Although the change is gradual, the U.S. is gaining ground on a more sustainable future. Energy experts and environmentalists can argue it's not occurring fast enough, but from transportation to engineering, improvements are being made.
The Prius is Toyota's third most popular car. Each year brings a new round of hybrid vehicles, making over 30 different hybrid cars at the start of 2012.

The public is invited to weigh in on new strategies being proposed to reduce the use of toxic substances in Washington. Last fall, the Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) convened a group of business, government, academic and non-governmental leaders to come up with new approaches for reducing toxic chemical pollution in Washington. Ecology asked them to think outside their typical legal and political silos to find creative new approaches to toxics that would offer better human health, environmental and economic outcomes.

Pilings Removed From Puget Sound Near Olympia
The last evidence of lumber yards and plywood mills that once lined the Budd Inlet shoreline near Olympia is being removed as workers pull out pilings and take away docks.
The pilings are soaked with the wood preservative creosote, which is toxic to marine life. The Olympian reported the work will remove 400 pilings and 7,000 square feet of abandoned docks and piers along 1.2 miles of south Puget Sound shoreline. The land is owned by the Port of Olympia, Squaxin Island Tribe, private landowners and state Department of Natural Resources. The $278,000 project is federally funded as part of Puget Sound cleanup work. The department says more than 15,000 pilings have been removed since 2004 and the goal is to remove 3,000 more in the next four years.
 
Increase In Debris Reported On Washington Beaches
An increase in marine debris has been reported on Washington's coastal beaches, so the state is asking clam diggers to carry a trash bag and pick up any plastic foam or bottles they find. The state Marine Debris Task Force says it can't say for sure whether the debris this winter is from the March 2011 Japanese tsunami. The state has placed trash bins at Ocean Shores, Long Beach and Westport to help dispose of the trash. People who find larger or possibly toxic items on the beach should notify park rangers at state beaches or call the marine debris hotline 1-855-WACOAST (1-855-922-6278). Last Saturday a refrigerator with Asian writing and covered in marine growth washed ashore at Ocean City State Park.

SEE: State marine debris photos