Editor's Take: November 20, 2009
Steve Rhodes, Flickr.
Showing the Way to Universal Care
The most succinct, appealing argument for health-care reform I've seen comes from Nicholas Kristof at the New York Times at the end of his recent column. Reform supporters point to the success of universal care in San Francisco as yet another model for the US overhaul. And if you're looking for a climate-news immersion, check out The Nation’s "Zero Hour for Climate Action."
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Lisa Stiffler | View All Today's News
San Francisco's health care a model
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
11/20/2009
San Francisco did not wait for Washington's health care overhaul. Most uninsured adults here are already reaping the benefits of a government-run health care program -- seeing doctors, filling prescriptions, and getting surgeries they could not otherwise afford.
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Oregon tree farmers invest in the majestic redwood
Ashland Daily Tidings
11/19/2009
Oregon tree farmers are planting at least 20,000 coastal redwood trees a year in Lane and Douglas counties. They're driven less the awe the big trees inspire in many people, than by the best return on their investment in 30 or 40 years, when the trees are harvested.
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Biologists rush to save fish after landslide
Seattle Times
11/20/2009
A gigantic landslide that buried a highway, uprooted homes and rerouted a river in Washington state's Cascade Range left hundreds of smaller victims: fish. Fisheries biologists from 10 government agencies and private groups are working shifts to try to save the salmon and trout.
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'Under-insured' growing as fast as uninsured
KPLU
11/19/2009
The trend of people no longer being able to afford health insurance has been getting worse, Washington officials say. A new state study predicts the number of people here without insurance will hit 1 million by the end of 2011.
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US companies making carbon cuts
San Francisco Chronicle
11/19/2009
A survey of 90 big US companies found that most were addressing climate change, either by cutting energy use, measuring greenhouse gas emissions, adopting policies to cut emissions, or pushing for federal legislation to do the same.
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Forests fight climate change on two fronts
Oregon Public Broadcasting
11/19/2009
And at a hearing on Capitol Hill, forest officials and lawmakers discussed ways that federal forestland could help combat climate change on at least two fronts.
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Views: US health-reform foes on wrong side of history
Seattle Times
11/19/2009
Why is it broadly accepted that elderly Americans should have universal health care, while it's immensely controversial to seek universal coverage for children? What's the difference, asks Nicholas Kristof, except that health care for children is far cheaper?
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Wage confusion delays weatherization program
Olympian
11/19/2009
Washington's home-weatherization efforts have fallen at least two months behind goals set under the federal stimulus aid, the result of a mix-up over conflicting wage requirements under federal and state laws.
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Oregon wolves again star in video -- with pups
Oregonian
11/20/2009
They walk in single file -- black- and gray-coated wolves gliding through a snowy open forest in eastern Oregon. The remarkable video, captured last week by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, is further evidence that wolves are re-establishing themselves here.
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RV park tenants face eviction from affordable housing
Oregonian
11/19/2009
A pastoral campground on the banks of the Columbia River has for decades provided about 60 low-income residents with a clean, cheap, and safe place to live in an Oregon county with a dearth of decent affordable housing. But regulators say it's operating illegally and the long-term tenants must go.
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Editor's Take: November 19, 2009
austrini, Flickr.
Cash for Caulkers
If environment's your passion, pick up a New York Times today for its special "Business of Green" section delving into renewable power, the US Chamber of Commerce climate debate and more. Also check out the NYT's "cash for caulkers" piece that digs into the need for widespread home energy efficiency upgrades, highlighting some of the challenges, which we've tried to answer at Sightline.
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Lisa Stiffler | View All Today's News
'Cash for Caulkers' home weatherization program
New York Times
11/18/2009
The economy still needs help. So White House officials are looking at creating a new version of cash for clunkers -- this time for home weatherization. Call it "cash for caulkers."
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Oregon entrepreneurs see profits in carbon market
Oregon Public Broadcasting
11/18/2009
Many hope the Copenhagen summit will set up a global carbon trading market, along the lines of what's now being established in California. In Oregon, some entrepreneurs see a public good -- and private gain -- in these markets.
