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Archive for April, 2013
Scientists investigate release of bromine in polar regions
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 26th, 2013
ScienceDaily: The chemical element bromine, whose compounds contribute significantly to the depletion of ozone in the lower atmosphere, is also released in polar regions to a great extent from snow on land. This is the result reached by an international research team of scientists from the Institute of Environmental Physics of Heidelberg University and colleagues from the USA, who performed measurements and sampling together in Alaska. Until now, science has assumed that sea ice was the sole source of bromine...
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Comments Off on Scientists investigate release of bromine in polar regionsSoils Cannot Lock Away Black Carbon
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 26th, 2013
Scientific American: Climate scientists may have to rethink some of their old assumptions about carbon. US and European researchers have just established that black carbon, soot and biochar -- the burnt remains from countless forest fires -- doesn't stay in the soil indefinitely.
Around 27 million tons of the stuff gets dissolved in water and washed down the rivers into the oceans each year.
Black carbon or biochar has been hailed as one possible way of limiting greenhouse gas emissions, by taking carbon out of...
Wild Weather Swings May Be a Sign of Climate Change
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 26th, 2013
Climate Central: For a political candidate, being labeled a "flip-flopper' can be a career killer. Just ask Secretary of State John Kerry, who lost his 2004 presidential race in part because of his reputation for voting against bills before he voted for them. Increasingly, though, the label also applies to North American weather, which has been lurching from one extreme to the next in a pattern that is consistent with global warming.
Climate studies have warned us to expect more frequent and intense extreme events,...
Great Salt Lake Is No ‘Dead Sea’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 26th, 2013
National Public Radio: Parts of Utah's Great Salt Lake are 10 times saltier than the ocean. But the lake is host to plenty of life, including salt-loving microbes that can turn the lake's water bubblegum pink. Bonnie Baxter, director of the Great Salt Lake, discusses how the bugs might hold the secrets to better sunscreen, hydrogen fuel cells—even life on Mars.
Greenpeace China becomes the biggest solar power producer in Beijing
Posted by Greenpeace: None Given on April 26th, 2013
Greenpeace: At 10:48 am on 17 April in Beijing, Greenpeace made a bit of history: we joined the first batch of around 50 rooftop solar PV projects that connected to the grid in China.
And to our surprise, we learned that our modest five-kilowatt solar system is actually the biggest rooftop solar power project currently in Beijing.
Our “system” is 65 square meters of solar panels at the new GP China warehouse in Shunyi, on the outskirts of Beijing. At full capacity on a day with clear weather, these panels...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Greenpeace China becomes the biggest solar power producer in BeijingIn Gasland sequel, fracking saga’s pressure ratchets up
Posted by Grist: None Given on April 26th, 2013
Grist: Josh Fox`s 2010 documentary Gasland alerted legions of people to the dangers of fracking and helped grow the movement against the drilling technique, which has created a natural-gas bonanza in many parts of the U.S. Now Fox is back with a sequel, Gasland Part II, that premiered this week at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City.
The new film begins much like its predecessor: Shots of politicians alternate with shots of the forest, dripping wet with fresh rain. Fox introduces himself, his...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on In Gasland sequel, fracking saga’s pressure ratchets upLas Vegas: The reinvention of Sin City as a sustainable city
Posted by Guardian: Sadhbh Walshe on April 26th, 2013
Guardian: The Las Vegas strip, home to the world's best known casinos where wastefulness is not just encouraged but is a key part of the business model, has been reinventing itself over the past few years as a model of sustainability. But is it really possible for the infamous strip, that according to legend is so lit up it can be seen from outer space, ever be truly green?
Las Vegas (Spanish for "the meadows") was founded as a city in 1905 because, ironically, the cluster of water springs in an area that...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Las Vegas: The reinvention of Sin City as a sustainable cityClimate change may reduce crop output by 18% in 2020: Sharad Pawar
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 26th, 2013
Times of India: Climate change is likely to bring down the production of key foodgrain crops like wheat and rice in the country by up to 18 per cent in 2020, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar said on Friday.
"Climate change is projected to reduce timely sown irrigated wheat production by about 6 per cent in 2020. In case of late sown wheat, the projected levels are to the extent of 18 per cent," Pawar said in the Rajya Sabha.
Further reduction by up to 25 per cent in crop yields are projected in 2080, he noted....
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Climate change may reduce crop output by 18% in 2020: Sharad PawarGroups to Gov. O’Malley: Keep Maryland Frack Free
Posted by EcoWatch: Food and Water Watch on April 26th, 2013
EcoWatch: Americans Against Fracking and 24 national, state and local groups representing public health, consumers and the environment, submitted a letter to Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, expressing serious concerns about the push to approve fracking in the state. The groups cited the findings of the Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission’s draft report on fracking, which warns that fracking could have significant negative impacts in Maryland, yet presumes it is inevitable and should be regulated rather...
Immediate Moratorium Needed on Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining to Protect Human Health
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on April 26th, 2013
EcoWatch: This week the National Commission on the Health Impacts of Mountaintop Removal Mining, a group of independent physicians and scientists, released recommendations for actions necessary to ensure the health and safety of the residents of Appalachia who are impacted by mountaintop removal (MTR) mining.
The Center for Health, Environment & Justice (CHEJ) commissioned the scientists to review a report prepared by CHEJ that analyzed the existing body of peer-reviewed, scientific studies on the impacts...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Immediate Moratorium Needed on Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining to Protect Human Health