Obama=Greenest President Ever?

Reporter Michael Hawthorne looks at what kind of impact Obama will have on environmental issues. While the article is nicely written and brings in several sources contemplating what kind of environmental relief the Obama administration will provide, there is never any proposed legistlation/plans (as the sub-headline implies "Obama's plans for environmental legislation may have big impact"). There is only speculation.

Obviously the Tribune has been immersed in Obama's transition of power, and it's only fitting to run this article now. However, there's a big source lacking--Obama. While this story is a nice preface to what he might do (so in that way the headline is kind of okay), it doesn't lay out any real ideas that he's offered. Of course we don't really expect Hawthorne to get on the phone right away, but I think a better way to approach this story would have been to look at "The Environment Under Obama" offering some hypothetical situations.

I think another way to go with this story as well would be to look at what we should expect given the poor state of the economy. Hawthorne alludes to this, "Some of his promises could be muted by a troubled economy," but it would be a good direction to take this story next.

Find the article here.

 

White House Limits EPA's Power to Monitor Lead Emissions

This article, published on November 14th by Tribune environment reporter Michael Hawthorne, explains how because Bush and the White House are only allowing the EPA to place monitors on those who pollute a ton or more of lead annually, 60% fewer factories will be investigated.

The story is a good example of two things. 

First, it had a lot of investigative elements in it. Hawthorne looks at the regulation and talks to lobbyists to figure out how these regulations were lifted. He really just uses information that is widely available.

Second, it's a good way of turning a broader issue local. He shows how a steel factory in Chicago as well as a battery plant in Naperville will fall through the cracks because of these new regulations.

Just a piece of editorial commentary--I think that Hawthorne, and all reporters for that matter, should continue to keep there eyes out for shady dealings like this one that occur during Bush's remaining lame-duck period.

Find the article here.

Tribune writer visits green hotels, restaurants around Lake MI

In an article published Nov. 9th in the Tribune, writer Cliff Terry explains his escapade seeking ecologically-friendly sleeps and eats in Michigan and Wisconsin.

Terry begins by walking us through his fiasco in trying to rent a hybrid for the trip (the one that the company owned was unavailable; it costs $799/wk to rent). He settles by getting a high MPG Hyundai Sonata.

Terry and his wife stop at several "Travel Green" certified lodgings and restaurants. Most places however are primarily certified because they serve local food, which greatly reduces transportation costs/pollution. Thus their carbon footprint is minimized.

One ski resort pays more money to assure that its ski lifts are powered by wind energy. The owner, a former renewable-energy guru from California, aims to promote wind energy by doing this. The resort has also built a new spa with non-toxic insulation, and all compact fluorescent light bulbs.

From there, Terry explores several other, similar lodgings/ restaurants, and the piece begins to drag on, with fewer interesting case studies in his adventure and less personal appeal (to his defense, this did appear in the Travel section).

While this piece shows us how we can patronize these eco-friendly attractions, we're left (at least I was) wondering: Why can't Holiday Inn change it's light bulbs? Why can't Chile's or TGI Friday's cut down on their carbon footprint by limiting the amount food transportation?

As is a trend with many of these Environmental pieces, the reader is shown a case study, an anomaly to the trend. I want to see more pieces demanding simple changes for big companies--that will make a real difference.

Find the entire article here.

Popcorn clogs sewers

Okay, this one is kind of a stretch, but obviously the last week or so of the Tribune's coverage has been dominated by the election. Even my go-to guy Michael Hawthorne was covering the election of the Trib.

This story, buried in the local news section, describes how The Popcorn Factory in Lake Forest was doing routine cleaning and as a result grease and caramel that seeped into the sewer system caused blockage and an overflow of sewage into a nearby field.

The damage was not very serious, but this is still a very good example of sheer neglect by this company. Though the article says they have now purchased new filtration mechanisms, I'm still not comfortable with popcorn grease being drained into local sewer systems. Where those sewers lead, nobody knows; in just walking around Champaign-Urbana we can see an emblem by most sewers that reads "No Dumping, Leads to Waterways." 

