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Archive for August 30th, 2010
‘Dry water’ could make commercial waves
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Edie: UK scientists have unveiled a super powder called 'dry water' which could help tackle global warming by storing carbon dioxide The powdered material, which looks like icing sugar or flour, could help absorb and store carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas. It could also prove a commercial hit in other areas, according to research presented at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston, this month (August). Ben Carter, PhD researcher for ...
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Climate change: The facts of life
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Guardian: Climate change now reveals itself on a weekly basis. Scientists this month identified a colony of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which carries both yellow fever and the dengue virus, in the Netherlands. This African insect had not been seen in Europe for more than 50 years. A few days later US researchers reported that on the evidence of satellite data, global plant productivity – which had increased by 6% in two decades, in response to the extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere – has begun to ...
Is genetically altered fish OK? U.S. to decide
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Reuters: U.S. health officials are set to rule on whether a faster-growing, genetically engineered fish is safe to eat in a decision that could deliver the first altered animal food to consumers' dinner plates. The fish, made by Aqua Bounty Technologies Inc, is manipulated to grow twice as fast as traditional Atlantic salmon, something the company says could boost the nation's fish sector and reduce pressure on the environment. But consumer advocates and food safety experts are worried ...
Disgusting algae’s spread perplexes scientists in California
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Sacramento Bee: On a sunny stretch of the Bear River near Colfax, the cool water carries a nasty surprise for swimmers and fishermen. Look closely at the water flowing by. It carries clots of a feathery substance that looks like shredded toilet paper. Step into the gravelly shallows. Your feet will scream at you to get out of the sewage spill. But this isn't sewage. About 10 miles of the Bear River below Rollins Reservoir is infested with a strange algae called "didymo," short for its ...
Data suggests Iowa really is getting wetter
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
KCRG: Muddy rivers, moldy classrooms, swarming mosquitoes, blighted tomatoes and effulgent quack grass will be mere annoyances in Iowa's new era of serial cloudbursts. Unless Iowans adjust dramatically to more extreme precipitation and flooding, they can expect more swamped crops, failed dams, subÂmerged cities and monolithic public institutions turned into indoor swimÂming pools, said Gov. Chet Culver, who recently dubbed the chronically wet conditions plaguing Iowa as 'the new ...
Cold snap may have killed millions of fish in Bolivia, poisoning rivers
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Mongabay: Although the last few months have been some of the warmest worldwide on record, including 17 countries reaching or breaking all-time highs, temperatures have not been above average everywhere. Cold air from Antarctica has brought chilling temperatures to parts of South America, including Bolivia where millions of fish and thousands of caimans, turtles, and river dolphins according to Nature. The estimated six million dead fish have poisoned some rivers in the region, forcing officials ...
Fears for wildlife in UK waters
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
BBC: The Firth of Clyde in Scotland was once known for its stocks of cod, halibut and herring, but scientists have warned that it faces ecological meltdown. The decline is echoed in many other seas around the UK that have suffered as a result of over-fishing. Richard Bilton has been investigating what is happening to the wildlife in our waters.
Google Earth animation shows Brazilian plans to turn Amazon into ‘series of stagnant reservoirs’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Mongabay: The decision last week by the Brazilian government to move forward on the $17 billion Belo Monte Dam on the Xingu river will set in motion a plan to build more than 100 dams across the Amazon basin, potentially turning tributaries of the world's largest river into 'an endless series of stagnant reservoirs', says a new short film released by Amazon Watch and International Rivers. The film, narrated by Sigourney Weaver, uses a Google Earth 3-D tour to illustrate the potential impact of ...
Pakistan floods: Thousands return to historic city as levees keep water at bay
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
AP: Thousands of people returned to the historic southern city of Thatta in Pakistan today after levees built from clay and stone held back the floodwaters that have ravaged large areas of the country. Thousands who fled as the floods inundated nearby towns complained about a shortage of food and water as they camped in a graveyard on a hill near the city. People ran after vehicles distributing food and water near the graveyard – a chaotic distribution system that left many flood ...
U.N. says 270,000 at risk as floods loom in Ethiopia
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on August 30th, 2010
Reuters: More than a quarter of a million Ethiopians are at risk from severe flooding next month when heavy rain is expected in the country, according to government estimates issued by the United Nations on Monday. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said 19 people were killed in mudslides after flooding last week and nearly 12,000 people had been displaced since then. "Some 270,000 people could be affected by flooding in the (Amhara region)," OCHA said ...