Indian Point nuclear plant kills a billion Hudson River organisms per year

The battle is on over Indian Point's nuclear power plant's request for a 20 year license extension, as the State of New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation has blocked needed water permits due to the twin reactors' "once-through" cooling system that kills a billion Hudson River organisms per year, including endangered species such as the shortnose sturgeon. But Entergy Nuclear, which made an incredible $436 million in pre-tax profits at Indian Point in 2009, will not go down without a fight.

Rare wildlife in India protected as uranium prospecting plan rejected

A plan to begin uranium mining in Meghalaya, a move strongly opposed by residents, has been halted by a national panel of wildlife experts. Prospecting in the area some years ago had already caused serious health impacts to villagers. But it was the threat to rare forms of wildlife that ultimately stopped the plan. The National Board of Wildlife rejected the exploratory drilling proposal because of strong local opposition and also because the area is home to elephants, black bear, leopards, deer and the red pandal, one of the world's rarest animals.

Sea turtles die as a result of BP oil spill

Already, 23 sea turtles have turned up dead on the shores of Mississippi as a result of the massive and on-going oil spill off the Gulf Coast. Sea turtles are vulnerable to polluting industries like oil and of course nuclear as we have already recorded in our investigative report, Licensed to Kill.

E.O. Wilson on why biodiversity matters

"Because humanity is a biological species living in a biological environment. Because like all species we are exquisitely adapted in everything, from our behavior to our genetics to our physiology to that particular environment in which we live. The Earth is our home. The rest of life is the critical part of that home. Unless we preserve the rest of life as a sacred duty, we will be endangering ourselves by destroying the home in which we evolve and on which we completely depend." (E.O. Wilson, the renowned evolutionary biologist and ant expert, was asked on a recent edition of the Diane Rehm Show to deliver a 45-second elevator speech on why biodiversity matters. The above was his answer and, as he said proudly at the end, "exactly 45 seconds!")