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Archive for May 21st, 2015
In Coast Guard commencement address, Obama buoys climate change
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 21st, 2015
CNN: President Barack Obama used his commencement speech to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut on Wednesday, to focus on a topic he called an immediate national security threat: climate change.
"Climate change will impact every country on the planet. No nation is immune," the President told the 218 graduating cadets. "Climate change constitutes a serious threat to global security, an immediate risk to our national security, and, make no mistake, it will impact how our military...
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Oil spill returns to its ancestral waters near Santa Barbara
Posted by Grist: None Given on May 21st, 2015
Grist: Early on Tuesday, an 11-mile-long underground pipe owned by a company with the very patriotic name of Plains All American Pipeline spilled about 105,000 gallons of crude onto the coastline of northern Santa Barbara County, just a few miles north of the town of Santa Barbara.
When cleanup began, and the spill was thought to be closer to 21,000 gallons, Coast Guard described it to the LA Times, as “medium” in size. Maybe they`re just jaded. In general, the U.S. sees about 100 "significant" oil spills...
Photos from the front: the California oil spill in pictures
Posted by Mongabay: Rebecca Kessler on May 21st, 2015
Mongabay: On Tuesday, an underground oil pipeline burst near Goleta, California, spilling crude oil into the Pacific, soiling beaches, killing marine animals, and coating birds in oil. Whales and sea lions were spotted in the spill area, where two slicks totaled 9-miles long as of Wednesday evening. The spill took place not far from the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, site of an incredibly diverse marine ecosystem that is home to 18 cetacean and 3 seal species.
The ruptured pipe was discovered...
What take to limit climate change 1.5°C by 2100?
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 21st, 2015
ScienceDaily: Limiting temperature rise by 2100 to less than 1.5°C is feasible, at least from a purely technological standpoint, according to the study published in the journal Nature Climate Change by researchers at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), and others. The new study examines scenarios for the energy, economy, and environment that are consistent with limiting climate change to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, and...
California investigates nine-mile oil slick
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 21st, 2015
BBC: Clean-up crews are working around the clock as investigators look into how tens of thousands of gallons of oil spewed into the sea off Santa Barbara.
More than 6,000 gallons (22,700 litres) of oil have been mopped from the beach - a fraction of the 20,000 gallons officials say spilled into the sea after a pipe burst on Tuesday.
Federal officials are to excavate the pipe to find clues to how it ruptured.
The company responsible for the pipeline has publicly apologised.
California Governor...
El Niño could bring drought and famine in west Africa, scientists warn
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 21st, 2015
Guardian: A global weather phenomenon could cause a famine in the Sahel this year by combining with already dry conditions to create a “double whammy” for the region, scientists and aid groups have warned.
Professor Adam Scaife, a long term forecaster at the UK Met Office Hadley Centre, said models now agreed an El Niño event was likely and the first impacts may be felt as early as June.
El Niño is caused by a reversal of trade winds in the Pacific that allow warm water to spread east, across the ocean....
Judge Says No to Fracking
Posted by EcoWatch: None Given on May 21st, 2015
EcoWatch: A judge in North Carolina has blocked the start of fracking in that state over a challenge to the membership of the commission charged with issuing the permits.
"Finally some good news in our long battle to keep fracking out of NC!" exulted North Carolina environmental nonprofit Haw River Assembly, one of the parties to the lawsuit, on its Facebook page.
The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) was granted the preliminary injunction it sought in Wake County Superior Court to delay the state`s...
Ottawa’s new climate plan step backward
Posted by Toronto Star: None Given on May 21st, 2015
Toronto Star: In the PR trade, it’s known as “dump and run.” If you have bad news, or at least something you hope won’t get too much attention, put it out when people are looking in another direction. The Friday before a long weekend will do nicely. So it was that the Harper government chose last Friday, hours before the Victoria Day weekend, to release Canada’s new target to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in advance of a crucial international climate summit set for December. And no wonder. The plan to...
El Niño could ‘disrupt food markets’
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on May 21st, 2015
BBC: Global food markets could be disrupted by the El Nino event predicted for later this year.
A strong El Nino is likely to increase prices of staple foods such as rice, coffee, sugar and cocoa, say scientists.
Forecasters agree that the El Nino effect, which can drive droughts and flooding, is under way in the tropical Pacific.
But they say it is too early to say how severe it will be.
Reduced rainfall could be felt in India and West Africa as early as June, say scientists.
"Most El...
What extreme weather costs US consumers
Posted by Scripps: None Given on May 21st, 2015
Scripps: The environmental damage caused by climate change isn't always immediate, but scientists say it's costing the U.S. a lot of money and problems right now.
New research reveals a sharp increase in global carbon-dioxide levels, passing 400 parts per million.
Dr. Pieter Tans is the lead scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. He says greenhouse gas emissions reached a new benchmark.
"CO2 hasn't been this high in 800,000 years. This is very well known. And very likely,...