By Becky Striepe •
January 5, 2009
Friends of the Earth’s “New Roads = New Pollution” campaign is calling for President-elect Obama to focus his infrastructure plan on clean endeavors instead of new road construction
[Creative Commons photo by Tobias Pro User]
Pollution from motor vehicles is responsible for 72% of nitrogen oxides and 52% of reactive hydrocarbons (principal components of smog). Cars and trucks are not the only culprits - road construction causes greenhouse gas emissions both during and after the work is done. A Sightline Institute analysis (pdf) found that building 10 miles of new four-lane highway construction is the equivalent of putting 46,700 Hummers on the road, once you account for factors like materials, maintenance, congestion, and new traffic.
By Brenda Keener •
January 4, 2009
I must admit that I was (and still am) a bit nervous about the Obama presidency due to age and experience, but today I discovered something that gives me renewed hope for the future. A new page has been launched on the Change.gov site called Open Government where the American people can ask questions and vote for their stance on all issues, including Energy and Environment.
By Tom Schueneman •
December 31, 2008
Phoenix christened the first 20-mile stretch of its new light rail system on Saturday, the culmination of decades of planning, four years of construction, and $1.4 billion in investment. The opening attracted 150,000 riders in its first two days of operation.
Phoenix is the nation’s fifth most populous metropolis and the biggest U.S. city without a public rail transit system (the city shut down it’s original trolley system 60 years ago). The sprawling metropolitan area has been characterized as “car crazy” and critics suggest ridership will be limited by the areas urban sprawl and grueling summer heat.
By Gavin Hudson •
December 29, 2008
Shibuya Station is one of Japan’s busiest transit hubs. Its futuristic “spaceship” design, by environmentalist and architect Tadao Ando, boasts a number of green features.
Shibuya Station is a vital hub in Tokyo’s transit network, linking trains and subways with bicycles (the station provides a
bicycle parking space), buses and the always heavy Tokyo pedestrian traffic. On the average weekday, the station sees over two million passengers, making it one of the busiest rail stations in Japan.
While July 2008 looked relatively normal in terms of Fourth of July celebrations and hot weather, $4 per gallon gas put a damper on that other summertime staple: the family road trip.
As you might imagine, we had a lot to say about that gas thing… but didn’t take a vacation from covering a wide range of topics.
July 2008
By Nick Chambers •
December 23, 2008
Editor’s note: This week we’re serving up the first ever year end best-of Gas 2.0 series with our most Dugg, most up-voted reddit, most Stumbled, and most viewed stories of 2008. As a special bonus, we’ll finish off the week by handing out the first ever (yet sure to be highly coveted) Gas 2.0 Post of the Year Award.
Ah, reddit. In many ways the cute little bugger is the forgotten genius brother to Digg, and, no matter how hard he tries, his smartness can’t seem to shine above Digg’s trophy-winning varsity jock prowess (if you hung out in the periodical room in high school, you know what I mean). But perhaps this is for the best, because what we’re left with is what civil commentary can look like on the internet when it’s dominated by graduate students, scientists, know-it-alls, and the generally reserved.
And as it turns out, all of those folks enjoy reading Gas 2.0. So, without further adieu:
By Nick Chambers •
December 21, 2008
Editor’s note: Today we inaugurate the first ever best-of Gas 2.0 series with our most Dugg stories of 2008. During the rest of the week look for the most up-voted reddit, most Stumbled, and most viewed stories of year as well. As a special bonus, we’ll finish off the week by handing out the first ever (yet sure to be highly coveted) Gas 2.0 Post of the Year Award.
Ah, Digg. That beautiful beast. There are some who say she even controls the internet as we know it. In her all-knowing and random wisdom, she giveth and she taketh away. Actually, if truth be known, she mostly taketh. Yet when she does giveth, man does she giveth in a huge way. For that we pay her tribute by exposing the loins of her Gas 2.0 grace. Uhhh… ick. Sorry.
So, before I make myself sick, let me present you with a stroll down the Gas 2.0 memory lane.
By Becky Striepe •
December 16, 2008
[Creative Commons photo by Josh Hallett]
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) is $60 million in the hole - double their expected revenue shortfall for 2008. Administrators are talking about raising fares and reducing consumer services to help the transit system cope with the losses.
By Levi Novey •
October 16, 2008
This article is part of EcoWorldly’s week-long spotlight on Politicians You Can Believe In. To read more, subscribe to our RSS feed, or view our posts about politics.
Having initially proposed to make Chile’s offshore waters a whale sanctuary earlier this year, on Wednesday President Michelle Bachelet officially signed the whaling ban into law.
On the previous day, she helped designate a new national park and also announced that six additional protected areas will be created in Chile next year.
She’s setting an excellent example for other world leaders on the conservation front.
Earlier this year, the Phoenix light rail system and the Arizona Republic teamed up to sponsor a contest promoting light rail safety. To attract entries, which were due Sept. 30, they offered this prize: a year’s worth of free travel on the light rail system, which officially opens on Dec. 26.
Well, 500-plus entries are in, and the promotion organizers are now working to select a winner. (Readers of the Arizona Republic’s Website, azcentral.com, will choose their favorites, and the top nominees will be passed along to Metro officials for a final decision.) While the top pick hasn’t been identified yet, though, some of the bottom ones have.
