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Archive for July, 2012
Satellites show ice melt across most of Greenland
Posted by MSNBC: Miguel Llanos on July 24th, 2012
MSNBC: Three satellites found that 97 percent of Greenland -- the land mass second only to Antarctica for its volume of ice -- underwent a thaw never before seen in 33 years of satellite tracking, NASA reported Tuesday.
Satellite experts at first didn't trust their readings, especially since they showed an incredible acceleration. Over four days, Greenland's ice sheet -- which covers 683,000 square miles -- went from 40 percent in thaw to nearly entirely in thaw.
"This was so extraordinary that at...
Crops get much-needed drink, more rains needed soon
Posted by Reuters: Sam Nelson and Christine Stebbins on July 24th, 2012
Reuters: Rainfall across the northern U.S. Midwest over the next 10 days will provide some relief for the drought-stricken corn and soybean crops, but more rain is needed to stem further crop losses, agricultural meteorologists said on Tuesday.
Rains from central Minnesota eastward to the northern regions of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio since late Monday through midday Tuesday averaged 0.75 inch to 1.25 inch, said Joel Widenor, an agricultural forecaster with Commodity Weather Group. Heavier amounts of up...
Climate change and the American west
Posted by TomDispatch: William deBuys on July 24th, 2012
TomDispatch: Dire fire conditions, like the inferno of heat, turbulence, and fuel that recently turned 346 homes in Colorado Springs to ash, are now common in the West. A lethal combination of drought, insect plagues, windstorms, and legions of dead, dying, or stressed-out trees constitute what some pundits are calling wildfire’s “perfect storm.”
They are only half right.
This summer`s conditions may indeed be perfect for fire in the Southwest and West, but if you think of it as a “storm,” perfect or otherwise...
Great Lakes Water Temperatures At Record Levels
Posted by Climate Central: Andrew Freedman on July 24th, 2012
Climate Central: Looking to escape to the beach this summer? Well, before you book that trip to Cape Cod or the Outer Banks of North Carolina, you might want to consider an unorthodox option -- the shores of Lake Superior. The lake, which is the northernmost, coldest, and deepest of the five Great Lakes, is the warmest it has been at this time of year in at least a century, thanks to the mild winter, warm spring, and hot, dry summer.
A comparison between Lake Superior's average water temperature this year so far...
Africa’s groundwater must be harnessed for communities
Posted by AlertNet: John Thomas, Cristina Rumbaitis Del Rio, Robert Marten on July 24th, 2012
AlertNet: Groundwater rarely earns a place among news headlines.
But a recent study by Alan MacDonald of the British Geological Survey captured global imagination by the sheer magnitude of its conclusions: it estimates Africa's groundwater storage capacity at 660,000 km3, or 100 times the continent's annual renewable freshwater resources, and 20 times the freshwater stored in African lakes.
This new information has wide implications: currently more than 300 million in Africa lack access to safe drinking...
Thirsty South Asia’s river rifts threaten water wars
Posted by Reuters: Nita Bhalla on July 24th, 2012
Reuters: Pakistan Line of Control, July 23 (AlertNet) - As the silver waters of the Kishanganga rush through this north Kashmir valley, Indian laborers are hard at work on a hydropower project that will dam the river just before it flows across one of the world's most heavily militarized borders into Pakistan.
The hum of excavators echoes through the pine-covered valley, clearing masses of soil and boulders, while army trucks crawl through the steep Himalayan mountain passes.
The 330-MW dam is a symbol...
Obama declares disaster in West Virginia after storms
Posted by Charleston Gazette: Paul J. Nyden on July 24th, 2012
Charleston Gazette: President Obama issued a "major disaster declaration" for West Virginia late Monday afternoon. The declaration will generate federal funds to help local communities recover from the damages caused by "severe storms and straight-line winds" between June 29 and July 1. The counties designated for federal financial help include 45 of the state's 55 counties: Barbour, Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Grant, Greenbrier, Hardy, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Kanawha,...
US corn belt crisis threatens to drive up global inflation
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 24th, 2012
Guardian: From Williamsport, Ohio, a first-hand account of the worst drought to grip the corn belt of America since 1956: Scott Metzger told Reuters on Friday that it had rained for about 45 minutes on his farm that day, producing 1.3 inches of rain. Respite, but not much. Since 13 May the farm has only had 2.1 inches of rain. While some parts of the UK have been recording that in a single day, more than 70% of the midwestern corn belt – breadbasket of the world – is gripped by a catastrophic drought. Little...
Posted in Water Conservation 
Comments Off on US corn belt crisis threatens to drive up global inflationJamaica minister: Sustainable land management key to stemming degradation
Posted by Jamaica Observer: None Given on July 24th, 2012
Jamaica Observer: MINISTER of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change Robert Pickersgill has described sustainable land management as an integral component of the Government's efforts to reduce land degradation.
Speaking at a sustainable land management (SLM) stakeholders' workshop at the Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel, Kingston, on Friday, Minister Pickersgill said some of the benefits to be derived nationally include: enhanced agricultural productivity; improved rural development strategies; protection of watersheds;...
Posted in Water Conservation Comments Off on Jamaica minister: Sustainable land management key to stemming degradationUnited States: President issues a disaster declaration
Posted by Register Herald: None Given on July 24th, 2012
Register Herald: President Barack Obama issued a major disaster declaration Monday that will make federal aid available to West Virginia to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms and straight-line winds during the period of June 29 to July 1.
Federal funding through FEMA is available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe...