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Archive for June 5th, 2013
Officials Urge Evacuations in German Floods
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 5th, 2013
New York Times: Officials in eastern Germany’s river cities and towns on Wednesday urged citizens in vulnerable areas to evacuate their homes as the Elbe River and its tributaries swelled ever higher, amid some of the worst flooding that some regions have seen in centuries. More than 600 residents of Dresden, where the floodwaters were expected to peak later in the day, were brought to safety, city officials said. Electricity and water services to the city’s affected center were cut off. Farther north in Bitterfeld,...
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Hurricane Sandy and Climate Change Drive Up the Pollen Count
Posted by Daily Beast: None Given on June 5th, 2013
Daily Beast: FIRST THE heat. Then the storms. Now the ... pollen? Massive quantities of pollen are floating through the air, causing people to sniff, sneeze, and itch. And it turns out a changing climate could be to blame.
In the Northeast, tree pollen is at the highest level in the 25 years that Leonard Bielory, an allergy and immunology expert at Rutgers University’s Center for Environmental Prediction, has been tracking it. He says it’s a continuation of a trend he’s been seeing for years, and he expects...
Australia has huge deposits of shale gas – but it won’t come cheap
Posted by Guardian: Oliver Milman on June 5th, 2013
Guardian: Australia could be sitting on more than 1,000tn cubic feet of untapped shale gas, but effective environmental regulations and a fall in costs are needed before this resource can be fully exploited, according to a new report.
The Australian Council of Learned Academies study found that while Australia had huge deposits of gas, it would "not be cheap gas in most circumstances' and would have a slightly higher rate of carbon emissions than standard gas, albeit significantly less than coal-fired power....
Another contaminated water leak at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 5th, 2013
Reuters: The operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant said it had found another leak of contaminated water on Wednesday, piling pressure on the utility to curb the problem as it seeks permission to release water to the sea.
The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power plant was hit by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami more than two years ago, triggering nuclear reactor meltdowns and explosions.
Tokyo Electric Power, or Tepco, said a worker patrolling the area spotted the leak just after noon, with...
Boulder Approves One-Year Fracking Moratorium
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 5th, 2013
Associated Press: Boulder City Council members have unanimously approved a one-year fracking moratorium, blocking oil and gas drilling permits in the city and on Boulder-owned open space properties. Several council members said Tuesday they are also considering a ballot measure in November to approve a longer-term ban. According to the Boulder Daily Camera ( http://tinyurl.com/k7l739t), city councilwoman KC Becker says voters need to send the message to their state legislators and governor about their opposition...
BP’s Oil Spill Deal Sours as Claims Add Billions to Cost
Posted by Bloomberg: Margaret Cronin Fisk, Brian Swint and Laurel Calkins on June 5th, 2013
Bloomberg: BP Plc’s $8 billion settlement with victims of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico spill may have hurt Europe’s second-largest oil company more than it helped.
The company is relying on a U.S. appeals court to rein in awards by the settlement’s claims administrator for what it considers to be unreasonable demands, such as a $21 million payout to a rice mill 40 miles from the coast whose revenue rose the year of the spill.
BP has protested in court filings that administrator Patrick Juneau’s interpretation...
Oil and Gas Lobby Says State Department Considering Keystone Hearing
Posted by The Hill: Zack Colman on June 5th, 2013
The Hill: The State Department is looking to hold a public hearing in Washington, D.C., on the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline this summer, the American Petroleum Institute (API) said Tuesday.
The department recently held a Keystone hearing in Nebraska, which covered its draft environmental review of the project. Cindy Schild, the API’s downstream director for refining and oil sands, said she had thought it was the last and said more public hearings would delay a final decision.
“They’ve held already...