According to Laurance, whose findings are reported this week in Science (December 14), a recent spike in Amazonian fires is being promoted by massive US subsidies that promote American corn production for ethanol. The ethanol is being blended with gasoline as an automobile fuel.

"American taxpayers are spending $11 billion a year to subsidize corn producers—and this is having some surprising global consequences," said Laurance.

The US is the world's leading producer of soy, but many American soy farmers are shifting to corn to qualify for the government subsidies. Since 2006, US corn production rose 19% while soy farming fell by 15%.

The drop-off in US soy has helped to drive a major increase in global soy prices, which have nearly doubled in the last 14 months. In Brazil, the world's second-largest soy producer, high soy prices are having a serious impact on the Amazon rainforest and tropical savannas.

Parliament has approved a major overhaul of Australia's environmental laws which green groups have lamented as a backward step for the country's natural habitat.

Apple Computer may be cool and hip with consumers, but it is anything but a trend-setter when it comes to good environmental policies, Greenpeace says.

The City Council here voted late Tuesday to ban certain giant retail stores, dealing a blow to Wal-Mart Stores Inc's potential to expand in the nation's eighth-largest city.

Former Democratic President Jimmy Carter called Israeli "domination" over Palestinians "atrocious" during an interview Monday on ABC's Good Morning America.

Global emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide have more than doubled since 1990 and the rate of increase is accelerating, according to new information gathered and analyzed by the Australian government research service.

While his peers from St Augustine's Catholic school were this month contemplating university careers or first jobs, Jason Chelsea was preoccupied with a different future: his first tour of duty in Iraq.

Positive action in Germany has seen the industry boom with more than 30,000 jobs, while Australia is stagnant.

The Australian wind energy lobby group believes there are progressive attitudes towards the renewable energy on the Australian scene

THE Murray-Darling river system could run out of water within six months, the Federal Government has warned.