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Archive for September 19th, 2013
Coal’s future darkens around the world
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 19th, 2013
Associated Press: The future of coal is getting darker.
Economic forces, pollution concerns and competition from cleaner fuels are slowly nudging nations around the globe away from the fuel that made the industrial revolution possible.
The U.S. will burn 943 million tons of coal this year, only about as much as it did in 1993. Now it’s on the verge of adopting pollution rules that may all but prohibit the construction of new coal plants. And China, which burns 4 billion tons of coal a year -- as much as the...
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Colorado Flooding Triggers Oil Spills, Shutdowns
Posted by Associated Press: Colleen Slevin and Matthew Brown on September 19th, 2013
Associated Press: Colorado's flooding shut down hundreds of natural gas and oil wells in the state's main petroleum-producing region and triggered at least two spills, temporarily suspending a multibillion-dollar drilling frenzy and sending inspectors into the field to gauge the extent of pollution.
Besides the possible environmental impact, flood damage to roads, railroads and other infrastructure will affect the region's energy production for months to come. And analysts warn that images of flooded wellheads...
Future of Japan depends on stopping Fukushima leaks, PM tells workers
Posted by Guardian: Justin McCurry on September 19th, 2013
Guardian: Japan's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, has told workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant that "the future of Japan" depends on their ongoing struggle to contain leaks of highly radioactive water at the site.
Abe's brief visit to the stricken plant on Thursday – his second since he became prime minister last December – comes weeks after he reassured the world that the situation at the facility was under control, amid reports that large quantities of contaminated water were seeping into...
Japan: Two years on: How nuclear sells itself post-Fukushima
Posted by Reuters: Karolin Schaps on September 19th, 2013
Reuters: Two years after catastrophe at Japan's Fukushima plant, sellers of atomic reactors woo potential buyers with the promise that lessons learned from one of the world's worst nuclear disasters make the technology safer than ever.
The March 2011 earthquake and tsunami triggered meltdowns and radiation leaks at the plant, 150 miles northeast of Tokyo, causing widespread contamination and prompting mass evacuations.
The shockwave through the nuclear industry has not subsided and Fukushima plant owner...
Colorado rainfall one for the ages, Weather Service says
Posted by Reuters: Alex Dobuzinskis on September 19th, 2013
Reuters: The downpour that inundated parts of Colorado this month was a once-in-a-millennium event for those areas, according to an analysis by the National Weather Service.
Colorado residents are coping with widespread destruction from floods unleashed by torrential rains that began on September 9 and lasted for several days. The flooding killed at least eight people, forced thousands from their homes and caused nearly $2 billion in property damage.
Towns at the base of Colorado's so-called Front Range...
Australia’s New Conservative Prime Minister Abolishes Climate Change Watchdog
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 19th, 2013
Agence France-Presse: Australia's new conservative government on Thursday abolished an independent climate change commission set up by the previous Labor administration, as part of its plans to streamline bureaucracy.
The Climate Commission was set up to provide apolitical and reliable information to the public about the science of climate change, emissions targets and international action being taken.
But Prime Minister Tony Abbott's conservative coalition, which plans to repeal Labor's tax on corporate pollution...
Women leaders convene to make a move on climate change
Posted by Reuters: Lisa Anderson on September 19th, 2013
Reuters: More than 100 prominent women's rights leaders and activists from more than 35 countries will gather to build international momentum for increased attention, funding and action on the issue of climate change and to craft a Women's Climate Action Agenda to be presented to the United Nations as the international body's general debate gets underway next week.
The first International Women's Earth and Climate Summit (IWECS), an offshoot of the International Women's Earth and Climate Initiative (IWECI),...
Australia: Coalition scraps Climate Commission, dispensing with Tim Flannery
Posted by Guardian: Oliver Milman on September 19th, 2013
Guardian: The Coalition's decision to abolish the Climate Commission, which provides information to the public on the impact of climate change, is "dismaying" and deprives Australians of their right to independent information, according to Tim Flannery, the body's chief commissioner.
The commission, which was established in 2011, has compiled 27 reports on various aspects of climate change. Its most recent major report, The Critical Decade, warned that the world must "virtually decarbonise in the next 30...
Indigenous peoples resume occupation of Brazil’s Belo Monte dam site
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 19th, 2013
Mongabay: 150 indigenous protesters have once again occupied the Belo Monte dam site in an effort to block the controversial project, reports Amazon Watch, an NGO that is helping lead the fight against the dam.
Amazon watch says that members of the Parakanã and Juruna indigenous communities blocked a key access road, shutting down construction activities for the day. It was the eighth occupation since 2012.
This demonstration aimed to push the government to respect the tribes' rights as well as earlier...
Colorado now tracking 10 oil spills in flood zones
Posted by Denver Post: Mark Jaffe and Bruce Finley on September 19th, 2013
Denver Post: Rushing floodwaters loaded with heavy debris damaged oil and gas pipes and tanks, causing the two large spills that state and federal regulators were tracking Thursday.
Another eight releases, whose cause is undetermined, were classified as minor by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission -- sheens, for example, coming off of a piece of equipment rather than a measurable volume of petroleum product.
Anadarko Petroleum Corp. on Wednesday reported the two larger releases in Weld County....