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California rejects energy-hungry TVs
Los Angeles Times
11/18/2009
California moved to crack down on the sale of energy-gobbling big-screen television sets that now account for about 10 percent of a typical household's monthly power bill.
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Seas absorbing less carbon
New York Times
11/18/2009
The Earth's oceans, which have absorbed carbon dioxide from fuel emissions since the dawn of the industrial era, have recently grown less efficient at sopping it up, new research suggests.
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BC First Nation approves private property rights
CBC BC
11/18/2009
A northwestern BC First Nation has approved a revolutionary land reform deal, making it the first in Canada to approve private property rights.
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Infuriated mom: Why can't I protect my body?
Seattle Post Globe
11/18/2009
Kim Radtke of Seattle was pregnant with her now nearly three-week-old son when tests detected in her blood 11 chemicals, including mercury.
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A bridge over rising waters
Oregonian
11/19/2009
December is the big season for Willamette River cruises on the Portland Spirit, but that's also the big season for heavy rains. The ship's owners worry that the deluge will be so sudden and so great -- courtesy of global warming -- that the river will rise too high for the Spirit to pass under bridges.
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Idaho Power's cloud seeding efforts
Boise Idaho Statesman
11/19/2009
Idaho Power Co. is investing up to $1 million to seed the clouds above Idaho's mountains in hopes of increasing the snowpack that holds the water that will drive the hydroelectric turbines to produce the cheapest power the company can get.
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Defending science: the disease of denialism
Seattle Times
11/18/2009
Fear is as infectious as any virus, and gives many Americans a warped view of the dangers posed by vaccines, genetically engineered crops and other beneficial technologies, New Yorker writer Michael Specter said in Seattle Tuesday.
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Push on to turn BC pet cemetery into park
CBC BC
11/18/2009
The only pet cemetery in Vancouver could eventually disappear under a developer's bulldozer, but some pet lovers are trying to have the property turned into a park.
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Editor's Take: November 18, 2009
mikebaird, flickr
Kids and Chemicals
A baby boom here at Sightline led to our new blog series Sustainababy: Growing up Green. Today's news gives parents a lot to consider: a local study found it's impossible for pregnant women to avoid toxins, physicians are detailing the health hazards from coal-fired power plants and there's still lead in toys, despite laws to eradicate it.
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Jennifer Langston | View All Today's News
Physicians detail health hazards from coal
Oregonian
11/18/2009
A new report from the advocacy group Physicians for Social Responsibility concludes that pollutants from coal-fired power plants contribute to four of the five leading causes of mortality in the US: heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory diseases. Coal plants still provide about 40 percent of the electricity used in OR and nearly 20 percent in WA.
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Study shows toxins present at birth
KUOW
11/17/2009
Pregnant women are often extra careful to avoid toxic products, like certain plastics and chemicals in household cleaners. But a new study of West Coast mothers shows those efforts only go so far. Babies are born already exposed to toxins linked to serious health problems.
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Vancouver endorses plan light on parks
Vancouver Sun
11/18/2009
Vancouver's city council has unanimously endorsed a plan to create a high-density neighbourhood with a civic plaza, residential and office space on the final undeveloped section of the former Expo lands. What it doesn't include is the 2.75 acres of park space per 1,000 people that city council holds as a goal.
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Senate to put off climate bill until spring
Wall Street Journal
11/17/2009
Senate Democratic leaders said Tuesday they would put off debate on a big climate-change bill until spring, in a sign of weakening political will to tackle a long-term environmental issue at a time of high unemployment and economic uncertainty.
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Paying more for flights eases guilt, not emissions
New York Times
11/17/2009
One of the first travel companies to offer airline customers the option of buying so-called carbon offsets to counter theit planet-warming emissions has canceled the program. While it might help travelers feel virtuous, the offsets were not helping to reduce global emissions and might even encourage people to travel more.
