Wikis are one of those amazing new things that we will never understand how we lived without.  The folks who brought us Wikipedia have created a new site that will allow folks to put up the best information about green topics and issues.  Check it out and/or share your expertise!

The  Pollution Control Hearings Board recently made a ruling that will require the state Ecology Department to rewrite their stormwater control regulations to keep polluted stormwater out of Puget Sound and the streams that feed into Puget Sound.  Up until now, the Ecology Department has encouraged counties and streams in areas that feed into the Sound to try new, rain-absorbing stormwater management techniques to filter runoff through soil and plantings prior to moving into streams, rivers and lakes but has not required it.

The decision by the Board, which acts like a court of appeals for state environmental regulations, says Ecology must require the new techniques for all new developments where feasible.  The ruling can be appealed, either to Superior Court, an appeals court, or directly to the state Supreme Court. 

Inevitably the developers, builders and local governments will wrangle with the Ecology Department over the changes.  But why?

Soil, the very basis of our civilization, is in danger.  That thin layer of topsoil, only three feet deep, that has nourished all life on this planet for hundreds of thousands of years, is eroding away.  It is also losing its richness, that wealth of nutrients that get absorbed into our plants and eaten by us and the other animals on this precious earth.   The Financial Times has an informative article called "Soil under strain: A thinning layer of life evokes concern".

The National Marine Fisheries Services has agreed to review the effects of 37 pesticides on salmon and steelhead after a lawsuit was filed by environmental and fishing groups.  The Seattle Times reported that the plaintiffs, which include the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides and the Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman's Associations is  hoping "the studies will lead to new science-based measures to protect streams from pesticides that pose a risk to salmon and steelhead".

The New York Times ran an excellant piece describing the shift in attitudes towards new cars and the American obsession with bigger and better. It certainly provides some food for thought on the complex changes facing our consumer culture.