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The Northwest is currently undergoing another jag of “extreme weather” to complement the huge snowfalls of last winter. All of this has prompted many people to seek air conditioned relief or simply hide in their basements. Perhaps some desperate souls are huddled by their refrigerators. It’s definitely not an efficient use of the fridge, but 103 degrees is hot, hot, hot. Luckily, many of the appliances we use to keep...

In December 2007, in “Junk Mail Box,” I lauded ad-mail slayer Catalog Choice and argued for US and Canadian Do Not Mail registries. Soon thereafter, I began using Catalog Choice assiduously at home. I also refreshed my subscription to the Direct Mail Association’s Mail Preference Service. I wrote to ValPak to plead for a reprieve from their thick wads of coupon mailers (my own letter carrier gave me the address)....

Gov. Chris Gregoire touted Washington’s increasing numbers of green jobs and expanding use of renewable energy before a Senate committee on Tuesday. She urged lawmakers to pass climate change legislation, taking pains to spell out the link between new jobs and clean energy. In testimony before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works plus the Subcommittee on Green Jobs and the New Economy she described the state’s approach: “Our...

The days when emissions levels and energy policies in China and India were held up as excuses by the rest of the world’s economic leaders for doing nothing about climate and energy seem to be over—almost. (Some reasons why the China argument doesn’t pan out, here, here, and here—and here are some compelling reasons why climate solutions can be a boon to the economy rather than a strain.) Today, in...

Ripples, and sometimes waves, of the economic tsunami continue to roil through cities across the United States. One product of the downturn is stalled real estate projects. Many shelved projects have left vacant lots, derelict buildings, or parking lots where housing or office space was planned. The need to put these spaces back into use has motivated some great thinking about how to integrate open space and farming into the...

Last week I heaped praise on Portland’s plans to revise their city building codes to encourage family-friendly courtyard housing. This week, I am feeling the same way about another set of changes being considered that would make it easier to generate clean energy and reduce runoff in urban neighborhoods. A package of changes called the “Green Bundle” is being reviewed this summer by the City of Portland. The Planning Commission...

Editor’s note: A revised and updated federal version of Sightline Cap and Trade 101 is now available. Download Cap and Trade 101: A Federal Climate Policy Primer here. This post originally appeared June 11, 2009. It was based on the version of the American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act (H.R. 2454, or “Waxman-Markey”) approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. By June 26, when the bill passed the...

The most common sense of the word “density” in land-use terms is simple: more people in a smaller area. Frequently the only way to accomplish this is to build taller, multi-unit buildings. High rises. But in areas with low concentrations of people, increasing density can mean something different than building up to the sky. There are ways to create more diversity and choice in single-family neighborhoods—accessory dwelling units (ADUs) can...

President Obama recently signed into law what’s called “cash for clunkers” legislation intended to take gas guzzlers off the road by offering an incentive for owners to upgrade to newer, more efficient cars. This is a really great idea because the program incentivizes the right thing: fuel efficiency. But the legislation has been criticized as more of a support for the ailing auto industry than an energy efficiency program. In...

As British Columbia acknowledges the one year anniversary of the landmark carbon tax shift policy, the revenue-neutral tax recently bumped prices at the pump from 2.4 cents to 3.6 cents a litre. But the price change at the pump hasn’t drastically altered public opinion one way or another. In fact, as reported in Sightline Daily today, carbon tax shifting appears to be gaining favor across Canada. A quick refresher on...