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Pot polluters in Oregon
New West
11/17/2009
It's no secret there are a number of Oregonians who enjoy smoking marijuana. And while that may be the case, there are millions in the West who don't enjoy having their water polluted to produce the plant.
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520 plan would add second Montlake drawbridge
KPLU
11/17/2009
There's a potential milestone in the decades-long search for a replacement for the SR-520 bridge over Lake Washington, but a coalition of Seattle neighborhoods is vowing to torpedo it. A proposal approved Tuesday calls for widening the freeway and adding a second drawbridge in Montlake.
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Failing septic systems vs. OR planning laws
Ashland Daily Tidings
11/17/2009
A smelly and potentially dangerous problem with failing septic systems in Jackson County, OR, soon could be resolved for up to 1,603 rural property owners, with a blanket exception to state planning goals that make it difficult to provide sewer service outside urban areas.
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Health group finds high lead levels in toys
Seattle Times
11/17/2009
Children's toys carrying the Barbie and Disney logos have turned up with high levels of lead in them, according to a California-based advocacy group - a finding that may give consumers pause as they shop for the holiday season.
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A Q&A with Al Gore
Seattle Times
11/17/2009
On a book tour in Seattle, former Vice President Al Gore weighs in on the Copenhagen climate summit, Obama's efforts so far, the prospects for US legislation, pseudo-science and garden-variety denial.
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Editor's Take: November 17, 2009
neighborhood notes pdx, flickr
Seeking Creative Approaches
Plenty of today's news reads "down in the dumps," with talk of increasing hunger rates, high unemployment, lack of affordable health insurance, and toxic chemicals in our air and food. Some promising decisions exist though, as Hillsboro, OR crafts a creative land-use policy, an Idaho company explores renewable car features, and San Francisco bicyclists test out technology for quicker rides.
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Christina Claassen | View All Today's News
Pigs in the city? Hillsboro's creative compromise
Oregonian
11/17/2009
The City Council expects to approve a plan Tuesday night to annex island properties into the city in order to streamline services and save money.
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Boise company's solar charger may save gas
Boise Idaho Statesman
11/17/2009
Treasure Valley Solar is marketing a way to keep electronic devices revved up in the car without turning on the engine.
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San Francisco cyclists get techie
San Francisco Chronicle
11/17/2009
If you see bicyclists wobbling through the city streets with an iPhone in hand, don't assume they're playing Bejeweled or IMing their virtual pals while they pedal.
They may be using Cycle Tracks, the San Francisco County Transportation Authority's new - and first - application for the Apple iPhone.
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Paying extra for green power, getting ads instead
New York Times
11/17/2009
Close to a million electricity customers have signed up for voluntary "green power" payments, and the amount of electricity sold in this way has nearly tripled since 2005, amid rising concern about climate change and energy security. But the participants are in a distinct minority, with a sign-up rate of only about 2 percent in programs run by utilities.
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Is 'cash for clunker appliances' coming to Seattle?
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
11/17/2009
If you were hoping to buy a new, energy-efficient dishwasher or fridge with a federal rebate by Christmas, you're out of luck.
Cash for clunker appliances - officially known as the US Department of Energy's state energy efficient appliance rebate program - won't be available in Washington until February of next year.
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Oregon's unemployed giving up looking for work
Oregonian
11/17/2009
It's tempting to present the flattening of Oregon's unemployment rate - at 11.3 percent in October - as good news. But economists, dismal scientists to the core, paint a negative picture.
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Premature-birth rate low in Washington
Seattle Times
11/17/2009
Premature-birth rates in the Pacific Northwest are among the lowest in the nation, but the March of Dimes says that earns Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska only C's on the organization's premature-birth report card.
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Judge won't consider White House salmon plan
Oregonian
11/16/2009
The federal judge overseeing the balancing act between salmon and Columbia Basin dams says he doesn't think he can consider new steps the Obama administration wants to take.
