Everyone at Lake Tahoe is hoping that history—or at least a very specific historical fact—will repeat itself. Tahoe—a 23-mile-long, 12-mile wide, nearly 1,600-foot-deep lake nestled in the Sierra Nevada—regained its lost clarity after most of the surrounding forests were clear cut in the 1800s and erosion was rampant. That’s particularly good news now, considering that […]
Putting Grounds in the Ground? Starbucks sells more than 10 million cups of coffee worldwide every week, according to spokeswoman Helen Chung. That much coffee leaves an awful lot of grounds to dispose of, and so it was heartening to learn that the manager of a Starbucks in Freehold, New Jersey was, at least for […]
In the case of coffee production, the old ways are the best ways. Traditionally, coffee is grown in the shade of tropical overstory trees, which enrich the soil and reduce the need for chemical fertilizers. The practice preserves forest habitat for migratory songbirds, and is friendly to organic production. But by 1990, more than half […]
“Most people don't realize that there are caribou in the lower 48 states,” says wildlife biologist Tim Layser, “and that they are the most endangered population of large mammals in the country. Once spread throughout the West, they all disappeared within a single lifetime.” In an attempt to save the species, a cooperative effort between […]
Damning the Dams North America's native freshwater species—the fish, mussels, crayfish, frogs, snails and other animals that live in rivers and streams—are going extinct as fast as species that live in tropical rainforests. And dams are mostly to blame. That's the message of a recent report, America's Most Endangered Rivers of 2000, released by the […]
Discovering the Great Outdoors With L.L. Bean
Environmental Groups Profit From "Stranded" Inventory The Green Widget Company (GWC) was in a quandary: Acme Widget Supply had executed a purchase order for $200,000 worth of recycled Widgets in a unique sea foam color, then promptly went out of business. GWC was sitting on inventory it couldn't sell, and it was spending money every […]
Give Your Swimming Pool–and Your Utility Bills–an Energy-Smart Makeover Six million American homes have swimming pools, which provide a cool alternative to the blazing heat of summer months and a refreshing excuse to put off that lawn work just a little bit longer. Unfortunately, the effort it takes to blow up those rafts isn't the […]
Meat Irradiation Gets the Green Light, But is It Safe? Would you eat a fast-food burger that had been “nuked”—exposed to nuclear radiation in order to kill pathogens such as salmonella? Maybe you just did. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the green light to the irradiation of beef and other meat […]
Calamari pizza, blackened tuna caesar salad, shrimp puttanesca—whatever your seafood craving, the nation’s restaurants are likely to have it. New and exotic seafood combinations are popping up on menus across the country and Americans are getting hooked. According to the National Fisheries Institute, we spend about $50 billion on fish and shellfish a year, consuming […]
