Environment

New Yorkers Rally to Urge Gov. Cuomo to Reject Fracking

The future of New York's water supplies and the health of its millions of citizens hang in the balance as Governor Andrew Cuomo decides whether to end the state's moratorium on new wells to drill for "natural" gas through the controversial industrial process of hydraulic fracturing or "fracking." Activists estimated that over two thousand concerned citizens joined the march in Albany Monday to try to persuade Cuomo not to lift the moratorium -- statewide or in some counties -- a decision expected to be announced some time after Labor Day.

Approval of New Chemical-Resistant GMOs Likely to Prompt Pesticide Escalation

A decade and a half after farmers began planting the first genetically engineered (GE) crops, the future is clear. The scientists who pioneered genetic engineering thought of themselves as environmentalists, creating products that could reduce pesticide use. Instead, they have simply perpetuated the same "pesticide treadmill" as their pesticide-peddling counterparts resulting in the application of a greater volume of ever more toxic pesticides.

Monsanto’s Quiet Coup: Will Congress Limit Scope and Time for GMO Reviews?

Monsanto skullAfter a series of court defeats over the past few years, Monsanto and friends are trying to use Congress to make an end-run around the courts and current law. Lawsuits brought by opponents of genetically engineered (GE) crops resulted in the temporary removal of two products -- Roundup Ready Alfalfa and Roundup Ready Sugarbeets -- from the market. If the biotechnology industry and the legislators they support have their way, future GE crops will not suffer the same fate.

Tar Heel Lawmakers Put Global Warming on Hold! (or, a Rising Tide Lifts No Votes)

Potential harm from sea level rise in North CarolinaIn a backward leap of anti-Copernican proportions, North Carolina's state legislature recently passed what may be the nation's first state-wide global warming denial legislation.

The legislature on July 2 effectively nullified the state's own science panel's report predicting a 20 to 55-inch rise in sea level. The statehouse also commanded scientists to wait until July 1, 2016, to make their next report (and only after it is approved/scrubbed by the powers that be).

New Film Hammers Democrat Andrew Cuomo's Plan to Frack New York

Gasland director Josh Fox released a short film last month targeting the Democratic governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, for his plan to open economically distressed parts of the state to hydraulic fracturing or "fracking." The 18-minute film skewers Cuomo for his plans and exposes oil and gas industry internal documents which detail that some of corporations also have concerns about well safety and water contamination.

WTO Not So COOL: Rules Against Popular U.S. Meat Labeling Law

The World Trade Organization (WTO) issued a final ruling today against the U.S. country-of-origin labeling (COOL) law. This popular pro-consumer policy, which informs shoppers where meat and other foods were raised or grown, enjoys the support of 93% of Americans, according to a 2010 Consumers Union poll. Now Congress must gut or change the law to avoid the application of punitive trade sanctions.

Farm Bill Passes U.S. Senate

Farm Bill CartoonThe farm bill S. 3240, passed the U.S. Senate on June 21. The bill, which is renewed approximately every five years, dictates congressional spending on not only farm issues such as crop subsidies, but nutritional programs like food stamps and the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP), and conservation programs. Total spending controlled by this one bill is in the billions of dollars each year. In 2010, farm bill spending amounted to $96.3 billion, according to the Environmental Working Group.

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