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Archive for November 19th, 2012
As coasts rebuild and US pays, repeatedly, the critics ask why
Posted by New York Times: Justin Gillis and Felicity Barringer on November 19th, 2012
New York Times: Even in the off season, the pastel beach houses lining a skinny strip of sand here are a testament to the good life. They are also a monument to the generosity of the federal government. The western end of this Gulf Coast island has proved to be one of the most hazardous places in the country for waterfront property. Since 1979, nearly a dozen hurricanes and large storms have rolled in and knocked down houses, chewed up sewers and water pipes and hurled sand onto the roads. Yet time and again,...
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Frack Fight—This Is What Democracy Looks Like
Posted by EcoWatch: Ellen Cantarow on November 19th, 2012
EcoWatch: There’s a war going on that you know nothing about between a coalition of great powers and a small insurgent movement. It’s a secret war being waged in the shadows while you go about your everyday life.
In the end, this conflict may matter more than those in Iraq and Afghanistan ever did. And yet it’s taking place far from newspaper front pages and with hardly a notice on the nightly news. Nor is it being fought in Yemen or Pakistan or Somalia, but in small hamlets in upstate New York. There,...
Natural resources can affect value of sovereign bonds – UNEP
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 19th, 2012
Reuters: Countries' natural resources should be considered when assessing sovereign credit risk as their worth can affect the underlying value of sovereign bonds, the United Nations' Environment Programme (UNEP) said on Monday.
Pressures on nations from the overuse and scarcity of water, food, forests and minerals, coupled with the effects of climate change, are currently mostly left out of models used to set sovereign credit ratings.
"Commodity markets, food prices and food and resource security are...
White House march revives Keystone XL protest movement
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 19th, 2012
Reuters: Hundreds of people who say they worry oil that would be carried the Keystone XL pipeline will accelerate climate change marched around the White House on Sunday, hoping to revive a movement credited with slowing down the permit process for the crude oil project.
The protesters chanted "Hey, Obama! We don't want no climate drama" and said they hoped the president's election-night promise to address climate change means he will reject the pipeline, which needs a presidential permit to cross into...
World Bank: Governments must tackle climate change ‘more aggressively’
Posted by BusinessGreen: Will Nichols on November 19th, 2012
BusinessGreen: The World Bank has warned failure to act on climate change has sent the planet "barrelling down a path" to flooded cities, intense storms, heat waves, and food and water shortages.
But it says such a desperate scenario can still be avoided through the smarter use of energy and resources, if only governments are prepared to be more "aggressive" in tackling climate change.
Turn Down the Heat, a report prepared for the bank by the respected Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and...
Protestors call on Obama to block Keystone XL tar sands pipeline
Posted by BusinessGreen: None Given on November 19th, 2012
BusinessGreen: President Obama is facing fresh calls to end the uncertainty over the future of the Keystone Xl pipeline designed to link carbon-intensive tar sands developments to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico coast.
A group of an estimated 3,000 environmental protestors yesterday gathered outside the White House to urge the newly re-elected president to confirm that he will block the controversial plans.
The protest is expected to act as a forerunner to a larger protest on President's Day on 18 February...
Sandy Stirs Up Superfund Site In New Jersey
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 19th, 2012
National Public Radio: As Northeast states take measure of the destruction brought by Hurricane Sandy, there's a new concern. New York and New Jersey have dozens of Superfund sites close to the shore. Some of these toxic zones were flooded by Sandy's storm surge. There are worries in Newark that toxic chemicals may have been swept into some people's home.
Cities can plan now for serious climate change impacts
Posted by Toronto Star: Jason Thistlethwaite on November 19th, 2012
Toronto Star: Toronto’s infrastructure is the city’s first line of defence but also its greatest vulnerability to climate change. This conclusion is the major take-away from recent research done by the Toronto Environment Office on the anticipated impacts of climate change in the City of Toronto.
Extended heat waves will put significant pressure on electricity infrastructure as power demand increases, but also the health and emergency services infrastructure as occurrences of heat-related illnesses increase....