A coalition of environmental groups is urging the federal government to approve a new plan for regulating Lake Ontario’s water levels. On Monday, the coalition, which includes the Nature Conservancy of Central and Western New York and Citizens Campaign for the Environment, held a press conference to show community support for Plan 2014. The plan would […]
environment
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Destructive beetle in county parks
The emerald ash borer has been detected in Oatka Creek, Black Creek, and Genesee Valley parks. It’s a serious situation, officials say, because 20 percent of the trees in Monroe County’s parks are ash trees. The invasive beetle is deadly to New York’s native ashes. The county wants to get ahead of the bugs and […]
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Project Censored
Ocean acidification tops the annual list of important stories ignored by the mainstream media.
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Contaminated houses coming down
Sometime in the next couple of months, a crew contracted by the Town of Irondequoit will knock down two adjoining houses on Timrod Drive. The lots will be cleared and seeded with grass, creating a small green space. The town took ownership of the houses approximately two years ago as part of a legal settlement. […]
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Group ranks state legislators’ environmental records
Environmental Advocates of New York has released its annual scorecard for state legislators, and Democrats in the Rochester delegation outscored their Republican counterparts. Environmental Advocates bases the scores around legislation it has identified as priorities. Legislators get points for the “correct” vote, whether it’s in favor of legislation the organization supports or against legislation it […]
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Making climate a career
Susan Spencer, a Rochester Institute of Technology Ph.D. student, wants people to understand that climate change is a serious problem and that workable solutions exist.
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Plastics found in Great Lakes fish
When researchers discovered that the Great Lakes are polluted with tiny plastic fragments, likely from consumer personal care products, they also suspected that birds and fish are ingesting the fragments. But they didn’t have hard evidence. Until now. Sam Mason, the SUNY Fredonia chemistry professor who has led the study of plastics pollution in the […]
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Groups push for and against lake levels plan
Back in June, the US and Canadian governments received for their consideration Plan 2014, a proposal to regulate water levels in Lake Ontario, from the International Joint Commission. Supporters and opponents of Plan 2014 have been making their voices heard throughout the process. This week, a group of 40-plus environmental and sportsmen’s groups sent a […]
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French grocer celebrates imperfect food
About a month ago, a French grocery store started an ad campaign trying to convince consumers to buy imperfect fruits and vegetables. The whole campaign is geared at addressing a major food waste problem. Too often, imperfect produce is tossed out by grocers, since the public doesn’t buy it. And it’s part of a much […]
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Environmental moves make good business sense
Bob Bechtold built a successful manufacturing company by embracing new technology, not treating it as a threat. Bechtold founded Harbec, Inc., almost 40 years ago in the Wayne County town of Ontario as an all-purpose machine shop. Computerized machine tools were just starting to make their way to shop floors, and some in the toolmaking […]
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Germany gains in renewables
In the first six months of 2014, Germany got more than one-third of its electricity from renewable sources, according to a new report. The country’s solar power production was 28 percent higher over that time than it was during the same period in 2013, says a report from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, a […]
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Crunch time in the Legislature
The State Legislature has a long-standing tradition of passing a slew of legislation on the last day or two of its session. This year, the crunch included bills for a medical marijuana program, an extension of the brownfields tax credit program through early 2017, and a bill to add Family Court judges, including one for […]
