Is the planet really warming? It's "unequivocal," a major international panel concluded earlier this year, warning that the world's poor would be hit the hardest. While some continue to doubt the science, others are rushing forward toward solutions: from pushing recycled deep-fry oil as gasoline to advocating a return to clean-burning nuclear energy. But will it be too little, too late?http://www.newser.com/2008 - Newseren-usNewser Feed GeneratorTue, 07 Oct 2008 7:21:50 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/39274/one-quarter-of-mammal-species-imperiledsurvey.html?refid=rss_all_defaultNearly 25% of the world’s mammal species face extinction, the Guardian reports, and 3% are critically endangered. The stark conclusion, based on research conducted over 5 years in 130 countries, paints an especially bleak picture for marine mammals, the highly regarded Red List says. "We are threatening the future of wildlife and nature and denying our children the chance to experience what we have experienced," said the WWF's chief scientist.http://www.newser.com/story/39274/one-quarter-of-mammal-species-imperiledsurvey.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMon, 06 Oct 2008 13:40:19 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/39049/baffled-brazilians-rescue-wayward-penguins.html?refid=rss_all_defaultEvery year a few Magellanic penguins, native to southern Argentina, accidentally make the 2,000-mile trip to the beaches of Brazil. But this year the influx is looking less like a wayward few and more like an invasion, with sunny beaches overrun by more than 1,000 exhausted and starved birds. Many Brazilians have leapt to their rescue, reports the Washington Post.http://www.newser.com/story/39049/baffled-brazilians-rescue-wayward-penguins.html?refid=rss_all_defaultFri, 03 Oct 2008 9:11:27 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38826/child-climate-cops-a-bit-too-green.html?refid=rss_all_defaultA new website from British energy company Npower is encouraging children to spy on their parents—to save the environment, Mark Ontkush writes on Treehugger. After completing a series of “missions” on the Climate Cops site, kids are kitted out with the necessities for keeping careful tabs on the energy-consumption habits of local adults, and are encouraged to track the folks' “energy crimes.”http://www.newser.com/story/38826/child-climate-cops-a-bit-too-green.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 02 Oct 2008 14:36:46 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38937/eat-roo-save-planet-aussies-told.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThe Australian government's chief climate-change adviser says emissions could be drastically reduced if farmers and consumers switch from beef and lamb to kangaroo meat, the Australian reports. The marsupials emit much less methane than sheep and cows, the professor argues, and, as Australia heats up, are much better able to thrive in parched rangelands.http://www.newser.com/story/38937/eat-roo-save-planet-aussies-told.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 02 Oct 2008 2:05:55 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38901/calif-adopts-stiff-anti-sprawl-law.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThe country's most aggressive anti-sprawl bill was signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger yesterday, the Sacramento Bee reports. The "first in the nation" bill mandates regional targets for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions and uses $5 billion in transportation funding as an incentive to stimulate denser residential development. “This fundamentally changes the way we think about growth,” says the Democrat who sponsored the measure.http://www.newser.com/story/38901/calif-adopts-stiff-anti-sprawl-law.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWed, 01 Oct 2008 12:50:58 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38784/eat-less-or-the-icecaps-melt.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTo avoid catastrophic global warming, people need to cut way down on their meat and dairy consumption, a new report on climate change says. Four modest servings of meat and about a quart of milk a week are all we should be consuming, the Guardian reports. And the report urges government programs to limit emissions, because consumers won’t make these changes voluntarily.http://www.newser.com/story/38784/eat-less-or-the-icecaps-melt.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 30 Sep 2008 12:36:08 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38442/buffett-gains-big-say-on-nuclear-power.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWarren Buffett’s $4.7 billion agreement to rescue Constellation Energy Group this week netted the billionaire investor more than just a utility. Buffett now will have a big say in the future of nuclear power in the US, the Wall Street Journal reports. He has long been skeptical of the industry, arguing that the plants are too expensive to build. The deal gives him control over 3 plants as well as half of a prominent nuclear development company.http://www.newser.com/story/38442/buffett-gains-big-say-on-nuclear-power.html?refid=rss_all_defaultFri, 26 Sep 2008 7:32:05 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38445/half-of-europes-frog-species-may-croak.html?refid=rss_all_defaultHalf of all of Europe's amphibian species could be doomed to extinction within the next few decades, scientists warn. Habitat loss and climate change are already wiping out huge numbers of frogs, toads, newts and salamanders, the Independent reports. The situation has been exacerbated by a skin disease that has spread around the globe, devastating amphibian populations.http://www.newser.com/story/38445/half-of-europes-frog-species-may-croak.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 25 Sep 2008 23:47:35 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38331/gore-calls-for-civil-disobedience-vs-coal.html?refid=rss_all_defaultEarth defender Al Gore is calling for a campaign of civil disobedience and protest to halt construction of 48 coal plants that lack the technology to capture and store carbon, Reuters reports. "If you're a young person looking at the future of this planet, I believe we have reached the stage where it is time for civil disobedience," Gore declared to loud applause at a Clinton Global initiative gathering in New York.http://www.newser.com/story/38331/gore-calls-for-civil-disobedience-vs-coal.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWed, 24 Sep 2008 22:24:28 CDT