OK...I'm officially depressed. Turkana's Blackwater diary pushed me over the edge into pure, unadulterated depression. Next Breaking! is going to be "ALL HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY" version. But...for today...some gloom with a few sprinkles of hope. Environmental News...to USE. **OMB! It's hit the recommended list! NAMASTE to y'all!**
Climate fears paint bleak future. A new report warns of skyrocketing rates of depression in rural communities if, as predicted, climate change triggers ever more extreme events, from drought to fire to flood. Sydney Australian
Global food crisis looms as climate change and fuel shortages bite. Soaring prices for basic foods are beginning to lead to political instability, with governments being forced to step in to artificially control the cost of bread, maize, rice and dairy products. London Guardian
Floodwaters devastate Mexico's Tabasco state. Massive flooding from a week of rain has forced hundreds of thousands of people to abandon their homes and seek shelter from muddy waters that Friday covered an estimated 80% of the Gulf state of Tabasco in southeastern Mexico. Los Angeles Times
Speaker says action needed now to combat global warming. World leaders are at a "tipping point in human affairs" regarding global warning, said David Orr, a keynote speaker at the Chico State University's sustainability conference, which continues today and Sunday at the university. Chico Enterprise Record
Lake Huron water levels spell deep trouble. The lake has dropped a metre in last decade and theories abound about the cause. Toronto Star
Warmth, wind speeds lower Lake Superior. Sharply higher water temperatures and an increase of up to 30% in wind speeds over Lake Superior appear to be coconspirators in the relatively rapid decline in water levels on the world's largest freshwater lake, a scientist told a Great Lakes conference Friday. Detroit Free Press
Rising acid levels in oceans threaten shellfish. Rising acidity levels in the ocean, due mainly to increased levels of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels, could pose a major threat to New Jersey's shellfish industry by the end of the century. Atlantic City Press
Cutting car emissions saves lives: T.O. report. Soaring pollution linked to cancer and asthma and costs city billions, medical officer finds. Toronto Star
DHS relaxes chemical plant storage rules. The Department of Homeland Security yesterday eased rules requiring tens of thousands of U.S. chemical plants to protect their stockpiles from terrorists, pleasing chemical industry lobbyists but disappointing environmentalists and some Democratic lawmakers. Washington Post.
Perry donors might be hazardous to health. Despite his dream to accelerate cures for cancer, Gov. Rick Perry accepted more than $1 million in the last two years from company officials and lobby groups connected to substances that increase the risk of cancer. Dallas Morning News
Smithsonian questions $5 million in oil money. The Smithsonian Institution has taken the rare step of putting on hold a $5 million donation from the American Petroleum Institute. Washington Post.
Primates in peril. One in four species of non-human primates are in danger of going extinct. Living On Earth.
Decline in bees has big impact. A sudden decline in the honeybee population across the United States could have a major impact on the retail price of more than just honey. Mt Pleasant Morning Sun
Oregon lab will test and certify food from China. An Oregon state lab will become first in the nation to gain Chinese government authority for testing and certifying food. Portland Oregonian
Fireman's Fund offers 'green' upgrade to upscale SoCal customers with fire damage. Fireman's Fund Insurance Co., which last fall introduced "green" property/casualty policies for commercial buildings, said Friday it is responding to the recent Southern California wildfires by offering to bear the cost of a "green upgrade" for homes destroyed or damaged by the fires. Business Journals
Ozone hole discoverer sees key role for Gulf. The Arab Gulf states, including the UAE, will play a very important part in the upcoming talks in Bali in December this year when the successor to the Kyoto Protocol starts to be debated, according to Nobel Prize winner Prof Frank Sherwood Rowland. Dubai Gulf News
New York mayor backs national pollution tax. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Friday called for a national pollution tax that he said would be the best way to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and fight global warming. Seattle Times
Seattle mayors' meeting a cozy climate for business. Mayors weren't the only people to show up at the U.S. mayors' climate conference in downtown Seattle. Corporate America was a constant presence, drawn by the prospect of capturing business, influencing policy and promoting its environmental image. Seattle Times
Mayors, looking to cities’ future, are told it must be colored green. The 100 or so mayors who attended the two-day Climate Protection Summit, convened by the United States Conference of Mayors, heard a clear message: Cities that are "walkable," workable and livable add up to the "s" word: sustainable. New York Times
Mayors: Candidates must show environmental leadership. More than 100 South Carolina mayors released an open letter to presidential candidates Friday, stressing strong concern over global warming and asking candidates traveling around early voting South Carolina to address the issue. Savannnah Morning News
Lt. governor talks global warming with local businesspeople. Lt. Gov. John Garamendi stopped in Napa Friday to warn a group of builders and real estate stakeholders that global warming is a real threat to California and they should do something about it. Napa Valley Register
'Fuel of the future' on tap at local station. When the Getty truck rolled into Brattleboro, Vermont Thursday, Sonny's Getty on Canal Street became the first station in town to sell gasoline blended with 10 percent ethanol. Brattleboro Reformer
McDonalds and Cargill in plan to help Amazon forests. After pressure from Greenpeace, McDonalds has joined forces with US grain buyer Cargill and The Nature Conservancy to plan a new strategy that could serve as a model for future development. London Daily Telegraph
Lead starts doing harm at low levels. Children with blood lead levels lower than the U.S. standard may still suffer lower IQs or other problems, a government advisory panel said as it urged doctors to be more alert to signs of lead poisoning. Omaha World-Herald
Override appears likely after veto of water projects bill. President George W. Bush vetoed a $23 billion water construction bill Friday, and Congress promptly scheduled votes next week that are expected to override his action. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Barrasso gets climate bill changes. Sen. John Barrasso won an amendment to a climate change bill Thursday that could result in incentives for Wyoming's coal industry. Associated Press via the Jackson Hole Tribune.
Kennedy criticizes Bush policies. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. brought his passion for the environment to Wayne State University Friday night where a standing-room only crowd in the Community Arts Auditorium applauded his condemning Bush administration's policies that he said is harming the public. Detroit News
Drought slams California farmers. Drought and water restrictions are exacting a high price on many California farmers who must make tough decisions about what to plant or fallow, harvest or plow under, prune or chop down. Associated Press.
Murder charge after row over watering lawn. A man has been charged with murder after a neighbour died following a fight over watering his lawn in drought-stricken Australia. London Guardian
Tri-state water deal aids Atlanta's supply. In the latest attempt to grapple with one of the harshest droughts on record and a decades-old battle over water rights, the Bush administration brokered a deal Thursday among three states that should keep Atlanta's water supply flowing. USA Today.
Activists push for water agreement. Michigan legislators need to pass measures to protect Great Lakes water from thirsty, drought-ridden southern and western states, a coalition of environmental groups said Wednesday. Detroit Free Press
Billionaire's water plan just 2 votes away. Oilman Boone Pickens has been trying for seven years to move billions of gallons of water from underneath the northeastern Panhandle to urban Texas. On Tuesday, Alton and Lu Boone should put him one step closer to pulling it off. Houston Chronicle
Southern governors convene to solve water fight. Severe drought is gripping Georgia, Alabama and Florida, and the states' governors have been engaged in a rhetorical battle over how much water the Army Corps of Engineers should be releasing downstream from reservoirs in northern Georgia. National Public Radio.