Emily Lewis

October 26, 2007

New Scallop Gear

Recently proposed scallop-dredging gear has the potential to render the continuous debate regarding the affects of scallop dredging on the ocean floor obsolete. The New England Fishery Management Council recently found that the area near New Bedford is important for the maturation of cod and subsequently barred the practice of scallop dredging in that area. In an effort to save the scallop industry and the environment, the new gear created by Cliff Goudey uses inverted cups, rather than the traditional metal bar, to specifically target scallops while maintaining the marine habitat for the other species in the ecosystem.

Jay Lindsay, New scallop fishing gear aims to protect ocean floor, Burlington Free Press, Oct. 22, 207, at 2A.

New England Fishery Management Council, http://www.nefmc.org/scallops/index.html (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

Andrea Cohen, The Better Scallop Dredge, Summer 2007, http://seagrant.mit.edu/2ifbysea/issues/summer07/scallop_dredge.html (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

Shrinking Great Lakes

Environmentalists and the shipping industry are concerned about the decreasing water levels in the Great Lakes. As the lakes shrink, the shipping industry loses money because it forces them to send out more frequent and lighter cargo loads. Climate change is a suspected cause of the receding water level and a multi-million dollar study dollar study undertaken by the International Joint Commission may confirm the suspicion.

Fernanda Santos, The Great Lakes Shrink, and Cargo Carriers Worry, N.Y. Times, Oct. 22, 2007, at A20.

International Upper Great Lakes Study, http://www.iugls.org/en/home_accueil.htm (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

Great Lakes Information Network, http://www.great-lakes.net/lakes/ (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

Army Corp of Engineers: Chicago District, http://www.lrc.usace.army.mil/ (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

General Motors Going Green

This year, after relinquishing their top rank for selling cars to Toyota, GM is giving its customers what they want: hybrids. GM plans to produce eight new hybrid models over the next two years starting with America's favorite, the full-sized SUV. Hybrid technology is not new to the company. GM produced hybrid buses in 2004, but it never predicted a large demand from their average customer. In addition to releasing the hybrid models, GM is making up for lost time by investing time and money into a wide variety of green automotive technology, such as the plug-in hybrid.

Bryan Walsh, Green Moters, Time Mag., Oct. 22, 2007, at 50.

Reinventing the Automobile with Fuel Cell Technology, http://www.gm.com/explore/technology/fuel_cells/ (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

Roland Jones, Hefty GM Hybrids Could Boost Automaker, Oct. 3, 2007, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21016575/ (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

White House Drastically Edits Global Warming Testimony

Recently Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Center for Disease Control (CDC), gave Congressional testimony regarding the potential health problems caused by global warming. After a White House review and edit of her testimony, Gerberding focused on the CDC's preparation rather than any scientific information on specific diseases. While a number of state and city health groups received the original fourteen-page testimony, the White House edits restricted the CDC director to only six pages in her testimony to the Senate committee.

Josef Hebert, White House Slashes Testimony on Climate Change Impacts, Valley News, Oct. 24, 2007, at B1.

Josef Hebert, Major Editing Seen in CDC Testimony on Climate Change, Boston Globe, Oct. 24, 2007, at A14.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, http://www.cdc.gov/ (last visited Oct. 26, 2007).

Israel Recycling

Israeli leaders are in the process of converting the garbage dump located near Tel Aviv, named Hiriya, into a recycling park named after the former prime minister Ariel Sharon. Sharon was passionate about preventing real estate development on the site and expressed a desire to restore the land as green space for the residents of Tel Aviv. More than 600 million cubic feet of garbage will become an educational venue for children on recycling and other environmental issues. Ultimately the energy generated by the decaying garbage will light the park and the landscape will include grass, trees, and a lake.

Isabel Kershner, Recycling in Israel, Not Just Trash, but the Whole Dump, N.Y. Times, Oct. 24, 2007, at A4.