Environmental Thread

[Cherub]

Thought I'd create a thread to put all the different topics on the environment

So, I'll start with this one



Study: Humans Drove Final Nail into Mammoth Coffin
Clara Moskowitz (cmoskowitz@imaginova.com)
LiveScience Staff Writer
LiveScience.com (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/byline/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=10sog4vj6/*http://www.livescience.com) Tue Apr 1, 1:15 PM ET

Humans may have struck the final blow that killed the woolly-mammoth, but climate change seems to have played a major part in setting up the end-game, according to a new study.

Though mammoth populations declined severely around 12,000 years ago, they didn't completely disappear until around 3,600 years ago. Scientists have long debated what finally drove the furry beasts (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=11taeokts/*http://www.livescience.com/animals/070927_mammoth_hair.html) over the edge. Researchers led by David Nogues-Bravo of the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Spain used models of the climate, as well as models of woolly-mammoth and human populations, to study the relative importance of various factors leading to the mammals' demise.
The team found that the brunt of the damage done to mammoths was due to Earth's warming weather (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=11vrj69jf/*http://www.livescience.com/environment/050330_earth_tilt.html) around 8,000 to 6,000 years ago. Since Earth was coming out of a glacial period at that time, temperatures were climbing and recasting the planet's landscape, and the mammoth's preferred habitat, steppe tundra, was vastly reduced.
The researchers calculated the temperature window in which mammoths can survive by matching known fossil specimens with climate models. They determined the temperature at the time each mammoth specimen lived and combined the data to get an overall picture of the animals' preferred climate range.
The team found that by 6,000 years ago, mammoths were relegated to 10 percent of the habitat that had previously been available to them 42,000 years ago when the glaciers were at their largest size and greatest extent.
But climate doesn't seem to explain the entirety of the mammoth's extinction (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=1233s769d/*http://www.livescience.com/animals/070607_mammoth_extinction.html). These hardy animals had survived, barely, a previous interglacial period of planet warming around 126,000 years ago. Scientists have found some fossil bones from this time, so climate change didn't completely knock out mammoths then.
One difference between that first interglacial period and the second one during which they actually died off was the presence of humans. Around 6,000 years ago when the climate warmed in North Eurasia where mammoths lived, our ancestors were able to move in to the region. Once there, they might have hunted the already weakened population of mammoths to oblivion.
"During the [earlier] interglacial period, climates were fairly warm, so why didn't [mammoths] go extinct then?" said Persaram Batra, a climate modeler at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, who worked on the study. "It could be because humans weren't there. Mammoth populations were so sparse, that if there had been humans, maybe they would have gone extinct."
The researchers calculated that by 6,000 years ago, an optimistic estimate of mammoth numbers would mean humans would only have to kill one mammoth each, every three years, to push the species over the brink. A more pessimistic calculation figures that even if one mammoth per human were killed every 200 years, they would still die off.
"This paper argues that climate change would have reduced the size of the habitat for the mammoths to the point where hunting could have extinguished them," Batra told LiveScience. "We're arguing that it's sort of a combination. Climate change probably didn't do it completely, but it made their life so precarious that humans could come in and kill them off."
Image Gallery: The World's Biggest Beasts (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=12cdecokm/*http://www.livescience.com/php/multimedia/imagegallery/igviewer.php?gid=52)
Scientists Aim to Revive the Woolly Mammoth (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=124ahinb7/*http://livescience.com/scienceoffiction/050412_mammoth_effort.html)
Surviving Extinction: Where Woolly Mammoths Endured (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=123hef8tn/*http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/041019_Mammoth_Island.html)
Original Story: Study: Humans Drove Final Nail into Mammoth Coffin (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=120e22fr4/*http://www.livescience.com/animals/080401-woolly-mammoths.html)Visit LiveScience.com (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=10tt1qlaf/*http://www.livescience.com/) for more daily news, views and scientific inquiry with an original, provocative point of view. LiveScience reports amazing, real world breakthroughs, made simple and stimulating for people on the go. Check out our collection of Science, Animal and Dinosaur Pictures (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=11pb7tfhf/*http://www.livescience.com/php/multimedia/imagegallery/), Science Videos (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=117mpvsb4/*http://www.livescience.com/php/video/), Hot Topics (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=1176rf5u8/*http://www.livescience.com/hottopics/), Trivia (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=119ths4c8/*http://www.livescience.com/trivia-quiz/), Top 10s (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=113laf0jb/*http://www.livescience.com/top10/), Voting (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=1128vldri/*http://www.livescience.com/vote/), Amazing Images (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=11bu6au5q/*http://www.livescience.com/amazingimages/), Reader Favorites (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=11c0ltqe1/*http://www.livescience.com/readerfavorites), and more. Get cool gadgets at the new LiveScience Store (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=112a5kfiv/*http://www.livesciencestore.com/), sign up for our free daily email newsletter (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=117gfjv9o/*http://www.livescience.com/community/) and check out our RSS feeds (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/studyhumansdrovefinalnailintomammothcoffin/26930972/SIG=11h1lbbo0/*http://www.livescience.com/livescience_rss.html) today!

[Cherub]

Rules to be waived for border fence

By EILEEN SULLIVAN, Associated Press Writer Tue Apr 1, 4:12 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration will use its authority to bypass more than 30 laws and regulations to finish building 670 miles of fence along the southwest U.S. border by the end of 2008, federal officials said Tuesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=lhb07NG_Rt3LkGMLR9nZLBL.GMAKIUfzBcsACP.k&T=1cg8pjisi%2fX%3d1207109067%2fE%3d83018390%2fR%3dnews%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3dH%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d293914385%2fH%3dY2FjaGVoaW50PSJuZXdzIiBjb250ZW50PSJTZWN1cml0eTtpdDtTYW47Q3JpbWluYWw7ZGViYXRlO3NlY3VyaXR5O3RlY2hub2xvZ3k7Y2hpbGRyZW47Y2hpbGQ7Z2l2ZTtnb3Zlcm5tZW50O2Vudmlyb25tZW50O3JlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIiByZWZ1cmw9InJlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIiB0b3BpY3M9InJlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIg--%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3d3D47BFD1&U=127vrqqlu%2fN%3dkYKtGNG_fy0-%2fC%3d-1%2fD%3dRMP%2fB%3d-1 http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=lhb07NG_Rt3LkGMLR9nZLBL.GMAKIUfzBcsACP.k&T=1chnb0gbb%2fX%3d1207109067%2fE%3d83018390%2fR%3dnews%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3dH%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d4070589800%2fH%3dY2FjaGVoaW50PSJuZXdzIiBjb250ZW50PSJTZWN1cml0eTtpdDtTYW47Q3JpbWluYWw7ZGViYXRlO3NlY3VyaXR5O3RlY2hub2xvZ3k7Y2hpbGRyZW47Y2hpbGQ7Z2l2ZTtnb3Zlcm5tZW50O2Vudmlyb25tZW50O3JlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIiByZWZ1cmw9InJlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIiB0b3BpY3M9InJlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIg--%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3d3D47BFD1&U=128pl2605%2fN%3dkoKtGNG_fy0-%2fC%3d-1%2fD%3dSIPR%2fB%3d-1http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=lhb07NG_Rt3LkGMLR9nZLBL.GMAKIUfzBcsACP.k&T=1chep62p7%2fX%3d1207109067%2fE%3d83018390%2fR%3dnews%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3dH%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d1462331457%2fH%3dY2FjaGVoaW50PSJuZXdzIiBjb250ZW50PSJTZWN1cml0eTtpdDtTYW47Q3JpbWluYWw7ZGViYXRlO3NlY3VyaXR5O3RlY2hub2xvZ3k7Y2hpbGRyZW47Y2hpbGQ7Z2l2ZTtnb3Zlcm5tZW50O2Vudmlyb25tZW50O3JlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIiByZWZ1cmw9InJlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIiB0b3BpY3M9InJlZnVybF93d3dfeWFob29fY29tIg--%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3d3D47BFD1&U=13buiaa0p%2fN%3djYKtGNG_fy0-%2fC%3d619213.12513767.12865462.1442997%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d4919452
Invoking the two legal waivers, which Congress authorized, will cut through bureaucratic red tape and sidestep environmental laws that currently impede the Homeland Security Department from building 267 miles of fencing in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, according to officials familiar with the plan. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly about it.
The move is the biggest use of legal waivers since the administration started building the fence, and it will cover a total of 470 miles along the Southwest border, the department said. Previously, the department has used its waiver authority for two portions of fence in Arizona and one portion in San Diego.
"Criminal activity at the border does not stop for endless debate or protracted litigation," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a statement. "These waivers will enable important security projects to keep moving forward."
As of March 17, there were 309 miles of fencing in place, leaving 361 to be completed by the end of the year to meet the department's goal. Of those, 267 miles are being held up by federal, state and local laws and regulations, the officials said.
One waiver will address the construction of a 22-mile levee barrier in Hidalgo County, Texas. The other waiver will cover 30 miles of fencing and technology deployment on environmentally sensitive ground in San Diego, southern Arizona and the Rio Grande; and 215 miles in California, Arizona and Texas that face other legal impediments due to administrative processes. For instance, building in some areas requires assessments and studies that — if conducted — could not be completed in time to finish the fence by the end of the year.
Chertoff had said using the waivers would be a last resort. The department has held more than 100 meetings with lawmakers, environmental groups and residents in an effort to work out obstacles and objections to fence construction.
The department will conduct environmental assessments when necessary. But the waivers enable the department to start building before completing the assessments. Chertoff said the department will continue to ask for input on the construction plans.
Even as the fence is being built, debate continues about whether it will stem illegal immigration.
Fernando Carrillo, a 32-year-old construction worker who was deported from Arizona six months ago, said the added security wouldn't stop him from trying to get back to his wife and three children in Phoenix. His youngest child was born while he was in Mexico.
"They can do what they want, but we will keep trying," he said while walking Tuesday with two other migrants along the newly built wall west of Nogales.
He said they were heading to an area where the wall had yet to be built.
"Whatever they do, you just have to keep trying because there, if you work hard, you can make ends meet," he said.
Residents and property owners along the U.S.-Mexico border have complained about the fence construction. In South Texas, where opposition has been widespread, land owners refused to give the government access to property along the fence route. The government has since sued more than 50 property owners in South Texas to gain access to the land.
Environmentalists have also complained about the fence because they say it puts already endangered species such as two types of wild cats — the ocelot and the jaguarundi — in even more danger of extinction. They say the fence would prevent them from swimming across the Rio Grande to mate.
"Unwilling to consult with local communities or to follow long-standing laws, Secretary Chertoff chose to bypass stakeholders and push through this unpopular project on April Fool's Day," Sierra Club executive director Carl Pope said in a statement. "We don't think the destruction of the borderlands region is a laughing matter."
Chertoff has said the fence is good for the environment because immigrants degrade the land with trash and human waste when they sneak illegally into the country.

