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Archive for February 13th, 2014
Methane burned vs. methane leaked: Fracking’s impact on climate change
Posted by Ars Technica: Scott K. Johnson on February 13th, 2014
Ars Technica: Fracking--the use of hydraulic pressure to crack layers of shale that hold oil and natural gas--is controversial. That’s one thing we know about a debate that mainly focuses on what we don’t know. The most common concern is the contamination of drinking water, either by the chemicals used in the fracking fluid or by liberated natural gas. And this issue has entered the public consciousness through media like the film Gasland and its imagery of flaming faucets--though almost 40 percent of people in...
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UK storms at a glance: how Britain fared in the storms overnight
Posted by Guardian: Frances Perraudin on February 13th, 2014
Guardian: * Around 80,000 homes and businesses remain without power, according to the Energy Networks Association. The majority of those without electricity are in Wales. Overnight about 130,000 homes and businesses across the UK had no power, with 10,000 affected in the north-west, 52,000 in mid and north Wales, 10,000 in Cheshire, 13,000 in the West Midlands and 19,000 in the south-west. In Ireland, strong winds left nearly 200,000 people without power.
* Rail services across the UK remain disrupted....
United Kingdom: 80,000 homes without power after 112mph winds on Wednesday
Posted by Blue and Green: None Given on February 13th, 2014
Blue and Green: Tens of thousands of homes are without power across England and Wales, after winds of up to 112mph battered the UK on Wednesday.
The Met Office issued a rare red warning, with the hurricane-force gales causing severe travel disruption. Train services in many parts of the UK remain cancelled while some roads are closed.
Debris and other objects picked up by the winds caused damage to power lines across the UK, with Wales bearing the brunt.
About 80,000 properties are still without power,...
UK rail services still disrupted after day of high winds
Posted by Guardian: Gwyn Topham on February 13th, 2014
Guardian: The high winds that swept across Britain on Wednesday have wreaked further havoc on a railway already battered by floods.
Overnight works have restored the majority of services, albeit with widespread delays, although severe problems from flooding continue on the Great Western line.
Disruption on the two major north-south rail lines was persisting into Thursday. Damage to overhead power lines meant train services were to remain suspended on the west coast mainline between Liverpool and Crewe...
Living with contaminated flood water
Posted by BBC: Claire Marshall on February 13th, 2014
BBC: The water running thigh deep through Ham Sandhu's house in Wraysbury in Berkshire is freezing cold and murky.
Floating around in his kitchen is a toy car and a pair of slippers. Clunking gently together near the sink are two rubbish bins.
"I brought them in here," he says, "so they didn't drift away."
An unpleasant smell thickens the air.
"That must be the freezer," says Ham. "When we were flooded back on 8 January the insurance company told us not to empty it."
He doesn't want to...
United Kingdom: Torrential rain, high winds and floods cause transport chaos and power cuts
Posted by Guardian: Haroon Siddique, Helen Nugent and Matthew Weaver on February 13th, 2014
Guardian: More than 80,000 homes were still without power supplies and there was continued disruption on the road and rail networks on Thursday in the wake of hurricane-force winds that left at least one person dead.
The Energy Networks Association said engineers had reconnected 145,000 homes and businesses following storm damage and would continue to work throughout Thursday, while train operators were also striving to restore a number of services hit by heavy rain and trees and debris strewn across tracks....
Keystone Public Comments Rushing in to State Dept
Posted by Fuel Fix: None Given on February 13th, 2014
Fuel Fix: Members of the public have filed more than 3,500 comments voicing their opinions on Keystone XL, just a week after the feds — once again — solicited input on the controversial pipeline. The process likely will set off another battle between supporters and opponents of the project to win the comments numbers game. The new round opened Feb. 5, days after the State Department released its long-awaited final environmental impact statement. Through Wednesday afternoon, the public had submitted 3,514...
Two Oil Spills Reported in Western North Dakota
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 13th, 2014
Associated Press: Health officials say two oil spills have been reported in western North Dakota, the largest of them involving nearly 300 barrels. The North Dakota Department of Health said one spill was reported at a well site about eight miles east of Williston. Some of the 300 barrels of crude oil released sprayed off the location onto agricultural land. Zavanna, LLC owns that site. The company said about 295 barrels have been recovered from within the storage tank containment dike. The second spill was reported...
Washington coal terminal to get extensive review
Posted by Associated Press: Phuong Le on February 13th, 2014
Associated Press: State and local regulators said Wednesday they'll consider a sweeping environmental review of the effects of a proposed terminal along the Columbia River in Washington that would export millions of tons of coal to Asia. The review of the nearly $650 million Millennium Bulk Terminals project will consider impacts that extend well beyond the site, including global-warming effects from burning the exported coal in Asia and rail impacts as coal is shipped by train from the Rockies throughout the state....
North Carolina: Residents Told Not to Eat Fish Near Spill Site
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 13th, 2014
New York Times: The state Department of Health and Human Services is warning people not to eat fish from near the site of last week’s huge coal ash spill on the Dan River and to avoid the river near the spill. The department said it is collecting fish downstream of the spill in Eden and will evaluate the data. The spill at a 27-acre Duke Energy coal ash pond, spewed up to 82,000 tons of coal ash mixed with 27 million gallons of contaminated water into the Dan.