Water


DOJ, Calif. Agencies File Against Greka Oil & Gas Inc. for Oil Spills

Alleging that the company violated federal and state water laws, The United States, the California Department of Fish and Game and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Coast Region, filed a civil complaint in federal court against Greka Oil & Gas Inc. (now known as HVI Cat Canyon Inc.).

Can We Balance Air Conditioning, Saving Energy?

For the hot summer months, some government-mandated incentive programs are aimed at getting us to buy more efficient air conditioners to save energy and money. However, a recent study explains why, even if we buy the more efficient devices, the plan won’t necessarily work.

Boeing 747-8 Freighter Arrives at Paris After Historic Biofuel Flight (With Video)

The Boeing 747-8 Freighter landed at Paris Le Bourget Airport after completing the first transatlantic flight of a large commercial airplane powered on all engines by a sustainable aviation jet fuel.

Report: Forest Density, Carbon Storage Capacity Increase Worldwide

Forests in many regions are becoming larger carbon sinks thanks to higher density, U.S. and European researchers say in a new report.

Even Green Energy Wind Farms are Bigger in Texas

Texas has a global reputation for being home to major oil and natural gas fields, but the winds of change have brought a new energy player to the Lone Star State: wind energy.

Natural Gas Taxis Heading to Los Angeles and Chicago

Two taxicab companies in Los Angeles area order nearly 120 Ford Transit Connect Taxis to operate on compressed natural gas, and 12 CNG-powered Transit Connect Taxis hit the streets of Chicago.

Expert: Shutting Down U.S. Nuclear Plants Would Have Daunting Effect on Economy, Environment

Shifting from nuclear to other types of power plants could affect the reliability of the electricity supply, electricity costs, air pollution, carbon emissions, and the reliance on fossil fuels like coal and natural gas, the researchers said.

Scientists Seek to Adapt Crops to Climate Change

Throughout history, farmers have adopted new crop varieties and adjusted their practices in tune with environmental change. But as global temperature continues to rise, the pace of change is expected to be unprecedented, and experts are now warning that climate change could trigger a global food crisis as farmers struggle to keep up.



Biobased Chemicals: Fact or Fiction?

While biobased industrial performance chemicals have been around for awhile, manufacturers have made great strides in the past decade in improving their effectiveness.

Virginia Tech Wins EcoCAR Competition With an ExtendedRange Electric Vehicle

Students from Virginia Tech University learned last night that their teamwork, perseverance and hard work have led to top honors when they were named the overall winners of EcoCAR: The NeXt Challenge after designing and building an exceptional extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) using E85 (ethanol).

Fly Larvae Used to Remove Organic Waste on an Industrial Scale

the 20 million larvae of the plant are able to ingest a ton of waste per day, showing that this technology is much more effective and faster than other conventional techniques of traditional composting and vermicomposting, which removes the residue with earthworms.

Google Earth Reveals the Behavior of Marine Life on the Great Barrier Reef

While most of us could find no better use for Google Earth than checking out a holiday destination, scientists in Sydney have shown it can reveal a lot about the behavior of marine life on the Great Barrier Reef.

Turning Hot Air into Energy Savings

A team of students from the Bourns College of Engineering at the University of California, Riverside, have been selected for a $15,000 EPA grant to develop a system that could cut electricity bills up to 16 percent by using heat from the sun and attic to operate a clothes dryer.

Wacky "The Toxies" Awards Tackle Serious Issue with Red Carpet Performance (With Video)

Red carpet events are common in Tinsel Town, but none quite like “The Toxies,” where costumed characters – actors hired to be toxic chemicals – emerge from limousines to walk down the proverbial red carpet to receive “awards” for the harm they are doing to the American public.

Major Flooding on Miss. River Likely to Cause Large Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone

Gulf of Mexico's hypoxic zone is predicted to be larger than average this year, due to extreme flooding of the Mississippi River this spring, according to an annual forecast by a team of NOAA-supported scientists.

RGGI Auction Yields Maine $769k to Invest in Energy-Efficiency, Renewable Energy

Maine yielded $769,092 of the $25.5 million in investment created by the proceeds from the 10-state cap-and-trade collaborative’s 12th auction of carbon credits. That money will be managed by the Efficiency Maine Trust to fund programs to improve energy efficiency, accelerate the deployment of renewable energy technologies, and provide direct assistance to energy consumers.

Coal-Fired Calif. Power Plant Approved to Convert to Biomass Fuels

DTE Energy Services Inc. recently received approval from the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District to convert an existing coal-fired power plant at the Port of Stockton to operate on biomass fuel.

Human Activities Release More Carbon Dioxide than Volcanic Eruptions Do

On average, human activities put out in just three to five days the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide that volcanoes produce globally each year according to a new article in Eos, from the American Geophysical Union.

Invasive Zebra Mussels Continue Trek Inland in Pa. Waterways

Boaters and anglers are being asked to take steps to prevent the further spread of zebra mussels after the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection discovered the nuisance species in Conneaut Lake.

New Biofuel Sustainability Assessment Tool and Greenhouse Gas Calculator Released

Researchers at Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, have together with their colleagues at the Swiss Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) and the HTW Berlin, Germany, developed an online tool to assess the sustainability of biofuel production.