Group: Global warming could cost Ohio its buckeyes (The Charlotte Observer) It's not the best-researched global-warming theory, but it could be the most horrifying to certain fans of college football: Environmentalists said Friday that climate change might push the growing range of Ohio's iconic buckeye tree out of the state, leaving it for archrival Michigan. Save The Buckeye, a coalition of environmental activists and outdoor enthusiasts, has a billboard in Columbus ... [News Source]

Group: Global warming could cost Ohio its buckeyes (AP via Yahoo! News) It's not the best-researched global-warming theory, but it could be the most horrifying to certain fans of college football: Environmentalists said Friday that climate change might push the growing range of Ohio's iconic buckeye tree out of the state, leaving it for archrival Michigan. [News Source]

Palin’s statements on climate change murky (Los Angeles Daily News) FORT WAINWRIGHT, Alaska - Vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's assertion that she believes humans contribute to global warming - made in her first major interview since joining the Republican ticket - is more definitive than her previous [News Source]

Beating back the ocean proves an enduring riddle. People worldwide are wrestling with how to preserve the beaches they have settled on. Some scientists blame erosion on global warming. Many scientists maintain that no matter what is done, there is no way to stop it. [News Source]

Study: soot-spewing ships pollute environment. Ocean freighters spew twice as much soot into the air as previously believed and tugboats are among the worst maritime offenders when it comes to air pollution, according to a new government study. [News Source]

Gas stations run short amid rush to fill up. A 40 percent spike in fill-ups left some Houston-area gas stations dry Thursday as Hurricane Ike bore down on the Texas Gulf Coast, but gasoline should be available today — though it may be scarce along the most congested evacuation routes. [News Source]

As refineries button up, fuel supplies cause concern. Hurricane Ike's pending assault of the Texas Gulf Coast spurred a slew of major oil refineries to shut down Thursday, stoking concerns that the lost output will further strain U.S. fuel supplies and send pump prices higher. [News Source]

Ike bears down on Houston area. Hurricane Ike rattled nerves up and down the Texas coastline Thursday as the 5.6 million people living in and around Houston learned they could bear the brunt of winds above 100 miles per hour and a storm surge of 15 to 20 feet. [News Source]

Texas taking no chances on Ike. The nation's fourth-largest city and its energy capital girded Thursday for the impending assault of Hurricane Ike as authorities ordered nearly 1 million vulnerable coastal residents to evacuate in the hope of avoiding roadway gridlock. [News Source]

Houston will stare down Ike; Galveston faces ‘certain death.’ As a gigantic Hurricane Ike steamed through the Gulf of Mexico toward the Texas coast, officials in America's fourth-largest city made a bold decision: Instead of fleeing, residents here would stare down the storm. [News Source]

Greater Houston faces real possibility of direct hit. After 25 years of slight brushes, near misses, out-and-out fizzles and false alarms, Greater Houston faces the real possibility of a direct hit from a significant hurricane by Saturday morning. [News Source]