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Archive for April 1st, 2011
Canada: Strong salmon hearts may hedge against climate change
Posted by CBC: Sharon Oosthoek on April 1st, 2011
CBC: Sockeye salmon with the most arduous spawning journeys have the strongest hearts, an adaptation that may better their odds of surviving projected rises in water temperature, say B.C. researchers.
Unlike human weekend warriors who risk heart attack with infrequent strenuous exercise, it turns out sockeye salmon are well adapted to their once-in-a-lifetime return to their natal rivers.
British Columbia's Fraser River is home to 100 distinct populations of sockeye salmon, with migration journeys...
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India launches mega research initiative on soot
Posted by SciDev.Net: T.V. Padma on April 1st, 2011
SciDev.Net: India has launched an exhaustive study on the source, distribution and impact of soot released into its air -- especially on climate and glaciers -- that will help evidence-based policy-making.
The five-year research agenda will involve about 250 scientists from institutes under the department of space, ministry of earth sciences and ministry of environment and forests at an estimated cost of US$45 million, environment minister Jairam Ramesh said at the launch this week (29 March).
The 'black...
Japan nuclear exclusion long-term
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 1st, 2011
BBC: The evacuation of residents near Japan's quake-hit Fukushima nuclear plant will be long-term, officials say.
Many of the tens of thousands of people evacuated from the area around the plant are living in temporary shelters.
The announcement came as high levels of radiation were detected for the first time in groundwater near one of the facility's six reactors.
Meanwhile, a massive search has begun to find the remains of those missing since the devastating tsunami hit.
Three weeks after...
Climate change to have terrible impact on food security: UN
Posted by New Kerala: None Given on April 1st, 2011
New Kerala: The effects of slow-onset climate change are expected to have "potentially catastrophic" impact on food production in developing countries in future, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned on Thursday, calling for action to mitigate the adverse consequences.
“Currently the world is focused on dealing with shorter-term climate impacts caused mainly by extreme weather events,” said Alexander Müller, the FAO Assistant-Director General for Natural Resources, in a submission...
Nuclear radiation seeps into Japanese groundwater
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 1st, 2011
Associated Press: Radiation exceeding Japanese government safety limits has seeped into groundwater under the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, according to the operator, but experts say it is unlikely to contaminate drinking supplies.
The leak is, however, a concern and an indicator of how far the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) is from stabilising dangerously overheating reactors after cooling systems were knocked out in the 11 March earthquake and tsunami.
Tepco has asked for international help,...
China to tax the biggest polluters
Posted by Sydney Morning Herald: Lenore Taylor on April 1st, 2011
Sydney Morning Herald: CHINA will hit ''outdated'' highly polluting industry with a big electricity price surcharge as part of a push to dramatically slow the growth of the country's greenhouse emissions over the next five years, a senior Chinese official has said.
Xie Zhenhua said yesterday China had singled out ''outdated'' companies in eight energy-intensive industries including iron and steel, cement, aluminium and iron alloy for a special 20 cents per kilowatt hour surcharge on their electricity payments.
Mr...
President calls for more US oil & gas drilling
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on April 1st, 2011
Living on Earth: Nearly a year to the day after announcing a broad expansion in offshore oil drilling, President Obama is again pushing for more domestic production. As Living on Earth's Mitra Taj reports, this time, instead of inviting oil and gas companies to drill in new locations, the president wants them to get the oil and gas from unused leases they have access to now.
Transcript
CURWOOD: With uncertainty in the Middle East and general nervousness in energy markets, the prices of oil and retail gasoline...
Carbon Emissions Plunge
Posted by Forbes: WILLIAM PENTLAND on April 1st, 2011
Forbes: After reclaiming leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives and strengthening its influence in the Senate, the Republican Party has relentlessly challenged the Environmental Protection Agency`s efforts to regulate greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions under the Clean Air Act. Although Republicans are less inclined to molest trees than their Democratic counterparts, they insist that they are not "anti-environment" but "pro-economy."
Unfortunately, for people like myself who believe that there is...