ECOLOGY

'Green' Measures Key to Earth's Future
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/012006EA.shtml
An analysis released Thursday warns that if major changes are not made in the way humans consume natural resources, there will be widespread famine, severe shortages of clean water and huge impacts from natural disasters. This grim scenario, however, can be avoided through policy decisions that emphasize environmental technology, poverty reduction and investments in education and health, the report's authors said.

EPA Tries to Drop the Clean-Air Rules for Rural Areas
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/012006EB.shtml
Bush administration officials are moving to strip significant clean-air protections from broad areas of California and other Western states, saying that rural areas should no longer have to meet federal rules for windblown clouds of dust, and that mining and farming operations also should be exempt. An official with the air quality district for Owens Valley calls it "outrageous."

New Law Forces Manufacturers to Pick Up Recycling Costs
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/012006EC.shtml
A first-in-the-nation law went into effect Wednesday in Maine, requiring makers of televisions and computer monitors to pick up the tab to recycle and safely dispose of their products once they are discarded.