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Archive for March, 2010
Climate change problems hit Native Americans close to home
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2010
Billings Gazette: The history of American Indians is varied and each tribe has its own customs, but one belief that binds us all is our deep respect for the Earth and the gifts it has given us. This belief has inspired the Salish and Kootenai people's effort to protect our air, water and other natural resources for future generations. We now recognize that one environmental threat poses a challenge like no other: global climate change. It was with these thoughts in mind that I journeyed to Copenhagen, ...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on Climate change problems hit Native Americans close to homeUnited States: Too early to judge effectiveness of fish-saving plans, scientists say
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2010
McClatchy Newspapers: Neutral scientists said Friday that it's too soon to judge the effectiveness of ambitious plans to save fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. While calling the controversial water diversions "scientifically justified," National Research Council scientists cautioned that they cannot yet be definitively evaluated. The split verdict left farmers and environmentalists alike something to seize upon in a much-anticipated report. "There is great uncertainty," acknowledged Samuel ...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United States: Too early to judge effectiveness of fish-saving plans, scientists sayCanada: Shell defends its operations in oil sands
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2010
Financial Post: Royal Dutch Shell PLC, under pressure from a small group of shareholders, has responded to critics' concerns with a report detailing its activity in Alberta's oil sands. Royal Dutch Shell PLC, under pressure from a small group of shareholders, has responded to critics' concerns with a report detailing its activity in Alberta's oil sands. Shell said it published the 17-page report because it shares many of the same environmental and economic worries expressed by the shareholders ...
United States: Renewed Support for an Everglades Land Deal, but Cost Is Still in Question
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2010
New York Times: Gov. Charlie Crist reaffirmed his commitment this week to the $536 million purchase of 73,000 acres of land from United States Sugar, declaring that it would heal both the Everglades and the coastal estuaries that are vital to Florida's tourist economy. But with its original plan to borrow money for the deal being questioned by internal auditors, the state water district responsible for the acquisition has begun to explore alternatives that could require severe cuts to restoration ...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United States: Renewed Support for an Everglades Land Deal, but Cost Is Still in QuestionChina says drought now affecting 50 million people
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 19th, 2010
Reuters: A severe drought across a large swathe of southwest China is now affecting more than 50 million people, and forecasters see no signs of it abating in the short term, state media said on Friday. The drought began last autumn, and is the result not only of less rainfall but also unseasonably high temperatures, the official Xinhua news agency said, citing a central government meeting on the situation. It is affecting the provinces and regions of Guangxi, Sichuan, Guizhou and ...
Bad Water More Deadly Than War
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 19th, 2010
Inter Press Service: Bad water kills more people than wars or earthquakes, declares Anders Berntell, executive director of the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI). The devastating earthquake in Haiti last January claimed the lives of more than 200,000 people, making it one of the biggest single natural disasters this year. But in contrast, some 3.6 million people - including 1.5 million children - are estimated to die each year from water-related diseases, including diarrhoea, typhoid, ...
Scientists: new study does not disprove climate change threat to Amazon
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 19th, 2010
Mongabay.com: Recently, Boston University issued a press release on a scientific study regarding the Amazon's resilience to drought. The press release claimed that the study had debunked the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) theory that climate change could turn approximately 40 percent of the Amazon into savannah due to declining rainfall. The story was picked up both by mass medai, environmental news sites (including mongabay.com), and climate deniers' blogs. However, nineteen of the ...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Scientists: new study does not disprove climate change threat to AmazonUnited States: Science justifies California water limits
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 19th, 2010
Reuters: Federal limits on water that can be pumped out of a major river delta for California farmers are scientifically justified, a much-anticipated report said on Friday, a finding hailed by environmentalists in the state's epic water wars. But the National Academy of Sciences stopped short of handing a decisive victory to environmental interests over agricultural interests. The academy said further study was required and that threats to Chinook salmon, delta smelt and other endangered fish ...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on United States: Science justifies California water limitsPrescribed Burns in U.S. West Would Cut Carbon Footprint, Study Says
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 18th, 2010
Yale Environment 360: The projected effects of prescribed burns in U.S. West used to destroy underbrush and prevent wildfires, would protect the larger trees that store carbon dioxide and help offset greenhouse gas emissions. Using satellite imagery and models that calculate carbon emissions related to wildfires from 2001 to 2008, researchers predicted that prescribed burns could reduce such emissions by 18 to 25 percent -- and as much as 60 percent in some areas. The burns would cut carbon emissions by 14 ...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Prescribed Burns in U.S. West Would Cut Carbon Footprint, Study SaysDamage to peat bogs driving climate change
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 18th, 2010
Telegraph: Peatlands in beauty spots like Exmoor and the Peak District store carbon dioxide in ancient deposits of rotted vegetation. However a report by Natural England found farming practices such as ploughing the earth and burning heather means three quarters of the deep peat area in England is now damaged. This is causing three million tonnes of carbon dioxide stored in the soil to be released every year, the equivalent to the average emissions of 350,000 households. Helen ...