ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries M arch 1 9 9 7 / 153 Environm ental resources on the Internet B y R o b e rt L. B atten feld a n d B. K e n to n T em ple Stop a t th e EcoM all a n d these o th er in fo rm a tio n -r ich sites T he Internet, originally created as a tool forthe military-industrial com p lex,1 has been enthusiastically em braced by the environmen­ tal movement as a grassroots communication and information distribution medium. Many en­ vironmentalists, as well as the scientific and gov­ ernmental environmental communities, have established an impressive presence on the In­ ternet. Indeed, the “Net” has becom e a pow er­ ful tool in order to facilitate the analysis, shar­ ing, and distribution o f information regarding both local and global environmental issues. The following listings represent the Internet sites that we found to be most useful and inter­ esting. The very nature o f this rapidly evolving global network makes it futile to try to provide a comprehensive list. We hope this article does, however, serve as a starting point for those who wish to use the Internet for environmental re­ search. G e n e ra l re so u rce s E n v ir o n m e n ta l d i r e c t o r i e s In addition to the general directory services such as Y a h o o ( http://ww w .yahoo.com /Society_ and_Culture/Environment_and_Nature/) and Galaxy ( http://www.einet.net/galaxy/Commu nity/Environment.html), w hich both provide pertinent subject areas, there are several good specialized directories for finding environmental information. • T h e B e st E n v ir o n m e n ta l R e so u rce s D ir e c to ry . This site, m aintained by Bruno Kestemont o f the Centre for Econom ic and So­ cial Studies on the Environment (CEES) at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles, is an extensive list o f other environmental directories and In­ ternet sites arranged in subject order. A ccess: http://www.ulb.ac.be/ceese/cds.html. • CIESIN (C o n so rtiu m fo r In te rn a tio n a l E a rth S cie n ce In fo rm a tio n N etw ork ). This “inform ation co o p e ra tiv e ” provides topical guides to Internet resources as well as a “kiosk” for sharing unpublished scholarly papers and w orking papers, softw are applications, and access to the CIESIN Gateway. The Gateway (http://wwwgateway.ciesin.org/) searches dis­ tributed environmental databases worldwide. A ccess: http://w w w .ciesin.org/IC/info-hom e. html. • EcoW eb— E co G o p h e r— E co L y n x . This directory from the University o f Virginia includes links to subject groupings and alphabetical lists o f resources. The site includes archives o f en­ vironmental mailing lists and is keyword search­ able. A ccess: http://ecosys.drdr.virginia.edu/ E co W e b .htm l, gopher://ecosys.drdr.v irginia. edu, telnet://ecosys.drdr.virginia.edu, login as “lynx”. • E n v iro lin k . Claiming to be the largest online environmental resource on the planet, this visually appealing site provides access to projects that include a “library” of links by subject; green marketplace services; a list o f online publica­ tions; an art gallery; connections to a forum; a freenet site; and an environmental newswire ser­ vice. Also includes an archive o f mailing lists and EnviroChat, an online conference service. Access: http://www.envirolink.org/. O th e r d ir e c t o r i e s • A rgus C le a rin g h o u se — E n v iro n m e n t. Formerly known as the Clearinghouse for Sub­ Robert L. Battenfeld is reference librarian at Long Island University, e-mail: rbatten@southampton.liunet.edu; B. Kenton Temple is humanities reference librarian at the University o f Tennessee, e-mail: bktemple@utk.edu http://www.yahoo.com/Society_ http://www.einet.net/galaxy/Commu- http://www.ulb.ac.be/ceese/cds.html http://wwwgateway.ciesin.org/ http://www.ciesin.org/IC/info-home http://ecosys.drdr.virginia.edu/ gopher://ecosys.drdr.Virginia http://www.envirolink.org/ mailto:rbatten@southampton.liunet.edu mailto:bktemple@utk.edu 154 / C&RL News ject-Oriented Internet Resource Guides, this site provides access to evaluative hypertext guides on specific topics. The section on the envi­ ronment is fairly extensive and most guides are updated within the last twelve months. A c c e s s : http://www.clearinghouse.net/tree/ envir.html. • E coN et. From the Institute for Global Communication, this searchable directory o f en­ vironmental issues includes information found on EcoNet and on the Internet. Also includes news items and press releases. A