Recycling Market Plummets - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com

As millions of Americans toss their wine bottles, plastic containers and newspapers into recycling bins this long Thanksgiving holiday weekend, they may be blissfully unaware of a big problem: recyclers are running out of money.

Prices for recycled materials such as plastics, paper and metals have plunged in the last two months, endangering some programs.

In Oregon, haulers of mixed recyclables once collected $40 to $50 a ton from the plant. Now the situation is reversed, and sometimes the haulers must actually pay the plant to accept their wares, according to the Oregonian.

A Battle in Poland Over the Cost of Climate Protection - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com

Poland relies on burning coal for 94 percent of its electricity needs, making its industry a highly polluting one. That has prompted the Polish government to lead the battle against moves to reform European Union climate laws forcing its coal-burning utilities to pay for permits to continue emitting such large amounts of greenhouse gases.
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The E.U. measures, said the Ernst & Young report, would damage growth, stoke inflation and undermine other goals such as adopting a new currency.