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Archive for February 27th, 2011
Judge suspends Brazil’s monster dam: contractor ‘imposing’ its interests
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 27th, 2011
Mongabay: Judge suspends Brazil's monster dam: contractor 'imposing' its interests
Construction on Brazil's planned mega-dam, the Belo Monte, has been ordered suspended by a federal judge, citing unmet environmental and social conditions. Just last month, the hugely controversial dam, was handed a partial license from Brazil's Environmental Agency (IBAMA). However, the judge, Ronaldo Destêrro, found that the partial license, the first of its kind in Brazil, was granted under pressure from the dam's contractor,...
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Whaling Policy in Choppy Waters
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 27th, 2011
Inter Press Service: After years of stiff resistance, the Japanese government has announced a temporary halt to its controversial research whaling programme in the Antarctic Ocean, a decision that will finally stir the debate to promote sustainable fishing, say conservationists here.
"We welcome the decision to halt whaling this season as a step towards preserving whales which are an endangered species. The message is that whales have to be protected which is all the more valuable since it comes from a nation that...
Drilling Down: Regulation Is Lax for Water From Gas Wells
Posted by New York Times: Ian Urbina on February 27th, 2011
New York Times: The American landscape is dotted with hundreds of thousands of new wells and drilling rigs, as the country scrambles to tap into this century’s gold rush — for natural gas. The gas has always been there, of course, trapped deep underground in countless tiny bubbles, like frozen spills of seltzer water between thin layers of shale rock. But drilling companies have only in recent years developed techniques to unlock the enormous reserves, thought to be enough to supply the country with gas for heating...