ENN: Cheap Solar, Indian Tigers, UAV Smog Detective and Much More

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					Tuesday, May 6, 2008
	News of Note Myanmar cyclone toll climbs to nearly 22,500 Myanmar's military government raised its death toll from Cyclone Nargis on Tuesday to nearly 22,500 with a further 41,000 missing, nearly all of them from a massive storm surge that swept into the vast Irrawaddy delta. Top Stories Solar Hot Water on the Cheap There's a downside to nearly all renewable energy technologies available for homeowners. Cost. Though over time a solar power or small wind system may pay for itself in savings from not buying fuels or power from the grid, the initial outlay for renewable energy is staggering for mere mortals. Despite the wisdom of a penny saved is a penny earned, most Americans consider sales price first, long term savings last. However simple, low tech, clever products or affordable high tech plug and play technologies may be the key to bringing renewable energy into the home. Cubs a ray of hope in India's fight to save tigers Fourteen tiger cubs have been spotted in a leading Indian sanctuary, a rare piece of good news in the country's fight to protect its dwindling population of big cats from poachers and habitat destruction. The cubs have been sighted regularly over the past few weeks in Ranthambore National Park in western Rajasthan, R.N. Mehrotra, the state's chief wildlife warden, told Reuters on Tuesday. Unmanned Aircraft to Study Southern California Smog and its Consequences "These monthly UAV flights will provide unprecedented data for evaluating how long range transport of pollutants including ozone, soot and other particulates from the northwest United States, Canada, east Asia and Mexico mix with local pollution and influence our air quality and regional climate including the early melting of snow packs," said Ramanathan. New Reason For Bee Hive Collapse: Ecologists Tease Out Private Lives Of Plants And Their Pollinators The quality of pollen a plant produces is closely tied to its sexual habits, ecologists have discovered. As well as helping explain the evolution of such intimate relationships between plants and pollinators, the study -- one of the first of its kind and published online in the British Ecological Society's journal Functional Ecology -- also helps explain the recent dramatic decline in certain bumblebee species found in the shrinking areas of species-rich chalk grasslands and hay meadows across Northern Europe.		ENN Spotlight Ethanol waiver seen spiking gasoline $1/gallon NEW YORK (Reuters) - A proposal by Texas Gov. Rick Perry to waive half of the renewable fuel standard for ethanol has raised the ire of some ethanol proponents, who say it could add more than a dollar per gallon to the cost of gasoline across the country. "The impact on gasoline prices, if you take 4.5 billion gallons of ethanol off the market today, if (Texas) Governor Perry gets his way, is significant," said Bob Dineen, president of the Renewable Fuels Association, an ethanol industry group. More Top Stories Record-Setting Laser May Boost Search For Earthlike Planets 100 Fold Scientists at the University of Konstanz in Germany and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated an ultrafast laser that offers a record combination of high speed, short pulses and high average power. The same NIST group also has shown that this type of laser, when used as a frequency comb—an ultraprecise technique for measuring different colors of light—could boost the sensitivity of astronomical tools searching for other Earthlike planets as much as 100 fold. Latin America: profitable business and sustainable development through inclusiveness Lately our news feeds about the business sector, government and development activities in Latin America have painted a stark picture; mostly surrounding resource competition between filling bellies and producing biofuels. The current crises elucidates the range of dilemmas faced when business and development needs are out of harmony, when they are placed in competition to one another. What results is negative local community development, compromised business outcomes and strained relationships between governments, industry and civil society. Climate change could hit tropical wildlife hardest WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Polar bears may have it relatively easy. It's the tropical creatures that could really struggle if the climate warms even a few degrees in places that are already hot, scientists reported on Monday. That doesn't mean polar bears and other wildlife in the polar regions won't feel the impact of climate change. They probably will, because that is where the warming is expected to be most extreme, as much as 18 degrees F (10 degrees C) by the end of this century.
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	Member Press Releases 2008 National Wetlands Awards to be Presented on May 13th By: Environmental Law Institute The seven winners of the 2008 National Wetlands Awards will be recognized at an evening ceremony on May 13th, 2008, at the Canon House Office Building in Washington, D.C. Oklahoma Moves to Protect State's Freshwater Turtles From Commercial Over - harvest By: Center for Biological Diversity Responding to a petition by conservation and health groups, the state of Oklahoma today enacted a three-year moratorium on commercial harvest of turtles from public waters. Botanical Research Institute of Texas to Present 2008 International Award of Excellence in Conservation to World - Renowned Botanist Peter H. Raven, Ph.D. By: Botanical Research Institute of Texas The Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT), a nonprofit international botanical resource center, will present its 2008 International Award of Excellence in Conservation to Peter H. Raven, Ph.D., at a dinner here on Thursday, May 15, 2008. Lethal Levels of Asbestos Prompt Closure of California's Clear Creek Management Area By: Center for Biological Diversity The Bureau of Land Management has just closed to the public over 30,000 acres of the Clear Creak Management Area in response to a multi-year Environmental Protection Agency report. Florida Forever Coalition Hails Renewal of Landmark Program By: The Trust for Public Land The more than 160 organizational members of the Florida Forever Coalition today applauded the Florida Legislature for its passage of Senate Bill 542, which reauthorizes the Florida Forever Program for 10 years at $300 million annually. Conservationists Sue to Recover Endangered Jaguars By: Center for Biological Diversity The Center for Biological Diversity filed suit today against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to compel development of a recovery plan and critical habitat for the endangered jaguar. Far Rockaway Middle School Students Celebrate New Playground By: The Trust for Public Land Sixth through eighth-grade students at M.S. 53 Brian Piccolo School in the Far Rockaway section of Queens today celebrated the opening of a new community playground that they designed. Join Robina Suwol at Whole Children, Whole Planet Expo 2008 By: California Safe Schools Join Robina Suwol of California Safe Schools, www.calisafe.org at the Whole Children, Whole Planet Expo, the premier natural parenting and family expo, taking place May 17-18, 2008 at Highland Hall Waldorf School in Northridge. Editor's Note : 'Network News' features press releases submitted directly by organizations in ENN's member network. This content is not specifically endorsed or supported by ENN and is not subject to ENN's editorial process.
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