[Cherub]

Al Gore kicks off massive global warming campaign
Story Highlights
Alliance for Climate Protection will combine advertising and online organizing
Campaign will spend $300 million - some of it Gore's - over the next 3 years
Ending global warming compared to halting fascism in Europe in World War II
Oddly paired public figures to appear in campaign's television ads
Next Article in Technology » (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/03/31/cybercrime.eu.ap/index.html?iref=nextin)http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/global/1x1pixel.gif
NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) -- Former Vice President Al Gore on Monday launched a three-year, multimillion-dollar advocacy campaign calling for the U.S. to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/TECH/science/03/31/gore.environment.ap/art.gore.jpgAl Gore has kicked off a multimillion-dollar campaign to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Alliance for Climate Protection's campaign, dubbed "we," will combine advertising, online organizing and partnerships with grassroots groups to educate the public about global warming and urge solutions from elected officials.
"We're trying to get a movement happening to switch public opinion so that our leaders feel, 'Wow! We really need to make this a top priority issue,"' Alliance CEO Cathy Zoi told The Associated Press.
An advertising campaign will equate the climate-change movement with other grand historic endeavors, like stopping fascism in Europe during World War II, overcoming segregation in the United States and putting the first man on the moon.
Some advertisements will feature bipartisan pairs, such as the Rev. Al Sharpton with Pat Robertson and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/nancy_pelosi) with former Speaker Newt Gingrich, Zoi said.

