Editor's Take: July 21, 2008
Credit: futureatlas.com, flickr
At an Energy Crossroads
Whether the idea is drilling for crude in ANWR or California or building wind farms in Eastern Washington, people and politicians are seeking answers to big energy questions. With rising gas prices impacting not only our choice of transportation but also the availability of food and other necessities, the question remains: will we stick to oil or turn to new energy solutions?
Editor's Top Picks
Your editor today is Rob Priewe | View All Today's News
Northwest's Wind Power Could Quadruple
Oregonian
07/21/2008
Utilities and independent developers are poised to more than quadruple the amount of wind power in the Northwest, a huge increase that underscores the region's push for renewable energy.
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ANWR Still Off Limits to Drilling
Anchorage Daily News
07/20/2008
For weeks, nearly every time President Bush has spoken about energy, he has re-emphasized his support for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And as gas prices continue to climb and promises of relief are repeated, polls have shown that people who once refused to consider drilling offshore or in ANWR have begun to change their minds.
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A Costly Trip from Farm to Market in Seattle
Seattle Times
07/19/2008
A portable floodlight replaced the sun as workers at Alvarez Farms threw boxes of potatoes and green beans onto their shoulders and loaded a delivery truck. Loading the truck was the last task of the day in readying the food for its 180-mile journey to Seattle farmers markets, a drive that has become an increasing burden because of record fuel costs. But it is an expense necessary for the farm's survival.
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Wolves Again Have Federal Protection
Boise Idaho Statesman
07/19/2008
The wolf is back on the endangered species list. U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy granted a preliminary injunction late Friday that will put wolves in the Northern Rockies back under federal government management. That decision also means Idaho, Montana and Wyoming will have no wolf hunting seasons this fall.
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Will We Stick to Our Newfound Frugality?
Seattle Times
07/21/2008
Adrienne Radtke plans to keep riding her bike to work even if gas prices drop. Steve Pizzini got rid of his Cadillac Escalade in favor of a 16-year-old Acura and doesn't expect to have another gas-guzzler. Every economic downturn changes shoppers in some way. But this time experts say the new behavior fueled by higher gas and food prices, tightening credit and a slumping housing ,market, are the most dramatic they have seen in decades.
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Whose Rain Is It Anyway?
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
07/21/2008
On a nonprofit Woodinville farm devoted to sustainable practices, rain hits a green shed roof covered in a carpet of herbs and moss. Drops run down a chain into four weathered barrels, draining to a small pond ringed by cherry trees, huckleberry bushes and native plants. There's just one problem. Technically, rain that falls on your roof isn't yours for the taking. It's a resource of the state.
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Report Details Climate Change Effects on W. Montana
Missoulian
07/21/2008
Western Montanans need only to step outside to experience hotter temperatures, shrinking snowpacks, warmer streams and larger wildfires, but climate change can still be a complicated global issue. In a new report, the nonprofit Clark Fork Coalition tries to make climate change understandable at the local level - and to prompt policymakers and residents to take action.
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Soaring Food Prices Felt Around the Globe
San Francisco Chronicle
07/20/2008
People around the world are experiencing sticker shock at the grocery store, the result of runaway economic forces that show no signs of abating. Here in the United States, the price of eggs jumped 29 percent last year. Dairy products are up more than 7 percent. And the price of corn has tripled in the past four years. It's even worse worldwide.
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Yukon Flats Villages Oppose Drilling
Anchorage Daily News
07/21/2008
The new generators in the remote Yukon Flats village shut down every night at 10:30 as a way to save fuel. The electric blackout ends in the morning, before caribou meat and other frozen goods begin to thaw. Times are getting harder in Arctic Village, where diesel fuel arrives by air tanker and retails for $8.50 a gallon. But soaring fuel costs haven't softened opposition here and in other Yukon Flats villages to oil drilling in their own region.
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Katha Pollitt: McCain on Contraception
The Nation
07/21/2008
John McCain was called out last week for his vote against a bill that would have required plans to cover birth control if they covered prescription medications for men like Viagra. But he didn't remember the vote and had little response. The fact is, for over twenty years John McCain has voted against contraception every time it came up. What does a McCain presidency mean for women's health -- and pocketbooks? And why aren't the media covering the question?
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