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Archive for October, 2013
Thousands march in Romania against shale gas, gold mine
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 27th, 2013
Agence France-Presse: Thousands of Romanians rallied on Sunday against a controversial Canadian gold mine project and against shale gas exploration, in weekly demos that have turned into one of the country's longest-running protests in years.
In Bucharest, some 2,500 people marched on the government's offices, chanting "Resign!, an AFP reporter saw.
The protest marked the ninth consecutive Sunday that Romanians have taken to the streets to voice their anger over the mine planned by Canada's Gabriel Resources, a...
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Comments Off on Thousands march in Romania against shale gas, gold minePreparing for extreme weather
Posted by Aljazeera: Donna Bryson on October 27th, 2013
Aljazeera: Hurricane Katrina wreaks havoc on the Gulf Coast in 2005. Superstorm Sandy brings destruction to the East Coast in 2012. Heavy rains in the middle of the country lead to flooding in the rugged Rocky Mountains in 2013. Each crisis brings greater urgency to preparations for the next storm. Scientists disagree on whether climate change is causing these cataclysms, but agree that humans, whose carbon emissions have altered the environment, need to change their thinking and habits to reflect the new,...
Climate change sets back forest preservation efforts in India
Posted by Hindu: Aditi Bishnoi on October 27th, 2013
Hindu: In Uttarakhand, women take the lead role in reviving and maintaining civil forests under Van Panchayats even in the face of several obstacles
Munni Adhikari, a resident of Dhaura Gram Sabha in Lamgara block of Uttarakhand`s Almora district, lives in an idyllic setting: green slopes covered with tall pine and oak trees, wild flowers in full bloom, neat little terrace farms... While this natural splendour can instantly captivate any visitor, there is a hard-hitting reality that comes with the territory....
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Climate change sets back forest preservation efforts in IndiaSandy exposed flood insurance failure
Posted by Aljazeera: Rachel Cleetus on October 27th, 2013
Aljazeera: It has been one year since Superstorm Sandy pounded ashore near Atlantic City, N.J., bringing death, destruction and massive flooding from heavy rainfall and coastal storm surge. Recovery continues, but often slowly and painfully. What is clear is that climate change and existing patterns of coastal development are raising risks of harm from major storms along our coasts. In order to face these dangers in a more resilient way, we must rethink how and where we rebuild. Reforming our current flood...
Philippines: ‘Mindanao needs more climate-adaptation investments’
Posted by Business Mirror: Alladin S. Diega on October 27th, 2013
Business Mirror: Funding is urgently needed to finance climate-change adaptation initiatives in Mindanao given the increasing vulnerability of the region to extreme weather disturbances.
“The impact of extreme weather events are particularly severe, especially on the people of Mindanao, a region that is reeling at the same time from conflict and extreme poverty,” Justin Morgan, country director of Oxfam in the Philippines, said during a forum held on Friday.
He said Mindanao has recently been experiencing strong...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Philippines: ‘Mindanao needs more climate-adaptation investments’Australia: Abbott’s new climate policy rejected by economists
Posted by Canberra Times: Matt Wade, Gareth Hutchens on October 27th, 2013
Canberra Times: Leading economists have overwhelmingly rejected Tony Abbott's direct action climate change policy and backed carbon pricing.
A Fairfax Media survey of 35 prominent university and business economists found only two believed direct action was the better way to limit Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. Thirty - or 86 per cent - favoured the existing carbon price scheme. Three rejected both schemes.
Internationally renowned Australian economist Justin Wolfers, of the Washingtonbased Brookings...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Australia: Abbott’s new climate policy rejected by economistsPilgrim no. 1 in U.S. for shutdowns
Posted by Cape Cod Times: Christine Legere on October 27th, 2013
Cape Cod Times: From broken water pumps, leaky valves and steaming pipes to elusive electrical problems, it's been a tough year for Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station.
Entergy, Pilgrim's owner and operator, has poured $500 million into the 41-year-old plant since buying it from Boston Edison in 1999, yet mechanical problems and off-site power outages have forced the operation to shut down six times since January, making it No. 1 among the U.S. fleet of 100 commercial nuclear reactors for shutdowns this year.
2013...
What we didn’t learn from Superstorm Sandy
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 27th, 2013
CNN: Many of our immediate responses to Hurricane Sandy were successful. Scientists accurately forecast the storm; authorities ordered the proper actions; many people heeded the orders; and there was a massive government response in the aftermath.
What went most wrong, and continues to go wrong, is our handling of environmental risks in the long term. Even when the present has delivered an unprecedented shock, we still have trouble accepting that the future will bring new ones, unlike those before....
Climate-change disconnect is baffling
Posted by PoughKeepsie Journal: None Given on October 27th, 2013
Poughkeepsie Journal: We are currently experiencing a slow-motion catastrophe. The dye is cast. We have emitted enough carbon into the atmosphere to guarantee climate change and rising sea levels. Some of our most precious real estate, our commercial capital and destination beaches, are doomed. And yet, instead of proactively considering possible solutions, from abstaining from new building on fragile coastlines to moving inland, the response of many is to deny that they are or will ever experience the effects of climate...
Brown University’s Misguided Vote to Not Divest From Coal
Posted by Huffington Post: Jamie Henn on October 27th, 2013
Huffington Post: Today, on the anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, Brown University defied the will of its student body and its own investment advisory committee and voted not to divest from the 15 largest U.S. coal companies.
"I'm deeply disappointed in our administration," said Brown student Ruby Goldberg '17. "The board acted explicitly in opposition to the voices of Brown's community, and of the endowment oversight committee. This could have been a moment for Brown to step up as a leader in the fight against climate...
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