Tues Nov 25, Who Killed the Electric Car? a 2006 documentary film, will screen at 7 p.m. at the Vineyard Haven Public Library.

The auto industry's quest to launch a new generation of electric cars may get a big boost from a sector with much to gain from getting advanced vehicles on the road: U.S. electric utilities. Top executives at several utilities are mulling the possibility of ordering thousands of the vehicles -- known as plug-in electric cars -- as an expression of support for the technology they fear could be derailed by the auto industry's financial traumas. The cars would run primarily on electricity, with gasoline to extend their range, and would recharge by plugging into standard electrical outlets.

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/
SB122662769283027123-lMyQjAxMDI4MjE2NDYxMjQ3Wj.html

HELENA, Mont. — On the side of a mountain on the outskirts of Montana’s capital city, loggers are racing against a beetle grub the size of a grain of rice.

HARDY
The beetles inject a fungus to stop the tree from moving sap. Many forests are being cut before the trees fall.

From New Mexico to British Columbia, the region’s signature pine forests are succumbing to a huge infestation of mountain pine beetles that are turning a blanket of green forest into a blanket of rust red.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/
science/18trees.html?_r=1

Steven Thrasher usually carries two reusable cloth bags for any impromptu shopping. At the Ikea store in Brooklyn the other day, he gladly forked over $1.18 for two of the store’s big blue bags, made of durable plastic for repeated use.

Shoppers at the Ikea in Brooklyn where, according to the store's manager, customers have adjusted to the large 59-cent bags without much difficulty.

But even an environmentally aware New Yorker like Mr. Thrasher cannot shake himself loose of the everyday disposable plastic bag.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/
nyregion/18plastic.html

Governor Deval Patrick today is expected to set a new environmental goal for the state by using rooftop solar installations to improve the energy efficiency of new "big box" stores and other retail developments.

The plan is part of Governor Patrick's agenda to make Massachusetts a leader in energy issues.

Two senior administration officials familiar with the plan say that by 2010 Patrick wants to spur the use of alternative energy at large retail buildings of at least 50,000 square feet whose flat roofs are ideal for solar installations.

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/
2008/11/19/patrick_to_unveil_solar_power_plan/