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Archive for November 27th, 2012
China planning ‘huge fracking industry’
Posted by Mother Jones: Jaeah Lee on November 27th, 2012
Mother Jones: China is ratcheting up its fracking ambitions with virtually no regard for groundwater protection or other environmental safety measures, according to a new investigation by the independent publication Caixin. The report points to an 24 October white paper on energy development released by China's top cabinet which "calls for ramping up the industry and pumping 6.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas from underground shale formations by 2015."
"The model for China's anticipated success is the...
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Christmas shoppers told to expect potato and sprouts shortages
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 27th, 2012
Guardian: Consumers have been warned to expect shortages of British winter vegetables in the run-up to Christmas, as UK farmers count the cost of devastating floods and poor weather on their crops.
Supermarkets have said they might be forced to import some of the staple ingredients in the traditional Christmas dinner – notably potatoes and sprouts – while homegrown carrots will be smaller because of difficult growing conditions. Supplies of cauliflower are also unpredictable, and retailers are likely to...
Climate change threatens French truffle: scientists
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 27th, 2012
Agence France-Presse: Scientists said on Tuesday they had proof that climate change was hitting the Perigord black truffle, a delight of gourmets around the world.
Trufflers have long suspected that global warming is affecting Tuber melanosporum -- dubbed "the black diamond" on account of its colour and extraordinary price -- in its native habitat in southwestern France, Spain and Italy.
A century ago, French trufflers notched up a harvest that, according to legend, reached 1,000 tonnes in a year.
In the 1960s,...
Climate change threat looms over New England ski industry
Posted by Boston Globe: Katie Johnston on November 27th, 2012
Boston Globe: Last winter, Mother Nature wreaked havoc on the ski industry. With snowfall totals down by about half and March temperatures soaring into the 80s, skier visits were off by more than 20 percent in the Northeast -- the worst season in two decades.
The dismal results had ski areas worried that people would be skittish about hitting the slopes this season, which kicked off this month at many resorts. Some operators are using extra incentives and attractions to combat the dreaded "backyard effect'...
Report says permafrost carbon emissions must be included in climate models, planning
Posted by Summit Voice: None Given on November 27th, 2012
Summit Voice: With temperatures on polar regions rising twice as fast as the global average, there`s a good chance that between 30 to 85 percent of near-surface permafrost could melt, releasing billions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere by the end of the century.
But most existing climate models don`t accurately account for the impact of permafrost carbon dioxide and methane emissions, according to a new report from the United Nations Environment Program. The report recommends that the IPCC compile a special...
The Glacier National Park that may soon have to change its name because of global warming
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 27th, 2012
Daily Mail: These photographs capture the retreat of glaciers in one of America's most beautiful national parks. After 100 years of climate change, only 25 out of the 150 glaciers recorded at the Glacier National Park in Montana still exist. As these pictures show, places where the ice was once many metres thick have been replaced with sediment, pastures and lakes. Even further down: A man stands at Grinnell glacier overlook, observing the large glacier that fills the basin at Lewis mountain range in the...
Beware of permafrost peril, climate talks told
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on November 27th, 2012
Agence France-Presse: Melting permafrost is emerging as a new factor in climate change, allowing long-frozen carbon to be released into the air and accelerating global warming, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said on Tuesday (UNEP).
In a report issued as the annual round of UN climate talks entered their second day, UNEP said scientists had already pronounced thawing permafrost to be a worry but the issue remained off politicians' radar.
"Its potential impact on the climate, ecosystems and infrastructure has...
Study predicts fewer icebergs from Alaska glacier
Posted by Associated Press: Dan Joling on November 27th, 2012
Associated Press: The rate of icebergs breaking off from Alaska's Columbia Glacier will significantly slow within eight years, according to a new study.
Scientists from the University of Colorado at Boulder used a computer model that indicated the tidewater glacier by 2020 will retreat to a new, stable position in shallower water. The glacier, the study said, will achieve "dynamic equilibrium," where the rate of ice accumulation equals the rate of ice ablation, or ice removal.
That should slow the dramatic discharge...
Siberia’s pesticide dumps may prove a bigger hazard than nuclear waste
Posted by Guardian: Marie Jégo on November 27th, 2012
Guardian: At Tegul'det (population 3,000), a village in the south-east corner of Tomsk oblast, it takes a lot to upset the residents, busy hunting, fishing and preening their vegetable patches, except during the six long winter months, when their only distraction is cutting holes in the ice on the river and fishing.
Nothing really bothers Alexei, a retired FSB (former KGB secret police) major. Not even the mound of earth that looms just next to his home. Yet 20 tonnes of DDT are buried there, between the...
Fracking Debate Friday Night—Does Hydrofracking Do More Harm Than Good?
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on November 27th, 2012
EcoWatch: On Nov. 30 from 7 -- 8:30 p.m., the Campbell Public Affairs Institute will host a debate on hydrofracking in the Maxwell Auditorium on the Syracuse University campus.
The proposition to be argued is: “This Assembly Believes Hydrofracking Does More Harm Than Good.”
Given the intense attention that this issue has generated, it needs little introduction, and indeed, it has been debated before. But in sponsoring this debate, the Campbell Institute is hoping to add some additional light to the considerable...