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Archive for September 25th, 2013
The number of killer thunderstorms could jump 40% by 2070
Posted by Quartz: Todd Woody on September 25th, 2013
Quartz: That spate of destructive thunderstorms that struck the US last year, killing scores of people and racking up billions of dollars in damages? Get ready for more. A lot more.
In a first-of-its-kind study published yesterday, scientists at Stanford University have linked climate change to the increasing frequency of such super storms. By 2070, the number of severe thunderstorms, which often spawn deadly tornadoes, could increase by 40% in the eastern US, according to the computer model developed...
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Texas agency responds to report criticizing Eagle Ford Shale fracking regulation
Posted by Current: None Given on September 25th, 2013
Current: A “toxic mix of irresponsible industry operators and negligent regulators,” as well as suffering families, marks hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” in the Eagle Ford Shale, according to a newly released critical report by national environmental non-profit group, Earthworks’ Oil and Gas Accountability Project. The study, titled “Reckless Endangerment While Fracking the Eagle Ford,” slams state agencies like the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for failing to provide oversight and take action...
North Carolina returns EPA grant for fracking study
Posted by Charlotte Observer: Bruce Henderson on September 25th, 2013
Charlotte Observer: North Carolina's environment agency has taken the unusual step of returning a federal grant to study streams and wetlands that could be harmed by hydraulic fracturing for natural gas.
The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources had itself recommended last year that baseline water-quality data be collected where drilling might occur. The information would help document any problems linked to drilling.
But under new leadership appointed by Gov. Pat McCrory, the department now says...
Debt-plagued Greece sees economic gains in adapting to climate change
Posted by ClimateWire: Julia Pyper on September 25th, 2013
ClimateWire: Greece has a long history of recording climate variations. There are centuries-old tales of heat waves, droughts and floods striking the region -- often thought to be at the hand of a spurned god or goddess.
"These climate changes are known, but they were, of course, not man-made. Now we are concerned about man-made warming," said Christos Zerefos, a professor at the Academy of Athens Research Centre for Atmospheric Physics and Climatology.
St. Paul's Church, a 10th-century monument in southern...
Sands of time running out for rare Canadian desert
Posted by Agence France-Presse: Thibault Jourdan on September 25th, 2013
Agence France-Presse: As desertification creeps into parts of the world, a rare stretch of sand in Canada's vast western plains is oddly doing the reverse -- slowly sprouting with vegetation.
Tufts of prairie grasses are emerging throughout Spirit Sands, a stretch of dunes steeped in local lore in a popular nature park in Manitoba province.
The sands cover only about four square kilometres (1.54 square miles) and in some parts, entire mounds have been completely overgrown.
Today, this small patch is the only...
Yale survey: Most Texans believe in global warming
Posted by Texas Tribune: Jim Malewitz on September 25th, 2013
Texas Tribune: Most Texans believe in global warming, but many are skeptical that the phenomenon, if happening, is mostly caused by human activity, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication that comes after another sweltering, dry summer. Some 70 percent of Texans believe that global warming is happening, according to the survey data. Fourteen percent believe the earth is not warming. Fewer than half of the 800 Texans surveyed — 44 percent— identified humans as...
Texas Climate Change Study Reveals Most Residents Believe In Global Warming
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 25th, 2013
Huffington Post: Don’t judge a book by its cover. Or in this case, a state by its politicians.
According to a study conducted by the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication, 70 percent of Texans accept that global warming is taking place. In fact, only 14 percent believe global warming is not happening. Although fewer than half (44 percent) agree it’s mostly caused by humans, more than 50 percent think now is the time for local and federal government to act on the changing climate.
However, these statistics...
British Green MP charged over part in fracking protest
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 25th, 2013
Reuters: Britain's only elected member of parliament from the Green Party, Caroline Lucas, was charged with public order offences on Wednesday after taking part in a protest last month against the shale gas extraction process known as fracking. Lucas was among 36 activists arrested on August 19 as they tried to block access to an exploration site operated by Cuadrilla Resources near the picturesque village of Balcombe in Sussex, southern England. The Crown Prosecution Service said there was sufficient evidence...
United Kingdom: Caroline Lucas to be charged over anti-fracking protest
Posted by Guardian: Sandra Laville on September 25th, 2013
Guardian: The Green party MP Caroline Lucas is to be charged over her part in an anti-fracking demonstration in Sussex.
Lucas was arrested last month at Balcombe where campaigners have been protesting about oil drilling in the village amid fears that it could lead to fracking in the area.
The Crown Prosecution Service said Lucas was to be charged with breaching a police order on public assemblies and wilful obstruction of the highway.
Nigel Pilkington, a senior lawyer with the CPS, said: "After careful...
United Kingdom: Green MP charged over anti-fracking protest
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on September 25th, 2013
Telegraph: Dr Lucas was arrested in August when she joined hundreds of other activists staging a series of protests in the West Sussex village of Balcombe, against the controversial method of extracting shale gas.
Activists allegedly blockaded the road leading to the drilling site to prevent traffic moving in and out of the area.
The protests, which were largely organised by the No Dash for Gas group, sought to raise public awareness of the controversial method of gas extraction that involves pumping...