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Archive for December, 2013
Inspector General Finds EPA Justified in Intervening to Protect Drinking Water from Fracking
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on December 24th, 2013
EcoWatch: Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Inspector General found EPA Region 6 was justified in legally intervening to protect Parker County, TX residents’ drinking water from drilling impacts. At Sen. Inhofe’s (R-OK) request, the Inspector General investigated to determine if Region 6’s intervention against Range Resources was due to political influence by the Obama administration.
Steve Lipsky, who lives near a fracking operation in Weatherford, TX with his flammable water. Photo...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Inspector General Finds EPA Justified in Intervening to Protect Drinking Water from FrackingOrganic Farmers vs. Monsanto: Final Appeal to U.S. Supreme Court to Protect Crops from GMO Contamination
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on December 24th, 2013
EcoWatch: Last week, the Public Patent Foundation filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in the landmark case, Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association (OSGATA) et al v. Monsanto, in the hopes that the highest court in the land would hear and reinstate the case of 73 American organic and conventional family farmers, seed businesses and public advocacy groups that seek protection for America`s farmers from Monsanto`s frivolous patent infringement lawsuits, and their promiscuous genetically engineered pollen...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Organic Farmers vs. Monsanto: Final Appeal to U.S. Supreme Court to Protect Crops from GMO ContaminationNew ‘Massive Lake’ Threatening Climate Change Debate?
Posted by Design and Trend: Jessica Durham on December 24th, 2013
Design and Trend: Researchers at the University of Utah said that lake, known as "perennial firn aquifer," remains liquid year-round despite the otherwise frozen landscape around it, according to English.chosun.com. "Large amounts of snow fall on the surface late in the summer and quickly insulates the water from the subfreezing air temperatures above, allowing the water to persist all year long," said Rick Forster, lead author and professor of geography at the University of Utah. The 43,500 sq.km body of water...
Repeal of ethanol mandate a cause Congress should support
Posted by Oklahoman: Editorial on December 24th, 2013
Oklahoman: DYSFUNCTION in the federal government may be at an all-time high, but lawmakers are finding bipartisan unity regarding one goal: repeal of the ethanol fuel mandate.
U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Muskogee, has teamed with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to author legislation repealing the federal mandate that requires an ever-increasing amount of ethanol-blended fuels in the U.S. supply, regardless of actual consumer demand, market realities or real-world negative consequences.
The federal Renewable...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Repeal of ethanol mandate a cause Congress should supportChina’s pollution problems threaten Australia’s coal exports
Posted by Eco-Business: None Given on December 24th, 2013
Eco-Business: Coal mining companies in Australia have been enjoying the good life in recent years, making millions of dollars from feeding the seemingly insatiable energy appetites of Asia's tiger economies -- particularly that of China.
But a new report by the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment (SSEE) at Oxford in the UK warns that Australia's coal mining party could be coming to an end.
It says coal demand in China looks likely to fall in the years ahead due to concerns about climate change...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on China’s pollution problems threaten Australia’s coal exportsIs Interior’s eagle plan good for the birds?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 24th, 2013
Greenwire: In exchange for the right to kill eagles, a San Diego-based wind developer offered to retrofit 75 power poles to reduce eagle deaths near California's Lake San Antonio, prime winter habitat for the iconic birds.
Another California developer agreed to upgrade 11 "problem" power poles, idle certain wind turbines and donate $20,000 for eagle conservation.
The Obama administration argues steps like those will keep eagle populations robust, even as it issues permits of up to 30 years for wind farms...
Many Amish selling land to flee encroaching oil boom in Ohio, cashing in on royalties
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 24th, 2013
Reuters: Farmers in the close-knit Amish community who eschew electricity and most technology, are among landowners capitalizing on a new financial trend in the United States energy boom - selling decades of future oil and natural gas royalties for an immediate pile of cash.
Gulfport Energy Corp, Chesapeake Energy Corp , Anadarko Petroleum Corp and others have spent billions developing oil and gas reserves on land in Ohio's Utica shale formation - often by agreeing to give landowners years of royalties,...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Many Amish selling land to flee encroaching oil boom in Ohio, cashing in on royaltiesIs Canada prepared for climate refugees?
Posted by Straight: None Given on December 24th, 2013
Straight: The winds, at more than 150 kilometres per hour, flattened almost all the homes, leaving bodies washed as far as 90 kilometres from the coast. Rice fields were destroyed, thousands died, many more were displaced, and, ever since, the soil has been saturated with salt.
“The tsunami that devastated the region in 1988 was the trigger,’’ Donatien Garnier wrote in 2010’s Climate Refugees about the disaster that struck southwestern Bangladesh 25 years ago. “Salt contamination has been increasing since...
Australia facing slump as China ‘goes green’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 24th, 2013
Ecologist: Australia has been growing rich from exporting coal to China. But as Kieran Cooke reports, China's renewable energy revolution may soon bring the 'good times' to an end. Owners and operators of the country's coal assets are, for the most part, ignoring what's going on. Coal mining companies in Australia have been enjoying the good life in recent years, making millions of dollars from feeding the seemingly insatiable energy appetites of Asia's tiger economies - particularly that of China. But a...
In 2013, Exxon Spill Showed Dangers Pipelines Buried Under Backyards
Posted by InsideClimate: Lisa Song on December 24th, 2013
InsideClimate: When a 65-year-old ExxonMobil pipeline ruptured on March 29 [3] and spilled 210,000 gallons of oil in Mayflower, Ark., it opened the nation's eyes to the potential dangers lurking in the thousands of miles of aging and overlooked pipelines buried beneath neighborhoods and farms.
The spill also brought fresh attention to the debate over the proposed Keystone XL pipeline and the inherent risks of transporting Canadian tar sands across America's heartland. Exxon's Pegasus pipeline was carrying dilbit...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on In 2013, Exxon Spill Showed Dangers Pipelines Buried Under Backyards