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Archive for July 10th, 2014
DRC deforestation escalates despite resource shortages, protests, rape, homicide
Posted by Mongabay: John C. Cannon on July 10th, 2014
Mongabay: Road construction, the promise of employment, and the conversion of forest to farmland – the effects of logging tropical forests are often not confined to the boundaries of the concessions, where, in the best case, a timber company has gained legal access to harvest trees. Along the Congo River in the northern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), recent data showing probable forest loss demonstrate the often-unforeseen consequences of timber harvesting.
It’s no secret that new roads to previously...
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Study: 40% of gas wells could leak methane in parts of Pa
Posted by Philadelphia Inquirer: None Given on July 10th, 2014
Philadelphia Inquirer: People who live among the fracking fields of Pennsylvania should expect considerable leaking of methane from natural gas wells into the groundwater and atmosphere, according to new research by a professor who has been a consistent critic of the boom in hydraulic fracturing.
A research team led by Anthony Ingraffea of Cornell University reached this conclusion after examining state inspection records of more than 41,000 wells drilled from 2000 through 2012 throughout Pennsylvania.
Because of...
Scientific Document Shows Why NY Fracking Moratorium Imperative
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on July 10th, 2014
EcoWatch: Less than two weeks ago, local communities triumphed over the fracking industry in a precedent-setting case decided by the New York Court of Appeals. The court ruled that the towns of Dryden and Middlefield can use local zoning laws to ban heavy industry, including oil and gas production within municipal borders.
While the court decision is a victory for the two towns, many New Yorkers continue to rally and push for a statewide fracking moratorium. In this vein, Concerned Health Professionals...
Lesions of Gulf of Mexico Fish Linked to Oil Spill
Posted by Nature World: None Given on July 10th, 2014
Nature World: Skin lesions found on large a number of fish in the northern Gulf of Mexico have been linked to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) ocean spill, scientists from the University of South Florida (USF) say.
Published in the journal Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, USF scientists reported a strong resemblance between oil from the Deepwater blowout and an outbreak of skin lesions and oil residue signatures discovered in bottom-dwelling fish, like the red snapper, a year after the spill....
US Salamander Disappearances Puzzling Scientists
Posted by Nature World: Jenna Iacurci on July 10th, 2014
Nature World: North America's largest salamander - also the third largest salamander in the world - is disappearing, and scientists are trying to figure out the reasoning behind it, the Associated Press reported.
Hellbenders, as they're called, which can grow two or more feet long, are vanishing from large parts of the 16 states they inhabit. Scientists believe the disappearance could reflect a plunge in the quality of the swift-flowing, rocky rivers and streams they are found in.
"These are animals that...
What Is Causing the Kidney Stone Epidemic?
Posted by io9: Annalee Newitz on July 10th, 2014
io9: The number of people suffering from kidney stones has grown over the past thirty years, and a new study shows it's likely to get worse. Here's why.
Pediatric urologist Gregory Tasian and his team analyzed over 60,000 medical records of people with kidney stones in major cities throughout the U.S. What they found was that people were more likely to develop the painful calcium deposits (pictured above) in their kidneys when average temperatures rose over 50 degrees. In fact, many cases of kidney...
India: Monsoon rains sharply lower average
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 10th, 2014
Reuters: Monsoon rainfall was 41 percent below average for the week ended July 9, the weather office said on its website on Thursday, the fifth straight week of poor rains after a late start to the season.
A poor monsoon season cuts exports, stokes food inflation and leads to lower demand for industries ranging from cars to consumer goods, while even a slow start can delay exports of some crops and increase the need for imports.
Rainfall was 53 percent below average in the previous week as the first...
El Niño Triggers Drought, Food Crisis in Nicaragua
Posted by Inter Press Service: José Adán Silva on July 10th, 2014
Inter Press Service: The spectre of famine is haunting Nicaragua. The second poorest country in Latin America, and one of the 10 most vulnerable to climate change in the world, is facing a meteorological phenomenon that threatens its food security.
Scientists at the Nicaraguan Institute for Territorial Studies (INETER) say the situation is correlated with the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), a weather cycle that periodically causes drought on the western Pacific seaboard and the centre of the country, in contrast...
Coastal flooding has surged in U.S., Reuters finds
Posted by Reuters: Ryan McNeill and Deborah J. Nelson on July 10th, 2014
Reuters: Coastal flooding along the densely populated Eastern Seaboard of the United States has surged in recent years, a Reuters analysis has found.
During the past four decades, the number of days a year that tidal waters reached or exceeded National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration flood thresholds more than tripled in many places, the analysis found. At flood threshold, water can begin to pool on streets. As it rises farther, it can close roads, damage property and overwhelm drainage systems....
Photosynthesis photographed for the first time
Posted by Mother Nature Network: John Platt on July 10th, 2014
Mother Nature Network: Every school kid learns about photosynthesis, but a new study shows the life-giving process in action for the first time. As published this week in the journal Nature, an international team of researchers has photographed photosynthesis in action using the world's fastest X-ray laser, which captures events that take place in one-quadrillionth of a second. Using this ultrafast laser, the researchers were able to document the previously unseen moments when photosynthesis converts water into oxygen,...