All Teheran Vehicles

Iran - Last October, air pollution in Teheran got so bad that the incidence of laryngitis skyrocketed. Government officials cleared their throats long enough to announce a $54 million plan to convert the capital's 4,000 transit buses to natural gas operation by 1998. Teheran's 3 million vehicles cause 80 percent of the city's air pollution. Natural gas-powered vehicles emit about 90 percent fewer emissions.

Eco-Cities Blossom Down Under

Australia - The Halifax Eco-City Project, a 2.4-hectare (5.9 acres) eco-outpost rising on the outskirts of Adelaide, will provide homes for 400 families and jobs in 30 businesses. The new residences, built with rammed earth and non-toxic materials, will implement passive solar design techniques, rooftop gardens and greywater recycling. The project's designers - Urban Ecology Australia and Ecopolis Property Ltd. - are also at work transforming the "rust belt" city of Whyalla into the country's first complete eco-city. "Solar panels will replace smokestacks, and the city of Whyalla will stand as one of the world's leading examples of ecological development," says Ecopolis director Paul Downtown.

From Boom Town to Bloom Town

US - The Army's 7,000-acre Volunteer Site, several miles north of Chattanooga, was once the biggest TNT plant on Earth. The Army recently demolished the plant and turned the land over for use as an eco-industrial park. The reborn facility will include a National Environmental Test Center for soil and water remediation research, and offices for the Hamilton County Board of Education. The low-impact buildings, designed by eco-architect William McDonough [Spring '96 EIJ], are built to be recycled.

More Miles to the Electron

Germany - In May, Deutsche Post AG claimed a "world record" after one of its electric-powered Mercedes vans traveled 262 miles - from Bremen to Bonn - with a 1,430-pound load. Despite having to buck heavy traffic, the zinc-air battery-driven van never needed to stop for recharging and arrived in Bonn with electrons to spare. Earlier this year, zinc-air batteries drove a smaller van 478 miles in near-freezing temperatures around a test track in Utah.

Iacocca Sees the Light

US - Former Chrysler Chair Lee Iacocca has turned his back on gas-gulping automobiles and opted for light electric alternatives - including scooters and bicycles. Iacocca's EV Global Motors has joined forces with Unique Mobility to build electric scooters in Taiwan and market them throughout the Western Hemisphere. But Iacocca may have missed the boat. A California firm, Edgetech LLC, is already selling 200,000 solar-powered scooters in the US each year.

Auto Lords Target Treaty

US - Lobbyists for the Big Three automakers have shifted into high gear to block White House support for an international treaty to limit sources of climate-changing pollution. US cars produce much of the world's greenhouse gases, but the car cartel maintains that a clamp-down on carbon dioxide would strangle the US economy; meanwhile, however, the Ford Motor Company is building a Factory of the Future in South Wales - complete with translucent solar panels that double as skylights. When it opens next summer, the factory will become the largest solar building in Britain, says Greenpeace Business.

Aus Mitt Deine Auto!

Germany - The land of the autobahn became the land of the auto-ban on June 15 when half a million Germans celebrated Mobil ohne Auto (travel without cars) day. The Evangelical Church and 40 eco- and travel groups called for a car-free Sabbath, and citizens responded with bike tours, street fairs and day hikes. Bikes, buses and boots brought 100,000 to Lake Constance where 30 km (18.6 miles) of roads were closed to traffic.

Burned by Disposable Cameras

Malaysia - Last year, a Malaysian photographer received a nasty surprise when he attempted to remove a used film cartridge from his new Kodak Fun Gold Flash disposable camera. According to Which? magazine, "He received such a powerful electric shock that he was thrown across the room and also had his finger burnt." The cameras are supposed to be returned to film processors after a single use. Trying to reuse a disposable camera can expose people to a capacitor that supplies the 300-volt jolt to the camera's flashbulb. Which? points out that "for the price of four [disposable cameras] you can buy a regular Kodak camera, which is not only longer-lasting but has more features."

The Root of the Problem

Germany - On June 9, Germany's annual report on the "state of the forests" looked for causes of Waldsterben (forest death) on the Waldboden (forest floor) and found that the nation's trees were suffering at the roots - from excess levels of sulfur and nitrogen. While agricultural run-off from chemical fertilizers usually is tagged as the source of nitrogen pollution in rivers, water supplies and forests, This Week in Germany reports that the main cause of nitrogen pollution is car and truck traffic.

Fall Ahead, Spring Back

Italy - University of Bologna scientists report that Pacific Rim earthquakes are altering the planet's shape and pushing the North Pole toward Tokyo at about 10 centimeters per century. The collapse of continental plates into the planet's molten magma has steered the position of the pole for the past 100 million years, but, since 1977, the frequency of quakes and the pace of the shift has accelerated. Tokyo need not worry about being pole-axed, however: In the last 100 years, global warming has made northern glaciers retreat, causing ice-capped land masses to spring back. The total effect has been to move the pole away from Tokyo - at a rate of 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) per year.

More ebb & Flow

Smoke a Cigarette; Go to Jail

US - Pediatrics magazine reports that women who smoke 10 cigarettes a day can give birth to sons with Severe Conduct Syndrome, a behavioral disorder characterized by rages, physical aggression and acts of arson. If true, US cigarette makers are not only killing millions of citizens through first- and second-hand smoke, their tobacco products are also contributing to the country's crime problem. If tobacco firms can be sued to recover healthcare costs for smoke-realated illness, perhaps the cigarette lords should also be held accountable for the costs of this criminal behavior.

Why Recycling Ain't Enough

US - Between 1990 and 1995, the amount of junk mail and catalogs consigned to the dumps increased from 3.8 million tons to 4.6 million tons -a 20.9 percent rise. But, during this same period, the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) points out, the volume of direct mail recovered for recycling "more than tripled" and the amount recycled "more than doubled" - from 7.1 percent to 15.4 percent. (What the DMA failed to note: Because of the increased growth of direct mail, 290,000 more tons of cast-off catalogs and solicitations wound up in the dumps in 1995 than in 1990.)

Who Said That???

US - "Reducing the impact of motor vehicles on carbon dioxide levels means only one thing - less fuel consumption. That strikes fear into the hearts and wallets of automakers raking in fat profits on big, fuel-thirsty pickups and sport-utilities." Not a surprising statement for Earth Island Journal, perhaps, but this remarkable quote appeared in an editorial in the July issue of Automotive News. The editorial called for reducing global warming by cutting auto pollution. (Let's see if their advertisers drop out.)

No Longer Number One

Germany - Last year, Germany's 4,500 wind-powered generators produced 2.7 billion kWh - 50 percent more energy than the previous year. In 1996, the number of German wind generators increased 26 percent. Germany now produces one third of the planet's wind-powered electricity and, in 1997, will push the US out of its first place position as the world's wind-energy leader.