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Archive for February, 2015
U.S. shale oil’s crash diet likely to bring forward output dip
Posted by Reuters: Anna Driver and Terry Wade on February 22nd, 2015
Reuters: Shale oil producers are throttling back so quickly on drilling that U.S. crude output could fall sooner than expected, within months, executives say as they slash costs to cope with tumbling crude prices and compete with Persian Gulf rivals.
About a dozen chief executives who talked to Reuters or who spoke publicly, acknowledged they were taken aback by the scale and speed of the cutbacks, noting how this oil price downturn was different from several previous episodes in their careers.
For...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on U.S. shale oil’s crash diet likely to bring forward output dipNow is the time to invest in real geothermal energy
Posted by Mother Nature Network: None Given on February 22nd, 2015
Mother Nature Network: In a recent post on ground source heat pumps, I purposely used a photo of a geothermal installation in Iceland to make the point that geothermal energy was a very different thing. Many complained that I obviously didn't know what I was talking about ("The big clue starts with the picture at the top which is NOT a geothermal heat pump system.") Well, duh — that was the whole point. Geothermal power is a very different thing and a very important source of renewable energy. With true geothermal energy...
Q+A: Prioritize food security, not conflict, wheat scientist advises
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 22nd, 2015
Reuters: Heat and drought are a major cause of wheat yield losses worldwide, problems that scientists predict will worsen due to climate change.
As a wheat physiologist, Matthew Reynolds works to bolster crop yields and improve the capacity of wheat to survive hot temperatures, particularly in developing countries.
"Climate change puts farmer livelihoods at risk and can lead to vast food-crop losses in vulnerable environments,' said Reynolds, who was recently named a distinguished scientist at the International...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Q+A: Prioritize food security, not conflict, wheat scientist advisesUS Chevron Quits Shale Gas Operations in Romania
Posted by Novinite: None Given on February 22nd, 2015
Novinite: US energy giant Chevron is quitting shale gas exploration in Romania after prolonged anti-fracking protests.
Romania was the last shale gas project of Chevron in Europe.
Last month Chevron made clear that it was suspending shale gas exploration activities in Poland, while last year the company terminated this type of activity in Lithuania and Ukraine.
“That leaves Romania, where we are in the process of relinquishing our concession interests,” a Chevron Spokesman was quoted as saying by...
Call for wider fracking moratorium in Scotland
Posted by Scotsman: None Given on February 22nd, 2015
Scotsman: AN alliance of community and environmental groups has called for the Scottish Government`s moratorium on fracking to be extended to cover underground coal gasification.
Almost 30 organisations and individuals, including residents’ associations, academics, Friends of the Earth and Unison Scotland, have made the plea in a letter to energy minister Fergus Ewing.
Campaigners welcomed the moratorium on unconventional oil and gas developments announced by Mr Ewing last month but say it does not go...
Is a controversial breeding project saviour of wild salmon, or wreaking havoc with nature?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 22nd, 2015
Independent: Bob Kindness makes fishing look easy. It seems that no sooner has he cast his line into the fast-flowing river Carron in Wester Ross than he’s playing the rod, smiling and reeling in a marvellous-looking wild Atlantic salmon.
Despite this success, wild salmon numbers across Scotland are at their lowest level for a decade, with catches in some areas down by 50 per cent. The situation is so dire that SNP ministers in Holyrood have just announced a plan to ban anglers taking salmon from Scottish...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Is a controversial breeding project saviour of wild salmon, or wreaking havoc with nature?United Kingdom: Climate change not just an environmental issue
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2015
Guardian: The general election means 2015 is a critical year for Britain. It is also a critical year for the world on climate change. Within months of Britain voting, the UN is holding a summit in Paris to agree a binding global agreement to tackle climate change. But there is a real danger that this great chance to achieve action is going to slip by, without the world even noticing. That might suit some politicians at home but it will be a disaster for our country and the world. Over recent months the EU,...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United Kingdom: Climate change not just an environmental issueAnother winter storm to pummel eastern United States with snow & sleet
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2015
Reuters: A fresh band of winter weather was churning up the East Coast on Saturday after pummeling parts of the South and Midwest, threatening to pile up more snow in storm-weary Boston and send the region back into a deep freeze.
The system cut a curving, 2,000-mile path from southern Missouri to Maine, with a winter storm warning in effect until Sunday for parts of southern Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia and western Pennsylvania, the National Weather Service (NWS) said.
In Kentucky and Tennessee, forecasters...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Another winter storm to pummel eastern United States with snow & sleetReport offers options for new fracking rules in Michigan
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2015
Associated Press: University of Michigan researchers are releasing policy options the state could adopt in anticipation of a potential upswing in a natural gas development process known as "fracking."
Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a process that uses high volumes of water, chemicals and sand to break apart rock deep underground and release trapped gas and oil.
The process is widely debated in the U.S. Critics fear it could pollute water and cause other problems, while the industry says it's safe.
Michigan...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Report offers options for new fracking rules in MichiganAlberta Fracking Quake Fears Prompt Tougher Rules for Shale Area
Posted by Bloomberg: Rebecca Penty on February 20th, 2015
Bloomberg: Shale producers in Alberta’s Duvernay region are being asked to monitor and prevent earthquakes after regulators linked a series of seismic events over the last two months to hydraulic fracturing.
Producers must test for quakes and, if they detect seismic events greater than magnitude 2.0 on the Richter scale, take measures to reduce the impact of their activity, the Alberta Energy Regulator said Thursday. If a tremor is detected above magnitude 4.0, producers must immediately halt drilling and...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Alberta Fracking Quake Fears Prompt Tougher Rules for Shale Area