by Patrick Mazza on October 19, 2012

Sitting down to talk about his work to focus the climate-saving power of soil carbon, Peter Donovan starts off with a trick question. “What’s the major greenhouse gas?”  I fall right into it. “Carbon dioxide.” “No, it’s water vapor.” Of course, he’s right, and I know it.  I have answered the question I thought I heard – What is the human-emitted pollutant that is the largest source of climate change?  But in terms of actual gases in the atmosphere, good old H2O is hands down the greatest heat trapper.

by Patrick Mazza on October 19, 2012

The Soil Carbon Challenge is a “competition to see how fast land managers can turn atmospheric carbon into soil organic matter. If you want to find out how fast a human can run 100 meters, do you build a computer model, do a literature search, or convene a panel of experts on human physiology to make a prediction? No, you run a race. Or a series of them.”

by Bobby Hayden on October 16, 2012

Each 1.8 degree temperature rise means 10 percent more in irrigation demands - a challenge for an industry whose primary energy use is pumping water. See how Oregon's nurseries are leading the way.

by Eileen V. Quigley on October 15, 2012

The Town of Jackson, WY is well on its path to becoming a national leader in energy efficiency and renewable energy. With over four million annual visitors to the area, Jackson has the potential to educate millions of Americans about the value of investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy and pioneering a clean energy future.

by Anonymous on October 11, 2012

If you want to find out how fast a human can run 100 meters, do you build computer model, do a literature search, or convene a panel of experts on human physiology to make a prediction? No, you run a race. Or a series of them. The Soil Carbon Challenge is an international as well as local competition to see how fast land managers can turn atmospheric carbon into water-holding, fertility-enhancing organic matter.

by Elizabeth Willmott on October 4, 2012

The success stories of the Recovery Act's clean energy investment are visible across the country in numerous American cities. Recovery Act funding enabled a wide range of innovative projects in municipal and community-wide energy efficiency, clean energy, sustainable transportation, and other measures to cut energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

by Ross Macfarlane on September 19, 2012

The following, an excerpt of an open letter to BNSF CEO Matthew Rose, was published in Sustainable Business Oregon. We wanted to thank you for recently visiting the Northwest. We’re sorry that we didn’t have a chance to chat about the subject that brought you to our region: coal export.

by Bobby Hayden on September 16, 2012

How Green Canopy Homes turns a profit, cuts the same carbon on average as one car permanently off the road, and employs approx.

by Rhys Roth on September 12, 2012

On a marine wildlife cruise in Alaska recently I got to touch a sea otter pelt–it was so luxuriously soft my knees almost buckled with pleasure. A new study found that these critters are not only super-cuddly, they also play an outsized role in sucking up carbon from the atmosphere and storing it safely away in the sea.

by Peter and Pam Hayes on September 4, 2012

In our three family-owned forests in the northern Oregon Coast Range, our work is guided by a simple belief: “If we take care of the land—the land will take care of us.”  With climate change, we believe that “caring for the land” includes our playing a responsible role in maintaining the climate on which life—and the success of our tiny family business—depends.