The boom in cellulosic ethanol that was predicted four years ago never happened. Or hasn't happened yet. The idea of making ethanol from all manner of plant material other than corn still promises major net environmental benefits -- unlike corn ethanol, which doesn't do much for the environment. But a lot depends on oil prices, electric car sales, financing, and the economies of scale.

"The federal rule protecting the nation's last remaining stretches of roadless wilderness will apply now to the largest and grandest of the national forests under a court ruling in Alaska, which threw out the exemption granted to the Tongass National Forest."

"Redondo Beach's King Harbor is inundated with dead fish. Experts believe the sardines sought safe harbor from a storm, but consumed the oxygen in their small refuge."

"Behind the feud between Greenpeace and Facebook over renewable energy."

"At least three of the Wisconsin state Senate Republicans currently demanding that public workers sacrifice benefits, wages and even collective bargaining rights for the sake of the budget have applied for and received hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal farm subsidies, a Huffington Post review of state and federal records shows."

The U.S. Supreme Court Monday issued the second ruling in recent days narrowing exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act -- and thus increasing public access to government information. In the case of Milner v. Department of the Navy, the court rejected an expansive interpretation of the FOIA exemption on personnel matters. The Society of Environmental Journalists had joined other journalism groups in a friend of the court brief urging a narrower exemption.

The extent of Arctic sea ice cover reached a record low this winter, tying the record low mark set in the winter of 2005, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Scientists consider the decline of sea ice to be a sign of manmade global warming.

"Democrats have attempted to get Republicans to confront the science on climate change, in an effort to halt moves to block regulation of greenhouse gas pollution. But it's not clear that the appeal to reason worked."

"Lead poisoning linked with illegal gold mining has killed a further 400 children in northern Nigeria since November, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said on Monday."
 

"The Interior Department will study the potential impacts of a 'very large oil spill' in the Arctic Ocean as part of a court-ordered supplemental review of oil and gas leasing off Alaska's northwest coast, the agency said."