WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ordered the federal government on Monday to take a fresh look at regulating carbon dioxide emissions from cars, a rebuke to Bush administration policy on global warming.
In a 5-4 decision, the court said the Clean Air Act gives the Environmental Protection Agency the authority to regulate the emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from cars.
Greenhouse gases are air pollutants under the landmark environmental law, Justice John Paul Stevens said in his majority opinion
April 2, 2007
Breaking: Supreme Court rules against Bush on emissions
Hiking in the Gallatin National Forest
Fading light in the Gallatin National Forest:
click the image for a much bigger version.
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More on the “Judge rules Bush illegally changed forest rules” story
The ruling overturns a key administration environmental rule that governs all 192 million acres of national forests and stops plans such as logging and mining in the parks.
”I think people who love wildlife and care for our public forest should be elated by this decision,” said Peter Frost, an attorney with the Western Environmental Law Center, one of 15 environmental groups that brought a pair of lawsuits challenging the new rules.
The national forest planning rules are like the Constitution for our National Forests, and the Bush administration tried to throw out the Bill of Rights,” said Trent Orr of Earthjustice who argued the case before Judge Hamilton. “The Bush rule changes made any wildlife provisions in forest management plans purely aspirational, but the nation’s wildlife deserve more than a ‘hope and a prayer’ planning system.”
California: Joshua Tree National Park - a geologic oasis
After a brown, dry winter, 2007 may not be the best year to spot wildflowers at Joshua Tree National Park. But don’t let that stop you from making plans to head out to the park. The park’s geology, while changing, is not quite as ephemeral or picky as those springtime flowers.
Montana: Work begins to open Going to the Sun Road!
The most spectacular drive in America (along with the Beartooth pass).
WEST GLACIER (AP) — Snowplows are scheduled to start cutting through drifts Monday, the start of annual work to open Glacier National Park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road for the summer. The 2007 opening may be the most complex on record.
Washouts and accumulations of rocky debris from torrential rain late last year are among the reasons. In 2006 the road opened on June 23. In 2005 the date was May 22. This year’s opening is projected for July 1.
West Virginia: Park development raises concerns
HARPERS FERRY — Development of 683 acres around an abandoned limestone quarry would seriously damage what the superintendent of Harpers Ferry National Historic Park calls hallowed ground, he says.
New Mexico: Forest woes need quick, but careful response
First, how would the insecticide affect other plant and animal life in the Lincoln? Will it work its way into the water supply and the water table? How might this affect communities that rely on those supplies for their potable water? What about the affect on livestock?
Colorado: Anger over ATV rentals
ALLENSPARK - Many locals are venting their frustration with law enforcement and an ATV rental operation for alleged damage to private property and national forest land.
More than 200 attended a panel discussion last week. Many said the ATVs are going off dedicated trails onto private property and into areas of the Arapaho and Roosevelt national forests, where they are banned.