A Delicate Ecosystem

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	China Gets Tough on Plastic Bags China's government announced last week that it is banning the production of ultra-thin plastic bags and forbidding supermarkets and shops to give them away beginning in June. According to the State Council, China’s cabinet, the country uses too many of the bags—analysts guess some three billion each day—wasting valuable oil, littering the countryside and polluting waterways.
IMPORTANT LINKS	Romney Drives Fuel Efficiency Rollback to Victory Just weeks ago, Congress passed a bipartisan plan to boost the nation's fuel economy, President Bush signed it into law, and the head of the Environmental Protection Agency touted its sweeping ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. And now, Mitt Romney has won victory in the Michigan primary in part by pledging to throw it out the window.
Earth Share	Nuclear Power in a Warming World The life cycle of nuclear power results in relatively little global warming pollution, but building a new fleet of plants could increase threats to public safety and national security.
Environmental Magazine	EPA Launches Plan to Improve Water Quality The EPA released a plan January 17 to reduce runoff and sewer overflows with green infrastructure including green roofs, trees and tree boxes, rain gardens, and porous pavements.
The Daily Green	Biofuel The Best Bet? The European Union is re-thinking its commitment to use ten percent biofuel in vehicles because of growing concerns about some of the fuel’s sources, including corn, sugar and palm oil.
Union of Concerned Scientists	Environmentalists Challenge State’s Weak Adherence to Clean Air Act Program The state of Texas violates the Clean Air Act and its own State Implementation Plan through repeated weak permitting decisions concerning new coal plants and other large polluting facilities, according to a petition filed January 17 with the Environmental Protection Agency. Earthjustice and Environmental Integrity Project filed the petition on behalf of Environmental Defense and Sierra Club, citing seven ways that Texas routinely administers the Clean Air Act illegally.
Earth 911	Judge Issues Temporary, Partial Stay in Sonar Case A federal judge temporarily stayed part of her own injunction January 17 requiring the Navy to protect whales from high-intensity sonar during upcoming training exercises in Southern California waters.
Earth & Sky	Winter Ice on Lakes, Rivers, Ponds: A Thing of the Past? If you're planning to ice skate on a local lake or river this winter, you may need to think twice, according to scientists John Magnuson, Olaf Jensen and Barbara Benson of the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Their research is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Living on Earth	Ice loss is severe at both poles Until recently, conflicting results have meant estimates of ice loss at the poles vary widely. Now an international team has used satellite data and climate modeling to show that, in the decade ending in 2006, annual ice loss from West Antarctica increased by 59 per cent while losses from the Antarctic Peninsula leapt by 140 per cent (Nature Geoscience)
Stop Global Warming	US to turn off power-hungry light bulbs Fresh from its last-minute acceptance of a global climate deal last month in Bali, the US underlined its green credentials by flicking the switch on the power-hungry incandescent light bulb.
Fight Global Warming	Massey Energy to Pay Largest Civil Penalty Ever for Water Permit Violations Massey Energy Company, Inc. has agreed to pay a $20 million civil penalty in a corporate-wide settlement to resolve Clean Water Act violations at coal mines in West Virginia and Kentucky, the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced. This is the largest civil penalty in EPA’s history levied against a company for wastewater discharge permit violations.
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