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Archive for July, 2013
Fighting Fire With Fire: Why Some Burns Are Good For Nature
Posted by National Public Radio: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1andt=1andislist=falseandid on July 21st, 2013
National Public Radio: Wildfire was once essential to the American West. Prairies and forests burned regularly, and those fires not only determined the mix of flora and fauna that made up the ecosystem, but regenerated the land.
When people replaced wilderness with homes and ranches, they aggressively eliminated fire. But now, scientists are trying to bring fire back to the wilderness, to recreate what nature once did on its own.
One place they're doing this is Centennial Valley, in southwestern Montana.
Rimmed...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Fighting Fire With Fire: Why Some Burns Are Good For NatureUnited Kingdom: After the calm, the storms
Posted by Daily Mail: Adam Lee-potter and Jill Reilly on July 21st, 2013
Daily Mail: The longest heatwave for seven years could come to an end this week as the heat and humidity look set to give way to lightning and downpours. But don't pack away the barbecues just yet - tomorrow the mercury is expected to hit 35C for the first time since 2006. Isolated showers are expected across Britain at the start of the week, but from Tuesday it has the potential to be very unsettled in eastern and northern parts with thundery downpours possible. However, there will be a lot of sunshine too,...
Climate change threatens Swedish water cost hike
Posted by Local: None Given on July 21st, 2013
Local: Sweden could see the costs of tap water rise in the future, said Rural Affairs Minister Eskil Erlandsson, as the government investigates how to secure a plentiful flow under the threat of climate change. "Water will become more expensive and Sweden needs to take action," said Erlandsson to news agency TT and added that national infrastructure requires more investment and water pipes need improved maintenance. "In comparison with the rest of Europe, we have cheap water in Sweden. We do see a threat,...
Majority of British people know little about farmers, survey finds
Posted by Telegraph: Edward Malnick on July 21st, 2013
Telegraph: The study, commissioned by the Prince's Countryside Fund, revealed that 5 per cent of those who took part realised that the freezing conditions between January and April led to the deaths of more than 100,000 animals.
A quarter said they did not know what agriculture contributed to the British economy, while 58 per cent undervalued the income generated by the industry last year.
Almost 60 per cent of people responding to the survey said they believed farmers earned more than double the average...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Majority of British people know little about farmers, survey findsFirefighters have California blaze nearly half contained
Posted by Reuters: Alex Dobuzinskis on July 21st, 2013
Reuters: Cooler weather helped firefighters make significant gains on Saturday against a massive wildfire in Southern California, as crews cut containment lines around nearly 50 percent of the blaze.
The so-called Mountain Fire has burned across more than 27,000 acres of dry brush and timber and destroyed seven residences since it broke out on Monday. At least 5,600 residents remain under evacuation orders.
The more than 3,000 firefighters tackling the blaze on Saturday managed to expand containment...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Firefighters have California blaze nearly half containedCanada: ‘Nobody Understands’ Oil Spills at Alberta Tar Sands Operation
Posted by Toronto Star: None Given on July 20th, 2013
Toronto Star: Oil spills at a major oil sands operation in Alberta have been ongoing for at least six weeks and have cast doubts on the safety of underground extraction methods, according to documents obtained by the Star and a government scientist who has been on site.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. has been unable to stop an underground oil blowout that has killed numerous animals and contaminated a lake, forest, and muskeg at its operations in Cold Lake, Alta.
The documents indicate that, since cleanup...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Canada: ‘Nobody Understands’ Oil Spills at Alberta Tar Sands OperationHeatwave: city centre road melts and wildfires blaze across Britain
Posted by Telegraph: Daniel Johnson, Rosa Silverman, and George Ryan 1:59PM Bst 19 Jul 2013 on July 20th, 2013
Telegraph: A 15-year-old boy is thought to have drowned in a river in the latest heatwave water death.
The teenager was airlifted to hospital after the incident in Roe Valley Country Park near Limavady, Northern Ireland, yesterday afternoon, but died in hospital.
It takes the death toll of water-related deaths to 14 since Britain's longest heatwave for seven years began.
According to Public Health England, 650 people died in the hot weather from July 6 to July 14, with more deaths likely to have added...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Heatwave: city centre road melts and wildfires blaze across BritainDeadly diseases and climate change
Posted by Record Searchlight: Doug Craig on July 20th, 2013
Record Searchlight: There is so much wrong with climate change, it is hard to keep up. The whole world is changing and yet it is one of the best-kept secrets on the planet. And as it changes, and we (shhhhh) keep it to ourselves, pieces of fact and truth bubble up now and then. Well more than now and then. Kind of constantly. Just ask D.R. Tucker. But most the media world successfully ignores it. And all of us carry on with our lives as if it will always be normal. I guess we need to pretend. Hang onto our denial as...
Oil train concerns in the Pacific Northwest
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 20th, 2013
Living on Earth: Plans are underway to build terminals in the Pacific Northwest to transport coal from Wyoming as well as North Dakota's oil from trains to refineries. Ashley Ahearn of the public media collaborative EarthFix tells host Steve Curwood that the more local residents learn about them, the less popular the proposed fossil fuel terminals.
Transcript
CURWOOD: Concern over the climate is also feeding the debate over fossil fuel transport. In the Pacific Northwest there's controversy over proposals to...
Canada: Runaway train is a metaphor for global warning
Posted by Montreal Gazette: Henry Aubin on July 20th, 2013
Montreal Gazette: In the aftermath of the Lac-Mégantic hell, almost all the reform talk is about regulations. There are demands for rules to ensure more workers on trains. To improve the brakes on rail cars. To thicken the shells of tanker cars.
This concern for safety is imperative and overdue, Yet it also taking attention away from the underlying cause of the Lac-Mégantic nightmare: Our society’s dependence on planet-heating fossil fuel, the product aboard the runaway train. The world needs to tackle this ever-increasing...