ccess: http:// www.igc.org/igc/econet/. • G reen n et. This United Kingdom-based site has a European and developing country emphasis on the environment, peace, and hu­ man rights providing links to resources in Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Pacific Rim. A ccess: http://www.gn.apc.org/. . E-Tip. A cooperative project of Ameri­ can and Russian environmental and technol­ ogy specialists, this site provides an annotated guide to technical environmental information on the Net. It is composed o f Internet data­ bases with guides for each, as well as other information sources. A ccess: http://ecologia. nier.org/. O n lin e p u b lica tio n s • G r e e n o t e s . This is the new sletter of ALA’s Social Responsibilities Round Table Task Force on the Environment. This premiere issue includes notes about EPA, ALA, and NIE as well as links to notes on education, collection de­ velopment, research, and the Internet. This is a good place to check new sites and discussion groups and the latest in what is happening at ALA in connection with environmental issues. Access: http ://www. ala. org/alaorg/rtables/srrt/ greenotes/greenotes. html. • E le c t r o n ic G re e n J o u r n a l . This is an academically sponsored and professionally refereed journal that provides information concerning sources on international environ mental topics. It includes articles, bibliogra phies, reviews, and announcements for the educated generalist and specialists. Access: h ttp :/ / d r s e u s s .lib . u id a h o .e d u : 70/d ocs/ egj.html. • eN et D ig es t. Weekly reviews o f inter national environmental, agricultural, and natu ral resource sites are provided by this free electronic newsletter. Current issues are de livered to subscribers by electronic mail. Mos back issues are archived and available on line. Access: http://www.enetdigest.com/. • E M a g a z in e . This net version of E M a g a z i n e gives coverage o f key environmental is sues and trends, news, individual and consumer product updates, food and environmental health issues, lifestyle tips, commentary, and book and film reviews. The site provides an archive and additional links. Bimonthly. Access: http:/www. emagazine.com/. N e w s re so u rce s • CNN— E arth . This site, the environmen­ tal section of the popular CNN Interactive Web page, provides full-text news items concerning current environmental issues complete with im­ ages, audio, and video clips. Access: http:/ www.cnn.com/EARTH/index.html. • E a r t h T im e s . This publication is a non­ partisan newspaper on international environ­ mental issues and sustainable development. Also available in a weekly print format, this Internet edition is published daily by journal­ ists a sso cia te d w ith the N ew Y ork Tim es, N ew sw eek, NBC News, and others. Current and back issues o f this edition can be searched online. A ccess: http://www.earthtimes.org/ index.html. M a ilin g lists a n d U SEN ET For an evaluative list o f discussion groups on ecology and environmental studies including mailing lists, newsgroups, and chat, try Diane K. Kovacs’s D irectory o f S ch ola rly a n d P rofes s i o n a l E - C o n fe r e n c e s a v a ila b le at: http:// www.n2h2.com/KOVACS/S0017s.html or go­ phers/gopher.usask.ca/1/Computing/Internet Information/Directory o f Scholarly Electronic Conferences/. USENET newsgroups can be accessed us­ ing a news reader program such as those avail- ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ t ­ ­ / ­ http://www.clearinghouse.net/tree/ http://www.gn.apc.org/ http://ecologia http://drseuss.lib http://www.enetdigest.com/ http://www.earthtimes.org/ http://www.n2h2.com/KOVACS/S0017s.html M arch 1 9 9 7 / 155 able through W eb browsers such as Netscape Navigator or Internet Explorer. Som e o f the newsgroups dealing with environmental issues are: alt.en erg y.ren ew ab le, a lt.sav e.th e.earth, alt.sustainable.agriculture, sei.bio.conservation, sei.environment, and talk.environment. B u s in e s s a n d e co n o m ics There are several Internet sites devoted to pro­ viding eco n o m ic analysis o f environm ental pollution and control or for locating “green” com panies and products. Also, many individual corporations provide information on their W eb sites concerning their environmental policies, such as E x x o n (http://www.exxon.com/envi ronment/environment.html) and Amoco (http: //www. a m o c o .c o m / w h a t_ w e _ d o / e h s 9 5 / ehsr_1995_toc.htm ). • EPA — E c o n o m y a n d t