Environmental

Recent Posts

Environmental Groups Should Support Wind Energy - A Victory For Wind Power Over NIMBY Groups
Posted on 24 May 2013 by William A. Ruskin

By William A. Ruskin Wind power can help address the nation's compelling demand for electric power without increasing greenhouse gas emissions or enlarging our carbon footprint. Environmental activists, who are critical of the use of fossil fuels... Read More

U.S. Energy Information Administration Monthly Reports
Posted on 24 Apr 2012 by LexisNexis Environmental Law Community Staff

The U.S. Energy Information Administration released its most recent "Monthly Energy Review" on March 28, 2012. The Monthly Energy Review is the U.S. Energy Information Administration's primary report of recent and historical energy statistics... Read More

Because some ships may be less carbon intensive than others, customers can influence emissions
Posted on 16 Dec 2010 by Thomas H. Clarke, Jr.

"If the shipping industry were a country, it would be the sixth-biggest industrial carbon emitter in the world. Whereas big countries have plans for cutting emissions, shipping does not. The UN climate talks in Cancún are unlikely to change... Read More

The trend toward use of heavier crudes increases the carbon footprint of petroleum products
Posted on 6 Dec 2010 by Thomas H. Clarke, Jr.

Heavier crudes are, by definition, more viscous. The also contain greater amounts of sulfur, which must be removed because of the adverse impact of sulfur on various catalysts used in the refining process. The sulfur content of fuel is also controlled... Read More

How does one assess the amount of carbon stored in a forest? Lidar
Posted on 26 Jun 2011 by Thomas H. Clarke, Jr.

Calibrating measurements from study teams on the ground with the results of a readouts from "light detection and ranging" instrumentation (LIDAR), Arbonaut, a Finnish natural resources management firm, has created the technology to product 3... Read More

Human impacts on the climate preceded the dawn of the petroleum age
Posted on 26 Jun 2011 by Thomas H. Clarke, Jr.

Prior posts, occasionally with tongue planted firmly in cheek, have noted that human impact on carbon loading in the atmosphere goes back to well before the industrial era. A recent assessment has calculated that over the eight millennia before 1850... Read More