RSS Feed
Archive for August, 2013
Exxon Knew Its Ruptured Pipeline Was Old, Defective and Brittle, and Still Added New Stresses
Posted by InsideClimate: Elizabeth Douglass on August 12th, 2013
InsideClimate: Since at least 2006, ExxonMobil [3] has known that its 1940s-era Pegasus pipeline had many manufacturing defects like the faulty welds that recently sent crude oil spewing into an Arkansas neighborhood. The company also knew that the seams of the pipe have been identified by the industry as having another dangerous flaw: They are especially brittle, and therefore more prone to cracking. "Having a crack or flaw in a pipeline is a whammy," said Patrick Pizzo [4], a professor emeritus in materials...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Exxon Knew Its Ruptured Pipeline Was Old, Defective and Brittle, and Still Added New StressesUnited Kingdom: Fracking should get public support, says David Cameron
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 12th, 2013
BBC: The whole of the country must "get behind fracking", which ought to get "real public support" once its benefits are explained, David Cameron has said.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, he said he wanted all of the UK to benefit from shale gas drilling - "north or south".
The prime minister moved to allay concerns about the technique, insisting it was safe if properly regulated.
Environmentalists fear it can cause small earth tremors, water contamination and environmental damage.
Fracking...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: Fracking should get public support, says David CameronUnited Kingdom: Cameron calls on north and south to get behind fracking
Posted by BusinessGreen: James Murray on August 12th, 2013
BusinessGreen: Prime Minister David Cameron has today issued his clearest call to date for communities to support a nationwide boom in fracking activity, arguing that it will deliver lower energy bills and create jobs without damaging the environment.
In an article for the Telegraph that is bound to anger the growing ranks of those opposed to fracking, Cameron said he was determined to win the debate over whether or not the UK should exploit its shale gas resources.
"If we don't back this technology, we will...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: Cameron calls on north and south to get behind frackingDavid Cameron: UK must accept the potential of fracking
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 12th, 2013
Press Association: David Cameron has insisted the UK should accept fracking, claiming the controversial method of extracting gas will attract "real public support" when the benefits are explained.
The prime minister said the process would not damage the countryside and cause only "very minor change to the landscape".
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Cameron said: "I want all parts of our nation to share in the benefits: north or south, Conservative or Labour.
"If neighbourhoods can really see the benefits –...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on David Cameron: UK must accept the potential of frackingBrazil: Extinctions ‘cut nutrient arteries’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 12th, 2013
BBC: The demise of big animals in the Amazon region 12,000 years ago cut a key way that nutrients were distributed across the landscape, a study has suggested.
Researchers say animals such as huge armadillo-like creatures would have distributed vital nutrients for plants via their dung and bodies.
The effects, still visible today, raise questions about the impact of losing large modern species like elephants.
The findings have been published in the journal Nature Geoscience.
A team of UK and...
California wildfire that has injured 12 nearly contained
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 12th, 2013
Reuters: A wind-driven wildfire was nearing full containment on Sunday after raging for five days through brush east of Los Angeles, injuring 11 firefighters and one civilian, state fire officials said.
The so-called Silver Fire erupted south of the Riverside County town of Banning and by Sunday evening had charred some 20,292 acres in the San Jacinto Mountains, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
Two of the firefighters suffered minor injuries on Sunday and the other injuries...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on California wildfire that has injured 12 nearly containedUnited Kingdom: The top five reasons why drilling for shale gas is fracking stupid
Posted by BusinessGreen: Craig Bennett, Friends Of The Earth on August 11th, 2013
BusinessGreen: Balcombe. Who would have thought that this quiet Sussex village would become the ground zero in the critical debate about Britain's future energy strategy? In this day and age, when some grumble that citizen action is largely confined to voting on Britain's Got Talent, I've found it inspiring to see activists travelling to Balcombe from across the country, being joined by and winning the overwhelming support of traditionally conservative local residents. But I've also been frustrated by the way...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: The top five reasons why drilling for shale gas is fracking stupidThe Algae Is Coming, But Its Impact Is Felt Far From Water
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 11th, 2013
National Public Radio: Algae blooms are green or red or brown, slimy, smelly and you don't want it coming soon to a waterfront near you. Most of us don't give a lot of thought to algae until the furry-like monstrosity is spreading over beaches, rivers, lakes and bays, but gigantic algae blooms have become an increasing problem around the world. The danger algae blooms pose is that they sap the body of water where they are growing of nutrients and oxygen; they then die, decompose and rot. "Fish can't live in there. This...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on The Algae Is Coming, But Its Impact Is Felt Far From WaterUnited Kingdom: We cannot afford to miss out on shale gas
Posted by Telegraph: David Cameron on August 11th, 2013
Telegraph: Fracking has become a national debate in Britain -- and it's one that I'm determined to win. If we don't back this technology, we will miss a massive opportunity to help families with their bills and make our country more competitive. Without it, we could lose ground in the tough global race.
As with any advance in technology, fracking -- drilling for so-called "unconventional' gas -- has rightly drawn scrutiny. But a lot of myths have also sprung up. So today I want to set out why I support it...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: We cannot afford to miss out on shale gasHow extinction of five-tonne sloths slows up growth along Amazon
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 11th, 2013
Independent: Vast regions of the Amazon are growing more slowly than they were several thousand years ago because they lack the fertilising effect provided by South America’s distinctive “mega-fauna” – the very large mammals that went extinct soon after the arrival of humans.
A study of how soil nutrients are distributed within the Amazon basin has revealed there is a dearth of vital minerals such as phosphorus because large mammals no longer roam the region to fertilise the soil with their dung.
Scientists...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on How extinction of five-tonne sloths slows up growth along Amazon