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Archive for July 24th, 2014
Serious Water Losses Identified in Colorado Basin
Posted by Nature World: None Given on July 24th, 2014
Nature World: The Colorado River basin is drying up. According to data recently released by NASA, the basin has lost nearly 53 million acre feet of freshwater since 2004, taking away far more water than the nation's largest reservoirs can refill.
The Colorado River basin is drying up. According to data recently released by NASA, the basin has lost nearly 53 million acre feet of freshwater since 2004, taking away far more water than the region can hope to refill.
Based on data from NASA's Gravity Recovery...
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Vital invertebrates decline by 45 per cent, study finds
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 24th, 2014
Independent: Insects, worms and other small animals that carry out vital functions for life on earth have declined by 45 per cent on average over 35 years, threatening human health, water quality and food supplies, a study has found. The rapid decline in the number of invertebrates – animals without backbones – is at least as bad as the well publicised plight of the larger animals, according to scientists who said they were shocked by the findings. Although there has has been far less research on invertebrates...
Drilling in Pennsylvania has damaged the water supply 209 times in last seven years
Posted by Grist: None Given on July 24th, 2014
Grist: Whether or not you think that`s alright depends on your perspective. According to Patrick Creighton, those numbers are pretty good -- so many oil and natural gas wells have been drilled in Pennsylvania in the past seven years that 209 problem wells is a mere 1 percent of the total. But Creighton happens to be the spokesperson for the Marcellus Shale Coalition, a trade group composed of natural gas drillers. So there`s that.
According to Steve Hvozdovich, 209 is a lot. "You are talking about somebody’s...
Report Exposes European Lobby Groups Who Ensure Expansion of Shale Gas
Posted by EcoWatch: Brandon Baker on July 24th, 2014
EcoWatch: The shuffling of lobby dollars that keeps fossil fuel-friendly policies on the books for the benefit of huge corporations and their legislative pals isn`t specific to the U.S.
A new report from Friends of the Earth Europe aims to expose Shell, Total and ExxonMobil, along with groups like BusinessEurope and OGP, to reveal what it calls a "thick web of lobbying activity." The report says public relations and law firms, paid-for scientific reports, and even members of Parliament have all been used...
Drought becomes top environmental priority for Californians
Posted by KQED: None Given on July 24th, 2014
KQED: Drought has moved to the top of the list in the latest survey of Californians` environmental worries.
In a statewide poll conducted during the second week of July, more than a third of respondents (35 percent) cited water supply and drought as "the most important environmental issue facing California today." That more than doubled the second most popular response, which was air pollution.
It`s the first time since the annual survey was launched in 2000 that Californians have cited water supply...
Coal India’s plans for 20 mines hit by land, environment delays
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on July 24th, 2014
Reuters: Twenty new coal mine projects by state-run Coal India, planned with annual capacity of 52 million tonnes (46 million tons), have been delayed by difficulties acquiring land and environmental clearances, the coal minister said on Thursday, underlining the uphill task he faces in reforming the sector. The new government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is hastening environmental clearances - which slowed to a trickle under the previous administration - to help fire up power plants and fulfill Modi's...
Loss and damage: UN receives new climate compensation plans
Posted by RTCC: Sophie Yeo on July 24th, 2014
RTCC: Over the next two years, countries will draw up a framework that will shape the responses of the poorest countries to climate-caused catastrophes.
This process is a crucial one for vulnerable nations, as it will essentially shape how equipped they are to deal with more hurricanes, rising sea levels, floods and heatwaves – some of the predicted effects of a warmer planet.
Some countries, like Bangladesh and the Marshall Islands, will feel these impacts disproportionately, and have the least...
Following Africa’s Water: A Threat of Scarcity
Posted by Nature World: None Given on July 24th, 2014
Nature World: Irrigation systems are essential for maintaining food production in Africa. However, compared to the developed worlds, African farmers have barely any water access. Now researchers are warning that some deprived parts of the continent are due for even more water scarcity in the wake of climate change.
As first described by Nature World News last month, churning atmospheric winds are utterly reforming what is "normal" weather for the globe, and are reallocating some very important patterns for...