Don't Miss
World summit turns to greenhouse gases (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/30/eco.conference.ap/index.html?iref=newssearch)
Massive ice shelf on verge of breakup (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/03/25/antarctic.ice/index.html?iref=newssearch)
Cities go dark for Earth Hour (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/29/lights.out.ap/index.html?iref=newssearch)
California lowers goal for zero-emission vehicles (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/03/28/zero.emission.ap/index.html?iref=newssearch)The Alliance will initially spend $300 million over three years, although Zoi said more could be spent in the future.
Some of the money for the campaign comes from Gore himself. Zoi said he contributed his personal profits from the book and movie, "An Inconvenient Truth," a $750,000 award from his share of the Nobel Peace Prize and a personal matching gift. She declined to provide the total amount.
"When politicians hear the American people calling loud and clear for change, they'll listen," Gore (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/al_gore), the former Tennessee senator and 2000 presidential candidate, said in a statement. Gore's staff did not respond to calls seeking further comment.
Zoi says research suggests that many Americans are concerned about climate change but don't know what to do about it.
The "we" campaign Web site hopes to change that by offering ideas on conserving energy at home and work and guidance for those who want to do more, like writing to their elected officials.
"Some steps can be taken by individuals, but the biggest, most important decisions are going to be coming from government and corporate leaders," Zoi said. "We need to have people saying, 'We want you to take bold steps."'
The campaign is also working through partnerships with groups like the Girl Scouts. The group's 2.7 million members will take a climate action pledge and the Alliance will provide them with kits offering suggestions for projects they can do in their neighborhoods

[Cherub]

Iceland phasing out fossil fuels for clean energy
Story Highlights
Iceland turning to hydrogen to power its cars, buses and fishing fleet
Professor Bragi Arnason: Iceland will be the world's first hydrogen economy
Iceland wants to eliminate its dependency on oil by 2050
Icelandic homes, powered, heated by domestic renewable energy sources
Next Article in Technology » (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/04/02/gamestop/index.html?iref=nextin)http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/global/1x1pixel.gif
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/base_skins/baseplate/corner_dg_BL.gif
REYKJAVIK, Iceland (CNN) -- Iceland may be best known for world-famous musical export Bjork but there's a new star quickly gaining this island nation worldwide acclaim -- clean energy.
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2007/TECH/science/09/18/driving.iceland/art.fcell.car.jpgThis hydrogen fuel cell car is leading an energy revolution in Iceland.
For more than 50 years Iceland has been decreasing its dependence on fossil fuels by tapping the natural power all around this rainy, windswept rock of fire.
Waterfalls, volcanoes, geysers and hot springs provide Icelanders with abundant electricity and hot water.
Virtually all of the country's electricity and heating comes from domestic renewable energy sources -- hydroelectric power and geothermal springs.
It's pollution-free and cheap.
Yet these energy pioneers are still dependent on imported oil to operate their vehicles and thriving fishing industry.
Iceland's geographic isolation in the North Atlantic makes it expensive to ship in gasoline -- it costs almost $8 a gallon (around $2 a liter).
Iceland ranks 53rd in the world in greenhouse gas emissions per capita, according to the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center -- the primary climate-change data and information analysis center of the U.S. Department of Energy.
Retired University of Iceland Professor Bragi Arnason has come up with a solution: Use hydrogen to power transportation. Hydrogen is produced with water and electricity, and Iceland has lots of both.
"Iceland is the ideal country to create the world's first hydrogen economy," Arnason explains. His big idea has earned him the nickname "Professor Hydrogen."
Arnason has caught the attention of General Motors, Toyota and DaimlerChrysler, who are using the island-nation as a test market for their hydrogen fuel cell prototypes.
One car getting put through its paces is the Mercedes Benz A-class F-cell -- an electric car powered by a DaimlerChrysler fuel cell. Fuel cells generate electricity by converting hydrogen and oxygen into water. And fuel cell technology is clean -- the only by-product is water. http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gif Watch the F-cell navigate through Reykjavik » (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/09/18/driving.iceland/index.html#cnnSTCVideo)
"It's just like a normal car," says Asdis Kritinsdottir, project manager for Reykjavik Energy. Except the only pollution coming out of the exhaust pipe is water vapor. It can go about 100 miles on a full tank. When it runs out of fuel the electric battery kicks in, giving the driver another 18 miles -- hopefully enough time to get to a refueling station. Filling the tank is similar to today's cars -- attach a hose to the car's fueling port, hit "start" on the pump and stand back. The process takes about five to six minutes. See some of the F-cell's unique features » (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/09/18/driving.iceland/index.html#cnnSTCPhoto)
In 2003, Reykjavik opened a hydrogen fueling station to test three hydrogen fuel cell buses. The station was integrated into an existing gasoline and diesel station. The hydrogen gas is produced by electrolysis -- sending a current through water to split it into hydrogen and oxygen. The public buses could run all day before needing refueling.
The bus project lasted three years and cost around $10 million.
The city will need five refueling stations in addition to the one the city already has to support its busy ring road, according to Arnason. The entire nation could get by on 15 refueling stations -- a minimum requirement.
Within the year, 30-40 hydrogen fuel-cell cars will hit Reykjavik streets. Local energy company employees will do most of the test-driving but three cars will be made available to The Hertz Corp., giving Icelanders a chance to get behind the wheel.Learn more about fuel cells » (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/09/18/driving.iceland/index.html#cnnSTCOther1)
"I need a car," says Petra Svenisdottir, an intern at Reykjavik Energy. Svenisdottir, 28, commutes to work from her home in Hafnarfjorour to Reykjavik. The journey takes her about 15 minutes if she can beat traffic. "If I didn't have a car I would have to take two or three buses and wait at each bus stop to arrive at work more than an hour later, cold and wet!"
Don't Miss
GM takes step toward fuel-cell car (http://www.cnn.com/2007/AUTOS/06/15/gm_fuelcell/index.html)
In Depth: Planet in Peril (http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/planet.in.peril)Most Icelanders drive cars, says Arnason. Around 300,000 people live in a place about the size of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Transportation is limited to cars, buses and boats. "Everyone has a car here," Arnason says. And it's very typical for an Icelandic family to own two cars. Arnason drives a small SUV.
Fuel cell cars are expected to go on sale to the public in 2010. Carmakers have promised Arnason they will keep costs down and the government has said it will offer citizens tax breaks.
He figures it will take an additional 4 percent of power to produce the hydrogen Iceland would need to meet its transportation requirements.
Once Iceland's vehicles are converted over to hydrogen, the fishing fleet will follow. It won't be easy because of current technological limits and the high cost of storing large amounts of hydrogen, but Arnason feels confident it can happen. He predicts Iceland will be fossil fuel free by 2050.
"We are a very small country but we have all the same infrastructure of big nations," he said. "We will be the prototype for the rest of the world."

