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Archive for October, 2014
This proposed pipeline would be even bigger than Keystone XL
Posted by Grist: None Given on October 16th, 2014
Grist: Meet Energy East: It will be 2,858-miles long, putting it right up there with some of the longest pipelines in the world. It would pump about a third more crude than Keystone XL was intended to. It`ll be bigger than the Druzhba pipeline, which carries oil 2,500 miles from Southeast Russia to the rest of Europe.
"Bigger" is the point. There`s no sense in extracting crude from Canada`s tar sands if you can`t sell it in extreme bulk, and a big part of selling it is figuring out how to get it to people....
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on This proposed pipeline would be even bigger than Keystone XLGlobal natural gas boom alone won’t slow climate change
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 16th, 2014
ScienceDaily: A new analysis of global energy use, economics and the climate shows that without new climate policies, expanding the current bounty of inexpensive natural gas alone would not slow the growth of global greenhouse gas emissions worldwide over the long term, according to a study appearing today in Nature.
Because natural gas emits half the carbon dioxide of coal, many people hoped the recent natural gas boom could help slow climate change -- and according to government analyses, natural gas did...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Global natural gas boom alone won’t slow climate changeThis new study explains why fracking won’t solve climate change
Posted by Climate Desk: Tim McDonnell on October 16th, 2014
Climate Desk: For President Obama, fracking is a key weapon against global warming. Abundant natural gas, he said in his State of the Union address this year, is a "bridge fuel" to ubiquitous renewable energy - the key to securing economic growth "with less of the carbon pollution that causes climate change."
Not everyone agrees. In fact, the debate over whether natural gas is the antidote to our deadly addiction to coal, or a faux climate change solution that will stall the clean energy revolution, is one...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on This new study explains why fracking won’t solve climate changeFracking boom will increase global carbon emissions, scientists warn
Posted by Blue and Green: Tom Revell on October 16th, 2014
Blue and Green: A global fracking boom will not help prevent climate change, as cheap shale gas would displace cleaner renewable energy and actually increase carbon emissions, according to a new study.
Because the burning of shale gas, extracted through the controversial process of fracking, releases around 50% less carbon than conventional fossil fuels such as coal, proponents have suggested it could act as a “bridge fuel”.
While investment in renewables is scaled up to meet demand, shale gas could fill in...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Fracking boom will increase global carbon emissions, scientists warnSanta Cruz Enforces California’s Toughest Drought Restrictions
Posted by National Public Radio: Richard Gonzales on October 15th, 2014
National Public Radio: California cities are taking drastic measures and none more so than Santa Cruz, where rationing is enforced through penalties. And if you can't afford to pay your fine, there's always Water School.
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Santa Cruz Enforces California’s Toughest Drought RestrictionsMeasuring How Climate Change Affects Africa’s Food Security
Posted by Inter Press Service: Xavi Fernández de Castro on October 15th, 2014
Inter Press Service: For the past 40 years Josephine Kakiyi, 55, has been cultivating maize, beans and vegetables on her small plot of land in the remote area of Kwa Vonza, in Kitui County, eastern Kenya.
Even though this has always been a hot and semi-arid region, over the last 15 years Kakiyi has noticed that the rainfall has reduced and become increasingly unpredictable.
She doesn't exactly know why this is happening. The only thing she knows for sure is that "now it's harder to say when it will rain."
But...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Measuring How Climate Change Affects Africa’s Food SecurityCalif. Heads for Warmest Year As Drought Hangs On
Posted by Climate Central: Brian Kahn on October 14th, 2014
Climate Central: Heavy precipitation fell across parts of the West in September, and while some locations saw top-10 wettest Septembers, much of the region is still mired in deep drought. Part of that is due to the excess heat that's afflicted the region this year, including what's been the warmest year to date in California according to U.S. temperature data released on Tuesday.
In a role reversal, the normally parched landscape of the Southwest saw record rainfall while verdant New England had a top-10 driest...
Could California be facing a mega-drought?
Posted by Mongabay: Brittany Stewart on October 13th, 2014
Mongabay: I moved to San Francisco six months ago and my umbrella hasn’t left its dusty sleeve yet. Scientists and politicians, everyone agrees: California is in deep trouble. As the state enters its fourth year of drought and the soil has never been drier. Some look at the sky with hope that El Niño will bring much needed rain. But most are starting to wonder if this is just the beginning. Are we entering a mega-drought that could last for more than a decade? Agriculture, one of California’s strongest pillars,...
What next for one of Europe’s great rivers?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 13th, 2014
Independent: Heavily polluted by communism's industries, and with an ancient fish species in critical danger due to extensive damming and illegal fishing, the River Danube is no stranger to a turbulent time.
It meanders its way from Germany's Black Forest through 10 countries, its vast 2,860km ending in spectacular display at Romania's Danube Delta - a protected biosphere of exceptional biodiversity and natural beauty - where it enters the Black Sea.
But now the decades of abuse could be put to good use...
India: Need to conserve biodiversity: Expert
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 13th, 2014
Times of India: Humanity comes together now to protect ecosystems, end fossil fuels, make peace, and equitably share or biosphere collapse, end of being