The Top Ten Best Environment Stories of 2007

Thanks to Al Gore and a dedicated group of international scientists boosting global warming into worldwide consciousness, this has been a great year for environmental reporting. We narrowed down our hundreds and hundreds of Environment stories to the Top 10 Most Read of 2007.

This list represents a great sampling of our content, with AlterNet favorites like Stan Cox, David Morris and Bill McKibben. Not to mention a few fun pieces mixed in with those reports on a warming planet, rising seas, and disappearing drinking water.

10. The Property Cops: Homeowner Associations Ban Eco-Friendly Practices by Stan Cox, AlterNet
Homeowner association regulations often make environmental responsibility impossible by outlawing clotheslines, solar panels -- even gardens.

9. Do You Live in One of the World's 15 Greenest Cities? by Grist Magazine
Here's the top 15 cities and few runners up who have made the most impressive strides toward eco-friendliness and sustainability.

8. Why Having More No Longer Makes Us Happy by Bill McKibben, Mother Jones
The formula of human well-being used to be simple: Make money, get happy. So why is the old axiom suddenly turning on us?

7. Fighting the Corporate Theft of Our Water by Tara Lohan, AlterNet
The Bush administration is helping multinationals buy U.S. municipal water systems, putting our most important resource in the hands of corporations with no public accountability.

6. Ice Caps Melting Fast: Say Goodbye to the Big Apple? by Paul Brown, AlterNet
The talk of sea level rise should not be in centuries, it should be decades or perhaps even single years. And coastal regions like New York and Florida are in the front line for devastation.

5. The Great Biofuel Hoax by Eric Holt-Gimenez, Indypendent
Touted by politicians and industry as "green" energy, biofuels come with a high price tag.

4. Top 100 Ways Global Warming Will Change Your Life by Center for American Progress
Say goodbye to French wines, baseball and the Great Barrier Reef. Say hello to massive amounts of mosquitoes, the northwest passage and hurricanes.

3. Ten Ways to Prepare for a Post-Oil Society by James Howard Kunstler, Kunstler.com
The best way to feel hopeful about our looming energy crisis is to get active now and prepare for living arrangements in a post-oil society.

2. You Call Yourself a Progressive -- But You Still Eat Meat? by Kathy Freston, AlterNet
Eating a plant-based diet is an easy, cheap way to end animal cruelty and clean up the environment. Why, then, are so many progressives still clinging to their chicken nuggets?

1. What Al Gore Hasn't Told You About Global Warming by David Morris, AlterNet
George Monbiot's new book Heat picks up where Al Gore left off on global warming, offering real solutions without sugar-coating the large personal sacrifices they will require.

Read more of AlterNet's Environment stories and sign up for our weekly Environment newsletter.