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Archive for June, 2013
Can the US frack its way to freedom?
Posted by MSN: None Given on June 28th, 2013
MSN: Using new technology to tap huge underground deposits holds the promise of American energy independence -- along with worries of environmental harm and health threats. The stakes couldn't be higher.
Fracking. The mere utterance of the word thrills investors in energy companies making big oil and gas finds in shale deposits in Texas, the Appalachians and North Dakota.
It makes environmentalists shudder because it involves so many unknowns.
But make no mistake: Fracking is a big deal. It has...
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Why all the fuss about GM food? Other innovations are available
Posted by Guardian: Andy Stirling on June 28th, 2013
Guardian: Amid the apocalyptic scare-stories, animated name-calling and heavy-handed orchestration surrounding last week's GM debate, the real issues seem ever more deeply buried. Why all this sudden high-profile fuss about GM?
In particular, why are so many British politicians getting so simultaneously publicly excited about such a specific technology? GM is, after all, only one among many different options for innovation towards more sustainable world agriculture. There are plenty of other ways – technological...
EU plans to make it mandatory for ship owners to measure carbon emissions
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 28th, 2013
Reuters: Owners of large ships using EU ports will have to measure and report annual carbon emissions from January 2018 under new European commission proposals published on Friday.
The plans stop short of including shipping emissions in the EU carbon market, but the commission says they can still have an impact and are part of its work towards global emissions agreements.
"The EU monitoring system will bring environmental and economic gains for the shipping sector by increasing transparency about emissions...
Does the UK really face electricity blackouts?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 28th, 2013
Guardian: Britain could face a return within 18 months to 70s-style power rationing to prevent blackouts, screamed one tabloid front page on Friday, conjuring up a vision of coalminer militancy and the three-day week.
The irony of the latest scare is that the big employers in this scenario – the energy companies – have partly created the threat of electricity disruption by using too much coal too quickly and mothballing their gas-fired power stations.
There is certainly a problem. The energy regulator,...
Are We Living Through a Shale Bubble?
Posted by Environmental News Network: Malo Herry on June 28th, 2013
Environmental News Network: On May 24th, J. David Hughes and Deborah Rogers gave a briefing to summarize the findings of two new reports dismantling the myth of a "shale revolution". We've heard about it in the media, on both sides of the political aisle: shale gas and oil are the future of US energy. Indeed, natural gas prices dropped thanks to hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) and horizontal drilling, which helped lower the country's carbon emissions by reducing coal consumption. In January, Barack Obama said that: "We have...
Indians question how far flash-flooding disaster was manmade
Posted by Guardian: Maseeh Rahman on June 28th, 2013
Guardian: As India picks up the pieces from the worst-ever flash floods in the Himalayas, the nation is beginning to wonder to what extent human intervention – specifically religious tourism and hydroelectric projects – contributed to the disaster.
About 1,000 people have been confirmed dead in Uttarakhand state from last week's flooding, and state authorities say the actual toll could be three to five times higher.
The Himalayas are a relatively young mountain range with a fragile geology prone to landslides....
Calgary floods spotlight cities’ costly failure to plan for climate change
Posted by CBC: Amber Hildebrandt on June 28th, 2013
CBC: But a community's ability to react during a disaster is one thing. Minimizing the impact of a flood is another. Now, the province faces a potentially decade-long cleanup effort that could cost $5 billion by BMO Nesbitt Burns estimates.
Disaster risk management experts say the Alberta situation should serve as a wake-up call to municipalities across the country of the need to spend money and time mitigating the risks before disaster strikes, especially as climate change is predicted to bring bigger...
Canada: Oil Sands Leak: ‘Bitumen Emulsion’ Released on Alberta Weapons Range
Posted by CBC: None Given on June 28th, 2013
CBC: Oilsands mixed with water has leaked in northeastern Alberta.
The Alberta Energy Regulator says Canadian Natural Resources Limited reported Monday that bitumen emulsion has been released on the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range.
The regulator put out a news release about it on Thursday.
Regulator spokesman Bob Curran says it's not clear how much has leaked or what caused the release from CNRL's high-pressure cyclic steam project.
Curran says the oilsands mixture has affected a nearby slough....
India floods: a man-made disaster
Posted by Guardian: Praful Bidwai on June 28th, 2013
Guardian: The terrible floods in India's tiny north Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, which killed more than 1,000 people, left 70,000 stranded for days and destroyed livelihoods, have been officially termed a natural calamity caused by cloudbursts and unprecedented heavy monsoon rainfall.
However, the true causes of the epic tragedy lie in the grievous damage recently wrought on the region's ecology by the runaway growth of tourism, unchecked proliferation of roads, hotels, shops and multistory housing in...
Will dumping Australia’s climate-savvy prime minister help the climate?
Posted by Grist: John Upton on June 28th, 2013
Grist: In terms of climate policy, Australians face a choice between fairly good and downright evil in an upcoming federal election.
The face of evil belongs to climate skeptic Tony Abbott, leader of the opposition Liberal Party (which, in topsy-turvy Down Under fashion, is in fact conservative).
And the face of relative good is ... in some disarray at the moment. Power brokers in the Labor Party, which narrowly holds power in the country, this week stripped the prime ministership away from Julia...