Yesterday, Greater Greater Washington reported a streetcar bombshell: the 11th Street Bridge, currently undergoing an extensive $300 million renovation, would not feature local streetcar tracks as previously planned. So who's to blame? more ›

Having alienated just about anyone who believes in a free press, Washington Redskins owner has turned his sights on Hispanic fans and now environmentalists. more ›

As if the District's trees didn't have a rough enough go of it, what with the incredibly hot summer we've been having -- now, the city's ash trees are apparently under threat from Emerald Ash Borers, an invasive beetle which feasts on ash trees everywhere it spreads. more ›

Have you noticed light poles around the District now offering an environmentally conscious tilt? That's the idea behind the Urban Forest Project, which has arrived in the District with "a forest of thoughtful images." more ›

Of course with grease! more ›

One of the most recent efforts to protect the ecosystem surrounding our urban landscape is the RiverSmart Homes project, run by the D.C. Department of the Environment. more ›

It's been well documented that the Anacostia River is not in the best health. So what better way to protest the government's lack of attention to the waterway than by hopping into it with a hazmat suit on? more ›

The Anacostia River is in bad shape. Not that it's stopping people from eating catfish they catch in its waters! more ›

A protest by environmental activists is currently blocking traffic along H Street near 14th Street NW. Of course, Earth Day isn't until April 22, but that's not stopping those attending the Powershift 2011 conference -- during which 10,000 young leaders have come to D.C. "to reclaim our democracy from polluters and lead the way to a clean energy future" -- from getting an early start on proceedings. more ›

Yes, people are still squabbling about the proposed mixed-use development on the site of the Wisconsin Avenue Giant -- a battle that is now going on its thirteenth year. But the progress of the development might not be sullied by legal struggles alone. more ›

Whenever D.C.'s five-cent bag tax is brought up, those opposed to it cite the tax's supposed strain on businesses as a reason why the tax shouldn't be imposed. One particularly memorable opponent even made the ridiculous assumption that the tax would force D.C. residents to take their retail dollars to Virginia and Maryland. But a new survey conducted by the Alice Ferguson Foundation appears to take most of the steam out of that argument. more ›

Today, the District adds one more license plate to its short list of vehicle tags promoting certain organizations or causes. (My personal favorite? The National Association of Black Scuba Divers.) more ›

Terrorists are in our midst. Eco-terrorists. (Cue the scary music.) more ›

Sunday's Earth Day Climate Rally on the National Mall ended up being graced with unexpectedly mild weather -- the predicted rain never fully materialized, so unlike in recent years, the show went on mostly uninterrupted (apart from a bit of a sound system snafu in the middle of a set by The Roots). Here's some of the best images captured by DCist photographers from the rally and concert. more ›

With the Jan. 1 implementation of the District's 5 cent disposable bag tax looming, Council member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) sent out some updates on how area retailers are preparing. The list is a little vague in some places, but the best opportunities to score free reusable bags look to be coming from Giant and Harris Teeter. more ›

D.C. Council member Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) has introduced a bill that would ban more than a dozen hazardous chemicals from being sold in the District, the Examiner reports. Among the materials listed in the proposed ban: Mattresses and furniture containing polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs, which act as flame retardents; food or beverage containers intended for children younger than 6 that contain Bisphenol-A, or BPA, which has been linked to neurological health problems; and body scrub beauty products that contain synthetic microbeads, which are often blamed for contributing to oceanic pollution. more ›

By DCist Contributor Lauren Evans more ›

Lots of reports came in yesterday that one half of the heralded "green" arm of the city's Summer Youth Jobs Program, the Mayor's Conservation Corps, had hit the streets around town to pass out paper fliers that are designed to hang on people's doors, except that many of them just ended up as trash on the street. Head over to Scott's Take for the best coverage we've seen so far. more ›

Before getting started on crime bill debate, the D.C. Council went ahead and passed the Anacostia River Clean Up and Protection Act on a second reading earlier today, sending the legislation to Mayor Fenty for his signature. The first vote took place just two weeks ago; both votes were unanimous. The key feature of the law is a new 5 cent fee on consumers per paper or plastic carryout bag taken from District retailers. If all goes according to plan, and there's no reason at this point to think it won't, the five cent fees would be in place by January, 2010, so you've got roughly six months to get used to carrying around your own reusable bags. more ›