[Cherub]

Energy, wealth and wildlife: Wyoming looks for harmony
Story Highlights
In 2006, Wyoming provided enough natural gas to heat 27 million homes
Biologists say the increased pace of drilling is hurting wildlife, habitat
Studies show sage grouse down by 80 percent; mule deer down by 42 percent
Communities say they want balance between drilling and habitat protectionhttp://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/global/1x1pixel.gif
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/base_skins/baseplate/corner_dg_BL.gif
PINEDALE, Wyoming (CNN) -- Call it modern horse-trading. Balancing the nation's energy needs with its interests in protecting wildlife and habitats.
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2007/TECH/science/07/24/gas.wildlife.wyoming/art.reclamation.jpgAn antelope grazes near a gas well in Jonah Field, one of the hot spots for natural gas in Wyoming.

The practice is playing out in Wyoming, where energy companies pumped 2.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas from the ground last year -- produced in 20 of the state's 23 counties. That's enough gas to heat every home in Michigan for seven years.
And good-paying jobs, public works projects and money for higher education have benefited Wyoming.
But there's a trade-off: Wildlife populations are taking a hit.
Populations of the West's iconic mule deer are down where drilling is prevalent; the sage grouse, a bird which conservationists consider a harbinger of how other wildlife are faring, has seen adult populations plunge near gas rig sites.
If grouse aren't surviving, biologists say, that means bad news for animals like antelope, bighorn sheep and pygmy rabbits.
Five years ago, there were about 10,000 wells spread across Wyoming. By the end of 2007, the federal Bureau of Land Management (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/bureau_of_land_management) estimates that 30,000 wells will be pumping natural gas. http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gif Watch a bird's eye view of a natural gas field » (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/07/24/gas.wildlife.wyoming/index.html#cnnSTCVideo)
Companies such as Shell, EnCana, BP and Questar operate the rigs.
"The West is the last unexploited frontier for gas reserves in the U.S.," said Fadel Gheit, an Oppenheimer and Co. senior energy analyst. "Market prices are skyrocketing. We've drilled the Gulf of Mexico down to Swiss cheese."
But Gheit concedes, "It's not good for the environment, no question."
On a June morning, standing in the middle of one of Wyoming's largest gas fields, Brian Rutledge, a wildlife biologist and the executive director of the Audubon Society of Wyoming, surveys acres of endless sage brush and rigs in the distance.
"These lands are some of the last vestiges of the American West we have, home to hundreds of species who won't survive if their habitat is fragmented by rigs," he said. "Once it's gone, it's gone. A boom goes bust eventually."
"We have to ask ourselves, 'Is getting cheaper gas now worth the future cost to the land?' "
Recent studies have shown the sage grouse and mule deer are in jeopardy, their habitat hurt by gas drilling, biologists say. Power lines are convenient places for raptors and other grouse predators to perch. Rigs sit on sagebrush, the grouse's primary food source. And loud activity disrupts the grouse's mating rituals.
Mule deer are down by 42 percent in areas where drilling is prevalent, according to a 2006 study conducted by independent ecologists and biologists and paid for by gas corporation Questar.
Gas corporations are required to perform wildlife analysis of lands where they intend to drill. Between 2001 and 2005, University of Montana biologist David Naugle attached radio collars to birds in and outside gas fields in northeast Wyoming.
He found as much as an 80 percent reduction in adult birds inside the Powder River Basin, a hot spot of gas production.
Matt Holloran performed his doctoral thesis at the University of Wyoming on the effect of gas drilling on the grouse on the Pinedale Anticline.