h e E n v i r o n ­ m e n t. This site is maintained by the Office o f Policy, Planning, and Evaluation within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s extensive W eb offerings and contains reports relating to the econ om ic costs and benefits o f environ­ mental regulation and controls. Reports can be downloaded in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format. A ccess: http://www.epa.gov/docs/oppe/eaed/ eedhmpg.htm. • T rad e E n v iro n m e n ta l D atabase (TED). This database, maintained by the School o f In­ ternational Service at American University, pro­ vides cases on issues relating to trade and the environment. Cases are organized into catego­ ries such as identification, legal, geographic, trade, environmental, and other factors such as culture and human rights. The North American collection includes information on trade issues such as African bees, NAFTA, shark fisheries, and even space garbage. A well-organized and easy-to-use database that also has search and sort cap abilities. A ccess: http://gurukul.ucc. am erican. edu/ted/TED. htm . • EcoM all. On this consumer-oriented Web site for locating environmentally responsible “g reen ” com panies and products, categories include ren ew able energy, eco-investm ents, activism, eco-restaurants, com panies and prod­ ucts, business to business, and communications. A ccess: http://www.ecomall.com/. E n v iro n m e n ta l eth ics • C e n te r f o r E n v ir o n m e n ta l P h ilo s o ­ p h y . This site is the hom epage for the Center for Environmental Philosophy, the International Society for Environmental Ethics, and the envi­ ronmental ethics graduate program at the Uni­ versity o f North Texas. It includes links to re­ lated graduate programs; associations; publica­ tions; Enviroethics, an Internet discussion group; and for the print publication E n v ir o n m e n ta l Ethics, providing subscription information, a table o f contents for each issue, and a cumula­ tive index. A ccess: http://www.cep.unt.edu/. In te rn a tio n a l e n v iro n m e n t a lis m • U n ite d N a tio n s E n v i r o n m e n t P r o g ­ r a m m e . Information about the program itself and identification o f international environm en­ tal issues and challenges can be found at this site. Products and services include the library catalog; publication lists; and a meta-data (data about the content and location o f data and hold­ ings) directory that can be searched both g eo ­ graphically and them atically. A ccess: http:// www.unep.org/. • T h e G7 G ro u p o f N a tio n s E n v i r o n ­ m e n t a n d N atu ral R e so u rce s M an ag em en t (ENRM) P ro je c t. The G7 Group o f Nations is comprised o f the m ajor industrial democracies. The project is intended to make global infor­ mation relating to the state o f the earth and its ecosystem s fully available. The site includes a useful prototype server o f a global virtual dis­ tribution library o f ENRM data and resources which provides full text, and is keyword search­ able. Links to topic working groups, discus­ sion lists, related activities, and meetings are included. A great deal o f international environ­ mental information is available here. A ccess: http://enrm.ceo.org/. E n v iro n m e n ta l o r g a n iz a t io n s The sheer number o f organizations on the In­ ternet prevents us from listing them all. Envi­ ronmental groups represented on the Internet have such diverse philosophical backgrounds as the Sierra Club (http://www.sierraclub.org), G r e e n p e a c e I n t e r n a t io n a l ( h ttp :/ / w w w . g r e e n p e a c e . o r g ) , a n d th e “W is e U s e ” m ovem ent’s Center for the D efense o f Free En­ terprise ( http://www.cdfe.org). The Amazing E n v iron m en tal O rg an ization W eb D irecto ry (http://www.webdirectory.com), as well as sev eral directories listed above, can be used to find environmental organizations o f all descrip­ tions. P o litics a n d la w • C am p u s G reen Vote. This well-designed W eb site is geared toward college students and http://www.exxon.com/envi- http://www.epa.gov/docs/oppe/eaed/ http://gurukul.ucc http://www.ecomall.com/ http://www.cep.unt.edu/ http://www.unep.org/ http://enrm.ceo.org/ http://www.sierraclub.org http://www http://www.cdfe.org http://www.webdireetory.com 1 5 6 / C&RL News endeavors to involve students in the political process in order to facilitate environmental protection on the college campus and in the world at large. A ccess: http://www.cgv.org/ cgv/. • League o f C o n s e rv a tio n V o ters. The League is the bipartisan political arm o f the environmental movement. This site contains the “National Environmental Scorecard,” co n ­ taining the environmental voting records of state and federal legislators, and a listing of the so- called “dirty dozen,” the members of Congress considered to have the worst envi­ ron m en tal voting reco rd s. A cces s: http:// www.lcv.org/. • In d ia n a U n iv e rsity S ch o o l o f Law— E n v iro n m e n ta l Law. This site lists Internet re­ sources for law in general and specialized ar­ eas. There is a listing for environmental law sites on the Internet as well as a few full-text resources such as the “Endangered Species Act.” A ccess: http://www.law.indiana.edu/law/v-lib/ envlaw.html. R e se a rch institutes • B io s p h e r e 2. This “artificial environ­ ment” that on ce housed 15 “biospherians” in Oracle, Arizona, has had a controversial his­ tory. It now is being managed by Columbia University with the hope that it will yield im­ portant information concerning the Earth and its com plex natural systems. Visitors can take a “cybertour” and view data and images from the various bio mes, including the desert, marsh, ocean, rainforest, and savanna. A ccess: http:// www.bio2.edu/. • N a tio n a l I n s titu te f o r t h e E n v i r o n ­ m e n t. This institute was created by the Sound Science for the Environment Act (H.R. 2827) in order to improve the scientific decision-m ak ing process. This site includes the National Li­ brary for the Environment that contains search­ able Congressional Service Research Reports and a proposed E n c y c lo p e d ia o f th e E n v iron ­ ment. Access: http://www.cnie.org/index.shtml. F e d e ra l g o v e rn m e n t a n d re la te d sites Not surprisingly, the federal government has created sites that can fit into all o f the catego­ ries w e have listed. Specific departments, of­ fices, and agencies, especially the EPA and DOE, can b e found by browsing the main hom ep­ ages listed below. • U .S . E n v i r o n m e n t a l P r o t e c t i o n A g en cy (http://www.epa.gov/). • U.S. D e p a r tm e n t o f E n e r g y (http:// w w w .d o e .gov/). • U.S. N u clear R eg u lato ry C o m m issio n ( http://www.nrc.gov/). • U.S. D e p a rtm e n t o f th e I n te r io r (http: //www.d oi.gov/). • U .S. G e o lo g ic a l S u rv e y , W a t e r R e ­ so u rce s In fo rm a tio n (http://h2o.er.usgs.gov/). • U.S. D e p a rtm e n t o f A g ricu ltu re, Natu­ r a l R e so u rce s C o n s e rv a tio n S erv ice (http: //www.n cg .nrcs.usda.gov/). • U.S. D e p a rtm e n t o f C o m m e r c e , Na­ tio n a l O ce a n ic a n d A tm o sp h e ric A d m in is­ tra tio n , I n fo rm a tio n S erv ices (http://www. esdim.noaa.gov/). • E n v iro n m e n ta l P ro fe ss io n a l’s H o m e ­ p age. Created by Jo h n N. Clay and sponsored by GZA GeoEnvironmental Technologies, Inc., this site is more than a com prehensive listing o f federal agencies involved with environm en­ tal issues. It was created to provide a direct link to primary source, environmen-related in­ formation. It is specialized to highlight govern­ m ent regulations, agen cies, and health and safety issues and is intended to b e useful for environmental professionals. Look here for the full scop e o f government sites as well as for all en v iro n m en tal issues. A cc es s: http://www. clay. net/govag. html. S p e cific e n v iro n m e n t a l issu e s A i r a n d w a t e r r e s o u r c e s • U n iversities W a te r In fo rm a tio n Net­ w o rk . Founded by USGS and housed at South­ ern Illinois University at Carbondale, the net­ w ork dissem inates information to the water resources community. The site includes links to water experts, organizations, events, and a publication list. Access by keyword is available from here to USGS’s Water Resources Scientific http://www.cgv.org/ http://www.lcv.org/ http://www.law.indiana.edu/law/v-lib/ http://www.bio2.edu/ http://www.cnie.org/index.shtml http://www.epa.gov/ http://www.nrc.gov/ http://h2o.er.usgs.gov/ http://www http://www M arch 1 9 9 7 / 15 7 Information Center to identify abstracts on wa­ ter research from 1967 to O ctober 1993. A pub­ lication list o f the Water Resources Research Institute from 1984– 1995 is also included. A c­ cess: http://www.uwin.siu.edu/. • N ation al C e n te r f o r A tm o sp h e ric Re­ s e a r c h . This is the hom epage for the research cen ter op erated in Boulder, Colorado, and funded by