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Archive for May, 2013
Canadian government drops over $16 million on advertising its tar sands
Posted by Guardian: Jeremy Hance on May 16th, 2013
Guardian: The Canadian government has nearly doubled its advertising spending to promote the Alberta tar sands in an aggressive new lobbying push ahead of Thursday's visit to New York by the prime minister, Stephen Harper.
The Harper government has increased its advertising spending on the Alberta tar sands to $16.5m from $9m a year ago.
The Canadian Press news agency, which first reported on the increase in advertising spending by the Department of Natural Resources, said the television advertising...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Canadian government drops over $16 million on advertising its tar sands10 Reasons Canada’s Tar Sands Suck
Posted by EcoWatch: Kevin Grandia on May 16th, 2013
EcoWatch: Pardon my french, but Canada`s tar sands suck.
As a Canadian it blows my mind that we can have the second largest deposits of oil in the world, but our government remains billions in debt and one in seven Canadian children live in poverty.
I feel like we are being played for fools here in Canada, because foreign owned oil companies like ExxonMobil, British Petroluem and PetroChina (71 percent of oil sands production is owned by foreign shareholders) are making billions exporting raw tar sand...
New Fracking Rule Issued By Interior On Public Land
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 16th, 2013
Associated Press: Companies that drill for oil and natural gas on federal lands will be required to disclose publicly the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations, the Obama administration said Thursday. The new "fracking" rule replaces a draft proposed last year that was withdrawn amid industry complaints that federal regulation could hinder an ongoing boom in natural gas production.
The new draft rule relies on an online database used by Colorado and 10 other states to track the chemicals used in fracking...
Keystone won’t hurt environment as much as feared, MIT prof says at hearing
Posted by MarketWatch: None Given on May 16th, 2013
MarketWatch: The controversial Keystone XL pipeline, whose approval has been delayed by the Obama administration, would not create the extensive environmental damage that some fear, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology energy economics professor told a House small business subcommittee Thursday.
The pipeline, proposed by Canadian company TransCanada /quotes/zigman/27155 /quotes/nls/trp TRP , would transport crude oil from the oil sands in Alberta, Canada, to the Gulf of Mexico. The State Department needs...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Keystone won’t hurt environment as much as feared, MIT prof says at hearingMajor U.S. Cities Are at Risk for Climate-Related Water Shortage: Report
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 16th, 2013
Bloomberg: Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, and San Diego are among the cities most likely to face water scarcity as climate change increases drought potential, a study released May 15 found.
Along with the potentially 40 million Americans affected in these cities, several “breadbasket region” states such as Nebraska, Illinois, and Minnesota also made the list of vulnerable areas.
The report, America's Water Risk: Water Stress and Climate Variability, examined how climate could affect “vulnerability...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Major U.S. Cities Are at Risk for Climate-Related Water Shortage: ReportCanada: After Upset Election, Route for Tar Sands to Pacific Doesn’t Close
Posted by InsideClimate: Lisa Song on May 16th, 2013
InsideClimate: Environmentalists suffered a setback on Tuesday when British Columbia re-elected a premier who left the door open for approval of two oil pipelines that would carry tar sands oil across B.C. to the Pacific Coast, where it could be exported to the world market. Despite trailing in the polls, incumbent Christy Clark, the leader of B.C.'s Liberal Party, defeated Adrian Dix and his New Democratic Party. Dix had opposed both pipelines, and environmental groups had hoped his win would signal the end of...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Canada: After Upset Election, Route for Tar Sands to Pacific Doesn’t ClosePipeline Owner Asks Vermont to Reconsider Tar Sands Oil Ruling
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 16th, 2013
Associated Press: The owner of a crude oil pipeline that runs between Maine and Montreal is asking Vermont environmental regulators to reconsider a ruling that would require a new review under the state's land-use planning law if the company seeks to move Canadian tar sands oil to Portland for possible shipment to markets across the world.
In its motion to reconsider, the Portland-Montreal Pipeline Corp. Pipeline said the coordinator of the District 7 Environmental Commission, who issued the ruling last month,...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Pipeline Owner Asks Vermont to Reconsider Tar Sands Oil RulingCanada: Protestors Pulled From Cement at the Keystone XL Construction Site
Posted by KRMG: April Hill on May 16th, 2013
KRMG: Police had a hard time trying to figure out how to get three protestors out of solid cement near Wewoka and Holdenville Tuesday morning. The protestors are with the Great Plains Tar Sands Resistance and Cross Timbers Earth First. They put themselves in the cement Monday to protest construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. On the organization’s Facebook page, they say, “A Deputy from the Hughes County Sheriff’s Department is full-force swinging a sledgehammer at one of Holly and Bailey’s lockdown...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Canada: Protestors Pulled From Cement at the Keystone XL Construction SiteSince 1900 the U.S. Has Lost Enough Groundwater to Fill Lake Erie Twice
Posted by Circle of Blue: None Given on May 16th, 2013
Circle of Blue: Groundwater is often compared to a bank account. By this analogy, the United States is making significantly more withdrawals than deposits, according to the U.S. Geological Survey’s first national assessment of groundwater depletion.
Between 1900 and 2008, the U.S. groundwater reserves dropped by nearly 1,000 cubic kilometers (264 trillion gallons), or enough water to fill Lake Erie -- twice.
And the problem is getting worse. The rate of depletion from 2000 to 2008 was nearly three times greater...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Since 1900 the U.S. Has Lost Enough Groundwater to Fill Lake Erie TwiceWorld’s most distinct mammals and amphibians mapped
Posted by BBC: Matt McGrath on May 16th, 2013
BBC: Scientists have developed the first map of the world's unique and most endangered mammals and amphibians.
The map highlights the fact that only a fraction of the areas identified as critical for the conservation of these species are protected.
Among the species highlighted by the map are the Mexican salamander, the Sunda pangolin and the black and white ruffed Lemur.
The research is published in the journal Plos One.
The Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) project has...