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Archive for July 16th, 2012
Drought of 2012 worst since 1956: NOAA
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 16th, 2012
Reuters: The drought scorching the Midwest is spanning 55 percent of the contiguous United States and is the worst since 1956, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a report posted on its website on Monday. The agency said based on the Palmer Drought Index, the 55 percent coverage was the largest since December 1956 when 58 percent of the contiguous United States was in moderate to extreme drought.
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Why extreme heat follows dry spells
Posted by OurAmazingPlanet: Douglas Main on July 16th, 2012
OurAmazingPlanet: If it's been dry, it's more likely to get extremely hot, a new study suggests.
Around the world, long dry spells significantly increase the likelihood that there will be an above-average number of extremely hot summer days, according to a study published in the July 16 issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The result could help predict extreme heat more than a month into the future, said study author Sonia Seneviratne, a researcher at ETH Zurich in Switzerland....
US faces worst drought since 1956
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 16th, 2012
BBC: The US is currently suffering its widest drought since 1956, according to data released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
On Monday, NOAA reported that by the end of June 55% of the continental US was in a moderate to extreme drought.
Crops including corn and soybeans have been hit by the dry conditions, and several states have seen wildfires.
High temperatures across much of the country in June contributed to the spread of the drought.
As much as 80% of the...
Alaskan Salmon Evolve Along With the Climate
Posted by New York Times: Nicholas Bakalar on July 16th, 2012
New York Times: Alaskan salmon are apparently evolving to adapt to climate change. Researchers have suspected that temperature-driven changes in migration and reproduction behaviors — which have happened in many species — may be evidence of natural selection at work. Now there is genetic evidence to confirm the hypothesis. For their study, published online last week in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, the scientists studied Alaska pink salmon in a small stream near Juneau where there have been complete daily...
Nebraska farms told to halt irrigation as drought drains rivers
Posted by Reuters: Karl Plume on July 16th, 2012
Reuters: More than 1,100 farmers in Nebraska have been ordered by the state's Department of Natural Resources to halt irrigation of their crops because the rivers from which they draw water have dropped due to a worsening drought.
The orders come as the central United States is enduring the worst drought in a quarter century, which has parched corn and soybean crops and sent prices of both commodities to near-record highs.
As of Friday, orders had been sent to a total of 1,106 farmers in the country's...
Fire at Keystone’s pipe maker has no impact on pipeline
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 16th, 2012
Reuters: Pipeline producer Welspun Corp Ltd said on Monday that a weekend fire at its Arkansas plant would not affect shipment of pipe to construct the controversial Keystone oil pipeline.
"The fire will have no impact on Keystone XL pipe deliveries," said Dave Delie, president of Welspun's Little Rock operations.
"The pipe is all produced and ready to be shipped. It will ship when requested by TransCanada."
TransCanada's Keystone XL line was originally planned to carry 700,000 barrels per day of...
Bangladesh: Experts seek ways to avert water crisis in Dhaka
Posted by AlertNet: Syful Islam on July 16th, 2012
AlertNet: Bangladesh's water experts are forecasting a water crisis in the country's capital, due to its rapidly rising population and overdependence on underground water which is being depleted at an alarming rate.
According to the World Bank, Dhaka is fast becoming one of the world's largest cities, with its population of nearly 14 million expected to rise to 22-25 million by 2020.
"Every day new buildings are rising up and people from the countryside are pouring (in) here, but no new water sources...
Japan: Over 100,000 Protest Nuclear Restart in Tokyo
Posted by Common Dreams: None Given on July 16th, 2012
Common Dreams: Over 100,000 protesters took to the streets in central Tokyo on Monday to protest the country's return to nuclear power. The demonstration was one of the largest of its kind since Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced that the country would restart its nuclear reactors last month.
Protest organizers estimated the crowd at 170,000 people. Demonstrators marched through the streets in Tokyo's record setting heat chanting: "Don't resume nuclear power operation. Prime Minister (Yoshihiko) Noda should...
Sauna-like heat, low rain help keep Chesapeake Bay clean
Posted by Washington Post: Darryl Fears on July 16th, 2012
Washington Post: The weirdly mild winter, the dry and toasty spring, and the hottest summer heat wave on record apparently had at least one upside: a cleaner Chesapeake Bay. Last year around this time, the bay was smothered by one of its largest dead zones — low-oxygen water caused by pollution where fish and plants cannot survive. This year, with so little rain to move pollution from farms and city streets into waterways, the zone “absolutely is much smaller,” said Bruce Michael, director of the resource assessment...
Drought worsens for farmers and ranchers
Posted by New York Times: JENNIFER PRESTON on July 16th, 2012
New York Times: Scattered rain fell in parts of the Midwest on Friday, but it was not enough to provide relief to farmers struggling to salvage crops scorched by worsening drought conditions and ranchers worried about feeding livestock.
More than 1,000 counties in 26 states across the country were named natural-disaster areas on Thursday in a statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It was the single largest designation in the program’s history and the worst drought since 1988, government officials...