Editor's Take: June 25, 2008
Mt. Shuksan / Credit: Peter Zahn
Climate Change and the Wild
As northwesterners plan summer pilgrimages to our wildlands, the folks who manage them grapple with how to address climate change's wide-ranging impacts. Crosscut finishes its provocative transit series. And just in: Supreme Court slashes damages for Valdez victims; paves the way for the long-awaited W.R. Grace trial
on abestos poisoning.
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Elisa Murray | View All Today's News
Experts Say Global Warming, Wildlife Don't Mix
Boise Idaho Statesman
06/25/2008
This week is the first time that resource agencies have brought together the people who will have to manage the refuges, parks, wildlife populations, forests and rangeland. The changing reality of the ecosystems they manage is forcing them to reconsider their priorities and the way they will do their jobs in the future.
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Crosscut Series: How to Do Buses Right
Crosscut
06/25/2008
They aren't the only solution, but they are the most flexible and potentially most attractive solution if they are used well. Bus lines are flexible, scalable, and can touch more people than rail, and they don't have to be a pain to use.
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Oregonians' Needs Rise With Prices
Oregonian
06/25/2008
Skyrocketing food and gas prices forced thousands of Oregonians to seek help from the state or local food banks last month. More than 475,000 Oregonians received food stamp benefits in May, a 7.3 percent jump from May 2007.
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Supreme Court Slashes Exxon Valdez Damages
Fairbanks Daily News Miner
06/25/2008
The Supreme Court today cut the $2.5 billion punitive damages award in the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster to $500 million. Nearly 33,000 Alaskans are in line to share in the award, about $15,000 a person. They would have collected $75,000 each under the $2.5 billion judgment.
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A Cheaper Way to Get Solar Power
San Francisco Chronicle
06/25/2008
UCSF wanted solar power for its new Mission Bay campus but was daunted by the cost. So the school found a new way to go solar - get someone else to pay for it.
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Wolves Finding a Home in Washington?
Wenatchee World
06/25/2008
A state biologist said he believes one or more packs of gray wolves are living in the Methow Valley, and if confirmed, it could be the first resident population of the endangered species in Washington state since before 1930.
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A Grim Look at California's Plant Life
San Francisco Chronicle
06/25/2008
If temperatures rise rapidly in California this century, up to two-thirds of the state's native plants might lose large swaths of suitable habitat, according to a new study. Scientists from UC Berkeley, Duke University and other institutions released maps Tuesday showing how 2,300 plants found only in the state might respond to the effects of global warming.
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Decision Paves Way for W.R. Grace Mega-trial
Missoulian
06/25/2008
The Supreme Court's refusal to hear the W.R. Grace case means there is nowhere else for Grace to appeal. The so-called "mega-trial," which stems from a February 2005 indictment alleging the chemical company knowingly endangered the lives of Libby, Montana, residents and mine workers, could begin in late fall or early winter.
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Rethinking Country Life as Energy Costs Rise
New York Times
06/25/2008
Suddenly, the economics of American suburban life are under assault as skyrocketing energy prices inflate the costs of reaching, heating and cooling homes on the distant edges of metropolitan areas.
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Study: Nation Is Becoming More Tolerant
Oregon Public Broadcasting
06/25/2008
A report out this week on America's religious landscape says people in the U.S. are becoming increasingly tolerant of other religions. The trend holds true here in Oregon where 70 percent of the people surveyed said they believed that religions other than their own could lead to salvation.
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