An unlikely lobbying group is pressing the U.S. Senate to curb greenhouse gas emissions: American hunting and fishing groups, mostly Republicans, representing tens of millions of votes in the U.S. heartland that could help swing crucial votes as the Senate tries to pass legislation to cut carbon output.

“If you go out and hunt at the same time in the same season and the same place every year, then you understand the changes that are happening,” said Jeremy Symons, senior vice president for conservation at the National Wildlife Federation.

(Continue reading at Reuters)

Photo credit: Fish and Wildlife Service 

With little fanfare, President Obama signed in early October an executive order that will reduce the carbon footprint of the federal government. Federal agencies are ordered to set a 2020 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target within 90 days; increase energy efficiency; reduce fleet petroleum consumption; conserve water; reduce waste; support sustainable communities; and leverage Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies.

“As the largest consumer of energy in the U.S. economy, the Federal government can and should lead by example when it comes to creating innovative ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase energy efficiency, conserve water, reduce waste, and use environmentally-responsible products and technologies,” said President Obama. “This Executive Order builds on the momentum of the Recovery Act to help create a clean energy economy and demonstrates the Federal government’s commitment, over and above what is already being done, to reducing emissions and saving money.”

The largest air pollution control project in Delaware’s history finally received approval Wednesday, a $500 million plan that could cut smog-forming toxic emissions at the Indian River power plant by 75 percent to 90 percent.

It could also produce up to 500 construction jobs for the Delaware economy.

Continue reading the news article at Delaware Online.

Also read their follow-up Opinion column:
Power plant announcement is good news for state’s health.

Photo credit: U.S. Geological Survey 

Meatless Monday is a campaign that aims to get Americans to cut out burgers and dogs one day each week as a way of trimming the hefty greenhouse gas emissions produced by the livestock industry — 18% of the world’s total carbon output, according to the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization.

In a big leap forward for the movement, the Baltimore Public School District announced recently it would adopt a Meatless Monday menu for its 80,000 students, saying they wanted to “ensure the kids eat and learn about healthy, environmentally-friendly choices”.

The school system’s actions yesterday earned it the 2009 Award for Visionary Leadership in Local Food Procurement and Food Education from the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future. 

(Continue reading, and get meatless recipes, at ABC-7)

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation said it will donate a total of $120 million in a bid to boost agricultural production, marketing and farming expertise in the developing world.

“Melinda and I believe that helping the poorest small-holder farmers grow more crops and get them to market is the world’s single most powerful lever for reducing hunger and poverty,” Gates, the billionaire founder of software giant Microsoft, said in remarks prepared for delivery on Thursday to the World Food Prize annual meeting, and obtained by Reuters.

(Continue reading in Reuters)