Companies like this should not only be held liable for repair costs, but they should also be fined for this kind of conduct. The short article doesn't really get into these angles, but it would be an interesting way to take this piece.

Find the article here.

Car Sharing

On Monday, October 27th, Michael Hawthorne, the Chicago Tribune's exclusive local environmental reporter was the selected writer for "The Talk," the second page editorial that fills in for John Kass on off days.

Hawthorne provides us with a glimpse into his life, sharing a car.

Using a first-person point of view, but also incorporating facts and anecdotes, Hawthorne is able to describe to the reader what exactly it means to "share" a car. He talks about two Chicago-based car services, I-GO and Zipcar, and discusses how the work, and the benefits and disadvantages of these non-profit services.

At $8 an hour, Hawthorne and users like him can take a car out of a selected garage. That fee covers the cost of insurance and gas. The car is described as a practical option for those who do minimal local driving and can also access public transportation when needed. Hawthorne himself acknowledges the importance of living close to a train station. Of course the ecological benefits are mentioned in the piece.

However, Hawthorne also explains how it can be impractical; how the cars must be reserved in advance on weekends, and how it can be senseless to pay for a car sitting in a shopping mall parking lot. He also ties in some of his own personal experiences, explaining how his oldest son feels when they check out the car ("...my oldest son is convinced the neighborhood high schoolers mock us as we walk to and from the parking garage where I-GO cars are located.").

To close, Hawthorne muses that he often wishes he still had his own vehicle, and I think this is important to readers. Going green is something that is very difficult, and to see that the Tribune's beat reporter has difficulty with it makes us realize that this is something that really has to be worked towards.

Find the article here.

RSEI Ratings- Around the University

When logging on ChicagoTribune.com and going to their "Living Green" section, the featured link was to a United States EPA database. The database shows the RSEI ratings of different companies around the state of Illinois.

An RSEI rating is "based on these factors: the amount of chemicals 16,40

5 companies across the country released into the air, as reported in the 2005 Toxic Release Inventory; the toxicity of the chemicals; and the population of the surrounding area."

I thought it would be interesting to look at Champaign County. The biggest air polluter is "Guardian West," an Urbana company that primarily manufactures truck bumpers. The EPA has it ranked 480th nationally, but more disconcerting to UIUC students is that it is ranked 399th (out of 16,405 companies) when it comes to women age 18-44, and it comes in at 346th for men age 18-44.

Near my hometown in Chicago, I was especially scared to learn that I lived a long walking distance from the 18th worst polluter in the U.S., Corn Products International. 

Though this isn't an attributed story, it is an effective tool to help the Tribune promote its stories. It has, in the past, run several articles pertaining to air pollution around Chicago, which has been rated the 13th worst city for air quality.

While really just an entry point, this gets readers locally involved and allows them to make their own judgments regarding companies around their town.

Find the article here.

Frog population takes hit--by cars

This is an interesting story that ran on Oct. 19 and is by Thomas M. Maugh II.

The article talks about a Purdue study by biologists who studied an 11 mile stretch of road in Tippecanoe Co., just west of West Lafayette. The report found that of the total number of roadkill found, nearly 95 percent were frogs and other amphibians.  (PICTURED AT RIGHT is an image of the northern leopard frog, an endangered species. 74 of these frogs were found dead as roadkill in the study.)

Obviously, this story catches our attention because we certainly do not think of frogs as a group vulnerable to road killings, particularly the staggering figure that the study proposes.

The article quotes biologist David Glista as saying, "We think of deer as being one of the more common animals killed on the road, but they make up a tiny percentage of the total." Their study, which lasted 17 months, found just four dead deer.

I think that this story accomplishes two things; it provides somewhat of a lighter side of news (that's not to say dead animals is a light subject, but in this case it is perhaps more peculiar than earth-shattering), and it also proposes a bigger theme of species endangerment and the many ways that they can be affected by human activity. On the whole, this news story captures the readers attention by keeping it short, using an informative lead and nut graf, and implementing effective statistics.

Find the article here. This article was also found under the business section of ChicagoTribune.com, which was perplexing to me.