"It's getting worse over time," said Holloran, now a senior ecologist with a private conservation firm.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/u_s_fish_and_wildlife_service) opted not to classify the bird as endangered in 2005. But a representative said the recent numbers are alarming and the agency may move to reassess the decision. See a sample of endangered species around the country » (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/07/24/gas.wildlife.wyoming/index.html#cnnSTCOther1)
So concerned by the grouse's dwindling numbers, Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal called a summit on the bird last month, drawing hundreds of conservationists, scientists and gas industry executives.
"We have a bull's-eye on our back," Freudenthal said. "I see it as an imbalance. The BLM has one objective and that is drilling. It wasn't always this way. There used to be some concern for habitat preservation, and I'm worried that's gone out the door."
Don't Miss
In Depth: Planet in Peril (http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/planet.in.peril)Freudenthal's comments were echoed in more than 90,000 letters the public submitted to the BLM in June objecting to the agency's plan to allow 8,000 more gas wells on 1.6 million acres in a field near Pinedale.
But BLM spokeswoman Cindy Wertz said biologists are performing thorough wildlife and habitat assessments before drilling commences and gas companies are required to repair the land when drilling ends.
And gas companies are spending money to repair the damage they do, like replanting sage brush, which is food for animals.
"We are drilling more, yes, and the sage grouse numbers are challenging. But our wildlife protections are the same as they've always been," Wertz said.
That, however, is not what a 2006 internal BLM document stated.
It said the agency failed for six years to monitor air pollution caused by drilling on public land in the West. The BLM provides "no evaluation, analysis or compiling" of data tracking drilling affects on the environment, it reads.
BLM's lead biologist in Pinedale between 2004 and 2006, Steve Belinda, quit because he says the agency values gas development over wildlife protection.
"The habitat used to be treated as a valuable resource," he said. "Now the BLM biologist acts as a support person to get permits processed, period."
The majority of the wells in Wyoming are on two fields in Pinedale, a town with one grocery store and a weekly newspaper. Folks here talk about a popular bumper sticker: "Lord, thank you for the boom, may it not go bust."
Lauren McKeever, an assistant to Pinedale's mayor, has watched the town's classrooms double, filled with children of gas employees who have moved here. Many of those children enjoy the town's new multimillion-dollar aquatic center, bought with gas industry revenue. See how gas drilling has changed Pinedale » (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/07/24/gas.wildlife.wyoming/index.html#cnnSTCOther2)
"I think the vast majority of folks here understand that our country is in dire need for energy resources," she said. "But, at the same time, I don't think many of us are willing to destroy priceless values in the process of obtaining the natural gas."
Recently, the state Legislature approved giving $2 billion from gas revenue to public schools over the next two years and taxes on groceries have been eliminated. Last year, an endowment created by gas industry taxes grew to $500 million, enabling every Wyoming high school student with above-average grades to attend college in the state.
Around the corner from the aquatic center, Levi Licking has just returned home from his job operating a front-end driver for Questar gas.
The 30-year-old father of two makes $20 an hour, more money than Licking believes he could earn at any business within 80 miles.
"The gas industry is the best thing that ever happened to Pinedale," he said. "This is the same place it was before -- only with more money." E-mail to a friend (http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/07/24/gas.wildlife.wyoming/index.html#)
All About U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/u_s_fish_and_wildlife_service) • Bureau of Land Management (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/bureau_of_land_management)

