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Archive for December 19th, 2010
US water has large amounts of likely carcinogen: study
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 19th, 2010
Agence France-Presse: A US environmental group has found that drinking water in 35 American cities contains hexavalent chromium, a probable carcinogen, The Washington Post reported Sunday.
The study by the Environmental Working Group -- the first nationwide analysis measuring the presence of the chemical in US water systems -- is to be made public on Monday, the daily reported.
The group found hexavalent chromium in the tap water of 31 out of 35 cities sampled. Of those, 25 had levels that exceeded the goal proposed...
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Facing the hard local realities of a warming world
Posted by Age: Michael Bachelard on December 19th, 2010
Age: One of the lucky ones - Nat White on his thriving Mornington Peninsula vineyard. Photo: Simon O'Dwyer
CLIMATE change has done Nat White a big favour. It has provided his boutique Mornington Peninsula vineyard with the perfect conditions for growing pinot noir and chardonnay.
Warmer temperatures in the hills that run down the spine of the Mornington Peninsula mean Mr White is now virtually assured that his grapes will ripen every year, even though he is harvesting them a full month earlier than...
Climate-smart agriculture to eradicate world hunger: FAO
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 19th, 2010
Press Trust of India: With climate change, ozone depletion and droughts in Australia and California's Central Valley, some farmers are coating wallnuts with sunscreen to alleviate sun damage. File photo
Adopting "climate-smart" agricultural practises would be key to eradicate hunger from the world, a UN body has said.
Climate smart agricultural practises could address the twin problems of food security and climate change, FAO (Food and Agricultural Organisation) Director-General Jacques Diouf said.
"By climate...
Forest fragment climate not driven by edge-effect
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 19th, 2010
Mongabay: Examining ten forest fragments in Brazil's Atlantic Forest, researchers have undercut the theory that the climate of forest fragment' is driven by the edge-effect. Writing in mongabay.com's open source journal Tropical Conservation Science, researchers found that edge-effect was too simple to explain the microclimate of isolated forest fragments from 3 to 3,500 hectares large, each at least 80-years-old.
After a forest is fragmented heat and moisture are exchanged occur between the forest and...
Using water bodies to track Asian elephants
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on December 19th, 2010
Mongabay: One would think that it would be easy to track Asia's largest land animal, but in fact Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) are generally shy, mostly nocturnal, and stick to the forest whenever possible. Yet, it's vital for conservationists to track the herd, if they are to keep them safe from poaching and protect both elephants and locals from potential conflict. However, a new study in mongabay.com's open access journal Tropical Conservation Science has developed a unique strategy to track elephant...
The IoS Christmas Appeal: Solar power frees thousands from risks of search for water
Posted by Independent: Raymond Whitaker on December 19th, 2010
Independent: Imagine that, instead of turning a tap, you had to walk more than 10 miles every time you wanted water. And that you then had to descend into a crumbling pit dug in a dry riverbed, to scoop out dirty water with your bare hands, knowing that it could make you and your family sick.
In the drought-stricken areas of Africa where the charity Practical Action works, this is the fate of thousands of village women. They are also at risk of rape, attack by wild animals -- or, in Sudan's Darfur region,...