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Archive for February 21st, 2014
Canada: Tar Sands Tailings Ponds Are Leaching Into Athabasca River, Federal Study Says
Posted by Globe and Mail: Bob Weber on February 21st, 2014
Globe and Mail: New federal research has strongly backed suspicions that toxic chemicals from Alberta's vast oil sands tailings ponds are leaching into groundwater and seeping into the Athabasca River.
Leakage from oil sands tailings ponds, which now cover 176 square kilometres, has long been an issue. Industry has acknowledged that seepage can occur, and previous studies using models have estimated it at 6.5-million litres a day from a single pond.
The soil around the developments contains many chemicals...
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California Leaders Propose $687 Million to Alleviate Drought
Posted by Sacramento Bee: Laurel Rosenhall on February 21st, 2014
Sacramento Bee: Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders on Wednesday unveiled a proposal to spend roughly $687 million to alleviate the impacts of California's drought, including efforts to clean and recycle water, improve conservation, capture rain, and give emergency food and housing assistance to farmworkers who will be out of work because their fields are fallow.
"The best way to make our communities more resilient to drought is to invest in projects that get the most out of every drop of water," said Senate...
Colorado Air Commissioners Hear Fears of Oil and Gas Drilling
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2014
Denver Post: Colorado officials sought public views on proposed new air-pollution rules for the oil and gas industry -- and faced a barrage of concerns.
A majority of the 120 residents who signed up to testify Wednesday before state air-quality control commissioners strongly supported the rules to reduce toxic emissions.
"Air pollution burns our eyes, ears, noses and throats," said Peggy Tibbets, who drove from Silt in western Colorado to testify.
Federal land managers offering access to public land...
North Dakota Pipeline Rupture Spews 75 Barrels of Crude
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2014
Associated Press: Tesoro Corp. says an excavator struck an oil pipeline in western North Dakota, spilling about 75 barrels of crude, or about 3,150 gallons. The company says it happened Wednesday afternoon near Cartwright, which is west of Watford City near the Montana border. Tesoro says the release of oil has been stopped and about 70 barrels' worth of oil has been recovered. The company says there were no injuries, and no impacts to wildlife were reported.
Oklahoma Shakes—Is Fracking to Blame?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2014
Time: It`s been a shaky week in Oklahoma. The Sooner State has experienced more than 150 earthquakes over the past week, far more than the Okies usually get. And while the vast majority of the quakes were fairly minor, one, on Feb. 16 measured 3.8 on the Richter scale, followed by a number of aftershocks. There`s been little damage reported, but the quakes jolted folks in a part of the country who aren`t accustomed to the Earth moving under their feet. "[It] felt like bombs going off," central Oklahoma...
Train Explosions Prompt Companies to Upgrade Oil Tankers Voluntarily
Posted by Fuel Fix: None Given on February 21st, 2014
Fuel Fix: Oil companies are rolling ahead of federal regulators to replace old tank cars following a series of fiery accidents involving crude-carrying trains.
Canadian refiner Irving Oil and San Antonio-based Tesoro Corp. have pledged to replace older crude tankers in their fleet, after the aging DOT-111 models built before 2011 were deemed prone to rupture.
Phillips 66 has said all of its crude-carrying tankers meet current standards and San Antonio`s Valero Energy Corp. said all of the railcars it...
West Virginia Asks Feds to Study Possible Health Effects of Chemical Spill
Posted by CNN: Elizabeth Cohen and Tom Watkins on February 21st, 2014
CNN: Is it really safe?
West Virginia's governor is asking federal authorities to do further study on the possible health effects caused by last month's chemical spill near Charleston.
"It is critical this study is funded and that work begins immediately," wrote Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin in a letter Tuesday to Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
On January 9, the chemical -- 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, or MCHM -- was discovered leaking from a storage tank...
British coasts suffer years erosion in just weeks of storms, says National Trust
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 21st, 2014
Independent: Some of Britain’s most famous sections of coastline have suffered years of erosion and damage in just a few weeks, or in some cases hours, as a result of the winter storms, the National Trust has said.
The high winds and waves that have repeatedly battered the UK have left cliffs crumbling, beaches and sand dunes eroded, defences breached and shorelines and harbours damaged.
The storms have caused the kind of damage the Trust was expecting, but not for some years to come, and the organisation...