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NEWS ABOUT: going green

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And America's Greenest Cities Are...

Separating the composters from the posers

(Travel + Leisure) - As part of the annual America's Favorite Cities survey, Travel + Leisure readers ranked 35 metropolitan areas on a variety of travel-friendly qualities, from cleanliness to great public parks, which offset that urban asphalt and improve air quality. Without further ado, the top 20 greenest cities in America:
  1. Portland:
... More »

Hey, Landlords: Plant a Tree, Then Jack Rent

Properties go for about $5 more a month if they have a tree: Study

(Newser) - Landlords, grab your shovels. Having a tree on your property translates to an extra $5.62 a month in rent. So say two researchers (one of them from the Forest Service) who played around with Craigslist apartment listings in Portland, Oregon, along with tree data on Google Earth, reports Good ... More »

People Like Going Green —but Not for Laundry

Consumers skeptical about cold-water detergents, even as they improve

(Newser) - The science behind washing laundry exclusively in cold water has come a long way in recent years, but consumers just aren't buying it—literally. The New York Times notes that sales of cold-water detergents are languishing, even though they generally measure up to their hot-water counterparts and save on... More »

Celebs, Green Activists Plan DC Summer Protests

Danny Glover, others seek pipeline foes willing to risk arrest

(Newser) - Actor Danny Glover is among a group of celebrities and green activists seeking volunteers to risk arrest this summer in DC over a proposed oil pipeline that would run from the Canadian tar sands to the Gulf Coast. “We want you to consider doing something hard: coming to Washington... More »

Recession Killing 'Green' Demand

Consumers say they want these products, but won't pay for them

(Newser) - Clorox had big hopes for its “Green Works” line when it introduced it in 2008, promising it would “move natural cleaning into the mainstream.” But thanks to the recession, that hasn’t actually worked out, the New York Times reports; Green Works sales have fallen from more... More »

Bolivia to Give Nature Same Rights as Humans

Nation will create ministry of mother earth

(Newser) - Bolivia will soon put in place a first-of-its-kind law that gives Mother Nature the same rights as humans. The idea behind the Law of Mother Earth is to try to rein in pollution and the exploitation of natural resources, reports the Guardian . It grants nature several rights, including the "... More »

Obama's 5-Ton Limo Exempt From Green Car Policy

No hybrid engine could haul that puppy

(Newser) - President Obama this week rolled out some ambitious goals toward making the federal government's fleet of cars more fuel-efficient, but his critics are likely to have fun with one thing in particular: His big limo is exempt. (Drudge has been highlighting the exemption with an upside photo of the president.... More »

Lights Dim for Earth Hour

It's that time of year again: 8:30pm local

(Newser) - Earth Hour is back for the fifth year, with cities around world dimming the lights at 8:30pm local time. Last year, nearly 130 nations took part, and National Geographic thinks the number could be bigger this year. The idea is to raise awareness of energy conservation: Click to read... More »

Why Plastic Isn't Evil

It's just the way we use plastic that's the problem: Susan Freinkel

(Newser) - Plastic is the material environmentalists love to hate, but it's getting a bad rap, writes author Susan Freinkel in the New York Times . These days, plastic is equated with junk and litter because we waste it on things like shopping bags and drinking straws. "If we understood plastic’s... More »

Congress Buys GOP's Foam Cups From Ex-Koch Exec

But the cafeteria managers, not GOP, chose his company

(Newser) - The GOP's decision to bring back Styrofoam cups to a Capitol cafeteria has been a real boon for an old pal of the seemingly ever-present Koch brothers. The owner of WinCup, the company supplying the Styrofoam cups, is a former Koch Industries exec, the Huffington Post reports. But everybody swears... More »

Save the Economy: Ride a Bike

You'll save money, and local businesses get a boost

(Newser) - Think of it as the "bicycle economy," writes Elly Blue in Grist . Ditching your car for a bike not only saves you thousands of dollars every year, it boosts local businesses. "It's amazing how much money can stay in your community when it isn't being pumped into... More »

Going Green? Bah! GOP Brings Back Foam Cups

Republicans reverse Democrats' green initiatives in Congress cafeterias

(Newser) - The Republicans are back in control of the House, and they're bringing something with them: styrofoam cups. The cups, along with plastic forks and a number of other things seen as not eco-friendly, were done away with four years ago by Nancy Pelosi to reduce Congress's carbon footprint. Now, the... More »

Sun Chips Tries Again With Quieter Bag

Company debuts new biodegradable packaging

(Newser) - Sun Chips is out with another biodegradable bag, but this time it swears you won't need ear protection. Frito-Lay backtracked on last year's really, really loud version amid complaints, ridicule, and poor sales. Now the company has begun putting a new biodegradable bag on shelves (for the "Original" chips),... More »

To Save Nature, Leave It

Harvard economist: City life is greenest

(Newser) - Living in the least natural setting—the city—may be the best way to save nature, a Harvard economist writes in the Boston Globe . Urban dwellers drive less and have smaller homes to heat than their suburban counterparts, writes Edward Glaeser. By his reckoning, an average suburban Boston household emits... More »

Compact Fluorescent Bulbs Die Faster Than Thought

California studies say they burn out in 6.3 years, not 9.4

(Newser) - Compact fluorescent light bulbs are promoted as revolutionary power-saving devices—able to produce more light with less juice and last for nearly 10 years. But a review of conservation measures undertaken by California—a state that adopted CFLs more enthusiastically than any other—shows the bulbs to be a little... More »

Forget Trucks; Let's Shove Food Cross-Country in Tubes

UK group proposes 'transport Internet'

(Newser) - In the future, we won’t truck our food across the country—we’ll shoot it through underground tubes at more than 60 miles an hour. Or at least, that’s the dream of Foodtubes, a UK-based group of academics, engineers, and project planners. It may sound like science fiction,... More »

For a Green Christmas, Try Renting a Tree

Movement gains traction among eco-friendly

(Newser) - For those who want Christmas cheer but don't like the idea of killing a tree or buying an unrecyclable plastic replica, there's a third option: renting a live one. A number of firms have popped up offering to rent potted trees and replant them in nurseries after the holidays, reports... More »

13 Recyclables No One Actually Wants to Reuse

Going green is great and all, but who would want your old bras?

(Newser) - It seems like everyone wants to go green these days—but there are some recyclables that just don’t seem like they should be reused. Brittny Drye lists 13 on The Stir :
  • Bras: You might not want to wear someone else’s stretched-out bra, but The Bra Recyclers will donate
... More »

The Grossest Green Products

Even obsessed eco-lovers might quail at some of these

(Newser) - Going green is good and all, but sometimes it can also be gross. ForkParty.com rounds up a dozen weird, eco-friendly inventions, some of which are also fairly icky:
  • Fertilizer: Specifically, made from human waste or, possibly even weirder, human remains.
  • Clothing: We all need something to wear, but would
... More »

White House Adding Solar Panels (Again)

Sun to provide electricity, heat water for White House

(Newser) - The White House will be powered at least in part by the sun after the installation of solar panels and a solar water heater next spring, CNN reports. The system will provide some electricity and heat water for the first family. "If it has anything like the effect of... More »

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