The Panther’s Last Stand

You may recognize the Florida panthers as the ferocius cat flashing its teeth on pro hockey T-shirts sold in sporting goods stores, or peering from one of the Sunshine State’s hottest selling specialty license plates. Its cash-register-ringing popularity belies and irony: The Florida panther is perhaps the world’s most endangered carnivore, with only about 70 surviving in the wild, including the young. Down from the days when a panther scalp brought a $5 bounty from cattlemen tired of the cats killing calves, almost everyone now wants the save the panther. But can they?

One Man’s Junk

Under the looming shadow of the 1990 Clean Air Act and the threat whooping federal fines if they don’t reduce pollution, states are taking a hard look at a symbol of the bad old days–smoke-belching 1960s and 70s cars. But getting the clunkers off the road is no simple matter.

Attack of the Feral Pigs

In December, 1992, the adventure-loving chairperson of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Alex Pacheco, and staffer David Barnes helicoptered into the lush Pelekunu Valley on the Hawaii island of Molokai, a largely untamed sliver of paradise 40 miles long and nine miles wide. Pacheco and Barnes planned to camp out for several weeks on its remote Pelenuku Preserve. Their purpose, however, was not to bask in the midday sun or engage in leisurely bird watching.

Electropolis

From his office on the 22nd floor of a black tower north of Times Square, S. David Freeman, the new president of the New York Power Authority (NYPA), can see why he isn’t yet famous for solar power in the Big Apple. A cloud canopy hangs over New Jersey, hiding everything beyond the pewter-colored Hudson River. Higher overcast has blurred the sun into a vague lantern with a soft bulb. The people on the sidewalks carry umbrellas, no doubt convinced that solar power belongs in pocket calculators and California, where Freeman did indeed become famous as the general manager of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), which has a field of photovoltic panels beside its defunct nuclear power plant. But he’s hardly deterred by gray weather.

Trouble in Paradise

All around the world, islands have become the troubled hot spots of the global eco-crisis. There’s turmoil beyond the sandy beaches and palm trees – environmental devastation, economic upheaval and endangered animal populations.

Flower Power

Since flowers and plants are, at their roots, products of nature, conscientious consumers tend to consider them a dependably green buy. Why wouldn’t a floral shop purchase be environmentally benign? After all, florists deal in the currency of nature, sending bits and pieces of it home with flower lovers in arrangements, wreaths, garlands, potted plants and more.

Ice Screams for Ben and Jerry

This column, I have decided, is my application to be CEO of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream corporation. First, my political credentials: I spent seven years as editor of "Greenpeace Magazine." For retail experience, I have to dig a little deeper, but I did spend a summer flipping chesseburgers at Yellowstone Park. It was a growth experience.

A Fighting Chance for Salmon

In 1991, only four sockeye salmon returned to their native waters in Idaho to spawn. In 1992, only one made it back. That solitary and no doubt exhausted salmon might be happy to learn about a major court victory that he and his brethren have just won. A judge in Portland, Oregon, has ruled that the federal government’s operation of hydroelectric dams of Idaho’s Snake River violates the Endangered Species Act. Idaho Governor Cecil D. Andrus and his stat government allies hailed the decision as similar to the early spotted owl cases that overturned the federal government’s timber practices, and plan to use Judge Malcom Marsh’s decision to win future courtroom victories for the region’s salmon.

Our Island Home

There are two Arubas. One is a shining island jewel of white sand and blue-green surf in the Dutch Caribbean, a casino-driven magnet for American tourists, American hotel chains and every conceivable fast-food restaurant, from McDonald’s to Dunkin Donuts.

Eco Parenting: Walking the Thin Green Line

My two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Natalie loves to "wash the dishes," which is to say that she stands at the sink, holds a container under running water until it overflows and the empties it. She repeats this procedure over and over, inevitable getting soaked and spilling water all over the kitchen floor. When I finally tell her it’s time to stop, her disappointment is so acute that the tears seem to stream down her face with almost as much forces as the water coming out of the faucet.

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