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Seattle's other mega-project: 520 bridge
KPLU
11/17/2009
A replacement for downtown Seattle's viaduct has been getting a lot of attention - but there's an equally challenging state highway project that crosses Lake Washington. The question is how to replace the aging Route-520 bridge. A committee is supposed to vote today on which option to recommend to the legislature.
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Views: Losing the public on climate change
Yale environment 360
11/16/2009
Even as the climate science becomes more definitive, polls show that public concern in the United States about global warming has been declining. What will it take to rally Americans behind the need to take strong action on cutting carbon emissions?
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Editor's Take: November 16, 2009
margolove, flickr
Reading the Tree Leaves
Today's story on monitoring pollution in tree leaves is the kind we like at Sightline Daily - it draws thoughtful connections between healthy air, bicycling, buses, the natural world and urban design. Other good reads today include this account of jellyfish expanding their reach and a profile of the Whole Earth Catalog founder turned "eco-pragmatist."
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Jennifer Langston | View All Today's News
Reading the tree leaves
Toronto Globe and Mail
11/15/2009
Riding his bike to work at Western Washington University, geophysicist Bernie Housen used to wonder how unhealthy it was to be breathing in all those exhaust fumes. Thanks to the tree leaves along his route, he now has proof that his concerns were well founded, in a remarkable piece of research that could one day lead urban planners to consult the trees on where bike or walking paths should be located.
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Jellyfish swarm northward in warming world
Seattle Times
11/16/2009
Scientists believe climate change and the warming of the ocean has allowed some of the almost 2,000 jellyfish species to expand their ranges, appear earlier in the year and increase overall numbers, upending fishing practices and terrorizing beachgoers around the globe.
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Chefs serve salmon with a message
Anchorage Daily News
11/15/2009
Chefs at more than a dozen Seattle restaurants are serving salmon dishes with a message on the side - a warning that the creature's future could be threatened by a giant gold and copper mine proposed for Bristol Bay in southwest Alaska, home to the world's largest sockeye salmon runs.
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So you want a green career?
Los Angeles Times
11/15/2009
Although the recession has emptied shopping malls and filled jobless centers, the call has only gotten louder for renewable energy, environmentally gentle products and eco-friendly practices - and for people to make all of that happen. The giant push has even created job opportunities for those with little or no experience.
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To serve (food) and protect (the soil)
Missoulian
11/15/2009
The call for local food is loud and growing. At the same time in Missoula, some of the land that produces those vegetables, that meat, is more valuable once it's been developed. Now three local forces are at work on that problem that's led to the incremental loss of agricultural lands.
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Pacific garbage patch threatens birds, boats
USA Today
11/15/2009
Charles Moore has spent most of the past decade sailing through the Pacific. He could regale you with stories of sublime open-water majesty. Just not anytime soon. "It's a swirling plastic cesspool," says Moore of an area called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, where he became mired in it during a 1997 sailing expedition.
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Riding out the recession
Spokesman Review
11/15/2009
It wasn't long ago that the Spokane Transit Authority was riding high, but the worst economic recession in generations has brought a new reality. Cuts in service are likely over the next several years, though some urge the agency to look beyond the recession and get ready for conversion to a "green" economy.
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Innovator and writer looks ahead
San Francisco Chronicle
11/15/2009
The founder of the Whole Earth Catalog lives on a tugboat with shrubbery on top and solar panels in front of the steering wheel. And yet he makes no apologies to the cow he just washed down with a frosty cup of ice cream. Stewart Brand's new book, "Whole Earth Discipline," thrusts him in the middle of the global climate debate, and not in an easily digestible way.
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Views: OR governor defends green tax breaks
Oregonian
11/15/2009
The growth in Oregon's renewable energy sector was not by accident - it was by design and the result of public policies that encourage new companies to move here and thrive here, writes OR governor Ted Kulongoski.
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Views: No such thing as free parking
Salem Statesman Journal
11/16/2009
Parking vexes more people than practically any other common issue. That's true around schools, businesses, neighborhoods and downtowns, evidenced by dozens of readers who weighed in on whehter Salem, OR should install parking meters downtown.
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