the National Science Foundation that conducts research programs with the univer­ sity community and facilitates technology trans­ fer programs. A large collection o f atm ospheric and oceanographic data for use in climate re­ search from a variety o f databases is a cces­ sib le from h ere. A cc es s: http://w w w .ncar. ucar.edu/. • W a te r O nlin e. This site is intended as a business connection for the water and waste­ w ater industries. A ccess: http://www.w ater online.com/. E n e rg y • C ritic a l M ass E n e r g y P r o je c t. Main­ tained by the advocacy group Public Citizen, this site provides information on nuclear power safety, energy proficiency, renew able energy, radioactive waste, fuel econom y, and congres­ sional votes on energy legislation. A ccess: http: //www.citiz e n .o rg / p u b lic_ c itiz e n / C M E P / home.html. • CREST ( C e n te r f o r R en ew ab le E n e rg y a n d S u stain ab le T e c h n o lo g y ). Also known as “Solstice,” this hom epage provides informa­ tion on energy efficiency, renew able energy, and sustainable technology. Topics include: ap­ pliances, lighting, bioenergy, geothermal, so­ lar, and general environmental issues. This site is also the host for the “Maine Solar H ouse,” which provides monthly updates on energy use and costs for an actual solar house. Access: http: //solstice.crest.org/. • N u clear E n e rg y In stitu te. This W eb site is maintained by the Washington, D.C.-based nuclear industry policy group and includes basic information on nuclear power, safety issues, benefits o f nuclear power, and press releases. A ccess: http://www.nei.org/. • W o rld E n e rg y E fficie n cy A sso cia tio n (W EEA ). WEEA was founded in 1993 as a non­ profit organization to assist developing coun­ tries in accessing and collecting information on energy efficiency. Online resources include the I n t e r n a t io n a l D irectory o f E n erg y E ffic ie n t I n ­ stitutions, case studies, and manuals. Access: http:// w w w . w ee a . org/. P o p u la tio n • U n ited N ations P o p u la tio n R e fe re n ce B u reau . The United Nations Population Infor­ mation Network (POPIN) provides a network o f world population centers to consolidate de­ mographic information including sites such as Princeton University’s Population Index (http: //popindex.princeton.edu/). Reports from the International Conference on Population held in Cairo are also available. A ccess: http://www. undp.org/popin/popin.htm. • Z e ro P o p u la tio n G row th (ZPG ). This is a population site with an emphasis on the detrimental environmental effects o f overpopu­ lation and wasteful consumption. ZPG provides a congressional report card, K– 12 curriculum materials, news releases, and excerpts from its periodical ZPG Reporter. A ccess: http://www. zpg.org/zpg/. W a ste d i s p o s a l • C o m p o st R e so u rce P age. Information and links fo r h o m e as w ell as la rg e -sca le composting are provided at this site created by Chris Palmarini. Poetry and a quiz game, links to international sites, updates on laws and regu­ lations, newsgroups, and children’s activities are in clu d ed . T h is site is a m ust s e e fo r any composter. A ccess: http://www.oldgrowth.org/ compost/. • G lobal R e cy clin g N etw ork. The Net’s recycling business center, this site has informa­ tion on news headlines, com pany directories, equipment, prices on traded recyclables, and educational services. The Reference Library link provides information on sources o f grant and capital funding, laws and regulations, resources, and publications. A ccess: http://grn.com/grn/. • Y a le W o rk in g P a p e rs o n Solid W aste P olicy . The full text o f strategically commis­ sioned papers from experts on topics that have b een neglected in the discussion about solid waste policy are available at this site. Access: http://www.yale.edu/pswp/. A u th o r n ote: Both the authors maintain en­ vironmental resources W eb pages that can be located at: http://www.southampton.liunet.edu/ library/environ.htm and http://aztec.lib.utk.edu/ -tem ple/envirnpg.htm. N ote 1. Edwin Diamond and Stephen Bates, “The Ancient History o f the Internet,” A m e r ic a n H eri­ ta g e 46 (O ctober 1995): 34–45. ■ http://www.uwin.siu.edu/ http://www.ncar http://www.water http://www.nei.org/ http://www http://www http://www.oldgrowth.org/ http://grn.com/grn/ http://www.yale.edu/pswp/ http://www.southampton.liunet.edu/ http://aztec.lib.utk.edu/ 158 / C&RL News M arch 1 9 9 7 / 159