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Our minds have a limited capacity to comprehend really, really big numbers. At least mine does. A million tons of C02 might as well be a zillion. Twelve and a half million dollars spent every hour on the Iraq war might as well be bazillions. Sometimes we try to fathom the enormities of raw numbers by visualizing them. How often have you heard that something stacked on end would extend...

A couple of hours ago, US stock investors finished taking a bath—the worst since 9/11—precipitated by a collapse in the Shanghai market. And front and center on its home page, the New York Times already has up a minute-by-minute chart showing today’s progress for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. (Hint: it’s mostly down.) Fair enough, I suppose. Measurement is important. And if the stock market ever deserves media attention, today...

I’m a bit late on this (that’s my new thing), but things just keep getting bigger and better when it comes to climate policy. Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington are joining forces to reduce emissions. Kudos to all five governors who pledged that: …within six months they will set a regional target for lower emissions. A year after that, they pledged, they will devise a regional cap-and-trade system,...

Wow. Just wow. The B.C. government is trying to out-green California with a sweeping strategy unveiled Tuesday to fight global warming by cutting back on greenhouse gas emissions from everything from cars and industry to the daily energy consumption of ordinary people. As far as I can tell, Campbell’s government looked at each of the recent advances in California’s climate policy—the emission goals, the broad authority to develop a cap...

Yesterday,Sightline released a new, expanded report telling the stories of seven communities affected by Measure 37. Here is another of the stories… Protection. Farmer Ted Warrick knows that his wine grapes need protection to be good enough to craft the pinot noir, chardonnay, zinfandel, syrah, and eight other varietals he makes at Wooldridge Creek Winery and Vineyards. Proud of southern Oregon’s fertile Applegate Valley, Warrick insists that this area rivals California...

Last autumn, Western states braced against an onslaught of “takings” initiatives masquerading as protections for property rights. In the run-up to the elections, voters were regaled with scary stories of abusive government regulation and eminent domain. Many of the stories turned out to be apocryphal, but some were genuine. And those of us who warned against the initiatives, such as I-933 in Washington, said we’d support real fixes for real...

Bicycle boulevards – coming soon to a city near you. Portland, Vancouver and Seattle are creating a designated system of residential streets with low traffic volume and direct routes that prioritize bicycle utility and safety. These boulevards come outfitted with street markings that dominate the road (as opposed to segregated bicycle lanes), right-of-way that allows the free flow of bikes, and signage that creates a comprehensive system. Check out what...

Who stands to benefit most from living in “walkable” neighborhoods? Possibly kids, new research suggests. As Science News reports this week, researchers including UBC’s Lawrence Frank (whose work we covered in Cascadia Scorecard 2006) are finding that children are disproportionately affected by how their neighborhood is designed. In one study of what determines whether kids are active, scientists found that: Girls who live near parks and recreational facilities are more...

Looks like Oregon’s making its move: Gov. Ted Kulongoski is backing a proposal that would force utilities to increase energy efficiency, increase their reliance on renewable energy and limit greenhouse gas emissions. He said he would work with other Western states to discuss a regional program called cap-and-trade, but an initial program just within Oregon also is viable. So it looks like Oregon is set to follow California’s lead: establishing...

When California passed its landmark global warming law last summer, it left the rest of the west coast playing catch up. But, perhaps, not for long. Late last fall, the environmental law clinic at the University of Victoria drafted a model climate change law, based on California’s, but tailored to work in British Columbia’s political climate: California’s law gave broad power to an independent regulatory board, but the UVic drafters...