New Study Finds Light Pollution Inhibits Plant Growth

Would sleep masks help?
A new British study has found that plant growth and food webs are adversely affected by light pollution that comes from sources like older-style sodium vapor lights still found in many street lamps. The findings have provoked fears that there could be widespread and permanent impacts on wildlife and ecosystems from light pollution.

Rich Chinese get to stare down their next steak.
An Australian company is selling whole steers (shipped in quarters over a period of time) to wealthy Chinese in the province of Guangdong, in Southern China. The buyers even get to visit Australia to see their purchases before the steers become steaks.

Oysters get their day in court, again.
A Virginia oyster farmer fighting to be allowed to grow and harvest the bivalves on his York Point property has filed suit against York County, arguing that the state’s Right to Farm Act allows him to farm without interference from local officials. A judge is considering the case. The farmer, Anthony Bavuso, has already taken a similar case to the the state’s Supreme Court and lost.

These California raisins don’t feel like dancing.
In another legal case, this one in the U.S. Supreme Court, California raisin growers are taking on the federal supply management system that they say forces them to turn over a percentage of their crop or pay a penalty. The more than 65-year-old system is designed to keep raisin prices steady, even in years where there’s a surplus.

A second chance for a two-faced steer?
There’s a push to try and save the life of Two Face, an Australian steer with two faces, who was recently sold at auction to a slaughterhouse. Here’s the petition, which has garnered close to 2,000 signatures.