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Archive for October 7th, 2014
World Bank chief steps in over evictions of Kenya’s indigenous people
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 7th, 2014
Guardian: The president of the World Bank will appeal directly to President Uhuru Kenyatta to resolve a Kenyan human rights crisis in which thousands of indigenous forest people have been forcibly evicted from a reserve in the name of water conservation.
After a board meeting in Washington, Jim Yong Kim said: “I will personally reach out to President Kenyatta and the government of Kenya to offer our full support in order to bring together the Cherangany-Sengwer people and all the key parties. Everyone’s...
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Floods Wash Away India’s MDG Progress
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 7th, 2014
Inter Press Service: The northeastern Indian state of Assam is no stranger to devastating floods. Located just south of the eastern Himalayas, the lush, 30,000-square-km region comprises the Brahmaputra and Barak river valleys, and is accustomed to annual bouts of rain that swell the mighty rivers and spill over into villages and towns, inundating agricultural lands and washing homes, possessions and livestock away.
Now, the long-term impacts of such natural disasters are proving to be a thorn in the side of a government...
Coral Bleaching Event: Worst in Decades
Posted by Nature World News: None Given on October 7th, 2014
Nature World News: Scientists are frantically monitoring Hawaii's unusual windless coast, finding that elevated sea surface temperatures are severely stressing corals near the shoreline, causing a major coral bleaching event that's even more intense than one seen two decades ago.
"Unfortunately, we are seeing evidence of wide-spread bleaching in shallow, near shore waters of windward Oahu," Frazer McGilvray, the administrator of the Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) Coral Rapid Response Team, said in a recent...
California Drought Cuts Hydroelectric Generation in Half
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on October 7th, 2014
EcoWatch: The prolonged drought in California, now entering its fourth year, has altered the state`s mix of energy generation sources, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That`s mixed news for those pushing for more reliance on renewables and less on fossil fuels.
The EIA issued a report yesterday that showed that, with the state`s reservoirs currently at 42 percent of their normal levels for this time of year, the ability of hydroelectric dams to produce power has been cut in...
Environmentalists not surprised, just disappointed to hear Cuomo meddled with fracking report
Posted by Village Voice: None Given on October 7th, 2014
Village Voice: On Monday morning, Capital New York published an eye-popping report that suggests a federal fracking study commissioned by the Cuomo administration was edited, and later delayed, by the same administration when it became clear that study was going to "result in a number of politically inconvenient conclusions for Governor Andrew Cuomo."
To environmentalists who have observed the Cuomo Administration over the past four years, the news that wasn't particularly shocking. "It's not surprising," Chris...
Under pressure, Texas install air monitor in heavily fracked county
Posted by InsideClimate: Lisa Song and David Hasemyer on October 7th, 2014
InsideClimate: Backed by results of a recent air-quality study, mounting pressure from local officials, news reports and the simmering discontent of residents, Texas regulators have decided to install an air monitor in the heart of the Eagle Ford Shale.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) will install the air monitor in Karnes County, the epicenter of one of the fastest-growing drilling regions in the nation. More than 10,000 oil and gas wells have been sunk in the region since 2008, and residents...
EU scraps plan to label tar sands oil as highly polluting
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 7th, 2014
Reuters: The European Commission on Tuesday proposed scrapping a mandatory requirement to label tar sands oil as highly polluting after years of industry opposition.
The new proposal abandons one obstacle to Canada shipping crude from tar sands to Europe and is likely to draw strong criticism from environmental campaigners and Green politicians.
It is suggested in a revised draft law on how refiners report the carbon intensity of the fuel they supply.
The debate about labelling tar sands, also known...
EU abandons ‘dirty’ label for tar sands oil
Posted by Reuters: Barbara Lewis on October 7th, 2014
Reuters: A European Union plan to label tar sands oil as highly polluting in its fight against climate change has been abandoned after years of opposition led by major producer Canada. A proposal published by the European Commission on Tuesday removes an obstacle to Canada exporting tar sands crude to Europe and comes at a time when tensions between the EU and top oil supplier Russia are running high. EU sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the desire for a trade deal with Canada had been a...
Naomi Klein: UK fracking trespass law flouts democratic rights
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on October 7th, 2014
Guardian: Ministers’ rewriting of the law to allow fracking to happen beneath people’s homes without their permission flouts basic democratic rights, according to Naomi Klein.
The author and activist said that UK government’s changes to trespass laws, to speed up the ability for shale gas companies to frack beneath landowners’ property, was energising resistance to fracking in Britain.
“What is animating the anti-fracking movement? Yes, it’s water. It’s also a defence of democracy. The fact the government...
EPA extends water consultation rule
Posted by BusinessGreen: Danny Bradbury on October 7th, 2014
BusinessGreen: The Environmental Protection Agency pushed back a consultation deadline on a broad-ranging water conservation rule this week. Consultation on the The Waters of the US rule, originally deadlined for Oct 20th, will now end on November 15th.
The rule is designed to reduce confusion over which wetlands are protected by the 1972 Clean Waters Act. The Act protected navigable US waters from pollution, but for several years, regulators have been uncertain about which upstream water resources were covered...