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Archive for March 20th, 2013
Australia: Flood plans ignore climate change: expert
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2013
AAP: PLANNING laws and flood mitigation strategies in Australia don't take into account the future impacts of climate change, leaving communities at risk from greater and more frequent extreme weather, experts warn.
During an online forum on Wednesday, Australian National University's Karen Hussey presented the findings from a review of four major flood reports from Queensland and Victoria.
Her team analysed how effective flood mitigation strategies were and compared them to initiatives in China,...
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New center to set stringent standards for fracking in East
Posted by Chicago Tribune: Neela Banerjee on March 20th, 2013
Chicago Tribune: A coalition of energy companies, environmentalists and Pennsylvania-based philanthropies announced Wednesday the creation of a center that would provide more stringent standards for fracking and natural gas development in the Eastern United States. The Marcellus Shale formation, which extends from central New York to eastern Kentucky, is the site of a vast gas boom, most of it centered in Pennsylvania. But the production method of fracking, high-volume hydraulic fracturing that has tapped the gas...
Fracking companies, environmentalists and philanthropies join forces
Posted by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Don Hopey on March 20th, 2013
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: A first-of-its-kind effort to set cleaner shale gas development standards and reduce the industry's air and water impacts was launched today by a consortium of gas drilling companies, environmental groups and philanthropic foundations in Pittsburgh.
The new Center for Sustainable Shale Development is a collaborative attempt to reduce the environmental risks and improve the performance of companies working in all phases of Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale development by setting higher performance...
Fish use adoption strategy to ensure survival of young
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2013
Mongabay: Fish in southern Africa's Lake Tanganyika engage in adoption as a risk mitigation strategy for keeping some of their offspring from being eaten, finds a new study published in the journal Behavioral Ecology.
The research involves a group of fish known as cichlids, which practice advanced forms of parental care relative to other fish species. Franziska Schaedelin and colleagues at the Konrad Lorenz Institute of the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria found that parent fish of Neolamprologus...
Keystone XL pipeline debate rattles Massachusetts Senate race
Posted by Reuters: Scott Malone and Timothy Gardner on March 20th, 2013
Reuters: A former hedge fund manager turned environmental activist who opposes the Keystone XL pipeline has waded into the Massachusetts Senate race, threatening to undermine a pledge by the two Democratic candidates to reject outside money.
California billionaire Tom Steyer has called on Democratic Representative Stephen Lynch to abandon his support for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, which would transport crude from Canada's oil sands to refineries in Texas.
The Obama administration is expected...
United Kingdom: Owen Paterson calls for email block after bee ‘cyberattack’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2013
Telegraph: The "bee-mails' were sent in protest at the UK Government's failure to back a ban on pesticides environmentalists believe are killing bees.
But Mr Paterson, the MP for North Shropshire, said the "cyber-attack' was a waste of his time that stopped him from carrying out important national and constituency work.
"Everyone has a right to express their view and write to me but this is a cyber-attack on the constituency office,' he said.
"The danger is that someone may have a real problem, they...
New EU farm subsidy plan criticised by green groups
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on March 20th, 2013
BBC: Farmers will be paid twice by taxpayers for the same work if Europe's farm ministers get their way over subsidies.
Ministers have backed double payments for environmental activities - even though the EU Commission and MEPs warn this would be wasteful and illegal.
They also watered down the Commission's plan to oblige farmers to deliver some public benefit for their 58bn-euro (£50bn; $75bn) annual subsidies.
The Irish EU presidency praised the outcome. But green groups are outraged.
The...
New Yorkers opposed to fracking: poll
Posted by New York Post: Rik Kriss on March 20th, 2013
New York Post: New Yorkers are turning against fracking, according to a new poll.
Quinnipiac University said its survey shows "for the first time ever' opposition to the controversial natural gas drilling technique "by a clear margin,' 46-39 percent.
That's a turnaround from 47-42 percent support in August 2011 as Gov. Cuomo continues to delay a decision on whether to allow high-volume horizontal drilling.
The poll shows upstate voters slightly in favor of drilling in Marcellus Shale (44-42) and the suburbs...
Both sides agree on tough new fracking standards
Posted by Associated Press: Kevin Begos on March 20th, 2013
Associated Press: Some of the nation's biggest oil and gas companies have made peace with environmentalists, agreeing to a voluntary set of tough new standards for fracking in the Northeast that could lead to a major expansion of drilling.
The program announced Wednesday will work a lot like Underwriters Laboratories, which puts its familiar UL seal of approval on electrical appliances that meet its standards.
In this case, drilling and pipeline companies will be encouraged to submit to an independent review...
Chevron, Green Groups Agree Set Standards for Shale Gas
Posted by Bloomberg: Mark Drajem on March 20th, 2013
Bloomberg: Chevron Corp. (CVX) joined natural gas producers and environmental groups to form an independent center that will set standards for drilling by hydraulic fracturing in the U.S. Appalachian region.
Gas output in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia is booming as drillers unlock shale deposits using the process, also called fracking, that shoots water, sand and chemicals underground to crack rock and free trapped gas. The process has spurred complaints from landowners and environmental groups about...