Chicago breathes easier: Midwestern Generation will close two controversial coal-fired power plants within the Chicago city limits after a decades-long effort by health and environmental activists and the adoption of a new citywide clean power ordinance. AlterNet, Chicago Tribune
Wait, there's more!: GenOn Energy also announced that it is closing eight coal-fired power plants in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey "because the cost of complying with tougher new pollution rules will be too high." The 10 closures announced yesterday bring the total number of coal plant retirements to 106 since the start of 2010. Mother Jones, Climate Progress
Pump pain: Paying $5 per gallon gas this summer is "hardly far fetched." New York Times
Who's to blame? What five things actually control the cost of gasoline? The president doesn't make the list. TreeHugger
Shell game: Shell Oil somehow filed a lawsuit against environmental groups who might object to offshore drilling in the Arctic before the groups even had the chance to officially object to offshore drilling in the Arctic. Los Angeles Times
Floating the filthy seas: Debris from the tsunami that struck Japan last year is making its way across the Pacific Ocean and will soon reach Hawaii. Some strands of the flotsam, which includes refrigerators and televisions, could reach Alaska and Pacific Northwest beaches next year. Washington Post
Treeslaughter: A Florida woman was arrested for allegedly burning down a 3,500-year-old tree while on crystal meth. The bald cyprus was a historic landmarked, nicknamed the "Old Senator," and was thought to be the fifth-oldest cypress in the world. The woman allegedly told witnesses: "I can't believe I burned down a tree older than Jesus." USA Today
India incensed: India is threatening to boycott the London Olympics' opening ceremonies this summer because of Dow Chemical's sponsorship. The Olympic stadium will be wrapped in logos of the company that acquired Union Carbide, which was responsible for the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster that killed thousands. The Guardian
Counting carbon: A self-described "compulsive" data collector compares his family's energy consumption and carbon footprint in suburban New Jersey versus his new home in rural Maine and is surprised by the results. Hint: the idyllic lifestyle comes with a carbon cost. New York Times
Tips: @OnEarthMag (tag it #greenreads)
Image Credit: Greenpeace