[Cherub]

Algae: 'The ultimate in renewable energy'
Story Highlights
Some types of algae are about 50 percent oil, suitable for biodiesel
U.S. government is once again experimenting with algae as fuel source
Scientists say there may be hundreds of thousands of species not yet identified
Algae have extraordinarily diverse sex lives
Next Article in Technology » (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/04/04/navajo.internet.ap/index.html?iref=nextin)http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/global/1x1pixel.gif
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/base_skins/baseplate/corner_dg_BL.gif
ANTHONY, Texas (CNN) -- Texas may be best known for "Big Oil." But the oil that could some day make a dent in the country's use of fossil fuels is small. Microscopic, in fact: algae. Literally and figuratively, this is green fuel.
http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/TECH/science/04/01/algae.oil/art.algae.jpgPlant physiologist Glen Kertz believes algae can some day be competitive as a source for biofuel.

"Algae is the ultimate in renewable energy," Glen Kertz, president and CEO of Valcent Products, told CNN while conducting a tour of his algae greenhouse on the outskirts of El Paso.
Kertz, a plant physiologist and entrepreneur, holds about 20 patents. And he is psyched about the potential algae holds, both as an energy source and as a way to deal with global warming (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/global_climate_change).
"We are a giant solar collecting system. We get the bulk of our energy from the sunshine," said Kertz.
Algae are among the fastest growing plants in the world, and about 50 percent of their weight is oil. That lipid oil can be used to make biodiesel for cars, trucks, and airplanes. http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gif Watch how pond scum can be turned into fuel » (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/04/01/algae.oil/index.html#cnnSTCVideo)
Most people know algae as "pond scum." And until recently, most energy research and development projects used ponds to grow it.
But instead of ponds, Valcent uses a closed, vertical system, growing the algae in long rows of moving plastic bags. The patented system is called Vertigro, a joint venture with Canadian alternative energy company Global Green Solutions. The companies have invested about $5 million in the Texas facility.
"A pond has a limited amount of surface area for solar absorption," said Kertz.
Don't Miss
In Depth: Solutions (http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/solutions/)
SciTechBlog (http://scitech.blogs.cnn.com/)"By going vertical, you can get a lot more surface area to expose cells to the sunlight. It keeps the algae hanging in the sunlight just long enough to pick up the solar energy they need to produce, to go through photosynthesis," he said.
Kertz said he can produce about 100,000 gallons of algae oil a year per acre, compared to about 30 gallons per acre from corn; 50 gallons from soybeans.
Using algae as an alternative fuel (http://topics.cnn.com/topics/alternative_fuel_vehicles) is not a new idea. The U.S. Department of Energy studied it for about 18 years, from 1978 to 1996. But according to Al Darzins of the DOE's National Renewable Energy Lab, in 1996 the feds decided that algae oil could never compete economically with fossil fuels.
The price of a barrel of oil in 1996? About 20 bucks!
Government scientists experimented with algae in open ponds in California, Hawaii, and in Roswell, New Mexico.
But that involved a lot of land area, with inherent problems of evaporation and contamination from other plant species and various flying and swimming critters. Darzins said NREL switched from algae research to focus on cellulosic ethanol. That's ethanol made from plants like switchgrass and plant stover -- the leaves and stalks left after a harvest -- but not edible crops such as corn and soybeans.
Valcent research scientist Aga Pinowska said there are about 65,000 known algae species, with perhaps hundreds of thousands more still to be identified.
A big part of the research at the west Texas facility involves determining what type of algae produces what type of fuel. One species may be best suited for jet fuel, while the oil content of another may be more efficient for truck diesel.
In the Vertigro lab, Pinowska studies the care and feeding of algae for just such specifics. She said even small changes in the nutrients that certain algae get can help create a more efficient oil content.
And she said a knowledge of algae's virtues goes way back.
"Even the Aztecs knew it was beneficial; they used it as a high protein food," said Pinowska.
The other common commercial use of algae today is as a health food drink, usually sold as "Spirulina."
I'm too sexy for my pond
And who knew that single celled plants could be such "hotties" when it comes to sex? Kertz said it's a real "algae orgy" under the microscope.
Some algae reproduce sexually, some asexually, while many combine both modes. In some green algae the type of reproduction may be altered if there are changes in environmental conditions, such as lack of moisture or nutrients.
Intriguing details like that keep Kertz and other scientists searching for more and different algae. While dusty west Texas may not be the best hunting grounds, he said he is always on the lookout for samples in puddles, streams or ponds.
Locating algae processing plants intelligently can add to their efficiency. Locating algae facilities next to carbon producing power plants, or manufacturing plants, for instance, the plants could sequester the C02 they create and use those emissions to help grow the algae, which need the C02 for photosynthesis.
And after more than a decade hiatus, the U.S. government is back in the algae game. The 2007 Energy Security and Independence Act includes language promoting the use of algae for biofuels. From the Pentagon to Minnesota to New Zealand, both governments and private companies are exploring the use of algae to produce fuel.



