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Archive for July, 2013
Flooding in winter to get worse, scientists warn
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 25th, 2013
Telegraph: Scientists have found that an atmospheric event behind the heavy flooding in Cornwall last year and in Cumbria in 2009 is to grow more intense and more frequent over the next century.
The researchers found that narrow bands of air packed with water vapour known as atmospheric rivers are responsible for the worst flooding events in the winter months.
These flows of moisture, which form in areas of low pressure and deliver sustained, heavy rainfall to the UK, are due to double in number, according...
Steam And Groundwater Raise Concern At Japanese Nuclear Plant
Posted by National Public Radio: Geoff Brumfiel on July 25th, 2013
National Public Radio: The troubles at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant began over two years ago when an earthquake and tsunami sparked meltdowns in three reactors. But events over the past week serve as reminder that the problems are far from over.
First, a remote camera spotted steam rising from one of the melted down reactors at the plant. The steam was first seen at the unit 3 reactor late last week, and it's continued on-and-off ever since.
Steam rising from the ruins became an iconic image from the early...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Steam And Groundwater Raise Concern At Japanese Nuclear PlantUK: Anti-Fracking Protesters Halt Sussex Shale Gas Operation
Posted by Guardian: Robert Booth on July 25th, 2013
Guardian: Anti-fracking campaigners claimed a surprise victory on Thursday against attempts to extract oil in the home counties.
Dozens of protesters blockaded a drill site outside the West Sussex village of Balcombe. The drill was operated by Cuadrilla, the energy company headed by former BP chief Lord Browne.
Earlier in the day, the Department for Energy granted a drilling permit for the site to Cuadrilla, which also operates hydraulic fracturing rigs in Lancashire. It is looking for oil in the Sussex...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on UK: Anti-Fracking Protesters Halt Sussex Shale Gas OperationWhite House Undercuts Coal Power Plant Water Pollution Rule
Posted by Environment News Service: None Given on July 25th, 2013
Environment News Service: Coal-fired power plants, many operating with expired permits, have become the largest source of toxic water pollution in the United States, finds new research released Tuesday by a coalition of environmental and clean water groups.
In April, the U.S. EPA proposed the nation`s first standards to regulate this pollution, but the White House Office of Management and Budget has weakened the proposed standards, the groups claim.
Their report, "Closing the Floodgates: How the Coal Industry Is Poisoning...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on White House Undercuts Coal Power Plant Water Pollution RuleMarsh: Infrastructure investors overlooking climate threats
Posted by BusinessGreen: None Given on July 24th, 2013
BusinessGreen: Infrastructure investors are still failing to adequately consider the impact of climate change when making long term investments, leaving energy, transport, and communications developments exposed to mounting physical risks, insurance broking giant Marsh has warned. A new report by the risk management specialist says the climate resilience of infrastructure assets such as new power stations, railways, or broadband networks, should be more widely considered at the project's inception, as well as...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Marsh: Infrastructure investors overlooking climate threatsHow the White House watered down rules on coal-plant water pollution
Posted by Grist: David Roberts on July 24th, 2013
Grist: Coal power plants are the biggest source of toxic water pollution in the U.S., mainly via coal combustion waste, which is the ash and sludge left over after burning the coal and filtering the exhaust (to keep the pollutants out of the air). Combustion waste contains heavy metals like lead and mercury that never degrade - they just "bioaccumulate" up the food chain until they reach us, doing untold damage along the way.
This week, a coalition of green groups released a report [PDF] about water...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on How the White House watered down rules on coal-plant water pollutionLouisiana agency sues big oil firms for hurting wetlands
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 24th, 2013
Reuters: A Louisiana agency sued 97 oil companies - including BP Plc, Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc - in state court on Wednesday for allegedly damaging hundreds of miles of sensitive wetlands by cutting through them with pipelines and transportation canals.
The suit demands the oil industry pay for or remediate environmental damages stemming from decades of work that allegedly caused erosion and hurt coastal wetlands - which experts say serve as critical buffers during floods...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Louisiana agency sues big oil firms for hurting wetlandsIndonesia’s Palm Oil Industry Rife With Human-Rights Abuses
Posted by Bloomberg: E. Benjamin Skinner on July 24th, 2013
Bloomberg: “What kind of oil should we buy?” Luo Xiaohua shouts to her cousin from the cooking oil aisle in Yonghui Supermarket in the heart of Chongqing, a rising Chinese megacity. Luo, 50, is the quintessential Chinese shopper. She earns $3,250 a year and has an elementary education. She’s fiercely opinionated about her purchases.
Luo stands before amber-hued bottles loaded with a commodity that fuels China’s and India’s growing consumer classes. “From what I understand, all of these brands contain palm...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Indonesia’s Palm Oil Industry Rife With Human-Rights AbusesState senator slams California for lack of oil drilling oversight
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 24th, 2013
Reuters: California oil and gas regulators have failed to monitor practices used to access shale oil, including the injection of dangerous chemicals underground, a state senator said Thursday, urging passage of her proposed oversight legislation.
Fran Pavley, chair of the Senate committee on Natural Resources and Water, said she was discouraged by the responses she received from the state's oil and gas well regulator to her inquiry about the use of corrosive acid to dissolve rock and unlock oil in California's...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on State senator slams California for lack of oil drilling oversightCanada: Climate change caused Calgary, Ontario flooding: Poll
Posted by Toronto Star: None Given on July 24th, 2013
Toronto Star: Climate change caused by human activities was behind the flooding in Calgary and the recent storms in central Ontario. That’s the belief of 53 per cent of Canadians polled July 23 by Forum Research.
It’s also a belief more common among women (59 per cent) than men.
In addition, eight in 10 of those polled believe the Earth’s climate overall is changing.
Forum Research polled 1,782 Canadians who were 18 or over.
The political backgrounds of those polled were also registered. Apparently,...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Canada: Climate change caused Calgary, Ontario flooding: Poll