By James R. Dunn Many environmentalists worry that suburban growth is reducing the diversity of wildlife. The Sierra Club’s Carl Pope recently wrote that urban sprawl “fragments landscapes–and fragmented landscapes are the biggest threat to America’s wildlife heritage” (Pope 1999, 6). This claim may be true in California, but it is not supported in NewContinue reading “At Home in the Suburbs”
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The Secret Past of Recycling
Like most people of my generation, I used to believe that recycling began a few decades ago in response to the crisis of energy and environmental degradation (except in the slums of the Third World where it was a means of survival). I had heard of the rag picker, the scavenger at the dump, theContinue reading “The Secret Past of Recycling”
Safe But Sorry
In June, European environmental activists dressed as butterflies protested the possible sale of genetically modified crops. A scientific report had suggested that pollen from such corn could harm caterpillars. Friends of the Earth and Defenders of Wildlife have written President Clinton calling for a ban on so-called “killer corn.” A broad coalition of environmental groups,Continue reading “Safe But Sorry”
Hunting Alligators
Alligators have long been important to Louisianans for their skins (for belts, shoes, boots, luggage, watch bands, etc.), meat (sauce picante, gumbo, sausage, etc.), and, since the advent of nature-based tourism, as a magnet that draws visitors to the swamps. They have played a major role in our culture: We wear them, we eat them,Continue reading “Hunting Alligators”
Voluntary Export Restraints on Automobiles
Now we know what a decade of quotas on Japanese cars cost consumers. In May 1981, with the American auto industry mired in recession, Japanese car makers agreed to limit exports of passenger cars to the United States. This “voluntary export restraint” (VER) program, initially supported by the Reagan administration, allowed only 1.68 million JapaneseContinue reading “Voluntary Export Restraints on Automobiles”
Straw Houses Withstand Huffs And Puffs
An accountant with a Washington State paper mill was the unlikely inspiration for a new process to produce recycled newsprint. Although the engineers said it couldn’t be done, Carl Simpson suggested replacing woodchips with office paper and telephone directories in order to provide the fiber content needed for newsprint. Steilacoom’s Abitibi Consolidated is now theContinue reading “Straw Houses Withstand Huffs And Puffs”
A Trust for Grand Staircase-Escalante
Private land trusts are proliferating around the nation as ways of preserving environmental values. So why not a federal land trust to manage the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah?
Incentives key to improving park service
Bozeman Daily Chronicle August 4, 1999 By Richard Stroup The special corner of God’s country called Yellowstone National Park is constantly in the news — and the news is often bad. We learn that there are too many visitors, too many elk, too many crumbling roads, and not enough money. On July 25 theContinue reading “Incentives key to improving park service”
Water, water everywhere, waiting for a market
Orange County RegisterJuly 18, 1999 CLAY LANDRYCopyright 1999 The Orange County Register THE WRITER: Mr. Landry is a research associate at the political Economy Research Center in Bozeman, Mont., and the author of "Saving Our Streams Through Water Markets: A Practical Guide." Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt called for water markets, conservation and aquifer recharge inContinue reading “Water, water everywhere, waiting for a market”
Banking On Wetlands
The Florida Wetlandsbank is transforming a weed-choked, garbage-strewn tract near Pembroke Pines into a pristine wetland, creating a product in high demand by local developers.