Daily Roundup: July 29, 2010

Smog City: Moscow has a carbon monoxide level that does the same amount of bodily harm as smoking two packs of cigarettes every few hours. BBC

Protective Instincts: A plan to ship 16 radioactive generators across the Great Lakes has resulted in a global uproar. Vancouver Sun

No Small Thing: Since the 1950s, plankton numbers have decreased 40 percent globally. These tiny organisms are the base of the ocean's food chain and provide half of the earth’s oxygen. Yahoo! News

Here Comes the Sun: In Sicily, the very first molten-salt-based solar thermal power plant has begun generating enough power to provide for 5,000 homes. Climate Central

Beach Bummer: More than 2,200 beach closings or advisories have been issued on coastlines from the Florida panhandle to Louisiana, ten times the number from last year. AP

--Kristin Baldwin