This post is by Michael Replogle, Transportation Director at Environmental Defense Fund.

Today, the New York City MTA proposed another fare and toll hike to manage a projected $900 million deficit next year. To avoid service cuts, according to WNYC, MTA head Lee Sander is "going begging everywhere, to Governor Paterson, Mayor Bloomberg, the federal government, and riders."

But in many other cities across the country, service cuts due to budget shortfalls are unavoidable. Ironically, communities are cutting services just when use of public transit is at a 50-year high due to skyrocketing gasoline prices (see map).

To avoid cutting these crucially important services, public transit systems urgently need federal help.

Read more »

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

People tend to do things the way they've always done unless something forces them to change - even if the new way is better and cheaper. So Hawaii has taken action to spur people along. From an article in the L.A. Times:

California last year passed legislation offering homeowners and businesses $250 million in incentives to install 200,000 solar water systems over the next 10 years.

But Hawaii Thursday took far bolder action, becoming the first state in the nation to require all new homes built after January 1, 2010 to be equipped with solar or other energy-efficient hot water systems.

The article goes on to say that Hawaii's switch to solar hot water will save homeowners money, and prevent the emission of more than 10,000 tons of greenhouse gases per year.

This post is by Andy Darrell, vice president for Living Cities at Environmental Defense Fund.

The high cost of gas has pushed retail gas purchases down 2 to 3 percent. What are people doing instead? Taking public transportation!

The first quarter report from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) found that use of public transportation is skyrocketing in tandem with gas prices. Last year 10.3 billion trips were taken on U.S. public transportation — the highest in 50 years. Ridership on streetcars, trolleys, commuter rails, subways, and buses are all up. Even Amtrak ridership is soaring.

This shift presents an historic opportunity.

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This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) use 75 percent less electricity than incandescent light bulbs for the same amount of light. (For why, see Bill's post "Why Switch to Compact Fluorescents".) But some people fear CFLs because of the tiny amount of mercury they contain. The risk from a broken CFL is extremely small, but CFLs should be disposed of properly so landfills aren't polluted. Sealing used bulbs in plastic bags before placing them in the trash can slow the release of mercury if the bulb breaks. But recycling is ideal.

The problem, until now, has been that recycling CFLs was inconvenient for post people. That's about to change, thanks to Home Depot. The New York Times reported this week that Home Depot will offer CFL recycling at all of its nearly 2000 U.S. stores. That puts 75 percent of Americans within 10 miles of a CFL recycling location.

Read more »

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Memorial Day is the start of the summer travel season. With gas prices approaching $4 per gallon across the country, you might want to think carefully about how you get where you're going. Should you take one, big, packed car, or two smaller, half-empty cars? How much gas can you save by driving slower and making sure your car engine is properly tuned?

For answers to all these questions and more, check out our Eight Ways to Green Your Road Trip.

This post is by Ramon Cruz, Senior Policy Analyst for Living Cities at Environmental Defense Fund.

It's ironic. In many parts of the world, there is no clean drinking water. Here in the U.S., pure, drinkable water flows out of every tap, and yet Americans buy a staggering amount of bottled water. We pay big bucks for it, too - over $15 billion a year.

Worse of all, the bottles are overflowing our landfills, and contribute to global warming. Take a look at this video from Doug James, and then check out these surprising facts.

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This post is by John Balbus, M.D., M.P.H., Chief Health Scientist at Environmental Defense.

On February 3, Parade published a misleading Medical Alert column with the headline "Bright Lights, Bad Headache?" by Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld. It starts with a list of unsubstantiated claims:

As energy-saving fluorescent lightbulbs become standard, new research suggests some dangers: Flickering bulbs have been reported to precipitate migraines or even seizures, though manufacturers say the new models have been improved. Fluorescent light also can aggravate skin rashes in people with lupus, eczema, dermatitis or porphyria.

Environmental Defense could find no published scientific studies demonstrating that compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) trigger migraines or seizures. And unlike older fluorescent tube lights, modern CFLs with electronic ballasts don’t flicker.

Read more »

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

Yesterday, the New York Times ran a story about light bulbs. If you only read the beginning of the article, you might think it was saying that compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) have poor quality light. But in fact, its conclusion - after testing a wide array of bulbs - was that some are better than others.

It's true - some are better than others. For information on CFLs and how they differ, check out our online guide, How to Pick a Better Bulb.

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

When you save water, you save energy - and vice versa. Carbon calculators can give you some idea of your carbon footprint, but most don't take into account your water usage. How much water do you use? Now you can find out.

A new Web site, H₂O Conserve, offers an H₂O Calculator. I tried it, and it said I used 479.88 gallons per day (I do?). The average American uses 1189.3 gallons of water per day, so I guess it's not as bad as it sounds.

The site also includes a comprehensive tips section for learning how to use less water.

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

Are you thinking about climate-related New Year's resolutions? In addition to this list of ideas from our Web site, here are some articles we've posted on green living that can give you some ideas.

Your Home:

• Personal Impact: Does It Really Matter What You Do? (easy-to-do tips)
• Making the Invisible Visible (energy usage feedback devices)
• The Next Big (Light bulb) Idea (LEDs)
• Why Switch to Compact Fluorescents?
• Heating with Lightbulbs: A Bad Idea
• Food Miles: Is Local Always Better?
• Energy-Efficient Mortgages: It Pays to Go Green

Your Car:

• Turn Off Your Engine!  
• Tips for Cleaner Driving
• To Drive Less, Live Closer to Work