The Footprint Blog

Obituaries aside, the climate bill still lives

Ever since President Obama took office 15 months ago and said that federal energy and climate legislation would be one of his top domestic priorities, we have seen a steady stream of political obituaries written about such bills. Many of these stories have a kernel of truth: our nation faces complex challenges in any transition from our fossil fuel economy… read more →

Are paper towels or sponges more efficient?

Skepticism about claims of greater efficiency or lower energy use are healthy, but Catherine Mohr (as she acknowledges) may be trying a bit too hard to make the right choices when it comes to building her home: OCD jokes aside, it's a really important exercise to examine the assumptions we often make about how sustainable or environmentally friendly a given… read more →

Obama to expand offshore oil drilling

A few days ago President Obama announced plans to open up large areas of the Eastern seaboard and the Gulf of Mexico to exploration for oil and natural gas production. My initial reaction was strongly negative. Why elect a Democratic president if he's going to tow the Republican line? Upon further reflection - and a significant cool down period -… read more →

Check your sprinklers. Please!

I walk my dogs at night, and twice this week we've discovered troubling new additions to our neighborhood landscaping. It starts when I hear an unusual sound, an undercurrent loud enough to penetrate my podcast-filled earphones. When I pause, my dogs get curious and hunt it down. It's a pleasant sound actually, a spilling, gurgling sound. Has someone installed a… read more →

TerraPass: Best of Green!

  • April 12, 2010
  • News
  • Comments Disabled
I'm pleased to report that TerraPass has been named Best Carbon Offset Provider by the good folks at Treehugger. Now in its second incarnation, Treehugger's Best of Green awards honor a wide variety of people, companies, places, even endangered species. They're impressed by TerraPass' transparency, and we thank them for noticing! As I browsed the other Best-of-Green honorees, I discovered… read more →

New bike time

I should have bought a used bike. I know that, I do. There’s no reason to go out and buy something new when something used would have worked just fine. Other than the fact that my old ride was stolen week before last, and has probably been sold since. How’s that for a dilemma - add to the demand for… read more →

Unexpected NY Auto Show feature – carbon offsets

With the growing demand for newer, cleaner, more fuel efficient vehicles, TerraPass has learned that several leading automobile manufacturers are poised to release the AERE (Automotive Efficiency to Reduce Emissions, pronounced "airy") carbon offset protocol at the New York International Auto Show. Our sources tell us that the AERE protocol has just undergone a final peer-review process, and its public… read more →

People use fewer bags when charged for them

Since we're all about plastic bags over here lately, it may interest you to know that the bag tax in Washington D.C. reduced the total number of bags used last month to 3.3 million, down from 22.5 million in the previous month without a tax. This is great news! Not only are far fewer bags being used and thrown away… read more →

A plastic bag seeks its destiny

If you've got 18 minutes to spare, check out Ramin Bahrani's moving biography of a plastic bag: "Plastic Bag" is part of the Future States project, which, in 11 episodes, envisions the future by asking what will become of America in 5, 25, even 50 years. The tragically existential tale is perfectly voiced by Werner Herzog (of *Woyzeck*, *Fitzcarraldo*, and… read more →

What

Part of me thinks the point of Earth Hour (Saturday, March 27, at 8:30pm) is to raise the question What's the Point? But for whatever reason, the idea of turning off the lights and non-essential electronics for an hour brings out strong emotions. In one corner are those who believe that Earth Hour is an important communal statement: up to… read more →
14 of 110
101112131415161718