• Can you settle this age-old question for me once and for all: Is it greener to take showers or baths? And how can I save water either way?

    EarthTalk Like most good questions, it depends… The main variables are how long the shower takes and the flow rate of the shower head. A typical bathtub holds 36 gallons of water, but most of us only fill it up partially. For baseline purposes, let’s assume a typical bath...
  • Research: Hikers Feel Better Looking in the Mirror

    Eric Tegethoff Public News Service HELENA, Mont. – People have access to an abundance of what the doctor ordered to promote a more positive body image – the outdoors. A new series of studies has found exposure to nature makes people feel better about their bodies. In the first...
  • California Dream of Zero Emissions on Rapid Path to Reality

    Suzanne Potter California News Service SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California could reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – that’s the prediction by a panel of clean-energy experts gathering in Sacramento today. The panel is part of the “Right to Zero” campaign by the environmental legal nonprofit Earthjustice. Staff attorney...
  • E-Bikes Are Better?

    Is there truth to the notion that E-bikes recharged off the fossil-fuel grid actually generate fewer carbon emissions overall than conventional human-powered bikes? Roddy Scheer & Dough Moss EarthTalk Well, actually, there could be… E-bike pioneer Justin Lemire-Elmore argues that e-bikes are better for the environment, at least if you compare...
  • How do environmentalists feel about the amount of packaging waste now that holiday shopping has largely switched from retail shops to online stores?

    Roddy Scheer & Doug Moss EarthTalk This past holiday season marked the first year that holiday shoppers spent more of their gift budgets online than in stores, according to a recent report by the consulting firm Deloitte. Environmentalists are indeed concerned that this trend doesn’t augur well for the...
  • Conservation Groups Slam Trump Plan to Drill Off California Coast

    Suzanne Potter California News Service SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Staggering. Extreme. Radical. Dangerous. That’s how conservation groups are describing the Trump administration’s decision to open up 98 percent of U.S. federal waters to oil and gas drilling. The new draft five-year plan includes 47 lease sales – the largest number in...
  • Indoor Air Pollution

    Do you have any tips for how to improve my home’s air quality without breaking the bank? Roddy Scheer & Doug Moss EarthTalk The key to a healthy indoor environment is clean air, but many of the finishes and furniture in a typical home or office off-gas pollutants that...
  • Groups Sue to Keep Methane Waste Rule

    Suzanne Potter California News Service SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Two new lawsuits have been filed in federal court to stop the Trump administration from deep-sixing rules meant to reduce pollution, fight climate change and preserve public resources. A dozen conservation groups and the state attorneys general of California and New Mexico filed suit on...
  • Conservation Groups Find Ways to Work with Trump Administration

    Stephanie Carson Public News Service ASHEVILLE, N.C. – With funding cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency and auctions of public lands, the situation seems dire for some of those invested in protecting the country’s natural resources. But some organizations are finding ways to work in the current political climate....
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