news round up

Can’t believe it’s been 4 months already since I’ve posted some links, but here’s your chance to peek over my shoulder at what I’m reading:

Diversifying Conservation (The Prairie Ecologist blog)

It’s Time to Rethink America’s Corn System: Only a tiny fraction of corn grown in the U.S. directly feeds the nation’s people, and much of that is from high-fructose corn syrup (Scientific American)

The zoo beneath our feet: We’re only beginning to understand soil’s hidden world (The Washington Post)

Can the Prairie Generation save rural America? (Christian Science Monitor)

New Evidence Shows Popular Pesticides Could Cause Unintended Harm To Insects (NPR)

Recreational Mowing Syndrome: What is it and how to treat it? (Purdue University)

The Most Controversial Tree in the World: Is the genetically engineered chestnut tree an act of ecological restoration or a threat to wild forests? (Pacific Standard)

A Water Crisis Is Growing In A Place You’d Least Expect It (NPR)

Maine Becomes First State to Ban Styrofoam Containers (USNews)

I work in the environmental movement. I don’t care if you recycle. // Stop obsessing over your environmental “sins.” Fight the oil and gas industry instead. (Vox)

Lake Erie now has legal rights, just like you: Ohio voters passed groundbreaking legislation that allows citizens to sue on behalf of the lake when it’s being polluted (Vox)

NYC Shows How Electric Vehicle Fleets Can Create Dramatic Savings: Recent data from the New York City government reveals the dramatic cost savings for tax-payers by switching to electric vehicle fleets for city operations. (Interesting Engineering)

The legacy of 4,500 years of polyculture agroforestry in the eastern Amazon (scientific paper from the journal Nature)

Earth system impacts of the European arrival and Great Dying in the Americas after 1492 (academic paper)

In Defense of Biodiversity: Why Protecting Species from Extinction Matters (Yale e360)

Humans Are Speeding Extinction and Altering the Natural World at an ‘Unprecedented’ Pace (NYT)

Bill McKibben Calls FBI Tracking Of Environmental Activists “Contemptible” (CleanTechnica)

Marshall County Community Foundation Spotlight – Will Erwin: See the historical wonders of Will Erwin’s Marshall County, Indiana, farm and listen to stories about his service. (a video tribute)