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Archive for January 10th, 2011
Farm Bureau Challenges E.P.A. on Chesapeake Pollution
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 10th, 2011
New York Times: In late December, the Environmental Protection Agency put the six states in the Chesapeake Bay`s 64,000-square-mile watershed on a "pollution diet," requiring steep cuts in the urban and farm runoff that has imperiled the health of the bay. The enhanced regulations are to be enforced by the states but could fall under direct federal control if pollution benchmarks are not met, the agency has said.
The plan, developed over several years in coordination with states, industry and other stakeholders,...
Mountain glacier melt to contribute 12 centimetres to world sea-level increases by 2100
Posted by Science Centric: None Given on January 10th, 2011
Science Centric: Melt off from small mountain glaciers and ice caps will contribute about 12 centimetres to world sea-level increases by 2100, according to UBC research published this week in Nature Geoscience.
The largest contributors to projected global sea-level increases are glaciers in Arctic Canada, Alaska and landmass bound glaciers in the Antarctic. Glaciers in the European Alps, New Zealand, the Caucasus, Western Canada and the Western United Sates - though small absolute contributors to global sea-level...
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Comments Off on Mountain glacier melt to contribute 12 centimetres to world sea-level increases by 2100Death toll from Australia floods expected to climb
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 10th, 2011
Reuters: The death toll from Australia's devastating floods is expected to climb, with grave fears held for many of the 72 people still missing, the premier of flood-stricken Queensland state said Tuesday.
"We fully expect that we may see that figure rise," Premier Anna Bligh told a news conference, describing the situation as grim and desperate. The confirmed death toll stands at least 12 since the floods began about three weeks ago.
"Given the circumstances, we hold very grave concerns for many of...
Studies warn of glacier melt danger
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 10th, 2011
Sydney Morning Herald: Pieces of ice fall from the Perito Moreno glacier near the city of El Calafate, in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz. Photo: Reuters Global warming may wipe out three-quarters of Europe's alpine glaciers by 2100 and raise sea levels by four metres by the year 3000 through melting the West Antarctic ice sheet, two studies say. The research places the spotlight on some of the least understood aspects of climate change: how, when and where warming will affect glaciers on which many millions depend...
Planet faces great glacier meltdown by 2100: Study
Posted by Vancouver Sun: Margaret Munro on January 10th, 2011
Vancouver Sun: A fifth of the ice in the world's mountain glaciers and ice caps will disappear by 2100, with some regions losing as much as 75 per cent of their ice, according to an international study.
In the most detailed assessment yet of glaciers, which are often described as the world's water towers, the study found the European Alps, as well as New Zealand, could lose three quarters of their ice by the end of the century, while high mountainous regions in Asia may lose 10 per cent.
In Western Canada...
BP shuts Alaska pipeline after leak
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 10th, 2011
Guardian: BP shares slid nearly 2.5% this morning after closure of a major Alaskan pipeline that carries around 12% of America's oil output.
The Trans-Alaska pipeline system, which transports oil from the Prudhoe Bay field, was closed on Saturday following the discovery of a leak. The incident is expected to drive up oil prices, and could mean motorists face even higher costs at the pumps.
Prudhoe Bay is America's largest oil reserve. BP is the largest shareholder in the company which runs the Trans-Alaska...
Floods threaten Australia’s Great Barrier Reef
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 10th, 2011
Reuters: Australia's devastating floods are flushing toxic, pesticide-laden sediment into the Great Barrier Reef, and could threaten fragile corals and marine life in the world's largest living organism, environmentalists said on Monday.
Flood plumes from the swollen Fitzroy and Burnett rivers in Queensland state had muddied reef waters as far as the Keppel Island Group, about 40 km (24 miles) offshore, at the southern end of the World Heritage-listed reef.
"Toxic pollution from flooded farms and towns...
Burning up biodiversity: forest fires increase in Madagascar
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 10th, 2011
Mongabay: Burning up biodiversity: forest fires increase in Madagascar
Burning up biodiversity: forest fires increase in Madagascar
The number of fires burning in and around forests in the northeastern part of Madagascar increased during the 2010 burning season relative the the year before, according to analysis of NASA data by WildMadagascar.org / Mongabay.com. The rise in burning corresponds to an especially dry year and continued illegal logging of the region's biologically-rich rainforests.
Data...
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