Global Warming Solutions

Rally Supports Clean Cars for Illinois

gws — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 14:41:23 +0000

Supporters of the Illinois Clean Cars Act turned out yesterday for a rally in downtown Chicago backing the bill. The Environmental Law & Policy Center is a key sponsor of Clean Cars Illinois, the grassroots campaign advocating for the legislation. House Bill 3424 would save $8.4 billion in the cost of gas, resulting in increased spending in Illinois and over 90,000 new jobs. The legislation would require the state to adopt the same clean-car standards in place in California, which would reduce emissions here. Fuel-efficient vehicles also would improve air quality and public health, including asthma and allergies. Learn more about the clean car legislation in Breathing Free in Illinois [pdf file] a report published recently by ELPC. Read more about the rally in coverage from the Chicago Tribune.

Learn more about how you can help at CleanCarsIllinois.org.

Recycle Those Campaign Signs!

fgaines — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 19:06:39 +0000

A record number of voters participated in this week’s history-making presidential election. So what do we do with all those campaign signs we put up? Don’t throw them away-recycle them. Recycling instead of manufacturing all that paper uses 60% less energy, and thus reduces global warming pollution, too.

Europe Looks Forward to Working with Obama on Global Warming

fgaines — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 18:58:14 +0000

European leaders are eagerly anticipating working with the new Obama Administration on a variety of issues. Given that a successor to the Kyoto Protocol is due to be signed in Copenhagen at the end of 2009, global warming is one of the top items on Europe’s “to do” list with our nation’s newly-elected 44th president.

California Voters Approve High Speed Rail Project

fgaines — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 18:56:38 +0000

Two years ago, ELPC and our allies persuaded elected officials in Illinois to increase annual funding for Amtrak enough to permit a significant expansion of the daily schedule. Ridership soared about 80% in the first year, and almost 20% in the second. Similar results occurred in California several years ago when that state invested in expanding its daily schedule. The momentum of that ridership surge reached its climax yesterday as California approved a massive high-speed rail project planned to whisk people the 400 miles between San Francisco and Los Angeles in just 2-1/2 hours, at a top speed of 220 mph.

New South Dakota Wind Farm to Generate All Power for Two Universities

fgaines — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 18:54:49 +0000

The University of South Dakota and South Dakota State University are the Midwest’s first such institutions to obtain all of their power from renewable energy, thanks to a new 51-megawatt wind farm that became operational last month. Construction on the 34-turbine wind farm began early this year.

See How a Pumpkin Can Help Fight Global Warming!

fgaines — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:20:06 +0000

Last week, we reported on organic candy. Continuing in the Halloween vein, we now present a stencil you can use to help your pumpkin spread the word about the threat of global warming. The plight of Arctic polar bears will be seen as never before when your neighborhood’s trick-or-treaters, and their parents, stop by.

Arctic Ice Continues Melting Quickly—In Winter

fgaines — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:18:39 +0000

This Fall, for the second straight year, the once-fictitious Northwest Passage opened again as Arctic ice continued its surprisingly rapid melting. In the past, such melting at least halted during wintertime, but new research suggests this is no longer the case. While air temperatures remain cold enough for the ice to remain solid, warmer waters underneath the ice are literally causing melting from the bottom up.

Thoreau Journals from 1850s Document New England Plants Before Global Warming

fgaines — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:17:09 +0000

Henry David Thoreau’s writings have been read, re-read, and analyzed for a century and a half. But now another set of works by the famous philosopher is drawing keen attention. In the 1850s, Thoreau kept precise records documenting when 500 different plants flowered. A comparison of today’s timetables with those of Thoreau reveals that plants bloom a full week earlier than they did in his time.

Nation’s Largest Wind Farm Planned for North Dakota

fgaines — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:51:23 +0000

Today, the nation’s largest wind farm is a facility generating 736 megawatts of power in Texas. North Dakota could earn those bragging rights as early as 2010, if a proposed 1,000 megawatt wind farm is constructed as planned. North Dakota’s Public Service Commission recently accepted a letter of intent from the company planning to construct the facility.

Coal Plants are Iowa’s Biggest Global Warming Pollution Sources

fgaines — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 19:51:55 +0000

A recent report written for Iowa Governor Culver’s Climate Change Advisory Council shows that nine of the state’s top ten global warming polluters are coal plants. The Advisory Council is charged with recommending strategies by the end of the year to reduce such pollution. The report is certain to spark debate within the Council on the amount of coal-fired power in Iowa’s future.