"The 2012 Atlantic hurricane season will be 'below average' with 10 tropical storms, four of which will strengthen into hurricanes, Colorado State University forecasters predicted on Wednesday."
"Republicans for Environmental Protection is dropping the 'Republican' — after 17 years of trying to demonstrate that a group can comfortably exist in today’s GOP while championing causes like global warming and opposition to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge."
"The group’s new name is ConservAmerica, a name that’s supposed to represent 'the inherent connection between conservation and conservatism' while appealing to an audience that has grown less party-affiliated.
"In one of the deadliest nightclub fires in American history, 100 people died at a concert in Rhode Island nearly a decade ago. But the biggest killer wasn't the flames; it was lethal gases released from burning sound insulation and other plastics."
"Peter Kareiva had come to answer for his truths. Settling at the head of a long table ringed by young researchers new to the policy world, Kareiva, chief scientist of the Nature Conservancy, the world's largest environmental organization, cracked open a beer. After a long day mentoring at the group's headquarters, an eight-story box nestled in the Washington, D.C., suburbs, he was ready for some sparring."
“We’ve never seen newspaper stories like this and we’re using them in our classes to teach students the basics of environmental science.”
"The federal government has taken a step toward wide distribution of gasoline with 15 percent ethanol by allowing the biofuel’s manufacturers to register as suppliers."
"The Ohio River again leads the nation in the amount of toxic chemicals dumped into it by industries, according to a new report by a Washington, D.C.- based environmental group."
"Last month was the warmest March on record across half of the United States with summer-like temperatures providing some welcome news to the country's farmers and clothing retailers, a weather expert said."
"North Dakota farmer Justin Zahradka will plant wheat this spring on 40 acres that has been off-limits for two decades, protected by a government conservation program that is shrinking as high crop prices make farmland more valuable."
The Food and Drug Administration is supposed to make its regulatory decisions on the basis of science and for the health and well-being of the public. But the White House often intervenes, trying to influence FDA decisions to achieve political goals. Often the White House pressure comes in response to fear of demagogic attacks from the GOP. So it was with movie popcorn.
Gardiner Harris reports for the New York Times April 2, 2012.
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