Wednesday, 8 February, 2012

As Congress, president debate changes to immigration laws, we wonder if immigration-fueled population growth is an environmental issue. Should United States reduce immigration?

An international team of scientists selected the Homestake goldmine to be the world’s deepest underground lab, but the project may sink.

Renewable energy and the hydrogen economy get a boost from new invention.

New photovoltaic (PV) cells combine polymer and inorganic semiconductors — could be cheaper to manufacture.

Worldwide thirst for oil, Hurricane Katrina, political instability, conservation failures add up to record demand and record prices for fuel. Can inherently “safe designs” reduce the risk of meltdown? Should we support a revival of fission power?

Gas hydrates under the ocean may contain an almost unlimited supply of energy, but they’re hard to get, and using them could make global warming even worse. Now a UC-Riverside professor says quick releases of frozen methane could cause a climate catastrophe. So is this gas a blessing, a curse, or both?

How do we find and produce oil and natural gas? Give credit to the ancient plants that make oil and natural gas. Why do oil companies whack the Earth? What is a horizontal drill good for?

New push for renewable energy: Solar hydrogen, wind farms and fuel cells all have potential — and problems.

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District announced that it would buy enough solar panels to make 10 million watts of electricity. That’s enough to power about 3,000 customers during the day, when the sun is shining, and when the utility faces its peak demand.