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Archive for January, 2013
‘Bipartisan’ task force on climate change one party short
Posted by Washington Times: Tom Howell Jr. on January 25th, 2013
Washington Times: Two Democrats on Capitol Hill are seconding President Obama`s call for real political muscle to address climate change and vowed to form a bipartisan task force -- but they haven`t found any Republican takers yet.
The administration found itself under growing pressure on another front, as a bipartisan majority of senators has signed on to a letter seeking approval of a massive new oil pipeline project staunchly opposed by leading environmental groups.
Rep. Henry A. Waxman, California Democrat,...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on ‘Bipartisan’ task force on climate change one party shortCanada: ‘Bitumen Bubble’ Means a Hard Reckoning for Alberta, Premier Redford Warns
Posted by Globe and Mail: Josh Wingrove on January 25th, 2013
Globe and Mail: The sharp revenue decline will also spur the continuing national debate over pipelines, heading east or west, which Ms. Redford argues are the only way to reduce reliance on American buyers, reach new markets and fetch a higher price for Western Canadian oil. “We have a duty to ensure that our resources, especially Alberta oil and gas, get to new markets at a much fairer price,” Ms. Redford said while delivering the news in a special television address Thursday evening, which cost taxpayers $55,000....
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Canada: ‘Bitumen Bubble’ Means a Hard Reckoning for Alberta, Premier Redford WarnsTexas Commission That Oversees Drilling Is Being Overhauled, Even in Name
Posted by New York Times: KATE GALBRAITH on January 25th, 2013
New York Times: The Railroad Commission of Texas regulates one of the most advanced industries in the world — oil and gas drilling. Yet the commission’s software systems, many of its rules and even its name are from another era. As the 122-year-old agency confronts a drilling boom that is altering the state and national economies, an overhaul of its operations is under way. Its old mainframe computer system will be upgraded with modern digital storage, clearing the way for a more user-friendly Web site. Decades-old...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Texas Commission That Oversees Drilling Is Being Overhauled, Even in NameWaxman: Keystone XL ‘Small’ Piece of Climate Puzzle
Posted by The Hill: Zack Colman on January 25th, 2013
The Hill: A top Democratic global warming advocate said Thursday that President Obama’s decision on the Keystone XL pipeline is a “small” part of battling climate change. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) said he hopes Obama nixes the project to bring Canadian oil sands to the Gulf Coast. But he stressed that Keystone is just one piece of the whole climate picture. “This is only a small issue compared to the overall objective that the president and we want to achieve,” Waxman, the top Democrat on the House Energy...
Tanzania: Maasai herders breed fewer, stronger cattle to tackle climate change
Posted by AlertNet: Lucas Liganga on January 25th, 2013
AlertNet: The loss of more than half their livestock in the 2009 drought has led Maasai pastoralists in northern Tanzania's Arusha region to breed fewer, stronger cattle and end their traditional focus on numbers alone as symbols of wealth and status.
The impact of that devastating drought, which dealt a blow to the whole nation's economy, is still visible in the small number of cattle in many villages of Engarenaibor in Arusha's Longido district.
The district's cattle breeders and owners lost at least...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Tanzania: Maasai herders breed fewer, stronger cattle to tackle climate changeFrom John Kerry, Cautious Words on Keystone XL
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 24th, 2013
New York Times: Appearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator John Kerry, President Obama`s nominee for secretary of state, was quizzed on Thursday about the decision he faces this spring on approval of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.
Mr. Kerry replied that he would ensure that "appropriate decisions" are made on the controversial 1,700-mile pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada`s tar sands to refineries on the Gulf Coast. He did not tip his hand on his position, but added that he...
Billionaires secretly fund attacks on climate science
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 24th, 2013
Independent: A secretive funding organisation in the United States that guarantees anonymity for its billionaire donors has emerged as a major operator in the climate "counter movement" to undermine the science of global warming, The Independent has learnt.
The Donors Trust, along with its sister group Donors Capital Fund, based in Alexandria, Virginia, is funnelling millions of dollars into the effort to cast doubt on climate change without revealing the identities of its wealthy backers or that they have...
Southwest Faces Looming Threats From Climate Change
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 24th, 2013
Climate Central: The American Southwest, which is already the hottest and driest region of the nation, is likely to become even hotter and drier in the next few decades thanks in part to the ongoing effects of human-generated greenhouse gases. That's the verdict of the draft National Climate Assessment report, the product of a federal advisory committee charged with assessing how climate change has already affected the U.S., and what the future holds.
Projected changes in average temperature (°F) from observed...
Greenland’s Ice Sheet More Stable Than Once Believed
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 24th, 2013
Climate Central: The enormous sheets of ice that lie atop Greenland may not be as prone to catastrophic melting as many scientists thought, even if the planet continues to warm and temperatures remain high for hundreds of years. But while that may sound like good news, new evidence also suggests that parts of the even vaster ice sheets that lie atop Antarctica could be more unstable than once believed.
That's the conclusion of scientists who have been drilling deep into the Greenland ice sheet since 2007, in a...
Hailstones Chock-Full Of Bacteria And Chemicals That May Affect Weather Patterns
Posted by redOrbit: Lee Rannals on January 24th, 2013
RedOrbit: According to a study published in the online journal PLOS ONE, there is a rich diversity of microbial life and chemicals in the ephemeral habitat of a storm cloud.
A Danish research team at Aarhus University analyzed hailstones recovered after a storm in May 2009 and found that they carried several species of bacteria typically found on plants as well as nearly 3,000 different compounds commonly found in soil.
The hailstones had very few soil-associated bacteria or chemicals typically found...
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