a pretty emotive subject. Perhaps surprisingly, when we asked our readers if nuclear has a place in our energy future, the results seemed to indicate a majority in support of at least some future nuclear capabilities. Yet a recent in-house discussion among TH writers put the majority of us marginally against further reactors, though the results were by no means conclusive. Meanwhile TreeHugger favourite Bill McDonough is all about nuclear reactors, he just thinks that the big yellow fusion-reactor sitting in our...

Dale Vince to Release Domestic Wind Turbine and an Electric Car?
Back in May we interviewed Dale Vince, founder of UK-based energy pioneers Ecotricity. It seems like Dale is in hot demand from the media these days, with an interview also appearing recently in the Telegraph newspaper, in which his discusses his background as a new-age traveller, and reveals some very interesting upcoming projects: He's promising an electric car that "will smash the stereotype of the 30mph Noddy car" and a mini-turbine for cities c...

Food Flight! The Argument Over Flying Organic Food
The Soil Association, the UKs leading organic certification body, has proposed withdrawing the 'organic' label from produce flown into the UK from abroad. So the question emerges, should the practice of air-freighting organic food be stopped? The Guardian provides two opposing answers to the question. The NO comes from Claire Melamed, head of trade and corporate policy at charity Action Aid:The trade of fruit and vegetables from Africa to the UK accounts for only 0.1% of all the UK's emissions. Therefore, banning organic green beans from Kenya or mange tout from Zambia,...

Two Years Ago in TreeHugger: New Prefabs
Everything takes longer than one thinks it will; Two years ago, the Dwell Homes by Empyrian were announced, and we looked forward to seeing Charlie Lazor's flatpak house popping up all over the place. Blueskymod also unveiled its new Todd Saunders designed cabin. Now, two years later we are seeing the Amy Goodwin's flatpak, and the BlueSkyMod people "are working on something big", but have not produced any more models. Such is the way of the modern prefa...

VIDEO from Wild & Scenic Film Festival: Source to Sea
You've still got until September 29th to enter your film in the Wild & Scenic Film Festival and check for the tour in your area. One film on the tour, Source to Sea (US, 2006, Documentary, 90min by Andy Norris, Ralph Davis) follows heroic swimmer Christopher Swain's historical first of swimming all 1243 miles of the Columbia River over a six month period all ...

Car Free Day: Toronto Report
It was anything but; a major highway was closed for repaving and all of the traffic was rerouted, so every street was just clogged with cars. Some streets were closed for car free parties, so there were a lot of angry drivers, but if you were not in a car it was a lot of fun. I pedalled down to Trinity Bellwoods Park, where it was purported that there would be a lot of heavy car free action. ...