Up on the Roof
Roofs and solar energy can save money and the environment By Mark Harris
Corporate Report Cards
Green Audits Reveal the Environmental Bottom Line, By Pamela J. Gordon
Peace in the Poconos
Poconos Vacation with environmental twist
Embalming Toxins
If laid out head to toe, every person buried last year in the United States would form a line stretching from Los Angeles to New York City. Since Britain’s low-impact "green burial" methods (see "Dust to Dust," Currents, November/December 1998) have yet to catch on in the U.S., most of these bodies are embalmed with […]
The Environmental Tax Shift
Polluters Pay More So You Can Pay Less Nobody loves tax time. Not only does April 15 bury you in a mess of paperwork, it’s a stinging reminder that the government can take your hard-earned dollars and spend them on activities you object to, like urban sprawl and timber sales on public land. While you’re […]
Right as Rain
Homeowners can prevent pollutants from harming surface and groundwater by installing a rain garden, a pond-like recess shaped like a saucer or shallow bowl.
The Fungus Among Us
Mushrooms are a source of mystery, fascination, and even fear. They appear suddenly, and are gone just as quickly. They come in a diverse array of colors and shapes, growing in dark, out-of-the-way places as well as on front lawns. Their usefulness as food and medicine has spawned a legion of mushroom aficionados.
It’s Electric! Two Wheels and a Plug-In Motor Offer Alternative Commuter Transportation
The next time your town is having a "bad air" day, and you glare at your local smoke-spewing power plant, give a thought also to the vehicle in your own driveway. According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, cars, trucks and buses account for more than 50 percent of smog emissions. Car emissions are indirectly […]
Car Busters in Action
In the fall of 1997, anti-car activists from 50 groups in 21 countries converged on Lyon, France, for a conference that was far more than the usual round of speeches. Although there were some relatively sedate workshops, the real action at "Towards Car-Free Cites" was in the streets, with protesters blocking highways, physically moving illegally […]
Getting Out of Gridlock
Thanks to the Highway Lobby, Now We're Stuck in Traffic. How Do We Escape? © Comstock Jerry Nichols, a musician, nurse and beer-brewer who lives in suburban Connecticut, has a long morning commute that can double if traffic is bad. His solution is unique to him: Zen-like detachment. "I simply tune it out," he says. […]