The United Nations must be a fan of the D.C. Council's intention to impose a 5 cent fee on consumers for every disposable bag -- the international body's environmental chief this week called for a worldwide ban on single-use plastic bags. Via McClatchy:

"Single use plastic bags which choke marine life, should be banned or phased out rapidly everywhere. There is simply zero justification for manufacturing them anymore, anywhere," said Achim Steiner, executive director of the U.N. Environment Programme. His office advises U.N. member states on environmental policies. more ›

Stock up on your canvas bags, everybody. The Washington Times has its story up already: the D.C. Council voted unanimously just a little while ago to give initial approval to the Anacostia River Clean Up and Protection Act of 2009, which among other things enacts a 5 cent fee on consumers per paper or plastic carryout bag taken from District retailers - retailers get to keep one cent of the fee, with the other four cents going toward Anacostia River cleanup. The bill also bans the use of non-recyclable disposable plastic carryout bags by retailers. more ›

This Friday, May 15 is the annual national Bike to Work Day (not to be confused with D.C.'s local Car Free DC Day, which happens in September). The Washington Area Bicyclist Association is once again taking the lead in organizing this year's event locally, and they're asking those of you who plan to participate to pre-register before showing up at the relevant "pit stop" on Friday morning. Registration is free, and allows the organizers to make sure each "pit stop" has enough supplies on hand to handle the crowds. Each "pit stop" will offer free breakfast and entertainment, plus the chance to win bicycles and other prizes. Registration also makes you eligible to receive a free T-shirt (the first 7,000 registrants who show up to their pit stops will get the shirts). more ›

In an announcement oddly timed with Earth Day, the Washington Mystics today inked a sponsorship deal with ExxonMobil, reports the Washington Business Journal. The massive oil company will now display courtside ads during Mystics games, a move that should place the team right alongside the Nationals as major targets of environmental protesters. Exxon will also become the official sponsor of the Mystics Student of the Week program. The Student of the Week program recognizes female high school students for excellence in math or science. more ›

With Earth Day just around the corner, this month will see a flurry of activity focused on environmental issues. As one would expect, artists are also stepping up to the plate, adding their voices to the chorus of people calling for a societal shift that gives more attention to how human activity affects the natural environment. This Saturday, storyteller/poet David Gonzalez will team up with a group of multi-media artists at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center to present Wounded Splendor, an examination of the Earth's natural beauty that advocates for its preservation and stewardship. more ›

The consensus on Sunday morning's coal ash spill in Luke, Md. seems to be that it coulda been a lot worse. Yes, 4,000 gallons of the toxic liquid ash leaked out of a pipeline over the Potomac River's North Branch, but the AP has already declared the spill doesn't appear to have done much harm, and fears about water safety in the D.C. region have been largely put to rest. But given the attention coal ash has been getting since December's catastrophic spill in Tennessee, this weekend's tiny-by-comparison accident is still making headlines. We highly recommend reading this now prescient story from the Baltimore Sun's Timothy B. Wheeler on how the state of Maryland has been welcoming certain kinds of coal ash disposal with open arms. more ›

Via a reader tip, Fox 5 reports that Greenpeace has taken responsibility for the polar bears that have been mistaken for suspicious packages around town over the last week. Indeed, if you go to the Greenpeace homepage, it turns out that not only was Greenpeace responsible, but they actually did it in collaboration with street artist Mark Jenkins -- so both of our guesses were correct!

Greenpeace has unveiled a collaborative art project with well-known street artist Mark Jenkins. The project highlights the shared plight of polar bears and humans in the face of global warming. We hope these polar bear street art installations help people draw a deeper and more immediate connection to the reality of the crisis. more ›

Flickr user benmiller23 spotted this polar bear installation, which looks very similar to the one that a bomb squad tore apart after shutting down surrounding streets and a Metro station in Columbia Heights today, on the National Mall on Thursday, Sept. 11. more ›