Birth defects soar due to pollution. Every 30 seconds, a baby is born with physical defects in China, thanks to the country's degrading environment, an official of the National Population and Family Planning Commission has said. [News Source]

Help wanted for green jobs. Though the "win-win" perkiness of the phrase has inspired some media cynicism, "green jobs" is not just a campaign buzzword or a liberal fantasy. Environmentally sound job creation and training is happening right now, all over the country. But progress can be slow. [News Source]

Retrofitting begins on diesel school buses. Thousands of diesel-powered school buses in the state are being retrofitted to reduce fumes that fill cabins. [News Source]

What’s emitted in Tahoe, stays in Tahoe. Pollutants from San Francisco and Sacramento contribute to our local pollution, but our own cars are mostly to blame. [News Source]

Let the light shine in. Classrooms at Rowland Hall upper and middle schools will be a little dimmer over the next several weeks - and possibly for many years to come. Both schools have pledged to use natural light instead of electricity to illuminate their classrooms, offices and hallways whenever possible. [News Source]

‘No Holds Barred’ in California climate negotiations? Arnold Schwarzenegger may have burnished his reputation as one of the country’s greenest governors with his advocacy of stringent targets for cuts in greenhouse gases, but he is also trying break an impasse in the state's $42 billion budget deficit. [News Source]

Alternative fuels. Agriculture and Energy. What appear to be two separate, but important parts of North Dakota have more in common than we think. [News Source]

Boulder company makes ‘green’ cars greener. Customers with deep pockets are paying big bucks to a Boulder company for making already "green" cars even greener. [News Source]

Agency reduces carbon footprint. The Metro Manila Development Authority wants to save a lot of lungs by minimizing air pollution while easing traffic congestion on major roads. [News Source]

Scrappage program a ‘wet noodle’: Analyst. The Canadian government said it will fund a new national vehicle scrappage program that offers consumers a maximum $300 in cash, or incentives like bicycles and transit pass discounts, to retire their aging gas guzzlers. [News Source]

Tanzania develops low carbon economy. The WHO has described indoor air pollution from smoke fumes as a worse threat to life than TB or malaria across many developing countries, where the money to improve cooking conditions for the average family simply doesn’t exist. [News Source]