But Al Darzins of the National Renewable Energy Lab said the world is still probably 5 to 10 years away from any substantial use of biofuels.
"There's not any one system that anyone has chosen yet. Whatever it is has to be dirt, dirt cheap," said Darzins

[Cherub]

Australia launches project to bury carbon dioxide

Story Highlights
Australia opens its first geosequestration plant to bury carbon dioxide
Plant in the state of Victoria is the first in the southern hemisphere
Project will capture and compress 100,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide
Gas will be injected 2 kilometers underground into a depleted natural gas reservoir
Next Article in World » (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/04/04/zimbabwe.election/index.html?iref=nextin)http://i.l.cnn.net/cnn/.element/img/2.0/global/1x1pixel.gif
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) -- Australia has begun pumping carbon dioxide underground to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, using a technology that locks dangerous gases deep in the Earth.
http://i.l.cnn.net/cnn/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/04/02/australia.carbon.capture.ap/art.jpgGeosequestration has the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.
Officials opened a plant in southern Victoria state on Wednesday that they said would capture and compress 110,231 tons of carbon dioxide from industry emissions and then inject it 6,500 feet underground into a depleted natural gas reservoir.
The research and demonstration project has been developed with federal and state government support.
Australia is one of only a handful of places that uses the technology, known as geosequestration, and environmentalists immediately criticized the project as a token gesture that distracts from the bigger goal of getting industry to slash emissions.
The minority Greens political party said the project would achieve little and should be abandoned in favor of plans that would achieve much bigger emission cuts.
Don't Miss

Cities go dark to mark Earth Hour (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/29/lights.out.ap/index.html)
Eco Solutions: World summit turns to greenhouse gases (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/30/eco.conference.ap/index.html)
Special report: Eco Solutions (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/30/eco.conference.ap/index.html)
Special report: Planet in Peril (http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/planet.in.peril/)
Principal Voices: Climate Change (http://www.cnn.com/CNNI/Programs/principal.voices/climate/) The project "is government-funded PR for the coal sector and would be a perfect place to start for a government looking to find budget cuts," Green Party Sen. Christine Milne said.
Officials said scientists at the site would monitor the reservoir to measure gas leaks and other factors, with the ultimate aim of demonstrating that geosequestration is a safe, viable way to combat global warming on a large scale.
"The project has a very important role in demonstrating the technical and environmental feasibility of geosequestration to Australia and the world and preparing the way for its widespread application," Peter Cook, the project's chief executive, said in a statement.
The technology is similar to that used at about 144 sites in the United States, where carbon dioxide is injected underground to help recover oil reserves.
Since 1996, 1.1 million tons of carbon dioxide a year have been injected under the Sleiper oil field in the North Sea and about the same amount under Algeria's In Salah gas fields in the past two years.