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Archive for October 22nd, 2012
As unconventional U.S. oil, gas boom, so do jobs: report
Posted by CNBC: None Given on October 22nd, 2012
CNBC: The U.S. oil and gas rush is cutting into jobless numbers, supporting a total of 1.7 million jobs this year, a number that will swell to almost 3 million by 2020, a leading consultant said in a study released on Tuesday.
The report by forecaster IHS Global Insight is part of a series attempting to quantify the impact that booming production of so-called "unconventional" oil and gas has had on the American economy.
Using new technology to blast fossil fuels trapped in shale rock has...
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Impoverished Niger creates fund to fight desert spread
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 22nd, 2012
Reuters: Niger said on Monday it will launch a $110 million project to counter the impact of rapid expansion of deserts and increasingly unpredictable rains in one of the world's poorest countries. "The program aims to test strategies that will help us integrate climate risk and adapt climate change into our national planning," Abdou Souley, spokesman for Niger's planning and community development ministry, said. The five-year program aims to improve community use of water resources and alter herding and...
Huge Protest Underway Against Canadian Tar Sands Pipelines
Posted by EcoWatch: Defend Our Coast on October 22nd, 2012
EcoWatch: With the sound of drums and voices raised in song, hundreds of First Nations have arrived at the legislature to defend our coast and their traditional lands. Their walk forms a human chain, and the crowd separates to allow them to kick off the protest. First nations have led this uprising since the start, and their rights and title are the main legal weapon the people have to push back on projects.
More than 1,500 people from across Canada and all walks of life have gathered in front of the B.C....
Appeals court: Kinder Morgan’s Ruby Pipeline should get another look
Posted by Reuters: Dan Levine on October 22nd, 2012
Reuters: A U.S. appeals court on Monday ruled that federal wildlife authorities improperly certified the Ruby Pipeline Project without taking into account its impact on groundwater wells and certain fish species along the route.
The natural gas pipeline, which runs over 678 miles from Wyoming to Oregon, has already been completed. The pipeline is owned and operated by Kinder Morgan Inc.
Even though the pipeline is in service, it is still possible to mitigate its impact on the fish and critical habitats,...
Blessing or Curse? Understanding the Risks of Fracking Poland
Posted by EcoWatch: Food and Water Watch Europe on October 22nd, 2012
EcoWatch: Today, a wide range of Polish and international non-governmental organizations and academics gathered in Warsaw, Poland, to critically assess the ambition of the Polish government to develop its potential shale gas resources on a large scale.
After a long string of corporate conferences on the topic, the Boell Foundation in Warsaw and Food & Water Europe offered a platform to concerned citizens and groups to air the legitimate concerns about the environmental and economic impacts of fracking....
Biodiversity meeting calls for more science-based information
Posted by SciDevNet: TV Padma on October 22nd, 2012
SciDevNet: An international meeting on biodiversity has called for more science-based information, the closure of knowledge gaps, and increased precaution, in the emerging fields of synthetic biology and geoengineering (climate engineering).
Two decisions related to these areas, among a set of 34 decisions adopted at the 11th Conference of Parties (COP 11) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), which took place in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad this month (8--19 October).
The meeting...
Nobody Mentions Climate Change. But Somebody Did Something About It.
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 22nd, 2012
Time: I constantly whine about the Beltway media, and I believe global warming is the most important issue facing humanity. So I was infuriated but not surprised to hear Candy Crowley explain after the last debate that she considered a question for “you climate change people,” but ditched it because “we knew the economy was still the main thing.” Actually, the technical term for people affected by climate change is “people.” It’s already an economic issue--drought is overwhelming the middle of the country--and,...
Wealthy nations, excluding U.S., pledge to double funds for biodiversity
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 22nd, 2012
Mongabay: Although negotiations came down to the wire, nations finally brokered a new deal at the 11th meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Hyderabad, India; at its heart is a pledge to double resources from wealthier countries to the developing world by 2015 to conserve embattled species and ecosystems. While no numbers were put on the table, observers say a doubling of current resources would mean around $10-12 billion a year. However, this amount is still far short of what scientists...
ALERT! Stop CNN the Coal News Network Fossil Fuel Greenwash, Abetting Climate Silence
Posted by Water Conservation Blog on October 22nd, 2012
TAKE ACTION HERE NOW!
CNN has jumped the shark and is no longer a reliable, independent news source, as it has become increasingly indebted to fossil fuel advertising, and greenwashes abrupt climate change. CNN coal funding in particular has resulted in infrequent and biased daily news coverage of ecological issues, and has abetted US Presidential candidates' silence on climate change. As currently funded, if CNN told the truth on abrupt climate change, global ecosystem collapse, and the role of fossil fuels in these crises; it is doubtful whether CNN would even exist after the coal and other fossil fuel industries pulled their advertising. CNN must indicate how they will change their business model to allow improved, propaganda free, and increased coverage of the huge amount of daily news regarding our fossil fuel addiction; North America's tar sands, coal and fracking ecocide; and the many looming global ecological emergencies.
Is Ohio’s secret energy boom going bust?
Posted by Reuters: Edward McAllister and Selam Gebrekidan on October 22nd, 2012
Reuters: Dozens of wells drilled this year across rural Ohio are quietly pumping out the answer to the U.S. energy industry's most loaded question: Is the Utica shale formation, touted as a potentially $500 billion frontier, a boom or a bust?
Yet the answer is likely to remain concealed for some time.
More than a year after Chesapeake Energy Corp Chief Executive and top Ohio driller Aubrey McClendon declared the Utica to be "the biggest thing to hit Ohio since the plow," investors, landowners and even...