07/06/2009

Climate change may be benefiting poison ivy, studies suggest
Coming into contact with poison ivy can leave sufferers in misery. And if it seems to you like there’s more of it around these day, you may be right.

Poison ivy myths
Common myths

07/04/2009

R.I. beach closings
R.I. beach closings

07/03/2009

Heavy rains exceed even overflow tunnel’s capacity
PROVIDENCE — It rained so hard Thursday morning that for the first time all year, the state’s massive, $359-million combined sewer overflow tunnel finally filled to capacity and allowed untreated sewage to spill into the city’s rivers.

Tiverton soil cleanup to start in fall
The Department of Environmental Management says the cleanup of contaminated soil should be completed by the end of the year.

Dispose of propane tanks safely, landfill officials warn
State officials are asking that those discarding the tanks do so properly, and not include them with trash bound for the state’s Central Landfill.

07/01/2009

$3 million in stimulus money to be used for fish ladders
The $3 million will finance several projects to open spawning habitats around the state.

Council miffed at mounting fields cost
Supplying water for the new athletic fields has become a sore point in East Greenwich.

EPA lets R.I., 13 other states impose tougher auto emission standards
Rhode Island is among the states that had sought to impose stricter standards.

06/30/2009

Newport tries to turn the tide on seaweed
The city invests $320,000 in a unique machine to rid Easton’s Beach of a noxious nuisance.

Air is now cleared over lead-paint settlement funds
Millions of dollars will go toward lead-paint remediation in houses where children are at risk of lead poisoning.

06/29/2009

Through this URI entomologist, ticks talk
To that great majority of us who experience ordinary disgust (if not outright horror) when beholding the tick, Thomas N. Mather’s long fascination with these bloodsucking disease carriers seems terribly wrong.

06/28/2009

Environmental Digest
Kent Hospital offers free document-shredding

06/27/2009

Warwick, North Kingstown beaches reopen
Two beaches closed this week for poor water quality have reopened.

4 incumbents recommended for coastal board
Governor Carcieri, in an effort to bolster the shorthanded Coastal Resources Management Council, has submitted the names of four of its members to the Senate for reappointment.

06/25/2009

Pollution closes Fort Adams beach
Fort Adams State Park in Newport brings to four the number of areas closed to swimming because of high bacteria counts, the state Department of Health said Wednesday.

Study finds deer tick numbers up in state
Damp weather is partly blamed for a more than 50 percent jump in Rhode Island’s tick population compared to last year.

06/24/2009

Wind-energy firm considers waters off N.J.
Deepwater Wind, planning a wind-turbine project in waters off Block Island, was among four firms awarded leases for exploratory work.

06/23/2009

Police: Fisher cat bites boy at bus stop
The animal, which has had a resurgence in Rhode Island, does not harbor rabies, says a biologist.

06/22/2009

Battle over coastal oversight panel leaves it rudderless
Environmentalists and the governor’s office urge the Assembly to act to allow appointments to the panel.

06/20/2009

Shades of gray dominate R.I.’s drizzly spring
If we could pick a symbol for this spring, it would be windshield wipers set on intermittent.

Chef at New Rivers Restaurant makes a tasty dish out of wild mushrooms
Confronted with a food item he had never seen before, Beau Vestal of Providence’s New Rivers Restaurant rises to the occasion.

Chef at New Rivers Restaurant makes a tasty dish out of wild mushrooms
Confronted with a food item he had never seen before, Beau Vestal of Providence’s New Rivers Restaurant rises to the occasion.

06/19/2009

FEMA official says residents must do more to prepare for a hurricane
Using computer models, the federal agency says a hurricane would be devastating to Rhode Island.

06/18/2009

R.I. Senate approves alternative energy for National Grid
The Rhode Island Senate approves a bill that would let the utility purchase power from alternative-energy suppliers.

06/17/2009

New climate report says global warming ‘human-induced’
The 190-page report was produced by experts from 13 government agencies and several major universities.

06/16/2009

Dead whale washes up near Little Compton beach
The humpback whale, estimated to be 25 to 30 feet long, draws curiosity seekers to Briggs Beach.

06/15/2009

URI turf scientists search for greener pastures
A perfect lawn could someday result from a scrubby patchwork of plants growing in an experimental field at the University of Rhode Island’s Kingston campus. This lawn would stay green all summer without watering, require minimal fertilizer, and need no chemicals to combat weeds, bugs and disease. It would barely have to be mowed.

Providence wins grant to create ‘green-jobs’ training program
The money will be used to prepare adults with less than high school-level literacy to enter the ‘green’ industry.

06/14/2009

Environmental Digest
plord@projo.com or by writing him, care of The Providence Journal, 75 Fountain St., Providence, RI 02902.

06/12/2009

Activists call for state to put lid on bottled water
PROVIDENCE — On the day before the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors opens here, activists gathered Thursday on the steps of the State House to urge officials in Rhode Island and across the country to step up efforts to reduce the nation’s consumption of bottled water.

Stimulus money earmarked for energy-efficient buildings
$14.5 million is earmarked to make municipal buildings more energy efficient.

Wind-farm turbine project moves a step closer
House and Senate panels throw their support behind legislation that would allow National Grid to purchase renewable energy, with stipulations.

06/11/2009

Wind-farm turbine project off Block Island moves a step closer
Rhode Island House and Senate panels throw their support behind legislation that would allow National Grid to purchase renewable energy, with stipulations.

R.I. Supreme Court to hear appeal of Champlin’s Marina expansion
The state Supreme Court has agreed to hear appeals from environmental groups in the case of the Block Island marina expansion.

East Greenwich Council raises questions about fields
EAST GREENWICH — Members of the East Greenwich Town Council on Monday night questioned why consultants and members of its Fields Construction Committee neglected to check into potential irrigation problems before beginning to build athletic fields near the high school.

06/09/2009

DEM looking for help with turkey count
PROVIDENCE — State biologists want to talk turkey.

Energy projects spark effort to map coasts
A consortium unveils efforts to map coastal areas from Canada to Cape Hatteras.

06/05/2009

Repelling ticks in style
An entomologist makes it his mission to get people into Permethrin-treated clothing.

Mass. map to allocate ocean’s use
The coastal zoning map, unveiled on July 1, will delineate the areas where offshore projects will and won’t be allowed.

Mass. map to allocate ocean’s use
The coastal zoning map, unveiled on July 1, will delineate the areas where offshore projects will and won’t be allowed.

06/04/2009

URI researchers working on renewable fuels
Research being conducted at URI’s Plant Biotechnology Laboratory could help give the state a foothold in the growing market for renewable fuels.

06/02/2009

National Grid seeks 11.2 percent rate increase
National Grid says it needs the rate hike to increase the reliability and safety of its electricity distribution system.

06/01/2009

URI opens its new Bay Campus Ocean Science and Exploration Center
NARRAGANSETT

Inner Space Center a dream come true for Ballard
The new facility at URI’s Bay Campus will act as a point of convergence for information gleaned during worldwide underwater exploration.

05/31/2009

Environmental Digest
Wild photo contest

05/29/2009

Settlement at hand in Tiverton land case
The head of the DEM says an agreement has been ironed out with the North Tiverton residents living on contaminated land.

Rhode Island sees a green future in energy
A state official says thousands of jobs could be created locally in the fields of energy efficiency and renewable energy, such as offshore wind farms.

05/28/2009

R.I. officials see opportunities in green power
PROVIDENCE — Entrepreneurs and state policymakers spoke Wednesday about what they said is a bright future for clean energy in Rhode Island.

05/27/2009

Bill boosting fines for industrial pollution makes progress
House Majority Leader Gordon D. Fox decides to advance a bill raising the maximum fines for corporate polluters to $25,000 a day.

State considers allowing trash incineration
Officials and proponents say a new method would provide energy and reduce waste at the state Central Landfill in Johnston.

05/24/2009

R.I. offshore wind farm would probably be far from sight
Because of stronger winds and a sea floor with fewer obstacles to construction, the most favorable places for wind turbines in Rhode Island coastal waters appear to be far offshore, where the turbines will be all but invisible from the mainland.

Governor, legislature differ on alterative energy bill
PROVIDENCE — It’s being characterized as crucial to alternative energy development in Rhode Island. But a key bill designed to energize wind turbines, solar cells and other renewable energy projects is adrift in the legislative winds.

05/23/2009

Carpet manufacturer promotes environmentalism in R.I. appearance
PROVIDENCE — As a corporate executive, Ray Anderson wears the typical dark suit and readily talks about bottom lines and shareholder values. But in a speech here Thursday night — one that he has given across the nation — he talked with much greater conviction about the biosphere and sustainability, as if he were a dreamy environmentalist from the 1970s.

Carpet manufacturer promotes environmentalism in R.I. appearance
PROVIDENCE — As a corporate executive, Ray Anderson wears the typical dark suit and readily talks about bottom lines and shareholder values. But in a speech here Thursday night — one that he has given across the nation — he talked with much greater conviction about the biosphere and sustainability, as if he were a dreamy environmentalist from the 1970s.

05/24/2009

R.I. offshore wind farm would probably be far from sight
Because of stronger winds and a sea floor with fewer obstacles to construction, the most favorable places for wind turbines in Rhode Island coastal waters appear to be far offshore, where the turbines will be all but invisible from the mainland.

Governor, legislature differ on alterative energy bill
PROVIDENCE — It’s being characterized as crucial to alternative energy development in Rhode Island. But a key bill designed to energize wind turbines, solar cells and other renewable energy projects is adrift in the legislative winds.

05/22/2009

Bill to reorganize CRMC has governor’s support
The legislation, which has the governor’s backing, would reduce the council’s membership and create a legislative oversight panel.

05/18/2009

Brown, RISD students produce an in-between urban alternative vehicle
It will never be mass-produced looking exactly like this, but the car you might someday drive to work exists today as a plywood-and-steel vehicle with three wheels, a 7-horsepower biodiesel engine and a front suspension cannibalized from an ATV.

05/16/2009

State’s coastal council rejects application for oceanfront home in Charlestown
The Coastal Resources Management Council rejects a Connecticut couple’s request to build a beachfront cottage in Charlestown.

Aeronautica Wind Power eyeing Quonset for turbine plant
The Massachusetts company has also looked at two other sites in Rhode Island as potential locations for a manufacturing plant.

05/14/2009

State’s coastal council rejects application for oceanfront home in Charlestown
State officials compiled a long list of concerns over building a new cottage on the shrub-covered, beachfront property in the tony Quonochontaug summer colony. Waves frequently wash over the lot. It is “geologically active” with sands moving back and forth. The state coastal council rejected a building application from another family in 1995.

05/11/2009

Portsmouth windmill paying dividends even before it’s dedicated
PORTSMOUTH