Today is Earth Day. In honor of that, here are some environmental stories that I found interesting:
Since the passing of the Endangered Species Act, 114 species have gone extinct.
Highlights of the study:
- 92 species became extinct with no Endangered Species Act protection
lengthy listing delays, sometimes as long as 20 years, contributed to the extinction of 88 species
- 27 species became extinct while waiting on the federal candidate or warrant review list
- 21 species became extinct while the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service illegally delayed processing of petitions to protect them.
- In some cases the agency knew the delay would cause extinction, but chose to do so rather than confront powerful political interests
Environmental Groups Plan to protest against Schwartzenegger's Hummers at Hummer dealerships
Schwartzenegger was the first U.S. citizen to own a Humvee. For him, I think the attraction was (as it is in most of Hollywood) that no one else had one. This is why Gov. Arnold wants to have his Hummer run on Hydrogen-Fuel Cells -- because no one else will have one like it. A mass-produced hybrid auto won't be enough for his ego, nor satisfy his need for public image. Thinking about it now, it may be in fact Schwartzenegger who started the SUV fad.
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