Just in time for Christmas….

• 8 Gifts That Reduce Waste – Examiner. Okay, so if you haven’t bought all your presents, you’re a serious procrastinator, but here are a few good ideas.
• DIY Green Wrapping – Green Phone Booth. I love wrapping presents in reusable bags. Two gifts in one!
• Vegetarian Holiday Recipes – Green Phone Booth. Has anyone tried these? They look good.

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve shared, so there’s a lot. Do you do want the good news or the bad news first?

The good news:

• Empire State Building Achieves LEED Gold Certification – Inhabit. It’s the tallest building in the U.S. to get LEED certification.
• EPA Issues Rule Limiting Arsenic, Mercury Emissions from Power Plants – NPR. About half of the coal- and oil-fired power plants still lack modern pollution controls. Now they have three years to clean up their act.
• Elevation of the Chimp May Reshape Research – New York Times. The government is halting all new grants for research on chimps.
• EPA Report Cracks Down on Hydraulic Fracking – Energy 2.0. The EPA specifically links fracking with groundwater contamination.
• Could Having Better Labels Help out the Environment? – Slate. More argument for social norms advertising.
• Naked People Need Building Science – Energy Vanguard. Okay, so this is less good news and more funny. But it makes a good point!

The bad news:

• The Scariest Energy Graph You’ll See Today – Green Bang. Warning: the the US Energy Information Administration’s International Energy Outlook 2011 is pretty depressing.
• Canada Holds Hearing on Suspected Virus in Salmon – New York Times. Infectious salmon anemia has spread from farmed fish to wild.
• As Permafrost Thaws, Scientists Study the Risks – New York Times. Permafrost could contain twice as much carbon as the entire atmosphere.
• Plastic Bags – XKCD. I love XKCD.