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Archive for July, 2014
Fire At Ohio Fracking Well Forced Evacuations And Likely Contributed Fish Kill
Posted by ThinkProgress: None Given on July 1st, 2014
ThinkProgress: An explosive fire at an Ohio fracking well was likely the cause of a chemical leak into a stream that contributed to the death of fish as far as five miles away from the the fire`s site, Ohio officials said Monday.
Over the weekend, a mechanical malfunction sparked a fire on the well pad of a fracking operation in Monroe County, Ohio, a blaze that caused explosions and forced evacuations of people who lived within a mile of the well. The people were evacuated as a precaution "because of the chemicals...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Fire At Ohio Fracking Well Forced Evacuations And Likely Contributed Fish KillGovernments urged to clean up estuaries management
Posted by BusinessGreen: James Murray on July 1st, 2014
BusinessGreen: Policymakers around the world have been urged to work together to improve the governance of vulnerable estuary habitats or risk some of the planet's most valuable economic and biodiversity hubs being undermined by escalating climate change risks and worsening levels of pollution.
That was the stark warning on the first day of the Global Estuaries Forum in Deauville, France where experts from across the fields of politics, business and academia detailed how the management of estuary environments...
UK food security at risk climate change and unsustainable diets
Posted by Blue and Green: Ilaria Bertini on July 1st, 2014
Blue and Green: The UK needs to produce more food with fewer resources and reassure the public on the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods if it wants to become more self-sufficient in the long term, a group of MPs has said.
A new report by the environment, food and rural affairs committee has called for “sustainable intensification” of the UK’s food system in order to increase crop yields and resilience in the light of threats posed by climate change.
Anne McIntosh MP, chair of the committee, said, “Complacency...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on UK food security at risk climate change and unsustainable dietsMeat-based diets linked to significant carbon footprints
Posted by Blue and Green: Jemma Collins on July 1st, 2014
Blue and Green: Meat-eaters’ diets have a much larger carbon footprint than vegan, vegetarian and pescatarian diets, a new study published in the journal Climatic Change has found.
The study said that high meat diets have more than double the amount of the greenhouse gas emissions than the average vegan diet. It also mentioned the majority of Britons are high meat consumers and argued that “reducing the amount of animal-based products in the diet represents an achievable way for an individual to reduce their...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Meat-based diets linked to significant carbon footprintsAustralia: Barrier Reef dredge spoil could travel further, conservationists say
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 1st, 2014
AAP: Dumped dredge spoil in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park could travel further than previously thought, affecting coral.
Three million cubic metres of dredge spoil will be dumped in waters 20km from the reef following a Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) decision on the expansion of the Abbot Point port in north Queensland.
The bid to create one of the world's biggest coal terminals near Bowen was last month criticised by Unesco's world heritage committee meeting in Doha.
Now,...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Australia: Barrier Reef dredge spoil could travel further, conservationists sayEl Nino likely in next few months: Australian Bureau of Meteorology
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 1st, 2014
Reuters: Pacific Ocean surface temperatures are at levels associated with a weak El Nino but the threshold for the weather event has not yet been breached, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said on Tuesday. While temperatures remain elevated and trade winds have re-emerged, typical with an El Nino, waters below the surface have cooled, the BOM said. Despite the mixed picture, the Bureau continues to indicate that El Nino is likely to develop by spring 2014.
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on El Nino likely in next few months: Australian Bureau of MeteorologyUK future food security threatened complacency, MPs warn
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 1st, 2014
Guardian: The UK’s ability to feed itself is threatened by “complacency” over the extreme weather driven by climate change and increasing competition for food as the world’s population grows, MPs warned on Tuesday.
The environment, food and rural affairs (Efra) select committee said ministers must put plans in place to secure supplies of fruit and vegetables and the soya needed to feed the nation’s dairy herds, noting that the UK’s self-sufficiency for food that can be grown domestically has fallen from...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on UK future food security threatened complacency, MPs warnTexas Sheriff Is on Mission to End Illegal Dumping of Frack Waste
Posted by InsideClimate: David Hasemyer on July 1st, 2014
InsideClimate: Deputy Sheriff Hector Zertuche parked his pickup across the road from a gas and oil waste dump and watched through binoculars as a container truck unloaded a mountain of black sludge.
Zertuche, the environmental crimes officer for Jim Wells County, is the law here when it comes to oil and gas waste. The job has fallen to him, he said, because the state's environmental agencies don't effectively police the disposal of the industry's waste. It typically contains benzene and other chemicals found...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Texas Sheriff Is on Mission to End Illegal Dumping of Frack WasteMalnutrition a threat with use climate-resilient crops, scientists say
Posted by Reuters: Isaiah Esipisu on July 1st, 2014
Reuters: As farmers move toward growing crops designed to meet growing world demand for food and stand up to tougher climate conditions, they may inadvertently be worsening malnutrition, scientists say.
Such "hidden hunger" stems from a lack of vitamins and minerals in some crops that replace staple favourites, and a narrowing of the range of foods eaten.
"When I was young, we used to feed on amaranth vegetables, guava fruits, wild berries, jackfruits and many other crops that used to grow wild in our...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Malnutrition a threat with use climate-resilient crops, scientists sayWater, Rivers and Runoff Challenge Ethiopia’s Expanding Capital
Posted by Inter Press Service: James Jeffrey on July 1st, 2014
Inter Press Service: The streets of Addis Ababa are increasingly turning into water-logged obstacle courses as downpours increase in the run up to Ethiopia’s July to September rainy season. Strangers link hands to steady themselves as they step high and gingerly over the spreading puddles and slippery mud.
Sustainable drainage systems may not sound like an exciting topic to get the heart beating faster, but it is one of increasing importance in Ethiopia and especially in Addis Ababa as the capital city grows, construction...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Water, Rivers and Runoff Challenge Ethiopia’s Expanding Capital