There was good news and bad to be mined from a state-by-state analysis of carbon emissions over a decade, which was released this week by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Overall, the EIA reported that between 2000 and 2010, 38 states saw an overall drop in their annual energy-related carbon emissions, but between 2009 and 2010, … Read More
Each spring, blooming flowers and trees are a hallmark of the season’s warmer weather. But their pollen is aggravating for people suffering from seasonal allergies, and can be downright dangerous for people with asthma. In fact, around this time each year, web searches soar for things like “pollen,” “allergies,” and “Claritin.” And this year is no … Read More
It’s already March, but the country is still recovering from last year’s extreme weather and climate events. As the hottest year on record in the U.S., 2012 brought intense drought across the Midwest and Great Plains, record wildfires in the West, and Hurricane Sandy’s path of destruction to the East Coast. But if you thought 2012 was hot, just … Read More
Despite a recent report trumpeting a record year for wind power in 2012, the numbers are not as encouraging as they seem. Because even though total wind power capacity grew by 30 percent last year, with 13,000 megawatts in new wind turbines, the actual portion of our electricity coming from wind energy did not increase proportionally. Also, the … Read More
The searing U.S. drought of 2012 devastated the nation’s corn crop, pushing yields down in some states to their lowest levels in nearly 30 years. According to recently-released numbers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Missouri, Illinois and Indiana were among the hardest hit Corn Belt states, with yields at 28-, 26-, and 22-year … Read More
