Blasting off mountaintops to reach coal in Appalachia or churning out millions of tons of carbon dioxide to extract oil from sand in Alberta are among environmentalists' biggest industrial irritants. But they are also legal and lucrative. For a growing number of banks, however, that does not seem to matter. After years of legal entanglements
By TOM ZELLER Jr.; 20100831
CITY ROOM; Sustaining The Forest, Maintaining A Bridge
There are 11,000 tropical wood planks in the Brooklyn Bridge boardwalk, and millions of feet and wheels tread on them every year. Eventually, the boards wear out and must be replaced. Currently, the city uses similar tropical hardwoods, though under pressure from rain-forest advocates, it has begun to test alternative materials. But a Manhattan
By CATE DOTY; 20100825
EDITORIAL; A Destructive Epidemic
Since its discovery in a New York State cave in 2006, the fungus called Geomyces destructans has killed about a million cave-dwelling bats of several different species, including the most common Northeastern species, the little brown bat. A new study, published in Science last week, concludes that little brown bats are likely to be extinct within
Date: 20100810
Despite Industry Skepticism, South Korea and China Are Said to Plan Trade Talks
BEIJING -- South Korea and China are likely to open free-trade talks next year, South Korea's ambassador to China said in an interview published on Thursday. The negotiations could be a first step toward a three-nation trade zone with Japan and would rival the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement in size. In an interview with
By MICHAEL WINES and CHOE SANG-HUN; 20100806
OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR; The Senate's Important Lunch Date
Washington WITH federal child nutrition programs due to expire Sept. 30, the Senate should approve reauthorization legislation this week, before the monthlong Congressional recess. The bill was unanimously approved by the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee in March, and it has no significant opposition. It has simply been a victim
By RICHARD G. LUGAR; 20100804
WORLD BRIEFING | AFRICA; Morocco: Commission Discusses Lifting Commercial Whaling Ban
The International Whaling Commission on Monday began what promises to be a contentious, high-stakes meeting in Morocco on whether to maintain a 24-year-old moratorium on commercial whaling in the face of pressure from Japan, Norway and Iceland to permit the hunt. Representatives of the convention's 88 member governments gathered behind closed doors
By DAVID JOLLY; 20100622
Uncertainty Buffets Japan's Whaling Fleet
AYUKAWAHAMA, Japan -- This small harbor on Japan's northern coast, where whaling boats sit docked with harpoon guns proudly displayed, and shops sell carvings made from the ivorylike teeth of sperm whales, might seem to be an unlikely place to find opponents of the nation's contested Antarctic whaling. Yet, local residents are breaking long-held
By MARTIN FACKLER; 20100516
Obama Administration Aims to Push Candy and Sugary Drinks Out of Schools
The Obama administration will begin a drive this week to expel Pepsi, French fries and Snickers bars from schools in hopes of reducing the number of children who get fat during their school years. In legislation, soon to be introduced, candy and sugary beverages would be banned and many schools would be required to offer more nutritious fare. To
By GARDINER HARRIS; 20100208
Senate Study Blames Lax Rules for Suspect Deals and Money Transfers
A suitcase containing $1 million in shrink-wrapped bills, hand-carried into New York by the former president of Gabon for his daughter to buy a Manhattan apartment. Purchases of a stretch Hummer H2 armored limousine and C-130 Hercules military transport planes for a civil war in Angola. And a shell company named Sweet Pink used to funnel millions
By LYNNLEY BROWNING; Bernie Becker contributed reporting.; 20100204
DEAL SEEN NEAR FOR PAYMENTS TO SAVE FORESTS
Negotiators have all but completed a sweeping deal that would compensate countries for preserving forests, and in some cases, other natural landscapes like peat soils, swamps and fields that play a crucial role in curbing climate change. Environmental groups have long advocated such a compensation program because forests are efficient absorbers of
By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL; John M. Broder contributed reporting.; 20091216
