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Archive for September, 2012
Idyllic Oregon thrust into energy export debate
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 15th, 2012
Reuters: When federal officials arrived in this scenic but economically struggling port a few weeks ago for hearings on a proposed liquefied natural gas plant, some residents had a sense of déjà vu: it was only six years earlier, in the same auditorium, that they had already discussed the pros and cons of an LNG plant.
But there was one big difference this time around: the 2006 plan was designed to bring gas in, while the current project calls for shipping gas out.
This literal change in direction illustrates...
Arctic Warming is Altering Weather Patterns, Study Shows
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on September 15th, 2012
Climate Central: By showing that Arctic climate change is no longer just a problem for the polar bear, a new study may finally dispel the view that what happens in the Arctic, stays in the Arctic.
The study, by Jennifer Francis of Rutgers University and Stephen Vavrus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, ties rapid Arctic climate change to high-impact, extreme weather events in the U.S. and Europe.
The study shows that by changing the temperature balance between the Arctic and mid-latitudes, rapid Arctic...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Arctic Warming is Altering Weather Patterns, Study ShowsNatural gas isn’t only solution to curb climate change
Posted by PoughKeepsie Journal: None Given on September 15th, 2012
Poughkeepsie Journal: There is a lot to be gleaned by the fact that carbon-dioxide emissions – the ones contributing to climate change – have fallen dramatically in the United States of late.
It is, indeed, welcome news because the world is in for a long struggle to keep these emissions in check, and the United States still creates far more than its fair share of the pollution.
But there should be concern over how, exactly, the United States has seen this decline: It has come mostly through the trend of cheap and...
EPA adds 12 waste sites to Superfund list
Posted by Associated Press: Josh Lederman on September 14th, 2012
Associated Press: The Environmental Protection Agency added 12 hazardous waste sites to the list of the most-contaminated places in the United States on Friday, clearing the way for major cleanups to rid the sites of dangerous toxins.
Arsenic, lead and mercury were among a long list of toxins found at the sites -- mostly former factories, chemical plants and contaminated water plumes. Investigators also found elements like benzene, copper and chromium, plus harmful chemicals associated with pesticides and industrial...
‘Red List’ of Endangered Ecosystems Proposed
Posted by Yahoo!: Becky Oskin on September 14th, 2012
Yahoo!: The International Union for the Conservation of Nature moved closer to approving its new Red List of Ecosystems, which measures an ecosystem's risk of collapse, this week at the World Conservation Congress in South Korea.
The IUCN is known for its authoritative Red List of Threatened Species, which created globally accepted criteria for assessing extinction risk. The new conservation tool takes a similar approach to entire ecosystems, determining the danger to an individual ecosystem, comparable...
Floods threaten Niger’s main rice crop: minister
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 14th, 2012
Reuters: Floods could wipe out most of Niger's main rice harvest this year as rain-swollen rivers rose to 50-year highs across West Africa, spreading devastation, a regional official said.
At least 81 people have been killed in Niger since annual rains caused flooding along the banks of the Niger River, raising its waters to their highest levels since the 1920s.
The country and surrounding region are still struggling to overcome food shortages caused by poor rains last year.
"In Niger ... most of...
Rethinking the New Zone Hardiness Map
Posted by New York Times: Joanna M. Foster on September 14th, 2012
New York Times: For gardeners sad to see the summer drawing to a close, there`s some comfort to be drawn from the fall planting season for perennials, trees and shrubs, which is just around the corner. What`s more, there`s the novelty of this year`s updated Plant Hardiness Zone Map, released early this year.
The previous version of the map was issued in 2003, but the agency fielded so much criticism over the ways in which it incorporated climate change into the equation - too little and too much - that the map...
Insight: U.S. and Brazil – At last, friends on ethanol
Posted by Reuters: Brian Winter on September 14th, 2012
Reuters: After years at each other's throats, Brazil and the United States are working together to promote the use of ethanol in a collaboration that could revolutionize global markets and the makeup of the biofuel itself.
The breakthrough came in January when Washington allowed a three-decade-old subsidy for U.S. ethanol producers to expire and ended a steep tariff on foreign biofuels. The tariff, in particular, had poisoned diplomatic relations between the world's top two ethanol-producing countries...
Airlines grapple with food vs. biofuel debate
Posted by Reuters: Maria Sheahan and Victoria Bryan on September 14th, 2012
Reuters: Airlines battling to cut costs and pollution may not find a quick fix in biofuels, as concerns grow that using feedstocks to create an alternative to kerosene will push food prices higher.
The European Union plans to impose a limit on the use of crop-based biofuels, in a major shift in the region's much-criticized biofuel policy, according to draft legislation seen by Reuters.
The policy U-turn comes after studies cast doubt on the carbon dioxide emissions savings from using crop-based fuels,...
Romania: From Ancient Deforestation, a Delta Is Born
Posted by New York Times: Rachel Nuwer on September 14th, 2012
New York Times: Humans were tampering with nature long before the Industrial Revolution’s steam and internal combustion engines arrived on the scene. The invention of agriculture around 8,000 years ago, some argue, significantly changed ecosystems as it spread around the globe.
Although scientists are only just beginning to understand how these ancient alterations shaped our world today, a new study in Scientific Reports suggests that millennium-old development along the Danube River in Eastern Europe significantly...