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Archive for February 25th, 2014
Peru Park Sets Record for Reptile, Amphibian Biodiversity
Posted by LiveScience: Megan Gannon on February 25th, 2014
LiveScience: For reptiles and amphibians, southern Peru's Manu National Park is the most diverse protected area on the planet.
Scientists have counted a recording-breaking 287 species of of snakes, lizards, turtles, frogs and salamanders within the borders of the largely inaccessible and undeveloped reserve and its buffer zone.
The landscape of Manu National Park ranges from lowland Amazonian rainforests to high-altitude cloud forests along the eastern slope of the Andes. The area is accessible by dirt...
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California’s Drought: A Shocking Photo And Other Updates
Posted by National Public Radio: Bill Chappell on February 25th, 2014
National Public Radio: Farmers in California, where Gov. Jerry Brown last month, are facing hard choices as a drought threatens to ruin their crops. They must weigh the costs of paying for irrigation against the chance that their fields will never get enough water this season. A striking picture illustrates the severity of the situation, as Northern California's Folsom Lake, a reservoir northeast of Sacramento, is seen in January at only 17 percent of its capacity. In July of 2011, "the lake was at 97 percent of total...
Frack-happy Colorado clamps down on methane pollution
Posted by Grist: John Upton on February 25th, 2014
Grist: Frackers and other companies that handle natural gas will have to start being at least a little bit neighborly in Colorado, where new rules will force them to clamp down on methane leaks from wells, tanks, and pipelines.
When methane (natural gas is pretty much just methane) escapes during drilling and transportation, it fuels ozone pollution and global warming. Methane concentrations in the atmosphere are rising, and methane leaks are a major problem in the U.S. By one recent estimate, the U.S....
Is Brazil’s epic drought a taste of the future?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on February 25th, 2014
Mongabay: With more than 140 cities implementing water rationing, analysts warning of collapsing soy and coffee exports, and reservoirs and rivers running precipitously low, talk about the World Cup in some parts of Brazil has been sidelined by concerns about an epic drought affecting the country's agricultural heartland. With its rise as an agricultural superpower over the past 20 years, Brazil is today the world's largest exporter of coffee, sugar, oranges, soy, and cattle. That means the drought will take...
UK floods: Raise roads and redesign houses, engineers say
Posted by Guardian: Jessica Aldred on February 25th, 2014
Guardian: Houses should be redesigned, roads raised and tidal lagoons built that generate energy to reduce the impact of flooding in the UK, according to a panel of senior engineers and academics.
Recent flooding has affected large parts of southern England in the UK's wettest winter on record - particularly the Somerset Levels and Thames valley, resulting in more than 5,000 homes and businesses being flooded, major road and rail networks disrupted, and a political row over who is to blame.
"In some...