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Archive for June 4th, 2014
Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining: Five Things You Need to Know
Posted by Rainforest Action Network: None Given on June 4th, 2014
Rainforest Action Network: A few days ago, I sat down for an interview with the good folks at Living on Earth, Public Radio International`s weekly environmental news show.
We talked about RAN`s work fighting mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining in Appalachia, and the banks that fund it. From that interview, here are five things you need to know:
MTR destroys some of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the U.S. The first step in blowing the top off a mountain is clear cutting the forest off the top of it--some of the most...
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Brazil’s ‘Mythological’ Pink Dolphins Finally Being Rescued
Posted by Nature World: Jenna Iacurci on June 4th, 2014
Nature World: In an effort to prevent the killing of the Amazon pink dolphin, whose flesh is used as bait, Brazil will temporarily ban the catch of a certain type of catfish, the Fishing and Aquaculture Ministry said Tuesday.
Ministry spokesman Ultimo Valadares said the government is still working out the details of this five-year moratorium, aimed at fishing of the species called piracatinga, and will go into effect sometime next year.
"That should give us enough time to find an alternative bait for the...
United Kingdom: Shale gas firms to get more power to drill under homes
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 4th, 2014
Guardian: A group of 50 academics from some of the UK's leading universities today call on politicians to fast-track a UK shale gas industry, the latest salvo in an increasingly polarised debate around fracking.
In a letter to the Guardian on Thursday, the scientists argue there are "undeniable economic, environmental and national security benefits" from shale being produced in the north-west of the country. The move comes just days after Sir Paul McCartney and 150 other celebrities called on the government...
Proposed Fracking in California Condor Habitat Draws Protest
Posted by Indybay: Center For Biological Diversity on June 4th, 2014
Indybay: An oil industry proposal to drill and frack eight new wells and construct thousands of feet of new pipelines in the middle of Los Padres National Forest threatens the California condor and would generate fracking pollution dangerous to human health, two environmental groups said in a letter sent today to forest officials and the federal Bureau of Land Management (see PDF).
In the letter the Center for Biological Diversity and Los Padres ForestWatch point out that the Endangered Species Act and...
Scientists warn against China’s plan to flatten over 700 mountains
Posted by Guardian: Stuart Clark on June 4th, 2014
Guardian: Scientists have criticised China's bulldozing of hundreds of mountains to provide more building land for cities.
In a paper published in journal Nature this week, three Chinese academics say plan to remove over 700 mountains and shovel debris into valleys to create 250 sq km of flat land has not been sufficiently considered “environmentally, technically or economically.”
Li Peiyue, Qian Hui and Wu Jianhua, all from the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Chang’an University,...
Keystone XL pipeline vulnerable to attacks, NextGen study says
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 4th, 2014
Reuters: The Keystone XL oil pipeline would be vulnerable to attacks threatening water supplies for millions of homeowners and farmers, according to a report by NextGen Climate, a political group led by billionaire activist Tom Steyer. Attackers could wreck remote pump stations along the pipeline's route in the northern Great Plains with just 4 pounds (1.8 kg) of readily available explosives, Dave Cooper, a former Navy Seal and a senior operative on the mission that killed Osama bin Laden, said in the 14-page...
Flying squirrel & eyeless spider discovered in Mekong
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 4th, 2014
Guardian: A series of high-flying creatures, including giant flying frogs and squirrels and a parachute gecko, are among the hundreds of exotic new species recently discovered in the greater Mekong region in southeast Asia.
A new eyeless spider and a fish that mates head-to-head are also highlighted in a report from WWF on the extraordinary biodiversity in the forests surrounding the Mekong river, which runs through Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and China, and is also home to about 325 million...
Climate change ‘off G20 agenda’
Posted by Sydney Morning Herald: Lisa Cox and Adam Morton on June 4th, 2014
Sydney Morning Herald: Prime Minister Tony Abbott has downplayed the likelihood of climate change being discussed at a G20 leaders' summit hosted by Australia, suggesting it does not fit the meeting's economic focus.
Asked about pressure from the US and Europe for climate to be included on the agenda for the November meeting in Brisbane, Mr Abbott said there were other international meetings that were more appropriate for discussing the issue.
''It's also important to ensure that these international meetings don't...
U.S. carbon plan will not reach climate goals: study
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on June 4th, 2014
Reuters: A U.S. plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions from power plants is not enough to achieve its goals for limiting climate change, and all nations will need to significantly step up actions to curb warming, a group of scientists said in a report on Wednesday. Washington announced plans on Monday to cut emissions from power plants by 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, as the centerpiece of a U.S. policy to fight climate change. Niklas Hoehne, of Ecofys - joint compiler of the Climate Action Tracker...
Tepco begin work Fukushima ‘ice wall’ contain water leaks
Posted by Blue and Green: Richard Heasman on June 4th, 2014
Blue and Green: The operator of the troubled Fukushima nuclear power plant, Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), has begun construction of a 1.5km (0.9-mile) ice wall to contain leaked radioactive water. Some 1,550 coolant-circulating pipes will be inserted 25 metres into the ground in an attempt to freeze the soil surrounding the contaminated water. A Tepco official said, “We plan to end all the construction work in March 2015 before starting trial operations.” The state-funded ice wall could be in operation...